Lassim watched the rogue convulse on the ground, trapped in the crackling tendrils of his [Lightning Lash]. But there was something that caused the world around him to slow down in that moment, something that poked at the edge of his mind, something about the way the shadows shifted and clung to the rogue’s form even as the lightning coursed through him.
It wasn’t just some barrier technique or a defensive aura that made him really react and notice it—it had an instinctual movement and a surging like a flood breaking through a dam whenever his lightning mana restricted and attacked.
The way the night element flowed—it reminded him of something.
His mind raced, going over the techniques he had mastered.
The behavior of this night energy wasn’t dissimilar to the way his [Aegis] technique used water to shield him, instinctively hardening into ice when under direct threat.
But the more he studied the rogue’s night elemental mana’s movements and the way the it pulsed around him, a second, more profound realization struck him.
It wasn’t just like his [Aegis].
It was also reminiscent of his [Lifestream] technique.
His [Lifestream] flowed much like this, finding cracks in the body’s natural life force where it had been damaged, filling them with the healing water mana to restore and fill in the lost life force like a dry river bed. This change of mentality for how it even worked was only a recent discovery thanks to the teachings of the water elementalist Mareen.
But where [Lifestream] was a slow, steady stream meant to heal, this night element acted and reacted like a flash flood in Lassim’s perspective—something aggressive, instinctive, and overpowering.
Lassim’s mind exploded with the possibility and connection he just made—fully inspired.
Could he combine the principles of his healing technique with the water mana’s reactive instinct of [Aegis]? Could he turn his [Lifestream] ability into the enhancing technique that supported him in battle like he had been wanting, not just after the damage was done?
The thought had been nagging at him for weeks—he had wanted to make [Lifestream] a more active part of his combat repertoire since he received it, something he could use to protect himself in the heat of the moment to provide him excessive stamina and ability to keep fighting long past what he would normally be capable of at his stage of cultivation.
The recent proficiency he’d gained with [Lifestream] had made the idea even more tantalizing, and now, watching the night element respond to his attacks, it all seemed to click into place.
He grinned despite the intensity of the battle between Vaela and the others surrounding him, and despite the rogue still twitching on the floor in front of him that was held with [Lightning Lash].
Lassim’s mind covered all of this with his enhanced mind in mere seconds and as time seemed to return to normal for Lassim… All the rogue saw was his somewhat starry-eyed grin that put an odd sense of primal fear into the half-nevak, half-nexarian rogue.
Lassim couldn’t waste this moment of inspiration.
This was exactly the kind of moment that would help shape his future fighting style that he wanted.
Drawing his focus inward, Lassim disengaged from the rogue on the ground, the [Lightning Lash] flickering out as he let the energy dissipate. The rogue groaned, but Lassim ignored him, focusing entirely on channeling his water element.
He reached deep into his inner heart world as he connected with the sensation of the dragon statue of the ice dragon’s fragmented soul, Aegrasian, before activating [Lifestream] while pulling at the familiar streams of water mana he had always used to heal.
Yet, this time he didn’t direct them toward the rogue or any external target. Instead, he called them into himself.
He visualized the way his [Aegis] normally formed around him as a floating spherical barrier of water mana, the way it reacted to threats without his direct control, and he fused that principle with the life-giving energy of his [Lifestream] that would instead flow and fill the crevices of the channels of life force across his body.
As he did, he felt the water mana surge through his body, flowing along his limbs and wrapping around his core. It was like a river meeting a delta, flowing with multiple channels just above his skin, coursing along where his skeleton and mana pathways resided.
He didn’t stop there.
Instead of letting the water element merely fill the gaps like in [Lifestream], he urged it to flow with purpose, to protect and heal. He gave it the command to reinforce his body, like the instinctive barrier his [Aegis] created.
Somehow, he felt like he heard a dragon’s roar in his mind just as the energy responded to his will, the streams of mana coiling around his bones, muscles, and organs, fortifying him and his body sturdily in a way he had never felt before.
The sensation was instantly overwhelming.
His body felt lighter, stronger, more responsive. It was as if every muscle had been perfectly lubricated with the flowing water mana, supporting each movement. That, combined with the sensation from the Tidal Rune’s effects of constantly massaging and enhancing his body’s natural state, he felt incredible. Like a whole new reservoir of power was unlocked.
He could even feel the elemental power of this new technique bordering along his progenitor marks, flowing just along the edges of the intricate markings on his chest and legs, as if respecting their space.
He wasn’t sure why, but the mana refused to overlap with the progenitor marks, instead drawing its own path around them, like gentle brooks tracing the edges of a mountain range.
A sudden rush of strength surged through him as he lifted his free hand not holding his halberd, and then clenched it into a fist. His breathing felt easier, his limbs moved more fluidly, and even his vision seemed sharper. It was as though his entire body had been revitalized and enhanced in every sense.
He let out a slow breath, a grin spreading across his face. "Lifestream Aegis," he whispered to himself, though simple and really lacking in creativity, naming the technique that had just been born from his inspiration.
No sooner had the words left his lips than the next wave of rogues arrived.
