Demon Slayer: Can I add points to my Breathing Technique?

Instead, they took him to a quiet, upscale coffee shop in Yokohama.

We chatted about everyday things.

The conversations mostly revolved around Master Kazami's recent situation or Xia Xi's daily trivial matters.

Sometimes, I would smile when I heard my master throwing a tantrum over some trivial matter.

Sometimes, she would ask questions out of curiosity because of Xia Xi's experience of encountering evil spirits.

His tone was humble, and his eyes were warm.

You would never guess that he is a swordsman who fights to the death with evil spirits.

Still the kind that stands at the pinnacle of swordsmen.

We chatted while drinking hot coffee and looking out the window.

Afternoon sunlight streamed through the glass windows, casting warm yellow dappled patterns on the dark wooden table. The air was filled with the aroma of freshly ground coffee beans and the faint sound of a piano.

For a moment, Xia Xi had the illusion that she was in the modern world, but on vacation in a foreign country.

But the panel that was always floating above the other person's head reminded him.

This is not reality.

The other party was not a weak or ordinary person either.

Igarashi Yuzome

[Ability Level: 354 (Physical 161, Technique 122, Mental 71)]

[Storm Breathing LV.6] [Wind Breathing LV.5]

His physical attributes alone are almost equal to his own three strengths.

Unlike Xia Xi, NPCs don't gain attributes by leveling up their breathing techniques.

However, from another perspective, they can improve their breathing technique level through their own hard work and training.

The sweat and effort along the way.

They had already honed their skills and physique to a terrifying level.

This was also the first time that Xia Xi had come into such close and real contact with the top combat force of the Demon Slayer Corps.

"Jiu Che, you're daydreaming again."

"This habit can be fatal in battle."

Igarashi pushed up his metal-rimmed glasses and said in a gentle and clear voice.

Xia Xi nodded: "Okay, Aizen-senpai."

The young man sighed and rubbed his forehead, wondering if his junior brother was doing it on purpose or not, always calling him by the wrong name.

Igarashi gently placed the white porcelain cup back into the dish, making a pleasant, crisp sound.

He then spoke.

"Jiu Che, what do you think true strength is?"

A very twisted mechanism?

A top-tier skill set?

Or perhaps a simple, unpretentious super value?

Xia Xi tentatively replied, "A strong physique, rich experience, and superb skills?"

Igarashi gently shook his head.

"Yes and no, not entirely."

"Even if many people possess all three, they still find it difficult to defeat some of the world's strongest individuals."

"Therefore, many people attribute that difference to 'combat talent' or 'monster-like innate abilities'."

His gaze, gentle and warm, fell upon Xia Xi across from him from behind his glasses.

"I think these are just 'phenomena,' blind generalizations by ordinary people about things beyond their comprehension."

Xia Xi asked curiously, "Then what does Senior Brother think it is?"

The young man spoke up: "I think... it's consciousness and logic."

"Logic?" Xia Xi asked, puzzled.

"Yes."

Igarashi dipped her fingertip in water and drew a flowing line on the table.

"Exquisite swordsmanship, powerful strikes, ultimate energy dissipation, and even a physique and reflexes honed through countless trials... all of these can be considered as the wind flowing through the mountains."

"And what drives them and determines where they flow."

"It's the shape of the valley, the temperature difference in the air, and the level of air pressure."

That is the underlying logic of using power.

He looked at Xia Xi, his gaze seemingly seeing right through the boy's thoughts: "Others don't understand why you study multiple breathing techniques at the same time, thinking it's just that this arrogant young man is overly ambitious."

"Distribute your talents and time among different breathing techniques."

"It's far better to focus on one breathing technique, master it to perfection, and even reach the pinnacle of it."

This idea is very common.

Yuzuru Igarashi could naturally understand this as well.

After all, people have limited time, and there's nothing wrong with exercising in the most efficient way.

Secondly, practicing multiple breathing techniques will not change a swordsman's strength.

It's not true that a swordsman who has mastered two breathing techniques is necessarily stronger than one who has mastered only one. In fact, in most cases, the more techniques one has mastered, the less proficient one becomes.

The less skilled one is, the weaker one becomes.

The swordsman's maximum output is still based on the skill he is most proficient in.

Just like when people travel, they cannot choose two modes of transportation at the same time.

At most, it's just a matter of choosing one in order.

It's like choosing to take a horse-drawn carriage to the station first, and then transfer to a train.

Instead of doing that, it would be better to train a Ferghana horse to gallop all the way from home to the finish line.

But Igarashi doesn't think like an ordinary person.

I also know that the person opposite me, Xia Xi, is not.

“I understand, that’s not the case for you.”

"You're trying to reverse-draw that 'valley map'."

"You want to understand the essence of the five basic breathing techniques and use them to climb to a higher level."

Xia Xi's breath hitched.

My cheap senior brother actually guessed what I was thinking?

Igarashi's next words pointed to something deeper.

"The unrestrained nature of Wind Breathing, the flowing nature of Water Breathing, the solidity of Rock Breathing, the extreme speed of Thunder Breathing... they seem completely different."

"But in essence, it is nothing more than intervening in the generation, transmission, and outbreak of force with different logics."

"When you have enough knowledge, you can deduce the universal formula for human force exertion."

His fingers continued to slide across the table.

It outlines a simple human body shape.

He also wrote down a few lines of mathematical formulas that Xia Xi found very familiar.

"When you have enough knowledge, you can deduce the universal formula for human force exertion."

"The breathing techniques created at that time will no longer be simple imitations of nature, but will be closer to the origin of breathing methods."

"The purest path, one's own."

“I didn’t take the approach of studying all schools of thought.” He paused, his voice tinged with longing, “but I am still researching the underlying logic of breathing techniques in my own way.”

"In order to... achieve a perfect balance between one's consciousness and power."

After saying that, he gave Xia Xi a warm smile.

"Although there are some differences."

“But Jiu Che, I understand you. Your path is not wrong.”

Xia Xi: ...

Although that's partly the reason.

But actually, he initially just thought that collecting all five breathing techniques might unlock some hidden rewards.

“Look at the people in the store.”

Igarashi suddenly changed the subject, his gaze sweeping across the entire coffee shop.

"Nine Carts, what did you see?"

Xia Xi followed his gaze and saw a shop assistant grinding beans, an elderly man reading a newspaper, and a lady enjoying a cake.

And the virtual labels floating above their heads.

Energy level and skills.

"They're probably a group of ordinary people, each with their own area of ​​expertise. For example, that middle-aged man probably used to be involved in a gang; he should be a good shot."

After all, with an energy level of 15, it must have undergone considerable training.

There is also a LV.1 gun skill and a LV.1 intimidation skill.

The young Zhu nodded, acknowledging Xia Xi's insight: "Being able to see these means that Jiu Che, you've already grasped the basics."

Xia Xi: That's right. After all, without me, the system wouldn't be in this state today.