Once the decision was made, Lin Mu hesitated no longer.
The next morning, at the Internal Affairs counter of the External Affairs Hall.
Lin Mu, clad in Steward's blue robes, leafed through the internal mission dossiers in his hands with an indifferent expression.
Most of what these dossiers recorded were trivial troubles—the kind the clan hadn't gotten around to publicly posting, or considered too poorly compensated to be worth the fuss.
For ordinary disciples, these missions were like chicken ribs—tasteless to eat, yet a pity to throw away.
But for Lin Mu, who urgently needed a whetstone to test his blade, this was the perfect hunting ground.
"Clear out the wind wolf pack? No." Lin Mu shook his head, skipping past it directly. "That's work testing endurance and attrition. What I need right now is verification of explosive power."
"Drive off the deep pool giant turtle? Also no. That's a beast specialized in defense—too tedious to fight. A pure waste of time."
His finger traced line by line through the dossiers until it finally stopped on an inconspicuous red notation.
[Mission: Hunt the Man-Eating Tiger of Broken Fang Valley]
Intelligence: A mutated Hanging-Eye White-Forehead Tiger at Rank 1 Upper Stage has taken up residence in Broken Fang Valley, not far from the Boar King's territory.
Thick-skinned and tough-fleshed, with claws and fangs sharp as blades, it is cunning by nature.
It has recently injured several of the clan's herb gatherers, and two Rank 1 Middle Stage collateral disciples even fell to it, suffering severe wounds.
"Strong enough, fast enough, and a solitary creature."
A glint of satisfaction flashed in Lin Mu's eyes. "Perfect for testing my current limits."
He pulled down the mission sheet, casually signed the register, and turned to leave.
Before departing, he made a special detour to Lin Ping's place.
From him, he collected two packets of medicinal powder essential for this hunt—one was specially formulated "Beast-Luring Powder," the other a scent-masking "Scentless Powder."
"Brother, be careful." Lin Ping offered only this simple reminder before returning to sorting through the pile of newly collected ore slag.
Lin Mu nodded and stepped into the vast mountain wilderness.
Walking once more on this mountain path leading deep into Black Wind Ridge, Lin Mu's state of mind was entirely different.
A few months ago, when he had walked here, every step had been cautious and fearful, dreading that some unknown venomous insect or fierce beast might spring from the undergrowth to claim his life. Back then, he had been prey at the bottom of the food chain.
Now, he strolled with hands clasped behind his back, his steps as leisurely as if taking a walk in his own backyard.
In his left eye, the Eagle Eye Gu operated silently.
Deep within his pupil, a sharp golden gleam flickered—every rustle of wind and grass within several hundred meters was laid bare before him.
In the depths of his aperture, the Blood Scent Gu functioned like a precision radar, passively capturing every faint trace of blood in the air.
Within a hundred meters, no living creature's concealment could escape his detection.
This sense of having everything under control finally let his taut nerves fully relax.
"This is the composure that power brings."
Half a day later. Broken Fang Valley.
The terrain here was long and narrow, flanked by grotesque, jagged rocks like mismatched fangs. A faint smell of blood pervaded the valley floor, and beast carcasses lay scattered everywhere.
Lin Mu didn't bother searching. Guided by the Blood Scent Gu, he headed straight to a massive boulder deep in the valley.
There, a magnificent tiger over three meters long was feasting on a freshly caught deer. Its muscles bulged like granite, and every stripe on its coat radiated an unnerving killing intent.
As if sensing a stranger's presence, the tiger suddenly raised its head.
Those amber beast-eyes locked onto this uninvited guest, a thunderous growl rumbling from its throat, fresh blood still dripping from its maw.
"ROAR—!"
Without any probing, bestial instinct drove it to attack in an instant.
A reeking wind struck his face like a malevolent wave.
The tiger's hind legs pushed off, its massive body bearing down like a mountain of flesh. That tiger paw—larger than a human face—tore through the air with a shriek, smashing toward Lin Mu's crown.
This single strike could shatter rock.
Before, Lin Mu would certainly have chosen to dodge or use mud to slow it down.
But this time, he didn't move.
He stood rooted like a wooden stake driven into the ground, watching that tiger paw descend with his own eyes, not even blinking.
"Phase one test: Defense."
Lin Mu's thoughts stirred. Within his aperture, that pool of ink-green peak-quality Primeval Essence instantly boiled, flooding into the Red Mud Gu like a great river.
Hum!
