Chapter 9

6. Sword and Fist

'If 0.22 is the amount of internal energy accumulated through normal training, it would be roughly equivalent to two years of cultivation. I saved a tremendous amount of time with just one duel, didn’t I? This draw system is actually quite useful, isn’t it?'

Although it's a bit unsettling that everything depends on luck, the result is still satisfying.

If I could receive such rewards two more times, it would mean I could match the internal energy of the senior students, right?

'The Pursuit Kick was a pretty good martial art. If I continue to build my internal energy with elixirs and draw and master higher-level martial arts... could I become a great expert by the time I graduate in three years?'

The birth of a young and outstanding expert, revered by all martial artists.

Although I haven’t fully adapted to this world yet, the thought of such a future makes this life seem not so bad.

'What happens after the story of the game... if I successfully drive out the Evil Sect, what then? Will I be sent back to my original world? If I have to stay here, the higher the level of martial arts, the better, given the dangerous nature of this world.'

Imagining an unpredictable future.

As I was lost in thought, the voice of the student carrying Xiao Zhongtian reached my ears.

"We’re here."

Lifting my head, I saw a large hall.

The characters "Yilong Hall" were engraved in the signboard.

'Everything here is somehow related to dragons.'

The unique smell of herbs being boiled wafted from inside, indicating that this was the medical facility of the Hidden Dragon Academy.

As I entered, one of the staff members, who was busily moving around, approached.

"Goodness! You’ve been beaten up pretty badly. The Huanglong Squad students haven’t had their group combat training yet, right?"

Since he was wearing the uniform issued by the squad, anyone could immediately tell his affiliation.

The man, who looked like a doctor, tilted his head as he saw Xiao Zhongtian, whose body was starting to swell.

"These are injuries from a duel."

"A duel? Oh, it seems you had quite a fierce fight. Lay him down on that bed over there."

The students who carried the patient followed the instructions and carefully placed the two of them on the bed.

"Thanks."

In response to Xiao Zhongtian’s gratitude, the student who carried him smiled.

"Don’t mention it. Your fight was quite impressive. How about a match with me next time? Oh! My name is Zhao Ying."

"Ah... Sure."

Although he was a bit taken aback by the gesture of shaking his fist, he felt that Zhao Ying’s intention was purely for practice, unlike Murong Xuehuo, and nodded.

Although he didn’t want to participate in such training again, duels among martial artists are frequent, and there’s no telling when another opportunity might arise.

"Take good care of yourself. If you have any moves you haven’t shown, practice them hard. I won’t be able to defeat you with the method I used on that guy over there."

Zhao Ying chuckled and tapped his crotch, leaving Xiao Zhongtian speechless with his mouth open.

'What a straightforward girl.'

After Zhao Ying left, the doctor approached and started to undress Xiao Zhongtian.

"Ouch! Be gentle, please."

"Tsk tsk, you’re bruised from head to toe! Especially your face is in bad shape."

"Huh? I didn’t get hit above the neck, though?"

"Really? Your face looks the most battered."

"You’re being too harsh! This is just a minor injury, right?"

"Ha ha! From the looks of it, your injuries are widespread but not serious, so they should heal quickly. Our Yilong Hall’s ointment is particularly effective for such bruises."

After some banter, the doctor took a bowl of medicine and started to apply it generously to Xiao Zhongtian’s body.

The pungent smell hit his nose.

"This smell is a bit..."

"Strong, isn’t it? You’ll have to bear with it. Good medicine always tastes bad."

It felt like he was applying fertilizer rather than medicine.

Still, as the doctor said, the medicine was effective. The burning pain from the injuries subsided, and his body felt cool and refreshed.

"The pain-relieving effect is excellent, so you won’t feel the pain soon."

"Indeed."

"Get some rest. The medicine is taking effect, so hold off on your cultivation until the evening. After the doctor treats your bruises with acupuncture tomorrow, you should be able to move around better."

"Okay."

As a patient, Xiao Zhongtian decided to follow the doctor’s instructions.

With his movement still limited, he spent the night at the Yilong Hall instead of returning to his dormitory.

* * *

After the duel with Murong Xuehuo, the way people looked at Xiao Zhongtian changed significantly.

The news of the duel results spread, and although it was a fist duel without his main martial art, he had defeated one of the top students.

Of course, those who witnessed the duel knew that Xiao Zhongtian didn’t win with his full strength, but the evaluation of him was much more positive than before.

From an unknown fool to a somewhat capable eccentric?

Although his life didn’t change much, he still felt the difference.

"Why! Why hasn’t anything changed?"

Three days after the duel.

Although the swelling from the injuries he received at the Yilong Hall was gradually subsiding, he still had difficulty moving.

Still, he could move, so he visited the Manlong Pavilion every day to read the secret manuals and practice the cultivation techniques, but he still hadn’t achieved any progress with the Banruo Divine Skill.

'If I had studied like this before, I would have gone to a prestigious university!'

Today, he memorized the cryptic martial arts techniques written in the secret manual, which were almost like Zen riddles.

Although his memory wasn’t bad, and he was memorizing them faster than expected, he was still only in the early stages.

The secret manual was so thick that he hadn’t even memorized half of it.

