No hesitation—Zhao Xuan moved the moment he made his decision.
With rapid footsteps, he kicked off the ground repeatedly and sprinted straight toward the valley marked on the map.
Using his normal speed, it took him nearly half an hour to reach the valley entrance.
The valley was enormous.
Lush greenery filled his vision, with ancient trees stretching across at least a thousand acres.
In such a massive, densely forested landscape, finding a specific target would normally be a daunting task.
But—
Not for Zhao Xuan.
Based on the map's information—
This Berserk Bear shared the valley with a huge colony of Spirit Bees.
And for Land King–type beasts, even a basic fourth-rank creature had territorial instincts.
"No outsider sleeps beneath my bed"—that was essentially the rule.
Most Land Kings would never tolerate another Land King nesting near them.
However—
This bear and the Spirit Bees existed in a unique relationship.
They cooperated.
The bear provided a safe nesting area, and in exchange, the Spirit Bees regularly offered honey.
Thus—
It was almost guaranteed that the bear's lair would be located near the Spirit Bee hive.
And Spirit Bees needed blooming flowers to produce honey.
From this, Zhao Xuan deduced a simple conclusion:
Somewhere in the valley, there must be a huge sea of flowers.
…
With this in mind, Zhao Xuan began weaving through the massive valley, searching quickly.
As expected!
Within minutes, he located a sprawling flower field in the northwest section of the valley.
A sea of blossoms.
The scenery was… breathtaking.
Among the flowers, fist-sized Spirit Bees buzzed tirelessly as they collected nectar.
"Bzzz! Bzzz! Bzzz!"
Millions—not thousands—of Spirit Bees swarmed the air.
It looked like a living, swirling cloud.
Zhao Xuan wasn't normally afraid of dense patterns, but even he felt goosebumps crawling up his arms.
A real trypophobia patient would've fainted on the spot.
He didn't approach the flower sea.
Instead, he observed from a distance.
Then—
He struck like lightning and grabbed one isolated Spirit Bee.
"One, two, three, four, five, six—holy sh*t!"
Shiny diamond-shaped markings—six of them—decorated the bee's wings.
His eyes widened as excitement flooded his face.
"A six-crystal Spirit Bee!"
This meant only one thing:
It produced sixth-rank Spirit Bee honey.
Earlier, when mentioning honey worth 40–50 million per 100 grams—
That was only fifth-rank honey.
Sixth-rank honey?
Not even remotely that cheap.
"Holy—holy—holy sh*t!"
Zhao Xuan trembled with excitement.
"If I can get my hands on sixth-rank Spirit Bee honey, I'll strike it rich!"
But then—
A thought hit him like a slap.
"Wait—wait wait wait!"
His brows furrowed tightly.
"This is not the time to celebrate."
"This joy is way too premature."
"That Berserk Bear's strength… might be far beyond what I imagined."
"It's been eating sixth-rank Spirit Bee honey all this time!"
His excitement cooled instantly.
"Stick to the plan. Test the bear first. If I can fight it—great. If not, run. After my Azure Dragon Fruit breaks through, I'll come clean it up."
After confirming his plan, he began tracking the Spirit Bees from afar, following them toward their hive.
He approached the northwestern cliff area—
When suddenly—
"ROOOOAAAAARRRR!!!"
A thunderous bear roar erupted from the cliff ahead.
"What the…?"
Zhao Xuan paused.
"Why is that bear roaring out of nowhere? Don't tell me someone else had the same idea and pissed it off before I got here?"
Before he could think further—
"BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!"
The ground trembled violently, getting louder and closer.
There was no mistaking it.
The source of the tremors was moving straight toward him.
"Don't tell me—!!"
A wild, absurd thought flashed through Zhao Xuan's mind.
"That damn bear couldn't have detected me from four or five kilometers away, right?"
"That's impossible. That would be ridiculous."
Unless…
Unless the bear had awakened Observation Haki.
"No way. No way. Absolutely impossible!"
He doubted himself—
Until the next second.
His doubts shattered.
Because he saw it:
A towering black bear, at least twenty meters tall, charging toward him like a walking mountain.
Its murderous gaze locked onto him.
Its killing intent was a tidal wave.
Even in his normal form, Zhao Xuan's body trembled involuntarily.
