Chapter 96 - New semester

Soul enhancement is the most challenging.

Whether it is a cultivation method, an item, or a unique treasure of heaven and earth, even if it can only slightly increase soul strength, it draws many powerful individuals to compete for it.

After these days of dual cultivation, Aoki's already formidable soul reached a new height once again.

His powerful soul enhanced his understanding of the way of the sword, and his Sword Zen level naturally increased by one tier.

However, there is still a long way to go before the realm of unity between humans and gods.

The personal panel's qualifications are simple and clear, starting from the junior level and progressing upwards.

Aoki is unsure if advanced Sword Zen represents the realm where humans and gods merge, as he has never acquired intermediate skills, let alone advanced ones.

As for whether there are qualifications above advanced... he believes that the demon bloodline is of the highest caliber, the pinnacle level, the realm of the demon king.

Although the latter part seems to pertain more to strength, the stronger the strength, the more potent the bloodline.

Another reason Aoki feels that skills are not limited to just advanced levels is that Miyajima Sakura once informed him that the notes recorded five realms of martial arts perception.

Taking the sword as an example, they are the radiance of the sword, the energy of the sword, the power of the sword, the intent of the sword, and the unity of human and sword.

The union of man and sword is the realm of the sword master.

As for the sword god, there was no sword god in Miyajima Sakura's lineage, so naturally, there is no record of it.

Relying on magical power to break through to A-level was temporarily on hold.

Aoki focused all his energy on martial arts, believing that even if he couldn't successfully break through during the summer break, he could at least approach the threshold of A-level.

Moreover, martial arts could significantly boost combat power.

Now that Aoki is stuck in a bottleneck, using them to enhance combat capabilities is perfect.

…

Knowing that Aoki wanted to break through the bottleneck, Rias did not assign any errands to him during the summer break, allowing him to practice with peace of mind.

August 26th, less than a week before school starts. 

For almost a month, Aoki had been studying martial arts in addition to dual cultivation. 

During this time, every time Shinra Tsubaki returned from the Demon World, he would stalk her and engage in dual cultivation one or more times. 

It's a pity that he still couldn't extract the intermediate skill of extracting magic power. 

Instead, he obtained Shinra Tsubaki's sword skills, and combined with his nearly one month of sword training, he successfully improved his Sword Zen to a high level. 

Just as Aoki expected, advanced Sword Zen had not yet reached the state of unity between man and God. 

He could only reach the level of a martial arts master. If he wanted to advance to A-level, he still needed to continue to understand the true meaning of martial arts. 

Miyajima Sakura's Tozen was only at this level, and due to his physical condition and other reasons, he had not officially entered the Grandmaster level. 

Without the guidance of his "master," Aoki's martial arts training had also stagnated. 

Until the beginning of the second semester, he still failed to successfully advance to A-level, but his combat power had indeed improved greatly. 

On September 1st, Kuoh Academy held its opening ceremony. 

At two o'clock in the afternoon, Aoki packed his backpack and rushed to the Occult Research Department. 

"Buchou, Akeno-senpai, Koneko...uh, and Kiba, good afternoon." 

Pushing open the door to the activity room, Aoki greeted everyone one by one. 

When he saw a certain blonde "handsome boy," he was stunned unconsciously. This guy with almost no presence was actually here today. 

Kiba Yuto gently replied with a warm smile, "Uesugi-kun, good afternoon." 

Aoki trembled all over and got goosebumps. 

Why does this golden retriever seem to be getting more and more feminine after not being seen for a while? 

Aoki calmly leaned towards Rias and began to observe Kiba Yuto with his peripheral vision. 

He had a delicate, fair face, a slender figure, and was about 1.7 meters tall, about the same height as her.

He had an Adam's apple... was it his throat or Adam's apple? 

His chest was really flat, flatter than that of a white-haired lolita. 

Generally speaking, he was more of a weakling than today's young man and would likely look good in women's clothing. 

Aoki was shocked by his sudden thought.

He wasn't interested in cross-dressers.

After shaking off the terrible thoughts from his mind, he continued to look down.

The black uniform pants wrapped tightly around his thighs, and only the rough shape of one leg could be seen.

Slender yet powerful, the thighs were taut, and the muscles were obviously highly developed.

After all, Kiba Yuto specializes in taijutsu, and his swordsmanship is much better than that of Aoki, a newcomer.

