Chapter 218: Mastering Energy, the Secret of the Second-Rank
"Wind God Legs?"
Kaito Shirogane stared at the ancient-looking scroll, his expression betraying no sign of joy or excitement. This was a martial arts ability from the Feng Yun derivative world. It was one of the "Three Absolutes" taught by the Elder of Three Absolutes to the formidable Lord Conqueror. It was both a ferociously powerful kicking technique and an unparalleled movement art.
In its original world, this was the very technique that had earned the hero Nie Feng his title, the "God of the Wind."
But for the Kaito Shirogane of today... the manual's utility as a simple movement skill probably outweighed its combat applications.
When it came to close-quarters combat, Kaito already possessed a terrifying trinity of super-speed movement skills: Rokushiki: Soru from One Piece, his Yokai of the Wind trait, and the reality-bending Setsuna. His movement was already bafflingly fast and unpredictable.
Of course, he mused, using the Wind God Legs as a new vector to trigger his Death-Taint of the Myriad Gods would certainly be an upgrade to his arsenal.
Sensing Kaito's distinct lack of enthusiasm, the smile on Luo Xi's face faded slightly. She could feel it immediately. This newcomer, Mercenary Tao, held none of the fawning, sycophantic desire to "pledge allegiance" that she saw in people like Rose Tiger.
This man... he held absolutely zero respect for her.
But this realization didn't anger Luo Xi. On the contrary, this very coldness and lack of respect made her believe that Mercenary Tao had far more potential than Rose Tiger ever would.
Reincarnators were a breed of people who lived on the knife's edge, expecting death at any moment. In a group like this, concepts like "etiquette" and "respect" were complete and utter bullshit. They were nothing but the pathetic whining of the weak, of those who had hit a bottleneck in their own power, who felt the crushing pressure of increasingly dangerous missions, and who desperately sought to grovel at her feet for protection.
Luo Xi saw through the motives of every low-rank Reincarnator who tried to get close to her. She knew exactly what they wanted. She still gathered Rose Tiger's faction under her banner, but only because the entire Nexus was becoming more unstable. In the higher-difficulty worlds, both the mission lethality and the intensity of Reincarnator-versus-Reincarnator combat had been escalating.
The ongoing shadow-war between those two transcendent, supreme-level Reincarnators had made every single Titled-rank Reincarnator, like herself, deeply uneasy. They were all forced to "feed the fire," to madly absorb any promising low-rank Reincarnator they could find, cultivate them as fast as possible, and then throw them into the meat grinder of a war of attrition.
After all, if she, the Crimson Sorcerer, refused to throw these new "recruits" into the furnace, the next person to be thrown in would likely be her.
And now, this brutal newcomer, Mercenary Tao—the man who had just personally executed Flame Fiend—was a member of her own assembly. For talent like this, Luo Xi was willing to show a great deal of patience.
"Mercenary Tao-kun," she said, her voice dropping to a more conspiratorial tone. "You aren't yet aware of the true secret of the Second and Third Ranks, are you?"
Kaito nodded. This was something he had observed. The population of Reincarnators was distributed in a sheer cliff-face. The First-Rank was overflowing with players. The number who could actually touch the "Limit Break" and ascend to the Second-Rank dropped off precipitously.
The vast majority of Reincarnators spent their entire, short lives stuck in the Paper, Mortal, and Strong tiers.
Because of this, the existence of the First-Rank's "Limit Break" wasn't some grand secret. But the path from the Second-Rank to the Third-Rank was far more closely guarded. Information brokers charged an exorbitant fee for even a whisper of it.
Of course, Kaito assumed that as a Reincarnator continued to grow within the Second-Rank, the Nexus itself would eventually provide the necessary clues.
"The path from the First-Rank to the Second-Rank," Luo Xi began, pacing slowly, "is the process of a Reincarnator evolving from a mere mortal into a true superhuman creature."
She paused, turning to face him, her crimson eyes sharp. "The path from the Second-Rank to the Third-Rank... is the process of evolving from a superhuman creature who only knows how to use brute force... into a true monster who can master energy and command the powers of heaven and earth."
Kaito's focus sharpened. He noticed she had placed an almost physical emphasis on the words "master energy". It was obvious. The great leap from the Second to the Third Rank was all about energy.
Thinking of this, a strange, almost undetectable expression flickered across Kaito's face. His own energy reserves... they were so vast, so bottomless, that he suspected even many Titled-rank Reincarnators couldn't possibly compare. His only, and significant, problem was that his utilization rate of that energy was laughably poor.
He possessed an ocean of power but could only scoop it out with a teaspoon.
Luo Xi continued her explanation, unaware of his internal thoughts.
"This 'Energy' attribute isn't like your muscles or your neural pathways. It's not a basic physical quality. You can't just dump the attribute points you get from missions into it and watch it grow, step-by-step, until you hit the limit."
"If you want to raise your 'Energy' to a high enough level—and more importantly, use it efficiently—to become one of those terrifying Reincarnators capable of obliterating entire cities, there are generally only three methods within the Nexus."
