Baihu Junior Rank, Blood Moon Kuanggang

"Shattered Stone Palm!" In a corner of the back mountain's forbidden area, Li Yi's figure drifted like a ghost from one corner to another, landing atop a large rock. With a gentle swing of his right palm, a robust force descended upon the boulder. A muffled sound emerged, and where Li Yi's palm landed, there was surprisingly no trace. However, on the opposite side of the boulder, a burst of shattered stones erupted, forming a palm-shaped indentation on the rock. After this strike, Li Yi's figure slowly descended to the ground, slightly raising his hand, with a faint trace of fighting spirit constantly surging between his fingers.

Beside him, the Snake Venerable floated in mid-air, slightly swaying. After a moment, he said indifferently, "Kid, I know you want to integrate these fighting techniques into your peculiar set, but it's not as simple as it seems, even for me. You might as well rest and cultivate for a while. Rushing like this won't yield any results." Li Yi sneered, "Old Coot, do you think I have the time to cultivate slowly?"

"Heh," the Snake Venerable chuckled, "Is that girl that important to you? Do you really want to go to Yunshui City and kill Nalan He? You've done your research; the Nalan family dominates Yunshui City. Your Li family is no match for them. Killing won't be easy, and I can't help you with that now." Li Yi replied calmly, "I know, and I also know that the head of the Nalan family is a Warrior of the King level. Going after his beloved son won't be easy... But should I just give up because of that?"

The Snake Venerable smirked oddly, "If you do go, what's your plan? Confront them directly?" Li Yi huffed, "First, let them call off the engagement. If they refuse, then I'll think of something else... In the end, if nothing works, killing Nalan He is the last resort. I heard he's also a Warrior now... Hmph, a Warrior doesn't scare me."

"Arrogant brat!" the Snake Venerable shook his head. "Killing a Warrior unawares is easy, but if he's on guard, it's a different story. Think it through... This is not like the times you killed Ye Qingma or Yin Tianjie!"

Li Yi replied coldly, "If I can't protect my woman, am I even a man? When it comes to that, I won't even be interested in the Sacrificial Rites." "You're threatening me again," the Snake Venerable sighed, "Alas, who'd have thought I'd end up with a disciple like you... But since I can't help you physically, I'll teach you this move!"

"Watch closely, kid! I'll only demonstrate once for safety. This is a Baihu level fighting technique!" Baihu level?! Li Yi's eyes brightened. He had been diligently training every day, hoping to integrate the fighting techniques into his Phantom Kill and enhance his strength. However, perhaps due to his state of mind, his progress had been minimal. But now, the Snake Venerable intended to teach him a Baihu level fighting technique! Just the Zhuque level techniques could allow one to challenge beyond their rank, but Baihu level was unimaginable.

The Snake Venerable smiled faintly, his figure flickering slightly in mid-air. His eyes narrowed, and after a low chuckle, the surrounding, slightly noisy forest fell deathly silent. Li Yi felt an immense pressure, making him feel incredibly insignificant. The air around him seemed to grow heavier, and even the flowing stream appeared to have stopped.

This skin-crawling atmosphere made breathing difficult for Li Yi. He squinted up at the Snake Venerable in the air, murmuring, "This Old Coot seems even more terrifying than the man in white that day... If he were in his physical form, not just a soul...," Li Yi caught his breath. In his eyes flashed a trace of wild fervor. For someone like Li Yi, getting stronger was a constant pursuit. In his past life, he thought he had reached the pinnacle, but in this life, he realized how limited his view had been. Now, this legendary world excited him even more!

In mid-air, the Snake Venerable's ethereal figure began to emanate faint blood-red fighting spirit, incredibly sparse but daunting. This mere hint of spirit, accentuating the Venerable's figure, resembled a mighty python capable of splitting mountains and seas. Li Yi watched intently, not blinking.

Finally, the faint fighting spirit slowly contracted, as if returning to the Snake Venerable's body. The surrounding light dimmed for a moment and then brightened again, turning everything within sight blood-red. Wisps of blood-colored mist, like ropes, swirled around the Snake Venerable. He raised his right hand slightly, and with a subtle shift in the space around him, he swung his palm toward a mountain wall.

"Baihu Junior Rank, Blood Moon Kuanggang!"

"Boom—" A thunderous explosion erupted as the Snake Venerable's palm struck, with blood-colored fighting spirit gushing out, forming a crescent shape in his palm.

