[Skill]

Unstable Weak Sword Spirit

An inferior, middling version to Sword Qi, a representation of your current state of your internal energy, no different than a toddler struggling to take its first steps.

Any attacks made with Unstable Weak Sword Spirit will experience an increase of +1 Power. Additionally, your weapon will possess a greater durability. This skill can only be used with sword weapons.

Due to your lack of experience, there is a chance of spontaneous deactivation or blowback, resulting in severe damage to yourself or your weapon.

Jin Tiehan had taught Leona this skill personally: [Unstable Weak Sword Spirit], which was exactly as the System summarized… A pretty pathetic version of Sword Qi but she had to start somewhere. It’d be beneficial to have a point increase in Power for all of her sword-based attacks, and when the ball eventually got rolling, this skill would evolve and be personalized according to her efforts.

She couldn’t help but scowl at the lackluster appearance, however. Her [Ornate Jikdo] was shrouded in an opaque, grayish hue, bubbling like boiling water. It wasn't applied evenly across her blade. Nor didn’t it feel outstandingly powerful or significant.

A weak skill in the beginning but had the potential for monstrous effects later—was what she reminded herself, trying to temper her impatience.

At least she was able to develop the skill quickly. The learning process was similar to channeling, where you (aptly) channeled infused mana throughout your body but with a cultivator twist: drawing the purest mana you had from within your Krait. It took some imagination and focus but the [Weak Sword Spirit] was produced.

Jin Tiehan had said he was impressed that she could learn it at her rank, citing it as "evidence" that she was their daughter.

As the summary noted, this skill was a reflection of her current state. If gray and depressing was her state then it was pretty spot-on.

From the [Skill Breakdown], a mechanic where the System analyzed a skill to your benefit, it determined that her biggest issue was her mana nervous system, where it was too unrefined—in other words, her Magick was too low—to sufficiently use this skill. Which made sense considering her Magick was abysmal. As in, it was still in the F’s even after a week of combat.

That wouldn't significantly change any time soon; however, she could improve on her concentration and maintain the shroud as best as she could. To better establish foundations for future growth.

Leona exhaled, holding her [Ornate Jikdo] out. She glimpsed at the ugly color and shut her eyes. Her body churned. Tingles spread throughout her arms like pins and needles, and her chest shivered and pulsated. She imagined the days where it’d be her and her parents, where she sat before them taking in their philosophies of combat amongst the stars. The duty to protect the world. The pursuit of self-mastery.

She stepped forward, keeping this concentration throughout her steps as the mental load increased. The System helped but without her direct control, it’d falter and collapse immediately. Her heart raced in anticipation. Slowly—it was always beneficial to move slowly when attempting things for the first time—she raised her arms. After making sure the [Unstable Weak Sword Spirit] was still active, she swung down on the sandbag before her, propped on a table.

Sand sprayed across the field, a gash ripped into the fabric. The strike had been enhanced with [Sword Spirit] from its manifestation to its swordfall—an admittedly small difference but a successful difference. Upon impact, her focus wavered and the gray color vanished, leaving silver traces.

So this was what Althea felt when she was training her channeling skills. Although her mana was used to conduct elements, while Leona controlled its purest state.

Pure like polluted water.

She sighed and relaxed. Her mind felt like it took an exam.

“I’ve seen much worse, but yours is down there,” said an exhausted woman.

Leona turned around.

A Southeastern Asian woman was standing behind her wearing mint-colored robes that had a collage of different (and probably toxic) stains, of which the stench reached even Leona. Everything in life seemed to trouble her in mild inconveniences, so in an act of defiance she hated everything with a passion.

Her judgmental stare disturbed Leona, or maybe her discomfort was born from the heavy bags sagging under the woman's eyes.

“I didn’t expect to see you outside your basement,” Leona began, pouting, “Catalyst.”

The Journey of Alchemy, and the most valued of the five.

