Overlord of the Wilderness

A mocking smile touched Zhaang Ye’s lips as he watched Zhaang Jin, who was so terrified he had wet himself. By now, the residents of Three Rivers Town had noticed the conflict between Zhaang Ye and Zhaang Jin. Dozens of people gathered to watch, pointing at the wet stain on Zhaang Jin’s crotch. No matter how thick-skinned Zhaang Jin was, he was so mortified that his face turned beet red. He wished a crack would open up in the ground so he could crawl into it.

”Zhaang Ye, you’re ruthless! Here, take this! After this, I don’t owe you anything!” Zhaang Jin snapped back to his senses. Seeing Zhaang Ye look like he was about to make another move, he panicked. He hastily pulled a few items from his robes and tossed them to Zhaang Ye before immediately helping his cousin up. Covering his face, he fled in disgrace.

’That kid thinks on his feet,’ Zhaang Ye thought, catching the items and sheathing his Thick-Backed Saber.

After grabbing something to eat, Zhaang Ye returned to his small courtyard. He unwrapped the items Zhaang Jin had thrown to him and found several thousand taels worth of Golden Tickets and a palm-sized booklet bound in Beast Hide.

Zhaang Ye opened the Beast Hide booklet. After reading for a moment, he was pleasantly surprised. It turned out that Zhaang Jin’s maternal grandfather had been a Martial Arts Sixth Layer expert. Before his death, he had recorded every last detail of his journey in Martial Dao Cultivation within this very booklet.

The Beast Hide booklet was, in fact, a journal of cultivation notes.

”What a treasure!” Zhaang Ye exclaimed after flipping through it for a bit. This booklet might not be of much use to an ordinary Martial Artist, but to someone like Zhaang Ye, who had never had a proper master to guide him, it was incredibly valuable. With this, he would no longer have to struggle to figure out his cultivation problems all by himself!

In the Zhaang Family’s library, it was easy to find a Martial Arts Secret Manual, but personal journals written by a Martial Artist were incredibly hard to come by. Zhaang Ye’s delight at obtaining this journal unexpectedly was even greater than if he had acquired a Mid-Level Combat Skill.

’Good stuff, really good stuff.’ Although the author of the journal didn’t have an exceptionally high cultivation, he had recorded everything in meticulous detail. As Zhaang Ye read, he instantly found answers to questions that had been weighing on his mind for a long time. The feeling of clarity was so exhilarating it made his entire body feel rejuvenated.

Growing more excited as he read, Zhaang Ye eventually closed his courtyard gate and began to practice with his Thick-Backed Saber. In an instant, the courtyard filled with the whistling of his blade, stirring up the fallen leaves on the ground.

After practicing for a while, Zhaang Ye executed the entire Basic Saber Technique in one fluid sequence. He could feel subtleties he had never noticed before imprinting themselves on his mind. He vaguely felt he had reached a new level of understanding with this technique.

”To have trained the Basic Saber Technique to such a level... you’ve done well, Zhaang Ye. However, the Basic Saber Technique is, after all, just that—basic. No matter how well you master it, you will never become a true powerhouse.” A voice suddenly echoed in the courtyard. With it came a large hand that seemed to materialize from the void, pressing down toward Zhaang Ye’s head. Its motion seemed slow but was deceptively fast.

The large hand used no special Transformation, just a simple press. Yet this simple press seemed to solidify the very air. Zhaang Ye suddenly felt as if he were frozen in a block of ice. A chill ran through him, and he found it difficult to even move.

’An expert!’

Zhaang Ye was immensely startled. His body trembled, and he instinctively executed the Iron Bridge Stopping River Formation. He shuddered twice like a leopard, shrugging off a portion of the terrifying pressure. Immediately after, the Thick-Backed Saber in his hand transformed into a bolt of white silk several yards long as it slashed toward the massive hand.

THUMP!

The massive hand shifted slightly, and a single, fair-skinned finger tapped lightly on the blade. The force of the blow sent a numbing shock through Zhaang Ye’s body, and the sweet taste of blood filled his mouth. He nearly lost his grip on the Thick-Backed Saber.

’Who is this? They’re so powerful!’ Suppressing his shock, Zhaang Ye’s Thick-Backed Saber became a blur, executing his Gentle Wind Slash. He unleashed over a dozen strikes in an instant, each carrying a sharp Sword Qi.

