Chapter Forty-Seven: A Startling Revelation

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It was not until the eastern sky began to pale with the first glimmers of dawn that Hu San finally managed to recover from the state of bodily rupture. At this moment, his entire body was smeared with scarlet blood, which had erupted from his pores as waste blood.

His eyebrows trembled, his eyes snapped open, and a dazzling beam of light shot forth, for an instant rivaling the newborn sun in brilliance.

His body shuddered and the sound of bones cracking echoed ceaselessly. When he stood again, a keen eye would notice that, in just one night, he had grown an inch taller than the day before.

“What terrifying power, what terrifying blood,” he murmured.

He clenched his fist gently, and with a sharp crackling sound, Hu San clearly felt the strength in this body. At this moment, he almost had the illusion that he could shatter heaven and earth with a single punch.

“This must be the strength of seven men. Such formidable power! Relying on this body alone, I could now battle a martial artist of the third level of inner energy.”

Exhaling softly, Hu San finally remembered to check the state of his inner energy, only to discover it had already reached a stage where it surged like a flood in all directions.

Its vigor was now as thick as a thumb, and by any measure, he had thoroughly advanced to the third stage of inner energy. Perhaps not yet at the peak, but he had truly made the leap.

“If the blood alone is so effective, what heights could I reach by consuming the meat?” he wondered, licking his lips. He didn’t bother to clean the blood clinging to his body, but bounded over to the creature, swiftly skinned it, and piled up a fire to roast the meat.

After finishing his meal, Hu San was disappointed to find that, while the warmth it produced was much greater than ordinary beasts, it paled in comparison to yesterday’s blood.

He used all of it to temper his inner energy, resulting in only a twenty percent increase in strength—far from reaching the peak of the third stage, let alone breaking through it.

After pondering for a while, Hu San guessed that the creature’s essence must have concentrated in its blood, while its flesh contained little.

What he didn’t know was that the beast was on the verge of forming a core, and all its essence was gathering in its blood. Though much had been lost for various reasons, what remained was still considerable, which allowed him to push his physical strength to the level of seven men, and his inner energy to the third stage.

As for the creature’s death, it wasn’t the doing of the Great Bend caravan—they simply didn’t have that strength. It had merely been acquired by chance, and the leader, seeing it as a treasure, had split the caravan into several groups to transport it safely, only for it to ultimately fall into Hu San’s hands.

The specifics of the creature’s demise were another tale altogether.

“If another monster were to appear, wouldn’t my cultivation quickly reach the next great realm? It seems I must seek out more such beings; this is the true path to advancement.”

Lost in thought, Hu San found a place to hide the creature’s hide. With his current strength, he could not protect it—revealing it would only bring disaster, and he was not foolish.

Yet, as he looked at the remaining bones, Hu San hesitated. Simply discarding them felt wasteful.

Thinking further, his eyes brightened. He wrapped the bones in his clothes, slung them over his back, and quietly returned to Wolfsheart Stronghold.

He found a moment when no one was around and buried the bones behind the residence of the second chief, weighing them down with a large stone before leaving.

With his current cultivation, Hu San was confident he could deal with the second chief even if the latter reached the fourth stage of inner energy. Things he’d never dared to do before were now within his grasp.

Burying the monster’s bones was merely a precaution. The nation of Great Bend was too powerful, and for a considerable time, Hu San would not dare provoke them.

The disappearance of the caravan would eventually be investigated, and to avoid implicating too many, a final point would be needed. The bones behind the second chief’s residence would be Hu San’s chosen endpoint.

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Of course, by then, perhaps the second chief would be dead, or Hu San himself eliminated, but at least there would be an explanation, wouldn’t there?

He remained in the stronghold for several days to ensure no one tampered with the gold and silver, then resumed his former routine: hunting beasts in the mountains, training himself, and securing ample meat, all the while steadily increasing his combat strength.

As time went by and the sun climbed higher, the chill of early summer faded, replaced by the heat of high summer. On this day, Hu San sat atop a giant tree, holding his breath and quietly awaiting the arrival of the Vermilion Bird.

Through repeated hunting, he’d discovered that the Vermilion Bird’s meat provided more warmth than ordinary beasts, so he often hunted them.

However, the Vermilion Bird was extremely vigilant; at the slightest disturbance, it would soar skyward, flying dozens of miles before landing again. Thus, Hu San dared not move when hunting it.

As the bird’s cawing drew nearer, just as it was about to descend upon him, a shadow suddenly flashed by. Though swift, it could not escape the bird’s sharp eyes.

