Flowing Water Never Stagnates

Su Li, covered in Cursed Gray Mist, had already prepared himself for his first death in the game. However...

One second, two seconds, three seconds.

Nothing happened?

"Huh? What's going on? Did it fizzle out?"

Su Li froze for a second, then smacked his thigh.

"Right! I'm a damn skeleton now!"

What was death blight? A rule-based instant kill that targeted living beings. It forcibly stripped them of their vitality, returning them to death.

But the problem was, Su Li was already dead!

"If I'm immune to death blight..."

Su Li, who had been cowering like a quail just moments ago, straightened right up.

The terrified Soulfire in his eye sockets gradually formed a crooked, villainous grin.

"Heh heh heh... You little frogs had fun spitting at me, didn't you? Well, now it's hunting time!"

Holding the Revered Corrupted Dragon Sword, Su Li strode into the depths of the mist like a demon god crawling out of hell.

"Ribbit?"

In the mist, a Curse Frog had been puffing out its cheeks, ready to spit a second time. It froze.

Its huge fake eyes rolled in confusion, as if it couldn't understand why its prey wasn't dead yet.

The next second, a dark red sword flash ripped through the gray mist.

"Thwip!" The blade sank into soft flesh.

The long sword in Su Li's hand plunged precisely into the Curse Frog's real eye, just beneath its fake ones. It was defeated before it could even scream.

[Defeated Curse Frog, experience +100]

"Too weak." Su Li flicked the slime off his sword, his face full of disdain.

The creature wasn't particularly strong. The real problems were that they liked to gather in groups and spit Cursed Gray Mist. They were also pretty ugly. But now that Su Li was immune to death blight...

"Ribbit! Ribbit!" Several more Curse Frogs hopped out nearby, trying to overwhelm the intruder with numbers.

"Flashy nonsense."

Su Li blurred into motion, a silver ghost tracing a zigzagging afterimage through the narrow passage.

A sidestep, a sliding step, an upward cut, a horizontal slash.

Every movement was stripped down to its essence, textbook efficiency in the art of killing.

"Swish! Swish! Swish!" Wherever the sword flash passed, it was followed by the sound of a blade sinking into flesh.

In just half a minute, ten Curse Frog corpses littered the ground. Their disgusting croaking fell silent, and peace returned.

[Defeated 10 Curse Frogs in total, gained experience +1000]

[Congratulations on leveling up! Lv8 → Lv9 (500/12400)]

[Free Attribute Points gained: 3]

"I'm already level 9? This leveling speed is practically rocket-powered."

Su Li happily opened his status panel to admire his stats.

[Race: Revered Corrupted Skeleton Soldier]

[Level: Lv9 (500/12400)]

[Attributes: Strength: 50+15, Vigor: 50, Mind: 41, Dexterity: 24+13, Faith: 18+12]

"Holy crap..." Su Li sucked in a breath as he stared at the numbers.

"So this is the joy of pay-to-win... I mean, the joy of a hardcore grinder?"

He couldn't help imagining what his future evolution might look like.

He'd wear splendid Godly Equipment, ride a mighty and imposing dragon, and lead an army of undead...

"Enough daydreaming. I've got business to take care of." Su Li closed the panel and continued deeper into the cave.

The farther in he went, the narrower the surroundings became.

The once-spacious passage began to constrict, while the rock ceiling pressed lower and lower.

Su Li recalled Pipi Dragon and continued alone.

Sticky Rotten Liquid covered the ground, making a strange sound with every step.

The noise echoed through the deathly still cave, sending chills down one's spine.

Gradually, a strange sound began to ring in Su Li's ears.

"..."

It sounded neither like wind nor water. It was more like soft-bodied creatures rubbing against each other—or countless people whispering.

He wasn't hearing it with his ears. It was drilling straight into his mind.

The Soulfire in Su Li's eye sockets flickered violently a few times. His vision doubled, and the surrounding rock walls seemed to turn into writhing flesh.

"What's going on? Mental contamination?"

"Search by book title not working? Try searching by the author instead. Maybe it was just renamed!"

"Bzzzt—"

As soon as Su Li realized what was happening, the whispers in his mind abruptly faded, and his vision cleared.

"Phew... That was close." Su Li shook his head, still shaken. "This place is kind of creepy."

Once he had recovered, Su Li hurriedly looked ahead. The passage had reached its end.

Before him lay a broad underground platform.

It hung alone in midair, surrounded by unfathomable darkness.

