Under the moonlit sky, Mira stood in the snow-covered field of exploded ice trees, contemplating. She had pushed the Explosive Ice Gauntlet to new heights, but the challenge of making it viable at her full power remained.
"The fusion of elements... perhaps that's the key to efficiency," Mira pondered. She recalled her affinity for water alongside ice, considering how these two elements could synergize within the gauntlet.
With this new approach in mind, Mira focused her Qi, summoning the essence of water to merge with the ice. She visualized the water molecules interlacing with the ice lattice, reinforcing it and adding a new layer of versatility.
As she formed the gauntlet again, she noticed an immediate difference. The presence of water made the ice more malleable, allowing for quicker formation and a smoother explosion mechanism. The water seemed to cushion the ice's explosive release, reducing the Qi drain significantly.
'Seems I'm going in the right direction.'
Excited by this development, Mira tested the enhanced gauntlet on a nearby tree. Pulling back her fist, she punched with just 30% of her strength.
BOOM!
The impact was more controlled, the explosion less violent, but equally effective. "This is it," she said, a triumphant smile forming. "The combination of ice and water not only strengthens the gauntlet but also makes it more efficient."
Mira continued her training, gradually increasing her power output while maintaining the balance between the ice and water elements.
At thirty-five percent, the gauntlet showed remarkable stability, its explosions precise and impactful.
Forty percent power brought new insights. Mira noticed that the water element allowed her to adapt the gauntlet's form mid-strike, providing a dynamic edge to her attacks. She experimented with changing the shape and density of the ice mid-punch, creating varying effects upon impact.
By the time she reached fifty percent, Mira had honed the Explosive Ice Gauntlet into a versatile and formidable weapon. The fusion of ice and water had not only enhanced its strength but also its adaptability, making it a perfect fit for her combat style.
However, she knew that her ultimate goal was to make the technique viable at her full strength.
Sixty percent power was a significant milestone. The strain on her Qi was quite noticeable, but the efficiency of the gauntlet had improved drastically. She could sustain the technique for longer periods while still retaining its devastating explosiveness.
Seventy percent brought about a new level of mastery. Mira felt a deep connection with the elements, her Qi flowing seamlessly between ice and water. The gauntlet responded to her every thought, adapting to her changing tactics.
Now, not just her fists, she could create the gauntlets around her feet, head, elbows, and knees.
'But…' Mira looked at the near-infinite amount of trees before her. 'It's not enough. I have access to all these elements, yet I'm not making use of them. I bet if I found the right combination, I could increase the power while decreasing the amount of Qi needed to sustain it.'
It was then that the idea of integrating Yin Fire and Yin Lightning into her Explosive Ice Gauntlet technique emerged in her mind.
"Yin Fire and Yin Lightning... elements of destruction and speed," Mira mused. "Their integration could elevate the gauntlet beyond its current limits."
Yin Fire, known for its cold yet burning nature, seemed like a natural complement to the ice element. Similarly, Yin Lightning, with its swift and penetrating characteristics, could enhance the gauntlet's explosive impact.
What made her desire them was that they both had an almost acidic effect when introduced to the body. With them, Mira felt she could increase the penetrating power and internal damage by several folds.
Mira started with the Yin Fire. She focused her Qi, summoning the essence of the cold fire, feeling its unique energy coursing through her. As she infused the Yin Fire into the ice gauntlet, she noticed an immediate change. The gauntlet now emitted a faint blue flame, its temperature paradoxically cold yet searing.
She tested the enhanced gauntlet on a thick ice tree. The punch landed, and the Yin Fire added a new dimension to the impact. The tree's surface was instantly covered in frost, yet the areas around the punch mark were scorched, showing signs of both freezing and burning.
Encouraged by this success, Mira turned her attention to the Yin Lightning. Integrating it proved to be more challenging due to its volatile nature. She had to carefully weave the lightning energy into the gauntlet, ensuring it didn't disrupt the existing balance of ice and water.
