The Speedrun Begins with Choosing Hunter

「The next morning.」

Sect Leader Murong Tian’s rewards were delivered to Wan Jun Peak.

The carriage, filled to the brim with rewards, made all the disciples who saw it on the road burn with envy.

The carriage slowly made its way to a massive estate at the summit of Wan Jun Peak.

Now that Bai Yuan was a True Disciple, his residence had naturally been moved from the mountainside to the summit.

He was the only True Disciple on Wan Jun Peak, so his courtyard was naturally situated right next to Wan Jun Hall. It was an incredibly lavish estate, covering a good four or five acres.

Becoming a True Disciple came with many benefits.

The most obvious change was the addition of two pretty maids in his courtyard—a privilege exclusive to True Disciples, one that Inner Sect Disciples could only dream of.

"Young Master, allow me to help you out of bed."

A slender, graceful woman with a cool and aloof air gently helped Bai Yuan sit up in bed, the very picture of contrast.

This was Liu Qing, a handmaiden assigned to Bai Yuan by the Divine Mansion Sect.

Outside the room, another young woman with a round face, named Jiang Fei, was patiently simmering congee.

Both were fine young women, skilled in the four arts of the zither, Go, calligraphy, and painting.

In a place like Qinghe County, only the young ladies of great houses could boast such talents, yet in the Divine Mansion Sect, they could only be handmaidens.

In fact, the two of them came from prominent clans in Huanglong Prefecture, though they were not of the direct lineage.

You Shengnan had warned him about this before.

Situations like this were actually quite common in the Divine Mansion Sect.

These women were raised from birth to be exceptionally skilled at serving others, then sent by their clans into the Divine Mansion Sect to curry favor with the True Disciples.

After all, every True Disciple of the Divine Mansion Sect had the potential to become a titan in their own right. Forging a connection with one using just a woman was an incredibly worthwhile bargain.

Of course, accepting these two women meant getting entangled in karma.

All sorts of interests would inevitably become intertwined.

Thus, among the True Disciples, there were those who readily took them into their chambers, and there were also those who turned the beautiful maids away.

After all, not every Martial Artist was an Ascetic Monk.

"Junior Brother Bai, Sect Leader Murong is truly generous."

Xiongshan excitedly burst into the room, grinning widely at Bai Yuan.

To the outside world, Bai Yuan was still in bed recuperating, so he had to trouble Xiongshan and You Shengnan with checking the inventory of Murong Tian’s rewards.

Tier Six Monster Flesh, Spirit Pills for Entering Martial Artists... These were all just standard fare.

Murong Tian had even gifted a piece of Celestial Meteorite Iron, a treasure worth a fortune.

His own Blood Tiger Scimitar was forged from Celestial Meteorite Iron, though it was nowhere near as large as the piece Murong Tian had gifted him.

’Did that Black-faced Ancestor of mine not like large sabers?’

’Not at all!’

’Only a large saber could truly bring out the power of the Blood Tiger Saber technique. The Black-faced Ancestor was just poor! If he’d had a piece of Celestial Meteorite Iron this big, he would have insisted on forging a three-foot-long great saber.’

Of course, what Bai Yuan cared about most was the Cultivation Technique.

Murong Tian knew that, like Old Dong, he was walking the path of cultivating all techniques, so he had generously allowed Bai Yuan to choose two Cultivation Techniques from the Merak Pavilion.

The other True Disciples were only allowed to choose one.

This could be considered a special favor from Murong Tian.

At that moment, You Shengnan also walked in from outside.

"Junior Brother Bai, when are you planning to go to the Instructor Hall?"

She looked at Bai Yuan, lying limp and powerless in bed.

Bai Yuan bolted upright in his deathbed.

"We leave at once!"

...

Main Peak, Instructor Hall.

"Se-... Senior Brother Bai?"

In front of the Instructor Hall, a Steward stared at Bai Yuan, uncertain.

He had just seen the man beaten half to death last night, so he never expected him to show up at the Instructor Hall in a wheelchair the very next day.

Murong Tian’s reward involved the Instructor Hall, so they had received the news early on.

They had originally thought Bai Yuan would wait for his injuries to heal before coming, but they didn’t expect him to be so quick.

He was truly... diligent.

With a direct order from Murong Tian, things went much more smoothly.

But now that Bai Yuan was a True Disciple, they wouldn’t have dared to obstruct him anyway. This was all a reflection of a True Disciple’s status.

Before long, an Elder from the Instructor Hall appeared in person.

Before, Bai Yuan had just been an Inner Sect Disciple, so of course an Elder like him would not have needed to condescend to greet him. But now, the young man was a True Disciple, and that carried a completely different weight.

