Beast Realm

The feeling of breaking through to a new realm of cultivation is entirely different from going up a level.

It is a bit like punching through the window of a wrecked motor vehicle to crawl out.

It hurts a bit to break yourself free of your old surroundings that were once adequate.

But once you have punched through the last of the glass and emerge out on the other side, the cool and refreshing feeling that runs awash through your body is only followed by the calming sense of safety and security.

A small explosion of power rippled off Taira's body as he took his first steps into the beast realm.

Since he had no pills to aid in the stabilization of his cultivation, he had to keep meditating for a few moments afterwards to ensure that he did not fall backwards.

Thirty minutes later, he now sat firmly on the second level of the beast realm.

'Not bad at all…my first impressions are quite good.'

Standing up, Taira began to execute a few simple movements to help him get a better grasp of his body's new capabilities.

His balance was phenomenal, his muscles were more powerful, movements were smoother and his agility and grace were at a never before seen level.

Even with the addition of eight fluffy tails that were each over five feet long, he had no trouble maneuvering his body exactly the way he wanted it without facing any issues.

'I think I may be ready for the next level of my cultivation arts now.' He realized.

He hadn't attempted these things previously as his body wasn't yet meant for the strain that they would pose.

However, now that he had suffered through a breakthrough and moon touched diamond dust, he had no doubt that his difficulties would be nonexistent.

Recalling the proper breathing for the second move of his movement art, he closed his eyes as he started to concentrate.

"Dark Moon Art : Black Light."

At a speed that was beyond what a beginner stage beast realm cultivator should have possessed, Taira vanished from his place among the flower fields and reappeared in a tree a literal mile away.

It had only taken him around fifty seconds to close such a distance, and the only evidence of what he'd done were the neon violet footprints left in the grass and bark of the tree he was standing on.

Obviously this was a movement art that focused more on enhanced speed than stealth, but it still had a great many uses.

And if he used this power in conjunction with his lightning element, then he was sure that he could double- no, triple his movement speed.

He could already imagine that little else within the beast realm would be allowed to touch him.

It was a very exciting premise.

Flipping down from the tree, Taira landed gracefully on the ground without making so much as a sound.

The next thing he wanted to test was his sword art.

Removing the two black blades from his storage, he frowned immediately as soon as they made their way into his grip.

'No… I must be imagining this.'

Telling himself that he was just sleepy or maybe a little horny, he shook off that odd feeling he felt and executed the second move of his mother's sword art.

Spreading his legs into a wide stance, he rested both blades on his shoulders as he circulated qi into his arms, hips, and feet.

"24 Wraiths Sword Art : Tirade Dance."

With whirlwind movements, Taira performed a rousing sword art amongst the grove of giant trees.

His feet seemed to carry him with the grace of a swan as he moved, showcasing why the art's secondary movement was referred to as a dance.

'No…'

Taira swung his swords in wide arcs, cutting through all of the wild trees in the surrounding area with not only the sharpness of the blades, but the terrible wind pressure that was created everytime he swung.

'I don't believe this… it's gone.'

BOOOM!

For the final move of this thirteen step art, Taira executed an overhead downwards slash towards the ground that blew away any surrounding debris.

Now that he was finally done, the Nogitsune hybrid looked around to examine all the damage that he had caused with his art.

Trees had been chopped down cleanly, there were large gashes in the ground, and the blades responsible for it all hadn't suffered a lick of damage.

To any outside eyes, this would have looked like a perfect execution of a combat art.

But cultivators at higher realms would know exactly what was wrong with this picture.

For cultivators, there comes a moment when they are choosing a weapon for the first time that is known as the kindling.

When choosing, one gives it a few whirls and waits to feel a spark between man and weapon take place.

This spark is the moment that let's one know 'this weapon was made for me'.

Sure, one could use weapons without feeling a spark, but they would only be able to use it at around 50-60% of the potential output.

Using a weapon that is truly meant for you provides no greater satisfaction, and something like that is integral to living a long life and seeing many battles.

Taira previously held that spark with his mother's swords, but in this moment it seemed like that time had passed.

The swings were no longer satisfying, and even though he was capable of executing attacks perfectly, there was still this inner feeling of revulsion within him that made him feel like he had done something terribly wrong.

The affinity that he felt with these weapons was gone.

Although, it really shouldn't have been all that surprising.

Swords have been the preferred weapons of vampires for generations, and the ability to use one at a master level was a requirement that every Ascalon had to meet before they turned fifteen.

'For some reason I feel as though my work has been wasted.. though I don't remember any of it to begin with.'

Sighing, Taira put both weapons away before taking a seat on a recently created tree stump.

It was more than a little disheartening to suddenly lose your synchronicity with a weapon you knew as well as your own body.

Taira could still choose to fight with a sword in the future if he so chose, but in a fight where he was outmatched against a superior enemy; such a thing would likely be a liability.

He needed a new weapon, and it had to be one that he had total and perfect synchronization with.

'…Wait a minute…'

Taira looked down at his chest and the familiar red gem that always sat within it.

Smiling, he crossed his legs and entered a meditative state.

Materializing a soul weapon for the first time typically required an immense amount of qi in order to give them their physical form.

It was such an exhorbitant amount, Taira did not even possess the necessary requirements to materialize it a few hours ago.

But now that he had entered the beast realm, he just barely met the requirements.

Barely.

A dull red glow started to encompass his body, and Indra focused all of his qi into the center of his chest.

After pouring all but 1% of his qi inside, his gem; a tendril of energy left his chest.

His weapon finally began to take physical form, and when Taira's eyes landed on it's complete state, a feeling of completeness began to ooze out from his very pores, and a predatory smile formed on his lips.

'Beautiful…'