The group first entered the giant supply shop called Underwater Goods. They had to walk up a flight of stairs that creaked ominously before they entered what looked like a warehouse stuffed with all kinds of stuff that had only one vague thing in common. The ocean. Right in the center when they went into the shop was a display of different diving bells and suits in different price ranges. From dirt cheap brass bowls with a small glass opening for the eyes to luxurious enchanted glass bowls that promised years of use with just one enchantment charge and free recharge. It was honestly a bit over the top, but it did not even come close to the rest of the store.

  There were different harpoons and spear guns to one side, with an equally absurd amount of different variants. From the cheapest one shot spear gun, to giant multishot shotgun type spear guns with magazines to have more than one shot. That behemoth of a gun looked very much like only a warrior could even carry it. Most of the spear guns were not actually guns, but used a crossbow like mechanism that worked under water from the looks of it.

  On the other side of the shop were walls of different supplies. From clothes for underwater use to diving suits. Underwater stoves that promised to grill your fish even under 100 times pressure like on a grill to survival rations that could be eaten under water. And of course there were boats, kayaks and other sporty looking goods that would have been common in most sporting goods on earth to enchanted underwater vessels with absurd price tags and magical seals against theft. All in all it was a cornucopia of goods all arranged in a maze like structure that Aaron was familiar with. It felt like stepping into a big store back home on earth. There were one or two people working here, clad in dark blue shirts and bowls on their head. The cheapest enchanted kind.

  A girl stepped up to them, her hair drifting in the water around her head like it had a life of its own. She smiled at them and waved, before she talked.

  “Welcome to Underwater Goods, how can I help you today?” her voice sounded slightly distorted and she exaggerated some words as she was talking through the water. It was really weird, but also fascinating.

  Roger, who had been here before apparently, said:

  “We need a standard underwater package, rations, kelp, a cheap stove and some simple dive capable clothes for all of us.” He pointed towards one of the spear guns.

  “I will also take one of those.”

  “Of course, right away.” she answered her words slightly warbled by the water.

  “So can you even fight in armor down there?” Aaron asked as he inspected some gear promising that it would hold up even against shark bites.

  “Yes, but it really tires you a lot. Have not done much underwater fighting. Its very different.” Mortimer said with a shrug.

  “Swords and axes are less useful. My greatsword can still be used to stab stuff, but you can’t really cut with it anymore. Robin’s axe is basically toothless.”

  “I’ll take a spear or something.” Robin said looking miserable as he patted the axe on his belt.

  The employee led them to some changing rooms and they were given water appropriate clothes, which in this case was a sort of wetsuit that was not made out of rubber. The fabric was tight and stretchy, but clearly it was cloth, although distinctly different in texture and quality from most stuff Aaron had seen so far in the tower.

  “What is this?” he asked the employee.

  “This is a special mix out of spider silk and coral thread. The best unenchanted alternative there is on a budget.”

  “Coral? I thought what they left behind is basically rock?”

  “Well it is what gives the fabric its toughness. But I do not know how it is made. It will keep you insulated and warm even in the deep and it won’t rip. Very comfortable.”

  “Well, alright then.” The whole group started to change into the outfits and Aaron did the same. The suit was made in basically one piece, which meant he had to slip first into the legs, make sure they sat tight and then pull the whole thing up over his body. This would be a pain in the ass to get off. There were some openings sealed by what looked like a zipper so one could answer natures call, but besides that it felt incredibly tight and restrictive. The fabric started to stretch as Aaron closed the front and felt it snugly fit his whole body. The rest of the group seemed equally uncomfortable with the clothes, except Shia who looked just as comfortable as before. She even had her bandolier with throwing knives back around her chest.

