Chapter 683 Patterns
Ryu stepped forward, his expression quite indifferent, though hidden beneath a mask. Something like polearm control was too easy for him. In fact, he was far better at it than a normal person would be since he had spent so long training for the purpose of dual wielding polearm weapons.
Not only did such a goal require ridiculous amounts of flexibility and dexterity, but it also necessitated supreme control. Ryu had long since gained the ability to fine tune the power output of each of his individual muscle fibers for the purpose of battle.
However, what was fascinating about the staff was that it was a weapon only ever used with two hands, making it somewhat different from even the polearms that Ryu was used to.
Though dual wielding polearm weapons was something never before seen and even endlessly ridiculous to some, there were many historical precedents for single arm wielding polearm weapons. It was just that the other arm would be occupied by what was usually a shield. In fact, it could be said that a spear-shield combo was among the strongest for large armies and provided great balance even to single combat warriors.
The staff, though, was different. There wasn’t any precedent for wielding it with a single arm. It could be said that the threshold for stability needed by a staff wielder was many orders of magnitude higher because due to its lack of a blade, a lack of accuracy and power was less forgivable.
This was the reason this game caught Ryu’s attention almost immediately.
“One credit or a Higher Immortal Qi Stone to participate!”
The staff wielder that was in charge of the game immediately called out when he saw Ryu stepping forth. Though he didn’t see a staff on Ryu’s back, it wasn’t very uncommon for those who weren’t staff masters to try out their hand at these games.
The price was actually quite expensive. To make a person pay a Higher Immortal Qi Stone just for a single shot at a game was overkill. But, it was more so an incentive to use the city’s credit system instead. It probably allowed the Armament Guild to make some money on the back end.
However, Ryu was unconcerned with this. Now that he had gained the Inheritance of two of his Clans, he had more money than he knew what to do with. His current wealth was a lot for an entire Clan and it was more than overkill for a single a person.
Without much reluctance, he tossed a Qi Stone over.
‘That reminds me,’ Ailsa mused, ‘I should nurture some Qi Pulses…’
Ailsa suddenly remembered that in the past, she had used the Cosmic Qi Stones Ryu gained from Edwin’s corpse to upgrade a Mortal Qi Pulse to Immortal. Even now, those Pulses, both Mortal and Immortal, were still within Hecate’s Immortal Cave, the Death Worm.
After gaining the wealth of his family, Ryu had more Immortal Caves than he knew what to do with and he had also inherited what felt like countless Cosmic Pulses, let alone Mortal or Immortal Pulses. So, the wealth he had gained previously from the Pedestal Plane felt quite worthless.
But, having too much wealth was a good thing. Ailsa had several ideas for things she could have never thought to do in the past. Her eyes went bright thinking of formations of Qi Pulses before they glazed over completely.
Yaana watched on from below the platform, her eyes bright as well, but for completely different reasons.
Ryu walked to a rack of staffs as the last participant walked down, still feeling somewhat disappointed in herself. She had thought that she would get much further, but she only managed to make it half way through the second section.
Her attention was caught when she suddenly smelled something quite good and refreshing, only to realize that it was actually a man. But, seeing Ryu looking at the weapon rack to the side, her good impression waned almost immediately.
Ryu hadn’t really spared the woman a glance. He looked up toward the man manning the game and asked a question that left those who heard it speechless.
“What would you say makes a good staff?”
The man was stunned for a moment but he still answered. After all, Ryu had already paid and the question was pretty simple.
“Flexibility, strength and form retention.” The man summarized.
Ryu nodded, picking up a random staff.
The young woman frowned seeing Ryu’s casual action and walked off. As for the man, he was a bit conflicted. Ryu didn’t seem very rushed or hurried to do anything, but it would become a problem if he stalled things for too long.
“About—”
The man was about to say more when Ryu flicked a finger and sent ten more Qi Stones. His mouth closed several times faster than it had opened. However, this only made the disdain of the woman who had begun to walk away several levels deeper. As for why she was still paying so much attention, who knew. Maybe she really had little else to do. But…
Right then, Ryu’s wrist suddenly flexed.
It was a subtle motion, but the reaction was anything but. The staff began to bow back and forward so fast that it became nothing more than a brown blur. But, even that only last for a moment before…
SNAP!
Ryu’s hand reached out with a lightning quickness, catching the broken half of the staff before it flew too far. It was clear that this staff wasn’t capable of withstanding his strength in the slightest.
The man, who went by the simple name of Surf, stood stunned, blood draining from his face. Had Ryu not reached out like that, his head would have been impaled, he had no doubts in the slightest.
That was already enough to shock him to no end, but that staff… That was an Earth Grade treasure. How could you break it by flexing your wrist? What was going on right now? Why would such a powerhouse be here?
Ryu shook head and tossed the staff away, picking out another one. This time, he didn’t test its strength. There was no point. They were all identical, only fluctuating by one or two percentage points here and there.
As for taking out his Ancestral Grade staff, Ryu didn’t see a point. Ancestral Grade weapons usually came with pseudo sentience of their own. If he really tried to use one without even having an Inheritance, it would just fight back and make his training counterproductive.
This much was good enough.
Ryu took hold of the plain brown staff and took a step forward, not even acknowledging the look of shock the young woman had.
“Good luck!”
Ryu chuckled slightly, not having to look back to know that it was Yaana. She seemed to be the only one who wasn’t pale in the face at the moment.
When Ryu came to face the first stage, his smile vanished and his gaze turned cold. He stood in silence for a moment before he moved. One arm wrapped around to his back and the other brandished the staff. In a single smooth motion, he speared the weight before him, balancing it onto the tip of the staff.
To an outside observe, the staff seemed to be completely straight, but Ryu could tangibly feel it bowing ever so slightly. Every movement of his wrist made it all the more exaggerated. The faster he moved, the more difficult it was to control.
Ryu’s gaze blazed, waves of an oppressive aura coming off of him. He lowered his strength again and again. Eventually, he was no stronger than the most ordinary Connecting Heaven Realm expert as he exhaled a light breath.
“Begin.” He said lightly.
Surf quickly composed himself. “Yes, yes. If you can complete the circuit, there is a prize—”
Surf stopped talking as he felt like he was wasting Ryu’s time. With a flip, the formation mechanism turned on and the platform whirred to life. Everyone was so weighed down that they didn’t even have the presence of mind to commentate of Ryu’s single hand wielding.
Lights appeared before Ryu in a flicker before setting on a designated arc. The moment they set, they began to dim. Clearly, there was a timer for completion. Once the pattern vanished and you hadn’t completed it, you would lose. If the tip of your staff failed to remain within the pattern once you started, you would also lose.
The very first pattern had about an inch of play up and down, meaning it was overall two inches thicker than the staff itself. As things progressed, there was no doubt that this width would shrink.
The moment the pattern appeared, Ryu had already moved.
His step shot out like a flood dragon, a swirling of wind whistling around it.
The instant it pierced into the starting point of the pattern, Ryu’s stance shifted and his forearm flexed.
The staff followed a curve before abruptly snapping downward, the harsh grating sound of wind whipping dancing about the ears of all those present.
Even to the train eye, Ryu’s execution was perfect. Not only had he completed the pattern, but he had remained in the dead center of its width. It was clear that he didn’t need nearly so much leeway.
However, Ryu himself frowned even as the second pattern appeared. Something about his actions, despite seeming so perfect, felt off. He was still acting like the staff in his hand was a spear, but it wasn’t. The trouble was that he couldn’t quite grasp what the true difference was…