by KSY
“Where did you learn about that?” Ryan asked out of curiosity.
“I read about this in a book in our library. The book is named Weaknesses and Strengths of Different Attributes,” Blake said proudly. Ryan decided to read that book too.
“How is your training going on?” Ryan asked Blake. It was a critical time for Blake since he was already in the Late Condensation Realm.
“Nice. I think I’ll be able to breakthrough to Mortal Elite Realm soon,” Blake said, and confidence could be felt emanating from him. Blake’s Martial Spirit resembled a Black Lightning Tiger, which is an Ancient Elemental Beast. It is a Dual Attribute Elemental Beast, one of whose attributes is Darkness and the other, Thunder. The terrifying thing about this Ancient Elemental Beast is its variant thunder.
All Attributes have variations. Variant Attributes are many times more tyrannical than their Normal counterparts. The Black Lightning Tiger possesses Dark thunder. The lightning and electric currents produced by it is pitch-black in color, and they are many times more destructive than Normal lightning and electric currents.
A Martial Artist with a Dual Attribute Martial Spirit doesn’t have the same advantages as someone with Dual Martial Spirits, as he possesses only a single Soul Core. The advantage a Martial Artist with Dual attribute Martial Spirit has over a Martial Artist with a Single Attribute Martial Spirit is the ability to transform the Spirit Power of one attribute into the other and vice a versa. This allows that Martial Artist to use the power of two attributes.
“Don’t slack off for some time, will you. What about you, Cris?” Ryan asked.
Blake just nodded his head and turned his attention towards Cris.
“I am still at Mid Condensation Realm. In a few months-time, I will be able to reach Late Condensation Realm,” Cris said with confidence. Earlier, he’d had a nice chat with his aunt and grandfather about his cultivation, so he was confident in his ability.
Cris and Oscar possessed a similar Martial Spirit. It resembled Calamity Giant, a Darkness Attribute Humanoid Martial Spirit. Calamity Giants are one of the most dangerous Darkness Attribute beings in the Universe, and they are only found in some Divine Worlds. Death is your only option when facing one.
“Good for you. Just work hard and heed Grandfather’s advice,” Ryan advised him.
“You also pay attention to Grandfather, Blake, as you also possess Darkness Attribute Martial Spirit,” Ryan said.
Both Blake and Cris nodded their heads in agreement. They could tell that their brother was speaking for their wellbeing.
The trio conversed for another half hour before Blake and Cris returned to their rooms.
Once Blake and Cris left his room, Ryan entered the Spatial Cultivation chamber to cultivate Poison Elemental Laws again, as he lacked the resources to further cultivate Death Elemental Laws.
Ch.3
Early in the morning, Ryan took a bath and changed into new pair of shirt and trousers before leaving for the Martial Skill Pavilion. There are Martial Skill Pavilions in every medium and large city, as they are set up by the power that controlled that city. The Martial Skill Pavilion of Hope City was set up by the Divine Martial Sect, so the residents of Hope City and neighboring small cities could get Martial Skills from it. Martial Skill Pavilions only have low-grade and mid-grade Mortal Martial Skills, but currently, they were sufficient for Ryan.
A sect like the Divine Martial Sect prefers quality over quantity. Since they are unable to recruit everyone as disciples, they allow others to become decent Martial Artists by providing them with Martial Skills and Cultivation Guidance Manuals at a cheap price. All major powers follow a similar pattern. That way, they can make the people living in their territory loyal towards their faction and those people can also act as foot soldiers for the faction during wars and other small conflicts. It is like hitting two birds with a single stone.
The Martial Skill Pavilion was situated in the inner district of Hope City, where all the influential and important people of Hope City lived too. Even the house of the City Lord was situated in the inner district. The Martial Skill Pavilion’s building was quite simple. Its inside looked no different from a typical bookstore, with huge numbers of shelves lined in neat order. The Martial Skill Pavilion was divided into many sections, each of which contained Martial Skills of a particular attribute. Ryan went to the Poison Attribute Martial Skill section and approached the book shelves there one by one and started checking the Martial Skill manuals in them. Each manual had a short introduction to the Martial Skill on its cover page.
