The Way of Skill

Just then, a crisp round of applause came from behind him.

"Fine swordsmanship."

Lin Jin glanced sideways. He had actually sensed another presence while practicing, but had paid it no mind.

He turned to look at the newcomer.

Su Qianxue stood at the courtyard entrance, wearing a cream knit top and a light-colored long skirt, her long hair falling over her shoulders and a faint smile on her face.

He did not know when she had arrived or how long she had been watching.

"When did you get here?" Lin Jin asked.

Su Qianxue walked into the courtyard, her gaze lingering briefly on the blade in his hand.

"A little while ago. You were so absorbed in your practice that I couldn't bear to interrupt." She paused, a trace of admiration flashing in her eyes. "I never imagined that, besides those superpowers, you had such stunning swordsmanship up your sleeve."

Lin Jin said nothing and simply slid Lightning-Cleaver back into its sheath.

Su Qianxue walked over to him and looked at the wooden posts that had been sliced into fragments, her tone turning serious.

"If I'm not mistaken, that swordsmanship you just showed means you've already reached the peak of the Transformation Realm in the Way of Skill, right?"

Lin Jin looked up at her, somewhat puzzled by the realm she mentioned.

"The Transformation Realm?"

Su Qianxue froze for a moment.

"You don't know?"

Lin Jin shook his head.

Surprise flickered in Su Qianxue's eyes, but she quickly understood.

That made sense. She had been the one to tell him about the ranks of the Awakened and Weirds in the first place. It was only natural that he did not know the divisions of the Way of Skill.

She sat on a stone stool in the courtyard and gestured for Lin Jin to sit as well.

Looking at him, Su Qianxue began slowly.

"In this world, besides cultivating superpowers as your main focus, there's also a supplementary system of power called ancient martial arts."

"Ancient martial arts?"

"Yes." Su Qianxue nodded. "Ancient martial arts have a much longer history than superpowered Awakened. Before the Weirds began reviving on a large scale, humans relied on ancient martial arts to fight those scattered evil beings."

She paused, then continued.

"Cultivating ancient martial arts means following the Way of Skill. The same amount of energy can produce vastly different power in the hands of people at different skill realms."

A hint of interest flashed in Lin Jin's eyes.

"Oh? Tell me more."

Seeing his interest, a trace of amusement flickered in Su Qianxue's eyes.

"What most people practice can only be called ancient martial arts moves. It's nowhere near qualifying as the Way of Skill."

"The Way of Skill is divided into four realms."

"The first is the Transformation Realm. Those who reach it strike with precision and ferocity, controlling their moves as naturally as their own limbs. Every move returns to the essentials, without a single unnecessary motion. Anyone who reaches this realm is already an expert in ancient martial arts."

She looked at Lin Jin.

"To me, the swordsmanship you just demonstrated belongs to this realm. And you haven't just entered the Transformation Realm-you're at its peak."

"Every move was clean and decisive, with no unnecessary motion. It looked simple, but every slash carried extremely lethal power."

Lin Jin did not offer much explanation and continued asking.

"What about the second realm?"

Su Qianxue continued.

"The second is the Intent Realm! You comprehend an intent of your own, such as sword intent, saber intent, spear intent, battle intent, and so on."

"Once you comprehend intent, the power of the same moves multiplies. With intent empowering them, your attacks also carry a unique mental pressure, making your opponent lose their nerve before the fight even begins."

She paused, hesitated, then said:

"Among our generation, people who can reach the Intent Realm are exceedingly rare. Zhao Ming of the Zhao Clan has supposedly touched the threshold of spear intent. That's one reason the Zhao Clan considers him a prodigy."

Lin Jin's expression did not change at the mention of Zhao Ming.

"What about the third realm?"

"The third is the Force Realm! Beyond intent, you possess a unique force of presence. You can injure people through that force alone, without even attacking."

"There aren't many people in the entire country who have reached this realm. They're almost all patriarch-level figures from the major clans."

Su Qianxue looked at him.

"As for the fourth, the Image Realm, that's a realm of legend. Every move is accompanied by a unique manifestation."

"They say a Swordsmanship Grandmaster reached this realm a hundred years ago. With one stroke, heaven and earth changed color, and ten thousand swords cried in unison. But no one knows whether anyone has truly reached it."

After listening, Lin Jin fell silent for a few seconds.