Lassim didn’t have time to marvel at his newfound power. He could feel the bloodlust coming off the approaching group in waves, their eyes glowing red with the corrupting influence of Kierlan’s Mark.
Where there had been around 12 before, now there were already double despite two dead bodies in front of Vaela, and more were still closing in fast from the distance.
But at this moment, he didn’t feel the same weariness that had gripped him earlier. His entire being was primed, his body fortified by the flowing water mana of [Lifestream Aegis].
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He felt unstoppable.
Vaela was already in motion, her lance launching from her hands. She unleashed her [Raindown Lances] technique, summoning dozens of lightning lances above her head that mirrored her own weapon’s movements, their electric forms crackling as she pulled back and then thrust forward, launching them and shooting toward the approaching hybrid cultivators.
The air hummed with the raw power of her Spirit Transcendent stage attacks as the lances rained down from the sky, piercing through the rogues’ defenses and scattering them like a group of rats that were just found inside the grain silo.
Lassim didn’t hesitate to lend his aid.
With his halberd crackling with the familiar blue sparks of lightning and flowing water mana, he surged forward, his body moving effortlessly thanks to the support of his [Lifestream Aegis] and immediately noticed the minimal effort required for reaching the top speed of his [Lightning Steps] in an instant.
Unable to dwell on that change, his first strike came down with devastating force—a downward [Slam], fueled with the full weight of a small ocean pressing on the back of his halberd, aimed directly at the nearest rogue.
The rogue hybrid raised his arms in a futile attempt to block with a pair of daggers. Yet, Lassim’s halberd crashed into the daggers before continuing towards the rogue’s forearms, shattering his defense and sending him sprawling to the ground with crushed limbs. Possibly a crushed torso and heart as he didn’t get up or even groan in response.
Without pausing, Lassim spun on his heel, pivoting into a sideways [Slash] that cut directly through the next rogue’s chest. The rogue’s body jerked as the blade passed through him, lightning crackling along the wound with an additional blade of water mana continuing on through his body behind him before he crumpled to the ground.
More rogues charged forward as they dodged the incoming blade of water mana from the [Slash], but Lassim was ready.
He swung his halberd in wide arcs, alternating each [Slash] with a sharp series of [Thrust]s, cutting through and piercing the corrupted cultivators as they tried to overwhelm him. Most of the hybrids were equal to Lassim in cultivation and their Nevak enhancements somehow made them more flexible and able to sense the danger in his attacks.
This allowed a considerable amount of dodging, but also gave them the chance to attack him back.
Bolts of the night element the size of needles were launched from multiple angles at Lassim and blocked by his newest ability. Water mana would lift from his skin and shield him with small and sturdy sections of thick ice that would quickly disperse the attacks before flash-melting and then returning to the flow across his body.
The water mana coursing through him responded to every movement; all while continuing to reinforce his muscles and keeping his stamina from waning. Every time a rogue’s attack came too close, the streams of water instinctively shifted and transformed, keeping out of reach of the danger.
It was a beautiful display of mastery for the concept of "Flow" that every water cultivator should embody. Lassim didn’t notice it, but his body with Marinelle seemed to have surged and widened to an unbelievable degree, making a huge amount of progress between the two.
Both companions were doing their best to lend their aid, as they always did, through their bonds and control of the elements to help him with his rapid-fire attacks and defenses. The true utility of elemental companions at this level of power and speed of battle was meant for moments like this as they worked together to manage and control his mana to an unbelievable and precise degree.
Having two elemental companions controlling divine level mana on a Spirit Ascension stage cultivator that was launching Spirit Transcendent stage attacks was on full display. Even the storm cloud building above began to drop rain onto the dry desert ground, aiding his defensive, enhancement technique.
Not only that, but the Leviathan constellation bloomed in full display and silently absorbed some of the cultivation essence and mana from the fallen rogue cultivators as the moments passed, sending the mana into Lassim through his oddly scale-like hardness, but normal looking, skin that he received from the Leviathan’s curse.
Vaela fought beside him, oddly shocked by his overpowered display as she noticed the new technique she’d not seen him use in their last side-by-side defense of the former outpost. Even the constellation somewhat frightened her with its life-like realness.
Refocusing on her opponents, her lightning-infused lances tore through the air like bolts of divine judgment at a level slightly more powerful than Lassim.
Each time one of her lightning lances struck, it left a trail of scorched earth and charred limbs in its wake. She was relentless, her movements fluid and deadly as she darted between the rogues, striking them with precision and power.
The only downside was that these rat-like enemies were even better at being cowards than before, which just began to infuriate her as they refused to take her blows head on.
At one point, a rogue with a massive warhammer lunged toward Vaela, his weapon raised high above his head. But before he could bring it down, Vaela spun her lance and thrust it forward, piercing the rogue’s neck with a crackling bolt of lightning. His body convulsed, the warhammer falling uselessly to the ground as Vaela yanked her lance free.
Lassim had no time to admire her skill or even focus on her battle. More rogues were coming, their numbers seemingly endless as there were more than the 50 he remembered from the encampment headed this way. He gritted his teeth, gripping his halberd tighter as he prepared for the next wave that was closing in from the distance.