Chapter - 1

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Chapter - 1: Black Swordsman

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[Third Person]

[ Floating Cloud City - Blue Wind Empire]

The smallest city in the Blue Wind Empire, so small that it can't even be called a city. Located in the far east, it is the most geographically remote city.

On the main street of the city, while most people were going about their business, something happened that could be described as very unique, something that could not be said to be seen often in this remote place.

A tall, muscular man had appeared, six feet tall, wearing a long black cloak with a high hood over his head, with short, spiky black hair, walking quietly down the street with a cold stare, as if daring someone to stop his way.

People began to look at him and discuss him as if he were some kind of otherworldly. He attracted the attention of all passersby for several reasons:

First, his attire was quite unique; he wore heavy black plate armor with even darker pants and armored boots. But what certainly caught people's eyes was the huge sword-shaped piece of iron on his back.

Second, he had a fierce aura, like a wild beast, that fascinated the average passerby. Men looked at him with envy, while many women of all ages watched him intensely, their cheeks blushing.

After all, he was very different from the people of this world. Unlike the feminine looking men with jade-like skin, he also had a wild and dangerous appearance that made women's hearts flutter when they looked at him.

But it seemed as if all the attention was insignificant to him, and without looking at anyone in particular, and ignoring the various elders present who were trying to understand his cultivation realm, the mysterious man slowly walked toward his destination.

When the mysterious man arrived at Xia Manor, his slow steps accompanied by the metallic sound of his armor, he immediately approached the two young men guarding the main gate.

Had he been his old self, he would have had no knowledge of military tactics to better understand the environment he was in. But thanks to his desire to be "Guts", he could naturally notice that their stance was too relaxed, and they seemed to be standing there just for the sake of it, without really doing their job.

He knew that most of the boys in this world were the kind of guys who could not be approached with kindness, so he did not "hide" his cultivation base and coldly said, "I want to meet the head of the Xia Clan for an important meeting.

The fearful gaze of the two guards looked at him slightly as one of them took courage and stepped forward, quickly nodding and saying with a respectful voice, "Wait, I'll warn the master!

Guts just nodded, leaning against the wall and waiting for some good news, while playing with what looked like an egg, covered with human facial features arranged on its surface, giving it a rather puzzling appearance, while a small smile grew on his lips.

Meanwhile, Xia Hongyi was surprised when the guard told him that someone wanted to meet with him; after all, he thought he had finished his business and did not remember to meet with anyone.

More importantly, it seemed that a powerful expert was looking for him after seeing how he had frightened his guards. So his curiosity got the better of him and he replied, "Let him in".

The guard nodded and went to Guts to deliver the Xia Clan leader's message. He entered the Xia mansion with ease and walked slowly into the living room, which was furnished with two simple wooden chairs and a small table in the middle.

Xia Hongyi had to admit that he hadn't expected to meet someone with such murderous intent, the only comparison he could think of was that he looked like a real Profound Beast.

But he certainly wasn't going to be intimidated so easily, after so many years of dealing with various experts on this continent, he had some experience. So he adjusted to the situation within seconds and motioned for his guest to sit down and listen to why he had come here.

Guts sat down on the empty chair, took the glass of water from the table and began to speak, trying to get a head start on the conversation: ''Sir, I am a mercenary and have come to Xia Manor to look for work.... I can help with my own strength, and my cultivation level is the first True Profound Realm"

Of course, as a merchant, Xia Hongyi wanted as much information as possible, and he looked into the black onyx eyes of the man in front of him to see if he was telling the truth, after all, he could not let a stranger into his mansion with his family, so he asked calmly,

"How do I know that you are telling the truth? Who are you and where are you from? If what you're telling me is the truth, then you should go and join some big sect, I'm sure they'd be more than happy to take you in.

He smiled at her question and said, "Let's start at the beginning, my name is Guts. Xia Hongyi just raised an eyebrow at the strange name, but nodded without question, "I was born in a small settlement of the Great Asura Nation and became a mercenary. Three years later, I joined a group of mercenaries and became their leader... The reason I came to the Blue Wind Empire is because I wanted to see the world around me instead of remaining a frog at the bottom of the well."

Xia Hongyi then heard Guts say, "As for why I don't want to join a sect. And that I just don't want to be limited by a sect where they only have one limited thing to teach. I mean, if I'm not in a sect, I can travel to different places without being bound by unnecessary rules, I like being free...".

