Chapter 7

The miscellaneous tasks that the miscellaneous disciples of the Qiyun Sect had to complete every day were very heavy, consuming a large amount of their time and squeezing their cultivation time.

At Baisong Peak where Ye Zhen was located, the miscellaneous disciples' tasks were to cut down fifty iron-branch pines as thick as a bowl and transport them to the foot of the mountain every day.

The iron-branch pines were extremely hard, and sometimes sparks would fly when a chopping knife struck them.

When Ye Zhen first arrived, it took him even seven hours to complete a day's task.

Even Ma Yuanwu, the strongest of Baisong Peak and a seed candidate, needed more than three hours to finish the task.

Usually, after the morning class, the miscellaneous disciples would rest for a while before going up the mountain to cut trees. However, today, after breakfast, they all hurried up the mountain.

Everyone hoped to break through under this pressure and strive to become an outer sect disciple as soon as possible.

Compared to the position of an outer sect disciple, the status of a miscellaneous disciple was like one in heaven and one on earth.

Ye Zhen was no exception. After breakfast, he carried his chopping knife and went up the mountain early.

On the way, Ye Zhen pondered the issues of the Yulong Path and the seed candidates.

The Yulong Path was a shortcut for early advancement to an outer sect disciple in the Qiyun Sect. Once becoming an outer sect disciple, one would have several times more cultivation resources than a miscellaneous disciple and could even choose their own martial techniques and cultivation methods.

However, to compete for the Yulong Path, one first had to become a seed candidate of a peak. In other words, Ye Zhen had to defeat Ma Yuanwu, the seed candidate of Baisong Peak, to participate in the Yulong Path.

Ye Zhen dreamed of beating Ma Yuanwu to a bloody pulp. On that day, Ma Yuanwu had destroyed everything Ye Zhen's mother had given him. Whenever Ye Zhen thought of that scene, he wished to kill Ma Yuanwu.

But everything depended on strength.

It was said that Ma Yuanwu's strength had recently reached the peak of the third level of Blood Cultivation, and he was just one step away from breaking through to the fourth level and becoming an outer sect disciple.

However, this final step was not easy to break through, and it could take one or two months, or even half a year.

Ye Zhen now had the cultivation of the late second level of Blood Cultivation, but due to the extremely condensed blood qi, he possessed a strength of four thousand pounds, which could rival a martial artist at the late third level of Blood Cultivation.

However, there was still a gap between him and Ma Yuanwu, who was at the peak of the third level of Blood Cultivation.

"Breakthrough! I must cultivate hard to break through within these three days!"

Only by breaking through would he have a chance to defeat Ma Yuanwu and avenge his past humiliation. Ye Zhen made up his mind.

*Chacha cha!*

With all his strength, Ye Zhen swung his chopping knife several times, and a bowl-thick iron-branch pine slowly fell to the ground.

He casually chopped off the excess branches and then swung his chopping knife at another iron-branch pine.

For the entire morning, Ye Zhen was drenched in sweat, not daring to slack off for a moment, hoping to complete his task early and have more time to cultivate.

Just as Ye Zhen had completed more than half of his task, the sound of crushed pine needles suddenly came from behind him.

"Ho, Junior Brother Ye, more than thirty already, not bad, it seems your cultivation has improved." A hateful voice sounded behind Ye Zhen.

"U Jian?" When Ye Zhen turned around and saw the person clearly, a trace of hatred flashed in his eyes.

This U Jian, whose cultivation ranked among the top at Baisong Peak, often bullied them by relying on Ma Yuanwu's power. Making Ye Zhen and others wash clothes, dirty socks, and carry foot-washing water was a common occurrence.

"What are you doing here?" Ye Zhen wiped the sweat off his face and coldly stared at U Jian.

"Nothing much, just that I spent too much time sparring with Senior Brother Ma this morning, and I'm afraid I won't be able to complete today's task. So I came to borrow a few iron-branch pines from Junior Brother Ye."

As U Jian spoke, he walked towards the neatly stacked iron-branch pines that Ye Zhen had cut down, grinning.

