On the grass in the forest, next to the Shadow Flying Tiger, the Sloppy Old Man, a bright young girl, and those four odd Loose Cultivators, sat encircling the Demon Tiger.

The Sloppy Old Man sat at the head of the Demon Tiger, holding a small red bottle, placed at the nose of the Shadow Flying Tiger. He gently blew, continuously sending red powder floating from the bottle into the nose of the Demon Tiger.

The young girl excitedly stroked the rounded belly of the tiger and asked the old man, "Dad, how can you be sure that this beast will give birth in two days?"

The Sloppy Old Man smiled slightly, proudly saying, "As a renowned Medicinal Beggar, if I couldn't even see this, that would really discredit my name!"

At that moment, Luoo Ge, sitting behind the tiger, squinted his eyes, glanced at the young girl, and chuckled, "That's truly a wonder! Elder Jin, your medical skills are famed throughout the world, known by everyone, and yet Miss Jin is unaware. Isn't that one of the world's great wonders?"

"She and her mother live secluded in Vast Mountain, away from the world, it's not strange that she doesn't know this!" the old man said indifferently.

"Elder Jin, by the looks of it, your matter will be settled in less than five days. We five brothers will have successfully completed the task. Regarding the matter of our reward..."

Luoo Ge had just finished speaking and was intently staring at the old man, awaiting a firm reply, when suddenly, a painful scream came from outside the forest, interrupting their conversation.

Hearing the distant scream, aside from the girl named Qiaoqiao, who changed her complexion, the old man and the remaining four Loose Cultivators did not care too much.

It was only when the screams turned into miserable howls, becoming more sorrowful by the minute, that the four young men were taken aback. One of them, a thin man carrying a long sword, frowned and said to the lead brother, Luoo Ge, "Big Brother, doesn't this cry sound odd, like it's coming from Zhongzi?"

"Humph, impossible!" Luoo Ge waved his hand dismissively, glancing at the Sloppy Old Man, their employer for this trip, and said, "It's no joke."

The Sloppy Old Man scoffed, but said nothing.

"It is Zhongzi's voice, I can tell too!" a donkey-faced guy chimed in, abruptly standing up from the grass.

At this moment, the expression on Luoo Ge's face changed as he thought, A Cultivator of Fifth Transformation handling a mere mortal, does it need to be this troublesome? Surely something has gone wrong. Seeing the long-faced guy stood up, he ordered, "Gutang, go and check it out."

"Yes!"

The donkey-faced man named Gutang didn't hesitate, quickly turning and stepping out of the forest.

Following the sound, when he found Zhongzi's body on the ground, he involuntarily took a sharp breath of cold air, chilling his heart. The face of Zhongzi was covered in Blood Pearls, his chest cavity seemed to be gouged open by some weapon, and even more horrifying was a slash about half a foot long in Zhongzi's abdomen.

Moreover, the Dantian was destroyed, Spiritual Energy completely depleted.

Having run around the Martial World and seen much, when he saw the cut in the abdomen, Gutang immediately realized that the opponent's methods were extremely cruel, not only killing the man but also sapping Zhongzi's Spiritual Power completely.

Who is the assassin?

Where is that young man?

Gutang immediately became alert, generating a Spiritual Energy Protective Shield with a gesture of his right hand, turning around and scanning. The sunlight danced through the treeshadows, yet no figure could be seen.

Suddenly, he felt a chill run down his spine as he sensed a powerful aura locking onto him.

"Whoosh!"

Just as he sharply turned around, he heard a piercing sound cutting through the air. By the time he turned, he saw an Immortal Sword already striking at his chest. Gutang's narrow eyes instantly widened, his face showing deep fear. At that moment, dodging was too late; he could only strive to reinforce his Spiritual Energy Protective Shield for protection.

However, to his surprise, the seemingly ordinary Immortal Sword, with its fierce momentum, shattered the Spiritual Energy Protective Shield and pierced through his chest.

In his dying moment, he still did not understand how the seemingly antique longsword, which was actually a Divine Weapon, had managed to break through the Spiritual Power of a Fifth Transformation Immortal.

.........

Gutang would never know that it wasn't just any ordinary Immortal Sword, but a peerless divine weapon capable of killing across two major realms.

Not to mention him, a Cultivator of Fifth Transformation, even those of the Sixth or Seventh Transformations, or even an expert of the Eighth Transformation, would equally fall dead.

Wang Xiaoqiang emerged from behind a large tree, took a step, and moved swiftly, pulling the Penglai Immortal Sword from Gutang's falling body before it hit the ground. Blood sprayed, and the body of the ancient sword did not catch a single drop.

Storing the Penglai Immortal Sword into the Sumeru Ring, he pressed his foot on the still trembling, not yet dead body, pulled out the Dagger Fish, and slit open his abdominal skin.

Immediately, Spiritual Energy and True Yuan burst out from within the body.

Wang Xiaoqiang released 300 Spirit Springs, sucked clean the released Spiritual Energy and True Yuan, then the 300 Spirit Spring Eyes flew back into his body, splitting into 600 Spirit Springs.

At that moment, the number of Spirit Springs inside Wang Xiaoqiang reached 9,400. All 9,400 Spirit Springs quivered together, becoming more ethereal, smooth as goosebumps stones after a fresh rain on an empty mountain,

Simultaneously, as the Spiritual Power inside Wang Xiaoqiang climbed, he reached a new level, only a half-step away from the First Transformation of Immortal.

.........

