Proficiency in the Game

The days of mining were bitter and tiring.

Fortunately, thinking about being able to play games at night, even though it was bitter and tiring, he could persevere.

Actually, in the mine, Mu Ye tried the Mind Eye ability again and discovered a second Red Flame Crystal.

However, Mu Ye did not report it.

Joking aside, the first one was due to good luck and was understandable. If he could find a Red Flame Crystal twice in a row, not only would Steward Xu be suspicious, but the other stewards would probably also be suspicious.

Although the Jinshi Sect was a righteous sect, human hearts were treacherous. Who didn't have some malicious intent in their hearts?

"It's a pity my strength is insufficient. If I were at the sixth or seventh level of Qi Refining, I could mine these high-value spirit ores myself."

If he were a Body Cultivator, he wouldn't even need the sixth or seventh level of Qi Refining. With just two or three levels, he could mine these spirit ores.

It was just a pity that Body Cultivators were looked down upon in the current Cultivation World. It was hard to find many Body Cultivators.

The reason was simple: Body Cultivators were difficult to cultivate and consumed a lot of resources. Many body-refining techniques had harsh requirements. Actually, this was not a big deal. The key was that the combat power of Body Cultivators in the early stages was much weaker than that of cultivators who refined Qi into Qi.

Many times, before a Body Cultivator could even make a move, they would be in a hurry even if a Qi Refining Realm cultivator cast a spell at them.

If it were a Body Cultivator with profound cultivation, they would naturally be powerful, but not many cultivators would consider them.

Another reason was that cultivating as a Body Cultivator was even more bitter and tiring.

For various reasons, not only were there fewer body-refining techniques, but fewer people also cultivated them.

In the vast Eastern Wasteland Cultivation World, there were only a handful of sects that focused on body cultivation, and most of them were like the Jinshi Sect, which were not even considered first-rate sects. They were so desolate.

The day's mining life quickly came to an end.

This time, Mu Ye went to the nearby Qinghe Market first. He wanted to see if there were any spirit fields for sale by the Jinshi Sect's steward disciples in the market.

If there were, he could rent a cheaper one and consider doing some farming.

After looking around, he found that even a single mu of spirit field required a deposit of over fifty spirit stones.

"As more steward disciples engage in farming, the spirit fields become more expensive..."

Mu Ye complained in his heart, he was truly impressed.

The Jinshi Sect would not provide spirit fields to steward disciples for free. If they were official Outer Disciples, they could be allocated a spirit field, but the output would be split fifty-fifty.

Steward disciples had to rent them themselves. Of course, there were benefits. If they rented them themselves, the output would be split ninety-ten, and they only needed to give the Jinshi Sect a symbolic ten percent.

But in reality, steward disciples had low cultivation and their spells were not well-practiced. They could not take good care of the spirit fields, and their output was often much worse than that of Outer Disciples' spirit fields. Even with a ninety-ten split, the harvest in a year was far inferior to that of regular Outer Disciples.

Without a suitable spirit field, and still lacking quite a bit of spirit stones, Mu Ye returned directly.

Full and satisfied, Mu Ye lay on the bed. He cultivated for a bit and found that the bottleneck had loosened slightly.

His spiritual roots were too poor, his cultivation technique too trashy, and his cultivation efficiency was extremely low.

The bottleneck appearing was actually due to the low conversion efficiency, coupled with his average physique. The spiritual energy he absorbed was difficult to condense, and he was stuck at that point.

If he just waited it out, perhaps in a few years, he could reach the second layer.

"Forget it, I'll play a game."

He entered the Sword and Blade Demon Sealing game interface and found that the second stage of Sword and Blade Demon Sealing was already out.

[Seven Absolutes Imperial Map]

It only cost 500 Paradise Coins, and the recommended strength level was: Second Grade (highest Seventh Grade).

This Second Grade should be the strength level division within the game, which was quite classic.

Mu Ye always considered these recommended strengths to be at a higher level.

"This time, I'll try using the Ranger, one by one..."

Mu Ye pondered.

