The Martial Unity

Time passed as Rui got the hang of applying nature manipulation in combat. In particular, understanding the timing and placement of nature manipulation in combat was something that he truly had to learn through experience, the hard way.

Another thing that he had to learn the hard way was that applying nature the way he wanted to was very difficult.

He had considered some form of standard application that boosted his processing and also his stamina, but he had underestimated how high the precision and accuracy were to receive a remote energy supply from nature, the way that the Genoran Guardian had received.

He would have to create a whole new technique for that from scratch, something that not even the Forge of Creation would be able to appropriately help him. He also realized that it was likely best not to get too hasty about mastering the Nature Path to whatever extent he intended to.

Nature manipulation was so different from Martial Art was that it wasn’t even funny. Even the closest thing to it that Rui did, domain manipulation, wasn’t even remotely comparable.

It was like having a new muscle in his body with new nerves that were newly connected to his brain.

It was quite different from anything he had ever done in his life before. In particular, drawing power from living entities and using them against an opponent by directly manipulating external elements through communication alone was just very bizarre for him as a Martial Artist.

Nonetheless, he began truly getting the hang of it as he even started learning to apply it in combat alongside his Martial Art, albeit primitively.

BOOM BOOM BOOM BOOM BOOM!

Rui activated Gale Force Breathing as he shuffled through the forest at highly unnatural speeds, coursing through the woods in a blinding blur. The explosions of wood that his contact unleashed were simply too slow for him.

“Not bad.” Mother Alicia commented as she waved her hand, causing a storm of leaves to stir, surging towards him with great speed and peril.

Rui’s eyes sharpened as he activated the Scriptures of Terra, manipulating earth in addition to manipulating the roots beneath his feet, accelerating their movement upwards to protect him from the attack.

BANG BANG BANG BANG BANG!

He successfully defended against her perilous storm of leaves, turning his eyes towards the vessel of Mother Alicia floating in the morning skies above the Forest of War, before activating a breathing technique.

RUMBLE!!!

The forest shook as trees and wood surged upwards towards her, threatening to grab her and crush her where he stood.

She simply smiled as she snapped a finger.

CRACK CRACK CRACK!

Suddenly, all the nature that Rui had manipulated to throw against her was sliced into pieces, falling apart in the blink of an eye.

“What the hell?” he tilted his head with confusion.

“It’s a more sophisticated nature manipulation defense against nature manipulation,” she explained. “I instructed the wood to split itself into pieces so that it would negate your attack. By avoiding direct conflict with your nature manipulation, I can still effortlessly negate your nature manipulation. Although this is exclusively an elven thing.”

Rui’s eyes lit up with interest. “That sounds interesting. Would this work against the light elves as well?”

“Of course.” She returned before him. “They use the same nature manipulation. As long as your cognition is good enough, you should be able to deploy the same tactics against us.”

Rui nodded thoughtfully as he made mental notes of it for when he would need it.

“The fact that you have become this adept at using nature in combat this quickly is frankly shocking,” she admitted with a soft sigh. “Most elves struggle to learn how to apply nature in combat. A part of it is our pacifism, but another part of it is certainly also that we don’t have an affinity for this sort of thing. You, however…”

An impressed smile emerged on her face. “You got the hang of it in just two months. It’s truly shocking. I have never seen anything quite like this among dark elves, at least. Your stunning affinity for combat seems to allow you to deploy anything at your disposal in combat effectively. Indeed, one of the reasons that you’re learning this fast is because you’re a Martial Artist.”

“I think that is a part of it, but it’s not the only part of it,” Rui replied, wiping his sweat off. “It’s also because growth in a given field is always faster at the start than at the end. Learning more Martial Art these days takes a long time for most people. Years on end to take a single concrete step because I have already reached an extremely high level within Martial Art. The principle of diminishing returns has made taking even one more step much harder than it used to be, but for nature manipulation…”

His eyes lit up with enthusiasm. “…It’s like starting all over again. I’m going through the basics and the foundations and learning how to fight all over again. That is a whole new field, and I’m getting the speedy boost of a newbie jumping into the field and learning a lot about it.”

“I see… still, even then, it is truly remarkable how quickly you have gained proficiency in nature manipulation in combat,” Mother Alicia remarked. “I think another part of it has to do with the fact that you still have a very young body in the prime of its life, despite all the decades that you have spent as a Martial Artist. I find that rather interesting. Do all Martial Artists have eternal youth?”

Rui stiffened.

“Well, no. That’s just something for me.”

It allowed him to ensure that his growth remained high and he didn’t lose out on the benefits of youth even as he grew older. His capacity to learn and change remained high, as befitting someone who specialized in adaptive evolution.

“Alright, enough of a break.” Rui cracked his knuckles as he took a stance against her. “Let us continue.”