Soon, the flashing and changing of the various colored attributes began to slow down.
Roya could finally make out several of the green attributes that flashed past.
Most of them were things like increased Stamina or increased Agility—nothing particularly remarkable, and not very appealing to him.
Gradually, the attributes began slowing down even further.
It looked as though the draw was about to stop on a green Agility Increase attribute, and Roya couldn’t help feeling somewhat disappointed.
But unexpectedly, just as the green attribute seemed about to lock into place, it flashed once more.
And then it suddenly became…
A purple attribute!
Before Roya could even see what it was, the purple attribute instantly transformed into countless violet specks of light.
They spiraled through the air before flowing into the status panel.
A rare attribute?!
Roya’s spirits immediately lifted.
He had thought he would only end up with an ordinary green attribute.
He hadn’t expected it to suddenly jump to purple.
The dramatic reversal made his heart pound several times.
Almost in the next instant, lines of text and numerical data appeared on the status panel once again.
Stage Two: Ancient Sword Soul +0
Attributes: Attack Power +40, Strength +10
Special Attribute: “All Things in Creation, Turn to Ashes!” — Sword attacks can freely inflict additional fire damage (Evolution Conditions Not Met)
Enhancement Energy: 0/20
Roya’s gaze immediately locked onto the newly added purple Special Attribute.
“This is…”
Staring at the words “All Things in Creation, Turn to Ashes!”, Roya felt that they were strangely familiar.
For a moment, he couldn’t quite place them.
Then Roya suddenly noticed that he could inspect the Special Attribute in greater detail.
With a thought, the Special Attribute section expanded, and a smaller information panel appeared.
Special Attribute: “All Things in Creation, Turn to Ashes!”
Initial State: Sword attacks can freely inflict additional fire damage.
First Evolution: Unlocks the active ability Shikai: Ryūjin Jakka.
(Not Activated)
Second Evolution: Unlocks the active ability Bankai: Zanka no Tachi.
(Not Activated)
VMMMM!!!
The moment Roya saw the detailed description, his mind seemed to explode with realization.
He finally understood why the phrase had seemed so familiar.
“All Things in Creation, Turn to Ashes!”
Ryūjin Jakka…
Wasn’t this the Zanpakutō ability of Genryūsai Shigekuni Yamamoto, the former Captain-Commander of the Gotei 13 in Bleach?
It was the oldest and most powerful fire-type Zanpakutō.
Upon releasing its Shikai, Ryūjin Jakka, it could unleash flames said to reach temperatures of approximately 6,000°C, comparable to the surface of the sun, incinerating everything in its path.
And its Bankai, Zanka no Tachi, concentrated heat said to reach approximately 15 million°C, comparable to the core of the sun.
Simply allowing its power to remain unleashed was enough to threaten the world’s very existence.
Such power was unquestionably worthy of being called the strongest fire-type Zanpakutō.
Compared to that, even the Magma-Magma Fruit wielded by the Marine Admiral Akainu seemed almost like child’s play.
How could ordinary magma possibly compare to the power of the sun’s core?!
Just looking at the Special Attribute, Roya could almost imagine an endless sea of flames swallowing the entire world in an instant, reducing everything to ashes.
Unable to suppress his excitement, Roya immediately examined the evolution requirements for Ryūjin Jakka and Zanka no Tachi.
First Evolution: Unlocks Shikai, Ryūjin Jakka.
Evolution Requirement: Sword Soul Stage Five.
Second Evolution: Unlocks Bankai, Zanka no Tachi.
Requirement: Obtain Ryūjin Jakka first before the evolution conditions can be viewed.
After seeing these two lines, the excitement in Roya’s heart finally settled somewhat.
“As expected, it isn’t going to be that easy.
I need to enhance the Sword Soul to Stage Five before I can unlock Ryūjin Jakka?”
“In other words, from now on, I need to focus on finding a way to rapidly enhance the Sword Soul to Stage Five…
and eventually even higher.”
…
Morning.
A ray of dawn rose over the horizon, seemingly bringing renewed vitality to the entire world.
Roya had spent the entire night too excited to sleep properly.
He had been itching to begin training immediately, accumulate Enhancement Energy, and continue enhancing the Sword Soul.
So, the next morning, he got out of bed exceptionally early.
His entire body was filled with energy.
He didn’t feel tired at all.
Aside from his intense desire to obtain Ryūjin Jakka, Roya’s mind and soul seemed inherently stronger than those of an ordinary person because of the Sword Soul’s existence.
Furthermore, this world was extremely peculiar.
No matter how exhausted or numb one’s body became, by the following day, it would somehow be completely refreshed.