  They left the store with three rucksacks of supply, a speargun and a spear, which cost them a fair bit of shards. Aaron did not have to pay anything. Roger took care of it, saying he would be reimbursed once they were back on the first floor. Strangely though Aaron had not seen any flippers to swim better. But maybe they had them below. They walked over to the bar called the Drowned Sailor and asked a surly innkeeper with a bowl on his head for space to keep their belongings they did not want to get wet. It was apparently a common thing and they stored their stuff in what locked like a big locker. Aaron stored most of his belongings in there. None of it was stuff he would really miss. His sleeping bag, his clothes, two daggers, a few potions, his bow. None of which was particularly suited for underwater use. He just left with 6 potions on his belt, his enchanted dagger and his purse with his memory cores and manastones. That was it.

  “I would suggest we acclimate today and tomorrow morning we can do...well whatever you decide to Cultivator.” Roger said as the group assembled in the inn.

  “You can call me Aaron, Roger.” Aaron said with a small smile. “And that sounds like a great plan.”

  Roger nodded stiffly and then pointed at a hole in the middle of the inn.

  “One of the ways down. Half of this inn is underwater. But lets eat some kelp first.”

  “Time for some food.” Shia said with a grin and sat down at the counter, shouting for a menu. The group settled down around her and Aaron soon had a menu in front of him. The Drunken sailor only offered three dishes, but they had a whole barrage of drinks listed on two pages. Aaron ordered the Kelp soup and a grilled fish baked in kelp, as well as a drink called Siren Song. Their food arrived quickly. With only three menu items there was almost no downtime. Aaron got his soup first, which was a big bowl of what looked like seafood stew with bits of green luminescent kelp swimming in it. The kelp even when cooked had a slight rainbow sheen in the light and Aaron studied the bit of kelp he had on his spoon for a moment, before he shrugged and took a big bite.

  The kelp was chewy and tasted vaguely like...green. Like a leafy vegetable, bitter and slightly sweet, but Aaron thought he could taste the chlorophyll in them as well. The stew itself was made with all matter of seafood and had a deep umami taste with barely any fishy or overly salty notes. It was also decently spicy. Aaron ate with gusto and checked out what the rest of the group had gotten. Shia had chosen the grilled skewers with bits of kelp in between the fish meat. It smelled delicious because it was smothered in some sort of sauce. It had a delightful charred smell that permeated the whole inn. Other than that the two warriors had ordered the baked fish. Which turned out to be 12 inches long and full of flaky white meat. The fish had been baked in kelp itself and the kelp in question looked like green rainbow ribbons wrapped around the fish. It was steamy and was served with three different dipping sauces. Aaron got his own fish soon after. Roger had ordered the skewers and Stab the soup. They gave him a look when the baked fish arrived, but Aaron was almost done with the stew.

  It was made by a chef, the balance of the soup was too good, but it was not that amazing. So probably not particularly high level. Aaron tried the baked fish and found the meat deliciously flaky and juicy. The dipping sauces were an incredibly spicy red one, a salty and slightly lemony one and one that was sweet and sour. It was delicious and Aaron finished the whole fish and soup in the time it took the rest of the group to go through half of their meal. Aaron then ordered the skewers for himself, getting a second look by the surly innkeeper, before he was served. Aaron ate enough for two men, but was still hungry in the end. The skewers were fantastic, the kelp nicely charred alongside with the meat and the sauce it was cooked with over the fire gave the meat a fragrant and spicy flavor.

  “By the lord, you sure have an appetite.” Robin commented.

  “I am still growing.” Aaron said with a smirk as he finished of the last of the skewers.

  “Right… How long does the kelp take to take affect?” Shia asked.

  “Around 15 minutes, so it should start soon.” The innkeeper said and served some drinks.

  Aaron’s Siren Song was a mixture out of multiple alcohols and was salty and sweet, with only a hint of bitterness. His body processed the high percentage alcohol almost instantly and so Aaron just got a minute or so high, when the alcohol went to his head, before he was entirely sober again. While they waited he wondered what the kelp actually did. He soon started to feel it. Magic in his stomach.

