《The Dark Demon Lord》 -1 Prologue In a dark dreadful hole in the middle of space, a building continued to blur and solidify. The ashen grey walls that seemed to blend in with the surroundings blocked the passage that led into a large gaseous door. Continuing down the large ancient hallway, the black flames that gave off a eerie light flickered into small sparks. A crystallized floor that seemed to be created from glass led the way into a room. Creatures of different kinds stood there unmoving. Their faces cold and grave, not willing to even blink an eye. Further up, steps led up to a bone covered chair. This chair, which melted into the crystal ground, held a sinister creature. Three large horns laid dormant on this creature''s head. Each horn emitting a black gas-like substance. His face had a sharp jaw with skin like iron. His eyes that resembled a pool of blood viciously stared at the beings in front. His almost three meter body slowly stood up, his two refined arms suddenly grabbed towards a Phoenix like creature. Its bright red wings trembled and slowly it flew towards the mountain like hands. "My Lord! Please, my Lord forgive me! It was only a small mistake! I beg for your forgiveness!" The Phoenix creatures high pitched cry rang across the hall. Its narrow eyes were full of fear as it looked towards the towering figure that held its wings. "My Lord, I beg of you! I will never make a mistake again! Please, m-" *Screeeeeech* The Phoenix creature shrieked as it''s wings were torn apart. The magnificent wings that brought envy from others laid on the ground, bleeding profusely. Before the Phoenix could ask for more forgiveness it''s head was severed from its body and thrown towards a wolf like creature that slept beside the large chair. Its azure eyes which contrasted deeply with its pale green fur, glinted ferociously before it pounced towards the blood drenched head. The sound of crunching echoed through the room, causing the other creatures to silently tremble. The ruthless Demon Lord, turned and sunk back into his seat. He observed the reactions of every creature before lifting his arm slightly in the air. A demon with two curved white horns creeped out from the Lord''s shadow. With his dull red eyes and wrinkled eyebrows, the demon servant walked towards the middle of the group. He solemnly glanced at all the beasts in the room. "My Lord will be going to be away for some matters and will need someone to handle his affairs here. As his humble servant, I will be taking the role to watch over his abode." The demon servant swiftly spoke to the rest. The Demon Lord''s droopy eyes slowly opened up before he stood up and indifferently strolled away with the wolf beast following suit. As the Demon Lord faded into the distance, the lingering essence that was left behind caused the group to be tense and silent. Their gazes were downcast, not daring to glance towards the domineering figure with his three sharp horns. ------------------------------------------------------- The Demon Lord leisurely walked through the ghastly building that got darker as he progressed through the building. The wolf bared its teeth before suddenly transforming into a handsome youth. The pale white skin accentuated his aged azure eyes. The green hair that rested on his oval head reached just below his shoulders. While walking silently behind the three meter monstrosity, the wolf''s height reached the Demon Lord''s stomach. "Master, where do you plan on going this time? If you want something, this beast of yours can quickly obtain it." The emerald haired youth curiously looked towards the Demon Lord. As the strongest being to have ever existed, his Lord never needed to go out. Creating different species and worlds, conquering territories and even slaying the mightiest of beings were only things the Demon Lord did out of boredom. With his unmatched strength, was there a need to travel? "Zhaik, why do you speak so formally with me? You are welcome to speak any way you wish!" The Demon Lord looked annoyingly at the wolf, Zhaik. As his closest friend, The Demon Lord did not like the formality that Zhaik used. It felt unnatural. "My Lord, as you are now the mightiest being in existence, I am only showing the adequate respect." As a creature that achieved realms far out the view of anyone in the universe, the Demon Lord had no equal. He had no one that could stand with him at his peak. His life became dull. To liven things up, he proclaimed himself as the Evil Emperor and fought against the world. But none were a match for him and his army. He wanted to go out and discover new power. A power system that could give him enlightenment to further his path. The feared Demon Lord, who in the eyes of others was the most talented and ruthless person, stared into the empty space sorrowfully. Zhaik watched his master quietly. As a creature that followed The Demon Lord for the longest time, he knew how his master truly felt. "Zhaik, a very long time ago my family was slaughtered ruthlessly just because they were common Demons. As my closest friend I wish for you to treat me the way you did in the past. However, if you feel that it is uncomfortable then act as you wish." The Demon Lord helplessly shook his head "Master Arnin, why do you wish to travel?" Zhaik was still confused as to why his master, Arnin wished to travel. "Zhaik, I once created a world that was only smaller than heaven. This world was sealed away ten million years ago in a reclusive space. In that space was a type of energy that differed from what we see around us. I wish to study that power and use it to break through into a new realm." Arnin stared into the the void, his gaze penetrating until it reached a vast green planet. Slight twirling blue threads and chunks of brown were placed in random. Zhaik, who did not possess the power to penetrate space with his gaze, watched Arnin silently. ----------------------------------------------------- While Demon Lord Arnin and his wolf beast Zhaik were conversing about the journey, the demon servant, Kulgag was discussing some plans with the other creature emperors. "Dragon Emperor, how long do you think master will take on this trip? We need to keep his place the same as before or¡­ you know the consequences!" Kulgag, who was pushed to take responsibility solemnly spoke to the Dragon Emperor. Other than Arnin, Zhaik and the heaven lord, the Dragon Emperor was one of the strongest beings in the universe. The Dragon Emperor''s dark blue scales dimmed when compared to his bright golden eyes. The two curvy horns sat on top of his pointy long ears. His body, which shrunk into a small size, allowed for his thousand meter tail to only be five meters. "Lord Kulgag, you already know how much I fear Master Arnin. I may be strong but I am not even worth breathing the same air as that godly monster." The Dragon Emperor helplessly shook his head. Kulgag, whose power was very similar to his own, and maybe even a little stronger, was only a servant to Demon Lord Arnin. What could he then do? "Dragon Emperor, I just want you to make sure that no one from the heaven realm comes to this black hole. After Master Arnin leaves, I am planning to teleport this hole into a more secluded area." As the two beings discussed their plans, the other creatures listened quietly, not daring to make a sound. The stifling environment suddenly became a lot more tense when a large door slammed open. "Kulgag, I will be leaving with Zhaik. Make sure nothing happens, or you will be answering to my blade!" Arnin spoke harshly as he grabbed one of his long, black blades. This blade, which resembled a katana, was extremely long and narrow. It was thrusted into the open space and a tear appeared. This action was seen by all creatures but they were too nervous to even look towards the mighty being. Arnin and Zhaik stepped through the tear and suddenly disappeared. Noticing that the heavy pressure was dissipating, all the creatures raised their heads and gave a heavy sigh of relief. ---------------------------------------------------- In a far away space, a small tear appeared. Stepping out was a large, three horned demon and a green furred wolf. Both stared at the world in front. "Zhaik, I am going to seal my powers and force a reincarnation. I will be placed into a random location and into a random species. You do the same. Make sure not to use your powers unless it is necessary!" Without looking back, Arnin made some complicated hand signs, which caused his body to shrink into a light beam. The grey beam shot into the vast world, leaving Zhaik to watch with a slight smile. 1 Birth Of The Twins Deep in a luscious green forest, the trees reached for puffy white clouds. A cheerful hamlet, made up of thatched houses,each deliberately placed, was guarded by trees on all sides, the boreal wall was only breached by a single dirt road. Every home and building was connected by paths of dirt that crisscrossed over one another. To the north of the small village, a house with wooden walls and thick green leaves as a roof, stood silently. Many humans gathered in front of the house. They were watching, waiting, their eyes seemed to sparkle, later dimming as time passed on. *ruuuuummbble* The stone door that blocked the entrance was slowly pushed open. Pebbles on the dirt ground started to move until a hunchback man stepped out. His black hair contrasted with his pure white clothes greatly. The deep brown eyes in his sockets glanced at all the people in the surroundings. Everyone became silent. "It''s a boy!" His mouth curved up into a small smile after staying silent for minute. Then suddenly the people roared with happy laughter. "Hahaha! We knew it would be a boy!" Shouted a small old man. "It''s a good day! Hahaha!" Everyone cheered loudly. They were patting each other''s back, but then another piece of news dropped loudly onto their ears like a drum. "I am not done speaking! She had twins. The second child is a girl!" The hunchback man annoyingly stared at the town''s people as his smile grew wider. The cheers got even louder. "A girl as well? What luck to have two children!" As everyone was laughing merrily and discussing the great news with one another, a couple silently sat inside the house. On a bed, a frail woman who looked like she was in her thirties cradled a baby boy. Her puffy blue eyes, which seemed to have shed some tears, looked lovingly at the child. Her long blonde hair dangled in front of him, who in turn played with the hair quietly. Beside her sat a slender young man whose age was similar to hers. In his thick, long arms was a baby girl. The man''s black eyes lit up as he took in the view of the girl with a smile. "Ashia, we finally have children. We can now be parents, and what''s more we have two! I am now a father!"The man looked happily at his beautiful wife. Ashia and Florian were a newlywed couple whose background was of common birth. They lived normal lives, but they hoped for their children to have a more splendid and adventurous life. The couple, who just had the two new babies, did not care about the ruckus that was going on outside. They just quietly looked at their newborns. The baby girl, who was in Florian arms, had tiny blonde strands on her head and blue eyes like her mothers, while the baby boy had strands of black-grey hair with deep black eyes, somewhat like his father''s. However, both babies had something on their foreheads that was abnormal yet enticing. The baby boy had three small horn shaped tattoos on his forehead, while the little girl had a single tattoo. The little boy''s tattoos were straight and sharp with small curves at the end, while the little girl''s single horn tattoo had no curve and didn''t seem sharp whatsoever. This discovery led to the couple''s astonishment. Their children had tattoos right when they came into this world. It didn''t seem like an auspicious sign, but it was still an unknown mark. The parents decided the marks were like birthmarks and that they were only a unique type of birthmark. "Florian, I have the names for our children already decided. I want the boy to be name Arnin and I want the girl to be named Nekaia." The soothing voice of Ashia reverberated in the room. Florian quietly nodded in acceptance. Florian felt very content because the Foro family bloodline was able to carry on. As a small family, it was very difficult to survive. The two new babies brought hope for the continuation of the family, especially the boy, Arnin. As the couple were blissfully occupied with their two new children, the people outside were slowly scattering away. Other than wanting to know how many children there were and whether they were boys or girls, the town''s people didn''t really think much of it. They had children if they were lucky, but if not then their luck was very bad. Many had their own children, allowing them to continue their families bloodline, however those that did not have children had to accept the facts and move on with their lives. ---------------------------------------------- The next morning, Ashia and Florian quickly took their children off their bed. Since Arnin and Nekaia were still newborns, they slept on the same bed as their parents. However, the parents were not wealthy, rather they were somewhat poor. Leaves were being used as the covers over the hard wooden bed. Although it seemed uncomfortable from afar, it was actually not too bad. The babies slept soundly with the parents throughout the night. Ashia was able to sleep through the whole night with Nekaia, but the hapless Florian was busy with the crying Arnin, who kept crying even after Ashia fed him. When the couple stepped outside with their two newborns, their neighbors rushed towards them. "Ashia! Florian! Good morning, and what might these adorable things be called?" An old woman who lived very close by quickly approached the couple. She was very friendly towards Ashia since her daughter and Ashia were good friends. As an old woman who had seen Ashia grow up, she also took joy towards Ashia''s blissful family. "Aunty Varena, good morning. Hehe! These two are called Arnin Foro and Nekaia Foro." Ashia happily smiled towards the old woman. She had very good feelings for the old woman who she had known since she was young. Florian on the other hand, smiled and nodded towards the old woman. He just held onto Nekaia, letting his wife tell others their children''s names. He enjoyed seeing his wife so full of smiles and laughter. It gave him a sense of accomplishment. After Ashia was done introducing her children to the neighbors, Florian and her started to walk around the village. She wanted to let her children get used to the environment. The couple walked into a crowded area and headed towards a large building. It was made of large logs and bright green leaves. There was clear glass for windows and a large sign that said ''Orb Identifier''. In the world of Afloria, there were different jobs one can do, however, what really allowed one to survive was strength. Every child was born with an essence orb, which allowed for one to absorb the world''s essence. This essence would become one with the child''s body and strengthen it slowly. Of course, the essence could be used in different ways. Depending on the type of orb and how much talent one had, a child could become a farmer or a warrior. Every family desired a warrior because these people could earn a more stable amount of money. Each warrior would have to go through different stages and be ranked depending on those stages. The first rank would be called ''Orb Birth''. This rank had four smaller realms inside. Earth, Sky, Hell and Heaven. These four levels stayed constant through every large realm. The village where the couple lived, was called Talonton village. It was a small village that made money through the selling of animal meat, however, the meat was from normal animals and not essence beasts. A warrior would be a big-shot in the Talonton village because the highest level achieved by the village leader was, Essence Manifest - Hell. Anyone who didn''t enter Orb Birth - Sky was considered as a regular human. Ashia and Florian were respectively Orb Birth - Hell and Heaven, making them a part of the average group in the village. When the couple entered the large building with their babies, they saw a front desk made out of refined stone. There were small plants placed in front of the many doors, which gave off a very comfortable feeling. Behind the desk was a small lady with brown eyes and brown hair. Her figure was petite but her face looked mature, which gave off a unique presence. "Are you two here for an Orb Identification checkup?" The girl asked. Her tone was high pitched but it wasn''t irritable. Actually, it fit well with the young woman''s appearance. Ashia nodded and signaled towards Florian, who put took out ten pieces of copper and placed them on the table. "So we are having two checkups? Ok, please head to room four. I will send someone to tend to you." The woman pointed towards a hall on the right. There were five rooms so room four was found easily. The couple quickly walked towards the room and entered. Inside was a large tree-like plant that hid beside a bed. The bed was wrapped with a soft piece of cloth. There was also a stone desk with some ink and pages. The identifier job was a good job to have, but wasn''t considered prestigious. Almost anybody could do it, however in the poor village of Talonton, even an identifier was treated with great respect. After waiting for a few minutes, an old man walked into the room. He had a bundle of white hair and his white robe was also quite clean. In his hand was a round object that was blue in colour and had a white cube inside. The old man did not bother to introduce himself and looked towards the two babies. He hovered the round object over Nekaia first. He raised an eyebrow when he saw the cube become black. He hovered it once more, but the result was the same. He wrote some things down on a paper and continued with the identification. Arnin was next. The old man put the object over Arnin''s head, but the same thing happened. The cube was black, but this time it seemed a lot deeper and demonic. The old man raised both his eyebrows and quickly wrote something on a piece of paper. After finishing the quick identification, the old man tossed two pieces of papers to the couple. "Each page has info about the children''s orbs and talent. You can see for yourself, however the result may not be a good thing." The old man took another glance at the babies and walked away. Ashia and Florian quickly looked at the pieces of paper and gasped. ''(Nekaia) Sex: Female. Species: Human. Realm: Orb Birth - Earth. Talent: ??'' ''(Arnin) Sex: Male. Species: (D)Human. Realm: ???. Talent: ??'' The couple was bewildered. Both babies had unknown talent, and Arnin even had an unknown realm. Also, what did it mean by the ''D'' in front of the ''Human''? What did all of this mean? 2 Arnin and Nekaia Ashia and Florian were extremely worried about the results of their children''s Orb Identification. With their talents unknown and even one with a questionable realm, would their children ever be able to live a good life? What confused them even more was the ''D'' in front of the ''Human'' for Arnin. It said ''Human'' so they knew that Arnin was a human, however, why would there be a ''D'' in front? As they silently discussed these issues, they failed to notice that a small red spot was forming in Arnin''s eyes. Although very tiny, if one looked closely it wasn''t difficult to find. Arnin, whose memories were awakened during the Orb Identification, looked around with his eyes. He looked at his parents, who were discussing something with frowns, and then looked at his sleeping sister. This was his second reincarnation, but his memories were intact and his powers were sealed. What surprised him though, was the fact that the mysterious round object was unable to distinguish his talent and power realm. With his past powers still lying dormant inside of him, that would possibly alter his realm results, but how was his talent altered? Did his talent from his past life carry forward into this life? Arnin began to come up with different conjectures about the issue related to him. While thinking about the identification, he was very surprised that his species was listed the way it was. Although he was reborn as a human, there seemed to still be some demon essence inside of him. The couple continued to walk back to their homes, and Arnin continued to take in the surroundings. When they finally got back to their small home, Ashia and Florian laid the children on the bed and started to play with them. "Little Arnin and little Nekaia will grow to become very successful. I just know it! Florian, we will provide everything for our children no matter what! I will not let them fall behind anyone else." As Ashia spoke resolutely, her eyes started to fill with tears. She just wanted her children to become successful and live life without any worries. Florian walked in front of her and got on one knee. He large hands grabbed her red cheeks and his thumb started to wipe the tears slowly. He smiled and looked confidently at her. "They will become great people when they grow up. As long as I am alive, no one will bully them, or you so don''t worry and wipe those tears. They make you look like a ghost-" Ashia softly pushed Florian away. Florian laughed happily as he pulled Ashia into his embrace and started to rub her head lightly. Arnin, who saw all of this, started to ponder something. In his past life, he was the almighty Demon Lord that was feared everywhere. Maybe if his family was not slaughtered he would have become a respected Lord, rather then a feared one. His new parents that were shedding tears for him and his little sister made him feel soft inside. The only person that had ever shown him so much love was his friend, Zhaik. Now that Zhaik was gone, this was his family. A family that was alive and healthy. Arnin, at that moment, made a vow to take care of his new family. He would grow up quickly so that nothing like what happened in the past happens again. ------------------------------------------------------- Five Years Later Arnin and Nekaia were now five years old. Arnin had short black hair and he was taller than most kids around his age. He was a handsome child but looked somewhat evil. He always kept a frown, unless he was with his parents or Nekaia. The three tattoos were ashen grey and still the same size. Nekaia on the other hand, turned out to be very beautiful. She had the same demonic air as Arnin, but it wasn''t as strong. Her blue eyes became brighter as she grew and her long blond hair had already reached her upper back. Many in the village called her fairy because of her beautiful looks, azure eyes and long blonde hair. Arnin and Nekaia did not look that much alike, but they still had some similarities such as their tattoos. They were very close and would stick to each other like glue. When they walked together, they gave off a very weird presence. Arnin with his cold countenance contrasted his sisters welcoming aura greatly. Arnin had no friends from the beginning, but he seemed to be ok with it. Nekaia, however, was very popular. She was both beautiful and welcoming making people feel attracted to her. "Arnin, want to come and play with me and my friends?" Nekaia looked at Arnin with sparkling eyes. She knew her brother didn''t like to talk to others, and others didn''t like her brother much either. She felt that her brother just needed to open up a little, then people would start to treat him very well. Arnin looked at his little sister, his eyes softening. He gave a slight smile and patted her on the head. "You can go on and play. I will go and see if mom and dad have work for me to do. But don''t stray too far, ok?" Arnin looked lovingly at his sister. These past five years further developed his desire to protect his new family and keep them out of harm''s way.His mental state, which was of a one-hundred-million-year-old Demon Lord, made him treat his sister in a child-like fashion. Nekaia pouted her rosy lips and made an annoyed face. She lightly pushed Arnin''s hand off her head and ran towards her friends. She smiled brightly at her brother from a distance and waved at him. Arnin watched silently then started to walk back to his home. The house still looked the same, except there was an extra bed placed in the one of the other corners. This bed was for him, while Nekaia still slept with their parents. He was a little too big to sleep with them, while Nekaia was still very small. He also found it rather unnatural to sleep with his parents. When he walked in, he saw that his mother was peeling some apples while his father was helping with the clothes. Ashia and Florian noticed his entrance and smiled happily towards him. "Where is Nekaia, Arnin?" Florian noticed the Nekaia''s absence and asked. His face didn''t seem worried, rather his face gave off a look of helplessness. He already knew what Nekaia was doing and why Arnin was home alone. He bitterly smiled towards Ashia who also smiled back. "Arnin, why don''t you go and play with your sister and her friends? You need to make some friends or you will become very lonely!" Ashia went towards her son and pulled him into her embrace. She really wanted him to be a little more open, but his cold personality was getting in the way. "I''m alright mom. I don''t need friends. They will just bring me trouble. Here let me help you and dad with something!" Arnin smiled towards his mom before walking towards the peeled fruits. "Arnin! Go outside and do something. I am not going to allow you to come inside until sundown. I don''t care what you do outside, just do something. Make some friends will you?" Ashia finally snapped at him. She wanted him to make at least one friend and enjoy what kids his age enjoy. Florian and Arnin were startled. They never expected that Ashia would become so mad over such a matter. Getting the hint, Arnin quickly ran outside and reluctantly closed the large stone door. He looked around to see kids playing with leaves, rocks, and twigs. In the distance, he could see his sister playing with a group of girls. She was role-playing as a princess and her friends were acting as other characters. Arnin walked towards the shade where he sat down. Since he still had his memories, he was a lot more mature than other children and even more mature than most adults. He understood that he was different because of this and that it hurt his mother and father, but he couldn''t change his personality. From a hole that acted as a window in the house, Ashia looked at Arnin sitting alone in the shade. She released a sigh and walked back towards the fruit basket. Her blue eyes were somewhat red as she glanced towards Florian. "Why do you think he is like this? He is a very good child, but why won''t he talk with others?" Ashia started to question Florian. Florian, who was done with the clothes, walked towards Ashia and sat down. "There is nothing wrong with him. He is just different, so let him be. He will eventually find a friend, a good friend." Florian smiled as he embraced his wife. He then helped with the fruits and looked towards the isolated Arnin in the shade and Nekaia who was surrounded by children in the sun. The sharp contrast in scenes made him heavily sigh. Arnin who was oblivious to what his parents were discussing silently sat in the shade with his eyes closed. Ever since he awakened his memories, he had been trying to figure out the power of this world. Through many inspections, he found a tiny black orb near his chest. It was releasing strands of grey that traveled everywhere in his body. He understood that the grey strands helped strengthen his body and mind. He had been trying to control the movement and intensity of these small snake like strands, except for the intensity he could not yet control where they traveled in his body. After numerous tests over the course of five years, he eventually came to the conclusion that he needed more strength to control the grey strands. In contrast to other children who didn''t even know where their orbs were located, Arnin had figured out how to absorb energy into his body. This energy became one with the orb, enlarging it. Although, he had an unknown realm, Arnin figured that he was still in Orb Birth - Earth. The difference, however was that he was approaching the peak of the realm, while others his age were just in the beginning stages. The people of Afloria believed that when a child turns five they should begin to cultivate their orbs. It was the most optimal age to begin because the children would have absorbed a good amount of essence that could now be used in training. Arnin and Nekaia would start their orb cultivation in three days time. Before that, their parents had to prepare the money for them to attend the lessons given by a scholar who came from a nearby city. Every city wanted young talents, so they would send a scholar to see which children had high talent. They would then try to recruit them, leading them to a better life. This was one of the many reasons that a family hoped their children could become warriors. Arnin had been reluctant to participate in the lessons because he had already gotten a good foothold on understanding the orb himself. However, to prevent others from having suspicions about his power increase and to learn more about how the natives controlled the power, he decided that attending the lessons would not be a bad idea. 3 Orb Cultivation Lessons Three days passed in a blink of an eye. Arnin and Nekaia were getting ready to head to the lessons given by the scholar. Ashia and Florian dressed them up in training attire. Arnin had a grey robe that tightly stuck to his body. Nekaia had a blue robe that similarly stuck to her small body. These clothes did not look new, rather they seemed kind of work out. This caused the parents to be slightly embarrassed when facing their kids, but with their financial situation, it was the best they could do. Arnin and Nekaia didn''t really mind that their clothes were worn out. Nekaia instead was very excited for the lessons and so she ignored everything else. Arnin on the other hand already knew of the situation so he did not complain about what he did and did not wear. Both kids quickly left the house after giving their parents a small hug. "Arnin, do you think we will be able to become warriors? Our talent was unknown so I am worried we won''t be able to cultivate." While walking, Nekaia was pouting and complaining to Arnin about their unknown talent. Arnin just smiled towards her. He already knew that both of their talents were insanely high. The mysterious identification object was just not able to calculate the degree of their talent. Nekaia, who noticed that Arnin''s smile, stopped pouting and happily grabbed onto his arm. She decided that she would just try her best and hope that nothing would go wrong. Both children reached an open area inside the woods. The trees surrounded them like giants but still allowed some light to get through. When they saw the open field, they were astonished because of the amount of children present. There were dozens of children of different ages. Some were five like them, but there were even children between the ages of six and seven. Everyone was huddled in the front area of the field, waiting for an announcement. Some parents were nearby, making sure that their kids would not make trouble. Suddenly, an old man with grey hair walked forward. He had a small grey beard and a mole on his right cheek. His clothes looked new and expensive. On his waist, there was a golden medallion with a ''CS'' symbol. This symbol meant, ''City Scholar'', meaning a scholar from a city. He walked and stopped three meters away from everyone else. "Today, all of you children have come for my lessons. The fees will be paid on my right. After you are done, enter the open area and continue standing in a straight line!" The old man who seemed humble on the outside was actually very greedy. Arnin noticed a glimmer in his eyes when the subject of fees were brought up. Everyone quickly did what they were told and paid their fees. Arnin was given money by his parents for both him and his little sister. He was given a total of two silver by his parents for their fees. Money in Afloria was quite simple, one-hundred copper equaled one silver, while one-hundred silver equaled one gold. His father, made an approximate amount of five silver a month. Their food expenses took the majority of that money, leaving very little for anything else. Arnin''s father had reduced the amount of food just to pay their lesson fees. This was a great blow to their financial situation, however, their parents never complained. This further motivated Arnin to not waste the money his parents had to put in. Everything went smoothly with the fees, and so Arnin stood in the line with Nekaia. After everyone was done paying to the old man, that old man walked in front and started a personal inspection. "This miss and I will be checking all of your physiques before we begin. I want the boys on the left and the girls on the right!" After shouting the instructions, all the kids got into lines. There was loud chatter everywhere, but the old man and the miss continued their inspections. Sometimes they nodded and other times they shook their heads. When the old man got to Arnin, he started to press on different parts of the body to see how sturdy it was. As a five-year-old, the old man did not expect Arnin to have a ridiculous physique, but he was surprised to find that Arnin was a little more muscular than all of the children. His physique was by far the best he had seen in a five-year-old. The old man took a deep glance at Arnin and gave a satisfied nod, then continued his inspection. Arnin did not feel surprised that his physique was good, as a past Demon Lord he knew how to keep his body in shape. After the inspections were complete, the old man had all the children undergo some physical training. It wasn''t strenuous, rather it was just to get the body warmed up for cultivation. The kids jogged, stretched and did some stationary training. Half an hour passed and the children were extremely tired. Their sweat poured down like a waterfall while their panting sounded like a vicious beast ready to eat its prey. The old man didn''t flinch once when he saw this, he only gave a slight nod before calling everyone over. He then started his first real lesson. "Now that your bodies are all tired and heated up, we can begin our first cultivation lesson. For this lesson, I am going to help you locate your orb." Every child became excited. They had never seen their special orbs, and now that they had the chance, how they not be excited? They all sat down in a cross-legged position just like the old man had said. Everyone was following his instructions step by step except one person, Arnin. He had already found his orb years ago, so he found this lesson to be unnecessary. He sat down beside Nekaia and tried to help her in any way he could, however, if her talent was similar to his, then she didn''t need much help. Just as he was thinking about this, his sister opened her eyes. She seemed to be happy as her eyes were glimmering brightly. It seemed that she had found her orb very quickly. The old man who was walking around and helping others noticed Arnin''s idleness and Nekaia''s weird expressions. He assumed that they didn''t know what to do so he walked towards them. "Do you two not understand what to do? Here let me explain once more. Sit cross-" Before he could finish he noticed that Nekaia was not paying attention and Arnin gave him a somewhat mocking smile. "Old man, my little sister gets it and has already located her orb!" Arnin point2d towards his little sister who was happily sitting there. Since he didn''t want much attention to himself he allowed his sister to gain recognition quickly. He knew that his sister would not be in danger with her talent. Although it was frightening, she was still a little girl who may fall during on the road to becoming an expert. In the eyes of others, she would just be a quick learner, however, if others found that he learned how to absorb essence at a much younger age and even self-taught it to himself, than a major problem could happen. Arnin, of course, would not allow his sister to become a failure or fall during her rise. The old man watched with widened eyes. He had never seen such monstrous talent in his life. He had only just begun the lesson and a little girl completed it instantly. He quickly ran towards the woman who was helping him with the inspection. The woman showed a slight shock on her normal face, but quickly hid it. She quickly came before Nekaia and sized her up. The woman''s chocolate eyes scanned Nekaia from top to bottom. She then came down to Nekaia''s level and touched her head. "Little one, what is your name?" The woman wasn''t the most beautiful person in the world, but a very mesmerizing voice. It was quiet but lovely. Nekaia wanted to quickly speak, but she was lost for words. She looked towards Arnin, hoping that he would help her. Arnin smiled helplessly and looked at the woman. He inspected her level and noticed that the threads in her body were of the blue color and were much larger and thicker than his. She was on a very high level and since he didn''t know the leveling system here, he couldn''t exactly tell what level she was on. "Miss, my little sister''s name is Nekaia, Nekaia Foro!" Arnin deeply looked at the woman whose level was much higher than the village elders. He hoped for his sister to help his father and mother financially and let them live better lives. Of course, he would try his best, but he still had his own goals that needed to be achieved. He was not going to discard them anytime soon. The woman looked at Arnin and nodded. She then looked back at the gorgeous five-year-old. "Would you like to become a disciple of mine? I have been searching for a very long time and you seem to have enough talent to be mine. I won''t mistreat you or your family, you can move your family to the city and they can live comfortably." The woman boldly stated her desires, not beating around the bush in any way. Nekaia sat there blankly, not knowing what to say. She had never expected to be asked such a question and be given such attention. It was only locating the orb in one''s body, it shouldn''t determine one''s talent of strength. What Nekaia thought was not incorrect, being able to find the orb in one''s body quickly should not affect strength. What she didn''t know was that being able to locate the orb showed one''s talent in mental strength. Mental strength could be used in a variety of ways, but it was not something that could be trained or learned. What many did not know was that if it took more than five hours to locate the orb, then one had very weak mental strength, making them unable to utilize it. Nekaia, who was able to locate her orb in an extremely short period of time, had very strong mental strength. The woman was looking for a disciple who had this very strong mental strength, which was why she wanted to recruit her as a disciple as quickly as possible. Nekaia who was about to say something was stopped by Arnin very quickly. Although Arnin approved of this woman''s straightforwardness he wasn''t stupid enough to let his little sister, who hasn''t experienced much and was easy to fool with free candy, make such an important decision. "Miss whatever your name is, I don''t dislike how direct you are, but who are you trying to fool? You know my younger sister would easily convince if you threw out some benefits, but I am not so easily convinced." Arnin spoke slowly, but his tone was a little irritated. Why would he let his little sister be conned in front of him? He had millions of years of experience so he knew what to do at that time. He could go get his parent''s consent, but they would be just as easily fooled with their low experience. He decided to handle this himself and get berated later if need be. The old man and the woman looked at Arnin with surprise. Who could have imagined that a five-year-old would be so decisive and cunning? They continued to stare at Arnin, and the woman started to feel somewhat awkward. It was true that she was taking advantage of the little girl''s lack of experience. Arnin noticed the atmosphere becoming awkward so he pulled out a blank piece of paper. He scribbled a large number of characters and added a symbol on the bottom right. The piece of paper started to glow with a faint golden-red hue, making it seem attractive yet dangerous. He rolled up the piece of paper and tossed it towards the woman. The woman silently watched all that was happening without hiding any of the surprises on her face. She only reacted when the scroll was about to hit her face. Her face contorted at the disrespect that was being shown to her, a slight snort was released as she opened up the scroll. She read the scroll as her eyes started to darken and even showed immense signs of shock. "Little boy, where did you learn to write a contract? Also, what does this symbol here mean, I have never seen anything like this!" The woman threatened Arnin for an answer. Contracts were difficult to make because they required precise control over one''s orb. It wasn''t something a normal warrior could do, let alone a five-year-old boy. "It''s a soul torture contract. If you sign it and break any of the conditions, your soul will burn for a hundred years, not even death would be an escape during the punishment." The woman and old man became completely silent after hearing Arnin''s reply. 4 The Cunning Child The contract had many demands. At a closer look the demands weren''t extreme, however the woman felt it was humiliating that a five-year-old took advantage of her. She continued to look through the demands which wanted her to take care of his family and sister, but surprisingly she couldn''t find a single demand that Arnin wanted for himself. "Don''t you want anything?" This was bugging her somewhat. Why would he not have any demands of his own? What game was he playing? "Just sign the contract if you want my sister as your disciple. If you can''t even accept something as minor as this, then forget about having my sister follow you." Arnin ignored her question and instead threatened her. The woman solemnly looked at Arnin before biting her small finger and letting bright red blood flow out. The blood began to shine with colorful characters before being absorbed into the contract paper. Once the transformed blood was absorbed, the woman sighed in relief. She lifted her head and sized Arnin once again, but this time there was no mockery. She looked at him as though he was an old man that tricked her into his home; it was a look of disgust and fear. "Your name is Arnin right? Well, the contract is signed, now can I take your sister in as my disciple? Also, let me meet your parents!" The woman pulled Nekaia towards her before Arnin could give her a nod. She wanted to get to know Nekaia as soon as possible. Also, she wanted to find out more about Nekaia and Arnin through their parents. Arnin was mysterious and probably had the same, if not more, talent then Nekaia. "Sure we can go meet my parents, however, I want to complete the lesson before I go. Just wait till it ends then we can go." Arnin waved his hand towards the woman and looked at the old man beside her. The old man kept his silence the whole time, watching everything with a dropped jaw. He came back to his senses when the lesson was mentioned. "Little Arnin, don''t worry about the lesson. Today, the kids only needed to find their orbs, there will be nothing more after this. Hehe!" The old man nervously laughed when he noticed the woman looking at him. He would just end the lesson for now and continue later. His life was more important than any lesson. "Well, since the lesson has been completed, take me to meet your parents now!" The woman pulled Nekaia and started to walk out the open area in the forest. She wasn''t polite to Arnin who had just duped her into signing a contract. Nekaia didn''t mind being pulled by the woman because she felt that the woman was in no way dangerous. Plus, she knew that she had been sold by her brother, who didn''t even ask her whether she wanted to become someone''s disciple. She looked at Arnin angrily, who immediately turned his face in a different direction when he noticed her red face. He was embarrassed about what he had done, but it was for her and his family''s future. They would live much better lives and Nekaia would be able to become much stronger. He felt it was a great deal. ----------------------------------------------------- In the Foro household, Ashia and Florian anxiously sat on their bed. All they could think about was the orb identification test five years ago. Arnin and Nekaia had unknown talents, which made them believe that their children had little talent. They were worried that things may go wrong for their children. *Knock Knock* A series of knocks resounded in the house, causing the parents to quickly get on their feet and rush towards the door. They thought that Nekaia and Arnin came back early because they weren''t able to cultivate, so they only wanted to quickly comfort them. Yet, when they opened the door, they saw a completely different scene. In front of them was Arnin, who continued to have his casual, detached expression. Behind him was a woman with average looks, and an age similar to their own. The woman held onto their princess, who didn''t seem to be struggling in any way. Both parents couldn''t help but be shocked at what they were seeing. "Arnin, what is going on?" Florian quickly came back to his senses and questioned his more mature child. He felt that something was off with the way Nekaia was being held. "Dad, this here is a woman from the city. Her name is¡­ what was your name?" Arnin finally remembered to ask the woman for her name. He was too busy thinking about the benefits that his family would receive, causing him to completely forget about asking the woman her name. The woman''s face became slightly red and dark. Arnin''s question humiliated her once again, and this time in front of her disciple''s parents. The woman quickly pulled herself together and gave Ashia and Florian a warm smile. "Hello, my name is Avian, Avian Illume. I have come from the city in hopes to find a disciple. Your daughter here is very talented and I hope to take her in as my disciple. Your son, Arnin, has already forced me to sign a dreadful contract, I reluctantly signed it and have taken your daughter in as my disciple. I hope that you won''t mind, I wanted to speak with you first, but your child gave me no other choice." The woman showed a pitiful face when she spoke about Arnin''s deeds, making it seem like she was taken advantage of, which wasn''t completely wrong. Ashia and Florian were gaping at the thought that their child, Nekaia, was now the disciple of a person from the city. However, when Ashia heard the last few lines, her face darkened. "Arnin! Is what she said the truth? Did you force her, your sister''s master, to sign a dangerous contract?" Ashia was extremely mad, but cunningly called the Avian Nekaia''s master. She pulled Arnin over and grabbed his ear tightly. "Mom, why are pulling my ear!? I only prevented Nekaia from falling for this witches tri- Ahhh! Mom, I am sorry please let go now!" Arnin''s ear became red as Ashia kept pulling. Avian on the other hand was slightly trembling when she heard Arnin call her a witch. "Miss Avian, I apologize for my son''s rude behavior. He has always been different from others, but I can assure you that he is a very good boy. Arnin, come here and apologize!" Arnin was rubbing his red ear in the corner when he heard his mother''s call. He didn''t walk over, instead, he gave Avian a glare. Avian felt like she was placed naked in a cold storm when she saw Arnin''s glare. "Miss Ashia, it''s alright. Arnin didn''t do anything terrible, rather he is a very good son." Although Avian felt that Arnin was immoral and cunning, she still thought of him as a good son. When he made the contract there wasn''t anything for him, rather all the demands were for his parents and sister. She could only dislike his attitude towards her, not his filial piety. Ashia felt that a huge weight was lifted off her shoulders when she heard Avian compliment Arnin. She still gave Arnin a glare before happily welcoming Avian into their home. Arnin continued to rub his ear, while Florian patted his head before following his wife and Avain inside. Nekaia was already in her mother''s arms when Ashia finished abusing Arnin. As both women sat on the beds, Nekaia sat on Ashia''s lap, while Florian stood behind Ashia. He felt it was better to let Ashia speak about Nekaia''s discipleship. Although he himself was concerned about the matter, Florian felt that Ashia would be able to make the best decision. "So, miss Avian you were talking about taking my daughter in as your disciple and a¡­ contract that you signed before this? Would you mind telling me the demands of that contract? I will have Arnin release you of any demands that you do not like!" Ashia shot a glance at the cowering Arnin when she spoke about the contract. She also apologetically looked towards the ''victim'' in the deal. "Mom I know you''re mad, but it is not possible to remove any of the demands in the contract. The moment she signed it, she agreed to never¡­" Arnin didn''t finish his sentence when he saw his mother ferociously looking at him. He then released a small sigh before waving his hand in the air, drawing a mysterious character. That mysterious character flew towards Avian and then disappeared into her body. He then took out a piece of paper and started to scribble some unknown letters on them. "I removed the first contract off of her, but I will not let Nekaia become her disciple until she signs this contract. Mom, I know what you''re thinking, but I will not allow this woman to take advantage of our family and my sister''s talent." Arnin, at that moment, lost all his cowardliness and viciously looked at the quiet Avian. He was extremely pissed, but his mother was the one making him change the contract so he could only do as he was told. Arnin then walked out the house, calling his father out as well. Florian followed his angered son with a smile. With both the men outside, Ashia shook her head. She knew that Arnin was doing it for their sake, but she was not willing to put her children in harm''s way just for a better life. She looked lovingly at her oblivious daughter who didn''t completely understand what was going on. She kissed her head and looked towards Avain, adjusting herself in a way that could allow Nekaia to fall asleep on her lap. "Miss Avian, I am happy that you would like to take my daughter in as your disciple, however she is still young and has never left home. I would like to wait until she is at least ten years old before letting her explore the world. As for my son Arnin, he deeply cares and understands our situation. He only wants me, Florian and my little girl to live happily. I hope you don''t mind his personality." Ashia helplessly defended Arnin and tried to deny the discipleship without offending Avian. She truly wanted Nekaia to live a good life, but Arnin was not ready to accept it without anything in return. Avian silently picked up the new contract and suddenly signed it. She then gave the contract to Ashia. "Miss, I really do want your daughter as my disciple and have spoken to Arnin on the way here. He is a remarkable child that really does care about his family. Here, look at the demands listed by him. There isn''t anything he wants except for you guys to move into the city and live there peacefully. I am ready to accept these conditions and will even stay in the city and train your daughter in your presence. I will only take her out to travel when you feel that she is ready to leave." Ashia looked through the demands and was surprised to find that everything was done for their safety and peacefulness. She looked out the window to see Florian looking at Arnin with some helplessness in his eyes, which caused her to release a beautiful smile. ----------------------------------------------------- While Ashia was inside discussing with Avian, Arnin was looking at Florian seriously. He took out a piece of paper and handed it over to Florian who looked somewhat confused. He looked at the paper and saw a small list of materials; a map, a blade, and a bag. "Dad, the reason I made those demands was so you, mom and Nekaia can live in peace without any financial worries. This piece of paper is a list of things that I would like you to help me get. I know our situation is bad, but believe me, that woman will accept the demands, no matter what. Nekaia is a genius even greater then the sages you told me about." Arnin spoke seriously while his father''s eyes became serious and helpless. "Arnin, you want to go out and travel? You are only five years old! I know that you are different from kids your age, but you are still a child." Florian became somewhat anxious at the thought of Arnin adventuring at such a young age. He was able to forcefully stop Arnin, but it was the first request that Arnin had ever asked of him so he was hesitant to deny it. "Dad, remember all those great warriors you told me about? They would start their adventures at a very young age, well I also want to start now!" Arnin brought up the legends his dad would tell him. The greatest warriors in Afloria would start their adventures when they were able to cultivate. It would be at an extremely young age, and because of the hard life they would live, many of them would be able to become top-notch lords. "I am telling this to you, but I hope that you won''t tell mom about it until I get all of you settled into the city." Arnin was worried that his mom would overreact so he wanted to keep it a secret until he actually left. "Alright, Arnin. I will get these items for you, but only if you''re able to prove to me that you can handle adventuring alone. I will give you two days to prove yourself, however if you can''t, then forget about leaving!" Florian strictly looked at his son who had the three tattoos on his head. 5 The Village Elder After having the discussion about leaving with his father, Arnin knew that he was limited on time. A normal child around his age would be on the Orb Birth -Earth level until the age of eight, however, he was already at the peak of the level. He needed to break through in two days so that he could prove to his dad that he is is able to venture out on his own. The only option that appeared in his head was seeking some advice from a native that had gone through the process of breaking through already. This would allow him to gain some enlightenment which could boost his cultivation and help him break through into the next small realm. He did not have a proper route;he was doing everything himself and needed some external help. If he had gotten a week, he could achieve a breakthrough on his own, but to speed it up he needed a helper. The village elder, who had already achieved Essence Manifest - Hell, had much more experience with the orb then Arnin. Being the strongest in the village allowed the village elder to live in the most central area. His home was much larger and spacious then Arnin''s. There was a hall right in front of the entrance, and a front desk for visitors. Although it was the village elder''s home, it was also a place where many of the problems were discussed. The village elders home was very chaotic because of the lessons that were going on. Many wanted their children to get the opportunity to become warriors of the city, but the lessons were stopped mid-way because of an unknown issue. This became a large setback for the village, so many high ranked officers came in to discuss it with the village elder. In the large hall, different sizes of people were gathered, some were wearing good quality clothes, while others were wearing tattered clothes. The village elder tried to not discriminate against others, which made him quite likable.However, he treated his grandchildren with more love than even his own children. He was impartial towards everyone except his grandchildren, which was good because it showed that he treated his family as something very important, but it was bad because it made him seem somewhat hypocritical. Arnin, who entered the hall, did not cause much attraction because of his size being smaller than the rest, which made him difficult to find. He swiftly walked through the many people, however at the same time he tried to observe their orb threads. He wanted to see the difference between their levels and his own. Some had very thick threads while others had thinner ones, but none had the same thickness as the woman who came to find him. He was able to determine the level of many people quite easily, some took a little longer but were also eventually discovered. This was not the case for Avian because her level was still unknown to him. After walking around for a while, he noticed an old man sitting on a chair in the corner. The old man had black hair with many wrinkles over his face. His eyes were closed, looking as if he was unperturbed about what was happening around him. The two little girls had sky blue eyes which complemented their long black hair, almost a perfect combination. They were beautiful children that would become incredible demonesses when they grew up. One of the girls was around the same age as Arnin, while the other looked to be a couple years older. While everyone in the hall discussed fervently, Arnin started to make his way towards the old man and two girls. He already knew that this was the village elder because the threads in his body were the thickest in the hall. He was only a dozen steps away when he felt someone approaching him from behind. A large man with a goatee walked towards him with a glare. His threads were thicker than the average person in the hall. He seemed to be a part of the stronger group in the village, giving him a higher status. "Little boy, what are you doing in this place!? Not just anyone is allowed here! Who are your parents, tell me their names so that I could call them to fetch you!" The goatee man was very haughty when he approached Arnin. His nose was raised in the sky, while his voice loudly reverberated in the hall. Everyone quieted down when they heard the goatee man''s voice. When they saw Arnin and started to discuss in private. "Who is this little kid? Doesn''t he know that this is the village elders home." said a middle-aged man with tattered clothes. "I don''t know who he is, but looking at his clothes he must be a part of the needy group like you. I bet you he is here to beg for some money or something. Just what I would expect from the poor. Haha!" A well-clothed man snickered at the middle-aged man with tattered clothes, with a hint of mockery and disgust in his tone. "What did you say? All you rich folks only know how to leech off our hard work! I bet you were an insect in your past life because you are both small and blood-sucking like one!" The two men fought using harsh tones. While everyone was arguing about different things, the goatee man had already walked towards Arnin. Judging by the thickness of the threads, the goatee man was very likely an Essence Manifest - Earth. It wasn''t the highest level, but it was still very good in the village considering there was only one small realm between him and the strongest. Arnin on the other hand just looked at the man for a second before turning around and walking towards the village elder. "Did you not hear me? What are you doing here?" The goatee man was angered that he was treated like thin air in front of so many people. He raised his voice and spoke a little more harshly, however to his surprise he was ignored once more. Arnin just kept walking towards the village elder without looking back. The goatee man lost his composure and rushed towards Arnin, wanting to grab him and give him a good beating. Just when he was about to reach him, Arnin sidestepped without turning his head. The goatee man fell forward onto his face, which gave him a few cuts. Although they were not deep, it was very humiliating for the goatee man, so he stood up wanting to rush towards him once more. Just when he was about to rush towards Arnin again, a shriveled hand grabbed his shoulder. The goatee man turned around and saw the village elder looking at him calmly. The goatee man gritted his teeth and stepped back, allowing the village elder and his two granddaughters to walk towards Arnin. "Young man, it seems you have something you would like to discuss with me. Tell me, what is it that you would like to say." The village elder spoke calmly towards Arnin. Everyone thought that the village elder was being kind, but they didn''t notice the hint of killing intent in his stare. Arnin, however, noticed it. He knew why the village elder was mad and didn''t blame him for it. Who wouldn''t be mad if their people were humiliated in their own home? Arnin glanced at the younger of the grandchildren before his lips curved up into an evil smile. "Elder, I see that your youngest granddaughter is doing well. Can I see her one hour from now, or will she faint from being overwhelmed by my presence?" Everyone in the hall started to berate Arnin for being shameless and arrogant, but the village elder suddenly released a terrifying aura. "Everyone, I would like you to leave for now. I have something to discuss with this young man!" The people in the hall quickly left the hall with their tails between their legs. On the way, they silently cursed Arnin for causing such a mess, some even pitied him for receiving the anger of the village elder. He looked at Arnin and laughed with unhidden mockery. Arnin was unconcerned with what the others thought. He only looked at the village elder, knowing that he understood the hidden meaning of his sentence. When everyone finally left the hall, Arnin walked towards a chair and casually sat down. He signaled towards the village elder to take a seat as well, but it was unnecessary because the old man continued to stare at Arnin. "Little boy, how did you know about the ailment that my granddaughter has? Speak now or else the consequences will be dire!" The old man lost his calm and started to speak much louder, almost shouting. Arnin rubbed his ears and smiled towards the village elder. "Elder, why the need to shout? I can help your granddaughter if that''s what you really want to know, but in exchange, you will help me. Is that a deal?" Arnin with his small hands rubbed his chin. He felt like he was back on his throne, speaking to one of the stronger beings in the universe. The village elder was at a lost for words, he didn''t know how to reply to the young man. "How will you cure my granddaughter of her illness? Do you, a little boy, even know what you are speaking about?" The old man became angry again. He felt that Arnin''s demand may not be so simple, and Arnin would most likely be gaining more then he would. Yet, his granddaughter was more precious than his life so he was willing try betting on this kid. "Well, that''s a stupid thing to say. Why would I mention your granddaughter''s ailment if I can''t help you with it? Old man, have you grown muddle headed because of your age?" Arnin spoke rudely towards the village elder right from the start. He didn''t feel that respect should be given to such a hypocritical person who claims to be impartial towards everyone but is still biased towards his grandchildren. He could remove the impartial title from his name then everything would be fine, but that title made him seem very hypocritical. "You disrespectful brat, how dare you to speak to your elder in such a way? Did your parents not teach you respect? First, you humiliate my people in my own home, now you do the same to me? Where is your decency?" The old man was so angry that his pale white skin became as red as roses. His veins were about to burst on his forehead when he suddenly became dizzy and stumbled back. His granddaughters quickly rushed to support him, while the elder one glared at the casual Arnin. "Remember, it wasn''t me that wanted a fight, it was him. And who told you to have thoughts of killing me? Just consider me sparing your life as being respectful. Now back to the main topic, I can treat your granddaughter. All you have to do is agree to my demand. You and I can sign a joint contract that forces us to do as we are told in the given time frame. Do you have any other complaints?" Arnin drew up a black and white contract. He took the black one and signed it while sending the white one to the stumbling old man. The village elder fell onto his seat and took in a deep breath. He caught the contract and read each piece of information carefully. Surprise filled his eyes when he read the demand. He knew the type of contract that was given to him and how deadly it was. He looked deeply at Arnin and signed his name on the contract. "I read through the contract and know that if you go back on your word, you will suffer tremendous punishment. I don''t know why you want me to give you tips about cultivation, but since I have already signed then I can only do just that." The village elder reluctantly sent the contract back to Arnin, who happily stuffed it in his robe. "Old man, since we are now in business, let''s start right away. I will cure your granddaughter in front of you today so that you can train me tonight and tomorrow. I need a breakthrough by tomorrow, so you better not fail me." Arnin spoke to the village elder as if he was the leader speaking to a subordinate. The village elder released a self-pitying laugh before sending his granddaughter towards Arnin. "Well let''s begin then!" 6 Curing The Granddaughter The youngest granddaughter, who was around the same age as Arnin, walked forward. Her beautiful black hair gently laid on her back as her face became red with anger. She didn''t have a good impression of Arnin because of what he did to her grandfather. Although she didn''t know about her ailment in detail, she couldn''t believe that a five-year-old boy could help her. As she got closer, she was able to get a better look at the dashing young man that exuded the aura of a tyrant. His deep black eyes that even looked red at times mixed with his black-grey hair caused him to look like a handsome demon. The three tattoos on his forehead were especially beautiful, making Arnin seem much more charming. The youngest granddaughter''s heart couldn''t help but tremble slightly at the sight. Arnin''s devilish looks were just too attractive, causing her face to heat up. "What is your name?" Arnin ignored the reaction the girl had towards him. He just wanted to quickly complete his side of the deal so that he could begin training. Although, the girl was beautiful, he had seen many beautiful things in his past life as a Demon Lord. "Her name is Lilise! Stop asking unnecessary questions and just do what we agreed on, brat!" The elder was still fuming at Arnin''s attitude. He just wanted to quickly complete the contract so he wouldn''t have to meet Arnin again. "Remember, I am only allowing you to help her, if anything unexpected happens, I will interfere and you will lose your life!" The old man looked seriously at Arnin with his eyes glinting with murderous intent. Arnin had Lilise sit beside him while he lifted her hand to check her pulse. Lilise was blushing slightly and kept her head down. She only snuck glances at her angry grandpa and the good looking Arnin. After checking her pulse, Arnin used his own threads to infiltrate her body, for a more thorough inspection. Lilise gave out a shriek as her body started to feel like it was being grabbed from everywhere. Tears surfaced in her eyes as she looked at her grandpa for help. "Don''t disturb me right now. This is a crucial moment, if anything happens then her orb could be further damaged. Lilise, just bear with it for a bit. After I am done you should be cured." Without even lifting his head or opening up his eyes, Arnin stopped the village elder from interfering and helped Lilise calm down. Yet when he said that he would be able to cure her, both the elder and the two girls were very surprised. Although they felt happy, they were skeptical about the whole situation. Arnin was only five-years-old. Could he really cure Lilise of her condition? Even though the ailment was not incurable and a treatment could be found if one went to the city, it still wasn''t as easy as Arnin made it seem. Inside Lilise''s body, Arnin''s threads were feeding essence to her orb. A worm-like mark on the orb brightened as its size became excessively large. This was the problem the prevented Lilise from cultivating her orb. The solution that Arnin thought of was to feed the worm his threads, bloating it, until it cannot digest anymore. Then, his mental energy would drag that worm into his own body. Arnin was not nice enough to sacrifice his own body for another''s, but since he was foreign to this world, he wanted a closer look on how the orb reacts to ailments. It could further improve his cultivation. Thirty minutes went by very slowly for the family of three, Lilise''s pale face was still burning because of Arnin''s threads inside her body. The old man and the other granddaughter were quietly watching everything happen, not daring to breathe too loud. Suddenly, a blue hue encompassed Lilise, causing her pale face to become more rosy. Her sweat precipitated into the air like smoke. Arnin''s closed eyes opened up and he nodded towards the old man. "Her condition is now stable and she should be able to cultivate like normal people soon. The only problem is that she is not in any power realm and needs help to achieve Orb Birth - Earth before cultivating. I think you can accomplish that much at least?" Arnin nonchalantly concluded the treatment as he leaned back and closed his eyes again. Although he was powerful in his past life, with his new power still in infancy, he would get exhausted easily. Lilise opened her eyes and found Arnin resting on his seat. She felt her face blush when she thought of the treatment and couldn''t help but take another look at his enticing tattoos. She got up and ran towards the stairs, leaving her sister and grandpa behind. "Grandpa, I am going to go with Lilise, you can continue what you were doing here." Lilise''s sister smiled towards the old man before giving Arnin a deep glance. She didn''t notice a slight flush on her face before she chased her sister. The old man gave a low sigh before smiling towards the resting Arnin. Now when he looked at him, there was no killing intent or fury, rather it was gratefulness and satisfaction. "Arnin, although you are a disrespectful brat that needs to be beaten for indecency and- *cough*, I mean thank you. Because of you, my Lilise can now cultivate like others, for that thank you. Let''s start your training right away!" The old man held himself together before finally completing his sentence. Although his granddaughter was treated, he didn''t want Arnin staying for too long or he might not be able to keep his sanity. "Old man, since I helped you, you better not fail your part. I cured your Lilise, but I can also bring her condition back and make it much worse. Let''s got to a bigger area, take me to your back training ground. You do have one, right?" Arnin walked himself towards the training ground. He already discovered where it was when he scanned his surroundings. The elder helplessly shook his head because of Arnin''s attitude. He didn''t like it, but atleast Arnin wasn''t licking his boots like many others. --------------------------------------------------- Inside a large room with many dolls and a large bed, Lilise was laying with her face fully red. In her mind, Arnin''s face and tattoos kept on appearing, causing her to be even more flustered. Suddenly, her room door opened up and her older sister walked in. "Sis Elidia, why are you here? Shouldn''t you be with grandpa?" Lilise collected herself and spoke silently to her sister. She didn''t lift her head to look at Elidia because she didn''t want her sister to see her expression. "Lilise, why did you run off?" Elidia looked at Lilise teasingly. In the world of Afloria, children would mature at a much quicker rate and live longer because of the large amount of essence in the air. Especially for wealthy children or people in higher societal ranks,they would have to grow up quick because of the high competition. Most children in Afloria had a mindset that was a couple years older than that of a normal person. Arnin was a special case because he acted very differently than children his age. The village elder saw that he was different when he first came to the gathering and the way he exposed Lilise''s ailment did not seem like something a five year old could do. "Sis, I don''t know why. Just forget about it. Is grandpa going to the training ground with¡­" Lilise stared at the training ground out her window happily at the mention of Arnin. Elidia shook her head before grabbing her sister''s hand and walking out the door. "Let''s go watch grandpa train with that boy. You can probably get some enlightenment before you start your own training." Elidia continued to tease Lilise. As they approached the large training ground which was covered in large trees and dummies, they felt a sinister aura in the air. Lilise could faintly see a black thread slithering in the air. This thread connected to other threads, flowing towards a boy. The boy''s three tattoos were giving off a grey light while his short, dark hair fluttered in the air. His eyes were closed tightly while on the side, her grandpa watched with wide eyes. Lilise walked towards her grandpa with Elidia. "Grandpa, what are those black threads around Arnin''s body? What are you guys doing? This aura feels scary!" Lilise hugged the elder''s arms before asking her questions. The old man was about to answer when he saw Arnin open up his eyes which had a red streak that was now very visible. "Old man, I just advanced into the next realm, Orb Birth - Sky. Spar with me!" Arnin was very surprised that he was able to rank up without the old man''s help. He knew that he still needed some time before he would breakthrough, but surprisingly the worm-like mark that he absorbed from Lilise''s body provided him with a large amount of essence, rushing him into a breakthrough. When he was about to begin training, all the essence inside the mark suddenly gushed out, filling every part of Arnin''s body. Arnin thought that the reason it exploded now was because of how much he bloated it during the treatment. The old man was gaping with his two granddaughters, his hairs rose when he thought of the sinister aura that Arnin released. On the other hand, Lilise''s eyes were sparkling greatly. "Old man, spar with me! I need to familiarize myself with this new realm." The village elder composed himself before slowly walking towards Arnin. He released some of his strength, but kept it on the same level as Arnin''s. Arnin vanished in front of their eyes before reappearing behind the old man. He swung his fist towards the old man''s head, but he missed and hit thin air. The old man appeared behind Arnin and aimed for his back, however Arnin vanished from his sight. Arnin arrived back to where he was with his back drenched in cold sweat. There was a large hole in his clothes, luckily the bruise was not bleeding. "Arnin, you really are something. I was using Orb Birth - Hell strength just to match you. Come here and let me see that bruise. Elidia can you go and grab me some ointment." The elder quickly instructed Elidia before turning and staring at Arnin. He felt that if he didn''t increase his strength, he would have been seriously injured with Arnin''s first strike. Arnin walked over and took his tunic off. Lilise blushed before turning her head around. Arnin smirked at her action and was about to walk over when the village elder gave him a stern look. The bruise on his back was slightly purple, but it didn''t bother him too much. It was only slightly painful. "Arnin, you are very powerful for someone your age, so much so that you will be considered a Demon like talent anywhere you go. Since you have such great talent, I was wondering if you would like to attend an Orb Cultivation academy with my two granddaughters?" 7 One Strike The village elder looked seriously at Arnin after asking the question. He knew that with Arnin''s talent, he could easily get into the academy, even without any outside help. As the village elder, he understood the living situation of most of the people, but he couldn''t assist anyone because of how much money the village lacked. His only alternative was to help families that had children with high potential. If those kids grew up to be famous and wealthy, then they could hopefully lend a helping hand to the village. He had been doing this for years, but Arnin was the first child that he thought would naturally become someone famous, if he doesn''t die prematurely that is. "You want me to go to the academy with your two granddaughters? You should already know that I come from one if the more poor families in the village, so I would not be able to afford going to an academy." Arnin''s family was actually very poor, but if Nekaia''s master is able to abide by the new contract, that wouldn''t be the case anymore. Although they wouldn''t be wealthy, his family would at least be able to eat and sleep without much to worry about. "Don''t worry about all those little things; I will handle them for you. I just need a yes from you and your parents. There are many ways to improve your strength quickly." The way the old man was trying to convince Arnin continuously made him understand that all of this was not for free. "Tell me what you want me to do for you! I know that all of this isn''t free, so stop trying to cover it up!" Arnin was getting more annoyed with the village elder who tried to pull tricks on him. There was no way that the old man was a saint who would assist him no charge. "Haha! I like how smart you are. I only have two conditions, the first is that you protect Lilise and Elidia in the academy from danger. I would have sent someone with them but the academy only accepts children under the age of fifteen and you are stronger than most people in that age group. The second condition is that if you become famous in the future, be sure to assist this village the best you can. That''s all!" The thick faced old man didn''t even care that he was asking for a lot, he only knew that this would benefit the village and his two granddaughters. He could care less about what people thought of him because of this. "You want me to meet all of your conditions just for an entrance into an academy? I think you know better then most that if I wanted to, I could join many academies with just my talent. I am not bragging, but the truth is the truth. So tell me, what will I receive in compensation for becoming a bodyguard for your little girls?" The village elder mocked himself for thinking he could fool a monster like Arnin. He was seen through in a minute. There wasn''t much he could offer at the moment but he really wanted Arnin as his little girls'' protector. "If you really do want me as a guard dog, then I have one condition for you. No matter what happens in the future, my family will stay in the village whenever they want, whether I am labeled as good or evil, you will keep them here! If you agree to this minor condition of mine, then I can be a bodyguard!" Arnin drew up another contract that listed the conditions of each party. The only reason he asked for such a demand was because he might be hunted down inthe future and his family may possibly get involved. "Hmm. Your condition seems safe from a distance, but in the future you could very well be a great disaster, but I don''t mind looking after your family. That is a deal!" The elder signed the contract and sent it back towards Arnin who also quickly signed it, binding both to the content inside the contract. Lilise watched all of this happen with some excitement. She still tried to avoid looking at the bare chested Arnin. Moments later, Elidia came in running with some ointment. She handed it to her grandfather who then applied it to Arnin''s back. "Arnin, let me meet your parents. I want to see who gave birth to such a brat. Haha!" The old man smacked Arnin''s bruised back before he laughed heartily. His eyes glanced at the smiling Lilise. Arnin shrugged his shoulders before leaving the training field himself. The village elder and the two girls quickly followed behind. -------------------------------------- In Arnin''s home, Avian was still inside discussing things with Ashia. They had settled on all major matters while Arnin was gone, and now Ashia was helping Avian familiarize herself with her family. As Nekaia''s master, she could now be considered a part of the Foro family. Ashia and Florian were very excited that one of their children had high talent and would be able to have a much better future than themselves. Florian did not talk about the little deal he made with Arnin because it would worry Ashia more than anything. Although children would go out at a young age, five years old was still a little too young. Most would wait until atleast they were ten to leave their home, because by then they would be at the upper levels of Orb Birth. Arnin, who they believed to only be at the beginning stages of Orb Birth, couldn''t possibly be ready to head out. Florian only made the deal to motivate Arnin to work harder. He was not willing to let him head out yet. Although he knew there was something different about Arnin when compared to other children. In his eyes Arnin was still a five-year-old child that needed his parents. Little did he know that that very child had already reached Orb Birth - Sky and could match people in Orb Birth - Hell. Ashia herself might not be a match for Arnin. While the people in the house were busy, Arnin had already arrived with the three people. When the three saw the state of the house, they looked at Arnin with different expressions. The old man had a look of satisfaction because it showed that Arnin had his strength not because of others, but because of his own skills. Lilise and Elidia really wanted to meet the parents of Arnin. They wanted to know who brought up an amazing talent in such a bad situation. "Mom! Dad! I am home! Can you guys open the door?" Although the house wasn''t locked, he didn''t want people walking in if his parents were discussing something important. He didn''t want his parents feeling awkward or anything because he brought people in while they were discussing finances, so he just wanted to make sure that they knew he was home now. The door swung open and Ashia came walking out. Her face was somewhat red from anger, which caused her not to see the people behind Arnin, and rushed towards him. She grabbed his ears and started to scold him. "Arnin, why are you home so late? Did you tell me or your dad that you would be going out? You little brat, first you make a ruckus with Avian, and now you come home late? Just watch how I take care of you!" Ashia began to pull his ears even harder causing them to become redder. She only let go when she saw Arnin''s ear becoming too red. When she was done releasing some of her anger, she noticed the three people behind her son. She couldn''t recognize the two little girls, but she knew the old man in the middle. "Oh, village elder, I am so sorry for the scene that you just saw." Ashia quickly gave a bow before glaring at Arnin, who she believed to be the reason the village elder was here. She was thinking of the many ways she would beat Arnin later. "You don''t have to bow to me. I don''t mind what I saw. Rather, seeing that brat so obedient makes me really happy. Haha!" The old man laughed out loud while the two girls also giggled before glancing at Arnin who was quietly rubbing his ear. They didn''t think that such a cunning person could be so submissive. Ashia, on the other hand, was somewhat confused and glanced at Arnin before facing the village elder again. "Look at me, I completely forgot to mention why I visited today. Your son hea- I mean helped me greatly today and so I wanted to meet the parents of such a talent. My two girls also wanted to meet such parents. The older one is Eldia while the younger one, who is about the same age as Arnin, is Lilise" The village elder beckoned both girls forward. Ashia gave another look at the two gorgeous children, but her reaction wasn''t extreme because her own daughter, Nekaia, was also a great beauty. Her reaction however, surprised the old man and the two girls. Although, they were not narcissistic about their looks, they still believed themselves to be quite pretty, but Ashia''s reaction made them dissapointed on the inside. Suddenly, Florian walked out with Nekaia and Avian. When the two girls saw Nekaia, they gasped internally. She was extremely beautiful and she even had a tattoo on her forehead like Arnin, making her seem even more pretty. When the three people compared Arnin and Nekaia, they found that they both had slight similarities, but the aura they gave off was completely different. Arnin seemed more sinister and mysterious, while Nekaia was angelic and welcoming. Lilise felt a little sad that she wasn''t as pretty as Nekaia and didn''t have the same tattoo as both siblings. She knew that these parents had outstanding children, both in looks and talent, so finding a way to impress them would be very difficult. What the village elder was shocked about was not the beauty of Nekaia, rather the presence of the woman behind Nekaia was invisible, even to him. "Miss, I am an elder of this small village and was hoping you could tell me your great name?" The elder''s attitude took a complete one-eighty turn. Ashia, Florian and the two girls were somewhat shocked. Nekaia was oblivious to what was going on so she just ran to Arnin and locked her arms in his, smiling. Arnin wasn''t too surprised towards his reaction because he knew that Avian was on a much higher level then him. "My name is Avian Illume. I am from the city and am the master of Nekaia Foro." Avian answered in a very monotone manner, not giving the village elder any formal greeting. "Wait, do you mean the great Illume family? Like from the central city?!" The elder let out a shocked cry when he thought of Avian''s background. Arnin looked at Avian before giving a puzzled look to the old man. "Arnin, since you are young, you may not know much about Afloria, but it is a very large world. There are five major continents in this world, one for humans, one for demons, one for the animal tribes and the last two are unknown. Some say that it is for dragons and phoenixes while others say that it is for anyone that is able to enter. Forget about that for now, let''s talk about the human continent. The humans have five large districts. There is the West, East, North, South, and Central district. Of course the central is the most powerful of all because it is in the middle. The other four however are close in strength, but there is still a ranking for each one. The weakest district is our West district. Even though it is the weakest, it is still very strong. The other four continents would not be able to attack and leave freely. The West has over five thousand cities. The central city is the most populace and powerful city in the West. This village is not even counted as a town, let alone a city." The old man quickly gave a summary of the place they lived in, allowing Arnin to further understand the geography of Afloria. Arnin wasn''t too surprised because he was the one who created the world of Afloria. Arnin just nodded before giving Avian another deep look. Avian noticed this and smirked, but Arnin just looked then turned his head away, making Avian feel extremely displeased about his lack of interest. After the old man described everything, Arnin looked at his mom and dad. "Mom, Dad, I plan on entering an academy for a while. I need to go to the academy to further my cultivation at a rapid pace. The fees and everything else will be taken care of by the village elder. Is that OK with you guys?" Arnin asked the most important thing he wanted to talk about. He wanted to go so that he could get a better grasp of Orb Cultivation. He also wanted to have more spars with his power so that he could adapt to it quickly. Ashia and Florian were surprised but began to deeply consider this. Florian allowed Ashia to make the decision because the effect would be greatest on her in comparison to himself. "Dear, do you really want to go? You can stay at the city and cultivate there, but if you really want to, I won''t stop you. But you have to prove to me that you are powerful enough to take car-" Before Ashia could finish her sentence, Arnin released his aura causing everyone to shiver. Nekaia, who was the closest, did not find the aura uncomfortable, rather she hugged Arnin even tighter because she liked the aura. Ashia and Florian were somewhat uncomfortable because Arnin tried not to aim his aura towards them, however everyone else was shaking and had goosebumps. The more experienced Avian and the village elder felt even worse and were somewhat frightened because of the mass release. Elidia and Lilise were pale white, looking in fear at the aura. The old man noticed this and quickly told Arnin to take his aura away. "Brat, that''s enough! Can''t you see Lilise and Elidia are about to faint?!" The old man was angered but also frightened. He had never felt such sinister aura in his life. Arnin looked towards the girls before taking back his aura, he smiled towards both of them. Sorry about that. If you both want, you can stand beside Nekaia while I fight the old man again. Mom and Dad, you guys also come here and watch this. Old man, let''s do this!" Arnin walked forward and took his top layer off. His bruise was seen by Ashia, which caused her to rush towards Arnin, but Florian held her back before facing the upcoming fight. The village elder scoffed and grunted before walking out. He kept his aura At Orb Birth - Hell so that he wouldn''t get overpowered again. The old man started out with a rush towards Arnin, however Arnin vanished from his sight at a much higher speed before reappearing on top of him. Arnin hit the back of his neck, causing the old man to stumble and then fall on his knees. Some blood leaked out of mouth before he looked at Arnin in great shock. "I understood the crux of your movement speed when we were sparring last time so I just increased my own." Everyone watched in shock, it started and ended in less than ten seconds. What kind of monster was Arnin? 