After Beigong Yu slaughtered nearly five hundred more completely crazed beasts, a surging torrent of vital energy erupted from within him.
A fierce wave of air sent several charging beasts flying more than ten meters away.
Streaks of golden light radiated from Beigong Yu's body.
Had he been able to look inside himself at this moment, he would have discovered that not only was his entire body emitting a golden glow, but even his bones had transformed from jade-white to silver, and finally into the present gold, appearing as though forged from divine metal and radiating a formidable aura.
The 4th Stage Bone Refining Realm had been reached.
Sensing the immense power once again surging wildly through his body, Beigong Yu could not help letting out a long roar to the heavens. The blood-red battle sword in his hand burst forth with a towering surge of Sword Qi, slashing a gully over ten meters long, three meters wide, and more than two meters deep directly into the ground before him.
Wherever the sword passed, whether 8th-rank or 9th-rank beasts, all were cleaved in a single stroke.
Corpses piled high across the ground, and blood stained the earth crimson.
Battle Slave No. 1 was terrified by the scene before him.
He had never expected that the silver-haired youth before him had grown to such a terrifying degree of strength.
With a single stroke of the sword, dozens of 8th and 9th-rank beasts had been slaughtered without the slightest resistance.
Moreover, what was the deal with that golden light that had just emerged from his body?
Beyond that, the sheer terror of the vital energy erupting from him exceeded his wildest imagination.
The terrifying intensity of that vital energy was probably something even beings at the Spirit Vein Realm could not boast so exaggeratedly.
There must be a secret hidden within this kid!
If he could obtain this secret, wouldn't he be able to become a disciple of the Great Desolation Immortal Sect before long?
Even an outer sect disciple would do.
That would be countless times better than being a wandering rogue cultivator like a lonely ghost with no sense of belonging.
It seemed he needed to plan this carefully.
"What are you daydreaming about? Why aren't you hurrying over here to clean up the battlefield?"
At that moment, Beigong Yu's eyes turned cold as he spotted Battle Slave No. 1 hiding in the dark. The corners of his mouth ticked upward slightly before he shouted coldly.
Battle Slave No. 1's expression stiffened. He quickly smoothed away the look on his face, assumed a humble and respectful demeanor, and hurried over to Beigong Yu. Pulling out a dagger, he began expertly harvesting the valuable parts from the various beasts.
*Damn maggot, just wait. Sooner or later, I'll beat you to death and steal the secret you're hiding.*
Beigong Yu glanced at him briefly, then plunged back into the slaughter.
Watching Beigong Yu act like a ferocious beast—fiercely killing one beast with a single stroke, or even multiple beasts at a time—he couldn't help but doubt himself again: Could he... really kill this guy?
He couldn't kill him.
Yet he was unwilling to share the secret the other possessed.
After all, if he wanted to find someone else to help kill this kid, he would have to find a Spirit Vein Realm cultivator who was stronger than himself and even stronger than this kid.
But if he did that, what would he gain?
In the end, it was entirely possible that he would even be double-crossed and killed by that person.
At this thought, Battle Slave No. 1 shuddered.
The urge to kill Beigong Yu diminished somewhat.
Should he... defect to the other side?
No, no, no!
The kid was merely a lowly Battle Slave; how could he possibly be qualified for him to pledge allegiance?
Just as Battle Slave No. 1's mind was racing with wild thoughts, an earth-shattering wolf howl filled with terrifying ferocity echoed from deep within the forest.
Battle Slave No. 1's body stiffened as he snapped his gaze toward the depths of the forest.
There, a majestic and domineering Azure Wind Demon Wolf—its entire body azure, treading upon a cluster of gentle wind beneath its paws—was walking step by step toward Beigong Yu like a true king.
"O... One-star, Tier-1 Demon Beast, Azure Wind Demon Wolf?"
*Dammit, this little maggot actually drew out a Tier-1 Demon Wolf.*
*We're totally screwed this time.*
Battle Slave No. 1's face was plastered with panic and despair.
The Tier-1 Demon Beast Azure Wind Demon Wolf excelled in speed. Ordinary 4th or 5th-stage Spirit Vein Realm cultivators who crossed paths with it would meet a bitter end, let alone himself, who was only at the 8th Stage Soul Refining Realm.
