Author's Note: I don't own Re: Zero and A Will Eternal. This fanfiction is a non-profitable work. I make no money out of it. I am just writing this for fun.

If you guys are wondering whether there will be wuxia elements included, yes they will be included, but very limited. How limited? The only thing that follows wuxia is the power-ups of Subaru and nothing else. There will be NO jade beauties who would topple kingdoms with just a look(come on guys, there are only four kingdoms in Re: Zero, let's not topple them) and there will be NO young masters who line up their faces and their ancestor's for face slapping. There won't be any such cliches.

{For your information, Bai Xiaochun is the MC of the wuxia novel 'A Will Eternal' by Er Gen.}

Hope you guys enjoy the chapter!

Chapter-5

In the void, we can see a floating island surrounded by an uncountable number of stars. The floating island consists of many mountains and forests. In the center of the floating island, we can find a mansion and in the courtyard of the mansion we can find Bai Xiaochun relaxing on a chair and sipping coconut water through a straw, but unfortunately, it's not about him. So, let us move on to the forest closest to this mansion.

In that forest, we can find Natsuki Subaru with his signature track suit-Replica number 106- on(His original tracksuit is long destroyed due to his training). Subaru is standing there with sanpaku eyes closed and a frown adorning his face. After a few seconds suddenly his skin started changing color from healthy brown to gray and finally to lustrous black. Subaru opened his eyes and checked the changes that happened to his body. After seeing his skin glowing with black luster, he was not able to contain his happiness and laughed boisterously.

"Hahahaha, finally, after many days of torturous training, finally I completed the Iron skin."

After some casual warm-ups with his iron skin activated, he decided to check his power. He found a big and sturdy tree nearby. He took a stance before that tree, with a shout punched that tree. At least he tried to, but his fist stopped an inch away from the tree. 'It wouldn't hurt, would it?' thought Subaru.

Bai Xiaochun, who arrived at the scene after sensing his student activating iron skin, was standing at a distance while watching Subaru. But he facepalmed after seeing Subaru's antics. 'Oh god, did my student inherit my cautiousness? Well, it is not a bad thing to be cautious. But do not chicken out at the last moment. Come on Subaru, you can do it.' Cheered Bai Xiaochun internally.

"Ah dammit, even if it hurts it would be just some pain. Nothing my regeneration can't handle." shouted Subaru to convince himself.

He took some deep breaths, calmed his mind, and punched the tree with his full strength.

Subaru's eyes widened at the result. His punch directly penetrated the tree without any resistance, leaving a hole in the trunk. Subaru didn't even feel any pain.

"Woah, no wonder it is so difficult to practice this technique. The power is crazy and it is just the iron skin." exclaimed Subaru in wonder.

But his testing is far from over. There is a secret magic he can use by practicing the Undying skin and he was dying to test its power.

Subaru found a large boulder nearby. He stopped a few meters away from that boulder and outstretched his right hand toward the boulder. He concentrated his energy on his fingertips which started glowing with an eerie black aura.

"Throat Crushing Grasp" saying this he clenched his fist.

-BOOOOOOOM-

Subaru's mouth was wide open at the result. The boulder that is a few meters in front of him was completely blown into smithereens.

"Oh yeah baby, now that is the power I am talking about" said Subaru jubilantly.

Suddenly Subaru heard applause from his side. He turned and saw that it was master along with some monkey spectators. He deactivated his iron skin, which turned his skin back to his original tan color, and said "Master, did you see what I just did?"

Bai Xiaochun looked proudly at this student and said "Well done Subaru! I know you had it in you. You truly didn't let me down. I have seen many people who falter at the very beginning of this technique and can't even achieve iron skin. But you persisted, and I hope that you persist till you master the complete technique."

Subaru was very happy at his master's praise. Subaru doesn't just see him as a master but as a family. Even though his master can be a bit troublemaker, he always supported Subaru. His master is an immortal, so he doesn't need to eat, but he still ate with Subaru every day to make Subaru feel at home. It really helped the poor boy who was far away from home and may not be able to return ever again.

