"Most of the options are from the same series. That's pretty rare~"
Baki the Grappler is a realistic fighting manga (lol). I guess you could call it a niche series, but because of its many famous memes, Ryu had some impression of it.
Aside from the background NPCs, most of the characters in it are fighters with monstrous physical strength. Some of their feats completely defy biology and ergonomics—in the later stages, there are even clones and spirit possessions, giving it a feeling of idealistic madness.
If you were to classify their power levels using wuxia novel standards, they would be at the "peak of external martial arts." Although they don't have concepts like internal energy or true qi, their displays of power are far beyond those of real-world humans.
...But then again, since the Suzuki Conglomerate exists, does that mean Kyogoku Makoto and Professor Agasa will also show up in the future? If you have to compare combat power, which is more absurd, Baki the Grappler or the Conan movies?
Shaking his head to clear away the distracting thoughts, Ryu began to read the System Card seriously. Each option was followed by a corresponding text description to explain its advantages, disadvantages, and hidden dangers.
"The drawback of Hanma Blood is that it affects your way of thinking and your IQ... The buffs from the Demon Back are so strong... But these martial arts techniques are all relatively cheap. Huh? What the hell is a Confucian Saint? And what does Confucian Abuse mean?"
Carefully comparing, creating a reasonable combination, and avoiding pitfalls—this was something Ryu did every month. It looked like tonight would be another sleepless one.
...In any case, the Ultimate Insult was definitely getting ignored!
Are you kidding me? This world doesn't have magnetic field powers, and Ryu wasn't some kind of lunatic. Choosing that would be pure self-torture!
Bai Cinnan was able to emerge from his cocoon reborn because his Dao heart was firm enough. A normal person would just become corrupted (fallen)—just like that bastard Griffith!
——
There was a strange feeling.
Standing before the luxurious, champagne-colored door, Ruri held a silver platter in one hand. Her movements suddenly paused. For some reason, she felt a chill; her skin tightened as if from the cold, and her muscles grew stiff.
Her breathing became cautious, and her heart, unhelpfully, began to race. Although she couldn't see it herself, her pupils had probably constricted like a cat's in the midday sun, right?
Was this love?
No, it felt more like an atmosphere of fear!
It was a distant memory from one of her few happy times. As a child, her mother had taken her to the zoo, where she saw a real wild beast for the first time:
A tiger, trapped in a large pit.
Even with the fence between them, she could still smell the thick, bestial odor. Just making eye contact was enough to freeze her on the spot.
At the closest point, she and the tiger were separated only by a thick concrete wall and a few steel bars. When that great striped beast walked toward her, her biological instincts made her forget how to run. She couldn't even cry.
——Just like now.
Of course, it wasn't that exaggerated. Ruri was no longer a child, and the air didn't have that repulsive animal stench. Instead, there was just a strange, scorching heat, like the feeling of steam and sweat mixed together at the entrance of a sauna...
"What's going on... Ah, is it that time of the month again?" Ruri had a sudden realization.
Just as girls have their special days each month, so did Ryu. Periodically, he would display some strange hobbies, or his own temperament would undergo a subtle change.
This was undoubtedly strange, but everyone, including Ruri, had gotten used to it. After all, the people of this country had an extremely high tolerance for geniuses. Even if they had a few eccentricities, or even committed crimes, everyone would just say, "That's just how geniuses are."
Ruri was a versatile talent, capable of handling any task except for bed-warming, and she might even be able to overcome that shortcoming in the future. Since she spent nearly every waking moment with Ryu, she was no longer easily surprised by such things.
"This feeling today is so strange..."
The maid frowned slightly. Taking a deep breath to prepare herself, she first knocked on the door. After waiting five seconds without a response, she opened it and went in.
"...Lord Ryu?"
Contrary to what Ruri expected, Ryu didn't need her to wake him up, nor did he need to set an alarm—
"Oh, it's you, Ruri."
So hot!
That was the maid's subconscious reaction, but after a brief pause, the strange atmosphere vanished as if it were just her imagination.
There was no shocking scene in the room. It was just a half-naked teenager standing in front of a mirror, observing or admiring something. The degree of nudity was moderate; you wouldn't even need to censor it if you showed it to children.
