Silence.
Lizarius continued hovering motionlessly within the endless sea.
He neither confirmed...
Nor denied it.
His golden eyes simply remained fixed upon Lian.
Lian scratched his cheek awkwardly.
"...Right."
"...I'll just assume that's a yes."
He let out a helpless sigh.
"...That's actually terrifying."
"...No privacy whatsoever."
He muttered beneath his breath.
"...Good thing I wasn't thinking about anything embarrassing."
Lizarius remained completely indifferent.
Lian's expression quickly became serious again.
"...Right."
His attention returned to the endless sea surrounding him.
He replayed everything he had just witnessed.
Again.
And again.
The water gathering.
Rotating.
Compressing.
Accelerating.
Then—
the final release.
Every movement replayed repeatedly within his mind.
"...Current..."
He slowly raised one hand.
The surrounding water immediately responded.
A stream quietly gathered around his arm.
He didn't rush.
Instead—
he carefully recreated the very first step.
Rotation.
The water slowly began circling.
At first—
the movement was unstable.
The current repeatedly collapsed before reforming.
Lian frowned.
"...Again."
He adjusted the flow.
This time—
the rotation became noticeably smoother.
The surrounding water was gradually drawn inward.
A faint spiral appeared.
His eyes brightened.
*That's it...*
*Keep compressing it.*
The spiral slowly tightened.
Faster.
Smaller.
Denser.
Water continuously gathered toward its center.
The pressure steadily increased.
Lian carefully maintained control.
He could clearly feel it.
The moment he compressed the current too quickly—
the entire structure became unstable.
It nearly dispersed.
He immediately loosened the rotation.
The current stabilized once more.
"...I see."
"...Too much force..."
"...And it collapses."
Lizarius quietly watched.
Lian continued experimenting.
Again.
And again.
Every failure taught him something new.
Gradually—
the spiraling current became increasingly refined.
The condensed core at its center steadily shrank.
Until—
it was no larger than a marble.
Lian stared at it.
"...So this is the spear..."
His gaze shifted toward the endless sea ahead.
"...Now..."
"...Acceleration."
He gently pushed his hand forward.
The surrounding water immediately gathered behind the tiny sphere.
He remembered what he had observed.
The surrounding current wasn't merely pushing it.
It continuously redirected the surrounding water—
reducing resistance,
guiding the projectile,
and maintaining its momentum.
"...Like this..."
The marble-sized sphere suddenly shot forward.
**Whoosh—!**
Its speed startled even Lian himself.
Yet—
only several meters later—
the condensed water abruptly lost stability.
It burst apart.
Returning to the surrounding sea.
Silence.
Lian blinked.
"...Failed."
He wasn't discouraged.
Instead—
he nodded slowly.
"...No."
"...Not completely."
"...The compression worked."
"...The acceleration worked."
"...Maintaining both at once..."
"...That's the difficult part."
His thoughts naturally continued.
*Maybe...*
*Instead of maintaining everything simultaneously...*
*I should complete the compression first...*
*Then allow the surrounding current to handle the acceleration.*
Before he could continue—
Lizarius spoke.
"...Correct."
Lian froze.
"...You really are listening..."
He sighed once more.
"...That's still creepy."
Lizarius ignored the complaint.
"...Continue."
Only a single word.
Lian smiled helplessly.
"...Yes."
He raised both hands once more.
The surrounding water quietly gathered around his palms.
Just as before—
he tried compressing it.
The current spun.
Faster.
Faster still.
For a brief instant—
the center began condensing.
Then—
**Pfft.**
The entire vortex collapsed into countless bubbles.
Lian sighed.
"...Failed."
Without waiting—
he tried again.
The water gathered.
Spun.
Compressed.
This time—
the current remained stable a little longer.
His eyes brightened.
"...It's—"
**BOOM!**
The compressed water exploded outward.
A violent wave slammed directly into his face.
Lian tumbled backward several meters.
He floated there silently.
"..."
Then—
he slowly wiped the water from his face.
