The Star Train's Journey Through the Heavens

Chapter 179 Guina

Shimotsuki Koushirou recounted the history of Isshin Dojo to the train crew, and also chatted about the local customs and culture of the island, creating a harmonious and pleasant atmosphere.

He also had his disciples demonstrate the Isshin-ryu swordsmanship to the train crew.

The disciples' swordsmanship skills were mostly superficial, and Zoro's swordsmanship only appeared powerful and heavy due to his physical strength, without anything particularly outstanding.

Only Kuina vaguely grasped some of the essence, and her swordplay was noticeably different from that of the other disciples.

Of course, the disciples couldn't sense this. The train crew was strong enough that even those who didn't understand swordsmanship could see something from their superior perspective.

"Your disciple named Kuina seems to have quite a bit of talent; she's much stronger than the others," March 7 commented.

A flicker of excitement at being recognized flashed in Kuina's eyes, and her sword swings became even more ferocious.

"You flatter me. Kuina is my daughter. She has been exposed to swordsmanship since childhood, and she started learning swordsmanship at a younger age than the other disciples, so it is normal for her to have the skills she has now."

"As for Zoro, he has only been practicing swordsmanship for less than a year, yet he has already surpassed most of the disciples in the dojo. That is true talent," said Shimotsuki Koshiro calmly.

"Zoro is indeed good. He has excellent physical strength and good character," Dan Heng agreed, recounting the story of how Zoro mistook them for bad guys and then single-handedly held them off in circles.

Shimotsuki Koshiro's expression was slightly strange, but in the end he did not choose to expose his disciple.

After the drill ended, Zoro looked at Meng Huaifeng and remembered him saying that he couldn't beat someone.

In a moment of impulsiveness, Zoro decided to prove himself to them and challenge Kuina once again.

"Kuina, I challenge you. This is the 1653rd time, and this time I will definitely defeat you!" Zoro said to Kuina, holding two bamboo swords.

Zoro hasn't mastered his verbal skills yet, and his third sword is basically harmless.

Therefore, Zoro temporarily used dual swords when challenging Kuina.

“Okay.” Guina agreed without hesitation, her face cold.

It was rare for a guest to acknowledge her, but her father denied it and instead praised the guy. Kuina was seething with anger.

The two stood facing each other in the dojo, while the dojo's disciples and the train crew watched with great interest.

"1653 times, how does he remember it so clearly?" Meng Huaifeng couldn't help but complain.

If he didn't know Zoro's character, he would have reason to suspect that Zoro secretly kept a little notebook to hold grudges.

"Ah, I can't even remember what I ate yesterday," March 7 said somewhat embarrassedly.

“Ever since Zoro came to the dojo, he has challenged Kuina five or six times a day without fail, and his rate of growth is clearly visible,” said Shimotsuki Koshiro.

If Kuina hadn't improved so rapidly under Zoro's pursuit, she probably would have been defeated by him long ago.

"Five or six times a day? Doesn't that get annoying?" March 7th exclaimed in surprise.

"Drink!"

Zoro shouted and charged towards Kuina, who raised her sword to meet him.

Today, Kuina seemed unusually ferocious, meeting every attack head-on, and her strength seemed to be several times greater than usual.

With the advantage of being two years older and in the prime of her development, Kuina's strength was still able to barely suppress Zoro.

Combined with his superior swordsmanship, it wasn't long before he knocked Zoro's twin swords away and struck Zoro on the forehead with a bamboo sword.

"Ugh." Zoro squatted on the ground, clutching his forehead.

"The 1653rd victory," Guina announced, looking towards her father and the train crew.

"Damn it, I lost again! I need to intensify my training!" Zoro said in frustration, perhaps feeling a bit embarrassed, and stormed out of the dojo.

His energetic appearance didn't seem like someone who had trained for a long time and had just finished a fierce battle.

It must be said that Zoro is indeed full of energy and recovers his stamina very quickly.

“Kuina’s strength is slightly greater than Zoro’s, but not enough to overwhelm him. If she uses more techniques, she should win more easily.” March 7 frowned slightly.

Although Kuina won decisively, she failed to fully utilize her strengths.

"Kuina, did you hear that? Boys are naturally stronger than girls. Zoro's strength is increasing very quickly. After a while, with your fighting style, you probably won't be a match for Zoro," Koushirou said to Kuina.

