Chapter 73: Your Strategy Guide Is a Bit Difficult
The power of the Blood Beast not only increases as Su Xiao's aura grows stronger, but his three melee attributes also enhance its might.
When he first obtained the Blood Beast, its total damage intensity was 3284 points, but it had now reached 4246 points. The Blood Beast was not an SSS-rank constant-type talent but a growth-type talent, growing more powerful as Su Xiao became stronger—that was where its true strength lay.
As he left the Skill Upgrade Hall, Su Xiao glanced at his Charm attribute. The remaining 3 points of Charm had turned red, but these last 3 points were surprisingly tenacious. Although they showed a tendency to slip, it shouldn't be a problem in the short term. Clearly, once Charm dropped to a certain low, lowering it further wasn't easy either.
The earlier enhancement of Blood Qi had consumed a fair amount of Su Xiao's stamina. He headed straight to Xia's restaurant, planning to have a hearty meal before checking out the newly unlocked facility—the Trial Grounds: Land of All Beings.
Inside Xia's Restaurant.
Jingle~
The doorbell chimed crisply. Most shops didn't have such a thing, but Xia's restaurant was different. Whenever the bell rang, it meant a guest had arrived to eat, potentially saving the nearly bankrupt Xia.
"Welcome... what would you like to eat?"
Seeing Su Xiao, an old regular, Xia put away her professional smile and brushed a strand of hair behind her ear. Noticing that Amu wasn't following behind him, she quietly breathed a sigh of relief.
"Anything."
"Again with 'anything'—that's the hardest one, you know. Let me think..."
The beautiful chef Xia pondered for a moment before walking into the kitchen.
Twenty minutes later, Su Xiao was chewing heartily on the delicious food. Xia's cooking had clearly improved, yet business had become slower—which was very unscientific.
"You've been to a War World recently."
Xia, sitting across from Su Xiao, wrinkled her nose. Having just enhanced his Blood Qi, Su Xiao inevitably carried a faint smell of blood.
"No, I haven't killed many people lately."
Su Xiao mumbled indistinctly, which was true. Most of what he had killed in the last world were Nether Spirits.
"Is it because of your abilities?"
Xia leaned forward slightly, as if she wanted to say something but found it hard to bring up.
"Yeah."
"..."
The restaurant fell silent, leaving only the sound of Su Xiao chewing.
"Uh~, I recently went through a very dangerous world, but there's always one problem. When I encounter an enemy with a strong aura, I feel instinctive fear—that sensation of tightness in my lower abdomen and weak legs. You experience that too, right?"
"I've... probably experienced it."
"Hey, what kind of look is that? I haven't actually wet myself from fear. So anyway, I want you to release your aura and let me train in a safe environment for a while. At least so I won't have weak legs when running from a strong enemy."
"..."
Su Xiao paused mid-bite, looked up at Xia. Xia smiled charmingly, making her even more attractive. At first glance, Xia didn't seem particularly stunning; she was the type that grew on you.
"Are you sure?"
"Definitely, I really want to train myself."
"No, you don't."
Su Xiao continued eating.
"Don't be so stingy."
"Go find Amu."
Su Xiao had just enhanced his Blood Qi, so of course he wouldn't release it. For the next two days, he wouldn't be able to fully control his aura—it would take time to adapt.
"Oh, right, there's one more thing. I went into the Akame ga Kill world before. Following the strategy guide you gave me, I almost died. It's probably my own fault, but I got a lot of rewards. So... do you have any similar guides?"
"Did you follow the method I provided to complete the mission?"
"Yeah."
"That was for your reference."
"Huh? Wasn't it tailor-made for me?"
"No, you're overthinking it."
"Could it be..."
Xia stared at Su Xiao in shock, her mouth slightly open.
"You didn't die—you're really lucky. Next time, follow the intel provided by Bubu Wang to complete the mission. My part was just a reference."
Su Xiao paid the bill and left the restaurant, heading straight for the Trial Grounds.
[Hunter has entered the Trial Grounds. Please select a mode.]
[Assist Mode / Combat Mode]
Su Xiao ignored the mode selection and scrolled down, quickly finding [Land of All Beings].
[To enter the first layer of the Land of All Beings, 50,000 Paradise Coins are required per hour. The Land of All Beings has seven layers.]