  It was one of those feelings you can’t really describe unless you had it before. Like something in his guts trying to spread out, only to be restricted by the potent power of his Cultivation. The magic traveled the path of least resistance, back up his throat and Aaron had to burp. While he did so, he felt the magic catch. It was not a spellform, not really. It felt too...primal, too loose and undefined. It was like a natural magic, wild and unconstrained. Like a side effect of the kelp when it reacted to stomach acid. One burp followed another and then Aaron felt something cover his lips. He panicked only for a moment before he discovered that it was a bubble. Like a chewing gum bubble you would blow up, just transparent with a slight rainbow sheen. He opened and closed his mouth, but the bubble stayed. He even poked it with his finger. Then he realized it started to become harder to breathe.

  “You better get below.” The innkeeper stated and pointed towards the hole in the middle of the room. Aaron walked over and he noticed the rest of the group had started to burp as well. Not the most appetizing way of getting the power to breathe underwater, but it was probably easier to maintain this way. Aaron took a look down the hole. It looked like a normal well. He held his breath, so he was fine, but he had felt how he could suddenly not breathe normally anymore. It had crept up on him and he wondered how many people had died on this floor before they found the kelp and used it to cross the floor. Either way it was time to test out if this strange bubble actually worked. He vaulted over the small balustrade around the well and fell down into the water.

  Aaron let himself be submerged and opened his eyes under water once he had gotten his bearings. It was murky in the well, but there was light coming from down below and up top. He could feel the bubble now cling to his lips and took a tentative breath. Air streamed into his mouth and into his lungs. He breathed out into the bubble and was fascinated to see no bubbles at all. The spell or whatever it was that created this effect somehow transformed air into water or filtered oxygen out of the water and vice versa. He carefully touched the bubble over his mouth and was able to push through, but the bubble remained. It was even over his nostrils. His eyes and ears were getting the full salt water treatment though. His eyes stung a bit, but he would acclimatize he hoped.

  His senses were going haywire though. His sense of sound was all garbled and he heard...he heard so much. It was like being suddenly inside of a drum. The water transmitting the sound slowly, but all at once. It also changed the frequency of what he was hearing. Below him was noise and beyond it was noise. But his senses were unable to parse through it. It felt like the first time when he had gotten Sensory Harmony. The sense impressions made no sense, it was all just sensory overload.

  With a splash the next member of the group jumped down, Mortimer. He sank down in his armor like a stone and the rest of the group followed suit. The rogues swam, while the warriors sank with the extra weight of their armor. Aaron took a minute to get his senses under control. His sense of smell was entirely gone. But his ability to feel the water currents and movement around him with the hairs on his arms was enhanced. His eyes pierced the water far deeper and further than he had expected, but sound was in the end the real and ultimate sense in the water. Aaron knew how submarines used echolocation and many animals did the same. He doubted he could recreate their feats and send out an echo he could interpret. At least for the time being. But he would be able to decode the sounds he got through his ears like a sonar, he was sure of that. Already he could make out the sounds of the group moving in the water.

  He followed them down the well into a new room. The underwater aesthetic was very different from up above. It felt like Aaron was inside of a coral reef that had been sculpted to look like an inn. There was a bar with people behind it preparing food or drinks, he guessed. The drinks were kept in small capsules the customers put into their bubbles before opening with a small latch. Food was eaten by hand. From what he could see it looked like sashimi and the grilled skewers from above. There were no real chairs, but there were tables. Little cubbies lined the walls, looking like small caves that surrounded a table. Each cubicle had a different colored coral theme and they came in wildly different colors. From crimson red to a deep dark blue over a bright yellow. The Inn was more popular down here and there were 10 or more customers here, drinking or eating. Living plants and underwater growth lined the hall, giving it all an overgrown, sunken look.

