CLANG!
After gaining the trait Quick Eyes and Swift Hands, Zhong Ming's sword-drawing speed skyrocketed.
His arm would swing into motion almost the instant the thought arose in his mind.
With his mind and body moving as one, Zhong Ming's strike was exceptionally swift and cuttingly sharp.
However, this nearly perfect strike had one colossal flaw: he missed.
SHIIING...
Zhong Ming fell silent, staring at the spot where his sword had cut through empty air.
'...Trying to hit a high-speed moving object with a sword draw really isn't as easy as it seems.'
His first failure didn't discourage Zhong Ming. He simply took a deep breath and calmed his mind.
Then, Zhong Ming looked at Dong Sea and called out, "Again!"
"Watch out."
WHOOSH!
A second pebble flew at high speed toward Zhong Ming.
Then the third, the fourth, the fifth...
And on the sixth pebble—BAM!—Zhong Ming hit it.
A precise strike combined with blinding speed. In an instant, Zhong Ming had sliced the speeding pebble in two.
"Huuu..."
Only then did Zhong Ming's Heart Spirit relax as he let out a long breath.
At the same time, a system notification, arriving fashionably late, sounded in Zhong Ming's ear.
[You have completed one full practice session of the Longxi Sword-Drawing Technique. Skill Level +3]
'Not bad!'
Successfully striking the stone for the first time and seeing the progress of his Longxi Sword-Drawing Technique increase again filled Zhong Ming with motivation.
He immediately shouted to Dong Sea.
"Again."
"Got it."
Seeing that Zhong Ming could now hit the pebbles, Dong Sea was no longer hesitant.
WHOOSH!
Soon, Dong Sea threw the seventh pebble.
This time, as Zhong Ming drew his sword... he missed.
Without a hint of discouragement, in less than a breath's time, Zhong Ming calmly assumed his sword-drawing stance once more.
"Keep going!"
WHOOSH!
CLANG!
...
And so, for the rest of the afternoon, Zhong Ming dedicated all his time to practicing the Longxi Sword-Drawing Technique.
Sometimes he missed, sometimes he hit. At times, the pebbles thrown by Dong Sea would even strike Zhong Ming's body.
Several hours of training left Zhong Ming covered in bruises.
But the physical injuries didn't bother Zhong Ming. On the contrary, his heart was filled mostly with joy.
—Thanks to his continuous training, in just one short afternoon, Zhong Ming's Longxi Sword Drawing Technique progress had reached:
[Longxi Sword-Drawing Technique: Second Realm Insight (631/3300)]
'Although my progress in the Second Realm only increased by about a fifth or a sixth, that's because my hit rate was too low at the beginning. Now, I can hit six or seven out of every ten pebbles, which has multiplied my training efficiency several times over.'
'If I go all out, I might even be able to advance the Longxi Sword-Drawing Technique to the Third Realm of Refinement in the next day or two.'
It had to be said, the single-move Sword-Drawing Technique was indeed a perfect fit for Zhong Ming.
WHOOSH!
THWACK!
A slight lapse in concentration earned Zhong Ming a nasty hit. Seeing this, he didn't dare to be careless again.
WHOOSH!
CLANG!
After another two hours of training, the sky grew dark. Both Zhong Ming, who was drawing the sword, and Dong Sea, who was throwing the pebbles, were mentally and physically exhausted.
Seeing this, the two of them went to the Longxi Peak cafeteria to eat.
After they had eaten and drunk their fill and rested for a while, Dong Sea saw that the Sun had completely set, with only a faint glimmer of moonlight spilling over the land. He looked at Zhong Ming with a hint of hesitation and asked:
"Zhong Ming, it's getting late. Are we still going to practice?"
The dark veil of night had fallen, casting everything around them in shadow.
Under these conditions, it would be extremely difficult for Zhong Ming to see the pebbles.
Realizing this, Dong Sea had asked Zhong Ming if he still wanted to keep practicing.
To this, Zhong Ming's answer was, naturally, "We practice!"
"Our Talent is lacking, resources are scarce, and time is even tighter. If we want to achieve a higher class, we have no choice but to risk our lives!"
To get a good head start, Zhong Ming's mentality was to grind until he dropped, as long as it didn't kill him.
This attitude of his also inspired Dong Sea, and it made Dong Sea even more confident that Zhong Ming would be rated as B Class.
'Zhong Ming is a man of his word. If he's rated as B Class, he'll definitely help me out.'
