"Reached the Mastery level!"
Mastery!
The proficiency levels of martial techniques were: Beginner, Proficient, Mastery, Perfection.
A Profound-tier, low-grade martial technique trained to Mastery.
This meant that the moment Zhao Ze struck with his palm, he could compress and explode the 10.3 units of qi and blood in his body in an extremely violent manner.
His lethality would at least double!
"Su Yu."
Lin Xiaoxiao looked at the silent young man, her eyes full of worry.
"Your qi and blood may have reached 10.4."
"But the surge you've had in the past three days hasn't had time to settle."
"What you've learned must still be the school-taught Earth-tier, low-grade 'Five Elements Fist,' right?"
"Against a Mastery-level 'Shattering Rock Palm,' the 'Five Elements Fist' is completely outmatched."
"That's absolute suppression!"
Lin Xiaoxiao bit her lip, her tone extremely serious as she warned,
"In tomorrow's practical assessment, if you're up against Zhao Ze, absolutely do not go head-to-head with him!"
"Use your speed to move around, wear him down!"
"Profound-tier martial techniques consume a lot of qi and blood—he can't last long!"
Su Yu listened quietly, without interrupting.
He really didn't have a Profound-tier martial technique, but he wondered if the Five Elements Fist, which he had evolved using his system, might surpass even a Profound-tier one.
Not that it mattered much, though.
With his 1000-point warrior-level qi and blood.
Even if he just stood there and let Zhao Ze hit him, Zhao Ze's vaunted Shattering Rock Palm would only end up shattering his own bones.
Overwhelming superiority.
That was the real overwhelming superiority here.
But.
Looking at Lin Xiaoxiao across from him, who was racking her brain, holding nothing back, and teaching him for his own sake.
A rare trace of warmth flickered in Su Yu's deep eyes.
For an orphan who had struggled at the bottom for three years.
This feeling of being genuinely cared for by someone.
Was unfamiliar.
But not unpleasant.
"I understand."
Su Yu responded calmly.
His tone had lost its usual cold detachment.
Hearing Su Yu agree, Lin Xiaoxiao let out a long sigh of relief.
She had been terrified that this prideful guy would, for the sake of his dignity, go head-to-head with Zhao Ze in the arena.
"Come on, eat up."
Setting aside her worries, Lin Xiaoxiao reverted to her usual laid-back manner.
She picked up her own chopsticks.
And, with complete naturalness, picked a piece of plump spirit-tail fish and placed it in the small plate in front of Su Yu.
"This fish is great for replenishing qi and blood. Since you've just had a boost and your foundation still isn't solid, eat more to stabilize it."
As she served him the dish, Lin Xiaoxiao even stood up.
In the open space of the private dining room, she demonstrated a few simple dodging steps.
"Watch closely," she said.
"If Zhao Ze uses his Shattering Rock Palm aiming for your lower body, use this move called 'Swallow Return.'"
"Your steps should be light and your center of gravity low…"
The young girl's crisp voice rang through the room.
Her black, form-fitting martial arts uniform traced out the energetic, vibrant lines of her youth as she moved.
Su Yu sat quietly in his chair.
Chewing his food slowly.
Watching this ritzy young lady who, in her determination to teach him combat skills, had forgotten even to eat.
He didn't refuse her kindness.
Even though he didn't need it at all.
The meal.
Had thus come to a rare, quiet peace amid this slightly warm, instructional atmosphere.
The private dining room of the small restaurant was spacious enough.
Lin Xiaoxiao pushed the rosewood round table aside, clearing some space.
She took off her black martial arts jacket and casually draped it over the back of the chair.
All that was left was a tight black sports vest.
The girl's sharply-defined abs, honed by years of martial arts, were faintly visible under the light, radiating youthful, explosive energy.
"Look closely," Lin Xiaoxiao said seriously, positioning herself with one foot forward and the other back.
"The core of the 'Swallow Return' lies in a sudden burst of power from the waist and absolute control over the ball of the foot."
Before she had even finished speaking, she shot forward like an arrow from a bowstring.
Just as she was about to crash into the wall, her toes made a sharp point on the ground, and her waist twisted at an impossible angle.
Whoosh!
In a motion that defied common sense, she instantly turned back to stand before Su Yu, kicking up a sharp, snappy breeze that ruffled the hair on his forehead.
"Got it?"
Lin Xiaoxiao was slightly out of breath, her dazzling eyes locked on Su Yu.
Su Yu stood in place, silent.
Got it?
