Chapter 3: Entry: Mastery of the Sword Path

"This trait's bonus seems far more powerful than I imagined..."

"Although my martial cultivation is still that of a tenth-grade quasi-martial artist, the current me could kill the former me in the blink of an eye."

The moment the "Dual-Sword Style" trait entered Yang Le's body, a profound realization regarding the way of the sword surged into his heart. The "Third Sword" techniques were extremely simple, consisting only of thrusting, hacking, and slashing. Yet, under the augmentation of the Dual-Sword Style, while the moves themselves remained largely unchanged, their lethality was incomparable to before.

In an instant, Yang Le drew his longsword, the blade dancing in the air to form a floral pattern. Just then, a cicada chirped from the corner. Yang Le narrowed his eyes slightly and delivered what seemed to be a casual slash.

The cicada was instantly slain, and the stack of firewood behind it was severed in one stroke.

"This is sword qi..."

"It seems I need to find more longswords. I can already release sword qi with a fifty percent boost; if it were increased to one hundred percent..."

Yang Le was shocked by his own strike, and he felt even greater anticipation for the traits that might appear in the future. After all, in these chaotic times, every bit of strength he gained increased his chances of survival.

"If a white-tier trait can provide such a powerful boost, it seems the color of the trait isn't the only factor—it's about forming the right combinations. Sword-related traits will be my priority, body-strengthening traits will be secondary, and as for other types, I'll decide based on their specific effects."

Having two days of experience in selecting traits, Yang Le now had a basic understanding of his system and a rough plan for the attributes he would choose moving forward. Sword-related traits would be primary, and other combat-enhancing traits would be supplementary. If neither were available, he would save the traits to upgrade his trait library to a higher tier.

For the next few days, Yang Le's routine was simple: wake up, eat, practice the sword techniques rewarded by the system, gather news about the White Lotus Sect inside and outside Qinghe County, and wait for the daily trait refresh. He spent ten days in this manner.

There were no major changes within Qinghe County. Although refugees were forbidden from entering, the presence of Changsun Ji's elite troops maintaining order actually made the security in Qinghe County better than before. There were no riots or disturbances; even petty theft had decreased. Furthermore, after rumors surfaced that Changsun Ji was a centurion of the Cizhou National Defense Army, no one dared to act out.

The only thing causing unrest among the refugees was the skyrocketing price of grain. Food had reached a point where it was available in name only, impossible to actually purchase. Additionally, many refugees had vanished into thin air. When reported to the authorities, the cases were simply dismissed; most speculated that they had slipped out of the city. Yang Le estimated that it would not be long before a riot broke out in Qinghe County due to the food shortage.

After all, no one could suppress a group of people on the verge of starvation. However, this had little to do with Yang Le. The grain he had previously purchased, combined with his existing supplies, was enough to last him half a month.

The news about the White Lotus Sect outside Qinghe County was Yang Le's primary concern. For some reason, seven days ago, the White Lotus Sect had already arrived at the city gates. Changsun Ji had even gathered his men, prepared for a life-or-death struggle. But before Changsun Ji could make a move, the tidal wave of White Lotus cultists unexpectedly withdrew and had not launched an attack since.

They simply surrounded the city from the riverbank ten miles away, refusing to attack. Every day, they burned talismans outside the city and cast them into the upstream water source flowing into Qinghe County. It was quite bizarre.

Upon learning this, Yang Le felt a sense of anxiety. He never wanted to experience this feeling of having his fate out of his own hands ever again.

As for the daily trait refresh... whether it was bad luck or something else, the traits that appeared over the last ten days were barely worth looking at:

[Longyang Spirit: You easily attract certain individuals of the same sex.]
[Gluttonous King: You can consume ten days' worth of food in a single sitting.]
[Son of the Wind: When it is windy, you have a chance to receive an adopted son.]

These traits were not entirely useless, but they were mostly trash. The only trait that could increase combat effectiveness along with sword mastery was one Yang Le was speechless about:

[No Women in Heart, Drawing Sword Becomes God (Red): Sever your bonds, increase sword cultivation speed by 10,000%, reward: Heartless Sword Technique.]

This was the first high-quality trait that appeared after he upgraded to the Tier 1 trait library, and the only red-tier trait he had ever seen. The power of the trait made Yang Le look at his own bonds for a fleeting moment, but he ultimately abandoned it. He could grow stronger eventually with the system, but he only had one set of bonds. After a moment of hesitation, Yang Le tearfully declined the system's "kindness." At least for now, he was only in danger, not truly facing certain death. The trait was strong, but his bonds... he couldn't give them up at all.

"Accumulated for ten days, success or failure hinges on this moment..."

Today happened to be the eleventh day. Yang Le had not selected any of the traits from the previous ten days, and the trait library had upgraded to Level 2, guaranteeing at least a green-tier trait. Setting his sword aside, Yang Le specifically washed his hands before opening the system.

"Here it comes!"

He silently confirmed his selection. As the mist covering the traits dissipated, a seven-colored halo, an orange glow, and a purple light appeared before him. In an instant, Yang Le knew the system had hit the jackpot!

"Ding, congratulations to the host for the successful trait refresh today..."
"Ding, cumulative trait selection complete, current Level 2 trait library..."
"Today's traits: Sword Deity, One-Day Master, Body of Chi You."

[Sword Deity (Seven-Colored): You are a natural Sword Saint. You will have no bottlenecks on the path of sword cultivation. The trait library will prioritize refreshing sword-related traits, increase the effect of all traits by 100%, and boost sword qi by 1,000%.]
[One-Day Master (Purple): You will gain First-Grade Innate cultivation, but it will only last for one day.]
[Body of Chi You (Orange): Your physique is comparable to that of gods and demons, but you will lose your sanity due to an inability to bear the bloodline of Chi You.]

After reading the three traits, Yang Le finally understood what it meant to have one's suffering rewarded.

"Select the trait: Sword Deity."

Without the slightest hesitation, Yang Le chose the seven-colored trait, Sword Deity. It wasn't that the other two weren't excellent, but they were simply incomparable to the Sword Deity trait.

The moment the selection was made, a seven-colored auspicious cloud surged into Yang Le's body. The next second, a series of notifications bombarded his mind like a system explosion.

"Ding, congratulations to the host for gaining the Sword Deity bonus. The effect of the Sword Apprentice trait has changed..."
"Ding, congratulations to the host for gaining the Sword Deity bonus. The effect of the Dual-Sword Style trait has changed..."
"Ding, congratulations to the host for the Sword Deity bonus to the trait library. The refresh rate for sword-related traits will increase significantly."

...

The selection finished. Yang Le opened his eyes and picked up the longsword he had set aside. At this moment, the sword in his hand even began to vibrate slightly.

And at the same time...

Qinghe County was in chaos.