Chapter 22

The story of the "Sleeve Arrow" and the "Pressure Point Hand" begins not long after Alpha accepted the "Heroic Path" quest.

...

...

Unlike other quests, accepting the "Heroic Path" quest not only changed the task prompt but also transformed the space around Alpha. Suddenly, everything around him vanished, and when Alpha regained his vision, he found himself standing before a majestic green mountain, surrounded by towering ancient trees. At the foot of the mountain, a stone tablet read "Wudang Mountain" in Chinese characters.

Why was Alpha surprised? He chuckled to himself, realizing that since he had already started the "Heroic Path" quest, it wasn't strange to see a few Chinese characters.

"Accept the quest 'Heroic Path',

Heroic Path: Speak with Master Zhenren."

Clearly, Alpha's goal was the disheveled old Taoist sitting on a large rock at the foot of the mountain—Master Zhenren. Alpha instinctively thought this Zhenren was the famous martial arts master Zhang Sanfeng.

"In fact, I am not the Zhang Sanfeng you think I am, caster of Azeroth," Master Zhenren already knew what Alpha was thinking.

"Your talent for casting is clearly not as impressive as it could be, but magic is merely a form of energy. The highest law has closed the door to your arcane powers, but it has already opened another window for you to harness energy, because you have obtained the 'Heavenly Book of Heroic Path'—this is what we in the East call 'destiny,' a mysterious existence akin to fate."

Master Zhenren, sitting crookedly on the rock with his eyes half-closed, seemed to be feeling the cool breeze at the foot of Wudang Mountain.

"..."

Alpha didn't know how to respond. Standing before this seemingly ordinary old man, Alpha felt a sense of awe and an inability to look directly at him, a feeling he couldn't quite explain. This feeling was not like looking up at a towering mountain, which would make one feel bold and adventurous. Instead, Master Zhenren's presence was more like a mountain range—vast and towering, yet gentle and continuous.

Alpha began to check his game status, wondering if this feeling was due to some kind of pressure or mental spell. Unfortunately, Alpha found no abnormalities in his game data. In fact, the old man had done nothing to display his power or use any mental or psychic spells. It was purely a manifestation of his personal aura—Master Zhenren had shown Alpha the so-called "aura of a great man" with just a few words.

Alpha was impressed by the game's detailed and exquisite portrayal of the NPC and decided to try to steer the conversation back to his class change quest. However, Master Zhenren saw through Alpha's intentions and preemptively said:

"Classes are merely ways to obtain and use power. You must understand... even hidden classes require a thoughtful person to master them."

Once again, Alpha felt the old man's unshakable presence and nodded, listening quietly.

"Whether it's a mage who borrows the power of the magic network or a warrior who wields swords and spears, they are all relying on external assistance. You can use a bow to kill enemies or a flute to inspire allies, but you cannot use the bowstring to play a 'Curse-Breaking Tune' or shoot arrows with it. Inertia and sound waves are all forms of assistance. Even a monk who gains supernatural power through soul cultivation mostly relies on divine protection, which is still a form of assistance."

In the "Heroic Space," Master Zhenren sat quietly on a large rock and spoke slowly. Alpha stood respectfully before him, saying nothing.

Yes, this was the "Heroic Space." When Alpha first entered, he received a prompt that he had entered the "Heroic Space," but the excitement of the class change quest had made him overlook it.

After explaining the concept of "assistance," Master Zhenren paused, then held out his palm, and a white hair fell into it. He casually flicked it forward, and the hair disappeared into the air.

"This is power."

A silver flash appeared in the bright sunlight, and a grating sound echoed in Alpha's ears. Alpha turned to see a thick, ancient pine tree cut in half, sliding down and crashing to the ground, raising a cloud of dust. A strand of white hair was faintly visible in the broken wood.

Such power from a single strand of hair!

But Alpha showed no reaction to this terrifying display, only a calm, peaceful expression as he watched Master Zhenren.

