Chapter 249: Superhuman Skill - Master of Arms, It's Just a Stone, Kick it Away (4K)

Chapter 249: Superhuman Skill - Master of Arms, It's Just a Stone, Kick it Away (4K)



[Master of Arms Lv1 (Superhuman)]



[Upgrade Requirements: Experience 0/10,000, Divinity 329/1,000]



Finally... the first transcendent skill has emerged.

Just as Xue Heng had anticipated, after the regular skill transcended, it bestowed a superhuman skill akin to the fused [True Martial Arts].

"Master of Arms... It probably means the master of all weapons, sharing the same name as one of the Seven Great Titles. What a coincidence."

Xue Heng closed the panel and couldn't wait to test its effects.

He calmed his mind and turned his attention inward, sensing the changes occurring within his body.

Hmm... there didn't seem to be any noticeable changes.

Unlike when [True Martial Arts] was activated, Master of Arms didn't seem to bring about any physical alterations.

This was not surprising, as the [Weapon Strike] skill had never really enhanced his physical body but instead bestowed upon him an exceptional talent for wielding weapons.

"Since my body remains unchanged, the skill's effects must lie in the use of weapons..."

Xue Heng reached out and grabbed the nine-foot-long alloy spear standing beside him.

The moment he gripped the spear, he felt a sensation vastly different from before.

All the information about the spear, including its strength, toughness, hardness, length, diameter, weight, flaws, weak points, nicks on the spearhead, and whether it was in a state of metal fatigue, instantly appeared in his mind with absolute precision.

He gently waved the spear through the air.

He instinctively knew the optimal grip position and the angle of attack that would inflict the most damage, as well as the amount of force he could exert without damaging the spear.

Xue Heng had never imagined that he could understand a weapon so thoroughly.

It was as if this spear, randomly picked from the Zhigo Base, was not a stranger but a longtime companion, one with whom he was intimately familiar and had perfect synergy.

"Any weapon, without any practice or refinement, can be perfectly adapted with just one grasp..."

Xue Heng nodded, feeling that this effect matched the name [Master of Arms] quite fittingly.

But... there was more.

Xue Heng now had a peculiar feeling.

It was as if he could arbitrarily control the weapon in his hand.

He fiddled with the spear for a while, and a realization dawned on him. With a subtle movement of his thoughts,

The spear in his hand began to transform. Starting from the point where Xue Heng's palm made contact, a platinum hue, like flowing water, spread across the metallic body of the spear.

The platinum color continued to envelop the spear until it completely saturated it.

Using his [Master of Arms] insight, Xue Heng immediately sensed the updated information about the spear now imbued with platinum.

"Its strength has increased severalfold. The flaws in the spear's body have been mended, and the nicks on the blade have been filled in, restoring its sharpness..."

"...This enhancement has elevated the weapon by several levels. I bet it's not any worse than the Futu Knife now."

Xue Heng's eyes widened slightly in surprise.

The second effect of [Master of Arms]—Weapon Enhancement.

This was akin to a superpower; no wonder it was a superhuman skill.

"The White Emperor is associated with metal and warfare. Is that why it's manifested as platinum?"

Xue Heng held the platinum spear horizontally and then released his grip.

Instead of falling to the ground, the spear hovered in midair.

With a thought,

The spear began to spin in the air, faster and faster, its propeller-like motion emitting a 'whirring' sound.

"Interesting. Once enhanced by [Master of Arms] and imbued with platinum, the weapon can be freely controlled, just like an artifact refined by a cultivator in a fantasy novel, allowing for 'object manipulation'."

Following Xue Heng's mental commands, the spear performed various moves in the air—pointing, picking, cleaving, parrying, breaking, and stabbing—with the agility of an invisible spear-wielding master performing a complex routine.

"Hmm? Wait a moment, this effect..."

Xue Heng's eyes widened as he recalled something. He looked around, scanning his surroundings.

Then, with a leap, he jumped from the rooftop down into the courtyard below.

He reached out and plucked a weed that was over half a meter long from the ground.

With a thought, he activated the enhancement effect of [Master of Arms].

The platinum hue instantly spread like flowing water, transforming the soft and fragile weed into a sturdy and sharp 'Grass Sword'.

Xue Heng swung the platinum grass sword a couple of times, stroking his chin as he mused, "As long as I deem something to be a weapon, it can be enhanced by this power..."

"No wonder it feels so familiar. Any weapon I pick up can be instantly dominated, perfectly wielded, and enhanced in level..."

Xue Heng drew a connection to a unique ability from a certain story.

"A knight doesn't die unarmed?"

He tossed the weed in his hand aside.

