Should True Strength Always Be Accompanied by Humility

Deep within the rocky forest.

Lin Jiang's entire body was covered in wounds. The spear in his hand barely supported his defensive stance, and he was already showing signs of defeat.

His opponents were two massive wolves, their bodies patterned with circular rings. Judging from their emanations, one was at the early stage of the ninth rank, while the other was at the mid-stage.

These were Ringed Wolves. In terms of strength, they weren’t considered particularly powerful amongst ninth-rank beasts.

However, they were incredibly cunning, never acting alone, and often cooperating seamlessly.

"If this drags on, I'm done for."

Lin Jiang frowned deeply.

Regardless of whether this trial ended here, he had to decide the battle quickly.

He was already gravely injured. If more Ringed Wolves were drawn to the scene, his chances of survival would be slim at best.

Among the True Inheritors, Murong Xiao bore the body of a half-demon, while Ying Bing’s reputation alone could leave prodigies in despair.

As for Li Mo... he was said to have great interpersonal connections.

As for himself, Lin Jiang was nothing more than a nobody.

After breaking through to the sixth vein of the Qi-Blood Realm and honing his spear skills to a minor mastery, Lin Jiang believed himself capable of handling most mid-stage ninth-rank beasts and had hoped to make a stunning impression.

Stopping here halfway, however, left him somewhat reluctant.

"Enough! I'll risk it!"

Lin Jiang had one ultimate move—originally reserved for beasts at the late ninth rank.

Summoning all his Qi and blood, he suddenly thrust his spear forward at lightning speed, tearing through the air.

The stronger of the Ringed Wolves was immediately impaled, its life extinguished.

But then...

"Awoooo!"

The early-stage ninth-rank wolf showed no sign of avenging its companion. Instead, it howled into the air.

“Damn it, it’s summoning the rest of the pack!”

Lin Jiang’s expression changed instantly.

But having just executed his ultimate move, his energy was momentarily exhausted. He couldn’t intercept it in time.

The next moment.

Something strange happened.

"Awoooo... woo... woo..."

The summoning howl abruptly turned into pitiful whimpering.

A figure emerged from the stone forest, casually dragging the Ringed Wolf behind him.

"You’re one of the True Inheritors, aren’t you? Your name’s… Lin Jiang?"

The voice, carrying a mocking tone, felt oppressively cold.

"Hmm?"

“Wang Hu?”

Lin Jiang recognized the newcomer.

Truth be told, it was a bit rude to bring this up.

During the entrance ceremony, Wang Hu had famously failed to climb the Ascension Stone Steps properly, tumbling down like a rolling gourd. The incident not only bumped him from the Inner Court to the Outer Court but also became a widespread joke within the sect.

It was impossible not to know him.

Yet now, Wang Hu’s real strength seemed no weaker than Lin Jiang’s.

“Thank you, Brother Wang,” Lin Jiang said, exhaling a sigh of relief.

“Heh, the one you killed is yours. This one I caught is mine. No objection, right?”

With a casual twist, Wang Hu snapped the neck of the Ringed Wolf in his grip.

“None at all.”

Lin Jiang nodded, relieved.

Claiming the mid-stage ninth-rank Ringed Wolf as his share of the spoils was already generous.

Glug, glug—

Before Lin Jiang could fire his signal arrow, the sound of drinking halted him in his tracks.

Turning back, he frowned deeper than ever.

There stood Wang Hu, tearing open the wolf's neck with his teeth, drinking its rancid blood in large gulps, his face alight with an expression of pure ecstasy.

A chill ran down Lin Jiang’s spine.

“Two Ringed Wolves.”

“One goes to Lin Jiang, the other to Wang Hu.”

An approaching sect steward arrived, briefly inspected the corpses, and carried off the two wolves.

As the steward’s figure disappeared from sight...

“Well then, I’ll take my leave.”

Lin Jiang cupped his hands in farewell, intent on getting away.

Something about Wang Hu unsettled him deeply; the grotesque scene he’d just witnessed only heightened his discomfort. He had no desire to linger.

He’d barely taken two steps when...

"Who said you could leave?"

A sudden rustling sound came from behind.

Lin Jiang froze in his step, turning his head to look back. His pupils contracted sharply.

What he saw was Wang Hu's arms swelling at an unnatural speed and quickly sprouting layers of mottled fur.

