"So that was the work of a Martial Artist?"

Su Yu was taken aback and looked at Shen Ruyun, confused.

"It should be."

"He’s probably a Martial Artist from around here who’s been staying hidden."

Shen Ruyun rested her cheek on her hand. Her sleeve slipped down slightly, revealing a pale forearm as she seemed lost in thought.

"Then do you think... could it have been my brother?"

Su Yu asked suddenly after a long silence.

He had always wanted his brother to gain Extraordinary power, because only by becoming stronger could one survive in such a dangerous world. Before, all he knew about were Sequencers. After Li Yu told him that Su Xing was definitely not a Sequencer, he had given up on the idea, but now that hope was rekindled.

’My brother’s been practicing with the sword for over a month now.’

’Who knows, right?’

"That’s probably not possible."

Shen Ruyun shook her head. Reaching up, she untied her hair, and a waterfall of black locks cascaded down. She spoke slowly:

"I saw your brother when I arrived."

"He’s certainly in good shape, but you told me he’s only been practicing with the sword for a little over a month. Even ancient Martial Artists required a great deal of time to cultivate their skills. The probability of your brother having that kind of strength is far too low."

"Compared to him, I’m more suspicious of your Sword Hall’s Hall Master."

"If this Martial Artist is indeed from this Sword Hall, then the Hall Master definitely has a better chance of being one than your brother."

"Okay."

Su Yu nodded.

He knew the odds of it being his brother were slim.

’For Su Xing to be able to instantly kill a Tier One Sequence after just over a month of training, when others can’t even become Martial Artists... it’s just too fantastic to be true.’

’It really is unlikely.’

Seeing the disappointment on Su Yu’s face, Shen Ruyun patted his shoulder, stood up, and comforted him.

"The Spiritual Qi has only just begun its resurgence. It will definitely grow denser in the future. Who’s to say your brother won’t embark on an Extraordinary Path as well?"

"Alright, I’ve told you about all these cultivation systems just to give you a basic concept of the world."

"You don’t really need to overthink it."

"Because you’ll rarely encounter the other cultivation systems."

"You’ll mostly be dealing with other Sequencers in your daily life, so you still need to focus on improving your own strength. Memorize all the known strengths and weaknesses of the different Sequences. That will give you a greater advantage in battle."

"Next, I’m going to talk about the different realms."

Su Yu nodded, his expression turning serious. The previous information had been like filling in his worldview, but what came next was what truly mattered.

"Although the four cultivation systems are different, their realm structures are more or less the same. There are commonalities at almost every level."

"For example, the Tier One you’re at now, we call that the General Realm, ’General’ as in ’common.’ The only difference between you and ordinary people is that you’re physically stronger and have a Sequence."

"Next is the Tier Two Sequence, which we call the Mirror Realm. This is because once you reach Tier Two, your Sequence will be ’mirrored’ in your Dantian. From then on, you will possess a unique Sequence energy. This is the same for all systems. A Martial Artist will mirror their weapon, a Confucian Scholar will mirror their most proficient book..."

Su Xing, who was outside the door, heard all of this.

He finally understood the hilt of a sword he could see in his abdomen and murmured:

"So... this is the proof that I’ve stepped into Tier Two?"

He knew.

’This must be the result of putting points into "Sword’s Breath".’

Su Xing realized that the skills on his system like "Slash" and "Breathing Rhythm" were actually Tier One skills.

’And "White Line Slash" and "Sword’s Breath" are Tier Two.’

So...

’"White Line Slash" is like a martial technique,’

’and "Sword’s Breath" is like a Cultivation Technique?’

As Su Xing’s thoughts ran wild, Shen Ruyun continued speaking inside the room:

"You might not understand from my words alone. If I release my aura, you’ll definitely understand the difference between Tier One and Tier Two."

With that,

a faint light emanated from Shen Ruyun’s abdomen.

A pale green orb of light hovered there. In its center floated an ancient character that seemed to be "Wind." It radiated wave after wave of a Tier Two Sequencer’s aura.

This aura formed layers of swirling air currents. Su Yu felt his entire body freeze. The Sequence energy within him was like a mouse that had seen a cat, scattering in all directions. No matter how hard he tried to control it, it was useless.

It wasn’t until Shen Ruyun retracted her aura.

Only then did Su Yu realize he was covered in a cold sweat. He gained a clear understanding of his own weakness, and the thought ’Am I really a genius?’ suddenly popped into his head.

"This is Tier Two Sequence energy."

"It’s almost a completely different substance from the energy of a Tier One Sequencer. As long as you train hard and reach my level, you will have officially stepped into Tier Two."

Shen Ruyun said faintly.

Su Yu shook his head hard, casting the disheartening thoughts from his mind, and said in a resolute voice:

"I understand."

"Haha, you don’t need to feel so much pressure."

Seeing Su Yu drenched in sweat, Shen Ruyun gave a small smile and said:

"In Southern Cang City, reaching Tier Two already makes you a minor expert. Even the strongest, Liu Ming, is only a Tier Three Peak Sequencer."

"You only started training a month ago. There’s no need to rush."

Su Xing stood at the door.

The waves of aura coming from inside the room made his body tense up.

While he wasn’t in as sorry a state as Su Yu, Su Xing still felt that she was somewhat stronger than him. However, he didn’t feel any particular emotional turmoil over the fact that she was stronger.

He simply accepted this reality calmly.

’It’s only natural that there are stronger and weaker people within the same Tier Two.’ 𝓯𝓻𝓮𝙚𝙬𝓮𝙗𝒏𝙤𝒗𝙚𝙡.𝒄𝒐𝓶

He had grown stronger, but it wasn’t enough. Both his "White Line Slash" and "Sword’s Breath" were only Lv. 1. He had so much room for improvement. There were countless people who stood above him on the path of the Sword Dao. But Su Xing had always believed...

’My Sword Dao will one day surpass everyone.’

Whether it was Shen Ruyun, Liu Ming, Li Yu, or even that Spirit from the Spiritual Sect, he would surpass them all, one by one. This was a silent, powerful conviction.

Su Xing listened for a while longer, but feeling there was no more new information, he waited a moment before knocking on the door. He told Shen Ruyun her room was ready and then returned to his own.

[Sword Saint Profession System]

[Name: Su Xing]

[Age: 22]

[Profession: Swordsman, Sword Hall Coach]

[Professional Skills: White Line Slash Lv. 1 (28/2000), Thrust Lv. 5 (143/1000), Stance Lv. 3 (12/250), Sword’s Breath Lv. 1 (134/2000)]

[Sword Dao Points: 3]

Sitting on his bed, Su Xing stared at the air in front of him, a faint blue light deep within his eyes.

Now that he understood the function of "Sword’s Breath," its priority for adding points leaped to the very top in his mind. Not only could it strengthen his body, but it could also amplify the power of "White Line Slash." There was no better choice.

Without hesitation, Su Xing roared in his mind:

’System, add the points!’