Start With Contracting Sprites

"Are you guys alright?"

Su Hao looked at the sprites.

They also looked like they had just woken up.

Butterfly waved, flapped its wings again, and leaped onto him in an instant.

"Gurgle ~ Gurgle, gurgle!"

It called out, then flew above its head reservedly and laid down.

Flaming feathers emerged on the Dazed Crow's body the moment it woke up. It only dispersed the flames on its body after it regained its senses.

It also made a "squawk" sound to indicate that it was alright.

"Neighhh ~"

The Water Unicorn Beast raised its hooves and looked back at the scales on its body.

Well, it's alright neigh~!

"It's good that everything is well."

The Electric Bear was stunned. "Awww?"

It pointed at itself.

Something's wrong, something's wrong ~!

Su Hao: "Don't feel that. I see that you're fine."

This bear was clearly full of energy, but it liked whining excessively.

How could it carry the flag of being the meat shield?

The Electric Bear was stunned.

It rolled on the floor.

I'm such a miserable bear ~!

Su Hao was rendered speechless.

Butterfly :"…"

Dazed Crow :"…"

Dumb Unicorn :"…"

All eyes looked over, and the Electric Bear that was rolling around froze.

It looked up and asked weakly, "Huh?"

...

From stepping into the room to exiting the illusion, it only took eleven minutes.

It was too fast.

He used less than half of the half an hour of illusion!

"Fortunately, the web master here… Cough, the staff member said that the unused time won't be counted."

But Su Hao wasn't too sure.

The length of time referred to whether they were in an illusion or in the crystal room.

He didn't plan to stay for long and wanted to push open the door and leave.

Right at this moment…

From the corner of his eye, Su Hao saw words appear on the wall.

[Challenge assessment: 10 marks]

Su Hao was rendered speechless.

If he remembered correctly, if he successfully passed the first round, he would get a minimum of 100 marks.

In other words, each sprite's skill was 10 points, and clearing the level within a short period of time would allow one to receive additional points.

"10 marks means that the Flaming Spiritcrow killed a sheep in the end."

"But this result…"

His wristband suddenly vibrated.

He took a look. Oh, the ranking of the special training camp had been updated—it seemed like he had triggered the updating mechanism.

He dropped from 97th to 100th place directly.

[-100 - Su Hao]: 10 points

[-99 - Zhou Wenming]: 50 points

[- 98 - Qi Lin]: 66 points

...

[-3 - Qin Ya]

[-2 - Jiang Xiuqi]

[-1 - Wang Qi]

Su Hao was rendered speechless.

Truthfully, his real score was definitely more than 10 points.

"Many sprites were exhausted before the challenge."

"The illusion sprite isn't as stiff as it looks, its coordination is very skilled… I keep feeling that the Vine Cage tactic was designed by Senior Wu."

"More importantly, I made a stupid mistake and sent them off in one go."

Unicorn didn't display his advantage in running.

If not for it… Cough, if not for Su Hao bumping into it himself, he could totally pull the Ground Wolf around in circles.

Together with Butterfly and Flaming Spiritcrow, they could kill one or two of them if they caught the opportunity to do so.

Electric Bear?

It didn't have anything to do with it.

"I was too reckless in the end."

"Once I reached the illusion, I let myself go. No, that won't do."

"Use survival as the core strategic point, and implement the two tactics, which are the sneak attack of the Flaming Spiritcrow, as well as the interference of Butterfly."

...

It was winter break.

But it had nothing to do with Su Hao at all.

He rushed between the special training camp, the dormitory, and the library.

He was very busy.

It wasn't just him. Even ordinary students from Whale Island University rarely went home.

Even if they went back, they wouldn't stay at home for too long.

Only in school could they enjoy its benefits and resources.

On Whale Island, anyone who stopped advancing would be left behind by others!

Library, fourth floor.

"Profound Meaning, Slashing… I got it!"

Su Hao found a few types of profound meanings such as Splitting, Slashing, and Chopping. After communicating with the Flaming Spiritcrow, he finally chose the profound meaning of the "Dual Blade Style".

"Flaming Spiritcrow has an assassin-type battle style. Apart from the profound meaning of the Dual Blade Style, it also has to start with the unique skill Slashing."

Slashing was a universal unique skill.

It was a very basic unique skill, similar to Charging.

But...

