The Cornflower Witch

Chapter 53: Student Breakthroughs to First Tier

Having come to study under Scholar Heide, two and a half months had already passed. The students in class had made significant progress, as if they had reached some critical point; some students had begun to advance.

"Solyn, you reached First Tier?"

That day, when the others saw Solyn, they could clearly sense something different about him. They couldn't immediately say what had changed, but they vaguely felt he seemed a bit stronger, his physical contours firmer, and even his voice carried more power.

"That's right. I advanced at home yesterday." He announced, delighted and proud.

After mastering Breathing Method Lv.2 (Bloodline) and Power Burst Lv.2 (Bloodline), and through the tempering of these two Bloodline Aspect abilities, he successfully pushed his Fate Card from zero into "First Tier · Bloodline".

Name: Solyn

Race: Human (mortal body)

Status: Healthy (no abnormalities)

Talent: Agility [Good], your reaction speed is a few notches faster than normal, giving you an advantage in combat

Fate Card: [Explosive Youth] (First Tier · Bloodline)- Effect: [Agile Body Lv.1], with adjustments from the Breathing Technique and Power Burst, your body has begun to adapt to the flow of the Bloodline, granting faster speed and reactions

Ability Cards: [Breathing Method Lv.2][Power Burst Lv.2][Empty Slot]

Skills: [Basic Swordsmanship Lv.4][Military Swordsmanship Lv.2][Secret History Knowledge Lv.2]

————

Facing Solyn's advancement, the classmates were full of envy, and even Scholar Heide offered rare praise.

That afternoon on the training field, the students wanted to spar with Solyn to see how much difference there was between someone at First Tier and someone without a condensed Aspect.

"Are you sure you want to try? I'm afraid I might hurt you." Solyn chuckled.

"Of course. Don't get too cocky, you just advanced a few days earlier than us." the others called back.

"All right, the three of you go at once, that's fair." Solyn selected three classmates who usually practiced with him.

"Fine, you asked for this." The three looked at each other and entered the ring.

The match drew a large crowd of students. Even Iona didn't leave today; she stood on the distant stands watching.

"Tia, do you think Solyn will win?" Komea asked with curiosity.

"He'll probably win easily." The girl thought for a moment before answering.

"Huh? Is the gap that big?" Komea didn't understand.

"Before, although Solyn was strong, if two classmates teamed up on him, he'd be in trouble. He'd have to keep moving, looking for openings to win.

"Or he'd risk taking some hits, then strike hard to send one opponent flying out of the ring, and then deal with the other.

"Now you say he can handle three people by himself easily. Just a few days passed and the difference is already this large?"

"Yes, Komea." Sylutia shook her head slightly, then had Komea look at the match.

"After advancement, if the Fate Card's Aspect matches the Ability Cards, they influence each other and provide mutual enhancement. In other words, Solyn now, even though his Breathing Method is only at stage two, can exhibit strength similar to stage three.

"At the same time, because of the advancement, every aspect of his body’s strength has improved—stamina, endurance, reaction time, eyesight, raw power, and so on. Each area may not have increased dramatically, but combined they create a huge gap.

"This is just the early stage. After some time, Solyn could single-handedly take on nearly half the class that hasn't advanced yet." Sylutia continued explaining.

The suppression caused by Aspect tier differences is terrifying; only those who have experienced it can truly understand.

The fight began. The three students who had reached Breathing Method stage two moved in with training swords, coordinating their attack. Their steps were quick and steady, their swordsmanship practiced and flexible, leaving no obvious openings for the onlookers to spot.

Yet amid that encirclement, Solyn casually stepped out of the ring, changed his footing, surged forward, and with a single strike he split one student's training sword and kicked him away.

When the other two realized what was happening, they attacked. Solyn nimbly dodged, used his sword to block one attack, then suddenly grabbed that opponent's wrist, pulled him off balance, and kicked him in the rear, sending him sprawling.

As for the last opponent, the outcome was obvious without fighting.

He moved through the entire sequence with effortless skill. If they had not been classmates, he would have used the blade to cut or the point to finish it faster.

Seeing the result, the whole field was stunned. Only then did many students clearly recognize the enormous gap brought by a condensed Aspect.

"Although the Bloodline Aspect doesn't have a wide variety of abilities, its advantage is comprehensively enhancing the body. Only the Dragon Eye Aspect might surpass it in that regard." Yero stood nearby explaining to the students beside him.

"Senior Yero, what about Blazing Sun?" someone asked quietly, wanting to know whether Solyn was stronger now or if Iona remained superior.

"Blazing Sun can also increase stamina, endurance, and recovery speed, but it doesn't strengthen overall physique as much as Bloodline does. However, Blazing Sun's influence spans many areas; its application is far broader than Bloodline." Yero shook his head slightly. He thought that for now Solyn still couldn't catch up to Iona's power, but the gap between them had indeed narrowed.

After this match, all the students were stirred by the idea of advancing. Many hurriedly prepared, hoping they would be the next to break through.

After class, many gathered around Scholar Heide, asking how to advance. Scholar Heide had to hold a special lesson to explain.

"Since everyone seems quite concerned, I'll briefly introduce advancement methods suitable for your current level.

"First, the simplest and most direct path: break your Breathing Method through to the third stage. Relying on the Breathing Method's powerful Bloodline infusion ability, let your Fate Card complete its breakthrough." He pointed to the blackboard.

"Second, follow Solyn's path: cultivate two Bloodline Aspect abilities. When both reach stage two, their combined force will temper the Fate Card and trigger its breakthrough."

"The last method…" Scholar Heide hesitated for a moment but went on.

"The last method isn't recommended, but if someone truly cannot advance, it's the only other path to try."

"That is to use spirit medicines or rare artifacts containing the Bloodline Aspect to cause your Fate Card to transform. You all know the nature of such medicines and artifacts—expensive and extremely rare."

"Or, some of you might not want to take the Bloodline path and have other plans, for example the more common Royal Authority route.

"When your physique and abilities can bear it, and a lord is willing to ennoble you, you can share in his Royal Authority. He may grant you the Castle Aspect rank, enabling your transformation."

Hearing this, Sylutia remembered Captain Frien, who had accepted Baron Horlin's ennoblement and become a First Tier Castle rank.

It seems the ways to advance in this world are varied and abundant. Ultimately, which path to take depends on each individual's choice.