From the moment the Tiger Soul awakened, I became invincible.

Chapter 146 A Great Opportunity, The Killing Sword Technique

After the battle ended, almost no one witnessed Qin Wu's rampage, and naturally no one would have imagined that it was all done by a young man like Qin Wu.

Only Meng Qiudie watched all this unfold in astonishment. Her eyes were filled with shock as she said, "Young Master Qin, your strength is even greater than I imagined. If others knew this, they would probably be very uneasy."

The others had already left with the White-Haired Immortal and the others. After all, their real purpose in coming to Tianji Valley was to obtain the treasures in Sword Qi Valley. Only Meng Qiudie stayed behind.

She was worried that people in the Guiyuan Sword Realm would harm Qin Wu, and wanted to use her status to see if she could protect Qin Wu, but she never expected that the final result would develop to this point.

Qin Wu smiled and said, "Then I hope Miss Meng won't expose all of this, otherwise, as you said, I'm afraid I'll really be in some trouble."

Qin Wu's strength was truly overwhelming. Although he had not yet reached the True Self Realm, the strength he displayed far exceeded the limits that ordinary True Self Realm cultivators could achieve.

After all, the people of the Guiyuan Sword Realm were not fools. Since they were confident in their ability to surround and kill Qin Wu, they naturally had extreme confidence in their own strength. However, even so, they were extremely laughable in the face of Qin Wu's combat power and were easily killed. Only a few escaped.

If people were to learn of such combat power, there would only be two possibilities: either they want to befriend him, or they want to eliminate Qin Wu.

Although Tianwu Mountain has a good foundation, it has long since declined and has many enemies. If those people knew that a genius like Qin Wu had appeared in Tianwu Mountain, their stance would naturally be the same as that of Guiyuan Sword Realm, wanting to kill Qin Wu.

"Young Master Qin, are you going deeper into Sword Creek Valley next?"

"The Shadow Leopard just left, so it must still be nearby. I plan to go and see if I can find it."

Meng Qiudie nodded understandingly. Although she didn't understand why Qin Wu was so obsessed with the Shadow Leopard, she could see that the Shadow Leopard was extremely useful to him. She considered for a moment and said:

"The Shadow Leopard prefers darkness, so it probably won't move around much before nightfall. It wouldn't have appeared this time if it hadn't been surrounded by so many powerful figures."

Therefore, the best way to find the Shadow Leopard now is naturally to seek out some dark and secluded corners. However, the Shadow Leopard is quite powerful, and although you are also very strong, you still need to be careful when facing it.

My strength is too weak. If I go with you, I'm afraid I'll only hold you back, so I won't go with you.

Meng Qiudie is very self-aware and has a very accurate understanding of her own abilities.

Although she had already entered the True Qi Realm, her strength was far from enough to contend with an adult Shadow Leopard. If she were to appear before an adult Shadow Leopard, she would cause Qin Wu considerable trouble. Therefore, she had no intention of following along and took her leave after speaking.

Qin Wu did not try to stop him. He knew the situation was dangerous and he was not confident he could protect Meng Qiudie. He even knew that he might not be able to defeat the wounded Shadow Leopard without injury, let alone Meng Qiudie.

However, the Shadow Leopard is indeed of great benefit to him now, which is why he is willing to take the risk of trying to kill it completely.

If he can completely hunt down and kill this Shadow Leopard, his strength will inevitably undergo another transformation in a short period of time, which is extremely important to him.

The two then parted ways. Meng Qiudie's information gave Qin Wu some clues, so he spent the rest of his time searching in the surrounding secluded and dark corners, avoiding the main roads where there were many people.

As night approached, Qin Wu glanced at the sky and frowned. If night fell, even if he found the Shadow Leopard, it wouldn't be so easy to deal with.

After all, the Shadow Leopard prefers the night, and its all-black body gives it a significant advantage in nighttime battles.

However, just as Qin Wu was about to retreat and see if he could come back to search the next day, a set of footprints suddenly appeared in front of him.

The moment Qin Wu saw the footprints, a smile appeared on his lips, because he recognized them as the marks left by the Shadow Leopard.

