And now, he was waiting here, in a dilapidated temple, waiting for the rain and night to pass.
As for Ji Yao, the government only provided a clue that he was last seen near this forest area.
Now, he needed to check the forest when the sun rises, and if he is lucky, he can find Ji Yao, take his head, get the bounty, and spend it on improving martial arts. Otherwise, just return back empty-handed.
Just as he was thinking further, a sudden robotic sound took him out of his daze.
[DING!!
World scanned successfully!!
The 'Evil Slaying System' is at your service.
Newbie gift pack: Iron Claw Skill (Lower Yellow Grade, Maximum Level)]
With this sound, a blue interface appeared in front of him, causing him to instinctively jolt back.
But after the shock came excitement, and his body began to shake as he looked at the interface with eyes wide open.
"S-System? Is my cheat finally here?" he took a deep breath, as his fists clenched tightly.
But the system didn't answer back and instead asked something else.
[Do you want to use 'Iron Claw Skill (Lower Yellow Grade, Maximum Level)'?]
Taking a deep breath, Ye Yuan calmed himself down as he asked a question he wanted the answer to before replying.
"System, are you responsible for bringing me to this world?"
[Unknown. Question out of scope of system functions.]
"So, how did you choose me? Is there a certain criteria or someone's choice?"
[Unknown. Question out of scope of system functions.]
"Haah," Ye Yuan took a deep breath as he rubbed his forehead a little. While he wanted to know the answers to those questions, they were not absolute.
He couldn't decide not to use the system just because of some doubts. Without it, he would most likely remain the same poor-talent person, who might spend his whole life taking revenge on those two gangs and end up dying somewhere unknown.
"So, what are your features?" he asked seriously.
[Answerable. Information is being imparted to host.]
As the text appeared, a set of information regarding the use of the 'Evil Slaying System' came to his mind.
Just as the name suggested, it was a system that worked after the host slayed or killed people who were evil – those who had done something harmful or evil acts – and the host would get corresponding Evil Slaying Points in return. The amount depended on how much harm they had done and how powerful they were.
He could use those points to conduct a lottery from the system, which was divided into the following criteria:
•100 points for Yellow Level Lottery
•1000 points for Black Level Lottery,
... (Unknown).
Of the Yellow and Black levels which were visible, he could only use Yellow for now. Once he obtained atleast one Supreme-level skills in the Yellow level(skills: low, mid, high and supreme level), the Black lottery would open.
Additionally, there were random chances that the system would give the host random missions at certain times, rewarding points or specific martial arts.
"Yellow, Black, and other unknown levels," Ye Yuan muttered, guessing the next one to be most likely Human Level. These were the levels martial arts were divided into – Yellow Grade, Black Grade, and Human Grade – the only ones he knew of, unaware of whether there is something after Human Grade.
[Do you want to use 'Iron Claw Skill (Lower Yellow Grade, Maximum Level)'?]
Now that he knew about the classification, he was sure that this lower Yellow skill was exactly what he had thought.
And just that was enough to excite him. You must know that in their small Blackwood City, the highest-level martial skill was only at the mid Yellow level — owned by the City Lord and a few noble families, making them the top forces of Blackwood City.
As for the low Yellow level, those were mostly held by others like the master of the Black Bear Dojo, the leaders of the Red Wolf Gang, the Two-Headed Viper Gang, and a few others. Only a handful, such as the master of the Black Bear Dojo, had cultivated them to the perfect stage, allowing them to step into the next realm after the Skin Refining Realm – the Flesh Training Realm.
"Use it," he said calmly, readying himself.
As soon as he finished speaking, he felt a warm sensation spread across his body, starting from his fingers and palms and slowly moving through his limbs.
Next, the warmth gathered at his skin. It felt as if his body was being tempered – his skin becoming tougher, stronger, and more resilient. Then, like a barrier being pierced through, he broke past the Skin Refining Realm.
But it didn't stop there. The strengthening continued. His skin grew rougher and firmer until, at one point, the roughness faded away, leaving behind a layer of smooth, flexible skin filled with vitality.
Then the energy began to flow deeper, focusing on the flesh beneath the skin. His muscles tensed and expanded as the strange warmth tempered them continuously. A second barrier broke, and a surge of power flooded his body. He had broken through again – this time into the Flesh Training Realm.
Ye Yuan kept his eyes closed as countless images and insights flooded his mind – the practice methods, battle applications, and mastery techniques of the Iron Claw Skill from beginning to end.
"Hah…" He exhaled deeply, opening his eyes as a visible mist escaped his mouth, scattering dust and debris around him.
"So powerful…" he muttered, feeling the newfound strength flowing through every fiber of his body.
He looked down at his palms and fingers – they appeared thinner, sharper, yet stronger than before.
Swish!
With a light swipe of his hand, a deep claw mark appeared on the solid ground before him. His fingers had dug into the earth as if it were soft clay.
He stood up and touched his skin, which had both the toughness of armor and the softness of youth. Added to the power he felt coursing through his body, he was certain that this wasn't a dream but reality.
"Hahahahahahaha!" A loud laugh burst from his mouth, echoing through the temple as if releasing all the tension he had carried over the past years.
In just a moment, he had joined the ranks of the powerful in Blackwood City – standing just below a handful of others. The thought of finally taking revenge made his heart race with excitement.
Tap tap tap
Just as he was about to conduct a few more tests, the sound of footsteps reached his ears, mixing with the rhythm of falling rain – clear to his enhanced senses.
"Brother, look! There's a temple here. We can stay for the night," an energetic male voice said.
"Yes, let's go in," another deep voice followed, and the footsteps drew closer.
With the creak of the door opening, two figures entered the temple. Their eyes immediately fell on Ye Yuan, who had instinctively gripped his Tangdao in a defensive stance.
As the pair stepped further inside, their figures became clearer.
One of them was a burly man with a bushy beard and a large stick-like weapon strapped to his back. The other was slightly shorter, with a few scars on his right cheek and one eye clouded and blind.
Seeing Ye Yuan, the shorter man clasped his hands together politely and spoke.
"Forgive the intrusion, little brother. We were out on some business when the rain started. Would it be alright if we stayed here for the night?"
"Um," Ye Yuan nodded lightly, lowering his Tangdao slightly before sitting back against the wall.
Noticing his calm reaction, the two brothers also moved to the opposite side of the temple, sat down, and took out a few meat buns, eating and chatting casually.
"Brother, we've been searching for that Ji Yao for hours, and he's nowhere to be found. Are those greedy officials even sure they gave us the right clue?" the large man said in a loud, carefree voice, not bothering to lower it even though Ye Yuan was nearby.
"It can't be wrong," the shorter one replied, rubbing his clean chin. "That Ji Yao fellow killed the nephew of the City Lord's current favorite concubine. There's no way the officials would dare give false information about that after such a big mess."