  Aaron concentrated only on his surroundings. Let his ears and sense of touch follow the disturbances in the water of the people passing and swimming around him. He listened to them. Their voices were not that hard to understand. The multiversal translator probably helped with that. He would need some time to acclimate though. His group settled down in one of the cubicles and Shia ordered something. Aaron told them he wanted to try the sashimi and the skewers again and then just drifted there. Not really standing or sitting. He was just focusing on his sensory impressions with closed eyes.

  Slowly, over minutes he acclimated and his brain was able to parse through the onslaught of new information. It gave him a headache though and when his food was there he ate silently, trying to only listen to the group.

  “I hate underwater missions, my armor is going to rust so fast. I’ll have to polish it when we are out.” Mortimer grumbled.

  “At least you can use your weapon.” Robin said and gave the spear, a trident to be specific, a malevolent look.

  “This thing is only an emergency measure.”

  “Boys, you forget this is basically a paid vacation.” Shia said while she demolished another skewer.

  “We won’t have to fight and will come away with loads of fish and other loot. What is better than that?”

  “Dry land?” Robin said with disgust.

  “Don’t be a sourpuss. The food here is great and cheap.”

  “I will get us some rooms here. We can all take a rest. Just don’t forget to eat something with kelp before you go to sleep.” Roger said while he drank the last bit of his drink out of a capsule.

  Unauthorized duplication: this narrative has been taken without consent. Report sightings.

  “Yes, mom.” Shia said with a chuckle as Roger swam towards one of the Inns employees.

  Slowly but surely Aaron’s senses could tell him more about his surroundings. But he was glad for the downtime. As always Sensory Harmony was very much a double edged sword. If the group had decided to fight him right here and now, he would have been almost helpless. Nothing indicated he was though and he kept up the ruse. But he was sweating internally. He did not like to be vulnerable and he had to see how well his fighting techniques held up under water. He finished his meal, that was because of the salt water a bit soggy, but not overly salted to his delight. The sashimi he had was juicy and delicious, but he could have done without it being wet. Oh well.

  He swam out of the cubicle and Shia called after him.

  “Where you going, Aaron?”

  “Out for a stroll.” Aaron said as he turned around to face her.

  “Let me accompany you.”

  “What? You gonna be my babysitter now?”

  “Yep, can’t let you swim off into the sunset without us knowing.”

  “Fine, just don’t disturb me.”

  “It’ll be like I am not even there.” she said as she shot forward through the water like a fish. She had acclimated very quickly and she swam very well. She moved her entire body to swim like a dolphin and was fast and agile. He suspected her class gave her the agility and control over her body necessary to do that. Aaron was a bit miffed that they did not want to leave him out of sight, but he had accepted this kind of thing when they had still been on the first floor. It was obvious that they were here to learn about him just as much as they wanted to help and keep him alive. So if Shia wanted to accompany him, that was fine. He swam out of the inn, with long breast strokes and found himself reminded that he was not the best swimmer. He had never been a marine or a frog man, so this was not really his element. But he would master it, he promised himself.

  Once they were outside, Aaron looked up towards a distant sun shining brilliant rays of light through the water. Schools of small fish swam around like birds in the sky, only sometimes disturbed by bigger fish hunting them. The deep cerulean blue of the ocean was everywhere and if they did not have the walls of the tower in their backs, Aaron would have felt lost in the vastness of the ocean. There were only a few more buildings down here in this village. They were either about fishing or farming kelp. The precious kelp grew everywhere around them and in giant dozen meter high undulating forests of the stuff. The whole village of Oceanview was on top of a natural underwater mountain and coral reef. Many fishes and crustaceans shared the space. All matter of fauna and flora prospered here and it looked relatively safe. There were no guards and quite a few people working here.

  Most of them were swimming around the kelp, while others were carving giant fish into pieces. Some had nets with fish or were picking crustaceans and placing them in baskets. Aaron watched as a group of men demolished what looked like a three meter tall tuna and then stored the meat in strange containers made out of what looked like wood.

