Chapter 11 The Goal We Martial Artists Pursue

The center of the plaza.

The Earth-Ripping Demon Ape's frantic rampage lasted for several full minutes before its strength finally began to wane.

It leaned on the black gold heavy hammer, blood continuously streaming down from its hollow eye sockets, its aura significantly weakened.

Zhang Fan, who had been using the Thunder Astral Step to hover on the periphery and wait patiently, had a cold light burst from his eyes!

“Thunder Astral Step: Instant!”

His figure vanished, and in the next moment, he appeared behind the Demon Ape's head as if teleporting.

“Dragon-Elephant Extreme Path: Heaven-Collapsing!”

This time, he held nothing back!

All the strength in his body condensed into his right fist, the dark gold light almost materializing into substance. A tragic fist intent that could collapse heaven and earth and slaughter gods and demons soared into the sky! Before the fist even arrived, the sharp fist wind had already pressed the scales on the back of the Demon Ape's head into a depression!

The Demon Ape seemed to sense a fatal crisis and wanted to turn around to swing its hammer, but it was already at the end of its rope; its movements were more than a beat too slow.

“Die!”

Zhang Fan's fist smashed heavily into the back of the Demon Ape's head!

“Bang!”

The hidden force penetrated the skull and shattered the brain tissue inside!

The Earth-Ripping Demon Ape's massive body suddenly stiffened, then crashed to the ground. The black gold heavy hammer also fell to the side with a 'clank'.

[Contact with the remains of a General-rank peak beast 'Earth-Ripping Demon Ape', obtained Attribute Points: 35!]

A massive surge of heat flooded his body, and his attribute points skyrocketed once again!

Zhang Fan let out a long breath, calming his churning blood. This battle seemed smooth, but it was actually perilous.

Had he not relied on the extreme speed of the Thunder Astral Step and his precise vision to find the weakness, a direct confrontation would not have been easy even if he could win.

He walked to the black gold heavy hammer and bent down to lift it.

“So heavy!” It felt heavy the moment he held it; this weight far exceeded any weapon he had used before. Wielding it required extremely high strength, which happened to suit his current Dragon-Elephant colossal strength.

He infused a sliver of blood energy into it, and a faint, imperceptible black light immediately surfaced on the black gold heavy hammer. Its weight seemed to change accordingly, making it even more comfortable to use.

“Truly a good treasure!”

Just then, a series of hurried footsteps approached.

Ye Zhenxi was ultimately worried and rushed in. When she saw the scene in the center of the plaza, she was struck as if by lightning, standing frozen on the spot.

The Earth-Ripping Demon Ape's massive corpse lay there, devoid of all life.

Meanwhile, Zhang Fan stood there completely unharmed, holding the black gold heavy hammer that emanated a ferocious aura.

“Senior... you... did you really deal with it alone?” Ye Zhenxi's voice trembled with disbelief.

She knew Zhang Fan was powerful, but she hadn't expected him to be this powerful! This was a General-rank peak beast in a berserk state, wielding a ferocious weapon!

Zhang Fan nodded, his gaze falling on the heavy hammer. “This hammer belongs to me now.”

“Of course! This is your trophy!”

Ye Zhenxi said without hesitation, her tone filled with admiration and gratitude. “If Senior hadn't stepped in, Songjiang City would have suffered a catastrophe today!”

She seemed to remember something and hurriedly unbuckled a seemingly ordinary black leather belt from her waist, offering it with both hands. “Senior, this mission was dangerous. This is a gift prepared in advance by the Alliance—a spatial folding belt with a built-in three-cubic-meter space. I see you happen to need a container for that heavy hammer, so please accept it.”

Zhang Fan's eyes lit up. Spatial equipment? This was a rare item! He was just worrying about the inconvenience of carrying the black gold heavy hammer.

He took the belt; it felt light and was made of a special material. Following the simple method Ye Zhenxi told him, with a thought, the black gold heavy hammer in his hand disappeared and appeared in the folding space attached to the belt.

With another thought, the heavy hammer appeared in his hand again. It was as easy as using his own limbs, incredibly convenient.

“Good stuff. Thank the Alliance for me.” This time, Zhang Fan gave his thanks with sincere intent.

Putting away the heavy hammer, he glanced at the mess on the ground and said to Ye Zhenxi, “I'll leave this place to you all.”

After saying that, his figure flashed and he disappeared into the shadows of the ruins.

Ye Zhenxi looked in the direction where Zhang Fan had disappeared, then looked at the terrifying corpse of the Demon Ape, her heart surging with waves of emotion.