After several attempts, Mira achieved a harmonious blend. The gauntlet now crackled with a faint electrical energy, giving it an aura of raw power. When she struck another tree, the impact was immediate and devastating. The Yin Lightning's energy pierced through the trunk, leaving a trail of both shattered ice and scorched marks.
Examining it with her Soul Sense, she noticed that a thin line from the lightning had entered the trunk, allowing the gauntlet to explode into it before causing devastating damage to the inside of the tree while leaving the outside mostly untouched.
She also didn't have to explode the entire gauntlet upon such an impact. Thanks to her water affinity keeping everything together, she could keep most of it intact while only the ice closest to the wound would explode.
At seventy-five percent of her power, the gauntlet was a spectacle of elemental harmony. The ice provided structure, the water added flexibility, the Yin Fire brought a burning chill, and the Yin Lightning ensured swift and penetrating strikes.
Mira moved through the thicket, testing the limits of her new creation. With each punch, she progressed in her mastery of the technique, showcasing the gauntlet's devastating potential.
At ninety-five percent, the gauntlet's power was awe-inspiring. Each punch was a cataclysmic event, the combined elements wreaking havoc in perfect unison. The forest around her bore the scars of her training, but she was able to keep most of it contained.
She could focus all ninety-five percent of that power into a singular spot rather than exploding it out into a cone.
'Just a bit more, and this technique will finally be complete.' Mira thought, grinning at the fact that she was about to create her very own technique from the ground up.
It wasn't like her Paragon Wings, where it was mostly just her imagination combined with a bunch of 'fuel', but something more systematic, more consistent.
She wanted this to be something that would always be a part of her arsenal. Something she could always rely on.
It didn't have to devastate armies or destroy mountains, nor was that what she was going for.
Looking forward to the technique at full power, Mira pushed even harder to complete it.
Finally, after another 12 hours of constant work, Mira wanted to unleash the full potential of the Explosive Ice Gauntlet.
"I need to see its limits, its true capacity for controlled destruction," Mira spoke to herself. She set her eyes on a large, robust ice tree in the middle of a bunch of smaller ones and approached it.
Mira raised her fist and enveloped it in the Explosive Ice Gauntlet.
At a hundred percent of her strength, Mira unleashed the gauntlet. Her fist shot forward like a blur.
Upon impact, the spectacle was breathtaking. The gauntlet exploded, but unlike before, the explosion was a concentrated burst of energy precisely directed into the tree.
The ice shards, supercharged with Yin Lightning, penetrated deep, branching out in a web of electric energy within the trunk. Simultaneously, the Yin Fire spread, creating a surreal scene of ice burning with a cold flame, scorching the insides while leaving the exterior surprisingly intact.
Mira observed the aftermath, noting how the tree stood, seemingly unscathed, yet internally, it was utterly ravaged. "This... This is the essence of the Explosive Ice Gauntlet. Devastating yet precise. Destructive, yet controlled."
A second later, the tree turned to dust, but she ignored that. Her power was simply too strong for it.
Turning her attention to another tree, Mira experimented with varying the intensity and focus of the gauntlet's explosive release. She discovered she could fine-tune the balance of elements, creating different effects based on her intention.
A lighter touch resulted in a more superficial burst of Yin Lightning, ideal for quick, piercing strikes. A heavier blow unleashed the full might of the Yin Fire, engulfing the target in a freezing inferno.
"This technique isn't just about raw power," Mira reflected. "It's about adaptability, the ability to respond to any situation with the right combination of elements."
As she continued her practice, Mira found herself moving in a trance. The gauntlet felt like an extension of her own body, responding instantly to her thoughts and movements.
"Each element brings its own strength," she thought aloud, her fists moving in a rhythmic pattern as she destroyed tree after tree. "Ice for structure, water for flexibility, Yin Fire for its piercing cold, and Yin Lightning for its swift, penetrating force."
After another few hours of training, Mira felt that she had finally completed and perfected her first technique. Not only that, but her understanding of the creation process, as well as her own elements, had improved drastically.
