Return Of The Strongest Player

[Warning! User's body is on the verge of destruction!]

[Warning! User's body is on the verge of destruction!]

[Warning…]

Dozens of messages piled up, yet none of them were visible to Arthur, who's mind and body were undergoing tribulations one couldn't imagine. Attempting to forcefully draw Sword Aura was practically impossible.

One could easily perish while doing so.

However, there was an unexpected benefit, given one succeeded.

Succeeding in surviving the process while retaining a certain amount of the mixture–known as Aura–could grant one a technique named "Sword Spirit." It was a degraded version of Sword Aura, but served as a stepping stool towards Sword Aura.

Achieving Sword Aura without Sword Spirit was definitely possible, but the latter made achieving the former comparatively easier, as one had already performed the fundamentals, and only needed to expand.

However, Sword Spirit was only achieved if the person attempting did not perish.

In Arthur's case, it was difficult.

[User's body is beginning to destroy itself.]

[Judgment Regeneration is being forcefully activated to reduce the damage.]

[Judgment Regeneration's efficiency has been lowered due to lack of available mana.]

'Fuck.'

Orange, crimson, and black energy burst from Arthur's body. Most of the Aura formed within Arthur's body had dispersed, leaving him no chance of achieving Sword Aura. However, the Aura that remained was still too much for his body to handle.

Too less for Sword Aura.

Too much for Sword Spirit.

Arthur's eyeballs threatened to pop, while veins bulged at an unhealthy rate. Arthur's nails dug into his skin, while cramps appeared in all directions. His chest, bicep, abdomen, quadriceps, and calves were cramped simultaneously.

But even that was minor pain compared to the sensation of having one's body ripped apart.

As the energy desperately tried to escape, Arthur orifices did not offer an exit. His orifices were being overloaded, causing both blood and Aura to escape from them. The disturbance in the surrounding mana was too great.

It was almost as powerful as Lucas's achievement.

"Sword… Aura?"

"Another one? There's someone as talented as Lucas Festus?"

"No, there can't be! He's the most talented."

Lucas scoffed, listening to their praises while only feeling a sense of disdain. Oh, how the tables had turned. Previously, their life motive was to bury Lucas's name into the ground. However, after witnessing his heaven-defying talent, they had turned a new leaf.

It was comical, yet Lucas did not find it humorous. For, it was simply irony.

'It's not Sword Aura, you dumbasses,' he said internally, but didn't voice his thoughts. He couldn't waste his breath to explain something so obvious. The Aura was escaping Arthur's body at a terrifying rate.

The retention wasn't nearly enough to support the manifestation of Sword Aura.

Perhaps it would've been possible if Arthur's constitution was more powerful, or if his relationship with the realm of the sword was more pronounced. This was simply a forceful boost in power.

It could possibly assist in the manifestation of his Sword Aura.

But that was it.

It was simply a weak version of Sword Aura.

Utterly useless.

'Then again, he's not like the others…' Lucas thought, stroking his chin. He believed the reason Arthur performed such a public stunt was to gather recognition, so that climbing floors without interference would be a breeze.

Players did not mess with those they considered above their league. 

They might band together to eliminate a threat, but Arthur had maintained his reputation to a level lower than a threat. By performing such a stunt after Lucas, he displayed that his achievement was not worth that much.

By doing that, he assured that the other players considered him a role model while not considering him enough of a threat to eliminate. On the other hand, Lucas's achievement would cause waves.

He would probably be targeted by groups of players who do not appreciate competition.

'That little fucker…' Lucas let out a bitter chuckle. His amusement had waned. He silently exited the training ground, allowing the others to discover that Arthur's achievement was not equal to Sword Aura.

It'd be disadvantageous for Lucas in the future, but Arthur had played him well.

The former couldn't wait to pay the crimson-eyed man back.

*

[User's condition is stabilizing.]

After a long round of intense pain, Arthur's condition finally stabilized. His entire body was covered in blood, with ripped flesh sticking out. Arthur let out a cough, causing his insides to shake.

His body trembled, and a single tear escaped his eye.

His expression was blank, and his mind was empty. It was like he was staring into the abyss, while the abyss was reciprocating.

It was an infinite loop.

[User has achieved "Sword Spirit."]

As the beeping sound of the message entered Arthur's ears, he was jolted awake from the emptiness of the abyss. Suddenly, excruciating pain assaulted his body, and he immediately activated [Judgment Regeneration.]

A few minor wounds closed up, while his arteries were unclogged. His heart began beating at a healthy pace, followed by the adoption of a regular breathing pattern. His condition had truly stabilized.

'I will suffer some consequences.'

Forcing his body to accommodate such a powerful, potent energy, and creating it without the appropriate prerequisites was incredibly harmful. Not only was his constitution weakened slightly, but his will had also weakened.

The possibility of his technique fading was quite high.

'The higher the risk, the higher the reward,' thought Arthur, letting out a painful sigh. With his former level of strength, attempting the first ten floors while also gaining the most benefits was utterly impossible.

However, Sword Spirit–with extensive training–had the possibility to turn the tables.

Now that he possessed information about each floor, it was necessary to exploit the system as much as possible. Achieving the most benefits provided him the opportunity to race ahead of other players from his batch.

'I don't think I can even beat Aditya in a fair battle, yet.'

Even with Sword Spirit, it was difficult to surpass true talents. Arthur's power hadn't bloomed during the initial stages of his journey, but falling behind was not an option.

Therefore, his only option was to accept the consequences and rush forward.