"I wonder how cousin will help me?" Kyrell inquired and Isobi went to the side where a rack of weapons can be seen.
There were small weapons such as daggers, shurikens, needles, blades. Of course, there are also bigger weapons such as swords, hammers, spears, lance, and many more.
Almost all weapons one could think of were present. This is not the kind of treatment that everyone in the clan could have.
"I excel in swordmanship. So how about we spar using the Soft Bone Sword Technique?" Isobi said while grabbing one of the swords, he can't wait to teach his good for nothing cousin a cruel lesson.
"Sounds good, coincidentally, I have also learned the Soft Bone Sword Technique a few days ago" Kyrell replied and he also held one of the swords.
It has been a few days since he became a cultivator and his routine was simply composed of two things; cultivation and training.
He cultivates by refining the mana from Mana Essence Potion, increasing his mana reserve. He trained in the Fiendish Dagger and Soft Bone Sword Technique which also helped him become more familiar with controlling mana. If he has spare time, he would also read cultivation notes.
While Zero can directly transmit information to his brain, Kyrell still finds joy in reading.
Still, in just a few days, Kyrell was progressing faster than what should be possible with his talent thanks to Zero.
Refining mana was faster thanks to the nanobots and getting familiar with Martial Techniques and mana control was also progressing fast.
This temporarily overcame Kyrell's lack of talent which would at the very least, last until the peak of the Genetic Awakener Realm.
"Thank you for your guidance, cousin" Kyrell said as he wielded his sword. One look was enough for the discerning eyes that he already has quite the foundation to swordmanship. However, Isobi clearly do not have that kind of eyes and he looked down on Kyrell.
"Well, I just hope that cousin won't blame me. Swords have no eyes, it is inevitable to get injured when training, especially if there was a great disparity in strength" Isobi said confidently and Kyrell nodded his head.
"No need to worry, I know that, cousin!" The last word of Kyrell's sentence was spoken with a loud voice as he launched an attack like a viper
Just like the Fiendish Dagger Technique, the Soft Bone Sword Technique also has the characteristics of being dirty and dishonorable.
The first thing that Kyrell targeted was actually his cousin's eyes which were too dirty!
The unexpected change of his cousin's demeanor surprised Isobi and he was almost unable to react. Fortunately, cultivators have better reflexes compared to normal humans and Isobi was able to barely raise his sword.
However, true to its reputation of being dishonorable, Kyrell used his swordsmanship and the eye attack was actually just a feint attack.
Thrust! Puchi!
In just a single attack, Kyrell managed to pierce Isobi's shoulder. Blood soaked the latter's clothes as his face grimaced in pain.
"Cousin! How dare you use a sneak attack! That's playing dirty!" Isobi said angrily as his body trembled. As someone who was just the same age as Kyrell, he had never been injured by a sword before.
"Oh, I thought swords don't have eyes and it was inevitable to get injured when training? Why is cousin angry?" Kyrell asked with a mocking chuckle.
At this point, even someone not as bright as Isobi can realize that his cousin fooled him. This hurt his pride and his anger flared.
Due to anger, he was able to temporarily ignore the searing pain in his shoulder in an attempt to fight back.
He became a cultivator a few weeks before Kyrell. He has more cultivation time than the latter but how can someone like him defeat someone who was cheating with the nanobots?
Not everyone can have their nervous system stimulated to 'fool' the body thinking that it had trained the Martial Techniques for months or even years!
As such, not only was Kyrell able to breached the not so long of a gap of their cultivation time, he was even able to surpass his poor opponent!
With a swipe of Kyrell's foot, Isobi loses balance causing him to fall on the ground. "So much for someone that claimed to have some talent" he sneered
"Y-you!" Isobi's body trembled in anger but before he can even try to avenge himself, Kyrell already thrust his sword at his other shoulder.
This time, the wound was deeper than the first time and Kyrell was even twisting the sword to amplify the pain.
In the past, Kyrell portrayed himself as kind-hearted. He wants to make friends rather than enemies just in case his talent for cultivation turns out bad. If he were to act arrogantly just to turn out to be trash, just how people would react after he fall from grace?
However, over the years, he realized that even in his own clan, whether he became talented or not, jealousy and dissatisfaction would still appear. When he realized that, it was already too late for him to act differently and so, he waited for the right time.
The right time was precisely when he became a cultivator. Whether his talent is bad or not, his clansmen will want to drag him down. If he were to continue acting kind and humble, they would think he was a soft persimmon that could be squashed at any time.
Such a person is easy to bully. On the other hand, if he showed enough ruthlessness, these people would hesitate to act which gives him more peace.
When was the best time to 'show his real color' other than now?
'I really am becoming more like my father' Kyrell thought.
"Young Master, that is enough" a cold voice entered Kyrell's ears and he saw one of the uncles from the branch family staring at him with deep coldness in his eyes.
"What if I say it isn't enough?" Kyrell retorted and he even thrusted his sword deeper into his cousin's flesh.
"Arghhh!!" Isobi screamed loudly in pain and he tried to break free from his cousin's clutches but a foot at his chest prevented him from doing that.
"Young Master! Stop! You might be the Patriarch's son but you have no right to act like this!" The uncle grew even angrier and it looked like he would act anytime from now
"If you knew that I am the Patriarch's son, how dare someone like you talk to me this way?"
In the clan, hierarchy is strict. Aside from the Patriarch and the Elders, Kyrell's status was the highest. It was not to the point that he can decide the life and death of everyone in the clan but his position was more than enough to silence the majority. If they were to act disrespectful in front of him, he has more than enough status to punish them severely.
At normal times, this uncle would not antagonize him but this is a 'probe' decided by the Elders and influential people in the clan. They want to see Kyrell's talent and also how he would act in front of oppression to adjust their plans accordingly.
"Y-you! Do you not respect your elders?!" The uncle asked angrily and Kyrell rolled his eyes. This is the type of people he hate. Does being older gave you the right to be bossy?
"Guard" Kyrell called and one of his Death Serpent Guard appeared in a rather brazen manner. Instead of just appearing beside Kyrell, the guard actually appeared in front of the uncle with a dagger in his hand.
Puchi!
Kyrell watched his uncle get stabbed by the guard. His uncle was clearly surprised by the sudden attack but maybe because the moment Kyrell called for his guard, he knew that it was for no good reason and he was able to save himself.
After all, the Death Serpent Guards have an infamous reputation. They are very vicious in their actions as if they want to vent the resentment of being someone's slave forever.
As soon as the uncle from the side branch was pierced by the dagger, his body suddenly turned into multiple snakes that slithered away from the guard before condensing into a human figure again. His face clearly way paler than before.
"Serpen Substitution Technique" Kyrell muttered in his heart the name of that technique which was a Core Skill of the Spirit Serpent Art.
Martial Skills and Core Skill are different. Core Skills came from one's Cultivatiom Art and one can only use these skills if they practice the Cultivation Art of where the skill came from.
Cultivation Arts are highly guarded secret of each forces. After all, they are the key in obtaining unimaginable power. Only by practicing a Cultivation Art can one transcend mortality.
Each Cultivation Arts are distinct with each other and it can be said that each of these arts represent a path of power.
They are not to be easily spread to the masses in fear that their weaknesses will be discovered and exploited.