Chapter 366: The Sword Saint’s Perfect Score

Chapter 366: Chapter 366: The Sword Saint’s Perfect Score

"Put it away."

The Elder Sword Saint looked at the ethereal Red Dragon and nodded.

The King’s Choice Sword’s acknowledgment, plus this Dragon Species title...

If he also possessed a Dragon Species Source Material or Treasure, it was practically a certainty. Just like Elvira, he would be one of the Dragon’s Chosen.

"Since Elvira has already chosen you, I can spare your life,"

the Elder Sword Saint said faintly.

"However, the identity of the ’Shadow of the Crimson Crown’ is of utmost importance. Draw your sword against me."

"I can tell you have a Swordsmanship Specialty. You may use your strongest Swordsmanship to attack me."

He believed that external forces could be used to kill a Heroic Spirit Species. The achievement was dazzling, but it could be inflated.

Only the innate talent a person displayed in Martial Arts could never be faked.

That was the true foundation determining how far one could go in the future.

Moreover, he himself possessed an ability that allowed him to see through others’ potential through combat.

If the boy’s aptitude for Swordsmanship was decent, then as the Imperial Sword Saint, he certainly wouldn’t be stingy. It wouldn’t be difficult to teach him a thing or two.

Of course, the main reason he made this demand was that he remembered the sight of Elvira covered in blood when she first teleported out of the Star Realm.

Since he knew this boy was responsible, he planned to use this opportunity to knock him down a peg and, while he was at it, get a little payback for his student.

This way, even if the two of them were to be joined by a marriage contract in the future, the boy wouldn’t dare bully Elvira so easily.

Lance looked at the man’s eyes and knew there was no escaping this beating today.

He clenched his right hand in the air, activating [Heart Intent Martial Structure]. The Dragon Remains Crystal in his palm rapidly extended, solidifying into a longsword.

Truth be told, Lance’s attainments in Swordsmanship weren’t particularly high. Since transmigrating, he had only learned one common, military-grade style of swordsmanship.

He took a long, deep breath, finished all his preparations, and his Ethereal Melting Furnace erupted in an instant!

The stone slabs of the platform beneath his feet cracked from the force.

Lance transformed into a red streak of light, lunging straight for the Elder Sword Saint several meters away.

The essence of Castro Swordsmanship was the most direct of thrusts!

The Ash Dragon Breath coating Lance’s longsword left a fiery trail in the air as it aimed straight for the Elder Sword Saint’s face.

But the Elder Sword Saint merely lifted his right hand slightly, casually parrying outward with the spine of his sheathed sword.

"CLANG!"

Lance was blocked by the sword’s spine, and an immense Power surged back at him.

With a series of sharp cracks, the Dragon Remains Crystal sword in Lance’s hand shattered and disintegrated!

The force sent Lance flying, and he tumbled uncontrollably across the ground for several meters before managing to stop.

Although he was disheveled and covered in dust, Lance immediately got up and checked his body, only to find he was completely unharmed.

’This guy’s control over his Power is just insane!’

The Elder Sword Saint maintained his one-handed sword stance, but his expression clearly showed a hint of disinterest.

As a Guardian of the Royal Family, he had seen too many geniuses in the Royal Capital.

Objectively speaking, for his age and Level, the Attribute Value Lance displayed in that last strike placed him in the upper tier of the current generation’s youth, but only just.

He was still a long way from the truly top-tier geniuses the Elder Sword Saint had hoped to see.

’Perhaps it’s related to his commoner background,’ the Elder Sword Saint thought. ’If the Royal Family hadn’t discovered me early on and sent me to the Instant Sword Court, I myself might have hastily advanced to the Excellence Level during the Level 1-5 stage without reaching the Multi-attribute Extreme Value. I can give the boy a reminder about that later.’

But this was still a fight. The Elder Sword Saint simply said faintly, "Again."

Lance showed no signs of discouragement.

After all, the gap in their abilities was obvious, and this wasn’t a life-or-death battle.

So, he charged again.

This time, he adjusted the angle of his attack, trying to bypass the defense.

But once again, he was unsurprisingly thrown back by that same force.

And after tumbling twice on the ground, he recalled that the point his sword tip had struck was in the exact same spot on the sword’s spine the man had used to block before—not even a millimeter off.

’Incredible!’

While Lance was marveling at this, the Elder Sword Saint’s expression had changed.

His brow furrowed slightly.

This time, he had felt something a little different.

"Again."

This time, the disinterest in his tone had vanished completely, replaced by a new seriousness.

The third charge.

Again, his sword tip struck the exact same point on the spine of the other’s sword.

But to Lance’s surprise, the repulsive force didn’t appear this time.

The old man stood his ground. Not only did he not send Lance flying, but a slight smile even touched his lips.

"Again. With your fastest speed."

Lance didn’t know what the old man had sensed, but right now, he just wanted to see if he could break through that defense, even if only by shifting his blade a tiny bit on the sword’s spine.

A silver-red stream of fire once again cut through the air, followed by a rapid series of impacts.

But no matter how fast Lance was, no matter what clever angle he tried, every thrust of his sword was effortlessly parried by that Radiant Sword at the exact same point!

The Elder Sword Saint’s face, however, slowly shifted from a smile to an expression of pure delight.

’So it wasn’t a coincidence after all.’

"Again!"

The Elder Sword Saint’s urging voice rang out.

Although he didn’t know why the man had suddenly started laughing in excitement, being blocked at the exact same spot more than a dozen times in a row stirred a spark of youthful stubbornness in Lance.

He decided to add a little "spice" to his next attack.

And during that very attack, just as the Elder Sword Saint raised his hand to parry as usual, a strange, invisible Force Field suddenly appeared!

[Gravitational Phase Transition]

This force not only tried to obstruct the Elder Sword Saint’s hand, but Lance’s body also abruptly accelerated in mid-air.

"CLINK."

This time, it finally wasn’t the original position, but shifted just a tiny bit.

And that tiny bit was enough to bring a rush of satisfaction to Lance, who had been getting completely thwarted until now.

Meanwhile, the old man was still savoring the feeling of that Force Field he had just experienced.

Then, instead of shouting "Again," he sheathed his sword at his waist and began to laugh heartily on the platform.

This left Lance rather astonished.

The old man now was completely different from the one who had looked ready to kill him earlier.

After he finished laughing, the Elder Sword Saint looked at Lance.

"By my standards, the ability to defeat a Heroic Spirit Species is worth a 9. I can tell you’re not quite at that level yet, so you must have killed one using a trick."

"But!"

As the Elder Sword Saint said this, he made no attempt to hide his admiration. "In this battle, I also saw your potential."

"And as for your potential, I, Reinhardt, give you a 10!"

"A perfect 10!"

’Huh? Did he find out I’m a cheater?’

Lance was dumbfounded.

He glanced at the now-cracked Crystal Longsword in his hand, wondering what on earth he had just done.

The Elder Sword Saint saw Lance’s baffled expression but offered no explanation.

He was already eager to teach Lance that Skill.

"Since you have earned my acknowledgment."

"Come here. I will teach you a very powerful Skill."

"This Skill is a Secret Technique from my school."

’Might as well learn it! A Skill taught by someone this powerful can’t be bad. I’ll just consider it compensation for getting tossed around on the ground a few times.’

Soon, after the old man’s explanation, the Skill had been imparted.

The Skill didn’t sound complicated, but after hearing the explanation, Lance couldn’t make heads or tails of it.

It didn’t have any specific moves or techniques; it was more like a philosophy.

A philosophy that, once learned, could greatly aid in combat.