Powerful Orcs

[Dragon Slaying Sword Qi: Consumes a large amount of stamina and energy. Unleashes a wave of sword qi by swinging a greatsword.]

[Its specific power, speed, and attack range depend on the user's comprehensive attributes, including strength, agility, Weapon Mastery, Power Strike, weapon proficiency, and more.]

What is this? Harrot couldn't help but grin from ear to ear as he looked at the new skill on his character panel.

This skill must have been acquired with the System's help, after he finished reading the Sword Fighting Manual and combined it with the Dragon Slaying Sword Art taught by The Bald Man.

Harrot was very curious about its actual effects, so he insisted on dragging The Bald Man along to test it out.

"I'm telling you, can't you just train by yourself? I have a lot of things to do. I can't spend every night training with you like before!"

The Bald Man grumbled impatiently. He was indeed quite busy with matters at the Gladiatorial Arena, especially these past few days. Count was arriving soon, and he barely had enough time to sleep.

Harrot ignored The Bald Man's complaints and said proudly, "After thoroughly studying the Dragon Slaying Sword Art, I had a sudden inspiration and comprehended an astonishing technique called Dragon Slaying Sword Qi!"

"Nonsense."

The Bald Man yawned indifferently. He and Harrot had sparred many times recently. Although Harrot's strength had undergone earth-shattering changes, he still hadn't won a single match against him.

Harrot's strength and agility were inferior to The Bald Man's. Power Strike only increased strength when attacking, and Running offered no speed bonus to the upper body. Overall, he was still suppressed by his attributes.

Light Strike and Heavy Strike were just skills that converted speed and force. Once The Bald Man got used to them, they weren't very effective.

The Bald Man even crushed Harrot's reliance on Weapon Mastery and weapon proficiency with his superior technique and experience.

Although The Bald Man had to admit that Harrot's strength was improving rapidly, he didn't believe Harrot could surpass him in a short amount of time.

Dragon Slaying Sword Art was his own creation. Harrot had only been studying it for less than two weeks, and the idea of him thoroughly researching and improving the moves was simply a joke.

"You'll see if it's nonsense once you watch. Open your eyes and watch closely!"

Harrot aimed at a distant wooden stake, raised his greatsword high above his head, and brought it down with a fierce vertical chop, shouting, "Dra! Gon! Slay! Ing! Sword! Qi!"

He didn't need to shout when using this skill, but Harrot felt it sounded more imposing.

As Harrot swung the wooden sword in his hand, a white sword qi suddenly flew out.

The power of the sword qi was astonishing. The wooden stake, over half a meter in diameter, was directly split in two by the sword qi.

A deep gash was also left on the ground between Harrot and the wooden stake.

After unleashing this move, Harrot collapsed to the ground, gasping for breath. He felt as if his body had been hollowed out, completely drained of strength.

The Bald Man, standing nearby, had his mouth wide open, looking at Harrot in disbelief. After a long moment, he asked, "Do you have Orc blood too?"

"Huh?" Harrot was bewildered by The Bald Man's words. What did Orc blood have to do with him? And what did "too" mean?

Seeing Harrot's blank expression, The Bald Man explained, "I've seen Eastern Orcs use sword qi, and it's very similar to your move just now. Humans can't learn such techniques. You must have Orc blood. Your parents should be half-bloods."

Harrot stared blankly at The Bald Man. What were Eastern Orcs? Why could they use sword qi?

Seeing that Harrot understood nothing, and remembering that Harrot came from a backwoods background, The Bald Man began to explain.

"Orcs are the overlords of this continent, divided into Eastern Orcs and Western Orcs, also known as Green Orcs and Red Orcs."

"Green Orcs are entrenched in the northeast of the continent. They have green skin and the Frostwolf Clan is the main component of the Eastern Orc tribes."

"Red Orcs, on the other hand, rule the northwest of the continent. Their skin isn't green but red, and the Hellscream is the main component of the great Western Orc tribes."

"Red Orcs love to wage war and invade other countries. They cultivate a powerful force called Rage, which allows them to unleash their physical potential through anger, gaining immense power for a short period. They can even fight against Nobles who have awakened their bloodlines."

"Green Orcs, however, restrain their desires and study the mysteries of the human body, mastering a mysterious energy called Qi. Some Orcs integrate this power into their swordsmanship, while others use it directly on themselves for unarmed combat."

"Red and Green Orcs are mortal enemies. The main force of the Red Orcs is currently at war with the Green Orcs, which is why our other races can resist the Orc invasion."

After listening to The Bald Man's popular science explanation, Harrot couldn't help but inwardly complain: Damn, the Red Orcs' "Rage" setting is so much like the Barbarians and Berserkers in games!

And the mysterious power "Qi" mastered by the Green Orcs perfectly fits the "Sword Saint" and "Monk" archetypes.

Harrot directly complained to The Bald Man, "Orcs are already physically strong, and they can cultivate various energies. This is so unfair! How can humans compete with Orcs?"

The Bald Man asked back, somewhat strangely, "What's unfair about the strong having more rights and choices? Humans were originally the losers, driven to the southern part of the continent by Orcs!"

Harrot was speechless after hearing The Bald Man's words. A real otherworld wasn't a game; there was no need to consider balance. If Orcs were strong, they didn't have to be weakened. If humans were weak, they didn't have to be strengthened.

The weak had their own ways of survival. The abilities of different races in nature were inherently unbalanced. It was perfectly reasonable for humans' racial abilities to be inferior to Orcs'.

However, in his previous life, Harrot had always lived as the Earth's overlord, "human." Now, suddenly being told that humans were a second-rate race, being completely dominated by Orcs, was something he couldn't accept.

Seeing Harrot's dejected look, The Bald Man comforted him, "You don't need to worry. Green Orcs are not very aggressive and don't like to attack other countries. The Red Orcs' main targets are also the Green Orcs."

"Orcs are warlike and enjoy fighting strong opponents. The Orcs who attack us humans are the weaker tribes among the Red Orcs. With the Noble lords who have awakened their bloodlines and the Knights who have received glory, we can completely withstand the Orc invasion."

Harrot felt a bit upset. The situation of humans in this world was somewhat similar to those hiding within the walls in Attack on Titan.

He now understood the unwillingness and anger of the protagonist Eren in the anime. The joy that the new skill Dragon Slaying Sword Qi had brought him was considerably diluted.

The Bald Man, however, was still curiously asking Harrot how he had comprehended this move, what its key points were, and if he, as a Red Orc half-blood, could learn it.

Harrot didn't hold anything back. After all, he had acquired this skill thanks to The Bald Man teaching him the Dragon Slaying Sword Art. There was nothing to be reluctant about.

Unfortunately, no matter how detailed Harrot explained the technique and secrets of generating force for this move, The Bald Man still couldn't perform it.

Although The Bald Man was a bit disappointed, he easily accepted it and said, "Perhaps only those with Green Orc blood can learn it. It's fine, maybe I can learn Rage in the future!"

Harrot understood that this had nothing to do with bloodline; he was also a pure human. His ability to learn sword qi was entirely thanks to the System.