He got it a little too well.
In the eyes of Su Yu, who had the realm of a martial master and a perfect-classed insight into martial techniques, Lin Xiaoxiao's proud footwork looked like slow motion replay.
Full of holes.
Her center of gravity was too high at the start—easy to be tripped by a leg sweep.
During the turn, she used too much power from her waist, causing a momentary stiffness when she landed.
But Su Yu couldn't say that.
"I'll give it a try."
Su Yu nodded. Copying Lin Xiaoxiao's example, he walked to the edge of the empty space.
He intentionally suppressed his muscle instincts.
In a very stiff, clumsy manner, he charged forward, then awkwardly twisted his waist and came back.
Slap!
His footing faltered, and he almost lost his balance.
Lin Xiaoxiao couldn't stand to watch.
She clutched her forehead with her hand.
"Lin Xiaoxiao, are you even taking this seriously?" she yelled at him in exasperation.
The moment she yelled it, the room fell dead silent.
Lin Xiaoxiao froze.
Her fair cheeks quickly flushed bright red, the blush reaching all the way to the tips of her ears.
"Crap! You made me so mad I messed up my own name!"
Annoyed, she stomped her foot.
"Su Yu! Are you even paying attention?"
"Results come out tomorrow, and the practical is tomorrow afternoon."
"If you can't beat Zhao Ze by then, how will you ever get into the Kyoto Martial Arts University?"
Watching her frantic, embarrassed expression, a faint, barely-there smile glimmered in Su Yu's eyes.
"My bad," he said.
"Let me try one more time."
"Try what? Your center of gravity is completely wrong!"
Lin Xiaoxiao strode over.
Without any hesitation, she pressed herself right next to Su Yu's side.
Teaching him hands-on.
"Keep your back straight!"
With one hand, Lin Xiaoxiao pressed directly against Su Yu's lower back.
A warm touch.
"Relax your arms!"
With her other hand, she firmly gripped Su Yu's wrist.
They were too close.
Close enough for Su Yu to distinctly smell the faint, subtle fragrance from her, and even feel the slight heaving of her chest as she spoke.
Lin Xiaoxiao's heart skipped a beat.
She was usually easygoing and unconventional, but at the end of the day, she was a just-turned-eighteen girl.
At such a close physical distance with a boy, the rush of his masculine pheromones broke through every layer of her bravado.
Su Yu's body heat was high.
His muscles were as solid as a piece of iron.
Lin Xiaoxiao's palm, holding his wrist, started to sweat.
Her own breath came quicker.
"It's... it's like this," Lin Xiaoxiao said, her voice a bit faint, afraid to meet Su Yu's eyes.
"Feel the path of force as I guide your movement."
Su Yu lowered his eyes.
He could sense how nervous Lin Xiaoxiao was.
But his mind was as calm as still water.
The lock on his own qi and blood technique firmly held back his warrior-level instinct to counterattack, allowing Lin Xiaoxiao's faint force to guide his body.
A quarter of an hour later.
"Alright, that's enough for today," Lin Xiaoxiao said.
She immediately pulled her hands away, as if shocked by an electric current, backing up two steps.
She grabbed her jacket from the back of the chair, threw it on haphazardly, using the motion to cover up her wildly beating heart.
“Stay sharp in real combat. Don’t try to take hits head-on.”
“Come on, I’ll take you back.”
They walked out of the private kitchen restaurant.
A night breeze blew, and Lin Xiaoxiao’s blush only then began to fade slightly.
The two walked up to the black armored off-road vehicle.
Lin Xiaoxiao pulled open the car door but didn’t get in right away.
Like a magician, she pulled an extremely delicate white jade bottle out of the storage compartment.
She turned around.
And tossed it directly to Su Yu.
Su Yu instinctively reached out and caught it.
The bottle felt warm and smooth in his hand.
The mouth was sealed with wax, yet an extremely rich fluctuation of blood energy still seeped through.
“What’s this?” Su Yu frowned slightly.
“A third-grade Blood-Condensing Pill.”
Lin Xiaoxiao rested one hand on the car door, her tone deliberately light.
“It strengthens the foundation and nurtures the core.”
“Your blood energy surged too fast—your meridians must be damaged. Take one before bed tonight. It’ll help stabilize your cultivation level.”
A third-grade pill.
Su Yu had seen references in the library.
On the market, it cost at least a million, and it was a military-controlled item—no one could buy it even with money.
“This is far too valuable.”
Su Yu held the jade bottle out to return it.