Chapter 19 – Frost Breathing (Part 2)
This "assembly method" is still purely theoretical. He and several other pro players have run data models confirming its feasibility exceeds 90%, but whether it can become a practical plan still needs a successful experiment.
For the first six seasons, either clashing class skills or the absence of a blade-technique focus kept the idea shelved.
It wasn't until Roland began this run's "class-less speed-clear" challenge that he remembered the set-up.
As long as it works once, Wheel of Reincarnation Paradise will recognize it as a self-created skill—and I can't kill myself in the process.
The death penalty inside Wheel of Reincarnation Paradise is harsh; once a character dies, only rare resurrection abilities or items can bring it back, otherwise you reroll from scratch.
If you don't want your painstakingly built character—and all the gear and skills you sank time and money into—to vanish, you can't fool around the way you would in other games.
Roland took an ice-resistance potion from his storage space, drank it in one go, and tucked a few pills into his cheek.
Step one: use the Breathing Technique from the Demon Slayer world to drive frost energy out of the lungs and circulate it through the entire body.
Under normal circumstances this step alone is indistinguishable from suicide.
Practitioners of Frost Sky Breathing Technique handle each breath of frost with extreme caution; if the cold goes out of control—remember, only the lungs are protected—every internal organ can end up frostbitten, and that's if you're lucky.
The instant Roland tried, needles of pain pricked through him, the way lungs ache after a winter-morning run in freezing air.
Chill spread rapidly; his blood felt as if it had frozen mid-flow, his thoughts icing over.
Even with the ice-resistance potion, the cold was almost unbearable.
Switching to the No-Mind style's gentler rhythm, Roland steeled himself and pushed Water Breathing to full throttle.
Breathing Technique stacked layer by layer; cold circulated, tearing his flesh like fine needles.
Next: hold the breathing pattern and run through every sword form.
He drew his longsword with stiff fingers, exhaled a white cloud, and rasped the words from his throat.
First Form—
He stepped forward, the blade whipping in a sweep laced with ice crystals, then released the weapon into a spin.
After a full body rotation he caught the hilt again, using the built-up momentum for an even wider slash.
The move merged Water Breathing's 'Surface Slash' with Ninja Arts' 'Whirlwind Slash'.
Frost on the steel condensed airborne moisture into bright silver crystals; as they spun with the blade, the strike deserved a name—Scrap Silver Slash!
Second Form.
Roland forced the pills down his frozen throat, flipped, and flung the blade in a crescent of cold light.
Because it fused the original 'Water Wheel' with Ninja Prosthetic Arm Arts' Goshawk Slash, his half-frozen brain simply dubbed it Goshawk Water Wheel.
Third Form… Fourth Form… On top of Water Breathing's eleven original forms, Roland combined each with another art until he had thirteen stronger variants.
When the final form ended and the nichirin blade slid home, Roland couldn't hold back; blood spewed from his mouth, shattering into crimson ice shards on the ground.
His once-black hair had turned white with frost, but he ignored it, laughing at the prompt before him.
Self-created skill completeness at 90%. Pay 6 Soul Crystals (Small) to finalize? Y/N?
Pay, pay!
Finalizing skill… Complete. Please name your self-created skill.
Frost Breathing.
Roland supplied the name he'd prepared long ago.
Frost Breathing LV.MAX
Proficiency: MAX
Skill Effect: While in combat, maintaining a specific breathing rhythm grants stacks of Breathing Technique, up to a maximum of 45; when Breathing Technique reaches full stacks, gain an additional 18% resistance to negative status effects.
Blade-technique damage increases by 12%. Unarmed melee damage increases by 8%. When attacking or blocking, deal an extra 45% torso damage.
Movement noise and trace left behind are reduced by 20%. When leaping, climbing, or traversing terrain, gain +10 Agility and +25% flexibility. While stealthing, reduce the chance of being detected by an additional 18%.
For every 3 stacks of Breathing Technique, Strength, Agility, and Vitality each increase by 1. Blade-technique damage increases by an extra 2.5%. Unarmed melee damage increases by an extra 1.5%. Attack special-effect potency increases by 1%. Frost resistance increases by 1%.
—First Form: Scrap Silver Slash: Consumes 3 stacks of Breathing Technique. Deliver a horizontal slash, increasing attack power by 12%.
—Second Form: Hawk Waterwheel: Consumes 3 stacks of Breathing Technique. Swing the blade in a circular arc, increasing attack power by 12%... Total Concentration: Constant: Without any cost, Breathing Technique is fixed at 12 stacks.
Combat Stance: In Low Stance, blade-technique attacks gain an extra 18% attack speed.
In Mid Stance, blocking actions gain an extra 15% correction value.
In High Stance, blade-technique attacks deal an extra 12% destructive power.
Frost-Tusks Attachment: When Breathing Technique exceeds 12 stacks, melee weapons held deal (1.5 × Breathing Technique stacks) frost damage and reduce the target's life recovery speed by 15%.
Tip: Against undead-type enemies, this effect changes to reducing the target's received healing by 50%.
Demon Slayer Mark: Strength, Agility, and Vitality permanently increase by 12 (equal to 80% of full-stack Breathing Technique bonus). When Breathing Technique is at maximum stacks, inflict 12 frost damage per second to enemies within a 15-meter radius.
Tip: After the Mark is activated, natural life drain speed increases by 60%. This effect disappears when base Vitality (unbuffed) exceeds 30.
Transparent World: Perception tier +1. While active, consumes 5% of spirit and 10 mana per second, increasing perception ability by 60%.
Tip: At the current stage, Transparent World has a 1-hour cooldown after each use. Cooldown decreases as Intelligence increases until it vanishes.
Extra Ability 1·Zanshin: Instantly return to your previous stance and recover 50% of the Breathing Technique stacks and stamina consumed in the last 7 seconds. Next attack gains an extra 5% attack speed.
Extra Ability 2·Tranquil Still Water: Gain an extra 12% resistance to mental and psychic negative status effects.
Extra Ability 3·Owl Breathing: When launching an attack while undetected, hits to specific parts become 'Execution', dealing 300% damage and restoring 12% of life and stamina.
Extra Ability 4·Ninja Steps: For each successful dodge, the next sidestep gains 20% movement speed and flexibility.
Extra Ability 5·Frostbite Invasion: Spend an extra 2 stacks of Breathing Technique and 15 mana to empower the next Frost-Tusks Attachment, increasing frost damage by 50% and leaving frost aura on the attack path for 15 seconds.
Some of the skill's bonus abilities became formal effects, while seldom-used parts were trimmed away; the core mechanics were kept intact.
Even among pale-gold skills, my Frost Breathing ranks near the top—great numbers and mechanics, and it fits me perfectly!
My character has no class, so I can build my entire profession around this skill set!
And the potential is far from tapped; once my talent awakens, the power will jump again!
It worked! Our theory was right! It's been ages since I posted a guide—perfect content drop!
Roland was overjoyed; surely the viewers outside the stream are going wild witnessing the birth of this god-tier skill!