The memory stone contained a long recording.
Lucian Baron focused on explaining how to advance Basic Swordplay all the way to the Grandmaster stage.
He patiently and carefully guided the soldiers on how to train, and he even sparred with them in person.
Raymond even spotted Hal in the footage. Back then, Hal was young and got beaten up pretty badly by Lucian Baron.
In one scene, Hal desperately blocked a casual swing from Lucian Baron, but it sent him flying backward like he’d been hit by a train.
"So, if I raise Basic Swordplay to the Master stage, I can master that kind of explosive power technique?" Raymond watched it three times before memorizing Lucian Baron’s teachings clearly.
Just then, in the empty space, the countdown for the four sinners’ draw chances ended.
Raymond didn’t hesitate and started another round of draws.
Sure enough, he got four more experience cards.
The only thing that made him feel good was that the succubus Lorraine finally came through again. She gave him an "Experience Card (Black Iron Stage, 30 days)."
After testing the draws over the past few days, Raymond had figured out a new rule.
The value of the draw rewards wasn’t fixed.
Having low Guard Contribution Points didn’t mean you couldn’t get high-value rewards.
And having high Guard Contribution Points didn’t guarantee you’d get low-value rewards either.
Everything was just a matter of probability!
"Lucky today. I got an extra 45 days of experience card time! Plus the 70 days from before, that’s a total of 115 days." Raymond chuckled and activated all the experience cards at once.
In a daze, he found himself back in that familiar white world.
But this time, it was different. A dark figure appeared across from Raymond in the white world.
Before Raymond could react, the figure raised a longsword and stabbed straight at his chest.
Clang!
Raymond drew his sword to block the strike.
His arm was still tingling from the impact.
Was this a simulation of Lucian Baron’s fighting style from the memory stone?
When Raymond realized what kind of training this was, he felt a surge of excitement.
After watching the images on the memory stone over and over, Raymond had understood one thing: once you train any technique to the Advanced stage, the only way to improve further is through real combat experience.
Raymond had thought that activating the experience cards this time would be just like before—him swinging his sword at the air alone in this boring space, with limited improvement.
He never expected to have a sparring partner!
This was amazing!
In an instant, Raymond’s fighting spirit soared!
A strong desire to defeat the enemy in front of him pushed Raymond to launch an attack...
115 days later.
Raymond snapped out of his daze once again.
He checked the time on the sinner card. Only a few seconds had passed.
Then he noticed his status panel. [Basic Swordplay (Advanced)] had changed to [Basic Swordplay (Master)].
His strength level, which had shown [Black Iron Stage Level 10 (Experience: 0.11%)], was now [Black Iron Stage Level 15 (Experience: 17.34%)].
He had gone up another five levels!
Raymond knew very well that the higher the level, the harder it was to level up.
He had originally thought that 115 days of experience cards would only help him reach Level 13 at most.
But he didn’t expect that this time in the white world, there would be a Black Iron Stage opponent for him to fight.
Plus, the techniques he was practicing this time were more advanced, which was why his level had gone up another five.
He should test his power!
As soon as Raymond thought of Lucian Baron’s explosive strike, he immediately pulled himself out of the empty space.
He went alone to the guard training ground.
It was already nighttime, and the training ground was empty.
Raymond walked up to the testing crystal and casually thrust his sword forward!
The tip of the sword stopped 50 centimeters away from the crystal and couldn’t push in any further.
Soon, a line of text appeared on the crystal: [Thrust Power: Black Iron Stage Level 16].
Raymond’s eyes twitched when he saw the number on the crystal.
His full-strength strike could already deliver Level 16 killing power?
Thinking about this, Raymond took a deep breath and said, "Let me try again with the burst technique I just learned!"
Clang!
Raymond exploded with force. The longsword stabbed toward the crystal and stopped 35 centimeters away from it.
Then, new text appeared on the crystal: [Thrust Power: Black Iron Stage Level 18].
Raymond’s eyes widened when he saw this. "These 115 days of experience cards were totally worth it!"
He was only Level 15 right now, but he could already deal Level 18 attack power. That made him very satisfied.
Still, Raymond felt deep down that 115 days hadn’t been enough for him to fully grasp the essence of Lucian Baron’s swordsmanship.
