Astonishing Progress

Thwack! Thwack! Foul-smelling blood rolled down the thick hide of the Monoceros Boar's neck, dripping onto the dust-covered highway. Madness gleamed in the Monoceros Boar's eyes. With a series of low roars, it charged at Luo Feng again and again like lightning. Its iron hooves, single horn, and tail—three relentless attacks. "With its neck injured, its head-turning flexibility is significantly reduced," Luo Feng noted, dodging nimbly. During the Warrior combat assessment, he had honed his movement technique by facing the simultaneous siege of seven H-tier monsters. While the intensity of seven H-tier monsters attacking at once was slightly less than this near F-tier Monoceros Boar, the difference was negligible. Whoosh! Luo Feng advanced instead of retreating, executing an elegant sidestep. The Monoceros Boar's sharp horn was barely three centimeters from Luo Feng's body. Yet, those three centimeters were like an unbridgeable chasm, preventing the Monoceros Boar from harming Luo Feng in the slightest. "Strike!" Luo Feng's Blood Shadow Battle Blade descended from above in a swift vertical chop! With a piercing shriek, the Monoceros Boar roared in alarm and fury, its four hooves suddenly pushing to dodge Luo Feng's strike. But... Luo Feng's blade speed was too fast. All that was heard was the sound of the battle blade sinking into flesh. Splat— It struck the neck again, not in the exact same spot as before, but this time it cut in about eight centimeters deep! "Hmph, with its previous injury, its neck muscles can't resist with full force. Next time, its neck defense will be even weaker," Luo Feng thought. As he struck, Luo Feng immediately dodged and retreated, easily evading the Monoceros Boar's furious retaliatory attack. Then, Luo Feng closed in again! "Hoo~~ hoo~~" The Monoceros Boar let out furious, maddened roars. "One last time!" Luo Feng swayed three steps in quick succession, creating a blurry afterimage, once again dodging the Monoceros Boar's attack. Accompanying his agile footwork was Luo Feng's fierce strike! "Thwack!" The strike was difficult at first, but after cutting in twelve centimeters, the resistance sharply decreased. Luo Feng's Blood Shadow Battle Blade forcefully cleaved nearly two-thirds through the Monoceros Boar's head, then he swiftly pulled out his blade and retreated! Blood gushed from the massive wound like a burst pipe! "Awooo~~" With a mournful shriek, the Monoceros Boar convulsed, its four hooves thrashing wildly and unconsciously, cracking the asphalt highway beneath them. Then, the unconscious Monoceros Boar charged headlong into the curved highway guardrail, smashing through it before tumbling down. The sounds gradually faded, and there was no further response. Luo Feng stood by the broken guardrail of the highway, looking down at the Monoceros Boar's corpse, its head nearly severed. The blood flow had slowed, clearly almost drained. After all, the amount of blood spilled earlier was probably enough to fill a wooden barrel. "It's dead!" Luo Feng leaped down, then used his Blood Shadow Battle Blade to remove the Monoceros Boar's horn from its head. The most valuable part of the entire Monoceros Boar was this single horn! ... Watching from a distance, the five members of the Fire Hammer Squad couldn't help but let out a long breath. "Freak!" "Monster!" These two words came from the Wei brothers' mouths, respectively. "How about that? My recommendation wasn't bad, was it?" Chen Gu exclaimed proudly. If they were surprised before, now they were utterly stunned. "Unbelievable," Zhang Ke couldn't help but sigh. Captain Gao Feng, 'Double Wind Hammer,' stared at Luo Feng, who was cutting off the horn in the distance. "How is Luo Feng's movement technique so formidable? In terms of pure speed, the Monoceros Boar was even slightly faster than him. Yet, he dodged several times just now with such ease. And each time, it was as fluid as flowing clouds and water! If he can maintain this level of movement technique for hundreds or thousands of times, that would be the 'Subtlety Tier!'" "He's only eighteen, and if he's at the Subtlety Tier! He should be sent to the Martial Arts Hall Global Headquarters for special training," Wei Tie, the elder of the Wei brothers, couldn't help but say. The Subtlety Tier... It means a warrior of the