High Martial: I Grind Professions

He sucked in a sharp breath, his chest heaving violently. The frustration in his eyes was quickly replaced by a blazing fighting spirit; his indignation caught fire, forging itself into an even firmer resolve.

’Just you wait. The advantage of being an Awakened is only temporary.’

He roared inwardly, trying to convince himself with this thought and rebuild his faith.

’They make rapid progress in the early stages thanks to insights from their innate talent, but once their potential is exhausted, their rate of improvement will only get slower. Ultimately, how far one can go depends on their foundation and continuous effort. I, Jiang Lingyun, will catch up!’

The car door clicked shut, cutting off all sound from the outside.

Li Wen leaned back against the soft, comfortable leather of the backseat, his expression completely placid.

Jiang Lingyun’s emotional turmoil and his bitter whisper meant nothing to him.

He didn’t have the slightest interest in prying or mocking him.

Right now, his mind was completely occupied by the pale blue, translucent panel that had materialized before his eyes:

[You achieved an excellent score in your Language Arts weekly exam. Scholar Experience +60]

[You achieved an excellent score in your History weekly exam. Scholar Experience +60]

[You achieved an excellent score in your Geography weekly exam. Scholar Experience +60]

[You achieved first place in the class on this weekly exam. Scholar Experience +140]

[Profession: Scholar Lv. 8 (1912→2232/12800)]

’Over ten thousand five hundred experience points to go...’ Li Wen stared at the long progress bar on the panel. Leveling up from Lv. 8 to Lv. 9 required 12,800 experience points, and he still had a gap of over ten thousand.

His fingertips tapped lightly on his knee, his eyes glinting with anticipation.

’The academic assessment of the second provincial mock exam, and the experience reward for the provincial ranking... I hope they don’t disappoint.’

...

Time flowed by quietly, like sand slipping through fingers.

「The calendar turned to April nineteenth, a Friday.」

The first glimmer of dawn pierced through the gap in the curtains, and Li Wen was already awake.

He didn’t linger in bed in the slightest. The very instant he became fully conscious, he silently called out in his mind, ’Panel!’

A pale blue screen of light unfolded before his eyes:

[Name: Li Wen]

[Age: 18 years old]

[Realm: Unranked (Grade 8.4→8.7)]

[Profession: Scholar Lv. 8 (2232→4164/12800)]

[Skills: Blade Arts: Potential Realm (40%), Five Luminaries Celestial Rainbow Skill - Flowing Rainbow Five Forms (Shadow-Stealing Form 100%, Overlapping Waves Form 18%→100%)]

[Cultivation Technique: Splitting Blade Golden Killing Skill (Perfection)]

His sharp gaze swept over every piece of information.

In the past twelve days,

His physical grade continued to improve at a speed that would leave most Martial Artists dumbfounded, climbing from 8.4 to 8.7. He was getting closer and closer to Grade 10, the watershed between mortals and true Martial Artists.

The most significant progress was undoubtedly in his skill realm.

The Overlapping Waves Form, which he had only mastered by 18%, had now been completely comprehended and refined to 100% perfection.

His overall comprehension of the Blade Arts’ Potential Realm had also been pushed forward to an astonishing 40%, as if he’d been riding a rocket.

Such a terrifying speed could only be described as monstrous.

’Finally done.’ A great weight lifted from Li Wen’s heart. Perfecting the Overlapping Waves Form had given him a deeper understanding of its characteristics—stacking power for explosive bursts and relentless attacks. The advancement of his Potential Realm was a natural consequence.

And today, he would face a new challenge: the Defensive Form.

Tomorrow was the critical battlefield that would determine if he could obtain one of the three paths to an S-rank contract—the day of the second provincial mock exam’s academic assessment.

The time he had left to comprehend the Defensive Form was, at most, today plus a little time after tomorrow night’s assessment. A day and a half—an extremely short period.

His morning academic classes went by like a formality, as usual.

Thanks to a powerful passive that made his learning permanent and months of frantic accumulation, all the high school curriculum was already branded deep in his mind. The classroom content could no longer offer him anything new.

The moment the bell rang, Li Wen left without a second’s delay. He took the conspicuous silver-gray limousine and once again arrived at the Bluestone Branch of the Fire Hall.

