The Fastest Way to Become Stronger

Although Leo had lost his battle against Miyamoto Musashi, he had enjoyed it thoroughly.

He knew that this was the first time he had used Zenith Tempest in a real fight since it awakened. Moreover, Miyamoto Musashi had been very considerate throughout the match, allowing him to unleash his techniques. Otherwise, given her abilities, it wouldn't have been difficult at all for her to hold a blade to his throat before he could even unleash the true power of Zenith Tempest.

Therefore, despite the loss, Leo felt no resentment or frustration. On the contrary, he felt a sense of clarity after having released his full strength to his heart's content.

Beyond just wanting to go all out, Leo had also wanted to gauge his current level through this fight with Miyamoto Musashi.

Although he felt confident that he could challenge those above his rank, that was, after all, just his own intuition.

Before this, Leo had never fought an entity at the level of an ultimate-class devil, and he hadn't even encountered many high-class devils. He had no real baseline, and he couldn't be sure if his self-assessment was accurate.

Thus, he wanted to use this opportunity to ask Miyamoto Musashi just how strong he really was.

As a member of a devil king's peerage and a veteran devil who had lived for hundreds of years, Miyamoto Musashi had challenged and fought countless powerhouses. Her insight and experience far surpassed his own.

She would certainly be able to give him an answer.

Sure enough...

"Young Master Leo's current strength is certainly not weak. At the very least, among the younger generation of this era, there shouldn't be many who can stand as your equal." Miyamoto Musashi seemed to see through Leo's intentions. After a moment of thought, she said to him, "When I say the younger generation, I don't just mean devils; I mean everyone within the three factions and even those beyond them."

"Many geniuses have emerged in your generation. Not to mention the red-haired princess of the Gremory clan, who inherited the Power of Destruction just like the current devil king Lucifer, there are also incredible successors born into other devil families."

"In particular, the Bael clan. I once met the successor of this generation. That young master is extraordinary. Although he isn't valued by his family, his strength has already far surpassed his peers."

"The church has also produced several promising candidates who could become top-tier exorcists. It is even said that among the Grigori of the fallen angels, several super-strong sacred gear users have been cultivated in recent years. Two of them are even holders of Longinus, possessing strength that stands at the pinnacle of their generation."

Miyamoto Musashi tallied all these individuals up before concluding that "not many could stand as Leo's opponent."

This was an incredibly high evaluation.

"The original Young Master Leo certainly couldn't be mentioned in the same breath as these figures, but since you possess Zenith Tempest—the second strongest Longinus in the world—the situation is different."

Miyamoto Musashi spoke candidly, continuing her assessment.

"Based on Young Master Leo's performance just now, among those of the same generation, you should be able to contend for the top five."

"If you can master Zenith Tempest and reach the realm of balance breaker, you could even contend for the top three."

"At the very least, an average ultimate-class devil would not be your match."

Hearing this, Leo asked thoughtfully, "By an average ultimate-class devil, you mean the eight-winged level, right? What about the ten-winged level?"

Faced with this question, Miyamoto Musashi wore a troubled expression before finally responding.

"If your opponent is an ultimate-class devil of the ten-winged level, then you, Master Leo, would still be quite far behind," Miyamoto Musashi stated truthfully. "Ultimate-class devils of that caliber are rare even in the underworld. Many of the older generation of devils don't even possess ten wings. As for the ten-winged angels and fallen angels, they are completely at the executive level; some can even trade blows with maou-class existences. They are far stronger than the eight-winged level."

"You are quite proficient in your use of Zenith Tempest, Master, but you haven't reached the pinnacle yet. If you were to fight an eight-winged ultimate-class devil, your win rate would likely be higher."

"But a ten-winged ultimate-class devil is a different story. I'm afraid the situation would be reversed. Even if you encountered one who had just ascended, your win rate wouldn't exceed 20%, and it might even be lower."

When it came down to it, Leo's Zenith Tempest had appeared too recently. Counting everything, it had only been a month. Being able to use it proficiently was already thanks to the feedback provided by the peerage transformation trait. Such power was enough to allow him to defeat an opponent one level above him, but trying to bridge two levels was still too much of a stretch.

If Leo could push Zenith Tempest to its absolute limit, he might have a chance to trade blows with a newly ascended ten-winged devil. However, to compare himself to someone like Miyamoto Musashi, who was only a step away from the maou-class, was somewhat delusional.

"Of course, this is just my judgment."

Seeing Leo bow his head in thought, Miyamoto Musashi quickly added a few words.

"I reached this conclusion based on your performance just now, but sacred gear users are existences that cannot be measured by conventional logic. Especially for a holder of a longinus like yourself, anything is possible."

