Qin Feng closed the noisy forum and turned his attention back to his own cultivation plan.
’My Contribution Points are sufficient for now; they can support the next stage of my secluded cultivation. But before I go into seclusion, there’s one more thing I must do.’
His gaze fell on a schedule reminder on his personal terminal.
A line of red text, which he had marked as the highest priority, was flashing faintly.
[Disciple Group Promotion Match begins today.]
’This is it.’
A flash of anticipation crossed Qin Feng’s eyes.
Becoming an elite disciple not only came with a reward of Contribution Points, but more importantly, the precious opportunity to "consult with one’s master about cultivation problems once every ten years."
The value of face-to-face guidance from a Star System-level Powerhouse was immeasurable.
Without the slightest hesitation, his consciousness sank into the Subspace Network. He skillfully opened the internal system of Canaan Starry Sky Martial Arts University and entered the private channel of his master, Yu Han.
The design of the private channel was minimalist to the extreme, featuring only a backdrop of a deep, boundless starry sky and a few floating function options.
Qin Feng directly selected the option that glowed faintly—[Disciple Group Promotion Match].
[Student Qin Feng detected. Current disciple group: Registered Disciple.]
[Begin ’Elite Disciple’ promotion assessment?]
"Yes."
[Confirmation complete. Matching you with an assessment opponent...]
[Matching Rules: The system will automatically select an opponent with a ’Medium’ strength rating from among all elite disciples under Master ’Yu Han’ to ensure the fairness of the assessment.]
[Match successful!]
HUMMM—
The starry sky background before him instantly twisted and stretched, transforming into countless streams of light.
When Qin Feng’s vision cleared, he found himself standing on a vast, boundless plaza of white jade.
The sky was a pure azure, untouched by a single cloud, and the air was fresh.
A hundred meters across from him, a young man in a white Martial Arts Uniform, holding a sheathed Long Saber, slowly materialized as the light coalesced.
The young man appeared to be around thirty years old. He was handsome, with a gentle, jade-like disposition, and the corners of his mouth held a mild smile, showing no tension despite the impending battle.
[Assessment Opponent: Yunhe]
[Life Force Index: 570.0]
[Main Killing Techniques: "Wind Listening Blade Technique" (Perfection), "Flowing Water Blade Skill" (Perfection), "Stone-breaking Saber Technique" (Perfection)... A total of twelve First-level Killing Techniques (Perfection), two Second-level Killing Techniques (Major Accomplishment).]
Seeing the string of astonishing data pop up on the light screen, Qin Feng’s expression couldn’t help but turn a little more serious.
’As expected of an elite disciple under a Star System-level Powerhouse.’
His Life Force Index was comparable to the Gatekeeper of the thirtieth floor, but the number of Perfection Realm killing techniques he had mastered was several times greater.
’Twelve First-level Killing Techniques at Perfection!’
This meant that his opponent’s accumulation in the Acupoint Opening Realm had already reached a terrifyingly profound level.
At that moment, a cold and magnificent voice echoed from above the plaza.
[Assessment begins. Countdown: 30, 29, 28...]
Yunhe, his opponent, didn’t immediately assume a combat stance. Instead, he gave Qin Feng a warm smile and spoke first. "Junior Brother Qin Feng, I’ve long heard of your reputation. Seeing you today, you truly have an extraordinary presence."
Qin Feng nodded slightly and replied politely, "Senior Brother Yunhe, a pleasure to meet you."
"Haha, no need to be so formal."
Yunhe waved his hand. He looked at Qin Feng, a friendly reminder in his eyes. "I know your strength is extraordinary, Junior Brother. This promotion match is just a formality for you. So, before we begin, I wanted to give you a bit of advice as someone who’s been through this."
Hearing this, Qin Feng said sincerely, "Please speak, Senior Brother. I’m all ears."
Yunhe nodded, his smile fading slightly as his expression turned serious.
"Once you’re successfully promoted to an elite disciple, Junior Brother, you must seize the opportunity to apply for that once-in-a-decade, face-to-face consultation with Master Yu Han. Don’t feel embarrassed or think your questions are too trivial."
He paused, as if recalling something, and continued, "I remember it clearly. There was a senior brother before, who specialized in the long stick—ahem, spear and stick share the same origin, they’re more or less the same. His talent was exceptionally high. It took him ten years to cultivate fifteen Level 1 Stick Techniques, all to the ’Perfection’ Realm, but he just couldn’t push a single one of them to the ’Control’ Realm. He was stuck at that bottleneck for a full five years."
"Later, during one of those consultations, Master Yu Han just gave him one look and determined that he had no affinity for stick techniques in this life, but instead had an extremely high affinity for saber techniques."
"That senior brother was skeptical at the time, but he still followed our master’s advice and switched from the stick to the saber. And guess what happened?"
A flash of amazement appeared in Yunhe’s eyes.
"After switching to the saber, it only took him one year to push three newly learned First-level Saber Techniques all the way to ’Perfection’! Then, it took him another two years to comprehend all three of those saber techniques to the ’Control’ Realm! The bottleneck that had plagued him for over a decade just vanished into thin air!"
"Oh? Is that so?"
For the first time, a truly moved expression appeared on Qin Feng’s face.
This went beyond his previous understanding of Martial Dao cultivation.
"Mhm."
Yunhe nodded heavily and explained, "That’s because the power of First-level, Second-level, and Third-level Killing Skills is determined more by the intricacy of the skill itself and the complexity of its Spiritual Energy application. As long as your comprehension is high enough, you have the resources, and you’re willing to work hard, you can theoretically learn any killing technique."