Xia Hongyi nodded as she understood him and said, "Okay, how long would you like to stay here as a guard?" Guts replied after thinking for a moment and said, "Well, I would like to stay here for six months.

He also thought that it should be enough to leave a shadow in Xia Qingyue's heart... As a close friend, he might be able to help her in the future if she was in any kind of danger.

After all, she was an important figure in this world, and her personal strength was not to be underestimated with the Frozen Cloud Immortal Palace behind her.

Xia Hongyi thought for a moment and said, "Well, I can't assign you to a regular guard duty because it would be rather embarrassing for an expert in the True Profound Realm. So how about being a personal guard for my family for these six months? You can eat with my family, and you don't have to report to anyone.

Guts nodded comfortably, as it was a good deal for him; it would not hinder his plan, and in fact, it would help him in many ways.

After chatting for a few more minutes, he asked Xia Hongyi for some food and began to eat it at a fast pace; after all, he had been in the forest for a very long time, where he always ate meat from Profound Beasts.

After eating the food, he excused himself and asked for his room to go to sleep. Xia Hongyi unceremoniously led him to the room where he would stay for the next six months, and Guts began to settle down.

[Interlude]

It was a good morning, the birds were singing, the wind was gently blowing through the leaves, the sky was clear and blue, and the sun was shining brightly. It is indeed a good morning, a good start to a good day.

This was what Xia Qingyue thought as she found herself staring at the morning sun through the window, stretching out her arms and cooing. Yesterday, to put it simply, was not a bad day. Rather, today was busy and there was no time to relax... Well, she was thinking about her marriage with this Xiao Clan man.

Without her father's promise, she certainly would not have gotten married. After all, she was a disciple of the Frozen Cloud Asgard, and the relationship between men and women is forbidden.

She also had to convince her master to let her stay long enough to solve all the problems in her heart, so that she could cultivate without any thoughts distracting her.

''And it is impossible for anything to happen between us, but at least our marriage will remain on paper, and I hope that will be enough to give the Xiao clan a face,'' she said coldly, but one could clearly see some annoyance at the whole situation.

But I cannot bring shame to our clan. When a promise is made, it has to be kept, that's what I've always been taught, I can't back out even if it's inconvenient for me. But she was suddenly jolted out of her stupor when she heard noises from below. She looked down and saw that someone was in her courtyard.

She could only blink as she realized that it was the man dressed in black that her father had hired as a new guard. It was only six o'clock in the sun, not too early, but not everyone would be awake at that time. She was surprised to see him in her courtyard and had begun to practice the art of swordplay?

Last night during dinner, her father had introduced him to her and Yuanba, of course, but she had not paid much attention to it, after all, she did not care, instead, her brother seemed to have taken a liking to him and even appreciated him.

She noticed that the warrior was currently dressed in a simple cotton shirt that showed off his entire muscular body, but instead of gray, it was black, and a black belt was tied around his waist.

He seemed to be very focused in his training, judging by how intensely he swung his huge broadsword with great ease. But he had to admit that when he wielded the broadsword, he had a certain charm that was impossible not to notice and was truly a delight to their eyes.

*Stronger. Faster. Harder...*

These three words kept repeating in Guts mind as he continued to swing his huge broadsword from left to right with his hand. Every six swings were vertical, and then he switched to horizontal swings. The purpose of this was to let his body get used to the feeling and let it become rooted in the muscle memory of the Guts Template (Berserker).

In the fights he had been in during the two months he had been in this fantasy world, he had hardly had time to think about what was happening to him, often it was a matter of split seconds.

He had to rely on his muscle memory rather than his mind, while his brain sent only short impulses to which his body had to react immediately. The result comes from continuous training, so the movements can be deeply ingrained in his body.

He knew this. That was why he trained so hard. He had never been in a real fight - a few street fights didn't count, there had never been any real danger. Instead, surviving against several Profound Beasts could be called pure luck, but it was mainly due to two reasons:

The first was his gluttony, and the second was the limit imposed by the capabilities of his new body, which allowed him to go beyond his limits. It was mainly due to the increased strength and perception of his new body that he was able to survive in the forest for two months.

After all, he was the legendary marked warrior who had survived the eclipse; an ordinary human could not compete with him. If not for this far superior body, he would have bled to death or worse, been eaten by some wild beast.

He could not be too complacent... Although demonic beasts were not a "problem," there were also cultivators who could not be considered normal opponents for many reasons, and they were far more dangerous than any random beast.

