Chapter 109

The door at the other end of the arena opened slowly, and a tall and burly figure walked out of the darkness.

That was a tiger-kin warrior nearly three meters tall, with his upper body naked, showing his strong muscles covered with scars, and his lower body wearing only a leather battle skirt that protected his vital parts.

The most eye-catching thing was his face—tiger head and human body, fangs exposed, and a cold and cruel light flickering in his amber eyes.

There was almost no defensive gear on his body; this was the extraordinary characteristic of the 【Weapon Master】 profession. When wearing light armor or no armor, the movement speed and attack speed would receive a certain bonus.

The tiger-kin was lightly carrying a giant sword almost as tall as a human in his hand, as if it were just a wooden stick.

"Human, you look very weak." Akesa's voice was low and rough, carrying an obvious mocking tone: "I hope you can persist for three seconds under my sword."

Luo En took a deep breath and adjusted his breathing to the rhythm of the "Sun Corona Breathing Method."

The heat flow in his body began to accelerate, providing additional gains for his muscles and reaction speed.

"Battle begins!" The mechanical voice announced.

Almost at the same moment the sound rang out, Akesa moved.

His speed was astonishingly fast, almost unbelievable for a creature of such a large size.

In the blink of an eye, he had already crossed most of the arena, and the giant sword drew a terrifying arc, heading straight for the enemy's waist, making a gesture to cut Luo En in half with one sword.

Luo En barely had time to raise his sword to block, but the huge impact still knocked him flying, and he rolled on the ground a few times before barely standing firm.

His arm trembled violently due to this blow, and he could barely hold the sword hilt.

"Only this much strength? A pathetic weakling..." Akesa hummed disdainfully and continued to approach with easy steps.

Luo En adjusted his breathing, endured the soreness of his arm, and set up a defensive posture again.

He understood that he was completely not an opponent in terms of strength and could only rely on technique and flexibility to seek a breakthrough.

The second round of attacks came quickly; Akesa used a series of fast and precise stabs this time, each of which pointed directly at vital parts.

He tried his best to dodge and block, but was still hit several times, and his body was soon covered with small wounds.

"Your defense has loopholes, your movement is too slow, and your sword-holding posture is not stable enough."

Akesa commented while attacking, his tone cold and professional: "As a swordsman, you are far behind."

Luo En felt a sense of frustration; although he knew this was just a simulated battle, being crushed so thoroughly still made him feel a deep sense of powerlessness.

What made him feel most broken was that every comment of Akesa was incomparably accurate, pointing directly at the weaknesses in his sword art.

The battle lasted for about ten minutes; he was already exhausted and covered in wounds, while Akesa didn't even look like he was sweating.

"I thought you would perform better." The tiger-kin weapon master shook his head, disappointment flowing in his eyes:

"It seems like a complete waste of time; it can end now."

After speaking, he suddenly accelerated, and the sword edge went straight for Luo En's throat.

At this critical moment, time seemed to slow down.

Luo En watched the fatal sword edge gradually approach, and a thought suddenly flashed in his mind—he had been trying to fight strength with pure technique, but in the face of an absolute strength gap, this was futile.

The real breakthrough was not in the perfection of the moves, but in understanding the essence of the sword—all weapons were originally created for killing.

At this moment, he no longer thought about technique and posture, and his consciousness was completely immersed in the connection between the sword and the body.

He forgot all his training, all his movement memory, and all his accumulation melted into one at this moment, forming a brand new realization.

【Basic Sword Art Experience Value +1】

【Breakthrough! Basic Sword Art (Proficient 100/100) → Basic Sword Art (Mastery max)】

【Trait Advancement: Sharp → Sharpness Exposed (Weakness insight rate and attack speed increased)】

Just as the sword was about to pierce his throat, Luo En made a move that seemed very stupid at ordinary times...

He did not retreat but advanced, his body turned slightly, avoiding the fatal blow by a hair's breadth.

At the same time, the long sword in his hand passed through Akesa's defense at an incredible angle, pointing straight at the other party's heart.

Akesa's movement suddenly stagnated, a flash of surprise in his amber eyes, followed by appreciation.

"A good strike, human." He said in a low voice: "It seems you have understood the mystery of weapons."

Luo En stood in place, watching his sword tip being blocked before piercing Akesa's chest, but he felt an unprecedented sense of transparency.

At this moment, he was no longer using the sword, but had become the sword itself—sharp, precise, fatal.

"The essence of sword art is not in fancy moves, but in the determination to kill."

Akesa withdrew the giant sword, his tone carrying a trace of appreciation:

"At that moment just now, you did it; if it weren't for my strength and speed being far superior to yours, I'm afraid my heart would have been pierced by you by now."

