The so-called skills were the moves in cultivation techniques, but they had only been cultivating for too short a time and had only learned the basics.
But now was the time for practice.
Zhao Shijie pulled his fists back, and swirls of air appeared on his fists.
Ye Wuyai put away his longbow, drew a longsword from his back, bent his body, gripped the hilt tightly with his right hand, and stared intently at the giant frog.
"Double Cannon!"
"Charged Sword!"
Bang—
Zhao Shijie's fists, like two heavy hammers, slammed heavily onto the giant frog.
Ye Wuyai's body moved like a ghost, and with one sword strike, he cut open the giant frog's chest.
Rumble—
The giant frog stumbled back several steps, then crashed to the ground.
Lin Ye, quick-witted, swiftly jumped off the giant frog, rolled a few times on the ground, then immediately clasped his hands together, covering the sword blade.
"Go!"
He spun a few times, then forcefully threw the longsword.
Originally, his cultivation technique focused on sword manipulation, but his current realm was too low to control a flying sword, so he could only rely on brute force.
The sword tip successfully pierced into the giant frog's body.
Seeing the giant frog motionless, the three exhaled a turbid breath and collapsed to the ground.
But before they could take a few breaths of fresh air, the giant frog suddenly got up from the ground, landed on all fours, and leaped high, like a giant rock smashing towards the three.
Just as the three were about to be crushed into a pulp, at the critical moment, an angry roar came from the bushes.
"Sky Severing Slash!!!"
Gusts of strong wind swirled around, and a long blade descended from the sky, carrying an unstoppable momentum, and fiercely struck the giant frog.
Boom—
The two collided, and both fell to one side.
"Pfft..." Qin Zhenhua clutched his chest and spat out a large mouthful of clotted blood, his eyes becoming somewhat hazy.
By this time, Zhao Shijie and the others had reacted, haphazardly grabbing their weapons from the ground, and with fierce expressions, ran to the giant frog.
The three did not hesitate, hacking wildly at the giant frog until it was cut into several pieces, only then did they stop.
To prevent the blood from attracting other demonic beasts, Zhao Shijie struggled to get up, "Let's get out of here first."
He dragged his exhausted body, pulled Qin Zhenhua, and stumbled forward.
Lin Ye and Ye Wuyai supported each other, following closely behind.
Rumble—
The originally clear sky suddenly became overcast, and soon after, a torrential rain began to fall.
The four casually found a tree hollow, Drill directly into，Leaning against the tree wall, breathing heavily.
After a few seconds, the four looked at each other and suddenly burst into laughter.
All words were hidden within their laughter.
"Stop, stop laughing, I, I feel like at least four or five of my ribs are broken!" Qin Zhenhua waved his hand to stop the others.
The other three also showed pained expressions, grimacing as they exchanged pills from the mall and swallowed them in one gulp.
After a few minutes of recovery, their complexions gradually improved.
"Check, have your experience points increased?" Zhao Shijie suddenly asked.
The three quickly opened their interfaces to check.
"Good heavens, I gained fifty points!" Lin Ye exclaimed.
"Why did I only gain thirty points? Damn it, that's not fair!" Ye Wuyai grumbled loudly.
"I gained sixty points, just twenty points short of breaking through to the second stage," Zhao Shijie said proudly.
Qin Zhenhua hesitated to speak, but anyone with an eye could see the unconcealable joy in his eyes.
"What, you can't level up again?" Ye Wuyai pouted, showing a look of suspicion.
"No, I gained almost eighty points, and I'm also twenty points short of breaking through to the second stage." Qin Zhenhua's lips curved upward, unable to be suppressed.
Originally, among the five, he was ranked last, but now he had leaped ahead to second place.
"That last hit, he must have gotten the kill," Zhao Shijie explained.
"We gained so much experience because we killed a demonic beast two levels higher, but I think the experience gain will be slower later on."
"Xian Ge said that experience points can only be used as a reference. When we reach the Qi Condensation stage and truly come into contact with Taoist magic, experience points will become obsolete, because that stage is the beginning of immortal cultivation."
All things considered, they had only been cultivating for four days, and without NPC guidance, they had to explore everything on their own.
However, fortunately, all four of them had strong adaptability and had gained some combat experience.
Outside, the rain grew heavier, and the air was filled with the scent of decaying leaves and soil, occasionally accompanied by various strange roars echoing through the forest.
This sense of adventure was both novel and exciting, a complete contrast to their stable lives in reality.
The four each exchanged a Body Tempering Pill from the mall, and their few contribution points were reset to zero again, which made them feel a pang of pain.
After about an hour, the rain gradually lessened, becoming a continuous drizzle, with occasional rumbles of thunder.
This was their first time taking a Body Tempering Pill, and the effects were particularly significant, especially for Zhao Shijie, whose bones and muscles resonated, crackling incessantly.
Although the others were not as exaggerated as him, judging from their grim expressions, they were also enduring great pain.
Zhao Shijie was the first to open his eyes, clenching his fists, his face showing excitement.
One Body Tempering Pill had actually allowed him to advance to Smelting Body Realm second stage, his strength increasing by a notch.
The others opened their eyes one after another, and besides Qin Zhenhua, Lin Ye and Ye Wuyai had also advanced to Smelting Body Realm second stage.
"Xian Ge was right, only by tempering the body in combat is the best way to advance," Zhao Shijie murmured.
However, they no longer had contribution points to buy Body Tempering Pills, so from now on, they could only rely on killing monsters to level up.
The four set off again, moving cautiously in the rain.
In the secret forest after the rain, there were broken branches and leaves everywhere, and their soaking wet clothes clung to their skin, making them feel extremely uncomfortable.
Especially the small insects; whenever they stopped, mosquitoes and other bugs would swarm around, making them endlessly annoyed.
After passing through that grassland, the group found the Star-Tail Beast in a pit.
There were four Star-Tail Beasts in total, two of which seemed to be a male and a female, and two small ones, clearly a family of four.
"Lin Ye and I will deal with the two large ones, Qin Zhenhua and you two will deal with the two small ones, any problems?"
Zhao Shijie quickly proposed a battle plan, and the others nodded, indicating no objections.
In the original plan, Ye Wuyai was responsible for drawing away the other three, while the rest surrounded one.
But now that they had advanced to Smelting Body Realm second stage, they felt confident enough to take on this whole family.
Zhao Shijie silently waved his arm, and the four quickly split up, slowly approaching in an encirclement formation.
The Star-Tail Beast, which was searching for food, sensed danger and suddenly turned around.
"Attack!"
Zhao Shijie launched the first attack, charging towards the robust Star-Tail Beast, and the others also pounced towards their respective targets.
In an instant, a chaotic battle erupted.
Lin Ye shook his sword, moving so fast that it was dazzling, making it impossible to distinguish his attack direction.
Clang, clang—
The sword blade continuously struck the Star-Tail Beast's black shell, emitting sounds of colliding metal.
Zhao Shijie was even more direct, taking the Star-Tail Beast's iron hammer head-on with his own physique, then embracing the Star-Tail Beast to engage in close-quarters combat.
In contrast, Qin Zhenhua and Ye Wuyai each faced two small Star-Tail Beasts, fighting to a standstill.
The sounds of battle rose and fell, and in a short while, several demonic beasts quietly approached, hiding in the bushes and staring intently at the battlefield.
The jungle after the rain was precisely when demonic beasts came out to forage, a fact that Zhao Shijie and the others were completely unaware of.