Twist and turn. Spin and stop. Karni breathed out, sweaty, watching what he saw in front of him with mild satisfaction. On his normal days, he would have been filled with happiness for his progress, but right now, he only knew that he needed to get stronger.
The Drumstick was spinning endlessly. He the right one in his hand, and the left one spun around the right one. And it did not stop spinning.
He threw it, and it circled like a boomerang. It worked just like how the Disordered Drumstick Resonance worked in the beginning. He caught the returning Drumstick with great finesse and the Drumsticks went into the previous state. Spinning endlessly around the other. He breathed a sigh of relief. It worked! It really worked!
This was the unique characteristic of the new technique: The Disordered Spiral Resonance.
In the battle against Lin San, this phenomenon only happened at the very end. Though back then, it was accompanied by another sensation. Karni was still missing that. However, this endless spinning was now reached far sooner than before after a week of practice. The fusion of the Disordered Drumstick Resonance and Resonant Spiral Force already succeeded at the 27th hit. What he now started calling the Disordered Spiral Resonance.
The effects of the unique effects that appeared every 9th hit of the Disordered Drumstick Resonance and the push and pull of the Resonant Spiral Force were constantly combined. In its base form, that appeared in the state of the endless spinning. When he sent the Drumsticks out, each Drumstick had its own effect of spirals. Even better, each hit of the combined technique brought forth more power than before.
Yet the increase was different, slower yet at the same time more explosive at every 9th hit. The unique characteristic of each bottleneck was strengthened as well. The upper ceiling of his power had increased overall.
And the most perfect show of that happened yesterday, when Karni's Sound completely ignored the Battle Armour's defences. Something which had always been an obstacle for him.
But Karni was convinced that that sensation contributed to that as well, and it really boggled his mind. For whatever reason, he could only get a semblance of it at the 45th hit, but it was a struggle to fully connect to it. The movements he used to combine the two techniques into Disordered Spiral Resonance were not connected to that sensation.
But he also found out through trying to recreate this phenomenon that there was a deep qualitative change in his very perception in those moments when he could feel it. He also found that the Disordered Spiral Resonance was the key to getting to this sensation. The build-up somehow triggered it.
Back in the fight he thought the two were one and the same. Now he could tell that the power of the movement, the endless spinning without his input fell under the Disordered Spiral Resonance, while whatever that Sound was fell into the very end of the build-up.
Karni continued spinning and hitting Drumsticks. One of them he held backhanded and another normally. He found out that this stance really was more efficient for Disordered Spiral Resonance. It was not for the Disordered Drumstick Resonance, but combining the two definitely helped him when he changed stances due to the addition of Spiral forces.
Karni built it up to the 45th hit and stopped to breathe in this feeling. Well, to listen to it was more accurate.
Then he swung and spun, deflected and threw again. And the Sound stayed. Just as it was. Karni could go on to hit 46th, 47th, even the 54th hit, but nothing would change; not the power, not the technique, nothing. He could simply go on and on and on, unless something disturbed it. In ideal situations, he did not have to worry about starting over anymore. And all the while the Sound stayed in this special state.
But the sensation, while there, still eluded him, which hinted at something more. The fact Karni did not need to reset gave Karni belief that this special state of Sound was not dependent on his movements. They were just one path to it. So, what exactly was this state?
He looked at the date. He had three more days to train. Then he'd have a perfect Guinea pig to test his theories on. The Wolf King.
… … …
Karni stepped up to the arena, and he had to admit, these past couple of days had actually been somewhat fun. At the very least, it felt good to train nonstop. Even the Tang Sect Project had a clear path to continue on, even if it was quite slow at the moment.
And here he was, still somehow not tired of fighting and actually looking forward to it… Oh no. Was he becoming a Battle Maniac? Karni shook his head. No. It was more likely connected to that feeling of frustration that hadn't left him for a while now. He liked having an outlet to let it out.
Like Hua Lantang, the Wolf King, who was on the other side of the arena. His Martial Soul was that of a Dragonwolf. His younger sister had a Dragonwolf Katana instead. The siblings were a mix of agility and assault types. Except, unlike most fights, Karni knew for a fact that the Dragonwolf man did not have many counters to Karni's abilities.
And Hua Lantang knew it as well. Hence as soon as the match started, he threw away his pride as the older combatant who was 20 years old compared to Karni's 15, and pulled out his deep purple Battle Armour.