The Ranger possessed initial reputation and favorability, which should be a relatively suitable choice for exploring the large map.

[Character selection successful, please re-enter name.]

[Mu Huangtu.]

[Large map unlocked, entering Taiping City...]

Mu Ye casually chose a name.

His main character would still be the Demon Sealer, after all, he had high combat power and special abilities.

He just randomly clicked on other characters.

After selection, the Ranger character was a man with a blade of grass in his mouth, wearing martial attire, his frivolous expression hiding a hint of seriousness.

[You are a Ranger wandering in Taiping City, upholding justice and punishing evil, with quite some fame...]

Entering Taiping City again, the streets were still familiar.

Mu Ye wanted to try out the Ranger character, so he controlled the character to walk to a nearby baozi stall, picked up a baozi, and ate it.

The peddler's expression changed. Just as he was about to scold, he saw the other person and immediately smiled broadly:

"So it's you. Is that enough? If not, there's more here."

"..." Mu Ye.

Damn, this ranger is just a freeloader, right?

However, at this moment, a message prompt appeared.

[Baozi Peddler's favorability has decreased.]

Clearly, even with initial reputation and favorability, freeloading and eating for free would still cause a decrease.

Mu Ye didn't continue eating. Instead, he headed straight for the Divine Fist Martial Hall.

This time, Mu Ye directly chose the second option.

[2. My martial arts are weak, I have come to apprentice and learn.]

Unlike the Demon Sealer, after choosing this option, the gatekeeper disciple's expression softened, and he said with a smile:

"So it's Little Hero Mu. In that case, please come in with me."

The Divine Fist Martial Hall is a renowned martial arts school in Tianping City. If you want to improve your strength, going there is definitely the right choice.

"Damn!"

"Having initial reputation and favorability really makes a difference."

The Demon Sealer couldn't get in at all, unless he forced his way in.

"As expected of a character that requires Paradise Coins to unlock!"

Of course, while the ranger is good, his overall strength cannot compare to the Demon Sealer.

Without the Demon Subduing Body, the difficulty of passing the Tutorial Stage would be even greater.

This was probably why the Tutorial Stage could only be limited to the Demon Sealer.

As he followed the disciple into the Divine Fist Martial Hall, the disciple introduced:

"In this chaotic world today, demons and monsters are everywhere. Learning a skill in martial arts can at least allow you to protect yourself."

"Yesterday, at the grand ceremony of the Shen Mansion, demons appeared. The scene was chaotic. According to the senior brothers who went there, at the critical moment, a Demon Sealer descended like a true god from the heavens and killed the demon with a single blade. Truly formidable!"

"It's truly extraordinary that the Shen Mansion could invite such a powerful person."

Hearing this, Mu Ye was slightly stunned. He hadn't expected the Demon Sealer's reputation to have already spread.

Invited by the Shen Mansion?

Madam Shen didn't invite me, Mu Ye wondered.

But upon thinking further, he realized that Madam Shen must have borrowed the name of the Demon Sealer to intimidate the riff-raff.

This Madam Shen is quite clever, not simple, Mu Ye thought.

Walking into the martial arts hall, he heard shouts and yells. Men with bare, muscular torsos were punching, palm-striking, finger-striking, and kicking, shattering stones and breaking steles. They looked formidable.

Mu Ye glanced at them. As a cultivator, he naturally disdained such scenes.

Mere mortal martial arts were nothing.

Until he reached the front, where a middle-aged man with a rugged face was unlike the other martial arts students.

His palm was imbued with a fiery glow, as if a faint flame was burning. His punches and palms carried an extremely powerful wave of flame.

"Senior Brother, what is this?" Mu Ye asked.

"This is our sect's ultimate skill, the Divine Aperture Secret Martial Art, Crimson Flame Fist," the disciple said, looking at Mu Ye with adoration. "It's also the foundation of our Divine Fist Martial Hall. This is our Hall Master, Yan Zhennan."

"Divine Aperture Secret Martial Art?" Mu Ye was puzzled.

