Successfully Recruiting Ryuma of Ryuda

"Alright, I agree. If you lose, you can have your sword. If I lose, I'll become a member of the Conqueror Pirates!" Ryuma of Ryuda said, glancing at the sword at Tianqi's waist. For a swordsman, a sword is life, so having a sword as a bargaining chip makes things much fairer.

"Since that's the case, then it's a deal. If you're willing to bet, you have to accept the consequences. But Ryuma, you have a good eye. Although my sword isn't a Supreme Grade Sword, it's a true divine weapon, even more precious than the Grade Swords!" Tianqi smiled and touched the Heavenly Cloud Sword. If he were to really exchange the Heavenly Cloud Sword for Ryuma of Ryuda, it wouldn't be worth it. However, Tianqi had 100% confidence in himself. Getting his sword wouldn't be that easy.

"Let's get this straight, we can only compete with swordsmanship, not your weird abilities, otherwise the bet is void!" Seeing Tianqi's confidence, Ryuma of Ryuda immediately added, "If you still use those strange abilities, I'll just surrender."

"Of course, this is a grand swordsmanship competition, so of course we'll be competing with swordsmanship!" Tianqi nodded. He hadn't planned to use any other abilities anyway; his swordsmanship was enough to defeat Ryuma of Ryuda.

"Hehe, I'll go first then. Come on if you want to win!" Ryuma of Ryuda leaped onto the stage, his eyes fixed on Tianqi.

Seeing this, Mihawk immediately went up, but Tianqi went up to the stage first and stood Ryuma of Ryuda. As they watched Tianqi go up, Shanks and Mihawk clenched their fists and stared intently at the two on the stage. After watching such a boring battle for so long, they could finally see a real duel between masters.

"Who is this guy? Doesn't he know his opponent is Ryuma of Ryuda? That's a great swordsman!"

"He's probably a swordsman who wants to become famous quickly. He dares to challenge Ryuma of Ryuda. I bet he can't even withstand one move!"

The crowd was buzzing with discussion, showing little optimism about Tianqi's chances. This wasn't surprising, as few people knew what Tianqi looked like, and these newly rising stars naturally didn't recognize him. Those who did know Tianqi remained silent, watching the duel between the two men in quiet contemplation.

Ryuma of Ryuda paid no attention to the discussions around him. At this moment, he looked at his opponents with a solemn expression. He had promoted these people to the level of beginner great swordsmen, but he believed that Tianqi would definitely not stand still. According to his guess, his chance of winning was only 20%, but that 20% chance was enough.

He drew his greatsword, gripped the hilt tightly with both hands, and slowly closed his eyes, trying to merge with the weapon in his hands. There was no need for further probing; he was going to go all out from the start. His powerful sword intent was directly concentrated on the blade, and he unleashed the full power of a great swordsman right from the beginning.

"Shinnin-ryu Ittousen!" Ryuma of Ryuda transformed into a streak of black light and instantly appeared in front of Tianqi, delivering a direct slash.

"This is Ryuma of Ryuda's Shinnin-ryu Swordsmanship! I didn't expect him to use a killing move right from the start. This swordsman who wants to become famous is doomed!" Seeing such powerful swordsmanship, the spectators exclaimed in surprise. They all thought that Tianqi was finished.

Tianqi looked at Ryuma of Ryuda, who had already arrived in front of him, with a satisfied smile. With such strength, he was worth recruiting. However, this was not enough to deal with him. Tianqi twitched his index and middle fingers slightly.

"Sword Qi!" Instantly, countless sword energies emerged and swirled around Tianqi. Ryuma of Ryuda's sword stopped an arm's length away from Tianqi, unable to advance any further.

"What! This is..." Seeing that he could not take another step forward, Ryuma of Ryuda's eyes widened. He suddenly realized something and wore an incredulous expression.

"What's this?"

"An invisible wall blocked Ryuma of Ryuda. Is this also swordsmanship?"

Tianqi's move left these novice swordsmen completely baffled, leaving them utterly confused. Meanwhile, some veteran swordsmen stood up, not wanting to miss a single detail.

"Sword energy materialized? Has the captain broken through to that realm?" Shanks, watching Tianqi's attack, could no longer remain calm and exclaimed in surprise.

"As expected of the captain, he blocked the attack just by standing there, that's amazing!" Jesus and the others had no idea what this meant; they simply thought the captain was very powerful.

"Control Sword with Qi control the sword, that's the Wind Blade Swordsman..." Mihawk, who understood, also widened his eyes. He thought that he had already defeated Tianqi and Ryuma by breaking through from intermediate swordsman to intermediate great swordsman, but he never expected that the one who made the biggest breakthrough was Tianqi, who had already broken through to the highest realm.

