At that moment, Tie Chen walked into the classroom, looking somewhat listless.
"Old Jiang, what time did you go to sleep last night?" he asked Jiang Lin as soon as he sat down.
Hearing this, Jiang Lin was confused. "I didn't sleep. Why?"
Tie Chen stared closely into Jiang Lin's eyes, trying to see if he was lying.
"How did you do it?" Tie Chen asked begrudgingly, sensing that Jiang Lin had no reason to lie to him.
"Once your breathing technique reaches a certain proficiency, practicing it provides the same effect as resting. Didn't you know that?
"Oh, right. With your talent, you probably haven't encountered that level of knowledge yet."
Jiang Lin repeated what Little Black had told him yesterday, leaving both Little Black and Tie Chen in a brief silence.
"I didn't sleep last night either," Tie Chen said. "I spent the whole night grinding practice problems. I finished two days' worth of work in a single day."
He continued, "It felt very fulfilling. I wish I could keep it up.
"But I don't have a breathing technique with such high proficiency, so logically, I should need rest."
Jiang Lin nodded. "That is true."
However, Tie Chen's tone shifted. "Old Jiang, you're better at potion-making than me. Do you know of any magic potion that can keep me from needing sleep so I can keep studying?"
Jiang Lin was genuinely shocked. Was Tie Chen really that stimulated? He wanted to use drugs just to pull all-nighters for studying?
After thinking for a moment, Jiang Lin suddenly remembered seeing a description of a similar potion in an extracurricular potion-making book.
"Wait a second. I have a vague memory of it. I think I saw it in a book. I still remember the title and the approximate chapter, but I've forgotten the name of the potion."
Jiang Lin then looked at Tie Chen with a strange expression.
"What's the potion called? Can you look it up again, Old Jiang?"
Their conversation wasn't hidden, and many people around them overheard.
This included Dean, who had also stayed up all night. Despite his mental fatigue, he leaned in, eager to hear more.
"I said I remember the book title and the chapter. What did you call me?"
Tie Chen was confused. "Old... Old Jiang?"
"The book is in the school library. What did you call me?"
Tie Chen suddenly realized. "Father! Can you look it up for me?!"
"Hehe, you're not stupid. I'll go check for you once the library opens."
Upon hearing this, Dean also leaned in. "Father! I want to know too!"
Jiang Lin found it bizarre, but since they were calling him father, he naturally wouldn't treat them poorly.
"No problem. I'll tell you once I find it."
Dean was overjoyed at the response.
"Alright, Dean, you brat, did you stay up all night too?"
"If you aren't sleeping, how could I?"
"Pulling all-nighters drains your spirit. Aren't you afraid you won't have any energy tomorrow?"
"There are only seventy-some days left. What do I have to be afraid of?"
Hearing the conversation between the three, the surrounding students of the tail-end class were utterly shocked.
Why were these three acting like they'd been possessed?
Was studying all night really something humans were capable of??
...
Before long, the news spread throughout the entire class.
Everyone now knew there were three people in the class who didn't sleep and spent the whole night studying.
Those who had stayed behind to work hard yesterday were equally stunned by the news.
Dammit, was it really enough to just sleep a little less?
While they were sleeping, those guys were still working non-stop!
And now they even wanted to use magic potions to maintain their all-nighter status...
How were they supposed to sleep after hearing that!!
Soon, Jiang Lin returned from the library and gave the two of them the answer.
"There's a potion called the Mental Invigoration Potion. It's designed for adventurers who need to travel through dangerous areas for long periods. After using it, one can remain mentally alert for twelve hours. It can be used repeatedly and provides a certain rest effect. However, it cannot be used for more than five consecutive days, or it may cause mental damage.
"You should be able to buy it at a potion shop, and the price is relatively cheap—about five gold coins per vial."
Hearing this, Dean and Tie Chen both nodded thoughtfully.
"I see. Then if I buy ten vials, I can go five days without sleeping!"
"To think such a wondrous item exists in this world!"
Seeing their reactions, let alone the students in the class, even Little Black, who was an evil god, couldn't quite keep it together.
How did these two look like they had been bewitched by an evil god?
