I Only Need to Win Once

The first time he was killed, Jiang Liu realized he had underestimated the NPCs.

That flying sword qi had dazzled his eyes and thrown him into a panic, leaving him no time to react.

There were no health bars, no mana bars. If his defenses were broken and a vital spot was struck, he would die.

He gave his first real battle a score of zero. Thinking back, he had made a mistake from the very first move.

When the NPC came at him, why had he tried to block? Wouldn't it have been better to dodge first, then counterattack?

Jiang Liu silently simulated in his mind how he should defend and how he should kill his opponent in return.

A few minutes later.

He reentered the scenario. His vision shifted, and he returned to the City Lord's Manor.

[Bold of you! You brat, you backwoods peasant.]

[Skip]

The instant he skipped it, Jiang Liu saw the Lingyun Sect Outer Elder charging at him with sword in hand.

The same movement! The same technique!

But Jiang Liu was prepared this time. As the sharp blade cleaved toward his head, he stumbled several steps back and thrust the Sunrise Sword at the Lingyun Sect Outer Elder's chest!

This sword strike carried the bearing of a sword immortal!

The Lingyun Sect elder missed with his strike, flicked the Sunrise Sword away with a backhanded swing, then sent another streak of white sword qi flying through the air.

Here it came!

Jiang Liu's heart clenched. He twisted aside in a slight panic and barely dodged the sword qi.

But before he could straighten himself, another streak of sword qi entered his field of vision.

Jiang Liu: "?????"

It was actually a combo attack!

[Battle Failed]

[Young Hero, Please Try Again]

Back at the scenario screen, Jiang Liu's face had gone dark and his breathing grew heavier. He was clearly furious.

Wasn't that sword qi move way too unfair?

It could slash him from several meters away, and if the first strike missed, there was a second. It had caught him completely off guard.

He had entered the scenario full of ambition, intending to get some proper combat training. Who would have thought that he could not even withstand two moves from a minor monster in 1-7?

He had come to train his practical fighting skills, not his state of mind.

"Can't I release spiritual qi externally?"

Jiang Liu pondered it. He was a cultivator at Qi Cultivation Layer 5, so he should be able to do it too, right?

But where could he test it out?

The 1-7 scenario definitely would not work. That old bastard attacked immediately and gave him no time to practice.

Then he could only...

Jiang Liu shifted his gaze and entered the 1-1 scenario.

The scene changed.

He appeared on a mountain path, with three masked bandits standing opposite him.

[This mountain was opened by me, this tree was...]

[Skip]

The three masked bandits did not care that Jiang Liu held a magical sword in his hand and had wings on his back. They rushed straight at him with little knives.

Knife-wielding bandits VS a cultivator with magical artifacts.

Jiang Liu hacked two of them to death in quick succession. His reaction was a little slow, allowing the final bandit to stab him with a knife.

Yet he was completely unharmed.

The instant the bandit's knife struck his chest, a white light suddenly surged from his body and blocked the feeble attack.

At the same time, a notification sounded in his mind.

[Attack received. Spirit Rhinoceros Pendant activated. Attack strength below Qi Cultivation Layer 5. Judged ineffective.]

Only when the electronic voice sounded did Jiang Liu finally look enlightened.

He had nearly forgotten that he possessed a Spirit Rhinoceros Pendant.

So that old man in 1-7 was actually a monster above Qi Cultivation Layer 5?

No wonder he could not beat him. His level was too low.

After casually beating the remaining little bandit half to death, Jiang Liu began figuring out how to release spiritual qi externally.

In truth, there was not much to figure out. It was simply too easy. Any cultivator in the Qi Refining Stage could do it.

Jiang Liu circulated the Three Revolutions Mysterious Technique. Water spiritual qi flowed slowly through his body. Under his control, it did not follow the route of the major heavenly circulation, but flowed through his palm and into the Sunrise Sword, coating the originally dark fiery blade in a faint blue glow.