"You've been wandering outside for years. Although you know some basic fist and foot techniques," the disciple chuckled, "that's nothing. To become a true Martial Master, you must learn the Divine Aperture Secret Martial Art and open your internal divine apertures to advance in rank."

"The so-called divine apertures are the hidden gateways within our bodies. Cultivating secret martial arts can help us open these gateways, thus transforming ourselves, gaining immense strength, and moving with incredible speed."

"According to the experience of our predecessors, our bodies contain countless divine apertures. Opening ten apertures makes one a Martial Master, fifty apertures makes one a Second-Rank Martial Master, and opening a hundred apertures makes one a Third-Rank expert."

"The Crimson Flame Fist, when cultivated to its highest realm, the Great Perfection of the Tenth Layer, can help us open a hundred apertures. With a single punch, one can melt gold and incinerate bone, becoming a powerful figure in the region!"

Mu Ye pondered.

Only Third-Rank?

This Crimson Flame Fist isn't that impressive.

"Can anyone learn this?" Mu Ye asked.

The disciple hesitated and said:

"The cultivation of the Crimson Flame Fist is extremely difficult. Our Hall Master has extraordinary talent. He consumed a Vermilion Fruit in his youth, and currently, he's only at the Eighth Layer, having opened eighty apertures... You can learn it, but for new disciples, it's best to practice other martial arts of our sect first."

"Although they can't open divine apertures, they can still temper the body and refine the tendons and bones, preparing for the cultivation of the Crimson Flame Fist."

Mu Ye thought, why bother learning anything else? If I'm going to learn, I'll learn something more powerful.

"What if one wants to break through to Third-Rank?" Mu Ye asked curiously.

"You brat, don't aim too high," the disciple reprimanded. "There aren't many Third-Rank experts in Taiping City. However, since you asked, to break through a hundred apertures, you naturally need to cultivate more powerful Divine Aperture True Martial Arts. For example, in the Shen Mansion, Hero Shen Tianxing's Sea Overturning Supreme Divine Skill is rumored to be able to open a thousand apertures and become a Fifth-Rank Grandmaster. It's just that Hero Shen only cultivated a partial version, barely reaching a hundred apertures."

"As for higher realms, the highest currently is the Sixth-Rank Acquired Grandmaster. Such Divine Aperture True Martial Arts are rare in the world."

Mu Ye listened with interest.

"Senior Brother, I want to learn this Crimson Flame Fist."

"Alright," the disciple chuckled. "Once you complete the disciple initiation ceremony, Master will teach it to you."

Not long after, Mu Ye knelt on the ground, performing the three kowtows and nine bows, completing the disciple initiation ceremony.

During the ceremony, various dojo rules were explained, such as what could not be taught to outsiders.

The master, Yan Zhennan, had a straightforward personality and light red hair. He was quite pleased that a new disciple was a well-known Ranger, as it would benefit the martial hall's reputation.

As for wanting to learn the Crimson Flame Fist, Yan Zhennan didn't think much of it.

This kind of Divine Aperture Secret Martial Art was almost impossible for ordinary beginners to learn.

If he could truly learn it, then his Divine Fist Martial Hall would have gained a genius disciple, which would naturally be even better.

So, if he wanted to learn, he would teach!

"Little Hero Mu, I will now give you the Divine Aperture Diagram of the Crimson Flame Fist for your study. The Crimson Flame Fist in our Divine Fist Martial Hall is also a set of internal cultivation techniques. Its cultivation difficulty is very high, so don't say I didn't warn you."

After receiving the personal instruction from the master, a system prompt appeared.

[First time learning Divine Aperture Secret Martial Art: Crimson Flame Fist]

[Martial Arts System activated. In True Mode, learned martial arts will synchronize with the player and be shared with other characters.]

[Crimson Flame Fist: 0/100]

Seeing this message, Mu Ye's eyes lit up.

What did "synchronize with the player" mean? If I learned it in the game, would I also learn it in reality?

Wait!

Proficiency?

I knew it! As a game, how could it not have this?

This means I can just grind it out!