Karni nodded. Good! At least his experimenting would be challenging.
The Dragonwolf transformed, Soul Rings coming to life. Four Purple, and surprisingly, one Black. The fifth, Black, Soul Ring got an immediate activation. It was a Strengthening type.
The scaled turned sharp and pointed out like a hedgehog. They moved with Hua Lantang's breath, as if he was breathing through his skin. A deep mist enveloped the body, though not the kind that would block sight, but the kind that pulsed with the vitality of the Soul Master.
"Alright then." Karni's third Soul Ring exploded alongside his own Battle Armour.
But that Wolf King. He really was just staring him into the eyes. He wanted Karni to make the first move. Well, if he gave him such a nice opportunity, why wouldn't Karni grab it.
Vision Bestowal activated and Karni disappeared immediately after.
The Wolf King started thrashing around. Lin San had warned him of the danger that Karni's second ring brought. The problem was that it was almost impossible to dodge, and they didn't know the activation method. There were really only two ways to avoid it. One could either close their eyes or have their back constantly turned to Karni. Both of these were quite difficult to figure out if Karni did not tell them about the skill.
But the Wolf King's instincts were sharp. He had to make up for the loss he experienced against Wulin before. Wulin immediately won in the 2v2 competition. The same competition that should have made it impossible for Hua Lantang to compete.
The Wolf King roared aloud, slapping against Karni's attack. A ring of metal sounded out as Drumstick met Battle Armour. It was immediately followed by another clash of metal, then another.
The audience saw it clearly. Karni was teleporting around Hua Lantang, always appearing behind, and always next to a Drumstick so he could strike again.
One, two, three, four, five hits, and the Dragonwolf crashed into the ground, causing an explosion.
It did not matter.
Six, seven, eight, nine hits were sent to crash into the armour, the Sound changing. The magnetic effect activated.
The bombardment increased, and the Dragonwolf could only stay in the middle, unable to retaliate.
Then the Vision Bestowal ran out, and Hua Lantang immediately jumped at Karni with speed, five claws from both hands slashing fiercely. Yet he slashed at air. Karni leaned backwards, his second Soul Ring shining again, looking Hue Lantang directly at his eyes. Then he vanished. And the bombardment of Sound and Drumsticks continued.
Fourteen, Fifteen, Sixteen, Seventeen and finally, Karni breathed, pausing just a little at the 18th hit. He spun his whole body and threw the Drumstick. A Spiral force gathered around it and hit the Wolf King. Yes, Karni had improved in the three days and could use Disordered Spiral Resonance at the 18th hit already.
A clear sound rang yet again, Battle Armour and Drumstick combined. But the Sound had yet to truly change into that next quality. The Battle Armour remained undisturbed. The same could not however be said for Hua Lantang himself.
What exactly did the Resonant Spiral Force do? Even without the fusion, it manipulated basic forces, a form of Gravity. A push and pull.
The Wolf King lost balance. His leg, which was hit, pulled to the side of the Drumstick, before suddenly rebounding. Hua Lantang barely regained balance before his other leg was already hit.
"Let's make you dance." Karni whispered to himself. Just how well could he control Hua Lantang's body? He would experiment that was the goal today. And he did not particularly care about how Hua Lantang would feel about it. What he was about to do was going to be incredibly unsportsmanlike.
Karni sent the Drumsticks flying, hitting legs and arms. Hua Lantang bent in the most unnatural of ways. It did not matter that the Battle Armour was there to strengthen and defend him. Karni's forces were both powerful as well as unpredictable.
The Drumsticks bounced, doing nothing, then a second later decided to Pull him in and yet later Push back.
On another hit Karni pulled instantly yet did not pull. Not until a second later.
Yet on another hit Karni where did not use pull, but only pushed.
The variations and timings constantly changed. At times it was the head on another was the legs which were forced to move.
As for what Hua Lantang actually did? Every time he would try something he would simply be interrupted. His right hand was pulled to the front and the left was forced to do the same after, then both arms were turned around, palms facing upward.
Then a Drumstick flew behind and only pulled the right hand to the left shoulder, and the second one came to pull the left hand to the right shoulder.
