Starting from his vigorous old age, he began to conquer Liaozhai.

Cao Xiong was like a seasoned hunter in the mountains and forests, constantly moving and roaming through them.

Not long after, the two corpse monsters that had disappeared from his sight reappeared.

This place is far from the ancient tomb, so Cao Xiong naturally doesn't need to worry about the noise from the battle attracting the horde of corpses.

Therefore, he made no attempt to conceal his presence.

"Shuashua~"

The armor made a sound as it rubbed against the weeds, and the two corpse monsters noticed it and stopped in their tracks.

He turned to look at Cao Xiong, but it was too late.

Cao Xiong pounced on the corpse monster like a tiger descending the mountain.

The blade flashed like lightning, and in the blink of an eye, two withered heads fell to the ground.

[Defeat two early-stage Spirit Awakening Realm Corpse Monsters, Shards +0.2]

After killing the enemy with a single blow, Cao Xiong quickly left the scene.

Go find the next target.

These ordinary Spirit Awakening Realm corpse monsters are about the same strength as early-stage Skin Tempering Realm martial artists.

They were powerless to retaliate against his attacks.

He completely overwhelmed and killed these corpse monsters.

Cao Xiong had no idea how much time had passed; he simply kept searching for and killing the corpse monsters.

As the first light of dawn appeared on the horizon, Cao Xiong realized with a start that it was already daylight.

[Fragments: 3.1-2]

Please select your term!

Cao Xiong couldn't help but burst into laughter, "What a thoroughly enjoyable night!"

Cao Xiong did not return to Xiahe Village, but instead went to a hidden cave based on his memory from the previous night.

The cave was neither large nor deep, just big enough for Cao Xiong to lie down in.

There was some dry grass and animal hair in the cave, so it's not hard to guess that this cave was once the dwelling place of some kind of large wild animal.

Cao Xiong tidied up the vines hanging down from the cave entrance, covering it up.

Then he sat cross-legged inside the cave and excitedly opened the control panel.

"Start selecting entries!"

As Cao Xiong finished speaking, the content on the panel changed.

[Entry 1: Master of Underhanded Tactics (White): Proficient in using limestone for sneak attacks. Increases damage dealt to enemies by 20% when using non-direct methods.]

[Entry 2: Corpse Monster Buster (White): Able to accurately detect the weaknesses of corpse monsters; hitting a corpse monster increases damage by 200%.]

[Entry 3: Swordsmanship Expert (White): Proficient in all types of swords. Increases damage output by 20% when using swordsmanship. Improves talent by 50% when practicing swordsmanship. (Can be fused with the entry "Old but Still Vigorous"; fusion characteristics are currently unknown.)]

Upon seeing the first entry, Cao Xiong felt somewhat disappointed. "It's that old hand at dirty tricks again. What I'm after is overwhelming domination and brutal force."

After muttering a couple of sentences to himself, Cao Xiong skipped the first entry and turned to the second entry: Corpse Monster Buster.

The attributes of the Corpse Monster Buster are very powerful.

Its attack power is doubled, and it can accurately identify the weaknesses of the zombie monster.

It's a pity that this entry only applies to corpse monsters. If its attribute were to be effective against all demons and ghosts, Cao Xiong would definitely choose Corpse Monster Killer without hesitation.

Cao Xiong finally looked at the third entry: swordsmanship expert.

Practicing sword techniques increases one's talent by half; using sword techniques increases attack power by one-fifth.

A fairly standard entry.

Cao Xiong was having some difficulty choosing between the two terms: "corpse monster nemesis" and "swordsmanship expert."

From the perspective of what suits him best, a knife skills expert is undoubtedly the most suitable for him.

However, the characteristics of the Corpse Monster Buster are simply too overpowered.

He even wondered if, by choosing the "Corpse Monster Buster" entry, he could sweep through the Ancient Tomb and kill all the Corpse Monsters by combining lethality and the ability to identify weaknesses.

By then, the accumulated fragments will be enough for him to awaken two more attributes.

Thinking of this, Cao Xiong felt his blood boil.

After a moment, Cao Xiong gave a self-deprecating smile.