Even on the nights when Subaru is homesick and cries alone on the lawn, his master always finds and consoles him. It is not wrong to say Subaru sees his master as a father. So, his master's praise meant so much to Subaru. Subaru was also feeling good about himself after completing what seemed to be hellish training. He learned to believe in himself and as long as he can put his heart into it, he can do anything.

"This is just the beginning Master Bai. I will also complete Bronze skin as fast and possible and..."

Xiaochun interrupted his disciple before he can continue and said "Not so fast Subaru, I can understand your excitement. But you should continue practicing iron skin and Throat crushing Grasp. From what I can see it takes you some time to activate either of those techniques. But the delay can be very fatal in life or death moments. If you were able to activate iron skin instantly, you can also activate the following skins instantly after practicing them, since the principle is the same."

Subaru took his master's advice seriously and practiced only iron skin and Throat Crushing Grasp the following week. His practice paid off and now he can activate those techniques in an instant.

After a small assessment, Bai Xiaochun gave the green signal to Subaru for practicing bronze skin.

Subaru can be seen standing beside the well he used to fetch water from. He closed his eyes, focusing on the information he has on the bronze skin. And after reading it, Subaru felt that practicing bronze skin is easier than iron skin. The condition for practicing iron skin is extreme pain while the condition for practicing bronze skin is extreme hunger. How bad can hunger be?

Subaru activated his iron skin, started doing some weird poses and started Qi circulation as shown in the manual. Slowly his iron skin began cracking and beneath his iron skin there is no blood as one would expect but there is a dull bronze glow. As Subaru continued on, the cracks started spreading and finally with the sound of the glass shattering his iron skin was completely shattered and now his skin is in Bronze color. He officially stepped into the realm of bronze skin.

And if he continued this schedule for four more days he would completely master the bronze skin and then he would be ready to start practicing silver skin. 'Heh, master said the more I progress, the more difficult it would be. But I find it getting easier, I must be built different. Yep, there is no other explanation to it.'

In the mansion, we can see Bai Xiaochun sitting at the side of the dining table filled with dishes. Anyone saw that will think that he is holding a banquet, but no, these dishes are all for only one person and it is his disciple. Bai Xiaochun has firsthand experience in cultivating bronze skin. It was surely not as easy as it seems. After all, it was during Bai Xiaochun's Bronze skin cultivation, The Famous Chicken-Thieving-Fiend who was never caught came into existence. He was pulled out of his thoughts when a skinny figure consisting of only skin and bones entered the mansion. Who can it be other than Subaru?

Natsuki Subaru was never a glutton. But today one can see him practically inhaling the food that was meant for at least twenty people. After he completed eating the food his master made for him, his body regained his previous figure. Subaru was now sitting on a chair contemplating the meaning of life. When he just started the technique he was not that hungry, but 10 minutes into that technique and he felt like his stomach was eating itself. He had to use every ounce of his mental capacity to not devour the dirt and trees that are on his way. Even the monkeys that he hates to the bone, seemed to be the greatest delicacy in the world.

But in the end his reasoning won, he dragged his body all the way to the mansion. He can clearly observe his muscle mass decreasing. He even doubted whether he could even make it to the mansion. How good it would be if he just laid down here and just go to sleep so that he could never feel this hunger again? But in the end, he gritted his teeth and made his way to the mansion.

And what awaited him in the mansion is a table full of food and his smiling master. For the first time in his life, Subaru saw someone with a golden halo above his head and angel wings on his back and moreover, it is his master. He didn't care if it was a hallucination or not. In fact, he didn't care about anything except food at this moment. He just ate and ate, he even lost count of how much he has eaten. And when he finally felt full, he stopped eating and just slumped down into a chair, fully satisfied and thinking about how he was not built different.