"I remember that there was an instructor in school who used the unique skill Slashing to fuse with a certain profound meaning, creating the Secret Manual Sword Draw."

"That kind of secret manual is very suitable for Flaming Spiritcrow."

Su Hao found the instructor named Wu Yongfeng.

When he arrived, Instructor Wu was practicing slashing with his students.

"When swinging the sword, one has to combine essence, energy, and spirit, and have an indomitable aura!"

Instructor Wu held the sword with both hands and was barefoot. His legs were slightly apart, making him look like an ancient swordsman.

With a swing of the sword, it cut through the air, creating loud sounds of the wind.

He waved his sword a few times before he noticed Su Hao standing at the door.

"Instructor Wu…" Su Hao called out.

Instructor Wu put away the sharp, long saber and walked over. "You're Su Hao, the student who made an appointment yesterday to learn "Sword Draw", right?"

"I am."

"Which sprite of yours is preparing to learn the Sword Draw?"

"That's it."

Under Su Hao's signal with his eyes, the Flaming Spiritcrow displayed Steel Wings and Wing Attack. Its wings became sharp, and it slashed down forcefully.

Whoosh!

Instructor Wu nodded slightly. "Its foundation is alright."

He then asked, "I see that you've only made an appointment for five days. The learning of Sword Draw requires the heart to be as still as water, and requires countless slashes. You won't be able to learn it in five days. It'll take at least a month or two before you can begin learning the basics."

"If you lack credits, I can delay collecting them."

Su Hao declined politely.

He expressed that he was collecting various moves, to reference, and integrate.

...

At the back of the training field.

Large rocks stood tall.

There were also mottled sword marks on many large rocks.

Instructor Wu brought Su Hao and his two students here.

"To learn Sword Draw, firstly, the casting and usage of the unique skill Slashing requires complete control."

"For example…"

Instructor Wu picked up a rock from the ground and placed it on a wooden table.

He unsheathed his sword and stared at the stone. His aura suddenly changed.

Suddenly…

Whoosh!

The light from the silver blade flashed, and the long blade was immediately put back into its sheath by Instructor Wu.

Su Hao saw the stone on the wooden table split into two with a click.

Yet, the wooden table was still intact.

The Instructor Wu in front of him was probably also a… Heavenly King Bu-styled expert!

His individual combat power was extraordinary!

He looked at it seriously, not daring to move his eyes away.

After all, he could only rely on himself to unlock the interface.

If he relied on the Dazed Crow to learn by itself, it could barely learn it in one to two months, and it would only be effectively utilized after three to five months…

That was too slow.

He, Su Hao, was a person who valued time!

Instructor Wu continued, "After completely mastering the unique skill Slashing, the second step requires mastery of the profound meaning."

"The profound meaning is the sublimation of skill, which is an even greater core concept…"

"My philosophy is that blood must be shed once the blade is out."

"When using Sword Draw, one needs to have a calm mind, to be able to sense all the changes in the surroundings, and have complete control of the body and mind. If it's us humans learning, we still need to be one with the sword, and need to carry swords at all times. In comparison, it is easier for sprites to learn."

In general, Sword Draw wasn't a particularly difficult secret manual to learn.

But...

It would take a lot of time to master Sword Draw to a profound level.

One needed to feel it with one's heart.

Instructor Wu even lent a knife to Su Hao, for him to practice swinging together with them.

"Now, I'll let my sprite show you what a real Sword Draw is."

He whistled.

A Leaf Blade Warrior leaped out of the forest nearby and appeared in front of them in a flash.

"It's an elite-level limit Leaf Blade Warrior."

Su Hao thought to himself.

The Leaf Blade Warrior was only a first-stage evolved form. With limited potential, it was very difficult to break through.

But he wouldn't underestimate it because of this.

In his eyes, the Leaf Blade Warrior walked steadily towards a huge rock more than two meters tall.

He saw…

The tall Leaf Blade Warrior raised its arm, and the blade-like leaves on it straightened, emitting emerald green light.

Whoosh!

The emerald green sword shadow shook.

Silence again.

The Leaf Blade Warrior seemed to be standing on the spot, not moving at all.

A thin line appeared on the huge rock in front of him, and cracking sounds were heard.

A few seconds later, the huge rock split into two and collapsed.

The whole surface was smooth, shiny and flat!

When the Flaming Spiritcrow saw this, it immediately flapped its wings in excitement.

Coach, I want to learn this~!