The Instructor Hall Elder personally pushed Bai Yuan’s wheelchair up to the Merak Pavilion.

Such treatment was a rare sight.

Their actions drew many sideways glances from other disciples.

Soon, the two arrived at the Merak Pavilion.

Merak is the second star of the Big Dipper, also known as Giant Gate. Above it lies Dubhe of the Phecda star. As for the Cultivation Techniques in the Dubhe Pavilion, only the Thirteen Peak Masters and the Supreme Elders are qualified to enter.

In other words, the Merak Pavilion was the highest level that disciples of the Divine Mansion Sect could reach.

It was Bai Yuan’s first time in the Merak Pavilion, and he was curious.

The Merak Pavilion was much smaller than the Yao Guang Pavilion, containing a mere ten Cultivation Techniques.

But this was normal. After all, there weren’t many Cultivation Techniques in the Divine Mansion Sect on par with the Tiger-Crane Form.

The Merak Pavilion originally held thirteen Cultivation Techniques. Seven were lost in a past rebellion, four were later recovered, and the Tiger-Crane Form had been burned by Bai Yuan. That meant two were still missing, with no news of their whereabouts.

Bai Yuan swept his gaze over the ten yellowed ancient tomes arranged on a rosewood table.

Saber techniques, swordsmanship, spear techniques, leg techniques...

These Cultivation Techniques covered the styles of most Martial Artists.

The three Cultivation Techniques Old Dong had given Bai Yuan were not among them. Clearly, those were Old Dong’s private collection and did not belong to the Divine Mansion Sect.

Bai Yuan didn’t hesitate for a moment.

He first chose the saber manual.

There was no special reason for his choice; it was simply the only saber technique available. Only by practicing a saber art could he raise his saber skills to the legendary level.

In addition to that, Bai Yuan picked a leg technique manual.

Fists and feet are two sides of the same coin. His Boxer class was perfect for practicing leg techniques.

There was an old saying in the Jianghu: fists for self-defense, legs for killing.

A well-mastered leg technique was a true killing art, its power not to be underestimated.

Right now, Bai Yuan only practiced saber techniques. If he lost his saber, his combat effectiveness would be drastically reduced. With a leg technique, his options in a fight would be much more flexible.

From his past life of grinding through mini-games, he knew that the Boxer was actually a late-game powerhouse class.

Once one’s fist and foot techniques were trained to the absolute limit, that level of power... Tsk, it was terrifying.

The Instructor Hall Elder looked at the two Cultivation Technique manuals in Bai Yuan’s hands without a hint of surprise.

You couldn’t find another disciple in the entire Divine Mansion Sect who practiced both saber and leg techniques, but since the young man before him was Dong Wanjun’s disciple, it all made sense.

"Bai Xiaoyou, you have three days to transcribe these. After that, I will come to Wan Jun Peak to retrieve them."

"Remember, the Cultivation Techniques must not be shared with outsiders."

The Instructor Hall Elder knew that Bai Yuan had been secretly wounded by the Soul-Chasing Tower’s vicious methods and that his mobility was limited.

By doing this, he could earn a favor from Bai Yuan with almost no effort, so he was naturally happy to do it.

Bai Yuan replied, "Then I’ll have to trouble you, Elder Liu."

The Instructor Hall’s Cultivation Techniques could not be leaked. If the Law Enforcement Hall discovered it, the punishment would be severe.

Therefore, to prevent leaks, borrowed Cultivation Techniques were generally not entrusted to others and were usually returned in person.

Although Bai Yuan was Old Dong’s disciple, and the Law Enforcement Hall was practically his own backyard, he still didn’t want to cause any unnecessary trouble.

The Instructor Hall Elder enthusiastically saw Bai Yuan downstairs again.

Outside the Instructor Hall, Liu Qing and Jiang Fei, who had been waiting for a long time, escorted Bai Yuan back to Wan Jun Peak.

Bai Yuan went back to playing the part of a cripple.

He lay comfortably on the bed as Jiang Fei skillfully massaged his feet.

’The life of a feudal landlord has its perks, after all.’

Although he didn’t plan to take the two women as his own, he had no intention of becoming an Ascetic Monk either. There was no reason to refuse such a good thing when it landed right on his doorstep.

While enjoying the gentle warmth on the soles of his feet, he leisurely opened the saber manual he had just acquired. Five powerful, vigorous words appeared before his eyes.

"Three Axes of the Woodcutter"

Don’t be fooled by the technique’s simple and unadorned name; its origins were immense.

It was created by the Founding Ancestor himself—the same old woodcutter depicted on the Divine Mansion Sect’s token.

Legend has it that the Founding Ancestor was forced into the mountains by his enemies. He chopped wood every day and, from this, gained enlightenment, creating a set of saber techniques based on woodcutting.

