One-Sword Immortal Kneels

At this moment, Ryan was constantly sorting out his path of swordsmanship, taking advantage of the hundred-fold comprehension benefit he had gained from entering the Great Swordmaster realm.

From the Basic Swordsmanship he had worked hard to practice at the very beginning, to the Iai swordsmanship he comprehended later on, plus the Kamusari rewarded by the system.

In his mind, Ryan continuously analyzed how to integrate these swordsmanship styles to make them his own.

It could be said that the swordsmanship path of every Great Swordmaster was different. The swordsmanship learned before reaching the Great Swordmaster level was all learned from others.

However, it was different once one reached the Great Swordmaster level; everyone needed to create new swordsmanship and walk their own path.

Ryan was also pondering his own swordsmanship path. His advantage was that his worldview was completely different from the people in the One Piece world. It belonged to a unique worldview formed by fusing the philosophies of the two worlds.

If it were the previous Ryan, he certainly wouldn't know what his swordsmanship path was like or which path he should take.

Yet the current Ryan was clear about his goal. As a transmigrator, if he was going to do it, he had to be the strongest—so strong that he could unfold everything. His swordsmanship was definitely not the kind found in the One Piece world.

Actually, in Ryan's heart, only the sword of those three feet of green blade was a true sword, rather than the blurring of the lines between swords and sabers like in the One Piece world. Swordsmanship like the Hundred-Step Flying Sword he created himself was the most suitable for him.

Earlier, Gaban said Ryan was a swordsman, and Ryan told Gaban he was a knight of the blade. They seemed similar, but in reality, there was a vast gulf between them.

Swordsmen in the One Piece world merely held blades in their hands to kill people; it could be said that anyone who used a blade could be called a swordsman.

Drawing a sword to help the distressed when seeing injustice on the road made a knight of the blade; being unrestrained, uninhibited, and free made a knight of the blade; upholding righteousness and defending the moral code in one's heart also made a knight of the blade.

Wielding a sword and traveling the pugilistic world back then,

Blade lights and shadows vaguely appearing in dreams,

Clouds winding around high mountains while idle Tsuru cry,

Drinking turbid wine, talking, laughing, and roaming the five lakes.

The knight of the blade in Ryan's heart should be like this.

As a twenty-first-century Chinese person, how could he not yearn for this? He had no chance in his past life, but since heaven allowed him to come here, Ryan certainly wanted to fulfill the dream of his past life. This was also why Ryan liked to wear a suit of white clothes and stood with his hands behind his back.

Everything was for that knight-errant dream in his heart—the unconstrained and happy freedom of flying on a sword and taking a head with a flying sword.

All the way here, Ryan had been practicing all of this without exception.

Just like what was said in Drawing Sword: "A true swordsman, a swordsman facing a powerful opponent, knowing he cannot win, must still resolutely draw his sword. Even if he falls, he must become a mountain, a ridge! What a stirring momentum, what a resolute spirit, what carefree joy, what mighty courage! Where the blade's edge points, none can stand before it."

This was the swordsmanship in Ryan's heart.

Having gained enlightenment of the Dao in his heart, Ryan's comprehension and analysis became even faster, and his realm as a Great Swordmaster was also constantly stabilizing and climbing.

Half an hour passed quickly. Ryan slowly opened his eyes, and astonishing Sword Intent emanated from his body—a swordsmanship that had never appeared in this world had arrived.

Ryan's temperament and Sword Intent had also changed. The previous Ryan only imitated the swordsman in his heart, capturing only his form but not his spirit.

If the feeling the previous Ryan gave people was the sharp edge of a youth fully exposed, then the current Ryan had his sharpness restrained, with all the worldly veneer washed away.

The others looked at Ryan, who seemed like a different person, filled with astonishment. Even Crocus beside them was clicking his tongue in wonder.

He had never heard of a person's very temperament changing just from becoming a Great Swordmaster.

While everyone else focused on the change in Ryan's temperament, Hawkeye was shocked by the transformation of Ryan's Sword Intent.

Previously, the feeling Ryan's Sword Intent gave people was powerful, bloody, and fierce.

Yet now, the feeling it gave Hawkeye could be described in just two words: "sharp"—incomparably sharp, as if nothing in this world could not be slashed.

Hawkeye had never seen such Sword Intent.

Ryan was also observing Hawkeye. Some changes had likewise occurred in Hawkeye; the previous Hawkeye was as fierce and cold as the blade in his hand, but now he had softened just a bit.

Looking at Hawkeye, Ryan couldn't wait to test to what extent his current strength had reached.

