Wizard: I Can Refine Everything-Chapter 505 - 50 Wilderness Land

I must say, the old Beastman’s words were exactly what Richard wanted to hear. Without hesitation, Richard accepted the offer.

"That’s good. I see that your caravan’s guard is short-handed. With me around, you’ll be safer." fгeewёbnoѵel.cσm

The old Beastman’s heart leapt with joy upon hearing this; he liked such warm-hearted young people.

"Then may I know how to address this young hero?"

"My name is Gu Lie."

The old Beastman nodded slightly and introduced himself, "I am Lv Dali, my lord’s name is Lv Shang.

Since the young hero is willing to travel with us, please accept this money as your remuneration for the journey."

Hearing this, Richard pretended to struggle and finally accepted the money reluctantly.

"In that case, I will be your guard for this journey."

Richard’s response greatly satisfied the Wild Beastman known as Lv Dali; Richard’s behavior perfectly matched his impression of those young Sect disciples fresh to the world.

He gave a respectful bow to Richard, "For this journey, I ask that you, Young Master Gu, take great care."

After sorting out Richard’s matters, the old Beastman returned to the side of the caravan master. After a brief discussion, they decided not to delay and to leave the area as quickly as possible.

At the moment, no one knew if those Wild Bandits would come back for a second attack.

"The lightly wounded walk on their own, the seriously injured go in the cart; those with one breath left get meat and wine to see them off. Bury the dead for peace."

The old Beastman’s orders were very rational. Having venture far and wide over the years, he had developed an iron heart that could be merciless when necessary.

Those who were barely breathing were a burden to the group; it was better to give them one last good meal and let them die sated.

The caravan’s guards showed no reaction to these orders; the moment they signed on as caravan guards, they were prepared to die in foreign lands.

"No ashes to keep?" Richard asked on purpose.

The old Beastian sighed and responded, "Cremation takes time, and I don’t practice the Martial Arts of fire, so we can only bury them here."

For the caravan guards, digging a large pit and burying their fellows didn’t take much time. In contrast, cremation was far too time-consuming.

Hearing this, Richard opportunistically showed a hint of compassion before sighing as well.

"Jianghu is indeed perilous."

The old Beastman chuckled to himself, thinking this was typical of the young and inexperienced.

In this world, villages in the Wilderness compete for resources, battles that can take dozens or hundreds of lives. Even small City Lords fighting each other would see scores or hundreds of Martial Artists fall in battle.

If major Sects went to war, that number would climb even higher.

And in the case of battles between Holy Sects, blood would flow like rivers, corpses would span thousands of miles.

Compared with these, the battle between the caravan and the bandits was merely a minor episode.

Once the bodies were buried, the caravan set off for their destination—Chengshan City.

...

On the Wilderness Land, there were no roads; trails appeared only where merchants frequently traveled.

A relatively safe trade route was crucial for merchants. If a route was destroyed—say, a Sect was built upon it or Wild Beasts claimed the area as their territory—then the caravan had to find a new path.

However, Wild Bandits were clearly not a danger that could force a caravan to stray from its route.

Along the way, Richard, like a curious baby, bombarded the old Beastman with questions.

These inquiries were half genuine, half feigned, partly to fit his current persona and partly to test whether the old Beastman was telling the truth.

The results of his test pleased Richard; the old Beastman did not lie.

After some questioning, Richard gained a meticulous understanding of Wild Beastmen society.

There were two primary types of Wild Beastmen settlements: cities and villages. Cities required a substantial population, solid walls, and a sufficiently powerful strong being. Villages, on the other hand, had no specific requirements.

A few people and a handful of huts could make up a village. Even if there were hundreds of thousands of people and an army of Martial Artists, it would still be considered a village if no walls were built.

In this land known to Wild Beastmen as Wilderness, cities are the places all Beastmen aspire to be.

Only within the cities can one find "Sects."

Sects are like Wizard Academies for Wild Beastmen but unlike the Wizard World, Wild Beastmen’s Sects are divided into four ranks.

The lowest rank is "Sect," and there is great variance among them. Some Sects may only have a martial master, which is a Second-level Creature, in charge.

And some Sects could be presided over by several Martial Arts Grandmasters, Third-level Creatures.

These Sects are the most common Martial Artist training institutions on the vast Wilderness Land, to the extent that Wild Beastmen directly use the term "Sect" to refer to such establishments.

Above the sects are the major sects, which require at least one Martial Arts Grandmaster, that is, a Level 4 Creature, to oversee them. Some of the major sects even have multiple Level 5 Creatures in charge.

And above the major sects sits the very pinnacle of the power pyramid in the Wilderness Land—The Holy Sects.

The Holy Sects consist of three orthodox, two unorthodox, and one divination sect, with each sect hosting at least one Martial Saint, a Level 6 Creature.

The social pyramid of the Wild Beastmen is such that the Holy Sects collect benefits from the Great Sects, which in turn collect benefits from the smaller sects. These smaller sects collect benefits from the various cities, and within these cities, there are typically multiple sects that hold authority. These sects are the local powerhouses, responsible for extracting benefits from the grassroots level of Wild Beastmen.

The area where Richard currently found himself was known as the territory of the Great Sun Holy Sect.

