Chapter 453: Chapter 162: The Swordsman Who Cleaved the Ironclad Ship: Mamiya Kurō
When Chiba Eijiro voluntarily set down his sword, the overwhelming "momentum" pressing towards Aoto from every direction like a massive wave immediately dissipated.
Although he really wanted to go a few more rounds with Chiba Eijiro, Aoto had to admit: Chiba Eijiro was right; he truly didn’t have the energy to swing the sword anymore.
Every part of his body was sweating profusely, drenched in sweat underneath the armor, his entire being like it had just been pulled out from the water.
His arms and legs were sore and aching badly, just lifting the bamboo sword was exceptionally strenuous, the aching muscles made it difficult for Aoto to hold the bamboo sword steadily, the sword trembled lightly... Unaware, someone might think Aoto was practicing the Beichen One-Sword Style.
Aoto possessed the "Strong Muscle" talent, where "muscles don’t easily tire".
Despite having such a talent, he still fought so fiercely that he couldn’t hold the sword steadily... One can only imagine how intense the fight with Chiba Eijiro was and how much energy it consumed.
When Chiba Eijiro said "We’ll stop here for now" and put down the bamboo sword first, the taut string in Aoto’s mind suddenly relaxed.
Without the support of willpower, Aoto’s steps suddenly became unsteady, and he stumbled a few times on the spot, then sat down on the ground inelegantly.
Chokata and the others on the edge of the dojo, holding the water and towels prepared earlier, rushed forward timely.
Chokata came to Aoto’s side, helping him remove the armor, while Kondo assisted Chiba Eijiro with his armor.
As soon as the mask was removed from his head, steam flowed out from Aoto’s head like it had been unsealed.
Aoto’s face was drenched in sweat, cheeks dark red from heat and fatigue, looking like a freshly cooked shrimp.
In contrast, Chiba Eijiro... from his current state, the significant difference in strength between him and Aoto became apparent.
Chiba Eijiro’s face only had a slight sheen of sweat, cheeks slightly flushed, breathing somewhat rapid but not chaotic.
"Drink some water quickly." Chiba Eijiro took the water handed by Kondo and said to Aoto with a half-joking smile, "The weather is getting hotter, if you don’t drink water timely, you might get heatstroke."
Getting heatstroke is essentially what is meant by suffering from the heat.
This summer seemed to have arrived particularly early, barely past May, making Aoto miss the fans and air conditioning of his past life.
Aoto took the bamboo water bottle handed by Chokata, gulping it down ferociously while relaxing his muscle.
Despite his body’s exhaustion... the system audio that just flashed in his mind halved his fatigue feeling due to emotional excitement.
Before the duel with Chiba Eijiro started, Aoto greedily fantasized: Could he copy the "Eternal Talent" from Chiba Eijiro?
For a genius among geniuses like Chiba Eijiro... possessing the "Eternal Talent" wouldn’t be impossible.
However, unfortunately—from the system audio just sounded in his mind, Aoto’s fantasy fell through.
But Aoto didn’t feel too disappointed.
After all, the rarity of the "Eternal Talent" destined the likelihood of encountering its holder as a matter of chance rather than choice.
Aoto was mentally prepared beforehand.
Moreover, effectiveness-wise, the "Gathering Spirit" copied from Chiba Eijiro might be more powerful than some "Eternal Talents" in the world. This greatly diminished Aoto’s minor regret from the fantasy of obtaining a second "Eternal Talent".
Far easier than most to concentrate spirit and maintain a state of "extreme mental focus" for a long time... Aoto understood why Chiba Eijiro achieved so many remarkable accomplishments at such a young age.
No matter Chiba Eijiro’s talent in Swordsmanship, possessing such a talent alone makes it hard not to become successful!
Anyone with common sense knows what the ability to concentrate attention more easily and maintain high mental focus for long means.
So in his past life, Aoto saw countless unscrupulous merchants selling all sorts of outrageous training courses and methods with the gimmick of "helping children improve concentration".
Feeling smug for acquiring another powerful talent, Aoto’s brows showed a faint smile.
Now that he obtained "Gathering Spirit", it’s undeniable—whether it’s studying or practicing martial arts, Aoto will have a faster learning efficiency, and can unleash greater combat power when fighting others!
Moreover, it was quite coincidental.
Only a few days ago, Aoto acquired the "Eightfold Banner of No Regrets" related to initiation conditions and concentration degree, and today gained "Gathering Spirit" which can enhance concentration.
The coincidence of events and good luck made Aoto couldn’t help but pinch his cheeks to see if he was dreaming.
The introduction in the system clearly mentioned: one of the activation conditions for "Eightfold Banner of No Regrets" is Unity of Heart and Mind.
Unity of Heart and Mind... isn’t that another term for "concentration"?
Between talents, they can complement each other, playing a mutually reinforcing role.
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