Chapter 11: First Blood
Location: The Outskirts of Cloud Forest.
Status: Injured (Ribs), Exhausted.
Luo Feng's breathing was ragged. Every step he took sent a jolt of fire shooting through his bandaged ribs. The 100-pound Wind Wolf carcass draped over his shoulder felt less like meat and more like a mountain crushing his spine.
He was only two miles away from the safety of the Green Willow District.
'Just a little more,' he told himself, sweat stinging his eyes. 'Sell the wolf. Buy herbs. Sleep.'
Suddenly, a strange sensation washed over him.
Despite the gaping wound in his ribs and the blood loss, he wasn't collapsing. Deep inside his flesh, he felt a cool, soothing current—the Moon (Yin) Qi—automatically rushing to the injury. It felt like cold water flowing over a burn, knitting the torn muscle fibers together with invisible stitches.
At the same time, his legs, which should have given out miles ago, were pumping with a hot, explosive power—the Sun (Yang) Qi. It permeated his bones, making them feel dense and heavy, like iron bars.
Luo Feng's eyes widened slightly as the realization hit him.
'I see... The Sun & Moon Technique isn't just refining my Qi. It's refining my biology.'
'The Yang is forging my muscles into steel. The Yin is constantly regenerating my life force. I am becoming a Body Cultivator without even trying.'
He took another step.
Click.
A tiny sound echoed from the bushes ahead. A normal person would have missed it.
Luo Feng stopped. He didn't look around wildly. He closed his eyes and extended his perception, just like he did when checking the soil for pests.
Technique: Spirit Farm Sense (Combat Adaptation).
He released a pulse of invisible Qi. It swept through the trees like a radar.
Bzzt.
The feedback hit his mind instantly. Three distinct shapes appeared in his mental map, hiding behind the ancient oak trees ten meters ahead. Their hearts were beating fast—the rhythm of excitement and greed.
[System Scan]
[Targets Detected: 3 Human Cultivators.]
[Location: Ambush Position (10 meters ahead).]
[Cultivation: Qi Refining Layer 3 (Late Stage).]
'Bandits,' Luo Feng realized, his blood turning cold. 'They are waiting for me to walk into the kill zone.'
He opened his eyes. He didn't walk forward.
"You can come out," Luo Feng called out, his voice steady. "I know you're there behind the oak tree."
Silence for a second. Then, a curse.
"Sharp eyes for a wounded dog," a rough voice sneered.
Three figures stepped out from the shadows, blocking the narrow dirt path. They wore mismatched, dirty leather armor and carried chipped weapons. Their eyes weren't looking at his face; they were glued greedily to the silver fur of the Wind Wolf on his shoulder.
"Heavy load, friend?" the leader, a man with a jagged scar running down his cheek and holding a rusty axe, laughed. "Since you're hurt, why don't you put that down? We can... help you carry it."
Luo Feng didn't smile. He slowly bent his knees and lowered the heavy carcass to the ground.
Thud.
"Smart choice," the leader grinned, taking a step forward. "Now leave the saber and your money pouch, and maybe we won't cut your other side open."
Luo Feng didn't answer. He closed his eyes for a split second.
Circulate.
He forced the Yang Qi to flood his limbs. His muscles swelled slightly against his sleeves, the heat rising under his skin.
"I worked hard for this kill," Luo Feng said softly, opening his eyes. They were cold.
"Then die with it!" The leader signaled to his men. "Get him!"
The three bandits rushed him at once—a chaotic charge of greed and violence.
The Solar Bullet.
Luo Feng didn't retreat. He lunged straight at the Bandit Leader.
He didn't draw his saber yet. He needed shock and awe. He thrust his right hand forward, extending his index finger like a pistol.
'Normal Spirit Finger isn't enough to kill instantly. I need explosive power. Pure Yang!'
Inside his meridians, he suppressed the cooling Yin energy and poured 100% of his Sun Qi into his fingertip.
Sizzle.
The reaction was violent. The skin on his index finger instantly turned black and blistered. The smell of burning flesh filled his nose. The Yang energy was too volatile to contain in a human body without the Yin balance.
"Spirit Finger: Solar Bullet!"
BANG.
It didn't sound like a wind gust. It sounded like a cannon shot.
A beam of concentrated red-gold light shot from Luo Feng's burning finger. It crossed the five meters instantly, leaving a trail of distorted air.
SPLAT.
The leader's head didn't just get pierced; it exploded. The intense heat boiled the water in his brain instantly, blowing his skull apart like a rotten watermelon.
The headless body took two more steps forward, propelled by momentum, before collapsing into the dirt.
[Qi Depletion: 20%.]
[Warning: Right Index Finger burned. Recoil Damage detected.]