Karni appeared next to him pulling and pushing the Drumsticks together for a boom of Sound, a release of the 27th hit that almost threw Hua Lantang far into the distance, but Karni himself stabilised him. He moved Wolf King's arms to his neck. The right arm to the right side and the left to the left side.
Karni then Shifted above Hua Lantang, making a slight opening due to the previous release of Sound, and throwing the Drumstick downwards, with it pulling the arms in a criss-cross manner to the hips.
The Drumsticks circled around and pushed apart while Karni caught them. He Shifted and pulled again, moving the Arms to the hips, but in a normal way this time, without them crossing.
Then finally, the Sound seemed to darken and thicken within the Drumsticks, the 36th threshold reached, and Karni made Hua Lantang jump and do a quarter circle.
It was complete. The dance was complete. Now to do it once more but faster and with greater efficiency.
Arms to the front, arms turned around. Arms cross the shoulders, the neck next bound. Crossed at the hips, then make it flap… the Macarena dance that ends with a Clap!
Hua Lantang was forced to clap and at the same time, Karni reached the 45th hit.
And with it, Karni shadowed from behind, both Drumsticks in hand and at the same time came at Hua Lantang's helmet. Karni could see that just as he hit, Hua Lantang' 4th Soul Ring shone, as if he was waiting for this, but nothing happened. Hua Lantang still collapsed.
But Karni was left standing… and most importantly staring at his Drumsticks, still ringing from hitting the head piece of Hua Lantang's Battle Armour. And the Harmony he heard there…
Subconsciously, Karni released one of the Drumsticks. The two Drumsticks were not touching, but between them, he could feel, hear, and even see vibrations of Soundwaves. Beautiful Harmonies, connected through distance between the two Drumsticks.
And the one Karni released… it stayed afloat in the air. Neither pulled to the other Drumsticks, nor pushed out.
That was why he always lost that special sensation. He could feel it stabilising as the Sound connected through the air. He could almost understand what it was-
Movement. In front of him. Hua Lantang actually moved. Whatever Lin San told him, he definitely warned him about this 45th hit of Karni's.
However, the Wolf King was standing up with a lot of difficulty.
Karni grabbed the floating stick then put both Drumsticks next to his own ears and closed his eyes. He fell backwards freely, just as The Wolf King slashed at his face. And just before Karni hit the ground, his legs stretched, even his Bloodline working on full power to aid his body.
Lin San hesitated, but soon regained his clarity. The Bloodline was not strong enough yet to influence people over long periods of time when they resist.
Hua Lantang's tired body slashed, jumped, crunched, but it was all for nothing. Karni listened and Karni danced to the rhythm and harmony of the Drumsticks. His eyes were closed, the Drumsticks at his ears, yet it all guided him. Almost like a sixth sense.
Understanding. A golden Harmony. A constant Still Harmony. It acted like a guide. It was a guide. And it sang to him.
Hua Lantang's Soul Rings shone, and Karni made a simple move, blocking a claw. Karni's eyes were still closed, but he heard the Sound penetrate Battle Armour and completely overwhelm Hua Lantang's arm. He heard more than that. He heard a constant rhythm in the surroundings.
Karni bounced off, a Sound released as he jumped, his body one and the same with the Sound, he was filled with the wonderful Still Harmony.
Yet in one move, it vanished into complete silence, a silence such that Hua Lantang who was far away flinched, because he thought he had gone deaf for a second. He could not hear, nor feel his own Heart.
Then Karni released a quiet tone from his Third Soul Ring, Sonic Rhythm, and the Sound exploded, the energy jumped, then coalesced and suddenly… it calmed. And Karni felt it again. The Still Harmony. It remained, but Disordered Spiral Resonance stopped.
He spun the Drumstick and could not help but laugh out loud, though even his laughter was perfectly rhythmic. There was a bit of crazy in his laughter. He actually started Disordered Spiral Resonance immediately. From zero. No build up required. As long as he had Still Harmony, he could jumpstart the technique.
He spun once, Still Harmony working in tandem with Disordered Spiral Resonance, and he threw the Drumstick, hitting The Wolf King, who once again, as he was hit, activated his Fourth Soul Ring.
From the front Karni noticed the Wolf King's head suddenly gaining an additional helmet underneath the Battle Armour. So, Karni did a simple thing. He placed the two Drumsticks around Hua Lantang's head, then let them go.
The Drumsticks simply floated there for a while. Not moving, but neither did Hua Lantang.