"...That doesn't count."
Lizarius merely watched.
His expression remained unchanged.
Silence.
Lian steadied himself once more.
His thoughts gradually settled.
*Don't rush it.*
*Master didn't simply compress the water...*
*He first created the current...*
*Then allowed everything to converge naturally.*
*The compression wasn't forced.*
*It happened because the current itself carried everything toward a single point.*
He slowly closed his eyes.
This time—
he paid no attention to the spear itself.
Only the current.
The surrounding water answered.
It flowed around him.
Circling.
Turning.
The rotation gradually increased.
Not violently.
Naturally.
Like a whirlpool forming within the endless sea.
The center slowly narrowed.
Smaller.
Smaller still.
A tiny point quietly appeared.
Lian opened his eyes.
*Now.*
The surrounding current suddenly accelerated.
The condensed point shot forward.
**Whoosh—!**
A thin stream of water streaked through the endless ocean.
Dozens of meters away—
it gradually dispersed.
Lian stared blankly.
Then—
he looked at his own hand.
"...It worked."
A smile slowly spread across his face.
"...It actually worked."
He immediately tried again.
The current gathered.
Compressed.
Released.
**Whoosh!**
The second attempt flew farther.
The third—
became even more stable.
The fourth—
left almost no unnecessary turbulence behind it.
Lian continued.
Again.
And again.
Again.
Time quietly passed.
With every attempt—
the technique became smoother.
More efficient.
The amount of spiritual qi required steadily decreased.
Eventually—
he stopped.
The surrounding water gradually became calm once more.
Lian looked toward Lizarius.
"...I think I've got it."
Lizarius observed him for several breaths.
His expression remained as calm as ever.
Yet Lian couldn't help smiling.
Coming from Lizarius—
that was already high praise.
He scratched the back of his head.
"...I'll take that as a compliment."
Silence.
The endless sea remained perfectly still.
Lizarius quietly observed the dissipating currents.
His golden eyes remained calm.
"...Next."
Lian straightened.
"...Next?"
"...Defense."
Lian blinked.
"...Defense..."
His attention immediately focused upon the tiny white lizard.
Lizarius slowly raised one claw.
The surrounding water responded.
Unlike before—
it didn't gather into a current.
Nor did it compress into a projectile.
Instead—
a thin layer of water quietly spread across his entire body.
It clung tightly to every scale.
Like a second skin.
It was so thin—
it was almost invisible.
Only the faint rippling along its surface revealed its existence.
Lian stared.
"...That..."
Lizarius spoke calmly.
"...By wrapping yourself in a layer of water..."
"...You create another medium between yourself and the incoming attack."
Lian listened intently.
"...An attack no longer strikes your body first."
"...It strikes the water."
The thin layer suddenly rippled.
A small stone silently appeared within the simulation.
It shot toward Lizarius.
**Tap.**
The instant it touched the watery coating—
the layer flowed.
The force of the impact immediately spread across its surface.
The concentrated force dispersed throughout the surrounding water.
The stone harmlessly bounced away.
The watery layer remained completely intact.
Lian's eyes widened slightly.
*It redirected the impact...*
Lizarius continued.
"...Water yields."
"...Yet it also carries force."
"...Properly controlled..."
"...A portion of the impact can be redirected throughout the entire layer."
"...Rather than allowing it to remain concentrated at a single point."
Lian slowly nodded.
"...So instead of resisting the attack head-on..."
"...It disperses the force."
Lizarius gave a slight nod.
"...Correct."
He looked directly at Lian.
"...Observe."
Without another word—
three stones appeared simultaneously.
Each shot toward him from a different direction.
The thin watery layer remained motionless.
**Tap.**
**Tap.**
**Tap.**
Three ripples spread across its surface.
Each impact dispersed almost instantly.
Not one reached the scales beneath.
Silence.
The demonstration ended.
The thin coating quietly dissolved back into the endless sea.
Lizarius looked toward Lian.
"...Your turn."