Avatar: Fire Emperor Chapter 49 49: Ordinary Research Routine

Is this really enough to be called a Firebending Master?

Is this all a Firebending Master amounts to?

Kahn simply assud Iroh was teasing him.

Iroh saw through Kahn's thoughts and chuckled as he added,

"From the minimum standard, yes, you could say that."

Seriously?

Kahn's lips twitched as he said indifferently,

"Then this Master title is pretty worthless, isn't it?

And if that's the case, wouldn't most Firebenders in this world be fools, since so few can even et such a simple standard?"

"It would be more accurate to say that people like you are an extre minority.

And you shouldn't put it that way."

Iroh spoke slowly,

"Among the majority of Firebenders you ntioned, many are also constantly exploring and improving, just in a different direction from ours."

"They study Firebending not to understand its essence or potential, but to determine which attack angles kill the fastest and which combinations of moves are the most unexpected."

"They study the bending of other nations not to draw inspiration, but to identify weaknesses and learn how to eliminate their enemies in a single strike."

"While they may not be Firebending Masters, they could be considered masters in other fields."

For example, masters of killing.

Hearing this, the excitent in Kahn's heart cooled considerably.

He even suspected that Iroh had deliberately said it to bring him back down just as he was starting to grow arrogant.

Indeed, even if he beca a Firebending Master, it didn't an he stood at the peak of the world.

Thinking about those Firebenders who honed themselves solely for killing, whose every move existed to take lives, he felt a chill run down his spine.

Who could guarantee victory against such killing machines?

That was close.

He had almost gotten carried away.

With Iroh's guidance, Kahn quickly cald himself and continued his diligent study of Firebending.

After his earlier success, his confidence soared, and he no longer needed constant guidance from Iroh.

Previously, he had many ideas but didn't know where to begin.

It seed like a trivial problem, but in truth, it was mixed with the anxiety of a first-ti innovator and the fear of failure.

Iroh had subtly guided him through it.

Over the years, Kahn had encountered similar obstacles many tis, and Iroh had always helped him resolve them.

Each ti, he could not help but marvel at his own luck.

No matter how many tis he said it, he still had to admit that having a good teacher was incredibly important.

Azula remained mysteriously busy lately.

Zuko, on the other hand, had beco relatively free after completing his basic studies and receiving a rare extended break.

After this, he would begin advanced training designed specifically for the Crown Prince.

But once he had free ti, Zuko frequently ca to visit Kahn.

Mai and the others were still attending regular classes and couldn't be disturbed, leaving him with little choice but to bother Kahn instead.

Sigh.

With nothing better to do, Kahn taught Zuko the heat manipulation technique he had developed.

He felt that Zuko was a bit straightforward and not particularly suited to becoming a Master.

Since they were close friends, he decided to at least let him experience a glimpse of what it felt like.

However, just as Iroh had said, in Zuko's hands, heat manipulation was far from a secret technique.

At best, it was useful for basic attacks.

More often, it could only be used to warm blankets, cool objects, or boil water, making it more of a household skill.

Still, Kahn demonstrated its true power in front of Zuko, telling him that with enough effort, he could also beco strong.

Zuko nodded eagerly and imdiately threw himself into training with great enthusiasm.

This wasn't exactly misleading him.

As long as he worked hard, even if he couldn't reach Kahn's level, he could still achieve respectable results… probably.

Kahn felt quite satisfied with himself.

If word got out, who wouldn't praise him for being such a loyal friend?

At least, he believed it himself.

Co to think of it, although he and Zuko were about the sa age, Kahn had always treated him as a strange mix of best friend, foolish younger brother, and an overly familiar junior.

It wasn't ant as disrespect.

Back where he ca from, it was common for boys to joke about being each other's elder.

Later, however, he learned that Zuko was actually half a year older than him.

Kahn was only twelve, while Zuko was already thirteen.

Who would believe that?

Fortunately, Zuko remained simple-minded and still regarded him as his best friend, completely unaware of Kahn's odd thoughts.

After a brief period of peace, Zuko, now with too much free ti, began to feel restless.

Suddenly awakening to his responsibilities as the future ruler, he decided to use his break to better understand the nation.

And just like that, he beca busy again.

Kahn could only shake his head.

As soone who preferred to take things easy, he couldn't relate to the Crown Prince's sense of duty.

But given Zuko's personality, he likely wouldn't cause any trouble, so Kahn paid it no mind and continued imrsing himself in Firebending research.

Recently, he had discovered so interesting new applications.

For example, compressing flas and releasing them instantly to create explosive effects.

With precise control, he could even give them a homing-like trajectory, which was quite fascinating.

Of course, the drawbacks were obvious.

The compression process was slow, the attack was easy to detect, and focusing on compression reduced his reaction speed, effectively turning him into a target.

He began thinking of ways to improve it.

One idea was to maintain a ditative state while compressing the flas.

ditation improved focus, which in turn increased compression speed.

It was a promising approach.

The downside was that it turned him from a moving target into a stationary one, which was arguably even worse.

Still, if used at the right mont, it could make for an impressive display.

Kahn chose to remain optimistic.

He also experinted with compressing flas near the center of his forehead, closer to the brain, hoping to reduce the distance of signal transmission and speed up the process.

He wasn't sure if it worked, but it made him look like he had a third eye, which was undeniably cool.

Unfortunately, the visible fla buildup made it less convincing.

This led him to consider whether he could compress the flas before they even ford, in the form of heat instead.

After nurous experints, he arrived at an important conclusion.

ditation was incredibly effective.

It cald both mind and body, enhanced concentration, aided in thinking, and prevented fatigue even after prolonged ntal effort.

As long as he didn't fall asleep, it was the perfect tool for this kind of experintation.

No wonder powerful figures in legends always favored ditation.

Wait a second.

He liked ditation, and those powerful figures also liked ditation.

So didn't that an—

He was one of them?

Kahn felt as though he had reached enlightennt.

In any case, after experiencing its benefits, he increasingly relied on ditation to think through problems.

For so reason, whenever he ditated, he began to sense sothing deeper, as if he were approaching the true essence of it.

Then, without warning, he experienced sothing strange.

It felt as though his consciousness had left his body.

"...?"

Looking at his own body from the outside, Kahn was montarily stunned.