Essence "The Endpoint" 032. (Sun-Guard Forest Chapter) Combat Power Bracelet

The sun in midair had already risen high in the sky, and large patches of white clouds were imprinted on the blue canvas above. A refreshing breeze pervaded the entire land. The green sea of trees in the Guardian Sun Forest rolled like waves under the invigorating wind. The alternating roars of beasts and cries of birds reached their liveliest at noon.

At this moment, inside the Guardian Sun Forest, within a certain cave.

"Hoo…"

A fist-sized pale red flame suddenly appeared out of thin air in the palm of Qingyan's right hand. A warm current of mystical energy began rapidly twisting and swirling around his right hand. The sparkling flame lit up Qingyan's focused and determined face, flickering across his forehead with glimmering sweat.

However, before Qingyan could beam with delight, the flame trembled precariously under a gentle mountain breeze and quickly went out, leaving a faint wisp of blue smoke drifting away in the wind.

"Hoo hoo… It seems, the path of a genius isn't so easy to walk after all."

Qingyan breathed heavily. Although the early spring February weather was still relatively cool, his forehead was already drenched in sweat from the strenuous effort, flowing continuously down his cheeks.

Yet beneath the sweat, the corners of Qingyan's mouth overflowed with a happy smile.

Simply because the speed of his cultivation was truly astonishing! Even though it was not as extreme as when he had the Wolf Form fifteen days ago, compared to his usual practice, this half-day of cultivation was at least three times more effective than before, which was enough to make Qingyan rejoice. After all, for a significant portion of the time, he could only maintain a human body.

"Beep… beep beep…"

Suddenly, a highly mechanical sound came from behind. Before Qingyan could turn around to see what it was, he heard an old, somewhat surprised chuckle:

"Combat power index: 455; Level: 4. Hehe, this so-called latest technology is quite impressive. Though it has little practical use in actual combat, it's still a fun gadget to play with."

"What is that?"

It was Qingyan's new teacher, Shi Quanshen. Qingyan turned his head and saw Shi Quanshen facing him, fiddling with a stone wristband in his hands, with a faint red light spiraling quietly around it.Listening to Shiquan Shen's inexplicable words, he couldn't help but ask. \ Shiquan Shen chuckled 'hehe,' threw the bracelet in his hand to Qingyan, and said without the slightest concern: \ 'This is called a combat power bracelet. I heard it's the latest level testing tool from the Huaxia Empire. It basically gives a rudimentary ranking to the powers of Immortal Lords, who originally had no level system, using so-called combat power indexes to represent a cultivator's strength.' \ 'That awesome?!' \ Qingyan exclaimed in surprise. He had already put on the bracelet; the mysterious energy in his body flickered, and with his will, entered the bracelet. He then heard a series of 'beep beep' mechanical sounds, and the bracelet turned a pale red, entering working mode. \ Although the human settlements were primarily focused on cultivation, as time passed, it was inevitable that some auxiliary technological tools powered by mysterious energy would gradually become popular among the people. Therefore, Qingyan wasn't unfamiliar with how to use the bracelet and quickly figured out how to operate it quite skillfully. \ Facing his teacher, Shiquan Shen, Qingyan immediately ran a scan and calculation, speaking continuously: \ 'Something this amazing, and you say it has no practical use? In the future, when meeting an enemy, you can just test their combat power and instantly know who's stronger and who's weaker, right? Then there's no need to fight desperately anymore, right?' \ 'I told you, your brain doesn't turn around. Now tell me, if your teacher completely gives up resisting, do you think you could kill me?' \ Shiquan Shen slammed his hand hard on Qingyan's head and asked. \ 'Uh, maybe…' \ Qingyan pressed on the swollen lump on his head, staring angrily at Shiquan Shen. But then, seeing the bright red color on the bracelet with the 'Unable to Calculate' notice, he felt speechless. He withdrew his mysterious energy, and the bracelet returned to pure white color. Then he interfaced to answer. \ Shiquan Shen nodded, not intending to take back the combat power bracelet, his expression a bit serious, and said, 'That's it. You must remember, the so-called combat power index doesn't represent everything. At most, it can only give us a vague idea of strength. At any time, in battle, the most important thing is not combat power, nor combat skills, but experience — that is, battle wisdom.'"If applied properly, with corresponding combat wisdom, a low-power cultivator can completely defeat a high-power cultivator. Even if the power difference is several times, it is entirely possible. In fact, such events occur frequently across the entire continent. Therefore, this so-called power index can only be used to roughly distinguish strength, and cannot be used to underestimate low-power cultivators or to overestimate high-power cultivators and retreat without a fight. True combat is the only standard to test a person's strength."

"In addition, weapons, combat skills, and even emotions can change a person's true power. In battle, power fluctuations can occur at any moment. Therefore, you must pay attention to everything that could alter the outcome of a fight to improve your combat awareness; this is something you must learn in the future."

"Mm…"

Qingyan carefully digested Shiquan Shen's teachings. Although there were still things he couldn't understand, Qingyan made sure to remember them and slowly grasp them over time. He knew that his teacher, who had experienced and understood so much, was far beyond what a fifteen-year-old like him could compare to.

…

Meanwhile, in the inner area of Shou Ri Forest, at the foot of the Tianxing Mountains.

*Whoosh!*

A mountain stream about four meters wide wound slowly through the rocks, but suddenly, as the mountain slope dropped, a cliff as sharp as a knife appeared beneath it. The four or five-meter descent formed a small waterfall, the clear water droplets striking the stones, creating sparkling splashes, and then flowing downward along the slope.

In front of the small waterfall was a flat area of several hundred square meters, spread open and bright. At this moment, around twenty people had set up tents under the shade of the trees, bustling as they rested.

All in uniform green military attire, with strong and powerful bodies exuding potent mystical energy. A well-organized reconnaissance team moved back and forth. They were a squad of special forces warriors! At this moment, the warriors were observing the nearby Tianxing Mountains, occasionally whispering to each other.Suddenly, a strong and powerful voice came from a middle-aged man standing in the middle of the crowd. His voice, like a thunderclap, said:
"Brothers, our 23rd Ironblood Regiment, Second Squad, is the first to successfully reach the destination! However, tomorrow is the real moment of battle. Everyone must seriously rest and recuperate, gathering your strength, so as to be fully prepared for tomorrow's victory!"
"Yes!"
The uniform response sounded like a clap of thunder, rising to the sky!