8 Five Day Training Begins The village elder spat out a small amount of blood from his mouth. He didn''t look severely injured but his face was pale and he looked weak. Everyone was silent because of shock. Who could imagine a five-year-old beating an old warrior in a single hit? Even though the old man reduced his strength, the battle experience was still there. Arnin didn''t think too greatly about his own battle strength because he had over a hundred million years of experience. He was the strongest warrior and could still be the strongest if he undid his seal. This win was an easy one which made him think that he could even possibly beat an Orb Birth - Heaven warrior, however he did not want to show all of his cards too early. As everyone stood in shock, the village elder got up slowly with his body swaying. He held his pounding head before walking towards Arnin. He lifted his hand and patted Arnin''s head. "If I knew you were this strong, I would have bumped my power to Orb Birth - Heaven, or even Essence Manifest - Earth. You are a great talent, the greatest I have ever seen or heard of. I am going to head home and recover, I will come back in five days to pick you up. We will head to the academy then." With that said, the village elder turned around and began to walk back from where he came from. Elidia took a quick look before following behind him. Lilise, on the other hand, was somewhat reluctant to leave. The village elder noticed this and exposed a somewhat bitter smile. Why would she want to stay around such a brat? "Also, Arnin I am going to leave Lilise here with you and your family. Please help her cultivate to Orb Birth - Earth before the trip. Thanks!" The old man quickly left, leaving Arnin gaping. Even though Lilise was five, because of her maturity she had some insight towards relationships between a man and woman. Although she found herself blushing in front of Arnin, she still couldn''t fully understand how she felt. Ashia and Florian noticed Lilise''s expression and understood immediately. They were surprised that such a young girl would start to develop feelings for the cold and aloof Arnin. Both of them however did not mind the presence of Lilise. They were given some financial aid from Avian, who was now the master of Nekaia, so food was not a problem. "Arnin, make sure to help little Lilise cultivate well! You better not go off and do your own thing again! Nekaia dear, make sure Arnin trains Lilise well." Ashia said her piece before walking into the house with a smile. She was extremely pleased that people found her son attractive or atleast, likable. Which mother wouldn''t be happy about her own children''s popularity? Arnin sighed before walking towards Avian. "So you''re from a powerful family? I should have made more demands from you. What a waste!" Arnin impolitely stated his thoughts before walking away, with Lilise following behind. Nekaia, who now liked Avian very much, gave her a hug before following behind Arnin. She waved back as she got further away which caused Avian to smile. ----------------------------------------------- Arnin and the two girls reached a shaded area. It was an open area with many houses and trees surrounding it. This was the place that Arnin practiced the most, making it the ideal ground for the girls'' training. It wasn''t crowded and was a good distance away from his home. The shade kept the area cool, which allowed them to practice for a longer period of time. He decided that since he had to help Lilise break into the Orb Birth - Earth realm, he would take her to his own training ground. Because Nekaia was tagging along as well, he would try to help her reach the peak of Orb Birth - Earth. He had already thought of a training plan for Lilise and Nekaia. Of course the one for Lilise would be less extreme because she wasn''t even at Orb Birth - Earth realm. He had both girls stand on two different sides of the training area. He, as the teacher, stood in the middle so that he could give them directions at the same time. The first step was a physical warm up. First he had them do stretches for their legs, arms, back, and other major body parts. Next, he made them do physical enhancement exercises such as pushups, situps, jogging, and many more. Nekaia found them to be easier to do then Lilise because she was already in the realm, Orb Birth - Earth, which made her stamina higher than that of Lilise. Her face was pale and beads of sweat poured down her face like a waterfall. She was extremely tired, but Arnin wouldn''t let her rest any time soon. He would make her feel like she was running on fire by prickling her feet with his orb threads, which kept her going. Nekaia didn''t get it any better, rather she was treated even worse. Her clothes were completely drenched, her hair in a complete mess. She inwardly cursed Arnin and the village elder for her current appearance. If the elder didn''t make Arnin train Lilise, then she could have been at home with her parents and master, but now she was basically bathing in her own sweat. Disgusting! Arnin pretended he didn''t notice the expression of the two girls and continued to lead them through their practice. After they finished with physical training, he allowed both girls to rest for a few minutes. "Lilise, I am going to help you in a bit, so you can wait in the corner. Nekaia, come here. I am going to start with you!" Arnin didn''t show any of the care that he previously would have. He beckoned for Nekaia, who snorted angrily and walked over. She limped her way towards Arnin before glaring at him. "My dictator brother, please tell me, your mistreated slave, what to do!" Arnin was flabbergasted by the way Nekaia spoke. He couldn''t help but release a small chuckle. However, with Nekaia''s icy stare that felt like needles all over his body, he pulled himself together and coughed ever so slightly. "Nekaia, since you have already located where your orb is, I am going to show you a method that brings essence into your body. It may not be the best method, but it will do for now." Arnin decided to teach Nekaia his method of collecting essence from the world. It helped him progress quickly through the earth realm, so he didn''t think it would be a terrible method. Nekaia sat down cross legged before Arnin grabbed both of her hands. He released orb threads into her body which caused her to quiver. The threads made their way to her orb and started to disappear. A small red symbol appeared on Nekaia''s snow white orb. The red symbol brightened until strands of different colors entered Nekaia''s body. These strands were the essence of the world and that symbol acted like a vacuum that sucked the essence into the orb. Arnin retracted his hands and allowed Nekaia to slowly absorb the essence and understand the mark. He couldn''t provide her with help during this phase because it would all depend on her own comprehension ability. Arnin got up and walked towards the resting Lilise. Her face was more energized then it was before he helped Nekaia. "Lilise, since we need to get you to Orb Birth - Earth, you are going to have to follow my every instruction. Some things may be extreme, but it is the best I can do in five days time." Arnin seriously explained to Lilise. The first task for Lilise do was some breathing exercises. He had her breath in and hold for a minute and then release, slowly. She had to do this continuously and slowly increase the time she held her breath for. This went on for half an hour, which was Lilise''s limit. She was only able to do it a little more than twenty rotations, and could barely hold her breath for two minutes. This wasn''t bad for someone who wasn''t even in a power realm, so Arnin didn''t have much to say. The next step required Lilise to let Arnin strengthen each individual part of her body. Other then her internal organs, Arnin needed to provide essence into the arms, legs, chest and back, head, hands and feet. This process would take three days to complete and after it was done, Lilise would have the same physical strength as an Orb Birth - Earth realm cultivator. "Lilise, I am going to need you to lay down on the ground for me. Remember, whatever I do requires you to be absolutely still. Got it?" Lilise nodded her head before laying straight onto the cold, hard ground. Arnin decided to start from her lower body and make his way towards the head. First, he grabbed her left leg and lifted it up. Lilise shook slightly before she closed her pretty blues eyes tightly. Her faced blushed slightly, but she tried to hold in any sound that would come out of her mouth. Arnin directly inserted some orb threads into her left foot and spread them out inside her blood vessels. He added little symbols that resembled the one on Nekaia''s orb, but this time the color was green. The symbols spread throughout the whole left foot, allowing Arnin to access more areas inside her foot. This lasted an hour before he repeated the process on the other foot. When he finished both feet, Lilise felt them with her hand and gasped in shock. They were softer and felt stronger than before. Nekaia also woke up at this time and walked towards Arnin. Her azure eyes looked at Arnin, who was sitting beside the flustered Lilise, with a smile. Although, she didn''t reach the peak of Orb Birth - Earth, she felt that it wasn''t too far away. Nekaia felt that she might even be able to break into Orb Birth - Sky by the end of the five days. "Nekaia, since you have done some of your training I am going to help strengthen your body to another level. This will help you cultivate more quickly and would make you stronger than a person in the same realm as you. Here sit down beside Lilise for me." Lilise pouted when she heard that Nekaia would be receiving the strengthening process as well. Nekaia, on the other hand, was very excited. She really wanted to cultivate much faster and catch up with Arnin. Arnin had Nekaia lay down and repeated the same process with her two feet. This time, the process lasted an hour longer. The reason behind this was because Nekaia already achieved Orb Birth - Earth, so strengthening it to a higher level would require more time and energy. The sun started to set, which marked the end of the day, however Arnin planned to continue in his home, but this time he needed to have the two girls dip in a medicinal bath. The medicinal bath would help nourish their and cleanse their bodies. The bath would even help rapidly increase strength if enough impurities were cleared, however the problem was that Arnin did not have any medicine to use. ------------------------------------------------------ The three children arrived home and noticed Ashia and Florian waiting outside with smiles. Lilise would be staying with the Foro family until departure so Ashia wanted to make sure that Lilise did not feel uncomfortable. "Mom, would you mind preparing two baths for me? It''s for their training." Arnin requested his mother to help him with the menial tasks because it would only take her a few minutes. He still needed to prepare some other things for the bath. He asked Florian to show him all the medicine that they currently had however Arnin guessed right; they had none. Arnin couldn''t make a real medicinal bath, but from his past knowledge on medicinal baths and cultivation resources, he was able to create different type of bath with a few simple steps. He first needed the blood of the people going into the bath, then needed to combine the blood with worldly essence. That blood would change colour depending on the person blood. It would turn into a new liquid that could only be used by the individual that the blood originally belonged to. The next step was to mix that new liquid with something demonic or negative. That substance would help eradicate any waste inside the body, helping with a good cleansing. The process was simple and the bath was effective, however it was not considered a medicinal bath. A medicinal bath always needed medicine and herbs for it to be labeled as a medicinal bath. Arnin called the two girls over and had them pour some of their own blood into two seperate bowls. He then tried to manipulate as much of the essence of the world and inserted it into the two blood bowls. The blood inside the left bowl, which contained Nekaia''s blood, turned extremely white. A coldness was being emitted from the new liquid, which somewhat surprised Arnin. The blood in the right bowl, which contained Lilise''s blood, also turned white, but there was a hint of black in the middle. Arnin knew that the reason everyone had different liquid colors was because it helped to point out one''s talent. Although it wasn''t the most accurate type of talent measurement. In Arnin''s old world it was commonly used by poor villages and poor people who could not afford a proper talent test. White meant high talent, blue meant passable talent, while purple meant no talent. Nekaia had extremely high talent which was a little higher than Arnin expected. In his past life, Arnin got wasn''t able to understand his own talent because the color came out to be black. It was the first black to appear, so no one knew the height of his talent. Back then, Arnin had thought that he would never see anyone with a black colored liquid other then himself. Now, he was able to see someone with a hint of black, which made him extremely shocked. Arnin pulled himself out of his trance before deeply looking at Lilise. Arnin shook his head before continuing with the final step; adding something demonic or negative. As a past demon lord, Arnin had the ability to control negative emotions and power. His main power was one of the most demonic ones out there, however he wanted to add the negativity of the individual. Since Arnin''s original power was still sealed, he would not be able to control demonic or negative energy, so he could only have the two girls try to insert it themselves. "Nekaia, Lilise, I want both of you to stand in front of your blood and hover your hands on top. Then, think of the most evil or bad thing that you can, try your worst nightmare or anything like that." Nekaia and Lilise nodded before following the instructions given to them. Half an hour went by, but their facial expressions stayed the same. Suddenly, Nekaia''s face contorted. Tears began to silently slide down her cheek which landed in the white liquid. Red surfaced on the liquid, causing it to get darker. Ten minutes later, the white liquid turned crimson red and Nekaia began to get dizzy. Arnin quickly caught hold of her and laid her down on the ground. "Arnin, I saw d-demons, lots of demons! They were d-d-dying one by one, leaving me alone, but then I was c-caught by another large demon and was thrown in front of a group of m-monsters. They were doing bad t-things to me!" Nekaia cried loudly witha frightened look longer face before tightly embracing the stunned Arnin. 9 Memories? While Lilise silently tried to recall anything negative, Arnin stared at the weeping Nekaia in shock. What did she say? Demons? Arnin pondered what Nekaia said before he thought of something. Was it possible that Nekaia recalled the memories of her past? Arnin, who was the strongest existence in his past life, knew for a fact that certain creatures could reincarnate or switch bodies with others. Unlike a phoenix''s reincarnation, when other creatures did it they would not be able to recall past memories¡­ unless something triggered them to reappear. "Nekaia, don''t cry anymore. Just tell your brother what else you remember, ok?" Arnin quietly consoled Nekaia and tried to find out more about her past. She said that she was surrounded by demons and was possibly even raped by them. Could she have been a member of a demon family that was massacred at the same time as his own? This being true was not an impossibility, and Nekaia recovering some of her memories could also happen. However, Arnin was unsure if this would be detrimental to Nekaia or not. The more he thought about it, the more he felt that it could change Nekaia completely. "Nekaia, forget about what you saw just rest for now. I will make sure that nothing happens to you I will always protect you!" Arnin, lost his whole family in the past and was not willing to lose his new one. He would be devastated if Nekaia changed for the worse and turned into a new person. He wanted her to forget about the bad memories and just concentrate on her life now. Lilise''s face also began to twitch slightly as tears flowed down her face as well. Although there were tears, she looked more angry than frightened. Arnin wondered what she was thinking about. The liquid in front of Lilise also turned red, but this time it wasn''t crimson like Nekaia''s, rather it looked like dried black blood. Lilise opened her puffy eyes before she walked towards Arnin and sat beside him. "Lilise? What''s wrong?" Lilise''s face was covered in tears, but there was anger and sadness on her face. She held onto Arnin''s free arm before pushing her face into it. Arnin silently sat between the two tear stricken girls. He knew that this was a horrible experience for many so he didn''t mind their reactions. The only thing that worried him was Nekaia recovering her memories of the past. He looked down and kissed Nekaia''s head. Ashia walked into the room and noticed the scene. She quickly ran over and pulled Nekaia and Lilise into her embrace. "Nekaia, dear what happened? Lilise, why are you crying? Arnin, what happened?" Ashia became frantic when she noticed Lilise and Nekaia both burst into tears. Arnin just smiled slightly before shaking his head. "It''s alright mom. Just think of this as part of training, its the only part where they would suffer this much. Just comfort them while I go finish up the medicinal baths." Arnin left Ashia alone with the two girls. He lifted the two bowls, with the final changed liquid, and headed towards the bath area. When he reached the steam filled area, he found two small tubs filled with hot water. They were each large enough for only one person, which worked well with Arnin''s plan. He quickly poured in Nekaia''s transformed liquid into one bath and Lilise''s transformed liquid was poured into the other. Arnin didn''t use a rod or stick to stir it, rather he inserted his threads into the bath and mixed them thoroughly while also adding in some of his own essence. Adding his own essence would not cause any harm or additional effects to the bath, it would just mix the bath more thoroughly. After the water baths combined with the liquids, Arnin ran into the room where his mom was caring for the two girls. "Mom, can you bring Lilise and Nekaia over now? I need to have them cultivate inside the medicinal tub as quickly as possible." Arnin hurriedly called his mother over who nodded her head gently. She lifted both girls in her arms and slowly walked to the medicinal baths. Arnin pointed to each bathtub and told her who should be placed in which tub. Ashia was surprised at Arnin''s talent, but she decided that as long as it didn''t harm him, she wouldn''t ask him much. Arnin left the area and allowed the two girls to undress and enter the bath tubs. He only re-entered the area when both were fully submerged inside the bath tubs. Nekaia didn''t really mind her brother''s presence because she was already hidden under the water, Lilise on the other hand was bright red. Ashia glared at Arnin. "Arnin, you can''t come in when a lady is bathing! Do you not know your manners!" Ashia quickly pulled Arnin''s ear and tried to pull him out but she felt Arnin hold her hand gently. "Mom, you know what type of person I am. I am only here because I need to help Lilise and Nekaia cultivate in the bath. It''s ok though, I won''t have them stand up or anything. Actually, since you are already here, help me with their training."Arnin chuckled. "Also, do you know where that witc- I mean Nekaia''s master is? She could possibly help me as well." He asked about Avian who he hadn''t seen since he left with Nekaia and Lilise to train. "Avian is not here at the moment and will arrive in five days. She will come pick us up when you leave with the village elder." Avian explained. She knew that Avian went to the city to settle some things for her family. Arnin smiled and walked towards the bath tubs. He walked towards Lilise''s bathtub while Ashia walked towards Nekaia''s. Since, Arnin knew more about the whole procedure, Ashia wanted him to make sure nothing happened to Lilise. "Mom, this will be a very important step for both of their cultivations, alright? So do as I tell you." Ashia, who was smiling towards Nekaia, immediately became serious when she heard Arnin''s words. She nodded her head and began to pay attention to what Arnin was about to say. "For this step, we will be putting both the girls into a state of emptiness, meaning we will have to make them unconsciously cultivate. The first thing you will need to do is insert your orb threads into Nekaia''s brain, then try to make a path from the brain towards her orb. Make sure that you only go straight towards her orb and nowhere else, or else this method won''t be as effective." Ashia nodded and did as she was told. When she made the path from the brain to the orb, she looked at Arnin once again. "I made the path to her orb, what should I do next?" Ashia was sweating slightly when she finished making the path. Her control over the threads were not as good as Arnin''s because she didn''t focus much on cultivation. Although, she wanted to cultivate, but she did not have the time or the talent to do it. "This next step is the most crucial. Use your threads to grab onto the largest essence string inside Nekaia''s orb. When you firmly lock onto it, slowly pull it back into the centre of the brain through the path you made." Ashia took twenty minutes to find the largest thread and took another thirty before she could bring it back to where Arnin said. Her face was already pale, when Florian walked into the bath area. He was surprised to see what was happening and was about to walk over to Ashia when Arnin stopped him. "Dad, don''t go to mom yet, she is at a crucial moment. In a while, I am going to need you to sub in for mom, ok? She won''t be able to keep this up for long so you will need to replace her!" Although, he felt slightly tired, he would be able to go on for a longer period of time then his mom because of his precise control over the threads. Florian nodded his head and sat beside the tired Ashia and waited. After the thread slowly sunk in the two girls'' brains, both of them fell unconscious in the tub. "Dad, switch with mom now. Remember to switch slowly. When you are in position I will explain the next step." Ashia couldn''t handle it anymore and was about to fall herself, luckily Florian walked in on a good time. He was able to switch smoothly with Ashia, and when he inserted his much stronger threads inside Nekaia''s brain, he noticed the activity happening inside and cried in shock. The path from the orb was crystal clear with many white strings tangled together. It resembled the main orb very much, but there was still a difference in size and essence. "So the next few steps are not as crucial as the last one, but they require lots of energy. We will make our threads act as parts of their body and cultivate for them. You should notice a round ball filled with threads being created in her brain. That is like another orb inside her, but it will allow outsiders to control it as well. We will insert our own threads inside and help the girls cultivate." Arnin started on Lilise''s round object while he was explaining. This was a method that he created based on a parasitic ability of certain monsters from his previous life. However, he changed it into a type of support cultivation method that will induce emptiness, and during this time if one cultivates, then their body will be able to get the best results. However, it only worked optimally if the person is able to induce themselves to the state of emptiness, rather than getting outside help. Florian did as he was told and inserted a small amount of threads inside the parasitic orb. Suddenly, he noticed Arnin get up and walk towards him. "Dad, I am going to add in some cultivation symbols that can help Nekaia cultivate during this state. All you need to do is make sure you show her a way to cultivate and repeat it three times. When you are done that, remove your threads and allow Nekaia to self-cultivate in this state. It may take more than three rotations, so do not leave her brain until she begins herself." Arnin had planned this cultivation bath since he was told to train them and had all the steps ready to go. He immediately inserted nine strange symbols which all resembled each other. They imprinted themselves on both the main orb and the parasitic orb. Right at that moment, Florian started his rotations. Arnin walked back to Lilise and did the same thing. This time however, he inserted eighteen symbols. Nine on the main orb, and nine on the parasitic orb. Since Lilise was still making her way into the Orb Birth - Earth realm, she would need more help. It was easier for an immortal to become strong, but it was extremely difficult for a mortal to become an immortal. This was a similar case with the realms going from a normal human to Orb Birth - Earth was much more difficult then going from Orb Birth - Earth to Orb Birth - Sky. Arnin was going through his first rotation when he felt something change on Florian''s side. He turned around and saw a small whirlpool appear under Nekaia. The whirlpool started off extremely bright and colorful, but slowly it lost its luster. Arnin knew that the self-cultivation had begun, however it was much quicker than he had predicted. This was related to the talent Nekaia had, but even still it was outside Arnin''s expectations. Could it be because of those memories? "Dad, move away from Nekaia and go rest with mom. Nekaia will be like this until morning so I don''t need you here right now. So go on and rest with mom." Arnin smiled towards his exhausted dad who was sweating profusely. He was fine with staying up because he didn''t need lots of sleep. Although his body was of a five year olds, there was still the power of his past life sealed inside him, so he didn''t get as tired as others would. While Arnin was thinking, Lilise''s bath started to create a whirlpool as well. It wasn''t as strong as Nekaia''s, but it wasn''t bad either. There was no surprise in Arnin''s eyes, he just silently watched both girls cultivate. He was thinking about what steps to take next. What he was doing now was trying to use his past memories to help these girls, but there would have to be a better method out there. Something that specifically worked on the orb. While he was thinking of ways to improve his cultivation method, his mind was still stressing over Nekaia''s memories. Did she really have the memories of a demon that faced the same catastrophe as his demon family? 10 Will He Become Evil? The memories that were trapped inside Nekaia were like a thorn that pricked Arnin''s mind. He didn''t want Nekaia changing because of her past memories. If she changed for the worse what would he do? Arnin shook his head and continued to sit beside the two cultivating girls. The sun began to rise by the time Nekaia''s cultivating water was completely drained of essence. She slowly opened her eyes and releases a warm breath. Even though she was in the bath for a long time, her skin didn''t look any worse. Rather it was softer and cleaner then before. Nekaia looked down at the water and then saw Arnin sitting not too far away. Arnin got up and brought clothes for Nekaia. He turned around to let her change into the clean set of clothes. "Nekaia, how are you feeling?" Arnin turned around after Nekaia finished changing. She had a bright smile on her face before she walked towards Arnin and lifted her arm in the air in front of him. "See for yourself!" Arnin looked weirdly at Nekaia when he noticed how excited she was. Arnin held her hand and inserted threads inside her body for an inspection. He found that the threads were much thicker inside her body and the orb was somewhat throbbing. The white colored orb was like a snowball; cold and extremely white. Arnin was very shocked, Nekaia had achieved Orb Birth - Earth peak level. Arnin took back his threads before warmly smiling at Nekaia. He was very happy to see his sister become stronger, at least she would be able to protect herself better. "Congrats! For the next few days, I want you to spar with me so that you can get some battle experience. Although, it won''t be life and death, it is better that you understand how to fight rather then just watch." Arnin explained his plan to Nekaia. He wanted her to learn battle techniques so that when she went with Avian, Nekaia wouldn''t be worse than anyone else. "Arnin, when will Lilise wake up? Also, how did you become so strong and smart?" Nekaia held onto Arnin''s arm while she spoke. She had many questions and even looked at Arnin with slight respect. She had seen her brother grow up with herself, so how did he become so strong and smart? "Well, you always went off and played with your friends. I on the other hand worked my butt off to understand cultivation. You are just a lazy little girl!" Arnin joked with Nekaia who began to look angry. She punched Arnin''s shoulder before walking towards Lilise''s bathtub. "Arnin, are you really going to go to an academy? Why can''t you come with me, mom, and dad to the city? I like master Avian, she treats me just like mom, she will treat you the same if you come." Nekaia''s eyes became red when she thought of separating with her brother. Her puffy eyes looked directly at Arnin before turning towards the quiet Lilise. "Nekaia, I need to go to an academy to learn more about cultivation. I want to become strong enough to protect you, mom, and dad. I can''t depend on your master to survive!" Arnin was resolute in his decision which made Nekaia a little sad. She silently nodded her head when Lilise finally opened her eyes. Lilise found herself looking at Nekaia''s sad face, which made her confused. Did she unknowingly say something or do something bad? Just as she was about to say something to Nekaia, Arnin picked up some clothes from ground and handed them to her. "Lilise, change into these. After you are done, go and do some breathing exercises. I am going to rest inside and when I wake up, we will continue with the training." Arnin turned around and walked into the house from the back. Lilise nodded slightly before walking out of the bath. She put on her clothes in front of Nekaia before sitting down. Before starting her exercises, she looked towards Nekaia in contemplation. "Nekaia, I have always wondered where you and Arnin got your tattoos. Was it placed there by someone or were both of you born with it?" Lilise found the tattoos to be mesmerizing. If it was placed by someone then she had a chance in the future to get one for herself, but if it was by birth then she would never be able to get one. "These tattoos were on Arnin and I since birth. My mom and dad don''t know why we have them, but they always said that this mark is special and that Arnin and I are the only ones they have seen with it." Nekaia''s eyes began to shimmer when she thought of the specialty if her tattoo. Although it wasn''t as great in number as Arnins, it was still unique to her. Lilise felt somewhat downcast, but she got over it quickly. "So, Arnin is going to the academy with you and your sister? I hope that you guys can look after my brother, he is very different. Whenever I play with my friends, he would go and do something alone. He doesn''t like talking with people outside my family. Your family seems to be an exception so please look after Arnin." Nekaia helplessly looked at Lilise and spoke in a somewhat begging tone. She grew up with Arnin so she knew the type of person Arnin was. He was a distant person that hated to interact with people outside his own family. She was surprised to see Arnin having a friendly relationship with the village elder, but she was happy to see that Arnin found someone to speak to. Even if that person was an old man past his prime. Lilise nodded towards Nekaia, agreeing. She also wanted to further interact with Arnin, both because of his wits and because of her favorable impression of him. She felt that going to the academy with Arnin would be a thrilling experience; Arnin was a monstrous talent and was able to defeat people who were higher than him in strength. As a person from Talonton village, Lilise couldn''t help but be happy that such a person was from her own home. She was also happy to see that her grandpa found someone to speak to as well. Just like Nekaia, Lilise was concerned about her grandpa''s loneliness. Although, he was the strongest in Talonton village, he still wasn''t considered to be a very strong person wen compared to the whole world. His friends grew distant because of his lacking strength, which caused him to suffer greatly. However, with Arnin''s appearance all of this changed. Her grandpa seemed a little more lively and did not hate the way Arnin spoke to him, rather he was happy to find someone who wouldn''t bend his for him and treated him like a friend. "Nekaia, what kind of person is Arnin? Since I will be attending an academy with him, it would be better for me to understand him more." Lilise really wanted to know more about Arnin. How could such a young person know so much? Her best bet was to ask Nekaia because she would have spent the most time with him. "Honestly speaking, the person who would know the most about him is my mom. He is always sucking up to her and doing whatever she says. He is such a mommy''s boy!" Nekaia talked about Arnin annoyingly. He would always listen to Ashia except for the one time, when Avian came. That was the first time Arnin went against Ashia. Nekaia was actually very happy at that moment because she was one of the many reasons he went against her. While Nekaia was speaking, Lilise listened with a smile. Inside the house, Arnin was laying on the bed while Ashia was silently massaging his head. Ashia was looking at Arnin with love and sadness. "Florian, I know that Arnin is going to leave for the academy, but don''t you think that we should be with him during this age. It''s true that children around his age would go to the academy, but I don''t want him to leave us at such a young age. He is still my little baby." Ashia was speaking with red eyes. Her hand continued to rub Arnin''s hair as she spoke quietly with Florian. "Ashia, he is young and this is the best time for him to cultivate. If we keep him with us, wouldn''t we be burdening his growth? Remember, he is very mature and different from the other children. If anything, we should be worried about Nekaia instead of him. Hah-!" Florian tried to brighten the mood, but Ashia only gave hive a glare which made him stop laughing. He walked and sat beside Ashia, also looking at Arnin. Although he hid it, he would also be worried about his son. Who wouldn''t worry about their five year old child separating from them for a long time? "Nekaia will be with us for a long time so we don''t have to worry about her. Arnin will be all alone in that academy, and knowing him, friends will be difficult to make. If only I could go with him to the academy, but Nekaia will need me more then Arnin." Ashia sighed slightly before smiling towards Arnin. She loved both her children equally, but Arnin was a special case because of his personality. She knew that Nekaia would always be surrounded by people in the future, but what about Arnin? While the two parents spoke, Nekaia and Lilise continued to discuss things about Arnin. ---------------------------------------------- "Although, my mom doesn''t show it, she treats Arnin differently. She makes him go outside and play with other kids while she tries to force me to become a little more mature. Mom wants him to change and make friends, but that never happens. I don''t really mind how Arnin is. He is different but he is still my older brother. He takes care of me and makes sure I don''t ever lose out to other people." Lilise listened with heightened interest. When she met Arnin for the first time, he was very haughty, but after listening to Nekaia she understood a different side of Arnin. She knew that Arnin treated her like a student, but she really wanted to become friends with him. "Nekaia, do you think that Arnin will become evil in the future?" Lilise suddenly asked a strange question. This question was always on the back of her mind. She still remembered that when her grandpa was signing a contract with Arnin, the only demand he had was for him to take care of Arnin''s family if he was ever labeled as evil in the future. Since he said that he might be labeled evil, she kept thinking that Arnin may not be a good person. Nekaia was surprised by the question but became somewhat angry. She glared at Lilise before calming herself down. "I don''t know what you see in my brother, he may be different and may have tricked your grandpa, but he is not evil!" Nekaia said with irritation before stomping off. She didn''t think that Nekaia would react so angrily because of her question. She quickly chased after Nekaia. "Nekaia, I am sorry! I didn''t mean it like that. I don''t think he is evil. Please Nekaia, listen!" Ashia heard the shouts and walked out with confusion. She saw Nekaia coming inside with a dark expression while Lilise was wearing a pale one. She hushed both the girls and pointed towards the resting Arnin. She then called them both over to the other bed, Florian also watched with some confusion. "Alright, stop making a ruckus. Tell me, why are you both fighting?" Ashia first looked at Nekaia and then turned her face towards the almost tear stricken Lilise. "Miss Ashia, it was my fault. I asked Nekaia a question that made her mad." Lilise was on the verge of tears, but she held them in. Ashia was even more confused and curious as to what question she asked. "Mom, dont worry about the question. It was about Arnin, and you may not like it. Hmph!" Nekaia did not want her mom to know the question because she would be hurt the most from it. She knew how her mom felt about Arnin, so anything negative said about him would be a big blow to her mentally. She was overprotective of her children, and with Arnin''s isolated personality, she took terrible comments against him to heart. "Nekaia, be quiet! Little Lilise, tell me the question. I might be able to answer it for you if it is about Arnin." Ashia kindly asked Lilise. Little did she know that this question would completely traumatize her. Lilise was somewhat hesitant, but Ashia showed such goodwill that she couldn''t hide it from her. In a very quiet voice she state her question once more. "I asked Nekaia whether she think that Arnin will turn out to be evil in the future." The question hit Ashia''s ears like a bolt of lightning. Nekaia glared hard at Lilise before running to support her mom. Florian lost all color on his face after the question was asked. His brows wrinkled and his face showed slight anger. Ashia''s smile froze and she stood up like a statue. "Lilise, why would you ask such a question? Did Arnin do something or say something bad?" Although Ashia felt hurt, she still needed to ask the main question. Why? Why would she ask this question? Lilise was somewhat frightened by everyone''s reaction. She didn''t know whether she should tell them about the contract between her grandpa and Arnin. However, at that moment, Arnin got up and opened his droopy eyes. Ashia noticed this and walked towards him slowly. Her eyes showed more care and love then before, and there was even a hint of worry. "Mom? What happened? Dad, why are you mad?" Arnin was became confused and when he saw his parents'' expressions. Even Nekaia had a angry expression. He turned his head found Lilise looking at him with a apologetic and sad face. This confused Arnin even more so he turned towards his mom with a look of puzzlement. "Dear, I have a question to ask you. Did you ever say or do something bad to Lilise? Because today she asked me a weird question, and there is no way she would ask this question without a reason. Did you do or say something in front of her or even to her that would make her think you are evil?" Ashia was still very heartbroken about the question that was asked about her son. Arnin was dumbstruck before he looked at Lilise. He then tried to recall anything that would have given her that kind of feeling. Different things came up in his mind, there was his dictator type training, him tricking her grandpa, and injuring her grandpa. He thought for a bit longer before he came to a conclusion. He sighed before looking at his parents and Nekaia once more. "The reason she asked that question is because of a discussion I had with the village elder. Don''t blame her, I shouldn''t have spoken with the village elder in front of anyone. Just know this, your son will never be evil if you say so. If you think I am evil then I am, but if you think I am good then I am good." Arnin smiled towards Ashia who was very pale. He stood on the bed and rubbed her head slightly which caused Ashia to pull him into her embrace. Florian''s face was better than before, but he was still thinking about what Arnin said. What discussion did he have with the village elder that would make Lilise ask such a question? Ashia also had the same thought in mind, but what her son said helped relieve her of most of her worries. However, she was now more reluctant to part with Arnin. What if more people began to start asking the same question? Would her son really become something evil in the future? 11 He Was Too Impatien With Arnin now awake, the girls would be able to continue their training. Lilise was feeling down because of the incident that happened inside the house. She really didn''t mean any harm it was just a question she had. Nekaia was still somewhat angry at Lilise, but it was reduced after Arnin clarified that there was a reason the question was asked. Arnin decided that training was the best thing to let Nekaia and Lilise cool down, as for his parents, the situation was different. Ashia and Florian seemed to act normal on the outside but Arnin knew that this was a thorn on their sides. Arnin regretted that the contract was created in front of Lilise. If she didn''t hear the contents of the contract then she wouldn''t have asked Nekaia such a question. Luckily, she never told his parents what he said specifically and Arnin wanted to keep it that way. Before leaving for the training grounds, Arnin pulled Lilise to the side and told her not to mention the details of the contract. Of course, Lilise readily agreed. She didn''t want to get on the bad side of anyone so she was willing to hide the contract details. Arnin had four more days before the departure so he needed to speed both girls'' training up. Lilise was the priority because Nekaia had enough talent to break through on her own. She also already had a rich master that knew more about the orb then him, so he wasn''t too worried about Nekaia''s progress. What concerned him was Lilise. She absorbed all of the essence in the bath, but still there was no signs of getting near a breakthrough. Even though he only just started the training, there were no hints of a breakthrough. Arnin knew that this was because he just didn''t have enough knowledge on orbs and training. He needed to find ways to increase his understanding because trial and error could only do so much. Arnin thought of going to the village elder for some help, but he was probably busy with the academy registrations. A thought suddenly appeared in Arnin''s mind. What about the lessons? He already paid for the class so he might as well go and learn things he doesn''t already know. ----------------------------------------- Arnin headed to the lesson area. He didn''t bring Lilise or Nekaia along because he was only going there to learn more about the orb and its functions. His walk to the open forest area was filled with the sound of chirping birds and whistling wind. After walking for another ten minutes, people finally started to come in sight. Although there were many kids around the same age as him and some were slightly older he didn''t recognize any of them because he never really cared to speak to them. However, there was one person he did recognize, granny Varena. She was the woman who had seen his mom grow up and was also their neighbor. She didn''t notice him so he walked towards her himself. He was a distant person, but he wasn''t going to ignore a person that had been nice to his mom since she was young. "Granny Varena!" Arnin called out loudly. He only called her granny because she was called aunt by his mom, so to not mess up the seniority he decided to call her granny. Granny Varena turned around and noticed the young but handsome Arnin run over. She smiled lightly before waving towards him. "Little Arnin, how are you? Are you also going to the lessons today?" Granny Varena looked at Arnin with a deep smile. To her, Arnin was like a grandchild, so she enjoyed his company. "Yea, I am heading to the lesson ground. What about you? Are you here to watch or are you bringing someone to the lessons?" Arnin was somewhat surprised to see Granny Varena heading to the lessons. Of course, she wasn''t going to attend them because of her age, but none of her children could attend them either. They were all grown up and even had some children now. Just as he asked that question, two children walked out from behind her. There was a boy and a girl. The boy had brownish yellow hair that reached just below his ears. His grass green eyes looked at Arnin with no emotion. Beside the boy was a girl with silky, chocolate hair that reached her back. She looked at Arnin with her black misty eyes with curiosity. "These two are my grandchildren, Vizran and Navo. Both of them are five-years-old, just like you. maybe you guys can become friends?" Granny Varena kind heartedly recommended to Arnin. Vizran, the boy, ignored the comment and looked to the side. Navo, the girl, hid behind her grandma, acting like a cat. Granny Varena helplessly shook her head when she saw how her grandchildren reacted. She apologetically looked at Arnin, who in turn smiled and waved his hand. Arnin didn''t mind their attitudes because he was going to leave the village very soon. Arnin spoke a little more with Granny Varena before quickly running to the lesson place. He wasn''t too far from the place and so he decided that we would get this done with and head back. He still needed to look after the training of Nekaia and Lilise. When he got to the lesson area, he saw the old man and a new woman helping him. The old man noticed Arnin''s appearance and quickly came to greet him. "Little Arnin, is there something that you need? Just state it and this old man will help you acquire it!" The old man proudly stated. After the incident with Avian, he knew that these children were important and not to be offended. "Old man¡­" Arnin didn''t know the name of the old man so he tried to stretch out his sentence so that the old man could tell him. "Uvan, this old man is called called Uvan. So what did little Arnin need?" Uvan didn''t mind licking his boots, he could even become Arnin''s horse if need be. "Old man Uvan, I need you to help me understand our cultivation orbs. I want to know how they work, what they are used for and how to cultivate with them." Arnin wanted to know many things, but he just wanted to learn the basics first. Although he found a way to cultivate them, that was only using his past knowledge of cultivation, so it wasn''t the most effective method. He wanted to compare what he created with the normal cultivation method. If he could, he wanted to improve on his own cultivation method. It was created by him making it easier to understand "So little Arnin is here for that. I can of course explain to you what little knowledge I have, however it wou-" Uvan stopped speaking when he saw Arnin toss a silver coin into the air and catch it once more. There was mocking smile on his face when he looked at Uvan, who took a big gulp. "If you want this coin, then stop the useless chatter. You give me what I want and I will give you what you want. Acting like an amiable old man? Don''t make me laugh! I know how you greedy people are, so just do what I asked you and I will give you this coin!" Arnin was irritated with Uvan because of his shameless behavior. Uvan, on the other hand, kept staring at the coin like a starving beast looking at food. His eyes were slightly red, but he still held himself back. "Little Arnin, you know how to make someone happy. Haha! Ok, let me quit the useless chatter and explain what I know." Uvan pulled himself together and began his explanation on the orbs. "As you already know, every person is born with a cultivation orb in their body, which makes it possible for almost anyone to cultivate. However, there are always exceptions to this rule. One exception is that an Orb that is incapable of cultivation. This means that a person''s orb is just too weak and is unable to properly assimilate worldly essence. Of course there are ways to fix this; medication, duo-cultivation, and some more. The second exception includes people with certain diseases or conditions that either indirectly or directly affect their orb. The former is easier to deal with because an indirect effect will still allow cultivation to be doable, however the latter is trickier. A condition directly linked to the orb is more difficult to handle because it specifically affects the cultivation of the person. Without a way to cultivate, one won''t be able to strengthen themselves, plus many treatments require essence inside the person''s body." When old man Uvan began to talk about the direct orb conditions, Arnin knew that the one Lilise had was under this category. However, the mark was able to collect essence so it wasn''t considered a terrible condition, but just to make sure that he didn''t treat it improperly, Arnin needed to know how a normal doctor would treat it. "Old man Uvan, how would you treat a person with a direct orb condition? Like, say the direct orb condition is in the form of a mark that devours the worldly essence for itself, not allowing the user to get any of it. How would you treat this?" Uvan was surprised towards Arnin''s specific question, but he decided not to ask anything and answered willing. "That type of condition is called a ''cultivation curse mark'', and it has many levels. It should be treated in the early stages because it is quite easy then, but when it starts to grow, it could at one point become life threatening. A worm-like mark is considered the easiest to treat because it is the beginning stages of the condition. As the curse mark grows, the shape also begins to change. The highest level mark will not only devour worldly essence, but also bodily fluids, life force, and even cells. It is the most extreme type and is also very rare." Arnin was somewhat surprised that such a condition existed. He became even more interested in the worlds essence that could give birth to such a deadly condition. "Can you tell me how to treat the worm-like curse mark and how to help them regain the ability to cultivate?" Arnin was serious during this mini lesson because he could unmask some of the major questions that he had. All the other children were ready to proceed with the lessons, but when they saw that the scholar was busy with Arnin, many became angry. "What is that old man doing there? We payed for these lessons so he should at least teach us at the proper time!" A child who looked around seven spoke with annoyance to a child beside him. "Exactly! I paid good many for this, so He should teach us what he is supposed to." The younger child was also very mad. Talonton village was not a rich village so the parents of every child had a limited amount if money. Since they used that money for the lessons and the scholar wasn''t even teaching them, many had dark expressions. The seven year old child decided to be the common man''s hero and began to walk in Arnin''s direction. "Mister scholar, when will you begin the lessons? If we begin too late, we will not have enough time to-" Just as the seven year old was complaining in a humble manner, Arnin slowly walked towards him. His face was dark because he was in the middle of learning about the condition, but an annoying pest came out of nowhere and disturbed him. "Little kid, when two people are talking, you shouldn''t interrupt. Do you not know manners?" The seven year old arrogantly berated Arnin, his nose slowly rising higher into the sky. Arnin vanished from the child''s view before reappearing behind him. He grabbed the child''s arms and pressed his foot onto his back. Slowly, he pulled the seven year olds arms and pushed from his foot. The child and everyone watching became terrified and angry. How fast was this youth? Was he insane? "What are you doing?! Do you know who I am?! I am related to the village elder so you better let go- AHHH!" A snap was heard from the child''s arms before Arnin released them, letting them land weakly beside the boy. The seven year old began to cry hysterically. "MOM! DAD!" The child screamed from the top of his lungs as tears and snot started to mix together on his face. Arnin coldly looked at the boy and spokewith a cold tone. "Do you know why I broke your arms? Let me tell you why. When someone is talking, one should patiently wait at the side. You didn''t do that, so I needed to punish you for your crimes." Arnin said the same thing that the seven year old said to him previously "I went easy on you for now, but next time something like this happens, your arms won''t be the only thing I break!" Arnin lost his cool when the kid disturbed him. He didn''t mind killing people, so why would he care about breaking another person''s arms? The child was being arrogant and a hypocrite, which Arnin found to be a good excuse for his actions. He only cared about whether he could get what he wanted or not. Everyone became silent when they saw what happened. They looked at Arnin in horror and anger. What did that kid do to get his arms broken? He only wanted to call the scholar for the lessons. What a ruthless and evil character. Just as everyone was silently looking at Arnin in fear and hatred, a couple sprinted through the entrance of the lesson area. There was worry and anger on their faces. The mother had tears falling down her face. When both parent finally got to the little boy, their eyes became even more red. They viciously looked at Arnin and released their own auras. "Why the hell did you break his arms?! You demon child, today I will rip you to shreds!" The woman, who was most likely the mother of the seven year old, glared murderously at Arnin. "Why did I break his arms? Let me see, why did I break his arms?" Arnin put on a pondering expression as he pretended to think of a reason. This action infuriated the parents even further, but Arnin could care less. "Oh, now I remember. He was a little too impatient for his own good, so I needed to teach him about how one should act. Your welcome!" Arnin smiled wickedly towards the couple before releasing his own aura. 12 Orb Birth - Sky vs Orb Birth- Heaven The parents of the child got up together. The father took the seven-year-old in his arms as he began to calm him down. The mother, on the other hand, released all of her aura as she walked towards Arnin. The aura she released was higher than Arnin''s, but it wasn''t in the Essence Manifest realm yet. The woman was in Orb Birth - Heaven, and not only that, it seemed like she was at the peak of the realm. Arnin wasn''t flustered in any way because he had always wanted to fight an Orb Birth - Heaven cultivator. It would help him understand how far he could go with his current strength. Uvan watched silently without showing any effort to interfere. He also didn''t like the way Arnin handled the situation, but because of Avian, he couldn''t berate him either. His only option was to let Arnin handle the woman himself. He would only interfere if things looked really bad. An Orb Birth - Sky vs an Orb Birth - Heaven. This was an unexpected match, but many of the children became extremely excited. A particular group of three were horrified by the scene in front of them. Granny Varena and her two grandchildren, Vizran and Navo, were watching Arnin from the side, silently. Granny looked at Arnin with mixed feelings. She didn''t like what Arnin did but because he was Ashia''s son, she still wanted to help him. "Miss Orsesa, would you mind letting little Arnin off just thi-" Before Granny Varena could even finish her sentence, the mother, who was supposedly named Orsesa, gave her a glare. There was an intense amount of murderous intent filled in the gaze, which caused Granny Varena to take a couple steps back. "So, your name is Orsesa? Well stop picking on others and just concentrate on me! Just like your son, seems like you want to waste my time as well. Granny Varena, it''s alright. I will handle these kitties soon." Arnin mocked the mother and even taunted her, causing Orsesa to become extremely mad. Granny Varena was silent and looked at Arnin without saying a word. She loved Arnin, but she couldn''t help him because he was in the wrong. "Arnin, which I presume is your name, let''s begin. Don''t go crying to your mom when I completely cripple you!" Orsesa snickered before launching her first attack. Everyone was surprised that Orsesa took the initiative, but no one said anything about it. Arnin was in the wrong, and his attitude also made them very angry. Orsesa didn''t try to sneak behind Arnin, rather she made a clear frontal assault. Her speed was much quicker than that of the village elder when he was in Orb Birth - Hell mode, however, Arnin wasn''t too surprised. He just took a deep breath before narrowing his eyes and concentrating on Orsesa. A red light sparked in his eyes, but no one noticed it at that moment. They were too busy watching Orsesa rush towards Arnin with unimaginable speed. Most people watching were Orb Birth - Earth, with some being Orb Birth - Sky, this excluded Uvan, and the seven year old''s father. Orsesa reached Arnin before grabbing towards his arms. In her mind, Arnin was only at Orb Birth - Sky so he wouldn''t be able to counter any of her moves, but she could only blame herself for underestimating Arnin from the beginning. A hand caught her own and another hand quickly grabbed her neck. As she was lifted into the air, her eyes widely looked at Arnin who scornfully smiled at her. Orsesa quickly calmed down before grabbing Arnin''s hands and inserting orb threads into his blood. Arnin''s hands felt numb before his grip on Orsesa weakened enough to allow her to escape. "That was a good trick! I didn''t think you could use the orb threads like that. Haha!" Arnin was excited to find new methods to use the threads. He didn''t think it could be used for direct attacks, but now that he knew he would be able to increase his battle strength two-fold. Arnin didn''t allow her to attack first this time, rather he rushed towards her and slowly released some threads. The threads crept towards her legs before he jumped into the air. Orsesa tried to jump aside, but her legs were numb, which made her movements extremely slow. She was shocked at how quickly and suddenly she was trapped. Arnin landed hard on her legs, causing Orsesa to scream out loud. He tried to grab her hair, but he was punched away by the disheveled woman. Her hair was in a mess, and she was limping because of her legs. Arnin smiled towards her before directing his threads out once more. Orsesa was blazing before she gathered a small number of threads around her injured leg. The pain numbed which allowed her to regain proper movement. "Another trick? Hmm, if you could numb a part of a body, can you.." Arnin thought of an idea when he saw how Orsesa was able to numb a part of her body. If she could numb it, then couldn''t he try to strengthen it? But how was he going to do that? With Orsesa trying to catch her breath, Arnin was able to test out some things very quickly. He inserted some of his threads in the blood around his hands, but he only felt numbness. He tried to increase the number of threads, but that only caused more numbness. Just as he was going to try something else, Orsesa rushed towards him one more time. She vanished from his sight and appeared behind him. This time she didn''t try to grab him, she only went straight for a punch. Arnin stood there with his eyes closed, he directed his threads towards his back in order to numb it. He wanted to see whether he could reduce any of the damage or pain. The punch landed directly on his back, causing the spectators to turn their heads away in fright. Arnin was blasted off his feet, but he felt very little pain from his back. While in the air, he smiled slightly before coughing a small amount of blood. The damage was reduced slightly, which made Arnin extremely happy. He turned his body around in midair, only to see Orsesa right in front of him. Her face was malicious, but Arnin only smirked. Just as she was about to reach him, he kicked his foot into her face and moved further back. Orsesa had dirt all over her face, and there was even a footprint. She was enraged even further, but Arnin continued to smile. When he landed on the ground, he numbed both his hands with the threads and rushed towards her with lightning speed. "What speed is this? It''s even faster than Miss Orsesa''s!" All the people were alarmed at Arnin''s speed. It was much quicker than before and even reached a limit faster then Orsesa''s. Orsesa was horrified but held her position like a rock; unmoving. In front of her was the swift Arnin, but suddenly he disappeared like smoke. She felt pain on her back before being launched into the air. Her head turned, only to see nothing there. She felt another burst of pain on her left cheek before being blown back once again. Arnin held nothing back and attacked her from all directions. Orsesa spat out blood whenever she got hit, her consciousness slowly blurred. She cursed Arnin in her mind before taking the last hit without any resistance. She was kicked beside the father and the seven-year-old. She was unconscious and there were bruises all over her face and body. Arnin gracefully landed further back and looked at the unconscious Orsesa with a smile. "That was a fun spar. When you wake up, please do come find me" Arnin dusted himself off before walking towards the exit. He walked by Uvan and gave a look. "I lost my interest, so take this coin for now. I will be back again, so you better not run away or do something stupid." Arnin tossed a coin towards Uvan before walking off. The father quickly kneeled before Orsesa and checked her pulse. When he found nothing wrong with it, he sighed in relief before picking her up. He looked at Arnin with an intense amount of hatred. "Little kid, you are lucky that my wife and child are injured. If they weren''t, I would have ended your life right now!" The father whispered to himself and disappeared from everyone''s sight. Arnin had a chilling smile when he finally vanished as well. When Arnin finally left, everyone started to discuss what happened with astonishment. An Orb Birth - Sky cultivator beat an Orb Birth - Heaven cultivator? How was that even possible? People were still very flustered because of the events, but they could only accept the truth that they saw with their own eyes. Conversations were erupting everywhere, however, three people were silently standing and looking at the direction Arnin left in. "Navo, Vizran, I don''t know why Arnin is like this, but I want both of you to ignore what has happened today. Try to keep a distance from him and do not get on his bad side. I will speak to Ashia about today''s events." Granny Varena did not wish for her grandchildren to fall under any bad circumstances because of Arnin''s actions or even be hurt by him. She was frightened by his actions, but because of her relationship with Ashia, she couldn''t hate Arnin. Although she thought it was his fault, she couldn''t completely hate him. ---------------------------------------------- Arnin was walking with blood stains and his clothes in tatters. He wasn''t seriously injured or had any deep wounds, but he got punched around enough for him to spill some blood. However, Arnin didn''t care about any of these things. He was fully engrossed in the threads inside his body. During the fight, he learned a new use of the threads and even thought of ways to implement them in different ways. While walking, he was trying to figure out how to strengthen his body rather than numb it. The threads could go into the blood and stop movement, which would cause some numbness. If more threads were added, then they could even reach the nerves, which would amplify that numbness. However, he still couldn''t figure out a way to strengthen his body parts. Suddenly, Arnin stopped walking and a thought crossed his mind. He strengthened Lilise''s body with his threads by placing symbols in her blood vessels. Those symbols, like a vacuum, absorbed worldly essence which then strengthened the body to a new level. However, this strengthening would take a long time because it would be permanent. Arnin created the symbols once more and started to gather them onto his right hand, however it was still slow. Arnin thought for a long time before thinking of another possible solution. What if he added the symbols directly onto a portion of his orb threads? Then couldn''t he strengthen the area that the threads pass through for a short period of time? Without even knowing, Arnin reached his home. He got out of his trance and found Ashia and Florian putting clothes on a line. Lilise and Nekaia were nowhere to be seen. Ashia bent down to grab another wet piece of clothing when she saw something on from the corner of her eyes. She turned her head and found a bloody and tattered Arnin. Her eyes widened before she rushed towards him. "ARNIN!" She screamed. Her eyes were already watery when she reached him. Florian heard her scream and when he saw the scene, he darted towards Arnin with a heavy heart. Nekaia and Lilise who weren''t seen before rushed out of the house and saw Arnin''s state, almost tripping over themselves. Arnin was surprised because of everyone''s reaction, but when he looked down and saw how he looked, he released a sigh. He completely forgot that he was in a ''bad'' state. Ashia reached Arnin and began to inspect his body. Her red eyes were misty, which hindered her inspection. Florian noticed and moved Ashia aside. He did the inspection and tried to see if there were any major injuries. Arnin was stripped by his parents, but he didn''t think much about it. He was five years old. His dirt and blood covered shirt was thrown onto the ground by Florian, who used a clean cloth to wipe the sweat and blood off him. After Arnin was slightly cleaned by the cloth, Florian began another small inspection, but couldn''t find anything major. There were a couple of bruises, but nothing serious. Florian also released some of his orb threads into Arnin''s body just to make sure nothing was wrong inside of him. He sighed in relief when nothing was found. "Arnin, what happened? Who did this to you? Tell dad and I will go teach them a lesson!" Florian was furious. He wanted to go and find the person who put his son in such a condition. He didn''t question whether it was someone else who hurt him or if it was just an accident. The bruises looked like wounds from a fight, so he didn''t need to ask. "Arnin dear, tell mom what happened. Who did this to you?" Ashia tightly hugged Arnin and questioned what happened. Arnin just shook his head and shrugged his shoulders. "Mom, dad, it was nothing. I just sparred with someone, so I have slight injuries. It is nothing too bad. If someone really wanted to hurt me, would I only have light bruises?" Arnin''s question stumped both parents and made them embarrassingly cough. Of course, they knew about spars between children. It was very common to get injuries during a spar, so what Arnin said was reasonable. Florian calmed down and dragged Arnin to the bath area. "Arnin, since you are here and dirty, come take a bath. Let your dad give you one." Florian smiled before pulling Arnin away. Ashia was left with Nekaia and Lilise in front of the house. Ashia laughed before wiping her eyes that were filled with tears that didn''t drop. She took a deep breath before walking back to the clothes. "Nekaia, Lilise, make sure that when you train with Arnin, do not let him do anything too strenuous. If anything happens, tell me immediately. Also, try to ask him about the spar if possible because I have a feeling he is hiding something." Ashia was feeling uneasy about the whole spar thing. Arnin was already much stronger than any of the children in the village, so he wouldn''t need to spar anyone his age, let alone get injured. That only left the older generation of the village. Arnin was stronger than Orb Birth - Hell cultivators, at least he was able to defeat the village elder in one hit when he was in Orb Birth - Hell, so the person he ''sparred'' with was most likely high ranked in the village. But who? Ashia was distracted and didn''t notice that Nekaia and Lilise already left. While she was putting up the clothes, Granny Varena arrived with her two grandchildren. Ashia was oblivious to their arrival so she couldn''t go and receive them. "Little Ashia, are you busy? I need to speak with you." Granny Varena walked closer and spoke in a somewhat reserved manner. Ashia turned around and smiled gently towards her. "Aunt Varena, I am sorry, I didn''t see you there. No,I am not busy, so of course we can speak." Ashia smiled at Aunt Varena and the two children. She wiped her forehead before taking Aunt Varena to the clean grass. Both women sat down with the children, but aunt Varena had a serious expression. "What is it, aunty? Did something happen?" Ashia got worried and questioned. Aunt Varena took a deep breath before speaking. "I want to talk about what happened today at the lessons. Arnin was there as well and this is about him. Has he come home yet?" Ashia nodded slightly before gesturing towards the bath area. "So he is already here? Well, you probably saw him in a tattered state, right? I am here to talk to you about that. Today at the lessons¡­" Aunt Varena slowly recalled the events with some fear and worry. Ashia felt like she was struck with lightning. She grabbed her head with one hand while the other was placed on her chest. Both her head and heart felt like they were tearing slowly. Ashia couldn''t help but breath rapidly before her eyes shut and she blacked out. 13 Tears of Sadness Granny Varena was shocked when she saw Ashia faint. She quickly tried to wake Ashia up, but there was no response. She checked her breathing and luckily it was normal. KNowing that Ashia was not in danger, Granny Varena had Navo and Vizran get Florian. Five minutes later, Florian came rushing out the house with Arnin in tow. Both of them had an extremely worried looks on their faces when they saw Ashia laying on the ground unconscious. Florian quickly checked her pulse and breathing. After finding everything to be normal, he heaved a sigh of relief. Arnin also came around and began a more in-depth inspection. He inserted threads into her body to see if the blood or anything had injuries or abnormalities. He was glad to find that nothing was wrong. Arnin then looked at Granny Varena. "Granny, did something happen? Do you know why my mom fainted? Did she fall out of nowhere or did something happen?" Arnin had a feeling that the reason she fainted was closely related to him. "Umm, Arnin I think I know why she fainted. I told her about... what happened during the lessons." Granny Varena spoke with some hesitation when mentioning the lessons. Arnin wasn''t surprised, rather he felt helpless. Even he knew that doing such a thing would cause Ashia to feel pain. Florian, on the other hand, was oblivious as to what happened during the lessons. He looked at Arnin questionably. "Dad, it wasn''t something major. I just injured another child and fought with his mother. It wasn''t something serious." Arnin spoke like it was an everyday issue, however Florian was shocked. He looked at Arnin with a glare before turning to look back at Ashia. Several minutes passed, before Ashia finally woke up. The first face she saw was that of Florian''s. She sat up slowly with her eyes still somewhat droopy. Ashia looked around and saw some familiar faces. When her eyes finally landed on Arnin, she stopped. Her eyebrows wrinkled before she stood up. "Aunt Varena, thank you for coming today. I need to speak with Arnin, so you should go home early." Ashia walked away while holding onto Arnin''s hand. Florian followed behind, while Granny Varena left with her two grandchildren. Inside the house, Arnin was silently standing in front of Ashia and Florian. Florian didn''t say much and only looked at Arnin with a piercing gaze. Ashia had a complicated glare. It was both of anger and frustration. "Arnin, you tell me. What happened during the lessons? If you lie even a little, then you can forget about going to some academy." Ashia used a harsh tone when she spoke. Her face was red and sweaty. Arnin was quiet before he told them what happened. He told her about why he went to the lessons, why he broke the arms of the seven year old, and what the dad said before he left. Ashia and Florian were frightened by the things Arnin told them. Just because of an interruption he broke the child''s arms? He was threatened by an Essence Manifest - Earth realm practitioner? Ashia felt a huge headache come about when she heard the news. She was extremely frightened. Who wouldn''t want to avenge their children? She couldn''t find fault in the actions of the mother and father. She could only see Arnin''s mistake. Ashia got up and grabbed Arnin''s hand one more time. "We are going to go to that family and beg for forgiveness. You caused this so you better not walk away." Ashia didn''t even turn back when she spoke. "No, mom. I am not going to apologize to tho-" Before Arnin could even finish, a palm struck his face. A red mark appeared on his right cheek. Ashia had just slapped him. Florian and Arnin were shocked. They never imagined that Ashia would slap him. She had never truly hit Arnin or anybody. This was the first time. "Arnin, I don''t want to hear another word out of you. Do you not even understand what you did? You broke the arms of a seven year old just because he interrupted you! How could you do something like that? You even fell out with both of that child''s parents. One of them, who neither me or your dad can even face, has threatened you! How do you think we feel?" Ashia began to scream at Arnin with tears falling down her cheeks. She was of course mad about how Arnin broke the arms of a seven year old, but she was more worried about the threat that the seven year olds father gave to Arnin. Neither her or Florian could handle such a person. Suddenly she pulled Arnin into her arms and cried silently. "Why did you have to injure them? I just want you to be safe. If you have a problem, why don''t you tell your parents about it?" Arnin, who silently listened to his mother''s weeping, finally understood that he was not the same Demon Lord he was in the past. He had a family now and they cared about him. Arnin couldn''t help but close his eyes and allow the warmth penetrate his very being. "Mom, I''m sorry. I will go and apologize to them myself. You and dad don''t need to blame yourself for what I did." Arnin silently whispered to his mother. He felt extremely guilty for what he did. "Be quiet Arnin. What if he suddenly attacks you? I can''t let my little boy go there alone. Dad and I will come with you. And next time, if you have a problem just tell me or dad, ok?" Ashia used her sleeve to wipe her tears as she gently grabbed onto to Arnin''s hand. She quietly took Arnin to the family''s home. She knew exactly where the family lived when she heard the mothers name; Orsesa. This woman was very high in rank. Her husband, Viret, was the son of the second strongest person in the village. Ashia, as a commoner, needed to know who the high ranked people were, so she knew of the whereabouts of Orsesa. Arnin silently followed behind with clenched fists. He knew that he had to bow towards the couple, so he was extremely mad, however since it was because of his mother he was willing. As the three reached an area with large houses, they were met with weird looks. Since, Florian and Ashia did not make much money, they did not have good clothes, so they stood out in a place where people wore somewhat expensive clothes. When Florian saw the people looking at them with weird gazes, he clenched his fists and looked at Ashia and Arnin with determination. He really wanted his family to live well but because of his lack of strength he was unable to make lots of money. Ashia and Arnin ignored the people''s looks and continued to walk. Finally, they reached a large house that had clean wood walls and a beautiful stone roof. It was much larger and looked better than their own home, but the three were not intimidated in any way. *Knock Knock* Ashia went up and knocked on the door. A few minutes later, the wooden door opened up without rumbles or creeks. A man with hazel eyed and brown haired walked out the door. He had sweat dripping from his forehead and had a frown on his face. He angrily swept his gaze on the people with little to no expression, but when he saw Arnin, his eyes flared. "YOU?! What are you doing here?! Are you seeking death?!" Viret, maniacally screamed at Arnin. Ashia and Florian quickly got in front of Arnin and looked at Viret. "Sir Viret, please calm your anger. We are the parents of Arnin and have come to your home to apologize. Please!" Florian tried his best to calm Viret down. As the person with the highest realm, he knew that he has to speak up first. "Apologize? After your demon child broke my son''s arm and injured my beloved wife, you think an apology will suffice?" The man was spoke with a seething hatred. How could he ever forgive Arnin for what he did? As a father and a husband, he was unable to forgive Arnin. "Sir, then please tell us what you would like us to do. I just hope that you can spare my child, please!" Florian was anguished when he saw the reaction of Viret. He knew that things were extremely bad and that something needed to be done quick or Arnin would not be safe. "Compensation? Can you even afford that? No, I want a tooth for a tooth! Since that demon broke my son''s arms, you must break his. If not, break your own!" Viret said what he wanted, but it stunned the couple. Ashia looked Viret with anger, but still stood in front of Arnin to protect him. Florian didn''t even turn around before walking up to Viret. "You want to break my arms? Here do it! I just hope that this will allow you to spare my child!" Florian looked at Viret with determination. He couldn''t allow his son to break his arms, so Florian sacrificed his own. Arnin and Ashia were surprised, but Ashia continued to stand in front of Arnin. Arnin couldn''t see the small tears appearing in her eyes, however he noticed Ashia trembling. "Dad, don''t do it! Just call the village elder, he can talk this out with them!" Florian only smiled at Arnin before standing firmly in front of Viret. He was willing to sacrifice his arms for his son''s life anyday. Viret maniacally grabbed onto Florian''s arm and started to pull. Florian trembled, but held his ground. Ashia began to silently cry, but didn''t let Arnin go by her. Arnin''s pupils turned from black to red. Veins appeared on his forehead at the sight of his father in pain. Snap! Florian''s face went pale when his first arm broke. Ashia couldn''t help it anymore and turned around. When she did, she noticed one of Arnin''s tattoo glowing. His eyes were furiously red, and veins were appearing everywhere. Just as she was about to reach out for him, Arnin disappeared from her sight. "AHHHH!" Viret screamed loudly. Ashia turned around and Florian opened his eyes. The sight caused them to take a couple steps back. One of Viret''s arms was missing. Blood was profusely spilling out. "How dare you hurt my father! I will slaughter you and your family!" Arnin, who was standing behind Viret, chillingly spoke. What caused everyone''s hairs to stand was the fact that in Arnin''s right hand was Viret''s missing arm. Ashia and Florian were frightened by Arnin''s actions. Ashia quickly rushed towards Arnin. "Arnin, stop it! Calm down, Arnin! Dad''s alright. Arnin!" Florian called out to Arnin many times. Arnin only looked at Florian with deep sadness. "Dad, it was your son that caused you to feel such pain. I will fix everything and leave. I will not bring you more pain." Tears fell from Arnin''s face. Arnin, who lived for over a hundred million years, had only ever shed tears once. That was when his family was annihilated. This was his second time ever losing himself in sadness. A sinister aura erupted from Arnin. A single tattoo lit up and released a small gaseous substance. The black gas masked Arnin and the house, leaving Ashia and Florian outside. "Arnin! Arnin! Please, stop it." Ashia screamed from the top of her lungs, but there was no answer, She tried to touch the gas, but it knocked her back. More and more people began to come out of their homes and look at what was happening. "Florian, go and call the village elder! He may be able to help." Ashia quickly told Florian to call the village elder, who was the strongest in the village. Just as Florian was about to leave, the gas began to fade away. Both Ashia and Florian ran towards the home, only to find that it was a wreck. The roof was no longer on top, and the door was crumbled into pieces. The glass windows were shattered and the walls were collapsing. "Arnin, where are you?!" Ashia madly screamed for her child. Suddenly, a trail of blood began to appear. The dust had yet to fade, but the blood was still discernible. Her eyes followed the trail, only to see three bodies lying on a pool of blood. Beside the bodies was Arnin. His body had cuts and bruises all over. His hair was a mess and his clothes were shredded. Arnin''s knuckles had ripped skin and were covered in a grey light. He turned his head slowly and looked at his parents. Ashia and Florian cried when they saw half his face had a large cut and tears of blood dripping down. "Mom, Dad, I caused lots of pain for you guys. Because of me, you had to bow your heads towards such beasts. Not only that, dad got his arm broken because of me." Arnin spoke mournfully. "Arnin, its ok! Just come to mom. Everything will be fine, just come to me." Ashia wiped her eyes, but the trembling of her voice was clearly heard by Arnin, who could only clench his fists. "Mom, I hope that you live well in the city. When I one day become strong enough to protect you, I will come back for you, Nekaia and dad. Just take care of yourselves." Arnin vanished from their sights, leaving only the destroyed home and the cold bodies. Ashia fell onto her knees before she began to cry loudly, Florian tried to hold his tears back, but it became difficult. ------------------------------------------ The village elder was busy in his study, scribbling words on a piece of paper. Suddenly, he felt a familiar sinister aura erupt from far away. He got up from his desk, but then a figure appeared in front of him. "Arnin? Is that you?" The village elder saw the three tattoos and immediately associated the figure with Arnin. He helped Arnin up onto his seat. "Elder, give me the location of the academy. I will meet you there. I can''t stay in the village anymore so I need to leave right away. Do not tell my parents where the academy is located, please. Sign this contract for me." Arnin spoke very quickly, not giving the elder anytime to understand what was going on. "Arnin, slow down. What happened? Why are you in such a state? And why do you want to leave so quickly? Tell me, what happened?" Arnin didn''t answer his questions and gave him the contract. "Just sign this. Know this, my parents cannot come find me until I find them myself. I did something that I shouldn''t have so I need to leave." Arnin briefly explained what happened which caused the village elder to stumble with shock. He couldn''t believe that Arnin did such a thing. A five year old killed three people? The village elder took a deep breath before signing the contract. "Alright, I won''t tell anyone where you are . I''ll bring Elidia and Lilise to the academy in three days time. Don''t worry about your family''s safety, everything will be taken care of. Here is the map for the academy''s location." With that said, Arnin gave the village elder a smile, then disappeared from the room with the map that the village elder gave to him. 14 Strength Upgrade After Arnin met with the village elder, he decided he needed to find a secluded area. When his dad''s arm was broken, a tattoo on his forehead lit up because of his rampaging emotions. Although he still had control over himself, Arnin''s rage still triggered a reaction from the tattoo. The tattoos on his head were not his sealed powers, but they had a connection with them. The tattoos had the ability to control and bring out his real power, which was Arnin''s final trump card in case of an emergency. Now that one of the tattoos was controlling his original powers, he needed to seal it up once more. If he let it stay unsealed, then his powers would erupt and devour the essence around him. Arnin ran to the lesson area very quietly. He bypassed many people without them even noticing his presence, until he found a cave just outside the lesson area. Luckily there were no essence beasts, or Arnin would have had to fend them off with his powers. The cave devoured Arnin''s shadow as he walked into the chilling darkness. Water droplets fell from the top of the cave. That sound was the only thing he could hear other than his own breathing. The rocky ground caused Arnin to stumble many times as he walked because with the impenetrable darkness in front, Arnin could only feel out his surroundings. After walking for what seemed like a decade, Arnin sat straight onto the ground. He felt his hand touch a sharp rock that slightly impaled his skin, leaving a small wound on his palm. Arnin chose to ignore the gash and began the sealing process. Since his powers were extremely strong and immense, the time it took seal them was more than a few seconds. Arnin closed his eyes and followed his blood towards the tattoos. When he got there, he found that there was a cube-like object inside his forehead. A bright light from the tattoo had attached itself onto the cube. There was no damage, but the light was stuck onto the cube like glue. Arnin tried to command the tattoo to leave the cube, but there was no reaction. He then tried to use some of his original gaseous powers to cut the light, but that only made the light brighter. Arnin was stumped. With his original powers, this would have been as easy as breathing, but now that he couldn''t use them, he had to depend on other means. While Arnin was thinking, his essence orb started to vibrate and release a dark light. Black threads shot out from the orb and traveled directly towards the cube that sealed his powers. Arnin watched in shock as to what was happening. He never directed the orb to do anything, so why was it acting on its own? Arnin decided to observe the clash and see what would happen. The black threads buried themselves into the cube and began to become darker and redder. After the threads became pitch black with a red hue surrounding them, they got out of the cube and attacked the tattoo light. Arnin, who was watching this from the side, began to get a splitting headache. The threads continuously attacked the tattoo light, while the other attacked the threads. At first, the light had the advantage, but because the orb was providing energy for the threads, the tattoo fell to a disadvantage. Arnin was unable to watch what was happening because of the intense pain he was feeling. Even as a past Demon Lord, he had only felt such dreadful pain a couple of times. As the two powers rampaged inside his body, Arnin was not able to hold himself together and fainted. The threads continued their attack and tried to absorb the light, while the light did the same. The essence orb became pitch black with a red hue around it, just like the threads. However, a symbol began to appear on the orb. It looked like the three tattoos on Arnin''s forehead. The threads were gaining the advantage very quickly, and the light was becoming dimmer. Just as the tattoo light was about to get completely absorbed, the other two tattoos also lit up. Two new lights supported the first and began to thrash against the threads. With the two lights joining in, both powers became equivalent. The only way to break the equilibrium was if Arnin''s real power joined in, however, both the thread and light would be absorbed immediately if that happened. The tattoo''s on Arnin''s head began to change somewhat with the new balance. There was now a small orb on each of the tattoo''s tips. Half an hour passed, and the two powers continued to be at a deadlock. Then suddenly, a saber-like object began to form. It was black with a red hue but also had the three grey lights mixed in. With the combination of the two powers, the color of saber gradually changed from a pitch black into a snow white. ------------------------------------ Arnin was still oblivious as to what was happening inside of him. The only thing he could see were the faces of Ashia and Florian before they disappeared. The reluctant looks on their faces and the fear they had, penetrated deep into his soul. He was just happy that Nekaia didn''t see anything. Suddenly, the pain he felt before disappeared. The darkness crumbled, taking away the faces of his family. Arnin did not have any reaction, only silently watching everything disappear. When Arnin opened his now black-red eyes, he didn''t see darkness anymore, he could clearly see the inside of the cave. Nothing changed, there weren''t any torches or any sort of light. Arnin was astonished by what he saw and quickly remembered what happened inside of him. He dived back into his mind to find what had changed. When he reached the place where the threads and the light faced off, what he found astonished him. The threads and the light were gone. The only thing present, other than the cube that sealed his power, was a snow white sword that released a whitish grey gas. Arnin took a closer look at the sword and found that it was like a very long saber. The blade had a slight curve, while the handle was wrapped with what seemed like white flames. The sight was astonishing and extremely abnormal. Arnin did not feel uncomfortable with the sword in any way, rather he felt close to it. It felt like the cube and the orb; his own power. Arnin called for the saber, however, there was no answer. Arnin tried many more times, but the saber didn''t respond. Arnin inspected it one more time, surprisingly found that the saber was a combination of his tattoo power and the power from his orb. He knew that the tattoo was able to control his real power, but never thought it would be its own system. Realizing that he wasn''t able to call upon the sword yet, Arnin began to thoroughly inspect his whole body for changes. To his surprise, he found that his orb threads that fed his entire body changed into pitch black with a red hue. They seemed much stronger and sturdier than before, plus they released the same aura as his original power. Arnin was extremely happy with the change because he was more comfortable with his original power than anything else. He had used it for more than a hundred million years so nothing was better. As Arnin drowned himself in ecstasy because of the big change to his threads, he almost forgot to inspect the source of those threads; his essence orb. When he got to the orb, he found that just like the threads, it was darker and red, however, there was something new. Three symbols that resembled the tattoos were now on the orb. Arnin guessed that it was because the fight that happened before he fainted, so he didn''t really think much about it. As long as it didn''t harm him, he was relieved. Arnin stood up from the ground and stretched his sore body. Crackles resounded in the silent cave. Arnin began to head out from the cave, however, when he took his first step he realized he was much lighter now. Arnin was still confused as to how he could see in the cave and why he felt lighter. He knew he didn''t make a breakthrough, all he could relate this change to was the combination of the tattoo, his power, and the orb. Arnin decided to see the threads in his eyes once again. He traced the threads all the way to his eyes and did a deep inspection. He found that there were many