Mordred lay face first in the dirt. Blood seeped from the corner of his mouth. The pain blossoming from the previous blow was tight against his chest. 

Around him, the Plum Blossom Sect’s training grounds were serene and deceptively peaceful, with plum trees in full bloom and their delicate petals drifting in the air. But a proudful stink loomed over him.

“Junior brother, all of this for a few measly spirit stones?” Senior brother Tianling said, looking down at him. His pure white robe glistened proudly in the high sun. “I’d advise you to stay down this time. My hand is growing itchy.”

Mordred’s lips curled. “They all add up. In the outer sect, spirit stones are difficult to come by. If I hadn’t challenged others for everything I've got, I’d remain here, wouldn’t I? You wouldn’t know that, born into the Inner. Besides, If your strikes were as powerful as your words, maybe I wouldn’t have to get back up,” Mordred said in an attempt to incense the young man. 

“You really are a cocky bastard.”

“You try having my talent at my age,” Mordred continued through a mouthful of dirt. He could feel it: he was close to pushing his senior brother into making a mistake. “Go on, I’ll wait. Oh, wait–”

Senior brother’s foot came flying at him. Mordred grit his teeth and rolled to the side. He channelled the qi within his core, and with the thought of his family's movement technique: Plum Step, leapt up, sword in hand, slicing at Tianling’s leg. Red blossomed through his white robe. 

Mordred was quick to return to his feet, his previous mocking and arrogant smile was no more; only a cold remained. Tianling, with venom in his eyes, swung his blade in a savage arc. 

Mordred bowed his head. Not a movement to dodge, but one out of profound respect. He shouted loud and clear, “This junior greets the honoured grand elder!”

Senior brother Tianling’s sword halted in horror. However, there was no one nearby. Mordred used Plum Step one more time, flower petals spawning around him. Ignoring the shocked expression taking hold of Tianling, Mordred struck the underside of the disciples chin with the pommel of his blade. 

With a harsh thud, Tianling fell to his backside, eyes wide in shock. “You–you scoundrel! You… you understand the essence of the plum blossom?”

Mordred bowed his head properly this time. “There are many paths to victory, senior brother. Many believe that they must bow to the strong, that they can’t beat the superior–” Mordred raised his head. “But I say that they just haven’t tried hard enough.”

“You–” Tianling rose to his feet, qi energy circling madly around his core. 

Eyes flashing with a gorgeous and profound pink, Mordred circulated his own. “I’d advise against that, senior brother. The blood around this arena is not for mere show.”

Tianling breathed heavily for a moment, before he spun on his heels. “You’ll regret these actions, junior brother. You may have all the talent in the world, but that talent won’t save you from your pathetic background.”

Mordred’s face turned expressionless. “Senior brother,” he said, not caring an ounce about respect. “You seem to be forgetting something?”

Gritting his teeth, Tianling removed a pouch from his waist, and threw it at Mordred’s feet. Picking it up while Tianling was busy walking away, Mordred blew a stand of long, black hair out of his face, and then counted them happily.

While he may be talented, the outer sect was a lawless land where everyone scrambled to gain any spirit stones at all. Maybe worked menial jobs, some acted as sparring partners, incurring grievous wounds in the process.

But Mordred played to win, no matter the situation. He bore the scars of the disrespect he had dished out over the years, but those scars had forged him into the young man he is now. Even if he had to live a life of pain, he would just grit his teeth and bare it. 

After all, immortality waited for no man. He had to reach out and grab it, stamping on people's toes, just like they had to him, in order to pluck it from the heavens.

Just as Mordred was about to return to his lodgings, everything turned blindingly white. When he opened his eyes again, he found himself in a forest, surrounded by people equally confused as he was. There were at least 100 of them. Most wore clothes that he had never seen before, along with shorter hairstyles. However, there were a few wearing robes just like Mordred. He even recognised one, Mordred’s brows rose.

It was the current generation crowned genius—Little Demon Jiang.

Strange, alien words flashed in front of his face. 

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You have been selected as a participant in the Tutorial zone number 1.

| Difficulty: Nightmare.

Mordred waved at the words, but they refused to disappear. What the hell has happened? Mordred felt a pit forming in his stomach, his heart smashed against his chest. What supreme elder was playing games with him? This wasn’t a time for jokes. He had a tournament to attend the next day. There were spirit stones to rob. 

More words joined it.

Tutorial Mission: Find and defeat the tutorial Boss – Titan of Smoulders.

| Secondary condition: Be 1 of 10 survivors.

| Time Limit until Tutorial collapse: 5 years.

| Reward: Unique Class.

Tutorial? What is that? Mordred wondered. 

System Activated – 10x Reward System.

| Perform feats that are worthy of achievement until you have enough to upgrade anything of your desire.

| 10x Upgrade: Ready.

Huh? Mordred tilted his head in curiosity. As if asking his question, a wall of text appeared.

