"Whew..."
Ning Chuan took several deep breaths. Once he had calmed down, he pressed the cyan Martial Seal against his forehead.
A wealth of information about Three Thousand Wind Shadows poured rapidly into his mind.
More than ten minutes later.
The martial art was imprinted.
Ning Chuan opened the system interface and glanced at it. Three Thousand Wind Shadows had appeared in the last entry, with its current progress at zero percent. He still couldn't tell how fast it would cultivate.
Even so, Ning Chuan had a rough idea.
Flash Thunder Slash, the hardest B-rank martial art, could make about four percentage points of progress a day while at the basic realm.
Three Thousand Wind Shadows was a top-tier S-rank martial art, so it might not even gain one percentage point in a day.
However, now that his martial cultivation had risen, his martial arts should cultivate faster.
Even so, he probably wouldn't achieve a breakthrough before the college entrance exam.
"Uncle Gu, here's your Martial Seal back!"
Ning Chuan smiled and had just raised his hand when a series of notification sounds rang out in his mind.
"Three Thousand Wind Shadows has detected similarities in the insights of Gale Step and has begun absorbing them. Cultivation speed has skyrocketed!"
"Progress increased by 30%!"
"Progress increased by 30%!"
"Three Thousand Wind Shadows has accumulated enough experience and gained insight, advancing to the Proficiency Realm!"
"Progress continues to increase!"
"Three Thousand Wind Shadows has completed absorption. Cultivation speed has returned to normal!"
One insight after another struck Ning Chuan, leaving his head spinning.
Once he came to his senses, he immediately summoned the system interface.
[Strength]: Awakening Stage Six [Savage Bull Force]: Minute Subtlety (progress: 15%) [Gale Step]: Perfect (progress: 7%) [Flash Thunder Slash]: Perfect (progress: 1%) [Thousand Bones Slaughter Art]: Proficiency (progress: 25%) [Vajra Body]: Third layer (progress: 28%) [Three Thousand Wind Shadows]: Proficiency (progress: 21%)
As Ning Chuan examined the last entry, the corners of his mouth kept curling upward.
It really had come to him without the slightest effort.
Just moments ago, he had been worried that Three Thousand Wind Shadows wouldn't break through before the college entrance exam. In the blink of an eye, it had already advanced to the second realm, Proficiency.
Most importantly.
Since Three Thousand Wind Shadows could absorb the insights of Gale Step.
Then other martial arts could surely also draw on the insights of martial arts of the same type to make their progress skyrocket.
I'll have to keep this feature in mind when choosing martial arts from now on.
Ning Chuan thought to himself.
"Xiao Ning, are you all right?"
Gu Tianyu couldn't help worrying a little when he saw Ning Chuan staring blankly one moment and grinning foolishly the next.
"Oh, I'm fine. I just suddenly figured out a problem with my martial cultivation and got a little distracted."
Ning Chuan smiled and gave the offhand reply as he returned the Martial Seal.
Gu Tianyu nodded and didn't ask further. "Three Thousand Wind Shadows and Gale Step share some similarities at their roots.
"Your Gale Step is at the Perfect Realm, so getting started with Three Thousand Wind Shadows shouldn't be difficult.
"As long as you're willing to put in the hard work, there's still a good chance you can reach a passable level of mastery in the basic realm before the college entrance exam!"
"Uh..."
Ning Chuan blinked. "Then I'll do my best?"
He really could only do his best.
For a martial art's realm to regress.
There was only one possibility.
His brain would have to be injured, turning him into an idiot and making him lose the corresponding insights.
As the police chief, Gu Tianyu had a sharp eye and could naturally tell that Ning Chuan didn't mean what he said.
He thought for a moment, then said, "Let me share a piece of information with you.
"Three Thousand Wind Shadows is one of the Wind Blood Divine General's proudest creations. It doesn't just cover the Awakening Stage; there are higher-level inheritances too!
"Even Lu Zhan, a Peak Knight, covets them!
"But only students of Galaxy University are qualified to learn them!"
"Uncle Gu, thank you for the reminder!"
Ning Chuan knew Gu Tianyu had said all this for his sake. He bowed slightly and said seriously, "I can't promise I'll get into Galaxy University, but I can promise I'll do my utmost!"
"Very good. You meant what you said this time. Off you go!"
Gu Tianyu smiled.
"Goodbye, Uncle Gu."
Ning Chuan pushed open the door and left. On his way out, he stopped by the finance office to collect the one-million-yuan reward.
The next day, Friday.
The sky was just beginning to brighten.
Ning Chuan woke up in the bathtub and glanced around. The water had already turned clear, and two medicinal packets whose potency had been exhausted floated in it.
After Vajra Body reached the third layer, he could absorb two medicinal packets in a single night.
That was ninety thousand yuan!
Adding in the Hundred Beasts Nutrient Solution he consumed every day, his daily expenses were approaching three hundred thousand yuan!
Even with assets worth over twenty million, Ning Chuan felt his teeth ache.
Money really was flowing away like water!
"Expensive or not, you get what you pay for!"