And yet, Ruri felt her face flush hot~
It wasn't as if this was the first time she had seen Ryu's upper body...
The young master of this financial conglomerate possessed a healthy physique that was completely at odds with his status. His well-proportioned and distinct curves were as long and graceful as a swimmer's.
In terms of pure muscle mass, it wasn't exaggerated compared to professional athletes. You could find many people at the gym who were more "robust" than him.
But if you looked closely, many small muscle groups that ordinary people couldn't train were also making their presence known. They didn't steal the show; rather, like the scenery in an oil painting, they had a clear distinction between primary and secondary. Each one perfectly fulfilled its role, and together they spoke of "power" and "beauty."
It's difficult for an ordinary person to obtain such a physique, which seemed to have been meticulously sculpted stroke by stroke, through mere exercise. Even athletes train specifically for their competitive events and cannot achieve such comprehensive development.
Even for events requiring full-body coordinated strength, trade-offs are inevitable due to issues of personal talent.
——But Ryu gave the impression of being an all-rounder who had achieved the most perfect overall development.
...Was he like this before?
Ruri blinked, feeling a little dazed.
Her master's physique hadn't changed much, and he had indeed been actively participating in various sports and achieving excellent results for years. Logically, she shouldn't be so surprised.
But whether you called it temperament or presence, even a subtle adjustment could result in a world-changing impression.
Especially the muscles on his back. Although there was nothing particularly abnormal about them, and they weren't as massive as a bodybuilder's, for some reason they always made her think of a mountain tiger stretching its back.
If I get closer, will I be preyed upon?
Powerless to resist, like an antelope with a broken neck... That doesn't seem so bad, actually~
"...Ruri?"
"Yes!"
The maid collected herself, a look of shame on her face. "I'm sorry, I was distracted. I was staring... uh, no, I was thinking about work."
"Work? Ah, I'll have to trouble you with the Kayaba matter as usual."
Ryu didn't seem to mind. He was rather quiet today, always staring at the mirror in a thoughtful manner.
After setting down the tray, Ruri stole another glance as she was leaving the room, and her eyes couldn't help but widen slightly.
Perhaps because her perspective was in motion, the faint image of a demon's face flashed across Ryu's back for a fleeting moment!
"!"
When she looked again, the large and small muscle groups were interlocking, and while they created a strong visual impact, there was no horrifying demon face.
I must have seen it wrong—Ruri shook her head slightly and quietly exited.
Once he was alone in the room, Ryu let out a long breath. Immediately after, his entire body began to visibly "glow."
It was fine beads of sweat slowly seeping from his pores and sweat glands. Illuminated by the morning light, they formed a thin, faint halo around him, which quickly evaporated in the high body temperature caused by his intense metabolism.
"Time for a quick shower."
Ryu cracked his neck.
——[Demon Brain].
This was Baki Hanma's special skill. It allowed for high-intensity combat calculations and action prediction. At a higher level, it could even conjure various opponents for simulated battles.
In other words, fighting with thin air!
If that was all, it wouldn't be worth the "6-point" cost. The most powerful aspect of the Demon Brain was its ability to feed the effects of these simulated battles back to the physical body!
If you trained with weights in your mind, your muscles and bones would actually feel the corresponding weight. If you were hit by an imagined opponent, you would feel distinct pain, and even bleed.
This was already beyond the scope of "imagination"; it could be considered a superpower based on psychological suggestion!
Just now, he had appeared to be standing blankly in front of the mirror, but in his mind, he was standing under a waterfall, balancing on a slippery rock, with the pressure of the water constantly crashing down on his head, doing his utmost to maintain his posture.
——It actually works!
The soreness in his muscles and the rapid, relieved beating of his heart and lungs were all proof that his body had been under extreme strain. And when he recovered his stamina, he would naturally have gained some benefits.
This is even more amazing than the [Demon Back]!
Of course, the Demon Back was also very powerful. It was equivalent to a simple "transformation," allowing him to enter the battle form of a natural predator, maximizing the power of his back muscles and doubling his overall stats (though the shape of the muscles wasn't as exaggerated or even ferocious as in the original work; it was just optimized based on his existing foundation).