"Sword rise!" Tianqi slightly raised two fingers, and the Heavenly Cloud Sword flew up from his waist. Then, Tianqi slashed forward with his two fingers.

"Sword Qi Runs Rampant!" With a horizontal slash, the Heavenly Cloud Sword unleashed a terrifying sword aura that sent Ryuma of Ryuda flying back dozens of steps.

After regaining his footing, feeling the tremor emanating from the Enma in his hand, Ryuma of Ryuda looked at Tianqi in disbelief and said, "Control Sword with Qi... you've already broken through to the Wind Blade Swordsman?"

The Wind Blade Swordsman is the highest level of swordsmanship, a legendary level. The highest level currently on the high seas is the peak of the Great Sword Master. As for the Wind Blade Swordsman, no one can reach it; everyone has only heard of it. However, today, Tianqi has directly demonstrated this highest level.

"I told you long ago I wouldn't stand still!" With that, Tianqi gripped the hilt of his sword with one hand, looking at Ryuma of Ryuda with a smile. He was determined to recruit this formidable swordsman.

"Hehe, I didn't expect you to have broken through to this highest level. It seems I'm destined to be your crew member. But I'd also like to see the strength of the Wind Blade Swordsman!" Ryuma of Ryuda shook his head helplessly. The spirit of Bushido would never allow him to admit defeat.

Ryuma of Ryuda immediately unleashed his full sword intent, the terrifying power causing the stone slabs of the arena beneath his feet to crack continuously, his sword intent pushed to its limit.

"Shinnin-ryu Sword Dance!" Ryuma of Ryuda flashed close and unleashed a barrage of sword strikes.

"Phantom Sword Dance!" Tianqi also flashed forward and began a close-quarters sword exchange.

"Clang! Clang! Clang..."

In an instant, swords flashed and shadows danced on the arena. Tianqi and Ryuma's figures became increasingly blurred, and their strikes grew faster and faster, leaving sword marks on the ground. The spectators stared wide-eyed as they could no longer make out the two figures clearly.

"Wow, this is amazing! Who is this young man? How can he be so strong?"

"Hmph! Even he doesn't know that you've been wasting your time on the high seas. He's the captain of the Conqueror Pirates, the one who defeated Sengoku, Karp, and an Uchiha Tianqi of other top sea warriors!"

"It was him!"

Finally, someone stepped forward and revealed Tianqi's identity. Everyone's eyes widened in disbelief that such a formidable figure would come to participate in the sword competition. At the same time, they felt ashamed of their previous underestimation of him; it turned out that they were the clowns.

"Hehe, it's over. Ryuma of Ryuda, you can't possibly be my match. I'll take you as my crew member!" Tianqi chuckled, and the Heavenly Cloud Sword in his hand immediately released its sword intent and sword energy.

"Limitless Sword Path - Rising Dragon Slash!" Sword energy and sword intent condensed into a white dragon, and Tianqi stood in the dragon's head. With a fierce charge, the white dragon, carrying terrifying power, attacked Ryuma of Ryuda.

"Bang!" The white dragon, carrying its power, slammed Ryuma of Ryuda out of the arena, creating a crater outside the ring, delivering a heavy blow.

"Such domineering power! A mere casual strike possesses such terrifying strength. Is this the Wind Blade Swordsman?"

Seeing Ryuma of Ryuda knocked out of the ring, Shanks and Mihawk were also surprised. They originally thought that in terms of swordsmanship alone, they should be no worse than Tianqi, but now the gap between them was like heaven and earth, and they could not see how much distance was between them.

With Tianqi's current swordsmanship power, even grass and trees can be used as swords. The reason he still uses the Heavenly Cloud Sword is entirely to give Ryuma of Ryuda enough respect. He also restrains his swordsmanship power again and again. Otherwise, this Rising Dragon Slash could have killed Ryuma of Ryuda. When you reach the level of a great swordsman, the difference in strength between each small stage is enormous, let alone the difference between a whole realm.

"Cough cough cough... I... I lost. From now on, I'm a member of your Conqueror Pirates. Do as you please!" Ryuma of Ryuda coughed, gave a helpless bitter smile, and struggled to his feet after adjusting his mindset. Winning is winning, and losing is losing. Losing to a Wind Blade Swordsman is not shameful.

"Hmm!" Seeing Ryuma of Ryuda's expression, Tianqi nodded in satisfaction. To be honest, he had high hopes for Ryuma of Ryuda. Not only was he very talented and strong, but most importantly, he had an exceptionally good mentality. He could always maintain a calm attitude towards winning and losing, which was one of the things Tianqi liked the most. Failure is not terrible; what is terrible is not having the courage to try again.