Water spiritual qi gathered on the Sunrise Sword. Sword qi burst forth in a half-meter blue radiance, accompanied by the soft sound of flowing water.

Success!

Seeing the externally released water spiritual qi at the tip of the Sunrise Sword, Jiang Liu could not help but smile. He turned his attention to the final bandit, slashing through the air. Pale blue sword qi shot forth and tore through the sky.

Haha, old bastard, I can do it too!

[Battle Victory]

Jiang Liu happily returned to the 1-7 scenario.

[Bold of you!]

[Skip]

This time, before the Lingyun Sect elder could make the first move, Jiang Liu slashed a stream of Water Spirit Sword Qi at him.

Bang!

The Lingyun Sect elder reacted with equal speed. With several swift sword swings, he shattered Jiang Liu's sword qi in the blink of an eye, then leaped at him with sword in hand once more.

The same movement! The same technique!

"He can even change his moves!"

Jiang Liu cursed under his breath. He had thought this NPC would stupidly crash into his sword qi, but the other party had changed techniques directly.

This was actually an intelligent NPC!

Jiang Liu calmly retreated and dodged the strike, then unleashed two consecutive streams of Water Spirit Sword Qi from his hand.

Whoosh! Whoosh!

This time, the Lingyun Sect elder had no way to deal with it. His robe was shredded by the two strikes, and two bloody wounds were carved across his chest.

Jiang Liu possessed a Supreme Water Spiritual Root. The strength of his water spiritual qi far surpassed that of ordinary people. Even if the Lingyun Sect elder's realm was higher than his, it was useless.

Though injured, the Lingyun Sect elder's expression did not change. He still swung his white sword qi with murderous intent.

The two exchanged sword qi from several meters apart, barely ending in a draw.

Jiang Liu felt the spiritual qi within him rapidly dwindling. Gritting his teeth, he drew several afterimages through the air with the Sunrise Sword. Five streams of Water Spirit Sword Qi swept toward the Lingyun Sect elder from every direction.

He emptied all the spiritual qi in his body!

Everything came down to this strike!

The Lingyun Sect elder's expression remained unchanged as he raised his sword.

Then he died.

A flurry of fists could kill even an old master!

"Hahaha, old bastard, fight me!"

"You can win countless times, but you only need to lose once!"

"I can lose countless times, but I only need to win once!"

Jiang Liu completed his first battle in the cultivation world. Though it had taken three attempts, and though it was only virtual, he was still incredibly happy, his heart filled with satisfaction.

Only at times like this did he deeply feel that he was not playing a game, but cultivating immortality!

This was damn exhilarating!

[Battle Victory]

[Obtained 500 Cultivation Points, Black Iron from Beyond the Heavens]

[Scenario Stage 1-8 Unlocked]

Jiang Liu remained on the scenario screen for quite a while before calming down. But he did not immediately enter the 1-8 scenario. Instead, he returned to the 1-7 scenario stage again.

He was only here to train in real combat. It had taken him several deaths just to beat one old bastard, let alone the monsters in later scenarios.

The enemy in 1-7 was already at a higher realm than him. Being able to kill above his level was impressive enough. There was no need to go looking for a beating in 1-8.

When he returned to the 1-7 scenario and faced the Lingyun Sect Outer Elder again, Jiang Liu did not use Water Spirit Sword Qi. Instead, he fought using only his physical skills, increasing the difficulty for himself.

And the price... was that he only killed the Lingyun Sect elder after dying seven or eight times.

He was practically developing psychological trauma.

The price was heavy, but the improvement was visible to the naked eye.

Through battle after battle, he went from being struck by the Lingyun Sect elder's sword qi, to barely brushing past it, until finally achieving a flawless victory. His combat experience, reactions, and ability to predict his opponent's moves all rose in a straight line.

In the end, he spent half an hour repeatedly clearing the 1-7 scenario, killing the Lingyun Sect elder dozens of times before finally venting his anger.