The match between Iris and Luna had begun. They both have seen each other's abilities in action already, so they knew how to counter them. As long as they weren't touched, neither would be in any immediate danger.

They were both running around trying to touch the other while dodging incoming punches or kicks. Neither of them was getting an advantage over the other.

"Just give up already! It won't be long until I touch you."

Luna was fierce with her movements. She was using the Leaping Tiger martial skill. She had yet to break the second tier so he couldn't use its aura skill yet. The first tier boosted the user's strength and allowed for short, sporadic bursts in movement that allowed her to easily shift directions.

Iris didn't speak. She was calm and collected while moving gracefully. She was practicing the Flowing Clouds Sutra. This martial skill was a moveset that allowed the user to move around the field as though they were clouds in the sky. Even though you can see them, you can't touch them. Attempting to catch someone who uses this martial skill is like trying to grab the air around you. Iris also hadn't broken the second tier yet, but even the first tier was a great asset to have.

Both martial skills are incredibly difficult to cultivate in their own ways and even more difficult to put into practice. These martial skills were similar in some ways but greatly different in others. They contrasted so much that neither girl could touch their opponent and the fight was dragging on. It was fun to watch, but it was already dark and the others were getting tired.

Iris then decided to try something else. If she couldn't use her ability on Luna, then she would use it on herself. She activated her ability and vanished in thin air.

The next thing Luna knew, Iris was behind her going in for a punch. Iris landed the first hit of the match directly into Luna's back. Luna was only 2 feet away from the edge of the boundary but she couldn't do anything about it. That's when an idea struck her.

Using Leaping Tiger, Luna began rapidly jumping left to right. Every 5th jump, she would boost her speed to go on to the next jump.

Iris paid it no mind and went for another punch. Her mistake was that she threw the punch as Luna was about to make the 5th jump. Iris's fist barely missed Luna's face by about 2 inches. Lunas responded by swinging her foot to strike Iris in her head.

Iris took notice but didn't have enough time to activate her ability again. She decided to counter against it with another punch to the face.

....................

The result of the match was a draw. Both of their attacks landed at the same time, but they were so worn out that both were knocked out.

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Everyone had returned inside the house and put the two girls into their beds. The other three ate dinner and discussed the matches. Luke would ask Julian questions about the different martial skills that were used to get a better idea of what his fighting style is. Shio would give compliments on Julian's technique and thinking skills while sneaking glances at him when he wasn't looking.

After dinner, the three retired to their rooms for the night. Julian decided to stay up a little longer to cultivate Windbreak. His match with Shio reminded him that he needed to get much stronger to fulfill his goals.

Julian sat on his bed and began cultivating windbreak. He used 3 other talismans after his fight with Shio to gather some natural aura. He picked up one of the talismans and drained the aura from it.

Natural aura was denser than normal aura produced from the body. This means that cultivating using natural aura was greatly beneficial to one's cultivation. Ten days of normal cultivation could be done in one hour with natural aura.

This timeline hasn't yet made this discovery. If one were to try and absorb natural aura, then it wouldn't mix well with their own aura. This caused a reaction in their aura pool causing it to explode. This is a discovery that Julain used in his past timeline to make a large profit. He discovered that collecting the natural aura in some type of container and infusing one's own aura into the container would cause the auras to blend. This is something that can't happen in someone's aura pool because the walls of the pool can't handle the blending process. That's why if someone were to mix them in an external source for them to blend and then absorb it, it would easily absorb into their aura pool.

Julian Then connected the talisman that had the natural aura stored in it to a small, blue gemstone that he brought with him for this purpose. He connected the two using another talisman with a command to transfer aura between objects. The natural aura flowed into the gemstone and it began glowing. Julian then infused some of his own aura into the stone and watched them blend. Seeing that the process was a success, he absorbed the aura from the stone and felt a tremendous power enter into his aura pool.

'Now that's what I'm talking about!'

Julian got to work cultivating Windbreak with his improved aura. After most of his aura was drained, he would repeat the process. By the time he was finished, he had broken the third tier of Windbreak and was halfway to breaking the fourth. He laid down on his bed and closed his eyes to sleep.

The next day, the group decided to visit an antique store in the city. At first, they didn't want to go, but it was Julian's turn to pick where they went so they reluctantly agreed.

They followed Julian into a weird building down an alleyway with an unusual design. It was two stories tall and painted all black with white dragons painted on. It wasn't the type of place that they were expecting, but Julian had already been here before and he was only here for one thing.

The group walked inside and was greeted by tall shelves that took up most of the first floor. The only place that didn't have a shelf was the counter at the back of the shop with an old man with grey hair. His eyes were closed and he seemed to be asleep.

Julian approached the man and rang this bell on the counter. The old man slowly opened his blue eyes and looked at Julian.

"A customer? Am I dreaming?"

Julian shook his head.

"No, sir. This is definitely real. We're here to shop around."

The old man's eyes grew wide and he leaped up from his seat.

"Really?! Then, by all means, take a look around. Let me know if I can help!"

Julian gave him a light smile and lowered his voice.

"Well, there is one thing that you could help me find. It's a small crystal that looks like a teardrop."

The old man looked a little confused. He reached under the counter and pulled out a small key.

"I have what you're looking for, but why would ya want that old thing. It ain't much use for anything. Are you sure that's what you want?"

Julian gave the old man a nod with his head.

"Alright. Follow me up to the second floor. I keep it up there in the storage room."

The group followed the old man up the stairs to the second floor. When they arrived at the storage room, the door blasted off and two men emerged holding a red box wrapped in velvet fabric.

A dark-skinned man stood behind a man with tan skin and blonde hair. The blonde man holding the box stepped forward with an evil grin on his face.

"Sorry grandpa, but the Imperium will be confiscating this crystal from you."

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