symbols deeply embedded inside his threads. They were similar to the ones he used for cultivation, however, the power resembled that of the tattoos. Arnin also noticed that there were slight differences in the symbols he made and the ones that was in his eyes. Rather than a single symbol, the ones in his eyes was compacted with many symbols. They were placed together in an octagon pattern, which seemed to absorb body essence and provide it to the eyes. Arnin''s eyes lit up when he saw that. He finally understood why the symbols he was using before numbed different parts of his body. What he was absorbing before was the worldly essence, however, to strengthen a part of his body or improve it, he needed to use his own orb essence. Although the orb essence originally came from the world, the difference between the two was that the orb was able to convert the world essence to match Arnin''s body. Arnin decided to do some more experiments with this new discovery. He applied the octagon pattern symbol to his arms and legs and found that there was already some patterns present and increasing the amount was not making much of a difference. Arnin could only experiment on others now that his body already had the patterns. Outside the cave, the sky was dark which told Arnin that he was in the cave for a while. Arnin found himself a large boulder and sat on top of it. He looked at the night sky and started to think deeply about different things. Were his parents alright? Would his sister have awakened her memory the next time he met her? Where was Zhaik and how was he doing? Many things appeared in mind as he closed his eyes. --------------------------------------------- Arnin was sleeping on a large boulder in the middle of the forest. The rock was covered in the light of the sun that was able to escape the blockade of the large trees. Arnin slowly opened his eyes and blocked the light with his hands. Everything was still somewhat blurry, but after keeping his eyes open for a few seconds, the blurriness faded. Arnin got up from the boulder and stretched slightly. He then kicked his feet off the boulder and gently landed on the ground. He knew that he had to meet the village elder at the academy in two days time, so he pulled the map out of his pocket and began to study it. The map was small and only showed a small area. In the middle of the map was Talonton village, on the extreme top right side of the map was the academy that Arnin had to go to. There wasn''t anything major on the road to the academy, only some dangerous areas that the village elder marked for Arnin. Arnin studied the map for a while longer and decided on the path he would take to the academy. He didn''t know how long it would take him exactly, so he wanted to leave as soon as possible. With everything set, he rushed towards the academy. ----------------------------------------------- While Arnin was making his way to the academy, the village elder was extremely busy at his home. "Village elder, you must get justice for my son''s family. Please, help me avenge my son." A large man that looked no younger than the village elder, was kneeling in front him. The man had a grievous look, with tears falling down his face. "Zuko, I know what you are feeling, but I can''t help you in this. The person that is supporting that family is not someone you or I can offend. If you go against that family, not only will I not support you, I will stop you with all costs." The village elder sighed as he looked at his saddened friend. The man in front of him was Zuko, the father of Viret. He was only second to the village elder and was even a large contributor to the village. The village elder was, of course, sad about the events that took place, but because of the contract he had with Arnin, he could only protect his family. Zuko was shocked when he heard what the village elder said. "Village elder, why would you stand in my way to avenge my son''s death? I have supported and protected this village for my entire life, even if you don''t help me, you shouldn''t go against me!" Zuko was more angry then sad. He was mad that his son was killed. He was angry that he couldn''t even get the support of the village elder. Now he couldn''t even avenge his son''s family? "I am sorry, but I really can''t help you, even if I wanted to" The village elder was helpless. The contract forced him to protect Arnin''s family no matter what. ''So this is what he meant when he said no matter what?'' The village elder mockingly sighed. He got tricked by a five-year-old to protect his family no matter the cost. The village elder had some fear growing inside of him because of Arnin''s deep calculations. *Creak* As the two old people were discussing, the door to the village elder''s home opened up. Three people walked into the house; Ashia, Nekaia, and Avian. Ashia and Nekaia had pale faces, while Avian had an angry one. "Village elder, tell me where Arnin is! I know you know where that brat is, so you better tell me!" Avian loudly spoke with great anger. When she finally came back from the city, she heard about what happened and was shocked. Arnin killed three people and fled the scene. The news shocked her and when she saw how Nekaia and everyone were handling it, she felt extremely mad. They were all depressed and gloomy, Ashia even had tear stains on her face. "Who do you think you are, barging into this place? Don''t think I won''t dea-" Just as Zuko was about to berate Avian''s manners, he felt his blood rush to his throat and coughed blood. A frightening aura erupted from Avian''s body. It was not as sinister as Arnin''s, but it was extremely powerful. "Who do you think you are, old man? When I am speaking to someone, you need to silently wait in the corner. Now scram!" Avian didn''t have time for Zuko''s nonsense so she used the most effective way to shut him up; absolute strength. "Miss Avian, please calm your anger." The village elder struggled to his feet under the terrifying pressure. He walked towards Avian with great fear and told her about the contract that Arnin had her sign. "That stupid rascal and his contracts! Ashia, don''t worry, I will get information about him as soon as possible." Avian gently looked at Ashia before glaring at the village elder. "Little Ashia, Arnin told me to tell you that he doesn''t wish for you to find him. He said that after he becomes stronger, he will come look for you himself. He just wants you guys to be safe." The village elder quickly spoke before stopping under Avian''s penetrating stare. "Village elder, was he alright? Is he safe right now? I hope that you can look after him for me. He is only five years old. I don''t know what happened to him, but he is not a bad child. So please look after him." Ashia fell to her knees as she spoke with a sobbing voice. The village elder got on one knee and patted her head gently. "It''s ok dear, I will look after him. Nothing will happen to him with me around, so just live happily and leave the rest to me." The village elder whispered quietly to Ashia. Ashia got up slowly and nodded slightly towards the village elder before walking out with Avian and Nekaia. After the three left, the village elder rushed towards Zuko and helped him up. Zuko, as a friend, I am telling you not to offend them. That woman is just not someone we can ever hope to take on. So please, for my sake, try to forget about it. Think about your remaining granddaughter, who was luckily not at the house when all of this happened. Take care of yourself so that she can also live knowing there is someone left." With that said, the village elder quietly left Zuko in the hall. Zuko silently cried for his son''s family. He couldn''t do anything except take care of his last family. "Arnin, you devil spawn! You are lucky my granddaughter was spared. If she wasn''t, I would have chased you for eternity." Zuko cursed under his breath before leaving the hall as well. 15 The Lost Little Boy The towering trees blocked the light from entering their domain, standing tall like the guardians of the forest. A dark light dashed passed each tree, causing the leaves to shake back and forth. The figure that rushed past the trees slowly revealed his countenance under the gaps that the sun rays were able to sneak through. Hair as black as the night sky, but with a hint of stone like grey, swayed under the pressure of the wind that pushed against his face while he ran. Obsidian-like eyes that carried a hint of red menacingly gazed forward, making sure that all obstacles were evaded. Arnin was a good distance away from the village. After his power upgraded, his speed was also increased exponentially. Within a few seconds, he was able to cover more than a few hundred meters. The map that Arnin was using had an easy route to get to the academy, however, it would force him to take a much longer time to get there. He had to circle around many dangerous areas that had essence beasts. Although the beasts were of the lowest level, even that was equivalent to a Essence Manifest - Earth realm cultivator. Arnin, who wanted to get to the academy as soon as possible, could care less about the obstacles. He decided to go straight through the dangerous areas, rather than wasting time with circling them. Plus, Arnin really wanted to see what the essence beasts looked like. Would they similar to the animal beasts that he had seen during his rise to become a demon lord? Would they be completely different? Arnin also wanted to gauge where he stood in terms of strength. He couldn''t call Viret''s death as a proper test because he used his original power, albeit a small amount, it still was his original power. Arnin continued to travel through the dense forest. The map showed that he was approaching the first dangerous area and that he should take a right, however, Arnin kept running forward. A few minutes later, he finally approached a forest that seemed a lot brighter than the one he came from. Arnin took a quick stop to inspect his surroundings. He wasn''t dumb enough to rush into the forest without making any plans. Arnin sat down cross-legged and began to adapt to the new environment by absorbing the essence. Surprisingly, his orb was able to absorb the essence at a much quicker rate and convert that essence into useful energy. Arnin continued his cultivation for ten minutes before getting up and continuing his journey. This time, he took his time to pass through the forest since it was dangerous grounds. The first thing Arnin decided to do was climb to the top of the trees and travel from a good height. If he could see what was approaching him from a distance,he would then be able to properly prepare. Arnin leaped up onto the closest tree and began to jump from branch to branch. With his strengthened vision, not only was he able to see better in the darkness, he was also able to see longer distances. While jumping, Arnin gathered that the deeper he went, the thicker the essence got. ''Is there perhaps a strong essence beast here?'' Arnin could thought that a very strong beast was in the forest, which was the reason the essence was so thick. In the world of Afloria, cultivation was a norm, however, not everybody cultivated the same way. Humanoid creatures had orbs inside their bodies that converted worldly essence into bodily essence. This essence was however very nutritious for essence beasts. Unlike humanoid cultivators, essence beasts did not absorb worldly essence, they had to devour different creatures and plants to get their energy. Although it seemed to be a very tedious way to cultivate, it was far quicker than the method used by humanoid creatures. Plants and animals were everywhere, so they were able to get their essence quicker. The reason that worldly essence gathered around strong beasts was still unknown to common folk. Arnin continued to move forward, but this time he moved a lot slower. He needed to make sure that the beast would not attack him if it was really there. Arnin decided to get back onto the ground because the branches would not provide him with much movement and dodging capabilities. Arnin slowly moved deeper into the forest. He had yet to meet any essence beasts along his path which further provided evidence that a strong beast was present. The large beast would hunt down the smaller ones for its own cultivation, so why would there be any left? The beasts only moved on animal instinct so they did not care about extinction or endangerment of species. They only cared about whether they would get food or not. *Clash, Clink* Just as Arnin was silently creeping forward, he heard some noises. It sounded similar to a blacksmith''s swordsmithing. It was very similar, but not as high pitched. Arnin masked his presence by stopping his absorption of the essence and sealing any pores that would release energy waves. He crawled towards the sound and hid in a bush that was very close to the sound. Moving aside the snaring leaves, Arnin saw a group of people attacking a large beast. There were three humans, all about the age of twenty to thirty. In front of the tiger-like beast, a tan-skinned man with a titanic body and stubble beard clashed head-on. His silver ax collided with the single beige horn on the beast. There was a large scar in the brawn man''s left cheek, and many fresh cuts and bites were all over his body. He looked to be on his last stand, however, his aura didn''t seem to fade away. The man''s two partners were on the ground. One had a deep cut on his right leg, while the other treated him. The injured person had a short sword lying beside him, while his pale face was in great pain. His long yellow hair was on his side, while his green eyes tightly scrunched up. The last person was a woman with long, silver hair. Sweat was pouring down her pretty, colorless face. Her amber eyes intently looked at the swordsman''s leg, while she applied some sort of cream. The injured man wrinkled his eyebrows when she applied the cream; his teeth gritted as he looked up and tried to fight against the pain. Arnin watched all of this happen with some amusement. He found it funny to see such a cliche type scene. A big man holding off the beast, while the maiden heals the injured man. He already guessed how this would go down, so he decided to continue watching the show. "Cher, you need to take Von out of here. I will hold off the beast while you guys escape!" The brawny man screamed at his comrades before blocking another one of the tiger beasts blows. "Jelen, I am already injured, so you take Cher and run. I won''t be able to get far so let me hold this beast back. Please!" Von, who was the injured man, looked at the brawny man, Jelen, with determination. Cher was on the verge of tears when she heard the conversation between the two men. Arnin, who was hiding in the bushes felt no sympathy for the three, rather he was finding it hard to hold his own laughter in. Such a scene was always told about in tales of heroes or other stories that Arnin found to be totally stupid. Arnin''s face was completely red from holding his laughter in. Arnin took a deep breath, but still couldn''t hide the smile on his face. He was debating on whether he should save the people or just fish in troubled waters. Arnin silently inspected each of the people and tried to see what their respective strengths were. The brawny man was at Essence Manifest - Sky, while the injured person was only a small realm lower; Essence Manifest - Earth. The woman, on the other hand, was the weakest, Orb Birth - Heaven. In Arnin''s mind, this was the classic scene where the men try to protect the woman and sacrifice their own lives for it. The woman would then escape with the injured man and fall in love and then live happily ever after. Arnin hated these types of stories the most because he found that sacrificing oneself was a dumb idea. Arnin had a malicious scheme planned inside his head, where he would use one of them to get out of the forest in the quickest manner. He would use one of the people to lead him out of the dangerous forest and then lead him to the academy. He was only going off the map, but the map was not to scale and maybe there might have been things that the village elder missed. Because of this, he needed a guide to get to the academy. Arnin decided that saving the girl was the best idea. The brawny man was too powerful andArnin wouldn''t be able to get him to do anything for him, so he was out of the picture. The injured man would become a nuisance because of his leg, plus he was also a little strong. The girl was the weakest in strength and would be the easiest to control. With this planned out, Arnin continued to watch the show in front of him. -------------------------------------------- "Cher, runaway! Jelen and I will hold the beast back. No matter what happens, do not turn around. We will meet you on the outside of the forest." Cher shook her head, but Von grabbed her hand and smiled at her. "Cher, we will meet you outside the forest, so please, for now just run." She shed a small amount of tears before getting up and rushing away from the scene. Arnin, who saw all of this happen, smiled brightly. He could now get rid of the two nuisances. The beast that the brawny man was fighting, was around the same strength as him. Since the two were evenly matched, only a break in that power equilibrium could cause the death of either one. The break could be a direct influence or messing with one of the people''s emotions. Von was extremely tired and pale, the blood coming out of his leg had already created a pool. This was his weakest moment, so Arnin knew he could kill him if he caught the guy by surprise. Arnin waited ten minutes before beginning his plan of action. -------------------------------- "Uwahhhhh, where''s my mom?! Mommy? Where are you?" Arnin walked out the bush with tears in his eyes. He looked pitiful, and with his small frame, he also looked very innocent. "Ahhhhh! A monster! Mommy where are you?" Arnin got on his knees and covered his ears. His tears increased and fell down like a waterfall. "Sh*t! What the hell is a kid doing here? Von, quick, take the kid to a safe place! I will hold this beast back! Make sure you come back right away!" Jelen quickly shouted out. Von was surprised to see a kid crying in the middle of the forest so he got up slowly and limped as quickly as he could towards Arnin. "Little boy, what are you doing here? How did you get into this forest?" Von picked Arnin up and started to question him while he walked away from the scene as quickly as he could. "I don''t know! I was collecting plants with mom, but then I got lost! I want my mom!" Arnin continued to act as the lost little boy, which greatly affected the heroic Von. "It''s ok, I will find you a safe place to hide. After I finish that bad monster, I will take you to yo-" Just as Von was about to finish comforting the ''lost'' Arnin, a hand pierced through his body. Von looked down at Arnin with astonishment. His chest had a large hole and Arnin''s hand was piercing him. "L-litt-le b-boy, wh-why d-did *Cough Cough*" Von coughed out blood and fell to the ground. His body was trembling as he looked at Arnin with confusion. "Oh, I''m sorry. Did that hurt? Here let me ease your pain." Arnin wickedly smiled at Von before piercing through his chest one more time, but this time he aimed towards the heart. Arnin got up and looked at the angered Jelen. Jelen completely forgot about the beast and murderously looked at Arnin. "You demon! How could you kill him?! AHHH! I''m going to grind you into dust!" Jelen turned away from the beast and rushed towards him. Arnin looked at Jelen with scorn and let out a yawn. "Was that your friend? Haha, he was so dumb. I love ridding the world of such ignorant people. You''re welcome." Arnin brightly smiled towards Jelen like a hero that had just saved the day from a catastrophe. 16 Sudden Turn of Events Cher ran through the forest at a very quick speed. Her breathing increased by the second and sweat drenched her whole body. As she ran through the endless forest, she kept praying for her friend''s safety. "AHHHHHHH!" Cher had gotten very far from her friends, but she heard the scream of Jelen. "What happened? Oh no, I have to go back!" Cher quickly pushed against a tree and did a full one-eighty turn. She began to run back towards the beast and her friends. -------------------------------- "You demon! I will slaughter you! I''ll kill you!" Jelen kept yelling at Arnin as he quickly approached him. Behind Jelen was the tiger beast, which didn''t seem to care about anything except its prey. "Blablabla! Why do you talk so much? If you want to thank me so much, then just say it outright. Jeez, you seem to be extremely excited after your friend''s death. Maybe I should just give you his body. Make sure he is properly dead. Hehe!" Arnin continued to mock Jelen with words he knew would hit Jelen''s sore spot. He then finished off by kicking Von''s body towards Jelen. A glare that could kill was directed towards Arnin when the body finally reached Jelen. Arnin took many steps backward so that a good distance could be kept between him and the enraged Jelen. He continued to smile at Jelen in mockery. Jelen became even more enraged, but before he could even do anything, the tiger beast finally reached him. "ROOAAR!" The beast pounced towards Jelen with its fangs bared and its claws out. Jelen moved his head to the side but wasn''t able to avoid a deep cut to his face. The beast landed on its front legs and then quickly turned to face Jelen. He brandished his ax and charged towards the beast. His face was full of fury. The silver ax, which at first seemed to be a normal ax, began to shine in bright green. Arnin who was watching from afar was surprised. He, with his heightened vision, closely looked at the ax to try and figure out the crux of the move. Arnin wasn''t able to figure anything out from the first look so he calmly waited for the next time such a move would be used. Jelen crazily smashed his ax onto the tiger beast without any thought. His aura didn''t decrease in any way, rather it was rapidly increasing with his rage. Arnin quickly leaped onto a branch and began to observe from the air. He needed to make sure that he witnessed everything that was happening so that he could further understand the orb''s power. The tiger beast released a loud howl and pounced with his thick hind legs towards Jelen. It opened its mouth and bit the ax. It then increased the strength it put into the bite and tried to hold onto the blade. Jelen lifted his left hand and smashed the tiger beasts face, but very little damage was done. The tiger beast shook its head furiously, trying to get Jelen to release the ax. He kept a tight grip, but it was futile. The beast was just too strong. The ax was forced out of his hand by the beast, who then spat it out of its mouth onto the ground further back. With no weapon in hand, Jelen''s fighting capability was reduced by half. Even though he had lost his ax, there was no fear in his eyes. He continued to look at the beast, before running towards it. A cluster of light, similar to the one that appeared on the blade, formed onto Jelen''s hand. He punched towards the beast''s face, tearing the wind apart. The tiger beast had no way to dodge so it took the hit directly. It was launched backward, falling onto its back. Jelen didn''t want to waste any time so he quickly rushed towards the beast to finish it off. Arnin, who was on top of the tree, didn''t want the fight to be finished too quickly, so he broke off a branch and vanished from the tree. He reappeared beside Von''s body and began to poke his head. "Mister ax man, look! Von is breathing!" Arnin said in an exasperated voice. Jelen, who heard what Arnin said, turned around quickly. There was some hope in his eyes, but when he saw the look on Arnin''s face, all the hope he gathered in that one second crumbled to pieces. Arnin had a very bright smile on his face, almost too pleasing, however to Jelen, that smile was akin to a curse. "Oops! Sorry, did I say Von is breathing? I meant to say that I was! Haha, isn''t that great? Oh no, mister ax, look behind you! The tiger is ready to attack." Jelen was only distracted for a couple of seconds, but that small time frame allowed the tiger to get back on its feet and ready its next attack. Jelen turned his head to look at the beast before turning and looking at Arnin ferociously. "You dirty little brat! Just wait until I finish off this beast. You''re going to be next!" Jelen turned his head around one more time and got back into a battle stance. His fists lit up with the green light once more. The tiger didn''t pounce towards him this time, rather it slowly walked forward. Drool was dripping from its mouth. What surprised Jelen, even more, was that the tiger wasn''t looking at him, he was looking in the air. When Jelen looked up, the sight devastated him. Von, his comrade and friend, was dead, but he still couldn''t rest peacefully. On the tree branches, he saw Arnin holding Von''s severed head by the hair. "You bast**d! Can you not leave his corpse alone?! You godda-" Arnin tossed Von''s head towards the tiger, who then shot into the air to catch it. The tiger didn''t swallow immediately, it slowly chewed on the head. Jelen who saw the scene couldn''t help but burn with anger. His eyes were became red because of the grief that began to build up inside of him. His head turned to the side while he quietly apologized to Von''s body. Suddenly an immense aura surged out of Jelen''s as he jumped towards Arnin. Tears fell down his face as his eyes only looked towards the demonic Arnin. "I will kill you even if I have to sacrifice my life!" Jelen swung his fist towards Arnin, who quickly sidestepped. Arnin tapped Jelen''s back before jumping to a different branch. "Oh really now? If you want to kill me, let''s see if you have the skills to accomplish that." Arnin kept jumping from branch to branch, barely avoiding Jelen''s hits. Although Jelen was much stronger than Arnin, he was exhausted after fighting the tiger beast. The sudden aura that he released only increased his power, not speed. Everytime Arnin dodged, he would tap a part of Jelen''s body. At first, Jelen thought that Arnin was trying to numb him, but even after many taps, he didn''t feel numb anywhere. However, because of his unstable mind, he couldn''t care about Arnin''s plan. The only thing he wanted to do was tear Arnin apart. As the fighting continued, the tiger had already completely devoured Von''s head. It didn''t chase after the two cultivators, rather it slowly walked towards the headless body. There was a greedy look in the eyes of the beast and the drool continued to spill from its mouth. "Would you look at that. The beast still wants more of your friend. What will you do? You going to continue attacking me and allow your friend to be completely eaten, or will you go and protect his body?" Arnin continued with his mind games. Since he couldn''t beat Jelen in direct combat, he could at least slow him down and destroy him from the inside. Jelen panicked. He ignored Arnin and pushed off a branch and rushed towards Von''s body. The tiger felt something approach so it turned its head quickly. A fist landed on its face, then a foot kicked its stomach, throwing it further back. The tiger beast bared its claws and pounced towards Jelen. Arnin watched on without any expression. He then sensed someone approaching from behind him. He turned his head and looked down towards the approaching entity. When he saw the person who came, a deep smile couldn''t help but appear on his devilish face. "Now, to finally finish the last part of my hunt." ----------------------- Cher finally got back to where her friends were. When she stopped to inspect the surroundings, the sight frightened her. Jelen was facing the tiger beast without his ax and was at a disadvantage. There were countless holes in the trees and many branches on the ground. There was even a headless corpse. "Jelen! Where is Von? Jelen, how did this happen?!" Cher became frantic when she couldn''t find Von. She hurriedly called out to Jelen, not thinking about the consequences if she distracted him. "Son of a..! Cher, get out of here! Hurry, run!" Jelen sunk into despair when he saw Cher. He couldn''t help but curse his luck for being so bad. Things only got worse by the second. "AHHH!" That moment of distraction that Jelen had was fully occupied by the tiger beast. The beast aggressively bit his right leg, giving him a wound that was similar to Von''s. "Oh no! Jelen!" Cher ran towards Jelen, but suddenly she felt her arm being grabbed. She turned around and was surprised to see a child. Jelen, who noticed Arnin appear and catch Cher, couldn''t help but become mad with hopelessness and fear. "You brat! Let her go! Cher! Cher, get away from him! Run, Cher" Jelen continued to yell, however, Arnin annoyingly glanced at him. "Can you stop being such a pest? Let me speak with the missy, will you?" Arnin then looked at Cher with a bright smile. "Miss, would you like me to save your friend from that tiger beast?" Arnin looked at Cher with his warmest smile. "Cher, don''t listen to hi- get lost you stupid beast!" Jelen couldn''t shake off the tiger that kept attacking him from every side, and it became even more burdensome with his injured leg. "Well, would you like me to save him from the tiger beast?" Cher looked at Arnin and then at the terrible state of Jelen. She nodded her head quickly. "Please save him. I will do anything if you can just save him." Cher didn''t think straight when she saw the situation getting worse for Jelen. Arnin smile before drawing up a contract. "Here is a contract that you will need to sign for my services. You can read through and confirm whether you agree with it or not." Cher quickly read the contract: Party 1 (Arnin) will save (Jelen) from Tiger Beast. Party 2 (Cher) will become Party 1 (Arnin)''s guide out the forest until Party 1 (Arnin) reaches his destination. Cher agreed right away with the demand. She quickly signed the contract with her blood before giving back the contract to Arnin, who also signed. "Well, now that we are in business, let me get my part done," Arnin smirked coldly before slowly walking towards Jelen. The tiger was still attacking the weakened Jelen relentlessly. Arnin completely released his sinister aura. Cher and Jelen gaped when they felt the strength of the aura; Orb Birth - Sky. Jelen became frustrated that such a weak child played him like a fool, but what he felt more than frustration was fear. Arnin, who was at such a low level, was extremely strong. So strong that Cher wouldn''t even be a match for him. The tiger beast stopped attacking and looked at Arnin in confusion. The aura that Arnin released was actually very comforting. It sniffed the air before slowly walking towards Arnin. Arnin and everyone present were very surprised. The tiger beast was actually walking towards Arnin? He never expected that the tiger beast would like his aura. Arnin couldn''t completely trust the beast so he took a single step back. His aura was then released to a higher degree. The evil presence and the killing intent that his aura released caused the tiger beast to howl in the air. Joy could be seen in the greedy eyes of the beast. Arnin was taken aback once more. It really seemed like the beast liked Arnin''s aura. He began to think about why this would happen. After thinking deeply, Arnin came to the conclusion that it had to do with his demonic powers. After his orb transformed, it began to emit the same presence as his demonic powers. It was known far and wide that demons were the only species that could tame essence or demonic beasts. This was both true in his past world and also in Afloria. Although essence beasts could one day become humanoid, they would still be beasts by nature. Arnin became extremely happy about the sudden turn of events. In the past, Zhaik was his beast, but now that he was gone Arnin could only make do with the tiger beast. Arnin reached out his hand and called out for the beast. The tiger quickly ran over and bathed in Arnin''s aura. Purring noises escaped the beast''s mouth when it showered in his aura. Arnin gently patted the beast''s head as his eyes didn''t show any evil intent. Although Arnin was considered human now, he had been a Demon for over a hundred million years, so he enjoyed the presence of beasts more than humans. "Well, now that my part is done, let''s move onto yours. Oh wait, let me heal your friend first." Arnin crouched down behind Jelen and reached out his hand. However, Jelen turned around and swung his fist towards Arnin. "Just because you saved me doesn''t mean I am going to let you live!" Arnin dodged his attack and took a step back. He then walked towards the tiger beast and smiled evilly. "Are you sure you don''t want my help? If I don''t heal you, you could die because of blood loss." Arnin emphasized each line. Cher quietly listened before speaking up. "I will go heal him. You can just watch from the side. Is that alright?" Cher walked as she spoke. She finally got beside Jelen and took out the same cream she used on Von. "Jelen I will apply some to your leg, I just need you to slowly cultivate and absorb essence. It will increase the healing." Jelen nodded towards Cher and before he began to cultivate, he whispered some warnings to Cher about Arnin. Jelen then closed his eyes and began to cultivate. However, just as he began to absorb the essence, he began to feel numb all over. Also, the worldly essence rushed into his body with speeds that he couldn''t handle. Jelen became completely paralyzed. He opened his eyes and looked at Arnin in fear and anger. "What did you do to me? You bast**d!" Jelen, who couldn''t move his body, fell to the ground. He couldn''t move anything because of the numbness that spreading through his body. "Do you not recall our little spar on the trees? Remember how I kept tapping your body? Well, planted some, let''s say curse marks, into your body that would not only increase your absorption but would also numb you." Arnin dashed towards Cher and quickly held onto her arm. He then began to quickly numb her legs and threw her in front of the tiger, "Don''t eat her yet" The beast, who seemed to understand Arnin, closed its mouth. Arnin then grabbed Jelen by the throat and inserted some threads into his body. The black threads traveled to the orb and began to place down many symbols. With an increase in symbols, the essence of the world increased their input inside Jelen''s body. Arnin then dropped him to the ground and walked towards Von''s short sword. Arnin lifted the blade in the air and examined it. "Not a bad blade, it will do for now." Arnin walked towards Jelen and crouched down. "Please don''t hurt him! How could you go against the contract? Didn''t you agree to save him? So why are you hurting him?" Cher screamed questionably at Arnin. She was confused as to how Arnin was able to go against the contract. "What do you mean ''go against the contract''? I did no such thing. The contract stated that I would save him from the tiger beast. There was no mention of what I could do with him after I saved him." Arnin casually replied to Cher and then lifted the sword into the air. "When you reach the other world, send my regards to that swordsman I killed. Hahaha!" Arnin then quickly stabbed the sword through Jelen''s skull. 17 The Hunt Begins As the sharp, short blade pierced through the skull of Jelen, Cher couldn''t help but release a shrill scream. Her puffy red eyes filled with tears as she saw her friend die without her being able to lift even a finger. "You will pay for this! No one will let you get away with this! You demon! Devil!" Cher couldn''t help but tearfully curse Arnin. Her screams echoed through the forest before abruptly stopping. Arnin covered her mouth with one hand and rubbed the blood covered blade on her cheek. "Miss, you shouldn''t be too loud. You don''t want the beast getting riled up, do you? If you do, then I am willing to let it chew on a leg or two. What do you say?" Arnin, with his devilish voice, whispered quietly into the ears of Cher. She couldn''t help but take a deep gulp and fearfully look at Arnin from the ground. "Now that my part of the contract is done, lead me to where I want to go. Here is the map, although it has a path, it will waste my time. I want to go through the dangerous areas, so you will be my guide. You can''t really deny since you signed the contract, so let''s get going." Arnin lifted the numbed Cher and placed her on top of the beast. "Oh shoot! I can''t have you doing anything funny while we travel so let me think of a way to restrain you. Hmmm!" Arnin put on a thinking look while he looked around the battle area. He walked over to Jelen''s body and kicked it over to see if there was anything useful. Cher couldn''t help but angrily stare at Arnin for his actions. Arnin continued to search the body, but couldn''t find anything useful. He then moved towards Von''s body. There was no head, but his items were still on him. After a few minutes of searching, Arnin still couldn''t find anything. He got up and let out a sigh. "Tough luck miss. Since I couldn''t find anything, I am going to need to improvise. Don''t blame me for what I am going to do... actually, go ahead and blame me." Arnin slowly walked towards Cher. The blade that was in his hand was lightly placed in his shoulder. "What are you going to do?" Cher was frightened by the approaching Arnin. The five year old that should have been angelic and innocent continued to look more and more like a demon from the depths of hell. Arnin didn''t answer and only smiled. He stopped directly in front of Cher and grabbed her hands. "I will give you two choices." Arnin didn''t even say the next line before slicing Cher''s fingers off. It was a clean slice that took all ten of her fingers at once. Cher sat dumb for a moment before her face scrunched up in pain. "AHHHH!" The pain caused her to almost faint. She looked at Arnin with intense fear. Her body shook terribly. Tears fell down her pale cheek. Arnin then wrapped her hands with cloth as to prevent too much blood from being lost. He then numbed her hands and legs once again. "Now that everything is sorted out, you can abide by your part of the contract. If you give me incorrect directions, don''t blame me from taking more than just your fingers!" Arnin lost his smile and looked at Cher with a deadly glare. Cher could only nod her head in fear. ------------------------------- In Talonton village, the village elder stood in front of a large flying beast with his two granddaughters. "Grandpa, will we really see Arnin at the academy? Then won''t aunty Ashia and aunty Avian be able to find him easily?" Lilise looked at her grandpa with hope. She didn''t hear what Arnin did exactly, all she knew was that he ran away from home. "You are right. It is easy to find him even if I don''t tell them where he is. However, it is very difficult to gain access to the academy. Although Avian may have a great background, it is not possible for her to just barge into any academy." The village elder talked about the academies with great respect. An academy would garner great respect from any person because of their goal to teach martial arts and other subjects to people. However, something that many did not know was how dangerous academies were. On the outside, academies may seem to be independent from one another, but it was actually completely the opposite. Every academy had an unbreakable alliance. If something happened to one academy, then all the others would try to help the academy or directly attack the other party. This knowledge was not secret, but it was still forgotten because of the many competitions that took place between the various academies. "Lilise, don''t worry about anything. Just concentrate on your studies. I need to have a word with Arnin for not completing your training. I will just complete it while we make our way there. We need to rush though or else Arnin will get there before us." The village elder smiled before walking towards the flying beast. It was a giant hawk like beast with a wingspan as long as twenty feet. The giant hawk''s feathers were brown like the dirt; it wasn''t a pretty color. However, something eye catching on the hawk was the insignia that hung around its neck. The insignia had a white butterfly and a black moth as the symbol. It was the symbol for the academy. On top of the beast was a man with a long grey beard. His face carried wrinkles and the dark blue eyes made the man seem gloomy. "Mister, we are ready to head out now. Sorry for the wait." The village elder respectfully bowed to the man on the beast before proceeding to put his granddaughters onto the beast. After both of them were on, he also jumped up and sat on the very back. The man on the beast nodded when all three were finally on the beast. He lightly kicked the beast''s side before it launched into the air swiftly. ------------------------------- The tiger beast quickly ran through the forest with the two people on its back. As the strongest beast in the dangerous area, it was able to move unhindered. The traveling speed was very quick ever since Arnin was able to ride on the tiger beast. And with Cher pointing the way, the efficiency increased even more. Arnin questioned Cher about where she came from and why she was in the forest. He needed more information on her and the group she came with. Jelen, who was the strongest in the group, was equivalent to the village elder in strength, which meant that her background was most likely not simple. Cher, under the threats of Arnin, reluctantly answered his questions. She told him that she was from the academy that Arnin was going to. Her group came far out to hunt beasts and gain experience. Jelen and Von were not students from the academy, rather they lived in the town that surrounded the academy. The academy accepted children from the ages of five to twenty-five. "So, we are considered fellow students?" Arnin was kind of shocked when he found out that Cher was from the academy. "Did anyone know where you were going?" Arnin asked the question that was bugging him the most. If the academy knew where she went, then they would also know who she went with. If they found out he killed them, then he would need to be extremely careful. "Of course they know where we went. It''s the rule in the academy that all students must report their whereabouts if they ever head out." Cher answered without thinking much about the reason Arnin was asking. Because of her fear of Arnin, she answered all his questions without trying to understand the underlying meaning behind them. Arnin''s eyes became sharp when he heard her answer. Since they knew where she went, he would need to make sure that he won''t get suspected for killing her comrades. He needed to silence her and guarantee his own safety in the academy. The tiger beast moved swiftly through the forest and the two on the back stopped their conversation. Arnin had to think of a plan before getting to the academy. One of the options was creating a contract, but there was a chance that someone in the academy could break that contract through force. He couldn''t take that chance so an alternative method was needed. Leaving her in the forest was dangerous because she could be found by someone else. The only method left was to kill her. Arnin smiled before questioning Cher once more. "How long until we can get to the academy?" Cher, who was sitting in front of Arnin, was not able to see his face when he asked the question. If she could, she would have been frightened beyond compare. "It should take less than half a day since you have this tiger beast. We have a large danger area to pass before we can finally reach the town. However, this danger area is not as dangerous as the previous ones we went through. Since this is the closest to the academy, it is also the best hunting grounds. We might even see some people from the academy." Cher silently clenched her teeth when she thought of meeting others. Her eyes were full of hope at the thought of escaping from the demonic Arnin. Arnin, on the other hand, became alert when he heard her. If people from the academy were in the forest, then getting rid of Cher would become difficult. The gears in his head turned as he derived a plan to get rid of Cher without others finding out. Arnin and Cher approached the last danger area before the town. Just from the entrance, Arnin felt a reduction in the worldly essence. Although worldly essence would always replenish itself, if there were too many cultivators absorbing the essence, then it would take much longer. Arnin didn''t want to take any chances so he slowed the tiger beast and had it steadily move across the forest. "Tell me the quickest route to the academy! I want a route that doesn''t have lots of people! If you take me to a place that has people then you better pray for your future!" Arnin glared at Cher ferociously. He couldn''t trust Cher, so he needed to scare her enough so that she wouldn''t do anything that would make things difficult for him. Cher nodded her head before pointing towards where she wanted the tiger beast to go, with her palm. The beast followed the direction without a noise. Cher had the beast do many twists and turns while giving directions. The scenery in the danger area was stunning. The large trees that acted like giants with their long green leaves. The sun that slowly sunk into the horizon emitted a beautiful orange-yellow light. Arnin couldn''t help but praise himself for creating such a beautiful world. The tiger beast approached a long, winding river. The wrinkling water gently flowed into the distance, carrying fish and twigs with it. The tiger beast took a quick stop and began to drink some of the water. Arnin got off the beast and also walked towards the river. His reflection emerged on the surface of the crystal blue water, showing a young, beautiful face. There was a small amount of blood and dirt smeared over his face which Arnin did not mind. However, with the approaching town, he needed to make sure that he didn''t stand out. Arnin took off his shirt and pants, before walking into the river. Cher only silently watched, fearing that moving out of place would anger Arnin. Arnin didn''t care about Cher. In his eyes, she was only a nuisance that needed to be taken care of sooner or later. He walked far enough that his head was fully submerged inside the water. The tiger beast also slowly walked in the water and also ducked its head under water. Arnin released some of his aura for the beast, just to increase the comfortability. He really liked the tiger beast because it reminded him of his life as a Demon Lord. Although five years shouldn''t have been something major for someone like Arnin, since he was in human body as a child, he found that time moved like a sloth; slow yet steady. Arnin didn''t find the speed of time to be something negative, it was an old feeling for him. Something that he used to care about before he became the Demon Lord. On the shore of the river, Cher anxiously watched the water. She wasn''t worried about Arnin or the tiger beast, rather she wanted to sneak away from them. She wanted to make sure that she snuck away at the best time. When she found that there was no movement from the water and that everything seemed to be quiet, she quietly turned around and ran. She made sure not to make any noises while she ran, however what she didn''t expect was that Arnin knew what she was going to do even before she did. Under the water, Arnin had a cold smile on his face. He could clearly see Cher run away, but he didn''t plan to stop her yet. He wanted to give her some hope of escape before crushing it completely. As his body soaked under the cold water, the tiger beast began to become chaotic. Arnin smiled at the beast before nodding his head. The tiger beast jumped out the water, its eyes becoming red with murder. Arnin slowly walked out the water and gently stroked the beasts head. "Make sure you don''t kill her right away, just play with her and then bring her right back. I will let you do what you please when you bring her back. Now go, have fun." Arnin laughed as he retracted his sinister aura. The beast crazily smiled and opened its menacing mouth wide open. The razor sharp teeth were soaked in drool while its wet fur began to quickly dry up under the increasing aura that it released. "ROOOOAAAAARRRR!" 18 My Hand Slipped A figure dashed through the trees, panting and sweating. Her hair was in disorder and her fingerless hands began to release blood once more. Cher, who had just escaped from Arnin, was in deep fear while she ran. She used the chance that Arnin was distracted to escape, but she knew that if she was ever caught, then her ending would not be a good one. "ROOOAAARRR!" Cher''s body shook when she heard the roar of the beast. In her ears, the roar was like the battle drums of a Demon. She almost tripped while running when she heard the roar, however she had to console her heart. Since she had already escaped, there was no way that she would be let off so easily. Her speed increased once more, blowing the fallen leaves in a chaotic pattern. Tears couldn''t help but slide down her face while she ran. All she could think about was how Jelen was killed and how she was going to be next. "Why did Jelen have to die? Why did that Demon have to appear?" These questions appeared in her mind while she ran for her life. Luckily, her speed wasn''t too bad or the tiger beast would have caught up by now. Cher panted as she ran, her red eyes became blurry, which slowly began to block her view. The direction she headed towards was the town where she was supposed to take Arnin. Since Arnin wanted the route that had little to no people, to get to a place where lots of people hunted, she needed to head to the town from a different direction. Although she knew that she might run into some beasts, it was the only way. Further behind her, Arnin stood by the river and smiled. He wasn''t worried that Cher would escape since her level was far beneath that of the tiger beasts. The tiger beast was able to completely control one danger area, so it had many tricks of its own. Arnin only observed the scenery. He was very close to the academy and was actually getting there ahead of time, both because of the tiger beasts speed and because of the directions he got from Cher. He had to admit that Cher knew her way around the danger areas quite well, however escaping was her one mistake. He would have eventually ended her life, but she would have been able to live for a longer time if she hadn''t run. "What a shame. If she followed my instructions, she wouldn''t have to die so early on. Huh." Arnin could only sigh, however it wasn''t one of sadness, rather it was one of pity for Cher''s stupidity. Arnin continued to sit down watch the river until he heard some sounds of laughter. "Hahaha, what a good hunt! I can''t believe we were able to kill a rank one beast without an Essence Manifest cultivator." A loud, manly voice was heard from behind Arnin. It was a youthful voice that was filled with vigor and excitement. "What do you mean ''we''? You just stood there and watched us fight the beast. You were so pitiful! Haha! You are lucky that it was the lowest of the rank ones; Rank One Earth beast. If it was a Rank One Sky beast, then none of us would have escaped." Another loud voice, which seemed to be of someone who was older was heard behind the bushes. Both were male and even the older voice had some excitement. Arnin didn''t plan to hide away from the group that slowly approached him. There was no reason to hide. Arnin picked from their conversation that in their group an Essence Manifest cultivator was not present. The group walked out from behind the trees with smiles. There were about seven people.. There were four males and three females. Other than two people who looked to be around the same age as Arnin, the rest were close to Cher''s age, if not younger. The two males that Arnin heard walked in front of the rest. The one with the younger voice had a set of long short, spiky black hair. His sharp nose and golden eyes made him look like a cunning yet fiery person. It was a contrasted look, but weirdly it worked. The man beside him, who had the older voice, had a similar appearance. There were the similar golden eyes and sharp nose, however, his hair was red. If Arnin didn''t see the different colour of hair, then he would have thought that these guys were brothers. Their faces had similarities, and they seemed to have personalities that mirrored each other. Behind the two boys were the quieter members. The other person who looked to be around the same age as Arnin, gave off a completely different air. His azure eyes,matched with his golden-yellow hair, gave him a cold and calm aura. He didn''t have the same cunningness as the other child; the boy looked to be the cautious type. His eyes never looked at the same place twice; they roamed around. The last male of the group looked to be the oldest of them all. Although he looked to be at most Cher''s age, his eyes carried a hint of experience. There was no happiness or anger on his face; it was neutral. His ocean blue eyes matched well with the ink-like hair. Stubbles grew onto his straight jaw and pointy chin. This man, like the cold young boy, looked around cautiously, his eyes trying not to glance at something for too long. The three girls looked to be different ages. The oldest of them, had glossy bronze hair that was tied into a ponytail. Her emerald eyes gave a her a holy look. This contrasted with the other two girls evil presence. The other two girls looked extremely similar in looks. Both of them had lush, sandy hair that were done into pigtails. Their sapphire eyes looked menacing and unwelcoming. Although they had a smile on their faces as well, those distant eyes could not be hidden. The girls were somewhat different, but all three of them were breathtaking. Arnin wasn''t too interested, but he also had to admit that their beauty matched that of Nekaia and Lilise. When the group walked out the bush, they noticed Arnin right away. Before they approached him, they all looked around to make sure that nothing was out of the ordinary. Arnin watched their actions with a smirk, however he didn''t say anything that would cause conflict between them. After fighting Orsesa, he believed that Orb Birth - Heaven cultivators were not difficult to deal with, he didn''t want to cause conflict right away. The spiky, black haired youth was the first to walk up towards Arnin. "Hey, what are you doing here alone? You do know that this forest is the hunting grounds for the Lepidoptera Academy, right?" The spiky haired youth began to question Arnin from a distance. Although his manner of speaking was aggressive, it was still said in a way that didn''t make him seem arrogant. Also, the way he kept his distance from Arnin allowed him to retreat quickly if a conflict did arised. "I don''t think I need to answer your question, right? You say this is your hunting ground? Well, where is your name then?" Arnin answered back with his own questions. The spiky haired youth frowned towards Arnin''s questions. He was about to burst into a fit, but he calmed himself down. He smiled towards Arnin once more before allowing the oldest man to walk forward. "Kid, we are only asking you these questions because this forest belongs to and is protected by our academy. Let me ask you this question once again, who are you?" The eldest of the bunch began to intimidate Arnin. His tone carried a small amount of ill-intent that Arnin was able to pick up. Arnin wasn''t frightened by the group in any way, but he wasn''t bored enough to cause conflicts wherever he went. "If you want me to answer your question, then tell me your name first. I don''t need or want to tell some guy my name without even knowing his. So if you won''t introduce yourself, then forget about knowing who I am." Arnin answered back with a smile. There was no threat in his tone; it was said very casually. The older man didn''t flinch before Arnin and only looked at him for a couple seconds before replying. "My name is Dane. You don''t need to know my family name. So now, what is yours?" The oldest person in the group, Dane, only gave his first name before asking for Arnin''s. "Well then, you gave me your name so why shouldn''t I give you mine? Honestly, if you didn''t give me your name, I still would have told you mine. It''s not like I am someone famous. What''s there to hide? My name is Arnin. Same as you, I don''t need to tell you my family name." Arnin spoke to Dane as if he was talking to a person of the same age. There was no politeness, but he wasn''t rude either. Dane''s facial expression didn''t change because of Arnin''s trick. He turned to look at his group before nodding towards them. They began to slowly spread around, not closing in on Arnin, but still putting pressure on him. Arnin found the scene to be funny but annoying. "Why are you guys becoming so aggressive? I was minding my own business, not causing anyone trouble, but you guys come and question me, and when I answer your question, you want to attack me? Talk about bullying the weak with numbers." Arnin snorted while he spoke. He found the actions of the group to be extremely irritating. He was about to release his aura and attack them when he suddenly heard the roar of his tiger beast. "ROOAAR!" Arnin smiled before rushing passed the group. Dane reached out his hand and tried to grab Arnin before he ran, however he misjudged Arnins speed. He couldn''t help but twitch slightly when he couldn''t grab Arnin. He turned around and chased Arnin after his initial miss. "Come with me, we are going to follow him. He is fast, but he shouldn''t be too strong. When he ran, I felt that his strength was only at Orb Birth - Sky realm. We should be able to handle him." Although Dane said that, he was still extremely cautious. Arnin''s speed seemed to be around the same as his, if not faster, which meant that Arnin was not weak. "Follow him!" ---------------------------- From where the beast roared, the scene was extremely pitiful. Cher was finally caught by the tiger beast. She was under his massive paws, choking. The astonishing weight of the tiger beast was fully pressed on top of her, making it difficult to breath. What was even more tragic was the fact that both of her arms were gone. Blood was gushing out of where her arms used to be. Without the numbing effect, the pain was causing Cher to tremble crazily. Her eyes couldn''t stop producing tears. It was torture for her. The tiger beast only got hungrier at the sight of the blood. It knew that killing Cher would be going against Arnin and it was trying its best to hold back, but as time passed, that became extremely difficult. It only hoped that Arnin could hurry up. Although it was supposed to go back to Arnin with Cher, the beast didn''t think that it would make it back with Cher alive. "Please let me go. Please, I just want to live. Please!" Cher tried her best to speak with the beast. She didn''t know if it could understand what she was saying, but she didn''t know if there was anything else that she could do. She was at the mercy of the beast, and with it''s howl, Arnin would be coming soon. Suddenly, a thought sprung up inside of her. The howl should have been heard by more than just Arnin. Her mind slightly calmed and hope arose inside her when she thought about it. There should have been others that would have heard the howl as well. She might be saved by those people. Traveling at lightning speed, Arnin rushed towards the roar. He pushed himself to the limit because he also felt that others might have heard the roar of the beast. He was feeling irritated that the tiger beast didn''t bring back Cher when he told it to. "That stupid beast! Just wait till I get my hands on it. It won''t be getting its meal for today." Arnin rushed past the trees at a speed that was far beyond an Orb Birth - Sky cultivator. The group that was trying to follow him couldn''t keep up with him. They were falling behind, especially the two that were around the same age as Arnin. They were at low realms so they weren''t able to keep up in anyway. "D*mn, we are losing him. I am going to go ahead. All of you just meet me back at the academy. Brajus, you follow me." Dane told the red haired man to follow him. The group split up and headed in different directions. Dane increased his speed and bursted forward with Brajus in tow. Arnin was still far up ahead, but he felt that the pursuers were getting closer. He smiled slightly before also bursting forward at a greater speed. Although he had reached his max speed, he was able to force a greater speed if he concentrated on the octagon pattern in his legs. A few minutes passed before Arnin finally reached the place his tiger beast was. Since his pursuers were getting closer, he needed to hurry and dispose of Cher. "Miss Cher, I told you that if you ran, I would make you miserable. Well since you both disobeyed the contract and went against me, I need to make sure that your ending isn''t too great. Luckily the contract will take care of your soul after death." Arnin noticed the refreshing blood smell when he got there. He noticed Cher''s missing arms as well. Arnin knew that he had to get away from the scene as quickly as possible. He tried to scan and see how many people were following him and when he found that only two were behind him, he couldn''t help but frown. If all seven were to come, he would be able to get rid of them cleanly and then escape, but with only two here he couldn''t do that anymore. If he got rid of the two, then the other five would know that it was him. Arnin walked towards Cher quickly before grabbing her throat and lifting her into the air. "You won''t get away with this! The people from my academy will find out what you did and they won''t let you go!" Cher, who already saw death, couldn''t help but curse Arnin with a mocking laugh. "That''s fine, it''s not like the academy is my final destination. It is just a stepping stone in my pursuit to power. If they get in my way, then I won''t mind destroying them thoroughly." Arnin smiled towards Cher wickedly. "You Dev-" Arnin used both his hands and tore Cher''s head from her body. Blood sprayed all over him. Cher''s body, which trembled in midair, collapsed to the ground without making another movement. "Oops! My hand slipped!" 19 Reaching Town Arnin tossed Cher''s head towards the beast and picked up her body. "Since you didn''t listen to instructions, you only get the head. Hurry up and finish it before the people come!" Arnin jumped onto a tree and climbed. From to branch to branch, he kept leaping. He needed to go quick or the pursuers would get to him soon. As the tree opened up into the vast, blue sky with white, puffy clouds, Arnin settled the body onto the thick green leaves that grew no further. The leaves that were once green, began to soak in the red of Cher. Arnin dug through the leaves and landed on the branches. His foot landed on a branches that were lower until he steadily got onto the crimson dyed grass that was green no more. With light footsteps, the measly body approached that of the giant tiger. It''s grey stripes blended with the orange coat showcased its grandeur. One leg swung over the mountain like back, while the other rested onto the opposite side. "Let''s go! We need to meet those pursuers before they get here. Do not attack them!" The flickering glare of the young human forced the beast to bow it''s head. Even though it was stronger then the pitiful human, it just couldn''t find the heart to go against him. As the wind began to pick up, the fur on the beast began to pitifully sway back. Patches of grass that once stood tall, collapsed under the weight of the beast. The young human sat on top of the tiger beast unyieldingly, his short, black hair moving with the wind. His coal-like eyes were tinged with red, focusing on the two approaching figures. Dirt flew into the air with shredded grass accompanying it. Claw marks slid and tore the earth into shreds. The beast halted in front of the two figures. The ocean-like eyes glared at the beast. Dane''s face flinched when he found that the strength of the beast was much higher than his own. His bronze hand lifted into the air to prevent his companion from moving forward. "So, Arnin was it? This beast must be yours then? I was wondering how you could tame a demonic beast of such caliber without being a demon yourself?" Dane knew that he could not match the beast even with his whole group present, but he was resolute to find out who Arnin was. "I don''t need to answer your question. All you need to know is that I am not yet your enemy." Arnin smiled towards the two. His small frame faulted his domineering tone, however with the beast under him, the words carried strength. "Since you don''t want to answer, don''t, but I will ask you again, what is your reason for being in this forest?" Dane decided to take a step back with his words. Although he thought he was stronger then Arnin, he knew he could not handle the beast. "You really are such a pest! Fine, I will tell you why I am here, but you are going to lead me out of this forest then." Arnin jumped off the beast and walked towards the two. Sadly, he wasn''t able to get rid of the two because all members of the group were not all present. "Sure, if you give us a suitable answer, we will be more than happy to take you out of the forest. But only if I like your answer." Dane didn''t show any weakness. Brajus didn''t say anything. Although he was usually angered quickly, he knew when to hold himself back. "I am a new student for the academy that you guys call Lepidoptera. I was traveling through the forest with my beast companion in order to get there." Arnin smiled towards the two and answered ''honestly''. Dane and Brajus were surprised at Arnin''s answer. They still had some doubts, so they didn''t take any steps. They were firmly planted to their spots. "Why was your beast not with you? And why did it howl jus-" "Hey hey! I don''t need to tell you anything else. You got your answer, so lead me out the forest now." Arnin cut Dane off. He wasn''t willing to answer every question they threw at him. Brajus looked at Dane with hesitation. Worry was written all over his face. Dane didn''t turn his head to look, he only pondered for a bit before nodding. "Alright, we will bring you to the academy. If you''re telling the truth, then nothing will happen to you, however if the academy finds you to be lying, then the consequences will be dire!" Dane took one last glance at the beast before turning around and speedily running through the forest. Brajus reached his hand towards Dane to say something, but he was tongue-tied. He only looked at the human boy standing in front the beast before following Dane. Arnin turned his head and looked at a tall tree that reached for the sky. "Bye Cher, make sure you don''t meet me in the otherworld. I have lots of friends there. Haha!" The young boy laughed and leaped back onto the beast. Patches of the earth flew into the air as the group of four traveled. Leading the group were Dane and Brajus. They kept a clear distance between them and Arnin. They still could not trust Arnin''s claim of being a new student at the academy. They were also unable to get any answers out of Arnin, which furthered their doubts. "Dane, do you think that he is telling the truth? I honestly cannot trust him, there is something about him that just seems off." Brajus silently whispered into Dane''s ear as he moved. "I also feel that something is off about him, but is there really a reason for him to lie? He could have gotten rid of both of us if he really wanted to with that beast of his. And if he is truly one with ill intentions, then the teachers can get rid of him easily!" Dane kept a calm expression as he ran. He believed in the strength of the academy. He was only surprised about how Arnin was able to acquire a Rank One - Hell demonic beast. It was known that Demons were the only species that could tame a demonic beast. The only way for other species to get beasts was through suppression or demon crystals. Dane decided that he just needed to report what he saw, he would leave the rest to the academy. Brajus noticed that Dane was contemplating something so he kept quiet. ---------------------------------- The trees continued to vanish in a blur and the ground that was before covered in grass, slimmed into a narrow dirt path. The tree''s closed in tightly. A smell of perfume and meat permeated the air. Arnin smiled lightly as he knew of this smell. It was not of the forest, where shrubs and leaves were all that one could smell, it was not one of the battlefield where blood and sweat was all there was, no. It was one of a civilisation. They had finally reached the town where the academy was. The light in front seeped into the forest, covering the scene that was about to be shown. As the group moved forward, the amount of tree''s lessened and shapes of the buildings took form. The smell got stronger and the light brighter. The two in front vanished into the light, and Arnin followed quickly behind. The beast stepped through the light that blinded their eyes. Arnin lifted his hands to block the radiating sun that tried to pierce his eyes. The smile on his face didn''t leave; he was happy to finally get to his destination. "Arnin, this is the town where the academy is located. The academy is an hour away if we walk, but we can get there in about thirty minutes if we run. As you are new to this town, let us walk there so that you can see some of the sights." Dane still had suspicion toward Arnin, but he knew that he was unable to handle the beast. He had to also meet his group in the village if they hadn''t already left for the academy. Brajus wanted to say something but he was stopped by Dane with a wave. "Sure I don''t mind, but let''s walk quick. I have to meet some people at the academy as well." Dane and Brajus were surprised that Arnin wasn''t going to be going there alone. They were also secretly relieved because if Arnin was meeting someone there, then his intentions were most likely not bad, however there was also the off chance that this was a gathering for people who wanted to attack the academy. As a cautious person, Dane was sure that the former was correct. No one in their right mind would attack an academy, especially one in a small area. Arnin got off the beast and walked by its side. His small steps forced the beast to also walk slower, but it didn''t mind. As the four walked, people looked frighteningly at the beast. They didn''t say anything bad, but their looks were those of fear. Arnin ignored all of the stares. He didn''t think that it was abnormal for others to look at the beast with such stares. The tiger beast did look frightening with his grey and orange coat, red, beading eyes and the single horn on its head. It''s size was also very large; almost two times Arnin''s. If the beast stood on its hind legs, then one can only imagine how large it would be. Dane ignored the looks as well, but Brajus found it somewhat uncomfortable. As a student from the academy, he only received looks of praise, never those of fear. He turned his head and gave Arnin a sharp glare, which was ignored in broad daylight. He had been holding his temper back for a long time, but he wasn''t able to resist forever. "Arnin, can you not have your beast wait in the forest? The villagers are getting frightened because of how hideous it is." Arnin''s face abruptly changed. Although he knew the beast for a small amount of time, it was his first link to his past life. Arnin never liked it when other''s rebuked his underlings. "Listen here, lobster head. If you don''t like my beast, why don''t you try moving him?" Arnin was mad, but he didn''t want to kill people from the academy in broad daylight... yet. He didn''t think he was strong enough for that. "L-lobster head? Who do you think you''re calling lobster head? You wanna die?!" Brajus couldn''t help but flare up. His eyes burned with fire while he flexed his arms and lifted his sleeves. "Come at me little boy! Don''t hide behind the beast!" Brajus got into fighting stance instantly. People from different stalls heard the commotion and rushed over. "Lobster, I don''t have time to fight you. Don''t you have any shame trying to attack me, a five year old, when you are already in the twenties?" Arnins sharp, mocking words caused Brajus to hesitate. "Brajus, pull back! Why are you making a scene right now?" Dane, with his expressionless face, pulled Brajus back. He looked at Arnin before walking into the crowd. Arnin patted the beast and smiled before following as well. The crowd dispersed when they saw that nothing happened. While walking on the stone ground, Arnin saw many different types of shops that one wouldn''t find in his village. Other then the common meat shops and other food places, there were shops for essence beast meat, cultivation resources and other things. Arnin wasn''t surprised by the increase of shops because a town was supposed to be much larger than a small village, especially a town that had an academy looking over it.During the whole trip, Dane didn''t speak a word and Brajus tearfully avoided shops that served lobsters. "Little boy, is that a Rank One Beast?" Arnin was walking silently when suddenly an old woman called out to him. His head turned and he looked towards the sound. A large shop stood alone with small field behind it. The wooden roof resembled the top of a tower a point in each corner. The limestone walls were plastered with signs, some talking about discounts and others about the information of the shop. Arnin read the large sign that hung from the roof; ''Beast Shop''. Arnin was surprised by the sign and couldn''t help but walk over with the tiger beast. "Hello, Miss. I am sorry but I am unsure of what you mean by Rank One Beast." Arnin spoke to the shop owner like a little boy. Although he was a child, the way he spoke greatly differed from his usual speech. "Oh my, come here sit down. Let me explain this to you briefly. This old lady has been serving this shop alone so I was hoping to speak with someone, so please come little one." The old woman showed great warmth when she looked at Arnin. She welcomed Arnin into the shop with great enthusiasm while the beast also followed Arnin in. Dane and Brajus watched from the side before walking towards the shop as well. Arnin looked at the two approaching before smiling evilly. "Old miss, don''t let those two in. The one with lobster hair bullies me, while the other one doesn''t let me do anything because of my friend. Can you tell them to go away?" Arnin didn''t really need a guide to the academy once he came to the town. He could ask anyone for directions, however the two didn''t seem to leave him alone. Arnin understood their intentions to keep an eye on him, but he hated when bugs swarmed around him. The old woman looked at Arnin and at his ''friend'' before nodding knowingly. "Don''t worry child. Not everyone loves beasts the way we do. Let me shoo them away for you, alright?" The old woman turned and faced the two humans. "Why don''t the two of you wait out here for now? I want to speak with this little friend alone." The old woman didn''t wait for a reply before closing the beast patterned door. Dane didn''t approach the shop and only stood outside waiting. Brajus, on the other hand, was about to rush forward but was held back by Dane. "Don''t do anything stupid. We can wait here for now." Brajus crossed both of his arms over his chest before standing behind Dane. "How dare that kid call me a lobster head again?" Brajus couldn''t help but silently whisper to himself. Dane heard his complaints but said nothing about it. -------------------------- Inside the shop, Arnin sat beside a large window that faced the field. The tiger beast laid beside him on the ground, its eyes drooping and unfocused. Arnin placed his hand onto the head of the beast. The old woman closed the door behind her and walked towards Arnin amiably. She looked at Arnin as if he was her own grandchild, and her eyes lit up even more when she saw the tiger beast beside him. "Little boy, what is your name? I want to chat with you so lets start with introductions. My name is Inme Tenebrae." Arnin nodded with a smile before introducing himself as well. "My name is Arnin, Arnin Foro." Arnin didn''t pick up any ill intent from Inme so he was alright with sharing his family name, anyway''s a family name wasn''t important unless the person was from a large family with great influence. Inme nodded her head before looking at the beast. "He doesn''t really have a name. I haven''t given him one. Let me think." Arnin pondered for a while before continuing. "Maybe I will call him Vilis." The beast didn''t show much of a reaction towards the name that was chosen for him. However, the smile on Inme''s face grew even more. "So you didn''t know what a Rank One beast was right? Well let me briefly explain the rankings of the essence beasts. An essence beast is a term used for any beast that can cultivate essence. As we know, beasts cultivate by taking it from others, while we cultivate by taking it from the world. Now, an essence beast is divided into two types of beasts. There are the demonic beasts and the radiant beasts. There are two major differences between the two. A demonic beast can only be tamed by a Demon or forcefully suppressed by demon crystals. These types of beasts are much more bloodthirsty, The radiant beasts are gentle creatures that can be tamed by anyone. Well, if they know how to tame them, that is." Arnin was surprised that beasts could be tamed normally by others as well. In his past life, the only way to tame a beast if one was not of the same race or of the demon race was through suppression or through a very rare act of good. There was no other way, however in Afloria this was possible. The interest Arnin had for the worldly essence, grew. "Old Miss Inme, what about the rankings of these beasts. Are they the same or what?" Arnin continued to act like a child in front of Inme. "The ranking for both beasts are the same. A beast will only be considered Rank One when they reach Essence Manifest cultivation. Then, similar to the humanoid creatures, they have the Earth, Sky, Hell, and Heaven separation. So from what I can see, Vilis is a Rank One - Hell demonic beast." Arnin''s eyes ''brightened'' when he heard that. "Wow, my Vilis is so strong." Arnin ''happily'' rubbed Vilis'' head, which irritated the beast. Arnin didn''t mind the reaction and only continued to smile. "So little Arnin, why are you here? Are you a traveler? Also, how did you tame a demonic beast?" Inme asked without any underlying meaning. She looked at Arnin with wonder filling her eyes. "I am here to join the Lepidoptera Academy to further my studies. As for Vilis, I found him injured by a tree and I helped him. It was also really hungry so I gave it some food. After that, it never left my side." Arnin forged a story for how he acquired Vilis. He knew it was because of his aura, which had some demonic presence, but he couldn''t just tell her that. "That is extremely lucky but dangerous. I am just happy that it didn''t attack you or anything. Haha!" The old lady giggled before getting up and leading Arnin towards the door. Arnin followed behind the old woman with Vilis in tow. The door opened up and the light rushed in like a starving person. "Well little Arnin, I can''t hold you forever. Enjoy the academy because it is a wonderful place. We might even meet each other very soon." Inme waved at Arnin, who began to walk towards the two waiting men. The two nodded towards the old lady and continued to walk in the direction of the academy. Arnin took one last glance at the old woman who disappeared into her shop. Through their conversation, Arnin didn''t learn anything about her other then her name. She also only asked questions about him and the beast. This seemed normal, however Arnin found this to be anything but. "I hope the next time we meet, you won''t be someone I have to get rid of." Arnin solemnly whispered. 