Character Interface

Great Jin Dynasty, Nanyang Prefecture, Wan City.

On West Gate Street, the bluestone road stretched straight ahead, leading directly to the west gate.

Before a grand residence stood two stone pedestals, each supporting a massive stone lion. Their claws were bared, and their expressions were fiercely imposing.

The mansion's vermilion gates gleamed with copper studs the size of teacups. On the plaque above them, two large gold characters read "Liang Mansion," their brushstrokes sharp and forceful.

Deep within the estate, two youths of about fifteen or sixteen clashed fiercely on a fighting platform, each wielding a weapon.

In a corner not far from the platform, several servants had gathered. They watched the fight and murmured among themselves.

"It looks like Second Young Master will win again. He's already won five matches in a row, so he should have no trouble reaching the final. He might even make the top three."

"Mm, I'm backing Second Young Master too. His inner energy has already reached the seventh rank of the martial path, and he's mastered his martial skills. Among the young generation of the Liang Clan, he should easily make the top three."

"Indeed, Second Young Master is strong enough to rank in the top three. Besides him, Sixth Young Master and Seventh Young Master should have a shot too. It's just a pity about Fourth Young Master."

At the mention of Fourth Young Master, the servants fell silent. Their faces showed all kinds of expressions: some sighed for him, some took pleasure in his misfortune, and others seemed indifferent.

After a moment, someone murmured, "Sigh, it's all fate! With Fourth Young Master's skill, he would've taken first place if he'd entered the competition. But who could've guessed that, right before the competition, he'd be badly injured while sparring with Ninth Elder and end up missing it?"

"It really is a shame. Fourth Young Master was always kind to us servants. Who'd have thought he'd suddenly suffer such a calamity? I heard this year's competition is also tied to admission to Floating Cloud Pavilion. What a pity..."

Just then, a sturdy youth in a blue robe came slowly toward them. His face, however, was deathly pale.

"Shh! Quiet! Fourth Young Master's here!" The servants quickly stopped talking.

"Greetings, Fourth Young Master!"

"Mm." The youth gave a slight nod, then turned his gaze toward the fighting platform. As he watched, he murmured, "I never thought transmigration would really happen to me."

He had been a university graduate, fresh out of school. One day, while playing a newly launched web game, he had grown tired and was about to rest his head on the desk. Then his vision suddenly went black, and he found himself in this world. It had been three days now.

Over those three days, he had absorbed some of the memories left behind by this body's original owner and gradually pieced together information about his current circumstances.

In this life, he was Liang Bo, sixteen years old and a member of the Liang Clan, one of the three great lineages in Wan City. His parents had died long ago.

Although he lived in a great clan like the Liang Clan and had no worries about the necessities of life, he was neglected in every other respect and received far less consideration than the other clan members.

Fortunately, the original owner of this body had worked hard and possessed decent talent for cultivation. At just sixteen, he had reached the peak of the seventh rank of the martial path, only one step away from the sixth rank. Even in a great clan like the Liang Clan, that was a rare rate of progress. At least among the younger generation, few could match him.

As a clan that valued martial prowess above all, the Liang Clan held an annual competition to encourage its members to train hard. The top three received generous rewards, as well as the clan's recommendation and the chance to continue their cultivation at Floating Cloud Pavilion, one of the greatest sects of the age.

With Liang Bo's strength, he had been a strong contender for the top three, and might even have taken first place. But just before the clan competition, he had been badly injured in a sparring match with his clan uncle, Liang Cheng. Liang Cheng had "accidentally" struck him too hard, and the original Liang Bo had died, replaced by the Liang Bo of today.

As he pondered, a maid with her hair in two buns hurried over from afar, carrying a thick outer robe. She handed it to him and said quietly, "Young Master, you've only just recovered from your serious injuries. You need to rest properly. Why did you come out on a whim? Go back and rest."

Hearing the slightly reproachful words, Liang Bo turned to look at her. She had a delicate face and bright, dark eyes, and wore a little green quilted skirt. She wasn't particularly beautiful, but she was the person Liang Bo felt closest to since arriving in this world.

The maid was named Xiao Qing. His mother had bought her for him while she was still alive. She was two years younger than him and had been by his side since childhood. After Liang Bo transmigrated, he had been seriously injured, and she had taken devoted care of him until he gradually recovered.

He smiled. "It's fine. I've mostly recovered. I've been lying in bed too long, so I wanted to come out for a walk."

Xiao Qing hesitated, but still insisted, "But Mr. Cheng said yesterday that you still need more rest."

Her eyes were clear and bright, and her face still looked a little young. Though she wasn't old, she could be stubborn about certain things.

Unable to refuse her, Liang Bo could only give a wry smile and turn toward his room. Xiao Qing hurried after him.

