Under the level-10 effect of the Heavenly Martial Heart-Tempering Art, Zhang Yu could feel his grasp of combat becoming far more refined. Any subtle shift in an opponent's moves could not escape his notice, and he could command every ounce of his power with precision. His practical combat ability had skyrocketed.
Except this state drained his energy at a ferocious rate. After holding it for one minute, Zhang Yu began to feel dizzy and lightheaded.
"This total-concentration state should be saved for the critical moments of a fight — I can't just use it casually."
The level-10 Heavenly Martial Heart-Tempering Art gave Zhang Yu far greater confidence in the martial-arts competition.
"But it's still not enough..."
Thinking of the unfair, uncompetitive Mana Competition, and of the top ranking in the martial competition Zhang Pianpian had mentioned, Zhang Yu wanted to make his odds even better.
So he opened the shopping platform again and looked at the techniques he'd favorited over this period.
Zhang Yu had not been idle when it came to deciding what to cultivate after taking the Heavenly Martial Heart-Tempering Art to level 10. Right now he was looking at an expert-level martial technique called the Imperishable Seal Method — thirty thousand after the fifty percent discount, along with its user reviews, level-10 effect description...
This Imperishable Seal Method, like the Heavenly Martial Heart-Tempering Art, was an expert-level technique.
It was a technique aimed at an opponent's mana, specialized in mana-drawing and mana-deflection.
Not only was it extremely hard to learn, mastering it was even harder. The comment section was full of reviews about how hard the technique was to learn and master, and that once you bought it you had to spend money hiring a tutor.
One-star review: Avoid this trap! Don't buy it, you can't learn it on your own. The moment I got a tutor it cost me tens of thousands.
Two-star review: Bought it at the original price of sixty thousand. Came back and it was on sale.
One-star review: Wait until I've trained it to level 10, then I'll leave a good review.
Zhang Yu guessed that the reason it was on sale was precisely that it was so hard to learn and attract sales. But this was no problem for Zhang Yu, because he'd discovered this Imperishable Seal Method only had four moves.
On top of that, the level-10 effect of the technique could be used fully in this martial-arts competition, and it could complement his Boundless Cloud Hands.
"The Boundless Cloud Hands can pull and redirect force, using the opponent's power against them. But the Formless Cloud Qi has a weakness — it's vulnerable to an opponent destroying the qi with special-type mana."
"But if I pair the Imperishable Seal Method with the Boundless Cloud Hands, I can draw and even deflect that special mana of theirs."
"Add in the Zhou Tian Qi Gathering Method constantly replenishing my mana, and the Heavenly Martial Heart-Tempering Art keeping watch over the whole field and catching every detail..."
"My battle system will become much more complete — better at winning against stronger foes, and better at coming out of a victory... without getting hurt."
In the martial-arts competition, against opponents with higher numbers, keeping himself from getting hurt — or getting hurt as little as possible — mattered enormously to a penniless student like Zhang Yu.
So compared to those fiercer, wilder, more dominating offensive techniques, Zhang Yu leaned toward defensive-counter techniques.
And if the Imperishable Seal Method had one drawback... it was the price. Even after the half-off discount it cost thirty thousand, and Zhang Yu's account currently held just a little over thirty thousand in total.
Meaning if he bought this technique, he'd be broke.
But thinking of his goal of becoming Songyang's strongest freshman, and getting into the Top Ten...
"I have to get into the Top Ten. I have to take the competition crown. After all, first place this martial-arts competition pays fifty thousand in prize money. If I can't take first, then hoarding these thirty thousand is useless."
Having made up his mind, Zhang Yu gritted his teeth and blew all thirty thousand in his account in one go.
In a flash he received the electronic secret manual of the Imperishable Seal Method.
After a look-through, the technique surfaced from his Feather Book, and he switched it over to Focus.
As a technique devoted to mana-drawing and mana-deflection, the most crucial part of the Imperishable Seal Method lay in the control of mana. Its external martial moves were only a very simple four forms.
And so, in less than a minute, Zhang Yu had trained the technique to level 1.
In that instant, memory after memory of practicing the Imperishable Seal Method surfaced in his mind.
Zhang Yu could feel his command of mana growing purer and finer, to the point that he could even temporarily convert an opponent's oncoming mana into his own and send it back out.
Of course, this process still consumed mana — it was just that the mana Zhang Yu spent was less than what the opponent had attacked with.
Zhang Yu nodded to himself: "As long as I keep raising the Imperishable Seal Method, I'll be able to draw on more of my opponent's mana with less of my own."
"According to the website's description, after the Imperishable Seal Method hits level 10, drawing 10 units of mana from the opponent only costs 3 units of my own — a ratio of thirty percent."
With that thought, Zhang Yu nodded to himself again and went back to grinding the Imperishable Seal Method.
...
Two more days passed in the blink of an eye, and it was now the day before the martial-arts competition.
Figures flashed back and forth across the training ground — it was Lei Jun, one against two, coaching Zhang Yu and Bai Zhenzhen.
Over this period, sensing the rapid progress of Zhang Yu and Bai Zhenzhen, Lei Jun grew more and more astonished in his own heart.
"These two brats — their understanding of all kinds of martial arts climbs higher every single day, and their practical experience grows terrifyingly fast."
In these days, even maintaining an output at grade-2 physical strength, Lei Jun had to pull out more and more real combat skills just to keep suppressing Zhang Yu and Bai Zhenzhen.
