"We need to test Lucas' theory out," Charles declared in a solemn tone.
"Indeed, this isn't an issue we can just set aside or put off until later," Sasha immediately agreed with her husband.
"But how are we going to do that?" Anna interjected, "Between the 4 of us, we only have 4 Cultivation Techniques, and the ones Drake and I cultivate are the simplest and most basic of all which barely even have proper Circulation Mantras."
"On top of that, Eris only managed to stumble onto this discovery by accident, and it's already a small miracle that she wasn't injured in the process," Drake added with concern.
"In order to properly evaluate Lucas' theory, we would need to be intimately familiar with various Cultivation Techniques as well as the Unarmed Foundations Art," Anna reasoned before turning her gaze towards her son.
Lucas was at a loss given the flurry of discussion going on, however he still shook his head, "I don't mean to be rude, but frankly speaking, all of you are just beginners when it comes to mastering the Unarmed Foundations Art. Even I can't completely practice it yet because I'm too young and my body hasn't fully developed."
"Lucas also hasn't started cultivating yet and won't until next year when he turns 10. What's more, even if he did start cultivating early, it would take him a long time before he mastered any Cultivation Technique we could give him," Charles pointed out with some frustration.
"How long do you think it would take for one of us to master the Unarmed Foundations Martial Art, Lucas?" Drake asked his son.
"At least a year to achieve basic mastery. As for full mastery, probably 5 or more years," Lucas responded immediately, squashing the hopes of the adults in the room.
"Is it really necessary for one person to do everything by themselves?" Eris chimed in, feeling a bit left out of the conversation up until now.
Furrowing his brow, Charles turned to his daughter and tried to explain, "In order to see if the efficiency of our Cultivation Techniques can be improved by combining them with Lucas' Art, we would first need to find appropriate matches between the two, then practice them for a time while measuring our progress. That can only be done once one of us has mastered both techniques."
"Maybe not," Lucas interjected, and as all eyes turned to him, he spoke his thoughts, "There might be a way for us to speed up the process, but it will depend on whether Mom, Dad, Uncle Charles, and Aunt Sasha are willing to share their Cultivation Techniques with me."
Although they didn't quite understand what their son wanted to do, Anna and Drake were both open to this idea as they would have eventually taught their Cultivation Techniques to Lucas anyways.
On the other hand, this statement immediately drew a frown from Charles and Sasha. Traditionally, sharing a high Grade Cultivation Technique, which was generally the core of a noble family's inheritance, was a massive taboo.
In fact, Charles knew next to nothing about the Flowing Flame Art as Sasha had never taught it to him. While he was her husband, he didn't belong to the Balfour Family and thus had no right to learn it. Even Sasha teaching Eris the Flowing Flame Art was something of a risk, despite Eris having the Balfour Family's blood flowing through her veins.
Going against one's ingrained teachings and traditions was always difficult, so Charles and Sasha couldn't immediately agree. However, after giving it some thought, the husband and wife realized that Lucas had already openly shared his Martial Art with them, which was arguably 100 times more valuable than their Cultivation Techniques, so after some reflection, they decided to at least ask Lucas about what he was planning to do.
Faced with this question, Lucas knew that he had to provide a convincing argument if he wanted to move the conversation forward. As such, the first thing he did was turn to Eris and declare, "Big Sister, I'm going to teach you 2 new Forms right now."
Naturally, everyone in the training room was confused, but the young boy quickly explained, "Big Sister said she slightly altered 2 Forms in order to better match her movements with her Cultivation Technique, and from what I observed earlier, I think I know why, but I can't say for certain. That's why I want to teach her a couple of new Forms to replace the ones she altered to see if they better synchronize with the Flowing Flame Art."
"Isn't that dangerous?" Sasha immediately asked in a worried tone. Eris had been lucky so far in that there had been no negative side-effects from her practicing the Unarmed Foundations Art and the Flowing Flame Art in concert, but that didn't mean it would still be the case if they started fiddling around with the Forms she was performing.
Lucas wanted to say he was confident that nothing would go wrong, but he wasn't, so he could only turn to his mother and ask, "Mom, you once told me that in order to cultivate, we first take in World Qi from our surroundings, then circulate it through our bodies while slowly refining and absorbing it to strengthen ourselves, right?"
Nodding, Anna decided to add, "That's right, Son. Cultivation is basically like eating, we take in food to grow our bodies, and that makes us stronger."
"Then, a Cultivation Technique must be like a set of instructions on how to circulate Qi within ourselves, yes?" Lucas continued to ask.
This time, it was his father who answered, "Yes and no, Lucas. A Cultivation Technique isn't just a set of instructions, it's also a kind of mental guidance which helps us gather then move World Qi around our bodies in specific patterns."
Pondering for a moment, Lucas suddenly gained a look of understanding as he muttered, "The Mantra."
