Chapter 153: Training Again, Shen Wulong
Kaito Shirogane subsequently entered the [Training Hall] to begin his training once more.
For him, while treasures like the [Devil Fruit] and [Shun Goku Satsu] were out there waiting to be traded for, his own personal strength was paramount. He followed the rules and the logic he had set for himself, and he would absolutely not allow his pace to be disrupted by some "great figure" or unexpected windfall.
In the world of martial arts, this mindset was a sliver of the state known as "a heart as still as water."
[You have entered the Training Hall. Time flow has been adjusted. From now on, you will be charged 50 Dimensional Points per minute.]
[Gravity Change: 1.5x]
[Oxygen Density: 0.75x]
[Extreme Environment Setting: None]
"Increase gravity to 3x. Lower air pressure to 50%. Set environment to a volcanic crater."
With a single thought, the sterile, white, high-tech training space around him transformed. The air became hot and dry, thick with the smell of sulfur. The low air pressure made every breath a struggle, and the increased gravity placed an extra burden on every one of his internal organs. This was an environment in which a normal person could not survive for long. But for Kaito, if he wanted to continue to grow stronger, this was a necessity.
He began to move wildly, pushing his heart rate to its absolute limit, before he began his formal training.
Having learned from his last session, where he had spent a C-rank Singularity to spar with Kaku Kaioh, he once again decided to pay the high price. For him, this was far more efficient than buying some low-level ability scroll.
[Spending 2 C-rank Singularities. Searching for a qualified martial arts sparring partner...]
[Search complete. Please select from the following candidates.]
[Candidate A: Garou, the Martial Arts Apprentice with Infinite Potential]
This was the image of a young man, his face still holding a trace of youthfulness. His muscles were streamlined, not exaggerated, and his entire form seemed to flow, making him difficult to lock onto. Kaito exhaled. He hadn't expected a 2-C-rank payment to summon Garou, the monstrous martial artist who could master any technique and continuously evolve under pressure. Of course, the system specified this was his "apprentice" stage, when he was still learning the Water Stream Rock Smashing Fist under Bang.
[Candidate B: Ba Liming, the Limit of the Dan Dao]
The second candidate appeared. This was a man with hair covering his face, dressed in worn-out, anachronistic sackcloth. His fists hung low, his body lean and powerful, an invisible will coiling around him, his breathing so controlled it was almost imperceptible. This was the King of Martial Arts from the world of Dragon Snake Romance, a grandmaster of the Dan Dao who had mastered all the world's fist styles.
[Candidate C: Kensui, the Master-Class Martial Artist]
This was a young martial artist with long black hair, standing in the shadows. A [Master-Class] martial artist from the world of Kenichi: The Mightiest Disciple. These masters had all fully grasped the true meaning of martial arts and had complete control over their ki. While this Kensui couldn't be compared to the monsters who could dismantle missiles with their bare hands, he was still at the top of his class.
[Candidate D: Shen Wulong, the Ultimate Martial Artist of Rebirth (Suppressed State)]
This was the hidden, strongest character from the Kengan derivative world. A monster who had supposedly lived since the age of myth by constantly "rebirthing," who had mastered techniques that could be called immortal arts, a man who was on a completely different level from everyone else.
Kaito looked at the four candidates. In terms of pure strength, aside from the still-young Garou, the other three were not that far apart. And since Shen Wulong was in a "suppressed state," he wouldn't have an overwhelming advantage. This training was to find a sparring partner, not a teacher. Any special abilities that couldn't be learned just by "watching" were meaningless.
Therefore, he first ruled out Garou. His talent was useless to Kaito. In a way, Kaito and Garou were the same type—they both grew stronger through battle. He needed an opponent who could pressure him, a master of supreme technique, not another genius like himself.
Next, he ruled out the Master-Class Kensui. The most important parts of the "Master" level in that world were the three stages of ki: Activation, Release, and Mastery. For Kaito, who had already found his own path to controlling ki via the Dodon Ray, this would be less useful.