A surge of Sword Intent radiated from Ryan, and everyone felt as though their bodies were being sliced.

"No! It's not like it."

They saw several bloodstains, as if slashed by a sword, appear on everyone's bodies.

Seeing this situation, Beli activated Armament Haki to block in front of the crowd, shielding them from that wave of Sword Intent. At this moment, Kid, Killer, and Lori all said with lingering fear.

"This is simply too powerful. The Sword Intent can already affect reality, just like Conqueror's Haki."

Crocus: "This old man has never seen Sword Intent that can affect reality like this."

Watching Ryan's Sword Intent soaring into the sky, Hawkeye's fighting spirit was also ignited. Just as he wanted to draw his blade, he heard Ryan say.

"Mihawk, let's fight in a couple of days. I'll go stabilize my realm first." Having said that, Ryan vanished.

Everyone: "..."

Indeed, this was the captain they were familiar with. The moment ago must have been an illusion!

After being stunned for a moment, Hawkeye said, "Very well."

With that, he also returned to his room.

Meanwhile, Ryan was checking the system notification from just a moment ago.

Ding! Congratulations to the host for breaking through to Great Swordmaster by your own strength.

Reward: Sword God Li Chungang's personal sword, Mubanniu. Reward: Sword God Li Chungang's swordsmanship comprehension once.

Looking at these generous rewards, Ryan could no longer suppress the wild joy in his heart and blurted out, "Awesome!"

The people still outside were once again left in disarray in the wind. Could stabilizing one's realm be this awesome?

Ryan took Mubanniu out of the system space and began to inspect it, the more he looked, the more delighted he became.

Mubanniu was the personal sword of the Sword God Li Chungang from the Snow Leopard world, and it was a top-tier treasured sword in that world. Unfortunately, it was later snapped in half by Wang Xianzhi, the second best in the world, and split into two ever since.

Yet what appeared in Ryan's hands now was a complete Mubanniu: three feet of green blade, archaic, and sharp. This was the treasured sword in Ryan's mind.

Reluctantly, Ryan put Mubanniu away into the system space and turned his attention to the swordsmanship comprehension belonging to Sword God Li Chungang.

Speaking of the Sword God Li Chungang, he was the character Ryan loved most in the Snow Leopard world.

Li Chungang entered the Vajra realm at sixteen, entered the Mysterious Gate at nineteen, and ranked among the Celestial Phenomena at twenty-four. After that, he kept his sword sheathed for a full six years without throwing a single strike, finally practicing the Sword Intent-dense Sword Opens the Heavenly Gate.

Stepping into the pugilistic world for the first time, he used imperial sword-flying across the great river in Guangling; defeated Wu Wei of the Plum Blossom Sword Sect at the Dongyue Sword Pond; entered the Wu Family Sword Tomb, defeated the Wu Family Sword Chief, and took the famous sword Mubanniu; forced a female sword immortal-like woman who walked barefooted in the pugilistic world back to her sect with a single finger; defeated the Spear Immortal Wang Xiu and offered him pointers; defeated Xuanyuan Dapan; declared there were no swordsmen in Xishu, entered Shu alone, and killed sixteen high-level swordsmen who blocked his way; traveled west to Lantuojiao Mountain, questioned Buddha with his sword, and killed twenty-three Arhats; fought Wang Xianzhi, winning six out of seven battles. In the final challenge, unwilling to use Sword Opens the Heavenly Gate out of cherishing talent, he unhesitatingly ruined his own reputation, let Wang Xianzhi snap Mubanniu, and descended the mountain unconstrained and carefree. Later, he accidentally killed the beauty Fengdu Lvpao, and intended to go to Longhu Mountain to demand a life-extending golden pill from Qi Xuanzhen, but on the way, the beauty passed away to the west. Discussing the Dao with Qi Xuanzhen at the Demon-Slaying Platform, his state of mind was thrown into chaos, and after failing to open the heavenly gate with his sword, he had no swordsmanship thereafter. Descending the Demon-Slaying Platform, he exchanged an arm with Sui Xiagu, his realm dropped to Mysterious Gate, and there was no news of him ever since. In reality, he went to the old site of Fengdu, drawing a prison on the ground to confine himself for twenty years beneath the Tide-Listening Pavilion in the Northern Liang Residence, and by a blessing in disguise, he was able to return to the Celestial Phenomena.

A sixty-year cycle later, he stepped out of the Tide-Listening Pavilion, ranking eighth on the martial arts evaluation. Accompanied Xu Fengnian out of Liangzhou on a white horse, breaking the Five Elements Water Armor at the border of Yongzhou with Sword Immortal Kneels. Cleaved the river for two hundred zhang at Ghost Gate Pass, kicked over a Huanglong storied ship on Lake Chunfen, and defeated the Wu Family Sword Crown Wu Liuding outside Xiangfan City.

