Chapter 187: Beyond Mastery

Chapter 187: Beyond Mastery



He never expected that by simply wanting to raise Thunderclap Hammer Technique to level 6 to hunt down the Scaled Ironback Turtle, he would unexpectedly gain the job transition information for Master Armorer (Legendary)! At this moment, Rain felt like he had suddenly won a million-dollar prize! This was a 'Legendary' job panel, obviously a level above 'Extraordinary'.

Calming his excitement, Rain began to compare the prerequisites for Master Armorer (Legendary) and Great Knight.

He was still curious as to why one was legendary while the other was merely extraordinary.

"Looking at the latter conditions, Master Armorer (Legendary) and Great Knight almost overlap. The biggest difference lies in the first condition!"

"Any three Extraordinary Combat Techniques of different weapon types above level 10." Rain mulled over this sentence, and a realization dawned on him. Clearly, it was this condition that made the Master Armorer a legendary job panel, while the Great Knight was merely extraordinary.

All three Extraordinary Combat Techniques at level 10. Despite the seemingly simple condition, Rain was well aware of the immense difficulty.

Rain roughly estimated that if he didn't have the system and relied solely on his own hard work, it would likely take two to three decades to reach level 10 in one Extraordinary Combat Technique, and that was assuming everything went smoothly.

"However, Baron Alonso, my strength far exceeds expectations, and the terms of our deal naturally need to be adjusted."

The key was the third combat technique, Imperial Military Sword Technique, which was only at level 3 (122/500). Even with day and night practice, Shield Defense and Archery were also at level 3, and at most, he could only raise them to level 5, leaving a 5-point Skill Point gap.

"Were there any distinctive features or patterns on that luxury coach?"

Concerned about the energy fluctuations of sorcery, which might wake up the resting Scaled Ironback Turtle, Rain refrained from using fire-based sorcery like 'High-Temperature Force Field'.

Among them, the second, third, and fourth prerequisites were: "2. Break the physical limit and reach 100%; 3. Any Breath Technique above level 9; 4. Strength, Agility, and Constitution above 20 points."

"I've done a preliminary review, and it seems to be true! Additionally, this guy requested that if what he said is true, he hopes to be released. This is not a decision I can make, so I need you to come in person."

"Crack!"

"This requires your full cooperation. Trust me, if what you say is true, releasing you will be an easy task for me."

After a while, Rain shook his head and muttered to himself.

Just as Rain was about to press his advantage, a dense yellow energy particle covered the Scaled Ironback Turtle's body, blocking the damage from his subsequent hammer strikes.

Rain checked his attribute panel; he now had 1 Skill Point remaining, and both Bear Claw Sword Technique and Thunderclap Hammer Technique were at level 7, leaving a 5-point Skill Point gap.

He remembered that her family had been severely oppressed by Baron Alonso. How could they possibly have the strength to attack his organization's stronghold?

At that moment, Magis recalled the stunningly beautiful lady he had seen at the ball, who had even captivated him.

As the remaining Skill Points on the attribute panel decreased from 2 to 1, Thunderclap Hammer Technique also rose to level 7, reaching the same level as Bear Claw Sword Technique.

However, the difference was that the hammer technique had the advantage of Hammer Proficiency at level 3, so at this moment, its power surpassed all other Extraordinary Combat Techniques.

Rain checked 'Armorer lv1 (17/100)', and with the Crowley family's help in gathering materials, it shouldn't take long to raise it. Filling the 4-5 Skill Point gap shouldn't be a problem.

He swung the hammer down again!

"Sir, we just found out it's the Crowley family's emblem." The confidant whispered.

"If this is true, let me handle the task of taking down that new knight, Rain!" Giovanni, are you sure your body has fully recovered? Additionally, according to the latest news from Baron Alonso, Rain is no longer just a new knight but a newly appointed Imperial Baron!"

Hmm? What's this? A message in a bottle? Rain spotted a brown bottle that had fallen out of the Scaled Ironback Turtle's body. Judging from the material, it seemed to be the rare glass material, which piqued his curiosity.

