Such things continued to spread throughout the martial arts gym.
Quite a few people had seen the video from the Cultivation Room and were greatly surprised by Lin Mu's performance.
But some people voiced doubts.
Lin Mu was not very old. No matter how outstanding his martial arts talent was, he could not possibly have reached such a level. It was very likely that he had simply blundered into the answers he gave.
Lin Mu knew nothing about any of this.
After receiving three hundred thousand, he went to the purchasing counter. After making his selection, he chose a Movement Technique Martial Skill.
Flowing Dragon Steps (Second-stage)!
After paying two hundred and eighty thousand, he turned and left.
Money came quickly and went quickly.
As a martial artist, cultivation always required money.
He went to the potion counter and bought several D-grade Blood Qi Potions before returning home.
Lin Mu took out the book recording the Flowing Dragon Steps and studied it carefully.
Before long, a system notification sounded.
Observing the Flowing Dragon Steps manual, gained 212x efficiency.
In an instant, Lin Mu's understanding of the Flowing Dragon Steps rose sharply. Many details were deeply etched into his mind.
Following the requirements of the Flowing Dragon Steps, he moved continuously. His footwork became incredibly elusive, and as he moved, he was like a swimming dragon.
As he completed one full circulation of the technique—
Completed Flowing Dragon Steps cultivation, gained 121x efficiency.
A system notification came through.
Lin Mu felt his Blood Qi grow fuller, and a pleased expression appeared on his face.
In merely a short while, he had already gained entry into this Second-stage Movement Technique.
Taking out the potions, Lin Mu drank them, his figure constantly moving through the Cultivation Room.
His movement was like thunder, and figure after figure resembling dragon shadows appeared without end.
In the blink of an eye, ten days passed.
Over those ten days, Lin Mu went to the Virtual Duel Hall every day and spent two hours guiding Li Yan's cultivation. Other than that, all his time went into cultivation.
As another system notification sounded, Lin Mu's Blood Qi rose noticeably. He looked toward the attribute panel, and lines of information surfaced.
Name: Lin Mu. Blood Qi Value: 1.9 points. Skills: Fist techniques (Black Iron Grade 40%), movement techniques (Black Iron Grade 57%). Cultivation Art: Five Hearts Facing Heaven Art (Minor Success 52%). Martial Skills: Dragon Roar Fist (Mastered), Flowing Dragon Steps (Mastered). ...
Compared with before, his Blood Qi Value had increased by 0.56, his fist techniques had risen by 4%, his movement techniques by 37%, the Five Hearts Facing Heaven Art by 10%, and the Flowing Dragon Steps had reached mastery.
The changes were extremely obvious.
"Fantastic!" Lin Mu could not help saying.
He stretched his waist and walked outside.
During this period, he had visited the Virtual Duel Hall every day, and his practical combat experience had increased greatly.
After all these days of duels, he had completely shed his novice status. He was only one step away from the One-Star Title.
Arriving at the Virtual Duel Hall, Lin Mu entered the virtual space with practiced ease.
A line of information appeared.
Virtual nickname: Lin Ying. Current rank: None. Points: 390. ...
"Duel!" Lin Mu said.
Ding! Your current points have reached the promotion standard. Would you like to participate in a Promotion Match?
"Participate!"
Matching... Match successful.
Lin Mu was teleported onto an Arena, and a figure appeared before him.
The moment he appeared, dozens of figures appeared in the spectator stands.
"Go, Wu Gang! I'll love you forever!"
"Wu Gang is so handsome! Mwah!"
"This is his Promotion Match. If he succeeds, he'll be the fastest person in Li City to advance to the One-Star Rank."
"..."
Voices rang out from the spectator stands.
Lin Mu's face showed a trace of surprise.
Wu Gang!
A somewhat famous Star Martial Artist in Li City.
He was handsome, and he livestreamed every cultivation session, drawing in quite a few brainless fans.
But his talent truly was good. At seventeen, his Blood Qi Value had reached 1.89, and he had cultivated multiple Martial Skills to major mastery.
It was precisely because of this that he had maintained an extremely high win rate since entering Virtual Duels.
After Wu Gang appeared, he looked at Lin Mu with a hint of arrogance on his face.
"You're really unlucky to run into me in a Promotion Match."
"And then?" Lin Mu replied calmly.
"You have no chance of winning against me. If you obediently admit defeat, I might let you lose with some dignity," Wu Gang said.
"Idiot!" Lin Mu could not help cursing.
The Virtual Duel Hall had extremely strict supervision rules. Deliberately throwing a match or voluntarily admitting defeat brought severe punishment.
After all, people might place bets on every match.
"You don't know what's good for you!" Wu Gang said coldly.
Lin Mu ignored him and directly placed a ten-thousand-yuan bet.
He could now place bets five times a day, ten thousand yuan each time.
After reaching the One-Star Rank, the amount would double, though the difficulty of winning would also increase.
Seeing this, Wu Gang sneered and placed ten thousand yuan on himself as well.
His brainless fans also placed their bets one after another. Before long, the amount wagered on his side had reached sixty thousand.
A mechanical voice sounded at that moment.
Wu Gang moved, instantly leaping into the air.
Gales of force rose around his legs as he kicked toward Lin Mu with astonishing speed.
Lin Mu dodged, then drove power into his right fist. His fist shadow swept like the wind and struck Wu Gang's abdomen from an extremely tricky angle.
Bang!
Wu Gang was sent flying, his eyes full of disbelief.
He adjusted his breathing and moved rapidly. Golden light surged forth at that moment.
Leg force like a long spear appeared before Lin Mu.
Second-stage Martial Skill, Adamantine Leg!
Facing such an attack, Dragon's Roar sounded repeatedly from Lin Mu's body.
His footsteps shifted like a swimming dragon.
Almost the instant the two exchanged blows, he shattered Wu Gang's attack with the force of rotten wood being swept away, then struck Wu Gang hard.
Bang!
A thunderous boom rang out as Wu Gang flew backward, blood spraying wildly from his mouth.
His eyes were filled with disbelief.
He was one of heaven's favored sons!
Since entering Virtual Duels, he had maintained a ninety percent win rate.
Yet against Lin Mu, he had not even lasted three moves.
With a calm expression, Lin Mu slowly walked up to him and kicked him in the face.
Match ended. Winner: Lin Ying!
A mechanical voice sounded.
Lin Mu returned to the virtual space. At the same time, mechanical notifications rang out.
Congratulations, you have successfully passed the Promotion Match and obtained the One-Star Title. A reward of twenty thousand yuan has been issued. Since you have obtained the One-Star Title, the Blood Qi Value restriction has been partially lifted. In future battles, your opponents' Blood Qi Value may exceed yours by up to 0.5. ...
Hearing this information, Lin Mu let out a soft breath.
He knew that every 0.01 difference in Blood Qi Value created a certain gap.
And a gap of 0.5—
If he was even slightly careless, he could lose to his opponent.
But this could also temper him.
After thinking for a while, Lin Mu called out again, "Duel."
As his words fell, his figure was teleported onto the Arena.
Meanwhile, on the other side, information about him was compiled and placed on an office desk.
Before you continue