Chapter 2: The Spirit of War

Lin Rui was checking the information in his mind in his room.

War spirit number one: Xue Bogao (possession possible)

Learnable skills 45 entries: Red Thunder Saber (Grandmaster), Red Thunder Palm (Grandmaster), Thunder Fire Stance (Grandmaster), Pistol Proficiency (Master)...etcetera omitted

Copyable skills 9 entries: Red Thunder Saber (Grandmaster), Red Thunder Palm (Grandmaster), Thunder Fire Stance (Grandmaster), Pistol Proficiency (Master)...etcetera omitted

User Guide 1: Each war spirit holds a strong obsession, the more you use the power of the war spirit, the more frequent the use, the heavier the influence of the war spirit's obsession.

User Guide 2: The skills you can copy are closely related to your physical condition.

User Guide 3: Higher-level war spirit possession can cause damage to both body and soul, please pay attention to the level and duration of possession.

"War spirits?"

Surprise flashed in Lin Rui's eyes.

He could now confirm that the Skull Ring on his hand was indeed a divine item.

But what was this list all about?

Red Thunder Saber, Red Thunder Palm, and Thunder Fire Stance were quite popular basic martial arts of this era.

From the information listed, it seemed that Xue Bogao had practiced these three martial arts to the level of a grandmaster.

Coincidentally, those were the very martial arts that Lin Rui's original self had practiced.

There were also over forty other martial arts and skills listed, including knowledge of other species, infantry tactics, and even cooking, among others.

The levels of these skills varied, with some at the beginner level, some at the novice level, some at the adept level, some at the master level, some at the level of true insights, some fully achieved, and others at grandmaster and master levels.

One of the martial arts was named "Radiant Thunder God Refining Technique," which Lin Rui had heard was a very formidable high-level martial art that only a colonel-level martial artist could practice, and its level was also at master.

There were rumors in their district that Colonel Xue had the chance to be promoted to brigadier, and it seemed to be true.

Lin Rui pondered for a moment and had an epiphany.

He immediately grabbed his practice saber and couldn't wait to go to his backyard.

Their backyard was about eighty square meters, and it was there that Lin Rui usually practiced martial arts.

Staring at the 'Learnable Skills' section and the words 'Red Thunder Palm,' a string of information naturally appeared in his mind.

"Do you want to learn Red Thunder Palm?"

As Lin Rui chose yes with his thoughts, he suddenly felt a slight chill all over his body, and his limbs moved uncontrollably.

He first took a deep breath and then exhaled slowly, his palms and limbs beginning to circulate True Qi, as if an invisible force was flowing between his palms.

With the movement of Lin Rui's palms, the air around him seemed to heat up as well.

The temperature in his palms rapidly rose, turning a deep red with faint traces of electricity dancing in his palms.

Lin Rui's pupils suddenly constricted.

It was Colonel Xue, Xue Bogao!

Xue Bogao's war spirit was controlling his body, executing the Red Thunder Palm technique!

Xue Bogao executed each and every move with neither haste nor slowness, the speed following his will, allowing Lin Rui to profoundly understand just what a grandmaster-level Red Thunder Palm looked like.

Throughout the execution of the palm technique, segments of information appeared in Lin Rui's mind, including the essence of the moves and the cultivation method for the internal Qi.

Lin Rui could see that Xue Bogao's Red Thunder Palm far surpassed the original Lin Rui's level.

He had inherited some of Lin Rui's memories in the martial arts field, and in addition, his intelligence terminal wristband was filled with a massive amount of videos recorded from his childhood to adulthood, including every detail of his life.

This was the reason he hadn't been exposed in the past ten days, and why Lin Rui's friends and family had not detected anything amiss.

Those videos included recordings of the original practicing martial arts, and Lin Rui had also tried to mimic the videos to practice, but he had only learned the basics.

However, Lin Rui's Red Thunder Palm compared to Xue Bogao's was like the difference between mud and clouds, incommensurably different.

Lin Rui speculated that the so-called grandmaster level was not just about practicing the Red Thunder Palm to its peak, but also about transcending the original limitations, elevating the technique to a higher level of power.

After completing a set of Red Thunder Palm in the backyard, Lin Rui's limbs regained their freedom.

By then, he had gained a deep understanding of the Red Thunder Palm.

If he practiced by himself, he estimated that it wouldn't be long before he could reach the level of his original self.

Lin Rui then turned his gaze towards the 'Copyable Skills' section.

