I decided to practice for the next four days until the inter-sect competition, putting into practice what I had learned from practicing in the forest when trying to master techniques. That is, real practice and use are the fastest ways to perfection.
Instead of just sparring with Nicholas once a day, I decided to practice with him twice a day and also take on random people at the arena. This would effectively speed up my path to perfecting my new techniques as well as let me earn combat experience.
Since I was now two stages above Nicholas, it would be too easy to win. Not to say it was useless, as he can still give me pointers, but he would be quite a bit slower than me now. As for sparring with others, I don't want to get too used to one person's movements that I can't fight against anyone else.
Since most people sleep at night, I would spar all day and practice my stealth at night by sneaking around the sect. This would also familiarize myself with the sect layout even better, making it even harder to detect or capture me once the games began.
After making my plans and leaving the library, I went home and started reading the manuals. Since it's a little late today to read the manuals, practice them to where I don't need the manuals in front of me anymore, and go to the arena today to spar, I decided to start my sparring tomorrow.
I sat down in the middle of the room and opened the manuals to start practicing. The dagger technique wasn't too hard to comprehend; it's a series of different attack and defense moves using a dagger reinforced with astral energy. However, the concealment was another story, wrapping astral energy around yourself to change the light being reflected off you. It explains how the astral energy can interact with light and all kinds of such things that have me pulling my hair out in frustration. This whole manual is about the intricacies of how astral energy interacts with light, which is fine, except I don't have astral energy.
Using the fist and footwork techniques wasn't too difficult as I could reinforce myself in the same way as one would with astral energy to use them. The same goes for the dagger one, but my energy does not interact with anything in the same way as astral energy.
I decided to give it a go anyway in case I could figure anything out from experimentation.
I made a thin sheet of energy in front of me. I could still see right through it, though. After walking around it a few times, I tried to make it vibrate, which helped a little as it made the area behind a little distorted but not nearly enough. Though this gave me an idea, if light passes through and vibrating it can interact with the light, then my devour skill should also interact with the light.
I made the sheet of energy break down everything that touched it, and suddenly, it turned a terrifying shade of black, black like the abyss, as if it wanted to devour everything. Even being the one who made it just looking into that void of all light was slightly frightening.
Although it did make it impossible to see what is behind it, it also would erase everything in the background, leaving a silhouette of the abyss to be seen. Though this gave me some ideas on some more skills I could make, it's not what I need now. Maybe I can filter out light at different distances from the sheet that can still pass through it.
After a few minutes of tinkering, I finished. When I held my hand right behind it, my hand was gone as if it had been suddenly cut off, a little creepy. But I could still see the background clearly.
I wrapped my new idea around myself. However, I couldn't move as it didn't move with me. I realized I had tied it to a spot in space rather than tying it to myself so it would move with me. After adjusting it to move with me, I decided it was time to head out and test it.
[New skill added 'Invisibility']
I know it only makes me invisible to the eye, doesn't conceal other things about me, but I think that's fine for this world. It's not like they have thermal cameras like my original world, though I'll have to improve it sometime.
Deciding to practice my dagger techniques at the same time, I purchased a grade 3 dagger from the store and headed to the courtyard with the dagger technique manual.
Standing in the middle of the courtyard, I set the book off to the side to practice the first part on fighting unarmed opponents. I imagined a figure in front of me launching a punch that I needed to block and swiftly counter. At first, I was slow and messing up the steps, but over the next 2 hours, I got the hang of it. Now I needed a real opponent to practice with.
While practicing I hadn't notice the sun had gone down, and darkness had fallen on the sect, illuminated only by the glittering stars and a few lamps in the streets. Very few people were still out, as most had already gone to sleep.
Deciding to test my invisibility, I stood in the path of one of these people, but he just kept walking while looking through me. It's an eerie feeling having someone looking at you but focused behind you like there is some danger that they are looking at; maybe this is how ghosts feel. My invisibility works very, very well, probably even better than the original concealment for astral practitioners.
Before he reached me, I stepped out of the way. My shoes made a small scraping sound on the cobble street, and he froze looking in the direction of my feet. I wondered if I should cancel the invisibility and scare the shit out of him for a little fun but quickly put away the idea. When people start disappearing, it would be bad if there were rumors of an invisible person with someone having seen me.
