A Demon Plant that can command several thousand Low and Middle Tier Demon Beasts must be on par with a High Tier Demon Beast, perhaps even approaching a Top Tier Demon Beast.

Throughout demon-slaying history, geniuses capable of fighting such a beast, even after reaching the Steel Bone Realm, were exceedingly rare.

For a student at the Iron Flesh Realm, even a prodigy who had completely grasped Huajin, killing it would require giving their absolute all!

These thoughts flickered through Li Juefeng’s eyes. His trembling hands pushed against the ground as he struggled to climb out of the crater, his chest letting out a sharp CRUNCH.

At the furthest reach of his crimson gaze, a figure in black landed with a thud. His bent knees rose in unison with the half-spear shaft in his hand.

’What is a prodigy of the Spear Dao?’

’That is!’

A flash of cold light accompanied by a dragon’s shadow—an ultimate burst of power that transcended realms to instantly kill the thick-rooted Demon Plant!

Its edge was unstoppable; the Huajin obliterated everything in its path!

’That fleeting glimpse of cold light and a dragon’s shadow... that is the Ancient Martial Spear Dao I have sought so desperately but could never attain!’

A hot current surged from Li Juefeng’s chest, burning through his limbs. Blood streamed from the corners of his eyes, but it couldn’t hide the divine light gleaming within them. "Jiang Qiu... has reached the Mastery Realm!"

His whisper was a pebble dropped into a pond, instantly creating massive waves.

"We’re alive... We’re alive?!"

"HAHA— We’re alive! We’re alive!"

"HAHA! Jiang Qiu killed the Demon Plant! The Demon Beasts are all dead! We’re not dead!"

Two or three hysterical shouts vented the pent-up suffocation, echoing like thunder in an empty valley and unleashing a chaotic symphony of life.

The scattered students shouted Jiang Qiu’s name, their crazed laughter rising to the heavens as saliva and blood streamed unheeded from the corners of their mouths.

Everyone’s gazes converged on Jiang Qiu like fireflies. The boy holding the broken spear was half-naked, a few strips of his black shirt hanging from his shoulders. His broad back muscles, built like a rolling hill, shifted from copper-yellow to crimson as white steam wafted off him, as if a War God was calming his rage. 𝘧𝓇ℯℯ𝑤ℯ𝘣𝓃ℴ𝓋𝑒𝑙.𝑐𝘰𝑚

’[Powerful Penetration] exhausted my bones and sinews, and [Copper Transformation] burned through my hot blood. I unleashed it all in an instant, focusing my body’s entire strength into Huajin, gambling that this one strike... could kill the Demon Plant.’

Jiang Qiu glanced down at the broken spear shaft in his hand and let out a long, turbid breath. ’A pity the shaft was too soft to withstand it. After I get out of this Secret Realm, I’ll use the money from turning in the Demon Beasts to buy a sturdier spear shaft...’

[Mastery Fusion Practice x1]

[Powerful Penetration + Copper Transformation + Huajin = Soaring Dragon Piercing]

In an instant, the sensory experience of piercing the air to kill the Demon Plant flooded his mind. He gave a slight flick of his fingers, and a brilliant light shone in his watery eyes.

[Ancient Martial Spear (Mastery)]

[Mastery Points: 1/10]

[Technique One: Soaring Dragon Piercing]

[Features: Strikes like a soaring Azure Dragon; its Spearpoint Armor-Piercing like a clap of thunder.]

Once Ancient Martial Spear reached Mastery, one needed to undergo Mastery Fusion Practices to continue upgrading, and each fusion was a deepening of one’s own path in the Ancient Martial Spear Dao.

For most students from the Northwest Province who had stepped onto the path of Martial Arts, years of Body Refining and spear dancing were all for the sake of a single moment of enlightenment, to step into the Mastery Realm.

Even a genius like Li Juefeng had yet to forge his own Ancient Martial Spear Dao, pinning his hopes on the rumored Qiang Su Fragrance that could supposedly break through bottlenecks...

Thinking of this, Jiang Qiu shook his head with a light chuckle. He looked around at the students sitting on the ground, who were now raising their right fists and shouting his name: "Jiang Qiu! Awesome—"

CRUNCH.

The crack of his knuckles was drowned out by the shouts of dozens of people. Xie Kuang’s eyes were wide as he stared at the boy who was the center of everyone’s attention, the corners of his twitching mouth squeezing out a few drops of blood.

’My aptitude is clearly not bad. When Wang Guanjia challenged and failed against Li Juefeng in our first year, I was publicly recognized as the second-strongest in the eight training grounds!’

’Doesn’t that make me a top-tier genius?’

