"Among swordsmen, the release of sword energy is one of the most important steps to becoming a sword god." Fred explained as Ketis returned from her match against the overcautious Gelic. "Some swordmasters are incapable of unleashing it. You can imagine how rare and difficult it is for sword initiates to accomplish something similar at their stage. If the higher ups of our state hasn't paid much attention to you before, then it is definitely different from now! Each sword initiate who can manifest an attack to this degree is a treasure!"

The old scammer was all smiles right now. He had plenty of reasons to be jubilant! The amazing prowess that Ketis had just displayed practically tripled the interest in his sword school!

​​

There were countless people in the Heavensword Association who dreamt of unleashing energy attacks just by swinging their swords. It not only looked awesome, but also solved one of the greatest weaknesses of swordsmen and swordsman mech pilots: lack of range!

Ketis didn't look too happy, though. While she managed to minimize her physical exertion, the sword energy release set back her mental recovery. Sharpie felt a little more deflated than before and it became harder for her to focus her mind.

Everything had a price! Even mystical sword energy attacks had to come from somewhere!

The strange part about this was that she possessed a lot more energy than she expected. She also recharged fairly quickly. She chalked this up to yet another quirk of her unusual state.

That said, when Venerable Dise derived the Executioner technique from a Swordmaiden battle formation, her results were considerably worse.

Unlike the Sword of Lydia, the Executioner was a much more elaborate and advanced technique. It involved several difficult principles that Venerable Dise wouldn't have been able to grasp if she didn't have the luxury of referencing her battle formations!

The technique that Dise passed on to Ketis was very rudimentary and still a work in progress. One of its major flaws was its low efficiency. It took too much energy to unleash the Executioner!

Fred grinned. "I don't think your future opponents will allow you to pull off this technique again. You can count the number of sword initiates who can propagate sword energy on one hand, maybe two if a couple of them have done a good job at hiding their strength. This means that they will essentially turn themselves into target dummies if they stupidly maintain their distance while you are charging up your attack. They have to get close and keep you occupied."

"That also plays in my hands." Ketis confidently responded. "The entire reason why I pulled off the Executioner to begin with was because my previous opponent insisted on staying out of my reach. As long as my opponents get close, I can utilize both of my sword styles to cut them apart!"

Learning the Executioner attack neatly solved her greatest weakness in her current state!

She had already formed a complete system. With the extraordinary characteristics of her two sword styles, she was an incredibly formidable threat at point-blank range. Now that she had a ranged solution in her arsenal, not even the fast and mobile types like Ivan Reid posed an insurmountable threat to her anymore!

The matches continued. Each time she stepped onto the arena, she stood proudly and exuded an indomitable vibe. It was as if her silent posture already signalled that she was bound to win the match!

The opponents she faced in the next couple of days became increasingly stronger, but no outliers had appeared for the moment.

This meant that each of them had to face a very difficult dilemma. They could choose to employ a cautious strategy and attempt to leverage their mobility to evade Ketis' attacks. They could also choose to attack her head-on and attempt to take advantage of her temporary weakness to avoid getting hit by her blade.

They all failed.

Ketis was slowly recovering with each day that passed. Fred constantly taught her the ins and outs of how to cultivate her swordsmanship according to the methods of the Heavensword Association. It became easier and easier for her to empower her attacks!

Her mentality also shifted. She frequently switched between the Swordmaiden Sword Style and the Annihilator Sword Style. Both of them possessed their own charm, and channeling them over and over slowly allowed her to develop her own insights in swordsmanship!

The advantage of possessing two separate sword styles was the same as having access to two different design philosophies!

Ketis was able to compare the two. This not only highlighted their common strengths, but also revealed their shortcomings. The contrast was so clear that she could easily recognize what needed to be changed in order to plug the weaknesses of either sword style.

"Maybe… this is how I'll be able to develop my own sword style!"

She was already generating some ideas about this endeavor. Due to her personal inclinations, she still planned to retain much of the Swordmaiden Sword Style. This would always be her starting point and anchor.

Every other sword style should be subordinate to her original style. Ketis did not intend to adopt the Annihilator Sword Style wholesale. Instead, she was content with plucking the most comfortable and desirable fruits from this tree.

She had to be very careful about this. Fred already warned her that combining sword styles mostly failed because of lack of compatibility!

This was also why there was no habit of directly exchanging techniques between sword schools. At most, the scriptures of their rivals could be used as reference material.

She continued to study, listen and read. She not only learned a wealth of knowledge from Fred, but also worked together with Venerable Dise to refine her two empowered moves.

Both the Sword of Lydia and the Executioner techniques became more controllable!

While her performance in the arena did not shift that much, secretly her combat prowess had soared!

She did not magically gain a lot of additional strength.