Luo En took a deep breath, feeling the earth-shaking changes in his body.

The basic sword art that reached the mastery level brought him not only the improvement of technique but also a brand new understanding of sword art.

"Thank you for your guidance, Master Akesa." Luo En said sincerely and bowed to the other party.

The tiger-kin weapon master nodded: "You have potential, human! But this is just the beginning; the road of the strong is endless, keep moving forward."

As soon as the voice fell, the entire arena began to distort and dissolve, returning to that empty circular room.

"Simulated battle ends, congratulations on your breakthrough." The mechanical voice announced: "Welcome to use the simulated battle device again."

The iron door opened slowly, and Luo En walked out of the room, seeing Andre waiting anxiously outside the door.

"Luo En! Are you okay?" The blonde boy stepped forward quickly, looking at Luo En with worry: "You stayed inside for nearly two hours, and I started to worry."

"Two hours?" Luo En asked in surprise, "It felt like only ten minutes or so."

"Time perception in a simulated battle will be distorted." Andre explained: "How does it feel? Did you break through?"

Luo En nodded, a satisfied smile on his face:

"Yes, I have understood the essence of sword art; it is not mechanically repeating movements, but integrating will into every sword strike."

He raised his hand and made a simple sword-swinging movement.

Although there was no real sword in his hand, that movement carried a kind of heart-palpitating sharpness, as if the air had been cut open.

Andre looked at this scene in shock: "This... this is completely different! Your sword art before was already very good, but now, it's like you've become a different person."

"Yeah, it's like suddenly opening up."

Luo En smiled: "Thanks to this simulated battle device, I had the opportunity to fight with a real sword art master."

The two left the central tower and walked on the way back to the workshop, Luo En still immersed in the joy brought by the breakthrough.

"The devices created by those alchemists are truly amazing."

He said to Andre: "They can actually build such a realistic combat environment, and even the touch and smell are simulated seamlessly."

"Yeah, I heard that it was a project jointly developed by several senior alchemists and spiritual wizards back then, with the purpose of training the school's combat power."

Andre nodded in agreement: "It's a pity that the school's research direction later turned to more theoretical fields, and this kind of practical device was neglected."

"But the potential of this technology is too great." Luo En's eyes flickered with excitement: "If it can be further studied, perhaps more practical alchemy devices can be developed."

His thoughts ran fast, imagining various possibilities:

A magic furnace that can precisely control the heat, a device that can automatically extract potion essence, and devices like this that can assist cultivation...

"Must speed up the learning of alchemy." Luo En decided secretly: "The potential of this subject is much greater than I imagined."

He looked back at the training room covered in dust: "I plan to go there for training regularly; although thirty magic stone fragments are not a small amount, compared to the benefits it brings, it is absolutely worth it."

After returning to the workshop, Luo En couldn't wait to take out his sword, wanting to experience the changes after the breakthrough in person.

As the sword momentum unfolded, he could clearly feel that every movement became more smooth and natural, as if the sword had become a part of his body.

The trait of sharpness exposed made every strike carry a heart-palpitating precision and sharpness; even if he only used a training wooden sword, it seemed to have the power to cut gold and break jade in his hand.

"This feeling... is really great." Luo En praised in a low voice, his eyes flickering with excitement.

The mastery of basic sword art undoubtedly laid a solid foundation for his future breakthrough to 【Magic Swordsman】.

What made him even happier was that the breakthrough obtained in this way seemed to be deeper and more internalized than relying solely on system prompts.

This was not just an increase in experience value, but a real understanding of the essence of the skill.

In the corner of the room, Ailan quietly observed Luo En's sword art practice, its vines swaying gently, seemingly also happy for its master's breakthrough.

"Ailan, I broke through." Luo En said to the tree spirit, his face full of joy: "This is another important milestone since I came to the Black Fog Jungle."

The tree spirit's vines spelled out a few words in the air: "Congratulations, Master."

Luo En nodded with a smile, carefully put the sword back on the sword rack, and began to think about the next step of the plan.

With the experience of this breakthrough, he was more convinced that some seemingly insurmountable obstacles might just be because of the lack of the right method or environment.

………………

A few days later, Luo En's workshop was brightly lit.

The "Sun Flame Extract" formula scroll gifted by Ma Genusi was spread out on the table, and Luo En was comparing the formula and carefully preparing various materials.

"Red Phosphorus Grass powder, three qian... Star Fire Stone Marrow, two drops... Sun-Day Orchid rhizome, four inches..." Luo En recited the materials and dosages on the formula in his heart, his fingers moving flexibly among various medicinal materials.

(End of chapter)