The Way of Skill: the Transformation Realm, the Intent Realm, the Force Realm, and the Image Realm.

This world really had explored power in meticulous detail.

Unlike the Hokage World, where everything revolved around bloodlines and kekkei genkai.

This world, at least through the Way of Skill, gave ordinary people a chance to catch up.

"What are you thinking about?" Su Qianxue could not help asking when she saw him fall silent.

Lin Jin shook his head. "Nothing."

Su Qianxue looked at him and suddenly smiled.

"But seriously, Lin Jin, that swordsmanship of yours was really powerful. If we fought using swordsmanship alone, I definitely wouldn't be your match."

"Even though I'm at the Peak Source Energy Stage and have an S-rank space-type superpower, facing swordsmanship like yours, I'm afraid I wouldn't even get a chance to use my power."

Lin Jin glanced up at her.

"Your space-type superpower is powerful, but you haven't brought out its strength."

Su Qianxue froze, then caught on, torn between annoyance and amusement.

"Honestly, I was complimenting you, and you're putting me down?"

The corners of Lin Jin's mouth lifted slightly, but his expression quickly returned to its usual calm.

Seeing that fleeting expression, Su Qianxue felt inexplicably happy.

He seemed less taciturn around her than he used to be.

"Oh, right." Something occurred to her. "Why did you suddenly start practicing swordsmanship today? And that blade-I've never seen you use it before."

Lin Jin picked up Lightning-Cleaver from beside him and said,

"I just exchanged for it at the Demon Suppression Bureau."

Su Qianxue glanced at the lightning patterns on the sheath, surprise flashing in her eyes.

"An S-rank weapon from the Demon Suppression Bureau? I heard any one of those costs tens of thousands of points. Where did you get that many?"

Lin Jin replied evenly.

"I went out a couple of days ago and completed a few missions."

"A few?" Su Qianxue pressed.

"Three."

Su Qianxue froze for a moment.

"Three missions of what rank?"

"S-rank."

Su Qianxue fell silent.

Three S-rank missions.

Looking at the calm-faced man before her, she suddenly felt a little dazed.

When they first met, she had thought he was merely an Awakened with some ability.

Then she discovered that he was a Bloodline Inheritor.

Later, he had single-handedly killed an S-Rank Weird and destroyed an entire Weird Domain. She had thought that was his limit.

Now, he had completed three S-rank missions in one go, meaning he had killed three S-rank enemies.

Just how many secrets did this man still have?

She suddenly felt rather fortunate-fortunate that she had taken the initiative to approach him back then, and fortunate that they had become friends rather than enemies.

"Why are you staring at me?" Lin Jin's voice interrupted her thoughts.

Su Qianxue came back to herself, her face flushing slightly.

"Nothing. I was just wondering who you really are. Even the direct descendants raised by top clans like ours can't compare to you."

Lin Jin looked at her and said earnestly.

"I'm just an unremarkable, ordinary person."

Su Qianxue burst out laughing.

"Ordinary? If you count as ordinary, then there's no one extraordinary in this world."

Lin Jin said nothing.

Once she had finished laughing, Su Qianxue stood up.

"All right, I'll leave you to it. I was just passing by today and stopped in to see you." She paused. "Oh, right, where's that kid Zhou Yan? Why haven't I seen him?"

"Out on a mission."

Su Qianxue nodded.

"I'll head off, then. I'll come mooch a meal another day."

She waved and turned to leave.

At the entrance, she suddenly stopped and turned back toward Lin Jin.

"Lin Jin."

"Hmm?"

"That swordsmanship of yours really is amazing. If I get the chance, I'd really like to see what you're like when you fight seriously."

With that, she smiled, turned, and left.

Lin Jin stood in the courtyard, watching her retreating figure disappear through the entrance.

Then he lowered his head and looked at Lightning-Cleaver in his hand.

Fight seriously?

He recalled those battles in the Hokage World.

Every one of those battles had been a struggle to the death.

As for his swordsmanship, he had comprehended intent as far back as the Shinobi World War.

The greatest way was simplicity itself; one slash could break all techniques.

That was his sword intent.

No matter what flashy ninjutsu or bizarre ability his opponent had, he would strike only once.

One slash to cut them down.

What Su Qianxue did not know was that the fierce flashes of his blade she had seen were merely his warm-up.

Lin Jin sheathed his blade, turned, and returned to the villa.