Free Web NovelChapter 8: Chapter 8: Substitute Teaching
[Sword Saint Professional System]
[Name: Su Xing]
[Age: 22]
[Occupation: Swordsman, Sword Hall Coach]
[Professional Skills: White Line Slash lv1 (12/2000), Thrust lv5 (143/1000), Stance lv3 (12/250), Breathing Rhythm lv5 (468/1000)]
[Sword Dao Points: 1]
In his room,
Su Xing sat cross-legged on his bed with his back against the headboard. He wiped down an iron sword, the hiss of metal on cloth accompanying his movements as he gazed at the glowing blue system panel before him.
After his afternoon Sword Dao class,
Su Xing had earned another Sword Dao Point.
Now, he had to consider where to allocate it.
Su Xing’s first thought was to put the Sword Dao Point into "White Line Slash," because specializing in one skill was the easiest way to raise his upper limit.
However, Su Xing suddenly realized that since "White Line Slash" had already been upgraded once, a single Sword Dao Point was no longer enough to level it up. He would need three.
Three Sword Dao Points...
That would take three days at a minimum.
Three days wasn’t long, but it wasn’t short either. If Su Xing had no other skills to choose from, waiting three days wouldn’t be a big deal. But he had two lv5 skills that only needed two Sword Dao Points to advance. In comparison, "White Line Slash" was no longer such a high priority.
After all,
Su Xing knew firsthand how much of a leap it was from "Slash" to "White Line Slash."
Upgrading his other lv5 skills would surely grant him a similarly huge boost.
Su Xing set down the cloth used for wiping the blade, stood up, and performed a flourish. He then slowly slid the sword into its Sword Scabbard, the blade humming with a soft VMM.
He had made his decision.
He would advance one of his lv5 skills first.
So far, Su Xing had two skills at lv5: "Thrust" and "Breathing Rhythm." "Thrust," like "Slash," was an offensive technique. Even if it were upgraded, it would most likely just become another offensive move similar to "White Line Slash."
The power of "White Line Slash" was certainly impressive,
and an upgraded "Thrust" would undoubtedly be strong as well. But Su Xing understood the principle of not biting off more than he could chew. For now, he didn’t need another offensive ability to support his current one.
For Su Xing,
the best choice right now was to wait until tomorrow, get his second Sword Dao Point, and upgrade "Breathing Rhythm." "Breathing Rhythm" wasn’t an offensive technique; it was a skill for regulating his physical state during a fight. Upgrading it might produce a different, more unique effect.
With a plan in mind,
Su Xing practiced his sword forms in his room for a while before turning in early for the night.
...
The next day, during his morning run.
"Bro, your stamina is insane."
Su Yu lifted the towel from his shoulder to wipe the sweat from his forehead, sighing in admiration.
Yesterday, he had run until he threw up while Su Xing had barely broken a sweat. But that was after Su Xing had already run over ten kilometers beforehand, so Su Yu felt his brother had a bit of an unfair advantage.
But today, Su Xing had woken up even earlier, run over ten kilometers, and then joined him for his run. Afterward, Su Yu hadn’t reached the point of throwing up, but his skin was flushed red and sweat was pouring off him uncontrollably, making him look like a well-cooked crab.
Su Yu was truly impressed by his older brother’s physical fitness.
"Heh, you’re still a growing boy. It’s only normal that my stamina is a bit better than yours."
Su Xing said with a laugh, also wiping away his sweat.
But his gaze kept drifting to his younger brother, Su Yu. His brother’s frame was lean, without a hint of defined muscle, yet his stamina was far beyond what an ordinary person could achieve.
Su Xing thought to himself, ’I wonder what level my brother is considered to be in that world.’
After the events of the past few days,
Su Xing was now certain that a hidden Extraordinary World existed. His brother’s bizarre stamina, the Spiritual Sect he’d encountered a few days ago, and that special department—they all supported his theory.
Sequencers...
That must be the mainstream system of this world,
the very same "prodigies who are one with heaven and earth" that the Director had mentioned before.
Heh,
now this is interesting.
A smile crept onto Su Xing’s lips as he lost himself in thought.
With his system, he was destined to walk the Extraordinary Path. If he were the only one on it, how lonely that would be.
As for the others—whether they were so-called Sequencers or from some Spiritual Sect, whether they possessed individual might or overwhelming firepower—to Su Xing, they were all just part of the crowd destined to witness his ascent to the pinnacle of the Sword Dao.
Time passed quietly.
In the blink of an eye, it was afternoon.
Even fewer people showed up for class today than yesterday. It seemed everyone had a keen sense that trouble was brewing. But Su Xing didn’t slack off; he continued to teach the principles of the Sword Dao with the same dedication as always.
"Alright, that’s enough for today."
"I know many students have been too afraid to come lately, and I understand. If any of you don’t plan on coming tomorrow, please remember to practice your sword work at home every day. I’ll be uploading practice videos to the group chat on schedule."
"Class dismissed!"
"Goodbye, Coach!"
[Taught one Sword Dao class.] frёeωebɳovel.com
[Sword Dao Points +1]
"Hah, finally. Two Sword Dao Points."
After all the students had left, Su Xing slowly opened his system panel. A smile touched his lips as he looked at the Sword Dao Points section.
[Sword Dao Points: 2]
He gave the heavy sword in his hand a powerful swing, then slowly raised it and slid it back into its Sword Scabbard.
He then walked over to the sword rack. The rack was made of a special wood and held numerous light swords, hung one after another like weeping willow branches. Su Xing just silently leaned his heavy sword against the base of the rack. He wouldn’t dare hang his own sword on it, or the rack would snap and he’d get another lecture from the Director.
"Hey, Su."
The Director called out to Su Xing from the second floor. He stretched lazily, looking at Su Xing with a listless expression, as if he had just been woken up.
"What is it, Director?"
Su Xing paused his steps, having intended to go straight back to his room. He looked up at the Director and asked.
"Heh, it’s nothing much. I was just wondering if you could cover for the other Sword Dao instructors starting tomorrow. With all the news going around, they’ve all called in and are too scared to come. You’re the only one who lives here. If you think it’s too much work, I can pay you extra."
"No problem."
Su Xing agreed immediately. ’Wait, there’s actually a deal this good?!’
This Sword Hall usually held three to four classes a day. If Su Xing covered all of them, it would be a bit tiring, but he would earn three to four Sword Dao Points every day. This was practically a gift from heaven.
The Director ran a hand through his graying hair, shaking his head and muttering in what he thought was an understanding tone:
"Sigh, I knew it would be too much work. It’s perfectly fine if you don’t want to—wait, why did you agree so quickly?!"
"I just want to teach. Is there a problem with that?"
Su Xing smiled with an innocent expression, as if he truly just wanted to teach.
’Yeah, right!’
The Director knew Su Xing all too well. He knew that what Su Xing loved was the sword, not work. But since Su Xing had agreed, he had no reason to refuse. He just waved his hand and said,
"Since you’ve agreed, there are three classes tomorrow. Get ready."
"Okay!"
...
Inside his room,
Su Xing sat quietly on his bed.
He was surrounded by a huge pile of high-calorie foods. Wrappers littered the bed and floor, so much so that an outsider would find it difficult to even walk through the room.
[Breathing Rhythm lv5 (468/1000) +]
[Sword Dao Points: 2]
In his mind, Su Xing roared, ’System, add the points!’
