The next few days passed by without incident. I spent a couple of hours training in the morning before school, and then continued my training again in the evening after school. It was an exhausting but rewarding routine, and I could already feel the improvements.
Though I could sense the storm brewing ahead—the USJ incident was looming in the distance—I wasn't entirely confident about my ability to survive an attack from the Nomu. I had been making progress at a steady pace, though, and I was growing stronger. Still, I knew I had to keep blending in, appearing as just another student, biding my time. As long as things played out as I anticipated, the only one likely to get hurt in the upcoming event would be Midoriya.
Days passed by, and everything felt like normal. Academic classes in the morning, hero training in the afternoon. Despite the chaos that I knew was about to unfold, I found solace in the steady rhythm of my day-to-day life.
What I loved most about the Hero course was that the afternoon training sessions were providing me with invaluable experience for leveling up—more than I had expected.
The night before the USJ incident, I knew I needed to be prepared. I had been thinking carefully about what techniques would be most beneficial. I had prepared two skills that utilized Needles to strike pressure points. I had the Frozen Meridian Seal, which was a precise technique for knocking out enemies by targeting their pressure points, and the Thousand Silver Rain, an AOE version that could hit multiple enemies in a wide radius. Both would be useful, but I knew the latter would be especially useful in the chaos of USJ.
As I sat in my room, my mind wandered to the concept of Martial Arts. According to the teachings, warriors were classified into several levels of expertise: Beginner, Adept, Expert, Master, Grandmaster, and Transcendence. Each level was further broken down into Initial, Mid, Advanced, and Peak stages. At that moment, I was at Peak Adept.
I needed something more to push myself forward, though. I had saved up enough gold to buy a basic Elixir from the store—a high-quality red pill that would help me break through to the Expert level. It had cost me ten thousand gold, but I was confident it would be worth the investment. There were two ways to break through the martial arts levels: accumulating enough ki through training, or using an elixir to speed up the process. Since I had the opportunity to use the latter, I was going to take it. However, I knew that from Expert to Master, I would need more than just energy—I would need insight into Martial Arts itself. Thankfully, I had refined the art of absorbing energies from my surroundings, though I needed pure ki to break through. The elixir would provide that.
I looked around the room, contemplating the elixir in my hand. After a brief moment of consideration, I decided to take the plunge. I stripped down and sat in my bathtub, preparing for the purification process that I knew would follow. I could already feel the impurities in my body waiting to be expelled, and I was ready.
I popped the elixir into my mouth. The moment it hit my tongue, a medicinal aroma filled the air. As I began running my Flowing River Technique, I could feel the surge of energy coursing through me. My body began to tremble, and I could feel the filth inside me—dark, almost black substances—leaving my skin. My skin grew shinier, more vibrant. I couldn't help but think that I looked better than before, though I wasn't entirely sure if that was true. But one thing was certain—I had completed my breakthrough.
The Flowing River Technique leveled up, and I could feel the power within me settle into its new form.
Flowing River Technique (Level Max).
It felt different this time. I wasn't sure if it was a universal rule that Level 5 was the max for all techniques, or if some techniques could evolve beyond it. But for now, I was content. The breakthrough had given me a significant boost in strength. My energy levels skyrocketed to a staggering 5000—more than double what I had before. The increase in my other stats was noticeable as well, each one growing by 5 points.
I opened my System Interface, looking over the changes. My progress was clear.
System Interface
Name: Jin KurodaLevel: 25 (Initial Expert)Occupation: Hero Trainee (UA)
Stats:
Strength: 44
Stamina: 33
Agility: 36
Endurance: 33
Vitality: 33
Dexterity: 31
Constitution: 38
Intelligence: 32
Wisdom: 6
Luck: 9
Perception: 30
Energy: 5000/5000
Free Attribute Points: 24
Skills:
Passive: Insight (Level 1)
Active: Energy Conduit (Level 2), Flowing River Technique (Level Max), Iron Body Technique (Level 3), Flowing Wave Palm (Level 4), Mountain Shattering Fist (Level 4), Ki Sensing Technique (Level 2), Frozen Meridian Seal (Level 1), Thousand Silver Rain (Level 1).
My level had risen fivefold. A satisfying result, and a clear sign that I was moving closer to my goal. But the road ahead still lay before me, and the USJ incident would soon put me to the test.
As I allocated the final points, a wave of crystalline clarity washed over my mind. Five points to Wisdom - and suddenly the world seemed sharper, my thoughts flowing with new precision. Connections formed effortlessly where before there had only been fragments. The tactical implications of my skills, the potential weaknesses in my techniques - all laid bare before me in perfect detail.
Luck, however, remained an enigma. Five points invested, yet no immediate change I could perceive. No sudden intuition, no fortunate coincidence. Just the same dorm room, the same night before the storm. Perhaps its effects would be subtler, revealing themselves only when fate's scales needed balancing.