Chapter 36: Battle Instinct (fixed)

Xiang Yu charged at Li Yao with determination burning in his eyes, his weighted clothes making each step a labor of pure will. Despite his calculated approach, she effortlessly sidestepped his attack, her movements fluid like water around stone. With a casual flick of her wrist, she sent him sprawling onto the packed earth of their training ground.

Lying there, Xiang Yu felt exhaustion seeping into every fiber of his being. His muscles screamed in protest, begging for respite from this relentless punishment. Was he pushing himself too far? The weighted clothing, combined with simultaneous technique practice, extracted a brutal toll on his mortal frame.

But then, the thought of experience points flooded his mind—the precious resource his system would double tonight. Each painful collision, every humiliating defeat… all of it would transform into pure cultivation progress. The realization acted like a restorative elixir, washing away his fatigue in an instant.

Li Yao watched with puzzled fascination as her senior brother sprang back to his feet, renewed vigor evident in his stance. What strange force drove him? Most would have remained down after such punishment, yet something sparked in his eyes that burned away weakness. Whatever internal fire fueled him seemed to grow stronger with each defeat—a paradoxical phenomenon she couldn’t quite comprehend.

She launched forward without warning, her sword cutting through air with lethal precision. Xiang Yu, operating on instinct rather than conscious thought, bent his upper body forward in a deep bow. The blade whistled overhead, disturbing his hair as it passed within millimeters of his scalp.

Time seemed to slow as Xiang Yu recognized the precious opening before him. Li Yao’s follow-through had momentarily compromised her defensive posture. Without hesitation, he drove his knife upward from his bowed position, blade angling toward her exposed midsection.

Satisfaction bloomed in his chest as Li Yao’s eyes widened slightly—he’d caught her off guard. A rare moment of genuine surprise crossed her delicate features. ’I’ve got her this time,’ he thought, victory tantalizingly close.

The triumphant smile had barely formed on his lips when blinding pain erupted across his temple. Li Yao’s serene face greeted him as his vision refocused, her gentle smile belying the devastating counterattack she’d just executed. With masterful control, she’d redirected her momentum, using her sword’s hilt to strike his head with pinpoint accuracy.

“That was a nice one,” she complimented, extending her hand to help him stand.

Xiang Yu accepted her assistance, breathing heavily as he rose. “Yeah, nice one,” he acknowledged internally, “but I wasn’t even able to touch you.”

The outcome was understandable though, he reasoned. Though Li Yao refrained from using spiritual energy, her body refining cultivation likely exceeded his by at least ten layers. Every practitioner knew that beyond the tenth layer of body refining, each subsequent level brought exponential improvements in physical capabilities—strength, speed, durability, and reflexes all increased dramatically. The gap between them wasn’t merely skill, but fundamental physical development.

Their sparring continued uninterrupted, a dance of attack and defense beneath the watchful mountain sky, until the familiar system notification materialized before Xiang Yu’s eyes:

[Calculating Settlement]

“Let’s call it a day,” Xiang Yu suggested, noting the system’s timing. Li Yao nodded in agreement, and they exchanged cordial goodnights before retiring to their respective quarters.

Alone in his room, Xiang Yu studied the expanded notification hovering before him:

[Calculation Complete]

[Enlightenment: Low (3/1000) (+1/1000)]

[Battle Instinct: (1/100,000)]

[Mountain Heart Scripture: 3rd Layer (20/300) (+20/300)]

[Low-grade Iron Body Technique: Beginner (50/100) (+50/100)]

[Basic Knife Technique: Major Success (120/400) (+50/400)]

[Basic Sword Technique: Minor Success (140/200)]

[Cook: 9th Grade (8/100) (+4/100)]

[Experience Points Doubled]

[Cook: 9th Grade (8/100) → 9th Grade (16/100)]

[Basic Sword Technique: Minor Success (140/200) → Intermediate (0/300)]

[Basic Knife Technique: Major Success (120/400) → Major Success (240/400)]

[Low-grade Iron Body Technique: Beginner (50/100) → Minor Success (0/200)

[Mountain Heart Scripture: 3rd Layer (20/300) → 3rd Layer (40/300)]

[Battle Instinct: (1/100,000) → (2/100,000)]

[Enlightenment: Low (3/1000) → Low (6/1000)]

[Next Settlement: 23:59:59]

…

A wave of euphoria washed over Xiang Yu as his enlightenment doubled, the sensation even more intense than the previous night. The rush of expanded comprehension flooded his consciousness, bringing with it subtle insights that sharpened his understanding of cultivation principles. Each doubling seemed to intensify the pleasurable sensation, as if his mind was being remolded into something greater than its original design.