As a result, Roya couldn’t feel even the slightest trace of fatigue.
Garp, on the other hand…
He had promised to personally guide Roya’s training, yet he was still asleep.
Roya couldn’t be bothered to wake him.
For someone as eccentric as Garp, there was probably no point in trying anyway.
At that moment, Roya was in the courtyard, practicing a simple set of physical conditioning exercises.
This was one of the basic training methods used by the Marine Headquarters’ recruit camp.
Not everyone could immediately learn Rokushiki.
Even among the Marine Headquarters recruits, very few knew Rokushiki.
Without an exceptionally strong physique, one simply didn’t have the physical foundation necessary to practice it.
Among the six techniques of Rokushiki, Roya was particularly interested in three:
Soru, the high-speed movement technique;
Geppo, which allowed the user to move through the air;
and Rankyaku, a technique resembling a flying slash.
As for Shigan, since Roya had already decided to build his foundation around swordsmanship, there didn’t seem to be much point in training a technique centered around attacking with his fingers.
As for Kami-e, which focused on evading attacks, and Tekkai, which allowed the user to withstand attacks…
These two techniques seemed to serve as the foundations for Observation Haki and Armament Haki.
With Garp around, once his physical strength was sufficient, learning Haki should be relatively easy.
At this point, Roya wasn’t lacking training methods.
As long as he wanted to learn something, he could probably find a way to obtain it.
What he needed was to rapidly strengthen his physical body.
And…
Enhance the Sword Soul!
“HUH!”
After training for roughly an hour, Roya was drenched in sweat.
His shirt was completely soaked through.
Only then did he stop and catch his breath.
At this time, Garp still seemed to be asleep.
After taking a drink of water, Roya couldn’t help wearing a helpless expression.
When it came to sleeping, he had to admit defeat before someone who could apparently fall asleep standing up.
Seeing that Garp still hadn’t awakened, Roya didn’t bother trying to call him.
He activated the Sword Soul System with a thought, and the status panel appeared before him.
Stage Two: Ancient Sword Soul +0
Attributes: Attack Power +40, Strength +10
Special Attribute: “All Things in Creation, Turn to Ashes!” — Sword attacks can freely inflict additional fire damage (Evolution Conditions Not Met)
Enhancement Energy: 1/20
Aside from the final line, which had increased by one point, nothing else had changed.
“The Enhancement Energy is increasing more slowly now.
Only one point after an hour?”
Seeing that his hour of training had only produced one point of Enhancement Energy, Roya wasn’t particularly surprised.
He had apparently already anticipated this.
After pondering for a moment, Roya casually picked up the sword resting on the table.
The 21 Great Grade Blade, Engetsu.
It was precisely because of this sword that the enhancement condition for advancing from Stage One to Stage Two had been fulfilled.
And because of it, Roya had obtained a purple rare attribute.
Shing!
The blade slid gently against its sheath, producing a faint sound.
This was the first time Roya had drawn Engetsu.
Engetsu was long and slender.
Under the sunlight, its edge radiated a brilliant white gleam, while the entire blade was crimson red.
It looked almost as though flames were rolling and burning across its surface.
Could obtaining Ryūjin Jakka somehow be connected to this sword?
That thought flashed through Roya’s mind.
Holding Engetsu, he stood up and walked toward the center of the courtyard.
Although Roya didn’t know any actual swordsmanship yet, Engetsu still radiated an unmistakably sharp aura beneath the sunlight.
Thinking about the Special Attribute he had obtained—Ryūjin Jakka and Zanka no Tachi after evolution, with the initial state allowing him to freely add fire damage to his sword attacks—a faint light flashed through Roya’s eyes.
“Let’s see what this additional fire damage can actually do.”
Roya looked at Engetsu and muttered to himself before slowly raising it.
The next moment…
Roya gripped Engetsu with both hands and suddenly swung it forward.
VMMMM!
As he swung the sword, Roya clearly sensed something within his body—or perhaps within his very soul—surging forth in response to his thoughts.
WHOOSH!
The instant Roya’s sword completed its swing, a golden flame suddenly appeared out of thin air.
It shot forward in the direction indicated by his blade and struck a pile of miscellaneous objects in the courtyard.
The pile instantly caught fire.
Blazing flames surged upward, rapidly reducing the pile to ashes.
Only after it had been completely burned away did the flames gradually die down.
So this was what the additional fire damage looked like?
Looking at the scene, Roya revealed a satisfied smile.
“This is only ordinary fire.
I wonder what kind of power Ryūjin Jakka will have once I can unleash it…”
Thinking about the power of Ryūjin Jakka from his memories, Roya couldn’t help yearning for the day he would finally obtain it.