Xia De snapped out of his self-doubt only when he heard Hilia calling his name.
Coughing awkwardly to clear his throat, Xia De first gave Hilia a brief introduction to Starfall's abilities.
“Let me introduce Starfall's abilities to you first. It mainly has two functions: one is manipulating gravity, and the other is disrupting mana to nullify magic.”
Hearing Starfall's abilities, Hilia's eyes widened slightly, and she let out a soft gasp, covering her mouth.
She hadn't expected Starfall to possess extra abilities; she had assumed it was just an ordinary, albeit exceptionally heavy, sword.
After all, weapons with special abilities were extremely rare. Each one was incredibly precious, with a market value starting at tens of millions of gold coins.
Even as an elven princess, she had seen fewer than ten weapons endowed with such unique properties.
To encounter another one in these remote mountains was truly astounding.
Xia De didn't pause at Hilia's astonished expression and continued, “For our training this time, we'll specifically use its gravity manipulation.”
“Gravity?”
“Yes. I will use Starfall to alter the gravity acting on your body, putting your physical form under high pressure. You'll need to constantly adapt to it.”
Hilia nodded to show she understood. Then, she spread her arms wide, opening them to Xia De, and asked, “What do I need to do? Do we need to press close together?”
“No, just stand right there. I'll slowly increase the gravity on you until we find a suitable range.”
“I'm ready,” Hilia said, taking a deep breath.
Xia De nodded, channeling the mana in his body and injecting it into Starfall.
The greatsword didn't emit any light, but its black hue deepened further as an invisible pressure radiated from it.
“Here it comes,” Xia De said softly, letting Hilia know it was starting.
Hilia's face was calm, but her tightly clenched fists trembled slightly, betraying her inner tension. Hearing Xia De's voice, she knew it had begun.
First, let's try 1.5 times gravity, Xia De thought.
Hilia felt her body grow slightly heavier. Her pale face lost a bit of color, but she still nodded to Xia De, signaling him to continue.
Two times.
Two and a half times.
Three times.
“Ah!” Finally, at three times gravity, Hilia couldn't hold it in anymore and let out a soft groan. She collapsed to her knees, gasping heavily for air, her pale golden hair falling forward to completely cover her face.
Seeing her collapse, Xia De stopped increasing the gravity, his dark eyes fixed on Hilia.
Gritting her teeth, she pushed herself up from the ground. The sound of her bones creaking echoed softly. Hilia summoned every ounce of her strength to stand up with great difficulty, then looked at Xia De with a smile. There was a trace of bitterness in her smile.
“It looks like this is my limit.”
Xia De shook his head and said, “To endure three times gravity using only physical strength without relying on mana is already extremely impressive. Especially considering that you're an elf, a race with naturally fragile bodies. So, there's no need to underestimate yourself.”
Hearing Xia De's words, Hilia's downcast mood gradually lifted.
“Then let's keep moving!” Her eyes curved into crescents as a brilliant smile blossomed on her face, revealing her pearly white teeth.
She turned around to resume their journey, but the moment she took her first step, she went thud and faceplanted onto the ground.
Her face was buried deep in the dirt. Pulling it out with great effort, her features contorted into a grimace of sheer misery.
“Oops... I forgot about the gravity.”
“Hahahahaha!” Showing absolutely no mercy, Xia De burst into boisterous laughter.
He walked over, pulled the dirt-covered Hilia up, and helped her brush away the stray hairs clinging to her face.
“There's no rush now. Take your time to get used to it.”
After all, he still had teleportation magic. Choosing to walk now was only to test where Starfall's limits lay.
If he waited until they returned to town to test it, given how he was leaving a crater with every single step he took right now, he might end up being charged with damaging public property. He'd probably be hounded for compensation every day.
Although he could afford it, it would be a massive waste of his time.
It was far better to test it directly out here in the wilderness, while simultaneously boosting his Combat Power.
And so, with Hilia stumbling and falling every two steps, the two of them made their way toward Adewang Town.
Two days quickly passed.
That evening, deep in the woods, Xia De sat on a fallen log. Floating beside him was a small sphere of light he had casually summoned with light magic.
A futuristic, deep blue status panel materialized before his eyes, and he glanced at the data.
【Name: Xia De (Human reincarnated from another world)
Combat Power: 203,257
Skills: All-Attribute Elemental Magic, Stealth Magic, Perception Magic, Space Magic, Surveillance Magic, Weapon Mastery, Mirror Image...】
Under the influence of a hundred times gravity without relying on mana, Xia De's Combat Power had received a massive boost over the past two days.
But this was still not enough. He could sense that a hundred times gravity was still far from Starfall's actual limit.
“By the way, what's taking Hilia so long? She suddenly suggested we take a break here, and then she just vanished on her own.”
Xia De closed the panel and stared blankly at the ground, his gaze somewhat vacant.
Then, feeling rather bored, he looked around. The surroundings were exceptionally quiet, save for the chirping of cicadas. Fireflies drifted about, their soft, glowing lights decorating the surrounding grass like tiny stars.
It really has that summer countryside night vibe, Xia De commented silently in his mind.
This scene brought back memories of his previous life, of his parents hosting barbecues in their yard.
“I kind of... want to eat some barbecue,” Xia De murmured softly, his eyes filled with nostalgia and his heart sinking slightly for some reason.
He then stretched his arms and let out a long breath.
“No time like the present. I remember there's a river nearby. I'll go catch a couple of fish first.”
Leaving a quick message behind so Hilia wouldn't wonder where he had gone when she returned, Xia De began walking toward the river.
Soon, he reached the riverbank.
Though called a river, it was nearly a hundred meters wide and incredibly calm. The silvery moonlight cast a gentle, shimmering glow across the water's surface.
“I should use Perception Domain first to see if there are any dangers.”
Just as he was about to activate his Perception Domain, ripples suddenly spread across the water, followed by a graceful figure emerging from beneath the surface.
Her eyes were closed as she rhythmically swayed her head from side to side. Her pale golden hair danced in the air, sending droplets of water flying that caught the moonlight like sparkling, translucent gems.
The gentle curves of her chest, her slender waist and hips... the bright moonlight fell upon her flawless, pale skin, draping her in a hazy, ethereal veil.
Humming a slow, melodious tune, Hilia opened her eyes, only to lock onto Xia De's somewhat dazed stare.
Their eyes met, and the atmosphere plunged into a sudden, dead silence.
Xia De's expression was a bit odd, though he couldn't completely hide the sheer awe in his eyes. He slowly muttered a few words.
“What a classic trope... but not bad.”
“Ah—!”
Rate on N.U.
