Sitting here in the darkness, Arthur extended his Shadow Sense a little, feeling it expand through the dry cavern. Funny, how dry it was when a waterfall was but a stone throw's distance away. He wondered if that was a weirdness of geography or Tower insanity, realised he didn't care. He tried to make himself think about it, to explore the cavern with his Shadow Sense. Tried to divert his attention from the pain of each breath that forced him to breathe shallowly, that had him sensing the way his shoulder itched and burned as the Clan seal shifted.
It seemed to take forever, a painful, uncomfortable sensation of ants moving beneath his skin that he had to forcibly ignore. Until...
Sigil of the Flame Phoenix has been upgraded!
New Sigil Bonus (Clan) - Enhanced Magnetoreception and Equilibrioception
"Apa ini?" Arthur cursed, reading the words over twice more. Carefully, because he had never heard of either of those terms before. Just as interestingly, it was not splitting the Sigil Bonus, so it was being passed on not just to him but the Clan at full strength. Of course, what it did...
Equilibrio... Magneto... So, he had better sense of equilibrium - balance? - and magnets? Waving a hand over his spear head, he didn't sense any difference. Not in the spear, nor how he felt sitting here. In truth, he didn't feel any change at all, but he had to admit, a large portion of that might just be because he was still seriously injured.
"Didn't get what you wanted?" the Hermit mocked.
Arthur glared at the rat, only to see it grab something from its side and throw it at him. He fumbled the catch, wincing as it landed away from his fingers to bounce on the floor. Thankfully, the paper did not stain on the numerous patches of blood, the liquid seeming to slide off the material itself.
Sometimes, the weirdness of the Tower had some advantages.
Beyond giving him bonuses to things he had no idea what for.
Grabbing the document from the floor and moving away from the puddle, Arthur sank to the ground with a grateful sigh. Everything still hurt and he really wished that the Tower had given him an upgrade to his healing ability, but it was just a bonus. This was the reason he decided to come.
Unrolling the document, he didn't bother reading it, instead allowing the Tower to pour the information of the cultivation technique into his brain. At least, the initial description.
Steel Skin
Toughen the cultivator's skin to make it as strong as steel while retaining the original flexibility. Offers greater protection against cuts, thrusts, scrapes and crushing attacks. May be further upgraded in the future.
Cost: 1 Energy per minute
Arthur stared at the document, then looked up at the Hermit. He looked down again and then upwards, wonder threatening to break clear.
"What?"
"This is actually useful," Arthur said. "Would you have given me something even better if I'd chosen to go with a cultivation technique?"
"Of course. I know my duty," the Hermit said, nose wrinkling. "Though it would still be in the same line."
"So... Titanium or Obsidian or something good like that?"
All he got was a flat stare, making Arthur grimace. There was, it seemed, only a certain level of talkativeness his former opponent was willing to give. A moment later, he realised, it was quite possible the damn thing was lying too... and just torturing him by giving him something that was good, but also...
An upgrade on something he already had. Admittedly, a significant increase since he was skipping Iron Skin entirely and going to Steel. Not just that though, but the fact that he had studied Bark Skin before meant that actually making the technique work for him was viable. If he could find a safe place to train, of course.
Which meant...
"Eh, boss... You know I don't really dislike you, right?"
"Drop it. You were more agreeable when you were truthful."
Arthur shrugged, figuring it was a good try. "So, I can stay here training this, right?"
"Why would you want to stay with me? Not scared I'll take a bite at night?" Arthur couldn't suppress the sudden shudder that ran through him, a motion that made the rat smirk. "So best you get going."
For a long moment, Arthur considered staying anyway, just out of obstinance. But the truth was, he wasn't likely to get much training done, not with the creature watching over him. On the other hand...
"I need to heal. So you leave me alone, to cultivate and heal up, and I'll leave right after. Won't study this," he waggled the document a little. "Deal?"
"And you think you have something to offer me?"
"My absence."
Silence, then a slight twitching shrug that started from the hips and rolled all the way up to the shoulders. It was alien and strange and set Arthur's teeth on edge, made him want his spear even if he knew he was, theoretically, safe enough.
Silence, afterwards, and realising that was the only answer he'd get, Arthur focused within on the healing. He still hadn't worked out how to cultivate or refine and use his body techniques, though at some point he knew he'd have to get there. For now, he started up the Bark Skin technique, just feeling out the flow in a conscious fashion before letting it fade.
Then, the Steel Skin technique. He read it over, scanning for differences, overall conceptual changes and to see how much he had to work upon.
Shifting of energy through various meridians and chi points - normal, not unusual at all. Easy to change, just had to memorise the order. A lot more branches, a lot finer manipulation though, so that would be difficult - but that was what his traits were for.
Next up, the way it bled into his skin, reinforcing it. There, there was a change. With Bark Skin, one just let it flow in, the energy pooling and firming and creating tiny warps and toughened areas naturally. It meant certain parts of the body were naturally more armored than others, and not necessarily areas you'd expect. Just like a worl or a twist in the trunk might be a little harder.
When it came to Steel Skin though, the infusion was much more regulated. There was a significant degree of fire chi that was utilized - something that Arthur knew was going to be an issue with his Yin body - to get the initial metal chi to flow right, but afterwards, it was manipulation of aura and will and wood chi that smoothed and layered the steel skin.
As he kept reading, Arthur was surprised to note that unlike Bark Skin, there were multiple levels to this technique. Just like how the Seven Cloud Stepping technique built upon itself, till one could create multiple steps, Steel Skin could layer. Only three most of the time, before it stopped being worthwhile - a significant loss in mobility after that and even with three, without proper caution, that could happen. With four layers, it was impossible to avoid.
Though...
"Huh. This is much easier to keep running than Bark Skin," Arthur said, outloud. "Like, the flows afterwards are easy to handle and simplified, once the initial switch happens. Is this just the cultivation technique or...?" Again he looked at the silent rat, and once again, his fishing was rebuffed.
Yeah, maybe that was a mistake.
Still, Arthur was beginning to see how higher grade techniques were more powerful, could be stacked on one another further and further because they actually required less work. His new Yin cultivation technique had been simpler to run and utilize than the ones he had learnt, the 0 star technique that had been taught to others.
Steel Skin was significantly simpler than Bark Skin.
Even his Accelerated Healing technique, though it used Refined Energy, was also quite simple in some ways. Over time, he assumed, he could learn to simplify it further; but because he leaned heavily on the body and the Tower's manipulation, the actual flow and control of energy when he had first created it had been easy.
So... another advantage then, to the rich and connected. One that was a lot less easy to notice, but was significant. Especially at the higher levels.
As he waited for his body to heal, Arthur started planning, rearranging some assumptions. Not just for himself, but for the Clan.