Instead, she was making better use of her existing potential. Her previous 'breakthrough' substantially increased her capacity, but it took a lot of time and effort to get accustomed to the new possibilities.

"I'm not sure I can still call myself a fake sword initiate anymore."

At some point, Ketis was able to replicate some of the charm of her two sword styles without leveraging Sharpie's help!

This was something that swordsmen invested a lot of years to accomplish!

Fred became shocked when he saw Ketis cutting through a practice pillar with Shiva!

Even though the saber did not completely pass through the thick pillar, the progress she made was record-breaking!

"If this is what you can truly accomplish without relying on any tricks, then you have definitely reached the standard of a pseudo-sword initiate!" He said. "It's only a matter of time before you become a genuine sword initiate!"

Ketis shrugged. "I was only able to progress this quickly because I am constantly able to reference the end point of my journey. It's like having all of the answers of a school exam."

"I don't think it's that simple, Ketis. If you aren't a pure and genuine swordswoman, you wouldn't have been able to comprehend any of the essence of the Annihilator Sword Style to begin with. I can't count the number of spoiled brats I've met who tried and failed to master a sword style because they were too dependent on the help and tutelage of swordmasters. Those types exist in our state as well."

She felt a bit prouder after he said that. Her determination to prove that she was not a fraud pushed her into making a serious effort into comprehending the Annihilator Sword Style!

Being able to reference the strength of a late-stage sword initiate by making use of Sharpie allowed her to avoid many detours and dead-ends. This was actually one of the primary reasons why swordsmen progressed so slowly or not at all. It was very difficult for other swordsmen to pass on this kind of understanding because everyone's situation was unique.

Yet Ketis was essentially able to compare herself to a future version of herself!

Whether it was cheating or not, she no longer quibbled over this issue. Plenty of powerful swordsmen took advantage of their own unique peculiarities.

Some were born with insane natural reflexes.

A handful of tournament participants possessed superhuman endurance.

Others merely took advantage of their family relations in order to receive privileged instruction!

Therefore, absolute fairness was not a realistic notion in the Heavensword Association.

Her rapid improvement in swordsmanship caused her to cherish this moment. Even if she dropped out of the solo tournament right away, her visit to the Heavensword Association was already one of the best periods of her life!

She still missed the Larkinson Clan though. One of the aspects she missed about her life was designing mechs. The tight tournament schedule did not grant her any opportunity to resume her primary profession!

Ketis looked forward to returning to the expeditionary fleet with all of her gains. Even if it was difficult for her to directly translate her progress in swordsmanship to her mech design career, there should be at least a bit of overlap!

She even began to speculate whether it was possible to incorporate her masteries into her mech designs!

However, she was not ready to go back to her old routine. Even as the Greater Omanderie Festival and its associated tournaments entered its later stages, Ketis felt it was her duty as a swordswoman to reach the limit of her capabilities. She had become fully caught up in the competitive spirit of the occasion!

Eventually, the match that would allow her to enter the top 100 loomed close. She had already reached the top 1000 some time ago. Whether it was a coincidence or not, she did not encounter any top seeds.

Secretly, she wondered whether the tournament organizers deliberately shuffled the matchups to prevent her from smashing the proud sons and daughters too early.

She didn't complain. The lack of strong opponents granted her ample time to recover her physical and mental states without exacerbating her existing conditions!

The few opponents who were able to defeat the old Ketis from before entering the tournament no longer posed a challenge to her! The difference in strength between a regular swordsman and a sword initiate was as great as the gap between a regular mech pilot and an expert candidate!

In a one-on-one fight, a sword initiate was virtually invincible against opponents who failed to grasp the essence of a sword style!

Unfortunately, just before she was about to enter the top 100, she finally bumped into a proper challenge.

"It was inevitable for you to reach this point." Fred spoke after he entered her practice yard. "Millions of swordsmen took part in this tournament. Many of them are average and only sought to get as far as their luck and skill could bring them. By now, they have all been eliminated by their betters. The swordsmen who remain up to this point are either sword initiates, pseudo-sword initiates or freaks who enjoy abnormal advantages."

Ketis pretty much belonged to the latter category.

"Just cut to the chase. Who is my next opponent?"

Fred looked serious. "It's a woman this time. Scipia Pepperin is a sword initiate who is a few years older than you. She is a seeded competitor and most betting agencies rank her between fifth and fifteenth. While she isn't the favorite to win the tournament, she is definitely able to contend against the top seeds!"

Whether she was stronger or weaker than Ivan Reid, she would never look down on Ketis after what had happened to her rival. Scipia would definitely approach the fight seriously from the very start and not let up until she definitely secured victory!

Ketis did not feel afraid. Instead, excitement and anticipation welled up inside her. Different from before, she had already returned to her peak condition.

She would be able to fight Scipia on a level playing field!