This set of techniques followed the path of "great skill appearing artless." It was incomparably profound, its quality no less than the Tiger-Crane Form, and perhaps even higher than the Blood Tiger Saber.

Bai Yuan’s Black-faced Ancestor was also an Entering Martial Artist, but his martial lineage was far inferior to that of the Divine Mansion Sect.

Take the Blood Tiger Saber, for example. Within the Divine Mansion Sect, it couldn’t even be considered top-tier.

Of course, Bai Yuan only had this thought after his horizons expanded upon becoming a True Disciple. If the Blood Tiger Saber were released into the outside world, it would undoubtedly be a Cultivation Technique that countless people would fight to the death over.

...

「Three days later.」

As promised, the Instructor Hall Elder came to Wan Jun Mountain to retrieve the two Cultivation Technique manuals.

Bai Yuan had a cheat, so he didn’t need to transcribe them at all.

He looked at his panel.

[Name: Bai Yuan]

[Classes: Demon Hunter, Ghostwriter, Boxer, Spirit Cooker]

[Skills: Three Axes of the Woodcutter (Uninitiated), Leader’s Leg (Uninitiated), Night Wanderer Step (Master), Myriad Transformations (Master), Hundred Poison Hand (Master), Tiger-Crane Form (Master), Blood Tiger Saber (Master)...]

[Enhancement Points: 0]

His martial arts panel was now looking extremely impressive.

Now that he had the Cultivation Techniques, all he needed to do was grind the skills.

...

Not long after Murong Tian bestowed the rewards, Old Dong made Bai Yuan the Commander of the Wei Camp.

The former Commander, Zhao Han, became Bai Yuan’s deputy.

In an instant, their roles of offense and defense were reversed.

Bai Yuan had become Zhao Han’s superior.

However, since he was currently feigning illness in bed, Zhao Han was still in charge of the Wei Camp’s affairs.

While Bai Yuan was lying low and cultivating peacefully on Wan Jun Peak...

Two unique lists quietly began to circulate throughout the Jianghu.

One Heaven List, and one Earth List.

The Heaven List was comprised entirely of Entering Martial Artists, while the Earth List ranked the outstanding young talents of Huanglong Prefecture.

First on the Heaven List was, of course, the Shenfu Sect Master, Murong Tian. Second was naturally Dong Wanjun. There was little controversy about this. Besides the two of them, the Heaven List included almost every Entering Martial Artist in Huanglong Prefecture.

As for the Earth List, the one ranked first was the number one True Disciple of the Divine Mansion Sect, Dongfang Yu, the prized student of Sect Leader Murong Tian.

The lists circulated with incredible speed. Within a few days, almost every Martial Artist in Huanglong Prefecture had a copy.

As a newly promoted True Disciple, Bai Yuan was naturally on it as well.

However, his ranking was far from optimistic.

Fifty-three...

Not only was he ranked last among the sixteen True Disciples of the Divine Mansion Sect, but he was even behind many young geniuses from other powers in Huanglong Prefecture.

The annotation after his name on the list explained the reason: meridians severely damaged, foundation half-destroyed.

The Divine Mansion Sect had not publicized what happened that day on the Dragon Gate Platform, but the creator of the list had still gotten the news and even had a clear grasp of the extent of Bai Yuan’s injuries.

This came as a surprise even to Bai Yuan.

’Their reach is truly heaven-encompassing.’

Not long after the lists appeared, many disciples of the Divine Mansion Sect who were out on missions were ambushed and killed. In just three days, there were more than a dozen casualties.

Murong Tian would not take this lying down, of course. He was convinced this was the work of the Soul-Chasing Tower.

He immediately razed several of the Soul-Chasing Tower’s hidden dens to the ground.

At the same time, Dong Wanjun also took action in secret, killing several Soul-Chasing Tower experts in one fell swoop.

When gods fight, mortals suffer.

Many disciples of the Divine Mansion Sect now only dared to hole up within the sect, no longer venturing down the mountain rashly.

At this point, Bai Yuan’s decision to feign illness seemed all the more brilliant.

After all, he was now "half-crippled" and posed no threat whatsoever to the Soul-Chasing Tower.

On top of that, he now spent all day holed up in Wan Jun Hall, never stepping outside.

It was far more cost-effective for them to send their Assassins after other Divine Mansion Sect experts than to risk sending them deep into Wan Jun Peak to assassinate him.

Several more days passed.

Disciples of the Divine Mansion Sect were still being attacked and killed.

Some sharp-eyed disciples discovered that every person killed by the Soul-Chasing Tower had been on those lists.

These Heaven and Earth Lists were no ranking of Huanglong Prefecture’s Martial Artists; they were clearly King Yama’s death note!