Chapter 10

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Task?

When Zhao Futu clearly understood the effect of the 'Head Wolf’s Power' in his hand, this thought immediately popped into his mind.

As the saying goes, 'no reward without merit.' He had just traded with the leader of these people, Cain, selling the head wolf's corpse to him, and the reward Zhao Futu received was a small bag of silver coins. Now, this bearded warrior was handing him such a potion, certainly not just because he had hunted the head wolf. A more likely reason was that they might need something from him.

Of course, if we follow the logic of this mysterious space, then it would be—task!

Indeed!

Right after Zhao Futu accepted the gift, Cain suddenly drew a longsword and threw it to him, shouting, "Catch it!"

Zhao Futu reached out to catch the hilt. This was a standard Western longsword, much heavier than Eastern swords, and it had a trend towards developing into a hand-and-a-half sword, also known as a bastard sword. Compared to the decorative and symbolic nature of Eastern swords, Western swords were mostly designed for practical combat. The swords they used had counterweights, making them suitable for slashing and killing, thanks to the physical advantages of Westerners.

"Huh? Your grip on the sword is very strange." Cain drew another longsword from his waist. This sword had a unique design, with a long, narrow hilt that looked like an asymmetrical cross. He observed Zhao Futu's grip and asked, "Have you never learned swordsmanship before?"

Swordsmanship?

For a modern person, swordsmanship is something very distant.

Zhao Futu and his group might use swords to fight, but swordsmanship was quite unfamiliar to them. His grip on the sword was one-handed, like a martial arts expert in TV shows, but he forgot that the sword in his hand was a Western longsword. Western longswords are longer and heavier, and they are typically used in a combination of one-handed and two-handed fighting.

This type of sword is between a two-handed sword and a one-handed sword, and the grip in combat is usually with both hands.

"No." Zhao Futu shook his head and admitted.

Whether someone knows swordsmanship can be seen at a glance. As a modern person, even if he tried to bluff, it wouldn't work. Modern people generally have low combat abilities. Those with a bit of martial arts training can easily take down one or two ordinary people. Zhao Futu's combat ability wasn't very strong; he had only practiced some free-style fighting, but if he used lethal force, he wouldn't be afraid of a dozen ordinary adult males.

However, his combat ability, if placed in the past, would only be on par with a common rural martial artist who had trained for a few years.

This is no exaggeration!

Because modern people have a very weak tolerance for pain.

A long period of comfortable living and pampering has reduced their ability to withstand hits to the lowest level in human history. Even if we don't talk about martial arts experts, just a person who has stood in a horse stance for three years without much training can easily take down an ordinary person with one kick, rendering them unable to fight back.

Modern people, with their broad horizons and extensive knowledge, often tend to be overconfident.

Those who are considered the pride of the heavens shout and kill on the internet, and they play games that are not bloody enough, but how many of them would be timid when encountering a few small thugs on the street, or feel uneasy when seeing a barking dog?

These should be the simplest things, right?

Playing too many violent games can sometimes blur the line between reality and fiction. Modern people have not only reduced their endurance but also their willpower. How many people can kick a barking dog without hesitation?

If one can meet this standard, they can barely be considered capable of fighting.

The living environment has led to this. The death of that high school student was also due to these factors. He thought he could easily deal with the giant wolves like in a game.

But when he faced them, he was afraid.

So, he died.

Actually, the guide at the beginning had one more thing to say: the trial task, though the simplest, also has the highest death rate! Those who cannot change their mindset, recognize their abilities, and adapt to this space often die at the beginning. This trial is a transformation, a process of turning from an ordinary person into a cycle participant!

These new participants are like new soldiers pushed directly into battle without any military training. Most will die in battle, but those who survive can become elite!

...

Cain frowned as he looked at Zhao Futu. He could see that this man had received some training, but the fact that he didn't know even a bit of swordsmanship was surprising.

How did a person who couldn't even hold a sword correctly manage to kill a head wolf?

However, he didn't continue to ask. Everyone has their secrets, and sometimes asking too much can turn a friend who is beneficial to you into an enemy. He needed some help because, after accepting the task to clear out the werewolves, Cain had always felt uneasy. A person who could kill a head wolf could also take down werewolves, and this person in front of him was the help he needed!

"Pay attention!" Cain's face was solemn as he said to Zhao Futu.

