The next day.
"Wearing this, it's become difficult to control reishi... my spiritual pressure too..."
Meninas flexed her wrist guards, her face troubled.
After putting on these two bracers, she felt her Reishi Manipulation ability was severely restricted, as if she had become an ordinary person who knew nothing.
These bracers were spiritual tools that Sora had made overnight.
He had even had his Reigai puppet sneak back to the Soul Society to bring them over.
"The bracers can isolate you from the perception of external reishi, for weight-bearing training," Sora explained their use. "You need to inject spiritual pressure at a specific frequency to lessen this isolation. It will train your use of your own spiritual pressure. And, you can also train your Reishi Manipulation by forcibly breaking through its isolation."
Putting shackles on a Quincy's Reishi Manipulation was their form of weighted training.
After testing, the current Meninas was just a new soldier with a low level of training. She needed this to build a solid foundation.
"Weighted training... I've heard that the elite soldiers in Silbern also do this kind of training!" Meninas was very glad to have found such a good professor. Otherwise, she probably wouldn't have been able to access these things for a long time.
"The Sternritter recruitment ceremony is in a week. I have to train hard. Even if I don't become a knight, I might have a chance to be transferred to a post in Silbern!" Meninas encouraged herself.
"What are the benefits of a post in Silbern?"
Sora was new here and was not very familiar with the situation.
He only knew that Silbern was not just for the Sternritter.
There were also high-ranking soldier officers within the castle.
"The Sternritter haven't recruited new members for a long time, but that doesn't include the officers of Silbern. They can be considered candidates for the Sternritter."
Thinking that her professor was a Quincy born in the human world, Meninas explained in detail.
"Usually, when the Sternritter recruit new members, they prioritize selecting from the outstanding officers of Silbern. They rarely hold such a large-scale recruitment. So, if you want to join the Sternritter, it's best to first raise your military rank. After becoming an officer, you can enter Silbern."
"This recruitment ceremony is unprecedentedly grand. Lord Haschwalth said that although the number of spots is small, soldiers who perform well will be directly granted the rank of officer and a post in Silbern!"
When Meninas thought of the treatment of the officers, her eyes couldn't help but light up.
She knew that with her current strength, she was still a long way from becoming a Sternritter, but she had a chance to get a post in Silbern.
"What will the tests be in the recruitment ceremony?"
Since coming to the Wandenreich, Sora had heard about the ceremony many times, but no one had told him the specifics.
"In the past, it was an arena tournament, and then an investiture ceremony was held for the final winner," Meninas paused. "But this time, there will be major changes. It won't be an arena tournament. The specifics haven't been announced yet."
"The Professor is so powerful... he might be able to become a knight directly!" Meninas's eyes grew even brighter. She had never seen a soldier more powerful than her professor.
"Hmm... if it's a competition with the soldiers, then there shouldn't be much of a problem."
Sora couldn't help but feel a strange sense of wonder. At this rate, he was going to infiltrate the Sternritter directly.
All soldiers had to participate in this recruitment ceremony, and those who had just come from the human world were no exception. Sora wanted to maintain his 'Kurosaki Usaki' identity, so he would also participate.
With his strength, it was like a shark in a fish tank.
Even without fully revealing his power, he was confident he could defeat the other soldiers.
"If I become a member of the Sternritter, I can definitely find out Yhwach's condition..."
If he could get inside the Sternritter, his purpose for coming to the Wandenreich would be solved.
He wouldn't even have to risk exposing his identity by trying to get information from Sōken Ishida.
Sora glanced at his panel, where two new notifications had just appeared.
Two new missions had been added:
[Current training mission added: Guide Meninas McAllon to complete reinforcement training (In progress)]
[The Sternritter recruitment ceremony is about to begin. After the ceremony, rewards will be settled based on the disciple's performance.]
"Since you want to go to Silbern, then work hard according to the training plan I've customized for you. You can't slack off on practical training either. I'll set aside one or two hours every day for that," Sora reached out and took her hand. "Feel the spiritual pressure frequency. This is the first stage, the difficulty is not high."
The bracers he had designed had several stage modes that could be adjusted according to specific spiritual pressure frequencies, allowing Meninas to adapt to them step by step.
Sora's knowledge of reishi was now on a completely different level, and he had a more systematic and scientific method for guiding disciples.
"Yes, sir!"
Meninas quickly focused her mind, concentrating on the spiritual pressure her professor was infusing into her body.
Under its influence, her own spiritual pressure also began to circulate.
Her spiritual pressure quickly manifested the specific frequency.
Gradually, she felt the shackles on her body unlock.
The external reishi, which had seemed to be sealed off, came back into her range of control.
"This is the first stage mode. It only blocks about 20% of your abilities," Sora explained. "There are five stages in total. Each time you unlock a mode, the bracers will block an additional 20% of your power.
Furthermore, the later stages require more complex spiritual pressure frequencies, making it more difficult for you to mobilize your spiritual pressure and sense the external reishi.
When you complete all five stages, your Reishi Manipulation and spiritual pressure application abilities will be greatly improved."
"It's very simple, right?" Meninas nodded, not thinking it was very difficult. "It's only blocking 20%. I can still control my spiritual pressure smoothly."
"Is that so?" Sora smiled slightly and withdrew his hand.
The next moment, Meninas was back to square one. The bracers once again sealed a portion of her abilities.
Meninas recalled the feeling of her professor's spiritual pressure flowing through her and tried to mobilize her own.
However, her spiritual pressure was not as obedient as it used to be.
"No way... just 20% is this hard?!"
Meninas realized it wasn't as simple as she had thought, and her face fell.
It had seemed easy just now because Sora was using his spiritual pressure to guide hers.
When she tried it on her own, she found that her spiritual pressure was moving as slowly as an ant.
