Ju arrived at the library entrance much faster than the first time. He noticed that the guards that were present previously were no longer there, and the number of new guards had increased from three to five.

There also seemed to be a more solemn atmosphere than before. But Ju didn’t think much of this; he was eager to find what he sought.

“I hope I get lucky.”

Some rudimentary combat techniques and spells were available from the second floor. Although their overall power was still relatively weak, this was in reference to specific criteria.

Essence artists.

In other words, they were techniques that no Essence artist would normally use; for someone like Ju, however, they could significantly impact his future battles.

Ju quickly began looking at the shelves. He saw different books on combat stances and weapon usage, but they didn’t interest him.

“At this rate, my time would be exhausted.” He thought grimly.

Ju spent close to two hours searching until he came across one technique.

“Hunter’s thorn.”

The teenager’s single eye seemed moved. The technique's name looked tyrannical and powerful, so he checked it.

Ju spent some minutes reading the method's description. After some time, he looked at the book with a hint of indecisiveness.

The technique involved concentrating a great deal of Essence into the palm and fingers, then moving this essence to the index finger and expelling it as an attack. The more essence you could concentrate, the more powerful the move would be; the drawbacks of such a move were obvious; one was that it needed fine muscle control. Ju guessed that the significant aspect lay in

the patience and concentration holding the fingers together. But those two aspects could be a problem in a tough fight.

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“Overall, it does not look like a bad move; it fits my style somewhat.”

Although Ju doubted the technique would aid him anytime soon, he decided not to waste any more time and purchased it.

“At least I could see how well I can go with it.”

The technique cost 500 gold coins, not a cheap price at all. But Ju was somewhat satisfied.

And like that, the young boy had the first combat technique in his Essence Arts Journey. Ju still checked for other moves, but no one again interested him. After signing an oath not to distribute the method, Ju left the library.

The teenager went back to the inn to study the move properly. Later, he planned to hunt to test its might and see if he could understand its intricacies quickly.

When he got to the room, Moon-Flower seemed in an awful mood. Ju sighed deeply when he saw this.

“Is it because I didn’t get you more wine?” He asked softly.

Moon-Flower shook her head.

“No, you always leave me and go out on your own, back then in the mines, and now even here. I want to follow you every time, " she muttered.

Ju had a helpless expression when he heard this. It was not that he didn’t want to come outside with Moon Flower, but Ender Town was just too dangerous. What if a random Essence Artist suddenly took an interest in her? What would he do then? Although the city rules forbade things like that, Ju didn’t want to take any chances. He still remembered the warnings of Old Kai.

For now, he was not strong enough to do whatever he wanted. At least if he managed to become an Essence Artist, they might have enough to roam the world freely. The young boy carefully explained all these to his sibling, citing the possible dangers.

Eventually, Moon-Flower was convinced.

“Okay, then. I would listen to Big Brother Ju, but hurry up and become an Essence Artist so we can go anywhere together, " she said as the little girl rested her head on his lap.

“ Don’t worry, I will,” Ju swore.

After the discussion with Moon-Flower, Ju studied Hunter’s Thorn. The stances were quite easy to understand, but as Ju imagined, the key aspect was focusing Essence adequately. Closing his eyes, Ju slowly moved his Essence. Due to his time with the Tempering Formula, Ju became more conversant with his spirit nodes and body's inner workings.

The young boy stretched out his right palm as the Essence slowly converged. The difficult part was moving a significant amount of Essence in a streamlined flow to his index finger.

Ju clenched his fist and pointed out his finger. The Essence slowly moved upward, but Ju was already losing concentration. Soon after, all of the Essence dissipated. The young boy took deep breaths and closed his eyes as he slowly analyzed his attempt.

“I think I rushed the flow. I should spend more time gathering the essence in my fingers.”

Some minutes passed, and Ju's eye lit up as he made another effort.