  “Can you imagine, once they ship that fish down to the first floor it will be worth its weight in shards. And if they manage to sell it to a caravan that can get to Ambition before the fish goes bad its worth its weight in manastones.” Shia said as she drifted next to him. Her voice was clearly audible, but it too was a bit warbled from the water.

  “But fishing is very dangerous, so many see it as an even trade.”

  “Dangerous?”

  “Oh yeah, the monsters on this floor are no joke. I hope you know what you are doing.”

  “We will see.” Aaron said noncommittally and swam upwards to a small ledge in the coral reef that had a nice view over ocenview and its underwater surroundings. There he settled down, sat on his legs and tried to calm down. He still ended time for his senses to acclimate to the new environment, so he decided to cultivate first. It had felt weird to be able to breathe entirely normal under water at first and the pressure of the water all around him had made itself known in his ears and was weighing down his limbs. It was not entirely uncomfortable. It felt more like a weighted blanked when he had closed his eyes. A wet salty weighted blanket.

  “What are you doing?” Shia asked and Aaron located her with his ears to be somewhere to his right.

  “Meditation.” was all he said, without opening his eyes. He restricted his senses, tried to focus on the inside, but his ears and sense of touch were too overbearing, sharing the constant touch of water and the sound of marine life with him at every second.

  “For how long?” Shia asked.

  “An hour.”

  “Seriously?”

  “Yes.”

  There was a long pause and then Shia grunted and settled down behind him and kept quiet. Aaron kept her in mind, focused on her as he calmed his mind. Still alert and very much ready to defend himself, although he did not know yet if he could. But his senses came first. He felt the mana in the water, felt it flow through the entire floor like another hidden and invisible current. But he could not absorb the mana through his breath, when he tried, he felt the bubble move and bulge inwards before he stopped. Well it was magic and he was absorbing magic, of course it would be in danger as well. He would have to focus more not to absorb it too quickly, or at least he would need extra kelp, a lot of extra kelp.

  He decided to absorb a manastone and fished one out of his purse. One of Mars mid grade manastones. He unsheathed his dagger and cut his hand, but almost hissed in pain as the salty water burned in the open wound. Great. He felt the intensity of the pain as if he had driven a burning nail through his palm. With a grunt of dissatisfaction he placed the mid grade manastone into his palm and started to absorb it as his blood turned nipped at the concentrated and solidified magic. A stream of mana entered him and he guided it into his dantian slowly, before he began cycling it. His mind wandering from Shia and what she was doing, to guiding Qi and the pain of his open wound.

  The cut closed in less than a minute and with a grunt Aaron reopened it. This would be torture to do. And for what? Barely any improvement? But that in the end Aaron decided was the cultivator way. He had to just keep at it, to add a little Qi to himself every day to become invincible in the future. Gradual, never ceasing progress. That was his goal.

  Shia curiously swam forward as she noticed Aaron doing something and then flinched. Aaron was pleased he could notice that reaction with just his ears.

  “What the fuck are you doing?”

  Aaron opened his eyes and looked at her. Shia had a hand on her dagger and was staring at his palm in a mixture of horror and curiosity.

  “Its one way I can absorb mana, through manastones.” Aaron said and turned the manastone in the open wound. The bottom of the pyramid shaped stone had been dissolved like he had dipped it into acid. Shia looked utterly fascinated.

  “You absorb manastones like mages?”

  “Well, I don’t think mages do this.” he said and reopened the closing wound again.

  “Doesn’t it hurt?” she asked and winced as he sliced his hand open again.

  “It hurts like hell in salt water.” Aaron said with a smirk.

  “Then...then why?”

  “Because it makes me stronger.” Aaron said and closed his eyes again.

