Curse Return: Swordsmith Start

Chapter 144 Contest

"This is made from the skin of a machi tuna."

"Mickey Mouse?"

"It's not rice, it's ma."

I took the robe from the boss; it felt like cloth to the touch.

"What effect will this have?"

"It has no magic resistance, but it's sturdy and durable."

In other words, it's sturdy and durable, suitable for various scenarios. Rudius tried it on.

Yue Ren was slightly taken aback before realizing that this was his signature gray robe. So that's where he bought it?

I remember this robe seemed to have accompanied him throughout his life, and I vaguely recall hearing that it was passed down to one of his children.

This is undoubtedly a piece of equipment of extraordinary significance to the future Grerat family. Like the "Arrogant Water Dragon King" in his hands, it is something that could be used as a holy relic in another world. However, it was obtained in a very simple way on such an ordinary afternoon, which makes people marvel at the wonder of fate.

"It's a bit too big, don't you have a smaller size?"

"This is already the smallest size."

"Shouldn't they have robes for children?"

"Where would you find such a thing?"

The boss was speechless. A little human child... isn't that an infant? Who would make equipment for an infant?

"Do you like it? The price is eight iron coins."

"Then include that as well."

'

Finally, after Rudius tried to bargain as much as possible, he bought it for six scrap iron coins.

I also bought four headbands with the same design as a team logo.

Two days later, after completing her daily commission, Alice took the certificate of passing the interim learning test issued by Rudy and went to Yue Ren, hoping that he would keep his promise.

Holding the test paper, which had some mistakes but was basically 80% correct, and looking at the girl's hopeful eyes, Yue Ren felt a strange sense of relief, like that of an old father.

Like Rudy, this girl is also working hard in her own way, which is hard to ignore, just like Itadori.

Shaking his head to clear the strange idea from his mind, Yue Ren nodded in acknowledgment of Alice's efforts.

Amidst the somewhat puzzled gazes of the crowd, he approached Rajirud.

"Mr. Rachel Rudd, would you mind doing me a favor?"

"Of course, what's up?"

Rijrud, who was sitting on the ground preparing to maintain his weapon, was a little puzzled, since this was the first time Yue Ren had asked him for help. However, he agreed without hesitation, since Yue Ren had already gained his approval.

"Let's have a match, a swordsmanship contest. Give this child a chance to observe."

'

...I see, I understand now.

As expected of a man skilled in combat, he quickly realized what the Yue man meant.

That's right, just like how beginners sometimes imitate the works of masters. Yue Ren plans to let Alice witness what real high-level combat is like, which should help her.

Of course, the help goes beyond that, but we'll talk about what happens after that, once the battle is over.

He turned to look at Alice.

"Alice, I've seen your efforts, so I plan to help you in two parts. First, I'll be having a real battle with Mr. Rigdl. I hope you'll watch carefully; this battle will most likely help you, understand?"

"Okay, okay, I understand."

Alice looked excited. Although it was somewhat different from what she had imagined, she readily agreed after realizing that she would be able to witness a spectacular battle.

She was really looking forward to the real battle.

Rudeus, who was not far away, nodded in sudden realization; he understood as well.

Then one has to admire Yue Ren's thoughtfulness; he actually thought of helping Alice in such a way. If it were him, he would probably have been troubled for a long time.

"Let's go then. We should go outside so as not to disturb others..."

'

"No need, I already have the location planned!"

Yue Ren's words made Rijerlude, who had just set off, stop and turn to look at Yue Ren with a puzzled expression.

Did he find a suitable spot within the city? But regardless, unless it's a special barrier, the surrounding area will still be affected, right...?

Despite having such doubts, he stopped and had no further questions. After all, Yue Ren was always very sensible, and he must have considered such matters.

Yue Ren turned his head and glanced at the other two.

"The location is right here. So, are you all ready?"

"Um.

""

Rudius was equally puzzled, but he also prepared to go out.

"certainly!"

Alice was even simpler and more straightforward, excitedly waiting for the next move.

As the three men's confusion gradually turned into surprise, the boy waved his hand, and a "blade" appeared in the Yue man's hand from the flames. At the same time, a magnificent chant was heard.

"What leads here is countless studies."

"A mound of knives is piled up, to sever past karma through karmic connections."

Flames ignited around him, and everyone's expressions turned to shock. Rachel Rudd gripped his weapon, his expression instinctively becoming tense.

"Arrival here is the convergence of all things."

"Severing ties, severing destiny, severing past karma, can also sever the self."

Seeing the expressions on everyone's faces, the young man smiled slightly, pointed the blade and sword tip at the ground, and the world began to crack and shatter.

"The one who built the eight-layered wall said—this is the blade of a thousand sons."

Flames exploded, and to everyone's disbelief, the world changed.

A flash of white light appeared, and what came into view was a blue sky and sand dunes dominated by swords and flames.

"This is..

.!

"Everyone..."

'

The bewildered crowd instinctively turned their heads to look at the familiar figure atop the sand dune.

Welcome to my world!

"5

""

Rudius knew that Yue Ren was very powerful, a genius that he could not match.

He was an incredibly powerful Onmyoji on Earth, and he was the same in this world. Like a hero in an anime, he knew nothing, but everything went smoothly for him, and learning was effortless for him.

Ah, I'm so envious, but I can't be jealous, because he's so radiant, with such powerful abilities and a gentle personality, like the sun radiating warm light, not scorching, but making people want to get closer.

Even without meeting them, someone like him could have thrived through his "Onmyoji" skills.

If he had had such a senior as a friend in his past life, he wouldn't have suffered such inhuman treatment. Rudius had asked himself this question more than once.