The more he consumed, the faster his strength improved.
Ning Chuan composed himself and checked his injuries. Even the scars were nearly invisible. He got up, changed into a clean school uniform, quickly tidied himself up, and headed out.
Ten minutes later.
Qingshan No. 1 High School.
Ning Chuan had barely entered the school gates when he saw a bright red banner stretched high overhead. It read, "Warm congratulations to our senior student Ning Chuan for braving death to slay the Heavenly Martial spy Zhao Weiping."
The characters were stamped in gold, enlarged and bolded, making them impossible to miss.
When the students on the road spotted Ning Chuan, they immediately stopped to watch him and discuss him excitedly among themselves.
Quite a few even took out their phones and secretly snapped photos.
Some bold girls even came forward to offer him pink love letters, pretty blushes spreading across their cheeks.
Holding a huge stack of love letters, Ning Chuan felt he had underestimated how popular he was at school.
This was different from the last time he had killed Thunder Sparrow.
That had only been an ordinary beast.
This time, he had killed an infamous Heavenly Martial spy, a full-fledged Martial Artist with multiple lives on his hands!
In particular, quite a few reporters had deliberately omitted Zhao Weiping's injuries to attract attention.
"Seventeen-year-old hero beheads Third-Rank Martial Artist with one slash!"
"Blade cuts down Heavenly Martial spy, sword points toward Galaxy University!"
"High schooler kills Martial Artist at the Awakening Stage, could become a Divine General in the future!"
Most of those reporters' stories were like that.
How could he not be popular?
All morning, Ning Chuan was like a rare animal on the verge of extinction. Whenever class ended, the classroom doors and windows were crowded with students peering in, one wave after another.
Fortunately, aside from the girls delivering love letters, no one approached to disturb him.
When school let out at noon.
Ning Chuan didn't dare go to the cafeteria to eat. He stayed in the classroom, drank a little water, then took out his phone and began looking up information on A-rank breathing techniques.
He had already asked Su Yun, and no exception could be made to let him inherit several more martial arts.
It was a rule set in stone by the Education Department.
After all, martial arts were too valuable. If schools had too much discretion, people lining their own pockets would be inevitable.
Ning Chuan was a little disappointed, but he didn't pay it much mind.
He already had enough money to buy the breathing technique he most needed to replace, and an A-rank one at that, beyond the school's authority!
Rank matters, but the type can't be overlooked either!
After careful consideration, Ning Chuan had a general idea of what he wanted in a new breathing technique.
It would be best if it excelled in explosive power.
Paired with Flash Thunder Slash and Three Thousand Wind Shadows, that type of breathing technique could bring the quality of "speed" into full play.
As for stamina, he could accept it being a little worse.
A flaw couldn't conceal the jade's brilliance.
As long as his attacks were fast enough, his opponent wouldn't even have the chance to surrender, let alone fight a prolonged battle with him.
"Why didn't you come to class this morning?"
Hearing footsteps ahead of him, Ning Chuan looked up and saw his good friend Guo Renyu. He asked the question casually.
"It's a long story..."
Guo Renyu braced himself against a desk and slowly lowered himself down. The moment his backside touched the chair, he sprang up. "Ow, that hurts like hell!"
Seeing this, Ning Chuan narrowed his eyes slightly, a flash of coldness passing through them. "Someone beat you? Who did it?"
He was worried that Guo Renyu might have suffered an undeserved misfortune because of him.
Ma Hai, Zhang Wensi, Wei Bohu and the others all had conflicts with him.
"My dad beat me!"
Guo Renyu took off his school jacket and laid it on the chair before carefully sitting down. "Come to think of it, getting beaten was all your fault!"
The sharp chill in Ning Chuan's heart faded. A little surprised, he asked, "What did it have to do with me?"
"Remember the hundred-day pledge rally? I was sneaking snacks and nearly got killed by Thunder Sparrow!"
"Yeah, I saved you."
"I kept that quiet and didn't dare tell my parents. But after you killed that Heavenly Martial spy, you were all over the news, and they played the old footage of you saving me too." Guo Renyu's face was full of grief and indignation. "My dad saw it, and without even asking, he picked up his belt and whipped me!"
"Haha..."
Ning Chuan couldn't help laughing. "Uncle Guo went easy on you by only whipping your backside!"
"And you're laughing!"
Guo Renyu gave Ning Chuan a resentful look. His gaze happened to sweep over the phone screen, and he couldn't help asking, "Are you changing breathing techniques?"
"Yeah. I made some money by killing Zhao Weiping."
"Then don't rush to place an order. Come home with me after school. My dad wants to treat you to a meal."
"Why? Is Uncle Guo giving me an A-rank breathing technique?"
Ning Chuan joked.
Guo Renyu neither confirmed nor denied it. He coughed awkwardly and abruptly changed the subject. "Come home with me after school. You'll find out then."
"Okay."
Ning Chuan smiled without giving it much thought.
He had met Guo Renyu's parents a few times. They ran a small business and had some money, but they were only middle class.
When it came to wealth, they were far behind him now.