At the far end of the platform, facing that darkness, a figure sat cross-legged.

He wore a tattered blue robe, his eyes covered by bandages. A rusted, broken long sword rested across his hands.

He sat perfectly still, as if he had become one with the ancient darkness.

"Is that..." Su Li gripped the Revered Corrupted Dragon Sword and cautiously approached.

"Hey, buddy? Got a light?"

There was no response. Su Li walked up to him and tentatively prodded his shoulder with the tip of his sword.

"Pff."

Like something weathered by countless ages, the figure disintegrated into dust the moment the sword touched him.

A bright blue crystal remained atop the pile of ashes.

Su Li picked it up.

[Obtained: Flowing Water Swordsman's Memory Crystal]

[Description: "Flowing water never stagnates; a door hinge never corrodes." This was the final obsession left behind by a Blind Swordsman. Legend had it that he sealed the Outer God of Rot with a mortal body. But to fight an even more terrifying entity known as the "Abyss," he chose to personally break the seal and release her, hoping to fight poison with poison...]

[Effect: Can be used to enhance a weapon or add attributes. After fusion, grants the Flowing Water Swordsman's swordsmanship legacy.]

"Flowing Water Swordsman?" Su Li stared at the description, the Soulfire in his eye sockets suddenly flaring bright.

As a seasoned lore expert, he knew this story well!

In the lore of Old Man Ring, the Blind Swordsman who taught the Valkyrie Malenia swordsmanship was the Big Boss who sealed the Outer God of Rot!

"Now that's a real Big Boss! Even the Valkyrie's Waterfowl Dance was something she learned from him!"

Su Li remembered the terror of being dominated by Waterfowl Dance back when he played the game.

"If I can learn that move, won't I be unstoppable?"

Besides, the System Panel said this thing could enhance weapons too?

Su Li glanced at the Revered Corrupted Dragon Sword, then at the blue crystal.

"My sword may be strength-based, but who says a greatsword can't use Flowing Water Swordsmanship? A greatsword doesn't need a sharp edge to be deadly. Ever heard of 'great skill is cloaked in simplicity'?"

"Enhance! I have to enhance it!" Without hesitation, Su Li slapped the crystal against the blade.

"Vrrrmmm—!!!" A blinding blue light intertwined with the red glow already shining from the blade.

Blue energy seeped into every groove, flowing like water. It tempered the sword's violent rot and dragon breath, making them more restrained and profound.

The blade grew heavier. Its rugged dragon-bone structure became longer and more compact, while wave-like patterns appeared along the edge. The dragon head on the hilt seemed to come alive, a hint of lively blue glimmering in its eyes.

[Enhancement successful! Revered Corrupted Dragon Sword (Fine Lv20) → Revered Corrupted Dragon Sword (Fine Lv90)]

[Attack power greatly increased! Armor Break +30, Magic Break +20]

[New attribute: Waterfowl Dance (Perform Waterfowl Dance to unleash multiple consecutive strikes. 10% of damage dealt is converted into your own health.)]

Su Li stared at the transformed long sword, a little surprised.

"It didn't advance straight to Excellent quality? Looks like this game's equipment enhancement really does get harder the further you go."

Still, even though its quality hadn't changed, the stat boost and new trait were a huge upgrade!

Especially the Waterfowl Dance. Wasn't this the lifesteal he'd always dreamed of?

"As long as I swing fast enough, I'll never die!"

At the same time, Su Li felt an arcane memory take shape in his mind.

It was the image of a Blind Swordsman swinging his blade beneath a waterfall. The sword followed the water, the water flowed with the sword—an endless cycle.

The System Panel updated accordingly:

[Class changed: Swordsman → Flowing Water Swordsman]

[Skill changed: Basic Swordsmanship → Flowing Water Swordsmanship]

[Flowing Water Swordsmanship: Every attack flows on like water, making it extremely difficult to block and more likely to trigger consecutive strikes.]

"Woohoo! I'm unstoppable!" Su Li gripped the sword and casually spun it in a flourish.

The blade felt like an extension of his arm. He felt like he could take on the Valkyrie right now.

As he basked in the joy of getting stronger and prepared to admire his panel some more,

a strange fluctuation suddenly caught his attention.

He raised his head and looked toward the stretch of abyss that had been pitch-black before.

With the Blind Swordsman's obsession fading, the darkness there had also receded somewhat.

The instant Su Li finally saw what lay ahead, his entire body stiffened.

"That's..."