Outside the City(Part-2)

When Apollo entered the forest, he slowed his steps and looked around. The trees were tall, swaying in the dark wind, and the sounds of nocturnal animals occasionally echoed through the night.

"A wolf?" Apollo muttered, recognizing the distant sound. Without any cultivation, he would have been terrified and might not have dared to enter the forest. The thought of encountering a bear or other large animals would have seemed like suicide. But now, with his body strengthened by cultivation, he felt like the world was in his hands.

With newfound confidence, Apollo wandered through the forest, searching for the perfect spot to test his strength. The training ground only had a scarecrow for measuring strength, and Apollo wanted to see his power in action.

After a while, he found a tree smaller than the others he had seen so far, with only a three-meter clearing in front of it.

Apollo stood in front of the tree and clenched his fist. His test was simple: punch the tree and see if it would break. If he succeeded, he would find a bigger, tougher tree and repeat the process until he found one he couldn't break with his fist.

"This looks like red maple," Apollo muttered, though the tree didn't quite match. It was darker, with black leaves and a trunk that would need two people to hug. Despite the dark sky, Apollo could see well thanks to his heightened senses from his 1st-step cultivation. It was a wonderful feeling.

Red maple was a common tree known for its durability and strength. But the tree in front of him seemed like an upgrade.

"Let's see!" Apollo took a deep breath and raised his right hand. Clenching his fist hard, he punched the tree.

A banging sound echoed, followed by the sound of breaking wood.

"Woah!" Apollo shouted in amazement. He looked at his hand and then back at the tree. He had punched a hole in it! Although it wasn't enough to make it fall, he was amazed at the power his fist could produce.

"Let's do it again!"

Soon, the sound of fists crashing into the tree reverberated through the forest.

Bang!

A tree fell to the ground, raising a small dust cloud.

"Huff," Apollo breathed out, sweat dripping down his face. "It took longer than I expected."

He had to punch through the tree repeatedly until it finally collapsed.

"At least I got to feel my strength," Apollo muttered. After regulating his breathing and using the Simple Breathing Technique to recover some stamina, he decided to wander around the area.

Suddenly, the howl of a wolf reached his ears.

"Should I?" Apollo's eyes shone with an idea. Now that he knew his current strength, he felt the urge to test it in a real fight. With this in mind, he looked up at the trees and jumped.

He tried to imitate the moves of ninjas from the movies he had seen in his previous life, but he slipped after stepping on a trunk and was about to jump again.

"Ahhh!"

Bang!

Apollo fell to the ground, his eyes wide with fear. Oh god, I thought I was a goner! When he slipped, he had forgotten for a moment that his body was no longer the same as before. He stood up and patted himself down.

He tried again and jumped. Leaping at least five meters was easy now, but he still slipped from the tree. With another bang, he crashed to the ground.

"Ah!!" Apollo shouted in frustration. He repeated this process until he was covered in dirt and his body ached.

"Sh*t, f*ck it!" Apollo opened his system store and sorted through it. "Show me a skill that can help me be good at running and parkouring!"

Heaven Maneuvering Technique: Once learned, one could walk on anything—be it water, air, outer space, the Higher Dimension, or even the void. This technique doesn't require Qi; one only needs to use their physical body and mind.

Alm Points Needed: 1,000,000

Cosmic Treading Technique: Allows one to travel the universe in the blink of an eye. Requires a huge amount of Qi to use.

Alm Points Needed: 900,000

Meteoric Walk…

Instant Appearance…

Door to Door…

Apollo read each movement technique, and his eyes couldn't help but widen. Every technique was incredibly powerful—and expensive. If I had these techniques… Just thinking about it excited him.

"Show me the cheapest," Apollo ordered. The list sorted itself, revealing one item.

Simple Movement Technique: A movement technique that embodies the essence. Once fully mastered, learning other movement techniques will be akin to drinking water.

Alm Points Needed: 10

"This is good," Apollo muttered while reading the description. It has 'simple' in its name, but it's far from that. The beggar bought it, and new information started entering his mind.

After a while, Apollo took a deep breath and exhaled. He suddenly felt that his feet didn't belong to him. He tried to walk, and his step was stable and light.

Let's try again! Apollo looked up at the tree and jumped.

One meter…

Two meters…

Three meters…

Five meters…

Seven meters…

Ten meters!

In just one leap, Apollo reached ten meters in height! Woah!

Apollo landed on a tree trunk and looked down before a smile appeared on his face. "Great!"

Then, like a monkey, he jumped from tree to tree. Using the Simple Movement Technique, his vision and body coordination became better. He felt like he was on the ground even though he was up in the trees, maneuvering on slippery and small trunks.

After having fun for a while and getting used to his newfound ability, he climbed the highest tree and stayed there.

"D*mn, I ended up using my Alm points!" Apollo brought up his status screen with a frown.

STATUS SCREEN

Name: Apollo Leone.

Race: Human.

Alm Points: 18

Spirit Cultivation: None.

Physique Cultivation: 1st Step Foundation Building.

Attributes: None.

Sigh… Apollo realized that he was not very good at saving up. In his previous life, he didn't need to save up as money kept coming in. But now, in this world, as a beggar, he had to learn.

Awooo!

The sound of a 'wolf' howling reverberated, and Apollo was brought back to his goal. "I should test my strength on that wolf and then go back."