Chapter 26: Breakthrough

The Beast Insect King was a full three feet long. Its body, covered in chaotic markings, radiated demonic energy in all directions, faintly exuding the majesty of a hundred beasts. This tumultuous demonic aura was of the same origin as Ji Xun's own.

Locked in a life-and-death struggle with the Insect King, the black bear spirit's fur was matted with blood, clinging in thick patches. Whenever the Insect King snapped its mandibles, another wound would open on the bear’s body. Only the bear’s formidable constitution kept it from collapsing.

Nearby, Da Huang was embroiled in battle with dozens of beast insects, his own body marked by numerous injuries.

As soon as Ji Xun emerged from the cave, he drew out the Spirit-Patterned Insect Pliers, channeling his own demonic energy into them until their patterns flared to life. At the same time, he swallowed several spirit stones, storing them in his snake stomach to digest for later need.

In the next instant, the pliers clamped down on the Insect King. Ji Xun seized his tusk dagger and drove it into the creature’s body. The black bear spirit, meanwhile, turned to assist Da Huang, confronting the swarm of beast insects.

A crunching sound issued from the pliers’ grip, but Ji Xun’s dagger could do little real harm to the Insect King. In desperation, he wielded the dagger with a move from the Tiger-Crane Twin Form Fist, unleashing the Crane Wing technique. Several rapid slashes managed to carve shallow wounds into the insect’s body.

But the pliers could no longer withstand the strain. They broke apart, releasing the Insect King. It emitted a piercing shriek that made Ji Xun's head feel as though something were churning within his skull, agony threatening to tear him apart.

As Da Huang and the black bear spirit reeled in a daze, the scattered beast insects gathered around the Insect King. It opened its mandibles—wide as a bowl—and devoured a heap of its own kind.

By the time Ji Xun reacted, it was already too late to intervene. He could only retreat lightly, widening the distance between himself and the Insect King.

After consuming its kin, the markings on the Insect King deepened, its body twisting as it turned and lunged at Ji Xun with a vicious demonic aura that made his heart quail. If those fearsome jaws bit him, he would surely perish, his path of cultivation ending abruptly.

In this life-or-death moment, he forgot everything else, recalling only Tiger Feather’s insight into the essence of the fist. Body, energy, and spirit merged as one; in that fleeting instant, he barely touched upon the true force of the fist.

Casting aside his tusk dagger and abandoning the Crane Form, he retained only the intent of the Tiger Form. He stirred his blood and energy at will, sealing all pores so that no vital essence escaped—he had reached the state of no-leakage.

In that critical moment, he forsook all variations—tiger claws, knife hands, crane beak—leaving only the purest, most unyielding punch.

The moment his fist thundered forth, Ji Xun’s consciousness dissolved into darkness, everything before him swallowed by the void.

It takes decades of unwavering practice to truly unify body, energy, and spirit, finding one’s own path. But Ji Xun, in the space between life and death, seized a fleeting inspiration, merging himself with the force of the Tiger Feather’s fist.

His own cultivation was far from the stage where mind, energy, and spirit could be truly unified; forcing it brought his soul to the brink, and he lost consciousness.

...

"Where am I?"

Ji Xun opened his eyes and spoke weakly. He looked around—the dim light, the scent of dry grass in the air. It seemed he was inside a giant tree hollow.

Da Huang lay by his side. Seeing him awake, the dog licked his hand.

Ji Xun pushed himself up, hands pressing into something long, soft, and supple. In the faint light, he saw what it was—the corpse of the Beast Insect King, its head split open.

"So, I did manage to land that punch after all."

Recalling the sensation of merging his essence, energy, and spirit, Ji Xun still felt a lingering dread. If not for swallowing several spirit stones, he might have exhausted himself entirely, never to awaken again.

At that moment, the black bear spirit crawled into the hollow. Seeing Ji Xun awake, it reluctantly broke off a piece of honeycomb for him and produced a red fruit from the dry grass.

[Ten-Year Vermilion Fruit: Profound-grade, lower quality. Nourishes blood and strengthens the body.]

Ji Xun took the fruit without hesitation and swallowed it.

“Old Black, just wait—one day soon, I’ll bring you royal jelly and broaden your horizons.”

He tucked the Insect King’s body away—not out of greed, but because both the black bear spirit and Da Huang were repulsed by the demonic aura clinging to it.

...

In the days that followed, Ji Xun frequently observed the Golden Armored Bees to see if they would swarm. Once they did, he planned to capture them all at once and send them into the Demon Refining Gourd to reap the rewards.

Meanwhile, the Insect King’s essence blood was extracted by the Demon Refining Gourd.

[Beast Insect King’s Essence Blood: Profound-grade, superior quality. Refined from the Beast Insect King. Greatly strengthens the body, replenishes energy, and aids breakthroughs.]

Ji Xun swallowed the essence blood without hesitation. The terrifying power within, condensed into a single drop, was so potent even his snake stomach could scarcely endure it—a burning sensation spread through him.

He circulated the Yi Xuan Technique at will, until the searing heat flowed into his heart and then throughout his body.

After two hours, Ji Xun’s blood refinement was complete; he reached the eighth rank of the Profound Martial Realm. He also gained a new innate ability.

[Demonic Aura Shapeshifting: Profound-grade, middle quality. Can imitate the demonic aura of other creatures.]

This ability was remarkably versatile. Although it could not perfectly mimic a target and could be seen through by the discerning, it allowed him to employ many secret arts from the Tiger-Crane Twin Form and further refine the Yi Xuan Technique.

The remaining beast blood was useless to Ji Xun now; he used it to cultivate the Beast Grass. One drop of essence blood from an eighth-rank insect corpse had already nurtured a Profound-grade, middle quality Beast Flower.

[Beast Flower: Profound-grade, middle quality. A mutation of Beast Grass. Strengthens the body, but may affect the mind.]

The Demon Refining Gourd only analyzed basic properties; learning how to use these for medicine or alchemy was up to Ji Xun himself. Beast Grass was lower quality, Beast Flower was middle quality, but the latter was the limit—any further attempts would be a waste of time.

As for the demon bone with the Wind-Chasing bloodline, its refinement progressed slowly.

Finally, Ji Xun’s last find was a peculiar green beast insect. Consulting ancient texts, he discovered an explanation: if the blood of a wood demon was accidentally mixed into the beast blood, a mutated beast insect could emerge—known generally as the Herb Insect, rejected by its kin.

This insect had a gentle disposition, did not consume flesh and blood, but thrived on the essence of plants. It could cultivate, and could be used in medicine.

Only then did Ji Xun understand why the other beast insects had bitten it so mercilessly.

...

That day, the weather was clear, but the atmosphere in the village was grim. The smiles that recently graced the villagers’ faces had vanished, replaced by worry and sorrow. Children cried endlessly in fear, and even the adults had lost their appetite.

All for a single reason.

The son of Qu the Skinner, Qu Qing, had returned.

His first act upon returning was to kick over his father’s spirit tablet. Offerings were scattered, the incense burner overturned, and the ancestral plaque ground harshly beneath his heel.