Sacred gears feed on the thoughts of their owners, capable of constant change and evolution, becoming stronger over time. The strength of their power is also determined by the user's will. If the host is in a state of low morale, the sacred gear's effectiveness will be worse than usual; conversely, it can boost the gear's power, unleashing astonishing might in battle.

The red dragon emperor in the original stories had "burst" with power like this more than once. In the most absurd instance, he managed to punch an executive-level ten-winged fallen angel away using a sacred gear that had only recently awakened, fully demonstrating the phrase "a longinus is a power that can destroy the balance."

Miyamoto Musashi had also seen many sacred gear users unleash astonishing power at critical moments, relying on an unyielding will to turn the impossible into reality.

That was why she said that if the opponent was a holder of a longinus, anything could happen.

Once Leo unleashed an astonishing will, given the status of Zenith Tempest as the second-ranked power in the world, it might even be possible for him to pin down and beat up a maou.

It was just that such explosive power was too unstable. In Miyamoto Musashi's view, it was best not to pin one's hopes on that.

"I suggest that you focus more of your energy on developing your sacred gear, Master Leo. Strive to use it with ease, reach the pinnacle, and attempt to touch the realm of balance breaker."

Miyamoto Musashi gave the most reliable advice.

"As long as you can reach balance breaker, with the status of Zenith Tempest, even if your opponent is a maou, it is not impossible for you to put up a fight."

If Leo could reach the realm of balance breaker, he should be able to compete with her when she was fighting at full strength, right?

Thinking of this, Miyamoto Musashi felt a sense of anticipation.

"I understand." Leo nodded, accepting the advice, and said, "That is what I think as well. I will first find a way to use the sacred gear with ease, and then aim for the realm of balance breaker."

This was the fastest path for Leo to become stronger at the moment; he certainly wouldn't put the cart before the horse.

Of course, he wouldn't neglect his foundation either. Only when his own demonic power and abilities were stronger could the power of the sacred gear be exerted better and for longer durations.

Even if he reached the realm of balance breaker in the future, his foundation could not be ignored; otherwise, he wouldn't be able to maintain the balance breaker state for long.

The best examples were the current red dragon emperor and the current white dragon emperor.

One was the weakest red dragon emperor in history. Even after being reincarnated as a devil, he didn't have much demonic power and couldn't even perform magic circle teleportation. He could only miserably train his physical strength, and even after pushing himself to the brink of collapse, he could only maintain the balance breaker state for thirty minutes. Furthermore, he couldn't even activate the sacred gear's abilities, as that would cause additional consumption, further shortening the duration.

One is the strongest White Dragon Emperor in history, possessing bloodline ties to the deceased Old Maou Lucifer. Born with immense demonic power and talent, once he activates the Balance Breaker of his Sacred Gear, he can maintain it for a full month. Such a duration means he could unleash his abilities recklessly without consequence, forming a stark contrast to the former.

Leo's foundation is not lacking either; he is a genuine high-class devil. Even if he were to squander the power of Zenith Tempest as he did just now, he would not suffer from the stamina issues that Yukino Yukinoshita faces during prolonged combat. If he were to reach the realm of Balance Breaker, even if he could not maintain it for a month, he should still be far superior to the Red Dragon Emperor.

However, the stronger the foundation, the better. If he could possess demonic power as vast as the White Dragon Emperor's and reach the Balance Breaker realm, he should be able to surpass him and become even stronger.

After all, the White Dragon Emperor's Sacred Gear is only the sixth-ranked god-tier Longinus, while Leo's Sacred Gear is the second-ranked top-tier Longinus. Given the same foundation and both having reached the same level of Sacred Gear mastery, Leo would undoubtedly be the stronger of the two.

And the White Dragon Emperor's strength after activating Balance Breaker is... Maou-class!

"Before I leave this manor, Young Master Leo, you may spar with me at any time."

Seeing that Leo was able to think things through, Miyamoto Musashi felt much more at ease and offered a highly tempting proposal.

"I imagine that having a sparring partner of sufficient caliber will be of great help to you."

Hearing this, Leo's eyes lit up.

Having a powerhouse close to Maou-class feeding him moves at any time would be an immense help.

"Then I'll be counting on you, Miss Musashi."

Seeing Leo nod so readily, Miyamoto Musashi smiled heartily.

Next, it was time to get things back on track, and Miyamoto Musashi resumed guiding Asuna Yuuki in her swordsmanship.

Having witnessed the power of two formidable devils with her own eyes, Asuna Yuuki's motivation seemed to have been ignited, and she became even more focused and diligent.

Just like that, time passed until the evening.

As the sky began to darken, Leo took Asuna Yuuki with him to keep the final appointment of the day...