Chapter 293 - 'Fade'
Lin Mu couldn't tell why the hunter had reacted like this and had run away, but he wasn't worried about that much. What he was the most worried about was the fourth skill 'Fade'. The effect that it had was much different than he had expected and not only that, but he had also somehow left his courtyard and appeared here.
From looking around, Lin Mu could tell that he was about two streets away from his house.
"Looks like the fourth skill 'Fade' is much more powerful than your other skills." Xukong suddenly said.
"Oh? Senior, you have a guess of what it is?" Lin Mu questioned.
"I do, indeed. The space that you saw which was grey in color was the parallels void that exists along with this world. Your fourth skill allows you to enter that space and move around in there. And finally, when the effect of that skill ends, you will reappear in the real world at the location that would match with that of the parallel void." Xukong answered.
Lin Mu thought over Senior Xukong's words and correlated them with his own findings and found them to be correct. Then in the next moment, numerous possibilities popped up in his mind. The Fourth skill was quite powerful, but Lin Mu still did not know what its limitations exactly were.
All of his skills had certain limitations and flaws which Lin Mu knew of. The first skill 'Flicker' was of a very short duration but its advantage was that it could virtually allow him to dodge nearly anything as long as it was during that period.
The second skill 'Blink' allowed him to teleport to any location that was within the range of his spirit sense. The limitation of the skill was that it could only work in a radius of ten meters regardless of if Lin Mu's spirit sense range unless if he used the spatial attribute qi to power the skill.
The third skill 'Phase' allowed him to dissociate his body, which allowed him to pass through objects with ease. The limitation of this was that spirit qi or objects containing spirit qi could restrict him. This meant that he would not be able to pass through formations and barriers.
From his short encounter with that hunter, Lin Mu could tell this much that he had not noticed him appear in front of him. This meant that the fourth skill 'Fade' fully made him disappear from this world. Lin Mu could see the obvious advantages and disadvantages of the skill.
The advantage was that he could get into areas or locations without anyone noticing or could even escape from a location if he was confined. It did not seem like a wall or barrier could restrict it either as Lin Mu was pretty sure he had walked through at least ten walls while coming here. He could guess that it would be the same for the things such as barriers and formations too.
But then came the biggest disadvantage, or rather flaw of the skill. Lin Mu couldn't actually tell where he was going while he was in the parallels void. Everything was the same there, and it was fully bare with not an object in sight.
This meant that Lin Mu had no reference to use and that even if he had his spirit sense, it was rather useless there as there was literally nothing there.
All of this meant that while Lin Mu had this powerful skill, it was a wild card for him, unless of course, he figured out a method of navigation while he was inside there. While the skill could allow him to disappear and escape from a location, it also meant that it could get him into trouble.
He could very easily get lost in the parallels void and end up right in the center of an enemy's stronghold. The fourth skill was now more of a double edged sword for him and unless he could figure out a better way to use it and navigate, he would not be using it as much.
A smaller disadvantage was the amount of spirit qi that it consumed for a single use was rather large, being at ten drops of liquid spirit qi and not even wisps, that too for only a duration of one minute. Though Lin Mu guessed that there might be a way to extend the duration for which he could use the skill oft.
~Sigh~
"So many things to consider, this will take me a while to figure it out." Li Mu muttered to himself as he made his way back to his home.
Lin Mu entered his bedroom and sat down to meditate on the skill. After a few minutes later, he came upon a potential solution to the flaw of the skill.
'I can perhaps use the spatial perception to navigate better in the parallels void. Spatial perception depends on space itself along with the spatial qi, which was also present in the parallel void. If I can learn to use it better, I should have no problem using the skill and its flaw may even become an advantage itself.' Lin Mu analyzed.
While Lin Mu was thinking this, Xukong was also taking a look at his memories and thoughts. Seeing that Lin Mu had actually come close to finding a potential solution only made Xukong feel proud of his disciple. He had a good head on his shoulders and although he was disadvantaged from his peers due to his starting circumstances, Xukong had no doubt the boy was a hidden genius.
His comprehension ability was rather astounding for someone of his age. He didn't know whether to attribute it to his curiosity or his incessant thirst for knowledge, but whatever it was; it had made him smarter and smarter.
Xukong had a bit more idea of how the fourth skill worked, but he had not told Lin Mu and wanted for him to figure it out himself. As he knew that the things that he learned on his own would be better for him than the ones that he taught him.