Spirit's Awakening: The Path of Lightning and Water-Chapter 317: Connections and New Ideas

Lassim stepped carefully away from the Nexus clearing of the forest, following the faintly glowing trail that led to the Research Grove. He was curious to take up Varen’s suggestion on visiting there before it was dark.

There was still probably at least three hours before the sun fell below the horizon, and the already gloomy surroundings from the constant storm that encompassed the island would darken further. At least the trees and constant lightning provided ample light, but he could only guess how dark things would get when night fell.

The storm around the island provided a backdrop of constant mana that, even now, his progenitor marks were slowly absorbing passively. The occasional rumble of thunder blending into the chorus of distant voices up ahead that he could slightly pick up on with his enhanced cultivation and physique.

The grove came into view shortly after as he passed a pair of curled and gnarled Storm Leaf Trees, their glowing leaves casting an ethereal blue and violet hue across the grove. This area felt even more alive, and much busier than the nexus was due to all of the disciples clustered into small groups, their voices carrying over each other’s with intense discussions and debates.

Some of the clusters of disciples had their focus fixed on array materials that glimmered faintly in the stormlight. There were array plates, conduction paper with designs and blueprints, and even an assortment of engraved objects lay spread across their workspaces across the makeshift tables placed on top of the grass; each one brimming with intricate array runes.

As he approached, a particularly animated group of disciples near the center of the grove caught his attention. They stood around an intricate web of runes inscribed into a series of flags. Their voices overlapped as they argued and Lassim could see the tension clear in their expressions as they argued.

"You can’t just add a tertiary node without compensating for the energy rebound in the second layer!" a tall, broad-shouldered man wearing the red guard accented robes exclaimed, frustrated.

"And what do you suggest, Rovan?" a smaller, female disciple with a cute round face and outer sect disciple robes countered. "We can’t maintain stability without redistributing the load somewhere. The secondary node is overburdened already."

Rovan threw up his hands. "Then we’re back to square one, Kaelin! The defense array collapses the moment we introduce higher energy inputs. It’s useless for real combat scenarios."

Lassim stepped closer, his curiosity piqued. His presence drew their attention as he’d reached the edge of their makeshift circle around the flags. The group fell silent as they turned to face him. Recognizing the distinct gold accented pattern of his Personal Disciple attire, their expressions shifted to a mixture of surprise and deference.

"Can we help you, Senior Brother? I hope we didn’t disturb you…?" Rovan asked with caution.

"I couldn’t help overhearing your discussion," Lassim said, offering a faint smile. "These flags are pretty neat. It sounds like you’re trying to stabilize the energy flow in a multi-layered array?"

The smaller disciple, Kaelin, stepped forward. "We are. It’s a defensive barrier design inspired by the Storm Leaf Trees. The problem is that the energy disperses too erratically when channeled through the secondary node. It’s fine at low inputs, but as soon as we push it to practical levels, the whole structure destabilizes."

Lassim crouched to examine the array, his gaze tracing and reading the intricate lines and symbols. The design was well thought out but flawed—he could see where the instability arose as it reminded him of the thick-body construct’s issues that he’d solved under Rlyis’ and Eno’s tutelage. It was still a different design issue, but he’d studied enough between the different books and array sheets, and even the Spirit Mystic construct they created to recognize a solution. The secondary node’s placement created an imbalance, forcing it to handle more energy than it was designed for.

"I think I see the issue," Lassim said after a moment. "You’re treating the nodes as separate conduits, but the Storm Leaf Trees don’t work that way from what I’ve seen. If you’re trying to mimic that, you should remember that their energy flow is layered, not isolated. If you connect the tertiary node directly to the primary one, then replicating that in parallel, you can create a feedback loop that stabilizes the flow."

Kaelin frowned, her round features attempting, but failing to crease with doubt. "Won’t that overload the primary node?"

"Not if you adjust the runes to redistribute the energy equally across the loop and adjust the flag placement," Lassim replied, pointing to a specific section of the array. "Here. Add a set of runes to regulate the flow before it reaches the primary node. It’s like how the trees release their energy in bursts."

The group exchanged skeptical glances, but Kaelin nodded slowly. "It’s worth a try. Let’s do it."

With Lassim’s guidance, they set to work, etching new runes into the array and adjusting its existing lines. The process was meticulous, requiring precision and focus, but Lassim found himself enjoying watching them work quickly. The disciples were skilled and their movements well practiced.

After nearly an hour of adjustments, the array was ready.

Kaelin stepped back, her hands on her hips as she surveyed their work. "Moment of truth," she said, nodding to Lassim. "Care to do the honors, Senior Brother…?"

