"Shauna?"
Seeing her trainer staring at her in a daze, Gardevoir tilted her head in confusion.
This was another thing Ronnie noticed—Pokémon born from Nen weren't like telekinetic manifestations, but rather independent beings with their own personalities.
The Pokémon that came from Nen could speak. Though they used the Pokémon language, Ronnie could understand them clearly.
"I'm fine…" Ronnie replied, still a little overwhelmed.
He got up and walked over to the large round table in the middle of the room. On the table was a glass of water, with a green leaf floating on top.
While he had some suspicions about what might happen, Ronnie still wanted to test it himself.
What Ronnie was going to use now was the water-view-style Nen identification method, a technique created by the Shingenryu school. He intended to use this method to determine which category his Nen belonged to.
Standing in front of the table, Ronnie focused, his hands hovering over the glass. His fingers were just a hair's breadth away from touching the water.
He took a deep breath and began gathering his mental energy into his palms. Waves of pure, white, translucent energy began to form around his hands, enveloping them in a thin layer of white light.
His Nen had only recently awakened, and his control was still weak. This was the maximum amount of mental energy Ronnie could currently gather.
Sweat began to form on his forehead, and seeing this, Gardevoir quickly grabbed a handkerchief to wipe the sweat away, her eyes flashing with concern.
Her gentle actions seemed to trigger something within the water glass. As Ronnie focused more on the task at hand, the water began to change.
The originally transparent water began to take on a faint pink hue. As Ronnie concentrated further, the color deepened, eventually turning a rich shade of purple.
Just when Ronnie thought the transformation had ended, something unexpected happened. The leaf on the surface of the water began to curl up and slowly sank, eventually coming to rest in the center of the glass.
Now, the leaf had become spherical, with a layer of crystal-like substance forming around it. Strange patterns appeared on the crystal, resembling a capital letter "M."
From Ronnie's perspective, the spherical crystal floating in the water looked almost like a Fairy Ball, and paired with the purple water, it resembled a Master Ball from Pokémon.
Ronnie took a moment to ensure that the glass hadn't changed in any other way, and then slowly stopped channeling his Nen. He removed his hands from the glass and watched the strange phenomenon with new understanding.
As he observed, the realization hit him like a ton of bricks.
So it's the Trait type…
Nen is divided into six distinct categories, forming a hexagon. These categories are:
Enhancer: Affects the strength or quantity of something, such as increasing the volume of water.
Conjurer: Alters the taste of the water, with the change depending on the individual.
Manipulator: Causes something like crystals to appear within the water.
Transmuter: Changes the color of the water.
Emitter: Causes objects, like blades, to move within the water.
Trait system: Anything that doesn't fit into the other five categories falls under this category.
In the original series, for example, Kurapika's Nen ability is a Trait type, and it's enhanced when he's working with his Chain Jail ability. Other abilities like Chrollo's ability to steal Nen or Pikenotan's memory-reading power are also classified as Trait types.
Among the six Nen categories, the Trait type is the rarest.
At first, Ronnie thought he had misjudged the situation. After all, based on his understanding, the "Pokémon Master" ability should fall under the Transmuter type, because of the color change in the water.
However, as he continued watching the water and the leaf, he began to realize that he was indeed a Trait-type user.
His Trait type included abilities that belonged to the categories of Emitter, Transmuter, and Manipulator.
Emitter: This ability allows him to direct Pokémon battles and analyze the Pokémon illustrated in his book.
Transmuter: Pokémon can enter and exit his body, and they can also attack from within him.
Manipulator: Each Pokémon is an independent entity, a physical manifestation of his thoughts, and they can be seen by ordinary people.
Could it be that the rumors were true?
Ronnie remembered a saying he had once heard: "All those born with natural talent are usually of the Trait type."
Now that he had confirmed his Nen category, it was time to focus on mastering the four essential practices of Nen: Tangle, Absolute, Refining, and Fa!
1. Tangle: Concentrating your mind, focusing your heart, calming your emotions, and surrounding yourself with the life energy constantly leaking from your body (your Nen). This is the foundation of Nen usage.
2. Absolute: This involves cutting off your aura completely, ensuring that enemies cannot detect your presence or intentions.
3. Refining: Using Tangle to focus your energy and unleash a powerful burst of aura. If Tangle is the accumulation, then Refining is the explosive release.
4. Fa: The ultimate Nen skill that allows you to develop your own Nen power after reaching a certain level of mastery. This is often tied to a person's personality, preferences, and experiences, and can reveal a lot about a person's character.
These are known as the four core elements of Nen, and mastering them is essential for any Nen user.
Although Ronnie felt he could rely on the power of his Pokémon to fight, unlike combat, mastering the four core elements of Nen was still crucial.
He knew that the most important skills for him right now were Refining and Tangle.
Refining was critical because it allowed Ronnie to unleash powerful bursts of Nen when needed. But equally important was Tangle, as it was the foundation for using the other elements effectively.
Tangle also had another benefit—by using it, you could lock the Nen emitted by your body into your system, which in turn could improve physical health and even extend your lifespan.
Compared to most other Nen users, Ronnie had it easy. While most people had to go through the painstaking process of mastering all four elements, he only needed to focus on Refining and Tangle.
Of course, cultivation was essential, but…
Ronnie glanced at the comfortable, soft bed beside him.
He smiled to himself.
Maybe he'd start practicing again tomorrow.
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