In the courtyard!
Zhang Mo looked at the system panel.
【Host: Zhang Mo】
【Martial Arts: Black煞 Palm (Black煞 Shatters Mountain), Dragon Elephant Stance (Unlearned), Snow-Treading Steps (Unlearned)】
【Host Lifespan: Seventy Years】
【Stolen Lifespan: Ninety Years】
Without hesitation, Zhang Mo began to gradually invest his lifespan into the Snow-Treading Steps.
Zhang Mo highly valued light footwork. After all, even if he couldn't win a fight, he needed to have the means to escape.
【You are already at the peak of mortal physique, just one step and you can enter the realm. Therefore, it only took a year for your Snow-Treading Steps to reach a minor level of proficiency.】
【Fifth year, your movements are imbued with a mystical quality, your Snow-Treading Steps have reached a major level of proficiency.】
【Fifteenth year, the Snow-Treading Steps have become a part of you, you have reached the pinnacle of this art.】
【Remaining Stolen Lifespan: Seventy-Five Years】
Feeling the changes in his body, Zhang Mo's face broke into a smile.
He felt his body becoming extremely light, as if each step could carry him several meters away.
“Unfortunately, the Snow-Treading Steps did not display the changes of the Black煞 Palm.”
He shook his head slightly, then turned his attention to the Dragon Elephant Stance.
【Though your aptitude is mediocre, you have endured ten years of arduous training, your strength has skyrocketed, just your raw power can cleave mountains and split rocks. The Dragon Elephant Stance has reached a minor level of proficiency.】
【Thirtieth year, your Dragon Elephant Stance has reached a major level of proficiency, your strength has increased more than tenfold, but you sense further depths to this art, you continue to train diligently.】
【Sixtieth year, you feel your strength still slowly increasing, but it is insignificant compared to before, making you hesitate whether to continue training.】
【Seventy-fifth year, the sound of the Dragon Elephant resonates within your body, you finally comprehend the Dragon Elephant Power.】
【Martial Arts: Dragon Elephant Stance (Dragon Elephant Power)】
“My strength?”
Zhang Mo clenched his fist, taking a deep breath.
He could now be sure.
Even without using any martial arts techniques, just with brute force, he could probably kill his previous self.
This level of strength enhancement was terrifying.
Simultaneously!
Zhang Mo felt his blood surging throughout his body, a hot current erupting from his spine and surging through his body.
Moreover, this hot current grew stronger over time, settling within his body.
“This is... Inner Breath?”
Zhang Mo's face lit up with joy.
“Training the Dragon Elephant Stance to the pinnacle has actually cultivated Inner Breath from the outside to the inside?”
So-called Inner Breath is the essence of a warrior's blood and flesh, and it is the foundation of all advanced martial arts.
With Inner Breath.
Even unlearned martial arts, when activated by Inner Breath, will increase in power exponentially.
This is also the mark of entering the realm.
“This Inner Breath born from the outside is still too crude and shallow, it's not as thick as the Inner Breath cultivated by normal First Realm martial arts.”
“But it's not bad, at least I'm now a First Realm warrior.”
“But what should I do next? There are still a few days left before school starts, I need to improve my strength as much as possible, but I don't have enough money.”
Muttering to himself, Zhang Mo felt a little troubled.
Beasts were just too expensive.
After these few days of expenditure, his wealth was almost completely drained.
Soon.
The entrance exam would come.
Before, it was fine. But now with the system, he wouldn't allow himself to be weaker than anyone else.
“Should I kill someone?”
As soon as this thought came to him, it was discarded by Zhang Mo.
He wouldn't attack anyone without provocation. That was his bottom line.
Besides, making too much noise would attract the attention of the Enforcement Team.
“If that's the case........!”
Zhang Mo looked far into the distance, his gaze settling on the towering city wall, a hundred meters high, seemingly separating civilization from the wild.
In his previous life.
This was unimaginable.
But in this world, it was a common sight.
Not just in the Great Xia Kingdom, but even in other countries, city walls were just as magnificent and vast, encircling entire cities.
The purpose of all this was to prevent the invasion of wild beast hordes.
Even so, there were still some beasts with strange powers, occasionally wreaking havoc within the cities.
“I'll just go outside the city and have a look.”
Zhang Mo's gaze became resolute.
The wild was incredibly dangerous!
But it was also full of treasures.
And it was home to the beasts he so desperately sought.
He was now a First Realm warrior, if he didn't venture too deep, he should be safe.
...
Several hours later.
Zhang Mo, carrying a backpack filled with wilderness survival supplies, arrived at the East City Wall of Tianfeng City.
The first thing that caught his eye was the immense city gate.
This was his first time here, and he could feel a sense of grandiosity and magnificence wash over him.
On both sides of the city gate, fully armed soldiers patrolled back and forth.
People constantly entered and exited through the city gate, some carrying back large quantities of beast materials or rare resources from the wilderness.
Besides that, there were others who only carried back their companions' corpses, their faces filled with grief.
This was the cruel reality of the wilderness.
Once you leave the city, anyone could die.
Zhang Mo approached the city gate, where he was stopped by a soldier.
“Are you really going out?”
“Is there a problem?”
“No, be careful!”
The soldier hesitated, but ultimately chose to let him pass.
To be honest!
It was rare to see students like Zhang Mo going out alone.
Because it was practically the same as seeking death, that's why he asked.
Zhang Mo walked straight through the hundred-meter-long city wall, and what he saw was a vast expanse of mountains, with ravines and valleys crisscrossing.
Towering ancient trees were lush and verdant, seemingly covering the sky.
Once he entered, Zhang Mo felt the air was very humid, and even the sunlight was blocked by the leaves, making it quite dim.
Zhang Mo walked slowly, even cautiously.
In the wild.
Besides wild beasts and monsters, there were also various poisonous creatures, and even other warriors who specifically targeted humans, forcing him to be careful.
Just then!
“Aooo!”
With a roar, Zhang Mo's expression changed.
He saw a black shadow looming before him, an incredibly dangerous aura rushing toward him.