Ryan spent about two hours before he’d narrowed down his search to ten Martial Skills. He had enough money to purchase four to six Martial Skill manuals, but he also needed to save money for a new Soul weapon. He’d already decided to purchase at least three Martial Skills each for his Poison Attribute and his Death Attribute, so he needed to decide on three Martial Skill manuals out of the ten he’d shortlisted.
It didn’t take him long to decide on the three Martial Skills. The ones that attracted him most were Paralysis Gas Martial Skill, Corpse Poison Martial Skill and Death Fog Martial skill. These Martial Skills had high utility compared to the other Martial Skills and they possessed considerable offensive power when compared to other Martial Skills. All three Martial Skills were of mid-grade Mortal Martial Skill.
Paralysis Gas Martial Skill, as the name suggests, allows the Martial Artist to conjure a gas that has a paralyzing effect. The paralysis gas is not at all lethal, but it paralyzes the victim for an hour or so.
The Corpse Poison Martial Skill allows the Martial Artist to conjure Corpse Poison, which is a highly corrosive poison and corrodes anything it contacts. It is generally used to attack the armor and weapons of enemies, as it just destroys them.
Death Fog Martial Skill is meant for conjuring a Black poisonous fog. This Martial Skill is quite similar to the Emerald Fog Innate Skill of Emerald vipers, but it lacks the same lethality. The reason Ryan chose it was because of its very low consumption of Poison Attribute Spirit Power. Its lethality depends on the Martial Artist’s insights and understanding in Poison laws.
After deciding on these Poison Attribute Martial Skills, Ryan headed towards the Death Attribute Martial Skill section to decide on Death Attribute Martial Skills. Unlike the Poison Attribute section which had some hundred or so Martial Skills, the number of Martial Skills in this section did not go beyond twenty. It only took half an hour to decide on three Martial Skills, as the rest were only junk in Ryan’s eyes since they didn’t have too many uses.
The Martial Skills he decided on were Wraith Body Martial Skill, Soul Devouring Finger Martial Skill and Evil Spirit Enslaving Martial Skill. They were the best out of the lot and could be used in multiple situations. All three were mid-grade Mortal Martial Skills.
Wraith Body Martial Skill allows the Martial Artist to mimic a wraith. Wraiths are Undead creatures known for their Innate Ability allowing them to become invisible and erase their presence simultaneously. They are not that easy to detect for living beings with the same Cultivation Level as them, but they are easily detected by beings with a higher Cultivation Level than them. The creator of this Martial Skill tried to mimic this Innate Ability of wraiths but failed terribly, consequently, this Martial Skill is only good at making a Martial Artist invisible but is unable to erase the presence of the Martial Artist, because of which any being can detect him or her with its Soul-sense. Ryan decided to take this Martial Skill though, as it could be used by him to escape at critical times.
Soul Devouring Finger Martial Skill is a Soul attack. It allows the Martial Artist to shoot finger beams, which try to devour the soul of the victim. The victim’s soul is destroyed after getting hit by the Soul Devouring Finger Martial Skill if he or she is unable to counter it in time. It is considered as a mid-grade Martial Skill, as it is so very difficult to master, and the combat prowess it gives to the Martial Artist is equal to a high-grade Mortal Martial Skill. Ryan had always wished to learn
a Soul attack as the power of Soul attack depends on the strength of the soul of the Martial Artist. Ryan’s soul was exceptionally powerful, which would make his Soul attacks tyrannical amongst his peers with similar cultivation levels as he had.
Evil Spirit Enslaving Martial Skill is, as the name suggests, a Martial Skill that allows the Death Martial Artist to forcefully enslave Evil spirits. Evil spirits are the weakest type of Undead creatures. They are generally used for scouting purposes by Death Martial Artists.
Ryan took all six Martial Skill manuals to the billing counter of the Martial Skill Pavilion. The counter was manned by an old woman, but Ryan could tell that she was quite strong despite her having aged quite a bit.