Additionally, outside of these three levels exists another kind of sect, known as martial academies.

A martial academy only needs one martial artist as the head to be established. Martial academies have a very low threshold—one martial artist head is sufficient to open an academy. However, their upper limit is also very high; among the seven Martial Saints throughout the Wilderness Land, besides the Sect Masters of the Six Great Holy Sects, there is also one elusive Martial Saint.

Rumors say that this legendary Martial Saint resides in a certain small city and even runs a martial academy there.

But beyond this individual, martial academies are still full of hidden dragons and crouching tigers. Many once-famous warriors in Jianghu open martial academies after they have grown old, to live out their remaining years.

After understanding the basic societal structure, including the intricate details not mentioned by the Reconnaissance Wizard, Richard had an idea in mind.

He planned to take over another’s nest, stealthily appropriating a sect as his own base.

Using the Invisible Face, his disguise as a Wild Beastman was unquestionably undetectable. As long as he handled things properly, he could openly move about in the identity of a sect leader.

He could directly support a power base, collecting intelligence while doing so.

Having decided on his next course of action, Richard began to intentionally inquire about the sects within Chengshan City.

As for the reason, it was quite simple.

In Jianghu, many sects have the tradition of testing their martial arts. The so-called testing of martial arts is to have a bout with the local sect wherever one goes in the course of traveling in Jianghu.

For his current identity, to test martial arts was naturally the most normal thing to do.

"With the young hero’s ability, I recommend you not start with those petty sects. You can directly start testing martial arts with the Banshan Sect," the old Beastman said kindly, "This sect’s strength is average among Chengshan City’s sects, but its ancestors were quite formidable, once dominating Chengshan City.

Their style of combat also aligns with the young hero’s style.

If the young hero can win against this sect, then no matter which major sect you visit afterwards, you will not be turned away.

If the young hero cannot win against this sect, then there will be no need for you to continue testing martial arts further."

The old Beastman, having walked Jianghu for many years, knew the Chengshan City sects very well, and the advice he provided was highly pertinent.

Richard nodded repeatedly, thinking to himself, "This Chengshan Sect is indeed a good choice. If I can take over this sect, I’ll have secured a foothold in Chengshan City."

"May I ask, Elder, how much you know about this Banshan Sect? My master taught me to understand the opponent’s information and prepare well before fighting them. One should not engage in battle unprepared."

The old Beastman was startled by the question but then sighed with admiration, "The young hero’s master must be an old hand in Jianghu. Alas, so many young martial artists, who are quite skilled, often stumblein minor conflicts early in their careers.

What they lack is this kind of caution.

Walking in Jianghu requires both courage and carefulness; many people only possess the former and lack the latter."

With that, the old Beastman shared all he knew about the Banshan Sect with Richard.

"This Banshan Sect’s martial arts category is focused on Power, with its Sect Martial Arts named the Moving Mountain Barbaric Bull Power. Rumor has it that once one starts to learn the Moving Mountain Barbaric Bull Power, they can break steles and crack stones. If they achieve mastery, they can play with boulders weighing thousands of pounds as if they were toys.

If they became proficient, it’s said that their strength could ’move mountains’, and a punch could even cause the space to tremble."

Richard frowned slightly and asked, "With such formidable strength, there must be a corresponding Body Refining Technique, right? Otherwise, upon delivering such a punch, the reaction force...could cause their flesh and bones to shatter."

"You’re correct, young hero. Besides the Moving Mountain Barbaric Bull Power, the Banshan Sect possesses another Body Refining Technique.

We outsiders do not know the secrets of this Body Refining Technique. However, it is known that upon perfecting this technique, one can transform into the Moving Mountain Barbaric Bull Statue."

Richard was startled by this and thought with joy: "So it’s Bloodline Alchemy, most likely involving Bloodline Seeds."

With this information, his next actions would be even more stable.

"Ah, but it’s a pity. The Banshan Sect probably won’t be able to produce the Moving Mountain Barbaric Bull Statue anymore."

"Oh? How so, Elder?" Richard inquired.

The old Beastman sighed once more: "Three generations ago, a Sect Master of the Banshan Sect ventured into the Wilderness and perished outside. Upon hearing this news, the sects of Chengshan City seized the opportunity and joined forces to attack the Banshan Sect.

While the Sect did not get completely destroyed in that battle, a part of their Body Refining Technique became incomplete. Without the complete Body Refining Technique, the Moving Mountain Barbaric Bull Power could not evolve to its peak.

The Banshan Sect had lost its chance for resurgence."

Richard was puzzled; if the Body Refining Technique was incomplete, couldn’t they just complete it? As the Sect’s definitive Martial Arts, their research on it would certainly not be lacking. Integrating the data, completing it should not be a severe issue.

Even if those records had been destroyed, the Banshan Sect had not perished back then; wouldn’t the practitioners of the technique discuss among themselves and complete it? Was it really that difficult?

Richard couldn’t help but ask, "Didn’t anyone try to complete the technique?"

"Of course, they did," the old Beastman said somberly, "The previous Sect Leader of Banshan Sect entered a withdrawn cultivation, vowing not to emerge until the Body Refining Technique was completed.

But so many years have passed, and he is likely to die in seclusion."