Catalyst canted her head, letting strands of her hair drop. Her hair was a marble cake of brown and white. “Neither would I because I had important work to be doing, but a heartless demon insisted that I needed to see 'the sun' but...!" She sarcastically gestured to the sky, where nobody had seen the sun in over a week. "Regardless, I told him in no uncertain terms that there is no reason for me to assist a martial princess and whatever specimen your partner is. You both are, to put it plainly, not worth my time. In normal circumstances."

Normally, Leona would feel some offense but this was Catalyst. She was notorious for stating things without care.

“So what are you here for?” asked Leona, wiping her lips.

She took out a small box from the inside of her robes, tossed it at Leona. “This.”

Leona caught it. It was a small polished redwood box, the same kind you used to store medicinal pills. “What pill is this?” she said as she opened it, revealing a small greenish-purple orb inside. Smelled foul.

“A mana cleansing pill designed for low-rankers to consume. It’ll flush your system and make leveling your Magick easier. Be sure to drink lots of water.”

Leona hummed and appraised it using the System.

[Consumable]

Low-Ranker’s Cleansing Pill [A]

Synthesized by the Journey of Alchemy, Catalyst, this pill removes waste throughout your mana nervous system to provide better foundations for future growth. It is most effective for low-rankers.

“An A-Rank consumable.”

“It is. I place the value at around a million standards, three-quarters at minimum—depends on the market. The average low-ranker wouldn’t be able to purchase it. Unless they are fantastic at budgeting.”

“I know,” Leona answered, picking up the pill. The texture was slimier than she thought. The [Cleansing Pill] was a luxury. As Catalyst said, low-rankers couldn’t acquire the funds to purchase one. Realistically, you'd spend most of your budget on equipment, maintenance, taxes, fees, and so on. It was like finding a bag of gold but literally everyone in the world wanted a cut, so at the end you were left with pennies.

The real customers were institutions like universities with Systemic Work programs. It was in these colleges’ best interest to provide the best faculties and resources for their junior Slayers. The most prestigious had connections with major guilds and companies, such as Ordo University and the Big Four. One example was this pill: first-years in Systemic Works would be given this for free.

“What’s your Magick rank?” asked Catalyst, shoving her hands into her robe’s pockets.

Leona hesitated but answered, knowing the reaction, “F8.”

The Journey opened her mouth to respond but stopped, her face visibly contorting. “That is pathetic. If you want to actually utilize your [Weak Sword Spirit] or any technique at all, you need to increase your Magick. What have you been doing these past years?”

“I’ve been studying Economics—”

“Economics!” Catalyst exclaimed sarcastically. “Good Lord, you wouldn’t find me anywhere near that field.” She huffed. “Well then, what do you want? I know you have questions from the irritating look on your face.”

Leona frowned, setting the pill back in its box. “I thought to ask an intelligent woman—" ("Uh huh.") "—for advice about my future development considering you're well-studied in systemic development—”

“I’m as well-studied as an encyclopedia.”

Continuing, “I’m wondering what I should focus on, to start. I have refinement techniques passed down to me by my parents—” (“Mhm.”) “—I have a laundry list of techniques to develop and complete—” (“Mhm.”) “—and I’m also dealing with an international crisis if you haven’t noticed already and it's stressful.”

“Yes, that's a small problem.” Catalyst took her hands out of her pockets and sighed, mumbling something and rubbing her face. “First of all, everyone's development path is different. Maybe I could spontaneously create a development plan step-by-step, have you follow it, but I don't have the time nor the energy so I'll give you general advice.

“As a low-ranker, forget about any body refinement techniques or whatever you inherited; while the reward seems promising, a single mistake could injure you permanently and you’ll ruin your development before you even start." Which is what Chunhua had said. "Instead, don’t do anything fancy. Literally, don’t think. Any imaginative idea you have? Kill it. Just train and exercise, and the System will recognize your efforts. Once you become a middle-ranker, then you can start focusing on these things.”