Ever since his blade arts broke through to the Potential Realm, Li Wen’s afternoon classes had been fixed at the Fire Hall’s exclusive Martial Arts Area.

The ordinary equipment and grounds at the school couldn’t even withstand the wind pressure from his slashes, let alone allow him to practice destructive martial techniques in actual combat.

After the first provincial mock exam, his elite class had begun its "sea of questions" strategy for academics. Thanks to the frequent weekly tests and mock exams, he could reliably earn nearly a thousand precious Scholar Experience points each week. If it weren’t for that, he probably wouldn’t even have bothered showing up for his morning classes.

In his private Martial Arts Room on the 14th floor of the Fire Hall, he first finished the high-energy nutritional meal he had ordered in advance.

Without a moment’s hesitation, Li Wen immediately entered the virtual world and called out to his smart assistant:

"Enter the Cultivation Technique Inheritance World. Comprehend the Five Luminaries Celestial Rainbow Skill: Flowing Rainbow Shocking Magpie Chapter."

[Commencing transfer... 5...4...3...2...1!]

A powerful pulling sensation instantly enveloped his consciousness.

When Li Wen opened his eyes again, he was already in that strange training space from last time.

The surroundings were no longer walls or a starry sky, but slowly flowing, heavy, viscous gray energy, like molten lead and mercury.

A virtual figure of light, with a solemn temperament like a mountain, stood in the center.

Unlike the swiftness of the Shadow-Stealing Form or the relentless dominance of the Overlapping Waves Form, this time, the moment the virtual instructor raised his palm, Li Wen felt an indescribable sense of stability.

The palm’s movement was not fast, even seeming a bit slow and sluggish, yet it traced a perfectly smooth and flawless arc in front of him.

In that instant, a potential—solemn, heavy, and capable of bearing all things like the earth itself—surged forth.

The flow of gray energy was like it had hit an invisible dam, coming to an abrupt halt half a meter in front of the instructor. It automatically split and flowed around him, outlining a visible, pale-gold energy barrier in the shape of a perfect arc.

The space inside the barrier was exceptionally calm, like the eye of a storm.

The barrier itself radiated an aura of indestructibility, as if it could withstand the impact of any blade in the world.

"Defensive Form. To defend the gate. Be a harmonious shield, immovable as a mountain."

The virtual instructor’s deep, powerful voice echoed in the space, "Silently observe the enemy’s momentum, and wait for an opportunity to strike. Your heart must be like still water, your potential like a great boulder. Watch closely!"

As he spoke, a long blade materialized in the instructor’s hand. But he didn’t use it to chop or slash; instead, he blocked, deflected, redirected, and sealed.

In his hands, the long blade became a constantly shifting and flowing shield.

The gray torrents that had been crashing against the barrier were now drawn in and dissipated by the long blade, like massive waves striking an ancient reef. They kicked up ripples, but the reef itself remained unmoved.

At certain moments, the instructor would even use the enemy’s force against them, suddenly erupting with a shocking counterattack from a state of absolute stillness.

Li Wen held his breath and focused his mind, activating [Absolute Focus].

The 80% comprehension boost from being a Lv. 8 Scholar was instantly activated, and his mind became highly concentrated.

He greedily absorbed every detail the instructor demonstrated—the mechanical principles within every movement and the unique essence of the defensive posture.

His [Primordial Spirit Power] also spread out silently, like the most precise scanner, capturing the activation of every muscle fiber and the rhythm of every minute energy node within those seemingly slow, yet infinitesimally precise, movements.

His Primordial Spirit Power perfectly mapped, analyzed, and branded every detail into the depths of his sea of consciousness, especially how that flawless, harmonious intent was manifested in the concrete movements.

However, the core essence of the Defensive Form lay in "immovability," in "defense," and in "gaining mastery by striking second."

This ran completely counter to Li Wen’s almost instinctual offensive style—the wind-fast Shadow-Stealing Form and the domineering, relentless Overlapping Waves Form.

This wasn’t just a difference in technique, but a huge conflict in combat philosophy and instinct.

When Li Wen tried to imitate the instructor’s movements and practice according to the flow of power he perceived, his body’s instincts couldn’t help but want to charge forward, to substitute offense for defense, to seize any momentary gap and tear it open.