However, even so, Rudeus felt that Yue Ren was still a novice hero in this world, someone who needed to constantly learn and level up.

But at this moment, this perception has been shattered.

So, this guy isn't a novice hero, but a fully-leveled demon lord? Is he here to experience life in this world?

Creating one's own "world"—that's a power belonging to the gods, isn't it?

Brother Yue, was he a god in the original world?

"Your world, Yue Ren... Who exactly are you? Creating the world, isn't that the power of a god? Are you a god?"

The man from Yue smiled slightly.

"How could that be? It's just showing off; it's not that serious. Actually, calling it a world is more like a barrier technique, similar to temporarily creating a different dimension that's advantageous to oneself. It's not a true world."

"...I see. But even so, it's already incredibly close to god-level magic."

Rachel Rudd breathed a sigh of relief; it seemed this time he had really been frightened.

As a warrior who once fought alongside the demon Laplace, Rigellud had undoubtedly seen a lot, but even so, he was still astonished by the Yue people's earth-shattering feat.

Even the former demon god Laplace never possessed such magic... It wasn't a matter of power, but rather the effect.

The demon god possesses powerful destructive magic capable of instantly altering the world's terrain, but has never possessed magic with such a special effect.

"This area is different from the real world. Any action taken here will not affect the outside world, so both sides can fight with peace of mind."

He casually picked up a weapon nearby and pointed it at Rijkaard.

"Of course, I also have my own selfish reasons. I've always wanted to test my skills against you, and this is a good opportunity. You don't mind, do you?"

That's the truth. Rijkaard's strength is among the top in this world. He's a hero-level figure who can influence an era. Yue Ren has long wanted to find an opportunity to fight him, but he hasn't had a good chance yet.

The current situation seems quite appropriate.

"Of course, to be honest, I'm also very interested in just how good you are."

As a warrior, Rijrud naturally longed to fight the strong, and since Yue Ren had put it so clearly, he had no reason to refuse.

Naturally, he raised his spear.

"Alice, watch closely. One day, you'll have to reach at least this level."

As soon as she finished speaking, Yue Ren and Rijerud disappeared from Alice's widening eyes.

Rudeus, too, began to stare blankly, for with the help of the Yue people, he could now barely see the truth of the battle.

The attack was like a metal storm. He didn't understand much else, but Rudius knew one thing: with that power, speed, and precision, if he were thrown into the fray, he would be chopped into mincemeat in a fraction of a second.

Alice, on the other hand, was completely absorbed in the battle amidst the sparks, her eyes glued to the screen.

Like two death spirals colliding, they exchanged blows countless times at almost imperceptible speeds, each strike canceling the other out. Sword tip against spear tip, each time with such precision—how did they manage it...?

A few seconds later, the two figures separated, and they were indistinguishable from one another.

Wow, that's amazing. It's like those two weren't even the main characters in the fight just now. Their stamina is incredible.

"Well then, that's the end of the testing, Mr. Rachel Rudd. Now it's time to get serious. You don't have to worry about killing me now, do you?"

"That's true, I'm sorry. I was rude."

Hey, hey, hey, are you kidding me? What are these two talking about...? Was that intense exchange just a test?

The next moment, the two responded to Rudeus's shock with their actions, making him understand what it meant to shake mountains and move mountains.

A flash of light, and the earth cracked. The place where the two stood was like a giant disaster-generating machine, slowly destroying the world.

The aftershocks of the attacks nearly knocked the onlookers off their feet; it truly was a battle of gods, literally.

Perhaps the only saving grace was that the two knew there were two spectators present, so no attack came towards their location. Even so, Rudius was still covered in a cold sweat.

After all, only a strong person can remain calm and composed when faced with a natural disaster, and he was clearly not qualified.

On the other hand, Alice was intently focused on the center of the battle not far away. In a sense, her talent as a warrior was truly limitless.

Half an hour later, the group reappeared in the room, but their condition was undoubtedly completely different from before.

Rudeus instinctively reached out to his surroundings, and after confirming that he was really back, he breathed a sigh of relief. Alice, on the other hand, was immersed in her own world and had not yet recovered from the battle.

The Yue man looked refreshed, as if he had just finished sweating.

Meanwhile, Rijkaard wore an expression that should never have appeared before, as if he had burned everything to ashes.

The battle undoubtedly ended in victory for the Yue people.

This is beyond doubt. After all, besides swordsmanship, the Yue people have other methods. Even if they cannot use them in this competition, and the opponent is very strong, the fact that they can infinitely recover from injuries is enough to tip the scales of the battle.

The swordsmanship that Yue Ren inherited from Grandpa Muramasa was even better than that of Rijer Rudd.

"Wow, that's amazing! You're really amazing, Yue Ren. How can I become as amazing as you and Rigdl? Tell me!"

Alice snapped out of her daze, and the first thing she said was that she couldn't contain her excitement. The battle she had just fought had really opened her eyes. She had never thought that one could reach such a level with just swordsmanship.

"Nothing can be accomplished without solid foundation, and swordsmanship is no exception. The reason why each of our strikes can achieve the desired effect is because we have been serious enough in every training session beforehand, gradually eliminating unnecessary movements."

""

After briefly explaining the importance of the basics, Yue Ren is ready to move on to the second step.

He came to Alice.

"Next, I will let you experience that battle from a first-person perspective again. Now, try your best to achieve that level. If you can reach even half of that level, you should be able to protect Rudeus."

, 7

"Understood!"

So, Yue Ren showed Alice a first-person VR movie and passed on some of his sword techniques that were suitable for her. After absorbing and mastering these techniques, it shouldn't be impossible for her to improve her swordsmanship to the Saint level in a short time.

At this moment, Miss Alice is only thirteen years old.