Chapitre 107: Chapter 107 - A combat test.
"How do you feel, kid?" Master Xie Xiaodan was waiting outside, his arms crossed. As soon as he saw Xin, he grinned.
"Eh. I'm alright." Xin also smiled lightly. He changed his robes and enjoyed the sensation of qi flowing through his body.
"You sound underwhelmed. Come 'ere." Xie Xiaodan hugged Xin tightly and gave him a pat on the shoulder.
"It's just... a bit anticlimactic. Got an earth qi boost, by the way. No human qi."
"And heaven qi was already claimed last time. I see. That's a great job, kid, give yourself some credit. Anticlimactic, what do you mean?"
"I... Don't feel the grand change, it was supposed to be a big moment, but is also quite hollow. Makes me think about the nature of achievement in general."
"Oh, cut that talk! Let me tell you something, anticipating a good event is almost more pleasant than actually experiencing it. That's why so many people live in their fucking fantasy world."
"I get it, I just expected more..."
"More? Do you want a catchy tune, or a bunch of concubines congratulating you, people telling you how amazing you are? Maybe we should throw you a fucking parade? Listen, that's exactly how progress looks. Sometimes, it's just 'eh'. Want to be a drama queen? Fine, you'll be a rank one forever, then. Move on."
Xin stared at master Xiaodan's puffy lips, making him look like a blowfish as he scolded him. It was goofy, but those lips spat some truths!
"I see now. Your words make a lot of sense. Thank you, master."
"Combat pavilion? Are you in shape? Let's test your new abilities."
"Fuck me... I mean, I'm quite tired. But we can do this."
Ten minutes later, master Xiodan set up a combat mannequin. It was an advanced master mannequin, stronger and more durable.
"I'm setting it up to master-tier combat skill, with rank one parameters. You'll manage." He slapped an advanced seal on the mannequin's back.
Fuck. Xin's heart started beating fast, it was a new environment filled with a lot of pressure. This opponent will be as strong as that crane style master he fought!
Xin already had his armour donned, and held a glaive in his hands. He put his dao shards and totem into his core, no longer having to hold them under his wrist padding felt quite nice.
"I'm enabling the formation." Xie Xiaodan said calmly.
Xin looked around. Evening training, half the sect is here. Rui Ming and Wu Lei were watching, they wanted to approach, but master Xiaodan chased them away. Oh, Wu Xiaoyun. Lady Ning, Yao Nang. So many familiar faces.
"Let's do this." Xin infused his glaive's blade with metal qi. It emanated a white, slightly greyish glow.
Charge! The mannequin rushed him, its hands longer than those of a human, its fists massive clubs of reinforced wood.
Slash! Slash! Xin went into the attack. He felt the anxiety and pressure of everyone watching him, but was too drunk on power to let it affect him.
The enemy dodged deftly, despite its build, it was as agile as Xin. How do they power this thing's brain so well?!
Smash! Xin was assaulted by an overhead strike of two fists. Roofing block! Xin raised his wrist above his forehead and exhaled swiftly.
Iron Lung dao shard!
The attack was completely blocked, and the metal qi energy spreading around his block prevented shoulder injury, too.
Steel sting dao shard! With his second arm, Xin changed the grip of his glaive and manifested an iron sting from its blade.
Dodge! The enemy leaned backwards, its body far more nimble than it looked, sacrificing balance to avoid a deadly blow. It looked like the mannequin was innately aware of how dangerous metal element attacks would be against it, and took caution.
That's my opening! Xin shot a snakevine at the opponent's legs, held too close together after being forced to retreat.
The vine was thicker, but also longer than it used to be when Xin was a mortal, and travelled faster. It entangled between the mannequin's legs, but it would take time to solidify and truly disrupt his opponent.
Tackle! Xin rushed into the creature, despite being weaker than it physically, he had to win a few precious moments, and prevent it from coming back to balance. A headbutt did just that.
"That's my friend!" Lei suddenly announced, looking proud. Xin smiled, his head spinning lightly from the hit. What a retard Lei is. Endearing.
In such a close range, waving the glaive would be a waste, so he just stabbed with it to get some tempo, but didn't retrieve it back, choosing to drop it instead.
Resonance Palms!
The energy Xin could apply to Resonance Palms was also much stronger now, and there was a visible platinum glow coming from the edges of his palms.
Stab! Stab! The creature finally recomposed, but was forced into the defence, assaulted by Xin's snake style attacks.
It almost stumbled as it tried to retreat, its movements disrupted by the snakevine, and Xin kept relentlessly attacking the creature, each stab adding a hole. It should start losing its qi reserves with each injury, Xin thought, but it's better to finish it off with a decisive blow!
Woodcutter's Downswi...
Xin baited the creature into the upper block.
Expansion vine kick! Xin infused his back leg with upwards wood qi energy, while his front leg delivered a powerful front kick, tripping the opponent and making them fall prone.
"New technique! He knows wood path martial arts!" Yao Nang felt her heart sink. Xin had now surpassed her, and she doubted she'd ever be able to catch up.
Steel Sting dao shard! Xin mounted the creature and stabbed its neck. It's almost enough.
Woodcutter's Downswing! This attack added a crack onto the creature's forehead. It punched Xin's ribs with a wooden qi attack, but Xin just exhaled and blocked it with the Iron Lung shard again.
Woodcutter's Downswing! He split the mannequin's head in two.
Xin stood up and took his helmet off. He noticed a group of rank one masters whispering among themselves.
"Wait, you guys struggled against this?" He raised his eyebrow and spread his arms. With his enhanced perception, he often heard what people said behind his back, and didn't shy away from holding a grudge. Eat this, cunts.
