Martial arts needed forms executed by the body and "Breath" to produce their effects.
Ordinary cultivators would begin to abandon them to focus on spells since the power expressed by their bodies couldn't match that of their other centers of power.
However, Noah was different, and his recent breakthrough had further enhanced his uniqueness.
Only the dantian of a rank 4 cultivator in the solid stage could endure the expenditure of "Breath" needed to match the physical strength of a rank 5 magical beasts.
It was needless to say that Noah was capable of performing his martial arts only a few times if he used the full power of his body.
'Even my secret art isn't suitable anymore. It can barely affect my body, and it can't increase my strength by too much. I always end up in these situations because I completely disregard the harmony between the centers of power when I train.'
Noah thought as he pondered over his issues.
It wasn't the first time that one of his centers of power grew so much that he couldn't express its full potential due to the lower level of his other ones.
That had mostly happened with his mind in the past.
The lack of a suitable fuel due to the weakness of his dantian had often prevented him from using the real strength of his spells.
Of course, Noah knew that his dantian was already enlarging incredibly fast, the issue was with his mind and body.
The advantage given by his transmigration and his transformation into a hybrid had made those centers of power reach a growth speed that was entirely off the scale.
Noah was already considered a genius for the achievements that concerned his dantian, but his mind and body were in a completely different league!
'I might just wait for my mind and dantian to improve and fight like a magical beast for the time being, but it's such a waste. I should create at least a couple of finishing moves that reflect the advantages of my species.'
The way Noah saw it, the situation was quite simple.
His body could express the power of a rank 5 beast, but his other centers of power were somewhat toward the upper tier of the gaseous stage.
Fighting as a magical beast would make him match rank 4 cultivators in the solid stage while relying on his human abilities would put him among the best gaseous stage cultivators.
'Forging rank 5 Demonic swords is also out of the question. I don't have any confidence in being able to hurt myself, let alone molding my body in the form of a saber.'
Issues piled up inside Noah's mind.
There didn't seem to be any solution other than wait for his centers of power to grow.
The heroic cultivators that had lived for centuries to reach a point where they could survive a frontal clash against a rank 5 magical beast would puke blood if they knew what was going on inside Noah's mind.
After all, he wasn't even fifty years old, but he could already join battles at the peak of the fourth rank!
However, Noah's ambition knew no limits, and his eagerness to obtain more power only increased as his hunger grew.
The Divine deduction technique gave Noah a broader perspective and made him analyze his issues far faster.
It didn't take much before he decided on how to proceed in the imminent future.
'I must tune my martial arts to the minimum physical strength that I'm capable of and do the same for my full potential. I don't think I would be using my martial arts that often even after that, but I would have some limited amount of attacks that make use of my body at least.'
The matter of the martial arts couldn't be handled differently, Noah had to settle for few but powerful attacks until his "Breath" became able to match his body.
'I need to translate all the diagrams of my spells, and I shouldn't limit that process to those up to the fourth and fifth rank. Even those up to the third rank have the potential to be useful while I'm a rank 4 mage with the necessary modifications.'
Having a stronger type of offensive didn't strictly mean that Noah had to always rely on it.
Magical beasts were weaker than cultivators after all, there was a limit to how much Noah could do by fighting like one of them.
So, he decided to improve his other abilities too.
That process had to be executed at some point anyway, and he didn't have any pressing matter to handle at that moment.
'I need to replace the will inside the Black hole cultivation technique. My dantian is far sturdier after my breakthrough and should be able to handle my newly found greed for power.'
His cultivation technique was forged using his greed as meaning for the "Breath", but that feeling has increased in intensity after he reached the fifth rank, opening a path for improvements.
'My mind must grow to better handle my new instincts, but that shouldn't be a problem. Translating the diagrams of my other spells, forging an improved rank 4 cultivation technique, and training with the Kesier rune should be enough to restore some harmony between my centers of power.'
Noah had always considered his mind as the most significant advantage in his second life, his unbelievable achievements had the absurd power of his sea of consciousness as part of their foundation.
'Lastly, I need a new secret art. My current one can't make use of all the "Breath" inside my body, and I can't just let it go to waste. I need to find or forge something that can further enhance the most potent weapon in my arsenal.'
Noah's planning ended after that thought.
His current secret art targeted rank 4 bodies and was tuned for humans, which was the reason why he could just keep it active for prolonged periods.
However, his current body was too strong and contained too many nourishments, even the pills created by the Udye family couldn't satisfy him anymore.
The growth of that center of power was exponential since it followed the evolution process of the magical beasts, meaning that even rank 5 secret arts would probably be unsuitable for his current level.
Yet, Noah believed that he could create something appropriate for his unique case.
Secret arts were generally considered as the simplest arts since they involved only one center of power and were mainly meant to push it to its limits.
There was no harmony involved, it was a pure burst of power at the cost of the stability of the center of power.
Noah was confident in creating something like that, he had begun to modify diagrams after all!
The Divine deduction technique kept on depleting mental energy as he began to follow his schedule, the heroic assets in the domes would have to wait a while for the official return of the Demon Prince.