"In that case..."

He raised his right hand, clenching it into a fist as he stared at it intently. With a soft voice, he murmured:

"How can a fist not be considered a weapon?"

As soon as he finished speaking, a platinum hue emerged and enveloped his fist, transforming it into a platinum gauntlet.

"Hey, am I the Platinum Star myself?"

Xue Jing furrowed his brows, brandishing his platinum fist. He threw a punch at the floor.

"Bang—!!"

A loud crash reverberated as the floor shattered and cracked, causing the ground to tremble within a hundred-meter radius, as if a minor earthquake had struck. Everyone in the Zhigo Base was startled by the commotion.

"The force of impact is mutual... But with this punch, I barely felt any recoil."

"Both my defensive and offensive capabilities have increased significantly. What a fantastic ability... After obtaining the Conquer's Haki, I've now acquired the Armament Haki as well, although the color is a bit off."

Xue Jing curiously experimented with the armament enhancement ability of [Master of Arms].

Due to the effects of [True Martial Arts], he could now channel his energy throughout his body, even to his eyes, the most unlikely of places, as if they too could be wielded as 'weapons'.

Therefore, in his perception, considering his entire body to be a weapon, the armament enhancement of [Master of Arms] could be applied to every part of his body.

This led to an interesting discovery. He could even cover his entire body with the platinum hue, transforming himself into a true steel-bodied, invincible being...

However, as he continued experimenting, he also encountered a problem.

This armament enhancement that turned his body platinum was not permanent, and it seemed to have a 'quantity' limit. The larger the area covered, the thinner the enhancement became, resulting in a weaker effect.

When applied to his body, the best use was to concentrate it on his fists and feet and, when under attack, to momentarily focus it on the impacted areas for defense.

"This should increase in quantity as the level rises, and the enhancement effect should improve as well, right?"

As he continued his experiments, Xue Jing soon discovered the third effect, which he had previously speculated about—[Omnivorous Weaponry].

In the courtyard, Xue Jing held the platinum spear in one hand, pointing it behind him with the spearhead touching the ground.

Suddenly, his eyes narrowed, and he channeled his flesh, muscles, bones, and blood simultaneously. The pinpoint power of [Master of Arms] transformed into the might of a spring thunder.

With the spear in his hand, he swung it from back to front with the force of splitting Mount Hua, cleaving a large circle in front of him.

"Hoo—!!"

A deep, resonating whistling sound, completely unlike the thin spear should have made, echoed as it slammed into the ground.

"Boom—!!"

The moment the spear touched the ground, the floor instantly shattered, and the earth in front caved in continuously, creating a depression several dozen meters long. The entire Zhigo Base shook from the impact.

As the dust settled, Xue Jing retracted his spear, standing tall beside it.

He had just used the nine-foot spear as a giant sword... This technique of wielding a weapon in an unconventional manner was something he had unintentionally used before when facing the Dragon Sect members' attack.

But when he tried to recreate it later, he couldn't, until now, with [Weapon Strike] evolving into [Master of Arms], he could finally use it at will.

Seeing the terrifying effect it created, Xue Jing exclaimed:

"This is not just a simple 'light as a feather, heavy as a mountain' technique... It has reached the 'superhuman' realm."

In the instant when Xue Jing swung the spear with [Spring Thunder], he truly felt as if he were holding not a spear but the Forgotten Giant Sword itself.

Although it was undoubtedly not as powerful as using the Forgotten Giant Sword directly, in that moment, the striking power of the spear's [Spring Thunder] had, to some extent, transcended physical laws, reaching a level of force that its weight should not have been able to achieve.

"It seems my speculation was correct. I really can pluck any random grass and use it as a giant sword... Aside from its broad applicability, when fighting others, the giant sword's strength combined with the spear's agility, and the spear's thick and heavy strikes with the giant sword's dexterity, this sudden contrast in style is something not everyone can react to. It can be a deadly trump card."

After much experimentation, Xue Jing was quite satisfied with the [Master of Arms] superhuman skill.

Perfect weapon insight + Unarmed yet armed + Armament Haki + Omnivorous Weaponry... Even the most basic talent for weapon usage had improved compared to when he had [Weapon Strike Lv10].

He tried a few moves and found that even without using the armament enhancement effect of [Master of Arms], when he executed the Seamless Spear Technique, it was much smoother and more natural than before.

His overall strength had risen to a whole new level.

...

Another day passed, and the quarterfinals of the tournament began again.

Since the quarterfinals adopted a double-elimination format, the eight contestants were divided into a winner's bracket and a loser's bracket based on the results of the previous round.

