Chapter 73: Soaring Strength
As soon as he picked up the three Soul Crystals (Medium), Su Xiao attempted to upgrade Blade Master. [Upgrading Blade Master Lv.10 requires Soul Crystal (Medium) ×1 and 6000 Paradise Coins.]
Although the price wasn't low, it was within Su Xiao's means. If he wanted to quickly grow stronger, upgrading Blade Master was undoubtedly the best choice.
The Soul Crystals (Medium) in his hand shattered, and his Paradise Coins rapidly decreased.
[Blade Master has been upgraded to Lv.11.] [Blade Master has been upgraded to Lv.12.] [Blade Master has been upgraded to Lv.13.]
Three Soul Crystals (Medium) and 18,000 Paradise Coins were consumed in an instant. These were all obtained by Su Xiao at the risk of his life, but the consumption was worth it—he had become stronger.
Half an hour later, Su Xiao opened his eyes. Dragon-Slaying Flash appeared in his hand, and the feeling of holding the blade was vastly different from before.
The strengthening didn't end there. Su Xiao picked up the [Swordsman's Sword Technique Manual]. This item could raise Blade Master by 5 levels.
[Yes/No to use the Swordsman's Sword Technique Manual.]
He chose to use it. The surrounding space surged, and Su Xiao was startled—this was a precursor to being teleported.
Light and shadow flickered before his eyes, and Su Xiao arrived at a dojo.
Looking around, Su Xiao felt a sense of familiarity.
"This is... a training ground?"
Su Xiao was puzzled. How could using a scroll bring him to a training ground?
"My disciple, let's begin."
A vigorous voice came from nearby. Su Xiao focused his gaze and saw a robust old man with a head full of fluffy golden hair and half a ship's wheel stuck in his scalp. From a distance, he looked like a golden-feathered rooster.
This was the Flying Pirate of the One Piece world, Gold Lion Shiki—a notorious great pirate. What the hell was this?
Su Xiao was baffled. He had previously thought that using the Swordsman's Sword Technique Manual would directly raise Blade Master by 5 levels.
But now it seemed that wasn't the case. This was letting Shiki personally instruct him until his Blade Master improved by 5 levels, after which Shiki would disappear.
Although it differed from his expectations, Su Xiao was overjoyed. This was far more reliable than a jump in Blade Master levels.
If a native of the One Piece world had obtained the [Swordsman's Sword Technique Manual], they would need to study it slowly to improve their strength.
Now, the [Swordsman's Sword Technique Manual] had been certified by Reincarnation Paradise and judged as Dark Purple quality. So Reincarnation Paradise had skipped the study process and transformed it into the current method.
[Assisted Training Mode has been activated.]
With the prompt from Reincarnation Paradise, Su Xiao's mind became clear, and his ability to comprehend things greatly improved.
[Time lock complete. This scene will disappear after the Hunter's Blade Master or Sword Master increases by 5 levels. During this period, the Hunter must fully focus on improving Blade Master or Sword Master. If the Hunter is found engaging in other behaviors, the scene will terminate.]
Su Xiao nodded. Dark Purple quality items were vastly different from Purple ones.
"Don't just stand there. Let's begin."
Shiki urged Su Xiao. Su Xiao drew Dragon-Slaying Flash. Shiki gave him a strange feeling—it seemed the man would only impart knowledge related to Blade Master or Sword Master.
"First, you need to understand what a sword is. What is the will behind your swing..."
Shiki unreservedly passed on his knowledge to Su Xiao. Su Xiao listened intently, like a dry sponge rapidly absorbing "moisture."
After explaining for a while, Shiki drew the two swords at his waist, "Sakuraju" and "Kareki."
The sound of weapons clashing rang out. Within a few minutes, Su Xiao was defeated, and Shiki hadn't even used his full strength.
"Your fundamentals are solid, but your strikes lack something."
Shiki sat cross-legged on the ground, his legs intact—not replaced by two swords.
"In the early stages of swordsmanship, it's about strength and technique. But at higher levels, it's different. What's called swordsmanship isn't just the skill of using a sword; it's a process of growing stronger—self-realization, realization of the heart, realization of the sword, and even realization of nature."
