On the positive side, your sheer volume and the Stream-like flow give you a tremendous advantage within the Initiate ranks. You can unleash bursts of power others cannot match. Your recovery might be faster. Against any Level 3, your reserves are overwhelming."
He fixed Rudra with a serious look. "The downside is critical: Your foundation is incomplete. You skipped the crucial refinement stages. If you attempt to push further, to truly ascend to Level 4 without addressing this, your power could become unstable. The unrefined prana could damage your pathways. The lack of tempered resilience in your core could lead to catastrophic failure during the breakthrough itself. Worse, your future potential could be stunted. A tower built on sand collapses."
Edward leaned back, his initial surprise replaced by focused intensity. "Your immediate priority, therefore, is not expansion, but consolidation, Precision, Control and refinement.
You must:
Purify: Use meditation, pressure training like Earth's domain, and specific techniques to burn away the impurities in your prana, compressing it, increasing its density and potency.
Temper: Continue to subject your body to extreme stresses. Not just to strengthen muscles, but to temper your prana path and core vessel specifically for the dense energy they hold. Make them capable of handling not just the volume, but the quality you need to cultivate.
Wait for the Metamorphosis: When you do finally trigger the breakthrough to Level 4 – and it will come, likely explosively given your reserves – that metamorphosis will be monumental. Your already vast volume will multiply. Your prana will undergo a final, radical condensation into true Adept-grade energy. The pill Master Earth gave you," Edward nodded towards Rudra's pocket, "will be instrumental then, widening your pathways at the moment of greatest expansion to maximise the gain."
"Volume without control is useless. Power without technique is wasted," Edward stated flatly. "You endured the crucible with raw resilience and instinct. Impressive, but insufficient for true mastery. You lack the means to harness your potential effectively, especially against skilled opponents."
He reached into a drawer within his obsidian desk, withdrawing two objects that pulsed with subtle energy. Not scrolls, but small, palm-sized tablets made of a dark, polished stone etched with intricate, glowing sigils.
One tablet shimmered with a silvery, shifting light. "This is the Myriad Steps technique imprint. It is a foundational movement art, not merely speed, but efficiency, evasion, and positioning. It teaches you to read the flow of battle, to move with minimal effort, to be where your opponent is not, and to control the distance. Essential for someone who relies on close-quarters power but lacks defensive finesse. Master this before you think of charging headlong.
This movement technique was developed by a wandering monk who never lost a duel. It's elegant, efficient, and brutal when mastered."
He tapped the imprint, which unfurled to reveal holographic images of footprints, arcs, and spirals.
"It has three grades," Edward said. "The first: every step covers the ground of ten. You step once, move ten paces. The second: one step for a hundred. The third..."
He looked up, and there was a flicker of reverence in his eyes.
"One step becomes a thousand. With mastery, you'll seem to vanish. Appear where your enemy never expected. Even teleporters struggle to match it."
Rudra's eyes widened. "You're serious?"
Edward chuckled. "I don't joke about power."
Then he stood.
"Watch."
He walked to the centre of the room. Stood still. Then moved.
It was a step.
Just one.
But in an instant, Edward blurred. The air shimmered where he stood—and he was ten paces ahead.
Rudra's jaw tensed. He hadn't seen the transition. No foot lift. No weight shift. Just presence—then absence.
"That," Edward said, voice now behind Rudra, "is Grade One."
Rudra turned. "And the other imprint?"
The second tablet glowed with a deep, pulsating crimson light. "This is Asura Fist," Edward said, his voice carrying a note of warning. "A foundational offensive technique focused on channelling power through the fists. Not brute force alone, but focused impact, structural targeting, and prana reinforcement. It teaches you to strike not just hard, but precisely, to shatter defences and maximise damage with minimal expenditure. It is demanding. It requires discipline and control. Please do not mistake it for simple brawling.
"But don't open it yet," Edward added, tone sharp. "If you try to use it without grasping the basic footwork of myriad steps, you'll only hurt yourself. The foot guides the fist. Always.
Edward placed the two stone tablets on the desk before Rudra. They hummed faintly against the obsidian.
Study them. Absorb the imprints. Practice them relentlessly. In Gamma Sector. In solitude. Use them to control the power you possess, not just unleash it. Refine your prana through their execution. They are the first tools to build upon your… unorthodox foundation."
He gestured towards the door. "Begin. Master the fundamentals. Consolidate your power. Refine your stream. The path ahead is long, Rudra. You have taken a shortcut that grants you power now, but the true journey of building an unshakable foundation starts today. Dismissed."
Rudra picked up the stone tablets. The Myriad Steps felt cool and fluid in his hand, the sigils shifting like flowing mercury. The Asura Fist felt heavy, warm, and faintly aggressive, the crimson sigils pulsing like a slow heartbeat. The weight of Edward's words – the revelation about his prana, the critical need for refinement, the responsibility of these techniques – settled on him, heavier in its way than Master Earth's domain. But within him, the diamond-bright stream pulsed, ready for the challenge. He nodded once, sharply, to Edward, turned, and walked out of the office, the path forward clearer, yet more demanding than ever. The crucible had forged him; now, he had to learn the art of the blade.