But this technique was special as it only contains one stage and doesn't possess an ultima state unlike the others as the technique was its own Ultima state; The Phantom Force
The Phantom Force state: Creating your own personal time dilation thereby overclocking the entire nervous system as well as the cells that build the legs, allowing the user to perceive and interact with the world at a higher frame rate for a short period of time.
From the user's perspective time slows down, from an outside perspective the user is moving at superhuman speed. The technique can only be used for short durations because the nervous system and body cells can't take the strain of moving at those speeds for prolonged periods.
But the difficulty of reaching the first state was as high as trapping clouds! Even higher than Berserk Explosion's first state.
Finally deciding, he heaved a breath he didn't know he was holding and left the floor to fiest floor to submit the techniques he had chosen.
He saw an old man on the counter.
The old man was seated lazily in a chair as the Librarian.
"What? Three-Step Saber Kill?" The Librarian started to frown and tried to persuade Theon, "Young one, a journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step. Never aim too high or too far. Put your feet on the ground and take it step by step. Three-Step Saber Kill is just a Tier-1 manual but the difficulty of mastering it is almost as hard as other Tier-3 manuals. Even if you successfully master this technique, you'd still end up dead either way. Many students chose not to listen to me and ended up dead. Listen to this old man's words and work steadily, one step at a time, to make solid progress."
Theon nodded his head as he listened to the speaker's heart and said, "I've thought about it a couple of times and have decided."
The Librarian remained silent and shook his head, thinking of all the students from before, also once full of confidence, before ending up dead up crippled after months of practice. Such a shame that their confidence was the only thing they had to show.
"Well...never mind. I do not have the right to stop students from choosing what they want. My job is to disperse wisdom in hopes that they would realize their abilities, instead of holding on to a fruitless dream."
With that thought in mind, the old man added, "Remember the Academy rules. You are not allowed to teach combat arts privately without permission, otherwise, you will face death. In more serious circumstances, your family will be decapitated. ."
"Don't worry sir, I am the least person likely to joke about my own life," Theon said seriously.
Looking at the second technique, the old man only glanced at him seriously for a second, convinced this was an extremely arrogant individual who wouldn't learn his errors easily before cutting the connection.
He reached under his desk and brought out three manuals.
"Here is the Three-Step Saber Kill, the Thunder Step Leg Art and the Symbiote Breathing Technique. Good luck."
Theon happily nodded and grabbed the manual while walking out of the Archive.
Theon sighed slowly. The old man gave him a feeling of nervousness. Soon, he forgot all about the old man and focused on the notification that appeared before him.
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[Ding! Quest (Acquire a Combat technique) Completed]
[Reward: Nine-Step Saber Kill +1 Level]
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[Ding! Quest (Acquire a Movement technique) Completed]
[Reward: Thunder-Step Leg Art +1 Level]
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[Ding! Quest (Acquire a Cultivation technique) Completed]
[Reward: Symbiosis Devouring Technique +1 level ]
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Instantly, massive amounts of knowledge crashed into his consciousness like a thunderous waterfall.
Three separate streams of technique understanding flooded his mind simultaneously, each carrying years of accumulated martial wisdom compressed into pure information.
The Three-Step Saber Kill technique unfolded before his mental eye like a deadly flower blooming in reverse.
He could see every movement, feel every muscle contraction, understand the precise energy flows that made each step possible. At this moment, he felt he could use the first move without much effort but didn't dare to.
The Thunder Step Leg Art was made for pure speed. Unlike other movement arts that relied on clever positioning or energy efficiency, this was raw acceleration by allowing the cells to imitate the frequency of thunder for movement, pushing his body beyond the human limit.
Finally, the Symbiosis Breathing Technique flows into him like a calm sea as its complexity unfolded before him like a flower.
This wasn't the typical cultivation it involved bonding with a parasitic organism that would enhance his energy absorption while feeding on his primal energy in return. However it wasn't that simple. The control of energy and the ratio of demand and supply needed to be fixed otherwise the parasitic organism would lash back.
Within minutes of leaving the Archive, he had reached the Beginner stage in all three techniques. His mind processed the complex martial principles and energy manipulation patterns as if he had been studying them for months.
"Even the academy's greatest prodigies need a day or three to reach Beginner stage," he murmured, walking back toward House 212.
Back in his private quarters, Theon entered his combat room and began practicing.
"I shall practice twenty set of Thunder-Step Leg art]
[Ding! Quest Created]
Just like that, he created quests, completed them and received the rewards all through the night.
At some point though, he only received primal energy pills as rewards making him ponder.
But by the time morning reached, he had achieved something that should have taken months of dedicated training.
Not only had he advanced from Level 1 to Level 2 Genetic Soldier through pure cultivation, but he had somehow reached peak Beginner stage mastery in all three techniques. His body moved with the fluid precision of someone who had been practicing these arts for years, while his energy control had become sophisticated enough to attempt the techniques' more demanding applications.