After he continued on his way, I sighed. While my invisibility may be very good, that doesn't mean someone can't notice something else like the sounds I make. I'm going to have to learn how to walk and move silently.
I messed around, wandering through the streets and alleys for a few more hours while making sure no one could actually see me as I employed various methods to ensure they weren't able to see anything; if they had, they certainly would have tried to beat me again.
When on the edge of the sect's town, I spotted two foundation establishment practitioners making out on the back wall of one of the buildings, I think an alchemy building used by the sect disciples to refine pills. Just thinking I was going to keep making sure I was truly invisible, I silently walked closer. When I could make out the faces of the people, I was shocked to find they were one of Kedron's bodyguards from that day as well as the girl that was sitting in his lap.
How could they be doing this? Wouldn't Kedron be angry and kill them? I would be. I wanted to lure Kedron over to see what his reaction would be and stir up some trouble within his group; however, I was unable to think of a good way to do it. Since it was in the middle of the night, he would be sleeping in his direct disciple's house, and if I did manage to lure him over, it would undoubtedly cause a commotion that would alert these 2 to run away before being caught.
Maybe I should kill them and start the hunt for Kedron's goons tonight. If I stab one, even if I instantly kill them, the other would scream.
The delicate sound of their lips meeting and contented murmurs were really getting my little bro excited. As I leaned against the wall a few yards away examining them for if there is a way to kill them silently, the girl suddenly wrapped her legs around the guy's hips, bringing her neck up to the same level as the guy's. A smile formed on my lips as I saw the perfect way.
I pulled out my dagger and cloaked it in my invisibility also. It has a blade length of 7" and the grade 3 materials would go through these foundation establishment peoples' flesh like a hot knife through butter.
With adrenaline coursing through my blood, I could feel heat in my veins. I silently crept behind the back of the man standing only inches away while holding my breath so as not to tickle the hairs on his neck, alerting him to impending death.
Reaching around him, I pointed the dagger towards the side of the girl's neck. I needed to be fast in my movements, yet precise to avoid one or the other making noise. Such a pity she's on Kedron's side; I feel a little bad ruining her delicate neck. I plunged the dagger through the main artery, all the way over and through the other one. Then, in the same motion pulled it forward, cutting through her windpipe, across the small gap between their necks, and into the guy's neck slicing neatly through his windpipe and one artery, all in a fraction of a second, only falling short of perfect by not being able to sever both of the man's arteries, but that doesn't really matter. Even being a grade 3 weapon against foundation establishment, I was still surprised at just how easily it sliced; the system weapons are really good.
The girl's eyes flashed open as she grabbed her neck, looking at the guy with an accusation of betrayal and bubbles formed between her supple lips. I took a few steps to the side to avoid being run into as they broke apart. I couldn't see the guy's eyes, but I imagine they look the same as he grabbed his neck trying to stop the bleeding to no avail and stumbled back gurgling.
Blood spurted through their fingers as they tried to hold it in. The girl tried to run toward the main street but only made it a few steps before falling, leaving bloody hand prints while trying to crawl along the wall before she collapsed, with a rapidly growing pool of blood under her head. The light left her eyes seconds later. The man stood a little longer but a kick to the back of the knee solved that; blood spread into the cracks in the cobblestone where they lay as the second one bled out also.
I lifted the girl's head and looked at her pretty face; what a shame to be on Kedron's side, definitely an 8/10. I searched their pockets for anything useful, only a grade 2 stone and identity papers. After searching, I activated my devour skill to clean up the corpses quickly.
"This is only a little interest you owe" I whispered while looking towards Kedron's home.
I was surprised at how fast they vanished, only taking about 2 minutes each. The place in the body where they store the astral power had a little extra energy; I think since it hasn't been condensed it dissipated after death quickly. I made a mental note about this for later.
The blood was a bit of a problem, taking almost 2 hours to clean it off the cobble street and walls without damaging them. I was lucky no one came by; I really need to find a better solution to the blood next time. I was mentally exhausted from controlling the devour skill so precisely; however, this also greatly improved my proficiency in its control.
By the time I finished, the sunlight was just peeking over the horizon, and I headed home to rest before my sparring later.