Watched Xu Fengnian at the snow-capped peak of Huishan, with Xuanyuan Qingfeng holding an umbrella, and returned to the Land Sword Immortal Realm. At the Donghai Martial Emperor City, borrowed nineteen hundred swords for the strongest battle of the contemporary era. Carved into Dayanziji in the Guangling River with Xu Fengnian, breaking two thousand six hundred-odd armors with a single sword, surging a thousand and a hundred miles in one breath. On the verge of death, borrowed a sword from Deng Tai'a across ten thousand miles to help him break through to the Terrestrial Immortal, fought Tuoba Bodhisattva to a draw, and passed away after seeing Lv Yu'er, the reincarnation of Lv Pao'er.

This was the brilliant life belonging to the Sword God Li Chungang. Ryan steadied his mind and began to comprehend it.

A full day passed before Ryan awoke from his comprehension. Swordsmanship comprehension allowed Ryan to directly watch Li Chungang's life from the perspective of a bystander and comprehend Li Chungang's swordsmanship.

When Ryan woke up, for some reason, in the perception of everyone present, Ryan—who was clearly a youth just a moment before—looked like an aging old man.

This feeling vanished in a flash, and only Hawkeye on the side sized Ryan up with a suspicious gaze.

"Hawkeye, let's have a fight." Ryan wanted to try out the sword moves he had just comprehended right away.

"Alright."

To such a cute request from Ryan, the bellicose Hawkeye naturally wouldn't refuse. Ever since breaking through to the Great Swordmaster level, Hawkeye had always wanted to see just how strong he currently was.

Crocus looked at the two of them with a slightly troubled expression and said, "Go easy on each other. This is inside Laboon's belly, after all."

"Rest assured, it'll be over soon." Ryan smiled slightly.

The entire group ran over to watch the battle. This was a duel between two Great Swordmasters, and being fortunate enough to observe such a battle would be helpful for their future paths.

Especially for Killer, whose excitement was already overflowing.

On a floating island in the sea, Ryan tossed "Ace" to Hawkeye.

Hawkeye instinctively caught the sword Ryan threw over and asked with a puzzled expression, "What do you mean?"

"The weapon in your hand isn't good. Use my Supreme Grade Sword Ace." For some reason, the current Hawkeye hadn't yet obtained that Supreme Grade Twelve Wazamono sword, "Yoru."

"Then what will you use?"

"I'll use this!" Ryan took out a sword from somewhere unknown, and everyone felt an archaic, heavy, and sharp aura emanate from that sword.

"What kind of sword is this?" Hawkeye looked at Ryan and asked, puzzled.

Not only Hawkeye, but the spectators watching the battle also wore looks of curiosity.

Swords in the One Piece world generally referred to sabers and rapiers. Weapons like Roger's Ace and Shanks's Gryphon belonged to rapiers.

They were usually single-edged, whereas the sword in Ryan's hand was a rare double-edged sword in this world.

"Mubanniu," Ryan said indifferently.

Seeing the treasured sword in Ryan's hand—one that was definitely no inferior to a Supreme Grade Sword.

Hawkeye wasn't someone who put on airs; the blade in his hand indeed lacked somewhat, and a good blade still provided a tremendous boost to a swordsman.

Ryan and Hawkeye first tested each other with a few moves, and Hawkeye was temporarily suppressed by Ryan, putting him at a disadvantage. With his extremely rich combat experience, Hawkeye knew he couldn't go on like this and had to use his full strength to launch an offensive.

Seeing Hawkeye raise his sword and charge over, Ryan shouted loudly, "Here comes the good part!"

Then Ryan was seen exerting force with his feet, flying straight up into the sky, and heading towards Hawkeye with his sword while taking advantage of his descent.

"One-Sword Immortal Kneels!"

The surrounding seawater exploded all around, and Hawkeye was seen struggling to block with the sword in his hand.

With a loud bang, the ground beneath Hawkeye's feet cracked successively, rapidly spreading outward at an extremely fast speed.

Meanwhile, everyone watching the battle from the ship in the distance was shocked beyond measure.

They saw such a scene unfold in their eyes.

Ryan flew into the sky, man and sword uniting as one to slash downward with a single strike. The next moment, the entire floating island cracked apart.

In other words, with a single sword strike, Ryan had shattered the entire small island into pieces.

Everyone sighed in their hearts: "The might of a single sword is truly terrifying!"