He then immediately followed the footprints toward the direction where the Shadow Leopard might be.

Before long, he walked in increasingly remote areas, and soon reached a cliff face. After searching for a while, Qin Wu discovered a cave on the cliff face.

Without any hesitation, Qin Wu drew his Tiger King Blade from his waist, simultaneously raising his mental focus to its peak to prepare for any unforeseen circumstances. Having made all these preparations, he slowly made his way into the cave.

The cave was deeper than he had imagined, but the attack he had anticipated did not occur.

After walking for several hundred meters, the view suddenly opened up before us. The setting sun shone down from the cave ceiling, casting a yellowish glow on the ground, making the otherwise dark place appear somewhat dim. It was a vast open area.

Upon seeing this scene, Qin Wu felt somewhat shocked. He was even more astonished when he looked around. There were century-old medicinal herbs everywhere, including more than one rare treasure with abundant spiritual energy.

"It seems this must be the Shadow Leopard's lair."

Qin Wu muttered to himself, a hint of joy appearing in his eyes.

Although he had long suspected that the Shadow Leopard must have a lair, and that its lair must contain considerable treasures, what he saw now still far exceeded his expectations. Just as he was about to pick some herbs, he suddenly noticed a stone door on one side.

Qin Wu walked towards the stone gate. After testing it, he found it to be very sturdy, but with his current strength, he could still push it open. There were remnants of sword energy on the stone gate. Seeing this, Qin Wu's expression immediately turned serious. He felt as if he had reached the most crucial point in Sword Qi Valley.

The others ventured towards the core of Sword Qi Valley, hoping to find the legacy left behind by that powerful swordsman. But what if that powerful swordsman wasn't in the deepest part of Sword Qi Valley, but here?

The Shadow Leopard is an extremely rare and exotic beast, completely different in quality from the other beasts in this valley. Therefore, this beast is very likely the former pet of that swordsman, or perhaps a descendant of his former pet.

After taking a deep breath, Qin Wu pushed open the stone door without any further hesitation.

Even though there might be considerable danger inside the stone gate, the legacy left by the sword master held a fatal allure for him. Therefore, no matter how great the danger, Qin Wu decided to explore it.

He pushed open the door and went inside, where a stone chamber appeared before him. The chamber had clearly been uninhabited for a long time, covered in cobwebs, but it was obvious that some traces of life had been found within it.

On one side was a row of bookshelves. Upon seeing these bookshelves, Qin Wu's eyes lit up; there was a high chance that some secret manuals were hidden among them. In addition, he also spotted a sword among them.

The sword that was left here by that powerful figure must be an extremely valuable treasure. So Qin Wu walked over, picked up the sword, dusted it off, and then drew it. A cold glint immediately emanated from the blade.

Even though it was already night, the faint moonlight coming in from outside still made one feel the extraordinary nature of this sword.

The words "Cold Moon" are engraved on the blade.

Qin Wu had some knowledge of swordsmanship, but he later learned knife skills and hasn't studied swordsmanship much since.

Then, he walked towards the bookshelf. Although he had acquired a fine sword, he had no intention of learning swordsmanship. After all, he was currently specializing in saber techniques, and even with his talent, switching to swordsmanship would not be something he could do in a short time.

However, his eyes lit up when he saw the books on the shelf. Besides a multitude of miscellaneous books, there were only a few secret manuals on the shelf.

One of the books was a movement technique. Qin Wu only glanced at it a few times before he could tell that this movement technique was extremely extraordinary. Even within Tianwu Mountain, there was no technique of this caliber. It was conceivable that the person who left behind this technique was definitely a top-tier swordsman. The other book was a sword technique.

This sword technique is called "Slaying Sword," which uses the sword as its body, merges with the remains of all beasts, and kills all things in heaven and earth.

After taking a few glances, Qin Wu immediately realized the difference in this sword technique. It was a sword technique based on all kinds of beasts, and for Qin Wu, what he cultivated was the Path of Beast Souls.