He looked closely at the Wolf King. He was slightly shaking. He touched the head for a bit and nodded. He looked at the referee, who checked Hua Lantang twice, just in case he would rise back up like before. But it was clearly over.
He raised his hand and announced. "Val Karni wins."
Karni nodded, then touched Hua Lantang's face again, literally sucking the Sound out of him, and directly into himself. No Martial Soul needed.
Hua Lantang woke up, then noticed the referee and cursed. "You humiliated me!"
Karni scratched his head. "Eh? Did I? Oh well. Thanks, by the way. If not for you being easy to deal with I would not have grown."
"I- What?"
"Because of you I was able to grow. Thanks. It was a decent fight." Karni nodded to the man and left.
Hua Lantang was left with mixed emotions. The way Karni said it was incredibly rude, but… he thanked him? He felt insulted, and looked over, but…. He shook his head. He did not know how to process this. He returned to his side, where a familiar figure approached him.
"Big brother. That bastard played with you-"
Hua Lantang raised his hand. "Jingxiao, not now. I have a lot to think about."
Hua Jingxiao cursed under her breath. "Damn it. I should have fought him." She looked to Karni who just left the arena. "Next time I won't let you go."
… … …
Karni walked off to the hotel, the whole way feeling wondrous, every bit of Sound magically sensitive. He could feel the waves of Sound bouncing off of every building, from every human to human. Sound of people going shopping, chatting at a café, crying over breakups, laughing about the past, getting mugged… Getting mugged?!
Karni Shifted instinctively, landing in front of the mugger, and knocking him out instantly. A normal human being. He used his Tang Sect glasses to inform the nearest police of where the perpetrator was and returned the stolen purse to an older lady. The guy could stay stunned, Karni had no respect for people like this anymore. He had long passed the point when he doubted his judgment.
Siduo was right back then. Actions do speak louder than words. And while circumstances should still be taken into account, it was not something that should matter when it comes to survival.
Karni was now also strong. Strong to the point that he could afford to not take people's lives and handle them delicately. The Sound would dissipate from the man in a day or two. The shithead could take a little suffering.
Tang Sect disciples were allowed to act as a temporary police force, but everything regarding normal humans was to be taken care of by the police after. In such a way, Karni left them with an easy capture.
Then he heard yet more. He was sensitive today. So many voices. He Shifted again, stopping a guy taking a shortcut from being beaten up. Just after that he had to Shift again. A child got lost.
So many things would happen at once in a big city! Karni had to Shift again.
… … …
Karni appeared at what was now… what? 30th something rescue? Luckily, the one he heard now was also the last one he heard. Because he'd been reporting so much crime the police were all along the streets, which also meant that the city seemed to have started calming down. Or at least the centre of the city had just lowered its crime rate for that day.
This one was the weirdest one of all though. Kids in a deep red uniform, bullying a kid who was not in uniform. A civilian without Soul Power.
"What do you think you're doing?" Karni heard from the other side of the alley. He looked over and noticed a familiar figure. The Dragonwolf girl. Her Katana already out on her shoulder, all four of her rings shining Purple, the last of which was slightly darker.
"Shit! It's Hua Jingxiao! Run!" One of them quickly started running, only for Karni to jump him from above using only Tang Sect Techniques and now wearing a full Tang Sect White Agent uniform. He heard what the girl said from the other side of the arena before, he did not want her recognising him. He really did not feel like dealing with her right now.
"Since you're attacking a civilian, the crime will be heavy."
"The Empire has no such laws unless we kill the- ughf." Karni knocked another one on the ground.
"True. But you got caught by the Tang Sect. And we have the freedom to dish out punishment to people like you." He looked at Hua Jingxiao. His AR Glasses showed she too was an inner sect member like him.
"Disciple sister. What is the punishment again?"
Hua Jingxiao was slightly shocked at Karni knowing she was from Tang Sect, but quickly got over it. Her Katana was at the ready. "When a Soul Master attacks a powerless civilian, they are to pay with their Soul Power."
"Wh-What do you mean, how do you pay with Soul Power." Another kid, which was smart enough to already surrender, asked.