Then, to Jiang Lin's surprise, several more people ran over to ask him: "Father! I wanted to ask about that potion..."
...
Jiang Lin truly hadn't expected to see such a side of people loving to study in a tail-end class of another world.
However, he soon stopped caring and redirected his energy toward his meditative breathing.
But before long, Jiang Lin noticed something was off.
Today, the magic essence in the classroom was no longer flowing toward him alone. Besides himself, several others were now absorbing magic essence!
More people had joined the ranks of those practicing their breathing technique during class!
Fortunately, everyone's level was relatively low, so their absorption of magic essence wasn't exaggerated. Practicing together had almost no impact on each other.
Seeing such a scene, even Jiang Lin felt a slight sense of urgency.
Their levels were originally ahead of mine, and now they've started working as hard as I am. Since everyone is putting in the effort, my relative progress has become smaller.
So, if I want to leave them in the dust, I need to work even harder than them!
Don't get lazy just because you have a system, Jiang Lin!!
...
Time soon arrived for the swordsmanship class Jiang Lin had been looking forward to.
He could spar with Anya, the top student of the grade, again!
Jiang Lin wanted to know how far her cultivation of the 【Seven Star Holy Glow Slash】 had progressed.
He also wanted to see if his superlative-level 【Breath Concealment】 would be useful in actual combat.
Upon arriving at the swordsmanship classroom, many students had already reached the venue early and were practicing with their usual sparring partners.
Jiang Lin's brilliance over the past two days had been a bit too overwhelming, making them all feel somewhat suffocated.
At the same time, the stories of Jiang Lin's overnight cultivation had begun to spread from the tail-end class.
"Have you heard? Jiang Lin hasn't slept for two days. Everyone sees him practicing his breathing technique whenever he's around!"
"I heard! Didn't they say Jiang Lin found some potion that lets you not sleep?"
"That's right! Jiang Lin hasn't slept once this semester, which is why he pushed his 【Basic Swordsmanship】 to such high proficiency!"
"I heard Jiang Lin hasn't slept since the day he was born..."
"..."
In short, under the embellishment of various rumors, everyone linked Jiang Lin's changes to his all-nighters. At the same time, more and more people began to consider whether they should also try overnight cultivation.
When Jiang Lin arrived, many people focused their gaze on him.
They watched as he scanned the room, and upon seeing that Anya hadn't arrived yet, he sat down cross-legged and began his meditative breathing.
Seeing this, the members of the tail-end class were all wide-eyed with indignation.
"Dammit, he won't even let this little bit of time go?"
"Curse him, seeing him work so hard is actually making me feel a bit guilty..."
"Quick, spar with me! My greatsword is already thirsty for battle!!"
The swordsmanship class for the lower-ranked students wasn't just Jiang Lin's class; it was composed of many other low-ranking classes.
Therefore, not everyone knew that Jiang Lin had been seizing every moment to practice his breathing technique these past few days.
Before long, as class was about to start, a striking figure appeared at the entrance of the swordsmanship classroom.
With long golden hair, a tall posture, and a beautiful face, it was none other than the top student, Lady Anya Castrot!
After entering the room, she scanned the area and quickly shifted her gaze to Jiang Lin, who was practicing his breathing in the corner.
She strode over to him. Sensing Anya's presence, Jiang Lin opened his eyes and emerged from his meditative state.
"How is your learning of the 【Seven Star Holy Glow Slash】 going? If you have any questions, you can ask me. This high-level combat technique is quite difficult," Anya said.
"Thanks to your notes, I've already successfully initiated!"
Anya nodded. "Yes, this skill is indeed difficult. Back then, even with a swordsmanship instructor's guidance, it took me... Wait, what did you say?! You've already initiated?!!"
Jiang Lin lifted the wooden sword beside him. A dazzling and holy light shimmered on the blade, and within the light, a single star could be faintly seen twinkling.
Then, as Jiang Lin swung the sword, the light detached from the blade and flew out, dissipating after cutting through several meters of air.
This was the definitive sign of having initiated the 【Seven Star Holy Glow Slash】!
Anya's expression turned slightly vacant as waves of self-doubt began to surge in her heart.
He initiated this high-level skill in a single day, all by himself?!