She took a deep breath and pressed her communicator, her tone carrying an unprecedented excitement:

“Command Center, the crisis is resolved! The Earth-Ripping Demon Ape has been killed solo by the Silver-Rank Consultant! Repeat, the crisis is resolved!”

As the news spread, a burst of cheers from the surviving City Defense Force members guarding the perimeter immediately erupted.

Liu Qian also breathed a sigh of relief, but seeing Ye Zhenxi walk out from the depths alone while that 'top-tier expert' was nowhere to be seen, her curiosity and admiration for that mysterious powerhouse reached their peak.

“Such a powerhouse... is the goal pursued by our generation of martial artists.”

She murmured to herself, completely unaware that the object of her admiration was the very 'body collector' Zhang Fan whom she once looked down upon.

Meanwhile, Zhang Fan had already returned to his apartment, taking stock of the massive gains from this trip.

All in all, a total of 75 attribute points, a black gold heavy hammer of startling power, and a practical spatial belt.

A bountiful harvest!

Inside the quiet room of the Fenglin Elegance Residence.

Zhang Fan's consciousness sank into his mind. On the light blue panel:

[Available Attribute Points: 75]. This was the generous reward for killing the Earth-Ripping Demon Ape.

“Let's begin.”

His intent first locked onto the fundamental cultivation technique, Dragon-Elephant Extreme Path Art (Entry). As a Rank Five technique, every step forward required a massive accumulation.

“Upgrade!”

Attribute points flooded in like an opened sluice gate.

1 point, 5 points, 10 points... when the total consumption reached a staggering 40 points, it felt as if ten thousand dragons and elephants had awakened simultaneously within his body, roaring toward the sky!

The sound of his blood flowing was like the roar of a great river. His bones turned jade-like, his internal organs glowed, and the layer of dark gold luster on his body's surface became completely internalized. His skin took on a strange texture that was as warm as jade yet indestructible.

[Dragon-Elephant Extreme Path Art (Entry)] → [Dragon-Elephant Extreme Path Art (Consummate)]!

Rank Five Body Tempering technique, Consummate!

Zhang Fan could clearly feel that his strength, defense, and recovery had reached a brand-new height.

At this point, even if he were injured, as long as it wasn't a severed limb or a fatal wound, his powerful vitality would allow him to heal quickly. This was a qualitative leap.

35 points left.

“Next is the core of my offensive methods.”

He looked at the Heaven-Collapsing Hammer Technique (Consummate). While this hammer technique was strong, there was still room for improvement when facing stronger enemies or wielding a ferocious weapon like the black gold heavy hammer.

“Deduce advancement!”

15 attribute points were invested.

In his mind, that fist intent that sought to collapse the firmament did not disappear; instead, it merged with a purer, more extreme 'destruction' true intent! After the collapse, all things shatter and return to nothingness!

The new force-exertion method was more complex and violent, evolving entirely to unleash the ultimate lethality of heavy weaponry.

[Heaven-Collapsing Hammer Technique] advanced to [Shattering Hammer Method (Entry)]!

The destructive power of the hammer intent soared! Zhang Fan even felt that by using this hammer technique to drive the black gold heavy hammer, for ordinary General-rank beasts, he wouldn't even need to look for weaknesses; one strike would turn their bones and muscles into pulp!

The final 20 points were invested into the movement technique Thunder Astral Step (Consummate).

15 attribute points were consumed, and the movement technique's realm was deduced and transformed. The originally conspicuous thunderous glow and roaring thunder sound were completely internalized and vanished, replaced by an ethereal and swift nature that merged into the void and left no trace. Moving like thunder, still as the void.

[Thunder Astral Step] advanced to [Thunder Void Step (Entry)]!

The new movement technique was not only faster but also significantly more stealthy, making it more suitable for surprise attacks and maneuvering.

With this, the 75 attribute points were exhausted, exchanged for an all-around surge in strength!

A Rank Five cultivation technique at Consummate, a Rank Five offensive hammer technique at Entry, a Rank Five concealment movement technique at Entry, and the black gold heavy hammer in hand.

“Now I can truly be considered to have powerful capital within the Rank Five realm.” Zhang Fan exhaled slowly, his breath condensed like an arrow.

At that moment, the specialized watch of the Martial Artists Alliance on his wrist vibrated slightly, popping up a message from Ye Zhenxi and a contribution point list.

“Senior, for killing the Earth-Ripping Demon Ape and resolving the crisis in the old city area, the Alliance has evaluated and awarded you 150 contribution points. Your cumulative contribution points have reached 200. The contribution store has opened higher-authority areas for you; please take a look.”

With a thought, Zhang Fan opened the Alliance's virtual store interface.