Chapter 64: The Heart of Martial Arts and Mission

Chapter 64: The Heart of Martial Arts and Mission

--

Gyomei Himejima stood up and turned to look at Aoki with a puzzled expression.

What happened? He was the one who got hurt, so why wasn't Aoki moving?

Kanae and Shinobu were equally confused. However, none of them disturbed Aoki. They even controlled their movements to avoid making noise and affecting him.

Aoki's attention was still on his newly acquired profession, "Martial Artist."

The way a "Martial Artist" gains experience is through combat. Interestingly, you only need to fight; there's no requirement to win, let alone kill the enemy. The more intense the battle, the more experience you can gain. This profession seemed tailor-made for him. The most powerful martial artists in the world were right beside him, waiting in line to compete.

Aoki pondered further. "But why did this profession appear today? Was it because I wasn't good enough before?"

The "Hunter" profession appeared after he learned some basic hunting skills. Both are half-star professions, so the requirements for "Martial Artist" must be higher than for "Hunter," right?

The reason must be more than this. Another thought struck Aoki.

"Is it the 'mentor'?"

He was introduced to hunting by his master, the best first-class hunter in the world. His first martial arts teacher was Keisuke Akiyama. Although Akiyama was competent, he was far from a master. Before this, Aoki had experienced many battles and met many strong warriors, but he had never communicated with them directly. That changed recently. He sparred with Kanae, communicated with other Hashira, and had just fought Gyomei.

So, obtaining a half-star profession might require both an excellent mentor and a certain level of proficiency.

"Brother Keisuke made a mistake!" Aoki sighed deeply and shut down the system. He noticed he was still in his punching posture, and Butterfly Kanae and the others were watching him.

"Ahem, why didn't you remind me?"

As a Demon, he had strong recovery abilities, so maintaining an awkward posture didn't cause soreness. He hadn't realized there was something wrong with his stance.

Gyomei clasped his hands together. "I thought that was Mr. Aomura's unique way of thinking, Amitabha!"

Aoki: "…"

He didn't understand, but he respected it.

...

After obtaining "Martial Artist," Aoki became more active in sparring with the Hashira. A week passed in the blink of an eye.

"What a gorgeous battle!" Uzui Tengen wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth and looked solemnly at his unscathed opponent. It wasn't that his wounds healed; he never hurt Aoki from beginning to end—not even once! The huge gap in strength was terrifying.

Aoki, a bit slow to react, cupped his hands and said, "I agree!"

Shinobu walked towards them, complaining, "Next time, fight outside. There's too much noise! The patients can't even rest."

"Hahaha, tell Kanae I have something else to do and leave first!" Tengen jumped up and disappeared out the door in an instant.

He made most of the noise. Explosives were part of his combat strategy and couldn't be used sparingly. In fact, he had been very restrained.

"While there is still time, let's have a fight!" Shinobu looked at Aoki, showing her high fighting spirit.

"Wait a moment!" Aoki waved his hand and opened the system.

[Ding dong!]

[Congratulations on your upgrade!]

This was the system prompt just now and the reason for his slow reaction.

[Name: Aoki]

[Strength: 18]

[Physique: 17]

[Intelligence: 18]

[Agility: 18]

[Occupation: Hunter, White Walker, Martial Artist]

…

[White Walker]

Quality: ★★

Level: lv13 (12/1300)

Skills: Demon Blood IV, Space Shuttle, Transparent World, Demon Devouring II

Mission: The last day of upper moons (1/3)

…

[Martial Artist]

Quality:☆

Level: lv2 (9/200)

Skills: Martial Arts Heart (yet to learn), Combat Intuition (yet to learn), Body Control (yet to learn), Indomitable Will (yet to learn)

Free skill points: 1

No attribute points were obtained. For half-star professions, only level 2 grants 1 attribute point. He gained only 1 skill point, but all 4 skills could be learned. Compared to "White Walker" skills that require 4 or 5 points to learn, it was disappointing. It's worth noting that attribute points obtained from all professions are the same, but skill points cannot be mixed. Each profession's skill points can only be used for its own skills.

Aoki looked at the four skills under "Martial Artist": "Which one should I learn?" All 4 skills were good. After a little hesitation, he chose "Martial Arts Heart." The talent for creating and improving moves was what he needed most now. Skills that aid growth should be learned as soon as possible. After adding the points, he didn't feel any different. However, with the "Hunter" experience, he knew his talent had changed.

Caw, Caw, Caw.

At this time, a shrill cry sounded.

"West! There is a Demon in the west harming people. Please deal with it immediately!" A black crow hovered in the sky.

Aoki reacted immediately: "A mission?"

This was the crow sent to him by the Demon Slayer Corps. Out of fear or disgust, it rarely appeared in front of him.

"It seems we can't fight today," Aoki said to Shinobu.

Not only today; there would likely be very few opportunities to compete with the Hashira in the future. However, he wasn't disappointed. Improving the level of "White Walker" was more important than "Martial Artist." Since learning to "see through the world," he hadn't had a real battle apart from a brief fight with Douma. He was eager to test the results of his cultivation.

"There's nothing we can do about it." Shinobu looked even more regretful.

"I'm going to change clothes first." Aoki greeted her and entered the room.

Besides the turtles, the Demon Slayers also prepared uniforms for him. The uniforms are made of special fiber, moisture-proof, cold-proof, and breathable. They can withstand extreme temperatures and weak demon attacks. Although these functions didn't mean much to him, as a Demon, wearing the Demon Slayer uniform was interesting in itself.

Aoki quickly changed clothes and found Shinobu still outside, joined by Kanae and Kanao. Seeing Aoki in the uniform, their eyes brightened.

Kanae pursed her lips and chuckled, "This outfit suits Mr. Aoki very well!"

Shinobu nodded, "He is indeed handsome."

"Am I not handsome usually?" Aoki joked and waved. "I'm off!"

"Teacher." Kanao's voice was very soft.

Aoki looked toward her.

"Please, please pay attention to your safety." Her beautiful big eyes were filled with nervousness.

"I will." A smile appeared on Aoki's face. He waved and disappeared into the yard.

Kanae took Kanao's hand and smiled. "Don't worry, Kanao. Anyone may encounter danger during missions, except Mr. Aoki!"

Shinobu added, "The only one who poses a threat to him is Muzan Kibutsuji. Even Muzan can't do anything to him with his ability to move."

The three of them chatted and turned to leave.

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