Chapter 6: The Legendary Battle, the True Use of Skill Points

The Royal City of Re-Estize.

Located in the deepest part of the capital, the Royal City is built upon a hill; even from afar, one can see a wall connected by over twenty massive circular towers.

It separates the commoners of the capital from the Royal City, and combined with the height of the hill, it gives the entire Royal City a status that towers above everyone else.

At the western base of the hill where the Royal City stands, a massive arena has been built, and the annual "Royal Tournament" always begins in this arena.

Such a competition is not merely a grand event; it is also one of the ways the Re-Estize Kingdom displays its military might to outsiders.

Clatter!

Clatter!

Following the noisy, clamoring crowd.

Tang Zheng arrived inside the arena, feeling a bit of heartache over the cost, and sat down in the outermost row of seats.

He cast his gaze toward the massive ring in the center of the arena. From his position, he could only see the figures on the ring.

For just this seat, it cost him a full 5 silver coins!

"This is truly a lucrative business."

Tang Zheng swept his gaze over the dense crowd of heads in the surrounding seats and sighed inwardly.

As a witness to a historical event, it could indeed satisfy a bit of curiosity.

But!

Had he known the price was this high, he wouldn't have come; after all, he already knew the outcome.

Tang Zheng thought with some resignation.

The Warrior Captain and the Nail Clipper had not yet appeared, but there were several figures on the ring below, seemingly performing inspection work.

Located directly north of the ring was the only part of the arena that stood significantly higher than the rest: a circular, tower-like viewing stand.

There was no need to guess.

That must be the viewing stand reserved for the kingdom's nobles and royalty.

Compared to the near-boisterous atmosphere of the other areas, the location of this circular tower stand was excessively quiet.

So much so that this situation gradually affected the other areas, like a bucket of cold water poured over the fiery atmosphere.

Even the surrounding chatter gradually quieted down significantly.

Tang Zheng reached out to tug at the collar of his coarse hemp clothing, shrugged his shoulders with boredom, and watched the scene with a calm gaze.

Others might not understand the reason for this slightly eerie atmosphere, but he knew a thing or two.

A competition of this level is ostensibly for the country to find powerful warriors and to promote the strength of the nation.

But in reality!

From the very beginning, the "Royal Tournament" has been a stage for major nobles to show off their subordinates and display their own military power.

All the commoner participants are merely stepping stones for these noble lords.

This involves the kingdom's own noble system!

Among the major nobles, aside from the eldest son, the other sons cannot inherit titles. This led to another title within the noble system: "Knight"!

This title carries no fief and is limited to the individual's own generation, yet it remains a goal that the younger sons of nobles scramble to obtain.

This is not only for the noble status, but also because once the "Knight" title is obtained, the royal family pays a high salary, so there is basically no need to worry about one's livelihood.

Of course.

This is also a strategy of the royal family to turn these noble descendants into a new generation of the "Pro-Royal Faction"!

The "Royal Tournament" exists because of this; it is considered a legitimate strategy. Therefore, outstanding noble descendants who stand out in the competition will be granted the title of "Knight."

However, starting a few years ago, the noble members or their subordinates participating began to be defeated by some commoner adventurers, which caused dissatisfaction among the nobles.

And now!

The appearance of Gazef and Brain, who have swept through everything to arrive here, has made it even more so.

It has turned the "Royal Tournament" into a stage for a duel between two commoners!

"Heh."

A smile appeared on Tang Zheng's face; he could fully imagine that the expressions of those noble lords must be anything but pleasant right now.

After Gazef achieved victory, he should have been granted the "Knight" title, but the result was the creation of a new "Warrior Captain" position, which came about under this background.

The reason this duel is known among commoners as the "Legendary Battle" is that the "Royal Tournament" was cancelled after this competition.

Clearly, no noble wanted a second Warrior Captain to appear.

However, this had nothing to do with Tang Zheng; compared to the future Great Tomb, these matters were, in the end, just small trifles.

No matter how dissatisfied the nobles were, this competition could neither be blocked nor stopped!

About 10 minutes passed.

Tang Zheng straightened his expression, his gaze becoming serious as he looked at the future Warrior Captain and the Nail Clipper walking onto the ring at the same time.

After the two stepped onto the ring, they shook hands and seemed to say something.

However.

From the spectator seat where Tang Zheng was currently sitting, he could only clearly see their figures; naturally, he could not hear the conversation between the two.

Soon!

The two separated again, turned to put some distance between them, and then stood face to face.

At this very moment!

The noisy sounds of the entire spectator area vanished completely, and eyes were fixed tightly on the two on the ring, fearing to disturb the duel between them.

=9+Shu_ba

Whoosh! Whoosh!

Almost the next instant.

Gazef and Brain moved at the same time; despite the distance of nearly twenty meters between them, they collided after just a brief charge.

Clang!

Clang!

Clang!

The two sword-like weapons collided instantly, sparking intense flashes.

"So fast."

Tang Zheng's eyes showed astonishment; his gaze could barely capture their figures. Especially the swords they were wielding—he couldn't see them clearly at all.

He could only see the sparks appearing one after another around them.

Tang Zheng leaned his neck back.

They simply weren't the same species as ordinary people!

The intensity displayed when they collided was something that couldn't be felt at all while watching an anime.

Seeing a battle of this level with his own eyes, Tang Zheng truly realized the uncrossable chasm between ordinary people and these powerhouses!

And this is only at the level of around 20?

Unaccountably, Tang Zheng suddenly felt a bit of the despair the Nail Clipper must have felt when facing Xia Tiya back then.

The title "Nail Clipper" is not a derogatory term!

Whoosh—

On the ring, a pale blue light suddenly flashed across Brain's body.

The next moment!

Brain appeared behind Gazef as if he had teleported.

However!

Gazef seemed to have anticipated this; he rolled his body and put distance between them again.

"So this is a Martial Art." Tang Zheng's eyes widened slightly.

"Martial Art" is a technique unique to this other world that does not exist in the "Yggdrasil" game; it can be understood as magic for warriors.

Using it requires consuming something called "Concentration"—simply put, it is mental focus. The more Martial Arts one uses, the more brain fatigue increases.

It is a stat that does not exist in the game, but it is closer to reality.

Whether in the anime or the light novel, the power manifested by "Martial Arts" is actually not weak.

It is just that the level limits of humans make Martial Arts appear not that strong.

Suddenly—

Hum!

The attribute panel appeared before Tang Zheng's eyes.

"Skill 'Flowing Acceleration' discovered. Requires basic warrior-class profession. Current conditions not met..."

"'Genius' profession activated. Conversion successful. Learning conditions met. Do you wish to consume 1 Skill Point to learn it?"

Seeing the information on the attribute panel, Tang Zheng's eyes revealed a look of surprise and sudden realization, and he muttered to himself: "So that's how Skill Points are used!"

(End of chapter)