In mere moments, the cave was left with five lifeless bodies.
Leaf Tian searched their remains for a brief period, uncovering a handful of silver notes and several tomes, all bearing the same title—Black Demon Battle Body.
"This must be the fundamental cultivation method of the Black Armored Army!" Leaf Tian's eyes brightened as he eagerly flipped through the pages.
Indeed, it was the foundational inner strength technique of the Black Armored Army; however, similar to the Blood Cloak Guards, it only recorded the first three levels of the **Black Demon Battle Body** to prevent the leakage of their techniques.
"Impressive! Not only does it accelerate cultivation, but it also strengthens the physical body!" As he read on, Leaf Tian's eyes sparkled with enthusiasm. Although the level of the Black Demon Battle Body was comparable to the Blood Battle Eight Wilderness, it surpassed the latter in many aspects.
"What a pity it's limited to just the first three levels; otherwise, I would certainly choose this inner strength technique!" After a while, Leaf Tian sighed upon finishing.
While both techniques could enhance cultivation speed, the Black Demon Battle Body** offered the additional benefit of fortifying the physical body. It was clear which was superior.
Regrettably, only the first three levels were available, and obtaining the complete version seemed almost impossible. In contrast, the Blood Battle Eight Wilderness was available in its entirety.
After a brief moment of hesitation, Leaf Tian decided against practicing this inner strength technique.
Inner strength techniques differ from martial skills; one can only choose one. If he were to cultivate the Black Demon Battle Body, he would have to abandon the Blood Battle Eight Wilderness, which Leaf Tian deemed not worth the trade-off.
"However, this inner strength technique could be taught to the village chief and others; it would surely enhance the strength of the Leaf family." An idea struck him; while he could not cultivate it himself, the members of the Leaf family could certainly benefit.
The Blood Battle Eight Wilderness belonged to the Blood Cloak Guards and must not be disclosed, but the Black Demon Battle Body did not carry such restrictions.
"Yet it should not be openly practiced; if the Black Armored Army catches wind of it, trouble is inevitable!" After a moment of contemplation, Leaf Tian resolved to pass it on to close relatives like Leaf Lion, Leaf Feng, Leaf Meng, Leaf Ba, and the elders of the Martial Pavilion, enabling them to swiftly advance to martial artist levels and bolster the Leaf family's strength.
As for other members of the Leaf family, he would teach them the inner strength technique gradually, based on their strength and loyalty, thus ensuring that no one would learn of the Black Demon Battle Body.
"As long as I become a formidable force that surpasses a martial artist, what could the Black Armored Army do even if they discovered it?" A glint of determination flickered in Leaf Tian's eyes, for in this world, the strong held the ultimate authority.
"Roar!"
At that moment, Little White darted into the cave, exuberantly roaring in front of the pile of purple spirit stones.
Leaf Tian squinted, nearly forgetting about this valuable treasure.
This heap of purple spirit stones contained about a hundred pieces. Based on prior experience, if he refined them all, it would be sufficient for him to leap up four or five levels.
However, he could not be selfish; after all, this treasure was discovered first by Little White, and it was only fair to reserve some for it. Additionally, if the Leaf family were to share, the remainder would likely allow him to advance one or two levels.
"Little White, let's leave this place for now."
Leaf Tian quickly wrapped up the purple spirit stones and instructed Little White to carry them as they exited the cave.
After all, the leader of the Black Armored Army was a formidable martial artist at level six, and should he arrive unexpectedly, they would be in grave danger.
Carrying a haul of purple spirit stones, Leaf Tian and Little White did not head directly back to the Leaf family but instead sought a concealed location to begin refining.
"The Black Armored Army will depart in a few days, and before that, I must rapidly ascend to martial artist level five!" A fierce light shone in Leaf Tian's eyes as he recalled the conversation of the Black Armored Army members, who seemed to plan to annihilate the Leaf family and slay Little White before their departure.
In light of this, a bloody confrontation seemed unavoidable, and if Leaf Tian wished to contend with the leader of the Black Armored Army, he knew he needed to elevate his power one more notch to confidently face a martial artist of level six.
Crack…As Leaf Tian refined the purple spirit stones, Little White joyfully devoured the stones beside him.
Both man and tiger were swiftly enhancing their strength.
"One… two… three! Only three acupoints this time?" Just as before, after about half an hour, Leaf Tian finished refining a purple spirit stone and slowly opened his eyes.
Little White lay sprawled on the ground, squinting as it digested the consumed purple spirit stones.
A hint of confusion crossed Leaf Tian's face; although he spent the same amount of time refining a purple spirit stone, he had only opened three acupoints this time.
"Could it be that as my strength increases, the effectiveness of these purple spirit stones diminishes?" Leaf Tian thought, somewhat disheartened. It seemed that the path of cultivation was not as straightforward as he had imagined.
The stronger one became, the more energy was required to break through.
