Though his tone remained steady, Lin Xuan keenly sensed a change in the aura this adjutant had kept restrained all along.
If he had been a pool of stagnant water before, now towering waves were faintly surging beneath its surface.
Bogard lowered his center of gravity slightly, pressing his left thumb against his sword guard. The inch of cold steel he had drawn reflected no dazzling sunlight. Instead, something black seemed to be quietly spreading across the blade.
His gaze locked onto a huge piece of driftwood floating on the sea dozens of meters away.
It was probably a piece of wreckage from the pier Lin Xuan had shattered earlier, carried away by the waves. It bobbed with the swell, making it extremely difficult to lock onto.
"Watch closely, Lin Xuan."
A hint of pride entered Bogard's voice as he prepared to demonstrate true swordsmanship to his junior. "A master swordsman's slash isn't about grand displays, but..."
Shing-
The clear ring of steel had only just sounded when Bogard's figure blurred for an instant.
Lin Xuan's eyes widened, and he held his breath.
Yet, just as that streak of black sword light was about to leave the blade...
"I've got booze! Hahaha! Boys! Time for a feast!"
A roar erupted from behind them. A heavy barrel of liquor whistled over Lin Xuan's head like a cannonball, hurtling straight toward the piece of driftwood Bogard had targeted.
Bogard's sword hand trembled imperceptibly.
His white-gloved hand, steady as a sculpture a moment earlier, had no choice but to stop awkwardly in midair.
With the sharp crack of splintering wood, the strong smell of cheap rum filled the air.
The driftwood, along with the "presence" Bogard had just locked onto, became floating rubbish under Garp's utterly unreasonable "barrel cannonball."
Bogard remained frozen with his sword drawn an inch from its sheath, as stiff as a dried salted fish.
Even the cold gleam of the blade seemed dazed by this sudden turn of events.
For a Headquarters lieutenant commander who maintained elegance and precision at all times, having his move interrupted like this was nothing short of a career Waterloo.
Silently, bit by bit, Bogard pushed that inch of steel back into its sheath.
The movement was so slow that it carried an indescribable resentment.
"Ahem."
Bogard held a fist to his mouth, trying to cover his embarrassment with a light cough, but his reddening ears betrayed his inner collapse.
Lin Xuan considerately looked away, pretending to admire the scenery to spare his future instructor some dignity.
"Well... as you can see, this is the unpredictability of the Grand Line." Bogard forced an attempt to salvage his dignity. His tone remained composed, but he was speaking noticeably faster. "No matter how skilled your swordsmanship is, unexpected situations will always interrupt your rhythm."
That counts as an excuse? A tactician, all right. He thinks fast.
Suppressing a smile, Lin Xuan nodded and played along. "Lesson learned. You really can't focus only on flashy moves on the battlefield."
Bogard gave Lin Xuan a long look, seemingly somewhat gratified by the boy's "consideration."
He straightened his collar, quickly extricating the conversation from that embarrassment and getting it back on track.
"Back to the subject." Bogard walked to Lin Xuan's side, his sharp gaze fixed on the boy's hands, which were trembling slightly from overexertion. "That slash showed no trace of any school. It wasn't a One Sword Style quick-draw technique, nor a thrust that pursued sheer speed. Who taught you swordsmanship?"
That question was crucial.
If Lin Xuan had a renowned teacher behind him, Bogard would need to consider compatibility between schools when devising his training plan.
Lin Xuan fell silent for a moment.
Kenpachi Zaraki's swordsmanship? Could that stuff even be called swordsmanship?
It was pure killing instinct, the way a beast tore into its prey, without any fancy routines. Even defense lay outside its offensive considerations.
"No one." Lin Xuan shrugged, his tone carrying a casually candid air. "Slashing that way just felt the most natural. As for schools... that stuff is too complicated for me. As long as I can cut the enemy down, I don't care if the stance looks ugly."
"You... figured it out yourself?"
Bogard's pupils contracted slightly, and a shock he could barely conceal finally appeared on his poker face.
He could deliver a slash with that kind of "presence" through intuition and brute force alone?
This wasn't merely an unorthodox fighter. This was a freak practically stuffed to bursting with heaven-given talent.
In Marine Headquarters' elite training camp, so many trainees practiced for more than a decade before barely reaching the threshold of "presence," yet this boy had managed it just by hacking away.
"A genius... no, a prodigy."
Bogard murmured under his breath, then looked at Lin Xuan with an even more fervent gaze.
An uncut gem like this was precisely the kind of student instructors dreamed of.
"If you're a blank slate, that makes things even easier."
Bogard took a deep breath, and his bearing abruptly changed, shifting instantly from an embarrassed bystander back into a strict teacher.
"Lin Xuan, listen carefully. In the East Blue, you might be able to do whatever you please with that brute strength and intuition. But once you enter the Grand Line, especially the New World, you'll encounter monsters who can even turn their bodies into elements-Logia Devil Fruit users."
"Physical attacks are useless against them. That's when you need Haki."
Bogard held up two fingers.
"There are three types of Haki. Aside from the extremely rare Conqueror's Haki, all humans can master the other two through training."
"The first is Observation Haki. It's like activating an omnidirectional radar in your mind to sense the presence and emotions of living creatures around you, and even predict their next movements. For your head-on fighting style, it's the best means of staying alive."
At this point, Bogard folded one finger.
"The second is also the power you most urgently need to master-Armament Haki."