Guina pursed her lips tightly. Although her father loved her, he had also regretted many times that she was not a boy.

Meng Huaifeng shook his head slightly. The more something is denied, the more a person wants to prove it.

Koushirou kept saying that women's strength was inherently inferior to men's, but Kuina insisted on using her strength to defeat Zoro.

She will only resort to more techniques if Zoro's power surpasses hers and she still doesn't want to lose.

"Who says boys are naturally stronger than girls? Step forward and take a hit from my baseball bat first," Xing scoffed.

"I'm sorry, you might not be happy to hear this, but it's an undeniable fact. Just look at the powerful figures on the sea right now. There's only one woman, Charlotte Linlin, but she's not an ordinary human." Koushirou said apologetically, looking at the train crew, which was mostly male.

“I know there are many powerful female experts, such as Jingliu, Keisha, Heita, Ruan Mei, etc.” Xing said unconvinced.

“I’ve never heard of that before. Are you talking about some small country’s strongman? I’m talking about the true pinnacle of power on the high seas,” Koushirou said.

“I’m talking about top-tier experts,” Xing said.

Koushirou stopped arguing. These people had only been at sea for a short time and had limited experience. They probably had no idea how strong the real strongmen were.

"Dad, I'll take my leave now," Guina said, sounding a little sad.

"Yes." Koushirou nodded.

Watching Kuina's departing figure, March 7th wondered, "She seems a little sad. Is she really your daughter? Why does it feel like you're constantly hurting her?"

Koushirou said helplessly, "My daughter does have a good talent for swordsmanship, and she is also very ambitious. I know she dreams of becoming the world's strongest swordsman."

"But she has neither a gifted physique nor a special, powerful bloodline. It would be difficult for her to become the strongest in the world with her talent, and it would be even more difficult for her to become a girl. It's not that she's destined not to become the strongest, but her hope is extremely slim."

"In this situation, I can only keep putting pressure on her to work harder. Only if she perseveres will she have a glimmer of hope to achieve her dream."

"Aren't you afraid that the pressure will be too much and break her down?" Meng Huaifeng asked.

“If you can’t even persevere through this and are crushed by it, then you’re nothing special and destined to never become the strongest. It’s better to face reality early, live a peaceful life, and inherit my dojo.” Koushirou laughed.

He doesn't actually have high expectations for his daughter. It's just that she's strong-willed, so he helps her out. If she can get through it, she might be able to realize her dreams. If she can't, it doesn't matter.

“But it still feels a bit cruel to your daughter,” Meng Huaifeng said.

"This is the price that an ordinary person must pay to become the strongest," Koushirou said earnestly.

But the price might be higher than you expect. Meng Huaifeng sighed inwardly. In the original story, Guina was likely defeated by the bamboo ladder because she had trained to her limit, was exhausted, and that's why she tripped and didn't have time to react.

After visiting the temple, the train crew dispersed and roamed freely on the island.

Meng Huaifeng and March 7th were taking a walk on the beach.

"Although what Uncle Koushirou said makes a lot of sense, I still feel like something's not quite right." March 7th said, walking backwards with her hands behind her back, facing Meng Huaifeng.

“There’s no right or wrong, only what’s suitable or unsuitable. The same educational methods can succeed or fail. It’s just that we’re used to Sister Ji and Uncle Yang’s encouraging education, so you instinctively disagree with his suppressive education,” Meng Huaifeng said.

"Is that so? Luckily, Sister Himeko and Uncle Yang are both very gentle. If they were like Uncle Koushirou, I couldn't handle it." Just thinking about how Sister Himeko would constantly belittle him and put him under pressure, San Yueqi hugged his arms and shivered.

“Maybe in March you’ll be much better than you are now,” Meng Huaifeng said.

“No matter how much more powerful it is, I don’t want it,” March 7th said without hesitation.

"Hey~ Hey~"

While walking backwards on March 7th, he accidentally kicked a small rock and lost his balance.

"Be careful!" Meng Huaifeng grabbed Sanyueqi, preventing her from falling.

"You scared me!" March 7th gently patted her chest with her other hand.

"Don't walk backwards, you won't be able to see the road," Meng Huaifeng said helplessly.

