The Almighty Martial Arts System

*Ding! Congratulations, Player. 300 skill points have been consumed. Lightness skill ‘Ladder Cloud Soar’ has been upgraded. Current level is 1 (0/460). Remaining skill points: 80.*

…

Watching his skill points rapidly diminish, Jiang Fei felt a distinct pang of regret.

Skill points were even scarcer for him than gold coins. He had worked hard to save up 380 points, planning to use them soon to upgrade either the Dugu Nine Sword or the Art of Mysteries. Now, the Ladder Cloud Soar had almost wiped them out in one go.

And this was under the premise that he had more or less given up on the Lightfoot Art ‘Triple Cloud’ and the Incomplete Taiji Fist! Among his many martial skills now, only the Art of Mysteries had been raised to the second level; all the others were still at the first level, requiring a vast number of skill points.

Thankfully, the North Sea Divine Power didn’t need skill points to level up. If it did, given its incredibly powerful nature, Jiang Fei wouldn’t have had any skill points left to learn this top-tier lightness skill, even after obtaining it.

Ultimately, Jiang Fei still didn’t have enough experience points. He needed a large amount of experience, which would then convert into skill points, allowing him to upgrade his martial skills freely.

Although he had acquired several martial skills, he hadn’t mastered any of them to perfection yet; their full potential remained untapped.

“Still need to work hard!” Jiang Fei sighed. “But right now, the most important thing is to test the power of this Ladder Cloud Soar! I’ve only cultivated it to the first level, far from its true peak. But Zhang Cuishan probably hadn’t mastered it completely either. If he could leap three zhang, the height of a three-story building, I shouldn’t be too far off, right?”

A strange smile played on Jiang Fei’s lips. He was itching to try it out, to see what it felt like to soar into the air.

It must be different from flying by holding onto an eagle, right?

However, finding a place in central Beijing where he could freely use the Ladder Cloud Soar was quite difficult. It was impossible inside his room. And in outdoor places like parks, if he jumped three zhang high, anyone seeing him would probably think he was some kind of birdman and try to shoot him down.

So, Jiang Fei chose the Central National Martial Arts Hall as his venue.

The Central Hall covered a large area, filled with various tall, ancient trees. Most importantly, everyone there was from the martial world, no ordinary civilians. Most of them already knew what a monstrously skilled expert Jiang Fei was. Even if he soared into the sky now, they might be amazed, but they probably wouldn’t be unable to accept it.

A man called the ‘Sword God’, a prodigy who defeated Miyamoto Kazuma at such a young age—what was so strange about something unusual happening with him?

“Jiang Fei, what brings you here today? What a rare guest!” Chen Zhoujian, dressed in Daoist robes with his hair in a topknot, saw Jiang Fei arrive, his eyes lighting up in surprise.

Since coming to Beijing this time, it started with the hunting trip, which led to the assassination attempt. No sooner had that settled down than the Chinese Medicine Association’s medical incident occurred. So, Jiang Fei had been constantly busy, with no free time to visit the Central Hall to practice his sword or visit his friends here.

“I’ve been in Beijing lately. Today, I felt the itch to move around a bit, so I came,” Jiang Fei said with a half-truthful smile.

“Move around? That’s great! We can feast our eyes again today!” Chen Zhoujian nodded. But then, as if remembering something, he shook his head and sighed. “But I don’t dare be your sparring partner anymore, nor am I qualified. Your divine sword skills are far beyond my ability to exchange blows with.”

Joking aside, think how powerful Miyamoto Kazuma was—he severely injured Liu Yunduo, killed the renowned Southern Sword master Wang Haoran, and even issued a challenge to the publicly recognized strongest expert of their Wudang Sect, his own grandmaster, Daoist Priest Qingxu.

Yet, such a master was slain by Jiang Fei. How could he, a mere Daoist who had trained on Wudang Mountain for a few years, possibly be Jiang Fei’s match?

Jiang Fei felt somewhat speechless. “Don’t worry, I’m not here for a sparring partner today. I’m not here to practice swordplay either, but to practice my lightness skill!”

“Practice lightness skill?” Chen Zhoujian was slightly surprised.

“Yes, practice lightness skill,” Jiang Fei said with a smile. Moreover, a mischievous thought crossed his mind. According to Jin Yong’s novels, this Ladder Cloud Soar was a unique skill of Wudang Mountain, a top-tier method for lightening the body. He wondered if such a lightness skill actually existed in the real-world Wudang Mountain?

After a moment’s thought, Jiang Fei quickly dismissed the idea.