Evidently, if one purple spirit stone could assist him in opening three acupoints now, after advancing to martial artist level five, it might only help him open one or two.
"Ah well, opening three acupoints is still a decent outcome; one mustn't be overly greedy!" After pondering for a moment, Leaf Tian shook his head and picked up another purple spirit stone to continue refining.
Unbeknownst to him, as time swiftly passed, he refined more and more purple spirit stones, and the number of acupoints he opened continued to rise.
One stone… two stones… three stones…
Five stones… seven stones…
Leaf Tian's heart surged with excitement as he observed the acupoints he was gradually opening, realizing he was on the verge of advancing to martial artist level five.
Just recently, he had broken through to martial artist level four, and now he was about to ascend to level five. Such a terrifying rate of cultivation would astonish anyone who heard about it.
Indeed, after approximately six or seven hours, Leaf Tian had refined a staggering thirteen purple spirit stones.
And as expected, his cultivation level had reached martial artist level five.
"This rapid-fire pace of cultivation feels exhilarating!" After briefly sensing the abundant true energy within him, Leaf Tian could hardly contain his excitement.
In less than a day, he had advanced from martial artist level three to level five—a pace more rapid than consuming intermediate acupoint-purifying pills.
"Hmm? The sun is rising; I should head back quickly. Otherwise, if my father and the others can't find me, it will be trouble!" Observing the sky turning light, Leaf Tian couldn't help but think.
At that moment—
Boom!
The earth suddenly trembled, as if shaken by an earthquake. A chill ran through Ye Tian's heart as he leaned in to listen intently, sensing fierce roars emanating from the depths of the nearby forest, accompanied by the fluctuations of battle.
"Such intense fluctuations... At least a clash between third-level martial masters!" Ye Tian was momentarily taken aback but quickly deduced the source.
In this forest, aside from the martial masters of the black-armored army, only those three formidable beast masters remained. This violent energy wave was undoubtedly the aftermath of a battle between the black-armored soldiers and these ferocious beasts.
Moreover, it was clear that the instigator was none other than the sixth-level martial master, the "leader" of the black-armored army; otherwise, the energy fluctuations wouldn't be so pronounced.
"Should I go take a look?" A thought soon surged in Ye Tian's mind.
Curiosity is an inherent trait of humanity, and Ye Tian was no exception. Given that he had now reached the fifth level of martial mastery, he felt no fear in confronting the black-armored army's sixth-level leader.
After a brief hesitation, he buried the remaining purple spirit stones and, accompanied by Xiao Bai, who had just broken through to the third level, rushed toward the source of the energy fluctuations.
Approximately a quarter of an hour later, Ye Tian discovered a breathtaking battle in a hollow of the mountain.
The combatants included a tall, imposing warrior of the black-armored army, whose cultivation level confirmed him to be the sixth-level leader.
His opponents were a massive wolf adorned in golden fur and another in silver, both of which exhibited tremendous prowess, likely matching the leader's level.
Yet, the black-armored leader managed to hold his own against both wolves with remarkable ease.
"This guy has probably reached the pinnacle of sixth-level martial mastery!" Ye Tian marveled, astonished at the leader's formidable strength, nearing seventh-level mastery.
Recalling his earlier audacious claim to vanquish the three beast masters in the forest, Ye Tian couldn't help but feel a flush of embarrassment.
Facing the combined might of these golden and silver wolves was far beyond his capability.
Ye Tian observed the battle closely, his gaze sweeping around when he suddenly noticed several members of the black-armored army excavating something in the hollow.
There were about eighty or ninety individuals, one of whom was a third-level martial master, directing the excavation efforts.
Before long, Ye Tian watched as purple spirit stones were unearthed and set aside for storage.
"This is indeed a purple spirit stone mine!" Realization dawned upon him—no wonder the black-armored soldiers had gathered here.
"Vile beasts, prepare to meet your doom!"
Suddenly, a thunderous roar erupted from the front.
Ye Tian turned to see the black-armored leader emanating a dark glow, cleaving through the air with a blade of black energy that brutally injured the golden wolf.
However, the leader also fell victim to the silver wolf, which seized the opportunity to tear his clothing, leaving bloody gashes on his back.
"Roar!"
"Ah!"
A furious roar and a pained cry echoed, signifying that both sides were gravely wounded.
"Brother!" the third-level black-armored warrior directing the excavation exclaimed, rushing toward the fray.
Simultaneously, the excavating soldiers surged forward in unison, surrounding the injured golden wolf.
The wounded leader of the black-armored army bellowed, "Brothers, be cautious! Let's eliminate these two beasts before we resume mining the purple spirit stones!"
"Brother, I knew these beasts wouldn't relent. Are you regretting it now?" The third-level martial master shouted, leading his men to attack the injured golden wolf.
Meanwhile, the uninjured silver wolf engaged the black-armored leader in a fierce struggle, with neither side gaining the upper hand.