Chapter 159: Score

When Li Pin saw the Demonic Cat and boldly approached with his sword, the Demonic Cat noticed him as well.

Ferocious beasts and demonic creatures were less aggressive toward martial artists than to Astral Cultivators, but eliminating intruders to ensure the safety of their territory was every creature's fundamental instinct. It's similar to how nations didn't allow others to amass troops on their borders.

"

Meow!

"

With a shrill, ear-piercing screech, the Demonic Cat charged toward Li Pin at an incredible speed.

Despite moving on two legs like a biped, its speed and agility defied any martial artist's imagination. It was significantly faster than even Li Pin. If the Demonic Cat decided to flee once it realized it was outmatched, Li Pin would have no chance of catching it.

"Qi and Blood level: 50.5 to 51."

Li Pin tightened his grip on the sword, crouched slightly, and pushed his spiritual perception to its limits.

After the life-and-death battle he had experienced against Lin Yuzhi, his mental spirit had grown once more, further sharpening his innate "Clairvoyance" talent.

When he intently focused, he could clearly "hear" his powerful heartbeat and the sound of his qi and blood flowing. He could also "see" the ripples created by the Demonic Cat's frantic dash and the friction between its body and the air. Moreover, he could distinctly perceive the force generated by its muscle contractions.

In an instant, the distance between Li Pin and the Demonic Cat had shrunk to less than ten meters. The Demonic Cat's sharp claws swung down with raw, unbridled force. This attack held no techniques, feints, or variations—just pure, unrelenting speed.

Against such an attack, even a typical grandmaster would struggle to perceive or dodge in time, not to mention a Core Formation martial artist!

In the realm of martial arts, only speed was invincible.

But to Li Pin, it still wasn't fast enough!

"

Whoosh!

"

As the Demonic Cat's claws came down with lightning speed, Li Pin, from his crouched position, burst into motion. His body, like a tightly coiled spring, snapped straight and propelled forward with the force from his feet.

Blood Core Eruption!

As the earth exploded beneath him, he moved like a mythical Lilong, his speed nearly matching that of the Demonic Cat. He could clearly see the ripples from the Demonic Cat's claws tearing through the air and the pulsing of its muscles as it unleashed its explosive force.

In less than a second, he covered the ten-meter gap!

Just as the Demonic Cat's claws, slicing through the air with a force that seemed capable of tearing through flesh, were about to strike, Li Pin abruptly shifted to the left. Li Pin and the Demonic Cat passed each other in a blur.

Before the Demonic Cat could react, Li Pin, who had already shifted half a body's length away, launched a lightning-fast strike with his sword

Sizzle!

The sharp blade pierced through the back of the Demonic Cat's neck, slicing through its body and emerging from its waist on the other side.

Thrust! Pull! Cross!

The entire sequence was fluid and fast beyond belief!

Carried by the force of his momentum, Li Pin landed more than ten meters behind the Demonic Cat, kicking up a cloud of dirt and stirring the blades of grass.

Blood spurted from the Demonic Cat's neck, spraying into the air like a fountain.

The Demonic Cat let out a terrified scream. "

Meow!

"

Surprisingly, the Demonic Cat didn't die on the spot even with its severe injury. The significant blood loss and pain left it feeling fearful. It did not attack Li Pin again but tried to escape. However, due to the fatal nature of its wounds, the bleeding far exceeded what the Demonic Cat had anticipated.

It fled in terror for several dozen meters, blood spilling everywhere. Feeling its strength draining, it persisted for a while longer before finally collapsing.

Li Pin shook the Lingfeng Sword in his hand and walked slowly to the Demonic Cat's corpse. At this moment, a number flashed on the device on his wrist.

Points: +17.

Total points: 17.

Li Pin searched the Demonic Cat's body but found no Astral Crystal.

"This Demonic Cat was much stronger than the one outside Liuchuan County," Li Pin remarked.

A surge of emotion welled up within him. The probability of low-tier ferocious beasts and demonic creatures producing Astral Crystals was indeed very low.

The last time he obtained an Astral Crystal had been purely due to luck. Moreover, since the Demonic Cat at that time seemed to have just recently consumed an Astral Crystal to complete its evolution, its qi and blood level had likely been only around thirty-five, allowing him to kill it before he even formed his Core.

If it had been this Demonic Cat back then, he would have been the one to die.

"A beast of this level is comparable to the Astral Cultivator at the Astral Hall," Li Pin noted.

Compared to when he first started teaching at the Astral Hall, he had grown considerably stronger.

After checking, Li Pin looked toward a specific direction. That was the boundary between the competition area and the outside.

"I need to set up a simple shelter."

Since he was alone in the wild, he needed a place to rest. Even an iron man couldn't endure half a month of high-intensity combat without a break.

Li Pin searched the forested area for a suitable hiding spot.