On the grass in the forest, next to the Shadow Flying Tiger, the Sloppy Old Man stowed away the red bottle and quietly observed this oversized Eighth-Level Demon Beast appearing accustomed, with a trace of satisfaction. Ten days of effort had not gone to waste, having finally found a pregnant, about-to-deliver Eighth-Level Shadow Flying Tiger.

Having nearly fulfilled his many years' desire, the old man's feeling of contentment spurred his willpower, and suddenly, a long smoking pipe appeared out of thin air in his palm. Holding it with his left hand, he placed it into his mouth while flicking his right hand towards the bowl of the pipe; a dim fire flashed, igniting it. The old man leisurely drew a puff, evidently pleased with himself.

"Father, this beast won't die, will it?" the radiant girl stared at the unconscious Shadow Flying Tiger, a look of worry evident on her face.

"Silly girl, rest assured, even if it wants to die, it must give birth to its cubs first, or your father won't agree!"

Hearing this, the radiant girl let out a long sigh of relief, her face brightening with joy.

The three Loose Cultivator brothers, unlike the relaxed Jin father and daughter, were frantic. Two of the brothers had left and not returned, their fates unknown—how could they not be anxious?

The five brothers, always working together, shared both good fortunes and misfortunes. But this situation was different, this time, these five Loose Cultivators had been hired by that man known as the Medicinal Beggar from the Jin Family, specifically responsible for the safety of the Jin father and daughter. Therefore, whatever happened, according to their promise, they were obligated to have one person remain behind. Although the Jin father and daughter both possessed cultivation, the Sloppy Old Man's cultivation was no less significant than his.

"Big Brother Luoo, why hasn't Gutang returned yet? Should we go check?"

The tall and skinny man with a sword on his back couldn't hide his agitation and blurted out a question.

"Yes, let's all go and check." The speaker, a man with a shifty look and sharp eyes, although his face bore a thievish expression, was also filled with unease and anxiety.

Luoo Ge turned his head to glance at the elder leisurely smoking, seeing no response from him, he suddenly stood up and waved his hand, "Let's go, let's have a look."

"You cannot go," the elder said grimly, "You must stay to ensure our safety. Let the two of them go."

Luoo Ge's face flickered with indecision as he weighed the pros and cons quickly. Eventually, he gritted his teeth with resentment, sat back down, and waved to his two brothers, "Go on, be careful."

The two Loose Cultivators acknowledged and quickly left the forest.

.........

Upon making a new breakthrough, Wang Xiaoqiang slowly opened his eyes and saw two more Loose Cultivators rushing over, this time, not one, not five, but two.

These two Loose Cultivators, each at the Cultivation of the Fifth Transformation of the Immortal, were significantly more advanced than Wang Xiaoqiang. However, Lin Xiaotian paid them no mind and didn't waste any time. As soon as the two appeared, he immediately took the Penglai Immortal Sword from the Sumeru Ring, ready to strike.

The two Loose Cultivators, upon seeing the horrific corpses of their companions on the ground, were both disturbed and shocked, trembling with fury.

Someone had killed and then dissected the bodies to absorb the True Yuan and Spiritual Power.

Such brutality was unforgivable!

The murderer, who was he?

The two looked around with bloodshot eyes for the killer, and immediately sensed a strong wave of Spiritual Energy.

The well-trained duo, sensing danger, instinctively stood back to back, each erecting a Spiritual Energy Protective Shield.

By the time one of the Loose Cultivators followed this sensation and saw the youth in the tree, it was too late.

A sword, neither jade nor stone, archaic in appearance, shot from the youth's hand towards his chest at a high speed.

Too late to dodge, he could only desperately strengthen his Spiritual Energy Protective Shield in an attempt to protect himself.

"Swoosh!"

In his shocked gaze, the Immortal Sword shattered the Spiritual Energy Protective Shield and deeply pierced his chest, leaving just half a foot of the sword hilt sticking out.

As the sword pierced him, his body shook violently, and he felt the body of his companion standing back to back with him shudder violently as well.

In their terror, they instinctively turned their heads and saw each other's faces, blood leaking from their mouths.

The two Loose Cultivators looked like a pair of grasshoppers skewered together.

Their deaths were both ludicrous and tragic.

Wang Xiaoqiang jumped down from the tree and, rather than immediately pulling out the spear, he first dissected their abdomens and released 600 Spirit Springs, taking turns with 300 each to absorb the Spiritual Energy and True Yuan still emitting from their not fully extinguished life forces.

After absorbing the essence of their Spiritual Power, the 600 Spirit Springs returned to Wang Xiaoqiang's body, split into 1200 Spirit Springs,

Now, the total number of Spirit Springs in Wang Xiaoqiang's body had reached 10000, 10000 Five Elements Spirit Springs that collectively trembled and then underwent a qualitative change, like a caterpillar transforming into a butterfly, becoming extraordinarily light. Simultaneously, Wang Xiaoqiang felt the Spiritual Energy inside him surging tumultuously, continuously assaulting the meridians and acupoints throughout his body...

Suddenly...

Boom...

All the meridians in his body vibrated at once, then those 10000 Five Elements Spirit Springs started to orbit within his body, resembling stars revolving around the sun, rotating in a mysterious pattern.

Finally, after one full orbit, they came to a stop.

They burst apart and then aligned in the formation of a certain Zodiac Sign.

At that moment, Wang Xiaoqiang's cultivation experienced a breakthrough and reached the realm of the First Transformation of the Immortal. (To be continued. If you like this work, please visit Qidian.com to vote and support the author. Mobile users, please read at m.qidian.com.)

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