Chapter 64: Chapter 63: Your Blade, 5 Millimeters Off to the Left

"A fierce beast? What’s that?"

Wu Chen looked at the man leading the merchant caravan and asked with some curiosity.

’Could it be that the Demon Corpse disaster has finally spread to Cangzhou?’

"My big brother told you to take a detour, so just do it. Why all the damn questions?"

Having encountered a fierce beast and lost a cart of goods, the mood in the caravan was already heavy.

When they heard Wu Chen ask what kind of fierce beast it was, looking like he didn’t know what was good for him, a hot-tempered man immediately snapped loudly:

"If you’ve got a death wish, go take a look for yourself."

"Shut up, Third Brother! This is no place for you to speak!"

The caravan leader glared at him. Seeing the anger on his big brother’s face, the man who had just spoken sheepishly ducked his head and fell silent.

The caravan leader was a wiry man, around his late forties or early fifties, with half his hair already gray.

He gave an apologetic bow with clasped hands toward Wu Chen, who sat atop his tall horse.

"My third brother is a blockhead, impulsive and reckless. He spoke rudely. My apologies, little brother."

"It’s nothing!" Wu Chen didn’t mind.

He wasn’t so petty as to respond to a passerby’s taunt with something like, ’You’re courting death!’

But he had already been traveling for a day and really didn’t want to turn back, so he had to ask again:

"So, what’s this about the fierce beast you mentioned?"

The leader had led everyone in a hurried retreat for half the day. He decided to take a break and, while they rested, told Wu Chen what they had encountered on the road:

"Little brother, this road we’re on connects Fenglin County and Black Stone City."

"In recent years, Black Stone City’s population has dwindled. It’s in a perilous location, and few people travel this way, so the road has become overgrown with grass and trees, making it harder and harder to traverse."

"At some point, a Bear took up residence in the forest ahead."

"Everything was fine when we came through; we didn’t run into anything. But on the way back, we ran right into it."

"This Bear is enormous and incredibly strong. A mere graze is enough to break bones and tear tendons."

"We only managed to escape by the skin of our teeth because we had numbers on our side, but we still had to abandon a cart of goods. Sigh..."

After speaking, he heaved a deep sigh and was about to urge Wu Chen to turn back immediately and take another route back to Fenglin County.

It was a longer way around, but at least it was safe.

But before he could get the words out, the sound of rustling vegetation and the crack of toppling trees echoed around them.

CRACK! SNAP! CRACK! SNAP—

It was the sound of something huge moving through the mountain forest. As the creature approached, the ground began to tremble with a low rumble, creating an immense sense of pressure.

The caravan members were already on edge. Hearing this sound, their faces paled in unison as they whipped their heads toward the source.

In the nearby stretch of forest, trees as thick as bowls were knocked down one after another as if they were made of paper.

The disturbance moved with incredible speed, closing to less than ten zhang from the caravan in the blink of an eye.

"Dammit, that beast has been following us this whole time!"

"Looks like it won’t rest until we’re dead!"

"Grab your weapons! Protect the horses and medicinal herbs!"

The caravan leader shouted, and the twenty-odd men of the caravan, jolted to their senses, drew their blades and formed a circle around the wagons and herbs.

They had just formed up when an incredibly imposing figure leaped out of the bushes and landed on the road.

It landed with a THUD—, a terrifying sound.

Everyone stared intently at the horrifying figure.

This Bear was about one zhang long, its body as round as a large water vat. It had a humped back, and its fur shone like oiled steel needles.

Its mere presence was enough to make it hard for the men to breathe.

Although the caravan members had seen this black bear’s terrifying appearance before, seeing it a second time still filled them with fear.

The Bear’s leap from the bushes and its heavy landing on the road made the caravan’s horses snort restlessly, their hooves poised to bolt.

The caravan had to spare some men to calm the horses.

Without roaring or any other display, the Bear charged toward the rearmost wagon of the caravan.

With every step it took, the ground trembled, startling the horses into rearing wildly, on the verge of a mad stampede.

Fortunately, the caravan guards were well-trained and quickly organized a formation at the rear of the group.

But as they watched the rapidly approaching figure grow larger in their vision, everyone swallowed hard, knowing today would not be easy.

However, a figure shot out from their formation, meeting the giant bear head-on.

SWOOSH!

"Third Brother, get back here!"

The caravan leader saw the figure rush out and, assuming it was the ever-impulsive Third Brother, cried out anxiously.

But Third Brother was right beside him, staring blankly at the figure that had charged out. "I... I wouldn’t dare go out there!"

Only then did everyone belatedly realize that the figure wasn’t the impulsive Third Brother.

"Is that the young man who was on the horse earlier?!"

The leader snapped back to his senses and was about to shout something to the figure, but it was too late.

The figure who had shot out from the group had already collided violently with the charging giant bear.

BANG!

The two crashed, producing a muffled boom. An invisible shockwave blasted out from the point of impact, making the chests of the men at the rear of the caravan feel tight.

Then, to everyone’s astonishment, the immense and seemingly invincible Bear staggered, its body forcibly twisted sideways as it plunged headfirst into the bushes by the road.

CRACKLE! SNAP!

The Bear’s body only came to a stop after crushing five or six trees.

AWOOO!—

The tall bushes blocked their view, so they couldn’t see how badly the Bear was injured, but its furious roar pierced everyone’s eardrums.

Everyone knew they were about to face an enraged Bear!

However, to everyone’s utter amazement, the figure standing on the road charged directly into the bushes without a word.