same rank can execute precise and subtle dodges every time, using the minimal amount of force to achieve the most perfect evasion! This kind of evasion is very difficult; ordinary warriors can do it once or twice. But to do it hundreds or thousands of times, that signifies a true Subtlety Tier master! "We've struck gold!" Gao Feng smiled. Wei Qing, the younger of the Wei brothers, rarely nodded. "Hmm, if we nurture him, our Fire Hammer Squad can gain another core member." "My brother and I will teach him," Wei Tie said. Chen Gu and Zhang Ke both smiled. As veteran warriors who had walked the line between life and death countless times, they knew very well that some so-called geniuses had excellent physical attributes. But when truly fighting monsters, they might not even display a tenth of their strength. Thus, they generally looked down on so-called geniuses. True masters were forged through countless life-and-death battles! And Luo Feng, with such a strong first performance, was clearly formidable in combat as well. "Captain," Luo Feng ran over from a distance. "This horn..." "You killed it, so the horn is naturally yours," Gao Feng said. Luo Feng nodded, not refusing. Among monsters, the materials from Soldier-tier monsters generally weren't very valuable. Because Soldier-tier monsters could be killed entirely with thermal weapons... Even a Beginner Tier warrior, armed with a machine gun, could easily kill one Soldier-tier monster after another if their aim was good. That's why Soldier-tier monsters weren't valuable! "This horn, if sold to the Martial Arts Hall, should be worth three thousand yuan. You'd also get a few contribution points. If sold to the underground alliance, it should fetch five thousand," Chen Gu said with a smile. Only materials from Commander-tier monsters were valuable. And important materials from 'Lord-tier monsters' were astronomically priced! "Luo Feng, your performance just now was barely satisfactory," Wei Tie, the elder of the Wei brothers, said, his face stern as always. "Tie Ge?" Luo Feng looked over. "Please enlighten me, Tie Ge." "Your movement technique foundation is good, but your efficiency is far too low," Wei Tie said with a cold face. "Later, watch how I kill an F-tier monster." ... Luo Feng had killed a near F-tier monster. After traveling for a short while, Luo Feng and his team encountered an F-tier feline monster, a 'Tiger Cat Monster.' This Tiger Cat Monster had spotted markings and was as robust as a calf. In terms of agility and ferocity, it was far superior to the Monoceros Boar. "Watch me," Wei Tie said coldly. Whoosh! Shield in his left hand, a curved blade in his right. Wei Tie charged straight at the Tiger Cat Monster! "Tie Ge is an Advanced Warrior, his physical attributes are comparable to this F-tier Tiger Cat Monster," Luo Feng observed carefully. He watched as Wei Tie, without dodging, collided head-on with the Tiger Cat Monster in the distance. No, to be precise, it was the instant the Tiger Cat Monster roared and pounced, colliding with Wei Tie. Wei Tie sidestepped, his shield colliding obliquely with the Tiger Cat Monster. This angled impact caused the Tiger Cat Monster to lose its balance, tilting to one side. "Thwack!" A treacherous arc of cold light scraped past the shield, slashing beneath it at the Tiger Cat Monster's exposed throat, revealed when it lost balance. As blood gushed out like a burst pipe, Wei Tie swiftly retreated, watching with cold eyes as the Tiger Cat Monster roared in agony, gradually weakening, falling, and finally losing its breath. Wei Tie cut off the Tiger Cat Monster's tail, extracted a nearly transparent tendon from it, put it in his backpack, and walked back. "Did you see that? My movement technique isn't as good as yours, and the strength I used didn't exceed yours. But, I killed it in one move," Wei Tie said, looking at Luo Feng. Luo Feng was still in shock. The battle just now had indeed been decided in an instant. Whereas he, to kill the Monoceros Boar, had dodged its attacks repeatedly, then struck its neck. It had taken considerable effort to kill it. Moreover, the Monoceros Boar was much weaker than this Tiger Cat Monster. "Think about it carefully," Wei Tie said, offering no further explanation, letting Luo Feng ponder alone for a moment. Luo Feng was utterly stunned. Wei Tie's