20 Does A Lobster Have Enough Meat? In a town packed full of people, a young boy rode on top of a beast. The orange and grey coat of the beast stood out in the town, it''s single horn looking sharper than fine swords. The young boy held onto the horn which could pierce through the thickest of armors. This boy, with his ashen, obsidian-like hair, looked like a beautiful demon. The grey tattoos that evoked jealousy from countless people shined like the moon on a dark, dreadful night. The two men in front of the boy had their own unique characteristics. The man with inky-black hair gave off a cold presence that made people want to stay away. His ocean blue eyes scanned the surroundings, intimidating everyone on the path. The more enthusiastic man, beside the cold one, had flame-like hair that stood out even in the darkest of areas. His golden eyes glowed like the radiant sun. "Daddy look, that guy has a lobster on his head!" From afar, a little boy sat on his father''s shoulders. His little fingers pointed towards Brajus'' red hair. "What did you say?! Come here! Say it to my face! See if I don''t put a lobster on your head!" The boy''s father walked away with an awkward smile, while the boy on his head continued to laugh. Brajus'' face became as bright as a tomato. He was feeling both embarrassed and angry. "See what I said, lobster head? Haha!" Arnin laughed from behind him, which further angered Brajus. He turned around and gave Arnin a piercing glare before ignoring him once again. He touched his short, red hair and brought it in front of his eyes. He released a sigh before walking with a hunched back. His eyes seemed less alive than before and his face became duller. Arnin continued to laugh at him with mockery. Arnin calmed himself down and looked at the buildings that slowly began to reduce in numbers. Up ahead, Arnin noticed a hill that climbed towards the sky. The path widened from stone into the dirt once again. The trees were nowhere to be seen; all that was left was a smooth hill path. As Arnin approached the massive hill, he noticed a stand at the base. There was a gate that stood in front of the hill, but the passage was blocked by a few people. "Kid, we are approaching the academy gate''s so you better behave yourself." Brajus turned around and spoke to Arnin like a superior. He felt that with all the teachers that were going to be around, he had enough backing to face Arnin. Although he was trying to act high and mighty in front of Arnin, he didn''t get a single reaction from him. Even worse was the fact that Arnin was completely ignoring him. "Hey, are you listening? If you listen to me now, then maybe I can help you later. What do you say?" Brajus put on a mocking and superior smile. He tried to taunt Arnin but he didn''t notice him getting flustered or scared. Suddenly, Arnin turned and looked at him. "Lobster head, would you mind quieting down? Some people aren''t into seafood." Arnin evilly smiled towards Brajus who was about to rush towards Arnin. Dane turned and grabbed Brajus. "Go and see if the others are here or in the academy." Dane didn''t have time to bicker so he only gave a command before leaving. He then turned to Arnin and looked at him expressionlessly. "To get into the academy, you have to take an exam of talent and other small things. You can go on and do that while I go report some things to the teachers." With that, Dane left Arnin alone with Vilis. "Since the village elder isn''t here yet, I will just complete the tests. Maybe I can get accepted before he arrives." Arnin couldn''t see the village elder when he came. He still had a day before they would arrive. Arnin got off of Vilis and walked towards the entrance to the hill. He found a teacher holding a pen and paper, so he walked towards him. He inspected the teacher as he approached him and was surprised to find a cultivation level that was much higher then his own beasts. Since Arnin didn''t fully understand the realms, he didn''t know what the teacher achieved. However, it was on the same level as Avian''s, or at least around the same level. The teacher had long silver hair that reached just below his shoulders. He wore glasses with large lenses and had a small mole on his left cheek. His asphalt eyes intently stared at the piece of paper in front of him. His clothes were half black and half white. The white side had a symbol of a coal-colored moth, while the black side had a pure, paper white butterfly "Excuse me, would you happen to know where I can take the entrance exams for this academy?" Arnin politely asked the teacher. The man abruptly lifted his head and looked at Arnin with surprise. He looked down and saw the small Arnin and smiled, but when he saw the beast behind Arnin his smile froze. "Little boy, is that your beast?" The teacher had some fluctuation in his speech. He didn''t look frightened, rather he looked surprised and even somewhat envious. "Yes sir, this is my beast, Vilis. So, where can I take the exams?" Arnin went back to the main topic. He only really cared about the exams, not making small talk with a person. "Oh yes, the exams. You don''t need to go anywhere, I am one of the conductors for the exams. Well, I wouldn''t call it an exam. It is more like a talent check and battle test. So, how did you get such a beast?" The teacher seemed distracted when he spoke. He went back to the topic about the beast. "Teacher, can we talk about the beast later? Let''s first get the main things out of the way." Arnin helplessly tried to avoid the topic about the beast. He found the teacher to be quite laid back. Although Arnin didn''t mind, he still found it tiresome to answer the same questions for different people. "Oh sure. Haha. So, the talent check is extremely quick. I want to stick your hand inside this aura flame. Depending on the color that appears, we will know how high your talent is. Let me first tell you how each talent is divided from lowest to highest. Brown, Yellow, Orange, Red, Green, Blue, Purple, and White. One has to have at least Red flames to gain entry into the academy. However, if they get Brown or Yellow, their battle scores determine their entrance. Also, if there is an off chance that none of these colors appear, then one has to take an extra test. First, they would take the battle exam and only if they do well will they be allowed to do the final exam. The final exam is special so I won''t mention it right now." The teacher spoke a mouthful before finally taking a break. He released a breath and smiled towards Arnin weakly. Arnin nodded seriously. This time the test was very detailed. They incorporated the unknown as well, which Arnin found to be extremely surprising. In his past life, that was never a result. It got him thinking that maybe there were others like him and Lilise who had the black talent or some other color talent. The teacher produced a flame on his palm which seemed to be colorless. It was a weird flame that was abnormal and mysterious. Arnin lifted his hand and slowly submerged it into the mysterious element. There was no pain, or any sort of negative feeling. It felt like the wind was wrapping itself onto his hand. Suddenly the flame began to change color. It didn''t turn into any of the colors that the teacher said, which Arnin didn''t find too surprising. The teacher, on the other hand, was astonished. His eyes began to glow when he looked at Arnin. The flame color increased in height and turned pitch black tinged, with an ashen grey hue. The flame didn''t stop increasing in height. It reach the the length of a full grown man, but it still didn''t stop. Arnin noticed that the higher it grow, the greater the glow in the teachers eyes. Arnin quickly pulled his hand back and placed it by his side. The flam stopped moving and began to shrivel up. It faded into the open air and turned back into the colourless flame from before. Sweat poured down the teachers face as his breathing rapidly increased. He tried his best to collect himself, but that became too difficult so he allowed himself to act like a fool. The people from the surrounding noticed the large flame so they walked over. However, by the time they reached the location, the flame disappeared. A man that had similar clothes to the teacher walked out from the crowd and rushed towards him. He quickly stood beside the panting teacher and began to question. "Kelnorin, what was that flame I just saw from afar? Hey, are you alright?" The man addressed the glasses teacher as Kelnorin, which Arnin took note of. The man didn''t see Arnin but did notice the beast beside him. He only gave it a glance before questioning Kelnorin. "Hey, little boy, what is your name?" Kelnorin ignored the man and quickly asked Arnin. He was still unstable after the whole flame incident, but he found his footing and looked at Arnin seriously. "Teacher Kelnorin, my name is Arnin. Can we get to the battle test now?" Arnin wanted to avoid the eyes of the people since he wanted to keep a low profile [Author note: Yea Right].Kelnorin noticed that Arnin was looking at all the people watching and understood his intentions right away. "Everyone here, other than the teachers, please leave," Kelnorin shouted to the crowd before walking away with Arnin and Vilis. He stood near Arnin since he was unafraid of the beast. The surrounding people began to whisper among themselves before leaving the scene. Only a few people who wore the same attire as Kelnorin stayed behind. They followed behind and discussed something between themselves. "Why do you think Kelnorin wants us to come with him? Do you think that the abnormal flame was produced by that child?" The man that approached Kelnorin in the beginning asked an old man with white hair. "I don''t know, but it is most likely related to that child. Xillar, that child seems to have a fairly strong demonic beast. How do you think he got it?" The white-haired person spoke silently with the first man, Xillar. "I don''t have the slightest clue. Let''s see what Kelnorin has to say." Xillar followed behind but he was intently staring at Arnin and the beast. The group walked towards a less crowded area and stopped when Kelnorin halted. He turned around and looked at all the teachers seriously. He produced the same mysterious flame on his palm, and looked happily at Arnin, who helplessly shook his head. Arnin lifted his hand and placed it in the painless flame. The same coal flame with the ashen grey hue formed. It reached the height of a child before Arnin pulled his hand out. All the teachers stood dumbly. Their eyes widened, their mouth dropped and sweat appeared on their foreheads, spilling like a waterfall. Xillar weakly lifted his hand and pointed at Arnin. "K-Kelnorin, where did you find such a child?" He couldn''t restrain himself and impolitely pointed at Arnin. He swiftly recovered his trance and pushed his hand back beside him embarrassingly. "I didn''t find him anywhere. He came to me looking to take the entrance talent test, and then this happened. Arnin, would you mind telling me where you come from?" Kelnorin looked at Arnin with some excitement. He knew that Arnin was special, but he didn''t know anything about such a special child. "You will find out more tomorrow. Let''s just complete the next test so that I can rest." Arnin waved his hand and avoided the topic. The village elder would arrive tomorrow so he wanted to leave the explaining to him. "Sure sure, that''s fine too. Here let''s begin the next test to see what kind fighting ability you have." Kelnorin hesitated before speaking. "Also, we don''t allow help from outsiders, so you have to take this battle test without your beast." He didn''t know if Arnin was dependent on the beasts skills or not, but the rule said no outside help. "That was my plan from the beginning. Vilis, go stand by the side." Arnin stood in place, while Vilis stepped outside the circle and laid on the ground. "Who do I fight, or what do I do?" Arnin looked at Kelnorin with some excitement. Being the Demon Lord in his past life, he truly enjoyed fighting strong opponents. It gave him a thrill that he couldn''t explain. "You will fight a student from the academy. He will be way above your realm, but he will not do any serious damage to you. He is here to test you out, so just bear with the pain. Xillar, go call a student from the group that arrived today!" Xillar nodded and quickly disappeared. A few minutes later, Xillar returned with a student. Arnin looked at the person who was brought and couldn''t help but laugh on the inside. The person Xillar brought was Brajus. When Brajus got to the place filled with teachers he had a confused face. He looked around and saw Arnin standing in the middle. Cold sweat appeared on his back when he thought of Arnin doing something bad and his group getting the blame. "Teachers, I don''t know what this kid did, but please don''t involve me and my group. We only brought him here because he said that he was applying to this academy. Dane even thought him to be a suspicious character so we wanted the teachers to check him out. His beast was stronger than us so we couldn''t do anythi-" All the teachers present became surprised at Brajus'' outbreak. Kelnorin looked at Arnin questionably who returned him a shrug. "Brajus, calm down. There is no problem, we only want you to spar with him for the exam. However, if you don''t want to then we can ask someone else." Kelnorin smiled slightly towards Brajus, who in turn became surprised. After pausing for a bit and collecting himself, a smirk appeared on his face. This smirk, which he thought he hid well, was seen by everyone, including Arnin. "So that''s the case. Haha! I am willing to spar with him. Arnin, I will go easy on you so don''t worry about that." Brajus wickedly looked at Arnin who had been taunting and annoying him the whole trip. "Do whatever you like. I just hope that a lobster has enough meat for my beast. Haha!" Arnin vanished from sight before appearing in front of Brajus and swinging his fist towards his face. 21 Are You Really Five Years Old? *Drip Drip* A crimson liquid slowly fell to the hard, stone ground. The redness seeped into the grey bricks, traveling through the cracks, trying to get as far as possible. *Drip* Another red liquid fell on top of the previous one''s, furthering the distance they traveled. The crevices filled up with the thick and vibrant blood. Tiny pebbles drowned in the incoming bloody liquid. Hair that resembled the crimson liquid swayed in the pushing wind. Further down, a small cut appeared on the pale forehead. This cut was the origin of the red liquid; the blood trailed down the sides of the sharp nose and slid over the dilated golden eyes. It reached the rosy lips and branched into two trails. One fell from the upper lip, sometimes entering the widened mouth, the other one kept going until it reached the jaw. It took a sharp turn toward the chin and fell towards the ground. The man with the cut blankly looked at the fist that was touching his forehead. The knuckles only pierced the skin, going no deeper. The man followed the fist and found the attacker looking at him with a mocking smile. "If this was a real-life situation, then you would not be standing right now." Arnin pulled his fist back and spoke in a way that only Brajus could hear. Coldness crawled down Brajus'' spine when he heard Arnin''s words. He knew that the boy was right; if this wasn''t a sparring match, then his head would have had more than just a cut. He pulled himself together and took a deep breath. His aura slowly rose until it reached the peak of Orb Birth - Heaven. The way he looked at Arnin also changed, there was no anger or haughtiness. His golden eyes shimmered with determination, there was only battle intent and resolution in his stare. Arnin didn''t get into any position and only stared at Brajus with his undisguised scorn. His body began to also quietly reach its peak. Although one could not see Arnin in a battle stance, his aura was still building up. Kelnorin and the other teachers that were watching had wide eyes. The smiled they had on their faces touched their ears, their hands clenched into fists. They never imagined that Arnin would be able to get Brajus by surprise in such a fashion. They were also very surprised with Arnin''s cultivation realm. It wasn''t at Orb Birth - Earth like most five-year-olds, rather it was already in Orb Birth - Sky. Not only that, it seemed to be fast approaching peak level. They couldn''t help but mockingly laugh at themselves. "Arnin, seems that you are much stronger than I thought. I won''t be holding back this time, so make sure you are ready." Brajus jumped back before circling Arnin at high speed. His speed accelerated and created a dust storm. Rocks flew everywhere, and the dust created a type of smoke screen. Arnin stood in the middle calmly, his eyes looking at the storm intently, trying to pick up anything that could be abnormal. Brajus kept circling Arnin and when he found that he wasn''t moving, he leaped out of the dust cloud and rushed towards him from the back. He wasn''t using killing blows, but his fist carried a great amount of essence and power. Arnin felt the fluctuation in the air, and instead of turning his head, the first thing he did was duck his head. The fist flew above him unstably, causing Brajus'' body to fall forward because of the miss. Arnin then lifted his body upward and jumped into the air. His head directly hit Brajus'' chin, forcing him to fall backward. Brajus lifted his hands and grabbed his head. He felt dizzy and couldn''t keep his eyes open. Arnin noticed this moment of thoughtlessness and rushed towards Brajus. With the octagonal pattern in his body, Arnin was countless times stronger than when he fought Orsesa (Author note: The mother of the seven-year-old). However, he noticed that Brajus was also much stronger than Orsesa. Just as Arnin was about to go and land another blow onto Brajus, the dust suddenly dispersed. A rapid wind tornado appeared causing everything to return back to normal. Arnin turned his head and saw Kelnorin walking towards him with a smile on his face. "As a five-year-old, you are extremely gifted. You have Demon-like fighting capabilities. I wonder where you learned to fight in such a way. You are only five, so you shouldn''t have experienced much, right?" Kelnorin looked at Arnin with a cunning smile. However, he was returned with an expressionless face. Arnin didn''t puff out his chest or even accept the praises, he just looked at Kelnorin without much of a reaction. Only, there seemed to be a glint in Arnin''s eyes that no one seemed to notice. Kelnorin noticed that Arnin wasn''t going to answer, so he decided to switch the subject. "Since you did outstanding in this test, way beyond anything that I have ever seen, you can proceed to the final test." Kelnorin was very satisfied with Arnin, however even though he showed an appearance of satisfaction, no one truly understood how he felt on the inside. His back had cold sweat, while he was also holding back his trembling hands. This was not of excitement, but of fear. Arnin''s talent was way beyond that of anyone. Not only did he produce a frightening grey-black flame, his fighting skills were also on a much higher level. Kelnorin believed that if Arnin was given the same cultivation realm as him, then he would stand no chance against Arnin. He was especially frightened about how ruthless Arnin was when he fought, it was not something that he would see in a child or even in many adults. Kelnorin decided that he needed to report information about Arnin to the principle and have him decide what to do with Arnin. "Now, let me explain to you what the special test was. It is not a physical test or a talent test, rather it isn''t even a test." When Kelnorin spoke, Arnin became confused. If it wasn''t a test then what was it? Noticing the confusion on Arnin''s face, Kelnorin put his hand into his robe and pulled out a white orb. "There is a rule in our academy that only teachers know about. If a student is eligible to take the special test, they must accept three conditions in order to get into the academy. If you won''t accept them then not only will you now be able to enter the academy, you will also not be able to enter any other academy in Afloria. The reason for this is because each academy has the same special test and it cannot be changed." As Kelnorin spoke and place the orb on the ground. It didn''t roll around like a normal ball, rather it began to project a blue light that caused it to slowly lift into the air. Arnin looked intently at the orb, but couldn''t figure out what it was and what it was made of. His knowledge of the essence and everything else was too lacking to know what it was. "What are these three conditions that you speak of? I will only accept them if I find them reasonable and not too demanding." Arnin made his stance clear before receiving the conditions. If they were something that would hold him back, then there was no point in attending such a restrictive academy. Kelnorin smiled slightly before walking around the orb and standing beside Arnin. "The conditions are not too demanding, however, they will restrict you for a certain period of time. I cannot tell you the conditions myself so we will head to the academy right away so that the head of the academy can explain them to you." Kelnorin placed his hand on the orb and released some blood. The orb rapidly transformed into a set of wings that climbed flew onto the back of Kelnorin. Arnin was surprised when he saw what happened. He assumed that the orb was related to the test, but who knew that such an orb was able to turn into a set of wings. "Teacher Kelnorin, I cannot head over to the academy with you just yet. I am waiting for someone who will be attending the academy with me, so I wish to wait until they arrive before meeting with whoever you want me with." Arnin took a step backward before speaking to Kelnorin. "Umm, alright then. We will head over tomorrow. I will be away for the day, but if you need any help or have any questions then ask the teachers around here." Kelnorin quickly spoke to Arnin before flying into the air and heading towards the stoneless hill. Arnin watched him leave before turning around and walking towards the crowded area once again. Although he didn''t like to be around crowds, he found that large groups easily spread information. Arnin wanted to collect some information about the academy and anything else that he considered important. Vilis got up and followed behind Arnin, while the rest stood there blankly before walking away. Xillar didn''t walk away with the other teachers, rather he decided to chase after Arnin and ask him a few questions. "Hey, kid, wait a minute! I want to talk to you!" Xillar quickly ran towards the departing Arnin. His face glowed with excitement. Arnin stopped walking and turned around. He looked at Xillar with some annoyance. "Yes, teacher? What do you need?" Xillar stopped walking and stared at Arnin with great interest. He looked at Arnin from top to bottom. His eyes landed on the tattoos on his head and didn''t move for a few long minutes. "I just have a few things I want to ask and discuss with you. Why don''t we speak while we walk?" Xillar stretched his arm outward and allowed Arnin to begin walking first. He then flashed beside him with a quick step. Arnin didn''t act surprised, which caused Xillar to have some speculations about his age. "Let me begin with a few small questions. What is your cultivation realm? I can see that you are at Orb Birth - Sky, but you were able to defeat an Orb Birth - Heaven cultivator with ease." Xillar didn''t move his eyes away from the grey tattoos on Arnin''s forehead. He couldn''t understand how such tattoos appeared. He almost believed that they were placed there by another person, yet he couldn''t help but deny that thought. "My cultivation realm is as you say, Orb Birth - Sky. Me defeating that lobster head was only luck, plus he was really dumb." Arnin gave a vague answer, not allowing Xillar to divulge more into the topic. -------------------------------- "Achoo!" Brajus suddenly sneezed lightly. His golden eyes watered up and his nose became slightly red. He lifted his right hand and rubbed his nose with a smile. "Seems like I am being spoken about. I wonder who is talking about me. Haha!" --------------------------------------- Xillar pitifully smiled when he heard Arnin''s answer. Luck? Who would believe that after seeing the spar? Xillar just took it as Arnin not wanting to answer the question. Arnin didn''t truly want to expose his skills and other secrets about him, so he didn''t answer truthfully. He didn''t even try to think of a good reason because he knew the teacher would be able to understand his thoughts. "Before I ask you more, do you have any questions for me? Say about cultivation or the academy?" Xillar puffed out his chest when he made such a suggestion. He knew that his knowledge had to be higher than a five-year-old regarding cultivation. Arnin thought for a moment before looking at Xillar with interest. He remembered that he wanted to learn more about the orb from the scholar in his village, but because of the events that took place there, he wasn''t able to quench his thirst for knowledge. "Since you are suggesting this, then let me ask you some things." Arnin smiled towards Xillar. His obsidian eyes twinkled ever so slightly. Cultivation. It was the reason for him traveling and his reincarnation. Why wouldn''t he want to learn more? Xillar looked extremely happy with Arnin''s response. He wanted to get on Arnin''s good side in the early stages so that he would benefit later on. He was willing to be shameless if he would be able to benefit further down the line. "Ask away, young grasshopper." Arnin lifted one eyebrow but chose not to comment on such a name. "Well, I wanted to learn about ways one can strengthen the orb threads in the body. For example, if I want to boost eyesight for a short period of time or boost my strength for a period. How would I accomplish that?" Arnin had always wondered if Afloria had something similar to the symbols he had in his body. Those symbols were able to strengthen his body indefinitely and even increase strength to a further level for a short period of time. However, the symbols were not completely in sync with the orbs; he wanted to know if the world had something similar that was tailor-made for the orb. Xillar looked at Arnin with astonishment. He looked away for a few minutes and began to ponder the question. "Well, there is a way to do that, but one can only accomplish such a task if they enter Essence Manifest Realm, however even then, the strengthening wouldn''t be too great. If I recall correctly, one can have characters placed in their body by a type of Mark Master." Xillar spoke with great admiration, however, there was also a seriousness in his voice. He looked at Arnin before opening his mouth once more. ''Why do you ask such a question? Do you want to get such characters in your body, or is there a different reason?" His eyes glimmered as he intently inspected the tattoos on Arnin''s head. They didn''t look like characters, but he had a thought that maybe they were linked to Mark Masters. Arnin was glad that there was a way to strengthen the body. What made him even happier was that this strengthening came in the shape of a character, which would be similar to his symbols. Mark Masters? Arnin thought of this job title but began to ponder deeply about how he should acquire a person with such skill, or if he was able to gain the abilities himself. Xillar looked at Arnin and noticed that he didn''t ask about Mark Masters right away, or even about how to speed up cultivation. In his experience, children would ask about cultivation increase tips and other common things, however, Arnin asked such an unexpected question. A thought appeared in his mind that he at first wanted to scratch, but couldn''t help but not push away. "Arnin, are you truly a five-year-old, or are you disguising as one?" 22 Controlling the White Saber "Arnin, are you truly a five-year-old, or are you disguising as one?" A question that Arnin never thought would be thought of, was asked of him at that moment. He maintained his calm appearance and only smiled at Xillar, however, a killing intent began to brew inside of him. He now wanted to get rid of the overly smart Xillar. "If you want to consider me as someone who has disguised as a five-year-old, then you are welcomed to do so." Arnin looked dead into the eyes of Xillar. His expression remained unchanged, but his eyes carried a hint of murder. Xillar felt a chill run down his spine. For some unknown reason, he wanted to get on his knees and apologize. He didn''t understand why he felt this way, but the more fear he felt, the more he thought Arnin to be abnormal. "Don''t get me wrong, I just think that your fighting style is not something one would see in a five-year-old, plus your demeanor greatly differs from those around you." Xillar pulled himself together and casually spoke with Arnin. He found the feeling to be weird and frightening, but it also left so suddenly that he couldn''t completely understand it. "Whatever, since you asked me your question, let me ask you mine. What is Mark Masters? How do I become one?" Arnin, although uncomfortable with Xillar''s question, wanted to continue asking his own. He wanted to learn more about these Mark Masters that had similar techniques to his own. Xillar didn''t show much surprise to hear Arnin''s question, he only nodded and began to explain. "Well, Mark Masters are very important people in Afloria. They are able to insert different marks into our body that help with restoration, strengthening and much more. Not only that, they are able to concoct pills as well, although not as well as Alchemists, they aren''t that bad either. They are very important, it is harder to find a Mark Master then an alchemist. It is just more difficult to become one." Xillar released a sigh of reluctance. He shook his head and continued his explanation. "Now, to become one, a person needs especially high Mental Strength. Without it being strong, then people can forget about it. We can do a test for your Mental strength soon if you would like." Xillar didn''t go into a detailed explanation but did talk about the some of the important parts. Arnin remembered that his Mental Strength was considered extremely high. No one knew that, but when he judged Nekaia''s strength and how Avian spoke about it, he assumed he was high as well. "Let''s do a test then. I want to know if my Mental Strength meets the mark. If it doesn''t, I won''t ask anything more about Mark Masters." Arnin decided that he would only ask more if he could become one. If he couldn''t pass the test, then there wasn''t a reason for him to ask about them. Xillar nodded and waved at Arnin to follow him. "Usually, mental strength, or Animo, is tested for before cultivation. It would allow for a person to see the Animo someone has before their strength begins to grow, however, there is an alternative test." Xillar didn''t stop talking while they walked towards an open area. The place was brimming with people who showered in the intense light of the sun. (Author note: I am going to call the star giving them light the sun as well. Just makes it easier to understand :] ) "This alternative requires one to be in a place full of sunlight. This is the best place we got down here." Arnin nodded and proceeded with Xillar. The people in the place ignored Arnin''s presence because they didn''t recognize him, but they allowed Xillar through unhindered. His teacher robe had a good effect on the people who were yet to be in the academy. The crowd also made room for Vilis; he was just too scary and gave off a very strong aura. "Well, what do you want me to do now?" Arnin turned around and looked at Xillar after he stood in the center of the place. It was very bright where the sun spat most of its brightness, mostly because there were little buildings nearby. "Now that there is a good amount of sunlight, we can begin the Animo test. This is going to be somewhat rough, but it is an accurate test. Here!" Xillar pulled out a book from his robe and threw it towards Arnin. It was a brown book with scratches and craters. The book was in terrible shape and looked like it was extremely old. Arnin caught the book and looked at Xillar in confusion. He knew that the book was for the test but he didn''t know how to use it for the test. "Do you want me to write in it or something? What do I do with this?" Arnin asked simply. He was getting a little excited because he would find out whether he could use Animo or not, but his dull face and undetermined eyes showed otherwise. "That was a great guess. Yes, we will write something, but not inside the book. The book lists a series of marks that a beginner Mark Master must be able to draw. I want you to draw as many as you can on the ground." Xillar smiled towards Arnin when he mentioned drawing the marks. Arnin nodded his head and was ready to begin drawing, but he paused. The test seemed too easy, there must be a catch. Arnin placed the book on the ground and look towards Xillar. He had wondered since the mention of this test as to why Xillar always looked so reluctant about the test and how he had possession of the book of marks. Arnin had a feeling that not every teacher carried the book around, so why did Xillar? "Teacher, I have a few questions before we begin." Arnin could start the test in a few minutes, but he wanted to know more and possibly pick up some hints about the test. "You can ask me anything, but I will not explain the test details and ho to go through with it. I already told you everything that I can, but go on. What is your question or questions?" Xillar put on a meek smile when he first heard Arnin wanted to ask him some questions. He felt that Arnin was very smart to not start the test right away and gather some information. This was an important skill to have, but somewhat difficult to develop. One needs to know when to ask and what to ask exactly. Now he needed to see whether Arnin knew what to ask exactly. "My first question is this, have you ever tried this test yourself?" Arnin didn''t hold back and went for his first question. It was a question that didn''t dig too deep into his past, but well enough for Arnin to derive more clues. Xillar smiled and then nodded. "I have taken this test in the past, next question." Xillar didn''t say anything else, only a straightforward reply that could not give any other info. Arnin nodded and fell into a silence. Xillar took the test before and he was holding the book of marks. He either passed the test and is a Mark Master himself, or he failed it and tests others. "My next question is about the sunlight. Can we absorb essence from it or not?" Arnin remembered that the test could only be done in sunlight, which means that the sunlight had something that affected the test. The only think Arnin could think of was the worldly essence, but that may not be the case. The sun was outside of Afloria, so it wouldn''t have the exact same properties as the essence in Afloria. However, because the sun was still in the reclusive space where the abnormal essence resided, there were some connections. "Arnin, you seem to be picking some things up. The essence of the sun is absorbable, but the way it is processed is different. The essence of Afloria has a combination of different elements and some strange factors, however, the Sun''s essence is different. It has only two properties; life and fire. These two are the components that make up the sun''s essence." Xillar smiled and explained in detail. He was happy to see that Arnin was getting closer to the trick behind Mark Masters. He was also extremely frightened by how smart and cunning Arnin was. The questions were not directly related to mark making, rather they focused on the other factors that support the creation of a mark. "Last question, well more like a theory that needs confirmation. I have an idea as to what I should do, but I just need you to tell me if it is right or not." Arnin gathered everything that he knew about the essence and the orb and thought of a theory. It was a long shot, but he wanted to test it out and see whether it would work. It may not be orthodox, but if it worked, then that''s all that would matter. Xillar gave a deep nod and continued to pay attention to Arnin''s movements. Arnin lifted his hand in the air and directed his orb threads towards the tips of his finger. "What I am doing is using my threads to gather some of the solar essences. I will not absorb them, rather I will use them directly to create a symbol." Arnin briefed his plan to Xillar, who listened with a gaping mouth. His eyes were widening in disbelief as sweat rained down his face like raindrops on leaves. He took a couple steps back before slowly sitting on the ground. He continued to watch Arnin with a dry tongue, unable to make any words come out. ''This kid is a demon! Creating his own Mark method without even being one yet? I have to tell the Principal about this!'' Xillar was unable to calm down. He, in the past, also did the Mark Master test, however, he failed to draw even one mark. He was just unable to figure out how. Yet, in front of him was a boy, that was only five-years-old, who was creating his own method for Mark creation when he wasn''t even able to figure out what to ask. Xillar wanted to find a hole and just sit in silence. He was too ashamed to even look at Arnin. Arnin''s threads rapidly made their way to his fingers, then he lifted his hand into the shining sun rays, soaking his hand in their light. He then began to guide his threads into sucking the solar essence, but Arnin only felt the essence of the world coming into him. Arnin wasn''t surprised by this because he had never absorbed anything other than worldly essence. His hand stayed in the air while Arnin fell into a trance. He needed to find a way to absorb the solar essence. Arnin remembered Xillar saying that the properties of solar essence were life and fire. He knew that these two correlated very well, a fire could give birth to life and flames can be reborn, gaining life. These two had good connections, but Arnin was not a specialist with these two elements. As a Demon Lord, Arnin had worked with the darker side of the elements, which revolved around death. Suddenly it hit him. Death and life were, as many knew, inseparable. Arnin remembered that he had four powers stored inside of him. His original sealed power, the orb power, the tattoos which had the ability to control his main power, and lastly the white saber. That saber was created through the mixing of the orb and tattoos, it went through a birth and got a life. Although it wasn''t a living thing, it was its own power system. Not only that, the saber had some relations to flame, possibly a higher level flame. Arnin decided that a way to absorb the solar essence lied in using the saber. He needed to find a way to control it or at least put it into use. Arnin pulled his hand back from the sunlight and switched his eyes into the place where the saber was dormant. He had some information from the blade; it was created from the tattoos and the orb. The orb had the ability to absorb essence and help increase or decrease strength. It was the base of his body. The tattoo, however, had the capability to control. He didn''t know any other abilities other than that, but it was something extremely useful. If absorption and control were combined, then both abilities would significantly benefit the other. The saber most likely had this power. Arnin had to find a way to control this power, but how? He knew it wouldn''t fall under him because of his lack of strength, but what else was there. Suddenly, Arnin recalled that his orb absorbed some of his original powers, giving them higher strength and a more sinister aura. If he weakened the blade with his orbs and used the tattoos to control it, would it work? Arnin knew that he would only find out after he gave it a shot. Arnin sent out a large cluster of threads and firmly grabbed onto the white blade. The gaseous white flame that was being released from the saber slowly burnt away some of the threads. Arnin watched in surprise, but he continued to add more threads onto the blade. With the orb providing with a large number of threads, the blade wasn''t able to burn them all away. It was finally completely covered with threads. Arnin then had the threads release the numbing reagent and weaken the saber. Although, numbing a blade would affect it much, but this blade was spiritual and the threads were a lot stronger. The blade, being numbed intensely from all sides, began to lose its flare. The weakening was working, which elated Arnin. Next, Arnin had the tattoos ram into the saber and firmly hold onto it. Arnin learned something about the orb which surprised him greatly; it was able to absorb almost any type of power and increase its own strength. Learning this made Arnin extremely happy, he couldn''t help but grin widely. Outside of Arnin''s body, a small crowd had gathered and were watching closely. Xillar was also very serious when he was watching Arnin. When Arnin began his trial to control the White Blade, his body began to secrete a white flame mixed with black threads. Not only that, but his three tattoos were completely lit up. Rather than looking like a five-year-old, Arnin''s powers made him look more like his previous Demon Lord form. The three tattoos look like live horns, while the threads and flames mixed to create giant pressure and figure. The presence was aspiring yet dreadful. Xillar and the surrounding people couldn''t help but gulp and breath heavily. A teacher walked over to Xillar with an extremely serious face. He looked at Arnin before turning his head towards Xillar. "Go and call the principal, right now! Things are becoming serious!" Xillar lost his playful, teacher-like visage and looked more noble and commanding. He was like a completely different person. "This child is not simple. He may actually not be a child! We need the principal to look at him, now!" 23 The First Mark The white saber dimmed as the weakening progressed. The threads were strong in their ability to weaken and the tattoos were also not falling behind in their control. The light they shot out was slowly taking control over bits and pieces of the blade. If the saber was any stronger, than the whole situation would have been hopeless. However, with the weakening and controlling abilities being used at the same time, the process was moving quite smoothly. Arnin was delighted to see that his plan was working. If he could control the blade then he would be able to continue with his marking test. Although, if he used the tattoo and the threads together, the effect would be similar, but there was a problem with this. He was unable to guarantee that another problem like the one that occured in the cave, would recur. Not just that, but the blade would have an equilibrium between the abilities, allowing for more precise control. The blade was just a much better way to continue with the procedure. -------------------------------------------- Outside his body, Arnin was unable to notice that a group of teachers had appeared. Not only that, but Kelnorin was standing on the side, observing seriously. When he had arrived to the location, he questioned Xillar as to what was going on. When he heard about the situation, he couldn''t help but take the matter extremely seriously. Beside Kelnorin was a middle aged man. His hair was tied up and placed behind him, his slender figure releasing a domineering aura. His resting abyssal hair swayed under the wind pressure that Arnin was creating. This man was the principal of Lepidoptera Academy. He wore a similar robe, but his was golden. The moth and butterfly were the same as the other robes however. "Xillar, Kelnorin, this is the boy? The one that has to go through the third test?" The principal looked at Arnin calmly. His eyes contained a hint of pleasure when he saw what Arnin was doing. He couldn''t help but be gratified that such a gifted student was coming to his academy. Kelnorin and Xillar saw the hint of happiness and pleasure, and couldn''t help but say something. "Principal Alastar, this boy may be a danger to us. Shouldn''t we lock him up or even¡­" Kelnorin was very happy when he first met Arnin. However, after he saw Arnin''s current state, he was feeling threatened. He didn''t know if Arnin would become a disaster to the academy in the future, which was why he wanted to get rid of him early. He would rather sacrifice a child for his academy than the other way around. Talents appeared everywhere. Although rare, they would still appear randomly. Arnin was just too talented and could even be slightly dangerous. "Kelnorin, as a teacher, why are you saying such things? Didn''t you want to recommend this child for the third test? Isn''t he what you called the Demon talent? So why are you becoming too hasty now?" Alaster joked with Kelnorin. He also felt a threat from Arnin, but he didn''t want to get rid of him. He wanted to allow Arnin to grow and see what would become of him in the future. "Principal, I know that I have suddenly changed my mind, but this child could become a major threat. We need to ensure the safety¡­" Alaster lifted his hand to quiet Kelnorin down. "We will do no such thing. He will also not do the third test...yet. Right now, we will allow him to join the academy and treat him like any other student. He will receive adequate guidance and will not be given special privileges. I will think of something later on, but for now we will only observe him." The principal walked away from Arnin, leading many teachers with him. "Also, do not mention our gathering to him for now. Xillar, you stay here and continue with the test. The rest of you, get back to position. Make sure he doesn''t find out that I came!" With that said, Alastar disappeared from sight. Kelnorin and the rest took one last glance at Arnin before also disappearing. Xillar stood alone. It was still bright outside and the crowd of people that were here left when the teachers gathered. Luckily, that crowd did not hear anything about the principal or anything related to Arnin, or they would have gotten in deep trouble. He continued to watch Arnin with a relaxed look. "I truly hope that you don''t become something that must be destroyed in the future." ---------------------------------------------------------------- Inside of Arnin''s body, the blade that was previously dimmed and going through the process of being controlled, floated in his mind. The white flames returned to normal and the blade was no longer unmovable. Arnin was extremely delighted that he could control the saber now. Although he was limited to using very little power from the blade, it was still more than enough for him. The blade floated in front of the cube that sealed his powers, not going higher or lower. It was like a trapped mouse. Arnin thought of controlling the saber with his mind and extracted some power from it. Unlike the bright light rays from the tattoos, the threads from the orb and the gas from his sealed power, the saber didn''t release anything. The whole blade itself transported to the location where it was needed. Arnin was bewildered by the discovery. He followed the blade to his fingers, but he found that the blade only got as far as his palm. It didn''t go to his fingers. Arnin was confused but also somewhat worried. He needed the blade to get to his fingers in order to make this work. If that didn''t happen, then how would he create marks? Just as Arnin was crazily thinking of ways to make the blade go to his fingers, the blade began to split. The single blade turned into five similar ones. All the new blades had the same characteristics and looks; white with grey. It was then that it hit Arnin. The blade didn''t release a type of branch, rather it was able to create more versions of itself and use those as branches. The multiple blades traveled to his fingers and pierced through, however Arnin felt no pain. Rather, he felt a weird energy begin to enter his body. He hurriedly came out of his body and was astonished by the sight. His fingers had white blades coming out, which looked somewhat like nails. Not only that, but the blades were surrounded by multiple colors. Arnin tried to feel them out and understood that all of these were the colors of essence. Although there was the worldly essence in there, Arnin also felt some other essences. After thinking for a few minutes, Arnin figured that there were essences from sun as well as other places, however what he needed was the essence from the sun. Arnin quickly soaked his hand in the sunlight, which increased the amount of red and white. He was able to see that the red and white were brighter than the other colors. Arninassumed that these were the life and flame essence from the sun. He was now able to gather solar essence, which let him complete step one. The next part was about him figuring out a way to isolate these two essences onto his fingers. He only needed the flame and life solar essences, nothing else. Since he had the saber under his control, he was able to easily think of a good method to complete this. What he thought of was having another saber coming out of his palm, but this piece will absorb all the essences except the solar ones. He would take the solar essence with his fingers while the rest would go to his palm. Arnin had his palm begin absorbing the essence, whenever he felt a solar essence make its way to his palm, he would use his finger saber blades to wrap them up and drag it back towards themselves. This was the first time Arnin was executing such a skill, so he had to do everything manually. After his control over his blades increased and his knowledge on the essences furthered, then he would be able to make the process much quicker. --------------------------------------------------------------------- Xillar watched on the side with astonishment. Although he felt a threat from Arnin, now that Arnin was able to control his blade, and the orb and tattoos were silent, he went back to his previous harmless look. However, Xillar did not expect that Arnin would grow claws or white blades from his fingers. When he saw the essence gathering around the white blades, he was even more astounded. How could a five-year-old have such an ability? He just couldn''t believe it. "Now that I can gather solar essence, what I need to do next is the most important part. I needed to find the best way to create the mark using the solar essence. Luckily I was able to isolate the solar essence to my fingers, so I won''t need to worry about the interference of the other essence types." Arnin suddenly began to explain what he was doing. Xillar was grateful that Arnin was doing such a thing. Although he wouldn''t explain how he accomplished the things he was doing, it still helped to know what his goal was for each step. "Since the solar essences are isolated from the rest, now I can do the most important step. The goal for me right now is to find the sequence needed to create each mark. As I am working with solar essence which has only two components, I can find the sequence easily. There is really only two, either life is first or second. But that isn''t the hard part, the most difficult part is to understand how much of each component is needed." Arnin kept explaining calmly as he flipped to the first page in the book. The first page consisted of about a hundred marks. The name of the mark was written down, as well as how it looked. Arnin nodded when he saw the first mark. It was called Hal. It looked like ''Z'' that was rotated slightly and the ends each had a circle. It was a simple mark that didn''t require much. Arnin began his first test, he started drawing with his first theory about the essence components. The sequence that he chose was life-flame-life. Life is born into the world through birth and creation, using lots of power, then the life loses its flame and dies. With the burning of the life, rebirth occurs through the flames of death, creating new life. This was his thinking and so he chose the sequence that he did. The first life he would use would create half of the mark, then the flames would create a small twenty percent. The second life would use thirty percent. He needed a mark that would be one hundred percent essence, so this was his way of going about it. He began to finally create the mark. Xillar, who was watching, knew that this was a vital step, so he held his breath and watched carefully. He didn''t want to make a single sound. Arnin used his index finger to draw. The blade that was coming out touched the ground and began to release the essence the way that Arnin wanted. Arnin decided to draw the main base of the mark with the life component. The base was about seventy percent of the mark so he could not completely cover it in life essence. He stopped drawing after he got a good part of the base done, next came the red flame component. This would be much harder to control then the calm life component. The flames would become chaotic and move around rapidly. He needed to contain in the spot that he needed to fill. Red essence released from his fingers when he began. Sparks flew out, causing the mark to twist somewhat, looking life-like. Arnin knew that this meant the flame component was taking over more than just the twenty percent. It was trying to control the base as well. The blade increased in length, releasing the white flames that it was made of. This helped to increase the control over the flame component, but it still wasn''t enough. Arnin began to think of a way to make the flames more calm. Xillar watched silently from the side, sweat pouring down his forehead. He saw that the red component was moving against what Arnin wanted, which meant something was going wrong. He wanted to step in, but he knew that this test was meant to be done by the individual. "I am sorry Arnin, but you must complete this yourself." (Author note: Boi, Arnin can do it, why don''t you just watch from the side? ;). Peasant!) Xillar clenched his fists. Suddenly, Arnin''s finger blade stabbed through the ground where the mark was being drawn. However, it stabbed into the ground where the flame mark was supposed to be drawn. His finger then moved the blade through the path where the flame component was supposed to go. The chaos ended and the flame component was more calm. Arnin used his pinky blade to fix the life component, which the flames ruined. Half an hour passed by, and Arnin finally completed the base. All that was left was the circles on each end. Arnin changed his plans when this came around. At first, he wanted to complete the mark with the life component, but he found that his white flames actually had a similar, yet stronger form of the life component. Plus, the white flame also had the properties of the flame component, which would make a better finish. Arnin began to create the circles, but he did not do them one by one. The only way to complete the mark was if he made the circles at the exact same time. He knew this because of his past experience with his own symbols. Arnin began to create the circles, which took him over an hour. The circles, which were the last, and should have been easiest step, were in actuality the hardest and most dangerous. The circles were meant to finally link the whole mark together, which was why the life component would not be able to complete the step. One needed all components involved to complete the step. The mark was finally completed. Arnin took a deep breath and fell onto his back and layed on the ground. Sweat was pouring down his forehead and down his cheek. His chest was rising and falling, while the blades went back into his body. All of a sudden, the completed mark began to shine in a golden light. It was so intense that both Arnin and Xillar had to block the light with their hands. They were unable to directly look at it. "Arnin, what is going on?" Xillar called out from the side. When he saw the mark being completed he was extremely excited, but with the turn of events, he became worried. "I don''t know! Let''s just wait and see." Arnin didn''t turn back. There was also worry written on his face. Although this was his first time creating a mark, and the process was actually very different from the symbols, he didn''t want to fail after he completed the final step. Ten minutes flew by, the golden light dispersed. Arnin moved his arm away and rubbed his eyes. After the blurriness disappeared, he saw a strange sight. The mark that was previously created from three colors, was now one. The color of the mark was an extreme pink. The mark looked the same, but the power that it exuded was ten times the one from before. Arnin looked in astonishment. Xillar who saw Arnin''s reaction chose to walk over as well. When he saw the pink mark, he couldn''t help but release a shout of surprise. "That mark was completed! Not only that it blended into the pink level!" 24 Mark Master Arnin became confused after Xillar''s exclamation. What was pink level? He could also see that his mark was pink, but what did that mean? Was it strong, weak, or extremely rare? Xillar noticed Arnin''s blank face. He couldn''t help but sigh at Arnin''s talents. "There are different levels of Mark Masters and marks. This is something that you should have already guessed. ''Being a demon talent''." Xillar whispered something under his breath that Arnin couldn''t catch, but he decided to ignore it. "The marks one creates are separated into eight strengths: orange, pink, yellow, green, blue, purple, white, silver. The first is the weakest and the last is the strongest." Arnin began to understand what was going on. He was able to create a pink mark which was the second type of mark one should be able to create. "Then what I created is not something a beginner should be able to make? That''s understandable. My method is unorthodox so things would of course be different. I am also guessing that each level of mark determines the strength of a Mark Master." Arin basically understood how a Mark Master''s strength was determined. "Umm¡­ yea. Arnin you are a little too smart for your age, you should make sure that you are careful though. Some don''t like the smart." Xillar gave out a friendly warning. He didn''t want Arnin getting killed prematurely because of his wits. (Author note: Didn''t you just want to kill him? Faker!) "What? Are you saying that there may be people who want to get rid of me? If they come after me, they might not be able to return, so I don''t mind. Now, back to the test. What is the strength of my Animo?" Arnin knew he could handle many people, but that could only happen if he relied on his sealed strength. He wasn''t worried about his life, rather he was worried that he would have to one day release his powers, which would ruin his whole reason to reincarnate. Xillar couldn''t help but widen his mouth because of Arnin''s confidence. However, after he felt Arnin''s terrifying aura, he knew that Arnin was not as weak as he seemed. "Of course! So the way Animo is measured is very similar to cultivation levels. Just as the first level of cultivation is Orb Birth - Earth, the first level for Animo is Animo Birth - Earth." Arnin nodded his head when he understood this. Although both Animo and the Orb were related to an individual''s power, they were still separate systems. Animo was spiritual power that used the mind, while the orb was more physical that used the whole body. "Well, what level would I be at?" Arnin understood the basics'', so he just wanted to know where he stood. "Your Animo is difficult to understand because of the way you made the mark. Usually, Animo is unseeable until one reaches a frightening stage, however I was able to see a form for your Animo." The more Xillar spoke, the more Arnin understood the saber. He didn''t know what the blade was at first, but it seemed like it was related to Animo. If the orb was his power, then that could only mean that the tattoo were his Animo. If his orb and Animo were able to mix to create the saber, then that blade was possibly something frightening that could use the powers of both Animo and the orb. "The what about my Mark Master level? We can discuss Animo later, but what I want to know is whether I am able to be called a Mark Master." Arnin figured that his tattoos were his Animo holders, which explained how they had the ability to control other things. Animo was based around one''s ability to control the essence and other powers. "Your Mark Master rank is pink. Just the like the eight colors for marks, the Mark Masters are also differentiated through those colors. You really are a talent Arnin, I have never heard of someone skipping Mark Master levels on their first trial. You are the first." Xillar couldn''t help but praise Arnin''s talents. Not only did Arnin create his own method of mark making, but he also skipped a level of Mark Masters. Xillar couldn''t help but self-mockingly laugh. He wasn''t able to even pass the test, let alone skip a level. Arnin was just too talented. "Oh yes, Arnin. I got a message from Kelnorin saying that the three conditions don''t have to be discussed anytime soon. He said to just proceed into the academy after you finish with your test here. You are officially a student of Lepidoptera Academy!" Xillar took his hand out and brought it in front of Arnin for a shake. Arnin raised one eyebrow, but didn''t move his hand. "What happened? What''s with the sudden change?" Xillar was surprised that Arnin didn''t shake his hand or even seem happy. "I don''t know what happened, but it seems like the three conditions are to be given at a certain age. You are not of that age, so you don''t have to receive them yet." Xillar went ahead and made up a lie. He couldn''t tell Arnin that the principal made the decision when he saw him. Seeing that Xillar wanted to hide something, Arnin thought that he would investigate the issue himself. For now, he was considered a student of the academy so they had to have some resistance towards him. Arnin brought his small hand into Xillar''s and moved it up and down. "Well, thanks then. You can explain the rules of the academy tomorrow. I have to wait for some people who will be arriving tomorrow, so I am going to find a place to stay. Unless you have a place that students can reside in?" Arnin questionably looked at Xillar. As an academy, they must have a place for students to stay, at least in the town that they protected. "Of course we have a place for students. I will have a student lead you there. I am going to go and get you a student robe and identity card. I will come back tomorrow." Xillar quickly explained the plan. Arnin was okay with being led by a student. He didn''t mind who led him, as long as he made it to his destination. "Just to clarify with you, my beast, Vilis, will be staying with me in the academy and in the student houses. This is not me asking you, but telling you." Arnin didn''t give Xillar an option when it came to Vilis. Xillar didn''t hesitate and nodded. "That is no problem. We will just need to assign a ''tamed beast'' card. It will tell others that Vilis is under your protection." Arnin nodded. Xillar turned around and rushed to find a student to lead Arnin to the student quarters. Ten minutes passed when he came running with a group of students. When Arnin saw the group, he couldn''t help but release a smile. It was Dane''s group. "You guys are already heading over to the student housings, so take him there as well. Tell the people from the front desk that he will be getting a free room, and put it under teacher Kelnorin''s name. Hehe!" Xillar smirked when he thought of using Kelnorin''s name for the housing and how he would react. Dane looked at Arnin and couldn''t help but nod. He already knew about what happened between Arnin and Brajus. Dane understood that Arnin was extremely strong, and Brajus didn''t have the same hate that he did before. Brajus only disliked Arnin because he assumed that Arnin was a danger, but he later found out that Arnin was actually going to attend the academy. Dane''s group however, did not have the same thought process. They only remembered surrounding Arnin and getting ready to attack him. "Teacher, this kid is dangerous. We can''t take him to the student house. We found him alone in the forest that was under our school''s protection. He is too suspicious." The young boy with the spiky black hair spoke out. He was the one that looked similar to Brajus and was the one that Arnin heard when he was by the lake. "Student Lekro, this is Arnin. He has passed the requirements to join the academy and is now a fellow student of yours. You will treat him the way you treat your other classmates, do you understand?" Lekro shook under the yell of Xillar. He never thought that Arnin would become a student of the academy. "Yes, teacher Xillar." His voice came out like a whisper. Lekro couldn''t help but glare at Arnin for getting him trouble. "Dane, you will be in charge of Arnin until tomorrow. I know I can trust you, so make sure he gets his room and comes to the academy after meeting with whoever." Xillar spoke to Dane with seriousness. He understood Dane''s quiet but mature personality. "Got it." Dane agreed without any hesitation. He didn''t have hate for Arnin, only suspicion, but now that Xillar was able to confirm that Arnin was a student of the academy, his suspicions dropped. ---------------------------------------------------- Arnin and Vilis silently followed the behind the group. "Why didn''t you tell us that you were going to the academy?" Lekro pulled back and spoke to Arnin questionably. "I''ve always wanted to speak to a person with short term memory." Arnin mocked Lekro. "What did you call me? I have a great memory!" Lekro defended himself. Anger was written all over his face. Why was Arnin teasing him for no reason? "Lekro, Arnin did tell us. We just didn''t listen to him." Dane spoke up before things got worse. Arnin mentioned the reason he was in the forest alone, but they were just too blinded with suspicions to even listen to him. Lekro became extremely embarrassed. He asked a dumb question and thought that Arnin was mocking him. He scratched his head and became silent. "Arnin, since we are now fellow students, let me brief how the academy works." Arnin nodded his head while he walked. "The academy has two groups of people; the butterflies and the moths. The butterfly are the normal students who receive normal education and are the largest group in the academy. My group falls under this category. We have normal talent and have average cultivation rates. The Moth group consist of the talented students. They recieve much higher education and resources, however it is harder to survive there as well. The talented have to earn their resources and education, they don''t just recieve it." Dane spoke about the two groups for a bit. The others had a look of worship when the Moth''s were mentioned. "From what I know, you will most likely enter the Moth group in the near future, however you will begin in the butterfly group." Dane''s words were like a lightning strike to the others. Lekro couldn''t help but look at Arnin with surprise. He lifted his finger and pointed at Arnin, trembling slightly. "H-he is going to the Moth group? How? He doesn''t seem talented." Lekro went into denial. He couldn''t accept the fact that Arnin was going into the Moth group. "It is true, Lekro. He defeated Brajus during the battle test. He has more than enough talent to go into the Moth group." Dane confirmed Arnin''s talents. Dane looked at Arnin for a few seconds before turning his head. He was also surprised when he heard that Arnin was able to defeat Brajus in a fight. He felt Arnin''s cultivation when he first met him. He knew that Arnin was only in Orb Birth - Sky level. However with the Brajus confirming that Arnin truly did defeat him, Dane had no choice but to believe it as the truth. "Arnin, I am not in the Moth group so I can''t explain much about it, but I am able to tell you some things about the butterfly group. We are larger in number, but by the time we leave the academy we will either be in Orb Birth - Heaven, Essence Manifest - Earth, or even Essence Manifest - Sky. However, the last one is rarely seen." Arnin understood that the students of the Butterfly group did not have high talent. "What about the Moth group? What is their cultivation in the end?" Arnin needed to know how fast they grew so that he would understand the speed he would grow at, or at least approximate the rate of growth for himself. "The Moth group is special. The talent there is very different. The lowest of the talents graduated with Essence Manifest - Heaven. Everyone else would usually graduate by entering the Elemental Formation realm." Everyone in the group released a sigh. They couldn''t help but feel dejected about the fact that they would not achieve that realm, any time soon. Arnin nodded his head and silently remembered the realm''s name. He finally found the name of the realm after Essence Manifest. If a student was able to achieve such a realm, then that meant the world had many realms that he could achieve. He became excited about increasing his cultivation to levels that were only achieved by the strongest. Dane noticed Arnin''s excitement and didn''t say anything. Who wouldn''t be excited after learning that they would join a group where only the talented gathered? "Arnin, you have to remember this though. The Moth group is very competitive. Fights happen very often because resources are limited. Only the strong are able to receive anything in that group. I recommend that you join another party so that you can receive some resources as well." Dane warned Arnin from the goodness of his heart. He didn''t have any negative feelings towards him anymore, so he was willing to provide some tips. "Thanks Dane. Your information is helpful, I will keep this favor in mind." Arnin decided that he would spare Dane in the future if they became enemies, but it would only be a one time spare if he decided to fight him again and again, then he would of course rip him to shreds. Dane felt that Arnin didn''t look that thankful. He also felt Arnin to look somewhat frightening when he smiled at him. As the group proceeded on, a large building came into sight. It was very tall, and was shaped like a small castle. The materials looked like limestone and glass. The windows were tinted with red, which Arnin assumed was a defense mechanism. The white walls also had some black symbols here and there. Arnin gave them a short glance before turning his head towards the towering door. "Arnin, this is the student building in the town. It is well protected by a barrier and is hard to invade. We will be staying here until tomorrow." Dane walked up to the large doors and grabbed onto the handles. He pulled and the doors slowly opened. The creaking of the door seemed to annoy Vilis greatly, as he went prone onto the ground, covering his ears with his giant paws. Arnin ignored the actions of the beast and only stared straight ahead. When the doors finally completely opened, the group walked in, Arnin following behind. Entering the large building, what met Arnin was not an open area or high ceilings, rather it was a closed space where there was nothing but a front desk and two doors. Dane walked to the front desk and pulled out his identification card. The rest did the same thing. "Dane we will meet you in our rooms later. Hurry up though!" Lekro spoke out before walking through the door on the right with the rest. Dane stayed behind to get Arnin sorted out. The person in the front was a woman with long, brown hair. She looked to be around the same age as Ashia, probably a little older. She had toffee brown skin. Her eyes were black like charcoal. She carriedsmile on her face which reached her ears. It was a pleasant smile that made people feel welcomed, other then Arnin. He didn''t like her smile. he felt it was too forced and even somewhat annoying. "Miss Fae, this is Arnin. He is a new student that was appointed by Teacher Kelnorin and Teacher Xillar. He is going to be staying here for a night before heading to the academy tomorrow. The beast beside him is his and will be accompanying him. Teacher Xillar told me to get him a room in this place under Teacher Kelnorin''s name, so would you mind getting that ready for him?" Dane did the introduction without missing a beat. Arnin stood by the side in silence. He just wanted to get a room and rest. Fae nodded. She looked at Arnin before walking through the door behind her. A few minutes later she came out with a purple key in hand. "Young man, you will be staying in a room that is on the lower floor. Since you have a beast, you will get a larger room, however it will be on the lowest floor. Are you alright with that?" Fae asked Arnin with an apologetic tone. "You see, we don''t get people who have beasts with them, so no one has ever used the lowest room. If you would like, I can make the room yours permanently?" Arnin nodded his head and walked through the door that led downstairs. "I will take the room then. Thanks. Dane, you can go. I like the quiet, so I will be good. Vilis, let''s go!" Arnin nodded towards the two before disappearing with Vilis. "Miss Fae, just put everything under teacher Kelnorin''s name. He will make the payments. Remember to look after that kid, he will be joining the Moth later on. He is very talented." Dane said his piece and went through the door on the right. "Another Moth? That kid looks stronger and¡­ more dangerous than the rest. Let''s see what happens in the future." Fae smiled wickedly before walking back into the room behind her. 25 We Meet Again Once Arnin entered the door on the left, what met him was a spiraling staircase that led downstairs. He walked down with Vilis, occasionally finding doors to other rooms, however, there were very few of those. The walk down the stairs took Arnin quite a large amount of time. When he finally reached the floor, he noticed a brown door. It was round from the top while the edges were carved sharply. There were no bars or glass on the door; it was fully made from heavy wood. Arnin nodded slightly before slowly opening the door. *CREAK* A creaking sound resounded from the door. Arnin understood that the door was used very rarely and was probably extremely old. since it was an old door, it was bound to make some noises. When he entered the room, the first thing he ran into was a spider web. It was covering the whole door entry, giving off the feeling of ancientness and passing of time. Arnin smiled slightly and walked in. After Vilis also entered, he shut the door behind him. A dim candle, which sat on a dusty table, barely lit a small portion of the room. There were no windows because the room was underground. Although the light was able to infiltrate most of the darkness, there were still some spots that were untouched. "What a nice room. It is underground and away from almost everyone. If I just add some barriers and other protection symbols, then I can do almost anything I want in this place." Arnin was extremely happy with the room. He was glad that he could get privacy from others. Plus, the room was now his for the keeping. He inspecting every nook and cranny in the room. The bed was wobbly and made noises, but it wasn''t anything that he couldn''t handle. The room was very large. A table sat in the middle, while a bookshelf was hidden in the corner. The large bed was on the other side of the room, plus the walls did not have any extra accessories. It was a bare room, but Arnin saw lots of potential in it. "Vilis, let''s first clean this place up before we begin settling down. I need a clean space to begin my cultivation." Vilis nodded his head before he began to use his tail to sweep the floor. Arnin, on the other hand, found a broom beside the door, so he used that to clean. An hour passed by; the room was not completely clean, but there was no visible dirt or webs. It was enough for Arnin to begin cultivation. "I will have someone come and clean this room before I head to the academy tomorrow. Let''s first begin by testing out some of the marks." Arnin sat down on the chair and faced the table. Vilis jumped onto the bed and began his nap, not concerning himself with what Arnin was going to do. Arnin went through his memories and tried to remember the marks he saw in Xillar''s book. Since he was barely able to draw the first mark, he wanted to practice more and get a better handle on them. He was luckily able to recall five of the marks from the book. Since he was working on the first mark, he didn''t try to remember the other marks, but he skimmed through them once, so he memorized a few. Arnin decided to draw the first mark once more. He had a better idea as to how he should proceed, plus he wanted to test out a theory that he had. From what he knew, the solar essence was necessary for creating marks, but when he was drawing his first mark, he found that the white saber had properties similar to the solar essence. Not only that, but the white saber was even stronger the solar essence. He also remembered that he felt a darker energy while he was gathering solar essence. He assumed that the dark energy was related to the essences that fell under death. If the sun released life and flame components, then he should be able to find darker components underground and away from the sun. Arnin went in his body and searched for the white saber. The white saber was next to the cube that sealed his power, shining with bright white flames. Arnin tried to control the saber and this time he didn''t feel any resistance. The saber allowed Arnin to use its power, which Arnin found to be a great thing. Same as last time, Arnin had the blade go into his hand and then duplicate into smaller blades. Five of them headed towards the fingers while one of them came out of his palm. The transformation this time was extremely quick, however, Arnin found that his control over the blades had decreased. He knew that the reason behind this was because of the blade regaining its previous splendor. He decided that he would try and increase his control over the blades as he practiced mark making. Arnin began by collecting a large amount of essence. Just the same as last time, different colors shrouded the white blades. Arnin scoped through the different colors and, after a few minutes, found the death related components. It was a grey colored essence. The grey was much more abundant underground than on the surface. Arnin pulled the rest of the essence towards the blade on his palm, while the grey essence stayed on blades that came out of his fingers. He wasn''t sure what the essence was exactly, it gave the feeling of death, but there was still something more to it. Arnin absorbed some of the grey essences into his own body and had his threads break them down into usable energy. He knew that the orb was capable of transforming the essence into something the body was able to use. Arnin theorized that if he absorbed the essence, then it would be able to split into different energy types. From that, he would be able to discover what the grey essence was truly made of. The process of absorbing the essence took a long time because the orb was breaking the essence down into specific components. It was a much more tedious task then just absorbing the essence and transforming it all into a general body essence. The latter method only allowed the essence to become usable, however, there was no variety. Ten minutes passed before the first batch of essence was finally separated into individual components. To Arnin''s surprise, he found that there was life essence inside the new batch. He also found an essence that exuded a strong death-like feeling, which made him conclude that the energy was that of death. There was one more component left inside. The last one didn''t have a color. It was visible, but Arnin was unable to determine the color of the component. Arnin tried to sense the type of energy that it was, but all he could sense was an old ancient type of energy. It had the feeling of oldness, yet also something new. It didn''t feel like it belonged in the present, but it still exuded a presence of something from the present. It was a very confusing type of energy that Arnin was unable to figure out. He first thought that it was related to space, but he knew the feeling of space energy. He had mastered space in his previous life, the only thing that he wasn''t able to comprehend was...time! Time was the most mysterious power in the universe. Although he touched upon it, he was unable to master it. The heaven lord exceeded him in the area of time because the heaven lord was the ruler of heaven, however, even that person was unable to fully comprehend time. It was a type of power that was always there but also always dispersing. There were many species in the universe that could efficiently control time power, but none got as far as him and the heaven lord. "Is this truly time essence? If it is, then this energy that provides power to Afloria is much more mysterious and powerful then I first thought. It might even be stronger and older than the power I used in my past life!" Arnin couldn''t disguise his shock. His previous power was considered as old as the heavens themselves. He always thought that there was no power stronger than his own, this stayed true... until now. The mysterious energy supporting Afloria was much older than his own. "Hahaha! Time power! If I master this, then I can finally enter that place!" Arnin laughed hysterically. His eyes turned a bright red, as his tattoos began to glimmer. A faint halo of his demon appeared behind him. "ROOAAR! AWOOOO!" Vilis stood on the bed and howled. There was an intense excitement in his eyes. Nothing but happiness could be seen from Vilis. He got off the bed and walked towards Arnin. He rubbed his head on Arnin''s arms before lying down beside him. Arnin was filled with so much joy that he almost released his own powers. He quickly calmed himself down before smiling widely. *Knock Knock* "Who''s there?" Arnin was annoyed that he was disturbed at such an important time. He walked from his seat towards the door. He opened the door and saw the woman from the front desk. "I heard some noises and was wondering if everything is alright?" Fae put on a facade of worry, which greatly irritated Arnin. "Nothing is wrong here. You can leave." Arnin waved his hand and turned around to shut the door, however it was quickly grabbed by Fae. "What are you doing?" Arnin looked at Fae with impatience. "Arnin, right? Why does it feel like you have some hate for me? I don''t think we have met before, or am I wrong?" Fae innocently looked at Arnin, her eyelids fluttering. Arnin scoffed before putting on a face of irritation. "I have never met you before and I am happy about that. You feel the hate from me? Well, you must have felt wrong. You are not even worth that much affection. Leave, now!" Arnin angrily looked at Fae. He was finally touching on the concept of time, and the person who gave him so much irritation had to show up. He was extremely pissed. "Now, is that really how a five-year-old should speak to their elders? I could be your mother''s age." Fae patiently spoke with Arnin, her fake smile still planted on her face. "You could be my great-grandpa''s age and I would still say the same thing."Arnin mocked Fae without hesitation. She, on the other hand, was shocked, she still continued to smile. "You are interesting, kid. I like that style of yours, however, don''t you think that you will make fewer friends and more enemies with that kind of attitude?" Fae asked with a ''concerned'' face. "I don''t care if people come knocking on my door. If they want a fight then they should prepare their own graves beforehand. Same goes for you, miss Fae. You should leave now before your coffin is the first to be lifted." Arnin smirked evilly at Fae before slamming the door shut in her face. "This child is truly special one. Hehe!" Fae smiled before walking up the steps slowly. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Inside the room, Arnin was sitting back in his chair. He went back to his orb and began to study the time component. It was small, but it was large enough for Arnin to gain some enlightenment. "If I add this time component to a mark then what kind of effect will occur? Will I be able to combine life and death together? Or will I be able to turn the death component back to a point where it was life?" Arnin began to think of different ideas revolving around the time component. It was a truly mysterious power that had almost infinite potential. Suddenly, the time essence began to shake. It moved up and down inside the orb, and then it disappeared into the threads. Arnin tried to make his threads stop the time essence, but it wasn''t working. Just as Arnin thought he was about to stop it, the time essence disappeared into his body, becoming completely traceless. "Hmm, seems like I need to learn more about the time component before trying to use it in any of my experiments. What a pity, however, I can''t do anything about it right now. Let''s begin the test I wanted to try from before." Arnin decided that he wasn''t strong enough or had enough knowledge on time to continue trying to control it. He began the experiment that he wanted to try since he made his first mark. The first mark was based on life, however what if he created one through death? The death component was not rare, rather it was just as common as the life component. Since both of the essences were interlocked, then there couldn''t be more of one and less of the other. Someone just needed to know where the death essence was located; it was found underground or in dark areas. Arnin had the orb release the death essence towards the white blades on his fingers. When the white blades were shrouded in a black hue, Arnin began the drawing. He decided that he would begin with ''Z'' mark since he had some experience with it. This time around, Arnin decided that the whole base would be made of the death component, while the circles would be created from the sabers power. Although life was linked with flames because of rebirth through ashes, death was also not an exception. Flames causing destruction or extinguishing were linked to death. Flames were very unique types of powers, they worked with almost anything. They were one of the most flexible elements in the universe. The base took around twenty minutes to complete, however, the flames were harder to manipulate. Although the flames were being released from his saber, they were much dimmer around death, then around life. The life essence would energize the flames, increasing the heat and chaos, however, the death essence did the opposite. The death essence caused the flame to extinguish, meaning a much higher amount of flames were needed to complete the mark. An hour passed by, and the mark was completed. This time, there was no blending of the colors, it was a mark that was both black and white. Arnin knew the different levels of marks, so he deemed the trial a failure. "Maybe I''m missing something? I don''t know, lets just rest for now. My energy is completely drained after that trial." Arnin got off the chair and lifted his arms in the air, causing his body to slightly tremble. He walked towards the bed and instantly fell on top. Since he didn''t have any extra clothes, he decided to sleep in what he had on. Arnin closed his eyes slowly and fell into a deep sleep. ------------------------------------------------ The next day, Arnin got up early. He went to his table, hoping that the mark might have had an overnight change, but there was still nothing. Arnin didn''t carry high hopes, so the sight didn''t cause him too much of a problem. He did some small workouts and stretches before walking out the door. When he stepped out, the first person he saw was not Dane or any of the people from Dane''s group, rather Fae was the first face he saw. "Good morning, Arnin. How was your rest?" Fae smiled brightly at Arnin, however, it only caused his mood to lessen. "Why are you in front of my room so early? Don''t you understand that you''re a pest?" Arnin was getting really annoyed with Fae. If he wasn''t in the academies premises, he would have already killed her. "Am I not welcomed?" Fae asked with a pout. "Of course you''re not welcomed! Don''t you understand that simple fact?" Arnin harshly spoke to Fae, but he wasn''t budging. He honestly disliked Fae very much. Her fake smile and fake everything really pissed him off. Arnin walked by Fae and headed up the stairs; Vilis followed suit. Fae looked at Arnin with some sadness but also some interest. She followed further behind, keeping a good distance between them. Arnin ignored Fae and walked silently up the spiral staircase. He reached the top door and suddenly felt something behind him. He turned his head and found that Fae was gone. "Hmph. I knew she was hiding something behind that smile of hers." Arnin turned around and opened the door. He walked into the front lobby once more and found a new person standing at the front desk. He walked over to her. "Send someone down to the lowest room and have them clean up. It''s a mess in there." Arnin commanded and walked away from the front desk. The woman looked at Arnin with shock. She wasn''t able to process who the little kid was. Just as she was about to call out to him, a hand grabbed her shoulder. She turned her head and found that it was Fae. "Miss Fae?" The woman looked at Fae in confusion. "Just do as he says, he will be a part of the Moth group soon." Fae didn''t look at the woman, she only glanced at Arnin''s departing silhouette with a smile. -------------------------------------------------------- Arnin stepped outside and took in a deep breath. Vilis also excitedly leaped around. Arnin knew that Vilis felt suffocated in the room, mostly because it was a beast that was accustomed to the outside, rather than a room underground. Arnin continued to walk forward and followed the path he came from. He knew that Dane was supposed to be his guide, but he could care less about that. He already understood how to get back to the front gates of the academy. Plus, today was the day that the village elder was supposed to meet him. As Arnin walked on the path back to the academy, shadows began to appear on the ground. Arnin looked up and found large birds flying in the air. He concentrated his eyes and saw people on top of those birds, heading towards the academy. "So that''s how the old man was going to get to the academy? No wonder he was going to leave late. That sly old man." Arnin smirked when he saw the many flying birds. He knew that one of them carried the old man because some of the birds were coming from the direction he entered the town. As Arnin finally got to the academies front gates, he saw hundreds of giant birds landing on the ground. The whole place was filled with children around his age. These were the new students that would attend Lepidoptera academy. Arnin inspected all the birds, looking for the old man. Suddenly he heard a shout from behind. "Little Arnin! Little Arnin, behind you!" Arnin turned around and saw the village elder getting off a giant bird. There was a wide smile on his face as he got off the bird. Arnin also saw Lilise and Elidia coming off the bird. He walked towards them with an undisguised smile. "So, we finally meet again, old man." 26 Tension The village elder walked towards Arnin with a large smile. Behind him, Lilise and Elidia followed with their heads low. Both of the girls were unsure as to why Arnin had suddenly left the village. Lilise was able to feel the tension in Ashia and Florian first hand, so she was even more confused as to why Arnin had left. "Arnin, when did you get here? It seems you got here quicker than us? You should have gotten here tomorrow at the earliest if you went through the path that I made for you." The old man looked questionably at Arnin. He knew that if Arnin went by foot, he would have made it here tomorrow at least. Suddenly, Vilis came running from behind Arnin. "Arnin, watch out!" The old man and the two girls yelled at the same time, but Arnin didn''t move an inch. "This here is my beast, Vilis. I met him in the danger area when he was really injured. I helped him out and he began to follow me around." Arnin used the same lie he used on Kelnorin, on the three. He couldn''t tell them he had demon powers which was the reason behind Vilis following him. The old man patted his chest and took a deep breath. He looked at Arnin with some complicated feelings before walking towards him. He bent down and moved his head next to Arnin''s right ear. "I met miss Avian at my home before I came. Both of your parents are extremely worried about you and it seems like miss Avian is set on finding you. Are you really alright with being away from your parents?" The village elder whispered silently into Arnin''s ear. He didn''t want Lilise or Elidia hearing what he was saying. The village elder knew how much Arnin''s mother was worrying. He saw her face when she first barged into his home with Avian. "Old man, you don''t need to worry about me. I need to get out and become stronger, that is my goal. All you need to do is abide by the contract and protect my family. If something does happen to them, then pray I don''t find out." Arnin seriously looked at the old man as murder appeared in his eyes. During the five years that he was with his family, he developed a love for them. Ashia and Florian were his second parents, and he didn''t want them to die like his first ones. However, he still had his initial goal of breaking through in his cultivation so that he could finally enter the other places. Plus, he could develop his understanding of time and possibly master it, which would bring his power to a completely new level. The old man moved his head back and stared into Arnin''s eyes. Although he could feel the power inside the beast and knew that the beast was possibly stronger than him, he feared Arnin a little more. He had the eyes of a killer, someone who experienced battle and death. "Don''t worry, I will do my best to follow the contract, just make sure you don''t forget your own part. You will protect my granddaughters in the academy." The old man also said what he wanted. Arnin nodded his head and walked towards the two girls. First, he glanced at Elidia for a moment before walking in front of Lilise. He lifted her hand and inserted his threads into her body. He discovered that she had recovered a good portion of her worldly essence, but she still wasn''t in the Orb Birth- Earth realm. The old man watched with his arms crossed over his chest. "You didn''t complete her training so she hasn''t gotten to Orb Birth- Earth yet. I was able to help remove a majority of the problem and allow her to cultivate throughout the trip, but it still wasn''t enough." The old man spoke with some annoyance. He trusted Arnin to help her get to Orb Birth- Earth, but Arnin left so early that the job wasn''t completed. "Old man, you talk as though you cured her and helped her get to this stage. Don''t forget that I cured her ailment and also got her to finally cultivate with little to no knowledge of how to do so. Plus, you were the one who suddenly dumped her on me, without even ask for my consent. So don''t go trying to act like you did most of the work." When Arnin first bumped into them, he was in a good mood, but because of the old man mentioning his parents, he couldn''t help but fall into a bad mood. Plus, the village elder began to act like he was in charge, which bugged Arnin quite a bit. Lilise and Elidia noticed the tension between the two, and couldn''t help but feel that something bad happened. "Arnin, you know as well as I do why I''m mad." Arnin didn''t budge and only continued to stare at the village elder. He knew the real reason why the old man was pissed. He killed the family of the old man''s second-in-command. The old man knew Arnin for a few days, while he knew the second-in-command for dozens of years. He would, of course, have more feelings towards the second-in-command then Arnin. Plus, the contract that Arnin made him sign forced the old man to go against the second-in-command if he wanted revenge. All of these reasons would make anyone very mad. "Don''t blame me. I warned you that this contract might be something burdensome, it was your fault for agreeing, so quit pointing fingers." Arnin didn''t care that the old man was in a bad mood. He had some good feelings towards the old man, but he didn''t consider him a friend or any of that sort. The only people in Afloria that he had feelings towards were his own family. "Umm, can we all calm down? We haven''t met in a while so we should be happy, not mad." Lilise broke the tension when she spoke out. She didn''t want to see her grandfather getting into a fight with Arnin. "Lilise, what are you saying? Arnin and I are not fighting, we are only talking about grown-up stuff. So don''t worry, we are not mad. Right, Arnin?" The village elder spoke quickly. Arnin nodded his head and shifted his gaze towards Lilise. "Don''t worry, we aren''t fighting. This is just how boy''s talk." Arnin didn''t hate Lilise. Since he did train her for a small period of time, and she had a good relationship with his family, he found her to be somewhat likable. "Back to the main topic. Since we have just arrived, Lilise and Elidia need to go and get signed up for the academy. Arnin, you also need to get signed up so come with me. You guys don''t have to do the examination." The old man was proud when he spoke. He was proud that he had connections with someone in the academy that would allow his family to get in without doing the entry exam. "About that, I already did the exam yesterday, and I passed. I can wait by the side while you sign them up." Arnin casually pointed out that he was already accepted. He was early so he had already completed the whole process, plus he was going to possibly join the Moth group. "Y-you what?! You have been accepted? Wait, when did you get here?" The old man was astonished. He didn''t expect that Arnin was already accepted in. "Wait! Didn''t you say that you met the beast in the danger area? Don''t tell me! You went through the danger area?" The old man began to sweat. The reason he marked the danger area as off limits was because it was supposed to have beasts who were Rank One - Earth and above. Arnin wouldn''t have been capable of traversing the place. "The danger area wasn''t too chaotic. Especially since I had Vilis, the other beasts just stayed away. I got here yesterday because of Vilis'' speed." The old man couldn''t help but curse Arnin''s luck. It was just too good. He ran into a beast that was very strong and was even able to tame it. Not only that, but he was accepted into the academy. "Well, since you are already accepted, then let me just get Lilise and Elidia into the academy." The old man knew that Arnin was very mysterious. He had always ignored the secrets that Arnin hid, so he decided to do the same again. "Let me come with you. I want to meet this person who is helping you with this process." Arnin was curious as to who would allow the village elder to enroll his granddaughters into the academy without taking the test. Although the academy allowed for this to happen, a teacher would usually have a quota of three people every half a year. "Sure. Lilise, Elidia, when you enter the academy make sure that you wholeheartedly cultivate. Listen to all of your teachers and try your best. Arnin will be there to help you with whatever he can, so during emergencies listen to him, alright?" Lilise nodded, but Elidia abruptly turned her head. "He is younger than me, why do I have to listen to him?" Elidia was stubborn. She didn''t want to listen to someone who was younger than her. "The reason you listen to me is simple. I am strong and you are weak. The weak must follow the strong, that is how the world works." Arnin dropped a bucket of water on her head with his statement. Elidia knew that she was weaker then Arnin, but she didn''t want to listen to a person younger than her. "Elidia, although you are older then Arnin, you''re still young. Arnin is different than other children, he is extremely mature and is also very strong. No one is telling you to listen to his command during your training or anything, but if an emergency comes up, you must do what Arnin says. Alright?" Elidia pouted when she was told that Arnin was mature. ''I am also mature." She couldn''t help but have this thought, however, since her grandfather was the one saying then she could only listen. She nodded her head in approval, but she still didn''t look at Arnin. When she first met Arnin, she had high hopes for him and thought of him to be very strong. Later, when she found that Arnin ran away from home, she couldn''t help but become disappointed and look down on him. The village elder lightly laughed before walking towards the gates. There were two long lines in front of the gate, one was for the examination, while the other was for the teacher quotas. The village elder took out two stones that had a butterfly insignia. Arnin looked at them and noticed that there was also a name printed on them. Getek. When the group of four finally reached the front of the line, they were met with a teacher with grey hair. "Stones please." The teacher didn''t ask for names or anything, he only asked for the stones. The village elder quickly took out the stones and presented the teacher with them. When the old guy took the stones and inspected them, he couldn''t help but look at the village elder seriously. "I''d like to apologize, but Getek has told me to inform the party with his stones that he wishes to use the stones for his own family." The words attacked the village elder like a missile. "What do you mean? Getek told me that I could use his quota for my grandchildren. Can I speak to Getek?" The old man was very anxious and his face was becoming red with embarrassment. Arnin watched everything with a calm expression. "I am sorry, but Getek is busy at the moment. Sir, there are others in the line so I would like to ask you to move to the examination one. You can try your luck there, however without a quota from a teacher, I cannot permit entrance through this method." The old teacher spoke in a very monotone manner. He didn''t care whether someone had or didn''t have a quota, he only did what he was told. The village elder walked out of the line with his two granddaughters. "What is going on? Getek told me that I could use his quota. Why did he suddenly change his mind?" The village elder had a red face, he was both embarrassed and angry. Lilise and Elidia had concern written on their faces. They were mostly concerned about their grandpa rather than their own entrance. "Arnin, Arnin, over here!" Suddenly, the group of four heard someone call Arnin''s name from the back. All of them turned around and saw a teacher running towards them. In his hands was a robe and a card. The teacher was Xillar. "Arnin, I have your robe and identification card for the Academy. Also, you are to be enlisted straight into the Moth group because of your scores in the exam." Xillar had an expression of excitement. He knew that Arnin had the capability of a fighter after watching his spar Brajus, plus Arnin was also incredibly talented in mark making. "You are also going to be joining the Mark Master classes since your talent in the area is very high." This was the news that Xillar wanted to say the most. Although the Moth group was difficult to join, it was still far easier than the Mark Master classes. Only students with high talent in Animo could join. The village elder and the two girls listened with shock. Although the two girls didn''t know about the Moth group, they could feel that it was a special group. The old man was, however, was very shocked. He knew what the Moth group was, and even knew what a Mark Master was. He looked at Arnin with surprise and astonishment. He couldn''t believe that Arnin was so capable. He also felt very glum; Arnin was accepted into the academy but he wasn''t so sure that Lilise and Elidia had the capability for that. Lilise wasn''t even in a cultivation realm yet, so her chances were almost zero. Elidia was in Orb Birth - Earth, but she had never experienced a fight. Arnin noticed that the village elder was somewhat depressed and knew the reason behind that. "Teacher Xillar, I have a favor to ask of you." Arnin decided that Xillar could help him with this. "Ask whatever you need. Since you are in the Moth group, you and I will be in the same academy section because I''m Moth group teacher." Xillar was very proud when he spoke. His nose faced the sky and his chest was puffed out, but Arnin had no reaction. "Well, do you have any quotas for student entries? I would like to use two of yours." The village elder was very surprised when Arnin said that. The hope in his eyes was reignited after Arnin''s question. He could only gratefully look at Arnin. Lilise looked at Arnin with some happiness, while Elidia showed less hate. "Quotas? Of course, I do. As a Moth group teacher, I can bring as many students in as I want, unlike those Butterfly teachers who only get three. Haha! So, what do you need them for?" Xillar finally noticed the village elder and the two girls. He smirked when he saw the two girls and suddenly thought of a wicked plan. "So, you want me to help these two girls in? Of course, I can do that!" The three were extremely happy, however, Arnin noticed a spark in Xillar''s eyes. "But?" Arnin knew there must be a catch. "I want you to join the academy guards. You will still be able to go to your classes, but you will also have to go outside the academy and clean out the forest of beasts." The wicked smile on Xillar grew. The guards were prestigious, but they had to be extremely loyal to the academy. If Arnin became a guard then he would have to sign a contract which would make him unable to go against the academy in the future. "No. You want me to pledge my loyalty to the academy, right? Well, I''m not going to do that. If you want to set such a condition, I will just leave this academy and go find a new one. If you prevent me from doing even that, then watch as I crumble down this place in the future." Arnin began to release a small amount of his aura which caused Vilis to howl. The village elder and the two girls panicked because of Arnin''s threat. Xillar''s smile froze and he also released a small amount of aura which suffocated the people from the surroundings. Everyone, counting the village elder and the girls, began to tremble, however, Arnin had no reaction. Rather, he increased his own aura. "You want to crumble this academy? Do you really think that you can escape this place alive?" Xillar grew serious. The quick personality change caught everyone by surprise, however, Arnin already planned this. A Moth teacher had an unlimited supply of quotas, why? Because they were extremely loyal to the academy. Only the most loyal teachers would be allowed to train the talented. "Do you want to test me?" Arnin didn''t budge under Xillar''s pressure. Suddenly, Xillar released a smile. "Fine, you win. If I hurt you, then not only will I lose my favorite newbie, but Kelnorin might get mad at me. I will give them my quotas, however, you have to accept a different condition of mine." Xillar stopped releasing his aura and spoke calmly to Arnin. "What is it?" Arnin also stopped, but he kept a good distance from Xillar, which was obviously noticed by him. "You have to work in the Mark Master section. You don''t have to be loyal or anything, however, you will become a student plus work in that department. Is that a deal?" Arnin thought about it for a moment and weighed the pros and cons. He could practice his mark making and also get real-life experience. However, he might expose some of his own secret powers, which was something he didn''t want. "I will accept it, only if you provide me with the orthodox way of making marks. I believe I will get better results that way." Xillar thought for a moment before nodding his head. "That''s fine too. You''re really sucking me dry, you know that Arnin? Here, give these two stones to the girls. I have to go get you registered as a worker in the Mark Master department. Hehe!" Xillar quickly vanished into thin air, leaving the group of four alone. "Now, the stones have been taken care of, let''s go sign them up for the academy." Arnin walked in the front and led the way to the quota''s line. ------------------------------------------------------------ In a dark room, three people silently gathered, including Xillar. "Xillar, how did it go? Do you think that he will be a threat?" The person asking was none other than Kelnorin. "Well, he won''t be loyal to our academy, that''s for certain, however, I don''t think he will be an enemy, unless provoked. What should we do with him, he is very different than the other children." Xillar had a concerned face while he spoke. "Do nothing for now. He is no threat to us. He is still young and if we kill him, then the public will question us, plus that woman has told us not to touch him. She is too difficult to deal with, so let him be. Just try not to provoke him, and keep an eye on him." The person who ended the conversation was none other than the principal of the academy. 