High Martial: I Grind Professions

Giant, bright red countdown numbers pulsed on the arena’s light screen.

"15... 14... 13..."

The light reflected on the tense faces of every participant.

Li Wen stood still, saber in hand. His aura was deep and restrained, making him seem almost too calm, strangely out of place amidst the oppressive, murderous atmosphere.

He shifted his gaze slightly, sizing up the opponents near him.

Not far to his left was a tall, handsome male student.

This person had also chosen a combat saber. Its blade was gleaming, and he held it in a reverse grip, his power poised but not yet released. He was clearly a skilled saber user.

He felt Li Wen’s gaze and turned his head to look back, his sharp eyes filled with scrutiny and evaluation.

When he sensed Li Wen’s unremarkable aura—a result of it being so well-controlled as to be completely concealed—a subtle flicker of disdain crossed his eyes.

To Li Wen’s right was a cold-looking young woman holding a longsword, its tip angled toward the ground in a guarded stance.

Meanwhile, in the spectator area outside Li Wen’s line of sight—a private viewing space in the virtual arena open for each participant—the number of viewers was constantly growing. Most were students from Bluestone Third Middle School and people from his home county who were following him.

At that moment, the viewer count next to the "eye" icon above the handsome student’s head—an icon only visible to spectators—had already surpassed fifteen hundred.

This student’s name was Zhao Xiao, one of the top three students from the neighboring Xijiang City’s municipal mock exam.

His saber mastery had reached the Peak of Unity Realm, just one step away from touching the threshold of the Power Realm. He was one of the seeded contestants Xijiang City had high hopes for to climb the rankings in this second provincial mock exam.

Right now, Zhao Xiao’s spectator space was buzzing with excitement.

Students from Xijiang City, including many of his admirers, were passionately posting comments and well wishes:

"Brother Xiao is a beast! Look at that presence, this is in the bag!"

"Brother Xiao has to be the strongest one in this arena, right? With his Peak of Unity Realm saber techniques, crushing noobs will be a piece of cake!"

"According to the random matchmaking rules, there’s only one Power Realm genius per batch. I just checked, and the one for this batch is in Arena 14. First place should be a lock for him."

"That kid on the right looks totally average. He’s the perfect sacrifice to christen Brother Xiao’s blade and get a strong start!"

"Exactly! Brother Xiao should make quick work of him and establish his dominance!"

"Brother Xiao will definitely be the first to advance! He’s the pride of Xijiang!"

The babble of voices was filled with absolute confidence in Zhao Xiao’s strength.

They were certain that Zhao Xiao was the undisputed king of this arena, capable of sweeping away all competition.

Standing in the center of the arena, Zhao Xiao couldn’t hear the discussions in his spectator space, but the arrogance born from his strength and past achievements was already bone-deep.

After quickly assessing the other contestants on the field, especially Li Wen to his right, whom he saw as having an ordinary aura, he instantly formed a plan in his mind:

’You’re the one! I’ll use you to christen my blade and claim my first victory! Let the entire province see what I, Zhao Xiao, am made of!’

His eyes locked onto Li Wen, his killing intent fully revealed.

A sharp aura, characteristic of the Peak of Unity Realm, began to gather around him. His saber let out a low hum, poised to strike.

Meanwhile, in Li Wen’s spectator space, the many students from Bluestone County also keenly picked up on Zhao Xiao’s intentions from his posture and gaze.

"Pfft... What’s that guy trying to do? Staring at Brother Wen?"

"Look at him... Don’t tell me he’s planning to attack Brother Wen first?"

"Tsk... he’s finished."

"Brave! Truly brave! I’m impressed! He probably has no idea what kind of target he just picked..."

The students from Third Middle School "gazed in admiration" at the so-called pride of Xijiang with a look that mixed pity, amusement, and eager anticipation.

Amidst these starkly contrasting spectator atmospheres...

"3... 2... 1!"

VMMMM—

The invisible barrier covering the entire arena vanished in an instant!

The arena battle royale officially began!

In almost the exact same instant the barrier disappeared!

VMM!

The Peak of Unity Realm Blade Intent that Zhao Xiao had been building up erupted from him.

He let out a low shout, his body shooting forward like an arrow released from a bow. Trailing a brilliant streak of saber light, he charged straight for Li Wen. His movements were incredibly swift, his killing intent palpable.

In his mind, this strike would, if not kill his average-looking opponent outright, at least leave him in a wretched state and at an absolute disadvantage.

However—

Facing this swift, deadly charge, Li Wen merely paused. A flicker of surprise, as if he’d just seen something rare, crossed his eyes, and a strange thought surfaced in his mind:

’Is this guy... always this brave?’

’I’m a genuine Power Realm master and I haven’t even made a move yet, so why is someone so eager to rush up and serve themselves to me on a platter?’

As the surprised thought flashed through his mind, Li Wen’s movements didn’t falter in the slightest.

There was no need to activate [Absolute Focus], let alone mobilize his Primordial Spirit’s power. With just a flicker of his will, the Blade Force that was already ingrained in his very bones naturally erupted.

He flicked his wrist, his saber hand swinging in a seemingly casual upward slash toward the charging Zhao Xiao.

WHOOSH—!

A ten-foot-long, grayish-white saber light materialized from thin air. It was as condensed as if it were solid, its contained Blade Force both majestic and restrained, yet carrying an unparalleled edge.

The saber light tore through the air with a deep shriek, its speed surpassing Zhao Xiao’s charge.

Time itself seemed to stretch at this moment.