With a startled cry, the Vermilion Bird shot into the sky, speeding away under Hu San’s frustrated gaze.

“Damn it, another wasted half day,” he muttered, shifting his attention to the shadow.

The bird’s alarm had obviously startled the shadow, yet it quickly recovered and sped past the tree, heading into the distance.

Sunlight filtered through dense leaves, and Hu San clearly saw the figure’s face, causing his heart to stir.

“Who is this? Commander Chizhen? What’s he doing here?”

Chizhen was well known—a martial artist from Black Bear Stronghold who’d surrendered. His cultivation had reached the third stage of inner energy, second only to Ironwing.

Among the commanders of Wolfsheart Stronghold, Chizhen’s strength was among the very best. Though Hu San had little acquaintance with him, he’d seen him a few times—a stern man who, to avoid suspicion, seldom mingled with the other bandits, let alone venture here.

The more Hu San pondered, the greater his curiosity, so he quietly followed.

With his current strength—the power of seven men and the third stage of inner energy—not only could he evade Chizhen’s notice, but even martial artists of the fourth or fifth stage would not detect him. Moreover, he was intimately familiar with this forest; every blade of grass and leaf was etched in his mind, making concealment effortless.

The two sped forward, quickly leaving the main stronghold and arriving at the periphery of a small mountain. Chizhen plunged into the dense woods without hesitation.

“This place is perilous, with meager resources and swarming with poisonous insects. Few come here. Why would Chizhen venture in?”

Hu San halted at the foot of the mountain, surveying his surroundings, puzzled, before picking a path and slipping inside.

He’d been here before, though not as familiar as with other places, but finding a way up posed no problem.

Soon he caught sight of Chizhen again, who seemed quite acquainted with the area, moving confidently without hesitation—clearly not his first visit.

After a short pursuit, the two rounded the mountain’s flank, passed through a thicket, and reached the rear summit. Here, the first thing Hu San saw was a small thatched hut.

The hut faced south, backed against a cliff, with open ground before it and no place to hide.

Yet Hu San need not worry, for on the southern cliff sat a mysterious figure clad in black robes.

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Chizhen headed straight for the mysterious man; evidently, he was the one Chizhen sought.

With Hu San’s keen vision, he could vaguely make out the man’s features. Coupled with the faint voices carried on the wind, the image of a person leapt into his mind.

Black Bear!

The man was none other than Black Bear, though why he was here—and in contact with Chizhen—was unknown.

Hu San wanted to eavesdrop, but could not approach. He was fretting when suddenly a crackling noise sounded nearby.

The two conversing men instantly turned, and Hu San saw a flash of dark light—Black Bear and Chizhen rushed toward the sound.

Considering his own strength relative to Black Bear, Hu San did not immediately flee. Though he still could not defeat Black Bear, the latter would find it impossible to capture him; Hu San was confident of that.

As it turned out, his caution was unfounded. The two stopped nearby, parted the thicket, and found a large mountain goat kicking desperately, a black arrow lodged in its side, the shaft still quivering—clearly just fired by Black Bear.

“What precise technique! I didn’t expect him to have such skill,” Hu San thought, remaining motionless.

“Ah, so it’s just a yellow goat,” Chizhen said, relaxing his brows.

“You can’t keep coming here like this; it’s too dangerous,” Black Bear replied sternly. “If there’s no news of Ironwing the traitor, don’t bother seeking me. As for Hu San, I’ll search for him myself in these woods. Our third brother’s death cannot go unavenged.”

“Big brother, be careful! The second chief is scouring the world for you to avenge his son, and Hu San is no pushover,” Chizhen warned.

“Haha, even if he doesn’t seek me out, I will seek him. The destruction of Black Bear Stronghold must be avenged! As for Hu San, he is even more detestable—daring to impersonate me. He must not be forgiven,” Black Bear laughed.

“Big brother, you didn’t kill the second young master? Nor were you behind the events at Wolf Fang Mountain?” Chizhen pressed, suddenly interested.

“Of course not! I’d have liked to, but someone beat me to it. As for Wolf Fang Mountain, I wasn’t involved at first. If my guess is right, all this was the work of that youngster Hu San. Such bold deeds! If he matures, no one may be able to restrain him.”

“Normally, Wolfsheart Stronghold is too small, and Hu San will eventually break with it. But I won’t let him grow—our third brother’s death is directly tied to him, and he bears great responsibility for the fall of Black Bear Stronghold.”

Black Bear spoke bluntly, and Hu San listened in a cold sweat. Unwittingly, they had tracked him here. He knew he would need to carefully consider his next steps.