"Now that Rain has become a baron, the servants and guards in his new mansion are all from the Crowley family."

Especially the center, which was completely shattered.

The tall knight, Giovanni, carrying a scythe-like weapon, bowed slightly to the corpulent High Priest and said, "High Priest, my body has fully recovered. I heard from Maral that the Druid who appeared in Flashgold Town last time was just a coincidence, right?"

"And most importantly, from the system prompts, it doesn't conflict with the Wizard Path!"

In an instant, a memory fragment of Thunderclap Hammer Technique cultivation flooded Rain's mind.

Rain immediately increased the frequency of his swings with the pig-head hammer in his hand, causing the yellow shield to resonate with a "bang bang" sound. Although the color was slightly dimmer, the pale yellow shield stood firm like a reef by the sea, unmoving! Indeed, could only sorcery counter sorcery?

Rain took a good look at the turtle's shell, which was extremely similar to the back shell of a large crocodile turtle from his previous life. It had more than a dozen ring-shaped scales resembling mountain peaks, and at this moment, yellow light was emanating from the tops of these 'peaks'.

"This guy was supposed to be hanged, but last time you said that we should investigate the outpost through various channels. So, we also have informants among the prisoners in the prison."

"The Knight's Longsword and Shortsword should both be classified as one-handed swords, so their battle techniques should be grouped into the category of one-handed sword techniques."

"That's right, Maral has checked repeatedly, and the Druid's trail has never appeared again. It must have been a coincidence." The corpulent High Priest nodded.

Seeing Magis stand up, Vele couldn't help but show a worried expression and said, "Sir, you haven't said if you can release me yet?"

Rain hesitated for a moment.

Although he didn't know how they had achieved this, even with the addition of the Crowley family, their strength was still far from sufficient!

The contents inside were not paper but seemed to be a scroll of parchment.

"Yes, High Priest! I will try to act during Rain's return journey and clean up any traces, ensuring no connection to the church." Giovanni smiled, saluted, and said.

Hmm, why does this feel so familiar? In an instant, a flash of insight struck Rain, and he quickly took out a small iron box from his pocket to compare it!

But in fact, this was a psychological suggestion, making Vele feel like he had grasped a lifeline!

"Hmm? So, you've already taken action? Was it just Rain who caused you losses, or were there others involved?" Alonso was slightly taken aback and said with a hint of unnaturalness.

"High Priest, we've located Rain's whereabouts. He seems to have gone to Rosby County."

Hmm? Soul Release?

As soon as Magis entered the room, he pretended to be furious and asked, "Sir Alonso, the newly appointed Baron Rain that you asked us to kill last time—wasn't he more than meets the eye?"

But the next second! A loud clang reverberated from the center of the turtle's back shell!

Holding it up to the sunlight, Rain carefully examined it and found what seemed to be a piece of paper-like material inside.

"This is enough!" Magis's expression turned stern.

Outside an interrogation room in Master County Prison.

"Ow!"

"The carriage has a distinctive emblem, although it's a bit far, my eyesight is excellent, and I can make out a shield-shaped emblem with what appears to be a rose-like flower on it."

If someone had witnessed Rain's entire ambush from a distance, they would have discovered...

Since the interrogation was over, Magis decided to leave. After all, Alonso was still waiting for his response.

Hearing this, Magis waved his hand and asked his confidant, "Have you found out? Which noble family in Master County does this emblem belong to?"

Magis smiled and said, "Don't worry, Vele. Just repeat what you said before."

"This makes me very happy! I thought that some noble must be hiding a lot of good stuff here, and I'm about to get rich." Vele continued.

At this moment, the vibrations from the battle sent the sand flying.

In other words, before acquiring the high-grade potion 'Beast Essence', it would be best to accumulate enough skill points to raise three extraordinary combat techniques to level 10.

Still in Master County.

The Scaled Ironback Turtle, similar to ordinary sea turtles, preferred the nearshore areas where the sea met the land.

With a 5-point allocation, the problem shouldn't be too big.

After a while, the High Priest's deep voice echoed, "Giovanni, I'll leave this matter to you. But I hope you can minimize the impact of this incident."

