Chapter 383: Wasted Potential

"In that case, you can come with us back to the Iron Citadel. Once we return, this information will be sent and a response will come in a few days", said Du Xiu. 

The other commanders nodded in agreement before fixing their eyes on Ming Yue. 

"Thank you, I will be on your care then, Seniors."

She cupped her fists and bowed before exiting the tent, leaving the commanders by themselves. They all looked at each other before Nie Xie spoke up. 

"So, she's talented, isn't she?" he said. 

The others looked at him and nodded before commenting. 

"The next generation is certainly a terrifying one."

Yu Zhen chuckled as she went to sip her cup of tea. 

"She has talent but she also has worked incredibly hard to get to where she is."

Gao Ri crossed his arms, still thinkong about what he was able to surmise about Ming Yue. Du Xiu looked at them all before making his own evaluations. 

"She is strong and decently experienced for her age but some of her potential is wasted. Do you remember that last attack she made aginst the Idol of Chaos?" he asked. 

"Yes, it was beautiful, almost like a moon in the sky. Although, trying to counter something like that would be difficult for any one of us", Yu Zhen replied. 

"It is strong but there's something missing, don't you think? It's as if she had not utilized one of her strengths."

"What do you mean?"

The other three commanders were rather confused by Du Xiu's words. He chuckled at them. 

"If Zi Jing was here, he might've noticed. Didn't any of you realize that while she is compatible for the Wind Dao and the Sword Dao, she has also tempered her body with something else? That energy is present in her body but she doesn't utilize it, Imagine if she did. how much stronger do you think that attack would've been? If she properly cultivated that, she will have trouble taking that final step into Return to SImplicity."

Through his words, the commanders replayed the scene over again in their hands. It took a minute or so before they understood that he was right, Ming Yue had yet to reach her full potential. 

"You are right, it really is missing something, an incomplete attack, and just on the edge of completion..." said Nie Xia.

Gao Ri's face turned to a frown, understanding what he meant. 

"It's a fearsome attack but it could certainly improve. If she doesn't cultivate that path of her's, then it would be a waste."

"Then what? Do you want to tell her?" Yu Zhen asked. 

Du Xiu shook his head. 

"There's no need to, she's bound to realize it herself, especially after attcking the Hundun Clan. Whether she wants to or not, it is something she will need", he explained. 

Bringing his hands together, he rested his chin on them. 

"In any case, we will be heading off soon. Most of our soldiers have recovered enough to make the journey back. Fortunately, this event has allowed us a chance to forge some relations with the beasts of the forest. With this, we will be able to create some outposts and keep watch. We'll set them up..."

The commanders began their strategic meeting in private as Ming Yue vetured into the outer reaches of the destroyed land. Finding a spot, she sat down on the ground, leaning on the tree whilst her two pets snuggled in with her. 

Alone with these two, she looked at camps and the gathering beasts, watching with a bit of interest. She then looked up at the sky from which the gray clouds covered the skies and thought back to the last attack she made against the Idol of Chaos. 

Looking at her hands and back to her sword, she recalled the sensation, how the varying energies merged and combined. Considering that this was her second time, she felt it much more closely, the finer details and became more accustommed to it. 

"I could probably recreate that much more easily now but..."

Indeed, Du Xiu was right, she would realize it soon enough but he didn't think it would be this soon. 

"Something's missing but what?"

Of course, the answer was quite obvious but she had nearly forgotten about it. 

"What could it be? What could it be?"

The question repeated itself in her mind as she tried to find out what exactly she was missing. She began to fish through her spatial ring, taking out the contents within. Rations, beast materials, medicine ingredients and finally a few books came out, neatly stacked on top of each other. All three of them were new, probably untouched even and that caught her eye. 

"Hmm, a copy of that book of paintings I gave to the Archive of Six Gates, then the Stormblade Dance Manual from the Eternal Blade Sect and finally.... the Lightning Dao Manual from Elder Xia."

She looked at all three of the books, suddenly realizing what she was missing. 

"The Lightning Dao!"

"So you finally remembered. As much as you like using the Wind Dao, it isn't a good idea to just abandon the Lightning Dao."

Xue Yue's voice teased her which in turn had made Ming Yue just a little bit angry. 

"I didn't abandon it, it was suppose to support the Wind Dao." she replied.

"But did you actually use it? Did you even incorporate it to your attacks?" 

Those questions came in quick and left Ming Yue silent.

"I thought so. Ming Yue, you've been cultivating the Lightning Dao when it was convenient. It was more like an afterthought for you but you should now what sort of opportunity you're wasting."

"I don't need you to tell me, Xue Yue. I know it well."

Considering that she's tempered her body and absorbed quite a bit of power from the Merciless Storm Peak, she had a wealth of Lightning Dao Energy within her. If It weren't for that, she wouldn't have been able to get close to the Idol of Chaos without getting hurt. 

"Good, I'm going back to sleep."

And Xue Yue's voice vanished, leaving her counterpart to think. 

Ming Ye had all of that energy, waiting to be utilized yet she ever did but now she had to think.

"How can I merge it with my Wind Dao? It's already at the True Dao Stage."

Indeed, her True Dao was the Dao of Everchanging Winds. Wind that flew wherever it pleased, attacks that could not be predicted, anticipated, how could she merge it with the Lightning Dao?

"I'm going to have to read through those books", she thought and picked up all three of them. 

Of them all, she opened up the Lightning Dao Manual and began to peruse it. She continued to read until sun rose up and finally put the book down. Having given it serious attention, she began to exercise her control of lightning but it was still rough. 

Opening her palm, she focused on the Lightning Dao Energy, letting it come out of her body. Sparks flew out before forming a ball but it burst out and vanished. 

"I thought so, I've only been able to cultivate it but as far as using it... It's going to be troublesome."

Unlike wind, lightning was much quicker and much more powerful which made it hard to control. She spent to entire morning trying to create a ball of lightning ad maintain it but each attempt ended with failure. 

"Damn it, If I had focused on it earlier, it woudn't have been so hard to control. But I've absorbed so much of it, its difficult to even draw out a little bit of it."

Strangely enough, she was met with a problem that few encounter, she had so much power that she could barely control it without having it go berserk. Something like this was even more troublesome as she could risk losing control and hurting herself internally. 

At worst, she could destroy her internal organs if the Lightning Dao Energy was let loose.