Although many elements in Jin Yong’s novels corresponded with reality, most were fictional, and the descriptions of various sects’ martial arts weren’t accurate. Probably, Wudang Mountain didn’t possess a unique skill like the Ladder Cloud Soar.

However, to Jiang Fei’s surprise, after hearing this, Chen Zhoujian also smiled and said, “I’ve seen your movement techniques before; they are quite profound, a rare dodging method. But dodging techniques, body movement, and lightness skill are quite different. Is your lightness skill also exceptional?”

Jiang Fei replied modestly, “It’s passable.”

“That’s right. Last time, during your great battle with Miyamoto Kazuma in Huacheng, I wasn’t there to watch, but I heard descriptions of the scene. The two of you were flying all over the place, fighting numerous rounds on top of pavilions. Your lightness skill must be excellent.”

Chen Zhoujian ignored Jiang Fei’s modesty and deduced. “However, our Wudang Mountain’s lightness skill is also unique, even considered slightly better than the Buddhist ‘Crossing the River on a Reed’. I wonder if you’ve heard of it.”

Jiang Fei’s heart skipped a beat. He asked, “Wudang Mountain’s lightness skill… what’s it called?”

“Ladder Cloud Soar! But it’s a secret martial art of Wudang Mountain. Ordinary disciples aren’t qualified to learn it. I’ve only seen my uncles and grandmasters perform it,” Chen Zhoujian said with some regret.

Holy crap.

Jiang Fei was instantly stunned. Wudang Mountain really had this top-tier lightness skill called Ladder Cloud Soar? Wasn’t that a mistake? Did that mean the things he obtained from the system could also be learned in the real world?

This couldn’t be that far-fetched, could it?

Jiang Fei hesitated, looking uncertainly at Chen Zhoujian, wondering if he should still practice the Ladder Cloud Soar today.

Chen Zhoujian had just said that Ladder Cloud Soar was a top secret of Wudang Mountain, only accessible to a select few. Even Chen Zhoujian himself hadn’t had the chance to learn it, let alone an outsider. If he used Ladder Cloud Soar and was discovered, would he be accused of stealing Wudang Mountain’s unique skill?

That was a major taboo in the martial world!

But Jiang Fei reconsidered. He had already obtained the Ladder Cloud Soar and spent 300 skill points to raise it to the first level. He couldn’t just shelve it and never use it again, could he?

Wouldn’t that be a huge loss and utterly frustrating?

And if he used it eventually, he would inevitably be discovered. If his Ladder Cloud Soar was truly identical to Wudang Mountain’s, it would definitely reach their ears.

Since the outcome would be the same sooner or later, he might as well test it in front of Chen Zhoujian now and gauge his reaction. If it really was the same as Wudang’s Ladder Cloud Soar, he could think of an excuse and a strategy earlier!

Given Jiang Fei’s current status and position, even if he were wrongly accused of stealing Wudang Mountain’s unique skill, it shouldn’t spell disaster. He believed a solution could be found.

Jiang Fei quickly calmed his surprise and pretended nonchalance. “Wudang’s Ladder Cloud Soar? I’ve heard of it. And actually, this lightness skill of mine bears some resemblance to your Wudang’s Ladder Cloud Soar. Since you’ve seen what the Ladder Cloud Soar looks like, you can take a look at my lightness skill today and see how it is.”

Chen Zhoujian laughed heartily. “Great! I’d also like to see if your lightness skill is as divine as your swordplay, and whether it can compare to our Wudang’s Ladder Cloud Soar.”

Jiang Fei nodded, saying nothing more.

They didn’t go to the largest training ground but stayed in Chen Zhoujian’s small courtyard.

The courtyard wasn’t very large, and the surrounding walls weren’t too high, about two meters. But the yard was planted with many trees, all lush and clearly old. Particularly, there was an old banyan tree in the center, probably decades old, standing over ten meters tall!

Standing in the yard, Jiang Fei looked up, estimating. If his Ladder Cloud Soar could reach Zhang Cuishan’s level, taking a breath and stepping on leaves to reach the top of this tree shouldn’t be too difficult.

Filled with anticipation, Jiang Fei took a deep breath. His eyes sharpened, and he immediately executed the newly learned Ladder Cloud Soar.

Following the mental method and circulating his internal energy, he pushed off forcefully with both feet, propelling himself upward. He soared over three meters high! As his upward momentum began to slow, Jiang Fei lightly tapped a nearly insignificant leaf with the tip of his foot. The power of Ladder Cloud Soar manifested, and he surged upward again, another four meters or so!