"Young Master, Ninth Master came by again just now and brought you some medicinal herbs. I took a look—they're all precious herbs, worth at least ten taels of silver."

"Uncle Ninth? Did he say anything?" Liang Bo furrowed his brow and asked.

"No. He just told you to rest properly and get well as soon as possible."

Liang Bo fell silent for a moment, then asked, "Xiao Qing, what sort of person do you think Uncle Ninth is?"

"Young Master, why are you asking?"

"It's nothing. I'm just asking. Don't overthink it. Say whatever you think."

Xiao Qing thought for a moment. "I think Ninth Master is a decent person. Though he accidentally hurt you while sparring, he's come by almost every day lately to ask after you and check on your injuries. He even brought you the best medicinal herbs. Otherwise, you wouldn't have recovered so quickly."

"Is that so?" Liang Bo replied noncommittally, though he sneered inwardly.

His Uncle Ninth seemed to have merely "accidentally injured" him, but Liang Bo would never believe it.

The Liang Clan's annual competition directly determined whether a person could enter Floating Cloud Pavilion, and only clan members under eighteen were eligible to compete.

Among the young clan members, Liang Bo had been a strong contender for first place. Yet his clan uncle had managed to "accidentally" injure him right before the competition—not earlier, not later—leaving him badly wounded and forcing him to miss it. It all looked deliberate, as though someone had wanted to remove a rival for a certain person before the competition.

Who had ordered Liang Cheng to do it, though, was still unclear.

Back in his room, Liang Bo put aside his plans to investigate the culprit for the moment and began to consider what to do next.

In this world, martial strength was everything. Only the strong earned respect and could rise to high positions. If you lacked strength, then even a prestigious background would hardly win you anyone's respect.

So training hard was his only way forward, and would be the sole pursuit of this life.

But martial training couldn't be separated from the guidance of a good teacher. The Liang Clan was only a local lineage, too small in scope and lacking in formidable martial strength. If he wanted to pursue the pinnacle of the martial path, he couldn't stay with the Liang Clan. He had to join one of the prestigious sects.

With Liang Bo's strength, he had originally stood a good chance of winning the clan competition and joining Floating Cloud Pavilion. But since he'd missed it, his only way into a prestigious sect was to enter the Martial Academy Competition held at the end of the year by the authorities and the various sects.

The Martial Academy Competition was like the college entrance exam of this world. Anyone under eighteen could sign up. Those who performed well could join a prestigious sect or enter the martial forces of the authorities.

However, compared with the clan competition, which was something like a "guaranteed admission," the Martial Academy Competition was on a much larger scale. It wasn't limited to members of the Liang Clan; young martial artists from across Nanyang Prefecture would take part. Even with Liang Bo's strength, he wasn't confident he could perform well enough to enter a major power like Floating Cloud Pavilion.

Just then, his body suddenly stiffened. A string of text appeared in his mind.

"What... what is this?" When Liang Bo read the words, his jaw dropped in shock.

Floating before his eyes was none other than the character interface from the web game he'd played before transmigrating. It displayed:

Liang Bo--

[ cultivation ]: Seventh rank of the martial path

[ arts ]: Baoyuan Energy 3/10

[ martial skills ]: Purple Lightning Blade 4/20 Cloud Piercing Palm 3/10 Heavenly Wind Wishful Steps 2/10 Dragon-Elephant Blade Technique 2/10 Mysterious Void Blade Technique 2/10 Lion Wrestling Hand 2/10 Gale Blade Technique 2/10 Shadowless Fist 1/10 Nine-Curve Blade Technique 1/10...

[ Skill Points ]: 0

Liang Bo's eyes went blank for an instant. Then he came to his senses, and excitement surged through him.

"Great! Could this be my cheat?"

He looked over his stats, his heart brimming with excitement. But then he gave a bitter smile.

"This guy learned such a hodgepodge of martial skills. He cultivated more than twenty of them, yet not one reached an advanced level. They're practically all at the introductory stage. Did he not know that a bird in the hand is worth two in the bush?"

In Liang Bo's view, rather than practice so many martial arts without mastering any of them, it would be better to focus on a single one and perfect it.

Of course, he knew that martial skills were easy to learn but hard to master. Reaching the introductory level wasn't difficult; it took only a few months to get a basic grasp of each skill. But reaching a higher level could take years, or even decades.

The original owner of this body had clearly wanted to learn more martial skills so he would have more ways to face his enemies and improve his combat ability in the short term. The idea wasn't wrong; it simply didn't fit Liang Bo's way of thinking.

He blinked and noticed a tiny red symbol beside the character interface, shaped like a gear. It was so small that he could barely see it without looking closely.

Liang Bo focused his attention on the gear symbol. An instant later, a line of information appeared in his mind:

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