Until now, only Inala's Biome Bombs hunted the Bludders. First of all, Inala had a lot of information to digest from his gains. Plus, he was focused on completing Mystic Royal Art. So, he couldn't personally target the Bludders.
The Quip Clan weren't functional without their cultivation technique, hence they remained immobile. Wittral could attack the Bludders without any issues, but Inala didn't mobilise the latter.
First was to prevent Wittral from chancing upon the Cooter Clan. Even though the Cooter Clan had abandoned him, he was still a proud Empyrean Snapper. The moment he takes pity on the Cooter Clan and helps them, a series of problems appear.
Wittral would be torn between his identities, which wouldn't bode well for his future. Hence, to prevent anything that could influence him negatively, Wittral was kept beside Inala.
Second was a means of protection. Inala was in a helpless state while he comprehended all the data in his possession. His Quip Clan too couldn't take action. Hence, Wittral was necessary to protect them from dangers.
As a result, only the two Biome Bombs were hunting other Pranic Beasts.
Since Inala completed the Quip Clan's cultivation technique and managed to categorise the information in his mind space to a sufficient extent, he could take action.
Everyone entered the first Biome Bomb that reverted to its original size, becoming a sphere with a radius of 180 metres. An entrance opened as the Quip Clansmen walked out, immediately attacking the Bludders.
The Zinger Aristocrats used a string of Prana to hover at a height of 100 metres from the ground. Currently, they were all at the 2-Life Stage, allowing them to have a Spirit Weapon range of 360 metres.
But that was their maximum Spirit Weapon range. Their optimal range was around 216 metres. Since a hundred metres was more than enough to remain beyond the range of Bludder attacks, they maintained themselves at that altitude and attacked.
Mystic Royal Art—Piezo Resonance!
This was a Skill created to condense the second function of Mystic Royal Art, which relied upon the Zinger Shriek to resonate with the skins of their target and extract some information from them. This was useful for both information extraction and to detect the position of all living beings in their vicinity.
Currently, the Quip Clan only has three basic Skills: Piezo Resonance, Piezo Slip, and Tangible Piezo Slip. As they were all functions built into Mystic Royal Art, Inala conceptualised them into Skills.
To create any other Skills, information was necessary. Hence, the Quip Clan was using Mystic Royal Art to gather experience related to it. Based upon that, they would formulate ideas for Skills. In the future, their accumulations would reach a tipping point to create even a Prime Skill.
"Tch!" Gappu frowned as she listened in on the faint Zinger Shrieks produced by the skin of the targeted Bludders, "I'm only able to extract nonsense information from them."
"This is the first time you're using the Skill." An Aristocratic Zinger commented while in a seated pose, using a string of Prana to keep herself at the altitude of 100 metres above the water surface, "It is arrogant of you to expect anything more than this."
"I know, I know." Gappu groaned and continued to use the Skill of Piezo Response more.
The Bludders spun across the water surface and targeted the strings of Prana. A flash of its Eddy Blade, and the string of Prana was severed.
"Eh?" An unsuspecting Zinger Aristocrat was stunned to lose her balance and fall, "Kyak!"
"Be careful, idiot!" A nearby Zinger Aristocrat used her second string of Prana to grab the falling woman and pull her up, "Always be ready to use your second string as a pillar when your first gets destroyed."
Seeing their targets remain out of their reach, a Bludder raced towards its brethren. When close, both unleashed their Eddy Blades. When the Eddy Blades accurately slammed into each other, the impact force sent one of the Bludders flying into the sky, making a beeline for a Zinger Aristocrat.
It was a planned assault. The Bludder had promptly made the plan and took action. By the time the Zinger Aristocrat reacted, it was too late as the Bludder flashed with Prana to target her neck.
It moved across the Zinger Aristocrat and landed on the water surface, rotating a few times to divert the momentum of its fall. After making a curve on the water, it arrived at the stop, turning around to observe the woman it had targeted.
A moment's confusion later, it was stunned to see that the woman was still alive.
"This…?" The Zinger Aristocrat noticed a thin layer of mist covering her neck, sporting a gash. In realisation, she stared at Wittral and bowed in gratitude, "I would have died if not for you."