She remembered that even with a swordsmanship instructor guiding her hand, it had taken her three full days to successfully initiate this high-level skill.
And that was under the premise that she had already learned many mid-level skills!
Was this what a true genius looked like?
Looking at it this way... was she insulting the title of genius herself?
For a moment, countless thoughts raced through Anya's mind. She even began to suspect if Jiang Lin had already learned this skill before and was just pretending now to humiliate her.
But she quickly dismissed the thought.
There was no way Jiang Lin would do that, nor did he have any reason to.
Thus, there could only be one reason: Jiang Lin was truly a rare genius in swordsmanship!
Otherwise, there was no explanation for how he could initiate this high-level combat technique in a single day, relying only on himself and a few non-essential notes.
Of course, she couldn't have known that the one teaching Jiang Lin was Little Black, an evil god infinitely more powerful than her swordsmanship instructor. That was the real reason he could initiate the skill in one day.
"What incredible speed," Anya marveled. "I'm almost jealous of your talent."
"It's nothing much. It's all thanks to your notes, Lady Anya."
As he spoke, Jiang Lin returned the skill book to her.
Anya had said she was lending it to him, so now that he had initiated the skill, he was returning it.
After all, he had completely memorized the contents. Furthermore, Jiang Lin didn't plan on practicing it himself in the future; he was just waiting for the system rewards to randomly upgrade this skill.
Thus, he didn't need to keep the book for reference.
"Hmm? You don't need it anymore?" Anya was puzzled.
"I've already memorized it completely," Jiang Lin replied casually. This was how he had always learned skills—once he read them and fully digested the understanding, he didn't need to open the book again.
"What terrifying memory. So that's why your theory grades are so good," Anya remarked.
'Huh? Is my memory that good?' Jiang Lin wondered.
He had always thought everyone was like this—that they only needed to read something once to digest and understand it. Since he hadn't communicated much with others about this before, he hadn't known any better.
"But it's not of much use. After all, as adventurers, we still have to let our combat power do the talking," Jiang Lin sighed.
Anya said with some regret, "I didn't expect you to have such talent. If your profession were a magic-based class like a mage or a priest, you would surely have a bright future in alchemy or array formations."
Alchemy and array formation required memorizing a massive amount of medicinal properties and magic formulas. Therefore, the better one's memory, the higher their talent in these two skills.
However, both required a massive amount of mental power to support them.
Hearing Anya's words, Jiang Lin also felt a bit of regret. "True. I used to think that if I were a magic-based class, I'd have enough mental power to complete alchemy and arrays..."
Suddenly, Jiang Lin seemed to realize something, and his eyes widened.
That's right! In the past, he wasn't particularly outstanding in terms of mental power due to his profession's limitations. But now, with the system's rewards, his mental power was already comparable to those of the mage classes.
He then changed the subject. "I wonder what level Lady Anya's 【Seven Star Holy Glow Slash】 has reached."
"My proficiency?"
Anya gripped her wooden sword. A brilliant radiance then shimmered on the blade, like a golden sun rising—holy and pure, illuminating the entire hall. At the same time, a powerful pressure emanated from her, as if this single strike could cleave her enemy in two.
Facing such might, Jiang Lin subconsciously swallowed. A feeling of being unable to resist welled up in his heart. Meanwhile, he squinted his eyes and counted the starlight within that shining radiance.
One... two... three...
Seven stars!
It was a 【Seven Star Holy Glow Slash】 that had been trained to at least the perfect level!!!
"It's reached perfect. I should be only one step away from superlative," Anya answered.
With that, she retracted the sword light she had been gathering.
This scene left Jiang Lin secretly clicking his tongue in amazement.
At his current level, if he charged the energy but didn't release it, the magic within the blade would explode due to instability. He couldn't retract and release it as effortlessly as Anya could.
After retracting the light, Anya continued, "Thanks to your help, my 【Basic Swordsmanship】 has made further progress from its original superlative level. This has also slightly improved skills like the 【Seven Star Holy Glow Slash】.
"I feel that before long, my 【Seven Star Holy Glow Slash】 will be able to reach the superlative level."
Rate on N.U.