Suddenly, Aoki's eyes narrowed.

No... why does this guy seem to have a flat area?

Because Rias and the others were wearing uniforms and short skirts, Aoki could only look at their thighs.

There's a big bulge, especially after sitting down and tightening his uniform pants even more, forming a small mountain.

Another look at Kiba Yuto...

He's really smooth, with no ups or downs.

Could it be that Kiba Yuto...?

Something's wrong with Kiba Yuto's development!

It must be an aftereffect of the Holy Sword experiment, which caused the number of good brothers below to be very small, or none at all!

The Adam's apple is probably the same reason.

Withdrawing his gaze, Aoki slowly lowered his head and silently lamented for poor Kiba-kun in his heart.

Because of his preconceived notion, he didn't consider other aspects.

An example of gender disguise is Shinomura Yuki.

It can't be that Kiba Yuto, who has always been a man in this anime, is also hiding his gender, right?!

A character who has never appeared before can't be the real person with just a cover, right?!

Aoki was the weakest person present, and Rias and others saw through his concealment.

Seeing him glance at Kiba Yuto from time to time, Rias and the others were initially a little surprised.

Following his gaze and the wonderful changes in his expressions, Rias and the others gradually began to look strange.

"Ao-chan, you're wrong…"

"Buchou."

Kiba Yuto twitched the corners of his stiff lips, "When I settle that matter, then… I want to say it myself."

Rias sighed, "Well, you don't really have to bear it alone…"

Kiba Yuto lowered his head, "I understand the principles, but I can't do it."

Rias was startled and fell silent.

Yes, everyone knows the truth, but only a few can act on it.

Isn't it the same for ...?

When Himejima Akeno heard this, her expression also darkened, and she became expressionless.

Even Koneko Koneko, who was eating snacks, stopped, and her mood became obviously depressed.

Aoki found that the atmosphere was not right.

Judging from the memories, several people obviously thought of the knot that had lingered in their hearts.

This awkward atmosphere suddenly made him no longer curious about what Rias wanted to say earlier.

"Boss, Akeno-senpai..." 

Aoki bravely broke the silence, "Although the holidays are very happy, wouldn't it be bad to have a sad face on the first day of school?" 

"Really, Ao-chan, who joined the club last, was allowed to change the atmosphere." 

Rias was the first to cheer up. She pursed her lips and said, "I, Buchou, have truly neglected my duty." 

"Ah la ah la~ It turns out that Mister Buchou also makes mistakes sometimes~" 

Himejima Akeno teased Rias to lift her previous sadness. 

Rias rolled her eyes and glared at the mischievous Akeno Himejima. 

The two had lived together since they were seven or eight years old, so she was not afraid of showing their true selves to one another. 

Himejima Akeno stopped teasing Rias as soon as she was satisfied and covered her mouth with her little hand, laughing to the side like a fox that had stolen a chicken. 

"Ahem." 

Rias turned around, adjusted her expression, and said to Aoki, "Ao-chan, there's an exam for the start of school tomorrow. Although there's absolutely no problem with your strength, you still have to go through the process." 

"The opening test? For school?" 

Aoki said doubtfully, "I heard others talk about the exam last semester, but I never went there even once." 

Rias slightly raised her chin to calm herself and said, "Akeno, please explain it to Ao-chan." 

Akeno Himejima rolled her eyes and reluctantly played the role of commentator. 

Who made her rely on Rias?

Although she knew he was mocking her in retaliation, she could only accept it. 

"Because you joined halfway and were previously an ordinary person, the rest of last semester was an adjustment period for you." 

Himejima Akeno explained seriously to Aoki. 

"The academy implements a final punishment system. We cannot allow you, someone who knows nothing and has just developed magical power, to take the exam with such people." 

"The final punishment system…" 

Aoki seemed to understand why Reina Hamazaki and the others were so impatient initially and wanted to practice dual cultivation with him, even resorting to force. 

After using the Eye of Insight for so long, and due to its strength, his mastery of it was no worse than the natural-born Hamazaki Reina, perhaps even deeper. 

"What is the punishment, in the end?" 

"The most serious punishment is expulsion from school, and there's usually special training." 

Himejima Akeno thought for a moment and added, "Special training is very difficult. If you can't endure it or refuse special training, you will also be expelled from school."