Chapter 143: Chapter 117: Mutation - Paper Body Control! Qian Yi, the union of man and sword!
The Ace of Spades on the little Paperman’s face remained impassive, as if such changes still couldn’t affect a swordsman’s heart. It was just like the three Paper Swords it firmly grasped, still and unmoving.
For the first time, Su Ping found the Paperman’s poker face rather endearing.
The Paperman indeed possessed a natural mastery and an almost instinctive understanding of swordsmanship.
In this peculiar stance, wielding swords in both hands, Qian Yi executed a strike by spinning its body. It used the sword piercing through yet fixed by its body, along with the swords in its hands, to form a circular arc—the Three Sword Style.
After delivering this strike, Qian Yi held the pose.
The next moment, as if quite satisfied with this strike, it sighed softly with its featureless face, "UGH... (This sword, feels so lonely...)"
Su Ping pursed his lips, forcibly suppressing the urge to quip. He did his best to ignore this private display before using the Eye of Truth to examine Qian Yi.
In Su Ping’s eyes, this light was dazzling, brilliant. At the same time, it was so captivating.
This signified a momentous change had finally occurred in Qian Yi.
As Su Ping watched, Qian Yi’s abilities finally materialized before his Eye of Truth:
[Mutated Paperman (Contracted)]
[Attribute: Metal, Undead]
[Current Level: Common Tenth Level]
[Racial Potential: Elite First Rank]
[Skills: Paper Body Folding (Beginner), Jinge Technique (Perfection), Sword Soul Mark (Special), Accelerated Casting (Proficient Level), Mutated·Paper Body Control (Beginner)]
The breakthrough of Accelerated Casting to Proficient Level couldn’t divert Su Ping’s attention. Compared to Qian Yi’s next skill, Accelerated Casting seemed so trivial it was hardly worth mentioning.
Because this skill was too eye-catching.
[Mutated·Paper Manipulation (Beginner): A special mutated skill derived from the Paperman’s ’Paper Body Joint’. It enables perfect control over its own paper body, the separation of its paper, and control over Papermen within a certain range or those it has touched! It also allows for special jointing with any Paperman.]
The skill description was deceptively simple and unpretentious.
It was similar to Xiao Qing’s ’Heart of the Poison Wood,’ which had mutated and evolved from the ’Heart of Woods’.
It not only encompassed the ’Paper Body Joint’ skill itself but also possessed an even more incredible control effect.
In other words, compared to Xiao Qing’s relationship with the Forest Wolf pack, Qian Yi was now the absolute monarch among the Papermen! It was the true ’head’—the leader.
How interesting!
Breeding Pet Beasts is just too fascinating!
Su Ping watched Qian Yi with great enthusiasm.
At that moment, Qian Yi also seemed to be sensing the power it had comprehended. The Paper Swords in its hands seemed even easier to command at this moment. Any of its intentions, even under such circumstances, could be more thoroughly understood and executed by the Paper Swords it wielded.
At this moment, in Qian Yi’s perception, to use the terminology from those martial arts movies it had seen: This was ’Man and Sword as One’!
The little Paperman muttered to itself in bewilderment, "UGH... (Have I become this strong...)"
The next moment, Qian Yi moved. Around the training dummy in the basement, CLINKING and CLANKING sounds rang out. Every strike left a faint sword mark on the dummy.
Su Ping intently watched Qian Yi’s every move.
The mutated Paper Body Control could very well be crucial to Qian Yi’s evolution!
That was certain.
So, what were the prerequisites for evolution?
Based on Qian Yi’s current foundation, Su Ping considered several factors: the consolidation of resources from the Metal Element and Necromancy Series, the improvement of its own Realm, and, possibly most importantly, the skill level of this Paper Manipulation.
Su Ping scratched his head.
Xiao Qing’s Heart of the Poison Wood, when linked with the regular Forest Wolves’ Heart of Woods through the Shared Connection in the Forest Wolf Catalog, experienced an increased skill enhancement speed.
But would Qian Yi’s Paper Body Control, if linked with other Papermen’s Paper Body Joint through the Origami Man Record, also experience an increased rate of improvement?
Su Ping didn’t know, but he was certain that ten Papermen were far from enough! To train Qian Yi’s Paper Body Control quickly, he needed even more Papermen!
The only drawback was that the Shared Connection limit was common to both the Forest Wolf Catalog and the Origami Man Record.
However, fortunately, the cultivation of Forest Wolves had recently hit a bottleneck. Most of the initial Forest Wolves’ skills had reached Proficient Level, and some had even broken through to Mastery Level. At such levels, even with the boost from the Shared Connection, advancing to Perfection would not be easy.
Moreover, it was time for Su Ping’s cultivation focus to shift to the little Papermen.
The reason was simple. Although Xiao Qing hadn’t evolved and hadn’t even found a path or direction for evolution, Xiao Qing’s race limit had reached the formidable Third-Rank Commander. It still had a long way to improve.
But Qian Yi is already nearing the limit of its race limit. If it doesn’t evolve, it will significantly hinder Su Ping’s growth rate.
As he was thinking, a sharp cry erupted before him!
"UGH! (Finisher!)"