27 Another Play Arnin led the group towards the quota line. He wanted to quickly enter the academy and begin his cultivation practice. Although his eyes were relaxed and his body wasn''t trembling, only Arnin knew fast his heart was beating. He wanted to quickly understand the time essence and figure out a way to master it. If he did that, adding to his sealed power, then he could truly enter those worlds and begin conquering. He was still wearing his worn out tunic and pants; Arnin hadn''t changed into his robe because of how long it would take. This caused him to not receive any special treatment in the line, so he had to stand in the back with the three people and his beast. "Arnin, are you really alright with how you spoke to that Moth group teacher? He isn''t someone you or I can handle at this stage. You didn''t have to do that for us!" The village elder held a face of apology and concern as he spoke, however wrinkles appeared between Arnins slim, jet-black eyebrows. "Do you truly believe that I would go to such lengths for you? Although I argued with him, it wasn''t for your stones. He wanted my loyalty through a contract, which was something I could not accept. Even if your pitiful life was on the line, I still wouldn''t have signed the contract!" Arnin ruthlessly spoke to the village elder. Even though he wasn''t going to do anything major for the stones, he was still mad that such an event occurred because of them. (Author note: Dam¡­ Arnin u some savage beast) "Arnin, isn''t that a little too harsh?" Sweat poured down his wrinkly forehead as they slowly made their way to his somewhat saggy chin. The village elder couldn''t help but find Arnin''s comment to be a little too bold. He began to feel even more guilt and shame because of his uselessness. "Arnin, how could you talk to my grandfather like that? Aren''t you too mean?" Elidia''s eyebrows knitted together as her small face turned red with anger. She spoke with gritted her teeth towards Arnin''s harsh words. "Harsh? I don''t think so. I would never ruin my own life for a random stranger. Your grandfather is nothing more than a partner to me; we made a deal and that is all. I am not obligated to risk my life for his, little girl." Arnin spoke unbridled. He was speaking honestly, he wouldn''t sacrifice his life for anybody, not even his own family. He would try his best to protect them, even if he had to climb a mountain of swords or walk through the depths of hell, he would try to protect them. However, if protecting them came to the point where he would have to kill himself, or do something that would guarantee his death, then he wouldn''t take that risk. (Author note: Dam¡­ you too much Arnin, lol) Elidia''s face became even redder. She looked like she was about to burst and attack Arnin. Just as she was going to take a step towards Arnin, the old man stopped her. His face was covered in sweat, while he had a bitter smile on his face. "It''s alright, Elidia. Arnin is not wrong. We are nothing more then partners. I will protect his family, while he will protect you girls. That was the deal." Arnin calmly nodded towards the two girls, which infuriated Elidia even more. She knew that her grandfather really liked Arnin and treated him like a friend, however Arnin just declared that there was no friendship. She couldn''t even imagine the pain her grandfather was feeling. Her eyes became slightly moist as she glared at Arnin with extreme hate. Although the village elder was feeling down and even a little hurt, he didn''t take Arnin''s words to heart. He saw how Arnin was going to leave the academy because of them. He felt that Arnin didn''t truly mean those words, so he didn''t take them to heart. (Author note: Sorry old man, but Arnin is serious :D) Lilise listened from the back, however she also had a similar feeling like the village elder. She saw the relationship that the two had in the village and how Arnin was going to leave the academy because of them. She truly felt that Arnin didn''t mean what he said, it was only something that slipped out of anger. "Next in line, please." Arnin walked forward with the village elder and the two girls. Vilis stood by the side and watched with boredom. "I would like to register these two girls into the academy." The old teacher lifted his head and was surprised to find Arnin''s group appearing once again. His face became a little annoyed as he spoke with some anger. "You guys again? I have already told you that you cannot enter witho-" Just as the old teacher was about to finish speaking, Arnin threw the two quota stones on the table. Xillars name was imprinted on the top which cause the old teacher to become surprised and even suspicious. "Where did you get these from? Did you steal them someone else?" The old teacher''s eyebrows slammed together as he slowly rose from his seat. "Stupid old teacher, why do you think we stole these? Just because we didn''t have stone previously doesn''t mean we can''t get them later on. You''re getting old, do you really think that I would lie to someone as old as you? You already have one foot in the grave, what can you do to me? Teacher Xillar personally handed these stone to me." Arnin spoke without a care in the world. He didn''t care if the person in front of him was a respected teacher or not, he treated them all the same. Seeing Arnin''s attitude towards the teachers only helped to further boost the speculations that the village elder and Lilise made. "Little boy, you must learn to speak with respect. Who do you think I am? I will call Sir Xillar over and get rid of all of you." The old teacher was infuriated with Arnin''s attitude. Arnin knew that if he brought out his identity card, then he could use it as proof of receiving the stones, however his anger towards the academy was still present. ''You want to trick me into giving you my loyalty? I will give you something alright.'' Arnin thought of a plan quickly. "Teacher, believe me, I am not lying! I was truly given the stones." Arnin put on a tearful expression as his eyes became round and puffy. The village elder and the two girls became surprised with Arnin. Elidia was about to go forward and say something, however the village elder put his arm out and blocked her path. A smirk could be seen on his face. "So, you finally show me respect? Well, it''s a little too late. Leave now, while I still treat you like a child." The old teacher was furious. Although Arnin was a child, he was impartial. He didn''t care if the person was a child, woman or an old person, if they treated him with disrespect then he would do the same. The village elder put on a pathetic face and walked forward. "Sir, please. My grandchild was a little rude before, but he is only five years old. Can you not let the matter go? Also, those stones are truly ours. Sir Xillar handed those to this boy himself. Please believe us." Arnin was surprised that the village elder was able to understand his plan. He couldn''t help but praise and curse him at the same time. ''What a cunning old fox''. "I don''t care if he is a child or not. If anything, his parents should have raised him properly." The old teacher calmed down, but he still spoke with a harsh tone. He felt offended because of Arnin''s attitude and the way he addressed him. "Mom, Dad, if only I knew who they were." Arnin began to tear up as his parents were mentioned. He turned around and put his head into the village elders chest, who was surprised at first but also put on a sad and angry face. "Sir, I am respecting you because of your status, but how could you talk to a child like that? He lost his parents when he was young, so your comment is very much uncalled for." People in the surrounding began to speak in hushed tones. They also had anger written over their faces. "Shameless!" "How could such a teacher be in the academy?" "Yea, he really brings the schools reputation down." Arnin smiled slightly when he heard the different comments. He was successful in his plan. Suddenly, the wind picked up and a woman appeared from behind the old teacher. "What is going on here?" The woman was a person that Arnin knew. She had a smile on her face that was very bright. Her eyes, however didn''t show the smile, which only Arnin was able to notice. "Miss Fae, nothing is going on. Only a little problem has occurred with this thief, nothing to get yourself involved for." The old teacher switched his personality immediately. There was a smile on his face that reached his ears and his chest was puffed out like a warrior who was getting selected. (Author note: So much for being impartial. Smh) "Thief? I know this boy. What did he steal?" Fae smiled when she saw the current Arnin. It was shocking to see him acting in such a way, however she picked up the acting right away. Arnin, however wasn''t too pleased with Fae''s entrance. He didn''t like her or feel that she was genuine. Her arrival where he was did not mean anything good. "Umm, these two stones are Sir Xillar''s. I believe that he stole them from another person, which is why he has them." The old teacher''s voice was slightly trembling as sweat drenched his back. If Fae knew Arnin, then he might just be walking into his own grave. "So, that''s the case? Well, where is your evidence?" Fae looked at the old teacher with a pleasant smile, however this only caused the old teacher''s spine to tremble. "About that, I don''t have any. I just assumed." His voice was shaky as he spoke. "You assumed? Who gave you the authority to do something like assume?" Fae continued to question with her pretty voice. "No one, Miss. I thought that since they couldn''t come through Getek''s stones, they might have stolen some from someone else. I am sorry." The old teacher felt a pressuring aura encompass him. Arnin watched everything happen with a frown. He didn''t believe the woman would help him through such a situation for free. Although he could deny her, if she intended on killing him, he would need to release his own powers, which was detrimental to his reason for reincarnating. "Gil, why did you call me here?" Suddenly, another person joined the fun. Xillar walked out from the gate with a frown. When Fae saw Xillar coming, her smile lessened. "Well, since someone has come to solve the problem, I will take my leave." Fae vanished mysteriously. Arnin grumbled when he saw her leave, however he felt his battle instincts reduce when she left, which was good news to him. "Sir Xillar, I was just doing my job, but these people claimed that you gave them your quota stones. I didn''t believe it and was about to remove them, however Miss Fae came and began to question me." The old teacher spoke to Xillar in a complaning manner, almost like a child crying to their parents. Arnin and the rest of the crowd began to curse the old teacher because of his shamelessness. "Miss Fae was here? Where did she go?" Xillar was surprised to hear about Fae, but couldn''t find her anywhere. Arnin became even more suspicious about Fae''s identity. She was feared by the old teacher and even Xillar seemed to hold her in high regard. "She was right here¡­ where did she go?" The old teacher found that she was gone, so he began to panic, however Xillar waved his hand to quiet him down. "So, someone stole my stones? Who could that¡­ Arnin?" Xillar looked around and was surprised to see Arnin with a tear filled face. He panicked at first before his face was completely red. He placed his hand on his mouth as tears came out and his eyes filled with water. "Hahaha! Arnin, what happened to your face?" Xillar couldn''t hold himself back as laughter bursted out. He held his stomach as he looked at the childlike Arnin. Who could have imagined that this very child was about to go toe to toe with him over a couple of stones? Arnin didn''t have much of a reaction towards Xillar''s laughter. He only took his hand and wiped the ''tears'' on his face. "Can you hurry up and get these two signed up? I have been waiting for a while now." Arnin reverted back to his informal way of speaking. "Yeah, alright. Gil, come here and sign them up. Don''t call me unless something major happens. Arnin, I will see you in a bit. I am going to go and handle some small affairs." Xillar was just about to go when Arnin appeared in front of him. "What is it?" Xillar became confused. "I have a question for you, teacher Xillar. Have you signed me up for the Mark Master class, or any of my classes yet?" Arnin felt that something was off. Xillar reacted really weirdly to him when Xillar was releasing his aura. He was happy, and then became a threat, and then became joyful once again. Arnin felt something was up. "Not yet. Something came up, so I got busy. Why?" Xillar was still confused why Arnin was asking such a question. No one could hear what they were talking about, which also made Xillar suspect something was off. Arnin smiled and walked past Xillar, however he stopped right behind him for a second. "I hope that whatever you were busy with, or whoever you were discussing things with, doesn''t concern me. If it does, then¡­" Arnin didn''t finish, and just continued to walk. No one noticed, but Xillar''s face was drenched in sweat. When Arnin walked past him, he released a very threatening and piercing aura, which traveled to the depths of his orb. It was something extremely frightening. Xillar turned his head around and looked at Arnin before vanishing. "This kid is too frightening. He must be hiding his true powers and even something more¡­ threatening. I must report back." Xillar ran through the hill, towards the academy, however just as he was about to approach the top of the hill, someone appeared. It was Fae. "Xillar, it seems you are in a hurry to report something? Before you go, let me give you a present." Fae vanished from her post and appeared before Xillar. Her slender finger tapped onto his forehead, causing him to fall onto the ground. Fae then vanished from the area with a wicked smile. -------------------------------------------------- A few minutes passed before Xillar slowly got up from the ground. He looked around to see where he was."What am I doing here? I needed to report something to the principal, but¡­ what was it?" 28 Lepidoptera Academy Arnin silently waited for the group to finish their process of signing up. Gil, the old teacher, did not make much of a sound while signing them up. His head was mostly faced down, so one could only catch glimpses of how pale he was. Finally, after a few minutes passed, the two girls were signed up. They didn''t get their robes or identity cards just yet. They would receive them in the academy, which was different from how Arnin went through the process. He got his items directly from a teacher that delivered it to him. Arnin felt that this was the difference in treatment for Moth group students and Butterfly group students, plus he felt that his identity was special in the academy. At first, Arnin wanted to stay in the low and just try to learn what he needed before slowly conquering Afloria and becoming stronger, however he felt that the academy wasn''t going to do anything to him. This feeling came to him after the initial agressive contact with Xillar. A normal teacher would have attacked him or atleast kicked him out of the academy for the way he spoke, however that didn''t happen. Xillar didn''t attack him or kick him out of the academy, rather he gave him a job that was rather important. He felt that there was something suspicious going on, and this feeling was nothing good to him. Arnin decided that he had to avoid students and teachers in the academy. He would try and dedicate himself into learning whatever he needed to, and not contact other students. As for Lilise and Elidia, he would protect them from the dark if needed, however if that wasn''t possible, he would try and get them to shift to a room or location near his own. That way, he would be able to keep a better eye on them. The group were right in front of the gates to the academy. The old man took a step back and watched from afar. "I am not allowed to enter, so I will see you off from here. Lilise, Elidia, I will try and come during your academy breaks, and your mom and dad will possibly come with me. Arnin, I am counting on you to look after them; leave your family to me." The old man spoke calmly. Arnin was surprised at the mention of the two girls'' parents. He had assumed that they might have died since they were never mentioned, however that didn''t seem like the case. He was somewhat curious as to who their parents were. "Don''t worry grandpa, we will study hard and make you proud. We will show our progress to mom and dad as well." Lilise replied with happiness, There seemed to be a spark burning in here eyes at the mention of her parents. Arnin became a little more curious as to who these people were. Parents who were never mentioned of before were going to appear in the near future. Arnin felt that the situation might not be as simple as it seemed, however since it was going to be at a later time, then he would just wait until then. The three humans and single beast walked through the gate and slowly made their way to the top of the academy. The village elder silently watched for a bit before turning around and walking away. His face, which was full of smiles a while ago, was now sullen and serious. During the trip to the academy, the large bird they rode on top of flew over the danger areas. While flying, he noticed the body of a person on the top of one of the trees. He knew that Arnin went through the forest and was likely not the reason for the death, but a small part of him kept yelling that it was Arnin. "Let''s just hope that the feeling I have is wrong. If not, then¡­" The village elder continued and walked away from the gate. ------------------------------------------------------------ Arnin led the way to the top. Vilis stayed at the very back, acting like a guard dog, or in this case, guard tiger. Arnin wasn''t spread out this way because of danger; he just didn''t feel like he needed to speak with the girls. Vilis, on the other hand, was doing it for some unknown reason. (Author note: Vilis is a loyal, kind, big, cool, fab, tiger. He is going to protect the group from the greatest of dangers. He is the true OG) The walk up the hill was very silent and awkward. Arnin kept his mouth shut because he didn''t want to speak, however the two girls didn''t know if they should speak or not but they were frightened of Vilis, so they kept quiet. "Arnin, umm¡­ can you¡­ tell your beast to move away¡­ He is scaring me." Lilise was barely able to speak up. Vilis was a frightening looking beast, and having it follow her right from behind was notgreat feeling. Arnin turned around and noticed how pale the two girls were. He nodded his head and waved towards Vilis. "Vilis, come here. Lilise, Elidia, he is not a scary beast. He is actually very kind. Do you want to try riding him?" Arnin knew that the two girls were scared, but they would be seeing things far worse if they wanted to be cultivators. Plus, since he was going to be protecting them, even if it was from the dark, Vilis would be with him. They had to get used to him being around. If they rode on him, then they might have less fear. "Arnin! Can''t you see that my sister is scared? Why would you ask her such a dumb question?" Elidia put on anangry face. She already had ill feelings for Arnin, but now he was basically asking them sit on what they feared! "What is it? Didn''t you want to be called a mature girl? Why don''t you face your fears? That''s what mature people do. Unless¡­ you are still a little girl." Arnin spoke to Elidia as if he was speaking to a very young child. Elidia was young, but she was still a part of the older children group; she wasn''t five anymore. Elidia''s face was shaded in an even redder color. She gritted her teeth and walked towards Vilis, albeit slowly. "I am a mature girl. I am older then you too, so don''t act like your the boss. Watch me sit on this beast." Elidia spoke big words and acted like a child her own age. Arnin knew that children from families that were on a higher standing in their society would be different. Elidia and Lilise acted different then kids like Nekaia. They would try to avoid doing fun things and only look for ways to improve their cultivation, however this was for their families. Nekaia acted like a child her own age. She was spoiled, complained and even slept with her parents every so often. When Arnin was training Lilise, he noticed that she took everything too seriously, something that shouldn''t be in a child. "Then get on the beast." Arnin kept taunting her. Although he was cold towards others, he didn''t want people acting like someone they were not. Elidia and Lilise acted too seriously, as if they were holding the world on their shoulders, which wasn''t to his liking. If they acted in such a way, then they were guaranteed to fail in cultivation. They needed to have a free mind and act as if nothing but themselves mattered, that was how one rapidly progressed through the different realms. Arnin was a special case, he didn''t act like someone who was older, rather he was someone older in a child''s body. It was something that was difficult to alter. "Alright¡­ here I go¡­ and¡­" Elidia was next to Vilis, however she didn''t even touch him. She made motions of almost touching him, but in the end, didn''t. This went on for a few tries before Arnin couldn''t take it anymore. "Vilis, get on the ground!" Vilis laid onto the ground quickly, which surprised Elidia into taking a step back. Arnin walked behind Elidia and suddenly lifted her up. He then put her directly on to Vilis. He then walked towards Lilise and did the same. To him, the girls were nothing more than babies. With his age, they could even be considered fetuses. (Author note: lolz) "Put me down, no, no, ahhhh!" Elidia and Lilise had very similar reactions. Both of them had fear written all over their faces. Vilis was the like the monsters they dreamt about and feared. Being suddenly placed on him was like a nightmare. After both girls were finally on top of the beast, Arnin began to clap his hands "Vilis, get up now. Let''s go." Arnin didn''t care much about the two girls'' reaction. He just needed to make sure that they didn''t act like they were adults and were not under lots of pressure. That would be detrimental to their future cultivation. Facing their fears and acting like children would be a benefit to them. When Vilis suddenly got up and began to walk, Elidia''s and Lilise''s eyes were already puffy and red. Although, tears didn''t fall out, but they were extremely scared. However, as Vilis slowly moved and they didn''t feel his threat,so slowly their little hearts calmed. "Are you finally done screaming?" Arnin turned his head and mocked Elidia. "Hmph, I wasn''t screaming. You were just hearing things." Elidia crossed here arms and was about to turn her head, however out of fear of falling off, she grabbed out to Vilis'' fur. She then let go just as quick, thinking that if grabbed too hard, the beast might eat her. Arnin noticed all of this and couldn''t help but shake his head. "Elidia, you can grab his fur. Vilis won''t hurt you." Arnin slowly explained to Elidia, as if he was trying to explain that threat level of a ladybug to a baby. Seeing that Elidia was still somewhat hesitant, he walked closer to Vilis and grabbed a handful of fur. Seeing that there was no reaction from Vilis, Elidia blinked with a gaping mouth. "Now, both of you try." Arnin spoke with dull eyes. Elidia and Lilise nodded their heads and grabbed onto a handful of fur. Seeing that Vilis still made no reaction, their eyes brightened. Wide smiles appeared on their little faces, making them look like children. "We are finally here!" While the girls were in their own worlds, they had already reached the academy''s front gate. As the group reached the gate, Arnin decided that it would be a smart idea if he put his robe on. Although he could mess with the teachers like the way he did with Gil, he didn''t want to waste anymore time. When they finally arrived, they found that a teacher was signing people in and handing them robes and identity cards. The three got into the line and waited until it was their turn. --------------------------------------------------- An hour passed and it was almost their turn. The girls stayed on Vilis the whole time, which Arnin didn''t mind. "Next." The teacher called for the next set of people. Vilis walked forward with the two girls. The teacher looked up and surprised to see a beast. He then frowned slightly. "Were you unable to walk up the hill? How are you going to be cultivators if you can''t even do that?" The teacher didn''t ask with any mockery or scorn. He asked a simple question, however it still made the girl feel embarrassed. "Teacher, whether we walk up the hill or not shouldn''t be of your concern, right? So why are you asking such questions?" Arnin didn''t speak disrespectfully to the teacher in any way. Arnin found that the teacher did make a fine point, so there really wasn''t a reason to cause a problem. "And you are?" The teacher looked at Arnin with some surprise. He was shocked to find that he was questioned on the first day. He didn''t feel irritated, rather he felt more shocked and surprised. "Teacher , my name is Arnin and I am a part of the Moth group and Mark Master''s class." Arnin didn''t hide his academic identity. He wanted to get through the process as quickly as possible, so exposing his identity would help speed that up. "So you are a Moth student! I didn''t notice the robe. Well, yes, it isn''t something that I need to ask, but a student should be able to walk up themselves. If they can''t, then they are honestly not fit to cultivate." The teacher was more courteous when he spoke, however he still answered without hesitation. "I see where you are coming from, but who''s to say that they are not able to walk up the hill themselves? People have different reasons for their actions, and you can''t judge based on what you see." Arnin spoke like a scholar, which surprised the teacher greatly. He couldn''t believe that such words were coming out of a child''s mouth. "The Moth group is truly different from the rest. Here, let me take back my comment, I should not have asked before knowing the truth. Let''s move onto the robe and identity hand out." Arnin was surprised and glad that the teacher was not some petty person that would argue with a child. He was happy to see at least someone that would accept the truth without getting angry. "The names are Elidia and Lilise. They were assigned through the quota method." Arnin told the names that should be in the list. "Hmmm¡­ alright, found them. So, you two will be in the Green Butterfly class. These colors don''t mean anything, they are just a way to divide the classes." The teacher gave the two girls their robes and identity cards. Arnin nodded his head and walked past him. "Thank you for your help, teacher. Maybe we will see each other in the academy." Arnin smiled before crossing through the gate and stepping into the academy building. He finally made it to Lepidoptera Academy. 29 The Chubby Boy When Arnin stepped into the large academy, what he noticed was the bustling of students going left and right. Kids were walking in groups, discussing different topics with passion. One could see their eyes blazing with fire, which showed that these were the newly accepted students. Other people who were a little older didn''t have the same look. They were more serious and even somewhat dull, which distinguished them as returning students. The robes everyone wore were very similar. They were white, however each of them had a large butterfly imprinted on the front and back, located on the chest and upper back respectively. The only difference that could be seem was the color of the butterfly. The robes that Lilise and Elidia wore had a green butterfly; the children walking by sometimes had green as well, or blue and many other colors. Arnin was the exception in the group of students. Not only did he not have a butterfly on his robe, but rather his robe itself was a navy blue color. There was a large black Moth on his chest and upper back, while the shoulders had an insignia with multiple marks. It was a robe that stood out quite a bit, even attracting some of the students. "Who is that? Why is his robe different than ours?" The first student asked his friend. He carried a look of awe. He didn''t know who Arnin was, but the different robe most likely signified something important. "You don''t know? That robe is only worn by the students of the Moth group. We can''t compare to them, so don''t make trouble." The student friend quickly explained. Although they were all about the same age, these students had large mouths. They spoke loudly and because of the loudness of the first student, other people began to notice Arnin as well. This was the one thing Arnin wanted to avoid. Although he made trouble with some of the teachers, he wanted to stay low in the academy so that he could get his work done undisturbed. "Let''s go talk to him. He may become our friend." Some of the students began to have ideas of befriending Arnin. They were young and they only thought about making friends with others, especially if they stood out. None were like the sly old foxes which would secretly scheme different ways to build a good relationship, and then use that to their advantage. These students had innocent thoughts of befriending the stylish Arnin. "You go first." The students began to bicker amongst themselves, which gave Arnin a headache. He decided to quickly leave the area and find his lodgings and also to get Lilise and Elidia sorted out. "Lilise, Elidia, let''s go find where you will be staying. I need to know where you will be so that if anything happens, I don''t have to search aimlessly." Arnin spoke with a dull expression before walking forward. The two girls nodded their head. "Wow, do you guys see that tiger behind him? It''s so cool." Some of the children noticed Vilis walking in through the gates and couldn''t help but gasp. They didn''t seem to consider him a threat since he was in the academy. "You guys want to go and pet him?" One of the boys asked his friends. "You can go. I''m too scared." His friends didn''t follow his mindset however, the young boy was determined to pet Vilis. He quickly followed behind Arnin with his fastest speed. "Wait, hey!" Arnin turned around only to find a boy running towards him. The boy was around the same age as Arnin and had short brown hair. He was a little chubby which was clearly shown as he ran. His flabs vibrated like a bouncing water balloon. Wrinkles spread, and it looked quite hilarious. Arnin, didn''t show much of an expression, however Lilise and Elidia found it hard to hold their laughter in. "Yes?" Arnin asked. He wanted to quickly get things sorted out and begin cultivating. Also, he need to go and find out how his classes would work with the Mark Master task he was assigned. Plus, he need to quickly practice some more marks, since he had only succeeded in making one mark so far. "Umm¡­ can I touch your beast? Only for a sec, it won''t take long." The chubby boy asked with some hesitation. However, the more he looked at Vilis, the more excited he got. Arnin smiled at the boy before nodding his head. It was only something simple as touching, and it would take about a second. "Really? Haha!" The chubby boy''s eyes began to sparkle as he walked towards Vilis. At first the beast growled, however Arnin glared at him, making the beast reluctantly agree. The chubby boy first placed his hand on the side before placing two hands, then he touched the fur with his head. Next thing you know, he is clinging onto Vilis. "Haha! This feels so good. I could stay like this forever." The chubby boy fell into his own dreams the second his whole body clung onto the beast. Vilis looked at Arnin for help, his eyes were becoming watery which could be interpreted as him saying, ''Get this kid off me!''. Arnin walked over to the chubby kid before tapping his shoulder. "You seem to really like beasts, huh?" Arnin noticed that the chubby kid did not show any fear. He looked at Vilis the way one would look at a lover. "Of course! They are the greatest creatures in the world. If only I could be one too." The chubby boy put on a face of sadness and reluctance. Arnin was surprised by his words, but he then thought of an idea. "What do you think of my beast?" The chubby boy touched the fur once again before putting his face back onto Vilis. "What do I think? If I wasn''t a human boy, I would marry this beast. Wait, can I still marry him?" The boy began to seriously contemplate, which caused Arnin to become a little flabbergasted. This kid was really weird, however Arnin noticed that he really did seem to like beast, although maybe a little too much. "If you are interested, why don''t you become my Beast sitter? You can look after him while I am busy. In return, not only will you be able to hang around my beast, but I can even teach a thing or two to you." Arnin really needed to find someone to take care of Vilis. Because he would be going to classes and even working at the Mar Master department, Vilis might become irritated. If the chubby guy would look after him, then Arnin would be able to get rid of one problem off his shoulder. "Really? Do you mean it? Do you truly mean it?" The boy''s blue eyes sparkled when he heard what Arnin said. "So, what''s your name?" Arnin began to walk away while the chubby kid followed with his hand firmly planted onto Vilis, unwilling to let go. "My name is Akig and I hail from the great village in the east." Arnin didn''t care where he came from. He nodded his head slightly before reaching an area where a long line was. Kids that wore the white robes stood in an orderly fashion, however it was filled with chatter. Arnin sighed when he saw how long the line was. "Are you trying to find some lodging? Don''t worry¡­" The kid was stumped. He didn''t even know Arnin''s name yet. "My name is Arnin." The kid nodded his head before continuing. "If you need a place to stay, then you can live with me. My home is the largest of them all. I have the best beds and even the best food. What do you say Arnin?" Arnin could tell that the boy was flaunting something that wasn''t even true, however he didn''t try to expose the kid. "I will get my own home, plus these two also need a separate room." Arnin shook his head and rejected the notion. He needed privacy, and he truly needed a large room that would be able to allow Vilis to live in it. Ideally, he would need a field in the back. --------------------------------------------------- While the two boys were talking,a teacher was walking around and supervising the area. He had a smile on his face, however it froze when he saw a certain student. He noticed that the robe of the student was navy blue with a Moth on the front and back. He quickly ran towards the group. Of course, that student was Arnin. "Hey, are you a Moth group student?" The teacher quickly questioned Arnin as he approached them with a smile. He looked to be around Florian''s age, which was pretty young for a teacher. Arnin raised an eyebrow before nodding his head. "If you are a Moth student, you don''t need to wait in line. Come with me, I can help you get a lodging right away." Arnin followed the teacher with a big smile. He was satisfied with the treatment that the Moth group got. Other than him, Vilis, Akig and the two girls followed as well. They were taken into a back room, which contained nothing but a small bookshelf and clean wooden table. There were also some chairs, however too few for all the people. The teacher turned around and was surprised to see so many people. He thought that only the beast would come, but never expected there to be so many people. "Since you are in Moth group, you are able to get a much larger lodging then rest of the kids.You probably didn''t notice this, but this academy has two large buildings. One of them is for the Moth group, while the other is for the Butterfly group. Unlike the Butterfly students, Moth students are assigned a lodging beforehand. All I need is you to give me your identity card so I can find where it is."Arnin nodded his head and passed his card over. The teacher then took out an orb and placed the card inside. A bunch of symbols appeared, the teacher memorized the content and then handed the card back. He took a deep glance at Arnin before telling him to follow. "Your lodging is actually one of the larger ones. Not only is it unattached to the Moth building, it is also in front of a large field. Of course, other lodgings are also there, but only for very prestigious students. Seems like the teacher who assigned this for you must have thought of you to be quite spectacular." The teacher couldn''t help but compliment Arnin. Although he was a teacher, a Moth student would usually have a much brighter future, especially students who were treated generously from the start. When he first found out Arnin''s lodging, he knew that Arnin must be special. They walked out the Butterfly building and across a large field. The field had short grass, but there were many different things placed onto the field. There were some large crystals and even a small forest to the left. As they approached the other building, the teacher stopped in his tracks. "Since I am a Butterfly teacher, I can only lead you this far. Just go into the building and find a teacher to help you out. I will help your friends find a place to stay." Arnin nodded his head and continued into the building with Vilis. When he entered inside, the atmosphere was completely different. He didn''t see students walking around or hear any loud noises. It was very quiet, which satisfied Arnin. As he walked in the large, spacious building, he finally found a teacher roaming the premises. Arnin walked towards the teacher. "Teacher, would you happen to know where I can get my lodgings?" Arnin didn''t know how the place worked so he could only question. Plus, since he wasn''t told where he was going to stay by the other teacher, he had to ask someone else. "So you are a new student? Here, come with me." The teacher was much less enthusiastic than the previous teacher. He didn''t have a smile, rather he seemed a little serious in his conduct. Even though this was the case, Arnin didn''t really mind. Everyone was different and had different personalities, so he could care less. He followed the teacher into a similar room. The same thing happened with the orb and this time the teacher looked up suddenly. "Which teacher tested you for the examination?" He had a serious look when he looked at Arnin. The previously dull expression was gone. "Teacher Xillar and Teacher Kelnorin proceeded with the exam. Is there a problem?" Arnin was unsure of what the issue was. Wasn''t it only lodging? When the teacher heard the teachers'' names, he took a deep breath before sighing. He then looked at Arnin again, however this time there was some interest. "Do you know where you will be lodging?" The teacher suddenly asked. "I was told that it was a large home, however I am unsure of any other details." Arnin answered. "Well, the place you will be staying is only for the top Moth students. Although it is a fine location, it is also quite a competitive place to stay. People will most likely come and challenge you in order to take that home. Do you still want to live there?" The teacher solemnly asked Arnin. Since the Moth group was very competitive over resources, the housing also fell under this category. Everything in the Moth group was up for grabs. If you were strong, then you would be able to keep it, however if you were weak, then life would only get worse. Arnin thought for a moment, before nodding his head. He was not going to run away because of a little competition. If he wanted to keep a low profile, then he could have Vilis guard the home. The teacher gave Arnin another deep glance before nodding his head. He went to the desk and brought out a key. It was a black key that was only a little smaller than a knife. "This is the key to your home. I will lead you there, however don''t expect to have a peaceful time." The teacher warned him once again before leading Arnin out. They walked back on the field, however this time they entered the forest. They walked for a few dozen minutes before coming to a large residential area. It looked almost like a mini village. Arnin saw students of different ages walking around the place. It seemed that the reason the Moth building was empty or very quiet was because everyone was over here. When Arnin stepped into the residential area, the teacher that led him stopped. "The place where you will be staying is at the end of this area. The number for your lodging is one. It''s one of the largest, so it will be hard to miss." Arnin nodded before proceeding forward. The teacher looked deeply at Arnin''s back before shaking his head. "Good luck." 30 Unexpected Humiliation Arnin slowly walked through the large residential area. It was like a small village. As he progressed with the key in his sleeves, he noticed that the smaller houses belonged to children around his own age. There weren''t many that were around his age, possibly five or so, but it seemed that as he progressed, the bigger the students got, so did the houses. While he walked, the students that were outside their own lodges noticed Arnin. They were surprised to see that instead of occupying one of the first houses, he kept on going forward. They thought that maybe he was confused as to how the lodging worked, but the look in Arnin''s eyes didn''t look confused or lost. Everyone looked at him, but no one approached. Some people looked without any emotions, others with some pity, while a few even had the intent to fight written all over their faces. Slowly, he progressed and the houses continued to get larger. He needed to get to the end of the residential area and would need to find one of the largest houses. However, that was all the information that was given to him. There was nothing on the characteristics of the house or even the number plate to distinguish it. Arnin noticed the various looks that were thrown towards him, however he ignored them all. Even though he ignored their stares, he still inspected the cultivations of each of the people. He was surprised from what he gathered. The five year olds were still in Orb Birth - Earth, however they were reaching the pinnacle. As the ages increased so did the cultivation. He finally understood why the Moth group was considered a place for talented people. Finally, he reached the end of the place and noticed that the ages here were around twenty. Not only that, but the students were at least at Essence Manifest. Some were younger then Brajus and Dane, but their cultivation still surpassed them. At the end of the residential area, he found that the houses were extremely large. They were smaller then the one the village elder had, however only by a small amount. Just as he reached the area he heard a voice from behind. "Little kid. What are you doing over here? This area is for the older students." The voice contained some anger. Arnin turned around only to find a group of students who looked to be around the age of twenty. The person who spoke seemed to be the leader of the group. He had shoulder length black hair, and jet black eyes. He was tall and dashing, especially with the tattoo drawn over his left eye. It looked like a tattoo of a blue diamond. Arnin didn''t answer the question and only pulled out his black key and shook it in front of their eyes. Vilis also walked forward in order to defend Arnin. The cultivations of the people in front were all above Orb Birth - Heaven. They were stronger than Arnin. "It was for older students. Since I will be living here from now on, it is also for smaller kids." Arnin stared directly into the eyes of the leader. He didn''t threaten the guy, but his deep stare still intimidated him. He took a couple steps back when he saw Arnin''s stare. However, because of this action he felt his face become deep crimson. "What do you mean? Who gave you that key? Give it to me!" The leader felt humiliated, so he angrily spoke to Arnin. He even stretched out his hand to grab the key, however Arnin just pulled back his hand and shoved the key back into his sleeve. Vilis took another step forward and growled at the leader. "What do you think you are doing? Don''t touch something that isn''t yours." Arnin felt a little annoyed at the leader''s attitude and his sudden reach for the key. Although he was young, he wasn''t someone that could be bullied so easily. He had his own dignity as a past Demon Lord, so why would he let others push him around? Noticing Vilis getting angry, the leader and the group took a few steps back. It was known that a beast was usually stronger than a cultivator of the same realm. The reason behind this was because of the beast''s strong physical body. It surpassed those of humans, which allowed beasts to be more difficult to deal with. This was the reason that Von and Jelen had a difficult time dealing with Vilis inside the forest. (Author note: Von and Jelen were the two people that Arnin met and killed. Von was stabbed through Arnin''s oscar winning acting, and Jelen was the brawny man that Arnin kind of toyed with until he eventually killed.) The leader of the group had a cultivation of Essence Manifest - Sky, while the rest were still in the Earth smaller realm. Vilis, who was sitting a Rank One - Hell beast, was much stronger than the whole group. "Kid, control your beast." Feeling humiliated once again, the seething leader glared at Arnin. "You want me to control my beast? Well, aren''t I doing that right now? If you don''t scramble away now, my pet here can be controlled in different ways." Arnin had a wicked smile on his face, which caused the group to look straight into Vilis'' menacing eyes. They felt a shiver run down their back. "You better watch your back kid. Once I call the seniors over, they will handle both you and your beast." The leader ran with his tail between his legs, but not forgetting to threaten Arnin. When Arnin heard this, he couldn''t help but shake his head. "Vilis, go bring me that loud-mouth." Arnin stood there standing with his arms crossing over his chest. "Try not to kill him though." Arnin warned Vilis. Vilis quickly chased after the group which his eyes shining brightly. The group never expected that Arnin wouldn''t even let them go, however they kept running. "H-hey kid, stop your beast!" The leader yelled while he ran. Arnin ignored his yell and only waited silently. A few moments later, Vilis, with the leader in his mouth, waked back valiantly. "You want to bring back some stronger people since you couldn''t handle my beast? Just for that line, you will be accompanying me with finding my lodging." Arnin didn''t know where he was supposed to stay, so he decided to use the leader to find his abode. When the leader found that he was not going to be killed, he released a sigh of relief, however his eyes contained a deep hatred for Arnin. If the beast wasn''t present, he would have given him a thrashing. Arnin ignored his stare and continued to walk around. "Tell me, I don''t know how to find my lodge, how do I know which one is mine?" Arnin asked the leader as he walked. All he knew that his house was very large, but he was given no other information. He was honestly at a loss. He didn''t want to go and try his key at every door, hoping that it would open. That would be a huge waste of time. The leader didn''t answer his and only turned his head to the side. This displeased Arnin somewhat. *Grrrrr* Vilis made a deep growling noise when he saw Arnin being displeased. This caused the leader to panic and his hairs to stand up like soldiers. "Alright, alright. Can''t you tell your beast to let go of me? It''s not like I can run from him or anything." The leader asked with some fear. This fear was was not of Arnin, but of the beast. "No!" Arnin gave a straight answer without even thinking about it. "Answer my question. Once I find where I will be staying, you can go." Arnin didn''t want to waste time with the leader, he just wanted to find where he would be staying so that he could continue with his cultivation. "Kid, although I may be weak, there are seniors that live in this area that are much stronger than me. Most of the seniors have reached Essence Manifest - Hell and Heaven, so it would do you good to let me go." The leader, although scared of the beast, began to threaten Arnin. He didn''t think that a child his age would try to kill someone else, especially since they were too young and naive for that. He felt that if he threatened him a little more, then there was a chance that he would make the beast let go. Arnin was somewhat surprised when he heard the information, but it wasn''t new. This information was given to him by Dane''s group previously, so he knew that this would be the case. "Tell me how I can find my lodging, I won''t ask another time." Contrary to what the leader thought, Arnin didn''t budge. Rather, there was a layer of coldness in his eyes that deeply penetrated the leader. "Fine. Your identification card should have a few things written on them. The bottom left corner should have a number, that number corresponds to your house. Tell me the number and I will help you get to where you will stay." The leader finally gave in. Although he felt some coldness from Arnin, he knew that he was at the mercy of the beast. One wrong move could possibly get him in deep trouble. Arnin was surprised that the information would written on his card, so he quickly pulled it out and looked it over. The number written was ten. "What did you say? Ten? There is no way!" The leader looked at Arnin with shock. Then he suddenly smiled coldly. "Kid, I think that this home is a little too much for you. You should try and give it up, or else you might not even know how you were thrown out." The Moth group was known for competition, and this involved houses as well. "Don''t speak nonsense, and just tell me where to find it." Arnin understood that his house was probably much larger than others and possibly would bring him some trouble. Although he planned to keep a low profile, that didn''t mean that he would give in to others. He would just have Vilis guard the place. "I am not speaking nonsense, I am actually trying to help you out of my good will. The place where your house is located is the seniors'' location. Plus, these are the oldest seniors. Their cultivation has already surpassed that of Essence Manifest." The leader warned. Arnin was slightly flabbergasted. Arnin felt that this would be somewhat troublesome. He was not able to handle Essence Manifest cultivators yet, let alone people who were a realm higher. The only way he could handle them was if he released some of his original powers, but that was only something he would do if he was facing a life or death situation. "Take me there. I will handle the rest." Arnin decided that he would try and see if he could live there. If things got to the point where he was unable to reside there, then he could just find a different place to stay. Although he was arrogant, he knew when to stop. The leader face darkened and his smile got even colder. ''This kid is doomed.'' He couldn''t help but be glad that Arnin didn''t follow his advice. He suffered under his beast, so he was looking forward to see Arnin suffer under someone else''s hands. The three approached an area with very large houses, however it was not connected with the residential area. They had to walk passed the forest and find the location. The houses were larger than that of the village elder''s, which surprised Arnin. The leader, who was still in Vilis'' mouth, couldn''t help but look at the houses with anticipation and reverence. Just as the three continued to walk, two people approached them from the front. They looked to be around the same age as Dane and Brajus, however the aura they released was much deeper. Arnin squinted his eyes and found that the threads inside their bodies were thicker and there was even an unknown power mixed within them. "What do we have here? Do you guys not know that this is only for the top students?" The two people looked at Arnin and the leader with surprise. One of them was a boy while the other was a girl. The male was the first to speak, however his face was dark when he noticed the three. "Senior, please help me. This child had his beast grab me and bring me here. Plus, he is going to be taking over house number ten." The leader quickly complained with hurt eyes. He acted like a child who was complaining about someone else in front of his parents. The two were somewhat shocked, but their faces became cold when they looked at Arnin. "I don''t care what you did to this man, but I do not permit you to live in house ten. This place is only for those who have surpassed Essence Manifest. You seem to still be in Orb Birth- Sky." The man spoke coldly. He walked closer to Arnin and looked down at him. "I don''t believe that I need your permission to enter. Step aside." Arnin also became somewhat annoyed. Although the two in front of him were people he couldn''t handle, he wasn''t going to back down just because of that. Before he became a Demon Lord, he had to face many foes who were much stronger than him. He lost to many of them, almost dying a couple times, but he would never bow his head. "Kid, I don''t think you heard me right. Let me explain it in a different way¡­" The man then walked over and released his aura. It was a strong aura that caused the leader to shiver in fear, however Arnin didn''t budge. He was able to handle Xillar''s pressure, let alone a student''s. Arnin released his own aura to counteract the other''s. Seeing that Arnin still didn''t budge, he was very shocked. Never would he have guessed that an Orb Birth cultivator would be able to stand under his aura without breaking a sweat. "Seems like you have some skill, but that still doesn''t qualify you to stay here." The man then vanished into thin air, appearing in front of Arnin. He quickly extended his hand and lifted Arnin into the air. Arnin became surprised that the man was able to lift him into the air like that. He was able to notice the speed, but wasn''t able to react to it. Seeing that he was being held up, Arnin''s eyes became colder and a red glint appeared. He was just about to swing his leg towards the man before he found himself being thrown back onto the ground. "As you can see, you can''t match up to me. Just give it up and find a new place. House ten is only for the tenth strongest." The man began to laugh as he walked away. Arnin gritted his teeth, but he didn''t make another move. With his current cultivation, he would be unable to handle the man, and he couldn''t release his sealed power either. Vilis was weak as well, so he could only leave in defeat. "I told you kid, this place is not for¡­" Just as the leader was about to finish speak, Arnin grabbed his arm and cracked it. "AHHHHH!" The leader screamed in agony as his arm limped to his side. He hatefully looked up, however nothing came out of his mouth. All he saw was Arnin covered in a sinister aura that shrouded him completely, making him look demonic. He also saw an image of a demon appearing from the aura. He took a deep gulp before closing his eyes in fear. Arnin had his fists clenched and his eyes were extremely sinister, however he was not frowning. He held a very evil smile, scaring even Vilis, who usually enjoyed such things. "You think that this is the end? You have just humiliated me, Arnin! I will make you suffer more than you can imagine for this!" Arnin whispered to himself, but every word caused the leader to tremble in fear. ''Who is this kid? Why do I feel so frightened by him?'' The leader could only utter such words in his head as he continued to tremble under the sinister aura. 31 Beauty into Beas Arnin walked out of the forest with a darkened expression. His aura was still lingering around him, which caused the leader, and even Vilis, to tremble in slight fear. The aura was just too frightening. "U-umm, I helped you find the place, e-even though s-senior didn''t let you through, I c-completed my job. C-can I g-go now?" The leader was trembling slightly. He never imagined that this kid would be so scary that he would even frighten his own beast. Arnin turned his head and looked at the leader coldly. This caused the leader to look down slightly, unable to even meet his cold eyes. "You aren''t done yet. Since I have lost my housing, how do I obtain another one? Do I have to go back and try to apply for a new one?" Arnin glared at the leader with anger. He needed to direct his anger onto someone, and this leader was the perfect person. "Y-you don''t apply for a new home. S-since you lost yours, you can t-try to take someone else''s. H-however, you have to initiate a proper duel." The leader spoke hesitantly, but told Arnin the details. He told him out of fear, but was hoping that Arnin would try not to duel him directly. "A-also, the duels are fought o-one on one, so your beast is not a-allowed to participate." The leader told him the most important rule. If group fights were allowed, then people could create their own groups and take over a district forcefully. Arnin nodded his head and coldly looked towards the different houses. He needed to quickly increase his own cultivation without bringing more attention towards himself. So, any large houses were now out of the picture, he needed to go and take over places that had only Orb Birth cultivators. "Alright then. Help me search for a home. I need a place that isn''t too large but also not too small. It has to be in a more quieter area with cultivators only in the Orb Birth realm." Without waiting for the other''s approval, Arnin began to walk. The leader looked at Arnin with reluctance and fear. ''What did I do to you? I only asked for the key. Why are you torturing me like this? Can''t we just part ways?'' The leader couldn''t help but cry to himself. They got back to the area where lots of houses were present, both big and small.People were shocked when they saw Arnin once again, plus they also saw the leader in the beast''s mouth, so they couldn''t help but continue staring. "Didn''t that kid go to the deeper areas? Why is he back now?" A teen asked with confusion. "He probably got kicked out of the place. That''s what he gets for being so arrogant and getting in over his head." Another person mocked from the sides. However, seeing that the leader was in the beast''s mouth, they didn''t try to approach. The leader stared at the people with anger. ''Are you guys trying to get yourselves killed? If he is able to hold me like this, wouldn''t he be able to do the same to you?'' The leader couldn''t help but sweat because of their stupidity. Although some of the people mocking Arnin were in Essence Manifest, the rest were still sitting around the Orb Birth realm. He, as an Essence Manifest - Sky cultivator, wasn''t able to face the beast, so what gave them the guts to try and mock him? "Since we are now well acquainted, what is your name?" As they walked, Arnin turned his head and questioned the leader with glare. ''Well acquainted? What the heck does that mean? Plus, why the heck are you glaring at me?'' The leader couldn''t help but feel as though he was being treated like a slave. "M-my name is Revi. What about you?" Since he was being asked for his name, he wanted to also know the name of his warden. Arnin didn''t answer his question and only turned his head. This caused Revi to scoff with annoyance. ''What the heck is with his attitude? I am asking for his name, not his life.'' "Now tell me, which location should I start looking from?" Arnin spoke without turning his head towards Revi. "Yea, the lodging area that you want should be this area, however I don''t know which home you would want." Although he didn''t like Arnin''s attitude, since he was under the other party''s mercy, he could only answer Arnin''s question. "If it is here, then I will just have to find the place myself. You are free to go now." Arnin nodded his head and waved his hand towards Vilis, who let Revi go. The leader felt as though he had been freed from hell itself and couldn''t help but scream towards the sky with happiness. Just as he was about to turn around and run away, he found that Arnin had already begun to walk towards a house. It wasn''t a large one, rather it was smaller than the ones in the area. It was quietly placed in the corner, making it a little harder to see than most of the other places. Revi was bewildered towards his actions as he assumed that Arnin would go and try to get a house on a larger scale, but that''s not what happened. ''What is he up to? Maybe I will watch him from a distance.'' With that decided, Revi moved further back and observed. Arnin slowly walked up to the silent house and knocked on the front door. The house was simple from the outside and had stone brick walls with a timber roof. Since the place was quiet, Arnin found that this would a suitable place to stay before he got his revenge on the senior student. He didn''t care what the senior was called, all that mattered was what level of cultivation he was at. A few minutes later, the stone door swung open and a young girl walked out. She had short orange hair which was tied into a ponytail. Her eyes were a bright sapphire and were filled with iciness. When she stepped out, her eyes examined the surroundings, and then she looked down to see Arnin. Her age seemed to be fifteen or so, and she was much taller than Arnin. "What do you need?" The girl glared at Arnin with her ice cold eyes. There was no hint of warmth within, even though Arnin was only five. "I need you to step out of the house and find a new place to live." Arnin smiled towards the girl before walking passed her and into the house. He pushed her aside and began to inspect the interior. "Not a bad place." He smiled once more before glaring at the girl. She looked at him with a frown. ''How dare he just walk in to my home? Does he have a death wish?'' The girl thought that Arnin might have some mental problems, which was why he was doing what he was. "Why did you enter my house without my permission? Get out now!" The girl looked at Arnin menacingly, however the only reply she got was a mocking smirk. "Your house? It''s mine now. If you want it, then come bite me." Arnin waved his hand towards her. Suddenly, right when she was about to berate him even more, Vilis walked past her as well, entering the house. As the beast walked, he made a growling sound towards her, threatening her to move aside. She reluctantly stepped out and her face became bright red. Never had she felt such humiliation. "Do you dare duel with me?" The girl noticed that she was no match for the beast so she could only threaten Arnin. "You want to duel? Do you have the capability?" Arnin had already fought with two people who were at Orb Birth - Heaven. Although she was also at this realm, this didn''t matter much to him. All of them were the same to him. ''What is this boy saying? He is only at Orb Birth - Sky, does he really think he could match me?'' She had a perplexed look when she heard his words. However, she still felt that Arnin was boasting with nothing to back him up. "Whether I have it or not, come and see." She didn''t back down and only looked at Arnin with hatred. Although Arnin was only a child, she could care less about that. Anyone that stepped on her dignity, she would teach them a lesson. "You asked for it. I am in a bad mood, so prepare to get some serious injuries." Arnin began to walk towards the girl with his aura slowly being released. From afar, Revi began to sweat because of Arnin''s boldness. Not only did he walk into the house without the other''s permission, he also had her initiate the duel. This was too great of a move. ''Kid, you are really something.'' Although he hated Arnin for how he treated him, he still felt that Arnin had some capabilities, especially because of the aura that he released previously. Suddenly, he felt the same aura that he felt before. It was sinister and also demonic. He began to get the chills and his hairs stood upright. His body trembled slightly before he saw Arnin walk out of the house with a black hue surrounding him. ''This kid is releasing that aura again. That girl is in trouble now. Even I can''t think properly under his pressure.'' Revi couldn''t help but feel scared, so he took a step back. The girl widened her eyes as she felt the pressure of Arnin''s aura. She couldn''t help but also take a step back as she slightly quivered. ''What is wrong with this kid? This aura is just too¡­ evil.'' She noticed that she herself was moving back, which shocked her. The girl strengthened her resolve and faced Arnin, however some fear was hidden in her eyes. "Do you still wish to continue?" Arnin asked the girl. Although he was in a bad mood, he still didn''t want to expose himself too much. He needed to lay low before getting rid of the senior. "Of course. You are the one who took my lodge. I won''t take this lying down." Suddenly, the girl released her strong aura. It was Orb Birth - Heaven realm, however it didn''t hinder Arnin in any way. "Well since you are so adamant about this, let''s begin." Arnin finally stepped outside the house, and then he vanished. The girl looked around and couldn''t find Arnin. She began to slightly panic, however she felt something behind her. Turning around, a fist flew towards her face. Quickly, she lifted her arms and blocked it, however she was still pushed back a couple of steps. She felt a tingling pain on her arms so she looked down, only to find that her forearm was slightly bruised. She was astonished that someone who was two small realms lower than her was able to injure her so quickly. Revi watched and also felt astonished. ''That kid is so fast. Even I couldn''t see his movements.'' Arnin was somewhat surprised that the girl was able to block his move. Brajus wasn''t even able to react to him, which clearly showed the difference between a Butterfly student and a Moth student. "Impressive. You are stronger than I thought, but that still isn''t enough to win against me." Arnin smiled and released an even stronger aura. He vanished once more and appeared on the girl''s left. She wasn''t able to react to his increase in speed and was directly hit on her cheek. A stinging pain appeared and she was off balance. Arnin took the opportunity to get under her and trip her onto the ground. ''What a shameless kid. He even tripped her right after punching her in the face? What happen to children learning to respect women?'' Revi couldn''t help but feel flabbergasted because of Arnin''s actions. Revi was a self-proclaimed lady''s man that always tried to impress women. He felt that women should be put on a pedestal and respected greatly, so what Arnin did really bugged him. The girl fell onto the ground with a thump. She felt that Arnin would at least let her get up, since this was supposed to be a respectful duel, however Arnin continued his assault. He lifted one of his legs and kicked the girl''s abdomen. She spat out a mouthful of blood before hitting the wall of the house. She hatefully looked at Arnin who approached her once more. His small hands grabbed her hair and lifted her off the ground. "Do you still want to continue with this duel? You have the option of forfeiting now, or letting me beat you until you can''t fight any more." Arnin threatened the girl with a wicked smile. He didn''t care whether the person was a girl or a boy, if they got in his way, then they would be beaten black and blue. The girl looked at Arnin with some fear, however she didn''t back down. "If that''s what you want, then blame only yourself." Arnin lifted his hand and hit her in the face, however he didn''t let go of her hair. He continued to beat her until she looked less like a beauty and more like a beast. Finally, the girl fainted and fell onto the ground. Although he didn''t fully release his anger, he felt that more would kill the girl. He dropped the girl and patted his hands. There was some blood on his knuckles and slight bruising,however it didn''t bug him too much. He walked towards the house and before entering, looked towards Revi who was standing in the distance. "Take her away from here. I don''t want garbage lying around my house." With that Arnin walked in and shut the door. The crowd began to whisper amongst themselves about how ruthless Arnin was. Revi felt his face go white like a sheet of paper when his name was called out. ''That kid! Why the heck is he calling me over? See if I listen to his commands. He isn''t my boss.'' Revi was about to turn around and leave, however he stopped. He had this feeling that Arnin was watching his back and his every move. He hesitated before turning around and walking towards the girl. He noticed her appearance and found that her cheeks were swollen and blood was leaking out of her forehead and mouth. ''That kid is truly a beast. Why the heck did the academy teachers let him in? Plus, he has his eyes on me now. What did I do in my past life to deserve something like this?'' He cried inside before lifting the beaten beauty. He slowly walked away from the house, not turning his head in fear of being seen by Arnin. 32 I Will Take This One The crowd watched as Revi took the girl away. Since most of them were in Orb Birth - Heaven, they could tell that Revi was much stronger than them. If Arnin was able to make Revi do his bidding, then what could they do to him? "That kid is too strong. Where did he come from? He looks like he is part of the youngest group, so how could he be so strong?" The people in the crowd couldn''t help but wonder. They wanted to go up and talk to Arnin and figure out his secrets, but after seeing what happened to the girl, they decided against that notion. Inside the house, Arnin sat quietly in the middle. He took over the girl''s house by force, which was something he didn''t mind, however there were some things inside the house which belonged to the girl. He didn''t have a use for them, so he thought of tossing them out. Some of the items included clothes, books, and even some other personal belongings. Grabbing all of her things, Arnin shoved them inside a wooden box that was in the corner. He then picked the box up and took it outside. Just as he was about to open the door, something fell out the box. It was a book. Arnin placed the box down and leaned down to pick it up, however the second he touched it, he felt a bunch of essence begin to gather around him. He was surprised by such a phenomenon. Arnin looked at the title of the book and couldn''t help but smile. Water Fist Battle Technique. It was a battle technique. Arnin hadn''t seen any of these yet, but he knew of their existence. In his past life, there were many things just like this. Not only that, he made his own battle techniques as well. The black gas that was released from his horns wasn''t a battle technique, they were something he gained after his powers reached a certain level. However, the wall of black gas that appeared in his village was a certain battle technique that he had created. It made the gas into an impenetrable wall that would deflect or cause damage, depending on his will. This battle technique was the first one that he saw in this world. He was intrigued by the essence of Afloria so he decided to see what kind of battle techniques there were. He opened up the book and began to read. "The essence of the world begins to form a cyclone inside the orb. Splitting of the catastrophe leads the hands, forming a smooth sphere of essence. The sphere absorbs impacts of other parties, leading to collection of esse¡­" As Arnin read through the technique, he wasn''t greatly impressed by the concept. He was able to understand it right away. The cyclone that they mentioned was basically the essence creating a type of whirlpool in the orb. That whirlpool then becomes a thick, water-like essence which travels to the fist. Once it reaches there, it creates a glove that can absorb a certain amount of impact, and direct it back to whoever the user wants. It may seem to be strong, however it can only absorb so much. If the power is too strong, then the sphere won''t be able to absorb the impact and it would backfire onto the user. It was a low level skill. "Such a useless skill." Arnin coughed, before throwing it back into the box. He needed to acquire better manuals and learn from them. The Water Fist was too weak for him. He also planned to make his own techniques, so he needed to find a way to learn more about the orb and the essence. He walked outside and threw the box onto the ground. "Are you the person who injured the young mistress?" Just as Arnin was about to turn around and walk back into the house, he heard a raspy voice from behind. He turned around and found an old woman glaring at him. She was wearing the same clothes as Xillar. Her eyes were cold when she looked at Arnin, as if she wanted to kill him. "Young mistress? Oh, you mean that girl? Yeah, it was me. What about it?" Arnin looked at the woman with a mocking smile. He could already feel the ill intent from the woman. The woman might be the guardian or something for the girl, which meant that she probably came from a pretty good background. "Insolence! How dare you even touch the young mistress?" The woman shouted at Arnin as if he was her greatest enemy. Arnin only smiled at her with mockery. He hated people that would come to him and spout nonsense like that. "Not only did I dare to injure her, I would do it again, even if I knew who she was." Arnin stepped forward and spoke with great arrogance. He could feel that he was no match for the woman in front of him, however as a teacher of the academy, she wasn''t able to do anything to him. "Y-you arrogant¡­ come with me! I will get you expelled from this academy right this instant!" The woman walked forward and tried to grab Arnin, however she suddenly felt a huge aura restrict her movements. "Teacher Zesiro, what do you think you are doing?" All of a sudden, a person walked out from behind the woman. Arnin looked over and his face darkened. It was Teacher Xillar. "Teacher Xillar, this man injured the young mistress. Don''t tell me I can''t even apprehend this little kid?" The woman was fuming when she was stopped. Although she was strong, her strength was still below that of Xillar''s. "Apprehend? Do you really think that is fair? The Moth group is bound to have injuries and competition. Just because the young mistress was injured, that doesn''t mean that the person who injured her should get in trouble. The Moth group will always be like this. Are you saying that we will have to get rid of every person who hurts another?" Xillar looked at Zesiro with a smile. Zesiro grumbled for a minute before turning around and walking away. "Teacher Xillar, you better be able to explain this to her father." The woman spoke before vanishing from the area. Xillar took a deep sigh of relief before looking towards Arnin. He expected a look of gratitude, or something along those lines, however he didn''t get any of that. Rather, Arnin''s face was dark and he looked angry. "What happened? Why do you seem upset?" Xillar asked quickly. He couldn''t help but feel that something happened. "Were you watching me? How did you get here at such a perfect moment?" Arnin asked through gritted teeth. He never expected Xillar to appear at such an good time. It was too much of a coincidence for that to happen, and Arnin didn''t believe it was unintentional. Xillar was shocked before he put on an awkward smile. "U-uh, yeah, I was watching. I was curious to see what you would do when you first arrived. I have no ill intent, so don''t worry about that. Still, do you know who that girl was?" Xillar tried to quickly change the subject and questioned Arnin. When he was watching Arnin, he didn''t expect to see him injure that girl. She was an important person that had a good background. "No, I don''t know who she is, however it doesn''t matter. She was a nuisance, so I took her out." Arnin spoke casually about the issue, which almost caused Xillar to trip. ''Doesn''t matter? Nuisance? You were the one who barged into her house and you call her a nuisance? What the heck is wrong with you?'' Xillar felt that Arnin was a little too much. "Then let me explain. Her name is Monifa Neige and she is the youngest daughter of a very powerful clan leader. Although he can''t do anything to you in the academy, once you leave, he is able to kill you if he wishes." Xillar looked at Arnin weirdly. Why would he attack someone he doesn''t even know? "Whether he can kill me or not is dependent on his skills. Plus, isn''t the Moth group supposed to encourage competition, so why are you saying that as though I made a mistake?" Arnin was feeling displeased. The rules clearly stated that competition was allowed, so it shouldn''t matter who he beats up. It was in the rules. Xillar look at Arnin and nodded his head. ''It is true that competitions are allowed, which is why the school is not going to lecture or punish you because of this incident. However, the parents and families of students don''t have to follow this rule outside of school. I am just warning you to be careful. People here are from great backgrounds, so don''t just beat someone up because you want to." Xillar spoke to Arnin without any anger present. "Teacher, thanks for your information, but I will do as I please. Also, if you continue to watch me, then make sure that you do it without me finding out. I may be weak now, but I have ways to tear this academy down without wasting an ounce of energy." Arnin threatened with a glare. ''This kid is too much. I just saved him from that old woman, and now he is threatening me?'' Xillar felt fury boiling up inside of him, but he managed to control himself. He nodded his head, and then vanished from sight. When Arnin spoke about destroying the academy, he was not lying. He would do just as he said if things were pushed too far. He could release his powers and completely destroy Afloria if he wanted. He was the creator of the world, so really he held complete authority over it. Arnin was going to stay in the house to cultivate, however he also needed to find out where Lilise and Elidia were going to stay. Plus, the chubby kid was going to look after Vilis for him. Although there was lots of competition in the Moth group, they could only fight the owner of the place if they wanted the house, and since Vilis wasn''t the owner, and the chubby kid wasn''t either, they wouldn''t be in danger. With a nod, Arnin walked towards the exit of the forest. ----------------------------------------------------- "That kid is so annoying! He thinks he is a big kid, but really he is just as childish as anyone else." Inside a small room with two beds, a girl couldn''t help but complain with gritted teeth. The girl was none other then Elidia. "Big sis, Arnin is actually really nice. He let you sit on his beast, and even helped us when the teacher was being mean." Lilise couldn''t help but pout when she heard her sister''s words. "Lilise, why do you and grandpa defend him so much? He is not so¡­" Just as Elidia was about to say more, a knock was heard from their room. Elidia was already in a bad mood and with someone interrupting her, she couldn''t help but feel even worse. Seeing that her older sister might cause a big problem, Lilise quickly rushed to the door to see who it was. She opened it up slowly and found that the person in front of her was Arnin. "Arnin? What are you doing here?" Lilise couldn''t help but ask. She knew that Arnin went to the Moth group location to get his own house, and she assumed that he would be very busy after that, but he suddenly came here. "I just came to check on you guys." Arnin didn''t wait for an invitation and just walked in. Lilise was surprised at first, however remembering her sister''s anger, she panicked. "Arnin, big sis is mad¡­" But before she could say anything, she heard her sister''s screams. "What are you doing here? Get out of here! You are such a pest!" Lilise''s face lost all of its colour when she heard that. "What the heck are you yelling about? I just got in here!" Arnin was already in a bad mood, so he couldn''t stop himself from yelling loudly. This caused both girls to tremble slightly as there eyes reddened a little. When Arnin yelled, some of his aura was released, which frightened them both. Arnin noticed their reaction and couldn''t help but sigh. He stopped his aura from releasing and looked at the girls angrily. "I just came here to check on you and what do I get? The older sister yelling at me, as though I killed her whole family. Whatever, I won''t pursue the matter. I want you both to come with me. This place is too small." Arnin walked out the door. Elidia and Lilise were somewhat scared to follow, but they gritted their teeth and obeyed. Arnin led them towards the outside. He passed the field and walked into the Moth building with the two girls. He looked for the residential place and finally found a teacher standing there. It was the same one that led him to the forest. The teacher saw him and couldn''t help but feel surprised. "What are you doing here? Did you get kicked out already? Unlucky, but I can''t help you with¡­ wait, why are there Butterfly students here?" The teacher questioned Arnin with a glare. Butterfly students were not allowed in the Moth building. It was a rule that was set a long time ago. "Does it matter whether they are here or not? Let me ask you a question." Arnin waved his hand and ignored the teacher''s question. "Of course it matters. It is a rule that was set by the previous principal. However, since this is your first time here, I will let it go, but there won''t be a next time." The teacher glared at him, but then calmed himself down. "What is your question?" He asked Arnin with some curiosity. ''I was wondering, how many houses are we allowed to occupy in the Moth residential area? Like if I want more, can I?" Arnin noticed that the houses in the Moth area were much better and had more essence in the surroundings then the enclosed house of the Butterfly group. The teacher looked at Arnin with shock. His face darkened and he couldn''t help but scoff. ''If you aren''t even able to take over one house, who gave you the courage to try and get two? To answer your question, yes, you are allowed to get more than one house. Really, as long as you can beat the other person, you can have them all. Still, you are too weak to even get one, so forget trying to get more." The teacher began to speak with annoyance. ''Who gave him the courage to ask such a question? He is too weak to have one, yet he wants two? The arrogance.'' "Whether I can maintain or fight for one is none of your business. Since you have told me I am allowed, then I am done here." Arnin waved his hand and walked away with a fuming teacher looking at his back. Lilise and Eldia couldn''t help but feel astonished and worried that Arnin kept making enemies with every teacher. It wasn''t good for him. "Let me show you where I''m staying right now, then you guys can pick a house as well." Arnin causally spoke to the girls as if it was an everyday task. "Wait, Arnin, are we even allowed to have a house there? Like, that is the Moths'' residential area, and we are only Butterflies." Elidia asked worriedly. She didn''t like Arnin, but she wouldn''t ask someone to put themselves through trouble just for her. "I am not asking for your opinion. The old man and me made a deal, so it is better if you are in my sights rather than in a completely different location." Arnin didn''t give them a chance to speak much. If they lived in such a far location, not only would it take more time to get to them, the lack of essence would also slow their cultivations. The two girls nodded their heads when they saw Arnin giving them no other option. As they walked across the place, the different students gave the girls looks of mockery. As Moth students, they felt superior to Butterfly students. Arnin ignored all the stares, but the girls couldn''t help but feel as though they were being pricked by hundreds of thorns. It was a very unsettling feeling. "Ignore them. They think they are strong and whatever, but they are really quite weak. If you follow my training plan, I can get you guys to be much stronger than those pitiful losers." Arnin calmed the girls'' mind quickly with his words. He needed to have his own group in the academy. He only had himself and Vilis, which was not enough. If Lilise and Elidia were also able to become strong, then they could do harder tasks for him. Finally, the group approached Arnin''s house. The two girls were shocked when they saw the size of it. Although it was much smaller than their grandpa''s home, it was still really big for a five-year-old. "I can''t have you guys sharing a house with me, so let''s go find one for you. We will go into a less crowded area, so yea." Arnin showed them his place just so they knew where he lived. Next, he took them to look for a home that was close by, but wasn''t too eye catching. Suddenly, Arnin found a small house which was similar to the one he had, however it was located in the lower cultivation areas, which was a good place for the two girls. "This house seems like a good place. I will take this one!" 33 Servan When Arnin pointed at the house, the girls couldn''t help but get a little shocked. Although they knew Arnin was saying that he would get them a house, they never expected that it would be such a large one. "Arnin, we won''t be able to protect a house like this. Plus, we aren''t Moth students, so we can''t have one." Elidia couldn''t help but remind Arnin of the circumstances they were in. "Don''t worry about those minor things. This house will be under my jurisdiction, and you guys are just using it as my people. If others want it, they have to duel me, not you." Arnin spoke nonchalantly, however