"Keep it up!" Sora smiled slightly. "You practice on your own. I'm going to take a walk."
He sensed the state of her spiritual pressure and knew she wouldn't be able to tame it in a short time, so he decided to go out.
After taking Meninas as a disciple and receiving a bunch of new missions, he had new expectations for this place.
He wanted to look around the city and see if there were any other future Sternritter members who had not yet matured.
...
In a humble little shop, a blond girl was lying on the counter, looking very unhappy.
Watching her peers run past outside the door, she became even more unhappy.
"So boring..."
She muttered in a low voice, annoyed.
Repeating the same thing day after day made her feel extremely frustrated.
The land here belonged to the empire. If the shop her parents had left her was left unattended, it would be repossessed. She had no choice but to stay here and watch it.
Moreover, she was not yet of age to become a soldier and had nowhere else to go.
"How much for the Gintō?"
Sora came to the counter, tapped on it, and got the girl's attention.
"280 merit points each."
The girl continued to lie on the counter, without even raising her head.
"Is that any way to do business..." Sora laughed. "You don't look like you want to sell anything."
He glanced at the girl's panel:
[Liltotto Lamperd]
Talent: S
Reishi Manipulation: Lv 8
Affinity Level: Stranger
He had drawn an S-rank talent!
After arranging Meninas's training, Sora had come out for a stroll.
He intended to search carefully and see if he could take on some Quincy disciples.
As a result, not far away, in a small shop, he had found a suitable target.
Liltotto, like Meninas, was one of the future female Sternritter.
However, the current Liltotto was still young, and her Reishi Manipulation was only at level 8.
"The more I sell, the more merit points I have to pay in taxes."
Liltotto rested her arms on the table and her chin on top of them, looking completely unmotivated.
"So there are taxes in the Wandenreich..."
Sora raised an eyebrow.
"Are you a Quincy who returned from the human world?"
Liltotto looked up slightly at the strange customer.
"Yes..." Sora nodded. "I just came to the Wandenreich, so I'm not very familiar with this place."
"What's the human world like?"
Liltotto became interested, her eyes no longer lifeless.
"How to put it..." Sora scratched his face. "The reishi concentration is much worse than here. Even a high-reishi area can't compare. But other than that, it's generally more interesting than here."
The Wandenreich was a space created by the Quincy. Its ecosystem was much simpler than the human world's.
Besides the Quincy and the ubiquitous white-toned buildings, there were only a few specific types of plants and animals that could grow by absorbing external reishi.
These plants and animals were also the residents' food source.
"How is it more interesting?"
Liltotto pressed, seeming to be somewhat interested in the outside world.
Sora raised his hand, and reishi gathered at his fingertips.
A moment later, it condensed into a miniature model.
"This is the human world," Sora pushed it forward, and the model landed in front of Liltotto. "I'm giving it to you. The reishi concentration here is high, so this thing should last for a while."
The model had complex terrains such as rivers, deserts, glaciers, mountains, and great canyons.
"This is the human world!" Liltotto's eyes lit up. She looked at the white part. "Is this the legendary glacier?"
"Yes," Sora chuckled. "The human world is much larger than here, and the environment is much more complex."
"Not only that, but there are also many interesting plants and animals."
Sora snapped his fingers. Reishi flowed at his fingertips, turning into lively little deer, lions, elephants, and rabbits... leaping at his fingertips.
With a flick of his finger, these millimeter-sized animals jumped into the miniature model in Liltotto's arms.
"I've seen these animals in books!"
"Thanks!"
Liltotto felt that her boring life finally had some excitement. She took out a box of 'Gintō' from under the counter. "These are for you!"
"So many?"
At that moment, Sora felt like a business genius. He had just exchanged some readily available reishi for a box of valuable 'Gintō'.
"Take them. The new soldiers' supply kits all have 'Gintō'. This box has been sitting here for a while, just collecting dust."
Liltotto pushed the box over, her eyes already captivated by the miniature model.
"Then I'll accept them."
Sora took the box.
A box of Gintō contained 3 tubes, which was not a small value.
A new soldier like Meninas couldn't save up that many merit points in a month.
"I won't take advantage of you..." Sora pretended to think. "You're not old enough to be a soldier yet, are you... I'll teach you a move so you won't be at a disadvantage when you join the army!"
"You'll teach me something? Seriously?"
Liltotto looked up.
Although she was young, she also had a decent perception ability.
The two tricks this strange Quincy had just shown were enough to prove that he was powerful.
"Only as much as a box of Gintō is worth."
Sora held up one finger and smiled slightly.
Liltotto had not yet expressed any request, so he did not immediately offer to take her as a disciple.
He would first find an excuse to interact with her more, and then taking her as a disciple would be a natural course of events.
"Hmm... then I won't be polite. But the patrol guards will be coming around here, and the shop needs someone to watch it. Is it alright for you to teach me here?"
Liltotto locked the miniature model in a cabinet.
The opportunity to be guided by a powerful Quincy was rare, and she did not refuse.
"No problem," Sora nodded gently and asked, "What do you know?"
"Basically nothing."
"Do you know Hirenkyaku?"
"No," Liltotto shook her head.
"Then I'll teach you Hirenkyaku," Sora looked at the back of the shop. There seemed to be a courtyard connected to it. "You practice in the backyard, and I'll watch the shop for you."
"Okay!" Liltotto had no objection. She would learn whatever this Quincy taught her.
Sora went behind the counter and looked inside. Sure enough, there was a courtyard that connected her home and the small shop.
"Sit over here."
Liltotto moved a stool to the courtyard door. From here, she could see both the shop and the yard.
"Hirenkyaku is simple, but it's not easy to use well... control the reishi in the air and gather it under your feet..."
Sora sat down and began to teach her how to use Hirenkyaku.
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