Road to Be the God

Chapter 21 Cultivate the Combat Craft

Seeing Lin Tian acted suddenly, Su Shu had a glint of surprise flashing across her eyes.

"What a silly!"

She mumbled. Of course, she knew that Lin Tian was standing up for her.

As his hand was held by Lin Tian, a glimmer of fierceness showed in Zhou Hao's eyes but he still greeted with a smile on his face, "Hello."

He nodded at Lin Tian perfunctorily and then shifted his gaze to Su Shu, and said with a smile, "Oh right, Shu, here is the thing. The Interior Ministry Trial will be held in three months. I will make it into the Interior Ministry for sure and then I will join the Imperial Expeditionary Army later. In light of my capability, I won't be weak in the Army. When I achieve astonishing feats, I may even be conferred as a prince or marquis. By then, you will be a princess consort."

Su Shu frowned and looked disgruntled.

"You haven't made it into the Interior Ministry yet and now you are fantasizing about being made a prince or a marquis," Lin Tian cast a glance at the sky and murmured to himself, "Weird. It's daytime now. You shouldn't still be dreaming."

"Haha!"

Su Shu couldn't help giggling.

Zhou Hao's face clouded over and his smile was gone instantly.

"Brat, what did you say?" The two people behind Zhou Hao stepped forward. One of them was about to slap Lin Tian in the face. "You asked for it!"

A gust of palm wind roared in a rush of terrifying momentum.

"Peak of the fourth layer of body cultivation!"

Astonishment was etched on Su Shu's face.

The young man who was about to attack Lin Tian sneered arrogantly and struck a harsh slap at Lin Tian with a bit more strength.

Lin Tian snorted and gave him a kick in the belly. With a bang, the man was sent flying away with a scream in pain. He was tossing from side to side on the ground, covering his belly. Hardly could he get up again.

"You..."

The other man also wanted to attack Lin Tian but as his peer was beaten, but he got frightened at once.

Clenching his fists, he was struggling whether to charge forward or to flinch.

Zhou Hao stared at Lin Tian, saying, "You've just joined the Martial Institution and you are so strong now. I'm quite impressed. However, is it too impropriate that you bully your fellow disciples in light of your strength?"

"Impropriate?" Lin Tian was a bit dismissive. "So you mean it is appropriate that I just stand still and get slapped by him? If so, why don't you stand there and take my slap?"

"Brat, watch your mouth!"

The man who didn't dare to act yelled.

Lin Tian looked at the man coldly, making the man shiver at once and shrink back.

Zhou Hao pressed his hand against the man's back to keep him from retreating. Then, he took a step forward and stared at Lin Tian. "You are really capable. I would like to challenge you. Will you accept it?"

Zhou Hao gaped at Lin Tian with a composed face but his eyes glittered with coercion.

"Challenge me?" Lin Tian stared at Zhou Hao meaningfully and answered with a smile, "Of course, fine by me. However, the time of the challenge must be decided by me."

"Well, what time do you prefer?"

Zhou Hao asked.

"The Interior Ministry Trial will be held in three months. It will be a perfect time."

Lin Tian said casually.

"Okay. As you wish. Let's have a fight in three months." There was a glint of fierceness in Zhou Hao's eyes. "Yet, Lin Tian, people are inevitably hurt in the challenge. How about coming into an agreement of life and death between us first? What do you say?"

With knitted brows, Su Shu wanted to refuse the suggestion for Lin Tian but she was stopped by him.

Staring at Zhou Hao with narrowed eyes, after a while, Lin Tian gave a sinister smile. "Good idea."

Having lived once before, he knew how to tell a man's personality. Apparently, Zhou Hao was a treacherous and hypocritical man. Faced with such a man, he couldn't show the white feather at all.

Then, the two of them signed a letter of challenge and agreed to fight in three months.

Both of them must be responsible for their life and death!

"See you in three months then!"

Zhou Hao said with a grin and took a meaningful look at Lin Tian before turning around and leaving.

...

On the way to Qingfeng Mountain, Su Shu gazed at Lin Tian with a complaining look. "How could you accept his challenge? Three months are not long enough to make you catch up with Zhou Hao."

Lin Tian laughed and didn't mind at all. Although Su Shu kept whining about his decision, he was aware that she was actually worried about him.

"Why are you still laughing?"

Su Shu became even angrier when she saw him laughing.

Lin Tian can't help raising his eyes heavenward. "What should I do if I don't laugh? Do you want me to cry? Or, you want me to shrink back before Zhou Hao and stay away from you with a pitiful look?"