this caused Elidia to be annoyed. ''Who is your person? I am nobody''s person.'' She couldn''t help but curse in her mind. Just as she was about to continue complaining, she saw Arnin go up the house and knock on the door. A young man walked out the house. He looked to be a little younger than the girl Arin beat up previously. His realm was also at Orb Birth - Heaven, but it looked as though it was a recent breakthrough. The young man had a set of snow hair and midnight eyes. His sharp jaw that still had some baby fat outlined what would become a dashing look in the future. His hair was tied in a bun, while his clothes were tight fitting. Although he didn''t have muscles like an adult, he was much better than other children his age. "What do you want?" The boy didn''t exude an aura of coldness like the girl and didn''t show hostility like Revi, however he was really domineering. "I want this house. Leave!" Arnin smiled as he looked up at the young man. Arnin didn''t care who the other person was, he would get what he wanted, even if he had to cripple the other party. The boy showed a surprised face before his expression darkened. However, instead of attacking Arnin right away, the boy took a deep breath before showing a very shiny white teeth. "You want my house? Sure, but as the rules go, beat me a duel." The boy was somewhat angered but it didn''t seem like he was going to lash out. "Sure." Arnin agreed readily. It was much simpler to negotiate with people who would go straight to the point. Since the boy understood that he wasn''t able to deny the duel, he went ahead and brought it up. Both parties walked away from the house and stood on opposite ends. They faced each other without any hostility emitting from them. Arnin was still frustrated after his meeting with the senior who threw him out of the higher tier houses, but he had calmed down significantly after beating the girl up. Arnin looked at the boy as his eyes slightly glimmered with a thought. "Before we start, why don''t we make a bet?" Arnin proposed. He could see that the boy he was facing was talented, he most likely had a higher talent than Revi. "A bet? Little kid, aren''t you worried that this bet would be more beneficial to me?" The boy was shocked at first, but he laughed slightly. Arnin was much smaller than him in height and most likely strength as well. He didn''t think that Arnin would be able to win the duel, let alone a bet. "Don''t worry about me, and let me just explain the bet. Just agree or disagree." Arnin looked at the boy seriously. "If a little kid like you is so confident, why should I back out? Go ahead, explain your bet." The white haired boy smiled before signaling Arnin to continue. "If I win, you have to give me the house and you will become my servant." Arnins words were extremely arrogant and the boy couldn''t help but widen his eyes before his face showed a hint of displeasure. "What happens if I win?" The boy showed annoyance after learning what would happen if he possibly lost, which he believed was not going to happen. "If I lose, the house will stay as yours and I will become your servant. Is that a deal?" The boy thought for a moment before he nodded his head. Although he didn''t need a servant, it didn''t hurt to have one. Plus, Arnin was also a Moth student, which showed that he was talented. If he could have a talented servant, then he would be able to get better resources and more respect in the Moth group. "Alright, it is a deal. Remember not to go back on your wo-" Suddenly a sheet was thrown towards him. The boy grabbed it and glared at Arnin for his sudden assault., however the latter only pointed towards the sheet. The boy harrumphed before looked at what the paper held. It was a contract that stated the things they just discussed. The boy was shocked that Arnin was able to create something like a contract without him even realizing it. "Sign the contract with your blood, I already did. After that, this bet will be final and neither of us will be able to go back on our words." Arnin smirked as he watched the boy drop his blood onto the contract. The boy was somewhat hesitant, but he resolved himself and then dropped his blood onto the contract. Suddenly, it vanished into thin air, which made him a little shocked about Arnin''s skills. ''This kid was able to make a contract like that so easily, he might be tougher than he looks.'' The boy didn''t look at Arnin like he did before. Just the contract was a product of high essence control, which only talented or strong people had. If Arnin could do it, that meant that he wasn''t weak. "Let''s begin th-" The boy was just about to finish his sentence before he saw that Arnin was gone from his previous location. The boy was surprised in the beginning before he jumped forward and twisted his body around. Arnin appeared from behind and couldn''t help but slightly widen his eyes. The boy had really good reflexes, which showed that his control over his body and his mind were very stable. Arnin couldn''t help but smile wickedly. He didn''t use his speed to get behind the boy this time, rather he landed, and pushed off the ground towards the boy. The boy scoffed, before also jumping towards Arnin. Although both of them were different ages, the boy didn''t care about that. He felt that Arnin was strong enough to be fought seriously, which even frightened him somewhat. Both of the boys used their fists to face the other. The fists collided against one another, causing the two to take a couple steps back. Arnin''s fist, which at first seemed normal, was anything but. When both of the fists collided, he inserted some threads into the other''s body, causing the boy''s fist to become numb. The boy shook his hand in the air, but he felt it losing feeling. There was a small bruise on his fist, but he felt that his loss of feeling was the greatest surprise. He also knew about the numbing effect of the threads, however he wasn''t proficient at using the skill. Seeing that Arnin was able to use the numbing effect caused him great surprise. He lifted his head and looked at the approaching Arnin. He felt a dreadful aura being released from Arnin, causing his body to tremble, albeit slightly. "Since we did a small exchange, let''s get on with the real thing." Arnin spoke quietly as a small tinge of red appeared in his eyes. ''Small exchange? Little kid, that was more than just a small exchange. You basically messed up my hand. How is that a small exchange?'' The boy cursed in his head before also releasing his aura. He tried to counter the one Arnin was releasing, however he still couldn''t overcome the dread that resulted from the sinister aura. He took another deep breath and his aura began to decrease in size. Arnin saw the change in the boy''s aura. Although it wasn''t as large as before, he felt that it was much sharper. ''He condensed it? This boy is much more talented than I thought.'' Arnin couldn''t help but praise the boy''s feat. He condensed his aura into a much stronger form, rather the continuously increasing its pressure. Arnin watch carefully before trying to attempt the same thing. He had past experience with this, but never tried it with the essence aura. *ROAR* Suddenly, a beastly howl was released from the aura around Arnin. The sinister feeling from before increased by a significant amount. Not only that, but the aura began to squirm slightly, making beastly noises that induced fear into everyone that was watching. The boy who was facing Arnin couldn''t help but take a few steps back. The aura that Arnin was releasing caused his breathing to increase rapidly, his eyes becoming blurry. Since he was the one being directly affected by the aura, he could feel the murderous and evil intent. His eyes blackened before he slowly passed out, however before he did, he noticed that a large Demon like creature had taken form behind Arnin. It had three large horns with a black gas surrounding them. ''What the heck¡­ is¡­ with ¡­ this...kid'' the boy couldn''t take it anymore and blacked out, ---------------------------------------------------------- *Drip Drip* The boy felt water falling onto his face. His eyes opened the gates of darkness and found a brown ceiling. The boy blinked a couple times before turning his head around. He realized that he was inside of a room, rather it was his room. ''Didn''t I lose the duel? Why am I in this house?'' The boy knew that he lost the duel when he blacked out. He just couldn''t understand why he would be in his room. "You''re up. Well hurry up and get changed, we have lots of things to get done." From the left, the boy heard a noise. He turned his head and saw Arnin standing by the door. He had a confused look on his face before he slowly got up from the bed. Right when he was about to get up, he noticed that he was shirtless. He didn''t get flustered or anything, however he noticed a weird mark on his chest. It was crimson mark that resembled a drop of blood. "What is this?" The boy became horrified at the sight. He jumped out of bed and began to examine his body to see if there were any other marks. "What''s taking so long? Hurry up!" Arnin''s voice resounded from outside the door. The boy blanked out before his expression became ferocious. He ran out and glared at Arnin. ''What did you do to me?! What the heck is this thing on my chest?!" The boy was flustered and his previous calm state was gone. "What do you mean? That mark is there because you are now my servant. Remember the bet? You just lost the bet, so stop acting like you lost your family!" Arnin was annoyed by the boy''s reaction. He lost the bet, so of course the contract would bind him to the agreements "C-contract?" The boy felt as though a bucket of cold water was dropped on top of him. He looked down and clenched his fists until his knuckles became white. "You are now my servant and this house is now mine. So hurry up and get your stuff out of here. As your master, I won''t let you live on the streets, but you are going to have to find a new place to live from now on. If you need help finding one, tell me." Arnin acted as though he was showing the boy a new path that could help him. ''This is your fault, you damned kid. If you didn''t duel me, I wouldn''t be on the streets.'' The boy felt infuriated, however he couldn''t do anything except accept the truth. He did sign the contract and it was his fault for losing. "You can find a house later though. For now, you are going to follow me and help me get some of my tasks done." Arnin didn''t wait for the boy, swiftly walking out the house. The boy was stunned for a second before quickly following behind. He could only try and be a servant until Arnin relieved him of the bet. He didn''t want to be a servant for a person younger than him, especially since they were both in the Moth group. It would be humiliating if someone saw him. As he followed him out, he saw two girls standing outside, waiting "Lilise, Elidia, this is now your place to stay. You will move your things here." Arnin waved his hand and walked away. The girls nodded their heads before rushing into the house with happy expressions. The boy watched all of this happened and his mouth couldn''t help but twitch. ''My house belongs to Butterfly students now? What the heck is this?'' The boy felt as though he was going crazy. If Arnin took the house, then that would be a little better, since he was a Moth student, but the house now belonged to Butterfly students. He couldn''t help but feel wronged. Both of them walked in while the boy continued to stay depressed. "What is your name?" Arnin turned his around and asked the boy. The boy looked up with his dull, black eyes., "Kurse." He only said one thing before looking back down. Arnin noticed this and smirked. "You lost the bet so stop acting so low. If you follow me, I will let you see things that you would never have imagined." Arnin smiled before consoling Kurse. He didn''t need a half-hearted servant. What he wanted was someone who would complete his tasks for him without much problems. He liked the attitude of the boy when he first met him, which was why he decided to take the boy in. However, if he became a nuisance, then Arnin would be without a servant. The boy nodded his head and complied. He couldn''t really saying anything else because of the contract. If he tried to do something that would go against the contract, he would feel a burning sensation from his chest. When the two people walked out of the residential area, Arnin turned around and looked at the boy. "Kurse, as your master, I will explain some of the things that I will be doing in the academy, so you have to prepare for them. I own two houses in the residential area, the original and the one I took from you. My original house also has my demonic beast, which will be taken care of by another Butterfly student. As my servant, you will be assigned to go to my place and make sure that no problems occur with other students. If someone comes and asks for a duel, you will only accept it if you can guarantee a win, if not then you do not accept and tell them to wait for my return." Arnin slowly explained some minor tasks which Kurse reluctantly accepted. Then, a thought hit his mind and he couldn''t help but look at Anrin with confusion. "Wait, what will you be doing then? Like other than the lectures, most people stay in their homes to cultivate. What about you?" Arnin kept saying that he would be away from the house, but where would he be? "That''s my next point. I am going to be working in the Mark Master building. I was assigned a job, so a good portion of my time will be spent there. Your duty as a servant will also require you to follow me there. I will try to find another person to help you with these tasks, so don''t worry about that. Kurse''s mouth twitched when he heard that. ''Another servant? Which unlucky person will share the same fate as me?'' He couldn''t help but feel sorry for the next person that would fall under Arnin. He already felt the strength that Arnin had, so he didn''t feel that anyone in the Orb Birth realm would be able to match him. "W-wait. Did you say Mark Master!?" the boy suddenly remembered Arnin''s words and his mind began to spin. ''You''re a Mark Master as well?'' Kurse looked at Arnin with bewilderment. "Yeah, it isn''t too difficult. Just make sure that you complete your duties. Now, lead me to where the Mark Master building is." Arnin waved his hand. Kurse almost spat out blood when he heard Arnin. ''You don''t even know where the Mark Master building is, yet you are one? Kid, stop pulling my leg!'' 34 Done Playing Nice Kurse helplessly led Arnin to the large Mark Master''s building. Although it was called a ''building'', it was actually just a large department in the Moth group building. The Moth group had many departments that were specially kept for them, these included the Mark masters section, lecture halls and also some small markets. It had a great variety of options for the Moth group, which was something the Butterfly group was unable to have. The Mark Master department was on the far left of the Moth building. It was large and had many rooms. There were three floors for the department, the lowest floor selling some stones that Arnin hadn''t seen before. The stones had marks on them which gave off various auras. Some of the stones were brimming with white light, others with black. They were different, and the more marks Arnin saw on a stone, the stronger the aura he felt. "What are these stones? Are they related to cultivation?" Arnin could only make a guess at this point. He was still new to the whole Mark Master role, and didn''t know much about it. Although he was able to create a mark on his first try, it didn''t mean that he was knowledgeable on the subject. ''You''re a Mark master, and you don''t even know what this is? What the heck is wrong with this person? My future looks so dark.'' Kurse couldn''t help but lament his misfortune. At first, he assumed that Arnin had some capabilities because of his strength, and when he found out that Arnin was also a Mark master, he had a small amount of hope building up, but it all came crashing down. "Uhum! Well, these stones are, as you said, related to cultivation, however only cultivators that are at Essence Manifest and above can use them. At the moment they are useless to us." Kurse decided to slowly explain. Although he felt that Arnin was too oblivious, as a servant, he had no other choice. "So these are for cultivation? How does one use them?" Arnin couldn''t touch the stones because they were stored behind a glass wall. In his mind, these stones were very similar to the marks inside his body, and would enhance a certain aspect for him in a given interval, but he was unsure as he had never seen one before. ''This kid!'' He couldn''t help but sigh because of his encounter with Arnin. "From what I have heard, one just needs to hold onto them while they cultivate and their essence absorption will increase depending on the type of stone." Kurse looked at the stones with sparkling eyes. He had always wanted to get them and boost his own cultivation, however as he was still in Orb Birth - heaven, he was unable to use them. Arnin nodded his head and looked around a little more. Other than the stones, he also found some weapons that had marks placed on them as well. He found various things in the shop, but the stones seemed to be the most popular. After looking around for a bit, Arnin decided that he would go to the second floor. The first floor was only the shop, meaning the second floor was probably related to the creators or something like that. He walked passed all of the products and found the front desk. There was an old man standing behind it. His short white hair blocked some of the wrinkles that laid on his forehead. His azure eyes looked serene and calm like a silent lake. Arnin walked over and, with his small frame, stood in front of the desk. "I need to go to the second floor. I am a new Mark Master that was assigned by Teacher Xillar." Arnin didn''t bother with any greetings or other formalities, he just needed to get to the next floor and begin his work. The old man raised his eyebrows and couldn''t help but scan Arnin with his eyes. His eyebrows wrinkled for a moment before opening the door for Arnin. Arnin nodded his head and continued passed the old man. Kurse followed behind and was a little skeptical of the scene. Usually one would need to present their student identification card for anything like that, but Arnin didn''t do that and still got the right to enter. He looked at the old man while he walked by and could help but nod his head. The old man also did the same and then went back to his position. "That old guy is asking for a death sentence! How dare he!" Kurse was bewildered at Arnin''s words. He looked over and found that his face looked extremely sinister. "W-what happened?" Kurse couldn''t help but ask. He saw that nothing was out of the ordinary, so he couldn''t understand why Arnin was so angry. Arnin glared at Kurse and couldn''t help but scoff at his confusion. "You are pathetic. That old man placed a mark inside of you, and you didn''t even notice? Absolutely pathetic." Arnin spat and walked forward. Kurse was shocked and couldn''t help but examine the inside of his body. He use his threads to find the mark that Arnin was talking about, however he couldn''t find anything. "You might have just been mistaken. I can''t fi-" Before he could finish, he found that Arnin had vanished and appeared behind him. He felt a stinging pain coming from his shoulders, and next thing he knew, Arnin was holding him by the throat. "I recall you being my servant, right? So why don''t you call me master?" Arnin had a wicked smile on his face that also looked somewhat like a glare. Kurse was surprised that Arnin suddenly attacked him, and he felt infuriated. "I may be your servant, but I will not call you mas- Ahhhh!" Kurse was going to finish his sentence but he began to feel a burning pain coming from his throat. It felt as though a scorching knife slowly melted onto his skin; it was a horrible feeling. "I am not asking you to call me master, I am telling you! You will do as I say, when I say." Arnin dropped Kurse onto the ground. Although Arnin was much shorter than Kurse, he was able to force him onto his knees with enough strength. Kurse couldn''t help but let out heavy coughs before using his hand to feel his throat. To his surprise, there were no bumps, or any sign of physical injury. He couldn''t help but look at Arnin hatefully. He still couldn''t understand why Arnin had become so aggressive all of a sudden. At first, he was walking fine, but then out of nowhere, he lost his cool. Kurse got off of the ground and walked towards Arnin with some hesitation. He knew that Arnin was much stronger than him and this incident also showed that he was extremely difficult to predict. As both of the people walked, Arnin felt his blood boiling. From the start of his reincarnation, he didn''t do anything major since he wanted to focus on cultivation, however others took that as an indication of his weakness. First, he was humiliated by the senior in the large residential area, and now he was taken advantage of by the old man? Arnin felt as though he was being a little too lenient with everyone. ''Since others see my patience as a sign of weakness, let me forgo this restraint and humbleness. I am the Demon Lord that has ruled the universe for millions of years. Let me show this world what true hell is.'' Arnin felt that he was done playing the quiet kid. He would not only cultivate and have a breakthrough, he would also incite fear into the hearts of all the people in Afloria. Kurse, who was walking behind Arnin, felt a sudden change in the latter. He couldn''t put his finger on why, but he felt that Arnin was giving off a very sharp presence. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- As the white clouds slowly glided across the sky, a hooded person sat on one of the puffy white cottons. "Seems like the Lord is done playing nice. Hehe! Let''s see what kind of chaos this world will fall into now." The hooded person''s face wasn''t revealed and simply sitting on the clouds that quietly drifted further away. -------------------------------------------------------------------------- The second floor of the department was much larger than the first floor. There were many large tables and some bookshelves that sat in the corner. It was a peaceful place that looked like a great learning environment. Kurse saw many people wearing white robes walking around with books in their hands. Some were quietly reading on the tables, while others discussed different topics. Kurse couldn''t help but glance at Arnin, who walked towards the bookshelves in the corner. He went ahead and began to read some of the titles of the books. Arnin found that some of the books described different marks and their usages, while others talked about the creation process. Arnin picked out two of the basic books and began to read through them. Kurse watched from the side, unwilling to say anything. He was still somewhat unsure as to why Arnin acted the way he did, but he didn''t feel that talking to him would make things any better. All of the white robed people looked towards Arnin, who casually picked up a book and began to read. They felt a little shocked to see such a young child in the Mark Masters department. One of them wasn''t able to hold himself back and walked towards the two. "Hello, is there anything I can help you with?" The white robbed man was humble and didn''t put up any air of arrogance. He looked around the age of Brajus, making him pretty old. Arnin look up and continued to flip through the pages. The white robed man didn''t get upset and continued to smile at Arnin. Kurse saw what was happening and couldn''t help but panic a little. ''Are you seeking death? This kid is not in a good mood, so you should leave before you make my life more miserable.'' Kurse was feeling somewhat anxious when he saw the white robed man talking to Arnin. He quickly walked over and pulled on the sleeve of the white robed man. "You should come with me. He is studying, and I don''t want him getting disturbed." Kurse could only speak in a humble manner to the white robed man. The Moth had people with high talents, so he knew that the white robed man would be much stronger than both him and Arnin. "Oh? Well, if you say so, but please do come to me if you need any help." The white robed man walked away with a smile. Kurse patted his chest and couldn''t help but sigh in relief because of the white robbed man''s politeness and patience. If the man were to make a big deal out of the issue, then things could have gone downhill for him. "Kurse, go get me something to drink." Arnin didn''t look up and commanded Kurse. "Y-yes." Kurse could only do what he was told. Although he felt humiliated being treated like that, he knew that if he didn''t do it, then the contract would act up. Kurse quickly left the area to find something for Arnin to drink. The white robbed man noticed what happened from far away and couldn''t help but feel shocked. He walked towards Arnin once more and looked at him with a smile. "Little boy, is that person a part of the Moth group?" Arnin didn''t answer back and just continued to read the book. The man didn''t feel irritated. "Little boy? Would you mind answering my question?" The book suddenly closed and Arnin stood up. He glared at the white robbed man and felt really annoyed. "What do you want?" Arnin glared at the man with his dagger-like eyes. The man was a little surprised by Arnin''s attitude, and started to feel somewhat displeased. "I am only asking you a question. Why are you getting mad?" He couldn''t help but feel that Arnin was being a little too rude. Arnin glared at the man before ignoring him and walking away. The man felt that Arnin was too ridiculous. ''Children will be children.'' The man shook his head and walked away, but what he didn''t know was that Arnin was walking away with a smile. Although Arnin was acting more like a child than a Demon Lord, he had his reasons for doing so. He was done being the nice guy, but that didn''t mean that he was going to expose himself. He decided to act like an annoying little brat, so people consider him a child and do not send some strong people to deal with him. Kurse quickly came back to the room, only to find Arnin missing. He looked around and saw that Arnin was walking towards the staircase to the third floor. He dashed towards Arnin with a drink in his hand. "Umm, here is your drink." He didn''t call him master, as he didn''t feel that it was necessary to do so. It was too humiliating. "Did I not tell you to call me master from now on? Do you want to experience that pain again?" Arnin glared at Kurse. "U-uh, m-ma-master, here is your drink." Kurse felt his neck burning again. Although Arnin wasn''t touching him, he couldn''t help but feel a strong burning pain. Arnin nodded his head and walked away. ''Some people need more than words to understand my authority. Since I am done playing good, it''s time to establish myself in this academy.'' Arnin grinned evilly before heading up to the third floor. 35 Saintly Smile Walking up the stairs, Kurse felt like there was some invisible hand choking him. Arnin was fine a while ago, but the old man did something that pissed him off. ''Why am I being crapped on when it was that old man who did something? I need to find a way to renege this contract.'' Kurse was in low spirits because of Arnin''s attitude. Finally, they made it to the third floor. Unlike the second floor, the third one had no bookshelves. There were some large tables and many stones and weapons. The stones were mostly clear of any marks, which was probably because they would be used for training, or they would be filled and sold. "Arnin! You finally made it!" In front of them, a teacher came running with a wide smile. When Arnin saw him, his mood began to sink. ''Why is this guy always following me? I need to teach him a lesson soon!'' The person running was none other than Xillar. "What are you doing here?" Arnin knew that Xillar was not a Mark Master, so why was he at the department? Kurse was astonished that Arnin showed no courtesy or any sort of respect for the teacher. Although he himself didn''t know all of the teachers in the Moth group, he knew that each and every one of them was extremely powerful. They were on a completely different level than the Butterfly teachers. "You are a really cold person, you know that? As a child, you should try and act a little more cute." Xillar awkwardly smiled at Arnin. He lifted his hand and scratched the side of his lip with his thumb before walking towards Arnin with a stone. The stone in his hand was one of the empty ones that needed to be filled. "Whether I act like a child or not shouldn''t concern you." Arnin harshly looked at Xillar before grabbing the stone out of his hand. ''This kid really is too much. He just grabbed the stone out of my hand without any warning. Whatever, it was meant for him either way.'' Xillar couldn''t help but feel that Arnin was a little too bold and direct. He didn''t wait for anyone and did whatever he wanted. "These stones are what Mark Masters use to practice and engrave with marks to sell. Since you will be working here from now on, let me explain some of the ins and outs." Xillar smiled before walking towards the tables. Arnin followed suit with Kurse behind him. "Every Mark Master will get a personal table for their work and to practice. We can go pick one later on, so you don''t have to worry about that." Arnin nodded his head and looked at the large table. It was made out of a pure white stone and had some books scattered here and there. "Wait!" Just as Xillar was going to continue explaining, Arnin suddenly stopped him. "What is it? Are you confused about something?" Xillar looked at Arnin with some confusion. "I remember us having a deal about this whole thing. Do you remember what the deal was?" Arnin glared at Xillar, who was dumbfounded. Xillar then squinted his eyes and began to recall the whole scene. ''I will accept it, only if you provide me with the orthodox way of making marks.'' Then it hit him. He was supposed to give Arnin a mark making manual that allowed him to go through the normal path. "Yeah, I have it right here. I didn''t forget, so no need to get so angry." Xillar laughed, before pulling a book out of his ring. Arnin noticed the ring and narrowed his eyes. ''Seems like this world has storage rings as well. However, I don''t know how important they are or how hard they are to obtain, so I will figure that out later.'' Arnin put the thought on the back of his mind. Storage rings were very handy, as they would be able to store many items, and sometimes even living creatures. In his past life, Arnin didn''t carry around a storage ring. He had control over space, so he was able to store stuff in different locations, some even being black holes. "Since you have it, give it to me. I don''t care about all this other stuff. You can go and set everything up while I go and read this manual. Kurse, go follow him and make sure I get a quiet place." Arnin took the book and turned around. He headed back to the second floor, leaving the two people dumbfounded. Xillar was a little shocked and somewhat displeased at Arnin''s actions. He felt that Arnin was acting a little more aggressive than usual. In the past, he would call him ''Teacher Xillar'' or at least ''Teacher'', however, that wasn''t the case anymore. He now referred to him as ''you''. Xillar looked at Arnin''s back before turning and glancing at Kurse. "Student, what is your relationship with Arnin?" Another thing that he couldn''t understand was why Arnin was bossing this student around. From the robe, and even cultivation level, he could tell that Kurse was a talented Moth student, so why was Arnin able to do so? Kurse''s face became somewhat red with embarrassment. He coughed before speaking with some hesitation. "Today, Arnin dueled me and we had a bet. I lost the bet so I''m now his¡­ *cough cough*... servant." Xillar''s face became weird as he looked at Kurse. "Well, we can''t do anything about that right now, so as his servant, come and help me get his stuff sorted out." Xillar turned around and left a gaping Kurse. ''What kind of a teacher are you? I became a servant for a younger student and you don''t even try to comfort me? If not comfort, you could at least give me some advice since you seem to know Arnin.'' Kurse was dumbfounded by Xillar''s indifference to his pain and suffering. "Yes teacher! Arn-... Master said that he wants a quiet place for his table, so I was thinking of a corner table. Is that alright?" Kurse didn''t want to screw this up, so he needed to get Arnin''s Mark Master setup completed without a single error. He felt fear towards Arnin, which even he didn''t understand the reason behind. Although Arnin had a sinister aura, he was still a child. However, Kurse couldn''t help but still feel fear regardless of all of this. "I was thinking the same thing That kid doesn''t seem to be a social person and he is also somewhat¡­ let''s say aggressive. I can''t have him starting fights in this place." Xillar still remembered when Arnin was ready to fight him over the small issue of becoming a guard. Although he knew that it was more so because of him not wanted to pledge his loyalty, Xillar felt that Arnin could have just told him. Xillar shook his head and lead Kurse into a back room. When they both got inside the room, they saw a large stash of stones in one corner, while the other one had a bookshelf with thousands of books. Kurse was astonished that there were so many books in such a small room. In the middle, there was a table with a purple sphere. "I am going to sign Arnin up for the most isolated table, just in case. I just can''t have him¡­" Xillar didn''t finish. He picked up the sphere and started to speak in a weird cryptic language. The sphere began to shine with a blinding purple light before suddenly dimming. Kurse watched with great interest, and after the light vanished, he found that there was a small obsidian-like sphere in Xillar''s hand. "Teacher, what is that?" Kurse couldn''t help but wonder. He had always been interested in mark making, but he never had the talent for it. He sadly had to forgo the idea of ever becoming a Mark Master, which made him fully concentrate on his cultivation. "This is just Arnin''s Mark Analyzer. It lists all of the marks he has drawn, the highest level of mark, and his identity. This can be used anywhere in Afloria, and it''s kind of like a Mark Master''s Identity Sphere. Right now, it is empty and we require Arnin''s blood to complete the Identity Sphere." Xillar explained. He looked at the black sphere with envy. In the past he failed to become a Mark Master, which made him unable to possess such a sphere. Even now, he was unable to create marks. "Arni- Master might be busy right now, so I think we should just go to the second floor and wait for him to finish. Teacher, I can take this to Master and have him complete it later. First, can you show me the table that he will be getting?" Kurse was still not completely use to calling someone ''Master'', especially not a child like Arnin. Xillar noticed this, but decided to ignore it. It wasn''t a big deal to him. ''Alright, let me show you where he will be staying. Oh, wait, take this." Xillar took out a small blade and handed it over to Kurse. "What is this?" Kurse looked at the badge and saw what was written on it. ''Mark Master Assistant'' "This badge will allow you to assist Arnin in his mark making. Although you won''t be making the marks, you will be able to observe him and even get some tips. Who knows, you might be able to become a Mark Master in the future." Xillar gently smiled towards Kurse. Although he was acting ignorant regarding the bet, he knew that a Moth student had great pride. The being forced to become a servant of some younger would be a great blow. Kurse was astonished before he looked at Xillar with a grand smile. "Thank you, Teacher. This is a great gift; I will not let you down." Kurse bowed quickly, before shoving the badge into his robe. Xillar smiled when he saw this. The Mark Master department was run by the students, however there were only a few who were able to make marks. Maybe even less than ten in the whole school. If Kurse was able to pick something up by watching Arnin, then that would be a great benefit to the academy. "Don''t worry about it, and just try your best. That''s all we teachers want to see." Xillar waved his hand before leading Kurse out the room. ------------------------------------------------------ Arnin was sitting by the bookshelves once again. The other students saw him, but they decided to ignore him. The previous senior also saw Arnin, however last time Arnin was being rude, so he decided not to interact with him. No one noticed Arnin go up to the third level. The stairs that went up and down were connected, plus they were blocked by a curtain, so no one would know which way a person went. Arnin was happy to see that no one was going to bother him, so he quickly opened up the manual. The mark making manual was very thin, having only five pages. Arnin was able to quickly read through it and engrave the details into his mind. The manual talked about a completely different way of making marks. It was very simple and even somewhat disappointing to Arnin. When he first went through the trial, he assumed that the solar essence must be used directly, but that wasn''t the case. The manual stated that a person could draw the mark with their own essence and then let it absorb the solar essence. Although this method was smart, it would not allow a mark to be made out of the solar essence. There would only be a small portion of solar essence inside the mark. Arnin kept scanning through what he read and found out how one would go through with this. While the creator made the mark, they would have to circulate their cultivation, which would allow the mark to absorb the solar essence, similar to how one would absorb the worldly essence, but there was still something that confused him. A normal cultivator is only able to absorb the worldly essence, so how would one allow solar essence to be absorbed? As he continued to contemplate, Arnin couldn''t help but feel that the orthodox method was lacking. If one wanted to cultivate with the stones that had the mark, they would be absorbing the essence of the Mark Master as well, which would bring about impurities. "This is such a stupid manual. I might as well practice my own method. What a let down." Arnin sighed before getting up from the ground. He stretched his small body before walking towards the staircase. The book was in his left hand, not covered by anything. The senior looked at the departing Arnin once more and noticed that he had a book in his hand. His eyes narrowed as he tried to read the title of the cover. Mark Making Manual. His eyes immediately widened and his mouth opened up. He began to tremble slightly as his steps became unstable. Everyone saw this and couldn''t help but look at the senior with worry. "Torne? What happened?" The others walked over and looked at the trembling senior. "Look at what that kid is holding." Torne calmed himself down and began to walk towards Arnin. Everyone else looked at the book in Arnin''s hand before they also began to tremble. Torne quickly approached Arnin with a bright smile. "Hey kid, where did you get that manual?" Torne spoke with a little more caution and respect this time. He wanted to seem polite and favourable so that Arnin would possibly let him see the book. "This is something that you don''t have." Arnin looked at Torne nonchalantly before continuing towards the stairs. Torne felt bewildered and clenched his fists with some anger. ''I am being kind and polite to you, but you keep showing me the same attitude. You are looking to be beaten up.'' Although Torne thought this, he didn''t show any ill intent on his face. "Kid, I know that I don''t have that, but I was hoping that you could allow me to get a glimpse of that book." Torne became even more respectful in his way of speaking. He really stooped down to a boot licking attitude. (Author''s note: The ''Kid'' Torne keeps using is not an arrogant one. It is a more formal or respectful use. At least his tone is.) Torne wasn''t a Mark Master, but he had always wanted to become one. He was just a Mark Master assistant, so he was only able to help the Mark Masters with collecting and selling stones. Since he had never gotten to see a mark making manual before, he felt jittery when saw one in Arnin''s hand. "You want to see this book?" Arnin looked at Torne once more and couldn''t help but smile. "Of course! It is a dream of mine to be a Mark Master, so I would love to see the manual. Would you be kind enough to let me see it?" Torne spoke gently but he began to move forward, indicating that he would take it. Arnin smiled even more brightly, which boosted Torne''s confidence. "If you really want to see my manual, I don''t mind letting you. Not only that, but I can even give this to you." Arnin smiled like a saint when he looked at Torne. This made Torne even more happy. ''Seems like this kid isn''t that bad. Is he actually going to give the book to me? That''s great.'' Torne was already in front of Arnin, and he slowly reached for the book. Arnin looked at his face with a smile. Just as Torne was about to finally touch the book, Arnin''s smile vanished and he swung his empty hand towards Torne''s cheek. *SLAP* 36 Utterly Bashed Xillar and Kurse were walking down from the third floor towards the second. They were finally done getting everything ready for Arnin. All that was left was for Arnin to take the sphere and drop his blood into it. After that, Arnin would be an official Mark Master and could begin his job of creating marks. *SLAP* The two people looked at each other when they heard the sound. "What was that?" Kurse looked at Xillar with confusion. He had a strange feeling that the sound was not a good thing and that it was related to Arnin. Xillar shrugged his shoulders and shook his head. "I don''t know, but it is most likely related to that kid, Arnin." Xillar had the same train of thought. Both of them quickened their pace. ---------------------------------------------------------- On the second floor, Arnin''s hand violently slapped Torne''s cheek. The latter couldn''t help but feel dumbfounded, and even a little confused. ''What happened? Did I just get slapped? Why?'' Torne was in utter confusion. He wasn''t able to process what happened. He was about to grab for the manual, but then his cheek felt a stinging pain. Then, a thundering noise erupted in his ears that caused him to blank out. A few moments later, the processing was finally done. It clicked right then. He was slapped by the kid for no good reason and it was a very painful slap. Torne''s face began to turn red with anger and humiliation. He glared at Arnin as his left hand touched his left cheek. "You little sh*t! How dare you slap me!" Torne roared with anger. He was being a nice senior to Arnin the whole time. Although Arnin was rude and even shrugged him off, Torne ignored that, but now he got slapped? There was no way he could ignore that. "I dare. Why wouldn''t I dare? Are you the ruler of this world? Are you a god? Even if you were, I would still dare." Arnin spoke with nonchalance. He wasn''t afraid of the man before him. After a small inspection, he found that Torne was only at Essence Manifest - Earth. It was considered high talent in the Butterfly group, however in the Moth group, it was the lowest of the low. At his age, he should be in the upper levels of Essence Manifest. "Little sh*t! Let me teach you what respect means!" Torne couldn''t care less that Arnin was only a child. He would teach him a lesson as his senior. In his mind, he was going to do the right thing. He released a small amount of his aura as he tried to pressurize Arnin. "As a senior, I will go easy on you. However, if you get onto your knees and slap yourself five times, then I will let you go. That a deal?" Although Torne kept telling himself that it was the right thing to give Arnin a beating, he couldn''t bring himself to resort to violence. He had an image of being an amicable person, so if he beat a younger student, then that image would go down the drain. "You are a funny person, you know that? Here, let me propose my own deal. If you get on your stomach and punch yourself a hundred times, and then call me ''Master'', I will spare you a good beating. However, if you want to get a beating, then you can call me ''Master'' later." Arnin smiled as he looked at Torne. "Don''t go overboard, little sh*t! I was just giving you a way out, but since you don''t want it, then as your senior I must teach you some manners!" Torne was fully riled up. Fury grew in his heart as he charged towards Arnin. He wasn''t going to do anything major, only give him a scare and a small beating. The crowd watched on without any interference. They looked at Arnin with anger and mockery. They felt that Arnin was a little too bold and disrespectful. He slapped Torne and even taunted him later on. Just as Torne was about to reach Arnin, a wild wind blew him away. Arnin noticed the wind beforehand and also felt a familiar aura within. He couldn''t help but snort. "What are you two doing? This is the Mark Masters building, not your house. Stop causing a ruckus!" From the wild wind, Xillar stepped out. His face contained a hint of anger and displeasure. Torne, who was blown away by the wind, stood up slowly. With a face full of complaint, he began to speak bitterly. "Teacher, this child has gone overboard. Not only did he slap me, but he was also being extremely disrespectful. As his senior, I was only going to scare him. I hope Teacher can punish him." Torne sighed in relief. He was furious towards Arnin, however he wanted to maintain a good image. Now that a teacher was here, he could be relieved of the duty as a punisher. Xillar turned around and found that the other party was Arnin. He couldn''t help but curse at his bad luck and even felt helpless at Arnin''s actions. "Arnin, did you really slap him?" He asked. As a teacher, he had no choice but to carry out punishments impartially, however as a person who knew Arnin, he hoped that the child could lie a little. That way, he could try and reduce the punishment, or even scrap it altogether. "Yea, I slapped him. Is there a problem with my actions?" Arnin smiled saintly towards Xillar. His eyes shined with righteousness, as if they were saying, ''The slap was a task given to me by God.'' Xillar almost fell over. He couldn''t believe that Arnin admitted to it so easily. Not only that, but it seemed as though Arnin was happy about it. ''Can''t this kid take a hint? I am trying to help him out.'' Xillar couldn''t help but curse Arnin''s answer. "Since you have slapped him, there must have been a good reason behind it. Tell me your reason, and if it is acceptable, I will let this matter settle." This was Xillar''s last resort. Although it may look like favoritism, Xillar didn''t care. It was favoritism. Arnin noticed and understood Xillar''s plan, and he couldn''t help but smirk. "I slapped him because I felt like it. Is that a good enough reason?" Arnin looked at Xillar with scorn. He didn''t like Xillar, and felt like making him miserable. ''This stupid brat is playing me! Does he not understand that he will get punished for this, not me? This brat is such a piss off!'' Xillar yelled and swore in his heart. "Teacher, he admitted that it was for no good reason! He needs to receive a proper punishment." Torne felt something was off with the way Xillar was treating the situation, so he quickly pushed the topic back to punishment. Plus, Arnin admitted to doing it without any sort of reason, which should result in a more serious punishment. Xillar heard Torne and couldn''t help but release a deep sigh. He looked at Arnin and shook his head. ''I tried to help you kid, but you just didn''t go with the plan.'' "Since he has admitted to slapping you, I will carry out the punishment. He will be sent to-" Just as Xillar was about to announce the punishment, Arnin raised his hand. "What do you mean by punishment? Why should the master be punished for teaching his servant a lesson?" Arnin looked at Xillar with a smile. "What do you mean servant? I am not your servant, and you are not my master. Who decided this?" Rage boiled inside his heart. Torne felt that Arnin was being a little too ridiculous. "I decided this. You are my servant, whether you want to be or not." Arnin spoke to Torne in a commanding tone. "Teacher, this kid is too much. Please carry out the punishment." Torne was furious, but he looked at Xillar and pleaded. "Servant, if you don''t admit that I am your master, then watch what punishment you will receive later on." Arnin glared at Torne. "You little sh*t, I am your senior, not your servant. If you keep this up, then the punishment will be something you won''t be able to handle." Torne was getting more and more riled up. Arnin''s constant taunting left him speechless. Xillar was also flabbergasted by Arnin''s actions. "Servant, since you won''t call me master, I will deal with you outside. You better not get involved in this. This is between a master and his servant." Arnin stared at Xillar and threatened. He showed no respect to Xillar. "Servant Kurse, come. I will show you what happens to people who don''t call me master." Arnin waved at Kurse, who was watching from the sidelines. When Kurse heard his name being called, he couldn''t help but feel some fear in his heart. He shook his head bitterly before following behind Arnin. The crowd followed them to the stairs. All of them walked down the stairs. The old man was still behind the front desk. When Arnin saw the old man again, he stopped in his tracks. "Old man, you better watch yourself. Don''t think I don''t know what you put inside me." Arnin walked away after threatening the old man. Xillar, who was a little further behind, heard Arnin threaten the old man and couldn''t help but feel confused. "Old Staloc? What happened?" Xillar was utterly confused. He didn''t think that Arnin would threaten the old man in such a way. Staloc had a glint in his eyes as he looked at Arnin. He couldn''t help but release a small smile before sitting down into his chair. "Don''t worry about it. That boy is special. He saw through my mark implantation. He is a talent that is difficult to come by. He might just be able to fight against those two, since he is the only person who was able to find that mark." The old man waved his hand and began to speak to Xillar. "You think he is that impressive? To be able to go against even those two?" Xillar couldn''t help but feel surprised. The old man in front of him was a real Mark Master, and even the leader of the department. He rarely praised anyone, but for him to give Arnin such an appraisal, it made Xillar astonished. "He may be a good seedling, but there is something about him that is mysterious. He seems deadly and even somewhat¡­ forget it. Just don''t get on his bad side, I feel that the results would not be good if he becomes angry." Xillar looked at the old man with bewilderment. "Old Staloc, he is only a child and in the Orb Birth realm, what''s the worst that could happen?" Although Xillar agreed that Arnin was an abnormality, he felt that Staloc was being a little too cautious. "I don''t know either. Something about him just doesn''t seem right." That old man sighed before waving his hand. Xillar took the hint and followed the rest of the students towards the outside. ------------------------------------------------------------ Arnin was outside, facing Torne with a smile that didn''t seem like a smile. It looked evil and caused goosebumps to appear on Torne''s arm. "Servant, since you don''t acknowledge me as your master, then sign this contract. If you win, you can choose to do whatever you want with me, plus you can even have the mark making manual." When Arnin spoke and outlined the bet, Torne felt happy but fearful. He couldn''t put his finger on it, but he didn''t feel too good about the bet. "What happens if I lose? Will I become your servant? That''s fine with me." Although he felt somewhat unsure but the whole thing, he was confident that he could beat Arnin. Plus, the mark making manual was also in the bet, so how could he not agree? "No, you will not become my servant. That position is too high for you." Arnin spoke with a wicked smile. "Then what happens if I lose?" He asked with some confusion. "If you lose, then you will become my eternal slave." Arnin spoke with great malice. A black contract appeared in Arnin''s hands before it was sent towards Torne. Torne looked at the contract with some hesitation and began to read it over and over again. He felt that if he won, then his gains would be extremely high, and he also knew that he was stronger than Arnin. After looking through it for some time, he nodded his head and signed it with his orb threads. Contracts varied. The lowest form of a contract was a verbal consent, while the highest form was through the orb threads of a person. This was equivalent to the soul of a person, so when Torne signed the contract, he was basically signing with his life away. There was no escape. When Arnin saw that the contract was signed, he couldn''t help but release an evil smile. He then vanished from his position and reappeared in front of Torne. Torne jumped back after seeing Arnin appear so suddenly. "Despicable! We didn''t even say go or anything of the like. How could you begin so suddenly?" Torne screamed at Arnin with some hate. "We didn''t agree on when the duel would begin, so it is your fault for not paying attention. Hehehe!" Arnin laughed wickedly before rushing towards Torne again. Arnin didn''t hold any weapons, but he was extremely strong with just his bare hands. Suddenly, a thought struck Arnin. ''The white saber inside of me helps with mark creation because of the tattoos, but is is also made from my threads. Can it be used as a weapon?'' Arnin thought for a moment before deciding to give it a try. He called on the saber inside of him and had it appear on his palm. This time, he didn''t divide it into the fingers, but directed all the energy to his palm. Torne noticed a short, snow-white blade appear on Arnin''s hand. Although it was inside of Arnin''s palm and wasn''t that long, he still felt the sharpness. Arnin looked at the weapon on his hand and couldn''t help but shake his head. Although it appeared on his hand, Arnin felt that it just looked like a blade, but didn''t have the properties of one. "What if I try to insert some threads into it? Maybe the balance will tilt towards the threads rather the tattoo portion." Arnin nodded his head and gave it a try. He didn''t have enough time to experiment with the battle capability of the saber, so he could only improvise. He began to add different threads to the blade. The threads didn''t go into the blade, rather they wrapped around it like a web. Torne noticed all of this and felt the sharpness of the blade increase. "Little sh*t, what are you doing? We never agreed to use weapons." Torne felt that this was unfair. Although he believed he was stronger than Arnin, that didn''t mean he underestimated the latter. "We didn''t agree to having weapons, but we never said we can''t have any either." Arnin smiled before rushing towards Torne with the blade. "Despicable. You are truly a demonic little sh*t. How could you be such a despicable child?" Torne leaped to his side to try and avoid the saber, however he was a little slower than Arnin''s swing. His right arm received a small cut, however something weird began to happen. When he was cut by the blade, he felt some of his essence disappear. Arnin also noticed that his saber absorbed some of the essence from Torne. ''Interesting.'' Arnin nodded his head and swung it towards the other party once again. "Little sh*t, what is this blade?! Why am I losing strength?!" Torne began to feel a large amount of fear. He never knew of such a weapon''s existence. It was absorbing his essence, but not only that, he was also losing a great amount of energy. Arnin ignored the screams of Torne and crazily swung the saber. It didn''t leave serious wounds, but still cut deep enough to do some damage. Arnin was slashing Torne without any hesitation, and there was also an intoxicated smile on his face. Throughout the whole fight, Arnin noticed that although Torne''s cultivation was high, his actual strength was actually even lower than Kurse''s. ''Seems like this guy is not a fighter.'' Arnin nodded his head and began to increase the strength in his swings. The crowd watched on with wide eyes. They all knew that Torne was not a good fighter, but his cultivation was much higher than Arnin''s. Suddenly, Torne fell to the ground. His body was covered in cuts that were both large and small, some deep, others not so much. He looked extremely pathetic. The blade on Arnin''s palm went back into his skin. "Slave, since you have lost the match, let me teach a small lesson as to what happens when one goes against his master." Arnin walked towards Torne and lifted his own hand. He then began to punch Torne''s face repeatedly. "ARGH! AHH! STOP! STOP! AHH!" Torne''s shrill screams resounded in the sky. They started off loud, but they slowly become weaker and more pitiful. Xillar, who didn''t step in the whole time, couldn''t bear it anymore. "Arnin, stop! He can''t handle it anymore. This is only a spar. Why are you treating your fellow student like that?" Xillar gulped before he spoke out. He didn''t fear Arnin''s strength, but he felt that Arnin was way too vicious. Suddenly, Arnin pulled Torne''s shirt up. A sinister ball-like tattoo appeared on Torne''s chest. It wrapped around his shoulders and waist like a snake. "W-what is that?" Xillar couldn''t help but move little closer and ask in astonishment. "This is the slave mark. He lost the bet, so he is now my slave. He is not a fellow student, so I can do whatever I like to him. Got it?" Arnin looked at Xillar sternly. The latter felt that Arin was becoming increasingly vicious as time went on. He could only shake his head. He could try and help Torne, but he knew that Arnin would still beat him up later. Suddenly, a thought popped in his mind. "If you try and take him from my sight, then I will make him live a life worse than a dog''s. You can try your luck if you wish." Arnin looked at Xillar with a wicked smile. The latter laughed bitterly before taking a step back. He did think of taking Torne under his wing to try and protect him from Arnin''s beatings, but that plan was a no go. --------------------------------------------------------- In the blue sky, a black robed person sat on top of the clouds and watched the scene unfold with great pleasure. "Hahaha! The Demon Lord is really not playing anymore. That slave mark is really something brings back memories. Hahaha!" The black robed person kept laughing with a voice that was neither that of a woman''s, nor of a man''s. 37 The Pitiful Servant and Slave "AH! ARG! AH STOP! PLEASE! AH!" Tragic sounds continued to resound outside the Mark Master department. Wailing, screaming, and grunting; all of these sounds were like slaps that hit everyone in the crowd. They could only watch as the person was tortured, however they couldn''t do anything about it. "A-Arnin, don''t you think that''s enough? He might die if you continue to beat him more." Xillar couldn''t help but step forward once again. He felt bad that he couldn''t do anything to stop the sight in front of him. If he attacked Arnin, then Torne would be tortured in a different way. His hands were tied. "He won''t die unless I want him to. Kurse, watch carefully. This is what happens to my servants, or anyone for that matter that disobeys me." Arnin then continued to beat the bruised and bleeding Torne. Kurse watched with fear as he regretted ever making a bet with Arnin. ''If I knew you were like this, I wouldn''t have dared to even breathe in front of you, let alone make a bet.'' Kurse couldn''t help but sigh bitterly at his own hapless life. What made it worse was that there was no time limit for the bet. At one point, he thought that he could get rid of the mark as soon as he wanted since there was never a time limit, however it wouldn''t leave. The only way to break the contract was if Arnin allowed him to leave. Half an hour passed and Torne was now unrecognizable. His face was completely swollen and blood leaked from his nose and mouth. His arms were covered in deep, black bruises that also secreted blood. Snot and mucous surrounded his swollen lips and even covered his shredded clothes. The sight was unbearable. The crowd looked at Arnin in horror and took a step back away from him. "Get up! I have work to do and don''t have time for your laziness." Arnin glared at the exhausted and pitiful Torne. He didn''t show any concern for Torne, only annoyance. "Arnin, he isn''t doing well. Maybe we should take him to a physician first." Xillar quickly spoke up. He had to speak in a different manner since the issue was now technically between a master and slave. Although both of them were students, he couldn''t do anything to Arnin because of his mysterious backer, and he also couldn''t help Torne since Arnin could just torture him through the mark. He was at a complete disadvantage and couldn''t do anything about it. "This is none of your business. As my slave, I can do whatever I like with him. This does not concern you. Hey! What did I say? Get up!" Arnin calmly looked at Xillar before lashing out on Torne. The pitiful fella could barely move his arms and legs before receiving another small beating. Everyone watched with seriousness. ''Isn''t this kid going to far? Senior might die because of this'' Someone in the crowd couldn''t help but think about this. ''This is no five year old. He is a monster, a demon!'' The people in the crowd began to have their own thoughts about Arnin. They shivered at the sight. Torne wailed under Arnin''s new beatings. "I a-a-am g-g-get-t-ting u-up, p-ple-ease s-sto-p-p." Torne was barely able to make out hid sentence with his face all swollen up. "Hurry up! I don''t have time to waste on you." Arnin snorted before walking away from Torne. "Master, wait!" Just as Arnin was about to leave completely, Kurse remembered the issue around the black sphere. Arnin turned around and asked in annoyance. "What is it?" "Umm, this black sphere identifies you as a Mark Master. You have to add a drop of your blood to finalize the whole procedure." Kurse had shaky hands as he handed Arnin the black sphere. Arnin looked at the sphere before dropping a small amount of blood on it. The black sphere then began to shine with a red hue before dimming once more. "How do I use this thing?" Arnin didn''t understand the use behind the object, so he looked up and questioned Kurse. "Teacher Xillar, would you mind explaining?" Kurse didn''t know the details about the sphere so he could only hand the job over to Xillar. The teacher nodded and walked over with wrinkled eyebrows. He was still thinking about Torne''s condition and how helpless he was regarding the whole situation. "To access the sphere, you just need to insert a small orb thread into the core. Then the information will be shown in your mind." Arnin nodded his head and did just that. [Arnin Foro - Age: 5 - Mark Master: Pink - Race: (D) Human] Arnin looked at the information and nodded his head. Although his Mark Master level was not considered high, it was much better than almost everyone his age. Arnin put the sphere into his robe and began to walk away. "Kurse, go and grab me some of those empty stones. Then, meet me back in my house and bring the slave along with you." Arnin didn''t turn around but gave his command. "Y-yes." Kurse felt defeated. He couldn''t do anything else anymore. His goal of becoming something or someone great was in the hands of Arnin. Xillar watched the scene and sighed in his heart. ''These kids have really fallen into a pit. Maybe the principal could do something about this, but with that person protecting him from behind the scenes, even he can''t do much.'' Xillar shook his head and vanished into thin air. Kurse quickly ran into the Mark Master department and took some of the empty stones. He then rushed out and helped Torne towards the residential area. ------------------------------------- Before going to his own house, Arnin decided to head to the two girls'' house. He needed to make sure that no one was going to try and duel for the house. If there was someone there, then he needed to go and teach those people a lesson. Arriving at the small house, Arnin walked in without knocking. Entering the house, he found the two girls sitting cross-legged with their eyes closed. They were cultivating tirelessly. Arnin decided not to disturb them and headed back to his home. He would go find Akig before his classes began tomorrow. After all, he still needed someone to look after Vilis while he was away. When he got to his home, he found a person standing in front of it. When Arnin saw the individual, he couldn''t help but start to feel some annoyance. It was none other then Fae. "What do you want?" Arnin glared at the woman sharply. "Why do you always push me away? Am I really that bad?" Fae looked at Arnin with some ''sadness''. "I don''t want to hear you speak nonsense. Just tell me what you want!" Arnin began to feel even more annoyed. He just couldn''t bring himself to like this person. Her every action pissed him off. "Don''t be that way. I helped you out with the whole entrance thing as well. You should at least show some gratitude." Fae looked at Arnin with a smile. "Whether you helped me or not doesn''t matter. No one asked you to help, so don''t expect anything in return." Arnin spoke with nonchalance, however his heart was pumping blood, getting him ready to fight at anytime. "True, true. Well, let us speak inside. I want to give you something." Fae walked into Arnin''s home without hesitation, however Arnin didn''t care too much about that. He was curious as to what this woman wanted to give him. *Grrrrrrr* Stepping inside, Arnin saw Vilis growling at Fae. She, on the other hand, showed no fear. Fae just smiled at Vilis, brightly. "Vilis, move to the side." Arnin calmly spoke to Vilis, who in turn walked to the side of Arnin. "This is a pretty cute house. I didn''t think someone such as yourself would like this type of place." The woman gave Arnin a deep smile. The latter ignored her words and sat down onto a chair, not offering Fae anything. "Cut the chatter. What do you want?" Fae nodded her head without getting angry. She took out a sheet of paper and handed it to Arnin. He looked at the page with confusion. It was blank. "What is this?" Arnin became even more annoyed at Fae for trying to be mysterious. "You will find out in about a month. This page will only reveal its contents around that time. Well, I have done my job. See you." Fae left the house and the disappeared. Arnin snorted before focusing on the page. He tried to inspect it with his orb threads, but nothing came up. He used the saber to see if he could drag any essence or energy out, however there was no reaction. Arnin couldn''t figure anything out with his current abilities. He needed to quickly achieve a breakthrough in his cultivation so that he could go and take over other houses. Although he didn''t need more homes, the more he had, the more servants he could get. If he occupied a bunch of houses, then he could have the Moth students do things for him in exchange for those homes. However, he wasn''t the strongest in the area so he needed to first increase his cultivation. Arnin sat down onto the ground and closed his eyes. In the past, he would use his threads to absorb the essence in the world, but with the new ability of the saber, he could increase his absorption. Arnin controlled the saber and had it come out from his hands, feet, chest and head. Although the blades were white, his body was surrounded by a deep red hue. The significant number of blades that came out from different parts of his body allowed for rapid essence absorption. Not only that, but the essence came in a cluster of different kinds. There was worldly essence, solar essence, and some other types. Arnin was absorbing most of them into his body and converting them into his own essence, however he kept a lookout for the time component. Ever since he discovered the time essence, he became excited for a breakthrough in his mastery of time. An hour passed and Arnin''s orb was almost completely filled with essence, however there was no sign of the time component. ''It is a rare essence; even in the whole universe it is extremely difficult to find.'' Arnin stopped with his cultivation and walked to his door. He had Kurse bring him some empty stones for him to practice with, so he went to check whether he had arrived yet or not. -------------------------------------------------- "H-how could you become a servant for such a demon child? He is not going to treat you well." Kurse was walking extremely slowly with the injured Torne. They were both discussing their unfortunate encounter with Arnin. "I didn''t want to become his servant. Who would have known that he was so strong at such a young age? He really is extremely frightening. Haha." Kurse bitterly laughed as he spoke to Torne. Kurse had grabbed a large amount of the stones, but since he was bringing an injured person back, it was taking him much longer to get back to Arnin. He was somewhat scared that Arnin might beat him for getting late, however he couldn''t move any faster with an injured person. "You got it lucky. You are just a servant, however I was forced into becoming his slave. Not only do I have the slave mark, I can''t resist him. My luck is so bad." Deep sadness was written all over his face. Kurse looked at Torne with some pity. He really did have it tough. "What took you so long?" Both of them were almost at Arnin''s home when they heard a voice. Both of them looked up and couldn''t help but sigh and feel somewhat frightening. "Master, sorry. We were a little slow. Torne is injured and I had to bring the stones, so it took a little longer." Kurse was the one to speak up. Although he was a servant, he felt that if Torns spoke, then Arnin might get angrier. "Stop giving me excuses. You are at Orb Birth - Heaven realm, it shouldn''t have taken you so long." Arnin glared at Kurse with his dagger like eyes. "S-sorry maste-" Before Kurse could finish, Arnin kicked him onto the ground. Arnin knew that the two took longer than they could have. If Kurse wanted, he could have ran with two people in his arms. "Incompetent. Hurry up! If you take too long, don''t blame me for having Vilis tend to you both later." Kurse had a bitter look on his face as he picked up Torne, who had fallen along with him. Arnin vanished from their sight. Torne and Kurse couldn''t help but sigh deeply. They really felt that their lives had fallen to the lowest. Torne, who was older, accepted it much more easily, however Kurse was on the verge of tears. "It''s alright Kurse. We will regain our freedom one day, however the only way to do so is to have that demon child renege the contract, or find someone who can do it for us." Torne noticed that Kurse was feeling extremely down and his face was completely red. Although he himself was beaten black and blue, he found that Kurse was more pitiful. Kurse was still so young. "I don''t think it is possible. If it was, don''t you think teacher Xillar would have done something already? We can''t even kill him, if we do then you will die along with him, and who knows what will happen to me." Remembering Xillar''s reaction and his helplessness, Kurse felt like he was drowning even more. Torne shook his head bitterly before picking up his speed. Although he was in extreme pain, he didn''t want to get another beating, or even get Kurse in much more trouble. Just as they were about to finally approach Arnin''s home, an idea hit Kurse. "Senior Torne, there might be a way to solve our problem." Kurse happily looked at Torne. His previous sunken face had regained some hope. "Oh? And what is that?" Torne noticed this change and couldn''t help but wonder. If he could get out of the contract, then he would be safe and out of harm''s way. "Arnin is not alone. He has two other girls that he takes care of. They have taken over my house, but if we ask them to speak up for us, then he might just break the contract. He seems to care for them a lot." Kurse remembered how Arnin took over his home just for the two girls. If Arnin cared about them so much, then he might listen to them as well. "Are you positive that Arnin will listen to them?" Torne asked with some doubts. "Well, he took over my house just for them. They are Butterfly students, so him bringing them here would cause problems. If he didn''t care, why would he do this?" Kurse spoke reasonably. "That''s true. If that''s the case, then you go and speak with them at some point. Let us hope this might save us." Torne closed his eyes and prayed. As they both chatted in front of Arnin''s house, they didn''t notice someone glaring at them with a wicked smile. 38 The Library Torne and Kurse knocked on the front door. "Leave the stuff outside." They heard Arnin''s cold voice order from the inside. Kurse quickly placed the empty stones onto the ground before taking a step back. He didn''t leave just yet, since he didn''t know if Arnin would allow him to. "M-Master, is there anything else that we should do for you?" Kurse asked after some hesitation. He really just wanted to quickly head over to the two girls and beg them to save Torne and him. "Not right now. You guys can leave. I will have Vilis fetch you when I need you." Arnin''s voice came from inside once more. This time, it was as if the heavens were playing their trumpets alongside his voice. The two were extremely excited that Arnin allowed them to leave for now. They quickly nodded even though no one could see them, and left. "Kurse, where are the two girls? We should hurry to them." Torne was feeling somewhat anxious. Although he hadn''t even spent a mere day with Arnin yet, he still couldn''t forget the beating he received. "They are not that far away. We should get there very soon." Kurse replied quickly, with a tinge of excitement in his tone. ------------------------------------------------------ Inside Arnin''s house, the stones that Kurse brought were placed on the ground. They were all still empty, but were arranged in an octagon like pattern. Arnin knew what the two were up to, however he couldn''t care less at the moment. He wanted to figure out how to create cultivation stones. He was very close to breaking through and needed a small push. If he could further master mark making and create lots of cultivation stones, then he could finally have a breakthrough into Orb Birth - Hell. "Let me first try the orthodox way of creating marks. After practicing that, I can then further my own method." Although Arnin looked down on the mark making manual, it was stillbetter way to start than not having any method. His personal mark making method was difficult to use and required great control over the saber, something he was lacking. If he could increase his mastery over his saber by using the orthodox method, then that would be a great situation. The reason Arnin arranged the stones in such a way was because the marks in his body were in that formation. Those octagon marks helped increase his body''s physical strength, so he wanted to see what sort of effect the stones would have. Would they further the development of his physical body? Would they fail to do anything? He wasn''t sure, so he decided to experiment. Arnin had the saber come onto one of his fingers. Instead of absorbing the essence from the world or solar essence, he had the saber pull some of his own essence out. The saber was covered in a black and red hue, which was the color of Arnin''s essence. Before he could begin, a thought hit him ''It says that I have to circulate my cultivation, but I don''t have a set cultivation.'' Arnin was at a loss. He never used a set cultivation method to increase his powers or to absorb essence. He directly absorbed the worldly essence in the most rudimentary way, which would not work for the orthodox mark making method. ''Hmm, seems like I have to go and find myself a proper cultivation method, and then I can just alter it later.'' Arnin shook his head and stopped with the whole mark making. His plans of practicing came to an end. He couldn''t do it without meeting the requirements. Although he could add in one of the symbols he used in the past to absorb the essence, that would change the method completely. It wasn''t the same as the normal way of going about things. Arnin decided that he needed to go and find a library or vault that held all the cultivation methods. ------------------------------------------------- While Arnin was getting ready to head out, Torne and Kurse were almost at Lilise and Elidia''s home. Their hearts were beating like crazy. If they could convince the two girls to help them, then they would be free from Arnin. It was a matter of life and death. *Knock Knock* After approaching the house, Kurse went ahead and knocked quickly. He wasn''t able to barge into the house since it wasn''t his anymore, plus he needed to give a better impression of himself so that they would help him out. "Kurse, you are sure these two can convince Arnin? What if they can''t and we get in an even worse situation?" Torne, although harbouring some hope, was still very anxious. He didn''t want to go through another beating. It was just too painful. Kurse was silent. He was also somewhat doubtful, but then he remembered how Arnin treated the two girls. Arnin fought him so that they could live in a better place. He shook his head and smiled at the hunchbacked Torne. "I can''t guarantee success, but from what I have seen so far, Arnin does care about these two. We can only give it a try and hope for the best." Kurse was set on asking for help. He didn''t want to experience what Torne did, nor did he want to be someone else''s servant. He wanted to become someone great. He wanted to become the strongest. Kurse knew he had great talent, however if he were to continue being a servant, he wouldn''t be able to put that talent to use. Torne became silent and nodded his head solemnly. It was true that they didn''t have many options left. It was better to try than to give up. *Creak* As the two were deeply thinking about their situations, the door began to open. Kurse and Torne looked up and their eyes became determined. No matter what, they would find a way to convince the two girls to help them. The person who opened the door was Elidia. She had a look of confusion on her face when she saw the two people in front of her. One of them was so injured that he barely resembled a human. The person next to him was someone she knew. He was the person that they took the house from. "Yes? Do you guys need something?" Elidia knew that she was a Butterfly student and shouldn''t be in the Moth living quarters. She kept herself restrained to the house and hadn''t gone out since Arnin gave it them. "Would you mind if we come in and talk to you about something? It is very important and only you and your sister can help us." Kurse asked in an almost begging tone. Elidia thought the two looked genuine and they didn''t seem to be here to make trouble so she let them in. She already knew that Kurse was now Arnin''s servant, so she had a small amount of trust that he wouldn''t do anything to her. "Come in then." Elidia moved to the side and allowed the two inside. Kurse and Torne smiled brightly as their hopes began to grow. ''This girl is already kind enough to let us in. She might even listen to our request.'' Kurse was excited. He entered the house and sighed bitterly. This used to be his home until Arnin took over it. Before, he could enter the house without worry, but now he had to ask permission first. "So, what did you guys want?" Elidia sat down with Lilise. They kept a distance from the two and asked with some hesitation. Lilise didn''t speak at all and let Elidia do all the talking. Torne looked at Kurse and nodded his head. The latter sighed before telling them their problem. ----------------------------------------------------- Arnin had already left his house and made his way towards the Moth building. He had to quickly cultivate himself to a higher level so he didn''t have the time to rest. After entering the Moth building once again, he scouted for a teacher. He didn''t know where he could find the cultivation manuals, so he could only ask the teachers. Arnin looked around for a while before stopping in his footsteps. "If you are here, then come out already. I know that you have been following me for a while now." Arnin angrily said. "Hehe! I wasn''t following you, I just happened to be in the same area as you." a man walked from behind Arnin. It was none other than Xillar, the greatest stalker in history. "Hmph, you really don''t know when to stop until someone does something." Arnin snorted. He couldn''t do anything to Xillar at the moment because he was stronger than him and also had the backings of the academy. "Truly, I wasn''t following you. We just happened to meet here. Haha!" Xillar laughed embarrassingly. He had to keep an eye on Arnin, and now he was even more serious about it. He wasn''t going to leave Arnin alone, lest he found himself another slave or servant. Arnin felt that Xillar had been following him since he left the Moth group housing area. ''This guy is really seeking death.'' "Since you are here, then lead me to where I want to go." Arnin said in a commanding voice. "Uh-hum! Arnin, I am a teacher you know. Shouldn''t you show me some respect?" Xillar looked at Arnin bitterly. "I don''t need to show someone who follows me around all day respect." Arnin said mockingly. Xillar laughed embarrassingly. Although he showed no anger on his face, he was somewhat displeased with the way Arnin kept treating him. ''Kid, you are lucky that person is protecting you. If not, I would have beaten you a long time ago.'' he kept these thoughts in his head. That person who was protecting Arnin was not someone he could match up to. "Where did you want to go?" Xillar coughed a little before speaking. "I need to find some cultivation manuals. I don''t have a cultivation method yet, so help me find some." Arnin spoke to Xillar as though he was speaking to a subordinate. Xillar ignored his way of talking and answered back. "Well, you can find different manuals in the Moth library. Although there are a bunch of cultivation manuals there, they are all low level ones." Xillar briefly explained. "Low leveled? How do I get better ones?" Arnin didn''t care about the cultivation manualhe got since he was only using them temporarily until he created his own, however better cultivation manuals would allow him to understand the various ways one could cultivate with the essence. "You will learn about these things tomorrow when you head to the first lecture. For now, I will just help you get to the library." Xillar quickly cut the conversation short. Although it wasn''t any secret, he felt that the more he answered Arnin''s questions, the more he felt like a servant. ''I am a respectable teacher! I will not answer your questions just because you want me to.'' Xillar quickly walked passed Arnin. The latter snorted before following him. As both of them walked, the silence irritated Xillar. It was suffocating. Although he didn''t want to talk to Arnin, he didn''t like the silence even more. "Where is Teacher Kelnorin? I haven''t seen him for a while." Arnin suddenly spoke up. He had been wondering what happened to the first teacher he met. When he first saw Kelnorin, he found that his strength was extremely deep, much higher than that of Xillar''s. However after that small meeting and examination, he never met him again. "Teacher Kelnorin is busy getting all the other students information sorted. We won''t be able to see him until tomorrow" Xillar sighed when he heard how respectfully Arnin mentioned his colleague. ''Where is my respect? He tried to kill you at one point!'' Of course, he wouldn''t say these things out loud. He might just get killed if he did. Arnin nodded his head. He could tell that Kelnorin had a much higher rank than Xillar. Maybe Kelnorin wasn''t an ordinary teacher? "Let me ask you something else. After one reaches the Essence Manifest, how does a person then make his way towards the Elemental Formation realm? Also, what are the different elements?" Arnin remembered that Dane was telling him about how the students in the Moth group would usually graduate while achieving Elemental Formation realm. He didn''t think much about it until he met that infuriating senior who kicked him out of the greater lodging area. He knew that the senior had to be in the Elemental Formation realm, or else he wouldn''t have been able to make him feel so weak. "Hmm, the Elemental Formation realm is actually not hard to achieve. It just takes a long time. After you enter Essence Manifest, you will begin to condense and gather different types of essences. Unlike the Orb Birth Realm realm where you just take these essences and increase cultivation, the Essence Manifest realm begins to seperate the essence into individual components." Arnin nodded his head as he listened. The separation of the essence was something that he already achieved. Although he had to do it manually, he was able to find the time essence because of this process. "After separation, depending on the cultivation technique you are using, the different essences will either increase your quantity of essence or convert into your elemental seed." Arnin continued to listen. The more Xillar explained, the more he understood the difference in strengths. Seeing that Arnin was seriously paying attention to him, Xillar raised his nose towards the ceiling and laughed on the inside. ''Kid, even though you act as though you know everything, you truly need a magnificent teacher like me to guide you.'' "Elemental seeds? Are these condensed essence components, or are they something else?" From what he learned, Essence Manifest was when the essence was separated and condensed, so the elemental seeds were most likely the condensation of the various components. "Correct. They are the condensed essence components. I won''t explain much more, as you will learn more about these things in the lectures. You will also find out more if you read in the library. You can ask me for help when you need it." Xillar felt very successful. He had been taken advantage of by Arnin for a while, and now that he was able to make Arnin listen to him, he felt as if he was flying towards heaven. ''I am a true Teacher. This is what I am, young student.'' Again, he didn''t speak this out loud and just thought about it. As both of them continued to walk, they finally got to a place with two large doors. These doors seemed to be made of some blue rock. They were polished nicely and even had many marks placed over them. "This is the library. Just scan your Identification card, and you can enter the first level." Xillar explained arrogantly. Arnin ignored Xillar''s haughty way of talking and did what he was told. He scanned his card on a circular device that sat in the corner. *Ruuuumble* The doors slowly opened. Arnin watched carefully as he saw thousands upon thousands of books appear through the opening. There were people scuttling through the large place with books in their hands. "So this is the so called library? Not a bad place." Arnin walked in happily as the doors behind him closed abruptly. 