Luo Feng hissed, clutching his smoking hand. The pain was blinding, but the result was terrifying.
The other two bandits froze mid-charge, covered in their boss's blood and brain matter.
"Sorcery..." one whispered, trembling. "He... he blew his head off!"
"Kill him! Look at his hand!" the second bandit screamed, his fear turning into desperation. "He hurt himself! He can't do it again!"
They charged again. One thrust a spear, while the other began chanting, a small fireball forming in his palm.
Whoosh. The fireball sailed past Luo Feng's ear, singing his hair.
Luo Feng gritted his teeth, ignoring the throbbing pain in his hand. 'One more shot! Take out the mage!'
He raised his middle finger this time—his index finger was useless.
BANG.
He fired at the bandit casting the fireballs.
The shot hit the bandit's right leg.
BOOM.
The Sun Qi detonated inside the flesh. The bandit's leg didn't break; it burst apart at the knee in a shower of gore and bone fragments.
"AAAAHHH! MY LEG!"
The bandit fell, rolling on the ground, screaming and clutching his bloody stump.
But the recoil bit Luo Feng again. His middle finger was now charred and trembling. Smoke curled from his hand.
'I can't use this anymore,' Luo Feng realized, checking his reserves. 'It burns too much Qi and destroys my own body. I have to finish this up close.'
The Body Cultivator.
The last standing bandit—the spearman—was now right in front of Luo Feng. He thrust his spear toward Luo Feng's heart, screaming in terror and rage.
Luo Feng's left hand dropped to his waist.
Shing.
The Spirit Iron Saber flashed.
Luo Feng didn't use a fancy technique. He didn't have the mana for it. He just used brute force, fueled by the Yang energy trapped in his muscles.
CLANG.
He parried the spear with a heavy overhead swing.
The impact was devastating. The bandit's wooden spear shaft shattered into splinters. The force traveled down the bandit's arms, dislocating his shoulders with a sickening pop.
"Argh!" The bandit stumbled back, looking at Luo Feng in horror. "How?! You're just a farmer! How are you this strong?!"
Luo Feng stepped forward, the bloody saber in his hand. The Iron Body gleamed faintly on his skin.
"Because I eat better than you," Luo Feng hissed.
He shoulder-checked the bandit. The collision sounded like a car crash. The bandit flew backward, ribs cracking, and slammed into a thick tree trunk.
Luo Feng didn't hesitate. He stepped in and swung the saber horizontally.
Slash.
The blade cut deep into the bandit's chest. The man collapsed, coughing blood, the light fading from his eyes.
No Mercy.
Silence returned to the forest path.
The fight had lasted less than ten seconds.
Only the sound of the legless bandit's weeping remained. The man was dragging himself backward through the dirt, leaving a thick trail of blood.
Luo Feng stood over him, panting heavily. His right hand was shaking, two fingers black and burned. His ribs were aching. But he was alive.
"Please..." The bandit looked up, tears streaming down his face, mixing with the dirt. "Please... spare me. I... I was forced. I have a daughter..."
Luo Feng looked down at him. His eyes were cold, devoid of the naive hesitation he used to have in the Sect.
He touched the bandage on his ribs. He looked at his burned fingers.
"If I had lost," Luo Feng said, his voice flat, "would you have spared me?"
The bandit's eyes widened in terror. "Wait! No! I can give you money! I have a Storage Bag! Take it! Just—"
Thud.
Luo Feng brought the saber down. The screaming stopped instantly.
Luo Feng stood there for a moment, the adrenaline crashing. He felt sick. He felt exhausted.
He quickly crouched down to loot the bodies.
12 Spirit Stones.
Two rusty daggers.
One low-grade healing pill.
One Small Storage Bag (Low Grade).
Luo Feng's eyes lit up when he grabbed the small gray pouch from the legless bandit's belt. A Storage Bag! Even a small one (1 cubic meter) cost 50 Spirit Stones. It was a luxury for rogue cultivators.
"This changes everything," he whispered.
He swallowed the healing pill instantly. The medicinal energy combined with his Moon Qi, accelerating the healing of his hand and ribs.
He walked back to his Wind Wolf carcass. He tapped the Storage Bag against the heavy beast.
"Collect."
Whoosh.
The massive 100-pound wolf vanished, sucked into the pouch.
Luo Feng let out a breath of pure relief. No more carrying. No more blood trails.
He hung the pouch on his belt, wiped the blood from his saber, and began the walk home.
He didn't look back at the three bodies. The forest beasts would eat them before nightfall.
This was the cultivation world. Kill or be killed. And today, Luo Feng had chosen to become the killer.
[End of Chapter 11]
— Author's Note —
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