Finally!
All the knights thought.
Who hadn't heard of the disturbance that occurred two days ago around the Daze mountain range?
Even if they didn't hear about it, Floki and Logail had told them about it.
Not only that, they even claimed that their bottlenecks were loosened after experiencing the event.
They claimed that it happened because the young lord was practicing a legendary technique.
Marcus noticed the excitement of his knights and could only secretly shake his head.
Aspects and Blood Force were two separate types of energy. The former came from the world and the latter was innate.
Though he wasn't sure, Marcus was fairly certain that those who cultivate Blood Force couldn't cultivate Aspect.
Or at least not this Five Elements Arts.
"The technique I have is called the Five Elements Arts. An ancient art that lets one cultivate the body. Blood Force is not needed if you can manage to begin cultivating this technique…" Marcus paused seeing the excitement growing on the apprentices' faces.
"And if you have already begun cultivating Blood Force, I will not recommend you attempt to cultivate Aspect." As these last few words fell upon the ears of his knights, their excitement visibly faded.
"Milord, is there a reason why we can't cultivate Aspect?" Chase asked.
As one of the two who still haven't broken through to the Tidal Wave rank, he was eager to grow.
"Elemental Aspect and Blood Force are likely to clash. This could end up in two ways, one, you survive but become a cripple, or two, you don't survive. Imploding as the two energies explode within you. Do not underestimate these energies.
"Elemental Aspects are a pure, but equally wild energy that needs taming as one cultivates it. If you wish to cultivate Aspect, you can be patient and wait until I get my hands on a neutral Aspect cultivation technique… or you dissolve your Blood Force and take a gamble to see whether you're suitable for the technique."
Lesley, who had been. Silent since, sighed softly. Once again, he felt left behind.
So did Chase.
They weren't going to dissolve their Blood Force over this. They had worked very hard to reach where they were.
"Milord, is this something that his grace, Lord Daemon had left for you?" Brown asked.
Such a technique was reserved for the closest retainers of powerful men like Marcus's father.
Rarely disseminated.
"Hmm, kind of." Marcus smiled. Let's get on with it, we don't have a lot of time. All of you, take a seat."
The apprentices obeyed without delay.
"Now close your eyes and calm your minds. Normally, you would have to seek a connection to the elemental Aspects yourself, but I will help you forgo the hassle of doing that. I will stimulate the Aspects and whichever of you feels a connection, let me know."
As soon as Marcus said this, he opened the Heart Pulse.
Over the past two days, Marcus had to keep it closed. That was the only way he could tackle his problems.
Without increasing his dexterity, he was unable to control his strength properly.
A small movement would send him into the air. There wasn't an imbalance in his control per se, rather, his control was up to par.
As soon as Marcus opened his
Heart Pulse, he felt this surge of strength return, even more difficult to control than before.
At the same time, he manipulated his mana, stripping it of its other properties and allowing only the Elemental Aspects to flow out.
These Elemental Aspects filled the training grounds in seconds.
Marcus wanted to speak, but he felt like doing that would break what little control he had of his body.
He felt as if he was holding in a big fart and one slip up would let it out.
At the same time, he used his eyes to track the flow of the energies.
As the Elemental Aspects flowed around, some threads began flowing towards a few people.
It started gradually, one became two, then three.
In a few minutes, different threads surrounded forty-eight of the eighty-two apprentices.
After taking note of their faces, Marcus closed his Heart Pulse.
"Those of you who felt something, step forward."
Just as Marcus suspected, forty-eight stepped forward.
This was a good ratio, however, he could not relax yet because feeling the connection was only the beginning.
If one fails to open their Heart Pulse, there's no point in sensing the connection.
Those who couldn't sense a connection became sad and jealous.
And those who could had smiles on their faces.
"I will teach you how to sense the Breath of Life. This is how you begin cultivating. The Breath of Life is the spark used to open Pulses hidden within the body. For Five Elements Arts, the first Pulse you open is in your heart.
"After that, you wait till saturation before opening a Minor Pulse by the heart. There are six of these Minor Pulses, and together with your Heart Pulse, they make a Major Pulse. All seven Pulses will have to be opened before you can truly say that you have begun cultivating this art."
An Entry Level Five Elements Art Cultivator should be at least as strong as a Radiant Knight, right?
Marcus explained a few more things before he stopped talking and started teaching them how.
After about an hour, out of the forty-eight, only twenty-five successfully sensed the Breath of Life and opened their Heart Pulse.
Unlike Marcus's opening, there was barely any commotion.
If not for the apprentices giving off stronger presences and aura, one wouldn't even be able to tell that they made progress.
After congratulating them, Marcus left to meet Asipen. He had a lot to do before the 27th.
***
July 27th.
Southern District, Lesser Than Thou.
The stars in the sky twinkled silently, spread out like sand on a beach.
It was a breathtaking sight to witness, however, people were either asleep, or up to no good.
As for Marcus, he and his men had chosen this night to take action.
Fifteen of them, including Marcus.
Eight of them were his knights, and the remaining six were from the few who managed to open their Heart Pulse.
They surrounded this tavern, waiting for Marcus's order to proceed.