The gaze directed at him was devoid of any human emotion, leaving behind only the bloodthirsty savagery of a wild beast.

A moment ago…

Was Wang Hu intentionally luring away the nearby steward?

"You!"

Whoosh—

Lin Jiang didn't have time to speak; a fierce gust of wind rushed directly toward him.

...

Meanwhile.

Not far away.

"What's happening up ahead?"

Li Mo, bare-chested, wove his way through a forest of towering stones.

Don't get the wrong idea—Li Mo didn't have any peculiar habits; he was simply trying to protect his mother's lovingly hand-stitched clothes. Since they were bound to be destroyed in the coming fight, he stored them in his system's space to keep them safe.

Hearing the sound of intense combat from a distance, he sped up his pace.

Then—

Upon arrival, he caught sight of two figures locked in a fierce battle.

Lin Jiang was clearly at a disadvantage, forced into a desperate situation. Blood streamed from multiple wounds on his body.

If this went on much longer, Lin Jiang wouldn’t need to be killed by Wang Hu; he’d likely bleed out first.

"Is Lin Jiang fighting some kind of wild beast?"

"No, that's not a wild beast..."

Something felt off to Li Mo.

He activated his Destiny Eye to observe:

[Name: Lin Jiang]

[Age: 16]

[Constitution Traits: Mantis Legs, Azure Serpent Spine, Magpie Painting Shoulders]

[Realm: Sixth Vein of the Qi-Blood Realm.]

[Destiny: Blue-Black]

[Evaluation: His talent is decent, but he is overly ambitious and short-sighted. If he can reflect in time, he may yet ascend higher.]

[Recent Encounter: After an intense fight and without adequate recovery, he has encountered Wang Hu, whose mind has been devoured by a beast seed. Though he will escape death, he will suffer severe injuries and fail to recover, leading to a downward spiral.]

"That's Wang Hu?"

Li Mo raised an eyebrow slightly.

Taking a beast seed turns one into such a horrific state?

And Wang Hu was clearly aiming to kill, yet the Destiny Eye foretells that Lin Jiang will survive...

It must be the elders.

A realization dawned on Li Mo.

The elders had likely been covertly monitoring Wang Hu's actions the entire time.

For some reason, they chose not to intervene directly.

But neither could they allow a core disciple to die senselessly, so they probably intended to save Lin Jiang at the last moment.

"A rescue by the elders is still a rescue."

"But if I intervene, I can even add a blue-level investment to my ledger."

...

"Wang Hu, you and I bear no grudges!"

"Harming fellow disciples is a severe crime! Stop now, and I will pretend this never happened."

Lin Jiang’s aura was growing weaker and weaker.

He realized he had already lost the advantage and could only hope his words might create hesitation in his opponent.

"The Fiery Wolf had no grievance with you either."

"The strong prey on the weak. You are weaker than me, and so you will become my sustenance. Where is the crime in that?"

Wang Hu licked the blood off his claws, his piercing gaze growing fiercer.

Lin Jiang gritted his teeth so hard they nearly shattered. He knew there was no negotiating with this man.

Today, it was either his life or Wang Hu's!

Another violent gust surged toward him.

Summoning every ounce of strength, Lin Jiang prepared to unleash another killing thrust.

But excessive blood loss and exhaustion had taken their toll—this strike was far less powerful than his earlier attempts.

Mid-thrust—

With a cruel smile, Wang Hu’s mutated hand flipped upward, effortlessly catching the spear mid-shaft.

Then, with razor-sharp claws now fully formed, his strike came crashing down.

Not to mention a human head—even a piece of bluestone would be shattered into fragments under such a palm strike.

Lin Jiang let out a sigh in his heart.

Is this the end of his life?

Bang!

A loud noise echoed.

"Huh?"

To Lin Jiang's surprise, his head did not shatter as he had feared.

Instead, Wang Hu was forced to stagger backward several steps, each step leaving deep pits in the ground.

Before Lin Jiang stood a lean and impressive young man, his body as nimble and fierce as a hunting leopard. It was unclear when he had arrived.

"Li Mo?"

Lin Jiang was stunned.

"Li Mo, you’re still as fond of meddling as ever!"

"Good, you’ve come at the perfect time! I’ve been looking for you!"

All pretense of calm abandoned him. Wang Hu, upon seeing Li Mo, became increasingly like a frenzied beast.

There are some people whose mere appearance can break one's composure.

