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Chapter 36: The Mysterious Martial Technique 'Mountain-Cleaving Strike'
Chapter 36: The Mysterious Martial Technique 'Mountain-Cleaving Strike'
September 25, 2017
Aside from his focus on the Leadership attribute, Lu HaiKong paid the most attention to his Strength attribute. Seeing that his Strength attribute was only at 25 points, Lu HaiKong couldn't help but feel a little disappointed.
If he remembered correctly, the last time he watched Yue'er defeat a bandit leader named Zhang Sanshan, that guy's Strength was 38 points, which was much higher than his own 25 points.
After this simple and direct comparison of stats, Lu HaiKong had to admit that he didn't seem to have the strength to challenge a bandit leader in a one-on-one fight. However, Lu HaiKong wasn't worried. After all, a mere bandit leader was nothing to be concerned about; he would eventually be able to defeat one.
After admiring his attributes, Lu HaiKong had one more important thing to do—eat!
This was a significant matter. In fact, Lu HaiKong was quite annoyed by this himself. Every day, he had to eat on time, and if he missed the meal, even with his connection to Wang Paozi, he couldn't expect that fat guy to let him off easily. This was one of Lu HaiKong's biggest dissatisfactions with this bandit camp, and it was also one of his primary motivations for wanting to establish his own.
Lu HaiKong, along with his group of followers, arrived at the mess hall and saw Zhang Wen, the scholar he had brought from the refugee camp, who was nominally under his command.
"Hey, you're still here. I thought you would have run off by now."
After bringing this guy back to the bandit camp, Lu HaiKong had left him aside and focused on gathering food and cultivating. He had completely forgotten about this guy's existence. On the rare occasions when he remembered, he would find that the guy seemed to have left the camp, and Lu HaiKong assumed he had run away. He never expected to run into him at the mess hall today.
"Greetings, Lord," said Zhang Wen, calmly bowing to Lu HaiKong. His attitude was much more respectful than it had been at the beginning.
Lu HaiKong was a little surprised to see that Zhang Wen's Loyalty had unknowingly risen to 60 points. This puzzled Lu HaiKong; how could this guy's Loyalty have increased instead of decreased after not seeing him for several days?
However, Lu HaiKong didn't investigate further. Zhang Wen was still a useful person, and the increase in his Loyalty proved that he wanted to follow Lu HaiKong. Lu HaiKong didn't mind having one more mouth to feed among his followers. He vaguely sensed that Zhang Wen's unusual behavior was somehow related to Wang Paozi.
This suspicion was confirmed when Lu HaiKong saw the meaningful smile on Wang Paozi's face.
After finishing their meal, it was time to pay. Lu HaiKong took out several thousand copper coins to settle the bill. Over the past half month, Lu HaiKong hadn't earned much, but his expenses hadn't decreased either. In just over ten days, the money in Lu HaiKong's hands had dwindled from over ten gold to only about two gold now. It seemed that another financial crisis was looming.
"It seems it's time to go out and earn some money by defeating monsters. It would be best if I could take down a bandit camp," Lu HaiKong thought to himself.
Lu HaiKong put away the money and, accompanied by his bandit followers, headed once again to the bandit camp's training ground. It was now around 8 p.m., and Lu HaiKong planned to use the few hours before sleep to consume the last 'feast' he had been saving.
This final feast was the sheepskin scroll he had obtained from Zhang Wen, which clearly stated that one needed to reach Level 10 in Basic Axe Technique to attempt to comprehend the martial technique.
Lu HaiKong had been eyeing the sheepskin scroll with anticipation for a long time. Now that he had finally reached Level 10 in 'Basic Axe Technique', he was eager to put it to use and see if he could comprehend something extraordinary.
As Lu HaiKong unfurled the scroll, something peculiar happened. Previously, he could only make out faint symbols on the sheepskin, but this time, as he opened it, he felt as if he had unlocked a gateway to another world.
A surge of ancient, weathered, and desolate energy washed over him. In a daze, Lu HaiKong found himself at the foot of a majestic mountain, gazing upwards with all his might, yet unable to discern its peak.
The mountain's grandeur was such that Lu HaiKong was convinced no one in this world could ever scale its summit.
Just as he marveled at the mountain's majesty, a steady footfall approached. Lu HaiKong turned to see a figure striding towards him, wielding an axe.
Oddly, despite the figure being less than two meters away, Lu HaiKong could only perceive darkness. He couldn't make out the figure's features or physique, and this strange sensation of being so close yet feeling distant and untouchable piqued his curiosity.
Lu HaiKong opened his mouth to speak, but to his surprise, he found himself unable to utter a word. Not only was he speechless, but he couldn't move either. He stood there like a statue, watching the figure approach step by step until it reached his position.
The figure, gazing up at the majestic mountain, finally spoke after a long silence, "This mountain is in the way. I'll have to split it open!"
The figure's voice was deep and resonant, conveying an air of honesty and trustworthiness. However, his words made Lu HaiKong scoff. Split open a path? Through such a majestic mountain? How dare he?
The figure swung the massive axe in his hand, aiming a blow at the towering mountain before him. This strike held Lu HaiKong's breath, not because it was terrifyingly powerful, but because he inexplicably anticipated something awe-inspiring from this figure.
In the 1619 book, the 1st edition, there was no mistake!
Sadly, the strike didn't deliver the awe Lu HaiKong expected. The axe hit the mountain, but there was no earth-shattering impact, no splitting of the mountain, only a small chunk of dirt dislodged by the blow.
Witnessing this, Lu HaiKong couldn't help but inwardly mock the figure. Just then, the scene before him began to fast-forward, as if time had been accelerated.
Time flew by in Lu HaiKong's vision. Sunsets and sunrises came and went, and the surrounding vegetation cycled through growth and decay. The only constant was the figure, who, from the moment he swung his axe, never let go of it, continuously hacking away at the majestic mountain.
Lu HaiKong couldn't fathom how long the figure had been at it or how many strikes he had made. The only thing he could remember was the figure's resilience, bordering on stubbornness, and stubbornness verging on obsession.
"Congratulations on comprehending the mysterious martial technique 'Mountain-Cleaving Strike'. Your 'Basic Axe Technique' level has increased, now at Level 13. Your Strength has also increased, currently at 31."
(End of Chapter)
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