Bai Xiaochun after seeing Subaru's satisfied expression is feeling very smug. After all, who cares about their students as much he does? 'I, Bai Xiaochun, am a very kind-hearted person! Why? Why am I so outstanding!?', Having reached this point in his train of thought, Bai Xiaochun was convinced that he was the epitome of wisdom, intelligence and courage. He was so pleased that he started looking around for a copper mirror to admire himself in, only to discover that there were no mirrors in this room. 'Tch, heavens must be jealous of me', he blamed lack of mirror on the heavens.

Subaru after gaining his energy back, looked at his master with puppy eyes and said "Master, is there a way to satisfy my hunger."

"*Cough-Cough* That came out in a very wrong way. But don't worry my student. I got you covered." Saying this Bai Xiaochun handed him a thick book. "Read this book completely by tomorrow. I will tell you what to do next."

Subaru was very excited to find an easy way out and immediately looked at the cover of the book which says

'101 WAYS TO COOK DELICIOUS CHICKEN'

"What the.."

The next day…..

Subaru was sitting at the dining table eating breakfast with his master. He looks haggard. He stayed up late at night to complete the book. He can now confidently say that he is one of the top experts in the world when it comes to appraising chicken dishes. But is it really worth it? He doesn't know. After finishing their breakfast, Subaru got tired of waiting and asked his master "Sensei, I did what you told me to. But how is it useful to me? Are you saying to cook my own damn food since the automated cooking system in the mansion can't handle my appetite?"

Bai Xiaochun simply grinned at his student's frustration and replied "You are only half correct. Do you remember what I told you on the first day at the mansion? The thing about the higher floors above the second floor."

Only now Subaru seemed to remember, he mumbled " The Spirit Chicken Dungeon."

"That's it, now is the time for you to explore it." Saying that Bai Xiaochun took a big wok(a wok is a type of cooking utensil) and some rope from under the table. While Subaru is still processing what the heck is happening, Xiaochun already tied the wok onto Subaru's back.

"Master Bai, What are you doing!? With this thing on my back, I look exactly like a turtle" complained Subaru.

"Of course, this wok is for cooking, what more do you expect from it. And even though the dungeon is named as the chicken dungeon, it is more like a chicken farm with somewhat aggressive chicken."

"Then how are they different than normal chicken?"

"They are not normal chickens, they are spirit chickens! Their bodies are fully saturated with mana. When you eat them, you can cultivate bronze skin twice as fast and you won't feel the hunger you felt yesterday."

Listening to this Subaru swallowed any complaints he had. 'Well, this is the best way. How difficult would it be to kill some chickens? No no no, do not jinx yourself.' Thinking up to here Subaru was excited about his first dungeon ride.

"Alright, follow me." Saying this Bai Xiaochun made his way to a particular room on the second floor and opened it.

Subaru peeked over Bai's shoulder, only to see that the room is a library.

'Heh, what a cliché. Now master pulls some book which opens a secret door to the dungeon. You can't fool a hikikomori who spends all his time playing games and reading novels.'

But contrary to his expectations Bai Xiaochun took a candle from the candle stand and threw it on a bookshelf which immediately started burning.

"MASTER! What are you doing? Quick, we need to put out the fire before it spreads to other shelves" shrieked Subaru.

Seeing his panicking student Bai Xiaochun put a hand on his shoulder and said "Subaru relax and just watch."

Listening to his master Subaru calmed down and looked closely at the burning shelf. He saw that fire is not spreading and in fact rather than burning, it is more like the shelf is disappearing into flames. After a few minutes, the bookshelf completely disappeared and a blood-red portal took its place.

Author here: *Sigh* I actually wanted to complete the training arc in this chapter. But this chapter turned out to be longer than I expected. So, rather than rushing, I will complete this arc in the next chapter. And Subaru will be arriving in Lugunica with just enough power to protect himself. Don't expect him to one-shot every opponent in his way from the moment he arrives.