"Maintain alertness," Wittral nodded calmly and surveyed the area. When the Bludder targeted the Zinger Aristocrat, he created a layer of mist at the targeted spot. The Bludder's Eddy Blade cut through a good chunk of the mist layer but failed to reach the woman's neck.
If not for Wittral, the woman would have been beheaded.
Secondary Nature—Empyrean Mist Deity!
It allowed Wittral to condense fluids anywhere in his Spirit Weapon range and use them as his Spirit Weapon. When this is combined with his Tertiary Nature of Subtle Imprison, Wittral could instantly form a layer on his target, one that couldn't be severed through by even a Bludder.
The Bludder's Eddy Blade cost 300 units of Prana while the layer of mist Wittral created on the woman's neck only cost 80 Prana. In terms of ability effectiveness, Wittral was superior.
Of course, things would have been different had the woman been on the ground. With a platform to move upon, the Bludder could have turned into a saw and cut through the mist layer and the woman's neck. Wittral would probably have to expend more than 300 units of Prana to protect her in that case.
It was why abilities have to be used strategically. Since the woman was high up in the sky, Wittral could protect her with minimal Prana while the Bludder needlessly wasted 300 units.
"Eh?" Wittral was surprised to see that his Prana reserves were back at full capacity. He stared at Inala to sense a stream of Prana touching his skin before seeping into his body. "You can do this too?"
"Yup," Inala nodded as he stole Prana from a Bludder, refined and elevated it to the Silver Grade, and then converted it to a form easy for Wittral to digest as he supplied it to him, all within the span of a second.
"Don't worry about Prana expenditure and just use your abilities recklessly." Inala shouted at the Quip Clansmen, "You need to first familiarise yourselves with your Primary Nature and cultivation technique."
"Yes!" Gappu laughed and used a string of Prana to grab a Phell and threw it towards a Bludder like a dart. She used the Tangible Piezo Slip to bombard some useless information onto the targeted Bludder, causing the latter's body to flinch for an instant when the Phell stabbed it and exploded in response.
Right at that moment, a couple of Zinger Aristocrats took action as they combined their strings to coil into a sphere around the Bludder, containing the explosion within. "Ahh! My head feels like it would crumble!"
Tanking the explosion through their Prana string resulted in a strain on their minds. But a stream of Lifespan supplied by the Royal Zinger and they were back to an optimal state of being, "You're the best, Lord Inala!"
Wittral protected them from harm while Inala supplied them with Prana and healed them using Lifespan. This way, the Quip Clansmen could rapidly accumulate battle experience.
Though they were Iron Grade Pranic Beasts, Bludders were tricky opponents to face, since they would learn upon the mistakes of their brethren and build upon that to target their opponents better.
Moreover, they were rapid, whether in their attacks or when they changed a plan. So, reacting to them allowed the Quip Clan to accumulate practical experience quickly.
"Aren't we in a race against time?" Wittral asked Inala in concern, "Don't we need to develop before Brangara begins building up strength?"
"We're indeed in a race against time," Inala nodded and stared at the Quip Clan, "But this is a necessary process. They weren't born as part of the Quip Clan but evolved into one later in life. So, there's a lot they don't know, including myself."
"We need to first understand our strengths and weaknesses." Inala stared at the Bludders, "To know that, we must experience a lot of things first. Rushing through this process is detrimental to our future."
"Whether it is the Mammoth Clan or the Cooter Clan, they weren't built in a day." Inala smiled wryly, "To reach their height and even surpass them, we need to develop traditionally through the accumulation of knowledge, experience, and wisdom over a period of time."
"But Brangara will become terrifying by then," Wittral frowned, "Even if the Quip Clan surpasses the Mammoth and Cooter Clans, the Celestial Boar can still annihilate them overnight."
"You're right about that, but the Quip Clan won't be fighting him but instead the Wean Clan." Inala smiled in confidence, "I'll be the one to fight him."
"Don't worry, even Brangara cannot gloss over this process. So, his Wean Clan must currently be undergoing the same thing as us." Inala stared at the Quip Clansmen, "What do you think is the most terrifying of all, Wittral?"
"Power?" Wittral tilted his head, not sure about his answer.
"Nope," Inala laughed, "There's one reason the Mammoth Clan was able to create the Seven Mystic Paths while the Cooter Clan didn't, even when both Clans are touted to be equal. It's thanks to this one resource that's the most precious of them all,"
"Ideas!"