Magis asked again, "Have you found out? Who has the Crowley family been closely associated with recently?"

Although eliminating Rain now no longer served the church's interests, the High Priest still had to consider the emotions of his trusted subordinate.

Perhaps due to his own dull senses, Rain focused his mind and held his breath as he approached the Scaled Ironback Turtle from behind, yet the turtle remained motionless.

Just as Rain was about to push off with force, the turtle's fist-sized eyes suddenly snapped open, sensing danger.

The flawless version is available on Book 69 Bar! 6=9+Book_Bar

Magis's eyes lit up, and he said, "It's her! That seductive widow?"

"Power Surge!"

Currently, the most troublesome requirement was the first one: "I. One extraordinary combat technique of a different weapon category at level 10 or above."

"According to the system prompts, my two-handed greatsword and two-handed warhammer each belong to a separate category. So, I just need to choose one more to make up the three!"

Sparks flew!

Magis scrutinized the other party, noticing numerous whip marks and small burn scars. It seemed his men had left quite an impression on the other party.

With his exceptional eyesight, Rain carefully observed the giant beast from a hundred meters away. Its eyes were as large as an adult's fist, currently closed as if dozing.

At this moment, the sea breeze blew, causing the dense sea reeds to rustle.

Rain had previously obtained the Imperial Military Sword Technique, and if he could improve it to level 10, he would have a complete set. However, he was now faced with a choice: should he focus on single-handed swords or other weapons?

Magis observed Alonso for a while, but he didn't see the reaction he had expected. Instead, he changed the topic, saying, "Whether Rain is alone or has help, the organization can handle it."

The man's psychological defenses were on the verge of collapse, and getting him to talk would be easy. Distinguishing truth from lies would also be simple.

Rain's face turned serious, and his legs suddenly exerted force. With a "Bang!" he exploded two piles of sand, and his entire body shot forward like an arrow released from a bow, charging towards the Scaled Ironback Turtle! For an ambush, what technique was needed? A hammer strike was all that was required, and the simpler, more brutal, and more effective it would be! Since the turtle's shell was its toughest part, he would break through from the hardest point! "Limit Break!"

A man was using a two-handed greatsword to cut open the giant turtle's body, seemingly to retrieve something.

"This guy knows something important and wants to report it!"

"Gigapower Level 3!"

"Bang!!!"

Magis entered the interrogation room and saw a middle-aged man with disheveled hair, wearing tattered gray linen, and emitting a strange odor. He was restrained in an interrogation chair.

Apparently intimidated by Rain's combat power, the Scaled Ironback Turtle didn't seem to have the desire to continue fighting the 'little guy' before it. Instead, it used its strongest defense and charged towards the distant sea.

"I'm still investigating. The current information is that the Crowley family has a close relationship with Rain. About two months ago, Rain became the Crowley family's guardian knight."

Rain carefully followed the claw footprints, moving forward. Unexpectedly, he soon left the reed marsh and quickly arrived at a beach leaning against the mountain.

Rain cautiously opened the bottle stopper, and indeed, it was a message in a bottle!

Fragments of memories about hammer techniques flashed through Rain's mind, quickly integrating into his muscle memory. It was as if he had dedicated himself to a mysterious space, experiencing over a year of Thunderclap Hammer Technique cultivation.

So, he signaled Vele to continue.

This was a quarter of the treasure map belonging to the Pirate King Vincent Sanburn. Was this related to the Fireball Technique? Could this Scaled Ironback Turtle have some connection to the Pirate King?

"Earth-Splitting Hammer!!!"

"The Crowley family?" Magis narrowed his eyes, deep in thought. He seemed to have never heard of this family before.

"Actually, continuing to deal with Rain no longer aligns with our interests." The High Priest continued in a low voice.

But this was a good thing!

"As for other intelligence, it's still being investigated. It won't be quick."

Rain understood why the turtle was called the Scaled Ironback Turtle.

"But later, I realized something was off. It seemed like the place was empty, so I went forward and discovered that a group of people had been cleared out by someone else."