At the very least, he still couldn’t pull off a casual, natural burst strike the way Lucian Baron did.
He needed to draw more experience cards and find a way to raise Basic Swordplay to the Grandmaster stage!
With that thought, Raymond turned his head and looked at the hallway outside the door.
Now that he was Level 15, it was time to turn those weak prisoners into cards!
Not long after Raymond left the training ground, three guard squad leaders walked in together.
The tall squad leader picked up two swords from the weapon rack and handed them to the other two, smiling. "It’s been a while since we sparred. How about we see who has the strongest attack today?"
The short squad leader took the longsword and grinned. "Then watch closely. My slash might even crack the testing crystal."
Right after he said that, the short squad leader raised his sword and was about to strike.
But before his blade could fall, the testing crystal suddenly lit up with the marks Raymond had just left behind.
The short squad leader’s eyes went wide when he saw it. He screamed, "Black Iron Stage Level 18! Isn’t it only junior guards on night duty? Which junior guard pulled that off?"
Another squad leader, a chubby one, stepped closer and studied the marks carefully. He frowned and said, "These marks are fresh. The person left no more than an hour ago! Dealing Level 18 damage with a thrust - that’s a talented guy!"
The tall squad leader stared at the marks on the testing crystal, his face darkening. "Find out who it is. Check all the junior guards on night duty tonight. Keeping talent like this stuck cleaning on the first underground floor is a complete waste!"
The short squad leader’s eyes gleamed with a sharp light. He lowered his voice and said, "Don’t make a fuss. This guy is talented. He might be able to help us deal with that Barron fellow."
The chubby squad leader snorted coldly. "That Barron thinks he’s hot stuff just because the chief favors him. He never treats us squad leaders with respect. We really do need a Black Iron Stage guard to take him down a notch."
Raymond had no idea what the three squad leaders were plotting.
He walked alone down the hallway, feeling frustrated as he looked at the empty prison cells.
Because of the black fever outbreak, more than a dozen prisoners on this floor had died.
Of the thirty or so prisoners left, more than half were above Level 15.
After walking around twice, Raymond found that only six prisoners were below Level 15 and easy for him to handle.
He didn’t have much of a choice, so he walked up to the cell of the nearest prisoner.
- [Zach, Level 13, had a child with a duchess through an affair.]
After reading this prisoner’s ridiculous story, Raymond sighed and said, "Get out here!"
"What’s all the noise? I’m trying to sleep!" Zach jumped out of bed and pointed at Raymond, cursing loudly.
Clang!
Before Zach could finish his rant, the cell door swung open instantly.
Zach was stunned. Was this junior guard really this brave?
He actually dared to open the door and face him face to face?
Even if he was weak, he was still a Level 13 swordsman who had once served a duke!
Just as Zach was confused, Raymond walked into the cell and locked the door behind him.
Zach saw this and laughed. "What, you want to be like the squad leaders and use us as punching bags to blow off steam? Look at yourself. Do you even have the strength for that?"
Raymond said nothing. He walked straight toward Zach.
His footsteps were light, making no sound at all.
That sent a chill down Zach’s spine. "If you’re looking to die, I’ll just take your keys and clothes and escape!"
Zach shouted and lunged at Raymond first.
Raymond didn’t dodge or avoid. He just slapped Zach across the face.
Smack!
Zach was sent flying, his body slamming flat against the wall.
That one hit completely stunned him.
Zach held his face, looking utterly shocked. "How is this possible! You’re a higher level than me, and you’re still working as a junior guard for 30 copper coins a week? Are you crazy?"
Raymond didn’t answer Zach. He saw a new sinner card appear in his empty space, then turned around and left the cell.
Click!
The cell door was locked tight again by Raymond.
Zach held his swollen cheek, completely confused.
Was this guy insane? He opens the door, doesn’t say a word, slaps me, and then just walks away?
Next, Raymond did the same thing and registered the remaining five prisoners as cards.
The whole process took almost no effort.
If one slap wasn’t enough, he used two.
By the time Raymond got back to the break room, ten sinner cards were floating neatly in his empty space.
"At this rate, it won’t take long to raise Basic Swordplay to the Grandmaster level!" Raymond smiled with satisfaction.