That was enough to be called a Firebending Master? Was that all there was to being a Firebending Master?
Kahn simply assumed Iroh was teasing him.
Iroh saw what Kahn was thinking, too, and added with a chuckle:
"By the bare minimum standard, you could indeed say that."
Seriously?
The corner of Kahn's mouth twitched as he said dismissively:
"Then that title is worth way too little. Besides, if that's the case, doesn't that make the vast majority of Firebenders in this world idiots? Hardly any of them can even meet such a simple standard."
"Rather, people like you are an extremely rare minority. Besides, you can't put it that way."
Iroh said slowly:
"Among that vast majority of Firebenders you speak of, quite a few are constantly exploring and improving, too. They're simply heading in a different direction from us."
"They study Firebending not to explore its essence and possibilities, but to work out what angle of attack will kill someone quickly, what combinations of moves will catch someone even more off guard;
they study other nations' Bending not to draw connections and broaden their understanding, but to find their enemies' weaknesses and explore how to kill them in a single blow."
"Although they can't be called Firebending Masters, perhaps they could be called masters in other respects."
Masters of killing, for instance.
After hearing all that, Kahn's excitement cooled a little. He wondered whether Iroh had planted a listening device in his mind, cooling him down with pinpoint accuracy just as he was starting to get a swollen head.
Indeed, even if he really had become a Firebending Master, that didn't mean he truly stood at the pinnacle of the world.
Thinking of those Firebenders Iroh had described, devoted to honing their killing skills, every move intended solely to take a life, he even felt a faint chill around his neck. Who could guarantee they could beat a bunch of killing machines like that?
That was close. I really was getting a little carried away.
Thus, after accepting Iroh's guidance, Kahn settled down again and continued immersing himself in his research into Firebending. With his previous success under his belt, his confidence had grown enormously, and he no longer needed Iroh's guidance.
Before, he had ideas but hadn't known where to start. It might have looked like a humblebragger's problem, but in truth, there had also been anxiety about his first research attempt and a fear of failure, both of which Iroh had dispelled with some unobtrusive guidance.
Kahn had encountered problems like this many times over the years, and Iroh had successfully resolved them every time. Each time, he marveled at his good fortune:
Although he had said it countless times, he still had to stress it: having a good teacher really mattered!
Azula remained mysteriously busy lately, while Zuko had actually become rather free. He had completed his basic schooling and received a rare little extended break, after which he would begin some advanced courses designed specifically for the crown prince.
But once Zuko had time on his hands, he often came running over to Kahn's place. Mai and the others were still attending classes as usual, so he couldn't bother them often and had to bother Kahn instead.
Ah, well!
Still, with nothing else to do, Kahn taught Zuko the Thermal Bending he had grasped.
He felt the kid was a little too dopey to be master material. Since they were good friends, he might as well let Zuko pick up something ready-made and get an indirect taste of being a master.
Yet just as Iroh had said, never mind using Thermal Bending as a trump card-in Zuko's hands, even ordinary attacks were a struggle. Its uses were probably limited to warming beds, cooling things down, and heating water. It had turned into a household ability.
But then he demonstrated the power of Thermal Bending in front of Zuko, telling him that as long as he worked hard, he could be formidable, too.
Zuko nodded happily in agreement and immediately threw himself enthusiastically into practicing Thermal Bending.
This didn't really count as stringing Zuko along. As long as he practiced diligently, although he might not necessarily reach Kahn's level, he really could unleash some decent power, right?
He had truly racked his brains to improve his friend's strength. Who wouldn't praise him as a "true friend" if they heard about this?
At any rate, he believed it himself.
Still, come to think of it, although he and Zuko were about the same age, he had always regarded Zuko as a quantum superposition of three things: a good friend, a silly little brother, and his puppy of a son.
This wasn't contempt. Back where he came from, every guy wanted to be his friends' dad. Perfectly reasonable.
Only later did he learn that Zuko was actually half a year older than him. He was only twelve now, while Zuko was already thirteen.
Who would believe that?
Fortunately, the innocent Zuko had always regarded him as his best friend and had none of those strange thoughts of his.
And so, after a stretch of peaceful days, Zuko, now completely idle, grew restless from all the stillness. He also suddenly developed the awareness of a future ruler and wanted to use his vacation to start learning about this country, so he inexplicably became busy again.
Kahn expressed that a slacker like him couldn't understand the crown prince's thoughts. Still, given Zuko's personality, he probably wouldn't stir anything up, so Kahn left him alone and continued swimming through the mysteries of Firebending.
Recently, he had discovered some more interesting applications. For example, compressing flames and releasing them instantaneously could produce a classic explosion, and combined with Firebending's control, he could even make it feel like a homing missile. It was quite interesting.
The drawbacks were obvious, too. Compression was slow, the target was conspicuous, and concentrating on compressing the flames slowed his reactions. While compressing flames, he was practically a sitting duck.
He had also thought of many solutions.
For instance, using the Explosion Technique while maintaining a meditative state. Meditation improved his concentration and accelerated compression, so it was indeed a decent idea.
It just turned him from a moving target into a stationary one, making it look even more like he was courting death.
But with the right timing, it would be a pretty good way to show off.
Kahn thought optimistically.
He had also tried carrying out the compression between his eyebrows, as close to his brain as possible, attempting to accelerate compression by reducing the distance signals had to travel.
He didn't know whether it worked well, but using it looked like Erlang Shen's Heavenly Eye, which was pretty cool, too. The appearance of the flames being compressed was just too conspicuous and didn't quite fit.
So then he wondered whether he could compress it before the flames took shape-in other words, in the form of thermal energy...
In short, after conducting numerous experiments, he reached an important conclusion-
Meditation really was useful.
It could calm his body and mind, improve his concentration, and help him think. He wouldn't even feel tired after a round of brainstorming. As long as he could avoid falling asleep, it was the best assistant for this kind of magical research!
No wonder all the big shots in magical worlds loved meditating.
Wait a second...
I like meditating, and big shots like meditating. Doesn't that mean:
Me = big shot?!
Kahn attained enlightenment.
In any case, after experiencing the wonders of meditation, he grew increasingly fond of using it to think through problems. For some reason, while meditating, he increasingly experienced a profound, mysterious sensation, as though he had grasped meditation's true essence.
Then, inexplicably, his soul left his body.
Looking at his own body, Kahn was momentarily dumbfounded.
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