Sword Rain

However, just as Bai Ye was about to act, he suddenly felt an intense pain in his head, as if something had viciously stabbed into it and was stirring around inside.

"Ugh!"

The pain was a thousand times worse than the first system knowledge infusion—an exaggeration, of course. Hagiri slipped from his hand and crashed to the ground as Bai Ye clutched his head and rolled about.

"Shing—"

Fortunately, "Texas" made her move. Her blade left its sheath, and with one swift strike, she ended Bai Ye's suffering.

For the first time, Bai Ye felt immensely grateful to this "Texas." Though she had killed him countless times, this was the one time he actually felt—relief.

When he was reborn once more in the pure white space, the agonizing pain that had seemed ready to burn his brain to mush had vanished without a trace, as though it had only been an illusion.

Still shaken, Bai Ye touched his head. He knew that state he had just been in was absolutely not normal.

Opening the system panel, Bai Ye found the answer. Taking advantage of the lull while "Texas" stopped attacking in the distance, he checked it.

[The host has independently comprehended a skill. Reward: Draws ×1]

[Overclock Mode]

Quality: Purple—Gold

Description: Through countless battles of life and death, you have learned to consume mental energy to accelerate your thinking, judgment, reflexes, and the brain's information-processing speed.

Note 1: This skill was independently comprehended by the host. For further development of its abilities, refer to the individual "Kinji Tohyama."

Note 2: Excessive mental energy consumption beyond the limit will cause brain damage. Please use with caution.

"Overclock...?"

Bai Ye looked thoughtfully at the skill on the system panel that had nearly burned his brain to mush.

So-called "overclocking" was a method of improving performance by making an electronic component run at a clock speed higher than the manufacturer's specified speed, though doing so could reduce the component's stability and lifespan.

"So I accelerated my brain's operation just now, which let me catch those high-speed blades?"

But such acceleration came with risks. Still unnerved, Bai Ye closed the system panel—thankfully, he had comprehended this skill somewhere other than reality.

Picking up Hagiri, Bai Ye stared fixedly at "Texas." At this stage, entering [Overclock Mode] was his only hope of completing the mission—the improvement of his swordsmanship and martial arts had already reached a bottleneck, and breaking through to the next stage remained far beyond reach.

"This seems like an opportunity... I won't die here, so it's the perfect place to practice this skill."

Having experienced Overclock Mode, Bai Ye naturally understood the skill's power. He needed to find out the maximum amount of time he could currently maintain an overclocked state.

As for the development mentioned in the skill notes, that was still far too distant for Bai Ye.

In any case, a new round of "suffering" began. Compared to the splitting headache of activating Overclock Mode, the pain of being killed by "Texas" seemed much gentler.

"Thirty seconds. That's my current limit... Did this damn system design it that way from the start?"

Bai Ye gritted his teeth. After burning his brain to mush nineteen times, he finally figured out the limit of how long he could maintain the state once he had grown accustomed to the disorienting sensation of Overclock Mode.

For the first thirty seconds, it would not damage his brain beyond a slight stabbing pain. But once he crossed that threshold, Bai Ye would experience intense agony. After thirty-five seconds, irreversible brain damage would occur.

And beyond that? Sorry, Bai Ye had not gotten the chance to find out—because "Texas" had kindly put an end to his suffering.

"It's time to complete this mission..."

After reviving once again, Bai Ye gripped Hagiri and slowly closed his eyes.

After repeated experiments, he had successfully learned how to maintain Overclock Mode steadily—to let his mental energy "burn calmly."

The first time he used it, he had burned through his mental energy too quickly, so he had only lasted a few seconds.

Silver mental energy flowed, then blossomed into a silver flame within his mind.

Bai Ye abruptly opened his eyes. Silver flames seemed to dance within his pupils as well.

Time stretched out, and sounds grew louder. Bai Ye entered an entirely new realm. It was as if the thick shell wrapped around his body had been torn open, revealing a clearer world before his eyes.

If this were reality, the sensation would likely be even more pronounced—the wind, dust, light, air currents... Yet in this pure white space, everything was monotonous and dull.

"Now it's... Kiana time!"

Without needing to look, Bai Ye caught the sound and vibrations of a blade cutting through the air. He twisted aside and evaded "Texas's" attack.

The slashes that had once been describable only as afterimages now seemed incredibly slow. His dynamic vision, enhanced by [Overclock Mode], could easily catch "Texas's" movements, while his accelerated mind could process the information.

"Twenty-one seconds... twenty-two seconds..."

Every second became extraordinarily long. Like a dancer on a blade's edge, Bai Ye dodged "Texas's" attacks with perfect precision every time.

"Twenty-nine seconds!"

At the twenty-ninth second, Bai Ye raised Hagiri. Taking a beating the whole time was not his style. Simply lasting thirty seconds was too easy. What Bai Ye wanted was to try and defeat "Texas" with the aid of [Overclock Mode].

Like a gust of wind, Bai Ye passed through the net woven from "Texas's" blades, then assumed an opening stance before the defenseless girl.

White light, like flowing fire, wrapped around Hagiri and made the blade shine with dazzling brilliance.

Dawn Tower Energy Guidance Method!

Milky-white holy light coated Hagiri, greatly increasing the blade's power.

At the thirtieth second, Bai Ye moved. His pupils contracted instantly, and the slowly burning silver flames in his mind flared.

"Haah—"

Blade Vine Style Secret Art—Linked Cranes!

With Overclock Mode's enhancement, Bai Ye swung his blade seven times in rapid succession. The sword technique, long since committed to memory, flowed seamlessly under the weaving of the Blade Vine Style's secret art.

"I got her!"

Bai Ye's eyes lit up as he gradually exited Overclock Mode. Yet Hagiri's momentum did not diminish. The seven slashes, carrying the sound of tearing wind, arrived before "Texas."

As expected of "Texas." Even under such circumstances, she evaded the first six strikes in succession. However, there was no way she could avoid the seventh.

The first six strikes had been meant to seal off "Texas's" movement. The seventh was the true killing blow.

Even though it was a forcibly executed secret art, it still displayed its formidable power.

Bai Ye smiled, and he smiled happily. The corners of his mouth lifted high, revealing a row of white teeth.

"Although you look exactly like Texas, you aren't her in the end... Forgive me, Teacher Texas!"

"What I'm holding in my hand right now is victory!"

But the next moment, he saw "Texas" raise the Originium blade in her hand high overhead.

The girl's lips moved slightly, as if she were saying something...

Bai Ye could no longer thrust out his final sword. His vision went black, and his consciousness withdrew from the pure white space.

The last thing he saw was countless golden blades descending from the sky...