"Any assistance can fly away like a fledgling bird. Only by mastering the essence of power will you gain a strength that truly belongs to you."

Master Zhenren leaned back lazily, his fingers moving in the air, and Alpha felt a powerful vortex swirling above his head. Although it had no effect on him, Alpha had no doubt that the sky above him was now filled with energy capable of destroying the mountain in various forms.

"This is also power."

Master Zhenren smiled.

"How do I obtain my own power?"

Alpha asked softly. Master Zhenren, who seemed to have known Alpha would ask this, stood up slowly. Alpha then realized that Master Zhenren was not as small and frail as he appeared but was actually a tall, imposing figure.

"From a single hair to the sky, every movement is your own power. You don't need to rely on deities or communicate with any form of energy field. Power comes from within. The bigger your heart, the greater your power. This is the essence of power—what we call the 'Heroic Path,' your heart, your power."

Master Zhenren waved his hand, and a burst of golden light shot out, tracing a huge "Hero" character in the sky, which then vanished and entered Alpha's forehead.

"Mage Alpha, possessor of the 'Heavenly Book of Heroic Path,' are you willing to use your wisdom and effort to touch, feel, and ultimately possess the Heroic Path?"

"I am willing!"

The golden light entered Alpha's forehead, and Alpha didn't care how awkward the words sounded. Even a fool would know this was the moment to receive a hidden class. As for touching the Heroic Path, Alpha wasn't about to take it too seriously and spend his whole life pondering the ways of chivalry.

—As long as he could obtain the hidden class, everything else was negotiable.

Sure enough, saying "I am willing" was enough. The "Heroic Path" quest was completed, and Alpha received a prompt that his mage class had been removed and he had gained a combat class.

It must be said that completing the class change quest was indeed quite easy. However, considering the month Alpha had spent in the church library, it wasn't too surprising. Clearly, the two quests were part of a whole, and the effort had paid off.

At this moment, Alpha's attribute panel finally changed. His class, which was originally "Mage Level 10," became "Wuxia Level 10." Alpha now knew his new class was Wuxia.

"Health: 290/290?

Internal Energy: 400/400?"

Alpha noticed some differences. After the class change, his health increased by 45 points, and his magic points disappeared, replaced by a new internal energy of 400/400. The health recovery rate also increased significantly, and the magic recovery rate became the internal energy recovery rate, at 4 points per second—since he was now a Wuxia, having internal energy was appropriate.

The five basic attributes—strength, constitution, agility, and others—remained the same, as did his carrying capacity and movement speed. However, Alpha noticed a new attribute in his learned skills section, which clearly explained the changes in his health and magic points:

—The "Wuxia Template"!!!

"Wuxia Template: As a mage who has comprehended the Heroic Path, your Wuxia class follows an incomplete mage template to some extent.

Template 1: The original mage level-up rewards are removed. Below the Heroic Realm (Level 60), each level-up grants half the base constitution as health, half the sum of base constitution and base willpower as internal energy, and 6 skill points. From the Heroic Realm (Level 60) to the Legendary Realm (Level 100), each level-up grants the base constitution as health, the sum of base constitution and base willpower as internal energy, and 10 skill points.

Template 2: Wuxia can only wear cloth armor but can use all weapons and shields except heavy weapons.

Template 3: The spell system is removed, but spells learned before the class change are retained and can be upgraded. Items that are effective for mages can be used, and when using spells from magical items, the class template is equivalent to the mage class."

The three templates were easy to understand. In summary, he could use more weapons but still only wear cloth armor. He couldn't learn new spells but could still use spells from items and retain the four "useless spells" he had initially learned, which could even be upgraded.

Seeing this, Alpha instinctively checked his learned spells section.

Sure enough, the four 0-level spells he originally knew were still there. Alpha knew that, barring any unforeseen circumstances, no new spells would be added to the "learned spells" section. However...

"Gone is gone."

Alpha smiled, looking at the new option in his status panel:

—Heroic Path Skills, which were martial arts!!!

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