The Paperman suddenly retreated. Then, the Paper Sword in its hand unexpectedly flew from its grasp, crossing over ten meters like a hidden weapon thrown by a martial arts expert from the movies.
The Paper Sword struck the dummy unerringly.
A crisp, clear STRIKE echoed!
Then, the tough, refined steel dummy was actually pierced through the throat by that Paper Sword.
Su Ping pursed his lips. He suddenly felt he might have truly created an extraordinary new Pet Beast.
This new Pet Beast might even be more incredible than the ’Sword Soul’ that the Fengdu Sword King had been so fixated on creating.
「That night.」
Su Ping slept especially soundly. He actually had another dream.
Perhaps it was because, after so many days of nurturing the Paperman, such terrifying improvements and progress had finally been made, leading to his thoughts by day becoming dreams by night.
Or perhaps the impact of the so-called ’finisher’ unleashed by the Paperman had simply been too overwhelming for him.
This was despite the Paperman fainting from energy exhaustion immediately after that strike. Simultaneously, the nine Papermen forming the Paper Sword Form went completely limp, unable to maintain the shape any longer.
Yet, Su Ping’s dream remained exceptionally vivid.
The style of this dream didn’t match the world he was in; he even dreamed he had transmigrated again.
Before him stood an immortal in white robes, floating above the Nine Heavens. Particularly noteworthy was his stance atop a long sword—clearly a Sword Immortal employing a flying sword technique. But what was more terrifying was that with just a few hand seals from this Sword Immortal, a multitude of flying swords shot out from behind him, beheading enemies thousands of miles away as easily as reaching into a bag to grab something.
Unfortunately, in this scene where the Sword Immortal should have gracefully departed, Su Ping saw that the Sword Immortal didn’t have a human face, but a sinister Ace of Hearts! And it was accompanied by a crisp ’UGH’!
Even the ’flying swords’ eventually transformed into paper swords.
Besides these, amidst his heightened mental state, Su Ping also dreamed of other scattered scenes. There was something about a man wielding a pink sword spouting nonsense about ’Bankai.’ And something about a blond-haired, red-eyed man, wreathed in a golden aura, disdainfully uttering words like ’mongrel’ or some other incomprehensible things.
There were too many varied images. So, he slept deeply, and his dreams were equally muddled.
「The next morning.」
Su Ping sat at the dining table, munching on a steamed bun. Beside him lay the legacy left by the Fengdu Sword King.
He had mentally mastered the creation of the Sword Soul, but it was useless for now. Soul Seeds and Sword Intent Origins weren’t easily obtainable either.
What he was currently examining was, in fact, the true core of the Fengdu Sword King’s legacy. To understand it better, Su Ping had even gone online to do some research.
He learned about a famous Marquis Level Beast Tamer from the Liang Dynasty, several hundred years ago. The Marquis Level is now known as the Emperor Level. However, in ancient times, the word ’Emperor’ was exclusively used by the supreme ruler and was naturally taboo. It was only in modern times that the Marquis Level was renamed the Emperor Level. Pet Beasts at this tier are emperors among their kind, and Beast Tamers of this rank are considered kings in society, hence ’Emperor Level’.
The book he was reading contained some of Yu Liangqing, the Fengdu Sword King’s, unique skill cultivation methods. All were Swordsmanship-related skills applicable to Sword Type Pet Beasts.
Although he couldn’t directly train Qian Yi, the Paperman, with these, he could still draw insights and perhaps find some inspiration.
Su Ping read intently. Guan Qianshan, currently the only person able to dine with him in the Heart of Woods’ private dining room, watched his serious expression.
Eventually, Guan Qianshan couldn’t hold back any longer, "Xiao Ping!"
"Hmm?" Su Ping’s cheeks were bulging with food as he looked at Lao Guan, who had spoken.
"Well... Lili came today. She’s at the resort right now. The girl brought a few classmates to have some fun, and by the way..."
Su Ping paused, then a smile spread across his face as he remembered something, "Alright. Has your daughter formed a contract with a Forest Wolf yet?"
Lao Guan finally breathed a sigh of relief, "She has, she has! The girl is very obedient, and she really likes the Forest Wolf."
Su Ping nodded, unconcerned, and turned his gaze back to the Sword King’s legacy in his hand. "Good. Have Lili come over later. She can stay here, and I’ll help her cultivate the ’Heart of Woods’!"
Although with Yun Tian’s legacy, the staffing situation was relatively less strained, Su Ping had given his word and naturally wouldn’t go back on it.
Lao Guan chuckled.
Parents who love their children always plan far ahead for them. If it weren’t for his own daughter, he wouldn’t have swallowed his pride to ask Su Ping. Over this period, he had truly and deeply understood how powerful the ’Heart of Woods’ skill was and its excellent compatibility with the Forest Wolf!
Not long after, Su Ping saw Guan Lili, Uncle Guan’s daughter.
Unfortunately, the circumstances of their meeting were somewhat unexpected.
"Quick, someone fell into the water! There are monsters in the water!"
A sharp voice cried out as someone rushed over from the direction of the Lingxi River, attracting the attention of everyone at the Heart of Woods service base.