CLASH! CLASH! CLASH! CLASH!

By continuously executing the Gentle Wind Slash, Zhaang Ye finally managed to fend off the massive hand. He felt his qi and blood roiling within him, and he stumbled back more than ten steps before managing to steady himself.

The owner of the hand finally revealed his figure. Zhaang Ye narrowed his eyes and saw a tall man dressed in brocade robes. The man exuded an oppressive aura just by standing there. It was none other than Zhaang Ye’s father and the Patriarch of the Zhaang Family of Three Rivers Town, Zhaang Chengtian.

Seeing that it was Zhaang Chengtian, Zhaang Ye finally breathed a sigh of relief. As the saying goes, even a vicious tiger won’t eat its own cubs. Although he and Zhaang Chengtian had barely exchanged ten sentences in their entire lives, Zhaang Ye was, after all, his son. He surely wouldn’t try to kill him.

”Your strength is quite impressive,” Zhaang Chengtian said slowly, his hands clasped behind his back as he regarded Zhaang Ye. ”In our exchange just now, although I suppressed the vast majority of my power, you still managed to withstand twenty of my moves without being defeated. That is quite an achievement. Of all my sons, you are the strongest. You also have the most potential.”

Praise from the Patriarch was a tremendous validation. Despite his normally calm disposition, Zhaang Ye couldn’t help but smile with pride. But he quickly let the smile fade, knowing Zhaang Chengtian wasn’t finished speaking.

Just as he expected, Zhaang Chengtian continued, ”I’m aware of your circumstances. Your innate aptitude is poor, and you’ve always fumbled through your Cultivation on your own. If you continue like this, no matter how great your Comprehension is, you will end up taking many wrong turns. So now, before you depart for the Cyan Mulberry Main Family, I will use the next few days to train with you. How much you learn will be up to you.”

”Train with me?” Zhaang Ye was completely baffled.

His confusion was soon dispelled. Zhaang Chengtian thrust a palm toward him and chuckled. ”For the next few days, I will suppress my strength to the Early Stage of Martial Arts Third Layer and attack you relentlessly. Be careful. I will not hold back.”

Even as he spoke, his palm was about to land on Zhaang Ye’s chest.

’Damn, he’s not kidding!’ Zhaang Ye thought in alarm. He instinctively executed the Startled Swan Step, his body abruptly flashing to the side.

Although Zhaang Chengtian had suppressed his strength to the Early Stage of Martial Arts Third Layer, he was a battle-hardened expert of the Martial Arts Fifth Layer Late Stage. Even with his Cultivation suppressed, his combat prowess was still absurdly potent. Seeing Zhaang Ye dodge, Zhaang Chengtian smiled faintly, executing the Shadow-Following Form to stick right with him. His palm remained locked on to Zhaang Ye, the distance between them shrinking ever closer.

”Hmph!” Seeing that escape was impossible, Zhaang Ye grunted. The Purple Copper Thick-Backed Saber in his hand moved as if an extension of his will, instantly executing the Gentle Wind Slash and chopping toward Zhaang Chengtian’s palm.

Zhaang Ye aimed the chop at Zhaang Chengtian’s wrist, the angle and timing exceptionally clever. Even with his immense power, Zhaang Chengtian had no choice but to meet it directly. He extended a single finger and gave the blade a light flick.

CLANG! Zhaang Ye executed the Startled Swan Step, dodging back three consecutive times. He used the backward momentum to neutralize the force from Zhaang Chengtian’s finger, then lunged forward again. Unleashing the Gentle Wind Slash with all his might, he instantly enveloped Zhaang Chengtian in his Sword Force.

”I never imagined you could cultivate the Mid-Level Combat Skill, Gentle Wind Slash, to this extent!” Although Zhaang Chengtian already thought highly of Zhaang Ye, he never expected his son could unleash over a dozen strokes of the Gentle Wind Slash in one go. With his power suppressed to the Third Layer of the Martial Dao, he no longer dared to confront such a blindingly fast Saber Technique directly. He could only rely on a profound Footwork Technique to evade within the small space, putting him completely on the defensive.

’Is this... Zhaang Ye’s true power?’ Zhaang Chengtian was secretly astonished. At the same time, a wave of elation washed over him. He had a faint feeling that he had finally found a worthy successor...