  Shia just stood there staring at him as Aaron absorbed the whole mid grade manastone. After going through his cycling technique Aaron could barely notice the increase in his power. He remembered when mid grade manastones had been sources of incredible power. But at least he could use them a lot and it did help him. It just looked like if he kept doing this he would need a really good source of income to keep up this cultivation speed.

  The hour passed slowly and Shia had settled down in front of him, staring at his calm motions of dagger, manastones and hand as he cultivated. Once Aaron felt some slight resistance he stopped and opened his eyes. He stored the half dissolved manastone in his purse, swiped the dagger a few times in the surrounding water and then sheathed it.

  “Done?” Shia asked.

  “Yes, now I am going to train. Gonna look for some open space.”

  “Wait, what about your hand?”

  “What about it?” Aaron asked and showed her the palm he had sliced open dozens of times in front of her. She stared at the unblemished skin and looked at him strangely.

  “You cultivators are weird, strong, but so weird.”

  Aaron smirked to himself and started with Wind Steps. He had not actually tried using it under water and he was curious what would happen. The first thing he noticed was that it cost a bit more Qi to activate the technique than in air. Probably because it was more difficult to shroud himself in Qi. But once he felt silk under his feet he did a small jump.

  His body rocketed forward through the water, leaving trails of bubbles behind as he passed through water as if he had an actual rocket strapped to his back. Aaron changed directions as he felt around him with his new senses. His range with his ears was just as big as it had been in air. But it was so much faster to hear things under water. The main problem had been that he had thought everything was so much closer, so much louder, just because he could hear things from so much further so much clearer. Aaron remembered that sound propagated through water faster than air, so it made sense. But what did not make sense was Wind Steps. Aaron had left behind the cliff he had cultivated on in an instant and was now hundreds of meters away, his speed barely impacted by the water. In fact it seemed to be easier. Aaron experimented and found that water resistance was a big factor in how much speed he got. When he stretched out his arms and legs he would slow down. But only incrementally compared to what a push of his feet against water was doing. It was like there was negative resistance to him. Gravity had barely a hold on him as he counteracted it with his buoyancy. Somehow Wind Steps broke multiple laws of physics by giving him less resistance to movement in water than in air. He suspected that his feet moving through water gave enough push that translated through the technique into a constant never ending jump. If he held entirely still he began to slow down and eventually he started to sink. Very, very slowly.

  Shia was far away now and swimming towards him quickly. Aaron turned towards her and accelerated just once, moving his feet and then holding still. He shot forward and then slowed down again. He moved again and kept moving his feet this time. His speed increased more and more as he left a current of displaced water behind him. He slowed himself down by changing directions with the technique and then stopped suddenly without any warnings. His momentum instantly negated.

  “Well shit. I did not expect it to be that good.” Aaron chuckled to himself. His senses had acclimated a bit more during his cultivation session and with Wind Steps he could basically reach ungodly speeds, dodge, weave and stop in the water at will. He was incredibly noisy while doing so though. Displacing water and disturbing fish in a wide area that fled his passing. It was not perfect because of that. Any creature native to this ocean would sense him like a disturbance in the water if he sped up that much. Still he could already think of plenty of ways to utilize this.

  He moved with regulated speed towards Shia and halted in front of her with ease, standing in the water like he would on dry land. Shia was out of breath and stared at him accusingly.

  “What the fuck, Cultivator. Why did you take off like that?”

  “It was an experiment, a successful experiment.”

  “You mean you did not know that would happen?”

  “No, but I think I know enough now. I will continue my training if you want to join me.”

  Shia gave him a strange look and then just nodded. Aaron dove downwards with Wind Steps, any direction was as good as another and he looked for the ocean floor. He also noticed that the water pressure was gone while he had Wind Steps activated. No compression sickness at all. His movement technique was better than any submarine could ever be and it was not even made for water. He wondered if Mei knew how effective this technique was underwater? But who was he kidding. She was ancient, multiple thousand years old probably. There was no way she had not had to fight under water during that time. Of course she knew.