But for Ryu, a special skill like the Demon Brain was clearly more valuable.
The only regret was that Ryu was too "normal." He simply wasn't obsessed—or rather, crazy—enough.
Baki truly regarded his imagined opponents as material beings, and the strain reflected back onto his body was almost perfectly replicated. But Ryu couldn't bring himself to believe completely; subconsciously, he always had the thought that "this is a product of my imagination," which weakened the effect somewhat.
It seemed he needed to find a master psychologist, or simply teach himself hypnosis~
He had chosen three abilities yesterday. In addition to the two above, there was also [Ghost of Extremely High Purity], which was also a special type:
A certain degree of spiritualist talent;
A rudimentary application of spiritual power;
Grants the user the aptitude for "spirit channeling."
——Ryu estimated this likely came from Miyamoto Musashi in Baki the Grappler.
That great swordsman, who had been dead for centuries, was revived in a sense by possessing a modern clone through a channeling ritual—though having something like that in a fighting manga was ridiculous.
The reason he chose this instead of the cheaper various martial arts was twofold. First, Ryu's own skills were already quite good—after all, he hadn't been training for nothing all these years. Second, he was drawn to its rarity.
No matter how you looked at it, this was an ability in the "supernatural" category. Previously, nothing related to "ghosts and gods" had ever appeared on the System Card.
Now that it has... who knows if it will be useful? As they say, it's better to be prepared!
"Spiritual power... can I start with Yogacara Tantra?"
Ryu pondered as he wiped off his sweat. His only prior understanding of spiritual power was from occasionally opening the [The Collector]'s dimensional space to store things, which allowed him to vaguely sense his own spiritual body.
And from the description of [Ghost], it seemed it could be applied in the field of combat. At the very least, it could form something similar to a pressure aura. If he studied it properly, he should be able to gain something from it.
He hoped so, otherwise it would be a huge loss. After all, to scrape together those eighteen points, he had gritted his teeth and chosen three negative effects:
[Fighter's Attraction]
·Just like Stand users, fighters are drawn to one another, becoming as restless as lions and extremely prone to conflict.
[Stepping Stone]
·Your first move is always the most brilliant. Over time, you will gradually "depreciate," eventually becoming a stepping stone for new characters.
[Athlete]
·To a true fighter, a so-called boxing champion is merely a professional athlete. The two are fundamentally different in mindset. An athlete's imposing aura will be diminished by a third the moment they encounter a fighter.
——This combination of three looked quite ominous. Just reading the descriptions was enough for Ryu to imagine the cliché plot of "a prodigy wins his debut match, only to be repeatedly beaten by his seniors, eventually becoming a stepping stone for the protagonist."
However, Ryu was very cunning. He had chosen these three intentionally.
The effects only last for a month, so how much could he really depreciate!
And even if some hidden master did pop up to teach him a lesson, he had a way to deal with it—
Go tell it to my Nobi Kaioh (Sharpshooter)!
Yujiro could conquer heaven and earth, but wasn't he still taken down by a single tranquilizer dart?
If you have money and don't use it, how can you become a grandmaster!
"Alright~"
After showering and eating breakfast, Ryu changed into some very ordinary casual clothes and leisurely walked out of his room. On the white stone path in the courtyard, a luxury car, different from yesterday's, was already waiting.
Today was Wednesday, but he was up so early not to go to school, but to attend a certain meeting and, incidentally, to try out a game.
"VRMMORPG... Speaking of which, in my past life, I was really looking forward to the day I could actually play one. I just never thought it would happen in this way."
Ryu sat lazily on the genuine leather sofa. While Ruri browsed through documents and briefed him on the situation, he was lost in his own bored thoughts.
"Although there was no SAO, that year we had Monster Hunter and Elden Ring, so it wasn't a loss~"
________________________________________
Get rewarded for helping with our community goals!
🎯 Reward for all: +1 bonus chapter at 50 Powerstones.
🚀 Tier Reward: Help us reach 20 members for +5 chapters on all stories!
👻 Join the crew by searching Ms. Medusa on (P). You know the spot! 😉