"No, I like it. Aren't you here to watch over things?" March 7th refused, but the two still walked side by side.

The two walked to the vicinity of a cliff and saw a small figure on the cliff practicing swordsmanship frantically.

“It’s Kuina,” March 7th said.

"Well, let's go take a look."

"Hey, Huaifeng, tell me quietly, do you know her?" March 7th asked, shaking Meng Huaifeng's hand.

She knew that Huaifeng had a lot of secret information about the new world, from who-knows-where, but he didn't tell them much about the details after the first world.

I only reveal a little bit of relevant information to them when we occasionally meet.

Because Meng Huaifeng said that many details might be different from what he knew, he didn't want people to have preconceived notions and misunderstandings.

Meng Huaifeng's original work is likely to have novel, comic, anime, and TV series versions, each with its own differences. Who knows which version the real world will be?

"I know. If nothing unexpected happens, she will probably die in about six months." Since March 7th asked, Meng Huaifeng told her.

"Huh?" March 7th's mouth gaped open in shock.

Is it possible that such a cute little girl will die soon?

"How did she die? Let's save her," said March 7th.

As Meng Huaifeng shared his guesses, the two slowly walked towards the cliff.

Kuina must have been training for a long time; she probably came here to train right after leaving the dojo.

Her body was swaying precariously, her clothes were soaked with sweat, and even the hand holding the bamboo knife was trembling.

"hu~hu~"

Guina finally couldn't hold on any longer and collapsed on the grass, panting heavily.

"Even with such hard training, my progress still can't keep up with that guy's pace. I can only watch him catch up little by little. Is the gap between girls and boys really that big?" Kuina murmured, tears or sweat welling up in her eyes.

No matter how strong Kuina is, she is still just a child who is not even eleven years old.

However, as the current senior disciple of Yixin Dojo, even if she vents or cries, she cannot let others see it.

So Kuina came to this remote cliff all by herself.

"Of course it's not that big." A somewhat familiar voice rang out from not far away.

Guina quickly wiped her eyes as if she were sweating. The sweat got into her eyes, causing them to turn slightly red, and more tears flowed from the corners of her eyes.

"Is it you?" Guina got up and looked at the people who had come.

She remembered the pink-haired woman praising her.

“Your father only said that boys are stronger than girls, but he didn’t say that girls are more agile than boys. He only mentioned the advantages, not the disadvantages,” Meng Huaifeng said.

“That’s right, why keep comparing your weaknesses to others’ strengths? You should make full use of your own skill advantages instead of going head-to-head with him,” March 7th said.

“But I’ve already started developing. Will I still be as agile as I am now, carrying two burdens?” Kuina placed her hands on her chest.

Meng Huaifeng couldn't help but glance at March 7th, who glared fiercely at him.

"Turn around and cover your ears so you can't hear!"

Meng Huaifeng shrugged and turned his back.

March 7th didn't mind Kuina's sweaty smell and whispered in her ear.

"Actually... everyone... is that big... normal... not big..."

Kuina's eyes gradually brightened: "Sister, so girls can become the strongest in the world too?"

“Of course! When your strength reaches a certain level, the physical differences between men and women will have less and less impact, and ultimately, the strength will depend on the energy you control,” March 7th said.

"Energy?" Kuina hadn't yet encountered any knowledge related to Haki.

“Yes, imaginary energy, internal force, magic power, and the like,” March 7th said.

"For ordinary people, the path of destiny is not so easy to embark on, and in March, the mainstream of this world is domineering aura, which is indeed greatly affected by physical strength," Meng Huaifeng reminded.

"Oh right, I forgot about that. Girls really suffer when it comes to cultivating that kind of domineering aura." March 7 scratched his head.

On March 7th, he took a small booklet out of the train ticket and gave it to Kuina: "This is internal cultivation. It can help you develop internal strength. You can practice this in the future."

Guina looked at it for a moment, then looked blank: "I...I don't understand."

"I'll do it." Meng Huaifeng tapped Guina's forehead with his finger, directly transmitting the method of cultivating internal energy into her mind.

For the increasingly powerful Meng Huaifeng, achieving this no longer required relying on soul skills; it was something he could do effortlessly.

"By the way, if I teach her internal energy cultivation, will it affect the power system of this world?" March 7 asked belatedly.

(End of this chapter)