“I could definitely get addicted to this,” he thought, savoring the lingering mental clarity. His attention focused on the enlightenment stat, noting with satisfaction that it had increased by one point before the doubling effect. What had triggered this natural growth? He hadn’t specifically trained comprehension today, not that he knew how to. After a moment’s reflection, realization dawned—he had attempted to study the mid-grade Phantom Footwork technique Li Yao had given him.

Though the technique hadn’t appeared in his status screen, suggesting he couldn’t yet effectively practice it, the mere act of studying advanced material seemed to stretch his comprehension capabilities. This discovery opened intriguing possibilities—perhaps he could accelerate his enlightenment growth by regularly exposing himself to techniques beyond his current level, even if actual mastery remained temporarily beyond reach.

Shifting his analysis to the Mountain Heart Scripture, he noted the impressive twenty-point increase. Accounting for the three points already present before today’s training, he’d gained seventeen new points. Five had transferred from his knife technique through the established conversion mechanism, but the remaining twelve—those had come purely from training with weighted clothing. The evidence confirmed his theory that weight training directly contributed to body refining progress.

His knife technique had improved dramatically—fifty entire points in a single day. The weighted clothing had transformed standard practice into accelerated advancement. Even more remarkable was his newly acquired Iron Body Technique, which had also gained fifty points before doubling to achieve Minor Success in just one day’s practice. Such rapid mastery of a low-grade technique suggested his comprehension ability was functioning at peak efficiency.

With his knife technique already at 240 points out of 400, it would certainly breakthrough after tomorrow’s reset. This realization shaped his training strategy for the coming day—he would focus exclusively on swordsmanship since it had just reset to intermediate stage. Of course, this singular focus wouldn’t prevent him from simultaneously practicing Iron Body, attempting the mid-grade movement technique, and continuing his Mountain Heart Scripture cultivation. The beauty of his training regimen lay in its layered efficiency—multiple techniques advancing through complementary movements.

Examining his cooking skill, Xiang Yu noted it had advanced to 16 points. Though he couldn’t immediately identify tangible improvements, certain culinary knowledge had materialized in his mind—flavor combinations, temperature control techniques, presentation principles. The true extent of his progress would only reveal itself when he prepared tomorrow’s meals.

Just as he prepared to dismiss the status screen, an unfamiliar stat caught his attention. [Battle Instinct] had appeared—an entirely new attribute he hadn’t possessed before. Unlike his other stats, this one displayed no distinct levels, merely a single progression bar with the staggering cap of 100,000 points. Did this represent pure combat intuition? The ability to instinctively choose optimal actions during confrontation without conscious calculation?

A grin spread across his face as he contemplated the implications. Without level thresholds to reset progress, this stat would compound continuously through his system’s doubling function. Though the current value seemed minuscule compared to its potential maximum, exponential growth guaranteed rapid advancement once momentum built. Even now, having doubled from one to two, he couldn’t perceive any tangible difference in his capabilities.

“I’ll test it properly tomorrow,” he thought as exhaustion finally claimed him, his body sinking into the simple bed. Despite the day’s grueling exertion, satisfaction permeated his consciousness as he drifted toward sleep.

[Name: Xiang Yu]

[Realm: Body Refining 3rd Layer]

[Species: Human]

[Spiritual Root: null]

[Enlightenment: Low (6/1000)]

[Battle Instinct: (2/100,000)]

[Professions: Cook: 9th Grade (16/100)]

[Techniques: Low-grade Iron Body Technique: Minor Success (0/200); Basic Knife Technique: Major Success (240/400); Basic Sword Technique: Intermediate (0/300)]

[Scriptures: Mountain Heart Scripture: 3rd Layer (52/300)]

[System Function: Double Exp (Cooldown: 24hrs)]

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