Chapter 143 – Aegis of Infinity (I)

Chapter 143

Aegis of Infinity (I)

While taking a break for kids to cultivate, I nestled myself into the isolated corner of the tent and started pondering on what art to create for Wan Lan.

It appears that will be the trend for all kids when they break through–the system will give me one ‘freebie’ to make an art that pretty much only they will be able to use.

To be honest, though, I’m not quite sure what to create. Not because there are no options–no, the options are infinite–but more that I just don’t know what Wan Lan needs. So… why don’t I ask her?

“Hm?” she looked at me oddly.

“As your Master, I’m supposed to gift you something for breaking through,” I said casually. “I just happen to have a rather large depository of arts from, uh, my father and sect and such, and am just wondering what you need the most.”

“Oh. You don’t have to worry about that, Master; due to my cultivation method, I probably wouldn’t be able to use any of the arts anyway.” Dammit, you think I don’t know that?! Haah, patience, patience.

“My depository is really large.”

“Just tell him,” Long Tao voiced from the side suddenly. “No matter how insane it is, he’ll probably have it.”

Hey now, don’t build expectations too much! What if she asks for an art that makes her a God, huh?!

“Oh,” she eyed him warily for a moment, still not sure how to treat who she thought was a kid younger than her, yet someone who was already inches away from the Spirit Manifestation Realm. “In that case, uhm… I–when I fight, I often… lose myself. I don’t know what it is, but Madame just called it ‘part of my constitution’. Now, I’m still aware of my actions and can control them, but what ends up happening is that I tend to forgo my defenses and trade blow for blow.” Hey, that’s a rather detailed self-analysis coming from a sixteen-year-old girl. Oi, system, are you sure she isn’t an old monster, too?

“Ha ha, no, Madame pointed it out too.” As though reading my mind, she laughed and quickly elaborated. “So, uhm, something in that realm, perhaps? Again, it’s really fine–she’s already given me so many arts that I’ll likely spend a lifetime trying to master them all…”

Hmm.

A defensive art.

I have a bit of experience with it going way back, but the art I made for the kids was actually already partly obsolete. They’ve all grown strong enough to naturally fight people in the Foundation Establishment and can probably even survive some weaker Spirit Manifestation Realm cultivators. Certainly me, at least.

My mindset, the first go-around, was rather rigid; the only concept in my mind was to create an art that ‘defends’ and saves a life. Nothing else mattered. But, ultimately, defense is far more than that.

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In the few battles that I’ve experienced (secondhand, yes), and while constantly watching the kids spar, I’ve picked up on a few ways in which martial artists here fought. At least the ones I’ve been exposed to the most.

Defense isn’t even secondary; it’s tertiary. First comes offense, second comes movement, and only then does the defense get brought up. Most of them would much rather just avoid an attack than try defending against it, but since Wan Lan is specifically talking about defense, it sounds like she can’t easily overcome that part of her that makes her go a bit ‘coocoo’ during a fight.

Hmm.

I… never actually saw her fight.

“You two, come out with me,” I called them out; Long Tao seemed to have realized why, sighing and just barely stopping himself from rolling his eyes, though thankfully coming out.

Wan Lan followed, seeming confused for a moment.