Finally, he chose Shen Wulong. Ba Liming was at the "Limit of the Dan Dao," but he had not yet reached the realm of "Seeing God, Undecaying." While he had mastered all fist styles and could certainly help Kaito's proficiency, Shen Wulong could do the same. And Shen Wulong's special ability, that "Logic" that gave him complete control over his body… Kaito coveted it.
"I choose D."
The other options vanished. A stream of white data converged, and Shen Wulong, with his white hair and double pupils, slowly materialized in the volcanic environment. His expression was casual and indifferent, as if he cared for nothing. His body was in a state of absolute relaxation.
Kaito activated his [Transparent World]. His opponent's muscle movements were completely illogical. His heart would only beat once every long while, and his breathing had almost ceased. This was a man who completely defied human common sense.
The puppet of Shen Wulong had no personality of its own. It simply put its hands in its pockets and walked straight toward Kaito. Its only purpose was to fight, without killing.
Shen took a single step. It was in the exact fraction of a second that Kaito blinked. Kaito's heart sank. He instantly reacted, his hand a blade, slicing at the air behind him.
SHIING!
The air shrieked. Kaito's pupils refocused. Shen was no longer in front of him.
BAM!
Kaito's hand-blade slammed into an upraised forearm. A terrifying shockwave exploded from the impact. Kaito's pupils contracted. The muscles on his opponent's arm had hardened in a way that defied all logic, tensing and bunching at the exact point of impact, then naturally dispersing, completely absorbing the multi-ton force of his blow.
Shen's right arm followed the flow of Kaito's own force and, with a natural motion, he tapped Kaito on the shoulder.
BOOM!
A massive force erupted, completely disproportionate to his physical body. Kaito, like a leaf in the wind, used his own perfect Shaorii to spin and twist, his body flying up into the air.
Shen showed no reaction to this technique. His left hand, which had been in his pocket, shot out with a lightning-fast punch. The contact time was probably less than 0.001 seconds, but in that infinitesimal moment, a massive force was unleashed. Kaito's balance was shattered in mid-air, and he was sent flying.
By the time he landed, the torn muscles in his arm had already been healed by his Hamon. He looked at Shen Wulong, a greedy smile on his face. This technique… it's really not something a human can master.
If martial arts was what allowed a human to surpass their limits, then what Shen Wulong was doing was on another level entirely. And yet, Shen himself had said that anyone could do what he did, as long as they "knew the trick."
"Logic"… heh…
"Again!"
Kaito stomped his foot, his body exploding forward. A sound like thunder cracked the air. He appeared instantly behind Shen and threw a punch. But Shen, as if he had already foreseen it, was already turning to meet him.
The realm of [Pre-Initiative] was no longer a secret to either of them. Kaito also saw Shen's movement. Even though his muscles had no wasted motion, Kaito could still react.
This time, he didn't counter. Instead, he puffed out his chest, and with a thought…
Tekkai!
CLANG!
With the sound of a hammer striking an anvil, Shen's movement paused. It was as if he had just punched a solid rock wall. His muscles instantly tensed again, and a second wave of force erupted from his fist, shattering Kaito's Lv1 Tekkai. He coughed up blood, his organs damaged, but in the Training Hall, he was instantly healed.
He immediately punched back, striking Shen in the chest. This time, with his [Transparent World], he saw it more clearly. This change in muscle… it wasn't just muscle control. Shen was using his acupoints or his nerves, controlling his body in a completely different way. He was fighting with two different methods at once: on one hand, the mind of a martial artist, with perfect mastery of all techniques; on the other, he was deploying his body in a completely unknown way, granting him a power and defense that was completely mismatched with his physical stats.
This technique… I want to learn it!
Kaito was filled with an extreme, greedy desire for this ability. In that moment, he had even forgotten his original goals of leveling up Tekkai and his Martial Arts Aptitude.
BAM!
SPLAT!
The sounds of the battle completely drowned out everything else.