"Lassim," He answered as he placed his hand over the array, channeling a small stream of his fused mana into its lines.

The array responded immediately, its glow intensifying as the energy flowed through it. A dome of crackling energy formed above the array, its layers interwoven like the leaves of a Storm Leaf Tree. The energy stabilized, the barrier shimmering with a steady light.

"It’s holding," Rovan said, his voice tinged with disbelief. "It’s actually holding!"

Kaelin let out a low whistle, her eyes wide with amazement. "You were right. The feedback loop stabilized the flow. This… this could work on a practical level now!"

Lassim studied the barrier, already analyzing its potential applications. "It’s a solid foundation," he said. "With more refinement, you could adapt it for larger-scale defenses, I think."

The group exchanged excited looks, their earlier tension replaced with enthusiasm and friendliness. Kaelin turned to Lassim, her expression earnest. "Thank you, Senior Brother Lassim. You’ve given us a lot to work with. If you’re ever interested in collaborating on more projects, we’d be honored to have you."

"I’ll keep that in mind," Lassim said with a faint smile.

Lassim had already turned away, his mind focusing inward, as he walked further toward the quieter edge of the grove. Yet, behind him, the murmuring of the disciples suddenly stopped.

Kaelin’s voice cut through the silence, "Wait… I was so distracted by the array that I just remembered. Did he say his name was Lassim?"

Rovan paused, the realization dawning on him as well. "Lassim? As in, that Lassim? That means he’s Sect Master Volten’s Personal Disciple? The one who fought during the Sect War?"

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Another disciple, one who had stood by the others and only took notes during the process, chimed in. "You’re saying he’s that Lassim? The one who led raids and helped retake cities from the Sun Sect? When did he have time to learn about arrays? I thought he’d be some buff meathead-type warrior."

Kaelin’s round face was lit with a mix of awe and disbelief. "I thought he looked familiar! I’d heard stories about him and once saw him from a distance when he first arrived at the sect after he knocked out that bully inner sect disciple, but I didn’t expect someone like that to just… show up here and help with our array!"

Rovan scratched the back of his head, looking slightly embarrassed. "And we had him fixing our sloppy work like it was some kind of beginner’s problem…"

The gossip has spread and one of the younger disciples in the Spirit Growth stage had come over, her voice tinged with admiration, added, "He was so casual about it. No arrogance or anything. He just walked up, helped, and left."

Kaelin crossed her arms,"That makes sense, though. If he’s the Sect Master’s disciple, he probably doesn’t care about flaunting his status. He’s probably here to train for something even bigger or take out a problem beast in the area."

Rovan chuckled, shaking his head. "Well, now I really want to spar with him. If half the stories about him are true, it’d be a hell of a fight. Did you know that he fought two Spirit Ascension guards when he first arrived at the sect? Both of them were losing so badly that the Sect Master had to personally stop the fighting. It was the talk of all of us Guard disciples for weeks! Some scrawny kid beating up two Spirit Ascension Cultivators at the Spirit Transformation stage, man my blood is pumping just thinking about it."

Kaelin shot him a skeptical look. "You think you’d last more than a minute against someone like that? Did you not notice he’s already at Spirit Ascension level 2? You’re barely in the Spirit Ascension stage yourself!"

Rovan shrugged with a grin. "Hey, a guy can dream."

The group shared a laugh as they marveled at the encounter. Kaelin’s gaze turned back to the direction Lassim had walked, her respect for him deepening.

Unaware of the conversation that had taken place behind him, Lassim had turned his attention to how good it felt collaborating with the others. They hadn’t tried to do anything particularly new as far as defensive arrays were concerned. Overall, there must be countless similar designs that have been created over the years by using the trees as inspiration, but yet they were still practicing this skill to make something of their own.

The experience had been satisfying, but it also left him with some lingering questions: What would he create next with arrays? What project should he try and aim for?

His thoughts drifted to the constructs he had worked on with Rlyis and Eno. What if he could combine his knowledge of arrays with his fused mana elements to create a technique or tool that reflected his capabilities and elements as a cultivator? A construct would be nice, but there had to be something else that only he could make, just like only the Geomancers of Aetheria could make their floating gem-infused floating islands and fast, flying warship technology.

The specific idea of what he might be able to make eluded him, however. He needed time to think, to explore the possibilities and let inspiration take root. For now, he decided to let the idea simmer as he made his way back to the village.

The Tempest’s Cradle was a place of seemingly endless potential after just one day of observations, and he was determined to make the most of his remaining year here before the Elder’s summit.