Ben had his dinner & soon found himself in front of Mahaansh. He found a faint sense of dread, something which was not there previously from him.
Mahaansh started speaking. "Well you have trouble coming your way." Ben raised an eyebrow. "The reason is the quarterly exams that happen. You have missed quite a lot of content & you have 30 days to prepare for it. Now the reason why I said trouble is due to the fact that this will be your final exam. All the portions of this year would be there. Even the ones which are only going to be taught."
"What?!!!" Ben blurted out. "Why is that?!!, what crime did I do to deserve this." Like all students he also dreaded exams. Mahaansh waved his hands & said "Relax. With your capabilities, memorizing stuff is easy. The brain is also an organ that is reinforced with aura. So the theory subjects won't be a problem. As you know within the next 4-5 months, the school will end. Since you are a martial knight now, you will have a mission as your practical exam!"
Ben was asked, "What kind of mission?" Mahaansh replied, "That I don't know. But the good news is that for the 3 months after your finals you will be free. No one will disturb you. Also the scholarship for martial seed implantation will also be decided by your mission. By that time the evaluations of other students will also be over. How is that?"
Ben replied, "That sounds fun! Also, you will get a full month for the exam, 8 subjects will be done over 30 days!" "Wohooh!!!" Ben was energetic now.
"So you will have to wait on your martial techniques!" added Mahaansh.
Hearing that all of Ben's excitement evaporated.
Mahaansh then continued, "Now onto the matters of the fight from today. Given the fact that a lord class creature was protecting the group by, you did excellent by concealing yourself & detecting the ambush. While we say that non prosimians are violent creatures, we often think them of being stupid. On the contrary, they are very clever & they have excellent concealing skills due to cancelling their smell and suppressing their aura and presence using blood energy. To think that you could sense it is commendable.
The next thing is the fact that you did not get flustered when such a large group attacked you. You were also not foolish enough to stay & fight them. You understood your weakness & ran away. It is not cowardly, but wise. You did not have anything to lose or protect, except your life. Those are all the good aspects. A martial artist cannot always expect a fair fight. They might have to fight against really bad matchups or more number of opponents. That is when basic stamina & endurance along with grasp of basics come into play. The systematic education that you received both from the school & your own efforts has given you a good grasp on basics. But in terms of stamina & endurance, you are still weak. This is also another avenue that you need to look for in a martial technique. You need to find a supplementary technique that will enhance your stamina.
Next is something to do with wide area damage as well as attacking multiple opponents. That is an approach that should come from you. I cannot decide whether you need a technique for that or you are going to handle that with your existing techniques itself or modify a technique or more. It is totally up to you.Then there is also a matter of sensory technique. You need to keep your guard up always, whether it is amidst combat or not. When you are in warfront, you can always expect an ambush.
Now, I have informed you some of my suggestions & insights into how you should go about. Also, you yourself should also have some inclinations. While I would say I am pretty experienced & my suggestions are valid, it is ultimately you who should develop your martial arts. It is your insights & your preferences that drive your development.
The next thing I have on agenda is the demonstration that I told I will show you. Come with me."
With this, Mahaansh & Ben came out of the cave. It was night & there was little to no light. But for Mahaansh & Ben this was no different from daytime.hey soon spotted a noble level crocos. For it to come out of its natural environment was unexpected. Both of them moved towards it. Both of them & especially Mahaansh had suppressed his power. The crocos spotted them. When it saw them, it took off & arrived in front of them within seconds.
Suddenly both Ben & the crocos shuddered. Both of them could not even breathe. Then the pressure on Ben decreased. The crocos however could not move even now. A beam suddenly came from Mahaansh & killed it.
"How do you like that?!"Mahaansh asked.
Ben: "How did you do that? What was that? I felt as though I was going to be killed & in…"
Mahaansh: "The most violent way.
Ben: Yes, something like that. What was that?
Mahaansh: That was my 'slaughter intent'.
Ben: ...??!!
Mahaansh: As the meaning of the words, it is my intent to slaughter. In simple terms my life aura resonates with my intent & produces this effect.
Ben: Aura can do that?
Mahaansh: There is a more complete explanation, but that will come when you become a martial noble.
Ben: Well now that I am almost there, why don't you tell me about lord realm?
Mahaansh: Ho, ho… haste makes waste boy. Be patient. And did you think it is easy to reach the peak of knight realm. No way.
Ben: But my penetration rate has been going well.
Mahaansh: Yes & based on your it will go smoothly till about 95%. That is a bottleneck. At that point the strengthening of primary & secondary meridians would have happened. The penetration would also be somewhat complete. But from there on the penetration will slow down. The body is already flooded with aura. That is a natural phenomenon. If the body reinforced with aura will resist further penetration of meridians. Thus it will get difficult for the meridians to penetrate further.
Ben: Sounds too complicated. Guess I should wait till the noble realm!"