Max Out Proficiency, Grind Until I Become a Mortal Sword Immortal

Max Out Proficiency, Grind Until I Become a Mortal Sword Immortal

Author: silvery

Synopsis:

"After transmigrating into a feel-good novel about a Great Female Protagonist whose Soul Slices scattered throughout the world, Yun Shu, a bottom-rung Sword Cultivator who was cannon fodder, first had to figure out how to survive the plot's repeated crushing blows—and maybe live forever while he was at it.

'Ding! You have practiced the Nine Heavens Sword Art once. Skill proficiency +1.'

Yun Shu: Got it. Grind!

Artifact Refining, Talismans, Formation Arrays, Alchemy, Beast Taming, cultivation realms...

Once he'd maxed out every skill, Yun Shu gazed at the plot to come and fell into deep thought. 'Are these protagonists and villains really sure they can beat me?'"

"Body Refinement Second Layer. You fail. Next."

The testing disciple's voice rang out without the slightest trace of emotion.

Yun Shu withdrew his hand, his expression calm. He didn't seem surprised by the result.

He knew his own limitations. He'd only gone through the motions of taking the test.

He looked around. There weren't any of the jeering voices that most novels described, rising and falling all around him. Everyone was just as lousy as everyone else, so naturally no one laughed at another for being worse.

The next disciple was also at the Body Refinement Second Layer. His cultivation was even less solid than Yun Shu's, so of course he failed too.

This was the test Menial Disciples had to pass to become Outer Sect Disciples. It was held once a month, and one needed to reach at least the Body Refining Fourth Level to qualify for the Outer Sect examination.

The sect here was called the Myriad Sword Pavilion. It had risen to prominence through the Sword Path and boasted a long history. Supposedly, a thousand years ago, it had been Yunzhou's foremost sect, renowned throughout the Ten Mortal Provinces.

Though it had since faded into obscurity and no longer ranked among Yunzhou's leading sects, even its highest-ranking cultivator, the Sect Master, was only at the Golden Core Stage. Still, the sect had once enjoyed a glorious history.

Yun Shu walked down from the platform by himself.

Like the other ordinary Menial Disciples, he lined up to collect the Hundred Herbs Liquid.

It was an essential item for disciples undergoing Body Tempering. The whole point of taking the test was to get their hands on this resource.

The first stage of cultivating immortality was Qi Induction into Body.

But not everyone had the aptitude to induce qi right from the start. They first had to temper their bodies, making them better vessels for containing Spiritual Energy. Only then could they attempt to enter the Qi Condensation Stage.

The Body Refining Stage was more like the Mortal World's methods of tempering the flesh. It strengthened the body, and therefore required a great deal of Heavenly Materials and Earthly Treasures.

Though the Hundred Herbs Liquid wasn't even as good as the lowest-grade Heavenly Materials and Earthly Treasures, it was still a potion that the sect's apothecaries had extracted from a hundred different medicinal herbs.

Yun Shu glanced around again. He didn't see any Outer Sect Disciples snatching the Hundred Herbs Liquid, and there had never been any such incidents before. Reassured, he collected two bottles and hurried away.

As soon as he got back to his quarters, he shut the door tight.

After making sure no one was watching, he took a Thread-bound Book from inside his robe.

The title was just barely legible. It was a long one: Conquest of the Empress God in Another World.

Yun Shu opened it and began to read carefully.

He'd picked up the book on his way to the test that day. It had fallen from the sky and landed right in his hands. Whatever else one might say, it was the heavens' first gift to him since he'd transmigrated, and he couldn't possibly take it lightly.

He'd been here for two years. With his limited aptitude and Low-grade Three Spirit Roots, he'd only managed to qualify as a Menial Disciple.

Perhaps in another two years, after advancing to the Body Refining Fourth Level, he'd meet the Outer Sect Disciple requirements, pass the examination, and at best become a true Outer Sect Disciple.

No one would be content with that. He'd trained desperately, but his aptitude really was holding him back. It took him a whole year to advance one layer in the Body Refining Stage. There were far too many people like him, and most would never reach the Foundation Establishment Realm in their lifetimes.

At least he had a little aptitude for cultivation. Low-grade Three Spirit Roots meant he could just barely cultivate, which was decent enough among these Menial Disciples.

Now that something that might be a Golden Finger had appeared, Yun Shu naturally wasn't about to let it slip by.