He was certainly good in terms of strength, endurance, and speed, but due to my lack of experience and skill, I survived several battles against various deep beasts that were stronger than him.

"When you strike, make sure that your attacks are made with killing intent. Make sure that each one is fatal to one of your opponents. Each strike must have the intention of knocking them down. Do not hesitate... Aim to kill!"

He could feel his breath getting short, but he didn't care and continued to push himself to the limit despite the growing protests of his lungs. Keep hitting from the moment he started, not even resting once, but he doesn't care. No rest until his body remembers exactly how to fight.

"If my attacks are not strong enough, then I will use your whole body, I must control my weight and protect my balance, all my attacks must be deadly! If your defense is not strong enough, use the ground, the ground is still, as long as your position is firm, your defense will be like a fortress"

He also had to work on his footwork and how to fight by moving around the battlefield.... There were still many things he needed to work on properly. And his time was already limited because he also had to maintain a "good" relationship with others.

But he only managed to stop in the middle of his movement when he felt a presence near him, and with a few regular breaths, he turned around to see a person not far from him.

"I didn't know I had a guest today," Guts said with a hint of amusement in his tone as Xia Qingyue mysteriously appeared behind him.

She was still wearing her nightgown and blue skirt, both hands clasped behind her back, with a cold and indifferent expression on her face.

Guts had to admit that her figure was beautiful and delicate. Under the long blue skirt, he could see an exquisite pair of slender legs. The perfect arches of her waist, breasts, and buttocks were enchanting. She radiated an incomparable and uncanny charm, and had a kind of proud look and attitude that transcended this world.

[Picture ---> Xia Qingyue]

But he quickly discarded these superficial thoughts; it was certainly not the time to think about such things, especially in this world. "What can I do for you, Miss Xia?" He asked with some respect, but without any submissive attitude.

After all, he was well aware of how rightfully arrogant the girl in front of him was, so he could not afford to act like a mere guard if he wanted to succeed in establishing a relationship with her.

His brave and cool face without any fear made Xia Qingyue feel a little uncomfortable, thinking that he might have a personality similar to hers. "Why are you in my courtyard?" she asked coldly:

"Why can't I stay here? I asked Master Xia mi for a place where I could practice my sword without being disturbed, and he showed me this beautiful cultivation," Guts said calmly, without changing his expression, as if nothing could affect his mood.

'That's why he's here... It seems like my father has a lot of trust in this man,' Xia Qingyue thought. It seemed like this man was strong enough to hide his cultivation.

"I'm sorry I didn't know, but I'm leaving soon..." Xia Qingyue said as the man looked at her and smiled slightly. 

"It's not a problem. Besides, I'm the one who violated your court, I'll come back to train here tomorrow... Have fun," the man said to Xia Qingyue, who had no time to react because the man had already started walking towards Xia Manor.

"..."

The only thing Xia Qingyue could do at that moment was to stare at the large back of the man in front of her with a gaze that tried to discover all of his secrets.

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A/N: I hope you like the chapter <3< strong>

I opted to commence by introducing the pivotal characters within the narrative, with the intention of portraying Mc as an smart individual. It's my desire for Mc to not embody the archetype of someone attempting to tackle every challenge independently, recognizing the essential role that bonds and concessions play in worlds of this nature.

Nevertheless, this does not imply any frailty in Mc; quite the contrary, as Mc will wield formidable strength, particularly when utilizing the broadsword and Berserker armor to their utmost capabilities.

It's crucial to note that Mc is not synonymous with "Guts"; although intimately acquainted with the latter, Mc possesses a distinct life and memories. Consequently, Mc will refrain from making overly ruthless decisions, yet will not treat adversaries with undue leniency.

Details regarding Mc's various abilities will be unveiled in subsequent chapters, as some necessitate a minimum of exposition, given the intricacies of the story's world.

On the other hand, if you want to see something specific in the next chapters, or even just have some good advice for the story as a whole, I am always willing to read a comment if it is constructive criticism.

If you see any mistakes, I would be grateful if you would point them out to me, so that I can correct them when I have some spare time, and make the story as complete as possible for myself and especially for you.

To facilitate a clearer understanding, I've retained pictures of the respective characters. Your feedback is always valued, and if you have any suggestions for the upcoming chapter, please feel free to comment—I'll be sure to respond as usual.

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