Shiki swung his sword in the air. Flames coiled around the blade of "Sakuraju," and a wave of heat rushed toward Su Xiao.
"Remember, practicing swordsmanship is a process of constantly breaking through yourself, growing stronger from the inside out. At your current level, don't worry about basic movements. Slashing, cutting, thrusting—these actions are already in your blood. You can instinctively perform the most standard moves."
Su Xiao remained silent. He didn't want to interrupt Shiki's teaching. This kind of instruction was too precious.
"Don't be confused. Don't doubt. Whether your swordsmanship is used to kill or to save, it's your own skill. Acknowledge it, accept it, understand it, and keep getting stronger. Swordsmanship has no limits."
Su Xiao drew Dragon-Slaying Flash, relaxed his body and mind, and casually swung a slash.
...
The upgrade of Blade Master began. Under Shiki's guidance, Su Xiao's understanding of his weapon deepened. He was immersed in the process of growing stronger.
After an unknown amount of time, a prompt from Reincarnation Paradise suddenly appeared.
[Blade Master has been upgraded to Lv.18.]
With the prompt from Reincarnation Paradise, the scene before Su Xiao changed. Shiki disappeared, the dojo disappeared, and he returned to his Exclusive Room.
Although he felt reluctant, there was nothing he could do. His Blade Master had increased by 5 levels.
"Realization of the heart, the blade, and nature... a process of growing stronger from the inside out. That makes sense."
Su Xiao swung his blade. Dragon-Slaying Flash cut through the air, letting out a whimper.
Zheng.
A pale blue Blade Aura detached from the edge of Dragon-Slaying Flash, leaving a cut mark on a nearby refrigerator.
Su Xiao was stunned. He looked down at Dragon-Slaying Flash, then up at the shallow cut on the refrigerator.
He had just unleashed a Blade Aura!
A smile involuntarily appeared on Su Xiao's face. Although the power of the Blade Aura he unleashed was very weak, it was a signal—his Blade Master had fully reached a supernatural level, allowing him to project Blade Aura.
This was the beginning of a legend. Without being able to unleash Blade Aura, swordsmanship would forever be confined to the mundane, merely wielding a weapon. Being able to unleash Blade Aura was a watershed moment.
Su Xiao had a premonition that when Blade Master reached Lv.20, the power of his Blade Aura would greatly increase, perhaps even matching the power of his melee strikes.
He unleashed a few more Blade Auras. Although their power was unimpressive, they were incredibly flashy, and the feeling of swinging his blade to strike at a distance was satisfying.
Su Xiao sheathed Dragon-Slaying Flash and quickly walked out of his Exclusive Room with Bubu Wang, heading straight for the Arena.
Arriving at the Arena, after a long wait, he matched with a contractor ranked 17th in the First Rank of the Arena.
Five minutes later, Su Xiao walked out of the Arena, gaining a new understanding of his current strength. That contractor ranked 17th was somewhat unlucky—she was a mage, a beautiful blood mage.
After being slashed twice by Su Xiao, the beautiful mage directly chose to surrender. The reason was that her staff wasn't suitable for close combat, and as for skills, she couldn't cast them while enduring Su Xiao's slashes.
If Su Xiao's previous combat power was 100, his current combat power was at least 200 and climbing.
Blade Master was his main combat method. Having raised Blade Master by a full 8 levels, this level of combat power wasn't exaggerated.
[Blade Master (Passive)]
Skill Effect: Increases blade-type weapon attack power by 77%, greatly improves blade technique.
Lv.10 Additional Ability:
Rhythm of All Things (Advanced): This ability cannot be enhanced in Reincarnation Paradise and can only be realized by the Hunter through personal insight.
...
No matter how he looked at it, the current Blade Master was somewhat terrifying.
In a great mood, Su Xiao returned to his Exclusive Room. Along the way, he even bought Bubu Wang 800 Paradise Coins' worth of premium snacks. This made Bubu Wang ecstatic, rolling around in a pile of snacks.
Sitting cross-legged on his bed, Su Xiao took out a pile of Scarlet Cards and three treasure chests.
Scarlet Cards ×10, Blue Treasure Chest ×2, Purple Treasure Chest ×1.
Flicking the Destiny Redemption lighter in his hand, the "Lucky King" moment had arrived.