With this thought, Dong Sea, now full of motivation, said:
"I understand, Zhong Ming. Be careful."
"I will."
...
CLANG!
Practicing the Longxi Sword-Drawing Technique at night was undoubtedly harder than during the day.
With only a sliver of moonlight, Zhong Ming couldn't see the incoming pebbles at all unless he focused his entire attention.
Even when he was completely focused, he would still miss many.
Because of this, at the beginning of his night training, Zhong Ming's success rate at striking the pebbles dropped back down to twenty or thirty percent.
Fortunately, training at night also had its benefits.
The extremely harsh training environment meant that every time Zhong Ming managed to hit a pebble, his gains were immense.
[You have completed one full practice session of the Longxi Sword-Drawing Technique. Skill Level +4]
[You have completed one full practice session of the Longxi Sword-Drawing Technique. Skill Level +5]
[You have completed one full practice session of the Longxi Sword-Drawing Technique. Skill Level +3]
Furthermore, as his Skill Level in the Longxi Sword-Drawing Technique increased, Zhong Ming could feel that not only were his hands faster and his eyes more precise, but his hearing was also improving.
After practicing until past ten at night, when his Longxi Sword-Drawing Technique progress reached [Second Realm Insight 975/3300], Zhong Ming could even vaguely judge a pebble's trajectory just by the sound it made cutting through the air, drawing his sword the next moment to slice it apart.
'On top of Quick Eyes and Swift Hands, I've now gained sharp hearing. I won't have to fear night battles in the future.'
'However, the trait I'll gain from advancing from the Second Realm of Insight to the Third Realm of Refinement shouldn't be just enhanced hearing.'
Reality wasn't a game, after all. Zhong Ming's Cultivation Techniques and skills didn't level up instantly after an experience bar filled up.
With every sword draw, with every point of skill gained, Zhong Ming would gain a little more understanding of the Longxi Sword-Drawing Technique he was practicing.
Thus, although his Sword-Drawing Technique had not yet advanced to the Third Realm, he could already feel some changes and sense the direction in which it was evolving.
'There's not much to say about the First Realm of Initiation for the Sword-Drawing Technique. It's all about one thing: speed.'
'The first half of the Second Realm of Insight also focused on drawing the sword with even greater speed, and then it added accuracy.'
'But midway through, it's not just about releasing the strike, but also retracting it...'
Having thought this far and gained a deeper understanding, Zhong Ming no longer had Dong Sea throw the pebbles one by one.
"Great Sea, grab a handful and throw them all at once."
"..." Dong Sea paused at these words, but he quickly replied, "Be careful."
WHOOSH...
Along with his words of caution, a handful of pebbles flew toward Zhong Ming, scattering like flowers tossed by a heavenly maiden.
His eyes fixed on the incoming shower of pebbles, Zhong Ming drew his sword once more with a CLANG!
This time, the Sword Light from Zhong Ming's draw was still swift and sharp.
What was different was that, while its edge was fully revealed, with a flick of Zhong Ming's wrist—SHIIING!—the Sword Light unexpectedly traced a graceful, beautiful curve through the air, just like a flowing stream.
CLINK! CLINK! CLINK!
This Sword Light, Flowing like a stream, directly sliced through several pebbles.
'I was right. The Third Realm of the Longxi Sword-Drawing Technique requires not only the Sword Momentum of a dragon, but also the grace of flowing water...'
Having gained another insight, Zhong Ming's heart was filled with excitement.
However, before his excitement could fully manifest...
THWAP! THWAP! THWAP!
A series of impacts rang out in the night.
This time, it wasn't the sound of a sword striking pebbles, but the sound of numerous pebbles striking Zhong Ming's body.
Zhong Ming had only just grasped the Flowing True Intent. Forget mastering it; he wasn't even confident he could execute it a second time.
Furthermore, it was nighttime. The new technique and the unfavorable environment allowed Zhong Ming to strike down some of the pebbles, but not all of them.
And the remaining pebbles, naturally, landed on Zhong Ming.
The barrage of pebbles made Zhong Ming grimace in pain.
"Stop, stop, stop! Don't throw any more."
Zhong Ming prepared to stop his practice for the time being.
He wasn't doing this because the impacts hurt.
Practicing for the better part of a day had left Zhong Ming utterly exhausted, both in body and Heart Spirit.
At this moment, he no longer had the capacity to continue training.