Hero Behind the Scenes

When you focus on something, time seems to fly by. In the blink of an eye, a week had passed. During this time, Jonathan and Link learned the Ripple Hermit Style from Baron Zeppeli every day, and also learned many strange techniques through sparring with him.

The Ripple Hermit Style uses breathing techniques to generate ripples within the body, creating energy. However, the same ripple power produces different strengths when used by different people. The reason for this is that everyone's physical constitution is different; the stronger the body, the stronger the ripple power generated.

Because of this, he discovered that with the inherent limitations of ordinary humans, even after learning the Ripple Hermit Style, which can enhance the body to a certain extent, they still cannot compare to the speed and strength of those with the Stone Mask.

After realizing this, Baron Zeppeli, being a man of considerable thought, developed some peculiar techniques.

For example, the Spring Punch, which uses ripple power to loosen joints to extend the attack range, and the Ripple Dash, which is most effective against Vampires.

Using these strange techniques, Baron Zeppeli had defeated many Corpseborn and Vampires.

In terms of the speed of learning and mastering the Ripple Hermit Style, Link was slightly slower than Jonathan. It took him over five days to gain the power of the Ripple Hermit Style, which was twice the time Jonathan took. However, in terms of physical constitution limitations, Link actually had the advantage.

Before learning the Ripple Hermit Style, Link's physical attributes in all aspects were already significantly stronger than Jonathan's. After successfully activating the Ripple Hermit Style, Link's strength saw a qualitative improvement.

Ripple Energy is very similar to the True Qi in Wuxia novels, both being a form of energy originating from life. As the breathing technique gradually operates and deepens, the airflow inhaled into the lungs can always stimulate circles of invisible ripples within the body. These invisible ripples then quickly transform into life energy and are stored in the body. Clearly, he could distinctly feel his body gradually strengthening and his life energy also increasing.

This was not just a subjective feeling; it could also be seen from the attribute panel.

Link Bennett

Biological Level: 1 Star

Attributes: The average attribute value for a normal adult male is 10 points.

Strength: 17.6 (Muscle 17.5, Physical Robustness 17.7)

Agility: 18.25 (Hand-Eye Coordination 19, Flexibility 18, Reaction 18, Balance 18)

Constitution: 16.9 (Health 16.6, Stamina 17.2)

Intelligence: 16.5 (Learning Ability 16.9, Mental Activity 16.1)

Perception: 13.5 (Willpower 13.5, Common Sense Judgment 14.5, Perception 13.5, Intuition 12.5)

Charm: 13.2 (Presence 14, Persuasion 11.5, Personal Appeal 15, Leadership 13, Appearance Appeal 12.5)

Skills: Baseball (Slightly Accomplished), Mixed Martial Arts (Proficient), Basic Science (Slightly Accomplished), Basic Firearms Proficiency (Slightly Accomplished), Violin Playing (Slightly Accomplished), Piano Playing (Beginner), Ripple Hermit Style (Beginner).

Special Abilities: None

Evolution Points: 0

Possessions: None

Space-Time Mission Function: Mandatory mission in progress.

After learning the Ripple Hermit Style, Link's Strength, Agility, and Constitution all saw significant increases. Of course, this growth was greatest at the beginning and would gradually decrease thereafter.

However, for Link, who had the system and could continuously and visibly increase his attributes, as his physical attributes continued to improve, the boost brought by the Ripple Hermit Style would also increase. The two could completely promote each other.

In addition to teaching the power of the Ripple Hermit Style, Baron Zeppeli also shared his memories and experiences with Jonathan and Link during his free time. Link had seen these things in the manga, and he was more focused on the process of cultivation.

Unconsciously, another week passed. Link's strength had grown significantly. While diligently cultivating the Ripple Hermit Style, Link also didn't forget to practice external techniques. He had dabbled in the Spring Punch developed by Baron Zeppeli and the Magnified Punch developed by Jonathan himself.

However, he did not focus his main energy on this aspect. Link, who had some understanding of Eastern culture, felt that this manipulation of ripple power was too crude. Having read countless novels and watched numerous films and TV shows, he intended to develop his own techniques. At this stage, he only had a few preliminary frameworks, which still needed to be perfected through future learning and practical combat.

However, leisurely days could not last forever. On this very night, an Easterner merchant arrived at the place where Jonathan was training. Upon seeing Jonathan, he immediately launched an attack.

As he attacked, the sharp fangs exposed at the corners of his mouth and the long, pointed claws on his hands fully indicated that he had lost his Human identity.

Having already mastered martial arts before this, and now having learned from Baron Zeppeli, mastering Baron Zeppeli's Spring Punch and developing his own Magnified Punch, Jonathan's strength was no longer what it used to be.

Facing the enemy's sudden attack, he didn't even dodge. With one punch, he sent the Easterner flying. The Ripple Energy attached to his fist even caused the opponent's face to begin melting.

It was precisely because of the appearance of this Easterner that the group learned Dio's current location. The strategy used was very simple: deliberately let the Easterner go, then follow him, thus finding out where Dio was.

After confirming Dio's location, the next morning, the group departed from London and embarked on the journey to defeat the Vampire Dio, heading for a town called Whirlwind Knight Town.

After passing through an ancient tunnel with a history of five hundred years and a length of about three hundred feet, the group could already see the outline of Whirlwind Knight Town in the distance from the carriage windows.

The town was surrounded by steep mountains on the east, west, and north sides, while the south side was a sheer cliff face with a turbulent ocean below.

This town was established in the Middle Ages as a place specifically for training knights. It wasn't until 1888 that the British authorities had a sudden idea and used its natural fortress terrain to establish a prison.

Whirlwind Knight Town produced coal underground. For ease of transportation, the locals also used countless prisoners to build a railway. Most of the other residents in the area were ordinary people who made a living from fishing and agriculture. The entire town, including the criminals, had over five hundred people.

Besides Jonathan and Baron Zeppeli, Speedwagon also joined this expedition. Speaking of which, this guy was Jonathan's true comrade. The two became friends after a fight; after being defeated by Jonathan, he became his best brother.

The Joestar family's battle against Vampires lasted for nearly 200 years. Speedwagon walked alongside the Joestars, silently acting as the Hero Behind the Scenes, until he passed away from a heart attack in 1952 at the age of 89.

Without powerful Ripple or flashy Stands, Speedwagon had a massive foundation as his backing. Even after his death, the Speedwagon Foundation continued to support the adventures of successive protagonists, accompanying the Joestars in Speedwagon's stead. He was the hero behind every generation of JOJO.