This was followed by a series of dull thuds—the sound of fists sinking into flesh.

"Boss, should we go help?"

"Can we... even help?"

While the caravan members were talking, they heard the terrifying roars grow weaker and weaker, until finally, they faded into nothing.

RUSTLE!

With a final rustle of the bushes, Wu Chen walked out.

"So, what do you think I should do with this thing?"

They stared at Wu Chen. Sticky blood dripped from his knuckles, while his other hand dragged the black bear’s body.

"GULP!"

"GULP!"

The men craned their necks and swallowed hard, staring wide-eyed and speechless at the Bear, which was as dead as dead could be.

They couldn’t believe it. The Bear that had thrown their entire group into chaos was now dead, just like that?

And in just a few punches and kicks!

The scene was so absurd it felt like a dream!

They forgot to answer Wu Chen’s question. All eyes turned to Third Brother, staring daggers at the man who had just provoked this young man.

’Well, the fierce beast is gone.’

’Now the bad news is, something even fiercer has shown up.’

"Young Hero, about before..."

Third Brother knew which way the wind was blowing. He stepped forward, clasped his fists, and bowed to apologize for his earlier behavior.

Wu Chen waved a hand, cutting him off. With a flick of his arm, he tossed the massive Bear carcass in front of them.

"Is this thing worth anything? If it is, help me carry it. If not, I’ll just toss it."

"It is! It is!"

The leader reacted instantly. "Young Hero, a Bear like this is worth three hundred taels of silver! That’s more valuable than my several carts of medicinal herbs!"

He barked at the men beside him, "Quick, get this beast packed up! And two of you, head back to Black Stone City and get two more carts!"

With the fierce beast slain, and not enough carts to carry it, they decided to rest there for the night and wait for the other carts to arrive the next day.

A bonfire was lit, and the aroma of roasting meat filled the air.

The black bear’s heart, originally the size of a clay pot, shrank to the size of a fist as it roasted over the flames.

It gave off a peculiar fragrance.

Wu Chen cut off a piece and tossed it into his mouth.

The meat was firm. As he chewed and swallowed, waves of warmth flowed through him, leaving a fragrant aftertaste.

He began to eat with large bites. In the time it takes to drink half a cup of tea, the entire fragrant, tender heart of the Bear was in his stomach.

’For someone in the Body Tempering Realm or Flesh Refining Realm, this would be a great supplement.’

Wu Chen felt the roiling Qi and Blood in his body gradually calm down. ’Unfortunately, I’m in the Meridian Passage Realm now. It’s better than nothing, I suppose.’

’If an ordinary Martial Artist ate the essence of this entire black bear, they could probably break through to the Body Tempering Realm within two or three years. Someone in the Flesh Refining Realm could also break through several minor stages.’

’But that’s still too slow...’

Wu Chen shook his head, having lost interest in the bear meat. He began to look through the eight manuals of Flesh Refining Realm Martial Arts beside him.

He had asked the caravan members for them, and no one had dared to refuse.

It wasn’t that he didn’t want Meridian Passage Realm Martial Arts; it was just that the men in the caravan were all in the Flesh Refining Realm and didn’t have any.

He quickly finished flipping through and ’adding points’ from the eight manuals. Then, Wu Chen turned his attention to the caravan members, who were practicing with their blades and weapons to get their Qi and Blood flowing after eating their rations.

But as he watched, he couldn’t hold back any longer and began to offer guidance:

"Hey, caravan leader, stop for a moment."

"What is it, Young Hero?" the wiry old man asked politely, turning his head.

"When you swing your blade, angle the edge five *hao* to the left."

Sitting by the bonfire, Wu Chen lazily gestured with a tree branch he was holding.

’Five *hao*?!’

The caravan leader Sun Cang’s mouth twitched. ’Is that a move a human can even make?’

But he still did as Wu Chen said. He straightened his posture, gripped the hilt of his blade, and tried his best to control the edge, shifting it that insignificant distance to the left.

And yet, with just that tiny change, his hand, which had held a blade for over thirty years, began to tremble like that of a hundred-year-old man, the blade wobbling visibly.

It was as if the blade, which weighed no more than ten catties, now felt as heavy as a thousand.

Beads of sweat formed on Sun Cang’s forehead and rolled down. It seemed this small change drastically increased his stamina consumption, bringing him to the verge of exhaustion where he might lose his grip on the hilt at any moment.

"Big Brother, you’re shaking like an eighty-year-old. Can you even swing that thing...?"

"Boss, maybe you should take a break..."

The others laughed, not taking it seriously.

’What’s the difference of a hair’s breadth? You can still kill someone either way, right? Is it really necessary to be so meticulous?’

"Hah!"

Sun Cang ignored them. When he felt he had controlled the blade’s angle to nearly the position Wu Chen had described, a sharp cry erupted from his chest, and he brought the blade down.

SHIIING!

The sound of the blade slicing through the air was no longer the ’whoosh’ of a heavy object falling. Now, it was more like a sharp edge tearing through silk—exceptionally crisp and clear in the night.

The men who had been laughing were stunned into silence.

It wasn’t just the change in sound; it was a fundamental change in the speed of his strike.

Everyone could see it clearly. Sun Cang’s strike was at least thirty percent faster than usual!

And in a life-or-death battle, that extra thirty percent speed was enough to decide victory and survival!

Hahh! Hahh!

All the caravan members looked at Wu Chen, their breathing heavy, their eyes burning with fervor.

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