Chapter Seven: Five Years Later

Three days passed in the blink of an eye, and early in the morning, Lan awoke from his slumber. After quickly washing up, he took Nara and headed straight for the training ground that belonged solely to him.

Through these three days of firsthand experience, Lan finally understood why the Golden Lion had said his blade training last month was utterly poor. Nara’s weight far surpassed that of the bamboo practice sword. If he were to swing Nara in the same way as the bamboo sword, Lan believed that within days his hands would be ruined.

Standing quietly at the center of the training ground, Lan waited for the Golden Lion’s arrival. According to what the Golden Lion had said, today he would formally begin teaching Lan the basics of swordsmanship. Only after mastering these fundamentals would he instruct Lan in other techniques.

Lan had no objections to the Golden Lion’s arrangement, for the Golden Lion was a great swordsman, and Lan himself was not.

The Golden Lion did not keep Lan waiting long; after about ten minutes, he descended slowly from the sky and landed before Lan.

Lan looked at his teacher with respect and said, “Master.”

The Golden Lion nodded, glanced at the Nara in Lan’s hands, and smiled faintly. “After carrying Nara these past few days, what insights have you gained?”

Lan thought for a moment and replied straightforwardly, “True swords are entirely different from bamboo practice swords. My training last month was an embarrassment to you.”

The Golden Lion shook his head. “Effort is never an embarrassment. Only those who mock you are.”

Lan smiled, saying nothing, but he agreed with those words. Just as in his previous life, when he decided to apply to the Legal University because of his father, nearly everyone ridiculed him, claiming his efforts were futile. Yet when the results came out, he proved them wrong—he, Lan, had been accepted.

“Watch closely now. I’ll demonstrate the proper way to swing a blade only once. If you don’t understand, ask me. Understood?”

The Golden Lion drew the ordinary samurai sword from his waist, twirled it in the air a few times, then began demonstrating the correct movements to Lan.

As a pirate, the Golden Lion was a resounding success—having fought the Pirate King Roger, single-handedly caused chaos at the navy base, destroyed half of it before being captured, and even managed to escape from the so-called inescapable prison.

Any single one of these feats could shake the entire world.

As a teacher, the Golden Lion was equally successful, for with just one demonstration, Lan realized where he had gone wrong.

Simply swinging the sword with all his might was entirely different from utilizing various muscles to swing the blade. The difference was profound.

Yet theory and practice are worlds apart. Watching the Golden Lion’s movements, Lan understood the logic, but when he tried it himself, it was nothing like what he had seen.

After several attempts, the Golden Lion shook his head, then came over to Lan and corrected his movements by hand.

Under the Golden Lion’s guidance, Lan quickly grasped the essence. With a single stroke, he felt the fatigue throughout his body.

“You have performed a perfect blade swing. Swordsmanship experience +1.”
“You have performed a perfect blade swing. Swordsmanship experience +1.”
“You have performed a perfect blade swing. Swordsmanship experience +1.”
…

As Lan trained, the system notification kept ringing.

If Lan checked the system now, he would see the experience bar for swordsmanship on the panel steadily rising with each swing. The increments were small, but with every swing, the bar grew a little.

“For the next few years, keep practicing like this. If you’re tired, just as on the pirate ship, after training a doctor will prepare a medicinal bath for you.”

Seeing Lan’s diligent practice and flawless blade movements, the Golden Lion was satisfied and reminded him before leaving.

“I understand, Master,” Lan replied, nodding and continuing his practice. He felt a peculiar joy in wielding the blade here, different from the feeling on the ship.

Only when training ended did Lan finally break free from that sense of joy.

Exhausted, Lan left the training ground, his only desire to soak in the medicinal bath, relieve his fatigue, eat a simple meal, and then sleep.

He paid no attention to the system panel, where the swordsmanship experience had increased by over three hundred, nearly four hundred, thanks to his blade swings.

Toward the end, fatigue caused his movements to falter, so they were no longer perfect and yielded no experience.

Otherwise, with five hundred swings, reaching swordsmanship level 1 would have been inevitable.

The next morning, when Lan checked his attributes as usual, he was startled by the experience bar in swordsmanship, which far exceeded the other stats.

“What’s going on?” Lan stared in surprise at the sudden growth in experience. After reviewing the system log, he realized that his swings the previous day had counted as perfect movements, each granting experience.

Filled with delight, Lan quickly got up, washed, and ran straight to the training ground.

One swing, one experience point—if he swung five hundred times a day, he could raise his swordsmanship level in twenty days.

But after twenty days, when Lan finally reached level one, he discovered that he could no longer earn experience with each swing. Still, perfect blade swings granted more experience than before.

From then on, the vast training ground saw Lan’s persistent figure every day, regardless of season.

Five years passed quietly, almost unnoticed by Lan.

The eight-year-old child from five years ago, through relentless training, had grown into a sturdy adolescent.

With a height of one meter sixty-three and well-proportioned muscles, he hardly looked like a thirteen-year-old boy.

“997…”
“998…”

“999…”
“1000.”

In the training ground, Lan was drenched in sweat. After completing his training, he stopped swinging and sheathed his blade with practiced ease.

“Master Lan, Boss Shiki asked me to escort you after your training,” a pirate said respectfully as he approached.

“I understand,” Lan replied, gripping Nara and leaving the training ground, heading toward the grand hall where the Golden Lion resided.

Since three years ago, Lan no longer needed medicinal baths to relieve muscle fatigue after training. It was also around then that he stopped pushing his body to the limit.

The system tasks continued to be issued as usual, but for the past three years, the training volume had stabilized, with little change.

Perhaps Lan’s improved abilities meant extreme training was no longer necessary; after all, constantly pushing the body to its limits would take its toll over time.

“Host: Lan.”
“Race: Human.”
“Special Abilities: None.”
“Strength Level: 3 (5790/10000)”
“Speed Level: 3 (4860/10000)”
“Endurance Level: 3 (5290/10000)”
“Swordsmanship Level: 4 (1200/10000)”
“Completing daily training grants random attribute experience.”
“The average person’s stats are at level 1, while regular marines and pirates have at least one stat at level 2.”
“Consistently completing self-disciplined training for a certain number of times grants cumulative rewards—the longer the duration, the richer the reward.”
“Current consecutive training days: 1825/2100, reward: ???”

Looking at his current data, Lan was quite satisfied.

Just one stat reaching level 2 put him on par with ordinary marines and pirates. All three stats at level 3, plus level 4 swordsmanship—where did that place him on the vast sea?

He walked slowly into the Golden Lion’s palace and immediately spotted his teacher.

“Master Shiki, you summoned me.”