"You're a quick learner," Charles praised, "That's right, reciting and executing the Cultivation Technique's Mantra is what allows us to properly guide World Qi around our bodies and refine it into Spirit Qi. In the Body Tempering Realm, this process mostly takes place through our bloodstream, but once you reach the Vein Opening Realm and begin unlocking the Meridians, they take over this role."
"It that's the case, then I believe that the reason Big Sister Eris was able to use the Unarmed Foundations Art and Flowing Flame Art together to improve her cultivation speed was because the Forms she was practicing stretched or strained the parts of her body which the Mantra was guiding Qi towards, allowing her to absorb more of it in each circulation," Lucas stated his hypothesis.
Taking a moment to mull this theory over, the 4 adults in the room felt that what the young boy had proposed made sense, and this was only bolstered when Eris added, "I think Lucas is right. When I practice the Flowing Flame Art together with the Forms, I feel like I am breathing out less Qi from my body at the end of each circulation compared to before."
Seemingly understanding what Lucas was getting at, Sasha spoke up, "So what you're trying to say is that if we can describe in detail to you how our Cultivation Techniques are circulating Qi through our bodies, you can find appropriate Forms to match the process?"
Nodding lightly, Lucas agreed, "That's why I want to perform a small test with Big Sister Eris. I noticed that the 2 Forms she altered made them similar to 2 specific Forms I have yet to teach her. While the alterations Big Sister made aren't necessarily incorrect, there are some awkward parts to them which make her movements disjointed. I think this problem can be solved if she uses the alternatives I have in mind."
"So that's it!" Anna called out excitedly, "If Little Eris uses the 2 new Forms in place of the ones she altered, and her cultivation efficiency increases again, it will be proof that Lucas' idea is correct. And if Lucas' thinking is correct, we should be able to apply the same process to all of our Cultivation Techniques!"
"That doesn't eliminate the risk," Sasha argued, "If something goes wrong, Eris may end up seriously hurt!"
Anna, Drake, Charles, and even Lucas all had their spirits dampened when they heard this. Essentially what they were doing was testing an unproven idea on Eris, and that thought didn't sit well with any of them.
However, Eris was of a completely different mindset and declared, "I want to try!"
"But…"
Cutting off her mother, Eris continued, "I know you're worried about me, Mom, but don't you always tell me that in order to become a powerful Cultivator one day, I must learn to face danger and risk? Compared to the stories you and Dad told me about your adventuring days, I don't think the test Lucas wants me to help with is a big deal."
Words of objection immediately caught in Charles and Sasha's throats, and as they thought back to their own youth when they ran through the fields and forests with weapons in hand, hunting Wild Beasts which could tear them apart with their fangs and claws, what they were trying to do now really didn't seem all that dangerous in comparison.
Seeing a chance, Eris kept up her persuasion campaign, "I know what I did was bad, and I'm sorry I didn't tell you about it before, but I've already succeeded once, so I can definitely do it again!"
This kind of logic was obvious flawed, as just because one succeeded in something risky once doesn't necessarily mean they could repeat that success. Everyone else in the room knew this, even Lucas, who was now regretting opening his mouth.
If he had just stayed quiet, instead of exposing his Big Sister Eris to risk, he could have experimented on himself after he began cultivating next year, a scenario he felt he would have much more control over and thus preferred greatly.
Realizing that her last argument seemed to have backfired on her, Eris racked her brain for another way to convince everyone, but try as she might, she couldn't think of anything to say.
Unlike Lucas, who had suddenly gained a lot of new memories and knowledge greatly improving his maturity and critical thinking abilities, Eris was just an ordinary 12-year-old girl who, while not a rebellious of wicked child, did grow up a bit spoiled by those around her. In the end, unable to get her way, she resorted to stomping her foot and declaring, "Even if you don't let me try now, I'll learn those Forms eventually and just try it myself later!"
As Eris' swordsmanship teacher, Anna recognized this stubborn streak in her student and understood that she really would do this if they kept refusing. Sasha and Charles also knew their daughter well enough to realize she wasn't just throwing a tantrum and was determined to carry out this plan, despite knowing the risks.
Eventually, it was Drake who decided to mediate, "I know that all of us are nervous about this, but if it's inevitable, I think it's better for us to participate fully so we can be here to monitor the situation and help if needed rather than letting Little Eris experiment on her own."
"Experiment?" Charles asked, prompting Drake to explain the concept his son had recently introduced to him.
"I see," Charles nodded, "I suppose you're right. Eris is as stubborn as her Mot…"
Receiving an icy glare from his wife, the noble and powerful Baron Newton coughed and corrected himself, "As stubborn as her Father was in his youth, so she'll definitely try something on her own even if we tell her not to. In which case, we might as well help her instead so we can try to minimize the risks."
With a snort, Sasha let out a sigh, "Where did I go wrong raising this girl… Fine, fine, if we're going to do this, we should put our all into it."
And so, it was decided that a new experiment would begin, one that would eventually have a more profound and far-reaching impact than anyone in the small training room ever imagined possible.