All of Qin Wu's previous thoughts were discarded at this moment. The idea of ​​cultivating saber techniques instead of swordsmanship, or that switching cultivation takes time, were all meaningless in the face of the Killing Sword.

He only glanced at it a few times, but he could tell that the Killing Sword was extraordinary.

Aside from these, there was nothing else around, only faint traces of sword energy remaining. Qin Wu was somewhat puzzled as to why the Shadow Leopard hadn't appeared. Had it not returned to its lair?

After a moment's thought, Qin Wu realized that his idea wasn't wrong. After all, the Shadow Leopard was already seriously injured and would likely choose to heal nearby rather than return here, since this place was quite far from where the battle had taken place.

Otherwise, Qin Wu wouldn't have taken so long to arrive here.

The Shadow Leopard possesses considerable intelligence, and it certainly knows it cannot bring enemies into its home. However, the Shadow Leopard could never have imagined that all of this would ultimately benefit Qin Wu.

Then Qin Wu left the stone chamber, collected all the hundred-year-old medicinal herbs and many spiritual items around him, and then returned directly to the stone chamber.

All his previous thoughts were no longer important at this moment. For him now, there was no place more suitable for practicing swordsmanship.

The surrounding area was filled with sword energy, which was the Killing Sword Technique. Practicing the Killing Sword Technique in this environment would naturally be twice as effective. With these spiritual objects, he was confident that he could master the Killing Sword Technique in a short period of time.

With the domineering power of the Killing Sword Technique, coupled with the presence of so many spiritual creatures, he even felt that he would be able to break through and enter the Realm of True Self in no time.

However, he also knew that this might just be his imagination. Although his strength had improved considerably, becoming a True Self Realm expert was no easy feat. He still lacked some foundational strength, and it would take him some time to fully build it up.

Regardless, for the next few days, Qin Wu devoted all his energy to cultivating the Killing Sword Technique. He also completely closed the stone gate and ate spiritual plants and herbs when he was hungry.

In the blink of an eye, three days had passed, and Qin Wu had not left the cave during these three days.

Just as Qin Wu was cultivating, a furious roar suddenly echoed within the cave. Hearing this familiar roar, Qin Wu opened his eyes, a smile playing on his lips: "It seems the Shadow Leopard has finally returned."

If all goes as expected, the Shadow Leopard should have suppressed its injuries and is therefore trying to return. However, Qin Wu has already taken all the valuable medicinal herbs and spiritual plants in the valley, so the Shadow Leopard must be extremely angry.

However, Qin Wu didn't care about any of that. Just by looking at the state of the stone chamber, he was certain that the Shadow Leopard had never stepped inside. Whatever the reason, the stone chamber was presumably safe.

Moreover, he has now mastered the basics of the Killing Sword Technique. Although his strength is not yet very high, he may not necessarily be afraid of the Shadow Leopard.

Soon, the angry roars subsided, and peace returned outside. Qin Wu wasn't entirely sure if the Shadow Leopard had left, but that didn't stop him from continuing his cultivation.

Therefore, Qin Wu was unaware that the Shadow Leopard, filled with boundless rage, had begun a rampage of slaughter in Sword Qi Valley.

The Shadow Leopard possesses extremely high intelligence. The reason it was surrounded and severely injured was mainly because it was caught off guard and attacked by powerful figures like the White-Haired Immortal.

Otherwise, given its speed, even a peak True Self Realm expert like the White-Haired Immortal might not be able to stop it.

Now, Shadow Leopard has come to understand everything in Sword Qi Valley. At this moment, Shadow Leopard is an extremely terrifying night assassin. In just a few days, many people have died at the hands of Shadow Leopard.

Meanwhile, inside the camp, the White-Haired Immortal and his companions looked extremely grim. They had gone to the core of Sword Qi Valley, but had found nothing; there wasn't even a trace of anyone there.

Although they obtained many previously unseen spiritual plants and herbs, it was clearly insufficient compared to their investment. Furthermore, the rampaging Shadow Leopards had injured many, even surrounding them, threatening anyone who dared to leave with their deadly claws. This situation naturally enraged them.

No one knew that the culprit behind all this was still cultivating in the stone chamber.

……