It was as Leona thought. Trying to develop [Divine War Saintess Heavenly Body] was a fool’s errand. At least being a low-ranker made things simple.

“Is that everything? I can’t afford to waste more time dilly-dallying,” asked Catalyst as she turned on her feet, poised to head back to her hermit-hole.

Leona nodded. “It is. Thank you for coming.”

The Journey hummed and walked away. She was as Shinzo described: a sour woman addicted to her work.

“Well, there’s only one thing left to do…” Leona said to herself, retrieving the [Low-Ranker’s Cleansing Pill] once more. These things tasted awful—she had taken some that provided temporary buffs.

She held her breath and popped the pill in, swallowed it. The effects were instantaneous. The contents seeped into her bloodstream and flooded her mana nervous system, felt like she was getting swept up in a riptide.

[Low-Ranker’s Cleansing Pill has been consumed!]

[Distributing…]

[Distributing…]

[Complete!]

[Impurities have been removed from your mana nervous system!]

The intense feeling subsided. God, she needed to drink at least a liter of water to remove the taste in her mouth.

She reactivated [Unstable Weak Sword Spirit]. The ugly storm-gray sheen was suddenly a tad lighter.

Now to practice.

~~~

Alexander watched as a boom rippled throughout the field, sending dirt everywhere and picking up a low-level cloud.

Some of the dust picked up, causing him to turn his head and cough. [A fraction of your power?]

Jin Tiehan nodded and replied back in Mandarin, [One-percent.]

[One-percent?]

[One-percent of one-percent of my total power,] he said, smiling. [I can make jokes as well.]

No one doubted your ability. Though no one would even think about doubting you. [Do you use this technique often?]

Jin Tiehan shook his head, then stopped mid-way, contemplating. [Yes and no. I haven't used [Mana Impact] in its barest form in years, but I had implemented it into other techniques. It's quite versatile. It’s what you would say: easy to learn but hard to master.]

[I can tell.]

[Mana Impact] was the technique that Jin Tiehan offered to teach him. You had to channel a dense concentration of mana into your fists and right at the moment of impact, you release it and create an explosive burst of power, boosting the physical strike. It requires precise timing to get it perfectly right, but once done your attack could be devastating.

Jin Tiehan had displayed the potential by performing the technique as an example, punching a sandbag with "one-percent of one-percent of his total power”.

Surprisingly the sandbag was still intact.

[It’s your turn,] urged Jin Tiehan, gesturing to Alexander to step forward and settle his grievances with the bag.

[Yeah.] Alexander raised his hands and channeled his mana exactly as Jin Tiehan had taught him. It was like someone had stuffed moving baseball into him. Its trek began at his chest then coursed through his right arm, ending in his hand. He allowed himself a few seconds to get comfortable with the feeling—in actual use, the channeling had to be done near-instantaneously, like the time between pulling the trigger and the hammer striking primer.

He exhaled, feeling the mana packed into his fist.

He’d done this thousands of times before.

So Alexander punched.

And his release was a few moments too late, leading to a pathetic discharge. All it amounted to was causing blowback into his hand and down his arm. Shooting pains. Thankfully he knew better than to use a lot of mana—even after receiving the [Cleansing Pill] from Catalyst—so the recoil stung like a bee’s.

Alexander shook his hand, sighing. The sandbag had a small rupture. [Almost,] he said.

[That was a good first attempt. Try again. You’ll learn the timing soon.] Jin Tiehan stepped back.

[I’m going to punch the air to nail it down,] warned Alexander, though it wasn’t like this guy needed a warning. He channeled the same concentration into both fists—about five to seven percent of what he could maximally bring—and began punching the air as though he was shadow-boxing.

Jin Tiehan stood at the side, hands behind his back, and watched with a peculiar expression. [How long have you studied?]

[What was that?] Alexander threw a quick few punches in succession but messed up the release each time. This was harder than he thought. He decided to make slow, deliberate punches instead of being fast and trying to brute force it.