***

While Li Pin and the other competitors were engaged in fierce combat with the ferocious beasts, a leaderboard showing each participant's score began to take shape at the World's Top Martial Competition Venue.

Despite the poor signal, significant delays, and various interferences from the Shadow Forest, human experts had already thoroughly explored this vast one-hundred-thousand-square-kilometer area. Numerous supply towns had even been established, making it no longer an uncharted territory for humanity.

As time passed and signals were transmitted, the rankings slowly came into view. To everyone's surprise, none of the five seeded competitors occupied the top spot. Instead, it was held by Yan Hongtu, a talented disciple trained by the Dragon Gate Hall of the Central Dynasty.

In less than two hours since the contestants entered the competition area, the Quasi-Martial Saint, yet to condense his Martial Will, had already amassed an impressive ninety-two points.

***

In another building, Su Mai, a heavyweight of the Taibai Kingdom, was seated with other high-ranking leaders from surrounding countries. They were viewing the rankings displayed on a large screen. They had access to more detailed information than the average person.

Ying Yu, the Blackbird Kingdom Martial Association chairman, asked, "Two Demonic Cats, a Snowman, and a Man-Eating Flower. Zhang Songbai, did your Central Dynasty's seeded competitor fall into a ferocious beasts' den? Such intense battles might cause problems, don't you think?"

Compared to the Taibai Kingdom, the Blackbird Kingdom Martial Association held significant weight. Its chairman, Ying Yu, was also the royal prince of the kingdom. He was on par with Su Mai in terms of status.

Zhang Songbai, a middle-aged man, said with a smile, "Hongtu has been trained differently from other martial artists. From a young age, he was taught that ferocious beasts and demonic creatures are humanity's arch-enemies. He is determined to exterminate all of them, reclaim the lost territories of humankind, and assist humanity in reclaiming the throne of Gaia.

"Therefore, he not only has extensive experience hunting ferocious beasts and demonic creatures but also knows their habits and weaknesses very well,"

An extravagantly dressed elder could not help but frown. "This... seems like cheating, doesn't it?"

"Cheating? Where's the cheating?" Zhang Songbai denied calmly. "The very purpose of martial arts is to help humanity stand firm in this world, to fight against heaven and earth, to battle all things, and to compete for more living space.

"Hongtu excels in fighting ferocious beasts. His effectiveness decreases when fighting humans. According to your argument, learning to kill ferocious beasts is wrong, and learning to kill people is the correct path?"

The elder fell silent upon hearing this.

Despite humanity being divided into the Six Extremities, with collaboration, competition, and even confrontation among themselves to gain influence, hunting ferocious beasts and demonic creatures was considered the highest form of political correctness. No one would dare criticize it.

Anyone who sacrificed their life fighting ferocious beasts and demonic creatures was not subject to any slander. This was why many notorious criminals, when sent to fight on the frontlines and eventually perish, would not only have their crimes forgiven, but they would also accrue merits that would be passed down to their descendants.

"It's just the beginning. Everyone, please remain calm." Wan Qingshan, a member of the Tianyuan Dynasty's royal family, spoke up. "Although it's been a long time since we last held a competition like this involving the hunting of ferocious beasts, the real measure of ranking and strength will not be apparent until ten days later.

"In the first few days, everyone will have time, energy, stamina, and supplies. Naturally, they will perform efficiently in battle. But after three to five days, they will face more than just ferocious beasts, they will also have to contend with survival in the wilderness."

He smiled. "It is only then that they will face the true test."

The others nodded in agreement.

Survival in the wilderness!

Even before the emergence of Astral Cultivators, it was already a well-known fact that those who possessed information held the initiative in war. Thus, scouting and constantly understanding the movements of ferocious beasts and demonic creatures were crucial.

Only martial artists could silently infiltrate territories occupied by powerful ferocious beasts and demonic creatures. Over the decades, human traces in the areas dominated by ferocious beasts and demonic creatures have almost been completely erased. Scouting these places was akin to surviving in the wild.

Surviving in such treacherous wilderness was extremely perilous. Contestants had to learn to survive without supplies, teammates, or assistance, and achieve notable results. This was why the Tianyuan Federation expended significant effort to establish this competition area, where competitors faced the challenge of venturing into and surviving in the wilderness, hunting ferocious beasts.

If they couldn't survive for even half a month on land where most major dangers have been removed and achieve certain results, it would be even harder to survive in actual perilous regions later on. One misstep could mean death.

"Let's just wait and see. Also, these competitors are the martial arts talents of our respective nations. Pay attention and send help quickly if someone requests it. We can't afford to lose them easily," Su Mai said.

"A batch of such talents comes around every three years. In my view, we shouldn't rush to their aid. Facing life and death without support might lead them to shine even brighter," Ying Yu sneered.

No one responded to this remark. After all, most of the competitors, apart from martial arts identities, had personal connections with them. They couldn't simply watch as these individuals ventured into the perilous region without any protection.