Kaito listened intently, his mind processing this critical information.
It was true. The 'Energy' attribute was listed right there on his stat panel, but it was grayed out. He had never been able to add points to it. When the Nexus randomly assigned him stat points, it only ever touched his four basic physical attributes.
The only times his Energy stat had ever increased were as a passive bonus from leveling up skills like his Dodon Ray or Hamon. From this, it was clear that raising one's Energy attribute was infinitely more difficult than raising one's physical stats.
"The first method," Luo Xi said, holding up one finger, "is through cultivating specific abilities. Things like Ki, Hamon, Meditation, Cosmo, or Hadoken. By continuously leveling up these skills and, more importantly, using them relentlessly, the corresponding energy within the Reincarnator's body will grow stronger and stronger."
Kaito felt this was very similar to how the main characters in a story would train. The only difference was that Reincarnators had the Nexus as a cheat engine. They could spend Singularities to have The Goddess instantly level up their skills, as if having decades of power forcibly injected into them, shattering all the normal cultivation bottlenecks.
"The second method is Bloodlines," she continued. "Certain special Bloodlines are born with the innate ability to command and generate energy. Acquiring one of these Bloodlines is the path most Titled-rank Reincarnators, myself included, have chosen to walk."
Kaito nodded again. This made perfect sense. Flame Fiend was a prime example. And Luo Xi herself, with the casual way she manipulated flames and her naked desire for the [Blood of the Flame Dragon], was almost certainly a user of a high-tier, Dragon-type Bloodline.
"And the third method?" Kaito asked.
Luo Xi gave a small, wry laugh. "The third method... you could call it 'dumb luck,' or maybe more elegantly... 'A Fated Encounter.'"
"A Fated Encounter?"
Kaito was skeptical. That concept felt fundamentally at odds with what Reincarnators were. Reincarnators were a swarm of locusts, meticulously calculating and stripping every resource from every world they invaded. "Fated Encounters" were the domain of the lucky, wide-eyed protagonists of those worlds, not the interdimensional thieves.
Luo Xi nodded, her expression serious.
"It's rare, but it happens. A tiny fraction of Reincarnators will, in a story-world, trigger some kind of unique, special plotline. Maybe they earn the profound favor of a top-tier main character. Maybe they activate some world-bound item that can't be brought back to the Nexus. Maybe they get caught up in some bizarre ritual or horrifying experiment. Whatever the cause, the result is the same: that tiny minority of Reincarnators sees their power skyrocket, and they ascend to the highest ranks almost overnight."
Kaito immediately thought of his own Body of Ten Thousand Spirits from the Underworld. That... that definitely qualified as one of Luo Xi's "Fated Encounters."
"So," Kaito said, bringing the conversation back, "what does any of this have to do with Wind God Legs?"
Luo Xi held up her index finger again, a sly look returning to her face.
"The Wind God Legs itself might not be a powerhouse ability, that's true. But it is the prerequisite for Three-Part Return Ki. And that skill... that is a supreme art that allows martial artists and physical-combat Reincarnators like you to dramatically increase both your Energy reserves and your energy utilization efficiency."
She leaned in slightly. "And besides... I know you use the Satsui no Hado. That power is devastating, but it comes at a price. If you don't find a way to suppress it, it will corrode your body from the inside out."
"You don't have the long, immortal lifespan of someone like Akuma to just gradually tame it, do you?"
Luo Xi's points were valid. She was operating under the logical assumption that Kaito was like any other physical-combat-type, unaware that his special constitution already gave him a monstrously high energy pool, just with terrible efficiency.
But the core concept of the Three-Part Return Ki—a method for fusing several different types of internal energy into one, superior whole—struck a deep chord with Kaito.
His own path forward was becoming clearer and clearer.
Because he had achieved a Limit Break in all four physical stats simultaneously, he was a true "stat monster." At the same time, because of his unique constitution, his Energy stat was also monstrously deep.
Kaito was, in every sense of the word, a "Numbers Freak" among Reincarnators.
But he wasn't satisfied with that. He didn't just want to have the numbers; he wanted to use them, to unleash their full potential. He envisioned a future where he could channel his power through Ki and Hamon for explosive bursts, while simultaneously using his Spirit Infusion and Underworld power to deal horrifying, absolute "true damage."
"The Three-Part Return Ki sounds excellent," Kaito said smoothly. "But, Lady Sorcerer... you are only offering me the Wind God Legs."
Luo Xi didn't get angry at the blatant negotiation. She simply held up a single, elegant finger.
"That 'great individual' is currently focusing his efforts on the Feng Yun world. I believe it won't be long before the manuals for Cloud-Part Palm and Frost-Part Fist become available. When they do, I will, of course, come to you for another trade."
The implication was clear: the "Rare" quality [Blood of the Flame Dragon] was only worth one "Rare" quality [Wind God Legs] scroll.