[How long have you studied?] repeated Jin Tiehan. [I personally came out of the womb kicking.]

[I’m twenty-three now, so around fifteen years. Sixteen.] Alexander almost pulled it off but not quite. He kept going. [Why you ask? As Martial’s Vice, you have more important things to be doing. Not standing around and talking to me.]

[I’m speaking with one of the Team Leaders of Dawn Baptists. But I could pester Blackviper and see how she’s faring with the Alumnus. I prefer speaking to you, though, because I am intrigued by you, Jianyu.]

Alexander stopped punching, side-eyeing him. [You’re getting presumptuous, Vice Guild Master of Martial Guild, the Righteous Jin Tiehan, the Perfected Cultivator.]

[Ha, Blackviper dislikes it whenever I use her given name despite the time we spent together. She dislikes it whenever I say her real name in any given capacity. Although I know much about Fan Shengyi, she is Blackviper first and foremost.]

[Hmph.] Alexander continued his training. [Is that why you want to know so much about me?]

[What is?]

[The fact that I’m a natural-born fighter.]

[A prodigy,] Jin Tiehan insisted.

[Something like that.]

Jin Tiehan looked off to the side, where they had their short little spar.

Alexander had collected his mini-arsenal afterwards. It took some time cleaning the dirt off, especially out of the guns. Funnily enough, that was harder than trying to develop [Mana Impact].

[The way you fight is natural, flowing. Your mind is not restrained unlike most I have seen, where they are imprisoned by the dogmas of their teachings and incapable of branching out. You, however, switch between one state of combat to another while simultaneously scheming underhanded tricks to gain the advantage.

[If I was an ordinary man and had to be your opponent, I would treat you no differently than Blackviper: be deathly afraid.]

[I beat up a lot of bullies when I was in high school,] joked Alexander but it was true. He had fought dozens of times in High Home, and that wasn’t including the spars he had in Davidson’s Gym.

[Did any of them try to kill you?]

Alexander paused his training. [Once.]

[I see.]

Alexander didn’t realize he was biting his lip until he drew blood. He had almost died then, genuinely. Didn’t help that Prominence—the Vice Guild Master of Oasis—was still in Ordo somewhere, doing his job. Early into the week, Alexander had explicitly told Seraph that he would never work with Prominence unless he absolutely had to.

He hated that motherfucker more than the Sungrazers.

And through that anger, somehow, Alexander executed [Mana Impact]. Air blasted from his fist an inch out. It wasn’t powerful at all but he knew he had done it.

[I didn’t realize teenage trauma moved you so,] Jin Tiehan said with a smirk.

[Trauma is my superpower at this point.] Alexander looked down at his knuckles. The System hadn’t registered [Mana Impact] yet so he needed to do it a few more times.

So he did. It took about five minutes of air-boxing to execute the technique about seven more times. The first came after three minutes, and the rest arrived at smaller and smaller intervals.

Alexander approached the sandbag again, and this time he concentrated the most mana he could into his right fist.

He punched and executed the release perfectly. Even at his low Magick rank, his punch blew open the sandbag and blasted sand everywhere, the impact sounding similar to a small explosion.

As sand rained down on them, he received a notification.

[You have developed a new skill!]

[Skill]

Incomplete Mana Impact

A technique taught to you by the Perfected Cultivator, the Righteous Jin Tiehan. By condensing mana into your fists and releasing the load upon impact, you produce an explosive effect.

These are the minimum values to produce a notable effect.

15% Mana Density: +1 Power

50% Mana Density: +2 Power

100% Mana Density: +3 Power

Due to your inexperience with this skill, there is a chance of catastrophic failure that will cause severe damage to your body.

There you go, easy as pie. Whenever he put this skill in his active list, the System will aid Alexander in matching the timing but he still had to drive the car. For his own safety and development.