This filled his blade movements with irreconcilable contradictions and a sense of stagnation. His movements frequently became distorted, making it impossible to maintain that smooth arc, let alone construct an energy barrier with any real Defense Power. 𝕗𝗿𝕖𝐞𝐰𝗲𝕓𝐧𝕠𝕧𝗲𝐥.𝚌𝐨𝚖

"Guard your heart... guard your intent... guard your stance..." The virtual instructor’s voice was like a temple bell at dusk, striking Li Wen’s heart with a peculiar rhythm.

"A heart like a calm lake, reflecting all things without a ripple. An intent as firm as a mountain, unmoving even under a thousand blades. Your Blade Intent reveals too much of its edge; its killing aura is too strong. You must restrain it, turn it inward, and make it fluid and adaptable."

The instructor’s words were like a sudden enlightenment.

Li Wen suddenly realized the crux of the problem. The source of the blade potential he had comprehended was one of showing its edge, of being irresistibly sharp.

This kind of potential naturally carried a strong sense of aggression and a desire to cut.

But the potential required by the Defensive Form was one of heaviness, of bearing weight, of being as tolerant and immovable as the earth.

The foundation of his Potential Realm was in fundamental conflict with the attributes of the shield he was now trying to create.

’This isn’t a problem of technique, but a problem of transforming the form of my potential?’ Li Wen instantly understood the deeper bottleneck.

The Potential Realm was not a single, static state; it could possess different characteristics.

Time passed, second by second. The feeling of mental exhaustion surged up again like a tide.

Fine beads of sweat broke out on Li Wen’s forehead, and his breathing became slightly heavy.

On the panel, his [Defensive Form Mastery] had crawled with agonizing slowness from [0%] to [1%], like a snail.

This insignificant 1% had cost him enormous mental effort and nearly exhausted his spirit, proving two or three times more difficult than when he first practiced the Shadow-Stealing Form or the Overlapping Waves Form.

’Still not enough...’ Yet Li Wen’s eyes grew calmer, revealing an unparalleled determination.

He was keenly aware of the strategic importance of the Defensive Form in improving his overall combat power and shoring up his defensive weaknesses, especially at a crucial juncture like the upcoming second provincial mock exam’s skill assessment, where the rules were random and comprehensive ability was required.

When the real-world time reached around four in the afternoon, a notification sounded in his sea of consciousness:

[Defensive Form Mastery: 1%→2%]

[Mental Exhaustion: Severe (Deep meditation recommended for recovery)]

The figure of light slowly dissipated. His consciousness returned to reality.

Li Wen opened his eyes, and an indescribable feeling of emptiness and exhaustion washed over him instantly, even causing his vision to black out for a moment.

This was the intense backlash from suddenly relaxing after a period of excessive mental concentration.

His body swayed slightly, and he had to brace himself with a hand on the ground to stay steady.

The sweat on his forehead had already gathered into streams, dripping down his cheeks.

HAAA... Li Wen let out a long, deep breath, his chest heaving several times.

Only then did the feeling of exhaustion subside slightly.

But what was his reward? A mere 1% increase in mastery!

Compared to his previous pace of mastering martial techniques, this was a snail’s pace.

However, Li Wen’s eyes showed no trace of dejection.

On the contrary, after this deep comprehension session, especially after the virtual instructor’s critical words, his understanding of the Defensive Form was no longer a hazy fog. Instead, he now had a direction that was both crystal clear and profoundly difficult.

The path forward was laid out before him with absolute clarity.

All that remained was to figure out how to use his unique methods—combining the comprehension boost from his [Scholar] class and the insightful analysis of his [Primordial Spirit Power]—to conquer this steep mountain.

This would take time, sweat, and a subversive reshaping of his past offensive instincts.

’As still as water, a perfect defense... So that’s how it is. Are offensive and defensive potentials essentially just different expressions of ’potential’?’ Li Wen muttered to himself, his gaze deep and thoughtful.

Although he had only pushed open a tiny crack in this incredibly difficult door today, the path behind it was displayed before his eyes with exceptional clarity.

Sitting down cross-legged, he didn’t get up to leave immediately. Instead, he picked up the bottle of Starlight Concentration Liquid he had set aside and downed it in one gulp.

As the cool liquid slid into his stomach, he lay down again.

For tomorrow’s academic assessment in the second provincial mock exam, he would need his body to perform at its peak mental capacity to compete for that crucial, massive amount of Scholar Experience.