Starry Sky Professional

In the blink of an eye, the end of August arrived.

Beyond Qinglin Marketplace, at the edge of the Great Wilderness.

After the end of the beast tide, the density of monsters in the wild decreased significantly, emboldening many martial artists to venture out in groups to hunt beasts and collect spiritual herbs.

*Snort! Snort!*

Accompanied by a terrifying snorting noise, a three-meter-long wild boar with blood-red skin and imposing tusks charged out of the dense forest.

It was like a heavy tank, flattening trees and tearing up the ground in its path.

Facing it was a young martial artist, carrying both a sword and a blade on his back.

“One blade in hand, no ghosts or gods allowed... Kill!”

Fang Xing, divine and demonic, unleashed a dazzling blade light from his hand-forged steel blade. He moved with the blade, transforming into a straight line, colliding ferociously with the Grade 1 low-rank demon beast.

*Whoosh!*

Just as he was about to collide with the demonic boar, he twisted his waist, maneuvering agilely in a manner seemingly defying the laws of physics, like a paper-thin figure.

*Slash!*

He sidestepped the boar’s charge, flashing his steel blade to savagely cleave down on the beast’s neck!

The boar had a thick layer of greasy, earthen defense blended with its innate gifts, making it tougher than iron armor.

Yet under the blade light, it was sliced open like tofu.

The blade cut through the thick exterior, followed by flesh and bone...

“Nothing remains unslain!”

With this slash, Fang Xing gained an even deeper understanding of the Ghost God Blade’s characteristic: an unstoppable, all-cutting force!

*Thud!*

Finally, the giant boar head soared upward, blood gushing like a spring.

Even after being beheaded, the boar’s decapitated body charged forward several dozen meters, knocking over a massive tree before finally coming to a stop.

【Ghost God Blade: 7/100】

“Great, the proficiency of my Ghost God Blade increased again. Indeed, martial arts demand real combat...”

Fang Xing felt a spark of exhilaration.

Ever since mastering both the Ghost God Blade and the Passionate Sword, he would occasionally come to the wilds to test his skills.

Many martial arts require real combat to advance rapidly!

Moreover, here in the cultivation world, there's the advantage that human life holds little value.

Even if several dozen were to die, it's hardly a matter—battles occur almost daily.

If this were on Hatchling Star, forget about wanton killing; even a single death would bring detectives knocking at your neighbors' doors.

Unless it were the black market!

But on the black market, everyone wears protective suits, making them difficult to kill and increasing the chance of a mishap!

In the wilderness of the cultivation realm, the probability of such mishaps is surprisingly lower.

“In the way of martial arts, being one step ahead leads to countless steps ahead!”

“Especially when it comes to the college entrance exams!”

He had begun learning A-level martial arts as a first-year student, naturally advancing much faster than those who encountered A-level martial arts only in their second or third year.

This fact alone could allow him to surpass many peers and secure admission to a better university in the future!

“School starts tomorrow…”

With a tinge of melancholy, Fang Xing proceeded to harvest materials from the Boar Demon's body.

Recently, the price of beast meat seemed to be on the rise, so even boar meat could not be wasted and could be given to Hua Feiyue to sell gradually.

His current outing was still under the guise of networking herbal channels, so he needed to go to a temporary camp to pick up a batch of herbs.

'I'll leave things here mainly to Hua Feiyue for the time being…'

'This woman seems trustworthy for now… The Black Tiger Gang and Chen Yi have inexplicably gone quiet lately, causing no trouble…'

While Fang Xing was cutting a boar leg, he suddenly stood up and looked at the dense forest: “Who’s there?”

“Young fellow, you have good hearing!”

A figure leapt out from the shadows—it was a young man dressed in black.

Tall and slender, with a heroic face, he stood atop a tree branch, his form rising and falling with the branches, showcasing an extraordinarily adept lightness skill.

Eyes glinting with interest as he gazed at the fallen boar, he said, “According to the market rules, we split when we meet, young man, you…”

As an innate martial artist with an exceptional lightness skill, he couldn't help but regard Fang Xing slightly condescendingly.

“Besides, this Rank 1 Lower-grade Beast is worth quite a few spirit stones!”

Although it might not mean much to some cultivators, to every warrior, even a single spirit sand can't be overlooked!

“Courting death!”

Fang Xing's face darkened as he threw his steel knife.

Swish!

The steel knife pierced the tree behind the young man, embedding itself up to the hilt.