Mordred

| Level: 1

| Class: N/A

| Titles: N/A

| Profession: N/A

Attributes:

| Strength: 17

| Vitality: 22

| Dexterity: 21

| Qi: 23

| Core: 25

Skills 3/6:

Plum Blade-Arts (★★★★)

Plum Step (★★★)

Blossom Circulation (★★)

He focused on his so-called skills, and more information popped up. 

Plum Blade-Arts: This technique blends fluid movements with explosive power, allowing the wielder to dispatch enemies with grace and efficiency. Limited to the 1st tier.

| Current Improvement: Damage increased by 40%.

Mordred nodded. The description was correct. This was truly fascinating. Mordred urged on.

Plum Step: The user can glide through the battlefield like falling plum petals, making them harder to hit and allowing for quick repositioning.

| Current improvement: Speed increased by 30%

Blossom Circulation: A rudimentary cultivation technique belonging to the Supreme Plum Blade. Limited to the 1st tier.

| Current improvement: Improves Qi regeneration and power by 20%. 

Mordred was enamoured, the grand elder was really going all out with his new technique.  

Disrupting him from his awe, Mordred snapped his head to the nearby forest. He felt something watching him and the others. Mordred frowned. The air swished. Mordred watched as a young man nearby was impaled by a lance. The force of the blow threw his body backward, and the lance continued its deadly path, impaling others in its wake.

Hairs rising on the nape of his neck, Mordred used Plum Step, increasing his speed as he barely got out of the way of another javelin. It fired into the crowd, spewing red mist.

Mordred, forcing his turbulent heart to calm down, spotted the attacker. Just at the tree-line, was a small green creature. It picked up another javelin, and threw it at them. It arrived at a crazy high speed, ravaging the people once more.

People screamed, people ran in every direction. It was chaos. Mordred remained calm. He didn’t know what was going on, but all he knew was that he had to survive.

The creature had run out of pointed sticks. Mordred thought it would retreat now that it was out of weapons, but instead, it bolted straight at them. It was a single creature, one that Mordred had never seen before. A demon from the Devil Sect? Mordred moved back, heading to the centre of the stampede.

He watched as the creature killed anything in sight, clever in hand; its strength was staggering. Each attack split apart limbs, tearing through flesh shoulder to waist. It wasn’t a creature he could kill. But if he could use these people as bait? Maybe he could.

“Is that a fucking goblin?!” Someone wailed in shock. 

“We can’t run,” Mordred shouted above the screams. “We have the number advantage. Pick up whatever you can and fight! Brother Jiang–”

However, the Little Demon Jiang paid his words no heed. He ran faster than the others, until he was just a vague black spot in the distance. Mordred spat. The cowardly were never rewarded.

None of the disciples listened. They were too focused on their own escape. But the strangely clothed people did. Mordred seemed to be the only one with a sword in hand, while the others picked up rocks, sticks, whatever they found on the lush grass floor. They turned to fight, they screamed, and they died. But they did it together.  

More only seemed to join in. It was strange. Did they know each beforehand? Why were they so desperate to help one another? 

Mordred didn’t complain. It was the perfect situation to dispatch the creature–to see what rewards came his way. While it was busy hacking a young woman to death, Mordred activated his sword arts: Plum Blade. Blossoms appeared in the air as his blade tore into the creature's throat. An intensely uncomfortable impact shook his hand. The blade only entered 3 fen deep. 

Cursing under his breath, the monster’s attention bore down on him. It felt like when a senior brother directed their qi directly onto him. Mordred broke free, dashing amongst the crowd of people with his Plum Steps. 

A young man with golden haired shouted words Mordred didn’t understand. But the strange people found their spirits raised. The golden haired man struck the beast with a large stick to the side of its head. The young man’s eyes widened as an attack came his way. However, the man seemed to predict it, slightly. He leapt out of the way, the monster’s attack grazing his arm. Blood fell.

The creature continued its rampage. Mordred would attack periodically, charging his attack. Finally, after the blades of grass underfoot feasted on blood, Mordred’s blade found its mark: the so-called goblin’s eye. 

A plum blossom dropped on the flat surface of his blade, and Mordred pushed it deeper. Plum Blossoms exploded in the air as Mordred felt the severe strain in his arm. His flesh torn asunder. Like a kite’s string severed, the beast finally fell.

You have defeated: Goblin (Level 4)

| You have Levelled up: 1>2

| You have 2 unspent Stat points.

| You have earned 6 achievement credits.

Stat points? Mordred wondered. He focused on it. It let him place one in one of his ‘stats’. Most peculiar. Lets put both in Qi and see what it does. 

Mordred did exactly that. Placing 2 points straight into Qi, he flexed his Plum Blade, noticing the difference in potency. His eyes widened. This was so much easier than cultivation!

Activate the 10x reward System?

| The reward system can be used on anything; recent Level ups, skills, equipment. (Can only be used once after 100 Achievement Credits have been earned.)

Just like the words before, Mordred thought, a budding excitement growing. I’m really not sure how this works, but, upgrade Blossom Circulation?

As his words ended, new system words appeared, much to his confusion. But that confusion instantly transformed into disbelief and fright.

Evolving Plum Circulation by 10x.