Duke felt the intense heat at such close quarters and realized that Fighting Spirit was far more complex than he had imagined.
He had never thought that the Fighting Spirit within his body could transform into actual flames, something that was beyond his comprehension.
"What exactly is the principle behind this?" Duke's mind suddenly conjured this thought, always wanting to understand the rationale and process behind everything.
But at this moment, he had no way to start, clearly lacking too much related knowledge.
Not to mention that he didn't understand, even Vivian was unaware of the principle behind it, only reaching this effect through practicing the Cultivation Technique as described.
The instruction of the combat technique lasted a full hour, with Vivian explaining all the content thoroughly.
This combat technique had no written material, everything existed in Vivian's head, so Duke needed to be particularly attentive and remember every detail himself.
Duke listened very intently, maintaining a high level of concentration throughout, striving to retain all the information.
At this moment, he realized the benefit of having high Spiritual Power, which allowed him to stay focused for long periods and concentrate spiritually.
Normal people cannot maintain long-term focus and will zone out occasionally.
"Treat the Longsword as an extension of your body…" Vivian slowly said.
Even by the end of the lesson, Duke hadn't yet grasped the basics.
But this was within Vivian's expectations; to grasp the basics so quickly would be extremely talented.
She was among those few; she had only taken a few minutes to learn when she started.
"That's about it, go back and carefully ponder the use of Fighting Spirit." Vivian placed the Longsword back on the weapon rack and picked up her long axe to continue training.
Duke naturally knew it was time to leave, and after expressing his gratitude with another bow, he left the castle under the guidance of a servant.
Before leaving, he took another look at the long axe in Vivian's hand, realizing it wasn't something an average person could wield.
Such a large axe, even if made of iron, would consume an unknown amount of pig iron.
Moreover, this axe wasn't made of iron; its layered textures were quite unusual.
Duke glanced at his Longsword, thinking that even if he had the same strength as Vivian, it would be challenging to defeat her.
In any battle, the Longsword he held would be instantly cut down by the axe; the disparity in weaponry was too significant.
Furthermore, with Vivian in full armor, Duke couldn't fathom how he could defeat her; he had no chances at the moment.
Carrying a chest of Gold Coins, Duke hurried back to the manor, not wanting to delay any further.
Even in Fengqiu City, trouble could arise.
If targeted, those people wouldn't dare make a move in the city, but being eyed would be a hassle nonetheless.
As soon as Duke returned to his room, he sat in a meditative position, controlling the flow of Fighting Spirit within his body.
He continuously familiarized himself with the control and operation of Fighting Spirit, attempting to attach it to the Longsword as Vivian had taught.
Although this process was indeed challenging, Duke found he could sense the flow of Fighting Spirit quite clearly, enabling precise control over it.
"Could this also be due to Spiritual Power?" Duke mused.
Immersed in controlling the Fighting Spirit, he discovered that high Spiritual Power seemed to greatly aid in the practice of combat techniques.
As long as one's Spiritual Power was high, extremely subtle operations could be performed when controlling Fighting Spirit.
After approximately three hours, Duke held the Longsword, and the blade emitted a faint white glow.
At the same time, a new branch sprouted in his Skill Tree.
[Dragon Spine Burning Wave Sword Technique: Level 1 (1/100)]
Duke breathed a sigh of relief; once a combat technique was solidified in the Skill Tree, everything became manageable.
No matter how difficult the combat technique was, constant grinding was the key.
Immediately, Duke began grinding proficiency, realizing he needed to maintain the Fighting Spirit attached to the blade for a minute to increase proficiency by one point.
Maintaining this state continuously depleted Fighting Spirit; with his current Fighting Spirit levels, he could sustain it for at most ten minutes before exhausting it entirely.
In an actual battle, where Fighting Spirit would also be consumed for combat, sustaining it for ten minutes would be impossible.
To quickly max out the combat technique's proficiency, Duke planned to practice the Breathing Technique every day after depleting his Fighting Spirit, restoring it while grinding the Breathing Technique's proficiency.
This would also form a virtuous cycle, allowing both the combat technique and Breathing Technique to progress.
Ten days later.
[Dragon Spine Burning Wave Sword Technique level up, Physique +0.5, Strength +0.3, Agility +0.5]
During this period, Duke stayed at the manor, seizing the time when there were no tasks assigned to focus on grinding proficiency.
Every day consisted of eating and sleeping, supplemented by consuming Magical Beast Meat, practicing the Breathing Technique, and honing combat techniques.
After increasing the combat technique's proficiency, his physical attributes saw a substantial enhancement.
Except for his Spirit, all of his physical attributes now reached 8.7 points.
At this level, any general skill would grant few attribute points.
However, the Dragon Spine Burning Wave Sword Technique provided a considerable amount, even at just Level 2, indicating its exceptional nature.
The more complex a skill, the more attribute points it can provide.
With the Longsword in hand and Fighting Spirit surging within him, it quickly attached itself to the sword.
At a thought, the sword tip suddenly extended with a section of pure white Fighting Spirit, effectively lengthening the blade.
This was the effect of the Dragon Spine Burning Wave Sword Technique after becoming proficient— Sword Light.
If the Fighting Spirit was sufficient, Duke could construct an entire sword blade with just the sword hilt using Fighting Spirit.
In actual combat, Sword Light could prove remarkably effective.
When opposing an enemy, both parties usually have a mental assessment of each other's weapon range.
If, without warning, the Longsword suddenly extended, the attack range would enlarge significantly, and the opponent's defensive range would shrink unexpectedly.
In life-and-death battles, such changes are often difficult to respond to, and any slight inattention could result in the extended Sword Light piercing the throat.
However, maintaining the Sword Light state also consumed Fighting Spirit rapidly; Duke could sustain it for at most five minutes before depleting all his Fighting Spirit.
This state also increased proficiency more rapidly; one minute increased proficiency by two points, essentially the same, but it saved Duke some time in grinding proficiency.
...
In Fengqiu City, Duke once again visited the Flying Eagle Commerce Association.
The previously acquired Magical Beast Meat had been nearly exhausted, and he needed to purchase another batch.
This time, he planned to buy better quality Magical Beast Meat, such as from higher-tier Magical Beasts.
Al was still sitting behind the counter, resembling a small mountain, with layers of fat piling upon one another.
Looking at the layers of fat, Duke suspected that this guy could probably survive without food for half a month, given that his body fat could sustain him for quite a while.
"Do you have Magical Beast Meat from higher-tier Magical Beasts?" he asked directly.