'Just practicing with internal energy doesn’t seem to bring any changes. Do I really need to fully master the techniques to see any progress? I’ve heard that advanced cultivation requires enlightenment, but even so, is it really this difficult to achieve the first level?'

Feeling frustrated, he couldn’t change the situation by thrashing around.

Still, he had to keep memorizing the techniques, hoping that once he memorized them all, he would see some progress.

'It would be nice if I could show continuous, noticeable growth.'

The only thing he gained in three days was 700 silver from the daily rewards.

He added this to his existing 600 silver, used it to draw once at the silver level, and obtained a colorless elixir, which increased his internal energy by 0.01.

This brought his internal energy to 1.60, but compared to when he took the silver elixir, this was hardly a noticeable change.

'Can I get a mission to obtain a treasure like last time? I need to draw another silver... or at least a bronze.'

He thought about various things, hoping that a mission might appear if he complained, but the notifications remained silent.

"Che."

Xiao Zhongtian left the Manlong Pavilion and headed towards the Yilong Hall.

To recover quickly, he was told to come for treatment every morning and evening.

Although he had no other urgent matters, it was still a hassle to visit for a few more days.

As he arrived at the Yilong Hall, he heard some commotion.

"What’s going on?"

Although the place was usually busy with many martial artists, today seemed particularly noisy, so he peeked in the direction of the sound.

He was then shocked by what he saw.

"Whoa, what the...?"

A person with a pained expression was being helped to lie down on a bed, but one of his arms was missing.

Upon closer inspection, another person nearby was holding the severed arm.

'What happened? Did he lose his arm during a duel?'

Although the bleeding seemed to be under control, it was clear that the injury was severe.

'That’s... a Baolong Squad uniform?'

Since each squad had its own uniform, he could tell that the injured person was from the Baolong Squad, which was two levels above his own.

"Ugh..."

"Quickly, bring him inside! Hurry!"

A few staff members from the Yilong Hall rushed to bring the injured person inside, out of sight.

As he stood there in shock, one of the remaining people spoke.

Judging by their uniforms, they were also from the Baolong Squad.

"Poor guy. Losing an arm means his life as a martial artist is almost over."

The man who was holding the severed arm responded.

"Just a duel, and why did he push himself so hard... sigh!"

"A tragic accident. Both of them were too excited and used their full strength, so they couldn’t stop in time."

"Only a few days after his promotion, and such an accident happens. The atmosphere will be tense."

"There’s nothing we can do. It’s a risk we take in this line of work. Who can we blame?"

Xiao Zhongtian, who overheard the conversation, shuddered.

'Not a major incident, just an injury during a duel? No... this place is more dangerous than I thought.'

Although it’s common for martial artists to sustain injuries, seeing this made him realize the difference between knowing it intellectually and experiencing it.

He felt a surge of tension in his body.

'Fist duels are relatively safe. If I have a duel with someone wielding a sword like last time, I could end up like that, right?'

Thinking about this and seeing the blood stains on the floor made him shudder.

As he watched the commotion with a troubled expression, a good reward mission he had been hoping for appeared.

"Are you kidding me?"

The reward was good.

Three silver treasure chests, which would be equivalent to the number of silver draws he had made so far.

However, the mission content was not to his liking.

Ruibing (Sharp Soldier).

In other words, defeat an opponent wielding a blade.

After seeing someone lose an arm in a duel just now, this was not a mission he wanted to take.

'This doesn’t feel right.'

As a martial artist, he would inevitably face such situations.

No, fighting an opponent with a weapon is not a choice but a necessity.

However, with his mediocre martial arts skills, it was something he wanted to avoid as much as possible.

'Even if I have to complete the mission to get the reward, I have a bad feeling that I’ll be forced into a situation I don’t want.'

He had a premonition that if he dragged out this mission, he would end up in a situation where he couldn’t avoid a fight.

For example, if Murong Xuehuo, who suffered a humiliating defeat, applied for a rematch?

He would naturally refuse and avoid it, but if he attacked him out of sight, there would be no way to stop it.

Although he won the fist duel by luck, if he faced an opponent with a sword, even if he didn’t die, there was no guarantee he wouldn’t end up like the Baolong Squad martial artist.

'That can’t happen!'

The thought made him shudder all over.

If he had to face such a situation, it would be better to take the initiative and resolve it as quickly and safely as possible.

In this dangerous world, the faster he grew, the better his chances of protecting himself from danger.

The three silver treasure chests he would get as a reward would help him draw and improve.

'Fighting doesn’t necessarily mean actual combat. If I choose the right opponent and have a duel, I might be able to win. But is there anyone I can defeat?'

To achieve the goal of winning, he would have to find a student who was at the bottom of the class, but even then, he wasn’t confident he could win.

Even with similar skills, the one with a weapon has an advantage.

'Forget it. There’s no limit to the number of attempts, so if I keep trying, I’ll eventually succeed. I need to find someone who doesn’t have a grudge against me and can go easy on me.'

As he thought about this, one person came to mind.

Zhang Zijun from the same team.

'Zijun uses a sword, right? I don’t know his skill level, but he seems like a decent guy. If I ask him for a few practice sessions to gain experience, I might get a chance to win. He probably won’t use his sword too harshly.'

After organizing his thoughts, Xiao Zhongtian decided to talk to Zhang Zijun.

Draw for the Strongest in the Martial World, Chapter 10