Chapter 807
Chapter 807 - 793 Four Techniques
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8 min read
"Actually, low-level professionals fight somewhat like playing a game, you know, one punch from you, one punch from me, you cast an Abnormal Ability, I counter with one,"
"In that situation, there really is no need to train in the Four Techniques, because they’re quite difficult to practice and basically superfluous..."
"But when it comes to Decree-level, that’s another story. Decree-level compared to low-level has much more ’freedom,’ allowing many ideas to be turned into practical combat abilities, and the foundation of that freedom is the clever combination of the Four Techniques..."
"Theoretically, it actually doesn’t enhance the path of a professional by anything, but when it comes to actual combat, having it or not makes a world of difference..."
The master was teaching a class, and below, Lu Ping’an and Xia Qin were listening intently.
In fact, both of them really needed to take this course, as their growth had been excessively rapid in some aspects...
"First off, there is the ’eye’..."
Decree-level (Silver) professionals and Cursed-level (Black Iron) professionals don’t seem that different on the surface, with the core difference being the addition of the "Decree" and a greatly improved resistance to Contamination.
But in actual combat, the difference is like heaven and earth, because there are things the Decree-level can do that the Black Iron-level cannot do.
"...Under normal circumstances, when launching a Career Ability, depending on the ability, there are different preparation times, but with sufficient training, instant casting of a fixed ability can be achieved..."
The Eye, which means "Where the eye goes, the mind follows," actually refers to the technique of instant casting Professional Abilities/Talent Abilities.
Black Iron-level professionals can only use Career Abilities in a templated manner, "paying a price to respond," and the hidden prerequisite for instant casting is...
"It’s best to choose those abilities that don’t have ritualized costs, so the price you pay for instant casting will be much less."
Silver-tier professionals are able to "resist" the "side effects" of Black Iron-level Curses, just like those Black Iron-level Taboo items, which in the hands of Silver professionals, often can ignore the "cost" (though there will be a burden).
"Instant casting doesn’t require completely ignoring the cost, which would be too great a burden on the body. Law Professionals have already touched upon their own laws, and can actually adjust low-level Professional Abilities to a certain extent. You need to compress it as much as possible to the point of being trigger-ready, to shorten the activation time."
Instant casting abilities aren’t unlimited; abilities like Shrink Land that involve Space can’t generally be cast instantly, mainly due to the ritualistic nature of their "Five-Step" prices, and most of the abilities that allow Decree-level professionals to cast instantly are of the first-tier.
"This is a list of Professional Abilities suitable for instant casting, how to adjust the price and the process of use is up to the individual. When you first learn the ’eye,’ it’s not recommended to master abilities beyond this list as it would lead to excessive stress."
Decree-level professionals start tweaking lower-tier Abilities, greatly simplifying the preconditions for use and shortening the activation time as a basic foundation.
But to actually train a low-level Career Ability to the point of "instant casting" is a long and arduous process—it’s often necessary to upgrade Black Iron-level low-tier abilities to the Brass or even Silver-class, and without good luck, it may take years.
"Beginners don’t need to pursue instant casting from the start; just shorten the pre-usage conditions and reduce the cost. Omitting them altogether places too much pressure on you."
On the other hand, targeted training of low-level Career Abilities is actually unrealistic for low-level professionals... it may sound complicated, but this is the reality; low-level professionals using low-tier abilities experience too much stress and can’t use them often, while Decree-level professionals can frequently use Black Iron Abilities.
The Eye is the foundation of it all; to "reduce consumption and increase speed," one must tweak each Professional Ability which is a long and arduous process of "resource optimization," something Lu Ping’an simply hadn’t had time for before.
The reason it’s called the "Eye" is because when you are well-practiced, commonly used abilities can be cast the moment you "see" the target, as if using a glance to "cast spells."
"The Eye is foundational, but in itself it’s of relatively low value in combat... most of the time, the benefits of training it are too low."
Training a Professional Ability to the level of instant casting is too painful, and while shortening the casting time is beneficial, it isn’t necessary; what truly makes the Eye essential for Decree-levels is the next teaching content.
"The second one is the ’Hand,’ or shall we say, ’having hands is enough’... heh heh."
Seeing the stale joke fall flat with no response from the audience, the Sword Saint let out two dry laughs and continued:
Kun Ba extended a finger, which was a slender and fair index finger, seemingly well-maintained.
However, the very next moment, a layer of gray rock flakes appeared on it, turning the entire finger into a "Stone Statue Finger."
"Hands, in some places, they are referred to as ’Coiling.’ It’s about keeping a Professional Ability/Talent Ability activated for a long time, integrating its persistency with one’s own limbs..."
As the Sword Saint’s finger collided with the sword, it produced a clinking sound of impact... and the next moment, the entire sword turned into a stone sword.
This was the "Petrified Ability," which should normally be an instantaneous Abnormal Ability that takes effect immediately upon use, but instead, it was coiled around the fingers, turning into a Petrification Hand.
Therefore, anyone struck by this hand would have to consider whether they could avoid becoming petrified.
"When choosing a ’Handcuff’ Professional Ability, one must pick one that is low-tier and low-consumption..."
Indeed, this was a fighting skill that only Decree-level professionals could attempt to learn.
The resistance of Black-iron level is too low, if one really played like this, the first to become petrified would definitely be themselves.
To coil a Professional Ability around oneself, aren’t you afraid of mutating too fast? Even for Decree-level professionals, over ninety percent of those who choose to coil an Abnormal Ability would pick a first-tier Professional Ability.
It’s not just a matter of resistance; more often, it’s the "price" that has to be paid for prolonged activation.
And that brings us back to square one, without leaping a major tier as a professional, it’s impossible to disregard those low-tier costs.
Keeping an Abnormal Ability attached to one’s limbs for a long time means that normal attacks carry magical power, which is extremely insidious and powerful in actual combat, but the downside is the consumption is extraordinarily ridiculous... Low-level professionals can learn it, and even use weapons to imitate its use, but the effects fall far short, and they generally can’t engage in prolonged combat.
Yet the Sword Saint in front of us could maintain this state forever.
In most cases, why a fourth-tier can beat a third-tier is not because of an immature "Law," but because fourth-tier professionals can crazy use low-level abilities, while third-tier have to constantly consider the load.
On the first day of teaching, Four Techniques taught two, not because the progress was fast, but because "hand" and "eye" essentially complement each other.
A "Coiling" hand needs the "eye" to optimize and control it and to constantly "replenish mana."
And the target optimized by the "eye" requires the "hand" to truly unleash combat power.
It’s a bit convoluted, but in essence, the two techniques often target a single Professional Ability. One must first train it to a certain level before considering the eye and hand, and during the training process, constantly familiarize with and accelerate the use of the two techniques.
This is still not the profession itself; it’s merely an interpretation, modification, and application of Professional Abilities, basically the exclusive domain of Decree-level professionals, offering little to career path enhancement but of immense value in actual combat.
Without the Four Techniques, a Law Professional is basically a pseudo fourth-tier, with a clear gap in combat power compared to a normal fourth-tier... well, there are always some exceptions.
Lu Ping’an has beaten plenty of fourth-tier professionals, and in some fights, if not for Zhi Xi’s perfect defense, he might have indeed been killed by some bizarre special capabilities.
So, the question comes back to the start, which Professional Ability should Lu Ping’an choose,
Given his limited time and energy, the chosen ability must meet the demands for constant use and also align with real combat and career planning.
In fact, this was one of the reasons he specifically came to seek instruction.
At this moment, he took out his pre-prepared notes and presented three options, asking his temporary mentor for help in deciding.
— End of Chapter 807 —