Ch.224224. Flying Sword

Hunting in the level 5 biome wasn’t difficult, but it was a bit precarious.

This wasn’t my usual hunting style.

I prefer to hunt in a more definitive, flashy, and safe manner.

Until now, I could hunt easily enough without using all my farming points, so I had been saving them for unexpected variables, but now wasn’t the time to be frugal.

“I should learn close combat weapons.”

I had several options to choose from.

Whether to stick with early-game melee weapons or gradually transition to other abilities.

Even if I switched, there were enough rewards waiting to make it worthwhile.

Clearing this main quest would give me three SSS+ grade abilities, and with those, I could learn the abilities I wanted and create combinations—enough to make a sufficient transition.

And changing my main ability didn’t mean I would completely stop using melee weapons.

There were plenty of ways to use swords as secondary weapons while casting magic.

But changing my main ability was still premature.

Rather, I was thinking of using close combat weapons as my main while using mid-to-late game abilities like magic as sub-skills to test the waters.

For now, the dimensional rifts I’d encountered weren’t particularly favorable for ranged combat.

So I was planning to look for a few more close combat weapon skills.

I had plenty of farming points to spare.

312.

That was enough to learn not just early-game skills but late-game ones too, with points to spare.

I immediately went to the skills I had learned in the Farming World.

[Active] – [Spirit Sword(SSS+)]

Among them, Spirit Sword was one of my most frequently used skills.

It was a skill I had purchased after an extreme farming point grind, scraping together points bit by bit, so I had a special attachment to it. In fact, wanting to use this was partly why I chose close combat weapons in the first place.

I just didn’t expect to be able to use it so soon.

[Used 100 farming points to purchase skill [Spirit Sword(SSS+)]!]

“Tsk… so damn expensive…”

Even as I buy it, I can’t help but complain.

The one consolation is that, surprisingly, it’s cheaper compared to the Farming World.

Not that it’s cheaper in terms of cost—it still costs 100 farming points just like in the Farming World—but there, earning farming points was much more of a grind and more difficult, making it significantly harder than now.

I really had to level up all sorts of abilities through grinding just to learn that one skill and earn farming points.

In the Farming World, you could earn farming points by performing activities related to your abilities, which made it possible, but compared to then, quests now give out so many farming points that spending 100 points just makes me click my tongue, but with over 200 points remaining, it still seems worth learning.

[Spirit Sword]

– Grade: SSS+

– Active Skill (Close Combat Weapon)

– Mana Cost: 500

– Mana Consumption per Minute: 100

– Summons 1 sword that moves according to your will. Additional swords are summoned based on magic power grade. (Currently SS+, 2 additional)

– Summoned swords use the same skills as the wielded sword.

– Summoned swords have the same stats as the wielded sword.

– For every 10 or more swords summoned, attack power increases by 300%. Additional attack power increases based on strength grade. (Currently SS-, 150%)

It’s an insane skill.

While it’s classified as a close combat weapon skill, it might as well be considered magic.

Just summoning one sword costs 500 mana, and it doesn’t end there.

The maintenance cost is 100 mana per minute.

With my current mana, considering what I use for summoning spirits, it would be impossible to summon more than 5 swords.

But I have the effects of the Demonic Light Sword and the Purified Ice Spirit Drink.

Mana consumption is reduced by 50%, and skill effects increase by 140% in total.

Summoning one Spirit Sword actually summons a total of 7 swords, and summoning two Spirit Swords meets the condition for increased attack power.

Actually, those additional effects don’t matter much.

My attack power is already more than sufficient for the level 5 biome.

Being able to hunt just by hitting the Goldbeasts means exactly that.

The real reason Spirit Sword is expensive lies elsewhere.

Woo-

Seven swords, identical to the Demonic Light Sword I’m holding, materialize and resonate around it.

Seven mana-constructed swords, identical to the Demonic Light Sword.

They float freely in the air.

They move around me as if each one has its own will.

Half follows my will, and half follows the swords’ own will.

This is the result of my effort and time investment in the Farming World.

I didn’t need to control each one individually, specifying exactly how to move here and there.

That wouldn’t even be possible.

Even if I could control one sword while wielding another, given the limitations of the human brain, if I were capable of such detailed control, I’d be making money doing something else instead of playing games.

When I set a general objective, the swords analyze my behavior patterns, interpret my intentions, and act accordingly.

For example, when fighting a Goldbeast, if it charges at me, I just need to input something like “attack from behind where it’s charging,” and the swords will coordinate with me automatically.

It’s like having an artificial intelligence applied, though I still had to control any mana-consuming skills.

“This is awesome.”

It felt fresh doing this after a long time.

Compared to my years in the Farming World, the time I spent with Spirit Sword wasn’t that long, but I always used it when hunting.

Well, that was mostly when I wanted to show off; in reality, everyday hunting was done with simple magic clicks.

“I can stably use about three.”

With my total mana approaching 5,000, I could summon and maintain three Spirit Swords, totaling 21 swords.

If I pushed it to the limit, I could surround the entire area with swords, but that would be more suitable for facing multiple monsters. Rather than unnecessarily blocking my vision, it was important to use an appropriate number effectively.

After all, having more swords didn’t mean I could control them all.

While they acted autonomously according to my will, if I gave vague commands like “do this,” some swords might end up idle if their paths crossed with others or if they determined they couldn’t perform efficiently.

Of course, even so, summoning more swords in battle could intimidate opponents, so there was no disadvantage. But learning Spirit Sword wasn’t the end of it.

“Multi-Leap Slash.”

As I swing my sword, all 21 Spirit Swords instantly teleport toward where I slashed, using Leap Slash as they pass through.

Over a thousand attacks cut through the air at once.

“…Damn.”

Over 500 mana was drained in an instant.

Each sword consumes 25 mana for Multi-Leap Slash, so now every time I use Spirit Sword and then Leap Slash, more than 500 mana disappears.

Now my mana pool finally feels somewhat strained.

That’s not a bad thing.

It’s better to have a state where mana can drop to almost zero when unleashing powerful attacks, rather than having excess mana with nothing to use it on.

Thanks to the Purified Ice Spirit Drink, I don’t need to use all my mana to get the damage increase effect, but investing nearly 5,000 mana and only using a few hundred at a time would be like buying a 5090 graphics card just to watch videos.

“I’ll keep the rest for now.”

I could acquire a few more skills with my remaining farming points.

It wouldn’t be bad to purchase passive skills either.

But I also had to consider the SSS+ grade abilities I’d get from completing the main quest.

I had a rough plan, and to execute it, I needed to reserve some points in addition to the main quest rewards.

And I also needed to decide whether to level up once or twice more, considering the usage of the portal connected to Earth for logging in and out.

“Let’s give it a try.”

I felt like a child with a new toy.

It wasn’t intentional, but lately I’d been just accumulating farming points without spending them, investing only in logging in and out while hunting with extreme efficiency using just Leap Slash. Finally, I had splurged on a premium skill.

I couldn’t resist.

I charged toward the Goldbeasts.