"Is this thing really just sixth rank?"
The bear stormed toward him.
Its massive paw—bigger than Zhao Xuan's entire body—came crashing down.
A terrifying gust tore through the forest.
Trees shook violently.
Branches snapped and fell like rain.
"ROOOOAAAARRRR!!!"
Zhao Xuan didn't retreat.
He activated his Dragonman form instantly.
Thunder surged around him.
Then—
He swung his lightning-wreathed fist upward—
BOOM!!!
Their attacks collided.
The shockwave flattened everything within the area.
Hurricane-force winds howled as ancient trees bent under the pressure.
And Zhao Xuan—
Felt like he had been hit by a high-speed train.
His internal organs churned violently.
He was pushed back over ten meters—
Until his legs sank into the earth like stakes.
"This thing… is sixth-rank high-grade!?"
"That strength… that physique… isn't any weaker than my Dragonman form!"
"I can't beat it head-on!"
A single clash told him the truth instantly.
He was absolutely NOT the bear's match.
Then—
BOOM!!
The bear's paw slammed down again.
Its speed didn't match its massive size.
It was unbelievably fast.
The ground exploded into a crater one hundred meters wide.
"Holy sh*t!"
Zhao Xuan leaped into the air using Moon Step.
"One hit from that and half my life's gone!"
"Nope nope nope! Retreat! Retreat immediately!"
"You damn bear, wait for me—once my Fruit ability breaks through, I'll come back for your head!"
Without shame, Zhao Xuan turned and ran.
But the Berserk Bear—
Did NOT let him go.
It chased relentlessly.
Its speed was nearly equal to Zhao Xuan's.
"Bullsh*t! Who the hell said bears are slow!? I want names!!"
Zhao Xuan sprinted madly through the valley.
Only when he escaped several miles did the bear finally stop at the valley entrance and let out a deafening roar of frustration.
Even after leaving the valley, Zhao Xuan kept running until he was far away.
Only then did he collapse, panting.
He took a mid-grade energy liquid and slowly recovered his strength.
"That damn bear… just wait!"
His expression darkened.
But—
He then noticed something shocking.
"Wait… my proficiency actually increased a lot?"
Shave.
Moon Step.
Armament Haki.
Azure Dragon Fruit ability.
All four jumped by nearly twenty points.
His eyes lit up instantly.
"I only need 250 more points to breakthrough!"
"At twenty points per round… only about twelve or thirteen more engagements!"
"If I persist a little longer and keep harassing it, I'll get even more proficiency!"
A wild smile crept across his face.
Without hesitation—
He turned around.
And ran BACK to the valley.
The moment he entered—
"ROOOOOAAAARRRRR!!!!"
The bear immediately detected him again.
"Something's wrong! There's DEFINITELY something wrong! Why does this bear keep detecting me instantly!?"
"Is it my scent? Bears do have insane noses…"
Before he could finish thinking—
The giant bear burst out again, charging straight at him.
Zhao Xuan exhaled deeply and—
Rushed at the bear head-on.
Moon Step carried him into the air.
He dodged a massive swipe—
And counter-punched with his lightning-coated fist.
The punch landed—
The bear barely flinched.
"What the—!? This defense! Its physique must be WAY past 10,000!"
Another paw came smashing down.
Zhao Xuan blocked—
BOOM!!
He was sent flying.
He got up.
Charged again.
Blocked again.
Sent flying again.
After four or five rounds—
He barely held together.
He fled once more.
The bear chased him to the valley mouth, then stopped again.
Then—
"Ding! You've experienced a fierce battle. Your mastery of Rankyaku, Moon Step, Armament Haki, and Azure Dragon Fruit has improved. All four abilities: +40 proficiency."
Zhao Xuan burst out laughing.
"Nice… very nice!"
With energy liquid and Monkey King Fruit, he recovered most of his strength.
Then—
He went back again.
Again.
And again.
Each "harassment cycle" brought more proficiency.
Until—
"Only fifty points left!"
Standing in a clearing ten kilometers from the valley, Zhao Xuan stared at his panel, grinning wildly.
Why so far?
Because—
That damn bear had broken the rules.
It had chased him out of the valley, across two entire mountain peaks, before finally turning back.
"That dumb bear… just wait."
"Soon… VERY soon… it'll be your turn to run."
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