Chapter 118: Warlord Invitation Letter
Hearing Rayleigh's words, Ian nodded and said, "Mr. Rayleigh, my main focus is swordsmanship!"
Rayleigh wasn't particularly surprised by this. After seeing Ian's blade yesterday, he had already roughly guessed as much, so he drew a longsword and said to Ian, "Come on!"
Rayleigh's sword was a true sword in the literal sense—double-edged, with a straight blade. Ian didn't know what the sword was called, but he estimated it must be a famous blade. Watching Rayleigh stand casually in place with his sword, Ian didn't dare to be careless in the slightest.
The exchange began. Ian charged forward with his blade, launching an attack on Rayleigh.
Whether it was slashing, cleaving, cutting, or slicing—since Rayleigh only focused on blocking during their exchange, Ian immersed himself in the moment, concentrating fully on his offense. The Enma Sword moved fluidly and naturally in his hands, and the swordsmanship Koushirou had taught him was unleashed one technique after another. This could be considered the culmination of everything he had learned so far...
Both Ian and Rayleigh moved at an incredibly fast pace. Ian had thought his speed was already impressive, but he hadn't expected Rayleigh to be even faster. Every block Rayleigh made seemed effortless and composed.
Each time their blades clashed, a metallic sound rang out. This sound continued for a while, and within just half a minute, the two had exchanged over a hundred strikes!
Of course, throughout this process, Ian didn't use any Psychic Power. He had come specifically to learn Haki, and if Rayleigh mistook his Psychic Power for Haki, that would be disastrous. Haki required awakening first, followed by training—the steps couldn't be mixed up. If Rayleigh skipped the awakening step due to misunderstanding, Ian would be the one to suffer in the end.
At this point, Rayleigh suddenly stepped back, and Ian stopped as well.
"Good. I can see your swordsmanship foundation is quite solid. It must have come from a skilled teacher," Rayleigh said with a satisfied nod. "There's nothing more I can teach you about swordsmanship."
"Yes, I mainly want to learn physical combat and Haki from you," Ian said.
"Haki is actually gradually developed on the basis of physical combat," Rayleigh explained. "So, let me first guide you in physical combat."
At Rayleigh's gesture, Ian walked over and sat down cross-legged facing him.
"Now, I'll teach you a specific breathing method," Rayleigh said. "The training of physical combat is simple in some ways and difficult in others. The key lies in this breathing technique. A correct breathing method allows the body's muscles and internal organs to receive sufficient oxygen supply, thereby accelerating the results of training."
Ian listened quietly. As Rayleigh explained, Ian tried to follow along and do as he was told.
The breathing method Rayleigh taught him was strange. Normally, when people breathe, they inhale oxygen, but when they exhale, they also release some oxygen—meaning that portion isn't absorbed by the body. However, according to Rayleigh's method, Ian had to use this new breathing technique to absorb all the oxygen components.
At first, Ian couldn't manage it at all, but Rayleigh patiently explained each step to him.
Gradually, when Ian grasped some tricks and could complete this breathing method, he suddenly noticed that with each breath, his body felt different.
It felt stronger and more alert...
"Good. Now that you've mastered this breathing method, you must make it instinctual," Rayleigh said. "Then, integrate it into your daily training."
Over the next few days, Ian consciously controlled every breath he took according to Rayleigh's method. As time passed, he gradually got used to this breathing style, and then his nightmare began.
Rayleigh officially started his physical combat training. After learning that Ian wasn't a Devil Fruit User, the first thing every morning was to have Ian swim ten kilometers in the sea!
The 34th Red Tree was located at the edge of the island, so swimming was easy, but swimming ten kilometers was a killer. A round trip meant twenty kilometers!
At first, Ian strictly followed Rayleigh's instructions, maintaining the special breathing method while swimming. But as his stamina gradually drained, his breathing began to fall apart.
On the first day, he only managed about five kilometers before he couldn't go on. If he hadn't been wearing a flotation device, he probably would have drowned.
Even so, Ian gritted his teeth and persisted, lasting longer each day.
During this period of training with Rayleigh, Ian didn't personally hunt pirates anymore. He left that to his family's subordinates, targeting only small-time pirates with bounties of ten to twenty million Berry.
As Ian had thought, never underestimate these people's potential. When there were enough of them, they could still catch pirates at that level, so the family's livelihood was maintained in the short term. Ian focused entirely on learning from Rayleigh.