“A mere postnatal martial artist, whether through traps or poison, lucked out in killing a low-grade beast, yet dares…”

The young man's figure, ghostly and swift, split into three afterimages and silently arrived beside Fang Xing, a cruel gleam flashing in his eyes.

Clang!

In the next instant, Fang Xing drew his long sword!

This long sword wasn't a blood-refined artifact, but a randomly bought Qingfeng Sword from a street stall.

In the mundane world, its material might be considered decent, barely qualifying as a sharp weapon; yet to cultivators, it was no more than scrap metal.

Swoosh!

The sword light flashed.

The young man suddenly froze, his mind dazed as he seemed to see the willow tree of his hometown, the moonlit lotus pond, and under the willow... her!

“Sorry… Ling'er, in the end, I still…”

A tear slipped from the young man's eye.

Thud!

He clutched his throat, unable to speak.

The young man's body fell to the ground instantly.

“Overcoming a congenital with postnatal skills, it's nothing special; I didn’t even use protective gear!”

“The Sentiment Sword seems mightier than the Ghost Knife, but mastering it is indeed difficult…”

Fang Xing sheathed his sword, glancing at the status bar:

【Emotional Swordsmanship: 5/100】

Since obtaining the guidance of the 'Disarray Talisman', he trained day and night, finally beginning to grasp this A-level martial technique.

Even at the introductory level, the power of this swordsmanship is astonishing.

Under simulated conditions, it can cause even innate experts to experience a momentary lapse in focus.

In a contest between experts, even a split-second distraction is enough for Fang Xing to strike down his opponent ten times over!

‘I just wonder how effective it would be against cultivators?

In the Qi Refinement stage, cultivators possess 'spiritual awareness', so their mental defenses might be stronger than martial artists… but my Emotional Sword is still in its initial stage, and there's room for improvement!

At the very least, achieving true mastery could definitely affect cultivators!’

Fang Xing contemplated, all the while fitting a layer of nano gloves over his hands to begin looting the corpse.

“Ugh, as expected, just a pauper—a few spirit sands and that's it...”

“Where are the martial arts manuals? I thought his agility was impressive, yet he didn’t even carry his manuals with him. How disappointing!”

…

After searching through the belongings, Fang Xing grumbled all the way back to the marketplace.

Naturally, martial artists from these markets are not as wealthy as those from black markets; none had even basic protective gear or laser guns.

Lately, not even a single manual has dropped, adding to his frustration.

In the shack.

“Did you venture out solo to hunt beasts again, young master?”

Hua Feiyue increasingly found this young master enigmatic.

Though aware of his blood-refined artifacts, he pondered why someone with such control over herbal resources would take such risks.

“From tomorrow, settle the spirit stones once every three days...”

Fang Xing said little, handing over a sorted bundle of herbs and beast materials to Hua Feiyue.

At this point, he began to trust her slightly more, thus extending the settlement period.

After all, even losing three days' worth of income was inconsequential for him; it was just the cost of discerning someone's character.

Moreover, once school started, he couldn’t spend day and night here anymore, necessitating some delegation.

“Rest assured, young master!”

Hua Feiyue received the item with a charming smile, throwing Fang Xing a playful wink.

With the aid of the "Seven Emotions Technique," they'd become quite acquainted over this time.

However, Fang Xing showed no interest in extending their conversation today and politely ushered her out with a cup of tea.

Once Hua Feiyue had left, Fang Xing remained silent as he began cooking spiritual rice and setting up for his Great Dragon Stance training.

After consuming the spiritual rice, he commenced practice with the Ghost Blade and Ultimate Passion Sword.

“The greatest benefit of A-rank martial arts is the protection of the mind! They allow one to withstand spiritual assaults and corruption from heretic god servants!”

Amidst countless sword and blade flashes, Fang Xing maneuvered deftly, contemplating many things.

“While training, I noticed that when confronted with the "Seven Emotions Technique," by simulating the Ghost Blade's essence, Hua Feiyue's mental art becomes ineffective on me…”

“Once I master the Ultimate Passion Sword, even a cultivator's ‘Disarray Talisman,’ as long as I resist, can be nullified.”

“Does this mean in future confrontations with some cultivators adept in mental assaults, like those with charming arts, I can remain unaffected?”

The strength of cultivators lies in their multitude of methods.

Yet this kind of mental attack secret art is among the most crucial.

Fang Xing's eyes gleamed with a hint of anticipation.

]

(End of Chapter)