Chapter 23: Even if You’re a Genius…

“Amazing!”

Yang Liuqing clapped in praise.

If she hadn’t witnessed the entire process, she would have thought Ke Ling was performing magic.

In reality, that small shield hadn’t appeared out of nowhere—it had been coalesced through exquisite manipulation.

“Can I do that too?”

“Xiao Qingqing, you’re still ten years too early.”

Ke Li spread her hands.

This was no low-end control technique.

Seeing Spirit Particles was just the first step of the first step. To coalesce a [Physical Object], you first had to learn Spirit Particle Manipulation.

Next, you had to compose the image in your mind and begin the reorganization.

Finally, you manifested it.

Learning that whole process—ten years was obviously an exaggeration. A slow learner could manage it in ten months at most.

A smart person? Maybe ten days or eight days.

“You won’t know if you don’t try.”

Yang Liuqing mimicked the motion.

Instantly, a Spirit Particle Riot erupted.

Not just in the alley—Spirit Particles from outside were also converging rapidly.

On Yang Liuqing’s palm, a translucent large shield gradually coalesced.

“It doesn’t feel that hard.”

The moment she said that, the two little girls exchanged glances, both seeing the surprise in each other’s eyes.

“Xiao Qingqing, how about you let me cut open your head and see if your brain structure is different from ours?”

A dangerous glint flashed in Ke Li’s eyes.

Even they, hailed as geniuses, had needed half a day to accomplish something like that.

Yang Liuqing, an outright novice, had replicated it after just one look—and on a larger scale.

Was the Magic Potion’s transformation really that absurd?!

“Cut your own head! Don’t tell me you two learned it in one go?”

Yang Liuqing put on an innocent expression.

That made both little girls’ mouths twitch simultaneously.

Those words were subtly hurtful.

“Back to the point. Master has undoubtedly officially begun her training.

But it will still take considerable time before she can use it skillfully.”

Ke Ling bluntly changed the subject.

“True. Cramming on the eve of battle is only good for a quick fix.

By the way, can this be condensed into armor?”

Yang Liuqing had a sudden whimsical thought.

“Xiao Qingqing… are you really a genius?”

Ke Li looked utterly incredulous.

This was far beyond the level of drawing inferences.

Ke Ling’s expression turned serious as she spoke slowly: “Master, Insatiable Greed.

Pushing the pace too fast all at once can lead to major problems.

Still, being able to think that way shows that Master has a flexible mind and her own understanding.

But at the current stage, it really isn’t suitable.”

Ke Li, standing to the side, flashed a sly smile: “Xiao Qingqing, try maintaining that shield for a few minutes first.”

“I’ll give it a shot.”

Yang Liuqing focused her mind, keeping the translucent large shield on her palm intact without letting it dissipate.

Time ticked by.

In less than two minutes, she felt something was off all over her body—a powerful wave of fatigue surged into her mind.

She immediately gave up maintaining it.

The translucent shield instantly collapsed and dispersed, reverting back into particles.

“So tiring…”

She felt that if she kept it up any longer, her body would give out first.

“Master, this was borrowed power after all, not a condensation of your own Qi. That’s why it’s hard to maintain for long.”

Ke Ling pointed out the crux of the problem.

“In short, it’s not a question of whether you can do it, but how long you can sustain it.”

Ke Li further added.

“I understand. Borrowing external power for a short while gives you cost-effectiveness.

But on the other hand, if I use my own Qi, I can maintain it much longer.

So why can’t I just use my own?”

Yang Liuqing still hadn’t given up on the full-body armor approach.

This was a life-saving ability.

“In your words, Master is currently like ‘one who has attained Long may wish for Shu.’”

Ke Ling barely stopped herself from rolling her eyes.

“Xiao Qingqing, your idea is good, but at the stage where you only know the surface, it’s best not to do that.

The consumption is too high, and the defensive power isn’t as good as you think.”

Ke Li, for once, spoke earnestly.

Yang Liuqing thought it over and felt their words made a lot of sense—she really had been too greedy.

Just starting out, and already wanting to learn advanced skills, completely ignoring the issue of consumption.

Suppose defense required more than half of her power, then offense would be reduced to only the remaining half.

Moreover, the defensive armor would be in a constant state of high consumption.

That meant her offensive capability would continuously diminish.

It was more loss than gain.

“Master, let’s change our approach.”

Ke Ling didn’t want to dampen her enthusiasm, so she decided to downsize along this direction.

“What kind?”

Yang Liuqing’s eyes lit up. Even if she couldn’t transform into an armored warrior, a budget alternative would do.

Ke Ling teased her first: “Master, in your opinion, which two body parts did ancient generals primarily defend?”

Yang Liuqing pondered for a moment: “The head and chest, I guess—since they’re the most vital.”

“Exactly. The helmet and chest plate are very important.”

Ke Ling nodded.

“So Master doesn’t have to be fixated on a full set of armor. When necessary, just protect the head and chest.

That would reduce consumption by many times, and it’s also more covert.”

“That works.”

Yang Liuqing accepted quickly.

Full-body protection was certainly good, but the consumption was unsustainable.

Settling for the next best and appropriately compromising could actually achieve a better effect.

If others saw you in full armor, they’d go all out to break through that turtle shell first.

Even if they couldn’t break it, the massive consumption required to maintain the armor would drain you dry.

Blocking a shot at a critical moment, on the other hand, could save your life.

“Xiao Qingqing, a Killer Move like that can usually only be used once. Next time, others will be on guard.

Once they know you have that defensive technique, they’ll definitely change their tactics.

The strong who survive one deadly fight after another aren’t pushovers.”

Ke Li warned her never to let her guard down.

“Mm, I understand.”

Yang Liuqing humbly accepted the lesson. She was like a dry sponge, absorbing the knowledge and experience of the two of them at incredible speed.

“Also, I should remind Master: the Spirit Particle Shield lacks corresponding resistance. If subjected to an Elemental Attack, it might be directly pierced.”

Ke Ling pointed out this weakness of the defense.

Yang Liuqing was slightly startled: “That’s pretty bad, isn’t it?”

These Transcendents had all sorts of incredible abilities. Elemental Attacks were as common as dirt.

“Xiao Qingqing, don’t worry so much. Sister means there are varying intensities.

For ordinary Elemental Attacks, as long as your Spirit Particle Shield is solid enough, you can basically avoid damage.”

Ke Li’s words allowed her to relax a bit.

“Imagine the Spirit Particle Shield as a thin steel plate, and you’ll know what level of attacks it can withstand.

For example, if a flame doesn’t have the properties of penetration or ultra-high temperature diffusion, it can basically be blocked.

Or take the guns you people commonly use.

Unless it’s a large caliber or a high-powered firearm, it’s hard to break through a Spirit Particle Shield.”

“What do you mean by ‘commonly used guns’? Guns are banned here.”

Yang Liuqing, having calmed down a little, even had the leisure to nitpick Ke Li’s wording.

“Xiao Qingqing, you’re mistaken again.

You don’t still think of yourself as an ordinary person, do you?

The enemies you’ll face not only have superpowers but also firearms.”

“…Sorry, I haven’t fully grasped the situation yet.”

Yang Liuqing was jolted awake by Ke Li.

Rules were always meant to restrict and protect ordinary people.