  Aaron found a small plateau on the side of the underwater mountain Oceanview was build on and settled down on sand. The water was relatively warm he noticed, too warm actually. He had not thought about it before but the water was bathwater warm, not hot, but still quite high. He wondered if that was to avoid people dying of hypothermia in the water. Probably some magic bullshit again. But at least the various fish seemed to like it. There were many swimming around him that came closer while he stood still on the ocean floor and marveled at the scenery.

  In this depth it was not dark yet, but more like a dim twilight. It was a beautiful landscape to stand in the midst of a giant coral reef mountain that from the looks of it could give the Everest a run for his money. He calmed down and started to stretch his body in the way Mei had taught him. First with Wind Steps activated and then with the water pressure on his shoulders, stretching, limbering and relaxing his muscles until he felt ready to continue.

  He fell into the familiar steps of the Rejuvenating Fist Kata. No matter how beautiful the environment he was not here just to sight see, but to take this unique environment and make the most out of it. The first rendition of the Rejuvenating Fist he absolved with Wind Steps activated. It felt like doing it on land. No Resistance from the water at all. Only his feet felt like they were on wet loose sand. When he felt the familiar relaxation flow through him he deactivated Wind Steps.

  He started the kata again, but this time it was very different. The Water resisted him. Every punch was difficult to do right and so he slowed down until the kata turned into what looked more like tai chi instead of looking slightly like karate. He finished with the set of the kata, feeling rejuvenated again to his amusement, when Shia finally reached the plateau. She had taken 10 or more minutes to finally catch up to him and she looked like she wanted to murder him.

  “You asshole.” she shouted. “Do you know how freaking far that was?!”

  “No idea. But don’t worry, when we are hunting beasts tomorrow I won’t stray far from you.”

  Aaron resumed his training, moving faster this time, forcing his body to execute the Rejuvenating Fist at the same speed as without the water and by doing so he sent out streams of water that tore through the ocean like vengeful ghosts. One even hit an unsuspecting fish and sent the poor thing tumbling through the ocean.

  “What are you doing?” Shia asked still slightly out of breath as she looked down on him, swimming dozens of meters above him.

  “Training.” Aaron said and continued. He focused and used his enormous physical strength to force his fists in the right position. It ended up feeling entirely different than the first Rejuvenating Fist he had done and in a way these were variations done for different emphasis. One slow, meticulous, meditative, precise. The other forceful, strong, heavy and mighty. But in the end he received his rejuvenating reward all the same.

  “Is this some sort of fighting art?” Shia asked after a while and Aaron sighed.

  “Yes it is and you could make yourself useful, if you are so keen on interrupting me with stupid questions.”

  “You can ignore my questions.” she said with a scoff he heard from all the way up there. But eventually she clicked her tongue and asked:

  “Useful how?”

  “Attack me in any way you wish.” he said and smirked up at her.

  “Excuse me?”

  “You heard me. Attack me in any way you want, I will defend myself, but I won’t retaliate.”

  “Are you stupid?”

  “No, but you seem to think you have any chance against me.”

  Shia glared down at him and then unsheathed her two daggers.

  “I mean, you literally asked for it.” she said and shrugged, before she catapulted herself downwards, swimming quickly at him. But Aaron just calmly continued the kata, trying to measure his strength and sense for her attacks. She came at him from above and behind and Aaron’s hands turned to palms as he reacted. He accurately felt for the attacks and moved to counter them. The world slowed down for just a fraction of a second before his open palms guided away both attacks and he flung her with ease away. Then he continued with the Rejuvenating Fist.

  Shia spluttered angrily and came at him again, stabbing again and again, jabbing at him and Aaron started to move. His evaded most of her attacks by moving, slow hindered movements sluggish from the water and those he could not dodge, he moved away with his palms. Most of the time he continued punching the water instead of defending himself, because Shia had trouble to keep attacking him under water. Her agility, her precision was there, but she did not have a firm stance. She eventually stepped onto the plateau and tried to fight him while standing, but it had the same result. Aaron countered her slowly, meticulously and no matter how Shia tried to feint or put him in a bad spot, he always was a step ahead of her.