“Hello Grandma, I would like to buy these Martial Skills,” Ryan said as he handed over the Martial Skill manuals to the old woman.
The old woman checked the manuals. She looked at Ryan and said, “Remember, we don't accept returns. All these Martial Skills selected by you are not at all easy to master, as the requirements for mastering them are quite high.” The old woman cautioned Ryan, but he was not at all influenced by her words, as he had full faith in his ability.
“Since they are difficult to master you will need to spend a lot of time on them, but time is a precious thing, boy. Don’t waste it by taking these Martial Skills,” she again cautioned Ryan as she could tell that he was taking her advice seriously. She had a good impression of him, as she liked his good manners. She had seen many hot-blooded young ones picking up things not meant for them.
“I thank you Grandma for your kind advice, but I would still like to give them a try. Who knows, I might succeed in mastering them,” Ryan said with a determined look. The old woman sighed and didn’t bring up the matter again. She knew from experience that Ryan was not going to change his decision.
“You need to pay six hundred primary low-grade Elemental stones for these Martial Skills,” the old woman said without emotion. Ryan paid her and left the Martial Skill Pavilion with a satisfied expression. He was happy with his purchases irrespective of what the old woman had said, as he was confident in himself that he would be able to master the Martial Skills he’d selected.
Ryan headed next towards a weapon store to purchase himself a suitable Soul weapon. The dagger that he’d used previously had turned to junk after his first hunt with a large number of cracks in its blade.
A weapon Martial Artists can form a Spirit link with is considered a Soul weapon. Ryan had decided to visit Stellar Weapon Store to purchase a Soul weapon for himself, as it was considered one of the best weapon stores in Hope City.
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“My guess was correct. He indeed has a Death Attribute Martial Spirit. Otherwise, he wouldn’t buy Death Attribute Martial Skills,” Oscar said to Emilia who was hovering beside him high up in the sky. Ryan had been unexpectedly followed by his grandfather and mother! They already knew the attributes of the Martial Skills selected by Ryan.
Emilia was feeling rather complicated and was unable to answer her father-in-law.
“But why would he do so?” Emilia said after a little silence. She was unable to think of a reason, which could force Ryan to hide such a big thing from his family.
“One of his Martial Spirits is most likely a Taboo Martial Spirit, one that has a very high intelligence and is outstandingly good at hiding itself. If it hadn’t been greedy for one second, I wouldn’t have sensed its existence,” Oscar said after giving it a little thought.
“How can you be sure that it is a Taboo Martial Spirit? Ryan hasn’t gone on a rampage since his birth. He isn’t aggressive and violent,” Emilia’s eyes were already moist as she questioned her father-in-law. She knew the difficulty faced by Taboo Martial Artists in society. They were always alone, as people preferred to keep a distance from them.
“There are always exceptions. Most likely Ryan is a Stable Taboo Martial Artist,” Oscar said with little confidence, as it was exceptionally rare for a Taboo Martial Artists to have resistance towards the Baleful aura of their Martial Spirits.
“Let’s confront him. Many of our questions will be answered then,” Oscar said with a determined expression.
Emilia nodded her head in agreement. If her son was a Stable Taboo Martial Artist, then things would be different. He could lead a normal life.
“Father-in-law, can you get the resources required for cultivating Death Elemental Laws for Ryan?” Emilia asked with a concerned look, as she was certain that he lacked them.
“Yes, I know about that. I will try buying them before returning home,” Oscar said as he watched at Ryan’s back as he walked through the crowd.
Emilia decided to return home as Blake and Cris were all alone. She turned into a blue streak of light and headed towards the estate at high speed. Oscar didn’t carry on trailing Ryan either. He turned into a black streak of light as he zoomed towards the horizon. It was unknown where he was heading to.
Ryan didn’t know that his secret was already out. Currently, his mind was occupied by the type of weapon he should buy. He had no intention of buying a dagger again. During his first hunt, he’d come to know about the drawbacks of using a dagger.
