Chapter 532 Defense

After Rui fleshed out the requirements and objectives of his second technique development project, he put it aside for the time being. He would need to do more research before he could flesh out both of his projects any further.

('I should give the projects names if I'm going to have more than one.') Rui shrugged. ('For the piercing technique, I should call it the... the Severer Project. The long-range technique project will be called... the Sniper Project.') Rui nodded. ('Both of these technique projects are centered around offensive techniques, I should probably develop a defensive project as well.')

However, deriving a defensive project was easier said than done. He needed to come up with a concept of a technique that was extremely potent with the cost of being very demanding on the accuracy of timing and placement of the execution of said technique.

('Well, for starters, it would have to be an active defense.') Rui noted.

Only active defense techniques were contingent on the execution of said technique, a passive technique was not particularly executable and thus would not improve based on parameters such as accuracy of execution.

('Inner Divergence is contingent on timing and placement.') Rui remembered. It was part of why his defense was that good. However, Rui wondered whether he could develop a technique even better and more synergetic with him than that.

('What kind of principles and mechanisms would end up requiring such a high degree of accuracy in timing and placement?') Rui wondered.

He could think of a few.

('What if I seek to create a defensive technique that... aims to completely negate any and all impacts?') Rui wondered, absorbed in his train of thought.

Such a technique would be demonstrably overpowered. The only question was whether it was realistic or even plausible in the first place.

('Let me dig into the fundamentals. What is an impact and why does it inflict damage?') He asked himself, rehashing basic collision mechanics and kinematics.

An impact was simply a collision between two objects where an exchange of energy occurs. The kinetic energies of the two objects get converted into damage or kinetic energy.

('My goal is to avoid the former; letting the kinetic energy of an object colliding with me get turned into damage.') Rui reiterated.

Instead of letting the kinetic energy of an object hitting him get converted into damage, he would rather the second option occur; where it gets converted into kinetic energy. In classical mechanics, this was known as an elastic collision, a collision where two objects clashing into each other do not inflict damage, and the kinetic energy does not get converted into damage but remains as kinetic energy.

An example of this would be two bouncy balls hitting each other. They did not damage each other, instead, they simply bounced away from each other. This was very different from two balls made out of glass that would simply break each other into pieces.

('Following that analogy, won't get sent flying away if I try to essentially turn myself into a bouncy ball?') Rui wondered with a confused expression. Bouncy rubber balls were notorious for being extremely crazy and hard to control. Just the slightest clash against them would launch them into a frenzy.

('It's similar to my previous opponent, except he was quite literally a bouncy ball, where I am trying to figuratively or effectively be one.')

Rui did not want to create a technique that would send him flying far away every time he blocked an attack, like a bouncy ball. This was the issue with trying to convert the kinetic energy that hit him into the kinetic energy of his own body rather than damage. Kinetic energy meant movement. Too much movement. He would not be able to even stand in one place if he got hit. It was too impractical.

('What if I try to get rid of my kinetic energy as soon as I receive it from my opponent?') Rui wondered. If he could get rid of the kinetic energy in his body, that was gained from an attack, immediately after his body gains it, then he would be able to stay in one place.

('So basically. My opponent hits me, I convert his attack's kinetic energy into the kinetic energy of my own in an elastic collision like a bouncy rubber ball with zero damage to me, and immediately after that I get rid of the kinetic energy, and then I'm safe?') Rui scratched his head.

Even he had to admit, this sounded like an absolutely crazy technique. He wasn't even sure if it was physically possible.

For example, how would he be able to make all collisions perfectly elastic? This alone was a difficult conundrum. In fact, back on Earth, absolutely perfect elastic collisions with one hundred percent elasticity were said to be practically impossible. Even if he didn't need to be one hundred percent, it was still something that would be extraordinarily hard to accomplish.

Furthermore, the second challenge to his proposed technique was how on Earth was he supposed to magically get rid of the absorbed kinetic energy in his body instantly on the spot? That was also something that seemed like it defied the principles of kinematics.

"Hmmm..." Rui pondered the idea a bit as he considered the possibilities available at hand. The second part of the problem was definitely more difficult than the first problem. For the first problem, he already had a potential solution.

('Elastic Shift... might help.') Rui recalled his very first Apprentice-level defense technique that he had mastered many years ago. It was an active defensive technique that allowed him to hamper impacts by increasing the distance over which the impact occurred. It was similar to how baseball players caught baseballs by moving their hands along with the ball while catching them. It also made collisions more elastic, and thus there was potential that the technique could end up solving part of the problems that stood in Rui's way in the construction of his ambitious project.

"To think that paltry foundational technique I learned a long time ago would end up helping me create what will probably be the most impressive defensive technique I've learned this far."