39 Elidia鈥檚 Righteousness Arnin entered the large room known as the library. Large bookshelves stood in hundreds of rows, stairs leading to an upper floor which contained even more books. It was much larger than even the village that he came from. The doors shut behind him and Xillar was gone. He was left in peace to discover the books he needed himself. Although there were many students in the library, what surprised him even more was that even teachers roamed through the area. He headed towards the large circular desk that sat in the middle of the large library. It looked to be made of an orangy yellow wood. The color, however, was more on the darker side than the light. It fit perfectly with the dark oak floors and walls. Approaching the front desk, he found a young man standing tall like an arrow. He looked to be around the same age as Revi, and also had a strong cultivation, Essence Manifest - Sky. He wore a white scholarly robe and had a small braid on the left of his face. His skin was uncommonly bronze, however it looked unique and somewhat captivating. His mature face, with his beautiful honey eyes really made him stand out. (Author note: Revi is the leader who Arnin dragged around when he was trying to find his home. His first appearance is in chap 30) Arnin approached this man with a small smile. The handsome man noticed Arnin coming his way and smiled back towards him. "How may I help you, young man?" His way of speaking was very professional, not showing a hint of contempt or mockery. "I am looking for cultivation manuals." Arnin answered calmly. Since the other party was asking him directly, why should he waste his time with unnecessary chatter? "Ah! Alright, would you first give me your Identity card so that I can check what levels of the library you are authorized to have access to?" The man extended his slender hand in front of Arnin. His pearl white teeth showcased themselves in their utmost glory when he smiled, however Arnin found something weird about the man in front of him. He didn''t feel annoyed the way he did for Fae, rather he found something peculiar and interesting about the man in front of him. He couldn''t help but inwardly smile because of this feeling. It was all too familiar. Arnin pulled out the card from his sleeve and handed it over to the man. The latter took it with a smile and inserted it into a crystal sphere that sat on his left. Arnin decided to ignore the man for now and also looked at the orb. Because of his small height, he had to stand on his toes just to get a good look. If someone were to know that the little boy who could barely see over the counter was a Demon Lord reincarnation, then they would probably spit out all the blood that was in their body. As Arnin intently watched the sphere, the number ''2'' flashed by. "Alright, you are allowed to scope through the floors one and two. Here, let me lead you to where the cultivation manuals are." The man stepped out from behind the desk. He handed Arnin''s card back to him and waved for him to follow. Arnin put the identification card back into his sleeve and began to walk behind the man. "What does one require to be able to get onto the second floor?" Arnin asked, confused. From the way Xillar spoke, he assumed that he would only get access to the lowest floor, but that didn''t seem to be the case. "You should already know that the Moth group is much smaller than the Butterfly group, right? Well, the academy decided to build one large library in the Moth group and allowed any student, no matter their group, to enter." The man explained slowly. Arnin only smiled as he listened to the man and carefully examined his smiling face. "Isn''t there a rule stating that Butterfly group members are not allowed to enter the Moth building? This library is in the Moth building, so how do they get access?" Arnin was somewhat perplexed. Although he was somewhat shocked to find such an extravagant library in the Moth building, he still assumed that the Butterfly group had their own library because of that rule. "It is true that the Butterfly group is not allowed to enter the Moth building, however the library has more than one entrance. The academy built a portal that links the first floor of the library with the Butterfly building." When the man began to speak about the portal, Arnin couldn''t help but feel somewhat shocked. Although portals weren''t considered a large thing in his previous life, he never expected to find one in such a small academy. Not only that, but when he roamed around as the Demon Lord, he had run into various types of transportation portals, however the core of each of these portals was related to one''s understanding of space. ''Seems like someone has a good understanding of space to create a transportation portal.'' Arnin continued to listen to the man, waiting for him to answer his first question. "Well, because the Butterfly group is able to come to access the library as well, the academy created another rule. The Butterfly students have to pay once for access to the first floor of the library, while Moth students are allowed to enter the first floor for free. Only highly talented Moth students are able to access the second floor right away." The man looked at Arnin with a hint of respect. Arnin smiled in response to the respectful gaze, however in his heart, he put on a different expression. "Since you are able to access the second floor as well, I will ask you to choose whether you want to go up right away or if you want to look over the manuals on the first floor first?" The man asked Arnin when they finally came to the staircase that led upstairs. Arnin pondered for a moment before deciding he wanted to check out the manuals on the first floor before going up. "Let me check out the manuals that exist in the first floor. I will head up after checking those out." The man looked at Arnin and hesitated for a moment. "Umm, if you don''t mind me saying, but I don''t recommend looking at various types of cultivation manuals. If you want, I can help look up some specific ones for you, so that you can narrow the number of manuals you would have to look through." It was a known fact that if one looked at too many cultivation manuals, their path could stray. This would be very detrimental to future growth and in a worst case scenario, it could halt one''s cultivation progress. The reason behind this was that each manual focused on a certain pattern in cultivation, and if one looked at too many, then they would begin to compare and might even try to combine the different methods. This would cause them to lose focus and would stop their cultivation path. "It''s alright, I know what I am doing. Just take me to the section where I can find the cultivation manuals." Arnin showed an expression of smiling that wasn''t really smiling, when he spoke to the man. "Well, if you want to, then I can''t stop you. My name is Surk, and you''re Arnin, right?" The handsome man named Surk looked at Arnin with a smile. "Yeah, my name is Arnin. Lead the way to the bookshelves that contain the manuals." Arnin knew that his student identification card showed his name. However, it showed only some information, nothing private. Surk led Arnin to a place where Moth students were gathering and discussing with bright eyes. "These five rows contain all the cultivation manuals of the first floor. You can look through them and just give me a shout when you are ready to go to the second floor." Surk pointed towards the many large bookshelves that contained hundreds of books. "Where are the Butterfly students? If they can access this library, where are they?" Arnin was confused because he couldn''t see any Butterfly students. "The Butterfly students don''t get access until tomorrow. You will see them roaming around everywhere after the lectures tomorrow." Arnin nodded his head and walked towards the bookshelves. If they weren''t here yet, then that wasn''t bad for him. He liked silence. The man continued to smile at Arnin''s back. A hidden glint flashed through his eyes, but quickly disappeared. ''Arnin¡­ Foro? Hehe!'' Surk inwardly laughed as he walked away. ----------------------------------------------- Lilise and Elidia sat in their homes with looks of shock and disbelief. Kurse and Torne saw these expressions and were inwardly happy. If the two girls began to feel concern for them, then they might just be saved. "Sis, I can''t believe Arnin would do something like that. He doesn''t seem like that kind of person." Lilise looked at Elidia with great shock. She had always looked at Arnin with respect and adoration. He was kind, and smart, and very strong. She always thought that he was a good person, but after hearing what the two people in front of her had to say, she began to feel conflicted. ''I told you, Arnin is not a good person. I always said that, but you and grandpa just wouldn''t listen." Although she was also feeling slightly conflicted, she carried an air of excitement. She had kept saying to her grandpa and Lilise that Arnin was not someone good, but they never believed her. With this as proof, she felt as though she had just stumbled upon gold. "But sis, he gave us this house. He fought someone for us. He can''t be a bad guy." Lilise felt as if her whole world was crumbling in front of her. Although she didn''t have feelings of love towards Arnin, she still felt really close to him, especially after staying as his home for a period of time. She treated Arnin like an older brother. "Lilise, you are just too nice to see the bad people in the world. Arnin is only doing this because his deal with grandpa. If that wasn''t the case, he wouldn''t treat us like this." Elidia finally found something bad about Arnin and didn''t want to back down. "But¡­" Lilise was still in disbelief. Elidia patted her head and looked at the two people in front of her. "Don''t you guys worry, I will handle all of this for you. I will make sure that Arnin releases you from your contracts." Elidia smiled righteously towards Torne and Kurse. She felt on top of the world at that moment. She disliked Arnin, and now she could cause him more trouble. Why wouldn''t she be happy? Kurse and Torne began to tremble with excitement. "Thank you very much! If you are able to solve this problem, then I don''t mind becoming your protector." Kurse was the first to speak out. A protector was different from a bodyguard. Unlike bodyguards, who would have to be around the client for long periods of time, a protector would only help when a problem arose. "Yes, if you can solve this, then I will help you as well." Torne spoke out right after. Elidia''s eyes sparkled when she saw the two''s reactions. They were both older than her by more than a few years, with Torne being even more than ten years older, however they still thanked her in such a way. She felt like a queen, like the ruler of the world. "Don''t worry, leave it to me." Elidia smiled brightly, however Lilise was still feeling extremely disheartened. She never expected Arnin to do such things. "When should we go and find master?" Kurse asked with some hesitation. He couldn''t help but want to get rid of the contract right away, however everything was in the hands of the two girls. "You don''t have to call him master anymore. Just call him Arnin. We will head out right now. Where is he?" Elidia puffed out her chest adorably and walked forward. She headed for the door and turned to look at the two. "Umm, I don''t know where he is, but I will find out right away. Just give me some time. You can wait here. Senior, let us go find m-Arnin''s whereabouts." Kurse spoke to Torne with some excitement. Torne nodded his head before getting up and limping towards Kurse. Both of them walked out the door and began their search. Elidia noticed that Lilise was still glum and walked towards her. She sat down beside her and rubbed her small back. "Lilise, just don''t think about him. He was nice to you, but that was only him lying. Did he finish your training? No! Did he talk nicely to grandpa? No! Did he run away from home? Yes!" Elidia began to list all the problems she found in Arnin in a single breath. Instead of consoling Lilise, it looked more like she was pointing out Arnin''s bad points. However as a child, Elidia still didn''t understand how to console a person. "Grandpa said that he had an important reason to leave." Lilise looked at Elidia with tearful eyes. Elidia couldn''t help but shake her head. "Lilise, Arnin is not our friend, or our big brother. He is only being nice to us because of the deal he made with grandpa. Just concentrate on getting stronger, and you will see how much of a bad person he is when you become strong." Elidia spoke happily as she explained. "Alright, but what if the two of them are tricking us? What if they are the bad guys and not Arnin?" Lilise was still reluctant to believe that the kind person she had perceived was just an illusion. "Lilise, you need to stop being such a baby. Arnin is not a good person. Those two looked so sad and were even beaten up. That explains everything!" Elidia used her flawed logic to explain why Arnin was bad. "Who are you calling a baby? You are only a little older than me." Lilise pouted before becoming quiet. Elidia ignored Lilise and began to practice her way of dealing with Arnin. ''Arnin, you evil person. Release these two! No no no, hmm. What about¡­ Arnin, I always knew you were evil. Let these two go and I will pretend I didn''t see anything.'' She began to copy the ways many of the heroes in her favorite stories spoke to evil people. Suddenly, a knock resounded from the door. She walked towards the door and opened it up to find Torne and Kurse standing there with happy expressions. "We found him! He is in the library." The two spoke excitedly. They were one step closer to getting freed from the contract. Elidia nodded her head and turned to look at Lilise. "Lilise, let''s go. We need to help these two and make sure Arnin learns that being evil is a bad thing." Lilise slowly got off the bed and headed towards the door. She looked at Kurse and Torned with an angry expression. Both of them didn''t know why she showed such an expression, however they decided to ignore it. Elidia pointed forward and laughed happily. "Lead the way." 40 Understanding Elements Arnin sat on a table with dozens of books stacked beside him. All of them were about the various ways of cultivation a person could choose to go about. Cultivation manuals were separated into various elements which would help to direct the cultivation towards that specific element. Fire, water, air, and earth were the four main cultivation manual types. Each of the cultivation manuals had a particular pattern for absorption of essence based on the element they were related to. Although the four types were considered the main elements, there were still countless other types out there. Some of them were related to darkness, some to light, and many more. When people decided to find a cultivation manual, they would look at many different types of cultivation manuals, however all of them would be under the same element. Looking at different elements could ruin the state of a person''s mind and even impact the pattern of someone''s cultivation. It was a risk people didn''t want to take. Arnin, however, was different. He had a bunch of cultivation manuals stacked beside him, and many of them were of different elements. The surrounding Moth students and teachers were dumbfounded when they saw the various manuals beside him. "What is that kid doing? Doesn''t he know that if he looks at all of those different types of elements, he may fall astray?" A kid asked his friends. They looked at Arnin with pity and even mockery. "Who cares? That''s one less genius to worry about. Haha!" Another kid couldn''t help but laugh slightly. Unlike Arnin. who came from a humble background, most kids in the Moth group were from prestigious families. They were taught many things about cultivation before they headed towards the academy. Arnin didn''t know about the cultivation realms after Essence Manifest until he heard about one from Dane, however everyone in the Moth group knew about it beforehand. The education they got before entering the academy was superior when compared to Arnin''s, who received basically no previous instruction. Surk heard the commotion coming from the cultivation manual section and couldn''t help but raise one of his ink-like eyebrows. He walked towards the laughter and chatter, and couldn''t help but feel dumbfounded at the sight. Quickly, he walked towards Arnin with a worried face. "Hey, Arnin, you shouldn''t look at so many elements at one time. They can ruin your future. Here, let me help you find a suitable cultivation manual." Arnin looked up and stared into Surk''s eyes, "I am fine with what I have. Don''t worry, I know what I am doing." Arnin looked at Surk expressionlessly. Surk shook his head and released a sigh. "If you know what you are doing, then that is fine. However, remember not to go overboard, or your cultivation could be affected." Surk could only warn Arnin with words. He wasn''t able to forcefully stop Arnin from doing what he wanted since it was none of his business, but he couldn''t help but lament Arnin''s terrible decision making. Arnin watched as Surk left as quickly as he came. He couldn''t help but smirk before drowning himself with cultivation manuals once more. He had learned quite a lot about the cultivation patterns that the different elements go through, and although it wasn''t enough for him to create his own, it was still a decent amount. Although all of them revolved around the orb of a person, but the way they rotated, the path they took, and the amount of energy used in a circulation was very different. Not only that, but the cultivation manuals helped to circulate specific components of essence. Although they still had other components inside of them, it was still acceptable. Only when one reached the Essence Manifest realm would they be able to properly divide each component, so only then would the cultivation manuals be very helpful. Arnin had memorized how the four elements cultivated, and he even looked at other minor elements, such as darkness and light. Elements like metal, wood, lightning, and many others were rare, so he couldn''t find anything on them. There were so many different elements, however some of them were not even considered an elements by definition, one example being wood. This was not an element by definition, however it still fell under the element category because it functioned in a similar way to elements in cultivation. Since he had read the main manuals on the first level, he wanted to head over to the second level and see the difference. Arnin walked back to the front desk and asked Surk to take him to the next level. "You''re already done checking those manuals out? Did you find anything that suits you? Remember, we can still do a test to see what your affinity is, and with that we will know what sort of element you should focus on." Surk kept reminding Arnin of the same thing over and over again. He didn''t want Arnin walking down the wrong path. Cultivation was the basis of life in Afloria; If one stagnated or even completely lost their cultivation, that would be a fate worse than death. Plus Arnin was a Moth student, which showed that he had great talent in cultivation, so it would be a real loss if he couldn''t progress in his cultivation. Arnin shook his head and rejected. "I don''t need to do a test. I am just looking at the moment, and if I find anything that suits me, then that is my luck. I don''t want to do some test for it." Although Arnin said that, he wasn''t really looking for anything specifically. Even if he stumbled upon something that was suitable for him, at most he would look at it with more detail. His goal isn''t to find a cultivation manual that suited him, rather it was to create one. This was why he didn''t want to do unnecessary tests for affinity. He already had an element that he wanted to focus on, and that was time. People were able to focus on more than one element, however it was hard to find a cultivation manual that would allow this, and it was also much harder to progress in. Arnin had decided that his main element would be time, while space would be his secondary element, and so on. He was going to have many elements to focus on because he wanted to progress his Demon Lord cultivation. He couldn''t be lax, and so he was looking to create something major. Surk sighed deeply before walking towards the second floor with Arnin. "I have a question for you. How do we know what is an element and what isn''t?" Arnin''s question was based on the facts that some of things that weren''t actually elements were called elements. "Hmm? Well, when you get to Essence Manifest, you will be able to separate essence into different components. We call these components elements. Whenever a new one is discovered, it is considered an element." Arnin finally understood. Everything was based on the separation of essence. Time was considered an element because of it being a component of essence. Arnin nodded his head and continued to follow Surk to the second floor. He got his answer, so there was no need for him to ask any more questions. Surk looked at Arnin weirdly, unable to comprehend what he was thinking. ''What is weird person, he asks a sudden question and just goes quiet after. What is he thinking?'' Surk pondered about Arnin. He knew that Arnin was actually a great talent, as only people with really high talent would be able to access the second floor right away. Even he himself didn''t get that privilege. "Alright, we are here." The second floor looked exactly like the first floor. There was, however, a greater abundance of book than on the first floor. Arnin quickly followed Surk towards the cultivation manual bookshelves. Surk looked at Arnin as he picked out various books right away. "Remember not to go overboard. You don''t want to ruin your cultivation." Surk knew that Arnin wouldn''t listen to him, so he waved his hand and walked away while shaking his head. -------------------------------------------------- Kurse was leading Elidia and the rest towards the library. Although Butterfly students were not allowed into the library until tomorrow, he could still try and let them through with his identity as a Moth student. Every Moth student was able to take in one outsider into the library, however that person would need approval from the academy. Kurse could take in Elidia, while Torne was going to take in Lilise. Since they were both already students of the academy, it wasn''t going to be difficult to take them inside. All four of them arrived in front of the large doors. Since it was not the first time that Kurse and Torne were going inside the library, they knew the procedures pretty well. Quickly, both of them scanned their ID cards on the sphere, and then the door opened up with loud, thundering sounds. The girls began to get excited. They had seen books in their old home, but they were very basic. Being able to go into an academy library excited them greatly. Torne and Kurse saw the expressions on their faces and felt relieved on the inside. The happier that they made the girls, the harder both of them would try to free them. Their hearts were palpitating at the thought of freedom. It hadn''t even been a day yet, but they were frightened by Arnin. When the doors finally opened, the two girls couldn''t help but widen their eyes. The amount of books was greater than the amount of people they had seen in their life. They looked around, nodding their heads. "Lilise, isn''t this place huge? It is even bigger than grandpa''s house. Wow!" Elidia was trembling with excitement. She loved to cultivate and was really serious about it. Although she didn''t have high talent, this didn''t discourage her from wanting to reach greater heights. Lilise was also feeling somewhat overwhelmed. The place was way too big. Just a small section seemed to be bigger than her grandfather''s home. The books were plentiful, which made her want to quickly go and read them, albeit she could barely do so. Children were taught to read very early on in their childhood. Because of the higher density ofworldly essence, people had longer lifespans, and they would also mature much quicker. This resulted in most children learning to read at a very young age. Although Lilise was able to read, she still found it somewhat difficult. "Where is Arnin? Take me to him." Elidia looked at Kurse and Torne and said in a heroic manner. Both of them began to get even more excited. "Yes, let me first find out where he is. Maybe the front desk people have seen him." Kurse quickly ran towards the front desk. What met him was a golden eyed, bronze skinned prince. Although he was a man himself and didn''t find other males to be attractive, he couldn''t help but feel astonished. The person in front of him was like a heavenly god that descended from a handsome land. "Can I help you?" Of course, this person was none other then Surk. He was just so handsome that it was blinding. He noticed Kurse''s expression, however he was unaffected by his reaction. He continued with his professional attitude. Kurse quickly pulled himself together and straightened his back. "We are looking for a fellow Moth student who was seen in the library earlier. He is around five years old, and has black hair." He quickly began to describe the looks of Arnin. Surk shook his head and smiled at Kurse. "Can you give me some more distinct features, or can you tell me his name?" He asked with a pleasant grin. "Oh yea, he has three tattoos on his forehead. They look like horns. His name is Arnin." Kurse scratched his head with embarrassment as he described something more unique. His former description was very general, however the name and the tattoos were extremely unique to Arnin. Surk''s eyes glinted before he looked deeply at Kurse. "Why are you looking for Arnin? He is on the second floor at the moment. If it is serious, then I can go and call him" Surk noticed that there was more than one person looking for Arnin. "Yeah, it is kind of important. Would you mind asking him to come down?" Kurse spoke spoke bitterly. It was important for them, but Arnin may think otherwise. "Sure, just tell me your name, so he can know who it is." Surk smiled and asked for his name. Although he could go up and just say someone wanted to see him, he felt that getting the names of the people would be more appropriate. "Umm, about that¡­" Kurse began to hesitate a little. He didn''t want Arnin to know that he was the person calling him down. Elidia noticed his hesitation and walked up confidently. "Tell him that Elidia is calling him. He will know who it is when he hears my name." Elidia acted like Kurse''s savior at that moment. She felt good when helping others, especially when she was helping them from someone she disliked, like Arnin. Surk raised an eyebrow when he saw how Elidia spoke. Although she may have seemed to have spoken with righteousness and confidence, he felt a hint of arrogance in her tone. He smiled inwardly before nodding his head. "Alright, I will go tell him that Elidia wants to see him. However, whether he comes down or not, I can''t guarantee it." Surk smiled before quickly heading towards the second floor. Although he didn''t know if the matter was something important, from the way Elidia spoke, he felt that something interesting was going to happen. This somewhat excited him, although he didn''t know why. He made it to the second floor relatively quickly, and located Arnin even faster. The latter noticed that Surk was coming towards him with a smile. He raised an eyebrow and looked at Surk suspiciously. "What is it?" He wondered why this man was looking for him so hurriedly. Although he felt something familiar about Surk, he couldnt put his finger on it. It wasn''t disgust, but something else. "Some people are looking for your downstairs. They say that it is important. A girl named Elidia is part of the group." Surk watched Arnin''s expression when he spoke, however he didn''t notice a change. It was the same calmness, causing him to feel somewhat depressed. Still, he didn''t know why he felt this way. "Alright, I will go see what they want." Arnin got up and headed towards the first floor. He was confused as to why Elidia would come to find him and what group was with her, however he had an idea about who it might be. Surk followed from behind and watched Arnin with some interest. Arnin finally reached the front desk and saw the group that wanted to see him. It consisted of Elidia, Lilise, and his servant and slave. He smirked when he saw them because he already knew what was going to happen. He expected them to approach him eventually, as he had heard Torne and Kurse discussing their plans. Elidia saw Arnin smirking and couldn''t help but feel somewhat infuriated. However, when she thought of how she was going to cause Arnin some problems, she began to feel better and more confident. "Arnin, I need to talk to you about something important." Elidia stepped forwards and spoke in a somewhat arrogant manner. Surk watched from behind as his eyes glistened. He was excited because he had a feeling that things were going to turn bad soon. Arnin casually waved his hand forward, gesturing her to explain. There was a hint of playfulness in his eyes when he saw Elidia''s attitude and how Lilise was standing behind with some reservation. He didn''t care what they thought about him since they were just a part of his contract. He only made things easier for the two because of Lilise''s relationship with Nekaia. That was it. "I want you to set these two free. I don''t want them to be a servant or slave anymore. I know all the bad things that you did to them, so let them free, or else¡­" Elidia spoke confidently, however she found it weird that Arnin didn''t have a single reaction. He just kept smiling. "Or else? Or else what? Enlighten me." Arnin leaned against the front desk, however he could only touch the lower half of it, as he wasn''t able to reach the top. "Or else I will tell everyone about what you do, and I will even tell my grandpa. Let''s see if he favors you then." Elidia thought that this would affect him, however she thought wrong. "Alright, go tell everyone. You know what, let me just show the world how evil I am." Arnin then walked towards the group. 41 Watch Me Help Them Arnin slowly walked towards the group. His eyes twinkled with an evil light. Elidia was dumbfounded by Arnin''s actions. ''What did he mean he will show everyone?'' She looked at Arnin with some confusion. Torne and Kurse noticed Arnin staring at them after he said those words. They began to feel frightened and felt a chill run down their spine. "Get on your knees. Why are you standing without my permission?" Arnin stared at the two with a smile. His voice sounded demonic, causing the group to shiver uncontrollably. Even Surk felt somewhat uncomfortable. Elidia looked at Arnin with some hatred. "Didn''t you hear what I said? I don''t want them to be your servant or slave anymore. Set them free." Elidia was still feeling somewhat annoyed that she trembled for no reason. ''What heck was that?'' Arnin turned his head and looked at Elidia with a casual glance. He then turned his head towards the reserved Lilise. "Lilise, tell your sister to be quiet." Arnin spoke with some annoyance. Lilise trembled slightly when she heard him. She looked at Arnin and couldn''t help but feel some somewhat nervous. The feeling he was giving off was very similar to the one he gave off when he broke through at her house, sinister and cold. "Who do you think you are, Arnin? Just because my grandpa likes you doesn''t mean that I have to like you too. You are younger than me, so show me some respect." Elidia was extremely annoyed. She disliked Arnin because of the things he did, and now she wanted to get some revenge, however she was being treated like a speck of dust. "Lilise, tell her to quiet down." Arnin said once more. This time, there was some force in his words that caused Lilise to tremble with fear. Her eyes began to tear up slightly because of the aura that Arnin was releasing. It was too frightening. "You little¡­! Stop talking like you are an adult. Lilise, don''t listen to him." Elidia''s eyes were burning with flames. She was pissed off because of the way Arnin spoke to her. Arnin noticed that Lilise wasn''t going to do anything so he just ignored the two girls. He then stared at Torne and Kurse, who were still standing in front of him. "Did you two not hear me? Get on your knees, I haven''t given you the permission to stand." The two looked at Arnin with some fear. They couldn''t do anything to him because of the marks on their body. They could only look at Elidia with some helplessness. "Arnin, stop commanding them! Release the contract¡­" Before she could finish, Torne and Kurse fell to the ground. They were shaking and their eyes were showing large amounts of fear. "Since you won''t listen to your master, I think another lesson should be given to you guys." Arnin walked forward towards the seizuring Kurse first. He squatted down and stared deeply into his eyes. "So unfortunate. I treated you quite well today. You even got a Mark Master Assistant token because of me. Is this how you are going to repay me?" Arnin shook his head before getting up and walking towards Torne, whose condition was even worse than Kurse''s. "And you, I gave you a beating just today, yet you still don''t understand your place. I was going to give you the cultivation manual as a reward for hard work, but it seems you like beatings, you masochist." Arnin smiled while he spoke. Elidia saw the two people on the ground and couldn''t help but feel enraged and worried. "Arnin, what the heck did you do? Why are you hurting them?" Elidia walked towards Arnin and glared into his cold eyes. Lilise was also somewhat upset because of Arnin''s actions. "Why are you hurting them? They just want their freedom." Lilise spoke in a mouse like voice. She didn''t look at Arnin and only stared at the ground. Arnin looked at the two girls and began to feel somewhat irritated. "The two of you are really getting on my nerves. I gave you a house to cultivate in, so why the hell are you guys here?" Arnin glared at the both of them. He had showed some kindness because of Lilise''s relationship with Nekaia, however he didn''t care anymore. "We are here because you are not a good person. You will set them free, or else I will tell my grandpa." Elidia trembled under Arnin''s glare, however this made her even more mad. Surk stood behind and watched this with some pleasure. He wished to have something to eat so he could more thoroughly enjoy the scene in front of him. A crowd slowly began to gather to see what was happening. Arnin pushed Elidia aside and walked towards Kurse once more. He lifted him up from his throat, however he couldn''t make him dangle in the air because of his size. "You say I am not a good person? Well, let me show you how good I am." Arnin smirked before dragging Kurse towards the front desk. "What are you doing? Let him go!" Elidia was enraged and was beginning to feel even more worried. ''This is not going well. Why isn''t he listening to me.'' She quickly turned around and looked at Lilise. She thought that Lilise could possibly change his mind. "Lilise, tell him to stop, or things might go bad for these two." Elidia spoke with seriousness. Lilise didn''t know what to say. She already tried to stop him with a mouse like voice, however she was ignored. "I will try." Lilise nodded and thought that Arnin might not have heard her. She walked towards Arnin and stood in front of him. "What?" Arnin looked at Lilise with a smile. Lilise took it as he would listen to her, so she gained some confidence. "Can you let them go? They are good people and I know you are good too, so can you set them free?" She looked at him with some hope. Arnin didn''t change his expression, however he dropped Kurse to the ground. Right when he hit the ground, Kurse stopped shaking. He looked at Lilise with some gratefulness, however he still held a lot of fear towards Arnin. "Kurse, take Lilise back to her house, then come right back." Arnin glared at Kurse. He hesitated for a moment before wobbling towards Lilise. "Here, you go home first. He won''t be my servant anymore when he comes back, however I need you to go home first. Your sister can stay here to make sure everything is alright." Arnin smiled wickedly towards Lilise, who took the smile as something warm. She nodded her head and walked away with Kurse. Elidia looked at Arnin with some anger. "Hurry up and free this senior then. You already promised that to Lilise, or should I call her again?" Elidia spoke with some arrogance and made sure to mention Lilise. She thought that Lilise might be Arnin''s weakness, however that thought couldn''t be anything but wrong. Arnin waited until Lilise was out of sight. Although he didn''t care much about Lilise, she was still friends with his sister, so he would try to make things easier for her, albeit only a little. "Surk, would you mind grabbing me a chair?" Arnin turned around and asked Surk with a smile. The latter shivered at the smile before asking with some confusion. "Why do you need a chair?" He wasn''t sure why Arnin would need something like a chair. "You will know once you get me one." Arnin smiled even more sinisterly. Surk thought for a moment before grabbing a chair from behind the circular front desk. Arnin took the chair and placed it opposite to the crowd. "Elidia, sit here. You can sit down and watch as I help Torne." Arnin smiled towards Elidia. The latter felt that Arnin was finally showing her due respect, and so she sat down on the chair with an air of arrogance "Let''s begin." Elidia said, and waved her hand. Arnin didn''t move and just smiled. "Let''s wait for Kurse first. I will help them together." Arnin said as he walked towards Torne and sat down on ground. The crowd was confused, however they felt something was going to happen so they decided to stick around. Their senses were much higher than Elidia, so they knew Arnin that was up to something. Surk smirked when he heard what Arnin said. He also felt Arnin was going to do something, however he wasn''t going to interfere. It wasn''t his business. Ten minutes passed and Arnin saw Kurse running back with unstable breathing. It seemed like he rushed back, causing him to become extremely tired. "He is here now, so set them free now." Elidia looked at Arnin with a look of superiority. She felt that she now had the upper hand in this. She was extremely happy. Arnin suddenly vanished from his position and grabbed onto Elidia''s hands. "W-what are you doing?! Let go!" Elidia struggled, however Arnin didn''t let her escape. He began to insert his threads into her body and started to numb her legs and arms. Now she couldn''t move or do anything. Surk saw all of this happen and felt a little displeased. "Arnin, although this is none of my business, what are you doing?" He didn''t care what would happen to Torne and Kurse, however he still felt uneasy with Arnin hurting little Elidia in the library and in front of him. "Just watch and see. If you dare to interfere, I will kill you!" Arnin smiled towards Surk, however his eyes were cold and deadly. Surk shut his mouth right away and didn''t say anything more. Although he was stronger than Arnin, he felt that if he fought him, things would not turn out well. The crowd saw that Surk wasn''t doing anything, so they also stayed behind and watched. If someone strong like Surk didn''t have the courage to go up and stop him, then why would they? "Arnin! Let me go!" Elidia could only yell at Arnin since her body was basically paralyzed. The latter smirked before walking towards Torne. "I said that I would help them, not free them." Arnin lifted Torne up from the throat and dragged him towards the desk. "Watch carefully, little girl. Remember, you caused this." Arnin smiled before suddenly slamming Torne''s face onto the lower portion of the desk. "ARG! AHH!" Torne screamed out in agony as his face began to bruise and bleed. Elidida watched the horrifying scene with fear. Her eyes began to tear up a little. "Arnin, stop it! He didn''t do anything." She spoke chokingly, however Arnin only smiled towards her. "These two didn''t get onto their knees when I said so. As slave and servant, they didn''t obey their master, so a punishment must be carried out." Arnin then slammed Torne''s face once more on the desk. Torne fell onto the ground, unconscious. Arnin smiled before walking towards Kurse. "Master, please, I won''t do it again." Kurse got onto his knees and began to move back with a frightened face. Surk stood by and did nothing to prevent this. Although he felt guilty, he couldn''t do anything about this. "Arnin, it''s not their fault. Let them go." Elidia panicked when she saw Torne laying on the ground unconscious. She was feeling extremely guilty since she was the one who guaranteed their freedom. "I will tell Lilise if you continue to do this." Elidia was depending on her sister as her last hope. It seemed that Arnin cared about Lilise, which was why he sent her away. "Don''t get me wrong, but I don''t care if you tell Lilise, or anybody for that matter. I only sent her away because it could affect her cultivation, and she is my sister''s friend. Other than that, I could care less about how she feels." Arnin spoke coldly. Elidia began to regret her decision to confront Arnin. Even if she closed her eyes, she could hear the screams. This was going to become something that would ruin her future. "If you are worried about your cultivation, then don''t be. I was told to help you, so I will. I will make sure your cultivation doesn''t stagnate, but you are going to have to watch all of this. Haha!" Arnin slightly laughed before kicking Kurse''s face. He then lifted him by his neck and slammed his face against the desk wall. "ARH! PLEASE! ARG!" The screams caused everyone to shiver and look at Arnin with fear. There was also some hatred in their eyes. They couldn''t understand why Arnin was treating them like this. Surk couldn''t help it anymore and walked towards Arnin. "Arnin, that is enough! Let them go!" He released his aura of a Essence Manifest - Sky realm cultivator. "Enough? Well, that''s for me to decide." Arnin smiled and released his own aura. Although it was of Orb Birth - Sky, the sinister feeling was domineering and suppressing. "If you set them free, I will give you ten academy points. Is that a deal?" Surk didn''t want to fight Arnin, however he didn''t feel right watching all of this happen. He initially didn''t want to interfere, but he never expected things would get this bad. He thought that at most, an argument would happen, but not such extreme violence. "Academy points? What''s their use?" Arnin looked at Surk as his left hand held onto the back collar of Kurse''s robe. The latter''s face was completely swollen, while blood leaked out of his mouth. However, the rest of his body was fine. Arnin made sure that he could still move around so that he could get things done for him. "Academy points are the currency used in the academy. You can use them to get access to higher floors in the academy, buy weapons, and much more." Arnin pondered as he dropped Kurse onto the ground. His knuckles were covered in blood so when he brought them up to his face, it looked very weird. "What can I do with ten points? Is that a lot?" If he was going to spare his people, then he wanted something good for it. If ten points were too little, he was going to ask for more. "With ten points, you are able to buy at least five cultivation stones, you can access the third floor for two days, or you could even get yourself a low-level weapon." Surk explained the different things he could get, attempting to entice Arnin. "I will spare them, however you need to give me a total of twenty points. Any less, and I will continue to beat them until they only have one breath left." Arnin asked for ten more points. If he could get so many things with just ten, then he want to double that. If he asked for triple, he felt that the other party might just fight it out with him. Surk hesitated before painfully agreeing. "Give me your ID card and I will transfer the twenty points." Arnin tossed him his card and walked towards the sphere where the information would be shown. A few moments later, he saw a section that said [Academy Points: 0] turn into [Academy Points: 20]. Arnin felt happy and took back his card. "Good doing business with you." Arnin smiled before kicking Torne and Kurse in their stomachs and walking out the library. Before he left, he freed Elidia and dragged her with him. Surk gritted his teeth when he saw Arnin kick the two before he left. ''Shameless, even after we had a deal.'' However, he calmed himself down and had the crowd take Torne and Kurse to the medical department. ---------------------------------------------------- The mysterious figure sat on the clouds and laughed while holding his (Author note: Only using his for now, gender still unknown) stomach. "Hahaha! Great, this is great! The great Demon Lord is truly a despicable bastard, even hurting such little kids. Haha!" The mysterious figure continued to laugh with a hard to distinguish voice. 42 Breakthrough Arnin walked out of the library with Elidia following him from behind. She was quiet while they walked, making for a stifling atmosphere. Arnin ignored her presence and was contemplating what he read in the library. He learned about the different elemental cultivation manuals and how they worked in the body in conjunction with the orb. He found the idea to be simple, however he would need some time to create his own. Although his goal was to create a cultivation stone and start to improve his control over the saber, he decided to put that on hold. He didn''t want to cultivate a random manual anymore since it could impact his future cultivation. Elidia didn''t say a word and continued to look at the floor. The agonizing screams of Torne and Kurse kept replaying inside her head. The sounds they made and the looks on their faces horrified her. This may have seemed like a bad thing, however there was a small benefit. She now understood that things would not go her way and that Arnin was not under her or Lilise''s thumb. She lifted her head slightly to take a look at Arnin''s back. Arnin suddenly stopped and turned around. Elidia looked up at him with surprise before looking back to the ground. She didn''t want to talk to Arnin, as she found him to be a repulsive person who really was a bad guy. Arnin smirked when he saw the way she was acting. "How did you like the show? You seemed to be enjoying it quite a bit while sitting comfortably on that chair." Arnin spoke with some mockery in his tone, however Elidia wasn''t able to catch it. "I wasn''t sitting comfortably! You did something so I couldn''t move. Just wait until I get home. I am going to tell Lilise everything that I saw, let''s see what happens then." Her pearl white teeth clenched together while she spoke with seething hatred. Her beautiful, sky blue eyes were shimmering with coldness, however Arnin faintly smiled towards such a glare. "Go ahead, tell the little Lilise. She is so little, it isn''t like the news is going to hurt her and make her extremely sad, but that is up to you. I know that you want to make your sister sad, so go ahead and tell her." Arnin spoke without much of an expression. Elidia went silent after hearing him, she didn''t want to make Lilise sad, but she didn''t want her to think Arnin was good either. "Why didn''t you stop? Why couldn''t you let them go?" She consoled herself, but she began to rethink about the scene in the library. She hadn''t seen anything major like that before and the aura Arnin was giving off really frightened her. "I don''t know why are you asking such dumb questions. Keep this in mind, everything that happened inside was because of you. If you didn''t agree to their request, they wouldn''t have been beaten." Arnin continued to taunt her without caring about her reaction. Elidia couldn''t take it anymore and sat on the ground in fetal position. She buried her face in her legs as her body trembled slightly. The sound of sobbing was heard in the building; it was heartbreaking. Arnin glared at Elidia''s childish actions. He would have killed her on spot if he wasn''t bound by the contract. Arnin didn''t care if others hated or disliked him. The only people in Afloria that he truly cared about were Nekaia and his parents, and although he cared about the latter, it was only to a certain extent. He wouldn''t harm them, which was why he had left, but he wouldn''t sacrifice his life for them either. Elidia, who was crying in front of him, was neither Nekaia, nor family member, so he only felt annoyed at her tears. "Get up!"Arnin glared at her as he spoke with some annoyance. "No! I don''t want to!" Although individuals matured faster in Afloria than normal people, Elidia was still a child. She would cry like a baby when she was upset or sad; it was normal. "If you don''t get up, then I don''t mind showing Lilise the same things you saw today." Arnin threatened her. He wasn''t planning on being a good guy, nor did he want to be one. He himself knew that he was not a good person, but that fact didn''t bother him. Elidia quickly got up and wiped her tears. She glared at Arnin before stomping off in a fit of anger. "I hate you Arnin!" She ran off towards the exit with tears appearing in her eyes once again. Arnin ignored her reaction and looked towards the ceiling. "Stop hiding, I know you are here." Arnin was glaring at the dark ceiling when a figure jumped from the top and landed in front of him. This time, it wasn''t Xillar, it was Fae. "You are such a bad guy. How could you make such a pretty girl cry?" Fae showed a hurt expression when she looked at Arnin. She then looked at the running figure with pity. "Why are you following me?" Arnin ignored her question and struck her with one of his own. "Well, I heard you were looking for some cultivation manuals to study. I have a few here that might interest you." She smiled brightly before taking out a dozen or so books from a ring on her finger. "These here are some of the books that I have collected over the years, take a look." She handed them all to Arnin. Arnin placed them onto the ground and began to look through them very quickly. Blood, space, darkness, and shadow were only a few of the many types of elements . These books talked about rare elements that he wasn''t able to find on the first and second floor of the library. These books were extremely helpful for him since they discussed some of the main elements that he wanted to focus on. He got off the ground and looked at Fae with some confusion and suspicion. After thinking for a moment, he smiled wickedly towards her. "What do you want in exchange?" He knew that these would not be given freely. There was a catch, and it most likely something difficult. Fae''s eyes brightened before she spoke as well. "You catch on quick. Well, at the moment I don''t need anything, but remember to keep that page I gave you close by. You will know in due time." She giggled cutely before vanishing into thin air, however she dropped a small bag before leaving before leaving. Arnin frowned. He didn''t like owing someone anything without even knowing what he needed to owe. However, he felt that the day the page had a reaction, things might become more interesting. Arnin picked up the bag and slowly inspected it. He was surprised to find that it had the properties of space revolving around it and knew right away what it was. Just like the ring that was on Fae''s finger, it was a interspatial bag that could carry many items without increasing their weight. He inserted his threads into the bag to inspect the interior and found that it was empty. He smirked before placing all the books into the bag. The interspatial bag was deep black and gave off a mysterious aura, however the space inside of it was not too great. At most, he would be able to fit twenty or so more books. Still, it was better than not having anything at all. Arnin tied the bag onto his waist and continued his way towards the the residential area. He wanted to quickly break through into the next realm. Arnin believed that he should be able to have a breakthrough now, especially since he had absorbed enough essence into his body and had even separated some of it. ---------------------------------------------- Fae appeared inside an unlit room where a few figures were barely distinguishable as seated. She quickly got onto her knees. "Did you give him the items?" The voice was very soothing, almost numbing. The voice was very charming and seemed to belong to a woman. "Yes, I gave him the cultivation manuals and the interspatial bag." Fae smiled her usual smile, the one that Arnin found to be disgusting and annoying. "Good. He had probably figured something out already, but it doesn''t matter. Let''s see what he does when the page finally reacts." The woman snickered in the dark. ----------------------------------------------- Arnin was oblivious to Fae''s meeting with the unknown woman, however he already felt that something was happening in the dark. It didn''t seem like it was going to be anything good, however he didn''t care much. As long as he benefited, he could care less about anything else. He finally approached his home as the sky was slowly darkening. He didn''t plan on sleeping because he wanted to see the difference in the essence of night and day. He got inside his house and found that Vilis was already napping in the corner. He didn''t disturb him, and sat down in the middle of the house, and began his cultivation. He had the sabers come of this body like the last time so that he could absorb essence at a faster rate. His body glimmered in a dark light and when the essence finally made its way inside his body, Arnin began to inspect the essence components one by one before absorbing them. He separated them slowly to see if he could find any more time components, however he couldn''t. It seemed that time was extremely rare. Arnin sighed before continuing with his inspections. He found darkness, earth, water, and even an ice element. Arnin knew that this was probably because of the high amounts of Yin in the air during the night. There were some fire essences, however it was an extremely small amount. Arnin decided to absorb the darkness element into his body while he took the other elements and spread them throughout his body for normal absorption. There was a difference between the types of absorption that one could conduct. Usually, only an Essence Manifest cultivator was capable of this because of their ability to separate essence, however Arnin was an exception. The essence that went directly into his orb as a component would alter some of the threads and force them into having similar characteristics to the component absorbed. In this case, Arnin absorbed the darkness component directly into his orb, which would allow some of his threads to have some of its characteristics, albeit a very minimal amount. The other absorption method that went through the threads first created energy. That energy would just increase the overall essence inside the person, not changing anything in the process. Arnin absorbed the components using the two different methods. He mostly found the darkness element, however sometimes, he would run into the death element. Death was an uncommon element. It was very strong, however it wasn''t overpowering. Arnin had control over death in his previous life, so he went through with controlling it in this life as well. Death was very weak in the beginning stages, and even during the mid stages, it wasn''t able to be ranked anywhere near the top, however once one mastered death, they would become extremely mighty. Darkness and death were the two main components that Arnin was directly absorbing. These two fell under the negative aspect of essence, however there were still plenty of people who absorbed them. The shadow element was also very useful, however Arnin didn''t directly absorb it since he didn''t need the essence. Hours passed and Arnin continued to silently cultivate. He didn''t go to see whether Elidia was alright and just stayed in his home. If he did go to see Elidia, then he might have noticed a small change inside of her. Sitting down with a dull look, Elidia watched Lilise sleep. Her eyes were still puffy from her previous bouts of crying, however she had calmed down. Lilise luckily didn''t see in her in such a state. Elidia began to recall the scenes from the library and couldn''t help but slightly tremble. She remembered how Arnin slammed the two guys'' faces onto the desk without showing any expression. "He isn''t normal. Arnin is the same age as Lilise, but why is he so different?" Elidia couldn''t help but question this. She didn''t dare to think about acting arrogantly in front of Arnin anymore, or rather, she was too scared to. She sighed as she slowly laid beside her sister. She pulled the covers onto her body and closed her eyes. Her orb, which was originally a faint greenish color, began to slowly show signs of black. It was the same black that Lilise had during her blood test. If Arnin saw this, he would have been extremely surprised. Elidia had a change in her orb and it would either help or destroy her future cultivation As she slowly closed her eyes, she felt a sudden burst of aura in the air. This aura was extremely familiar to her; it was Arnin''s. The latter was sitting quietly when he finally heard a popping sound. After the pop was heard, his aura exploded forth and began to spread out. Vilis opened his eyes and looked at Arnin with happiness. "ROAR!" He couldn''t help but roar loudly because of the comforting aura that Arnin released. It was extremely sinister. Everyone in his surroundings also felt this burst of aura, and they trembled slightly before rushing out of their own homes. "What is that?" A young woman asked. "I don''t know, but it seems to be coming from there." Another young man spoke and pointed towards Arnin''s home. "Is he breaking through? Why is his aura so powerful and¡­ scary?" The young woman asked while she took a couple of steps back. All of them could hear Vilis'' roars and felt the frightening aura that Arnin was releasing. Lilise woke up when she felt the aura. She was once treated by Arnin''s threads directly, so she was more sensitive towards his aura than most people. "Sister, Arnin is breakthrough, I think. This is just like when he broke through at grandpa''s house." Lilise quickly jumped off her bed and began to get ready. "What are you doing?" Elidia asked with some confusion. "I am going to go and check it out. Let''s go." Lilise excitedly changed her robe and rushed through the front door. Elidia hesitated a little before gritting her teeth and following Lilise. Xillar who was standing by and watching from the dark had his eyes wide open. In others'' perspective, they would only be able to feel how sinister the aura was, but because he was on a much higher cultivation, he felt a lot more. Darkness, death and even something else was hidden inside of Arnin''s aura. "I need to go and get the principal and the others." Xillar was about to turn around and go before he saw some figures appearing in front of him. "We are already here. This kid is really¡­ something." The principal looked at the house with his deep eyes, not letting others figure out what he is thinking. In a different place, Fae watched Arnin with brightened eyes. "This kid is a talent. Even at such a young age and such a low realm, he is able to comprehend components? Haha, this is great!" Fae laughed with happiness when she felt the sinister aura that Arnin released. Elidia and Lilise finally made it close to Arnin''s house, but they could only stay at a distance. The aura was so oppressive that they couldn''t help but tremble. Lilise had it worse, as she could faintly see a giant Demon manifesting within the aura. It looked terrifying. On the clouds, the mysterious figure watched everything with nothing but seriousness. There was no laughter or jokes, just suppressing silence. "What is that other essence inside of his aura? Is that¡­ time!? The Demon Lord has found time!?" The mysterious figure got onto his feet and disappeared into the darkness. Arnin''s aura was increasing by multiple folds, while his orb was also slowly becoming larger. It began to turn darker, and small symbols appeared on the surface. The symbols gave off a eerie light, however Arnin found them to be amazing. Suddenly, his aura retracted back into his body. It left so quickly that everyone stood in their spots, dumbfounded. "What the heck just happened?" A kid couldn''t comprehend how the aura disappeared so suddenly. "I think that the person inside broke through?" Another kid answered him, however he still spoke with uncertainty. Everyone watched the door with confusion. Slowly, it opened up and Arnin walked out with a deep, sinister aura lingering around him. Lilise saw Arnin walk out and was the first to run towards him. "Arnin, did you just breakthrough?" She asked with excitement. The aura this time was much stronger than the one that appeared in her grandpa''s house. "Yeah, I am officially in the Orb Birth - Hell realm." Arnin smiled before speaking. Although his voice wasn''t loud, everyone was able to hear what he said. "He is only in the Orb Birth Realm!? What the heck!" "That aura was way stronger then any Orb Birth realm cultivator''s! This kid is crazy!" Everyone discussed frantically. Fae watched with glittering eyes as she disappeared. The principal sighed before looking at Xillar. "This kid will either be our greatest student or our greatest enemy. Make sure that he isn''t the latter." The principal disappeared after saying his piece. Xillar looked at Arnin with astonishment before retracting into the shadows. 43 MM WOH WOH Arnin was feeling great after his breakthrough. He felt that his whole body had an upgrade, and it wasn''t a small one either. In the past, when he broke through into the Orb Birth - Sky realm, that change was incomparable to the one he had now. Not only did his powers increase, he also felt that he was able to have a small amount of control over some of the elements he had absorbed, mainly darkness and death. Although he had absorbed components of time before, it was so little that it couldn''t be controlled. Lilise looked at him with glittering eyes. She was happy that Arnin broke through, completely forgetting his title as a bad guy. Elidia watched from further away, however she didn''t come forward. She didn''t feel like speaking to Arnin, and she was only there because of Lilise. "Well, it''s late, so go and get some sleep. We are going to start our lessons tomorrow." Arnin waved his hand towards Lilise and Elidia. He had just broken through into a new realm and wanted to get used to it. Although he felt his body was much stronger, he still needed to figure out how much stronger, plus he wanted to test out if his control over the saber had increased in any way. "Alright, I will see you tomorrow then." Lilise smiled before running towards Elidia and rushing back home. At the moment, she still didn''t know about what happened in the library, so her impression of Arnin was still that he was a good person. Arnin smiled as he looked at the trees behind his house. He scoffed before walking back inside. Entering, he found Vilis looking at him cutely. He then walked towards Arnin and rubbed his head onto his clothes while purring. Arnin gently rubbed Vilis'' head with a calm look. He then faintly pushed him aside and sat down back onto the ground. He delved back into his body and began an inspection. Other then the larger orb, Arnin found that all of his threads had the same symbols that the orb did. Each thread carried a hint of death, darkness and a very small amount of time. This pleasantly surprised Arnin, who began to look over his physical condition. He found that his blood had a small change in it as well. Although it was still crimson, he found hints of black. They weren''t impurities, rather they looked like something that was a part of the blood. Arnin tried to figure out what the black in his blood meant, but he was unsure. Even in his Demon Body, his blood had stayed a single color. He had never heard of blood that had more than two colors. It was extremely fascinating and mysterious. His body''s muscles were more toned than before, however only to a certain extent. His body was small since he was five, so his muscles couldn''t grow too much. His hair, which was previously midnight black, started to show small amounts of ash grey. His skin was also smoother, and more pale. Overall, Arnin found that his physical appearance had a small change, but his physical strength was atomically boosted. Plus, his threads went through another change and were more sensitive towards the three types of essence that he had directly absorbed. Arnin felt that he could truly match up to an Essence Manifest - Sky cultivator without much of a problem. In the past he was able to barely match up to a Essence Manifest - Earth cultivator, but he could go up a small realm, possibly even another small realm. The next thing Arnin wanted to check was his control over the white saber. He had already found three major properties of the saber. First, it could absorb various types of essence. Second, it could control essence to a high degree and be used to create different things. Third was that it could be used as a physical weapon. Arnin was able to take advantage of the the first property pretty well and could somewhat control the second property as well, however bring it into a physical form was extremely difficult. He was barely able to do it in his fight with Torne, but he couldn''t bring out much of it''s hidden power. Right now, Arnin wanted to see how much of the third property he could utilize. He couldn''t practice the second one until he made himself a cultivation manual. Arnin called for the saber and directed it towards his right palm. In his mind he was able to see that the sword was very long. It had a blade, a hilt and even a small fiery ribbon which wrapped around the hilt, but he could barely form the blade, let alone the the rest of the saber. Slowly, a white blade began to pierce out of Arnin''s palm. It didn''t damage him, but instead it smoothly moved out. Arnin knew that at this moment, the blade was still in spiritual form, exactly how it would be when he was absorbing essence, or creating a mark. This time, however, Arnin did not stop and try to give it physical form, rather he wanted to see how much of the blade he could pull out. Soon, a meter or so of the blade was visible. Although this was extremely long, Arnin felt that there was a little more left before the hilt. Unfortunately, he wasn''t able to bring out anymore. Now that he had pulled out a spiritual blade, Arnin held onto it tightly and tried to figure out a way to make it something tangible. The first thing he tried was to command the saber to turn into a physical entity, however there was no change. Arnin tried to command it a couple times, and even tried to make a deal with it, however there was no change. He scratched his head in confusion. He had many spiritual weapons when he was a Demon, and most would turn into a physical form the moment he grabbed them, while others would turn only when he commanded them to, however he had never run into a spiritual weapon that stayed spiritual after so many attempts. He was bewildered and couldn''t think of anything. This spiritual weapon was different from others because it was formed with the weird essence. It was an anomaly, something he couldn''t change. Coming to this point, Arnin decided that he would need to do some research on the spiritual weapons in Afloria. A better option would be if he could find a person who had experience with these types of weapons. Now that his attempt failed and he had come to a conclusion, Arnin decided to see what kinds of powers the spiritual form could release. He remembered that during his fight with Torne, even though the blade was not in a physical state, the latter still received a wound. Not only that, but some of Torne''s essence had begun to disappear. Arnin walked towards a vase and slashed it with the saber. The saber went right through the vase like a ghost, however a small crack appeared on the place where Arnin slashed and then the vase¡­ disintegrated. It vanished into the air like ash. "What is this power? It felt similar to death, but all of the essence was sucked out from the vase." The vase was long gone, however Arnin felt a small amount of essence enter his body and slightly increase his overall essence. ''So, this works similar to how I absorb essence from the air, however I can absorb it directly from other things?'' Arnin nodded his head and swung the saber at another item. The same thing happened. Arnin smiled brightly before chuckling. "What if I used this on a beast or human?" Arnin turned to look at Vilis, who noticed the evil stare. Vilis took a couple of steps back and prostrated onto the ground. Arnin shook his head and decided not to harm Vilis. He still needed him for protection, and even as a companion. ''I will try this on Torne.'' Arnin nodded his head and walked out of his house. He tried to scan the area to see if there was anyone watching him, however he felt that no one was around. Nodding his head, he vanished and began to sprint towards the Moth building. ----------------------------------------- Arnin could sense Torne''s position because of the slave mark. He knew exactly where he was, so he was able to sprint towards him without a problem. As he got closer, he smelled a faint fragrance of herbs and plants. He looked towards the walls and found two words, Alchemy and Medicine. From this, Arnin knew that the two were most likely recuperating from his previous attacks. He couldn''t help but wickedly smile. ''Oh Torne, you are my slave, so why are you trying to heal something that I gave you? Such a¡­'' Arnin didn''t finish and quickly ran into the medical department. So far, he didn''t find any teachers keeping watch, or any students walking around. He knew that most people would be asleep during these hours, and the only reason that there was crowd around his house was because of the commotion his breakthrough made. Just like the Mark Master department, the medical department had three floors. The first was for selling some pellets for healing and other medicinal herbs, and the second floor was for the injured people. Arnin quickly got onto the second floor. He traced Torne''s presence and quietly walked towards him. On the way, he surprisingly found another familiar person. Monifa Neige. The pretty girl who he had beaten up and stole the house from. Arnin smiled before walking towards her still swollen and bruised face. He looked at her sleeping face before lifting his hand and caressing her bulged cheek. "You really are a pretty little thing., however if your father goes against me, I don''t mind killing him along with your whole clan." Arnin spoke quietly as his caressed the young girl''s cheek. Although he had seen many beauties in his life, that didn''t mean he didn''t like them anymore. In the past, he had abducted many young girls from difference races, and made them his or his general''s playthings. If he liked something, he would take it without hesitation. However, right now his body was of a small child''s and his powers were weak. He couldn''t do the same things he did in the past until he got stronger. Although he had his eyes on this girl, he was going to wait until she grew up and became ripe. "Hehe! Remember to doll yourself up for our next meeting." Arnin wickedly laughed before walking away. He silently stepped towards the sleeping Torne. He was in a more severe condition then Monifa. For some reason, his silent sleep irritated Arnin. "Get up!" Arnin grabbed his throat and lifted him off the bed. When the victim opened his eyes and saw Arnin in front of him, he began to panic. "Arnin! What¡­ are¡­ you¡­ doing¡­ here. *Cough cough*" He forcefully spoke, even though his throat was being tightly held by Arnin. "I think I heard you wrong. Did you just call your master by his name? Do you want another beating?" Arnin smiled evilly towards Torne. "M-master¡­ spare me." He began to panic when he saw Arnin''s smile. Torne then fell onto the ground face first when Arnin let go. "*Cough cough*, Master, why¡­" He was just about to question Arnin when he saw the latter glare at him with cold eyes. Quickly, Torne shut his mouth. "Get up. As my slave, you have work that you must complete whether you are dead or alive." Arnin turned around and began to walk towards the exit. Torne hesitated before his chest began to burn as if a scorching rock was placed right on top of him. "Master, I am coming, please stop!" Torne spoke a little loudly when he begged for mercy. Arnin vanished from his sight, and next thing he knew, Arnin was stepping on his face with his foot. "Stop being so loud, slave, or do you want Kurse to experience this with you?" Arnin smiled before creeping towards Kurse with a wicked smile. Torne was a good person who would try and help his juniors, so he began to sweat and panic when he saw Arnin walking towards the injured Kurse. "Master, please spare him. He is still young. I will listen. I will listen." Torne was much older then Kurse, so he didn''t want his junior to suffer at Arnin''s hands too much. He already knew that Kurse was beaten silly by Arnin, and that made him extremely sorrowful and mad, but he couldn''t do anything about it. Arnin turned around and looked at Torne, showing his snow white teeth. "Are you sure? If I bring Kurse along, the amount of work you will do can be reduced by half." Arnin looked at Torne with a taunting expression. Torne hesitated before resolving himself. "I am sure!" He spoke with determination, however his teeth were still gritting hard against one another. He knew that the ''work'' Arnin mentioned was not going to be anything good. "Such a loving senior you are. It almost makes me want to free you." Arnin walked over with a face of reluctance. When Torne saw this, his heart began to beat quicker. ''Is this my chance?'' Although he didn''t think Arnin would free him, he felt that there was a chance that Arnin might upgrade his status from a slave to a servant. Arnin knew exactly what Torne was thinking. Not only that, but he knew it word by word. Because of the slave mark, he was able to hear the thoughts of Torne, so he knew exactly what to use against him. However, he could only see his thoughts when Torne was in front of him. "I can''t free you, but maybe I can change you from being a slave into a servant?" Arnin touched his chin as his eyes didn''t miss a single expression that appeared on Torne''s face. The latter''s heart was picking up pace and he couldn''t help but feel somewhat thrilled. "Master, I am willing to serve you without a single complaint if you¡­" However before he could finish, he felt a sharp pain on his head. "Joking." Arnin was squatting in front of him as he grabbed onto his hair and tugged it. "You are my eternal slave. There is no going back. Hehe!" Arnin found the grief filled expression on Torne''s face was extremely pleasing. He stood up and tugged hard on Torne''s hair. "Let''s go!" Torne felt as though a bucket of ice cold water was thrown on top of him and he was buried under extremely cold ice. His last bit of hope was crushed. He felt completely dead on the inside and didn''t even know whether he should continue living under such conditions. "If you plan on killing yourself, then get that out of your head. You won''t even be able to scratch yourself unless I say so." Arnin didn''t turn around and walked away. Torne got up with his eyes not having much light left in them. He followed Arnin, hoping that the ''work'' wasn''t too bad. --------------------------------------- Arnin arrived back to his house with Torne following him from behind. This was his first time being in Arnin''s home, however only one thing in the whole house caught his eyes. Vilis was snoring in the corner, however when he heard footsteps, he yawned, exposing his sharp teeth to the world. Torne noticed that the beast''s realm was much higher than his own and he couldn''t help but gasp. Arnin waved towards Torne, who quickly walked towards Arnin. "Master? What is¡­" Everything suddenly went black for Torne. "Vilis, take his robe off, and fetch me some rope." Vilis quickly used his claws to rip up Torne''s clothes. He then ran towards a box and pulled out a long rope. "Actually, give me a long chain, not the rope." Arnin changed his instructions, however Vilis happily obliged and got a long, metal chain. ------------------------------------------------- The darkness that trapped Torne slowly began to fade. His eyes opened up, but everything was blurry. He blinked a few times before everything finally cleared. "Wohh¡­" He tried to say something, but felt his mouth was extremely numb. He felt nothing, preventing him from making any noise. He tried to use his hands to touch his jaw, but found that he couldn''t move his arms. They were bound by something. He tried to look over, but felt something tightly wrapped around his neck. Everything was bound, and he couldn''t break through whatever was binding him. Usually, even a metal chain could be broken by him, however the chains that held him in place felt much tougher. He just couldn''t break through. Arnin suddenly walked out from a room with a tray. On the tray, there were a couple of knives, and some roles of bandages. Torne began to understand what was happening. "WOH! WAH! MM!" He tried to make some sounds from his throat, but even those were extremely quiet. He moved around, but nothing happened. Fear was written all over his face, and a small amount of tears even appeared in his eyes. Arnin smiled before walking towards Torne. "Don''t worry, I am only testing some theories out. They might even be beneficial to you. Also, I think you need to know pain before understanding what happens when you keep going against me." Arnin shook his head before walking back to the tray. He grabbed a small knife and walked towards Torne. "MM! WOH! WOH!" Torne tried to scream, but nothing came out. Suddenly, the knife was placed on his lips. Arnin glared right into his eyes, and Torne found that in the black pupils, there some demonic red. "Shhh! This will be over soon." 44 Experimentation Arnin raised the knife and placed it on of Torne''s lips. His eyes glittered with an ominous light which deeply frightened him. He couldn''t do anything or even say anything against Arnin because of the slave mark. Now that his mouth was numb as well, he couldn''t scream for help. He knew that this night would be his doom, or at the very least, something completely unforgettable. Arnin smiled before taking a step back. "So, I will be doing some experiments on you and testing out some of my theories, however don''t worry, it will only hurt¡­ a lot. Even if you try and pretend like there is no pain, you will still feel pain. I will make sure of it." Arnin''s words were like a bomb that made Torne aware of the events that would occur in the night. Arnin began to think of what he wanted to test first. The night was long, and he had many different options to go with. "Hmm, maybe I will check out your talent?" Arnin nodded his head and walked over to Torne''s arm and sliced it without warning. "MMM!" Torne''s eyes became red as he felt his bicep open up slightly due to Arnin''s cut. His pain tolerance was not high because he had not participated in a lot of fights as a student, and instead had spent most of his time studying marks. Arnin quickly took out a bowl as he collected the blood that was dripping from Torne''s bicep. He wasn''t affected by his treatment of Torne since he had done these kinds of experiments many times in the past. He would experiment on more than just humans and demons, sometimes choosing to experiment on phoenixes and dragons. He wanted to do the same test he did on Lilise and Nekaia in the past. The conditions were optimum for the test. There were tons of negative emotions, an abundance of essence, and the person''s blood was now with him. Arnin put the bowl of blood aside and brought out a needle and thread. "Let me help you stitch this wound up." Arnin faintly smiled before using both of his hands to aggressively squeeze the cut. "MM! UUU!" Torne wasn''t able to shake his head, however he tried his best to show that he didn''t want the stiches. If Arnin numbed his arm before stitching him up, he might have agreed, but he was already feeling intense pain from his bicep. He found the pain from the cut to be unbearable, so he couldn''t imagine the pain he would feel during the stitching. "It''s alright. As your Master, it is my job to make sure that all of your injuries heal as quickly as possibly." Arnin''s cold eyes scared Torne witless, however he didn''t stop trying to make noise. Arnin shook his head and ignored the man''s sounds of agony. The corners of his lips rose before he began to slowly stitch the wound together. His skills were extremely refined, however he made sure to ''accidentally'' touch the muscles. "UU! OO!" The sounds he made weren''t too loud, however they were horrifying. "I am not perfect, so I will make mistakes too. Don''t worry though, this should be over soon." Arnin continued to stitch very slowly and finally completed the procedure. Arnin knew that he shouldn''t have stitched the wound right away without cleaning it first, and plus he might need more blood later, however Arnin didn''t care about that. If he wanted more blood, he could just cut open another part of Torne''s body. After the torturous stitching, Arnin sat beside the bowl of blood and began to insert essence into it. Now that he was a Mark Master, his control of essence was considerably better and he was even able do control essence more efficiently with the white saber, which could be considered a godly weapon that could control and absorb essence. Arnin had a small blade appear on his finger as he began to absorb the worldly essence. He didn''t need to split them into different components and also didn''t need to absorb them into his body, so he was able to complete the whole process fairly quickly. The color of the blood slowly began to change into a blueish purple color. Arnin shook his head and looked Torne with some disappointment. The latter felt his heart begin to tense up, as he couldn''t understand what was going on. The disappointment on Arnin''s face was didn''t hurt him, rather it made him tremble. "You really are such a pitiful person. You can''t even be considered a passable talent. Such bad talent." Arnin shook his head and continued to look at the bowl. He could try and add negative energy into the bowl of blood and make a bath, however why would he do so? ''Hmm, what if I add in separate components of essence into the bowl of blood? Will I be able to figure out his affinity?'' Arnin had a sudden thought and thought that the idea may be feasible. Nodding his head, Arnin walked towards Torne with a knife in his hand once more. The latter began to make weird sounds again. "WOHH! UUU! MMM!" His eyes were completely red and there were small hints of tears. Arnin laughed and shook his head. "Shut up, and stop making so much noise. Do you want to completely lose a body part?" Arnin got annoyed so he had the blade point towards Torne''s third leg. Torne panicked and his eyes showed an intense amount of fright. He stopped making noise and could only tremble when he felt the pain. Arnin smiled before taking the knife and slowly cutting Torne''s abdomen. He had the knife in go very deep, however not deep enough to kill his test subject. Blood began to pour from the wound like a waterfall. Vilis, who was watching by the side, couldn''t help but drool. Arnin noticed this and smiled wickedly. "Vilis, are you thirsty? After I grab a couple bowls of blood, come and lick it off, but don''t bite or suck." Torne began to sweat even more when he heard Arnin''s words. His eyes looked at the large Vilis, who was drooling profusely. ''What the hell did I do to deserve such treatment? This is inhumane, wouldn''t the academy punish Arnin for doing this?'' Torne felt extremely wronged because of his treatment. Although he didn''t like Arnin''s beatings either, they were still not too bad compared to what was happening to him right now. Arnin grabbed five small wooden bowls from a box and began to fill them up with the blood that continued to gush out the major wound on Torne''s stomach. After all five of them were completely filled to the top, Arnin allowed Vilis to go and lick off the blood. Of course, the pain would be immense during this, because his sandpaper-like tongue would most likely scrape against Torne''s organs, and possibly some other things as well. *CRACKLE CRACKLE CLINK* "UUUHH! WOHH! MMMM! MMM! ARRR!" Torne shook all of his chains as if the numbing was no longer effective in the face of such torture. He moved around frantically, making all sorts of sounds. Tears slowly slid down his pale cheek as he went through the pain of being licked by Vilis'' rough tongue. Arnin scoffed before taking the knife and inserting in Torne''s mouth. "You really make lots of noise. Maybe this will quiet you down." Arnin didn''t smile and only showed an irritated expression. He took blade and stabbed it into Torne''s tongue and slowly cut it down the middle, causing it to split from the midpoint. Crimson blood filled his mouth like water. "UHHUH! HUHU!" High pitched sounds were released from Torne. Even though he wanted to hold it in out of fear, the pain was just too great. He was able to do it. The weird sounds he made were the only things that he thought could possibly distract him from the pain, however they didn''t. Arnin covered his ears and looked at the Torne with annoyance. "Would you shut it if I cut this up?" Arnin took the knife and cut Torne''s uvula. He then grabbed the little thing and tossed it to Vilis. "Eat." "UUUUUUUUUUUUUUU!" Arnin knew that the noise was not coming from his mouth, or anything like that; it was because of his throat. Torne would not be quiet unless he was either sleeping, unconscious or¡­ dead. Arnin smirked, before tilting the latter''s head towards the ground so that he wouldn''t choke on his own blood. He then walked towards the five bowls. He temporarily stopped his torture and began to experiment. Since he had five bowls of blood, he was going to test out five different components. The first bowl was mixed with the darkness component, the second with water, then ice, death and lastly fire. The fire component was difficult to find because of high amount of yin in the air, however it was still there in small amounts. He watched carefully to see what the effects would be. The first bowl''s blood turned purple. The second turned dark blue¡­ the last bowl turned light blue, almost white. Arnin smiled and was happy with the results. This meant that the blood test was able to determine how great one''s affinity was with the elements. It was a simple procedure that didn''t require much effort, only a little bit of blood and some control over essence. Most likely, only a Essence Manifest cultivator who was able to control essence outside the body would be able to accomplish this, or even a Mark Master that was able to make marks. Arnin''s cold eyes looked deeply into Torne''s, then he smiled faintly. "We are almost done. I am going to do one more thing, and then I will send you back to the medical department." Arnin had tortured enough and had gotten most of the things he wanted done. The last experiment was on the octagonal symbols. Ever since he discovered them in his body, (Author note: Chap 14) he had wanted to test them on others. He wasn''t able to place more inside of himself, however he could try and improve the current ones so that their effect could be greater. Torne''s dull eyes sparkled slightly when he heard that. He wanted to quickly leave the presence of the demonic Arnin and rest. He had lost lots of blood and felt extremely weak. Luckily, he was an Essence Manifest cultivator, or else he would have been long dead. His tenacity was also much higher than normal people. Arnin grabbed one of Torne''s legs and inserted his threads into it. Torne began to shake uncontrollably. His leg slightly swung. He was frightened that Arnin would something crazy like what he did to his mouth. He wasn''t able to control his fear and accidently moved his leg and¡­ kicked Arnin''s face. ''OH NO!'' Torne didn''t think that he would hit Arnin. Although it was barely even a touch, his leg still hit Arnin''s face. The latter looked up and stared at Torne with a chilling smile. ''He is going to kill me! What the heck did I do?!'' Arnin quickly took the knife and sliced off Torne''s third leg. ''UUU! MMM UH! UH UH UH!'' The pain ran through his body and caused Torne''s face to turn deathly pale. Tears rained down his face and didn''t stop for a second. ''WHY?!'' He couldn''t scream due to his inability to use his voice. Previously, he was scared of Arnin and just wanted to stay away, but now he hated him to the core. He had lost his middle leg; he could never have descendants. "How dare a lowly servant kick his Master''s face?! If you weren''t still useful, I would have killed you for such audacity." Arnin glared at the latter, however he didn''t do anything more. He continued with the experiments. He inserted his threads into his leg and started to create the octogonal symbols. He understood how to make them and where to place them after some small tests, so it only took him a few minutes to create the symbol inside the limb. Arnin undid the chains on the leg with the octogonal symbol and looked at Torne with a glare. "Try to test out your leg and tell me if you notice a difference." Arnin wasn''t scared that the latter would try and escape, or do anything out of order for that matter. He was confident that he would be able to take Torne down with ease, plus Vilis was right next to him. Torne was still in bad shape, however he did as he was told. He moved his leg and felt that it was much stronger than before, however he didn''t know how to explain the change. His tongue and uvula were cut, and his mouth was numbed in a way that he couldn''t move speak. Arnin knew that this was a problem, so he decided to use head movements. He quickly made sure that the neck was able to somewhat move. "Nod if the improvement was good, or shake your head if the experiment was ineffective. If it is damaging, then don''t move your head." Torne quickly nodded his head. The quicker the experiments finished, the quicker he could leave this devil''s den. Arnin nodded his head and smiled. "You are done for the night. I will take you back and let you rest for now. You better be in good shape for tomorrow, because I will need you to start your tasks as a slave." Arnin spoke as if Torne''s injuries were mild, however it was the complete opposite. His injuries were very severe. He had a deep wound on his bicep, although stitched, prone to infection. His abdomen had a severe laceration that could allow one to even see his organs and ribs. His tongue was split in half and his uvula was missing. Not only that, but he had lost the major body part that defined him as a man. He was severely injured. Arnin knocked Torne out suddenly and pulled him down from the bindings. He began to drag the bloody body back to the medical department. With his current strength, Torne didn''t weigh too much, so it was simple to carry him. --------------------------------------------- Finally reaching the medical department, Arnin placed Torne back onto his bed. He didn''t bother to clean him up and just walked away. He gave Torne and Kurse a quick glance, before smirking at the sleeping Monifa. 