Chen Mu proudly introduced his secret manuals, but when he saw the expression on Fang Yue's face, he got confused.
"What's wrong? You don't seem…satisfied."
"Uh…No, it's just that I don't quite understand how the martial arts are categorized into levels." Fang Yue did not understand the concept of levels behind the martial arts manuals.
Chen Mu suddenly understood the situation and was slightly embarrassed. He was boasting how great his secret manuals were to a newbie, but the newbie did not even recognize the manuals, thus the embarrassment.
Chen Mu explained, "There are two types of martial paths: the mainstream one and the non-conventional one."
"The non-conventional one, which is considered crude martial arts, is practiced by everyone else in Guyue Village other than the three captains of the village guards.
"As for the mainstream one, if you were to categorize them into different levels, they are: First-rate Precelestial, Second-rate Precelestial, Third-rate Precelestial, First-rate Postcelestial, Second-rate Postcelestial, and Third-rate Postcelestial .
"These two martial manuals might only be Third-rate Postcelestial , but they complement each other and form a perfect circle between themselves. Therefore, they are strong when used together. That is why I was able to defeat the other captains and become the general captain of Guyue Village."
Crude martial arts, Postcelestial martial arts, Precelestial martial arts…
Fang Yue finally got a general understanding of the value of the secret manuals after Chen Mu explained it to him.
In simple words, even though the two secret manuals were only Third-rate Postcelestial manuals and were an entry-level manual to the path of martial arts, only three people in Guyue Village knew them, hence they were considered valuable martial arts manuals.
However, Fang Yue thought of the information he had gotten from his [Insight Vision], so he asked shamelessly, "Captain Chen, what about low-tier Human-level? What level of martial arts is that?"
"Human-level?!" Chen Mu's eyes widened in shock when he heard the term. "How do you know about this term?!"
Fang Yue noticed the strong reaction from Chen Mu, hence he quickly said, "I heard it from Lord Han."
"Lord Han, eh? If it's Lord Han, then it's normal. Lord Han's strength is unpredictable, so I have no idea how strong he really is but why would Lord Han tell you about Human-level?"
The last part of his sentence was not meant for Fang Yue but a question for himself. Chen Mu chuckled and discarded the confusion away.
"Human-level is considered a grade higher than First-rate Precelestial . For example, someone as powerful and extraordinary as Lord Han prefers to call the martial arts that we practice Common-level martial arts.
"Human-level is beyond Common-level martial arts, but there are many common martial artists out there, and the competition has always been fierce.
"If we don't further elaborate the term 'Common-level', how can we measure our strength properly? After all, it's rare to find someone at the Human-level."
'Human-levels are rare?' Fang Yue listened to Chen Mu carefully as his heart was racing in excitement. 'F***! I think both my skills are awesome as f***!"
Fang Yue remembered the astoundment on Lord Han's face when the man saw him walking freely in the rain. He suddenly felt that his skill, which was a high-tier Human-Level, was amazing.
However, [Insight Vision] was a little disappointing. Maybe because it was not a combat skill, Fang Yue could barely feel its existence when he did not activate it.
'Maybe [Insight Vision] has secrets that I still don't know of.'
Fang Yue suppressed his thoughts. He then asked after a quick thought, "Captain Chen, I have one more question."
It had been a while since Chen Mu talked to someone about martial arts, thus he was also intrigued.
"Ask away."
"If martial arts has grades, can people's states be categorized as well?"
"Of course. You are considered an outsider in your current state. If you start practicing my [Starfire Cultivation Method], you will be able to gather internal energy and breakthrough from your current state. Then, you will be considered a real martial artist treading down the martial arts path."
"You will start with Third-rate Postcelestial. From there, you can breakthrough and ascend to a higher grade, reaching First-rate Precelestial or even Human-level."
"Human-level…"
Fang Yue was a little carried away but quickly regained his senses and thought about something else.
"Then, what level is a Rain-level?"
"I don't know." Chen Mu shook his head.
"You don't?"
"Yeah. I don't know what that is. I've only heard about it from Lord Han. Rain-levels are so powerful that they can move freely in the rain, so their strength is unpredictable."
"Why do I lose HP in the rain? Does it mean that I will lose HP in the day as well?"
"No, you won't. You won't lose HP during the day. It's a different story if it's a Triple Blaze Day though."
Chen Mu looked at Fang Yue with a peculiar expression. "Strange, have you never seen the sun back at where you are from? Oh, wait, I forgot you lost your memories. You poor thing."
"Uh, yeah."
"Here's the story about the rain. There was an old legend circulating in the martial arts world. It was said that people practicing martial arts was an act that defied nature, hence it attracted the wrath of the heavens. The sky punished the martial artists by changing the weather. The weather got so strange that the night became a breeding ground for Wickeds, and it became more difficult for humans to survive.
"Of course there's also another version of this legend about a powerful Wicked causing [Cold Nights] and [Storm]. People called the Wicked a Transcendent Wicked, suggesting that it has transcended beyond the normal. It is mysterious and unpredictable.
"Nevertheless, such legends have nothing to do with us peasants. We are happy enough to be able to live a steady life. No one would care about something that big."
Chen Mu was right. Fang Yue was no match for the weakest Newborn Wicked, so why would he care about some legendary Wicked that reformed the world?
Fang Yue looked at the martial arts manuals. He tapped them but…nothing happened.
'Did I open it wrongly?'
He opened it and flipped to a random page.
'Learn.' The thought popped into his mind, but the manuals did not react either.
'What's wrong?'
Fang Yue was stunned. He did not expect to face a bottleneck at this stage.
"What are you doing?"
He looked up and saw Chen Mu looking at him.
"I don't know how to learn these," Fang Yue admitted honestly.
"Read! Use your eyes and read! Think! Use your brain and think! That's what learning is!"
Chen Mu's righteous answer confused Fang Yue even more. He stiffly went over some random pages before he looked at Chen Mu again.
"I still don't get it."
"Of course! Are you dumb? Who would start reading a book from the center? Start from the first page!" Chen Mu said with an annoyed tone.
"Oh…Okay, you don't need to be so angry."
Annoyed, Fang Yue read the [Starfire Cultivation Method] from the first page. The manual had mostly pictures plus some descriptions, so he was able to go through the entire manual quickly.
When he finally finished the last page, he got a notification.
[Do you want to learn the Starfire Cultivation Method?]
'So, that's how you learn something in this game?'
"Yes!"
[Congratulations. You have learned the Starfire Cultivation Method.]
As the manual slowly disintegrated into white light and disappeared, a sea of knowledge gushed into his mind.
"You've got it?" Chen Mu was shocked.
"Yeah."
Chen Mu looked at Fang Yue excitedly and praised his speed.
"What a terrifying level of comprehension! You are a genius in martial arts! I studied it for 3 years before I turned the manual into light and I achieved newbie status."
'Uh, no, I'm not a genius. It's just how the game works. Every player can do this.'
"Wait, did you say your manual turned into light as well?"
"Nonsense. Every manual will turn into light after mastering it. Why would you keep it after mastering it? Do you want to let outsiders steal it and learn it for themselves? I have heard about manuals that will remain even after mastering them, but those are special ones."
Fang Yue nodded silently. He then read through the [Starfire Saber Technique].
[Do you want to learn the Starfire Saber Technique?]
"Yes!"
[Congratulations. You have learned the Starfire Saber Technique.]