Su Shu thought about it and said, "No!"

Lin Tian spread his hands. "There you go."

The entrance of Qingfeng Mountain was relatively close to the Elder Pavilion. After half a quarter, Su Shu brought Lin Tian here. There was a huge rock gate ahead, on both sides of which two deacons of the Martial Institution were guarding.

"Be careful. No heroics when you go inside. Just find a corner and cultivate."

Su Shu said to him.

Lin Tian nodded, took a few steps forward, and stopped.

"By the way, Su Shu, I have a request to make," Lin Tian turned around to say to Su Shu, "I will probably spend a long time cultivating the combat craft inside. Could you please take care of my sister? She is not familiar with this place."

Su Shu was slightly dazed and surprised.

"It is said that this guy didn't even blink his eyes when he killed Mo Sen. I didn't expect that he could be so gentle to his sister."

She mumbled to herself.

"What did you say?"

Su Shu's voice was too low for Lin Tian to hear clearly.

Su Shu hastened to shake her head. "Nothing! Just go ahead. Your sister is on me."

"Okay. Thank you then."

Lin Tian said with a smile.

He waved at Su Shu, showed his jade pendant to the deacon, and then went inside.

Watching Lin Tian disappear, Su Shu was lost in thought.

"Frankly speaking, he looked quite dashing just now."

She muttered in a low voice.

...

Qingfeng Mountain's terrain was complicated, featuring massive thistles and thorns. It was the paradise of monsters. After saying goodbye to Su Shu, Lin Tian entered the primitive forest through the rock gate. Walking in the forest, he felt astounded. The old trees here were too thick. Any one of the trees was more than two meters in diameter.

Lin Tian shook his head and soliloquized, "My current priority is to find a place to cultivate combat craft."

Qingfeng Mountain occupied a vast area. Strolling within, he could hear monsters howling occasionally and catch sight of quite some disciples of the Martial Institution. Apparently, those people were cultivating here too. Lin Tian didn't go deep into Qingfeng Mountain. Instead, he found a secluded and spacious grassland at the edge.

"Phew."

Lin Tian let out a breath, sat cross-legged, and closed his eyes to start practicing Siji Scriptures. Instantly, the spiritual energy of heaven and earth flooded from all directions, enveloped him like a layer of the mist-like light cocoon.

After half a quarter, the spiritual energy of heaven and earth was stabilized. Lin Tian opened his eyes again.

"Done."

He mumbled to himself.

The martial artist had better keep his status in his prime before he started cultivating combat craft. Having practiced Siji Scriptures for half a quarter, Lin Tian finally adjusted his status to the best level.

He stood up and shouted with a serious face, "Shadow Fire Boxing!"

Lin Tian swung his fists rhythmically, which caused the air to buzz continuously. He struck his fists and didn't stop until the sweat was pouring off him. After taking a little rest, he resumed cultivating again.

"Bang!"

"Bang!"

"Bang!"

On the grassland, Lin Tian not only waved his fists in midair but also punched the old tree aside against the pain. He hit the tough trunk of the old tree and his fists were even bleeding.

Very quickly, two hours passed.

Within two hours, Lin Tian had struck countless punches. Now, he felt his fists became scorching as if his fists were wrapped up with flames. His energy even seemed to burst out, which made him feel thrilled. His eyes glittered with excitement.

"Shadow Fire Boxing!"

He shouted and then swung his left fist.

With a bang, nine fist shadows appeared with strong energy and landed on an old tree ahead. "Crack!" A small part of the tough trunk of the old tree was blasted, which caused the bits of wood to splash around.

Lin Tian smiled. "After two hours' effort, I've eventually touched the threshold of the first layer."

Shadow Fire Boxing was an elementary combat craft of body cultivation, which consisted of two layers. The first layer was Shadow Boxing. The practitioner could exert numerous fist shadows of energy. When he cultivated to the highest level, he could exert eighteen fist shadows at the same time. The power created was rather potent. The second layer was Fire Boxing, which could make the fist shadow of the first layer carry with flames. The power was even more striking.

It only took Lin Tian two hours to reach the threshold of the first layer, Shadow Boxing. He struck nine fist shadows now. It was fair enough to say that his cultivating speed was astonishing! Yet, Lin Tian was not satisfied with the progress. There were a lot of strong martial artists in Jiuyang Martial Institution. He knew that he still had a long way to go. For example, Zhou Hao was way much stronger than him.

"I must work harder!"

Lin Tian muttered to himself.

He took a deep breath and clenched his fists to resume cultivating.