At first, he was a little confused as to what the Royal swordsmanship could do but after reading the two books he was surprised.
It can change depending on what I need?
He first started with the stab. His body went through the motions described inside the book. He felt his blood stir, moving inside his muscles and filling them up. He also noticed how the blood not only flowed inside the muscles but also inside his tendons.
Hoh.. the amount is a lot more and is a lot more precise? It also seems much more complicated...
It looked like he could not just use the stab hundreds of times and master the technique in the morning. He also suspected that the full Royal Swordsmanship technique was an Innate Grandmaster technique.
He could change the speed and power of the stab depending on what he wanted. He could make it a powerful one, piercing through armor or a fast one that finds the gap inside the enemy's armor and pierces his flesh before the enemy even notices.
Now imagine he could do that with a slash. Or when parrying he increases his power? The possibilities would be endless.
He was also pretty sure the complete Royal Swordsmanship would even include a movement technique and a breathing technique!
However, after mastering the basics of the stab Jihoon quickly moved onto the slash and continued practicing until he mastered the basics.
This style is so versatile… I can't believe the Wang family would share these techniques with me…
Jihoon was confused as to why they did that. Did they really think his background was that impressive? Or did they want to impress him somehow?
No, it makes sense… If I go and join the Army as a First Rate Warrior it is practically guaranteed that I would become a Cultivator and they would probably provide me with the same Martial Arts if I asked for one...
So by providing these things in advance the Wang family just befriended a Cultivator by providing him with certain resources in advance.
Heh… that old fox. No way was that Wang Jie's idea…
Jihoon smiled as a little laugh escaped his mouth. He was not angry, in fact, he was quite happy because this allowed him to conclude two things.
First, they saw him as someone worth investing in, meaning his identity would be guaranteed to a certain degree. As they did not to be either associated with somebody unknown or lose their investment
Maybe he could even use that old man's connection in the Army in the future.
However, the second reason excites Jihoon even more… he does not think that they are completely loyal to the Kingdom let alone the alliance. After all they could have just sent him to the army and probably received some benefits for introducing a future cultivator. No, they wanted more.
As for why he was excited?
The reason why was quite simple. Each village should have at least some kind of resources that the Kingdom wants and he hoped that he could buy these resources, take them with him to his own world, and sell them there and vice versa.
However, for that, he would need to do a certain amount of research.
So I need to steal a history book from the school, and find out which resources are used in both worlds.
Jihoon smiled lightly.
Seems easy enough.
Having finished training in the Royal Swordsmanship Jihoon moved on to two techniques he had never seen before. Fist and Movement techniques.
Like always he went through the motions of training however half an hour in Jihoon noticed something.
He had barely any talent in fist techniques!
Hmm, that's bad… I never thought of training with my fists but if I somehow lose my sword or can't access it in a fight I need at least be able to defend myself…
He thought as he tried to come up with a solution.
Ah, right! Wang Jie boasted of their hand-to-hand fighting capabilities. I will ask him after I finish training.
He stopped training his fist technique and started the movement technique. Luckily he had talent there.
The technique teaches one to move smoothly rather than exponentially fast. What Jihoon noticed is that it really paired well with his swordsmanship.
He thought since he focused on speed and precision that he would need a movement technique that increased his speed several times but that was not the case.
Jihoons speed slightly increased yet his swordsmanship improved by leaps and bounds. It was not that the technique suddenly strengthened him to unimaginable heights, it was that it just opened the door.
A way forward.
It allowed him to see a path, blocked before. And that path was all he needed. His swordsmanship got smoother and more precise.
It looked like it increased in speed but it was just that his body was at the right spot at the right time.
His sword now took the path of least resistance, each swing, each stab, and each slash was aimed at a vulnerable spot as it took the shortest way to find its spot.
It felt like even the air moved out of the way but Jihoon was not sure.
However, while it seemed like he suddenly became a new master swordsman, that was simply not the case.
He just started his own path. Earlier. He would fail tens of times even hundreds of times but that was what made him excited. Jihoon now knew where to go, as for the road? He would build one if needed.
Time to train Wang Jie and find somebody to train me in hand-to-hand combat.
It was afternoon by now as Jihoon made his way towards the training ground outside. Their designated meeting spot.
It was a big yard surrounded by a small fence and trees. The ground was covered in what felt like hard dirt and a mix of dust and sand. There were dummies and weapons on one side while the other side looked like a sparring area.
Walking inside he saw a couple of other guards fighting. They were surrounding one bare-chested middle-aged man who stood in the middle in a fighting stance. He had brown unkempt hair, with a long, wild beard. He was at least two meters tall and so muscular that it seemed like his muscles had muscle.
Are they bullying him?
Jihoon frowned as he thought unsure but the next moment he changed his mind.
One of the guards made one move and attacked the giant. The giant sidestepped the punch before delivering a devastating uppercut to the guard's stomach.
The man's fist dug deep inside as it seemed like the guard's body was slightly lifted into the air. Spit flew out of the guard's mouth as his body collapsed onto the ground.
Heh looks like I found my teacher.
Jihoon grinned before spotting Wang Jie standing in a corner and swinging his sword.
He quickly moved to him as he observed his swordsmanship.
Looks like he is practicing hard…however his swordsmanship is… mediocre at best.
Jihoon was confused. From the techniques he saw this world should be superior in swordsmanship to his.
Is Wang Jie just untalented? Also, why is he practicing so weird.
Wang Jie kept repeating an overhead slash over and over again. It might be good for a beginner to do that but sword fighting was not like a chess game where you could move and then your opponent would be next.
No, the transition between each move was as important if not more than an attack. Also, no fight would be perfect, sometimes you would not have enough time to use your full force or you would need to change the angle of your attack because you just dodged one yourself.
You should never be static.
"Why do you keep practicing the same move over and over again? I can see that you have already mastered it."
Jihoon called out with a frown on his face.
Wang Jie, slightly startled by the voice beside him, couldn't find the right words for a moment.
"Well…I want to improve it more…"
However, even after thinking for a couple of seconds, he could not find the right words.
"You know there is a saying from where I am from."
Jihoon said with a small smile.
"Practice makes perfect."
His eyes got serious
"But that's bullshit…"
"If that was the case you would be much better in swordsmanship than you already are. So let me give you my version: Perfect practice makes perfect."
His smile disappeared.
"What you have been doing is practicing. Let me show you how to practice perfectly."
Jihoon unsheathed his sword as he deeply looked into Wang Jie's eyes.
The moment he pulled his sword out the atmosphere changed. The tension became palpable as the guards stopped what they were doing and looked at the two figures.
Jihoons eyes shone with seriousness as a dark glint passed through them.
His whole body tensed as he positioned himself in his fighting stance. He was ready to lunge.
Wang Jie was confused at first thinking that he somehow angered Jihoon who now wanted to kill him.
But he relaxed after seeing no malicious intent inside his eyes.
So there is so much of a difference?
Wang Jie wondered as he realized that even when he fought to the death he was that focused.
"Use your overhead slash."
Jihoon coldly.
The moment Wang Jie's sword went above his head Jihoon lunged.