Chapter 243: Resonance

The first volume was played again and again within his mind and the avatars were continuously practicing it. He tried to integrate his understanding of all the laws he felt were relevant to the first volume of art.

"Have two of them practice the art and you should view it from the side. It is one of the benefits of practicing Origin avatar art. Your natural duction ability is enhanced to a new level."

"I already have a basic outlay which could very well be the foundation of this art." The Keeper inspected the overlay but refrained from speaking up.

"Why would these people allow participants at Qi general level to try and comprehend an art this complex? The creator is surely someone who is way above our level."

"The test would never be based on an impossible task. What could the higher-ups possibly want to do achieve this way?"

Long Tao was racking his brain again and again. Just why would such a complex art be displayed to all the participants, most of whom are only going to be outer disciples? He replayed the art again and again. He then tried to have the avatars execute the second volume. 

The second volume was much more complex and had a variety of laws involved within it. When he tried to feel the laws, a shock appeared in his eyes. The combinations are so complex that he could feel at least ten laws at work here.

"What about the third volume?"

The avatars tried, but no Qi was expressed out. Long Tao couldn't feel shit. "Why is it this way?". No matter how many times the avatars repeated it, he couldn't feel anything.

"Is there some defect with this art?"

"There certainly isn't. You are just unqualified to learn it." The Keeper said in a mocking tone. He was a bit irritable sometimes.

Long Tao was in a dilemma. No matter how much he tried, the avatars couldn't even execute the art above the third volume. The first volume was still in creation, and the second one was a mysterious mixture.

It was while practicing the third set again and again, when a sudden idea stroked Long Tao's mind.

...............….

"The core elders must be thinking of making this test quite creative." One of the elders spoke up.

"It is the decision made by the higher ups. One could only assume the idea behind this move."

"Who do you people think would win this competition?"

"The biggest contenders in the Chu girl of course. She is someone who practiced Lightning Devil art. That man was said to have used a particular set of arts which perfectly complemented each other. Lightning Devil and the strikes of Thunder are both parts of that set."

"I support the idea too. The Lightning devil must-have elements which help in the comprehension of the art. She is sure to win."

"I bet on the boy to win." A young man to the side spoke up. To everyone's surprise, no one was offended by this act. It was because of the young man's strength and status within the academy.

"Why do you expect him to win?"

"He is the most talented one in the bunch by far. Other participants feel like insects in front of him."

An elderly member of the Chu family clenched his fist but refrained from acting. The young boy himself was enough to wipe most of their whole family.

"I hope the young master will refrain from stating uncertain facts. The boy is certainly a talent seen once in a thousand years, but this isn't a test of talent, but rather compatibility. Our young miss is someone who has practiced Lightning Devil arts. She is sure to come on top."

"Would you like to bet with me?" The young man asked.

"What would a young master like to bet on?"

"1000 high-grade lightning element stones." All the people present were shocked. This was not a small amount. Middle grade elemental stones were something used by Qi emperors to cultivate with. The elder hesitated, but after sometime made up his mind.

"Deal."

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

"Do you know the story behind the origin of Strikes of Thunderous palms?" The old man asked.

"Please enlighten us, master." The two men bowed.

"The creator was a peerless figure within the Thunder Academy. He was said to have been a heretic in cultivation, and would often try out crazy experiments with the arts he had learnt. He is the only figure who was said to have reached the peak of Thunder-God's body except for the original creator of that art."

"During his journey, he tried to merge all his knowledge from various arts, and create a new set of arts altogether. The Lightning Devil and Strikes of Thunderous Palms are a product of his efforts."

"What people often assume is the fact that these arts were compatible with each other. It was later found by some high-grade cultivators that the art had no relation altogether. It was he who made them look so compatible with each other."

"The arts hold no relation with each other." The two men were shocked. The two of them were also practicing the strikes of Thunderous palms and Thunder-god body.

"He even left a written document saying that the art of Lightning devil is way inferior to the Thunder-god's body, but had a huge road of improvement ahead of it. He desired to create something which could compete against that peerless art, but ultimately failed and died in an incident."

"This art, however, has an even more grand backstory. It was the art which he invested most of his time in. The number of laws which went into the creation of this art is simply unimaginable. That figure was also peerless for another reason. He is said to have connected with all kinds of elemental laws."

The two men were again shocked. "But how could one possibly connect with all the laws?"

"He managed to connect with two heavenly laws of fire and thunder, while the rest of the laws were earthen level."

"Theoretically, he should be able to connect with another heavenly law if he just concentrated on that part. Why did he choose to step down for earthen laws?"

"This art is the reason for that. Those were the requirements for the creation of this art."

"But if he chose to connect with those laws for this art, then it must have been..." The two men were shocked.

"It was the reason behind this test. The first two volumes of "strikes of Thunderous palms" were created when he was still in the QI general realm. That art is his most precious creation and also his strongest."

"The motive behind this test is to find someone compatible enough to connect with these arts while being in the Qi general realm. It is a risky move to find an inheritor of his legacy."

.....................…

Long Tao's eyes were glistening with light after he executed another set of moves. " I was right."

"The third volume could only be used by someone who has stepped into the King level. That is the reason I saw no responses from it while I practiced the exercises mentioned."

"What about the first two?" The Keeper was interested in viewing the outcome of the test.

"Your earlier statement did confuse me, but after experiencing it multiple times, I am sure about it. The creator must have established these two sets while he was still in the QI general realm. It was the reason behind it having such a huge number of elemental auras mixed within it."

"He took the positive portions of many different kinds of elemental arts and integrated them into this one. Every move mentioned here requires one to have a grasp on an array of laws."

"You finally did it. Well done. This art feels like it was tailored for you to inherit. Go ahead with your gut feeling."

Long Tao closed his eyes and followed the set of moves. Soon enough a rhythm was set and aura began to release out. Sometimes it was calm while being violent otherwise. It was often hard but also soft sometimes. After a set of rotations, Long Tao finally experienced an epiphany.

A bright shadow was formulated within his mind, practicing this set of moves automatically. All Long Tao had to do was look at it and comprehend the meaning behind it.

The stone tablet within the room began to shake. It made the old man up the sky open his eyes suddenly.

"Somebody actually managed to resonate with it."