Heavy Tasks

"I lost again."

Koshiro sheathed his sword and stood, showing no obvious wounds. However, there was a tear in the fabric of his clothes over his chest, which was clearly the reason he conceded.

"You've already improved a lot, look!"

Mo Xingchen grinned, turning sideways to show Koshiro a small, inconspicuous cut on the fabric near his ribs.

For the past few days, since Kozaburo needed to research how to forge swords with specific materials, Koshiro had taken the opportunity to invite Mo Xingchen and William to stay at his home. Every day, he would spar with Mo Xingchen for practical combat experience.

Mo Xingchen had no choice but to go along with his host's wishes. Of course, he also wanted to test the skill of a Great Swordsman and see how it compared to the top powerhouses in this world.

On the first day, when they sparred with all their might by the sea, Mo Xingchen realized that the strength of an ordinary Great Swordsman was roughly equivalent to that of a Marine Headquarters Vice Admiral. With improvements in swordsmanship and technique, they should eventually be able to rival an Admiral's level, similar to Hawk Eyes in the later stages.

However, Mo Xingchen was a bit puzzled. It seemed that the swordsman techniques in this world were particularly crude, and their power was relatively dispersed. They always liked to unleash huge, useless sword energies. He wondered if it was because he hadn't seen enough Great Swordsmen.

Why did he say that? Because the speed at which sword energies flew was too slow for opponents of comparable strength! He couldn't understand why attacks that could clearly be dodged were depicted by Oda as needing to be met head-on, as if that looked cooler.

So, for the next few days, Mo Xingchen ended up teaching Koshiro the correct way to use a sword. First, he marked out a square area, five meters long and five meters wide, in the courtyard. He stipulated that Flying Slash was forbidden, and anyone who received a fatal blow or stepped out of bounds would lose.

This kind of sparring not only required maximizing the power channeled into the sword but also demanded that Mo Xingchen maintain restraint. Generally, being able to stop at any moment with complete control was only possible when a stronger person fought a weaker one. For two people of similar strength to achieve victory while also exercising restraint was a double test of their control over their power and technique.

Koshiro was truly a gifted swordsman. It was no easy feat for someone to change decades of ingrained habits. He had gone from only being able to last a few minutes and losing by stepping out of bounds to dodge attacks, to now being able to cut Mo Xingchen.

The refinement of his swordsmanship techniques had progressed at an astonishing rate. He believed that soon, after correcting the flaws in his swordsmanship, he would be able to close the gap with Mo Xingchen infinitely.

"Sir, your guidance these past few days has benefited me greatly. However, I have a question I'd like to ask for your wisdom."

"Speak."

"You know I have a daughter, and my wife is frail. I also don't want her to have any more children, but the swordsmanship legacy of my Shimotsuki family... Sir, do you think a girl can become a Great Swordsman, or even surpass one?"

Mo Xingchen sheathed his swords and walked to the entrance, sitting down. He drank the tea that had been prepared beforehand, beckoned Koshiro over to rest, and said with a smile, holding his teacup:

"First, surpassing a Great Swordsman isn't about gender, but about talent and aptitude. Secondly, in my hometown, there are countless female sword masters. Not to mention those far away, but even on the high seas, there are no shortage of female powerhouses. Why do you have such doubts?"

Koshiro sat opposite him across the tea table, poured himself a cup of tea, and downed it in one gulp before speaking:

"Without exceptional talent, women are naturally weaker than men. And in practicing swordsmanship, both strength and technique are indispensable. Without strength, it will only become a mere display."

"Koshiro, you don't need to worry too much. Your child, even if it's a girl, will undoubtedly carry the bloodline of your Shimotsuki family, so their talent shouldn't be too weak. Strength can be trained from a young age. Even if there's a slight deficiency in strength, what does it matter?

As long as they cultivate according to your family's tradition, study according to my theories, and put in a lot of effort in the Soft Sword Realm, becoming a Great Swordsman shouldn't be too difficult, right? Are you expecting your child to become the world's number one swordsman?

I say, you expect your child to achieve something you yourself cannot even accomplish. That's not the mindset of a qualified father."

Koshiro pondered for a moment, his brow relaxing. Indeed, as Mo Xingchen said, with his own strength, even if it were a girl, it would just take a bit longer to train her into a Great Swordsman. As for surpassing a Great Swordsman, he himself wasn't sure if he could do it! He then sighed with a smile:

"You are right to admonish me, Sir. I was too fixated and lost in delusion."

Mo Xingchen smiled and shook his head, saying no more. He simply raised his cup, inviting Koshiro to share the tea.

Just as the two were clinking cups and chatting, Kozaburo came over with a piece of paper.

"Mr. Mo, these are the materials needed for forging the sword. A large portion of the rare ores and metals I've marked are in short supply in our inventory. You might have to find a way to get them yourself."

Mo Xingchen took the material list and glanced at it. He hadn't heard of most of the materials, and many of them were marked with red ink.

"Don't worry about this. I'll contact headquarters and have them collect and send the materials as soon as possible. I'll leave the sword forging to you."

Then, Mo Xingchen took out a Den Den Mushi from his embrace and handed it to Koshiro, instructing him:

"Take this. If you encounter any difficulties or have any questions about swordsmanship, you can contact me. We've been imposing on you and your son these past few days, but I have a mission to attend to, so I won't be staying any longer. Farewell!"

"May your martial fortune be prosperous!"

Koshiro and his son stood up and bowed. Mo Xingchen cupped his fists, flicked his coat, and turned to leave with William in a dashing manner.

Koshiro watched their retreating figures and couldn't help but exclaim:

"Sir is truly a hero!"

"Kid, keep at it! Chase his footsteps and strive to surpass the Great Swordsman!"

After leaving Koshiro's house and on the way back to the warship, William asked:

"Captain, what's our next mission?"

"Going to Windmill Village to see my sister."

"..."

You're really not afraid of Mr. Koshiro coming after you with his sword, are you! William thought silently, rolling his eyes.

The warship slowly set sail, leaving the dock and heading for Windmill Village.

On the way, Mo Xingchen called Vice Admiral Tsuru. Using his charm and sweet-talking, he asked Vice Admiral Tsuru to help him collect the sword forging materials. Some of the rare metals weren't even in stock at Marine Headquarters. After all, the Marines weren't pirates; they wouldn't keep useless items in storage as treasures.

Later, he would have to ask Fleet Admiral Kong to use his influence to request some from the Gorosei, who would then get them from the Celestial Dragons. Otherwise, if Mo Xingchen had to search the world for materials, it would take ages to forge his sword.

Thanks to the mobility of the Marine warship, they arrived at Windmill Village in less than a day.

Since Makino's bar was right by the harbor, there was no need to leave anyone to guard the warship. Mo Xingchen waved his hand grandly:

"Brothers, let's go! Drinks are on me today!"

"Roar!"

A large group of them swaggered towards the bar.

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