The Second Level of the Stormstride Ninefold Path

At first, Karsha planned to complete the quest and then start training for his biggest challenge—killing the 10 Overlords. But along the way, he had luckily chanced upon some items and techniques that further elevated his strength to new heights.

One of the greatest gifts he received was the subspace, where he could train for 24 hours while only spending an hour in the real world. It was a tremendous boon that couldn't have come at a more opportune moment.

Now that he had completed the quest and awakened the 8 elements, his next plan was to start training. Although 864 days sounded like a long time, in the world of cultivation, it was considered a blink of an eye.

His first goal was to train his movement technique to the second level before tackling the other techniques and skills. With the first level mastered to a high degree, Karsha could now move on to the next level: Thunderstep.

In the first level, he learned 108 different steps, where each step modified the previous or the next. With each step at his fingertips, Karsha could now switch between movements without even thinking about it.

The movement combinations had now merged with his muscles, so depending on the move he wanted to make or the attack he wanted to evade, he could do so effortlessly without having to twist his body awkwardly to avoid a projectile.

While the first level was more about a hands-on approach, the next level involved tapping into the power of lightning to move insane distances at incredible speeds.

The second level required Karsha to harness thunder and lightning to achieve rapid movement. This level could also be used offensively, allowing Karsha to utilize lightning to not only evade but also deal damage. While the offensive move might not be extremely powerful, the lightning had a paralyzing effect on targets, buying him time to either counterattack or retreat depending on the situation.

To master the second level, Karsha had to revisit the fundamentals of the first level. The second level essentially involved merging the movement combinations from the first level to create more powerful ones.

The first level comprised 108 steps, and for Karsha to attain an S rating and advance to the third level, he needed to merge all 108 combinations to form 64 different variations.

It meant he could pick two combinations and merge them to form a new and advanced technique. He could also choose to merge three different steps to further elevate the power of the newly formed movement.

While it might sound easy, merging movements was far more difficult than one could hope. He first had to understand the essence of each movement, assess their similarities, and determine where the two or three movements could intersect to form a new, robust version.

Since it was a movement technique, Karsha had to understand how they were formed. He needed to break them down to the atomic level and rebuild them, ensuring there was no overlapping.

Overlapping occurred when even a slight movement interfered with others. For example, if the technique required Karsha to start by moving his right leg while swinging his left arm, overlapping would occur if he swung his right arm instead, along with his right leg.

When that happened, the resulting damage would be catastrophic. To get this right, Karsha had to become like Dr. Frankenstein, dissecting the movement combinations and merging them with other techniques to create something new and powerful.

"I guess this will be fun then," Karsha thought, gazing at his perfect clone created by the system. He smirked, ready to begin his intricate and challenging training.

He envied the clone. What was there not to envy? Here he was, trying to master a technique, and standing in front of him was his identical clone, who had already mastered the technique and even developed different variations for Karsha to try.

The clone was just over the top, and Karsha, who was just starting to like the clone, couldn't help but smirk every time he looked at its serious face.

At least he had a clone to help him create many different variations without having to do it all himself. The clone had created over 300 variations, and Karsha would have to select only 64 from them.

Once selected, he would have to understand how they were made and then master them to make them his own. Yes, it was a cheat, but since no one was present to caution him against it, he could proceed without any hindrance.

"Mastering the second level with eight combinations will surely elevate my yin-yang lightning in the process. Perhaps, I can finally enter the High Affinity level, killing two birds with one stone," he thought.

Karsha had initially wanted to master 64 combinations. However, after receiving the blessing of the Time Tablet, which granted him an additional 18 days—equivalent to 432 days inside the system's Subspace—his ambitions grew. He now aimed to go further, compressing the 64 combinations down to 32, then to 16, and finally to 8.

With the added time and heightened comprehension speed, Karsha was eager to test if he could indeed achieve his goal. The clone already possessed the combinations; all he had to do was select and master them.

"Let's get started then. I don't have all day," he thought. With that, the clone began executing various combinations. Karsha's brain immediately went to work, his comprehension speed tripling and further advancing his intelligence.

While his increased intelligence contributed to comprehending the techniques, Karsha needed to genuinely grasp the essence of each movement. Only with that deep understanding could his intelligence truly flourish, ensuring he comprehended the intricacies of each movement.

After the clone executed about 256 different variations, Karsha had it run through them one more time. Each run took three hours, giving Karsha ample time to grasp the movements. He understood most variations at a single glance, but to ensure he didn't make any mistakes, he had the clone repeat the process five more times.

After the fifth time, a system notification flashed into Karsha's vision, making him smile slyly.

< Ding! You have attained an S rating in the Stormstride Ninefold Path: Second Level - Thunderstep >

< You have mastered 64 different combinations >

< You have to master the techniques to advance to the next level >

Karsha read the message with a smile. He then stood up and began practicing the 64 new variations.

Ten days went by, but he persisted, ensuring he drilled the technique into his bones and muscles. Thirty days passed, then forty. After the fortieth day, Karsha stopped and sat down.

He then instructed the clone to further merge the 64 combinations. True to its nature, the clone began executing another set of movements, more advanced and powerful than the previous ones.

As always, Karsha's brain went into overdrive, allowing him to grasp most of the movements at first glance. After four hours, the clone executed about 98 different variations, prompting Karsha to enter a deep state of thought. He assessed the different combinations and selected the ones he wanted.

Choosing the wrong technique would surely leave him disappointed in the end. While that outcome was less likely, the chances of not having the most powerful variations could, one way or another, hinder his progress in the future.

'I envy you, clone. I really do. How I wish I could be like you,' Karsha thought inwardly as he commanded the clone to start another set of variations.

The clone executed the variations over and over again, making Karsha's understanding increase each time. Five days later, Karsha had selected 30 variations, with only two remaining to complete the second set and attain the SS rating.

'While having a ring of lightning around me while running sounds fun and dope as hell, I already have the lightning chain, an even better version for both offense and movement. I guess a cyclone it is.'

Karsha, caught between two movement techniques, pondered for a while before selecting a technique that would soon become his favorite. He then reviewed another set of variations and picked the last one, finally completing his set of 32.

Having already understood how they worked, it didn't take long for the system notification to appear. He then spent 20 days running the 32 combinations to reinforce his muscle memory.

< Ding! You have attained an SS rating in the Stormstride Ninefold Path: Second Level - Thunderstep >

< You have mastered 32 different combinations >

< Ding! Your mastery of the First Level has been raised to SS rating >

'Mr. Clone Me, let's start the third step: 16 variations.' With 65 days gone, Karsha, having mastered 32 combinations, now started with the 16 combinations.

Ten days later, Karsha continued to watch the clone execute the 24 variations with intense focus. While the other variations had seemed easier, the 24 variations now had hundreds, if not thousands, of connections. Missing even one would mean an incomplete technique, which would be catastrophic. Adding another five days, Karsha ran the variations again.

On the 80th day, Karsha let a small smile escape his lips as he finally understood the essence behind 15 variations, leaving only one more to go. He had already chosen the last variation, but the connections he had to study numbered in the thousands, making him run that particular variation over 100 times.

< Ding! You have attained an SSS rating in the Stormstride Ninefold Path: Second Level - Thunderstep >

< You have mastered 16 different combinations >

< Ding! Your mastery of the First Level has been raised to SSS rating >

After the 85th day, Karsha finally grasped the last variation, bringing his mastery to the SSS rating. He then willed the clone to start the 8 combinations.

"Holy shit," Karsha cursed out loud when the clone executed the first variation. It was perhaps the most complex and robust one he had seen so far.