"And the winners are: Wei Junwu, Song Nanxing, Okarina Suzuka, and Xue Jing.

The losers are: Huang Lu, Li Mou, Chen Chao, and Zhou Yinglin.

The winners will face off against the losers. If a winner emerges victorious, they will advance straight to the top four. If a loser wins, it will count as a resurrection victory, and they will only need to win one more match to advance to the top four."

Xue Jing's match was scheduled for the fourth round, but he arrived at the Super Arena early to watch the matches. His appearance in the contestant observation area caused a stir among the audience, eliciting cheers and screams. The live cameras seemed to have a mind of their own, frequently turning to capture close-up shots of him with absurd frequency.

At the same time, amidst the audience's cheers, Xue Jing learned a piece of news... He finally had a new title.

It wasn't an embarrassing title like 'My Husband' that made people facepalm, but a domineering one.

- Xue the Demon King -

It was said that he possessed overwhelming strength that seemed unfair to the other contestants, akin to an unbeatable demon king. Additionally, his ruthless treatment of Zhou Yinglin further emphasized his demon king-like demeanor.

Although the origin of this title had a moral connotation, Xue Jing didn't mind. He quite liked it.

The world of martial artists valued strength above all else.

'Strength' had nothing to do with concepts like justice, conscience, or morality. Its essence was pure and simple: the power to make others submit and obey.

The title of Demon King evoked fear of 'strength' in people, and that was enough for Xue Jing.

At least, Xue Wan wouldn't be able to tease him about it.

Soon, the first match began, with Wei Junwu from the winners' group facing Zhou Yinglin from the losers' group.

To the surprise of Xue Jing and most of the audience, Zhou Yinglin, who was supposed to have been crippled and reduced to a human stick, actually showed up.

Moreover, his body appeared to be intact, showing no signs of the horrific injuries he had sustained previously.

Xue Jing had considered the possibility of Zhou Yinglin's recovery, given his background as a disciple of the Spear Saint and his connections to the Thirteen Giant Chambers. However, he hadn't expected it to happen so quickly, within just one day.

Amidst the astonished murmurs of the audience and the bitter expression on Wei Junwu's face, Zhou Yinglin slowly ascended the stage.

In the contestants' observation area, Okarina Suzuka, standing next to Xue Jing, spoke softly:

"He must have undergone super surgery and taken some extremely potent medicines... As expected of Zhou Yinglin."

"There aren't more than 200 top-tier doctors in the world capable of performing super surgery, and each of their schedules is booked out at least a decade in advance... It's quite challenging to find one of them and get them to perform the surgery on such short notice."

Xue Jing nodded, "I see."

"Xue, you don't seem too concerned," Yin Mu Hu commented, curious about Xue Jing's nonchalant expression.

Xue Jing gave her a strange look, "Why should I be concerned?"

Yin Mu Hu thought for a moment before replying, "I think Zhou Yinglin is in a hurry to heal himself and didn't withdraw from the tournament. He must be seeking revenge against you."

Xue Jing smiled, "When you're walking down the road, do you pay attention to whether the stone under your feet is the same one you kicked away before?"

To him, Zhou Yinglin was just one of his many defeated opponents, not even a particularly notable one.

Whether it was recovering in just a day with super surgery or possessing genuine immortality, Xue Jing wouldn't take him seriously.

"A stone is just a stone. There's nothing special about it. If it's in your way, you kick it aside. Why bother worrying if it comes back to bother you?"

Yin Mu Hu nodded slowly, "So that's how it is..."

Okarina Suzuka covered her mouth with her sleeve and laughed softly, "Xue, your words are as sharp as ever. If Zhou Yinglin heard that, he'd be furious again..."

On the stage, Wei Junwu struggled for a while before ultimately succumbing to Zhou Yinglin's overwhelming defeat.

At that moment, everyone suddenly recalled that Zhou Yinglin was also a genius in the U19 youth tournament, his talent so exceptional that it was almost unfair to his peers. It was just that his opponent the day before had been so outrageously strong that it made Zhou Yinglin seem inferior in comparison.

The commentator shouted excitedly, celebrating Zhou Yinglin's victory, and the audience applauded enthusiastically.

However, Zhou Yinglin paid no heed to any of it. Instead, he directed his gloomy gaze toward the contestants' observation area, specifically at the boy who stood apart from the others, an aura of intimidation surrounding him.

Realizing that the person hadn't spared him a glance, Zhou Yinglin coldly huffed. He tossed the long spear in his hand to the side, embedding it into the stage floor, before turning and striding back down the contestants' corridor.

...

(End of Chapter)

Chapter end