As he spoke, Bogard raised his right hand.
Under Lin Xuan's gaze, that black substance once again covered his fist like liquid, gleaming like metal in the sunlight.
"It's a technique that gives physical form to the 'energy' within you, or rather, your 'willpower,' coating your body or weapon like armor."
"It not only improves defense and attack power, but is also the only means of grasping a Logia user's 'solid body.' For swordsmen, coating a blade in Armament Haki not only protects a famous sword from breaking, but is also a necessary step toward achieving a Black Blade."
Bogard explained in great detail, even breaking down how the sensation of energy flowed and where the will was concentrated.
Lin Xuan listened quietly, looking every bit the good student, but his thoughts had already drifted to the system panel only he could see.
Two golden balls of light floated quietly in his inventory.
They were special items from the beginner's gift pack.
An Insight Talisman and an Awakening Talisman.
Lin Xuan had originally intended to save these two treasures for a critical moment. After all, each consumable used meant one fewer left.
But now, listening to Bogard's professional yet somewhat obscure theoretical explanation, Lin Xuan suddenly felt that this was the "critical moment."
Kenpachi Zaraki's template excelled in ferocious spiritual pressure and physical strength, but when it came to understanding techniques, he was notoriously one for not using his head.
If Lin Xuan slowly worked out Haki himself, even with Bogard giving him private instruction, it would probably take a month or so just to get started.
But he couldn't wait that long.
Ace had already set sail, and the gears of the plot had begun to turn.
He had to become combat-ready as quickly as possible to gain a firm footing in this world overrun with monsters.
System, use the Insight Talisman.
Lin Xuan issued the command silently.
As the command went through, the golden talisman in his inventory instantly shattered, dissolving into specks of starlight.
The next second...
An intensely cool current washed over Lin Xuan's cerebral cortex like melting mountain snow.
His mind, somewhat muddled from physical exhaustion, became clearer than ever.
The world seemed to slow in his perception. The sound of the wind, the frequency of the waves, even the pace of Bogard's speech were broken down into the most basic streams of information.
"...Imagine a flowing current of warmth inside you. That's your life force..."
Bogard continued speaking, but to Lin Xuan's ears, those formerly abstract concepts suddenly took concrete form.
He "saw" it.
Not with his eyes, but with some newly awakened perception.
He could "see" the tiny muscle tremors in Bogard's arm and sense the energy surging through his body like blood, yet entirely controlled by his will.
It felt as though someone watching a black-and-white television had suddenly been thrown into a 4K high-definition VR world.
So this was what "coating with will" meant?
It wasn't simply exerting force, but a kind of mental "solidification."
Lin Xuan instinctively closed his eyes as vast amounts of information frantically reorganized and took shape in his mind.
The exhilaration of sudden understanding even made him forget his body's aches.
He stood motionless, seemingly sunk into a deep meditative state.
The sea breeze lifted the hem of his clothes. With his eyes gently closed, the boy's initially calm expression gradually gave way to the wild joy of sudden comprehension.
Yet to Bogard beside him, the scene meant something entirely different.
Bogard stopped explaining and frowned slightly at the boy, who had suddenly closed his eyes and become completely unresponsive.
Was the explanation too advanced?
After all, something like Haki truly was far too abstract and dependent on the mind for a child raised in the peaceful environment of the East Blue.
Without undergoing trials of life and death, it was difficult to understand what "invisible armor" meant.
The boy clearly looked utterly bewildered, his brain frozen.
Bogard sighed inwardly, feeling somewhat guilty.
He had been too impatient, actually expecting a sixteen-year-old boy to grasp everything after hearing the theory once.
"Lin Xuan?"
Bogard called tentatively. When the boy still didn't respond, that "mind wandering far away" expression only confirmed his guess.
It seemed talking alone wouldn't work.
For an instinctive genius of this beastlike sort, theory lessons were often the dullest lullaby.
"It's all right if you don't understand. That's perfectly normal."
Bogard's voice slowed, taking on a reassuring note.
He flexed his wrist, preparing to enlighten this uncut gem through the most primitive and direct method.
"Since the theory is too abstract, let's try something practical."
Bogard stepped forward, his aura slowly rising. He deliberately held the pressure at a threshold suitable for guiding a beginner.
Bogard's sword hand trembled imperceptibly.
He thought the boy had been confused by his earlier explanation about "giving physical form to willpower."
Fair enough. Discussing the "solidification of internal energy currents" with a self-taught fighter raised in the East Blue was like playing music to a cow.
"Forget it. Don't dwell on those complicated theories."
Bogard sighed, suppressing the impatience born of his appreciation for talent.
He readjusted his stance, lowering his sword tip slightly and keeping his tone as gentle as possible. "Your body's memory is more honest than your brain. Come, use that beastlike intuition from earlier and attack me with everything you've got. I'll let you experience for yourself what it feels like to strike an 'iron plate'-"
"Um, Instructor."
Lin Xuan suddenly spoke, interrupting Bogard's impending "tough love."
The boy blinked. His pupils, somewhat unfocused from thought, were focusing again, carrying a strange, eager excitement.
"I think I've found that 'valve.'"
"...Huh?"
Bogard froze, then his poker face twitched despite himself.
He had seen arrogant recruits, but never one this arrogant.
He had just explained Haki theory that Marine Headquarters had spent decades studying, and this kid claimed to have found it after staring into space for three minutes?
Before you continue