Chapter 1455: Many Thanks

Su Xiao's consciousness was clear, but he could not move. All around him was a world of kaleidoscopic colors—a scene he had witnessed several times before when entering the space formation in the Void.

With a 'whoosh', a sense of weightlessness took hold. Su Xiao felt solid ground beneath his feet. He stumbled forward a few steps, and several maple leaves drifted toward his face.

Everything around him was pitch black. Su Xiao could only see a tall black maple tree in the distance. He walked toward the black maple tree, and soon, the darkness began to recede.

Su Xiao arrived on a patch of emerald green turf. This patch, about a hundred meters in diameter, gave him a sense of safety, driving away the chaotic darkness that lay a few dozen meters away.

A gentle breeze blew, and the black maple tree in the center of the lawn rustled. An old man sat beneath the tree. He wore tattered clothes, his white hair was disheveled, and he looked rather unkempt. However, his eyes were peculiar—so pitch black that they were chilling.

"You brat, you've come."

The old man looked up at Su Xiao and reached out to gently stroke the black maple tree behind him. A piece of bark was missing from the trunk, and distinct claw marks were clearly visible.

Upon touching these marks, the old man's expression was no longer calm; his face twitched, clearly pained.

"I have cultivated a sapling."

Su Xiao walked toward the old man as he spoke and sat cross-legged on the grass a few meters in front of him.

"Hm?"

The old man looked at Su Xiao in surprise, then smiled and nodded.

"Then I wish you success. If a blade-wielder possesses a black maple tree, many challengers will come knocking."

The old man sighed, recalling his past in the Void.

"Are you not planning to take it back?"

Su Xiao had met this old man once before and knew who he was. He was the master of Ma Wen·Waltz, a fierce old man who had imprisoned the Blade Demon phantom within his own body, devoured it, and transformed it into his own power.

"This is a matter of your timing or destiny; it has nothing to do with me. What is mine will eventually find its way to me, and what is not mine..."

The old man didn't continue. His words were clearly contradictory; the first half sounded like a transcendent sage, while the second half took a sharp turn. The implication was: if it was his, no one could take it; if it wasn't, he would first kill the owner of the treasure, manually interrupt their destiny, and then snatch the treasure away!

"This is the first time I've heard someone speak of 'snatching' so righteously."

Su Xiao was in no rush now, as he had already guessed why he had come to see this old man again. He was about to face a choice—a choice regarding his swordsmanship.

"Kid, don't put it so harshly. Having the opportunity to snatch something means that the object has a connection to you. Although it isn't an honorable act, it's far better than coveting it in secret. The Void is just like that; it has many laws, but no law can achieve true fairness."

The old man seemed to be in a good mood. After sighing with emotion, he put on a serious expression.

"Since you have come here, it means you have reached the time when you truly need to make a choice. It remains as I once said: you have two options. This time, I will be more thorough. Will your swordsmanship continue to improve in a conventional manner, or will you break the shackles and look toward a higher level..."

Through the old man's description, Su Xiao understood what he meant. To describe it using the Reincarnation Paradise system: Su Xiao's Sword Master skill had reached a certain limit. In other words, Lv. 50 was the theoretical maximum level for Sword Master.

Su Xiao had two choices: one was to find a way to break this limit and continue developing Sword Master, and the second was a climb in terms of rank.

In terms of difficulty, breaking the limit was actually much easier than climbing the rank. Su Xiao only had guesses as to what lay beyond the Master level, but nothing had been thoroughly confirmed.

"Choose. Of course, you have a more extreme third option, but..."

The old man gave a sinister laugh, his pitch-black eyes narrowing.

"If you choose the third option, you will become dozens or even hundreds of times stronger in a short period. But whether you will still be 'you' by then is an unknown. Your consciousness might perish in the process. Many have verified this; it is a path of no return. Considering you are cultivating a black maple tree, the second option is actually more suitable for you."

Hearing the old man's words, Su Xiao didn't react much. He had already learned about the pitfall-prone nature of the Law Breakers' guidance from Ma Wen·Waltz and the tomboy Law Breaker. The old man was already a very good mentor; at least he recommended a relatively correct choice to Su Xiao.

Whether to continue raising the level of Sword Master or to promote the rank of his swordsmanship—this was the choice Su Xiao faced. The former was relatively simple and stronger than the latter in the early stages, but in the later stages, promoting the swordsmanship rank would definitely be stronger.

Simply put, the former had a high floor, while the latter had a high ceiling. As swordsmanship was his core ability, he naturally had to choose the one with the high ceiling.

"I choose the latter."

After a brief consideration, Su Xiao made his decision.

"Most Law Breakers would choose this way. If your black maple tree can grow vigorously, you will be glad for this choice."

The old man raised his arm, and with a 'clatter', the surrounding scene shattered. A black light drifted out from the black maple tree and merged into Su Xiao's body.

"The only remaining Law Breaker, you do not need to restore the Law Breakers, nor is there any talk of a mission. You only need to let those spellcasters in the Void know that we, the Guardians of Elements, will not be exterminated by thieves like them. Perishing is not the end, and death is also silent. The tilting of the scales is merely predetermined, not fated."

The old man stood with his hands behind his back, slowly dissipating, a faint smile on his face.

"Don't be so flowery; I don't understand the second half."

"..."

When Su Xiao said this, the smile on the old man's face stiffened.

"Simply put, it means to teach those spellcasters a harsh lesson. You brat, there isn't much I can do to help you, and I don't need you to repay me."

After leaving these words, the old man, perhaps feeling he had lost face, quickly disappeared.

"Understood, many thanks."

The power of space wrapped around Su Xiao. When he opened his eyes again, he was already sitting on the bed in his exclusive room, and a large number of prompts appeared.

【Prompt: Sword Master has reached Lv. 50. This is the maximum level for Sword Master. Sword Master has undergone a change and has been temporarily locked as 'X'.】

【X makes an impact.】

【X promotes authority.】

【Prompt: Promoting a Master-level ability requires a trial assessment.】

【Prompt: Due to the high-tier energy bonus, the Hunter is exempt from the trial assessment.】

【To promote Sword Master, the Hunter must pay: Scroll of Master's Power (Complete) + Proof of Glory.】

【Prompt: The Scroll of Master's Power (Complete) can be synthesized from fragments of Master's Power. Ten fragments of any kind can synthesize 'Master's Power (Complete)'.】

【Prompt: The Proof of Glory must be obtained by challenging in the trial grounds. This authority has been temporarily opened. Each challenge by the Hunter will consume 5000 Paradise Coins. If the challenge is successful, the Proof of Glory can be obtained.】 ===== CHAPTER 1456 =====