Rain narrowed his eyes. He had already spotted a large sandbag about a hundred meters away, at the corner of the beach. Although it was covered in sand, the faintly exposed body and massive size were undoubtedly the Scaled Ironback Turtle that Has had mentioned.

Hearing the High Priest's words, which seemed to imply giving up, Giovanni raised his eyebrows and said solemnly, "High Priest, the dignity of the Black Flame Church cannot be challenged! Let us subordinates handle this matter."

This was probably the Scaled Ironback Turtle's special ability, the yellowish shield that Has had mentioned.

For Rain, it was almost completely or already mastered, with no difficulty at all.

The two sounds were almost simultaneous! With the effects of 'Hammer Specialization Level 3', the double effects of 'Shockwave Level 2', and 'Precision Level 2', Rain's strike was as powerful as a 205mm grenade launcher.

The Scaled Ironback Turtle's eyes widened in terror, and it desperately rushed towards the sea. The yellow shield on its body violently trembled and swayed, about to collapse!

One day earlier...

But Rain didn't believe in this evil!

At the very least, contacting the Empire's military through Hamilton shouldn't be a big problem.

Indeed, killing a recently ennobled Imperial Baron would have a severe impact, and the Empire's officials might conduct a thorough investigation.

This feeling wasn't the same as when he had mastered the technique; it was a deeper understanding of the weapon's essence.

Upon seeing Magis and Vele enter, fear was evident in the man's eyes, and his legs trembled. It seemed that this man named Vele was afraid of Magis, who was dressed as a prison guard.

If the Scaled Ironback Turtle's shell was compared to an iron basin, then the small, black hammer, the size of a fingernail, had just smashed into the basin, instantly sending the turtle's limbs and neck flying!

Because of the brackish water confluence, food was abundant, and there were numerous sea reeds growing to a height of three to four meters, providing good cover.

Additionally, the turtle had dozens of thumb-sized meat whiskers on its lower jaw, seemingly without any practical use, only served to enhance its intimidating appearance.

At this moment, a cylindrical object suddenly rolled out from the Scaled Ironback Turtle's body.

Once discovered, Rain would strike hard! He took off his pig-headed hammer and quietly approached the Scaled Ironback Turtle from behind.

"That day, I was searching for suitable targets to plunder near the abandoned mine. Unexpectedly, I saw several people carrying many items from the woods and loading them onto two carts. There was also a luxury coach in front of the carts." "Wait!" Magis interrupted.

"So, after they left, I followed their tracks and arrived near the abandoned mine. At first, I hesitated and didn't dare to approach, as it was another group's territory."

Seeing Magis's expression, his confidant knew that his master probably couldn't remember this family. He whispered, "Do you remember? The beautiful woman, Jennifer."

"Also, based on the weapon's name and prerequisites, it seems to imply proficiency with various weapons, and it's likely very powerful. It might even be comparable to a Great Swordsman!"

Additionally, before taking action, he had reminded Magis to be cautious, so he couldn't blame them.

"He naturally had something to hide, like the fact that 'Beast Knight' Giovanni was injured by an unknown Druid."

The hooked beak had split open almost to the neck.

It was quite comical!

"Because of your concealment, the organization has lost a Peak Knight and several Senior Knights."

When good things happen, people feel refreshed!

Since the other party was taking a nap, a sneak attack was the natural choice. Of course, after the previous battle with the melee sea dragon, Rain had also made some preparations.

Rain dismounted, carrying a greatsword and a warhammer, and carefully searched. Soon, he discovered the large and obvious claw footprints.

"Why go to the abandoned mine area? You should know whose territory that is."

As for the fifth prerequisite, the high-grade potion 'Beast Essence', although a bit troublesome, Rain already had two beast hearts as raw materials. Returning to the county town, he could solve this problem through the military supply department.

"Different weapon categories?"

"What!" Giovanni was startled and exclaimed.

"Yes, sir." Vele nodded.

"Do you find it hard to believe? I didn't believe it at first, but this news has been verified from multiple sources. It's true! Even Count Habsburg has met this Rain."