Beigong Yu watched the Azure Wind Demon Wolf as it walked forward like a king with all four paws treading upon a wisp of clear wind, a trace of fighting spirit flashing through his eyes.
As expected, it still managed to draw out a Demon Beast, did it?
Could he beat it to death?
He should be able to.
After all, even for a Spirit Vein Realm cultivator, their maximum physical strength topped out at around ten to twenty thousand catties at most.
Yet right now, he possessed a brute strength of forty thousand catties.
At the same time, he had comprehended the [Furious Wind Single Slash] to the realm of perfection.
With the blessing of this perfected [Furious Wind Single Slash], his strength reached roughly fifty thousand catties.
Of course, once one's cultivation reached the Spirit Vein Realm, one could already preliminarily execute some low-level spells, so it was impossible to use this kind of calculation to precisely measure combat power.
One could only calculate a rough estimate.
Still, the Azure Wind Demon Wolf before him shouldn't have reached the point of mastering low-level spells yet, right?
Even taking a step back, and assuming it had mastered them, he still wouldn't be afraid.
The [Primal Body Refining Art] gave him supreme confidence.
"Awooo!"
A wolf's howl rang out, and the surrounding beasts, whose courage had already been shattered, hurriedly scrambled back by a wide berth.
Beigong Yu tightened his grip on the blood-red saber and braced himself for battle.
If he killed this Azure Wind Demon Wolf, could his cultivation break through to the 5th Stage Marrow Refining Realm?
He was filled with anticipation.
As for fear? There was no such thing.
Awooo!
The next moment, the Azure Wind Demon Wolf suddenly raised its head and let out a long howl. Then, a white wind blade carrying a piercing, shrill whistle slashed toward Beigong Yu.
Seeing this, Beigong Yu realized that the Azure Wind Demon Wolf before him had mastered a low-level spell like the Wind Blade Technique, and he instantly stopped holding back.
With a low shout, he channeled the [Furious Wind Single Slash] through the blood-red battle sword in his hand and charged at the Azure Wind Demon Wolf.
In an instant, a terrifying streak of Sword Qi shot out from the long sword like a blood-red lightning bolt, slashing directly toward the wind blade.
At the same time, Beigong Yu's body moved like a hunting leopard, flashing rapidly behind the Azure Wind Demon Wolf. Raising the blood-red battle sword in his hand, he executed the [Furious Wind Single Slash] once more.
Although this was a saber technique, wielding it with a blood-red battle sword felt somewhat awkward.
It didn't matter, though.
The impact was negligible.
Sensing danger, the Azure Wind Demon Wolf had the clear wind beneath its paws surge frantically as its figure darted away at extreme speed, attempting to dodge the fatal sword strike.
However, Beigong Yu's combat experience was far too rich.
Just as the Azure Wind Demon Wolf moved to dodge, the blood-red battle sword in his hand had already shot out over a dozen powerful streams of Sword Qi, sealing off all surrounding escape routes and forcing the Azure Wind Demon Wolf to take the blow head-on.
The result was that deep, bone-deep sword wounds appeared across the massive body of the Tier-1 Azure Wind Demon Wolf.
Yet this only served to completely enrage the creature.
The Azure Wind Demon Wolf roared up to the heavens as a basketball-sized sphere of wind-attribute demonic energy rapidly gathered in its maw, transforming into dozens of palm-sized wind blades that slashed toward Beigong Yu.
Seeing this, Beigong Yu's expression turned fierce. He danced the blood-red saber in his hand into a impenetrable barrier, hacking apart the terrifying wind blades one after another.
At the same time, he moved like an extremely agile leopard, executing mysterious footwork honed through actual combat to close in on the Azure Wind Demon Wolf with ghost-like grace.
The Azure Wind Demon Wolf naturally saw through Beigong Yu's intent. Instead of dodging, it charged forward ferociously, raising a massive paw wreathed in sharp, violent force to swat down at Beigong Yu's small frame.
Beigong Yu's expression tightened. With a loud shout of "Well timed!", he swung his sword to hack at it.
Yet right at that moment, a sharp *crack* rang out, and the blood-red battle sword in his hand shattered into pieces...