  Shia grew angry, but did not lose control, instead her face turned cold and furious as she tripled her effort to stab him. At first her attacks had been probing, but now she held nothing back. Her dagger suddenly accelerated and Aaron dodged back and launched a palm strike at her to disrupt her. He had to give it to her, that had been a dangerous attack. But Shia was incredulous.

  “Ow. You punched my tits you asshole! You said you would not retaliate?”

  “Just a gentle push.” Aaron said amused.

  “Fuck, if that’s gentle, I do not want to know what rough is. But fair, who snitched?”

  “Sorry?”

  “Who told you I had that skill.”

  “What skill?”

  “Sudden Lunge. Its impossible to dodge unless you know its coming. Who was it? Roger? Robin?”

  “I did not know any of your skills and I do not care. You can’t touch me either way, Shia. That was neither my real speed nor serious fighting. This is training. The only one in your group who has a chance to actually wound me is Stab, but that’s because he is like level 30 or something.”

  “What? Stab isn’t a 30! He is an old quiet shit.”

  Aaron shrugged and resumed his kata. He did not care if Stab had not told them, but it was clear to him that the man was much stronger than the others.

  “Wait wait wait, what makes you say that?”

  “He is too fast. Faster than me. None of the rogues your level are even close.”

  “Fuck. Fuuuck. That is how he cheats at dice. That old piece of...Ohhh he is so banned from playing with us again.” Shia cursed and then shook her head and laughed slightly in disbelief as she stared at Aaron.

  “How the fuck are you so strong?

  “I was lucky being given these techniques and I have had enough time to get stronger. But I am very weak compared to most things in the Tower. Which is why I train. You should try it too sometimes.”

  “Yeah but like we are told Cultivators take centuries to become strong. You have been what? Less than a year in the Tower?”

  “If you continue to level you will become stronger than me eventually. I won’t be able to keep up. At least that is how it was explained to me.”

  “I can’t imagine becoming that strong. I am just glad to have a group that takes me.” Shia said and then looked away as if she had said something she should not have.

  “You can keep attacking me by the way, it is good training for me and a good workout for you.

  They kept at it for an hour or so. Shia taking frequent brakes while Aaron continued to do his katas. Eventually Shia just collapsed, floating in the Ocean staring towards the sky. Aaron finished his last Rejuvenating Fist kata and felt really good about this training session. Having someone attack him randomly and with as much fury and perseverance as Shia turned out to be really great for training the Unceasing Palm kata. Now that he was done he had only one more thing to test.

  Aaron took aim at a boulder around two or three football fields away and got into the stance of the Rejuvenating Fist. He activated Wind Steps and propelled himself forward, stepping with his feet on the water, making him accelerate. He kept his core tight and went through a simple straight punch as he launched himself at the boulder. With a massive crash his fist pulverized the boulder, kinetic forces clashed and Aaron could feel the rock give way as his bones cracked. He felt his hand break and cursed. A boulder had been a terrible idea. The stabbing pain reminded him for the next 30 seconds of agony why this was a stupid idea for a target, before his body had healed itself and the pain slowly receded. He needed to reinforce himself if he wanted to do this again. Shia had looked up from her prone position and was staring at him and the boulder in awe. Aaron looked for another one and this time he reinforced his arm with Qi. He imagined it like armor around his muscles, before he propelled himself towards that rock again and punched out.

  The boulder exploded into fragments as he crashed fist first through the rubble. His arm, his knuckles especially hurt. But it had worked. He could combine the acceleration from Wind Steps with his kata. Aaron grinned to himself. Now he had the weapon to conquer this floor. Tomorrow he would see what the third floor really had to offer.