The Martial Unity

It was an intriguing idea, one that was definitely worth seriously considering. Poison would allow him to capitalize the most on an open wound, more than almost any other offensive field. He pictured something such as conditioning the part of his body that would be piercing into his target with a powerful toxin. Doing so would allow him to incapacitate, hamper, or even kill his opponent depending on what kind of poison he chose and how potent it was.

('The only problem is the matter of how compatible I am with poison.') Rui sighed.

Poison was a niche field, perhaps not to the same extent as something like heat was, but it certainly was very much divorced from the mainstream fields of techniques that Martial Artists most dabbled in.

Rui recalled a conversation he had with headmaster Aronian regarding the Unorthodox Sect and why they had been dubbed as such. Fields such as poison and heat were not inherent natural applications of the human body. The proportion of Martial Art and Martial Paths centered around these fields was low due to this very reason. The same applied to compatibility, the compatibility of the average martial Artist with these fields was low.

That was Rui was somewhat unsure of whether he was qualified to incorporate any potent poison into his technique.

('But it doesn't necessarily need to be potent.') Rui noted.

As long as the poison accomplished some meaningful difference, it was worth pursuing. Furthermore, unless Rui was, for some reason, especially horribly incompatible with poison, it was unlikely that he would be unable to obtain something of some utility.

('This would have been an easy decision had I still been in the Apprentice Realm, but it gets more complicated now that I'm in the Squire Realm.') Rui sighed.

Squires were not easily susceptible to poison. Martial Apprentices were physically human, unless they had gone out of their way to master some defensive resistance training techniques against poison, they were as vulnerable to poison as other normal humans were.

The same could not be said for Martial Squires, Martial Squires possessed far more resistance to invasive substances that were detrimental to the human body. What would kill even the most resistant Martial Apprentices was something that most Martial Squires would be able to resist. The question was whether Rui would be able to master Squire-level poison techniques that were required to affect Martial Squires to a meaningful degree.

('Hm...') Rui narrowed his eyes, deep in thought. ('I might need to learn more about the poison-oriented techniques from the Martial Union before I can make a decision on this matter. It is always best to be informed about the subjects that are important to you.')

It was in these avenues that Rui was willing to obtain some help from the Martial Union; purely distant aid that did not overreach.

('Well, until I get to that, I have to consider my other options as well. Another option that comes to mind is friction-oriented elements.')

He recalled that one of the Martial representatives of the Martial Contest had a Martial Path that was centered around friction. The man's very touch wrenched and ground against the flesh, causing excruciating flesh wounds.

('What if I incorporate friction into the sides of whatever part of my body pierces into my opponent?') Rui wondered with intrigue in his eyes. ('Then, as I penetrate my opponent, I will be inflicted damage to the sides of the wound due to sheer friction.')

It could be likened to a knife with a blade with many tiny spikes on its blade surfaces. If someone was stabbed with a knife, both the actual sharp blade and the tiny spikes on its side would cause tremendous amounts of damage and pain to its target.

('Wait... What if I combine piercing, friction, and poison?') Rui's eyes widened.

What if the knife that had many tiny spikes on its side was also covered in poison?

Such a technique would have devastating lethality. Any technique that incorporated meaningful amounts of each of the three fields would be no different from a lethal assassination technique that could potentially kill its opponent with a single attack!

('Is such a thing even possible?') Rui began to wonder with excitement.

He didn't know. To be more precise, he didn't know if he possessed the qualifications to master such a technique.

('I need to learn more about this.') Rui nodded, seriously. ('Oh, I should also consult Julian. He definitely knows a lot about the scientific side of the Martial Art in this world.')

In a way, so did Rui. The difference between them was that Rui had gone to extremely far lengths in his previous life in the martial arts and combat sports of Earth while the scientists of this world tapped into the more supernatural side of Martial Art.

Sometimes Rui felt the need to learn more about the esoteric sciences of the world of Gaia. It was in times like these, as well as the time when he obtained the research data of the Squire breakthrough process from the Commonwealth Duchy of Vinfrana. Thankfully, in both this and that situation, he had his reliable older brother who was always willing to help him out.

('I just don't have enough time.') Rui shook his head.

Even though Earth's understanding and application of natural reality were far greater than that of the human civilization on the Panama continent, he did not underestimate how difficult learning esoteric in-depth most likely was. Mastering it was probably extremely difficult all things considered. If Julian needed many years of education and experience to be qualified to become a full-fledged scholar, Rui did not think he would be able to complete it in a flash.

('Well, that wraps my thoughts on one project.') Rui opened his eyes. ('I'll have to do more research when I get back, but I don't think I need to limit myself to only a single Martial Art technique development project if I can help it.')