Does this skill-copying ability mean I could directly copy Grandmaster Xue Bogao's 'Red Thunder Palm'?

The assessment is tomorrow, and even with Xue Bogao's instruction, it's impossible to master this palm technique in such a short time.

But if I could directly copy Xue Bogao's martial arts, I would definitely be able to pass the heteromorphic combat assessment.

Lin Rui's attention focused on the 'Red Thunder Palm' in the list, and soon a stream of information surged into his mind.

"Copy Red Thunder Palm?"

Lin Rui chose 'Yes' without hesitation.

At that moment, he felt an excruciating pain in his temples, as countless pieces of information burst into his mind.

At the same time, Lin Rui also felt a severe, cramping pain in his limbs.

The pain was extremely intense and lasted for a long time before it subsided.

When Lin Rui recovered, a look of surprise appeared in his eyes.

He tentatively executed a few moves of the Red Thunder Palm and found, to his astonishment, that he exhibited the elegance and essence of Grandmaster Xue Bogao's level of the Red Thunder Palm.

All the subtleties and critical points of this Red Thunder Palm were deeply imprinted in his mind as though they were memories he always had.

"Is this copying? It's powerful, not only does it include plentiful combat experience, but it even copied the physical memory. What exactly is this Skull Ring that I have on my hand?"

He felt that when he was using the Red Thunder Palm, the movements of his limbs were incredibly agile and smooth, unified with his intent, as if they had become instinct after practicing day and night for decades.

Lin Rui was exhilarated and redirected his focus to the term 'Red Thunder Saber' in his mind.

"Copy Red Thunder Saber?"

As Lin Rui chose 'Yes,' his face once again showed a pained expression.

However, this pain was considerably weaker than before, probably because the Red Thunder Saber was derived from the same source as the Red Thunder Palm, and many of the techniques were similar.

After the pain faded, Lin Rui found his mood slightly agitated, with many distracting thoughts sprouting in his mind, some even violent and aggressive.

Lin Rui's expression gradually turned solemn as he thought of the content in 'usage instruction 1'—'The more you use the power of the battle spirit and the more frequently you use it, the more you are affected by the battle spirit's obsession.'

Lin Rui had initially wanted to copy the Grandmaster level Radiant Thunder God Refining Technique and to try out what the 'Possession' feature was all about.

But now he felt somewhat apprehensive.

In the end, Lin Rui decided to copy only the Radiant Thunder God Refining Technique. As for the Possession feature, he would wait and see how things went over the next few days before trying it out.

The Radiant Thunder God Refining Technique was crucial, directly influencing his future accumulation of True Qi and the effect of physical and spiritual training.

These three Grandmaster-level martial arts would not only enable him to pass the heteromorphic assessment but might even allow him to go a step further and try for the top ten in actual combat for the year!

Lin Rui drew his practice saber and began to execute his newly acquired Grandmaster-level Red Thunder Saber technique.

Just like with the Red Thunder Palm before, the saber technique seemed etched into his very bones, the long saber in his hand moving as if it were an extension of his arm.

But he had only practiced a few moves when he heard a light footstep.

"Who's there?"

A wave of uncontrollable anger and murderous intent surged within Lin Rui's heart, and the practice saber in his hand slashed out like a whip.

During the slashing motion, it even produced a streak of lightning as thick as a little finger.

However, Lin Rui's saber had only sliced halfway when he saw his sister Lin Xi's delicate face.

Lin Rui hurriedly pulled back and controlled the saber.

Fortunately, the Grandmaster-level Red Thunder Saber technique he copied included instinctive body movements, allowing him to wield the saber with complete control.

His practice saber stopped steadily three feet in front of Lin Xi's forehead.

Lin Xi's face turned deathly pale, and with her heart still racing, she stared at the saber blade in front of her, "Brother, what are you doing? Dinner is ready, I came to call you to eat."

Her voice trembled as she instinctively reached into her pocket, clutching the butterfly knife hidden there along with a small, unopened bottle of sleeping pills.

Lin Xi was certain, beyond a doubt, that in that moment just now, Lin Rui truly wanted to kill her!

The murderous intent was bone-chilling, sending shivers down her spine and goosebumps all over her body.

Lin Rui was completely unaware of Lin Xi's reaction.

He frowned deeply, his mood heavy.

The violent thoughts in his mind, and the murderous intent, undoubtedly originated from Xue Bogao's battle spirit. It seemed that copying abilities from the battle spirit came at a certain price.