speed and technique weren't particularly flashy, but the results were undeniably effective! "The best way to kill a monster is to target its weak points!" Wei Qing, the younger of the Wei brothers, walked over and said indifferently. "Generally, the weak points of land-dwelling beasts are their eyes, anus, throat, and mouth. Secondary vital points include the soft abdomen... And tertiary vital points are the neck and back that you were hacking at!" Luo Feng nodded; he knew these things. But monsters moved so fast, it was hard to stab their eyes! Monoceros Boars and Tiger Cat Monsters usually kept their heads low, making it difficult to stab their throats. Attacking the abdomen was also difficult, so hacking at the neck and back was the simplest. "But if there's no opportunity, you create one!" "For example, my brother just now, through a sudden, angled collision, caused the Tiger Cat Monster to lose its balance, momentarily exposing its vulnerable neck. Then, his curved blade instantly stabbed from beneath the shield, piercing its neck. This instantly killed the Tiger Cat Monster," Wei Qing said indifferently. "Even my brother's final strike came from beneath the shield, giving the monster no time to react!" Luo Feng nodded. "Remember, learn to utilize your strengths," Wei Qing said. "Be as effective and concise as possible! Your movement technique is excellent, but you don't need to show it off every time. When killing monsters, the ultimate goal of every action is to kill the monster most effectively." "Understood," Luo Feng nodded. Wei Qing rarely showed a hint of a smile. "Let's go," Captain Gao Feng said, waving his hand with a smile. ... The Fire Hammer Squad was clearly intent on seriously nurturing Luo Feng as a future 'core member' of the team. Along the way, Wei Qing and Wei Tie took turns dealing with some monsters, occasionally letting Luo Feng handle them himself. Through their words and actions, they imparted practical combat experience to Luo Feng. And Luo Feng's progress was equally astonishing. Even the Commander-tier powerhouse Gao Feng intervened a few times to instruct Luo Feng. Luo Feng gradually understood that killing monsters meant making every attack as effective as possible. His previous beautiful dodges when first killing the Monoceros Boar were, in reality, just showing off and ineffective! Luo Feng's attacks gradually became sharper, more direct, decisive, and efficient! Three days later. Early morning, on a dilapidated ring road, the six members of the Fire Hammer Squad advanced. "Two F-tier Lion-Mastiff Dogs ahead, Luo Feng, you take them," Captain Gao Feng ordered. "Yes, Captain," Luo Feng grinned. He ran towards the Lion-Mastiff Dogs, not moving particularly fast. "Roar~~" "Roar~~" The two Lion-Mastiff Dogs roared and charged at Luo Feng. Bloodthirsty madness gleamed in the eyes of the Lion-Mastiff Dogs; they paid no mind to the human before them. When the two sides were very close—a smile appeared on Luo Feng's face. Whoosh! His speed suddenly surged! The fur on both Lion-Mastiff Dogs instantly bristled. Luo Feng, however, closed in instantly, executing four strange steps—the 'Flowing Light' movement technique from the 'Nine-Layer Thunder Blade'. He lured the Lion-Mastiff Dogs to pounce with their claws, then twisted his body, precisely dodging their sharp claws. The moment their bodies passed each other, his Blood Shadow Battle Blade treacherously stabbed out! Thud! It directly pierced a vital point in the neck. Luo Feng swiftly lunged forward, then turned to look at the other Lion-Mastiff Dog. "Roar~~" The other Lion-Mastiff Dog, seeing its companion's neck gushing blood, let out a low growl and swiftly fled. Gao Feng, Chen Gu, and the others from the Fire Hammer Squad all showed a hint of a smile at the sight. Although Luo Feng's experience still couldn't compare to the Wei brothers, his advantage in movement technique meant that Luo Feng's lethality was now no less than that of Wei Tie or Wei Qing. "Luo Feng, let's go, we need to get into the county town quickly! Lion-Mastiff Dogs are pack animals; the one that just fled will soon bring a whole pack of them back," Chen Gu said with a chuckle. Luo Feng smiled and rejoined the group, and the six members of the Fire Hammer Squad finally entered their destination—County-level City No. 0201.