Chapter 230 Martial Grandmaster
It took 2 hours to perform the first move, three hours for the second move, and 4 hours for the third. A full cycle of practice was 9 hours, and when Dante was done, he felt completely rejuvenated rather than fatigued, which mostly had to do with the Quantum Vitality Serum rather than his practice itself.
When he checked his progress, he saw that he had made 5%. This was a steep increase from the 2 hours for 10% he had at the previous Advanced Knight Realm, but it followed the rules of higher realm = higher effort.
Anyway, with his current ability, it was a piece of cake to bring his Primal Ape Technique to breakthrough to the Great Knight realm after spending just over 81 hours or 3 and a half days practicing nonstop with no break.
After all, Dante at his current realm did not feel much physical fatigue, while his mental fatigue was greatly alleviated by his quantum clone, who was peacefully meditating using the expensive incense in the Black Land.
When he broke through to the Great Knight realm, Dante felt the inkling of feedback, but it was still not enough given how high his stats were. If he had been at the previous 1500, he might have enjoyed a small increase.
[Physical Powers: Primal Ape Technique (Level 5: Great Knight, 1%).]
[5. Great Knight: Savage Onslaught
At the Great Knight level, one's attacks will mirror the silverback's primal ferocity. By tapping into the ape's instinctual aggression, one's strikes will become more unpredictable, unrelenting, and overwhelming. This realm also grants one an innate sense of one's opponent's weaknesses, allowing one to exploit openings with precision.]
The Great Knight realm was where the offensive part of the power began to come into play, as this realm was all about hurting others. Dante was tempted to practice it since he was still in the zone, but knew that it would be best to match his two physical methods together.
As such, he switched to the Raging Blood Halberd Technique and took out his Blood Battle Halberd. Unlike using common halberds like before, using this one not only doubled his practice speed but also loosened any 'bottlenecks' he would face.
In truth, Soulforged Steel of the Knight Breathing System and Magus World should serve the same purpose, but Dante did not invest in it because there was no technological alternative yet. He had tried to program nanites with the same properties as Soulforged Steel so that his exosuit could become his knight armor, but there was a problem linking life essence to nanites.
As for the Raging Blood Halberd technique at the Martial Master realm, it was all about Blood Qi control. Unlike the previous Martial Blood Realm which emphasized growing your newly created Blood Qi until you could not take anymore, now it was time to compress and refine that Blood Qi as well as your control over it.
To do this, the Raging Blood Halberd technique had listed 5 moves.
The first move of the lot was called Crimson Initiation.
Dante grasped his blood battle halberd firmly, his movements precise and deliberate as the hologram visualized the movements he needed to perform using his body in real-time.
To start the first move of this minor cycle, he channeled his blood energy, stirring the massive Blood Qi within his body. You could picture his blood energy - which was near limitless and more than a hundred times in quantity compared to his Blood Qi - as fire and his Blood Qi as water.
He was burning his blood energy to 'heat up' his Blood Qi and get it to boil. To do this, the best way was to naturally swing and thrust his blood battle halberd using the method of the technique.
As he continued to move his blood battle halberd while copying the hologram, Dante felt the Blood Qi awaken, surging through his veins like molten lava. It was extremely hot, enough that Dante's caramel skin began to smoke and become red, as if he had activated the kaioken technique.
The second move was the Bloodborne Exodus, and no, the name had nothing to do with what you were thinking about.
Transitioning seamlessly to the second move, Dante's focus shifted from his body to the halberd in his hands. With a flick of his wrist, he directed the awakened Blood Qi outward, guiding it into the halberd's blade which was a portion of his entire total, about 1/36th of it.
The weapon seemed to come alive, resonating with the influx of Blood Qi as its already blood-colored body shone with a nefarious light, looking like a demonic weapon that had killed countless beings.
The blood battle halberd absorbed the Blood Qi like a voracious sponge, the crimson energy swirling within its metallic core (it was made of metal, right?) and leaving nothing behind.
This step was crucial in preparing the Blood Qi for purification and refinement.
The third move was Purity's Embrace, and this stage required precision and control.
With the blood battle halberd now brimming with Blood Qi, Dante initiated the purification process. He visualized impurities, accumulated from daily life and exertion, being expelled from the energy pool.
As the impurities dissipated by being burned into black ash, the Blood Qi's quantity obviously diminished, but its quality soared.
It transformed into a radiant, crystalline essence, untainted by the mundane aspects of existence. This purer form of Blood Qi was the foundation of the Martial Master realm and the key to a successful Martial Grandmaster realm.
The fourth move was called Density's Crucible. No, not Destiny, but Density, read it again.
This particular stage focused on compression. The refined Blood Qi, now in its purest state, was condensed within the blood battle halberd. Every twirl and sweep of the weapon compressed the energy further, reducing its volume even more but amplifying its potency.
The blood battle halberd thrummed with power as the already superior Blood Qi - compared to Dante's peers - was packed into a denser, more formidable form.
This compression process was a delicate balance, ensuring that the Blood Qi's quality remained uncompromised even as its quantity decreased.
The fifth and final move was called Lifetide Return.
As the conclusive part of the minor cycle, this sequence naturally brought the refined and compressed Blood Qi back into Dante's body. After all, it wasn't like he cleaned and squeezed it for the halberd to drink and enjoy, right?
When the Blood Qi merged with his body, Dante felt an overwhelming surge of strength and vitality. His martial power was heightened, and the refined Blood Qi became an integral part of his power source, ready to be unleashed in the heat of battle.
Of course, for now, it was sequestered away in a separate part from the regular Blood Qi that had yet to go through refinement.
After all, we didn't want to taint the batch after just being improved, now did we?
The rest only 1/36th of his Blood Qi was pulled out and refined in this process was that it formed a minor cycle at this realm. When all 36 batches were refined and formed 36 minor cycles, this formed a full cultivation major cycle.
Dante then had to perform 72 major cycles to achieve the full technique. This was time-intensive as one minor cycle took 10 minutes to complete, and a major cycle was obviously 360 minutes, or 6 hours.
To perform 72 of them required 432 hours or 18 days, which was an incredibly long process. Luckily, the stage only required all 72 major cycles and was split into 5, with the entry level requiring 8 major cycles, the minor accomplishment requiring 20 cycles, greater accomplishment needing 16 cycles, mastery needing 20 cycles, and perfection requiring 8 cycles.
18 days was not long for Dante to spend. It was a bit tougher this time since his quantum clone left the Black Land after 4 days and was now in the final 30 days mock exam where all students of all years would be present.
He was distracted by its actions and had to cut off his connection with it in order to focus, especially when he saw what kind of fruits it got. Dante's breathing became extremely heavy, and he thanked lady luck even more than he got Quantum Compatibility.
Anyway, he easily broke through to the Martial Grandmaster realm after completing all the necessary cycles and was now ready to delve into the Apocalypse World once more to raise his stats again!
[Physical Powers: Raging Blood Halberd Technique (Martial Grandmaster, Entry level 1%).]
Feeling the surging perfected Blood Qi, Dante once again felt a hint of feedback that was wasted. Maybe if he was at 1500 or less, he could have gained some stat-related benefits, but that was impossible now.
Whatever the case, he cracked his neck and came out of seclusion. After heading to the Apocalypse World, raising his stats, and then raising his two magical methods, his parents should be about done with their upgrade, and it would be time for them to enter the Eternal Universe and meet his wife's family.
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