He held the sword with both hands, the hilt at his chest, the blade raised high, and he assumed a powerful stance for a slashing attack!

"The swordsmanship I practice is—[Silver Cross Swordsmanship], which originated during the First Crusade and was refined by some highly skilled hospital knights." Cain took a deep breath, suddenly shouted, and delivered a powerful slash, followed by a spin, a horizontal cut, and a downward strike. The entire movement was fluid, but compared to Eastern swordsmanship, it was much simpler, with fewer unnecessary flourishes and a heavier, more brutal feel of battlefield combat!

Eastern swordsmanship is often combined with footwork and is a combat technique. Ancient knights were all masters of swordsmanship.

But Western swordsmanship is adapted for the battlefield, a true combat swordsmanship. The footwork is often just simple forward and backward movements, but the slashing and killing are extremely brutal!

After the Qin Dynasty, the fundamental starting points and adaptability of Eastern and Western swordsmanship began to differ.

"Such a domineering sword technique!" Zhao Futu took a deep breath and began to recall Cain's movements.

The [Silver Cross Swordsmanship] that Cain demonstrated was not complicated but was a sword technique that emphasized momentum, focusing on the ferocity and invincibility of cold weapon combat on the battlefield! The sword movements were primarily powerful slashes, and the horizontal and downward cuts utilized the strength of the waist and the momentum, such that a successful strike could almost cut a person in half!

Though not particularly sophisticated, it had a strong sense of "overpowering with force."

Westerners, with their physical and strength advantages, naturally developed sword techniques to serve these advantages. For example, a powerful slash from a strong person could make the opponent's hands tingle and even split their palms, making the remaining effects of technique limited.

"In battle, the most powerful attack is a thrust, but while a thrust can severely wound an enemy, it is hard to kill them outright! At such times, you must face the enemy's dying counterattack!" Cain's expression was serious as he broke down the next moves of [Silver Cross Swordsmanship] and taught them to Zhao Futu, explaining carefully: "A thrust attacks a point, while a slash attacks a surface!"

"In battle, you won't face just one enemy, so the moves of [Silver Cross Swordsmanship] are primarily large, sweeping slashes! Military equipment provides strong protection for vital areas, and enemies won't let you easily stab them in a vital spot. Compared to a thrust, a slash is more likely to kill the enemy in front of you while effectively protecting yourself."

[Silver Cross Swordsmanship] has twelve moves, divided into thirty-six sword techniques, with not many variations, mostly consisting of very practical basic sword techniques.

Practicing such a sword technique is accessible to anyone, but the final results are often drastically different. Some people with little determination and wisdom can only reach the level of a common warrior, but in the hands of exceptional individuals, it becomes a terrifying killing technique! This is a sword technique that doesn't require much insight; with enough determination, even a dull person can become a master of swordsmanship!

...

"Beep! The character Cain is teaching you a silver-level sword technique—[Silver Cross Swordsmanship]. Automatically extracting the basic attributes of Contractee No. 1013, skill learning exemption check in progress!..."

"Main attribute check passed! Contractee No. 1013's basic attributes meet the skill teaching requirements, obtaining [Silver Cross Swordsmanship] Level 1 ability."

"Secondary attribute check passed! Contractee No. 1013's spirit and willpower pass the exemption check, automatically mastering [Basic Melee] Level 1 ability and activating the extended branch ability [Basic Swordsmanship] Level 1."

...

With the mysterious space's prompt, Zhao Futu found that his data attribute page had three new special abilities.

The top ability was a broad overview of [Basic Melee] Level 1: passively increasing melee attack damage by 5% and improving the ability to master any melee techniques.

Below that was [Basic Swordsmanship] Level 1: passively increasing sword weapon damage by 10% and improving the ability to master any sword techniques.

Finally, below [Basic Swordsmanship] Level 1 was [Silver Cross Swordsmanship] Level 1, an active skill. The damage is determined by the strength and agility in the basic attributes, with the additional damage from the sword techniques being over 30%!

"Basic Melee—Basic Swordsmanship—Silver Cross Swordsmanship?" Zhao Futu looked at the text on his data attribute page and thought, "This data display seems to gradually break down into more detailed categories, like choosing a specialization within a broad range."

"It looks like the combat style will become more diverse in the future."

{Piaotian Literature}