Chapter 25

Tang Tian's expression was solemn as he punched the stone in front of him.

*Peng!*

The stone trembled and crumbled into countless tiny pieces. Each piece was the size of a chestnut, unlike the irregular small fragments formed by others' Lesser Collapse Fist. These small stones had smooth cross-sections, as if cut by a knife.

"Amazing! I never would have guessed! This kid is a genius!"

"Being able to endure such hardship, he must be a genius!"

"Old Wei has found a great treasure this time!"

...

The surrounding stone workers all exclaimed in amazement. Although the stone Tang Tian could shatter with one punch was only slightly larger than his fist, it was only because his true energy was too weak.

In terms of the Lesser Collapse Fist, Tang Tian had already reached a fairly proficient level.

"Good job!" A smile appeared on Stone's face as he said to Tang Tian, "Although the Lesser Collapse Fist only has three levels, its power is still quite impressive. And you will find that many martial techniques use the collapsing force. If you can fully understand the collapsing force, you will find it much easier to learn many higher-level martial techniques in the future. Pay attention!"

He walked up to a huge granite block as tall as two people.

He lowered his waist, stood firm, and pulled his fist to his side, his expression solemn.

He exhaled and shouted, then punched with his right fist!

*Puh!*

To Tang Tian's surprise, the seemingly powerful punch only produced a barely audible sound when it hit the hard granite.

The large stone block did not move an inch.

What is this...

Tang Tian was somewhat puzzled.

At this moment, an astonishing scene occurred. The two-meter-tall granite block suddenly crumbled like an avalanche, collapsing into countless tiny fragments, with dust flying everywhere.

A large man nearby raised his hand, and the wind from his palm swept away the dust.

A small mountain of crushed stones appeared before Tang Tian.

Tang Tian stared at the pile of crushed stones, his heart filled with shock. If this punch had hit a person, it would be terrifying!

Stone, fearing that Tang Tian would be discouraged, comforted him, "I have been practicing the collapsing force for over ten years. As long as you keep thinking about it, your achievements will definitely surpass mine in the future."

Tang Tian jumped to Stone's side, his face full of admiration, his eyes sparkling with stars, "Big Brother Stone, teach me, teach me!"

Stone, unable to help but laugh, said, "I'm not good at explaining. As long as you stay here for ten years and crush stones every day, you will definitely be better than me."

Tang Tian scratched his head, "No, I have to go find Chiharu."

But he immediately raised his arm and clenched his fist, his face serious, "Big Brother Stone, rest assured, I will definitely surpass you in the future!"

Everyone was amused by Tang Tian's appearance and burst into laughter.

Stone, however, did not laugh. He patted Tang Tian's head with his large hand, saying seriously, "Yes, I believe you!"

All the laughter suddenly stopped, and the others looked at Stone in surprise.

Stone did not explain, just smiled gently and encouraged, "Keep it up, god-like boy!"

Tang Tian raised his arms and cheered, "Wow, god-like boy, let's go!"

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Ameri held a large iron knife, a faint blade glow appearing on the blade, his muscles bulging, his eyes wide open.

He raised the knife and brought it down, a yellowish-brown blade glow flashing and disappearing.

The blade sank into the stone.

He raised the knife again and brought it down, the yellowish-brown blade glow flashing and disappearing once more.

Ameri's expression was focused, and his large iron knife had a determined air. After a few cuts, a square stone brick appeared before everyone.

"Hmm, qualified," Stone inspected the stone brick and showed a satisfied expression.

"Hurrah!" Tang Tian jumped up, raising his arms in celebration.

Ameri had a silly smile on his face. These days, he had suffered a lot. Cutting stone bricks with an iron knife seemed simple, but it was actually not at all. The quarry had very high requirements for the precision of the stone bricks, so the knife skills needed to be very high.

At first, Ameri was very unaccustomed. Where would he usually practice knife skills to such a high precision? Moreover, granite was very hard, and he had to infuse true energy to cut the stone bricks, which required a very high level of true energy precision.

Such training made him feel that his knife skills had improved significantly.

The large men in the quarry liked these two boys very much and clapped, some even whistling.

Old Wei suddenly appeared from somewhere.

"Hey, boys, looks like you did a good job."

Old Wei had a smiling face, and the others greeted him.

Stone turned to Old Wei and said, "Although they still lack some refinement, they have passed. These two boys are good and can endure hardship. Old Wei, you've found a treasure!"

Old Wei's wrinkles smoothed out, and he said proudly, "Jealous, aren't you? Come on, boys, your special training is complete."

This special training...

Tang Tian and Ameri looked at each other, wondering if there were other special trainings.

"If they could train for half a year, their improvement would be even greater," Stone said regretfully.

"Time is short," Old Wei said helplessly. "The martial arts competition is about to start, and these two boys have other special trainings. Let them go through this first, and the future refinement will be up to them. Just getting them started is enough."

Stone nodded, "That's true."

