3: Chapter 3 A Different Li Wen

The next day, early morning.

Faint light pierced through the gaps in the mottled old curtains, casting long, narrow strips of light onto the room's floor.

Li Wen woke up on the bed, his consciousness swiftly shifting from deep slumber to clarity.

He habitually squinted his eyes to adjust to the brightness, then stretched out a long yawn.

Once the lingering sleepiness completely faded, the anxiety deeply hidden in his heart quietly resurfaced.

With a slight movement of his thought, he summoned the light screen that carried all his hope:

[Name: Li Wen]

[Age: 18]

[Profession: Scholar Lv1 (0 / 100)]

[Realm: Unranked (6.0 → 6.1 Rank)]

[Cultivation Technique: Splitting Edge Golden Fiend Method - Basic (Beginner 80 → 87 / 100)]

[Skill: Blade Technique - Advanced (Minor Achievement 86 / 100)]

Looking at the familiar translucent light screen still floating quietly in his vision, Li Wen couldn't help but let out a deep breath, as if expelling the heavy oppression that had weighed on his heart for eighteen years.

"It's still here... Not a dream," he murmured to himself, his voice carrying a barely perceptible tremor.

These eighteen years had been too hard for him, like a small boat struggling to row through a boundless storm.

Despite exerting strength far beyond ordinary people, his sweat soaking his sinews and bones, due to his family's straitened circumstances and his own past dullness, he hadn't even managed to approach the other shore, but was instead left further and further behind by peers who possessed resources and talent.

The appearance of this mysterious panel was nothing less than the only piece of driftwood he saw when he was about to drown—the only ember burning with hope that he could grasp.

The sense of solidity brought by confirming the panel's existence gradually calmed his panic. Li Wen's mind settled, and his gaze swept over the jumping data on the panel with focus and exploration.

Realm: Unranked (6.0 → 6.1 Rank)

"As expected!" A sharp glint flashed in Li Wen's eyes.

During yesterday's physical assessment, the cold mechanical voice had declared his Physical Body Rank was barely holding at Rank 6.0, a passing score that was still worlds away from the enrollment line for Martial Arts Universities.

In just one night, he had directly increased by 0.1 Rank! This magnitude was unprecedented in his many years of Cultivation.

It must be known that in the past, even when he gritted his teeth every month to use the meager three level 1 qi and blood potions, the resulting increase was minuscule. An augmentation this visible and confirmed by the panel was an absolute first.

"It must be the effect of 'Absolute Focus'!" He confidently attributed this achievement to the core skill he activated last night.

Under that state of 'Absolute Focus,' not only were his mind and intent unified, discarding all distracting thoughts and causing Cultivation efficiency to surge, but more importantly was that profound, mysterious feeling—as if parting the fog to enhance Comprehension Ability—that was the key!

Cultivation Technique: Splitting Edge Golden Fiend Method - Basic (Beginner 80 → 87 / 100)

Shifting his gaze to the Cultivation Technique column, he understood immediately.

No wonder he always felt the Profound Truth of the 'Splitting Edge Golden Fiend Method' was profound and its understanding obscure; it turned out his proficiency was only at the 'Beginner' stage, having just crossed the threshold.

And yet, just one session of Cultivation last night under the 'Absolute Focus' state caused this long-stagnant proficiency to jump by 7 points. The direct feedback from the efficiency boost filled him with confidence for the future.

Skill: Blade Technique - Advanced (Minor Achievement 86 / 100)

When his gaze landed on the Skill column, a slight ripple, mixed with a trace of emotion, stirred in Li Wen's heart.

Compared to the superficiality of his Cultivation Technique, the 'Minor Achievement' Realm of this 'Advanced Blade Technique' was perhaps the only achievement worth praising from his two and a half years of arduous Cultivation, barely something he could present.

The classification of primary Martial Arts Skills appeared clearly in his mind: Basic, Advanced, Top Tier, with each layer further subdivided into Beginner, Minor Achievement, and Major Achievement.

After cultivating a Top-tier Blade Technique to Major Achievement Perfection, if one could perceive Heaven and Earth and fuse it with oneself, creating a secret Martial Dao technique belonging uniquely to them, only then could they step into that yearned-for first Realm—the Unity Realm!