“Ryan, get a sword, and we can turn it into a Life Weapon,” Yama suggested. Yama’s four out of six hands wielded swords which meant that Ryan would have an exceptional talent in wielding swords, just like a Martial Artist with a sword-shaped Martial Spirit. This was one of the advantages of possessing a Humanoid Martial Spirit. Ryan approved of Yama’s suggestion. He himself had been thinking of buying a sword. He knew that he would have an exceptional talent in wielding a sword. He would just have to avoid using the sword in front of his family as they would be able to tell that it was a Life Weapon.
Stellar Weapon Store was situated in the commercial district of Hope City. It was a grandiose building which spoke a lot about its profits. Stellar Weapons sold all kinds weapons. The metallurgical sciences on Grandura were highly advanced, so the weapons made there could cut rocks as easily as if they were pieces of cloth.
Ryan entered the store and went to the section that sold swords. A store attendant approached him with a smile, “Sir, what kind sword do you wish to purchase?”
“I wish to buy a sword to create a Life Weapon for myself,” Ryan said with a serious expression. The shop attendant was overjoyed upon hearing Ryan’s requirement, as such swords were quite expensive.
He immediately started showing Ryan different kinds of swords that could be used to create a Life Weapon. They were of various shapes and sizes. Some were only 60 centimeters long and resembled a needle, while some were as long as two meters in length and had a very broad blade. Ryan tried each one of them by swinging it around, but he shook his head each time. He didn’t like the feeling he got from them. The attendant’s expression turned ugly, but he quickly replaced it with a smile.
Ryan sighed and said, “Do you have some more swords? Don’t worry about the price.”
“Sir, we have only these swords that could be used by you with your current Cultivation Level, but new stock will arrive within a few days. You can visit the store then and try your luck again,” the store attendant said. Ryan nodded his head in approval and started checking out other stuff in the shop.
Just as he was passing by the section displaying weapons forged by renowned blacksmiths or weapons made from precious metals, Ryan felt as if someone was calling him. Yama also heard the call. Ryan followed the call and soon arrived in front of a wall that had a black sword displayed on it. Ryan was shocked on realizing that it was the black sword in front of him that was calling to him. Clearly this weapon had sentience, which made it priceless, as only the best blacksmiths are capable of making weapons that possess sentience to some extent. Generally, such weapons are used by Immortal Realm Martial Artists. Ryan was certain that the sword was definitely an Immortal Artifact though he was unable to verify its grade.
The sword was wholly black in color. Its bl
ade was sixty centimeters long and two fingers wide, and its hilt lacked a cross guard. The sword had a sense of familiarity as he touched it. He felt as if it was meant for him, and he wanted to wield it.
“Ryan this is a genuine weapon of a real Asura. You have to get this sword no matter what the cost!” Yama frantically and Ryan finally understood why this sword had called out to him. Asuras forged their own weapons using their own blood as one of the constituents, so its power can be imagined.
Ryan found the store attendant in charge of the section where the black sword was displayed and asked him as he pointed at the black sword, “How much does that black sword cost and what’s its story?”
“That sword costs around two thousand Primary attribute mid-grade Elemental stones. It was found in the City of Death, a place, as you know, that is filled with Undead creatures. When this sword was found by our expedition team, it had a few powerful Undead creatures protecting it. That made us think it was a valuable artifact, and many of my brothers died to get it,” the store attendant said as he sighed. Ryan was certain from the price quoted by the store attendant that the people from the weapon store didn’t know that this sword was even more precious than an Immortal Artifact. Even a low-grade Immortal Artifact would cost more than the overall worth of Hope City.
The store attendant continued, “When we successfully acquired the sword after killing the Undead creatures and got it appraised by an appraiser, he quoted the value I told you. It was not as valuable as we’d initially thought, just a normal sword made by a high-level blacksmith. As for why the Undead creatures were protecting it … we don’t know the reason for that,” the shop attendant said in a self-mocking tone. Undead creatures were known for their low intelligence. It was not uncommon for them to guard ordinary objects without reason.