"He's sixty years old, I never expected he'd still have such a strong gambling spirit!"

He had only just entered the Bone Forging stage. There were hundreds of corpse monsters in the ancient tomb. If they were just ordinary corpse monsters, that would be fine, but there should be quite a few mutated corpse monsters among them.

The image of the armored corpses near the giant coffin resurfaced in his mind.

Their strength is probably even greater than that of the mutated corpse monsters.

Cao Xiong banished the unrealistic ideas from his mind.

Their gaze finally settled on the "swordsmanship expert".

The annotation following the attribute says that "swordsmanship expert" and "old but vigorous" can be merged into a new attribute.

His intuition told him that choosing this option would bring unexpected rewards.

"I choose the swordsmanship expert!"

As Cao Xiong's voice fell, the two entries, "Master of Underhanded Tactics" and "Corpse Monster Buster," disappeared, and the "Swordsmanship Expert" transformed into a golden light and merged into Cao Xiong's body.

Cao Xiong unconsciously gripped the handle of the willow-leaf knife.

"Clang~"

The scalpel emitted a sharp whistle, as if expressing excitement.

A strange sense of familiarity washed over Cao Xiong.

Following his will, Cao Xiong drew his sword and swung it at the mountain wall, leaving a cut more than 30 centimeters long and one finger deep.

"Sword Drawing Technique~"

Cao Xiong murmured unconsciously. Then, the panel changed again.

【Eighteen Forms of Wind Slash (Transcendent Realm)】

[Derivative Secret Technique: Sword Drawing Technique]

"I never expected that the Eighteen Forms of Wind Slash would actually break through to perfection."

Before Cao Xiong could even be shocked, a new notification appeared on the panel.

[Old but vigorous (White) Swordsmanship Expert (White) can be merged]

[Should we merge?]

Cao Xiong did not hesitate at all and chose to merge.

The two terms kept twisting and merging, eventually creating a new term.

[Entry 1] Sword Genius (Green): A natural swordsman. When using sword techniques, damage is increased by 100%. Talent increases by 100% when practicing sword techniques. Able to learn by analogy; with focused practice, every bit of effort yields fivefold results.

After reading the entry for the new student, Cao Xiong was speechless for a long time.

"Boom! It's bursting with energy!"

Cao Xiong couldn't help but take off his armor, lower his waist and mount his horse, unleashing the "Fierce Tiger Stance".

Previously, you put in a little effort and reaped a lot of rewards. After practicing the stance training once, you can clearly feel the progress.

Now, efficiency has increased dramatically, it's unbelievable.

As Cao Xiong unleashed his moves, his internal energy seeped deeper and deeper into his bones, layer by layer, following the principles of stance training.

His breathing became heavy, and when he inhaled, his chest and abdomen bulged like a tiger's roar.

When exhaling, muscles and bones resonate, with subtle, crisp sounds emanating from all parts of the body.

With each breath, a warm current rises up the spine and then sinks down to the shoulders and elbows.

In just one week, his skin began to turn slightly red, and sweat rolled down his wrinkles, but he showed no signs of weakness or shortness of breath.

"Coo coo~"

Cao Xiong didn't know how long he had been cultivating until his stomach started to protest, which brought him back to reality from his immersive cultivation.

Name: Cao Xiong

【Age】：60/80

[Cultivation Level]: Bone Forging Realm (Early Stage)

[Entry 1] Sword Genius (Green): A natural swordsman. When using sword techniques, damage is increased by 100%. Talent increases by 100% when practicing sword techniques. Able to learn by analogy; with focused practice, every bit of effort yields fivefold results.

[Technique]: Fierce Tiger Stance - Bone Forging Chapter (Beginner) 8/100

Eighteen Forms of Wind Slash (Transcendent Realm) - Derivative Secret Technique: Sword Drawing Technique

[Fragments]: 1.1~3

"Phew~"

The results were even better than he had imagined.

In just a few hours of training, his proficiency increased by three points.

If this continues, he will achieve minor success in his cultivation technique in less than a month.

Cao Xiong packed his things and returned directly to Xiahe Village.

If nothing unexpected happens, Wei Qiang will most likely arrive tomorrow. He knows this boss all too well.