"Stop braying like a donkey. Stand quietly."

"Wait for the inner sect stewards to arrive and deal with you under the sect's rules."

Li Mo frowned faintly.

Having saved Lin Jiang, he considered his investment complete.

Whatever the sect elders had planned for Wang Hu, Li Mo had no interest in going beyond what was necessary.

"You’re asking for death!"

To Wang Hu, such an attitude was nothing short of a blatant insult.

Completely losing control, his entire body began to swell with muscle. Thick fur sprouted across his skin, and a tiger’s tail lashed about, resembling an iron whip swinging in fury.

He no longer bore any resemblance to a human.

He had transformed into a towering striped tiger, standing upright.

His crimson eyes burned with the desire to rend Li Mo limb from limb as he lunged furiously toward him!

"Li Mo, be careful!"

Lin Jiang’s heart turned cold with panic, and he shouted loudly.

He could sense that Wang Hu’s aura had now become unbearably terrifying.

Likely even a peak ninth-grade beast wouldn’t compare!

Without hesitation, Lin Jiang launched a signal flare into the air.

Seeing Li Mo stand firm without dodging, he called out in urgency once more:

"Li Mo, you have to get away! Otherwise, neither of us will make it out of this….."

Bang!

A heavy impact resonated.

The enormous tiger claw collided with Li Mo’s fist.

The odds seemed impossibly stacked against him.

Yet the outcome nearly made Lin Jiang’s eyes pop out of his skull.

The furry tiger arm instantly exploded into a mist of blood, shattering as though it was boneless.

Li Mo’s expression remained calm and composed.

With a single motion, he grabbed Wang Hu’s head and slammed him onto the ground.

Boom!

The earth cracked and splintered.

"That buildup was so long, I thought you were planning something grand."

"Putting effort into learning a forbidden technique is one thing. But neglecting to practice, and turning yourself into neither beast nor man—what was the point?"

Li Mo remarked airily.

Wang Hu’s eyes rolled back as he fell unconscious.

It was unclear whether the blow had knocked him out or if Li Mo’s words had angered him into passing out from sheer indignation.

Soon after, Wang Hu's beast-like transformation vanished, and he reverted to his human form.

His energy drained entirely, leaving him frail and fragile, like a dying old man floundering in the wind.

Not far away, Lin Jiang’s mouth gaped wide—enough to swallow two eggs whole.

A figure as strong as a peak ninth-grade beast had been defeated in an instant?

One move?

Honestly, he even felt as though Li Mo hadn’t gone all out.

If he had, he wouldn’t have simply knocked Wang Hu out—he could have killed him with ease.

They had all entered the Qingyuan Sect together as disciples.

Yet why was Li Mo so overwhelmingly powerful, to the point of utter despair?

Before entering the Qingyuan Sect, he was already trained for quite a long time at a martial arts gym.

As for Li Mo, when he was initiated into the sect, he hadn’t even unlocked his meridians yet.

At that time, he was an ordinary person completely powerless, someone Lin Jiang could have easily defeated a hundred times over.

And yet, how long has it been since then?

As Lin Jiang began to question life's unpredictability—

A wooden box was handed to him.

"Here, for external use," said the voice.

At the same time, a bright and cheerful voice reached his ears.

"This Baihua Condensed Dew Ointment works wonders for treating external injuries."

"This…"

Coming to his senses, Lin Jiang looked up and saw that sunny smile before him.

Not one to hesitate, Lin Jiang quietly began applying the ointment to his wounds.

Meanwhile—

[Investment successful. Half a bottle of Baihua Condensed Dew Ointment invested.]

[Reward generated: One martial arts manual for Golden Bell Shield Technique. Claim the reward?]

"Do not claim."

Responding internally to the system, Li Mo casually motioned farewell to Lin Jiang.

"Alright, just wait here for a steward," he said.

"I’m in a hurry, so I’ll take my leave."

With that, he strode off determinedly toward Moonwatch Cliff.

"Take care, Brother Li!"

Watching his retreating figure, Lin Jiang couldn’t help but feel a growing sense of awe and admiration.

The effectiveness of that medicine was extraordinary—it stopped the bleeding instantly after application.

Not only had it saved his life, it even allowed him to continue participating in the trial.

"Saving lives without seeking recompense."

"Could it be that true experts really are open-hearted and magnanimous..."

Lost in thought, Lin Jiang rose to his feet once more.