On the other side of the beach, the vast sea was right next to it.

"This..." The High Priest fell silent.

Just as Vele was savoring the meaning of these words, suddenly, a 'Bang' sound rang out, followed by a sharp pain in his neck. Then, he realized that he could see the white wall behind him. Returning to the office, Magus naturally wouldn't share the intelligence with Alonso honestly. Just now in the corridor, he had already thought about how to maximize his interests.

So, the ironback turtle stretched its neck, quickly looking around, but couldn't find the enemy. This caused a puzzled expression in its large eyes.

"Don't worry, my Bear Claw Sword Technique and Thunderclap Hammer Technique are not yet at lv10. I have time to slowly consider this issue."

No conflict, that was the most important thing! At this moment, Rain's heart was filled with a sense of loss for missing out on the Swordsman, Great Swordsman, and Sword Saint path with its ultra-high attack power. But with the Great Knight promotion prompt, Rain still felt a little disappointed because the Great Knight's attack power was significantly weaker than the Great Swordsman's."

"Yes, you've done well!" Magus patted his confidant's shoulder.

But because Rain attacked from behind, and at this moment, the opponent was already directly above the turtle's shell, which happened to be in the blind spot of the Scaled Ironback Turtle's vision.

"I've never seen him, but the leader of the young knights had a distinctive style, carrying a large hammer and a greatsword." Vele gestured, crossing his arms.

This was somewhat possible, after all, turtles were known for their longevity! But it was still an extremely rare event, and Rain felt he should thank the Goddess of Luck! However, this made him feel anxious.

The confidant was reporting the situation of the criminal to Magus: "His name is Vele, originally a bandit who hung around in the Wild Wolf Hills. A few days ago, he got drunk at Old John's Bar in the county town and got into a fight. He was reported, and after the county patrol verified it, he was sent here."

Magus' deep voice and slow speech gave Vele a sense of trust.

"Sir, can you guarantee my release? The other gentleman said he couldn't make that decision; it needs to be you." Vele looked fearfully at Magus' uniform shoulder patch, knowing he was the one in charge.

Rain, leaping in mid-air, his entire body inflated like a balloon, at least two sizes larger. At the same time, his muscles and tendons were taut like a fully drawn bowstring. He raised his dark pig-head hammer high and struck the center of the Scaled Ironback Turtle's shell.

It wasn't that he wanted the Rebellion to fail; Alonso just didn't want them to raise their demands.

"By the way, you mentioned seeing a luxury coach in front of the cart, right?" Magus asked again, remembering something.

"Additionally, according to reliable sources, Count Habsburg's appointment, which was just issued today, indicates that Rain should return to Maist County within five days to assume the position of Fishing Port Town's Town Magistrate and Sheriff."

At this moment, Maral's voice echoed from the entrance of the underground hall, saying:

"It's a new bandit gang, reportedly very strong. The boss told us not to provoke them, but we haven't had business in a long time, so I crossed the border, but not too deeply, just a little." Vele explained.

Even the eyelids had fine scales for defense, and the exposed claws, not completely buried in the sand, had thick green scales.

This caused Rain's face to turn pale! The sea was not his battlefield.

But this thing had a hard-to-find flavor, and Rain couldn't help but sigh! Rain lit a bonfire and began processing the Scaled Ironback Turtle's materials, his mind pondering the prerequisites for the 'Master Armorer' promotion.

Rain refocused his thoughts and stared intently at the four characters 'Weapon Category'.

Vele's words caused Magus to pause, and he turned to his confidant, saying, "Then grant his wish and release his soul."

Rain couldn't help but frown, seemingly unable to think of a good solution.

At this moment, the sound of flapping wings filled the air!

A blue-headed pigeon suddenly descended from the sky, landing next to the small pigeon cage on the brown horse, and began to whisper with the other Blue Helmet Pigeon.

Blue Helmet Pigeon! Rain's pupils constricted, and he immediately stood up and walked over!

Before leaving, Rain had told the beautiful woman that if she encountered trouble, she should contact him using the Blue Helmet Pigeon.

(End of Chapter)

Chapter end