It was a Bloodline item for a top-tier cultivation manual that enhanced energy. In the Nexus, their values were indeed comparable.
Kaito knew this woman was a shrewd negotiator. He hadn't expected to get a massive premium on the item. But he also understood the principle of leveraging a rare commodity. And in this situation, the rare commodity wasn't the [Blood of the Flame Dragon].
It was him.
He pressed his advantage. "Lady Luo Xi, I can accept this trade. However... I am still lacking some essential equipment and items. I was wondering if you..."
Luo Xi knew immediately he was angling for free information, a bonus for the trade. She considered it for a few seconds. This was a "premium" she was willing to pay. She nodded, agreeing to his unspoken request.
Right now, she needed Mercenary Tao. She was willing to satisfy his demands. But the moment he lost his value, he would become just like Rose Tiger—someone who would find it difficult to even get a moment of her time.
[You have lost the item: Blood of the Flame Dragon (Rare).]
[You have obtained the item: Secret Manual - Wind God Legs (Rare).]
[Secret Manual - Wind God Legs]
[Quality: Rare]
[Description: A secret manual recording the "Wind God Legs" absolute technique from the Elder of Three Absolutes.]
[Requirements: Spirit > 10]
[Effect: Each use consumes a certain amount of Spirit to perform a 'Martial Deduction'. Based on the results of the deduction, you can master portions of the Wind God Legs techniques.]
The moment Kaito received it, he realized this was not the same as the "skill scrolls" he had used before. This wasn't something he could just crush and instantly master. It required him to actively use "Martial Deduction" to learn and practice it.
He'd been played. He knew Luo Xi had gotten one over on him. For someone with his abnormal learning capacity, it wasn't a huge obstacle, but it was far less convenient than a simple skill scroll.
"Oh, right," Luo Xi added, as if it were an afterthought. "I forgot to tell you. In the Second-Rank and beyond, you will start to encounter many more of these 'special manuals' and 'ability crystals.' For the same exact ability, how a Reincarnator learns it and unleashes it can produce... wildly different effects."
Kaito put away the "secret manual." He was finally beginning to truly understand what the "Second-Rank" really meant in the Nexus.
It was the stage where a crowd of newly-evolved superhumans began to truly develop their own unique specialties. They would learn to grasp all kinds of different energies. They were beginning to touch the true meaning of power.
From this point on, Reincarnators would truly become superhumans capable of flying through the skies and shattering the earth. They would no longer be "super soldiers" who just relied on enhanced physical abilities, martial arts, or high-powered weaponry to blast each other apart.
It was just like the Shun Goku Satsu he had obtained. There was a massive difference between the base Shun Goku Satsu and the "True" version. The skill description had said: under special conditions, one can master the True Shun Goku Satsu: One Thousand Strikes in an Instant.
The divergence between Reincarnators would only widen from here. Kaito thought back to that man, Kai, whom he had met in the Jujutsu Kaisen world. The man's Hadoken... it had possessed a uniquely tyrannical and domineering aura.
"Thank you for the information, Lady Luo Xi," Kaito said, his tone all business. "I am currently in need of a suitable vehicle. Something that can get me across large distances quickly, whether in a mission world or the real world. Do you have any channels for that?"
Kaito knew that the Wind God Legs was itself a divine-tier movement technique, but he was thinking of large-scale, rapid strategic movement. He was thinking of worlds like One Piece, which were full of massive, unusual terrains—like oceans—that would severely limit any movement method that relied solely on his own two feet.
Luo Xi tapped her long, pale finger against her chin. The acquisition of the [Blood of the Flame Dragon] had put her in a good mood. A wisp of flame danced around her arm as she thought for a moment.
"If you're just looking for a conventional, technology-based vehicle, you can probably find something in the shantytown market. But if you want a high-tech or even hyper-tech vehicle... that comes down to pure luck. The same goes for high-tier biological or magical mounts."
She paused, then looked at him with a calculating gaze. "However... if you possess the ability to command a specific element, I could introduce you to an Alchemist I know. He specializes in custom-crafting unique vehicles that are bound directly to their owner's abilities."
Their conversation had not been short. It had already attracted the attention of several other assembly members lingering in the plaza, but none of them dared to approach and interrupt the Crimson Sorcerer.
But just at that moment, a Reincarnator on a flying broomstick suddenly zipped in from the distance, flying erratically.
He completely ignored Luo Xi's developing frown and landed hard in front of the pair. He shot a nervous glance at Kaito's ugly, pink-robed avatar before blurting out his message.
"Lady Luo Xi! The Final Day has just made an announcement! He's declaring the founding of a new nation in the middle of the Pacific Ocean! He's conscripting all Second-Rank-and-above Reincarnators, assemblies, and teams in the Eastern District to participate...!"
~~~
Guys We cross the 100 power stone goal and as promise here the bonus chapter
Next goal 200 power stone,come on guys you'll can do it, good luck.
~~~
Every 5 new reviews = 2 extra chapters
Every 100 Power Stones = 1 extra chapter