He noticed one of the masters roll his eyes. He turned back to master Xiaodan, grinning.
"Master Xiaodan, are you sure this was a 'master' difficulty mannequin?"
"Get off your high horse, kid. Your combat system is still unfinished. You aren't at the peak of rank one just yet, you've got a lot of room for growth."
"I can beat most of the sect's rank ones now. I know I've got to improve, sorry for posturing, I got drunk on power."
"You are currently eighth in my estimation of the sect's rank ones. Below Lei and Ming, remember this. You spent too much time as a mortal, your skills don't scale as well into the new realm. Humble yourself and get back to training. And think hard about your dao shard choice."
"Yes, master. Thank you for your input."
"Input... Whatever, disciple. You'll be officially promoted tomorrow. Newly promoted rank ones will be settling into the master quarters next week, but you'll be gone by then. Go enjoy yourself, hang out with your friends, get a bit of rest before plunging into stress again."
"Yes. Thank you."
***
Ten minutes later, Xin, Wu Lei and Rui Ming were sitting in the canteen, drinking tea and snacking on honeyed sweets.
"So, you're about to go and pick your free dao shard, eh?" Lei asked.
"Right."
"Got any ideas? What is your next move?" As Rui Ming asked this, Xin felt a bit weird. Does he observe me as a source of inspiration, attributing special value to each of my actions? Flattering, but a bit creepy.
"I'm willing to be flexible. Right now, I've got to honestly estimate my methods and pick something that will help me cultivate in the next few months. It doesn't necessarily have to be something that makes me the strongest fighter."
"And what's your self-estimation?" Rui Ming inquired. Right, he is fishing for my thought patterns, trying to develop his own thinking off them. I don't mind.
"Resonance Palms are very situational. I don't like them. I need a better melee attacking method. Using a mundane glaive is also not necessarily the best thing to bet on."
"I'd develop the tiger totem, if I were you. The attack that sliced my hand is still stronger than any rank one move I've seen." Lei stared at his right hand.
"The tiger had a lot of affinity with his totem. And was very Yang, unlike me. That's what gave that move so much power. Once I refine my totem, it's a real possibility that I'll use tiger style martial arts as my main melee attacking method."
"And in range, you'll keep using your crossbow." Rui Ming assumed.
"Correct. Its strength won't scale linearly, since half of the move's power is the innate strength of the crossbow, which won't be boosted. The reload will be effortless now, though. I can apply steel sting dao shard to my bolts, although it's not as strong as using them in melee, it's still a trap card I could use. Would be better if I had a stronger crossbow, but mine is already at the peak of the mortal realm. And the enchanted options are all expensive."
"Right. And defence, is my Iron Lung enough?" Lei inquired.
"Yes and no. For now, it's useful, and its breathing ability is a nice bonus. But it's unsustainable against a barrage of attacks, I'll need to replace it with something stronger."
"What about the snakevine?"
"Oh, I'm keeping it. It's a staple of my new style. Once I learn to manipulate the vines better, I'll be able to use it in various different ways. It's very versatile, I love it, and it's much stronger now, too."
"I've seen." Lei playfully choked his own neck. "Even the mortal version of this move was rather annoying, should be even cooler at rank one."
"Indeed. But I think Xin's system is still far from finished. There aren't enough synergies to truly elevate his combat style." Rui Ming didn't mind being blunt. Again.
"You're correct, I'm still a jack of all trades. I also have that weird jade ring, and a plant reinvigoration dao shard, but I haven't trained any of these enough."
"You should sell them, if the price is good." Lei didn't mind flipping things for profit, while Xin was more of a hoarder.
"I understand, but the plant shard is good for alchemy, and I'm an alchemist. And being good at ambushing never hurts. My perception is also at a higher tier of rank one, despite having no shards. I wonder if I should specialise in it and become an investigative master, or if it's better to appreciate this advantage and move on."
"Focus on combat power. It's the strongest leverage a cultivator has." Rui Ming answered.
"I disagree. Xin is already decent at geomantic perception, has totemic abilities and naturally good hearing and eyesight. Remember how I found an inheritance in that cave? It was thanks to my night vision. Xin shouldn't neglect this aspect of cultivation. In fact, that's the best way to avoid most fights. This and movement, of course."
"Right, I agree, if I see a good opportunity to improve on this aspect, I won't hesitate to use it. But my weakest aspect is still movement. I have my mercury greaves, and they're great, but it's nothing compared to what you guys have. I'm leaning towards improving my mobility."
"Wood and metal paths are inferior in this aspect. You should play to your strengths, in my opinion." Rui Ming stared at the tea in his cup as he said this.
"I disagree. Ironglide dao shard is decent. Needle rush, too. Springvine and verdant stride shards are also good." Xin tried to remember other dao shards that would fit him, but Rui Ming cut his pondering short.
"Ironglide is weaker on non-flat or non-metal surfaces, and it will burn through your qi rapidly. Needle rush is only horizontal, and limits your body shape as you move. Springvine is decent, but needs a firm point of origin, and is quite limited in horizontal movement. Verdant stride is outright useless."
Xin took a sip of tea again. Rui Ming is ruthless when it comes to speaking his mind! Outside of cultivation, he seems like such a nice guy, but when it comes to the dao shards, he'll relentlessly bash any choice you make!
"Hmmm. I don't fully agree, but I see your perspective. None of the options seem strong enough to achieve qualitative change in my combat style. I'll consider non-movement shards, instead."
"So, investigative method it is?" Lei wondered.
Xin rubbed his chin in contemplation.
"It's not so simple. I should also consider healing."
État de l’alimentation hebdomadaire
-- Classement
Power Stone 
-- Power
stone