Zhao Xiao’s charging figure froze mid-stride. The confident, ferocious expression on his face instantly solidified, replaced by utter shock and bewilderment.

His pupils contracted violently in fear, reflecting the grayish-white saber light that reeked of death as it instantly closed in and filled his entire vision.

"Wha—?!"

The thought couldn’t even fully form.

SHLIIICK—!

The grayish-white saber light, like an unobstructed line of death, sliced precisely down Zhao Xiao’s centerline, cleaving him in two from helmet to torso to combat boots without the slightest resistance.

Zhao Xiao’s body dissolved into two fragmented shafts of light and vanished from the arena—killed in a single strike and forcibly eliminated.

He hadn’t even had a chance to resist. Half of his points were instantly harvested by Li Wen.

Silence!

Absolute, dead silence!

Zhao Xiao’s private spectator space, which had been boiling with clamor just a second ago, was now as if someone had hit the pause button on time itself.

All the cheers, shouts, discussions, and expressions... were frozen on their faces.

Everyone, whether they were students from Xijiang City or members of Zhao Xiao’s fan club, had their smiles frozen on their faces. The fervor in their eyes turned to a dull stupor. Their mouths hung open, but no sound came out.

On the screen, the image of that terrifying saber light and Zhao Xiao disappearing like dust scattered by the wind assaulted their senses again and again.

’What happened? What just happened?’

’Where’s... Where’s Brother Xiao?’

’He was... he was insta-killed? In one hit? Just one hit?!’

’But he’s one of the top three from Xijiang City, a genius at the Peak of Unity Realm!’

A massive cognitive dissonance and sense of absurdity swept through the entire spectator space like a tsunami. Everyone was stunned, their minds completely blank, with only the image of that devastatingly easy strike playing on an infinite loop.

It wasn’t just Zhao Xiao’s spectators.

The four hundred-plus students remaining in the arena had also noticed the commotion when Zhao Xiao began his charge.

Some of them wanted to sit on the mountain and watch the tigers fight, while others were looking for an opportunity to pick up the scraps.

But before more than a few thoughts could cross their minds, they saw a grayish-white saber light, imbued with a terrifying power, suddenly flare up, and then... the guy who charged in was just gone?!

HSSSSS—!

An icy chill shot up from the soles of every participant’s feet straight to the crowns of their heads. Their instincts screamed of danger, making the hair on their bodies stand on end.

"Blade... Blade Force!"

"Power Realm! It’s a Power Realm Powerhouse!"

"Run! Get away from him!"

Cries of terror rose one after another.

The brief calm in that corner of the arena was completely shattered. In a radius of several dozen meters around Li Wen’s position, the students scattered as if they had seen a great flood or a fierce beast, desperately retreating away from him in a panic.

As for Li Wen, the cause of this commotion, he didn’t even bother to lift his eyelids after casually delivering the strike that made Zhao Xiao vanish into thin air.

His face was expressionless as his feet moved lightly, his entire body suddenly accelerating.

The standard-issue combat saber in his hand seemed to come alive, transforming into the tentacles of a grim reaper as he moved.

The grayish-white saber light was no longer the ten-foot-long beam meant for a single killing blow. Instead, it broke into smaller pieces, like a shower of ink-black rain, as foot-long, even more condensed and swift beams of light shot out in all directions.

SHLICK! SHLICK! SHLICK! SHLICK! SWOOSH! SWOOSH! SWOOSH! SWOOSH!

Wherever the saber light passed, the air shrieked as it was torn apart.

Any students still near Li Wen who hadn’t escaped far enough or were trying to form a defensive line were instantly eliminated. If a beam of saber light so much as grazed them, their armor shattered instantly and their protective energy proved as fragile as paper. Their figures followed the path of the light, dissolving into white motes and disappearing from the arena.

Li Wen moved like an efficient war machine, strolling leisurely across the arena. Every flicker of his body, every slash of his saber, meant the instantaneous clearing of the surrounding area.

The efficiency was simply appalling!

Li Wen’s frenzied reaping, like a tiger let loose among sheep, and his signature grayish-white Blade Force—majestic and restrained, yet utterly invincible—finally began to attract more and more attention from outside the arena.

The main observation platform, the public viewing areas, the exclusive zones for major high schools... more and more people began to notice the unusual activity in Arena 3.

"Quick, look at Arena 3! That guy with the gray saber light!"

"What powerful Blade Force! His kill efficiency is way too high!"

"Who is this person? I don’t think I’ve ever heard of him."

"Teleporting to Arena 3!"

"Let’s go, let’s go! Let’s watch that monster clear the field!"

The number of viewers in Li Wen’s private spectator space once again experienced explosive growth.

The count skyrocketed from five thousand, to eight thousand, to ten thousand...

Several figures teleported into Li Wen’s spectator space at almost the same time.

They were none other than several of the top-ten prodigies from the first provincial mock exam who had already advanced.

Lin Xuan, Chu Feng, and others were among them.

The geniuses gathered tacitly in a corner, their gazes piercing through space to watch the figure who was still relentlessly harvesting points in the arena.

"This person... his Blade Force isn’t weak." The tall, thin, and stern-looking Lin Xuan was the first to speak. As a top-tier genius who also used a saber, his assessment was sharp and to the point, his gaze as piercing as a blade.

"Him? Ha! I know him!" A young man with a few silver streaks in his hair suddenly let out a soft laugh, his tone laced with amusement.

"Li Wen, from Bluestone County! Ranked forty-eighth in the province during last month’s first provincial mock exam! Remember him?"