[Land of All Beings Layer 1: 50,000 Paradise Coins per hour.]
[Land of All Beings Layer 2: 100,000 Paradise Coins per hour.]
[Land of All Beings Layer 3: 300,000 Paradise Coins per hour.]
[Land of All Beings Layers 4–7: No entry permission.]
...
The Land of All Beings had no specific description, but the usage fee was exorbitantly high. Even the most basic layer cost 50,000 Paradise Coins per hour.
Su Xiao still had 1.56 million Paradise Coins. These coins were earned through life-risking efforts, so he certainly wouldn't waste them. Therefore, he chose to enter Layer 1 of the Land of All Beings, intending to give it a try first.
White light flickered on the ground beneath Su Xiao's feet, quickly forming a teleportation array pattern. The next moment, Su Xiao found himself in a courtyard.
The courtyard was surrounded by a fence made of branches. Inside stood a willow tree with drooping slender branches, and behind it was a small thatched cottage. Beyond the half-meter-high fence stretched an endless grassland, where a gentle breeze blew, making it look like a vast green ocean.
Su Xiao stood in the fenced yard. His feeling was that this place was perfect for meditation—no, meditating here would be a waste. This place was better suited for practicing swordsmanship.
He had already confirmed that he hadn't arrived here in consciousness alone; his entire body had been teleported here.
Drawing the Dragon-Slaying Flash from his waist, Su Xiao slashed through the air. A silver blade glow appeared in midair and slowly dissipated.
As soon as Su Xiao made that slash, dozens of silhouettes appeared around him. These silhouettes were all human-shaped—male and female, young and old. They shared one common trait: they all used blades.
Dozens of figures slashed simultaneously, all horizontal cuts. Among them, a few strikes were exceptionally sharp, feeling like at least Blade Grandmaster Lv.30 or above. Su Xiao couldn't determine the exact level, but these figures' slashing speeds were not fast, as if deliberately slowed down so Su Xiao could clearly see their stances and techniques.
After making their slashes, the figures slowly dissipated. Su Xiao pondered for a moment, his eyes growing brighter. He now understood the function of the Land of All Beings—it was a place to refine swordsmanship or train other techniques.
Su Xiao sheathed the Dragon-Slaying Flash at his waist, holding the scabbard in one hand and the hilt in the other.
'Ring Break.'
Clang!
A pale blue ring-shaped blade glow spread outward, cutting through the thatched cottage and willow tree, which were instantly repaired.
The ring-shaped slash expanded for several dozen meters before dissipating. Su Xiao's eyes scanned the surroundings, and soon, translucent figures appeared one after another. Some held their blades with one hand, others crouched in various stances.
Clang, clang...
Ring-shaped slashes similar to Ring Break spread around Su Xiao. These slashes weren't solid; they passed directly through his body.
Su Xiao's gaze locked onto an old man with short graying hair, wearing light armor. The move the old man had just used was very similar to Ring Break, but far more powerful.
The figures dissipated. By now, Su Xiao had fully confirmed that the Land of All Beings was a place for self-developing swordsmanship techniques. For example, just now, he had witnessed dozens of moves similar to Ring Break. This allowed him to learn from their strengths and weaknesses, thereby perfecting Ring Break. After all, Ring Break was a move Su Xiao had developed himself—it wasn't a skill and could receive boosts from all his passive abilities.
If Su Xiao wanted to perfect or develop techniques, this was the best place. It completely surpassed the "master-teaches-apprentice" method. A master teaching an apprentice was one-on-one, and even the master might have things they didn't understand.
The Land of All Beings, on the other hand, manifested dozens of blade-wielding masters. If Su Xiao wanted to develop a technique, he only needed the most basic concept. Even if his execution had many flaws, the Land of All Beings would manifest illusions of blade masters who mastered similar techniques, letting them demonstrate comparable abilities. Su Xiao could draw inspiration from them to develop new sword techniques. These abilities would all suit him well, since they were self-developed and self-explored.
For now, Su Xiao needed to perfect Ring Break first before considering developing other abilities. He gripped the sword hilt with one hand. Having already used Ring Break once, as soon as he assumed its starting stance, translucent figures appeared around him, each adopting various opening stances.