Stone turned to Tang Tian and said, "Tian, remember, the killing move of the Lesser Collapse Fist is called [Great Avalanche]."

Tang Tian nodded, saying seriously, "Big Brother Stone, I will master it!"

Stone smiled and suddenly waved his hand behind him. A large man appeared, carrying two old wooden boxes, and walked to the two boys with a smile.

The two wooden boxes were opened, and inside were a pair of black metal gloves and a black long knife.

"These are gifts for you. I hope you like them."

Stone handed the gloves and the long knife to the two boys.

As soon as Tang Tian held the gloves, his hands sank involuntarily. They were so heavy! The unremarkable black gloves weighed over thirty pounds, which surprised Tang Tian. He tried putting them on and found that although they were heavy, they fit his hands perfectly.

Each joint was very flexible, not hindering the movement of his fingers at all.

Ameri caressed the black long knife, unable to put it down. He had practiced knife skills for many years and could see at a glance that the black long knife was well-made.

Old Wei muttered, "You've hit the jackpot! These are both from the Black Iron series of weapons from the Celestial Furnace constellation!"

"Celestial Furnace?" Tang Tian asked curiously.

"A very distant constellation, known for producing high-quality weapons. Don't lose them; you can't buy them here," Old Wei said sternly.

"Are they very valuable?" Ameri asked weakly, holding the black iron long knife tightly.

"Ha!" Stone laughed heartily, "Leaving them here would be a waste. You two don't need to worry too much. They've been sleeping in the dust, probably not content."

Tang Tian and Ameri seemed to understand but felt that the last sentence had a deep and profound meaning.

Old Wei was silent.

Stone waved his hand, "Come on, don't waste time. Stop by if you have time."

Although they had only been there for over twenty days, everyone had developed a good relationship.

Under Old Wei's urging, they reluctantly left the quarry.

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"Hey, old man, what's the background of Big Brother Stone and the others? They seem very powerful."

On the way, Tang Tian couldn't help but ask Old Wei.

Old Wei glared at Tang Tian, "Why are you asking so many questions, brat?"

Tang Tian immediately glared back, "Old man, who are you calling a brat!"

Ameri raised his hand, "Old man, I can prove that Tang's butt isn't small at all."

Butt... something seems off...

Tang Tian scratched his head.

Old Wei suddenly sighed, "You need to remember, they are a group of people worth respecting. In this world, there are always many sinister and bad people, but there are always some who remember their beliefs and vows. Such people deserve respect."

Tang Tian seemed to understand but couldn't help but touch the cold gloves, finding them trustworthy.

"Hey, old man, what's our next special training?" Tang Tian asked.

"You'll find out when the time comes," Old Wei said without turning his head.

Soon, they arrived at a mine, and Ameri was left behind by Old Wei.

"Ameri, your knife skills are already excellent for your age. What you lack is not technique but deeper insights. You practice earth-based knife skills, and the true mark of mastery is understanding the Heart of the Earth. Only by understanding the Heart of the Earth can you truly begin to practice the Earth Frenzy Knife!"

The Heart of the Earth sounds very profound...

It's just digging, right...

Tang Tian thought to himself.

Of course, when Old Wei brought him to his destination, Tang Tian had no urge to complain.

A vast bamboo forest, with bamboo shadows swaying, and occasionally figures in straw hats could be seen moving through the bamboo.

"Boy, your lightness skills are terrible, and this is your biggest weakness. You've probably heard of the Green Swamp Bamboo Forest. There are many bamboo leaf bees here, and their stingers and wings are valuable."

Old Wei's eyes sparkled when he talked about money.

"This place is absolutely a treasure for your training. Not only can you practice your lightness skills, but you can also practice the Shadow Shattering Palm. Remember, you must not lose money when practicing martial arts! By the way, you don't have a second-level palm technique, so I'll give you this Drifting Palm Soul Card. It's a bronze card, so don't be picky."

Old Wei encouraged, "God-like boy, keep it up!"

With that, Old Wei's figure flashed and disappeared.

This guy was definitely a child labor trafficker in the past!

Tang Tian stared at the direction where Old Wei disappeared, taking a while to react.

However, once Tang Tian became familiar with the surroundings, he had to admit that the Green Swamp Bamboo Forest was indeed an excellent place to practice lightness skills and the Shadow Shattering Palm.

The Green Swamp Bamboo Forest was very unique, with the bamboo forest growing on a swamp. To enter the bamboo forest, one must step on the bamboo branches. Without good lightness skills, it would be impossible to move here. The bamboo leaf bees were a specialty of the Green Swamp Bamboo Forest, slightly larger than regular bees, with a green body and wings shaped like bamboo leaves.

The stingers and wings of the bamboo leaf bees had many uses, so there were specialized vendors outside the bamboo forest who bought them.

A group of people lived here, making a living by catching bees.

Tang Tian looked at the vast bamboo forest, a surge of heroism rising in his heart.

—Well, let's start practicing the [Empty Wooden Stake] honestly.

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