The third day had arrived.
Liming Zi has yet to return; Sun remained alone in their shared accommodation.
However, he was no longer sitting with his halberd on his lap.
Sun was inspecting Rising Dragon, his brows creased and his eyes shaded.
"There is hardly any change..."
The despondent tone in Sun's voice was heavier.
'Maybe I can't sense the change too well...? I should have Li Zi take a look when she gets back.'
Sun moved to the courtyard. It was desolate under the starlight, and plenty wide.
'The foundation is weak, but if I supply it with Qi, then it should remain stable.
'But expenditure is a problem. Merely sustaining it would pose no problem, but if I'm using it as well...
'I'll spar and gauge the specifics.'
Sun roused the Qi of his Heart Qi Core and directed it into the Dao Art Image within the halberd.
Rising Dragon's two axe heads and the spike atop shone a pale golden light.
The light reflected in Sun's eyes.
'Guess the open space will be my enemy.'
While Sun had heard of 'image fighting' or 'shadow sparring', that was not something he had experience with.
He had only heard it from Liming Zi in the past.
Instead, he would attack arbitrarily.
Sun's grasp was tight around the shaft of Rising Dragon. The weight felt foreign, but it was something Sun had to work with in the meantime.
Thrusting the halberd forward, drawing a straight line of pale gold, a sharp whistle whipped through the air.
Rising Dragon shot forward, then withdrew, leaving behind a faint trail.
What succeeded the thrust was an upward swing. A golden arc soared to the sky, twirling around, then swept horizontally across the empty space.
These actions were unhurried, carrying with them elegance, but also shone with lethality.
Everywhere the blade of Rising Dragon traced, a thin trail of golden light would be left in its wake.
But this strail was shortlasting, merely a blur left behind.
'Seems that only the 'arc' half of the Dao Art is working properly...'
Sun evaluated after his short bout with the empty air.
He placed his dominant hand further up Rising Dragon's shaft, just below the base of the blade.
With a few quick successions of stabs and slashes, Sun exchanged leverage for agility and familiarised himself with a shorter reach.
'The material is not too light, and the weight is nicely balanced. Even with all this needless ornamentation... It is a good halberd.'
Changing the position of his hands once again, Sun spun the Rising Dragon and drew a mighty vertical arc.
A crescent shape was drawn as the final act of his bout.
'There is also a counterweight on the other end of this halberd. Perhaps I can utilise that end with Golden Ribbons and Arc.
'Rather, I can try and make up for the missing 'ribbons' of the Dao Art...'
Sun contemplated his current situation.
Golden Ribbons and Arcs indicate two expressions of this Dao Art.
This is an offensive method, but it was currently missing its former expression.
'It would be fine if this were just an ordinary offensive Dao Art, but the 'ribbons' are the vital component to this Dao Art, otherwise it would just be ordinary...
'Overall, the expenditure is not too severe... that is also due to the lack of 'ribbon.'
His evaluation was quick and efficient.
It is a capable weapon, and only one fault lies within the Dao Art. Unfortunately, Sun could not remedy this problem at the moment.
'I should wait for Li Zi to get back, and ask for her opinion...'
But as he was about to quell his Heart Qi Core, Sun cast his gaze over the Dao Art Image once again.
He narrowed his eyes...
'It can't be...?'
Looking over the Dao Art Image and scrutinising the Innate Qi of Rising Dragon, Sun found that the Qi had thickened ever-so-slightly.
It was still far from stabilising its foundation, but the progress already surpassed Sun's prior attempts to stabilise it.
'Swinging Rising Dragon around did this...? What is the meaning behind this?'
Yet another question had floated in his mind, and this was the second time he cursed his ignorance.
'I should ask Li Zi about this, too...
'But if sparring with the air is able to stabilise the foundation, then I can kill two birds with one stone.
'Training once again, and stabilising my Rising Dragon's Innate Qi...! Although... Would I be able to fix the ribbon half of Golden Ribbons and Arcs?'
Sun contemplated for the time it takes to burn a stick of incense.
He sat back on the ground with his face held in his palm, deep in thought.
To him, the 'ribbon' half was vital for the Dao Art itself, and more valuable than the 'arc' half.
It expressed elegance but increased the lethality of the weapon manyfold.
The 'arc' half essentially increased the blade's sharpness.
'If I can manage with just 'arc', then I should be fine. I only need to be prepared for the encounter with the fog...
'I can figure out why 'ribbon' isn't working another time. For now, I will resume my training...!'
Sun stood up again, feeling a little confidence bloom in his chest.
He could see his progress, and it felt gratifying.
Once again, he ignited the blade of Rising Dragon, and began to spar with the empty air.
...
The light shimmered, then dimmed, before reaching its darkest point.
Late Hour has arrived, and the starlight of the Starlit Sky has waned.
Liming Zi was returning to the shared accomodation.
She was not returning from Qing Tian's Park, for she had visited a few other places, simply watching the people from afar.
When Liming Zi returned to the sight of Sun sparring the air, she approached with a question.
"Your stabilising of the Innate Qi has finished?"
Sun stumbled in his step as he stopped himself abruptly, turning to his friend with satisfied expression.
"No, not really. The method you taught me didn't seem to work very well, but I found out that sparring like this has progressed me further.
"In two nights, I couldn't achieve much, but in just a few hours, I've made great progress towards stabilising the Innate Qi...
"But... I do want to ask, what is the meaning behind this?"
Sun wanted to understand the principal behind this seemingly unorthodox method of stabilising Innate Qi.
...