Those who entered this Realm had their body and mind perfectly integrated with their technique, capable of unleashing their power with several, or even over ten times, the original might, completely widening the gulf between them and ordinary Martial Artists.

In front of a Master in the Unity Realm, as long as the opponent's skill Realm had not similarly Advanced, even if their Physical Body Rank was much higher, they were merely targets with slightly superior strength and speed, capable of being eliminated in a mere flip of the hand.

This 'Unity Realm' was a crucial, even decisive, threshold for a Martial Artist to break through the limits of life and step into the Ranks of the transcendent 'Super Martial Artist'.

Unable to enter this Realm, one would forever be locked within the scope of an ordinary Martial Artist.

In the small Qingshi County, experts who reached the Unity Realm were few and far between; they were all high-and-mighty Super Martial Artists.

And among high school students, those who could achieve this feat were rarer than phoenix feathers and unicorn horns.

To Li Wen's knowledge, across all high schools in Qingshi County, those who could reach the Unity Realm before graduation could be counted on two hands.

Those individuals were all favored sons of heaven, the greatest hope for the entire county to impact the four top Martial Arts Schools of the Huaguo in the coming year.

Once upon a time, hearing these legends, his heart was filled only with deep powerlessness and shock.

He had exhausted all his energy just cultivating the basic Blade Technique, and reaching Minor Achievement in the Advanced Blade Technique was already difficult, yet others could surpass Top Tier and create their own secret techniques at the same age.

The Li Wen of that time didn't even dare to harbor the ambition to catch up; even the luxury of looking up seemed unattainable.

However, at this moment, gazing at the '86 / 100' on the panel, feeling the unprecedented clarity brought by the Fusion of the dual souls in his mind,

And the power of the 'Scholar' bestowed by the panel, the long-dormant lake of Li Wen's heart stirred with ripples named 'Ambition' for the first time.

"Jingle bells~~" The slightly harsh alarm clock sound from the bedside suddenly rang out, interrupting Li Wen's flying thoughts.

He casually turned off the alarm, settled these thoughts deep in his heart, got up, pushed open the door, and went to wash up.

The cold running water stimulated his cheeks, bringing complete sobriety.

Hastily finishing his washing, he picked up the simple, still-warm breakfast already prepared by Li Wen's Mother, Wang Juan, from the small dining table in the living room, slung his faded canvas schoolbag over his shoulder, pushed open the creaking front door, and merged into the characteristic morning hustle and bustle of the old district.

...

Qingshi No. 3 Middle School.

Senior Year Teaching Building, Class 21 Cultural Course Classroom.

It was still early, and the large classroom was empty.

Li Wen was already seated in his usual corner spot by the window.

His gaze was intently fixed on the textbook, "advanced mathematical foundation theory," spread out before him.

Sunlight filtered through the window, illuminating the complex and difficult formulas and symbols on the page.

Li Wen concentrated his spirit and began to read and comprehend sentence by sentence.

About ten minutes after he entered the study state, the classroom door was pushed open, and a slightly chubby boy with small eyes walked in.

Seeing Li Wen already reading, he pushed up his glasses and greeted him, half-teasingly, half-habitually:

"Whoa, as expected of our class's The Overachiever, you're really early."

This person was Wei Wu, the top student in cultural courses for Class 21, a figure who consistently ranked in the top ten on the entire Qingshi No. 3 Middle School cultural scores list.

But contrasting with his dazzling academic achievements, his Martial Arts scores were dismal, even worse than the former Li Wen.

Classmates often made fun of their names privately: Li Wen wasn't good, Wei Wu wasn't good.

"Morning," Li Wen didn't lift his head, his gaze still glued to the page, only replying with a brief word.

It wasn't intentional coldness; it was because he didn't want to attract unnecessary attention due to an unusual attitude, and more importantly, because he was currently immersed in a novel craving for knowledge.

The scholar experience points needed to be gained through studying knowledge! This was something he realized after his initial attempt last night.

[You diligently studied for ten minutes, scholar experience +1]

Almost simultaneously, this line of text, which brought him a slight joy, popped up on the panel.

Indeed! Just like the settings in the game he remembered!

The core source of experience points for the [Scholar] profession to level up is learning, understanding, and mastering knowledge!

