Chapter 54: Emperor Fist
The heavy clouds were torn apart by a five-colored fist imprint, creating a large hole through which gentle sunlight streamed down, shining on Du Qianjue. He stood in the sunlight with his eyes closed, his hands naturally hanging by his sides, his expression serene. However, the slight trembling of his right hand and the residual soul power fluctuations around him indicated that the recent punch was indeed his doing.
"Thousand Absolutes is truly a genius. In just half a year, not only did he completely master my 'Great Cold Without Snow,' but he also improved it to better suit himself and successfully created his own soul skill based on it." Snow Empress stood not far away, smiling as she looked at the figure standing in the icy world.
Although the punch still appeared somewhat immature and full of flaws to a strong figure like Snow Empress, it was just the beginning, wasn't it? No one could achieve perfection in one step. Even her 'Great Cold Without Snow' was perfected over countless years.
"Congratulations, Thousand Absolutes, for successfully creating your own soul skill," Snow Empress softly congratulated him as she appeared in front of him when he opened his eyes.
"Thank you, Snow Empress," Du Qianjue replied gently, pulling Snow Empress into his arms.
"You said it yourself, there's no need for thanks between us," Snow Empress chuckled, resting her head on his shoulder.
Du Qianjue remained silent but tightened his embrace.
"Thousand Absolutes, your self-created soul skill has taken shape, but it is still far from perfect. The day you can completely internalize the power, showing no signs of killing intent like 'Great Cold Without Snow,' it will be truly complete," Snow Empress said softly while nestled in his arms.
"I understand. After all, you are my best teacher, aren't you?" Du Qianjue nodded. "With 'Great Cold Without Snow' guiding me, I know the direction I need to develop."
"Perhaps it won't be long before you surpass me," Snow Empress said with a smile.
"When that happens, it will be your turn to guide me," she added playfully.
"Mutual support, helping each other," Du Qianjue said calmly, disagreeing with Snow Empress' self-deprecating remark.
Snow Empress stuck out her pink tongue, looking cute and playful. She knew that her earlier self-deprecating comment had somewhat displeased him, but the pressure from Du Qianjue unbelievable talent was immense.
Looking back, it took her countless years to create and perfect the three 'Empress' skills. Yet, Du Qianjue, with her assistance and the reference of 'Great Cold Without Snow,' achieved similar results in just half a year.
Snow Empress was happy for him, but also deeply affected, making her feel less confident despite her status as the Northern Lord.
"What do you plan to name this self-created soul skill?" Snow Empress quickly changed the topic.
"Well... Since your 'Great Cold Without Snow' is called the Empress Palm, mine will be called the Emperor Fist," Du Qianjue pondered for a moment before deciding on a name for his skill.
The specific name wasn't crucial at this stage since the skill hadn't fully matured. A final name would be chosen upon its completion.
His 'Emperor Fist' evolved from Snow Empress' 'Great Cold Without Snow,' making numerous changes in the soul power operation method and integrating his five attributes. In terms of power, it even surpassed 'Great Cold Without Snow.'
'Great Cold Without Snow' was powerful due to Snow Empress' formidable ice attribute, which had a freezing and controlling effect far exceeding its destructive power. On the other hand, 'Emperor Fist' balanced five attributes briefly to cause elemental conflicts and immense damage, making it stronger than a single attribute skill like 'Great Cold Without Snow.'
Of course, this comparison only held true within the same level. Furthermore, there were hardly any individuals in Douluo Continent with multiple attributes.
Currently, 'Emperor Fist' was far from complete. Du Qianjue had managed to balance the five attributes well, but controlling the attributes' conflict to cause massive damage was beyond him. He could only release the energy as a fist imprint rather than keeping it internalized within his fist.
Although this method allowed him to use the skill, it was far from perfect. The spread of energy upon release greatly diminished its destructive power.
It's like the difference between a bomb exploding in a confined space and in an open field. While the latter covers a larger area, the single-target damage is significantly reduced.
This was why Snow Empress said his self-created soul skill was far from complete.
Having watched Du Qianjue develop the skill from scratch, Snow Empress saw through many of its flaws.
First: The charging time was too long. Though powerful, the punch took nearly ten seconds from charging to execution. Controlling the elemental conflicts within his arm was too challenging and dangerous; a slight mistake could blow up his arm before the attack even launched.
Second: It was easily interrupted. This flaw was related to the first one. During the charging phase, he had to maintain intense focus to avoid losing control of the elements, making it highly susceptible to interruptions.
Third: The energy consumption was too high. The stronger the soul skill, the higher the consumption, which was normal. But for Du Qianjue, the energy consumption was unnecessary. One 'Emperor Fist' consumed nearly thirty to forty percent of his soul power, despite its power surpassing some of his ten-thousand-year soul skills.
His soul power was incredibly potent, featuring Ultimate Ice, Ultimate Thunder, Ultimate Fire, near-Ultimate Wind, and near-Ultimate Earth attributes. Even though he was at the Soul Emperor level, his total soul power was comparable to many Soul Douluos.
A Soul Douluo's thirty to forty percent soul power could release two or three ten-thousand-year soul skills at the Soul Emperor level. Although a single ten-thousand-year soul skill might not match the power of 'Emperor Fist,' the same amount of soul power could release two to three such skills!
Thus, the cost-effectiveness of 'Emperor Fist' for Du Qianjue was extremely low.
There were also other minor flaws, but none as evident and fatal as these three.
The road to perfecting his self-created soul skill was still long.
After half a year of training in the Far North, Du Qianjue hadn't focused on leveling up, but the numerous sources of power within him had propelled him to level sixty-nine, just one level away from obtaining his seventh soul ring and breaking through to the Soul Sage level.
At this point, another plan emerged in his mind.
Should he advance the condensation of his soul core?