This crescent moon, imbued with a hint of madness, fiercely descended. Where the Blood Moon touched, the space around it became a blur of illusion. When it finally struck the mountain wall, it was eerily silent. In the visible range of Li Yi's eyes, he clearly saw that everything, be it trees or rocks, turned into powder the moment they were touched by the red fighting spirit. The falling blood-colored fighting spirit didn't dissipate but instead started to spin wildly upon reaching a certain point. The original blood moon, now like the center of a tornado, spun furiously, sucking in everything around it, even the air seemed to be drawn into its vortex. Strangely, as the Blood Moon spun, it didn't grow but shrank instead. Li Yi squinted his eyes, and even with the naked eye, he could sense the extreme lethality within the Blood Moon.

"Break!" With a low shout from the Snake Venerable, the hand seal in his hand changed slightly, and the highly concentrated fighting spirit Blood Moon exploded! The sound broke through the skies!

"Boom—Boom—Boom—Boom—" The blood-colored fighting spirit moon, like an exploding sun, burst open with a cold aura, enveloping the heavens and earth. The mountain wall, already pockmarked, now bore a huge circular hole, as if devoured by a black hole. In this astonishing scene, as the giant hole appeared, the Blood Moon gradually dissipated, finally vanishing into the air. On the mountain wall, there seemed to be some chaotic blood-colored lightning still jumping around.

In the Li family's back mountain forbidden area, the landscape had completely changed. Li Yi, covering his ears, stared at the scene before him, utterly dumbfounded... Was this the power of a Baihu level fighting technique? Looking at the perfectly round hole in the mountain, Li Yi couldn't believe his eyes.

In mid-air, the Snake Venerable's ethereal figure flickered slightly, coming beside Li Yi. Looking at Li Yi's expression, he smiled faintly and said, "What's wrong? Weren't you always coaxing me to teach you a higher-level fighting technique? Why are you scared stiff upon seeing this technique?"

......

In the Li family's Martial Arts Pavilion, two elders who were originally sitting cross-legged facing each other suddenly changed their expressions. They flashed and almost simultaneously appeared outside the pavilion, looking towards another direction of the back mountain with extremely peculiar expressions. After a moment, the elder with a clear forehead was already covered in cold sweat, his hand trembling slightly, but still looking in that direction, slowly saying, "This... This is... This is..."

Inside the study room of Li Han from the Li family. Li Han, originally engrossed in his documents, suddenly trembled and, without even bothering to open the door, burst out, looking towards the direction of the back mountain. His face suddenly showed a strange light, murmuring, "Isn't this where that brat is cultivating? How... How... This... Is this a Baihu level fighting technique? How... How is that possible!?"

"Someone! Come quickly!" A hint of madness flashed across Li Han's face. When the Li family's guards arrived, he grabbed one by the clothes and hissed, "Send the order, from this moment on, except for the young master, no one is allowed to step half a step into the back mountain forbidden area! Whoever comes, kill without mercy!"

In the main hall of the Long family, Long Fei sat with a troubled expression, as the Long family's recent attacks on Blood Wolf Town had not gone as smoothly as expected. Suddenly, his expression changed, and he rushed out of the hall, staring in the direction of the Li family, his face showing an unpredictable look, murmuring, "This... This is... The Li family... The Li family really..."

In the Fighting Deity Temple of Wanchao City. This most sacred and mysterious place in Wanchao City seemed somewhat plain at this moment. In the Gothic-style temple, a large deity statue hung prominently at the front, appearing somewhat ethereal and hard to look directly at. In the spacious temple, a row of white-robed priests sat meditating with their eyes closed. Suddenly, the priest sitting at the top, Bede, opened his eyes, his face showing a strange solemnity, slightly frowning and saying, "Do you feel it, everyone?"

"Yes, Priest Bede, we all felt it... It must be the response after a Venerable used a Baihu level fighting technique," replied the priests. Bede's face showed a hint of confusion, "In the Tianfeng Empire, Venerables are few, and I haven't heard of anyone mastering a Baihu level technique, not even the temple lord... What exactly..."

He glanced at Xia Chen, who had been meditating opposite him. After a moment of silence, Xia Chen said indifferently, "Whoever used this technique, it's clear that there was no intent to kill, likely someone teaching a disciple. If I'm not wrong, it's highly likely related to the Li family, possibly even the return of the Li family's ancestral Venerable. As you all understand, at that level of strength, life is incredibly long. Such a powerhouse is best left unprovoked..."

After a pause, Bede asked, "So, you mean..."

Xia Chen replied lightly, "Pretend we know nothing, lock down all information, and continue preparing for the Sacrificial Rites... If I'm not mistaken, we might have found another talent for the Fighting Deity Temple..."

"If that's the case, then let's follow your suggestion..." Bede smiled faintly and closed his eyes to meditate again. The remaining priests, seeing this, also closed their eyes, as if the previous sensation was an illusion...