As for the money from the check, Ian had withdrawn it. Although Rayleigh didn't charge tuition, Ian still fulfilled his duty as a student. After each day's training, Rayleigh liked to go gamble a bit, and Ian used that money to cover Rayleigh's gambling expenses.
Over time, Ian found it a bit strange. Rayleigh was so powerful, but why did he always lose when gambling?
When Ian brought this up, Rayleigh laughed heartily and said, "If I had to cheat while gambling, what fun would there be in it?"
Hearing this answer, Ian couldn't help but shake his head. He didn't understand this philosophy either.
Although the bounty money from capturing Lucius hadn't been used to recharge and draw cards, Ian felt it was worth it. Compared to the money-grubbing system, Rayleigh's gambling expenses were at least lower—over the course of a month, it only cost about eight million Berry...
Rayleigh gambled purely for the enjoyment, not to the point of betting recklessly.
When staying with Rayleigh, Ian always maintained the proper attitude of a student, treating Rayleigh the same way he had treated Koushirou in Shimotsuki Village.
Rayleigh didn't say much, but he was quite satisfied with Ian. Ian's talent wasn't great, but he was willing to work hard. Rayleigh had actually gone back to visit Shakky once during this time and naturally learned about Ian from her.
He not only found out about Ian's affairs but also heard from Shakky about Ian's views on pirates and the Marines.
Rayleigh never brought this up with Ian, but he became even more dedicated in his teaching. Once Ian could complete a full twenty-kilometer round trip swim, Rayleigh started adding more training.
Rayleigh's training was quite harsh, but Ian gritted his teeth and pushed through.
Thus, after two months passed, Ian's body had grown much stronger, and finally, a system notification sounded in his mind.
"You have learned the Basic Physical Combat Training skill!"
Ian opened the system to check.
[Basic Physical Combat Training: Increases all attributes by 5%. Current Proficiency (0/20000)]
Ian was surprised. He hadn't expected the Physical Combat Training skill to have such an effect.
It increased all attributes by a percentage! That meant as his level increased and his attributes grew, the benefits from the Physical Combat Training skill would become even greater!
Ian's three basic skills had all been acquired differently. The Swordsmanship skill had been there from the start, likely formed from the original body's long-term training. The Nen Training skill was obtained after equipping the first card. Only the Physical Combat skill was earned through Ian's own efforts.
Besides increasing attributes, the most crucial point was that it meant Ian could finally use the skills from certain physical combat-type cards!
The appearance of the Basic Physical Combat Training skill made Ian train even harder.
However, as training progressed, Ian also noticed that the proficiency growth for this skill was difficult. For example, on the first day, swimming twenty kilometers gave him 20 proficiency points, but swimming the same distance the next day only gave 19 points. It seemed that the same training method yielded diminishing returns.
Ian guessed this was tied to his improving physique. In other words, if he wanted to maintain the same growth rate, he would have to keep increasing his training intensity.
Becoming stronger wasn't easy, but Ian was giving it his all for the sake of power.
The gradual development of his physical combat skills brought obvious benefits. He noticed that his swordsmanship seemed to improve, though this wasn't reflected in the Swordsmanship skill's proficiency. Still, he felt it—like when his Nen Training skill advanced and his Expert-level Swordsmanship became less obscure. It was that same feeling.
This made Ian realize that even skills at the same stage had subtle details and levels...
As the days passed in this training, one day, when Ian dragged his exhausted body back to the base, Hogkin told him that a friend had come to visit!
Ian was puzzled. On this Sabaody Archipelago, where did he have any friends?
But when he walked into the rebuilt house and saw who it was, he understood. The person with their back to him—who else could it be but Ace?
"Ian, you're back?" Ace turned around at the sound of footsteps, his cheeks puffed out as he ate the food Lorin and Elena had prepared for him. He said between bites, "It wasn't easy finding you!"
"You're on Sabaody too?" Ian asked, a bit stunned.
"Yeah!" Ace nodded. "After we parted that day, me and my crew have been traveling along the route. It wasn't easy getting here!"
Ian sat down and asked him, "Are you heading to the New World next?"
"Of course!" Ace adjusted his hat and grinned. "My ship is already being coated! I came to ask you something."
"What is it?" Ian asked.
"This!" Ace pulled out a piece of paper that looked like an invitation. "A strange bat delivered this to me. It says they want to invite me to join the Seven Warlords of the Sea..."