"Your Dantian gets crippled." Karni answered him. That was correct. Tang Sect had no chill when it came to Soul Masters attacking civilians, because civilians really couldn't do anything against them. Soul Masters on the other hand had never been considered civilians. On Douluo attacking civilians as a Soul Master was deeply frowned upon. While the Empire did not have any specific laws against it, there was a reason why they let Tang Sect have jurisdiction over such matters.
Not only was Tang Sect deeply respected, but their laws were not as well known. So, when something like this happened, the status of the criminals in the empire would not count for jack shit.
One of them seemed to have forgotten this. "You just wait. My dad is the brother of the Star Crown Duke! You can't touch me! Try it if you dare, see what happens." He smiled cruelly, then stood up and walked toward Karni as if he had already won. He looked Karni in the eyes, and Karni held back on using Vision Bestowal.
A starry crown appeared on his head. Starlight gathered in his arms. Then he tried to push Karni to the ground. "Beg- AWH!"
Karni already had him in a grapple. One of the spoiled shit's arms stretched.
"Owowowow! Didn't you hear me! My dad is- AAAAAAAAAAH!"
Karni broke his arm in a way that would leave lasting damage. The jackass's Martial Soul was a crown. He didn't need the arm for combat. It would still function day to day after some healing. "I'm sure your father would love to talk to the Tang Sect and be willing to contribute some money in exchange for us not crippling his son." Karni said, then let him go. "This is your first and only warning."
The kid ran away, crying. The others soon followed. "And same for the rest of you."
"Is that really okay, disciple brother?" Hua Jingxiao asked.
Karni nodded. "I'll keep an eye out. It will be good practice for me as well. Anyway, I'll put this in the log and credit you as well. See you." Karni quickly jumped and went off.
"See you?" The girl thought out loud.
… … …
Karni facepalmed, back in his hotel room. Fucking idiot. Why did he say see you? He really had been off lately. Just when he felt a bit wonderful after a long time, that very ability made him go on a rescue spree and find shitty people.
He sat in a meditative pose. He calmed his heart. Best way to get a clear head had recently been to fall into work. It was time to do some analysis of his improvements.
First and foremost was his Sound. His Spiritual Power… yep, still at the bottleneck. He felt that if it had increased, it should have been more impactful. His Soul Power… also still the same.
Well, that's annoying. It seemed that today was an increase of his Comprehension in Sound, but that was the only thing. It sure was different, this feeling of oneness with everything the Sound touched.
Karni was also mentally tired, he didn't even feel like complaining. Constantly being in that wonderful state really caused some mental exhaustion. His Spiritual Power was being depleted nonstop.
And somehow, he did not even know how to stop it. In fact, this new state, Still Harmony was even more sensitive now that he was tired for some reason. So, he visited a person he was sure would be able to help. He knocked on a neighbouring door.
"Karni?" Xu Xiaoyan was confused at his visit.
"Hey. Do you have any ear mufflers? One that might block out Sound?"
She looked at him weirdly. "Why would you want that?"
"During my match today, I had a breakthrough. I feel the Sound all around me and even throughout my body, but well… I wanna rest and I can't seem to turn it off."
Xu Xiaoyan chuckled. "Gimme a sec. I think I have a black pair somewhere." She went into the room and quickly returned. "Here."
Karni thanked her but could not help asking. "Say, how many colours do you have."
"Twenty? Anything that is a necessity needs at least twenty variations. If it's necessary, you have to make sure it can go with all styles. Wouldn't want to accidentally mix purple and green."
Karni nodded, as if it was normal. "Of course. Anyway, thank you again." He grabbed the mufflers, returned to his room, then sighed. "What a weirdo."
He put on the mufflers, and while they did not help perfectly, as his whole body was reacting to Sound, once he put on a blanket and turned on the AC so it was loud, he could make most of the outside Sound disappear. Most. Not all. He had trouble falling asleep.
… … …
Karni woke up and stretched. Feeling shitty, but better. The Still Harmony was not bothering him anymore either. Great!
But he was curious. Yesterday, he managed to turn the Sound off, completely reset it, then turn it back on again. Toward the later part of the day however, when he'd been using it for a while. He was unable to turn it off anymore.
He took out his Drumsticks and focused on the Sound. He did just like before. A tiny sprinkle of Sonic Rhythm, sucked in all of the immediate Sound and finally… He struck the Drumsticks together in a beautiful melody.
A really beautiful melody… but the Still Harmony was not there.
It wasn't there!