"Cavitation?" Leyvi wasn't familiar with this term.
"Yes, it's when my super fast attack created a low-pressure area, which caused the water to vaporize, creating a bubble. When the bubble collapses, it creates a secondary shockwave that adds to the power of my attack," Reddie explained eagerly.
"You can only do this in water?" Leyvi was disappointed. Since it requires a bubble to collapse from pressure, obviously he couldn't do it on land.
"Well, I can't do it without water, but maybe we might be able to do something similar, I'm not sure," Reddie suggested, her antennae twitching thoughtfully.
Leyvi's mind raced with possibilities. "Could you show me how you do it in water, so I can understand the concept better?"
Reddie nodded excitedly and dashed towards the pool, her many legs moving in a blur. The water's surface rippled as she dove in, her bright red shell glistening under the early morning sun. She beckoned for him to come closer.
Curious, Leyvi walked to the pool's edge, his eyes following Reddie's movements as she began to demonstrate. As she unleashed a lightning-fast attack in the water, Leyvi saw a bubble formed in a split second at the tip of her club-like appendage and instantly collapsed, creating a powerful shockwave. This was what Leyvi detected during the tournament.
According to Reddie, bubbles are formed from water that vaporizes in a low-pressure area. Leyvi didn't know about this.
"Reddie, can you do it again? But attack me instead." He asked. Leyvi jumped into the pool as he intended to personally feel how it worked.
"Sure!" Reddie's antennae perked up and she charged at him. He readied himself for the hit, feeling the water around her vibrating with her movement. When the club-like appendage hit his stomach, the bubble formed and collapsed with a surprisingly loud noise, sending a shockwave through his body. Although it was a light blow, the force was incredible.
Leyvi felt dizzy. The impact from the club didn't do any damage to him but the shockwave coming from the cavitation penetrated his body, transmitting pulses of high-pressure energy and damaging his body from the inside. He could feel his internal organs injured from the attack. It was amazing.
If he could implement something like this in his attack, maybe he could directly ignore his enemy's defense and damage them from the inside. When he was fighting against Old Bong, he used earth armor to protect himself preventing his attacks from injuring him.
However, if he could somehow create an effect similar to cavitation, even if he couldn't destroy the armor, he could bypass his earth armor defense and directly injure him with the high-pressure pulses.
However, theorizing was the easy part, implementing it was another story. There's no way for Leyvi to come up with a method like that right now. So Leyvi decided to train his body again, by strengthening it from the inside.
He requested Reddie to attack him with the cavitation again and again. Every time he accumulated enough damage, he would heal himself again. Just like when he trained with Mr. Bison, he trained his body again with Reddie.
It was a painful process. Each hit sent shockwaves through his body, causing his organs to tremble and his bones to ache. Yet, with each hit, he felt his body growing stronger, adapting to the high-pressure impulses wreaking havoc in his body.
Although Leyvi doesn't have enough knowledge and the intelligence to utilize the cavitation collapse shockwave right now, he would slowly study things related to it and increase his knowledge. All he could do to become stronger right now was to endure immense pain and overcome it, in the most barbaric way he knew of.
And so the training continued. Reddie, with her unbridled excitement, would attack him with her cavitation move over and over again. He could see the joy in her eyes every time she hit him. It was like playing catch with a child who hadn't played in a long time. But for him, it was a grind of pain and recovery.
After Reddie was tired, Leyvi let her rest, and she used the time to play around the backyard. Is this really a demonic beast that won beast tamer tournaments three times? She was more like a little girl.
Leyvi continued training in the pool. He wanted to try creating a cavitation bubble like Reddie does. Based on the information he has right now, a cavitation bubble was created due to low pressure. To achieve this low-pressure effect, he has to move extremely fast in the water.
Moving in water was extremely difficult, much less making fast movements. The resistance was tenfold compared to land, and even with his increased strength, it was like swimming through honey.
He kicked and punched, trying to mimic how Reddie moved, but his efforts were clumsy and ineffective. Despite the failure, he didn't give up. Leyvi spent the rest of the day practicing various punches and kicks in the water to find the best movements that allowed him to move the fastest in the water.
Time passed, and a week was left before the Alchemy Conference started.
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"Mother, you came!" Selene Goldstone greeted her mother who had just arrived at their vacation house in the Holy Cat City.
"Yes, I did. How have you been here?" Madam Goldstone replied with a warm smile.
"It's been... interesting," Selene said, her eyes flickering with a hint of mischief. "But mother, I have something important to tell you."
Madam Goldstone raised an eyebrow. Her daughter rarely spoke about personal matters, especially with such urgency. "What is it, Selene?"
Selene took a deep breath, her cheeks flushing slightly. "I've met someone... someone I really like," she confessed, her voice barely above a whisper.
Madam Goldstone's eyes lit up with excitement. "Oh, really? Tell me about him!" she urged, taking a seat next to Selene.
Selene looked down, playing with her fingers. "His name is...Leyvi Leyan. He's a beast tamer, and he's so kind and strong. We met during the Spirit Beast tournament," she began, her voice growing more animated as she recounted their encounters.
Madam Goldstone was speechless. It was already hard enough that her son was short and had trouble finding a woman, now her daughter was a weird case too. She only met him in the tournament and he didn't even know her real face. What made it even worse was that her daughter became a stalker, following him to determine where he stayed.
"Mother, I know it's sudden, but I just can't get him out of my head. He's... different from the men I usually meet. He is goofy and can make me laugh." Selene said with a hopeful look.
Madam Goldstone felt like crying. Which girl picks their man based on their goofiness?
"What else do you know about him besides being a beast tamer?" Madam Goldstone asked another question.
"I know he has multiple wives. I saw them after the tournament." Selene answered.
"What? You want a married man? Did you forget who our family is? We are the Goldstone Family. If you have to marry someone you have to be the main wife. Since he's married already there's no way you can be the main wife!" Madam Goldstone lectured her daughter, reminding her of their status.
"But mother, I don't care about that. I just want to be with him. I don't need to be the main wife, I just want to be a part of his harem," Selene said, her voice filled with determination.
Madam Goldstone sighed heavily. "Selene, you know how society works. A girl from our family can't just become someone's concubine. It would ruin our reputation."
"Mother!" Selene was disappointed.
"Enough! Don't go out anymore until the Alchemy Conference starts. I will report this to your father." Madam Goldstone ended the conversation.
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"Look, they are the people of the Medicine Valley. Oh yeah, the Alchemy Conference is only one week away, more participants will arrive in the city now." Said one of the city gate guards.
As they approached the city gates, a steady stream of cultivators flowed in from various directions. Many of them arrived with their sect's airship or with the airship transportation service as it was the safest mode of transportation available.
The vibrant colors of their robes fluttered in the breeze, each one a testament to their unique backgrounds and affiliations. Among them, the figures dressed in emerald green stood out the most. These were the disciples of the Medicine Valley, one of the most prominent alchemy sects in the South Region.
While many alchemy sects focused on the power-enhancing aspects of alchemy, Medicine Valley was renowned for its dedication to the healing arts. Some said that they even have an alchemy formula that could prolong one's lifespan, which was coveted by many old cultivators.
Amongst the disciples that arrived, one young man in particular caught the eye of the onlookers. He was young, probably in his late teens, with a handsome face and confident expression. His emerald robe was adorned with golden threads, which represented his high status within the Medicine Valley.
This was none other than Ori Oregano, the youngest alchemy prodigy the valley had seen in centuries.