Planet Pulverizer: A Mortal's Ascent-Chapter 304: Rumors

Li Pin moved stealthily through the mine.

The cave walls were lined with a strange type of moss that seemed to merge with the aura of the dead. It emitted a faint green glow, providing light in the dark.

After walking for several kilometers, they had only encountered twelve of them.

"The density of Ghouls and Majin isn't that high," Li Pin remarked.

"That's because we're still in the outer section. The deeper we go, the more we'll see," Wen Xingchen explained. After a pause, he said, "They say a Top-Tier Astral Cultivator once ventured into Area C. When surrounded by a dozen Ghouls, he used Starlight Transformation to escape. However, in less than half an hour, thousands of Ghouls and Majin were drawn from all directions, eventually surrounding and killing him."

Li Pin had already heard about the mine's layout from Wen Xingchen before coming here.

In the early days of exploration, the mine was divided into Areas A and B. Deeper inside, countless tunnels led to other sections. After the miners of the Great Moon era perished and turned into Ghouls and Majin, no one knew how many areas there were, nor how deep the mine truly went.

Over decades of exploration, people could only map out what had been explored. Area C was undeniably one of the closest regions to the mine's depths.

"We're currently on the first level of Area B. After many expeditions, even Black Iron Ore is rare here, let alone Adamantium or Mithril. At best, we might find some abandoned Copper or Crimson Iron Ore in a corner," Wen Xingchen explained.

Copper and Crimson Iron Ore held little value. Due to their weight, apart from ordinary people, hardly any Martial Saints would take them as spoils.

"If we're lucky, we might stumble upon an unexplored section in the outskirts, filled with Adamantium and Mithril..." said Wen Xingchen, his words trailing off at the end.

He shook his head with a smile. After all these years, any new section in the outer regions would have already been discovered. Finding an unexplored area was like hoping to win the lottery.

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"We don't need to move stealthily anymore," Li Pin said.

Wen Xingchen was taken aback. "We don't?"

Li Pin smiled. "Didn't Qiao Yuanshan tell you? I'm staying here to train."

It had been a month since he had fully refined his path as a Martial God. During this time, his magnetic field had steadily strengthened, and his qi and blood had increased, with a daily rise of 0.15. Over the past month, his qi and blood had gone from 103 to 107.

Although this might seem like a small increase, each point in qi and blood wasn't a simple "+1" in the mathematical sense. Authorities had calculated that in the early stages, every point represented a percentage boost in overall power.

At later stages, during the Top-Tier Astral Cultivators Starlight Body phase, the growth slowed due to system changes, but the rate of increase was still significant.

Generally, with a qi and blood level of a hundred, a person would have a raw strength of a thousand kilograms. Even a small increase could lead to a thirty to forty percent surge in power.

It might not sound like much, but that was just the base strength, without factoring in the amplifications from Aura Force or secret arts.

At the Force Manifestation phase, martial artists could already harness all their strength, making their fist force highly concentrated.

When these several thousand kilograms are concentrated at a single point, the destructive power that could be achieved was beyond imagination.

"I haven't had a proper fight in two months. My body's practically rusting."

Li Pin turned a corner and spotted a wandering Ghoul.

Wen Xingchen looked at Li Pin walking forward and was momentarily stunned. Then, he exclaimed in disbelief, "Martial Saint Li... you can't be thinking of...."

He quickly realized what Li Pin wanted to do and said in horror, "You can't! These Ghouls may look slow, but their speed becomes terrifying when they attack! Their skin is as tough as iron, making them extremely hard and resilient. Only High-Class Astral Cultivators or a team of Martial Saints can defeat them! You can't take a risk like this!"

"Did Qiao Yuanshan not tell you about my past victories?" Li Pin asked.

"He did. He mentioned you single-handedly killed fourteen Skeleton Demons. Your strength rivals even Supreme Martial Saints. It's truly impressive..." conceded Wen Xingchen, "but these Ghouls have already reached the level of high-tier demonic creatures."

"Then he probably didn't mention how long it took me to kill those creatures." Li Pin revealed himself, smiling at Wen Xingchen. "Excluding the time spent running, it took me..."

The qi and blood he previously suppressed within him surged and erupted.

The Ghoul wandering several dozen meters away suddenly seemed to "smell" something. With a roar, it lunged toward them at an unimaginable speed.

"Nineteen seconds."

Wen Xingchen was stunned. Nineteen seconds!? Fourteen Skeleton Demons, mid-tier creatures that even Ordinary Martial Saints had less than a thirty percent chance of defeating, and only official Astral Cultivators could kill. Yet, he had taken them down in just nineteen seconds?

"Roar!"

Before Wen Xingchen could fully process this, the Ghoul was already within ten meters of Li Pin.