In the end, Jiang Fei didn’t quite reach the very top of the banyan tree in one go, but he came close, stopping about eight meters off the ground, landing on a pine branch!

“Still not as good as Zhang Cuishan. It seems just reaching the first level of a martial art manual really isn’t enough. This Ladder Cloud Soar still has a lot of room for improvement. Once I cultivate it to the third level, leaping over ten meters in one go shouldn’t be a problem at all,” Jiang Fei thought, somewhat dissatisfied.

However, while Jiang Fei was somewhat dissatisfied internally, Chen Zhoujian, who had been watching from below with his neck craned, nearly had his eyes pop out of his head.

“Is… is this still a lightness skill?” Chen Zhoujian thought to himself.

This was practically divine magic!

When he saw Jiang Fei shoot up from the ground like a rocket, his jaw almost hit the floor. The height was simply terrifying, unlike anything a human should be able to achieve.

Their Wudang’s Ladder Cloud Soar was considered unparalleled, but even if performed by the currently recognized strongest expert of Wudang Mountain—Daoist Priest Qingxu, whom Miyamoto Kazuma had wanted to challenge—the maximum height would be five or six meters at best.

Yet Jiang Fei had just reached over eight meters!

Did you have springs installed in your legs? How are other lightness skill practitioners supposed to compete or even call themselves masters when you jump this high?

Watching Jiang Fei drift down gracefully soon after, Chen Zhoujian just stared at him wide-eyed, speechless.

This was just too discouraging.

“What superb lightness skill!” A middle-aged man’s voice sounded at the courtyard gate.

A Daoist priest, also dressed in robes but distinctly different from Chen Zhoujian’s—more profound and intricate—walked in.

The priest had a long beard and held a white horsetail whisk, exuding an aura of immortal grace.

“And this is?” Jiang Fei asked.

Chen Zhoujian finally snapped out of it and hurriedly introduced, “This is my grandmaster, Daoist Priest Qingxu! You must have heard of his name, Jiang Fei?”

Jiang Fei was somewhat surprised.

He had certainly heard of Daoist Priest Qingxu.

During his decisive battle with Miyamoto Kazuma, wasn’t Qingxu the third person Miyamoto intended to challenge, after severely injuring Liu Yunduo and killing the renowned Southern Sword master Wang Haoran?

This Qingxu Daoist must be a considerable master himself, otherwise Miyamoto Kazuma wouldn’t have been so eager to challenge him.

He just hadn’t expected him to be at the Central Martial Arts Hall today.

“Greetings, Daoist Priest Qingxu,” Jiang Fei said politely with a nod.

“This humble Daoist pays his respects to Benefactor Jiang.” Daoist Priest Qingxu made a slight bow with one hand, smiling. “Last time, Benefactor Jiang did this humble Daoist a great favor. I have been wanting to thank you in person, and finally, we meet.”

Jiang Fei waved his hand. “There’s no need for such courtesy, Daoist Priest.”

“Truly, heroes emerge from the young! Meeting you in person surpasses mere reputation! Benefactor Jiang’s skills are beyond this humble Daoist’s expectations,” Qingxu said.

Then, for some reason, Daoist Priest Qingxu asked Chen Zhoujian to leave first, as he had matters to discuss privately with Jiang Fei. Chen Zhoujian naturally didn’t dare disobey his grandmaster and promptly nodded and left.

Seeing this, Jiang Fei’s heart tightened. Could this Daoist really think my Ladder Cloud Soar was stolen from their Wudang Mountain?

Before Jiang Fei could ponder too much, Qingxu soon asked, “For example, this lightness skill of yours bears some resemblance to our Wudang Mountain’s Ladder Cloud Soar, yet its effect is even stronger, as if the student has surpassed the master… Might I ask what your lightness skill is called, Benefactor Jiang?”

Hearing this, Jiang Fei breathed a sigh of relief. It seemed he wasn’t suspected of stealing Wudang’s unique skill.

“My lightness skill is called… called ‘Heavenly Ascent Ladder’!” Jiang Fei improvised a name on the spot.

“‘Heavenly Ascent Ladder’… ‘Heavenly Ascent Ladder’. It truly lives up to its name!” Daoist Priest Qingxu repeated the name twice, a thoughtful look in his eyes. “As expected of a descendant of the Tianji Sect.”

“What?”

Hearing the three words ‘Tianji Sect’, Jiang Fei was greatly shocked. This identity of his was being mentioned for the first time!

“How does the Daoist Priest know this?” Jiang Fei asked urgently.

Daoist Priest Qingxu smiled slightly, revealing the answer: “Because Daoist Priest Xuanji and my own master were close friends for many years…”