’But he came to Training Ground Eight and, in less than half a month, snatched the two portions of Wusu Fragrance that should have been mine, shattering my spear shaft in a single move right in front of everyone!’

’How could he do all this?!’

’He replaced me as the leader of Training Ground Eight, took the top spot for the practical training hunt that I didn’t even dare to dream of, and now he’s turned the tide by killing the Demon Plant and wiping out the Demon Beasts!’

’He’s stepped over my head and Wang Guanjia’s, and now even Li Juefeng can’t compare to him!’

’How can he improve so fast, saving everyone by turning the tide, while I’m just like a rat, and the people who followed me are all dead?’

’The gap is so huge...’

As the thought settled, the trembling of Xie Kuang’s bleeding jaw ceased, and a bitter taste mixed with bloody foam spilled from his lips.

HISS...

A faint sound seemed to pluck at his heartstrings. As if guided by a thought, his gaze was pulled to three unnoticed White Jade Fruits lying ten steps away, as eye-catching as pristine jade emerging from mud.

’The Demon Plant’s fruit!’

’How did no one notice?!’

Xie Kuang’s heart leaped. He pushed himself up from his knees and paced over, his chest pounding.

’If I just secretly eat the Demon Plant’s fruit, I can absorb the power it has brewed for years...’

’Break through to the Iron Flesh Realm, then advance even further to the Steel Bone Realm...’

’It contains the concentrated essence of the Demon Plant’s entire life, absorbing the Life Force from the dead Demon Beasts that it didn’t have time to convert...’

’It’s even the pebble of the Demon King Red Flame Spider Mother, capable of hiding the aura of my growing strength...’

’I’ll surpass my own peak, and crush the currently exhausted Jiang Qiu.’

’Then I’ll kill everyone else, and no one will be left to report me when we get back. Even Director Zhao won’t be able to find anything wrong!’

The whispers in his heart strung together like beads. Xie Kuang bent down and picked up the White Jade Fruits. Their warm, smooth texture in his palm felt like he was truly holding a precious jade, startling him so much that his lips and face twitched. "As long as I eat it... I can kill everyone in this Secret Realm... But can I really surpass Jiang Qiu just by eating a fruit?"

TAP. The instant he grabbed the fruit, it was as if a berry had burst on its backside. Xie Kuang’s eyes narrowed like slashing blades, his murky pupils reflecting a smear of purplish-black liquid and mangled limbs on the pad of his index finger.

"What is this thing? It thinks it can control my mind!"

Gritting his teeth, he crushed the remnants of the tiny, purplish-black spider between his thumb and forefinger. He glanced at Jiang Qiu from afar and snorted coldly. ’He saved everyone with his own power. On what basis could I possibly surpass him right now?’

TAP. TAP. TAP...

Xie Kuang let out a long, heavy breath and walked toward Liu Zili, who was kneeling in the distance, carrying the three White Jade Fruits.

At the moment, she was the person from Training Ground Eight he was least familiar with, and also the one closest to Jiang Qiu.

The victor’s prize should, in the end, go to the victor.

...

In the cold, rustling wind, the Demon Plant’s trunk yellowed and dried, as if it were a rootless tree that had been decaying for a thousand years.

His gaze swept over the ravaged battlefield. The bodies of Iron Armor Lizards and Red Armored Giant Lizards surrounded the remaining students. More than a dozen students lay on the ground, unmoving.

The vast gray clouds swirled overhead, and the border of the Secret Realm stretched to an endless horizon. Everyone was gasping for breath in this liminal space.

Jiang Qiu remained silent for a long time, the heat in his blood suppressed by a chilling realization.

’If all I pursue is the status of a Martial Artist, can I really survive in a world like this?’

’Ever since the Secret Realms awakened a hundred years ago, the territory of Xia Country has shrunk again and again. Less than a tenth of the land is actually guaranteed to be safe.’

’And I was born in the Northwest Province, where war is most frequent—a city that was once repeatedly trampled by the Demon King Red Flame Spider Mother.’

’Slaying Demon Beasts is my destiny.’

’I must put in more effort to improve myself, so I’m no longer trapped by the schemes of the Demon Race, thrown into desperate situations without understanding why.’

The whisper settled in his heart. Jiang Qiu’s gaze burned like black jade as he clenched his fist and roared, "The Demon Plant is dead! Light the fires and roast the meat!"

"YEAH—"

His call was met with a hundred replies. The students who had collapsed on the ground scrambled to their feet, gathering behind the leaders of their respective training grounds.

SNAP. Someone broke off a dry, brittle root from the Demon Plant. CLICK. A flame shot out from a lighter.

A bonfire was lit, its large flames dancing with the wind but refusing to die out.

The belly of a Red Armored Giant Lizard was cut open, its heavy plates peeled away, and the meat set to roast...