"Ha, Junior Brother Ye, I don't need much, just these thirty iron-branch pines will do." As he spoke, U Jian bent down to pick up the iron-branch pines, completely ignoring Ye Zhen's opinion.

*Whoosh!*

Ye Zhen's chopping knife flew from a distance, narrowly missing U Jian's nose, causing him to jump up in shock.

"U Jian, if you want to borrow iron-branch pines, shouldn't you ask if I agree?" Ye Zhen walked towards U Jian, his face full of anger. "Besides, if you want to borrow, you should return the 207 iron-branch pines you borrowed from me before, right?"

U Jian, relying on his strength, often bullied Ye Zhen. If he was lazy and didn't want to do the task, he would directly come and take Ye Zhen's results.

Hearing Ye Zhen's words, U Jian's face suddenly showed a ridiculous expression. "Ye Zhen, did I hear you wrong? When did I need your permission to use your iron-branch pines, you piece of trash?"

"It seems you've forgotten your past pain and are itching for more!"

As he spoke, U Jian clenched his fists and charged at Ye Zhen in large strides.

Ten steps.

Five steps.

At the moment of approach, U Jian suddenly roared and launched a move called "Bear King Emerges from the Cave," which came with a whistling wind, aiming at Ye Zhen.

"Ye Zhen, today I'll teach you a lesson, you piece of trash!"

Mentioning the past was a bad idea. Thinking of the bullying he had endured, Ye Zhen's eyes immediately turned red.

With a roar, the sound of bones cracking, Ye Zhen swung his fist.

Bear King Emerges from the Cave!

Hard against hard, tooth for tooth!

Seeing Ye Zhen use the same move, U Jian sneered. "Looking for death!" His iron fist suddenly accelerated.

*Bang!*

The two iron fists collided, and U Jian's sneer immediately froze, twisting into a look of horror and pain.

*Crack!*

U Jian's forearm twisted at an unnatural angle and broke!

"Ah, my hand!"

U Jian was utterly terrified!

As U Jian screamed, Ye Zhen did not stop. He rushed forward and launched another punch at U Jian.

*Bang bang bang!*

With his arm broken, U Jian, in a panic, was like a human punching bag, continuously hit by Ye Zhen.

Lazy Bear Stretches!

Bear King Emerges from the Cave!

Old Bear Tears Rabbit!

The three moves and nine techniques of the Bear King Mountain-Bearing Fist were continuously applied to U Jian's body. The humiliation and anger he had endured from U Jian over the past year were all released at this moment.

The sound of bones breaking echoed from time to time, and U Jian, who could only passively avoid vital points, was terrified and had no ability to fight back.

"Bear King Mountain-Bearing!" Ye Zhen roared, and the final move of the Bear King Mountain-Bearing Fist, accompanied by a whistling wind, aimed at U Jian's chest.

Seeing this move, U Jian was terrified. If this punch hit his chest, he would surely die!

"Spare my life!" U Jian screamed in despair.

This scream woke Ye Zhen, who was enjoying the fight. Seeing U Jian's terrified expression, Ye Zhen suddenly understood something.

The wind of the punch changed, and the powerful iron fist suddenly turned, smashing into U Jian's thigh.

Killing chickens, wolves, and many wild animals was something Ye Zhen had done before, but killing a person was something he had never done. Moreover, Ye Zhen only wanted to take revenge and did not intend to kill U Jian.

Besides, in the Qiyun Sect, injuries during sparring among miscellaneous disciples were allowed, but killing someone was a serious matter.

*Crack!*

U Jian's thigh bone was directly broken by Ye Zhen's punch, and white bone fragments protruded from his thigh.

Suffering such a severe injury, U Jian didn't even have time to be shocked. He screamed in pain, his eyes rolled back, and he fainted.

He never imagined that Ye Zhen, whom he used to bully, had become so powerful.

"Feeling good!"

Looking at the unconscious U Jian, Ye Zhen felt extremely satisfied. The humiliation he had endured from U Jian over the past year was all released at this moment.

Not only that, but Ye Zhen also felt that his Bear King Mountain-Bearing Fist had improved through this practical combat. Several changes that he had not fully understood before became clear.