Dark red mud instantly covered his entire body, rapidly hardening and compressing over his chest and crown, forming heavy red mud armor with a metallic sheen.
BOOM!
A muffled explosion.
The tiger's paw slammed onto the Red Mud armor.
Lin Mu's feet sank three inches into the ground, his whole body sliding half a step backward.
The mud armor over his chest dented slightly, leaving a palm print, but it didn't shatter. Instead, under the circulation of Primeval Essence, the depression quickly rebounded and hardened, dissipating all the recoil force from the tiger's paw.
Not a scratch.
"Not bad."
Lin Mu patted the dust off his chest, a hint of approval in his eyes.
"Before, I could barely block a wild boar's charge. Now I can take a full-force blow from a Rank 1 Upper Stage tiger head-on. Money well spent."
The tiger clearly hadn't expected this seemingly fragile human to be so tough. It froze for an instant, then grew even more enraged, opening its blood-filled maw to bite down.
"Test complete. Time for a different game."
Lin Mu's lips curved slightly.
"Phase two: Mobility."
Dust Escape Gu, burst.
Ink-green Primeval Essence poured in without reservation. This time, Lin Mu felt none of that stabbing pain of drained meridians. High-quality Primeval Essence was like premium lubricant, making the Gu's operation silky smooth.
POOF!
Gray-brown dust exploded outward, shrouding an area three zhang in radius.
The tiger's bite caught nothing but a mouthful of dirt.
It swung its claws furiously, trying to disperse the dust. But in its field of vision, its prey had vanished.
Within the dust cloud, however, Lin Mu moved like a fish in water.
The Blood Scent Gu had long since locked onto the thick blood-scent coordinates emanating from the tiger. He was like a gray specter, weaving at high speed around the beast.
One breath, two breaths, three breaths...
Eight breaths passed.
The tiger flailed like a fool being toyed with, roaring and lunging wildly, yet unable to touch even the hem of Lin Mu's robe.
Meanwhile, Lin Mu carved wound after wound into it with effortless ease—neither too deep nor too shallow—as if sculpting a work of art.
"Speed is sufficient. Concealment is sufficient."
Lin Mu's form halted, stopping behind the tiger.
The dust dispersed, revealing his calm face.
"Playtime's over. Time to send you on your way."
He slowly extended his right hand. Between his index and middle fingers, he pinched an Iron Leaf Gu.
"Phase three: Lethality."
The ink-green peak Primeval Essence within his body compressed to the extreme like a high-pressure pump, all of it injected into this tiny leaf.
The originally dark-green iron leaf underwent a qualitative transformation.
It no longer resembled a plant. Instead, it took on a cold, metallic luster like chilled iron, and at its edge, an inch-long aura of qi flickered in and out.
"Go."
Lin Mu flicked his finger.
Swoosh—
No sharp whistle of splitting air—only an extremely faint sound, like tearing silk.
The iron leaf became a black streak, instantly piercing the tiger's incredibly tough skull.
In through the back of the head, out through the brow.
A string of ghastly blood blossoms trailed behind.
"Aow..."
The tiger's massive body went rigid, then collapsed as if its spine had been yanked out, crashing to the ground and raising a cloud of dust.
Instant kill.
Lin Mu walked forward and deftly drew his dagger, beginning to process the spoils.
Skinning, extracting sinew, harvesting tiger bone, removing the tiger's heart.
His movements flowed like water, without a single wasted motion. This whole tiger's worth of treasures would fetch a tidy sum at the market.
Unfortunately, despite a thorough search during the dissection, he found no wild Gu worms.
"Still, Gu dropping from beasts is a low-probability event."
Lin Mu wasn't disappointed. He packed up the spoils and shouldered them.
Standing at the valley entrance, he glanced back at the mangled tiger carcass, conducting a final assessment in his mind.
"The stiffness is gone. High-quality Primeval Essence has raised all my Gu's power by a tier—especially the Dust Escape Gu, whose endurance has greatly increased."
"As I am now, killing Rank 1 Upper Stage is like slaughtering dogs."
"If I encountered an ordinary Rank 2 Initial Stage... I couldn't win, but I could retreat calmly using the Dust Escape Gu."
This was confidence.
The setting sun painted the clouds at the horizon blood-red.
Lin Mu, carrying the heavy tiger hide on his back, walked step by step down the mountain ridges into the evening glow.
His shadow stretched long behind him—like an unsheathed blade, its edge restrained, yet sharp enough to cut through thorns.