Looking further into the [Skill Breakdown], it looked like he could set specific mana density values for the System to follow. As great as it would be to consistently fire off [100% Mana Density] attacks, it'd be a great drain on his mana. [Mana Impact] at five percent would be good enough honestly, especially when combined with [Inexhaustible Ironfist Flurry].

It seemed the total percentage was based on his Constitution and Magick; the former dictated how much his body could condense mana safely and the latter had everything to do with mana. By increasing both stats, his body will be able to hold a greater mana density, have more mana to draw from, and produce greater impacts. Once he emerged as a true Slayer, this skill will be devastating.

God, he was going to be a Slayer after this shitshow. Low-rankers, middle-rankers, high-rankers. It had taken the B-Ranks in Alumnus three or so years to get there, and they had pretty much the perfect conditions you could get. Endless training regiments and personalized development plans and great diets, not to mention the discipline and inherent talent you needed to rank up that fast. Because the four (now three) B-Ranks had their ceilings capped in the S’s, they weren’t hitting the wall sooner unlike their peers.

And Alexander was years behind them. Not to mention his current unawakened Growth Potential; although he had an absurd number of buffs, he was feeling the wall. Besides, he didn't have to worry about that now. It took time to raise your stats, so it was better to develop skills as a foundation for later. They provided a bigger bang for your buck.

[Shen Jianyu, I assume the System recognized your efforts?] asked Jin Tiehan, holding a small smirk as Alexander had the [Skill Breakdown] screen up.

He nodded. [I’m looking at the breakdown of [Incomplete Mana Impact] right now. All I need is to improve my timing and it’ll be developed.]

[Mhm, don’t falter unless you’re intentionally seeking out a catastrophic failure. And…] Jin Tiehan paused, thinking. [...After we have defeated the Sungrazers and pushed out the Cosmic Beasts, what will you practice?]

[What do you mean?] Alexander cracked his knuckles, shaking off the soreness he built up. Even with [Iron Knuckles], it hurt. Just meant he could build up that skill too.

[Well, your partner is a murim-in. I am obviously a cultivator, the Alumnus each have their specialty and roles. But what about you? You’ll obviously be a combat specialist but in what form? Swordsmanship?]

[I’ll leave that to Leona.]

[Firearms?]

[Vernon.]

[What is it then?]

[I feel more comfortable having a variety tools at my disposal,] he answered truthfully. [If I have to agree with one thing in your assessment of me, it’d be the comment about restrictions.]

Jin Tiehan’s eyes widened a little bit. [You have an unrestricted mind, yes.]

[Mhm. I’d rather not tie myself to any particular form. I’d rather be reactive, adjusting myself according to my opponent, having more options than names in a phonebook.]

[A phonebook? That’s a dated comparison.] He smiled and nodded. [Normally I would say that’s a foolish decision. Being the jack of all trades is a losing strategy against a man who had conquered his niche. But with you? I suggest studying weapon creation magic.]

Weapon creation magic wasn’t a horrible idea, but… [I heard creation magic is difficult.]

[As with all magick. Alma will know more about this so excuse me if I make any mistakes, but consider creation magic to be a subset of conjuration given how precise your mental imaging has to be. Most rangers you’d see will have some form of projectile creation; and I believe Li Chunhua has a spear creation technique as well.]

[Is there any chance I could develop a creation skill within the day?]

[Impossible.]

Alexander laughed. [Figured. I’ll stick with building up my repertoire then.]

[So be it. I believe this is the best time to leave you to your own devices,] Jin Tiehan said, looking around the field at the various activities present. [Is there anything you need before I conduct my duty?]

Alexander thought for a second then nodded. [I want [Stamina] and [Mana Potions] plus pills to mitigate potion sickness.]

[Alright then.]

He was going to master [Mana Impact] as soon as possible.