And the higher the Rank, the more exaggerated and powerful the Comprehension boost and self-control enhancement that 'Absolute Focus' can bring!

The huge Cultivation returns from his first experience with the skill last night were like timely rain, filling him with motivation to grind experience points right now.

Even without this panel, he would strive hard for improvement.

But now, with a clear goal and a visible progress bar, this motivation burned like a raging flame.

He must raise his [Scholar] Rank as quickly as possible!

Because according to the game's settings, the first player to grind their initial profession Rank to the maximum would receive a Heaven-Defying reward—unlocking the second profession!

This hidden 'Pioneer' achievement was recognized in the previous life's game guide circles as one of the cornerstones that determined the strongest combat power in the later stages! He was determined to obtain it!

...

Time flowed silently amidst focus.

Another dozen minutes passed, and the classroom door was pushed open again. A girl with a high ponytail and a slightly weary expression walked in.

Seeing Li Wen and Wei Wu already reading at their desks, one in front of the other, she couldn't help but yawn and mutter:

"As expected, the first and second The Overachievers are both here. I say, you two, can you give the rest of us a way to live?" Her words carried a familiar jest.

"Morning!" Wei Wu looked up and replied with a smile.

"Morning!" Li Wen still didn't look up, sparing a moment from his book to respond.

The girl was clearly accustomed to their style. She tossed her schoolbag onto her desk, unzipped it, pulled out a book, and joined the Ranks of the 'grinders'.

The classroom was left only with the sound of turning pages and the rustling of pen tips scratching against paper; the focus of the three built a silent boundary.

...

"Jingle bells--" The melodious sound of the dismissal bell suddenly rang out.

For an entire morning, Li Wen was immersed in high-intensity study. Excluding necessary trips to the restroom during breaks, he had practically studied six hours straight without moving from his desk.

[Profession: Scholar Lv1 (36 / 100)]

The experience points on the panel clearly recorded the results of his diligence.

Thirty-six experience points gained in six hours.

By this calculation, he would certainly be able to raise his Scholar Rank to Lv2 after just two more days of such wholehearted dedication.

Hmm... Li Wen put down his pen, stood up from his seat, stretched his shoulders, neck, and back, which had become slightly stiff from sitting for so long, and let out an extremely wide yawn.

A few slight cracking sounds came from his joints.

Although there was no violent exercise like in the afternoon Cultivation session, the high-intensity study requiring extreme mental concentration for several hours still caused a huge drain on his spirit.

At this moment, his temples even felt slightly swollen.

Simultaneously, his abdomen let out a timely protest: "Gurgle..."

"I'll fill my stomach first," Li Wen murmured to himself, quickly stuffing his books into his desk, grabbing his empty water cup, and walking briskly out of the classroom towards the cafeteria.

The intangible satisfaction brought by knowledge now required replenishment from real energy.

...

Around 1:30 PM.

Qingshi No. 3 Middle School, Class 21 Martial Arts Room.

Completely different from the simple and compact Cultural Course classroom in the morning, this dedicated room for Martial Arts Cultivation was quite spacious.

The nearly thousand-square-meter wide space was paved with flooring made of special Materials capable of withstanding powerful impacts.

Various training equipment was fixed to the surrounding walls, while a large open area in the center was reserved for combat drills or group Cultivation.

There was still half an hour before the afternoon Martial Arts class officially began, but the Martial Arts Room was already quite lively.

Excluding the students in the class whose ambitions lay in the humanities and had long given up the Martial Path, the students planning to take the Martial Arts route and aim for the Martial Arts University had basically all arrived.

In the second semester of the final year, the new content the school's Martial Arts Teacher could impart had already been taught in the previous two years; the current curriculum was more focused on students' independent reinforcement practice, with the teacher patrolling, guiding, correcting errors, and answering difficult questions.

On the path of Cultivation, in the later stages, the truth that 'a Master leads one to the door, but cultivation depends on the individual' manifested vividly.

With the college entrance examination imminent, everyone had a string taut in their hearts; no one dared to slack off, all wanting to seize every second to improve themselves and gain an extra bargaining chip in that fate-deciding examination.

Thus, at 1:30 PM, the Martial Arts Room was already this busy.