But what startled him most wasn't that. Rather...
"These two, through their daily bitter training and their repeated bouts with me, have gradually developed their own fighting styles."
Lei Jun threw a punch, which was blocked by a clump of white vital qi under Zhang Yu's control. He could feel the force of his punch scattering to the four winds, most of it redirected away by the other party.
"This Zhang Yu kid — his Boundless Cloud Hands grow more skillful by the day, like a slippery, elusive ball. Put the full ten parts of your strength into a hit, and he can redirect seven or eight of them. Every time I have to use special mana first to break his qi, and the fight drags on into a mana-attrition war."
"And then, to top it off, he recently trained up that technique called the Imperishable Seal Method, making his defense more and more watertight."
"Mm... no need to worry about this one getting beaten into bankruptcy in this competition."
Lei Jun turned and used a palm to block Bai Zhenzhen's sword-fingers, thinking to himself: "Bai Zhenzhen... now she's a true martial-arts prodigy."
"In just two weeks, she's already gradually able to keep up with my changes, see through my openings, and strike where I must defend."
"But her fighting style... is too dangerous."
Boom!
As Lei Jun raised his output again, a wave of mana oscillation rolled over, blasting the two of them flying at once.
"Today's lesson's over."
He said with an emotional smile: "You two have improved a lot over this period, and you've just about reached where you need to be."
"For tomorrow's match, remember — safety first. Put your own safety above everything else at all times. Don't push through by force. Don't force anything."
By now Bai Zhenzhen had grown familiar with Lei Jun, so she shot back directly: "Got it, Old Lei. So what do you think — how far can we make it?"
Lei Jun thought for a moment and said: "Top ten is still within reach."
Bai Zhenzhen: "Only top ten? Still within reach?"
Lei Jun smiled helplessly: "The three great elite schools have too many out-of-syllabus tricks, and even their regular methods are things you simply can't afford. Their top students' numbers are higher than yours. You could say it's not even a fair starting line. If you two can make it into the top ten, you should be quietly laughing yourselves to the bank."
"That's enough, go get ready. And don't forget to bring your competition drugs tomorrow."
"At midnight tonight, we gather at the gates of White Dragon High School."
The venue for this martial-arts competition was White Dragon High School.
Zhang Yu blinked in surprise: "Midnight?"
Lei Jun said it matter-of-factly: "White Dragon High has classes during the day, so the matches are scheduled at midnight."
Zhang Yu could only say that if it wasn't for White Dragon High School, in the art of acting inhuman it had never disappointed him.
Zhang Yu asked again: "How do we get there?"
Lei Jun said: "Take the subway yourself."
"There are only the two of you competing in this martial competition. You think the school's going to charter a bus?"
Zhang Yu could only say this was also just like Songyang High — just like White Dragon High, it never disappointed him.
Lei Jun watched the two departing backs, sighing inwardly: "If those two had been born into a rich family, maybe they'd have a shot at the Top Ten."
...
That very night.
After two more hours of frenzied all-out training, Zhang Yu finally pushed the Imperishable Seal Method to level 10.
His body gave a violent shudder, and he felt his meridians — as though tempered by a thousand hammers of training — suddenly becoming far more resilient, more able to accommodate the flow of all kinds of special mana.
At the same time, all his experience in mana-drawing and mana-deflection melded together in his mind, as though completing some kind of sublimation, finally yielding a new understanding.
Now, unleashing the Imperishable Seal Method once more, Zhang Yu was confident he could directly convert his opponent's mana to replenish the mana he himself had spent.
In other words, after the Imperishable Seal Method reached level 10, he could grow stronger the longer he fought, using the mana his opponent threw at him to refill his own reserves.
Of course, this sort of absorption and replenishment naturally had its limits.
"Within a single battle, I can replenish myself up to 30 units of mana this way. Any more than that... my current meridians can't hold out."
With that thought, Zhang Yu looked again at his Feather Book. After these two weeks of bitter training, his base numbers had also climbed considerably.
Zhang Yu Dao Heart Level 3 (53%) Mana 21.8 Physical Strength Grade 1.51
"Sigh, if only I'd been able to learn the Zhou Tian Qi Gathering Method a month or two earlier, and had a little more time to raise my physical strength..."
Back home, he scrubbed himself down with a shower, then hurried onto the bus and set out for White Dragon High School.
...
11:31 PM.
The moment he stepped out of the subway station, Zhang Yu saw a building some thirty-odd stories tall. He knew it was where White Dragon High School stood.
But he had no time to look at it now, because Zhang Yu at this moment was very, very, very hungry.
"Where's A-Zhen?"
"Better find her fast and borrow some money to buy dinner. I can't fight a match on an empty stomach like this."
As for Zhang Yu's own money — of course he'd long since spent it all.
Just the one Imperishable Seal Method had wiped out the thirty thousand in his account.
And the little bit of change left over had been finished off these past few days on food and medicine.
Just as Zhang Yu was looking around anxiously, a hand slapped down hard on his shoulder.
Zhang Yu turned his head, delighted: "A-Zhen? Quickly, you—"
"Yu'er, lend me some money." Bai Zhenzhen clutched her stomach, speaking weakly: "I've got no money for dinner, I'm going weak all over."
Zhang Yu was shocked: "You spent all your money too?!"
Bai Zhenzhen, seeing Zhang Yu's reaction, said miserably: "You spent it all too? What kind of spending sense is that, spending until you can't even afford dinner?"