93: Swordsmanship Mastery

Dawn broke faintly, winter birds chirped, and Ironthorn Territory, silent for a night, gradually recovered its vitality.

White smoke drifted from the chimneys, and the bustling chatter of the inhabitants brought a rich atmosphere of life to the territory.

The training grounds outside the castle also revived amidst shouts and low cries that rose and fell in volume.

The wind that blew this morning was much gentler than usual, yet it remained cold and piercing.

However, this chill was nothing compared to the inhabitants' enthusiasm for life and the sweat shed by the figures training.

"Hah!"

"Ho!"

In the open space behind the training grounds, Lister's tall figure continuously jumped and moved back and forth.

While swinging the longsword in his hand, he subconsciously let out a short, low cry.

Thanks to Liberi's guidance yesterday, his swordsmanship had become increasingly refined and Proficient.

Swish, swish, swish!

Accompanied by the sharp sound of the sword tearing through the air, the speed of the longsword's swings grew faster and faster until it became an afterimage difficult for the eye to track.

The Qi and blood within his body quickly grew hot during the high-intensity movements and swings.

Soon, Lister's body resembled boiling hot water, continuously emitting white steam.

As time passed, he felt as if his body was gradually merging with the longsword.

Every swing was an unconscious motion, yet he could clearly feel his consciousness controlling the sword.

This profound feeling, mixing consciousness and unconsciousness, made him eagerly absorb the 'nutrients' emanating from it, like receiving sweet dew after a drought.

Moreover, from beginning to end, he did not use any Battle Qi energy.

He relied solely on the inherent energy and consciousness of his physical body to frantically perform simple swordsmanship moves like thrusts, chops, and slashes.

After an unknown amount of time, his Sea of Consciousness, which was immersed in this profound state, suddenly shook violently with a 'boom,' but this abnormality came and went quickly.

The next second, Lister abruptly stopped his movements, revealing a look of disbelief.

Immediately, he began to carefully sense the changes occurring within his body... "The realm of Mastery! My swordsmanship has finally reached the realm of Mastery!"

At this moment, even Lister, who was usually steady, couldn't help but laugh out loud with wild joy on his face.

He had originally thought it would take a few more days, perhaps even longer, to break through, just as Liberi had said.

But now it seemed his swordsmanship talent was far stronger than what he and Liberi had estimated.

To reach the Mastery realm of swordsmanship at this age, there probably weren't many others in the entire Kingdom!

While marveling inwardly, he couldn't wait to test the power of his Mastery realm swordsmanship.

As his arm moved again, the longsword danced under his control... sometimes swift and heavy like lightning, sometimes light and flexible like a swimming fish, constantly changing.

"Hah!"

Suddenly, a low cry sounded, and immense Battle Qi energy surged from deep within his body, instantly condensing and concentrating on the sword body.

Immediately afterward, the Battle Qi energy concentrated on the sword body violently shot out from the sword, transforming into a massive Battle Qi Slash that flew toward a large tree nearby.

With a 'boom,' the large tree instantly exploded. The fierce wind generated by the energy impact blew the wood fragments from the tree trunk, causing them to shoot out randomly like bullets.

Bang, bang, bang!

Piercing explosive sounds rang out, and the previously intact ground was covered with fist-sized craters, a shocking sight.

Lister nodded in satisfaction and murmured to himself, "Although it's not as powerful as a Skill, it's quite good already."

"When my Knight Realm improves and the Battle Qi energy within my body increases, the power of projecting Battle Qi outward should be greater."

At this time, the huge commotion attracted Spartacus and the others who were training on the outer side.

Before they could ask, Lister slowly walked out.

Because Red and his group had not yet returned, the training ground looked a bit deserted.

Besides him, there were only four people: Spartacus, Sinclair, Marjorie, and Tony Matthew.

Seeing that Lister was fine, the group breathed a sigh of relief while also looking like curious children.

Seeing this, he happily explained patiently, "I made a breakthrough in this training session. My swordsmanship successfully reached the Mastery realm. I just tested it out a bit, which is why the commotion was loud."

Hearing this, the group immediately looked surprised and then praised him continuously, though their words of praise were clearly not as sophisticated as Red's.

No wonder Red was the Knight Captain!

Naturally, Lister didn't mind this. After all, he was a broad-minded Lord; how could he discriminate against his subordinates just because they lacked high culture?

Next, carrying the air of an 'enlightened master,' he guided the swordsmanship of each person individually.

Since he had already reached the Mastery realm of swordsmanship, guiding these 'little rookies' seemed perfectly reasonable, right?

Just as Lister was showing off in front of others, a heavy sound of hooves and the sound of horses being reined in came from outside the castle gate.

Hearing this sound, Lister immediately knew that Red and his group were back. He promptly ended the guidance session and took the others away from the training grounds... After a morning of rest, Red and the others, who had escorted the carcasses of the Silver Wolf King and other Magical Beasts, had recovered their energy.

To reward the group that had followed him to support the Viscount Territory, Lister specially held a small barbecue feast at the training grounds.

Of course, he did not treat the Knights and Soldiers who remained in the territory unfairly either.

Aside from those required for routine patrol of the territory and those sent out on missions, the rest were summoned to the training grounds to participate in the Celebration Banquet.

Since the harvest of Magical Beasts was plentiful this time, Lister indulged in a bit of luxury, replacing all the barbecue meat with Magical Beast Meat.

The usual roasted wild beast meat was 'disdainfully' removed from the tables today, lest it lower the quality of the feast.

Watching Thomas and Flora, along with the other Maids, cut and distribute large plates of Magical Beast Meat in front of them, Red and the others, who were already starving, began to gorge themselves.

After this fierce Battle, none of the Knights and Soldiers who supported the Viscount Territory died, apart from a few who sustained minor injuries.

Naturally, they also gained a lot from this, especially the ordinary Soldiers who had never fought Magical Beasts before... They not only overcame their fear when facing Magical Beasts but also learned how to effectively respond when fighting them.

Although killing them was very difficult, the greatest success was ensuring their own survival while effectively restricting the Magical Beasts' movements.

Having this experience would also greatly help them in future Battles against the Foreign Races.

After all, those Foreign Races were highly intelligent beings just like humans, and dealing with them was no easier than dealing with Magical Beasts.

Although it was daytime, the atmosphere of the feast did not diminish; instead, it grew even more enthusiastic.

Watching the joyous appearance of the crowd, Lister took a large bite of Magical Beast Meat.

The next moment, a large amount of scorching energy rapidly circulated within his body.

As the pain and heat intensified, the Realm Shackles gradually began to crack.