Noel gasped while Anna recalled this kind of technique from her previous life. Back then, Noel's energy was indeed calm. He managed to control his energy perfectly so that he could concentrate a portion of energy on the spot where she was going to hit, absorbing a portion of her power.
It seemed that the essence of the training was about that ability, she thought.
Old Ru raised his hand again. "Take a close look at my Spiritual Energy."
He wanted them to look at the thin layer of energy that wrapped his hand. Suddenly, it became a bit inflated until it was thick enough to consider it as a glove.
"By controlling the output of your energy, you could do something like this." Old Ru grabbed Noel's hand with his other hand and lifted it up to the front.
"Feel the power difference." Old Ru extended his palm to Noel's hand and the energy hit Noel's hand. The impact felt like he was being hit by a punch of a Spirit Master even though Old Ru didn't use a lot of momentum to increase the power.
"Then, how about this…" Old Ru did the same thing, but this time with less energy. This time, he felt the impact was like a kid pushing his hand.
"…" Noel frowned, feeling the difference.
"I was watching your battle yesterday before deciding to meet you." Old Ru punched to the side. The Spiritual Energy around his arm became like a flame, covering his skin. But once he completed that punch, the energy flowed to the fist and flew away due to the momentum. "You utilized your energy to follow the flow. You do nothing to control that energy. It's such a waste."
"…" Noel and Anna looked down, recalling how they used the Spiritual Energy.
"There are two reasons. By using the energy this way, the energy will be less concentrated, causing the loss of power. Of course, your offensive abilities are overwhelming. That's something I acknowledge. However, you haven't fully utilized your ability to its full potential.
"Then, the second reason is…" Old Ru grabbed a stick lying on the ground and wrapped it with a layer of Spiritual Energy. "Noel, swing your blade at me!"
"But Old Ru…" Noel didn't want to do it because Old Ru was only using a stick. Even though he had this technique, Ardagan was a living spirit. He believed Old Ru was underestimating him.
"It's fine. Just do it."
Noel frowned. He had no choice but to comply. However, he made enough distance that even if he completed his swing, Old Ru wouldn't be in his range.
"I'm going to strike it." Noel declared. As soon as he got a nod from Old Ru, he swung his blade as hard as he could.
Old Ru also did the same, striking Ardagan.
But surprisingly, instead of getting chopped by Ardagan, the stick managed to stop the blade as if it was made of metal.
"Huh?!" Noel widened his eyes in shock.
Old Ru smiled, noticing that the sword managed to break through the layer of Spiritual Energy and cut a portion of the stick. In the end, the stick fell down because it couldn't support its weight.
"I see. It seems I've underestimated your blade. It's truly sharp." Old Ru apologized.
"No, no. That's not a problem. It's already impossible for a stick to stop my sword!" Noel shook his head furiously.
"This is the second reason. The durability. With this power, you should be able to increase the durability of your ability. I'm sure it can help you even for an offensive Spirit Ability, right?"
"Yes…" Noel was shocked by the potential that this single ability could have. In addition, this might be something that his Undying Fire needed.
Damian had taught him how to master a Spirit Ability, but the one he chose was the Undying Fire itself. He had trouble controlling the fire because it was too overwhelming. But this ability might be the solution.
"This is the first stage. I want you to have some control over your Spiritual Energy. As for the second stage, I want you to match the Spiritual Energy in your surroundings. Spiritual Energy has strengthened all subjects and objects in this world. It might be small, but that stick also has Spiritual Energy. I control my Spiritual Energy, match it with the stick, and pour it to increase its strength."
"This is the essence of the second stage. As for the third stage, it's as simple as pouring your element into the mix. You should know that your Spirit Ability is unique. Most people receive elemental spirits, but those who have unique spirits are not that low either. So, I want to incorporate the element, or specifically your spirit, into this ability."
Noel listened to the explanation attentively. Meanwhile, Anna seemed to be contemplating as if she had realized something.
"Old Ru… may I ask a question?" Anna raised her hand.
"Sure."
"The reason why you put us into the same room is for this, right? In the first stage, you want us to share all items inside the room while using this ability. The Spiritual Energy will linger for some time, so if you want to use the item, you have to match the amount of Spiritual Energy that remains on that particular item."
"After that, you want us to gain more mastery and finally notice the Spiritual Energy that the items originally have. With both of us using the same thing, we might notice each other's mistakes and make improvements."
"Last but not least, the elements. Both of us have conflicting elements, so there might be a reason why you arrange our stay like that." Anna explained her observation.
Old Ru thought for a moment and made a mischievous smile. "For that question, I will give you sixty points. You have a general idea, but not fully correct yet."
"Let me give you a hint, I told you that the Spiritual Energy had empowered all subjects and objects in this world." Old Ru emphasized the 'subjects' and 'objects' so much that Noel and Anna could easily notice.
"Don't tell me…" Both of them thought the same thing and looked at each other. It seemed that Old Ru wanted them to circulate their energy to each other as well.