He barely had time to shout, "Be careful!"

Bang!

A thunderous explosion erupted in front of Wen Xingchen, followed by a fierce shockwave.

He couldn't even tell what happened. All he felt was a force pressing him back, like being pushed by a Martial Saint of equal realm. He stumbled backward, struggling to regain his balance.

As he retreated, scattered debris struck him, stinging his skin. His clothes tore, and bloodstains appeared on his body.

After eight or nine steps, Wen Xingchen finally unleashed his strength, lowered his center of gravity, and barely managed to stabilize his body.

In the heat of the moment, he had no time to think about anything else. His focus shifted toward the direction where the Ghoul and Li Pin were.

Amid the swirling dust, the scene of Li Pin being torn apart by the Ghoul didn't occur. Instead... he saw that Li Pin's fist had shattered the Ghoul's arm.

That arm, which was supposed to have been tempered by Death Aura, as hard as steel, was blown apart by the impact.

The violent force pierced through the Ghoul's body, causing it to howl uncontrollably as it staggered backward.

As it retreated, Li Pin's Force erupted beneath his feet. A visible shockwave burst from the spot where he stood, tearing the dusty ground apart.

In a daze, Wen Xingchen could only see a figure, swift and agile like a dragon, leaping into the air. Fiery, violent fist energy flashed with streaks of electricity, crashing down onto the Ghoul's head like a thunderclap.

With the keen eyesight of a Martial Saint, Wen Xingchen saw clearly how the Aura Force Li Pin unleashed struck the Ghoul's skull.

First, the head flattened, then the Force pierced through, blasting out from the other side as if something had exploded from within.

Then, the terrifying speed of the punch created a shockwave, obliterating the head after breaking its surface tension.

The entire skull shattered, sending countless fragments shooting out in the direction the fist was traveling.

The Ghoul's corpse was hurled sideways by the sheer force of the blow, flying five or six meters before slamming into the mine's wall, scattering stone debris and dust.

Bang!

A thunderous sound reverberated through the cave, accompanied by a second wave of powerful gusts of wind.

Unlike the Skeleton Demons, a Ghoul or a Majin's weakness lay in the head.

Once the head was destroyed, even these undead creatures, capable of resurrecting, would well and truly be dead.

After all, "undead creatures" theoretically could live forever, but that didn't mean they were invulnerable to death.

"As I expected, it's only as powerful as a newly elevated high-tier demonic creature. It has a qi and blood of around 160 points," Li Pin muttered, casually flexing his wrist.

Qi and blood between 150 and 300 fell into the category of High-Class Astral Cultivators. However, there was still a clear distinction between them. A powerful High-Class Astral Cultivator could easily take on ten newly ascended counterparts.

Of course, once human High-Class Astral Cultivators forged their Astral Palaces, their qi and blood would quickly rise beyond 250, making the gap between them seem less pronounced.

Wen Xingchen stared in shock at the now-motionless Ghoul, almost believing he was hallucinating. "Dead... it's dead?"

That's a Ghoul—a high-tier demonic creature! Only a High-Class Astral Cultivator could slay such an existence! This.... How long had it been?! Martial Saint Li had killed it just like that?!

"It took me only two punches to kill a demonic creature this weak," Li Pin said.

Li Pin's words jolted Wen Xingchen out of his daze. He glanced at the headless Ghoul, then at Li Pin, who looked completely unbothered, as if he hadn't even warmed up.

Wen Xingchen drew in a sharp breath. "Martial Saint Li... you..."

"Since you're equipped with weapons, check if there's an Astral Crystal in its body," Li Pin instructed before continuing forward.

The outburst of qi and blood earlier seemed to have attracted the attention of another Ghoul nearby.

Li Pin had noticed the creature just as it had sensed him too.

Having barely warmed up, he charged at it without hesitation.

Wen Xingchen took a deep breath. "A high-tier demonic creature..."

Seeing that Martial Saint Li had no intention of explaining further, Wen Xingchen recalled the warnings from his father and Qiao Yuanshan, suppressing the urge to ask more questions.

With the power Martial Saint Li wielded, if he had any ill intent toward the Xiangye Territory or the Wen family, he wouldn't need to go to such lengths. This confirmed the reason for his stay in the Xiangye Territory—he was here to train.

A Martial Saint comparable to High-Class Astral Cultivators....

Wait!

A thought flashed through Wen Xingchen's mind.

I remember, two months ago, during the King of the Century Competition, a peerless genius named Li Pin pioneered the path of the Martial God, surpassing the Martial Saint. His strength was beyond anyone's imagination. It's said he once single-handedly suppressed hundreds of Martial Saints and later unleashed a world-shattering blow, killing a Legend...