Better late than never, right? Some people had transmigrated for over a hundred years and risen to become the leaders of the righteous path before their Golden Finger finally arrived. He wasn't in that much of a hurry.

The title had the feel of an old-fashioned women's novel, but he read on carefully all the same.

Three days later.

Yun Shu closed the book.

A look of shock appeared in his eyes.

It was a pure wish-fulfillment novel, a power-up story!

A Great Female Protagonist power-up story, and the protagonist was a fragment of an almighty Big Shot's soul. Her soul had been split into several pieces and scattered throughout the world, and the heroine of this novel was one of them.

The whole story revolved around the heroine. Every bit of the plot served her rise. It was a true Great Female Protagonist novel!

To be honest, this sort of story was an extremely old-fashioned genre for women readers. But that didn't matter.

What mattered was that the world described in the book was exactly the same as Yun Shu's own world!

Did I transmigrate into a book? Yun Shu wondered.

If so...

With this book as his foundation,

he could use his foreknowledge to plan carefully and secure the greatest possible benefits for himself!

As for the heroine's opportunities?

What's yours and what's mine? Weren't they all meant to be shared?

Except for things that required an identity number with even a single digit wrong to activate, which he couldn't do anything about, he had no qualms about the rest.

Of course, that all depended on having enough strength!

He quickly calmed down.

Strength really was the fundamental problem. In the story, the Myriad Sword Pavilion was destroyed just after the heroine left it.

Then, naturally, the heroine avenged them by slaying her enemies. It was a minor trial on her path.

The Myriad Sword Pavilion was just a backdrop on the heroine's road to becoming an Empress and attaining godhood.

But he didn't want to die!

According to the plot, the heroine would arrive at the sect in another month. He didn't have much time left to grow stronger.

He was still a Menial Disciple. Once the Myriad Sword Pavilion fell, how could he possibly survive?

He could just run away.

But running away wasn't a real solution. Two years ago, his Old Man had spent a hefty sum of real silver to secure him this position, hoping he'd make something of himself. If he went back empty-handed, tail between his legs, it wouldn't look right.

Most importantly, even as a Menial Disciple, his name was already on the Myriad Sword Pavilion's registry. It wouldn't be easy to switch to another sect.

His path to immortality might end right there!

He couldn't accept that either.

For now, all he could do was work on getting stronger.

Then take things one step at a time.

If he truly had no other choice, he could still run. After all, as far as the Myriad Sword Pavilion was concerned, he was just a nobody.

With that thought, Yun Shu placed the Thread-bound Book over the oil lamp and gently set it alight.

Over the past three days, he'd read the book over and over. He could remember all the important events in it perfectly.

His memory had always been good. Before transmigrating, it had helped him study his way into one of the top five universities in the country. After transmigrating, his memory had become even sharper, and he didn't miss a single detail.

He didn't regret it. The book hadn't explicitly said to burn it after reading, but it might as well have. It contained earth-shattering secrets, and if they leaked, they could get him killed.

He didn't have a Storage Artifact or anything like that to keep it in. Even some Foundation Establishment disciples didn't have such things, let alone a Menial Disciple like him. So he might as well burn it.

All he could do now was hurry up and cultivate.

And wait for his chance.

He took out the two bottles of Hundred Herbs Liquid.

The Hundred Herbs Liquid wasn't something just anyone could make. It was the work of an apothecary. Its recipe was used across the continent, but only apothecaries could brew it. Their status spoke for itself. A step further, and they might become Alchemy masters, held in the highest esteem by all.

The Hundred Herbs Liquid could be used for Body Tempering. Each month, disciples could receive only two bottles, making it the one resource available to Menial Disciples.

As for the benefits Outer Sect Disciples received, supposedly, they even got real pills.

Yun Shu didn't know much about it and had little experience with it, but over the past two years, he'd managed to learn a bit about how the sect worked.

"Energy Substance detected—Hundred Herbs Liquid. Absorb?"

A voice appeared in his mind.

Yun Shu's eyelid twitched.

Again?

The first time he'd heard that voice, a month ago, he hadn't hesitated for a moment before fusing the two bottles of Hundred Herbs Liquid.

And then...

Nothing had happened at all...

Except that his two bottles of Hundred Herbs Liquid were gone. He'd been saving them to break through to the Body Refinement Third Layer!