45 Who Calls My Name After Arnin came back from the medical center, he decided to sleep right away. It was already quite late, and tomorrow would be the first official day of the academy. The smell of blood continued to linger inside of his house, and there were even many dark stains on the ground. Arnin didn''t clean the tools right away and simply placed them to the side. He would clean them at a later date, or he would just go and get new ones. The tools he used before were not the best, since there was no scapula, or tweezer, or anything that would be good for a proper dissection. ----------------------------------------------- The next day arrived very quickly. Arnin left his house wearing his Moth group robe that also signified his Mark Master identity. Although no one would notice right away, if one stared long enough, they would realize that Arnin''s robe also showed his Mark master status. On the first day, all of the students were required to head to the field that was between the Moth and Butterfly buildings. Many things would be clarified there and students could go and meet their teachers. Arnin was of course walking with Lilise and Elidia. Both of them were excited for the first official day, however Arnin noticed the dullness on Elidia''s face right away. ''Seems like the whole scene in the library caused some sort of change in her. I should see what happened later and make sure that it isn''t detrimental.'' Although Arnin didn''t care much, the contract binded him to the demands and he was supposed to take care of the two girls. He needed to look over their cultivation and make sure that nothing bad happened. Elidia noticed that Arnin was looking at her and she quickly turned her head away. She still felt somewhat fearful of Arnin, and even had many bad feelings for him. Noticing her quick reaction, Arnin smirked before looking straight ahead. He was also looking forward to the first official day. He was still not sure about many things related to Afloria, and so he wanted to learn about them as quickly as possible. The quicker he learned, the faster he could move on and rule the world. The trio approached a multitude of people standing in the middle of the field. More than two-thirds of the students were from the Butterfly group, while the rest were from the Moth group. Arnin examined his surroundings in hopes to find any of the seniors that lived in the ten major houses. He wanted to see the one that humiliated him so that he could burn the man''s face in his mind. He was going to get revenge, and it wasn''t going to be quick or simple. He wanted to thoroughly destroy that man. The three walked passed the chatting students, however when the students saw them, many discussed in hushed voices. "Do you see those two girls?"whispered one of the boys. "What about them?" asked a fair little girl. "They are Butterfly students like us, however they live in the Moth residential area." he answered. "How are they able to live in the Moth area? Aren''t only Moth students allowed there?" The little girl was astonished and confused. "It''s true that the place is just for Moth students, however my friend''s brother, who is a Moth student, said that the house the girls live in belongs to a strong Moth student." He spoke proudly when he mentioned his relation to a relative of a Moth student. "Those girls are so lucky. If only I could live in the Moth area." The other student began to daydream about the Moth residential area. It was supposedly much better than the one the Butterfly students lived in, so she was somewhat jealous. The two girls heard bits and pieces of the many conversations around them and could make out the subject of those conversations. Lilise was feeling extremely proud because of the fact that she lived in a the Moth residential area. Elidia, however, was feeling something else. She enjoyed the Moth area, although she barely came out, but she would rather go back to the Butterfly living quarters than stay close to Arnin. Arnin also heard the conversations but chose to ignore them. Since the students were useless to him and discussed no important information, why should he pay attention to such small talk? Arnin walked with the two girls following him from behind. The crowd was split in two groups. The front consisted mostly of Moth students, while the back had more Butterfly students. Of course, some students of each group were on both sides, depending on whether they were with friends from the other group. Arnin didn''t want to stay in the back and pushed his way to the front. He still kept a lookout for the senior students, however for some reason, there were none in sight. He felt disappointed, however he ignored it. Maybe not now, but he would eventually meet them all and have them die slowly under his feet. Even though there was only one senior student that had humiliated him, Arnin felt that the rest of the seniors were probably no different. Power made one arrogant, and if one with great power acted kind on the outside, then they were most likely sly foxes. Arnin had experienced many things and he firmly believed in this. No person was inherently good, not even someone from the Heaven tribe. As Arnin was walking through the group of Moth students, he heard someone from behind. "Hey! Who the hell said that you could go in front of us? The newest students stay in the back; only the older students can go forwards." Arnin turned around and found a young Moth student who was around the same age as Kurse. He had azure eyes with short brown hair. His skin was pale, however if one looked closer, they could find a tan line above his elbow. The robe he wore was one from the Moth group, however it seemed as though he cut half the sleeves off. "I think you have it wrong." Arnin smiled towards the brown haired youth. "What do you mean I have it wrong? Get to the back of the group." The brown haired boy didn''t budge and insisted that Arnin moved to the back. He shook his head and slowly walked towards the boy. Elidia felt a small amount of aura being released from Arnin and she couldn''t help but panic, thinking back to the library scene. She quickly ran and stood between the boy and Arnin. "What are you doing?" Arnin glared at Elidia who stood in front of him. Although he was supposed to make sure that she wasn''t hurt by others, that didn''t mean that she could continue to come in his way and bother him. "Arnin, can''t you let it go? He is only stating some rules that he knows. He hasn''t said anything wrong." Elidia spoke in an almost pleading tone. Her eyes showed fear and panic, and Arnin of course saw it cleary. Lilise quietly stood by, confused. She didn''t think that Arnin would go and do anything bad, primarily because she was sent out of the library, so she didn''t know Arnin''s personality too well. Elidia, on the other hand, knew a little too well. She knew that if Arnin wanted, he could ruthlessly beat up the boy in front of him, leaving him in a half-dead state. "Elidia, move aside. I won''t ask again." Arnin glared and spoke with irritation. He hated it when people came in his way just when he was about to do something. It didn''t matter who it was, it would always bug him. "Little Butterfly girl, get out the way. He can''t touch me even if he wanted. He is nothing more than a brat." The boy behind Elidia smirked before pushing Elidia aside. He didn''t push her too hard, however Elidia still fell onto the ground. Arnin smirked when he saw this, but then looked back at Elidia. "I am supposed to make sure that no one hurts you guys. Since this guy here pushed you onto the ground, I have every right to do whatever I want. You can watch with your sister or¡­" Arnin smiled at the fallen Elidia. Lilise quickly went to help her sister up, however she suddenly felt a hand grab tightly onto her arm. "Sis?" Lilise looked at Elidia with confusion. She heard what Arnin said, however she still couldn''t convince herself that Arnin would do anything bad. She had fully believed him when he said that he would let Kurse and Torne have their freedom, and so she continued to blindly believe in him. "Lilise, come with me for a sec. I want to show you something that Arnin gave me." Elidia knew that she couldn''t do anything to help the brown haired boy, so she bitterly shook her head and tried to quickly get Lilise out of the area. She had seen Arnin''s ruthlessness and didn''t want Lilise to see it too. "But what about Arnin?" Lilise could also feel that something wasn''t right. Elidia quickly thought of an excuse and suddenly came up with one. She moved her mouth towards her sister''s ear and whispered quietly. "This boy is Arnin''s good friend, however Arnin hasn''t met him in a long time. I didn''t know, but Arnin secretly sent me a message that he wants to talk to this boy alone." Elidia didn''t have anything else to say. She could only hope that Lilise would fall for the lie. "So that is the case? He could have just told me too. Why does he need to hide it?" Although Lilise ''understood'' the truth, she still felt confused. "Let''s just go and give them some time to talk." Lilise nodded and quickly walked away with Elidia. The brown haired boy saw the whole scene and was dumbfounded. He then looked at Arnin, who was slowly approaching him. "Now then, let me explain the real rules to you. The weakest stay in the back, while the strongest go to the front. This is not about seniority, but strength." Arnin smiled and was already in front of the boy. He was still just five years old, so his body was smaller than the boy''s, however the aura that was slowly emitted by him was much stronger. The boy felt the sinister aura that Arnin was releasing and he couldn''t help but take a deep gulp. "Stop!" Suddenly a voice sounded from the crowd. Everyone turned to look towards the sound. Arnin also heard the sound and couldn''t help but snort. Quickly, he punched the boy in the abdomen, causing him to spit out a large amount of saliva. He then fell to the ground, holding onto his belly. The person who screamed out was no one else, but Xillar. He noticed Arnin''s aura from afar and felt that he was going to start something once more. He couldn''t do much to Arnin because of the mysterious protector, but that didn''t mean that he couldn''t protect other students from him. ''Dammit, this kid gives me no respect!'' Xillar gritted his teeth when he saw Arnin punch the other kid without any hesitation. "Oops." Arnin looked at Xillar with a faint smile before walking towards the place where Lilise and Elidia went. Xillar shook his head before walking towards the fallen boy. "Teacher, you have to teach that kid some manners. I am his senior. How could he hit me like that? Not only that, but he did a sneak attack! What a shameless person." The boy was gritting his teeth and couldn''t help but complain. He felt Arnin''s power in that one punch, and he knew that he wasn''t nearly as strong as him. "Don''t worry. Someday, he will be taken care of." Xillar spoke in a serious tone, however the boy didn''t here the second half of the sentence. He only heard the ''Don''t worry'' part. --------------------------------------------- Elidia and Lilise waited patiently for Arnin. Elidia was feeling anxious and worried for the boy, while Lilise was happily waiting for Arnin to finish speaking with his ''friend''. "You two, let''s go." Arnin walked over without them noticing, and then walked back to where he came from. Lilise looked at Elidia before following quickly. Elidia, on the other hand, was somewhat hesitant, however she forced her way forward. "Elidia, my friend was lucky today. We didn''t get to talk at all." Arnin spoke with a dark smile. Elidia was somewhat happy that nothing happened, however she was astonished that Arnin knew what she had whispered to her sister. ''How did he hear me? I was so quiet.'' Elidia shook her head and decided not to think about it. She knew that Arnin was mysterious, plus he was very strong. Elidia wasn''t able to figure him out, and didn''t wish to. He was just too scary. "Arnin, if you need to talk to your friends, you can just tell us. We won''t mind." Lilise spoke sweetly. Arnin looked her before looking at Elidia. He then smirked. "Lilise, do you want to know what me and my friend were talking about?" Arnin didn''t look at Lilise when he spoke. His eyes kept looking at Elidia, who then began to panic. "Umm, if--" Before Lilise could answer, she felt a pinch on her arm. "Ow!" She looked at the person who pinched her. "Lilise, it is rude to ask about other people''s affairs. Don''t ask again." Elidia glared at her sister, who quickly ducked her head and didn''t say anything else. Arnin teasingly smiled towards Elidia, who looked away with anger. Arnin decided not to go towards the front anymore, instead, he wanted to go and find the chubby kid, Akig. It would be better for him to know where the chubby kid lived, so he could ask him some other small things. Arnin slowly walked and looked around. He wasn''t too tall, so he wasn''t able to see over the other people. He then turned around and looked at the two girls. "Do you guys know where Akig lives? Also, do you know which group he stays with?" Arnin had left Akig and the two girls to find his house on their first day, so he didn''t get the chance to discuss much with the kid. "Akig? Who is that?" Lilise asked innocently. A chubby kid was standing behind a group of people and coincidentally heard his name from somewhere. This person was none other than Akig. he quickly walked around the group and looked around with great arrogance. "Who calls my name, the friend of a Moth student!?" 46 Academy Introduction When Arnin heard the voice, he couldn''t help but smile. There was something about Akig that he liked, but he just couldn''t figure out what. The two girls turned round and saw Akig speaking with his round head held high. He lightly punched his chest, causing his arm and face to jiggle. "Who is it? Who is gossiping about me behind my back?" Akig tried to put on a strong front, but he just seemed like a clown. Arnin smiled, while Lilise, and even Elidia, couldn''t hold back their laughter. "Akig, over here." Arnin called out to him quickly. This boy was going to be his Beast-sitter in the future, so he wanted to talk to him a little more. Akig turned around and tried to find the person who had called out to him. His eyes latched onto a small kid around the same age as him. He had black hair and three horn tattoos on his forehead. Beside the kid were two girls. One looked to be a little older then himself, while the other was around the same age as him. He recognized them immediately. "Arnin! Wow, I haven''t seen you in like what, one day? It feels like one year." Akig quickly ran over and tried to hug Arnin, however the latter exerted some force and lifted his hand, so Akig wasn''t able to even get close to Arnin. "You keep getting stronger and stronger, Arnin. No wonder you are a Moth student." Akig could feel himself being repelled by Arnin, so he didn''t walk any closer. He spoke with some happiness, but then began to look around with frantic eyes. "Where is the beautiful beast? Is he not here?" Akig asked with worry. "Calm down, Akig. You can see Vilis later." Arnin smirked when he saw Akig''s behaviour. The latter smiled with relief before walking towards the two girls. "I haven''t seen you guys since you got your house. I heard that you are in the Moth residential area. Wow!" Akig showed some envy when he spoke. Just then, a group of guys came from behind Akig. They were all around the same age as him. "Akig, who are these three friends of yours? You want to introduce them?" The three boys smiled without any ill intent. It seemed as though they were friends of Akig. "Haha! You guys, these are the three people I was talking about. This guy right here is that Moth student." Akig spoke with arrogance. He talked as though he was showcasing the most important person in the world. The three boys were surprised and looked at Arnin with some shock. He was a little bigger than most kids his age, but he still looked like a child with devilish good looks. "So you''re that Moth student that Akig kept talking about. Wow, I never thought that I would be able to speak with a Moth student." One of the boys looked at Arnin with an idolizing gaze. His lips reach his ears, showcasing his bright white teeth. "Yea, I never thought that Aig was actually telling the truth. So where is the beast that Akig was talking about?" Another one of the boys asked with some confusion. They had also seen the beast in the past, but they didn''t see it now, causing them to wonder where it was. "Vilis is at home right now. Why are you guys crowding around my friend? Make way." Akig quickly stepped in front of his friends with a proud smile. He tried to act like Arnin''s bodyguard, which made them all smile with some helplessness. "Akig, are you still going to come and take care of Vilis for me? If you are, I can get you a house in the Moth residential area as well." Arnin smiled towards Akig. He liked the boy, and since the other party was going to take care of Vilis, him having a house closeby would make things easier. When Akig heard this, his eyes began to sparkle. "Haha! I told you guys, Arnin and I are buds." Akig laughed loudly, rubbing it in his friends'' faces. "You''re so lucky, Akig. If only we were able to get a place at the Moth residential area as well." The three friends became envious of their friend''s luck and couldn''t help but voice their desires. Arnin smiled and shook his head. He wasn''t holding a charity where he would provide everyone with a place to stay. Only people who were useful to him would be given a house, and that too only if it would make things easier for Arnin. Akig acted smug and followed Arnin, who began to walk towards the front of the Moth group. He had found Akig, so now he had no reason to stay in the back. ---------------------------------------- Arnin made it to the front of the place with the other three. Akig''s friends weren''t able to come, however Arnin didn''t care. Many people looked at Arnin and his friends with anger, however some of them knew about Arnin''s beast. They had seen the beast attack one of the older students in the residential area, so they didn''t want to do anything stupid. (Author note: This is talking about the Leader that Arnin had Vilis grab and drag around on the first day in the residential area.) Anyways, most of them just wanted to hear the announcement, so they minded their own business. After a few minutes went by, an old man walked up onto the stage. He had a long grey beard and very little hair on his head. He stood on top of the wooden stage, while behind him stood some teachers. Most of the teachers were of the Butterfly group, with only a few belonging to the Moth group. Xillar was among the Moth teachers. "Uhum! Students of Lepidoptera Academy, welcome. Many of you have been here for years, while some of the students present are new. We do this every year, so I will begin by explaining some of the expectations we have of you. In Lepidoptera Academy¡­" The old man began to talk about the common rules of the academy. Most students already knew about the rules because of a handbook that everyone had received. The old man made a little speech on how he expected every student to try their best, and make sure to represent the academy in a good light. Arnin found the speech to be rather boring, as did many of the older students, however many of the new students listened with passion, their eyes burning with flames. "Now then, we will begin most lessons right away. On the stage we have many teachers. Most are from the Butterfly group, while some of them are from the Moth group. A teacher from each group will come up to the stage and begin to explain some of the procedures of each group." The old man finally finished speaking and allowed a pretty Butterfly teacher to walk forward. The teacher looked absolutely stunning. Her hazel eyes, combined with her long blond hair, made her extremely attractive. Many of the older boys watched with fervent eyes, while the older girls looked on with envy. In Afloria, marriage took place quite early for many children. Most girls would be able to get married at the age of fourteen, while boys would be able to get married at the age of sixteen. However, people of much higher status might accelerate the process, while commoners would usually allow their children to grow up a little more. Most students in the academy were around the ages of fourteen and fifteen, while a minority of them were around twenty years old. Arnin still couldn''t understand why there was such a disparity, but he felt that there had to be a reason for this. "Hello students, I am the teacher for the Green Butterfly students, however I will explain some things now for you Butterfly students. The Butterfly students¡­" There was another long explanation, however the woman''s soothing voice made many of the older boys blush, and even feel excited. Arnin snorted at their actions. Luckily, Akig was still a child so he didn''t do anything like that. The teacher talked about splitting students under their respective class colors and some other small things about resources and cultivation. Arnin didn''t really pay attention to the teacher since it didn''t concern him. He only cared about what the Moth teacher had to say. who would explain the rules for him. "Now that I am done, I will allow a Moth teacher to come up and do his own introduction." This time, the person who stood on top of the stage was Kelnorin. Arnin was surprised to see him. He had assumed that it would be Xillar, or some other teacher, as he didn''t even see Kelnorin sitting on the chairs. ''Where did he come from?'' Arnin continued to suspect Kelnorin''s identity. He just didn''t seem like a normal Moth teacher. "Thank you. I will explain many things related to the Moth students, but some of the info is also helpful for the Butterfly students." Kelnorin began to speak. "Moth students are different from Butterfly students because of their abnormal talent, however this doesn''t mean things will be easier for them." Arnin listened intently. He knew of some small things, but not the major details. Kelnorin continued. "A Moth student will not get a set class. In fact, they won''t even have a set teacher." When the new Moth students heard this, they began to chat amongst themselves with some panic. Arnin also frowned slightly when he heard this. ''If we don''t have a class, or a teacher, how will we learn new things?'' Although he was thinking this, Arnin didn''t say anything. He knew that Kelnorin would explain. "This may seem unfair to most students, but this is the way a Moth student will be nurtured. All of the academies in Afloria do the same thing. However, we won''t let the students just do nothing, so we have implemented a method to make the Moth students more productive." Arnin thought about the Academy points that Surk told him about. "Moth students, and Butterfly students too, will start off with zero Academy points. You can use these points to enter floors of the library, get private lessons, and even buy different things inside the academy." When the Moth students heard this, they became somewhat upset. They thought that the Moth group would allow them to always be ahead of others and be personally nurtured by the best teachers, however they were wrong. "This is unfair! We should at least get some lessons. Why do we have to work for it when we passed the examinations, just like all of the Butterfly students?" One of the new Moth students screamed out his complaint. He was grumpy because he was going to need to work for his lectures, and even had to fight for a place to live. This was not an academy, it was basically the real world. "I understand your complaints, but this is how all the academies work. If you don''t like it, you can switch into the Butterfly group, but I will tell you now that the Moth group has many benefits that the Butterfly group doesn''t." Kelnorin knew that the Butterfly students would get upset over him saying that the Moth group was better and the students were more talented, however facts were facts. There was no need to hide them. "How do we get Academy points then?" The boy didn''t want to go over to the Butterfly group since the Moth group did have better final results. "I was just going to get to that. To earn points, there are actually many things that you can do. You can do well in the academy competitions, do jobs, complete missions, and much more." Kelnorin didn''t go into too much detail, however he did explain some of the jobs that one could do. These included working with the medical department, being a Mark Master, selling items, etc. He also explained where the missions would be found. "Now, Moth students may seem to be in a bad place, but there are some benefits that many have probably already used. Moth students can get free access to the first floor of the library, and possibly even the second, if they are talented enough, and even have personal housing. There are more than enough houses for all of the students, so even if one loses a duel, they can still find a place to live." Arnin had experienced these benefits, not only that but he got himself two houeses. He had to admit that although the Moth group was more competitive, the perks were not too bad. The angry student who spoke out before calmed down and began to smile proudly. He had already found a house for himself, albeit small, but it was still his. He hadn''t gone to the library but he had heard many things about it. Kelnorin finished his piece and disappeared once more. Arnin watched with some suspicions but he stayed quiet. The old man came back onto the stage and began to divide the students, making the Butterfly students go to their respective teachers. Lilise and Elidia went towards the beautiful teacher from before since they were in the Green group. The Moth students had it different. Three teachers came up and gave them three options. Xillar would lead the students towards possible jobs they could do, while another teacher would lead them towards the mission area. The last teacher was going to lead the students towards the training grounds; this was another benefit that the Moth students had. Only the Moth group had a personal training ground. It was huge, and had an abundance of essence in the air. Arnin pondered for a moment before deciding to follow the third teacher. He already had a job as a Mark Master, plus missions were not important to him at the moment. Right now, he wanted to cultivate. He could go do missions in the future. 47 Large Training Field The group that was heading for the training grounds was fairly small, with maybe a few dozen Moth students. The Butterfly students had already left for their own classes, while the remaining Moth students also went their own way. Arnin was a part of the group that was going to the training grounds. He didn''t need to get a job since he had one already, and missions could be done later. Right now, he wanted to break through into the Essence Manifest realm as quickly as possible. He needed to cultivate quickly and learn more about the different components, especially the time component. Although it may have seemed as though Arnin had plenty of time, he did not. The other world that he wanted to go to was difficult reach because the gates for that world only opened at certain intervals. He needed to cultivate and have a breakthrough quickly, so then he could go to that world. The group mostly consisted of older students around the same age as Kurse and Monifa. All of them chatted amongst one another about the training grounds, and since Arnin was new and had never been there, he listened in on their conversation. "I am going to cultivate on the surface for now. It has a lot of Essence, plus it is easier to absorb. What about you guys?" A boy with braided brown hair asked his group of friends. "You are such a wimp, Nettle. I am going to enter the first floor of the training tower. It is much better than the field." Another boy with curly black hair mocked. "You''re not even an Essence Manifest cultivator. The tower will be too difficult for you. You should stay on the surface with me." Nettle, the boy who spoke first, didn''t get flustered by the mockery. He didn''t ridicule the boy in return, but instead gave him a suggestion with a smile. It seemed like Nettle was not one who would taunt others. "Who cares! The first floor is still pretty good for Orb Birth cultivators. If I begin to struggle, I will come to the field with you." The boy helplessly shook his head and spoke with a slight hint of determination. It seemed as though he really wanted to go to the tower. Arnin listened in on their conversation and was somewhat surprised. When he first heard of the training fields, he assumed that it would just be a large field with an abundance of essence, however it seemed like there was more to it than just that. Arnin had learned even more from other conversations that were going on around him. The large field that was between the Moth and Butterfly buildings was used by Butterly students for their cultivation. The Butterfly students did not get a private training field like the Moth students, however they still had some opportunities too. Although the private field was intended for the Moth students, the Butterfly students could get access to it if they paid a heap load of academic points, however they would only get access to the first three floors of the place called the Essence Tower. Arnin began to look forwards to this tower. It seemed as though it was meant for Essence Manifest cultivators, which meant that it probably had something to do with components. Not only that, Arnin found that other than the tower, there were also many different areas in the training fields that were reserved for the Moth students, no matter how much the Butterfly students paid. ''The Moth students really have a lot of benefits. The Academy''s way of building loyalty within the Moth group and motivation for the Butterfly group is excellent. Such crafty people.'' Arnin smirked when he thought about the system they had in place. He knew that everything had a reason. Although the Moth students were treated extremely well, that didn''t mean that the academy would lose out. With such good treatment, most students, if not all, would remain loyal to the academy. Not only that, but the amazing treatment of the Moth students would ignite envy in Butterfly students, making them work harder. This would then lead to better outcomes from the Butterfly group as well. Arnin didn''t know if this was a system that was collectively used by all the academies, but one thing he did know was that the larger and wealthier ones would have much better treatment for both groups. Lepidoptera was not a big academy, rather it was considered to be an average academy when compared to others. This made Arnin look forward to seeing other places in Afloria. The group walked through a large forest, using a narrow dirt path to cut through it. Soon, they finally left the land of trees and approached a large field. Arnin was astonished by the scene. As a Demon Lord, he had seen far too many sights and sceneries. He had gone to what mortals considered Hell and Heaven. He lived inside a black hole that many didn''t even dare to approach. He had walked through the hottest volcanoes and the deepest oceans. However, he was surprised that such a small academy could have a field so large. In front of his eyes, there were lush green fields that shimmered with abundant life further than the eye could see. Not only was there grass, and groups of trees everywhere, animals roamed in every corner. These weren''t hostile animals like Vilis, rather they were calm and docile. Deers with single horns, small brown bunnies with antlers and tiny insects that moved in colonies were everywhere. The environment was extremely peaceful, but this wasn''t what astonished Arnin the most. As a person who was able to seperate essence into components, combined with having the white saber in his body, Arnin had an extremely high sensitivity towards essence. Usually, he could feel the essence around him, however it wasn''t visible to him, and it didn''t ever seem suffocating. However this time, he essence in front of him was like an ocean, pressurizing him from all sides. He could even see some of the essence in the air. The sight was magnificent and Arnin couldn''t help but feel extremely comfortable. Most of the students didn''t have much of a reaction since they had been in the training field before, however there were a couple of students who were new to this place, just like Arnin. They looked at the field with glittering eyes. Arnin swept through the field with his eyes and saw something in the distance; it was an extremely tall tower. Arnin automatically knew that the structure was most likely the Essence Tower. The Moth teacher who was leading the group turned around and looked at all of the students. He had a slight smile on his face, but that was it. "We will be heading towards the Essence Tower from here. Older students can leave now and do what they want, however the new students will follow me towards the tower." With that, the Moth teacher began to walk towards the tower. The older students looked at the new Moth students and one of them quietly whispered. "Try to keep up with him." Then all of them disappeared, leaving only Arnin, and three other students. Arnin pondered what the boy said and looked at the teacher, who was getting further away. He quickly caught up, while the other three also ran after a pause. Other then Arnin, none of them thought about the words of the older student. They all carried expressions of confusion and idleness, as if the words had no deeper meaning. Arnin shook his head, however since they were just five years old, they would not be as perceptive as Arnin. They hadn''t experienced much. The Moth teacher turned his head and smiled slightly before increasing his speed. Arnin noticed this and also increased his own. The other students were still oblivious that something was happening, however they were able to keep up thus far. The Teacher turned around and looked at the few students behind him, before increasing his speed once more. This time, he was jogging. Arnin reacted the quickest, while the rest took a moment before finally speeding up to a jog too. The Essence Tower was kilometers away from the forest they just came from, so it would be a long jog. Only Arnin was higher than Orb Birth - Earth. Almost every new Moth student was at the Earth level for Orb Birth, however there were always a few exceptions. They hadn''t started their official cultivation because they had just gotten to the academy, so they were still in the beginning stages. Arnin carefully watched the teacher, and noticed that he had quickened his pace yet again. This went on until Arnin finally got the pattern. The teacher was changing his speed every one hundred meters. Although it was a slight increase, the students would get tired very soon. A few minutes passed, and the three Moth students were already breathing rapidly. Sweat was dripping down their foreheads, however they continued to persist. Arnin was still doing fine. His endurance was high because of previous training, and because his realm was higher than that of the other three. The Teacher noticed this of course, and couldn''t help but smile with satisfaction. ''This one seems to be a great talent. His realm is much higher than the other students.'' This teacher did not know much about Arnin since the principal wanted to keep quiet about it. Some teachers did know that Arnin was very talented, but they didn''t know about his evil personality and the mysterious backer. "This¡­*huff huff*... is so¡­ *huff huff*...tiring." One of the boys couldn''t help but quietly complain to his fellow students. Of course, he tried to make sure that the teacher didn''t hear him. "Yeah, I¡­ am about¡­ to drop." A little girl replied, her face completely drenched. Even her clothes were soaking with sweat. "Keep going Alisma¡­ we can¡­ make it¡­ *huff huff*" The third student replied. He seemed to be doing the best out of the three. Although he was exhausted and sweaty, he still looked like he could go on for a long time. Arnin watched as the three spoke. He didn''t say anything, and continued following silently. If they fell, then they fell. It didn''t affect him much, so he didn''t want to interfere. He just found them somewhat interesting. Ten minutes passed, and the group were about a kilometer away. Arnin noticed that the change in speed happened every two-hundred meters now, rather than every one hundred meters. Arnin was able to go on for a long time, however he felt that the other three were at their breaking points. They were basically sprinting towards the Tower now, however the three students'' faces were extremely pale and their lips looked dry. ''They are only five-years-old, so this much is already acceptable.'' The Teacher nodded his head and began to slow down. He was satisfied that all the students were able to make it so far with sheer determination. "Alright you guys, let''s take a break first. Try to gather as much energy as possible, because we will be increasing our speeds much more." The teacher stopped and turned around. When the three heard what the teacher said, they fell onto the ground and tried to catch their breath. They didn''t have any water to quench their thirst, so they could only silently gulp down their own saliva. The teacher looked at the three on the ground before his gaze fell upon Arnin. The latter was standing about three meters away from them. His eyes were closed, and his breathing seemed to be very steady. ''This kid is really something. He doesn''t seem tired, and is even doing a breathing exercise.'' The teacher could, of course, figure out what Arnin was doing with just a glance. Arnin didn''t try to hide his actions either, so it was fairly easy to figure out. He walked towards Arnin and began to silently watch him breath in and out. He saw his chest rising and falling, and even saw his nose quiver when taking in the air. Suddenly, Arnin sat onto the ground and opened his eyes. He looked up at the teacher and asked without a single thread of emotion. "What do you need, Teacher?" There was neither respect, nor disrespect in his voice. The teacher didn''t take his attitude to heart, rather he admired it. He found that Arnin was different from the others, not because of his talent, but rather because of his composure. When he first took the group towards the field, he found that Arnin gave off a feeling of something ancient. He quickly found that Arnin was quick witted, and exuded an air of confidence. His face had some arrogance, but he didn''t interact with others. The teacher found Arnin to be different from the normal, cold and haughty students. His arrogance seemed to be innate, but for some reason, he felt that it was not out of place. The feeling was extremely weird, and he couldn''t even describe it properly. "Nothing, I just wanted to see what you were doing." The teacher smiled towards him. He didn''t say anything else and continued to stare at Arnin. "Have you seen enough? If so, you can leave and check on the others. I don''t like being bugged by flies." Arnin smiled wickedly towards the teacher. The teacher just smiled when he heard Arnin''s words, there was no other reaction. He then turned around, and waved his hand. "I will be here then. If you need anything, do ask. We will be leaving in about five minutes, so get ready." The Teacher then went and inspected the other students. He said some things to them, however Arnin scoffed before ignoring him. While he ran from the forest, he had been sensing the essence in the air. The closer he got to the Essence Tower, the more chaotic it became. The essence in the field was like slow moving balls. It moved freely without much action, however around the Tower, the situation seemed to be different. He noticed that the essence would move much quicker as he got closer to the Tower. It felt as though each of the essence components were at war with one another. Arnin also felt that the variety of essences increased as he got closer to the Tower. This made him very excited. Five minutes flew by quickly, and it was finally time to head out. The three weren''t completely ready, but they were in better condition than before. Quickly, they set out towards the Tower once more. A kilometer was overtaken speedily since they moving much faster than before. By the time they got there, the three Moth students were about to collapse of exhaustion, while Arnin couldn''t help but grin widely. He felt it. He could feel that the Tower had hundreds, or even thousands of types of essence components. He could even vaguely feel some time essence somewhere in the tower. ''Time essence, I can feel that you are in the Tower. Haha, good, good. This is perfect.'' Arnin couldn''t stop himself from smiling evilly. When the teacher noticed this, his body couldn''t help but shudder. 48 Here To Take Your Room As Arnin entered the building, he could already feel the various types of essence components. Not only that, he could also feel the essence of time somewhere deep within the tower. This excited him to the point where he couldn''t help but grin broadly. "Alright. The school assigned me, Xaac, to explain the rules about the Essence Tower, and the whole Training field in general." The teacher turned around once all five of them had entered the tower. He looked at Arnin and the other three students with a smile. Judging by his appearance, he seemed to be a fairly old teacher in the academy, so of course, his cultivation base was extremely high when compared to the Butterfly teachers. "The Tower has twenty floors, each with greater amounts of essence than the previous. The first floor is free for Moth students, while the rest can be accessed through payments of academic points. Only Moth students can enter the first ten floors, while Butterfly students can only use the first three." The teacher explained slowly. "Wait, if we can''t pay to access the last ten floors, how do we get access to them? Do we have to do some special missions, or something similar?" Arnin could already guess that the higher floors were much better than those beneath them, not only because the higher floors would have greater amounts of worldly essence to absorb, and a larger variety of essence components,but also because the higher floors probably had rare components, like time. "How do you enter the higher floors? Well, you are right that there are certain missions that can grant access to higher floors, however the best way is not through missions, but through competitions." Xaac''s eyes showed satisfaction regarding Arnin''s question as he spoke. "Competitions? What types of competitions?" Arnin knew that there were different types of competitions in the world. Even in his previous life, there were multiple types of competitions that could be conducted, however every world tended to focus on a certain kind. These competitions were considered the most important. When he was the Demon Lord, he went to a world of dryads, where one''s control over nature was the focus of competitions, while in another world of humans, they focused on intelligence. Every world stressed whatever they considered to be important. Although Arnin didn''t know the focus of Afloria, he assumed it was probably based upon strength. "Well, we have so many types of competitions, a lot of them will let you get into the higher levels of the Tower, however these competitions are not in the academy. They are held between different academies, regarding different topics. If you do really well, then there is a high chance that you can go to higher floors." Xaac spoke patiently, without showing any sort of annoyance. The other three students were still extremely exhausted and found it difficult to listen. They weren''t use to such long jogs and sprints, as they were only Orb Birth - Earth, so they hadn''t received much training. One of the students, Alisma, was even feeling somewhat sleepy. However, this was to be expected of them since they were still five years old, and their bodies weren''t fully conditioned yet. "Let''s not discuss the other floors for now, since that is still a while away. I have just done a small intro of the tower, but if you want to know more, you can ask me, or any of the teachers in the Tower at a later date. Let us now talk about the rest of the training field." Xaac smiled and nodded. He looked at Arnin this time because he noticed that the other three didn''t really show much interest in the other floors. "Now, the Essence Tower is the middle of the Training field, and is surrounded by the field, however there are more places other then the field and Tower." This time Xaac pointed towards three other entrances. Arnin looked at them from a distance and found that they didn''t lead to a green field like the one he just came from. From his perspective, he could see three different colors. "There are four gates that lead outside the Tower. They are labelled North, East, South, and West. The one we just came from is the South gate¡­." He carefully explained where the other three gates led to. Armin was even more astonished when he heard Xaac''s explanation. He couldn''t believe what Lepidoptera had for a training field; it was insanely large. The South Gate led to a large grassy field which focused on components like wood, life and fire. The North gate lead to a barren land with dead trees and shrubs which focused more so on the components of death and withering. The East gate led to a snowy world where water and ice were supreme. The last gate, the Western one, led to an underground world. This world emphasized the components of earth, metal, and darkness. Arnin nodded his head when he heard this. Xaac only spoke about two or three of the components in each of the worlds, although there were probably many others. "Is there some sort of formation that created these worlds, or were they naturally spawned?" Arnin didn''t believe that the worlds were natural spawned since that would be extremely weird, however Afloria had many unusual happenings, which was why he decided to question it. "Umm, actually, all of these worlds were naturally created, however they are not all around the academy. We built teleportation portals that lead to the different places. Only the grassy field world is around the academy, with the underground world being right below us. The dead world is actually quite far, and the same goes for the snowy world." Xaac explained with a smile. He couldn''t help but feel astonished that Arnin was asking these types of questions. Most students wouldn''t care about such trivial matters. They would usually only question which world was the best for cultivation, and sometimes make other minor inquiries. Arnin nodded his head and asked one last question. "Can we begin our cultivation now, or is there anything else left to talk about?" He just wanted to go and cultivate now. Now that he had learned everything that he needed to know, there wasn''t much else he was interested in. "Let me see, we covered the info on the Tower''s floors, and the overall idea of the training fields. Actually, there is one other thing that I have to tell you about the Essence Tower. Most, if not all of the students that use the Tower are in the Essence Manifest realm. The biggest reason for this is because of the chaotic essence components in the tower. They are able to handle them better then Orb Birth students, which is why there are more of them here. However, there is another reason. The Tower has limited rooms¡­" Xaac was about to continue speaking, however Arnin interrupted. "And because there are limited rooms, we have to claim them through force or something along the same lines, am I right? This academy really makes us students fight too much. First it was the residential area, and now this Tower. You guys really like watching children fight." Arnin mocked with a sneer. He didn''t find these rules to be bad, since they could temper the students, however it was still annoying that everything had to be fought for. He felt that this might lead to him not being able to have a peaceful time cultivating. "Haha, you are correct. You have to claim each room through force. However, if a person has already entered a room and has begun to cultivate, then the other students are not allowed to disturb them until he or she comes out. Of course, we make sure that the student isn''t just hiding in there and not cultivating." Xaac felt somewhat embarrassed because of Arnin''s remark. The school was technically watching the children fight one another. Arnin pointed it out as if they were enjoying other students getting hurt, however this was simply a way to temper everyone. Xaac could only laugh with some embarrassment. "Can we go now? You have told us everything, right?" Arnin felt that the information given was already enough. If he needed to know more, he could always come back and ask later. There was no need to explain every little thing, down to the very finest details. "Yes, you may go now." Xaac sighed before waving his hand helplessly. He didn''t take offense towards Arnin''s attitude. He didn''t find it impolite, rather it was quite refreshing. Arnin quickly rushed away from the group and went deeper into the Tower. The other three students continued to rest for a while as they watched Arnin get further away. "That guy is really something. We should make friends with him. He looks like a fun person." One of the boys spoke up. His golden hair was tied behind his back. It wasn''t extremely long, however they still reached his shoulders. "What are you talking about Rumir? He doesn''t seem like a fun person at all. He is too quiet, and only spoke to the teacher so far." One of the other boys said. "He might just be a shy person, Meak. He looked nice, so I still think we should talk to him." Rumir replied. As the two boys conversed, Alisma had already closed her eyes. She just wanted to rest before doing anything else. Arnin decided that he would cultivate in the Tower, rather than go to the other four places. Although the Tower had chaotic essence, this was still very good for Arnin. He just wanted to find the time component and begin absorbing it into his orb. Plus, the Tower had various types of components, while the other four places emphasized specific types. He found that he couldn''t see any other doors, except for the four main gates. He knew that he was on the first floor, so there should be cultivation rooms somewhere, however he couldn''t find any way to access them. As he zoomed around the first floor, he finally found a large square desk in the middle of the floor. There were a few people standing behind it, however Arnin found someone else there that he didn''t expect to see. It was Surk. "Arnin? What are you doing here?" Surk also saw Arnin and quickly asked with a smile. "Me? I should be asking you that question. Don''t you work at the library?" Arnin didn''t think that Surk would have two jobs at the same time, that would just interfere with his cultivation. Plus, both of the jobs were very good, so why would he need both? "Well, I was switched over to the Tower. The library position was given to someone else." Surk spoke with nonchalance. Even though he saw Arnin beat people in the library, and even had to pay him twenty Academic points, Surk kept a normal attitude and didn''t show any displeasure. He acted as if the library scene had never happened. "Since you are here, then help me find the cultivation rooms. I don''t know where they are." Arnin didn''t care that much anymore. Although he was surprised in the beginning, it didn''t really matter to him. He just wanted to get a room for cultivation. "So you are looking for a room? Well before you do, let me just warn you, all of the rooms are taken by Essence Manifest cultivators, so you will have to duel them for it." Surk warned Arnin with a good heart. Even though Arnin was ruthless and much stronger than the average Orb Birth cultivator, he still didn''t think he could get deal with just about anyone. "I don''t care about their cultivation base. Just tell me which rooms I can duel for." Arnin waved his hand in the air and spoke with some arrogance. He honestly didn''t care about Essence Manifest cultivators after his breakthrough. He felt that he could beat Earth level cultivators easily, and even fight well against Sky level cultivators. Not only that, Arnin also felt that he might be able to go head to head with a Essence Manifest - Hell cultivator, however he couldn''t guarantee a win. "Alright then, let me pull out a list and see which rooms you can fight for." Surk smiled before pulling out a small notebook. He flipped through the pages and looked through them with serious eyes. Arnin was still wondering how he was going to access the room. He couldn''t feel much space essence, other than what came from his interspatial bag, and from the two of the gates that had teleportation portals. "Alright, there are three rooms that are available for a fight. One of the cultivators is Essence Manifest Sky, another is Hell, while the last one is in the Heaven realm. So which would you like to fight for?" Surk asked with a smile. Arnin was somewhat surprised that there would be Hell and even Heaven cultivators on the first floor. He expected that such cultivators would be on much higher floors. "Is there a major difference in the rooms, or are they all the same?" Arnin had a feeling that the two higher realm cultivators were probably weaker than others in their own realm, which was why they were on the first floor. It made no sense as to why they would be on first floor for any other reason. "Not really. The first floor''s rooms are basically the same. Only higher floors will have different ranks for rooms." Surk replied quickly. Arnin nodded his head and began to decide who he would fight with. Even though the Essence Manifest cultivator was probably weaker than others in his own realm, Arnin didn''t think that he would have a high chance of winning unless he went all out, which he didn''t want to do. He would expose too many of his skills. The other two cultivators were manageable, but Arnin didn''t want to create too much of a ruckus, so he ultimately decided to go with the easiest opponent. He felt that he could beat the Hell realm cultivator, however he wanted to hide some of his skills for the future. "I will duel the Sky realmed cultivator." Arnin spoke up. If he fought the Sky realm cultivator, he could gauge how strong he is after the breakthrough. Plus, if other Essence Manifest - Sky cultivators came to fight him because of his high skills, he could pummel them quite easily, but he couldn''t do that with cultivators who were at the Hell realm and higher. "Alright then. Let''s head over to that room." Surk walked from behind the desk and towards a wall between the North and West gates, and Arnin followed behind.At first, he felt somewhat confused, however as he got closer, he noticed that there was something unusual about the wall. There seemed to be a huge amount of essence trapped behind the walls. Arnin stared at Surk, who began to tap on the wall. He did not hit the same place, but rather tapped out a certain pattern. Arnin tried to memorize these points, which Surk quickly noticed. "Haha, you won''t be able to use the same positions every time. They change, so there is no use memorizing them." Surk found it funny that Arnin was trying to remember what he was doing, however Arnin''s countenance became solemn. He was very discreet in his actions, so he never expected that he would be caught. Even Moth teachers wouldn''t be able to catch him doing something like that unless they were watching him closely, however Surk had just looked at him once. ''This person is not as simple as he seems.'' Arnin smiled wickedly at such a thought and couldn''t help but find Surk much more interesting. After completed the code, a door appeared in the wall. Surk opened the door and walked through, Arnin following suit. Behind the door, Arnin found a small room made from some type of black material. The whole room had only one candle that hung on the wall. It was the only source of light. Sitting down with her legs crossed, was a woman with long silver hair. Her eyes were open, and she was eating some bread. She had beautiful green eyes, and was quite young, possibly around the age of sixteen or so. Her cultivation was pretty good, however this made Arnin think that the people he had met so far were not very talented, except for Kurse, who barely made the mark. Torne was extremely pitiful with his low cultivation and high age, while people like Revi, who he had assumed were talented, were actually not that good. ''Seems like I haven''t seen the real talents of the academy yet, however I still feel that this Surk is much stronger then he shows.'' Arnin glanced at Surk before looking back at the girl who was silently eating her bread. She looked up and her eyes brightened when she saw Surk. When they landed on Arnin, they went back to normal. "Senior Surk, do you have business with me?" Her eyes went back to Surk as she asked with a bright smile. "Hello, Unuz. I am here because my friend here would like to duel you for this room." Surk went straight to point, and didn''t try to speak much more than was necessary. The girl showed a disappointed look on her face before looking at Arnin with some shock. "Do you mean that this boy here? He wants to duel with me? He seems to have just started his cultivation and is probably at Orb Birth - Earth. How could he fight me? Senior Surk, you really like to joke." Unuz giggled. She didn''t take Surk seriously, and even began to think that he may have just used a this as an excuse to speak with her. She began to blush slightly, mesmerized by the deadly charm that Surk exuded. Arnin didn''t have much of a reaction and found it comical that the girl assumed his strength without testing it herself. He began to wonder how such an incompetent person was so talented. Although she didn''t check Arnin''s cultivation, she couldn''t be blamed for such a thing. Who would ever guess that a five year old that had just begun his path in cultivation would be at Orb Birth - Hell? Possibly no one. "Unuz, I am not joking with you. This friend of mine wishes to duel with you, so I hope that you can abide by the rules and proceed with the duel." Surk spoke professionally and didn''t try to warm up to the pretty girl. Unuz was astonished by Surk''s serious attitude. The first time he mentioned it, she took it as a joke, however now that he mentioned it another time, he must be serious. The girl looked at Arnin once more, and began to seriously inspect him. She couldn''t help but suck in a breath of cold air when she saw how high Arnin''s cultivation realm was. "Y-you, are you really a new cultivator? I have never heard of someone being at Orb Birth - Hell at such a young age. I entered that realm when I turned eight, and only because of large amounts of cultivation stones and pills." The girl was extremely shocked. She couldn''t help but spout out as she looked at Arnin with a much more serious expression. "Whether I am new or not isn''t of your concern. I want this room, so either fight me for it, or scram." Arnin didn''t show any hint of politeness when he spoke. The girl was displeased by his tone. Although she believed that Arnin had demon-like talent, she still didn''t think that an Orb Birth cultivator could beat her. "What is your name?" She asked him with a solemn look. "None of your business. Surk, can I just attack her now, or do I have to wait for you to say something for us to begin. You already told her the reason for my visit, so that should be enough." Arnin looked at Unuz with some annoyance before asking Surk. "Umm, well technically, you can beg-" He didn''t even finish his sentence before Arnin launched an attack at Unuz. Arnin''s fist landed directly on Unuz''s stomach and she flew towards the black wall. *BOOM* "--in" Surk''s lips twitched when he saw Unuz hitting the black wall with such speed. Arnin coldly looked Unuz and spat out with some annoyance. "Since you wanted to know my name, here it is. My name is Arnin, and I am here to take your room." 49 Flames of Neutrality A ruthless expression dominated Arnin''s face as he looked at Unuz. He didn''t hesitate to hit her as soon as he found out that the duel had technically started. He wanted the room, and that was end of the discussion. "You *cough cough*... shameless person!" Unuz got up from the ground and coughed up a little blood. She was hit extremely hard, and the crash into the wall made it even worse. Surk, who was watching from the side, had a faint smile on his face. He didn''t react when Arnin launched the sneak attack, rather he found the whole situation interesting. Unuz was laughing at Arnin just a while ago, and now she was coughing blood. "Whatever. Shameless or not, this is not your room anymore." Arnin didn''t give Unuz another chance to speak before he rushed towards her once again. The room was fairly small, about the size of his old house in Talonton village, and because of this, Arnin was in front of Unuz practically instantly. "W-wait for m--" Before she could even say another word, a fist was planted directly onto her cheek. Again, she flew across the room and crashed into another the black wall. *BOOM* "Either give up and leave, or continue to get beaten. Pick one." Arnin looked at Unuz and spoke without a shred of emotions. He couldn''t care less about the girl and wouldn''t even mind killing her. However, the academy was still not a place where he could do what he wanted without restraint. His current body wasn''t strong enough yet. Unuz got up from the ground and lightly touched her swollen cheek. She felt the bump and couldn''t help but feel enraged. Her aura began to climb up, and the hatred in her eyes also rose. "I don''t care if you''re a kid, I''m going to kill you!" Unuz rushed towards Arnin without hesitation. She wanted to eradicate Arnin''s existence. He didn''t even let her speak and attacked her twice. How could she take this lying down? "Hey Surk, since she wants to kill me, can I do the same?" Arnin looked towards Surk without paying any heed to the incoming Unuz. If this girl wanted to kill him, then that would be the perfect excuse to kill her instead. "Haha, umm, she won''t try and kill you. Just restrain yourselves a little, alright." Surk had a bitter look on his face. He knew that Arnin was a ruthless person, and would kill Unuz if he could. However, there shouldn''t be any deaths during duels, especially just for first level rooms. Arnin scoffed before looking back at the girl. Since he couldn''t kill her, he would do something else. He patiently waited for her to get to him, his hands clenched into fists. Just as she was about to land a punch on his face, Arnin ducked to the right, avoiding her arm, and then grabbed her head. He yanked it down, pulling her along with the force. "AHHH!" Unuz couldn''t help but scream out with pain. Having their hair pulled with so much force would cause many people to feel pain, especially someone with long hair like hers. "Now then, let the duel begin." Arnin smiled wickedly before grabbing the girl''s throat. He kept a tight grip on her neck and pinned her to the ground. "Let *cough cough* go!" Unuz found it difficult to breath, let alone speak, but she still tried to force some words out of her mouth. "I don''t think so. You had your chance to quit." Arnin didn''t release his grip, rather he tightened it. He then lifted his other hand and slapped her across the face. *Slap* "Arnin, I think you won¡­" Surk wanted to speak out, but Arnin had already landed more than five slaps onto her face. He then lifted Unuz up and threw her towards the door. "Get out of here. I am going to cultivate now." Arnin looked at both Surk and Unuz with a glare. He wanted to quickly begin absorbing the essence components. Surk nodded before walking towards the door. He helped Unuz up and walked out, leaving Arnin alone inside the dark room. -Outside- "Who *cough cough* is that¡­ boy?" Unuz still found it difficult to speak, however she was horrified by Arnin''s strength. Never had she imagined that she would find such a talented person, someone who could defeat an Essence Manifest cultivator while being in the Orb Birth. She had never heard of such a case. "That kid is not someone you want to mess with, so just ignore what happened. That would be better for you. I will have someone send you to the medical department." Surk didn''t try to dissolve much of Unuz''s confusion since he himself didn''t know the extent of Arnin''s mysteries. Anyways, even if he did know something, he wouldn''t tell Unuz. There was nothing to gain from that, instead he might even make his relations with Arnin worse. Unuz stopped asking about Arnin when she saw that Surk didn''t want to say more, however she was still curious. Although she felt hatred for Arnin due to his previous beating, she knew that nothing could be done about it. She just wanted to know more about this child, and understand how he got so strong at such a young age. Reaching the front desk, Surk had someone take the injured Unuz to the medical department. He smiled at her before continuing with his own work. Inside the black cultivation room, Arnin was sitting silently with his legs crossed. His eyes were closed, and he was breathing at a very steady pace. The essence in his surroundings was very chaotic, however Arnin did not find anything wrong with such an environment. Not only could this chaos help temper his control over the absorption of essence, he could also find various types of essence components lingering inside the chaos. Arnin had the white saber come out of his body once more, making it look almost like his bones were coming out of him. After the saber blades were out, Arnin began his absorption. He was focusing on was finding the components of darkness, death, space and time, as these were what he wished to master as soon as possible. Of course, he was absorbing the excess components into his threads to increase his essence energy. Time slowly passed, and Arnin was able to find a large amount of death, darkness and space essence. The rarest of the three was not space, but rather death. Darkness was extremely common, and space was also not too difficult to find. Arnin directly absorbed these three into his orb, making them a part of his powers. Sadly, he couldn''t find any time components in the room, however he could feel it further up. As he was engrossed in his own cultivation, he began to notice that there were some components that went into his orb without his approval. He didn''t send them in, yet they were still directly absorbed. Arnin found this extremely weird, because he knew that his control over the essence absorption was very good, probably better than many of the people in the academy, however even he wasn''t able to control these components that went into his orb. ''Let me see which components have made their way into my orb.'' Arnin couldn''t understand why this happened, so he wanted to at least check which components traveled into his orb. If they were components that would cause future problems, he would find a way to quickly remove them, however if they would help him, then he wouldn''t. Arnin looked at the new symbols that appeared in his orb and began to derive what elements they were. He discovered a total of three different components went into his orb without his personal efforts. They were namely withering, fire, and¡­ blood. Arnin was shocked to find a component that was related to blood. He didn''t think that something like this would be a component, however what confused him more was why these three elements went into his orb. The withering had relations to the death component, which could help to explain why it would go into his body, however why did fire and blood appear? Arnin pondered over this for a while before coming up with some theories. His saber had properties of fire, which could possibly attract the component of fire as well, however there was a flaw with this theory. The saber was created from the orb and the tattoos, however the orb was not created from the saber, so there shouldn''t be much of a linkage. ''Is it because I controlled solar essence in the past?'' Arnin did use the solar essence before, which was mostly composed of fire and life, made him think that maybe this caused it. Arnin wasn''t too worried as to why he got the components, but he what made him somewhat apprehensive was whether these components were harmful to his cultivation or not. Withering was something that fell in a similar category as death, so he didn''t find any problem with it. Fire was a very peculiar component, since it was considered one of the major four elements. Although it was it''s own component, it had many different types of properties. It could be used for healing, killing, mark making, and much more. It had many benefits, however fire also had another property¡­ light. One of the major components that Arnin wanted to cultivate was the darkness element, especially since he had cultivated something like darkness in his Demon Lord life. However if he simultaneously nurtured the fire component, there was a chance of these two elements conflicting with one another. Arnin delved deep into his thoughts to figure out how to solve this problem. Although he could completely remove the fire component, he felt that this would not be a wise choice in the long run. Fire was extremely useful, and it might even help strengthen the saber, but he just couldn''t think of a way to make it work with the darkness element. ''What if I tried to combine darkness and fire together to create¡­ that flame?'' Arnin suddenly got an idea. In the past, when he was roaming the universe as the Demon Lord, he ran across a particular person who could use an abnormal type of flame. Arnin had captured the person and experimented on his body and his flame to find out its origins. Later, he found that the flame was composed of different elements that were completely contradictory towards one another. Fire was the core, while darkness and light were mixed to create the energy. The man called this type of flame ''Flames of Neutrality''. Arnin began to ponder whether he should create such flames for himself. He didn''t do so in the past since it was useless for him and it had only piqued his interest, however now was probably a good time to make use of that experiment. Arnin decided to begin collecting the three different components for this flame. If he could create such a flame, he would have the ability to control three different components with one ability. Arnin had the fire and darkness components move onto one side of the orb, which wasn''t too difficult. He also began to absorb the light essence, and placed the marks on the same side. At the moment, the three different components would not conflict. Only when he progressed in power and realm, and when he had an abundance of the components would they conflict. A few hours passed and Arnin had collected a good amount of the three components. He made sure that the light and darkness components were equally abundant, while the fire component was double in quantity. Arnin wasn''t able to bring out the three components from his body since he had yet to enter the Elemental Formation realm, however he was still able to combine them inside his body, but there was still a problem with this route. If a problem occurred, then his orb threads, and maybe even his orb could be damaged. Not only that, but his blood vessels, pores and organs could even be seriously hurt, which would cause major concerns in the future. Arnin took a deep breath. Although there was a chance of injury, he still wanted to risk it and create the Flames of Neutrality. Arnin delved into the orb and began to combine the components. The first components he would need to combine were those of light and darkness. After they reached an equilibrium,he would add them into the fire component. He calmed his mind and began to combine the two components. It was extremely risky, but it would be worth it in the end. Arnin slowly pushed the two marks made from the darkness and light components towards each. They were the same size since he had absorbed the same amount of energy for each. The second the two marks touched one another, sweat poured down his back as he heard his body made noises that resembled crashing waves. His heart pumped faster, and his orb began to shake. Arnin stayed calm, however his body was still going into chaos. ''You goddamned components, mix for me!'' He couldn''t help but scream inside his head. He slowly began to push the marks deeper into each other. They were overlapping by approximately half now. If someone walked into the room, they would find that his body was releasing two different gaseous substances. One was black, while the other was white. It looked peculiar and they each gave off completely different auras. Arnin''s nose, eyes, ears and mouth were oozing blood. His body was already taking significant damage from the combination, however he was still extremely lucky. After his body created the octogonal symbols, it was much stronger than the average Orb Birth cultivator''s, and probably even stronger than many Essence Manifest cultivators. If it wasn''t for that, his body would have long been broken by now. The two components were already overlapping completely, however they didn''t combine yet. They were still two different entities that were in conflict with one another. Arnin had to think of a way to completely combine them, but was unsure as to how he should go about it. Plus, he had very little time to think. ''Wait, isn''t this similar to mark making? I can just use the saber to redraw the marks and create a mixed mark.'' Arnin suddenly thought of an idea. He remembered that when he first made marks with the saber, the life and fire component combined together to create one single mark. He was sure he could do the same with the darkness and light components. Determining that this route was possible, he began to control the saber within his body. This time, it was much more difficult than before. Not only was his control over the saber less than amazing, he even had to control it within his body. The risk factor was extremely high, however the rewards would also be much higher. ''I should have tested this out beforehand! Such a dumb mistake!'' Arnin cursed his own lack of preparation. He didn''t think that there would be so many problems, however he couldn''t stop it anymore and had to continue with the whole procedure. If he did stop, then the two components would repel like two opposing magnets, and that would severely damage his orb, possibly crippling it. ---------------------------------- Lilise and Elidia were in the same class, under the same teacher. Lilise had to work extremely hard since she had yet to break through into Orb Birth - Earth, however she could feel that the day was near. Elidia was not the brightest in the class, however she was still considered very talented. Lilise, on the other hand, was not treated as well as her sister since her cultivation was lacking. "How do you think she got accepted into the academy? She is not even in Orb Birth - Earth." One of the kids spoke with her friends. The class was only composed of females. "I heard that a Moth student helped her get in." Another child said. "Wow, if only I could get a Moth student''s help. I bet you she isn''t even talented." Many of the kids were envious and jealous. Lilise heard what they were all saying and couldn''t help but feel disheartened. ''It isn''t my fault that I couldn''t gather essence like all of you.'' She pouted before sitting quietly in the corner. She paid attention to the classes with great interest, however nowhere near being considered popular like her sister. Elidia was very popular, but she was hard to speak to. After the classes ended three hours later, Lilise walked out with a sullen face. This was the first class, and she was already disliked by so many people. Elidia was one of the most popular people in class, which made her excommunication even more unbearable. Lilise didn''t hang around, and decided to go home first. She felt as though she would get in the way of her older sister, so she walked home alone. "Haha! My dad sent me here and I passed the exam very easily. I may not be a Moth student, but my talent isn''t bad." Kids spoke to each other in the hallways, ignoring the existence of Lilise. "My talent isn''t too bad either. I didn''t need to use the quotas since I am not untalented." Kids would usually make fun of others that used quotas, since they believed that having to use one was as sign of weakness. When Lilise heard people bad mouthing quotas, it hurt her even more. She had used a quota to get into the academy. Those remarks were like blades, and made her almost tear up. Lilise silently walked home. She felt reluctant to go to the Moth residential area, since it felt as though she was leeching off of Arnin, however at the thought of him, she couldn''t help but smile slightly. He treated her just like her grandpa did, making her feel safe. She didn''t have romantic feelings for him since she didn''t understand those kinds of emotions, however she still treated Arnin like a brother. --------------------------------- Arnin had been in the cultivation room for over three hours now. The light and dark marks were finally completely incorporated. Arnin couldn''t help but release a deep sigh of relief. The whole procedure was extremely dangerous, but he finally completed the most difficult part. Now the last thing left to do was to combine the fire essence with the fused component. Arnin used the same procedure as last time, deciding to utilize his mark making skills. He still couldn''t practice beforehand, as he didn''t have any excess of light and dark mixture to experiment with. He had no choice but to directly mix them without any preparation. This time, the level of difficulty was significantly lower, since the two marks being mixed together weren''t completely contradictory to one another, however that didn''t mean that there was no danger. If he failed to properly mix all three or if he made a mistake, his body could burst into flames and explode from the inside. Arnin quickly calmed himself down and began the same process once more. This time he had to create a mark that incorporated the three components. Darkness and light were already at an equilibrium, however if he made a mistake, the equilibrium could easily be broken. A few hours passed by and the situation became much more relaxed. Arnin was able to combine the fire component with the darkness and light component at last, albeit with some difficulty. Although the three were finally combined, Arnin felt as though there was something missing. He assumed that he would be able to complete the process if he used the mark making method, however the new Flames of Neutrality didn''t seem to be complete. It was as though there was still something left to add. Arnin began to think. He knew everything he did was correct, and that it should be complete, but what was he missing? Suddenly, a thought hit him. ''I used the saber to make the Flames of Neutrality, which means that there are some bits of the saber flames inside of the mark as well. Do I have to add more of the saber flames to prevent the deficiency in the mark?'' Arnin didn''t think that such a situation would occur, however it wasn''t entirely impossible. All three of the main components were integrated inside the mark, however because of the saber flames that were secretly inserted into it, the mark was now considered incomplete. The only possibly solution was to create an equilibrium with the saber flames as well. Arnin couldn''t help but shake his head, however he continued to add in the saber flames, making the mark brighter, and more vibrant. Gradually, it also began to change shape. Flames began to appear, taking the shape of a small oval ball, almost like a¡­ seed! Arnin was shocked. This new object that the mark transformed into was most likely what Xillar described as a Elemental Seed. Right when the ''seed'' was completed, Arnin felt his whole body heat up. He felt as though he was in a lava pool, however that wasn''t everything. A sharp stabbing pain began to spread across his whole body. It was an extremely uncomfortable feeling, however Arnin gritted his teeth and tried to wait it out. This was most likely the last step. Two colors of gas rushed out of his body, black and white. White and orange flames also began to slowly appear on his skin. Suddenly, all four of the different substances began to merge. The two gasses combined together, then the two flames, and then finally, the new grey gas combined with the cantaloupe orange flames. *SRRSSHH BOOM* The sound of an explosion reverberated across the room, however no one other than Arnin heard it. Arnin had his eyes closed the whole time as he tried to fight against the pain, however after the explosive sound, the pain suddenly turned into a feeling of comfort. He felt as though he had just jumped into a cool lake. Arnin opened his eyes and saw a flame in front of him. In the past, when he first saw the Flames of Neutrality, they simply looked like a grey fire, however this flame was different. Passed the grey exterior, there were also two small flames rotating around the core. One of the flames was a pure white, just like snow, while the other was an orange like sun. "I-is this my Flames of Neutrality?" 50 Blood Cultivation Arnin looked at the flame in front of him. Is was different from the one he saw in the past, however the aura it exuded was much more intense. It felt extremely strong, and also somewhat mysterious, almost like the saber. "This is my Flames of Neutrality, haha!" Arnin was exhilarated. He never thought that the outcome would be so amazing. Arnin swallowed the flame and it went back into seed form. What confused Arnin about the whole ordeal was the seed that was created. He didn''t know what element it belonged to. Would it fall under the fire element? Maybe the darkness element? Possibly light? Or would it be all of them? Or maybe even none? Arnin could feel each of the elements inside of the seed, however they felt slightly different from before. Arnin decided to call it the Neutrality seed, since it was birthed from the Flames of Neutrality. Arnin was extremely happy, however there one last thing that was on his mind. He had decided to keep the withering component inside his body, and even created a seed of Neutrality with the fire, however there was still one more component left, the blood component. This was one of the three that came into his body without him directing it inside. It was also a very rare type of component, and he only knew that it existed because of one of the cultivation manuals that Fae gave him. ''Should I discard this, or keep it? I kept the other two, and this is also just a type of component. It doesn''t conflict with anything that I already have.'' Arnin pondered quietly. The blood component was rare, however it might have many mysterious uses that Arnin didn''t know about, especially since he had never used anything like it in the past. After pondering for a few minutes, Arnin decided that he would keep the blood component. It didn''t hurt to have it, and it might even be helpful in the future. Arnin brought out the saber once more and began to hunt for some more components. He no longer needed to look for light, darkness, or fire, so he focused on space, withering, death and blood. He knew that time would be difficult to obtain unless he went to higher floors, so he decided not to waste his time trying to find it. Another hour or so passed, and Arnin had absorbed plenty of death and withering components. He took in a decent amount of space components as well, however he only managed to absorb a very meagre amount blood components. ''Hmm, is there a special way to get the blood component?'' Arnin looked around the room and found that there was a little bit of blood on the floor. ''Wasn''t there much more last time? How did it decre-'' That''s when it hit Arnin. The best way to obtain the blood component was to be in a place where one could find lots of blood, like battlefields, or anywhere blood was spilled. Arnin smiled wickedly. He knew that this essence was very good for him. He enjoyed the process of killing others, whether it was for his own objective or just for fun. It was thrilling. ''Alright, I have cultivated enough in this room. I will have to find a way to get blood later. Right now, I need to go and train with this new flame of mine.'' Arnin got up and walked out of the room. The door was still visible in the dark room, and opening it didn''t require any special order of knocks. Arnin walked out of the door and stretched his body, as he had been sitting down for many hours. The sun was still up, but it would be setting soon, so Arnin wanted to quickly get what he needed done. As he walked towards the middle desk where Surk was, people looked at him with strange eyes. Arnin was confused as to why they were looking at him like that, so he began to inspect himself and quickly found the reason. His clothes were in tatters and there was blood on his arms and face. He looked like a wreck, so who wouldn''t stare? Since he now knew the reason why they were staring, Arnin shrugged his shoulders and continued on his way, ignoring their weird looks. Soon, he got to the front desk and found Surk standing with his back towards him. "Hey, Surk." Arnin spoke without the proper respect that a junior should show to a senior, however he didn''t care. He didn''t find anyone to be his senior, since he himself was actually over a hundred million years old. Surk turned around and had a smile on his face, however that smile quickly froze when he saw Arnin''s condition. "W-what happened to you? Weren''t you just cultivating in there?" Surk asked with some confusion. He couldn''t help but shake his head. He always felt that there was something wrong with Arnin; bad things just always tended to happen around him. "Become my slave, and I will tell you." Arnin smirked towards Surk, however he wasn''t really serious about it. If Surk did accept, then that would be great, but if he didn''t, then it didn''t matter. It was just a joke. Surk''s mouth twitched when he thought back to the library scene. Arnin beat his servant and slave to the point where they weren''t even recognizable. He shuddered at the memory. "Heh¡­ heh...heh. Y-you sure are a funny guy." Surk laughed awkwardly. "I need to find a place to train some skills. Is there a place like that in the Tower or even in the academy?" Arnin asked. "Umm, well there is a place like that in the Training field. It''s not in the Tower though." Surk said after thinking for a few seconds. "Take me to it." Arnin spoke and then turned around. Surk was about to decline, but seeing that Arnin already begun to walk away, he couldn''t help but shake his head bitterly. ''This kid really likes to push me around.'' Surk hesitated before following Arnin. He went in front of him very quickly, and led him out the South gate, toward the grassy field. "So, where is this place?" Arnin looked around at the familiar sight and asked Surk. "Just follow me. It is not that far." Surk smiled before leading Arnin around the Tower. The kept walking around the large walls and Arnin eventually began to hear some noises. "Hah! AHH!" *CLANK* As they finally circled the Tower, Arnin saw a large area that was fenced around the sides. The barrier went on for many kilometers, enclosing a sizeable amount of land. "This is the place where the Moth students come to practice their skills. They either duel each other, or practice with the training bags." Surk pointed towards the large grassy area. Not only was there lots of space filled with grass, Arnin could even see dozens of platforms which looked like they were made of a gem like material. "What are the rules here? If we duel, can we kill? How seriously can we damage the opponent?" Arnin asked without any change in his expression. Surk knew that he wasn''t asking this as a joke, Armin was serious. "Well, you can''t kill anyone here unless--" Surk hesitated but Arnin quickly cut in. "Unless what?" Arnin smiled wickedly. "U-umm, let''s ignore that. You can duel them and injure them, but you can''t kill them." Surk became bitter because of his slip of tongue. Arnin glared at Surk. "I won''t ask again. What is that ''unless'' you were about to mention?" Arnin slowly released a lot of his sinister aura. Surk shivered and took a deep gulp. After Arnin''s breakthrough, Surk didn''t feel confident in taking Arnin down, especially since he saw him destroy Unuz, who was in the same realm as him. "Well, a duel of life and death allows for you to kill. However, both parties have to agree, or else you will be punished severely." Surk quickly reminded Arnin that both parties had to agree. If he didn''t, he felt that Arnin might go and begin killing indiscriminately. "Say I do have the duel of life and death with someone, and I happen to kill them. Will the academy pester me, or will they act as if it didn''t happen?" Arnin thought that this would be the best way to collect some blood essence components. If he went up to the stage, killed some of the people, and started to cultivate around their bleeding bodies, it could help him collect a lot more blood components. "The academy will not pester you if both parties agreed willingly, however the family behind the person might try to harm you. That''s only if you go outside the academy though, they can''t do anything inside." Surk explained. He hoped that Arnin would back off if he knew that the families would have something against him. ''The families could become a problem. I will be doing missions soon, and will most likely need to go out of the academy. Hmm.'' Arnin put his hand on his chin as he began to ponder what he should do. "Let me ask you one more thing. If I cripple a person, what will happen?" Arnin decided that killing right now may not be the best choice. However, if he sliced off their arms and legs, and then allowed the blood to drain for a period of time, that could still work for him. "As long as they can continue their cultivation, then anything is fine." Surk decided to tell Arnin whatever he wanted. He knew that if he didn''t, then Arnin could force it out of him, or he could just go and ask someone else. ''Should I call a teacher and have them supervise the area?'' Surk began to think of a solution. He felt that once Arnin stepped onto a platform, things would become very chaotic, very quickly. Surk nodded his head and decided to get a teacher to supervise the area to prevent Arnin from doing anything excessive. "Arnin, you can head over, I''m gonna go back. I still have work to do as well. Hehe!" Surk laughed bitterly as his mouth twitched somewhat. Arnin raised an eyebrow and smirked at Surk''s obvious expression. ''This guy is going to do something.'' Arnin shook his head and waved his head. He didn''t really mind what Surk did. If he followed the rules, then no one could do anything to him. When Surk got the signal, he bolted away. He was going to find Xaac, since he was the one who led the new students over. ''Let''s just hope I can do this quickly, or else there might be too many casualties.'' Surk would have warned the other students about Arnin, but he knew that they wouldn''t believe him, especially with their towering pride. As Surk disappeared, Arnin scoffed, before walking towards the training area. He looked around with a mysterious smile, while everyone also looked at him with weird looks. Arnin hadn''t changed his clothes yet, so he was not surprised by their reactions. Arnin walked over to a big guy who was punching a training bag. He looked to be around the age of twenty one, however his body was much larger than that of others his age. He had refined muscles that bulged out, while his face also had a small beard. He looked like a macho man, however his cultivation was not too high, only Essence Manifest - Earth. Arnin didn''t care if the person was at the Sky or Earth realm, he was just looking for people who would spill lots of blood for him. "Hey, ugly beast, wanna duel?" Arnin walked over and began to taunt right away. He wanted to anger the guy into fighting him since no would fight a five year old, unless they were similar in age or realm. "Are you talking to me, brat?" The big guy looked at Arnin and puffed up his chest. His eyes looked cold, however Arnin wasn''t intimidated. "I don''t think there is anyone as ugly as you here, am I right?" Arnin continued to taunt the big guy. "Little kid, why don''t you just scram. I don''t have the time to play with you!" The macho guy felt extremely annoyed, however he wasn''t going to lower himself to beat up a little kid. That would hurt his pride as a cultivator. "Are you scared, ugly? Or maybe you don''t have a third leg. Is that the case? Oh, my bad, I thought I was talking to a man. Seems to me that I''m talking to an ugly duckling." Arnin''s vulgar words made the man extremely angry. Many people had insecurities that they were extra sensitive about, and this man hated it when people said that he didn''t have a third leg. It was humiliating to be told that. "Kid, are you looking to die?" The man squinted as he said in a low voice. "Yup. Come and kill me, ugly man. Maybe you might even grow something." Arnin laughed wickedly as he spoke. It seemed like the taunting was somewhat effective. "Come to the dueling platform if you dare! I will take you on, and teach you respect!" The large man was extremely angry. His glare was menacing, and it was obvious that he had been rubbed the wrong way. ''I have something between my legs! Who the hell does that kid think he is to say that? Anyways, I am not ugly! I am very handsome!'' The man kept repeating this in his head, and the more he did, the more infuriated he got. Arnin smiled as he followed the man to one of the platforms. Many people saw this and couldn''t help but laugh. "Een, you are so shameless! How could you fight a child?" Some of the people watching couldn''t help voice out. The macho man was supposedly called Een, and Arnin kept that in his mind. "Shutup, I am just teaching this child lesson." Een glared at the crowd before standing silently in the middle of the stage. Arnin also walked towards the middle and couldn''t help but mockingly smile. "Are you ready kid? I am going to throw this coin in the air, and once it hits the ground, we begin." The man pulled out a copper coin and showed it Arnin. He then tossed it into the air and waited for it to fall. Arnin smiled before¡­ *COUGH COUGH* The man began to cough and he spat out some of his saliva. He looked down and found Arnin''s hand digging into his abdomen. "W-what the heck? Didn''t we agree to wait?!" The man was extremely pissed. He wanted to grab Arnin and slam him into the ground as hard as he could, however before he could do that, a fist flew from the right and directly attacked his cheek. Een flew through the air, landing on the edge of the platform. "I don''t remember agreeing with your terms. You did what you wanted, and I did what I wanted. Simple as that." Arnin smiled with an evil light in his eyes, accompanied by a small amount of red, however no one noticed. "You shameless bast--" Just as Een was about to finish, Arnin was already in front of him. He grabbed Een by the hair and threw him towards the middle of the stage. Arnin followed his flying body and elbowed him back to the ground, making him spit out a mouthful of blood. "You dem--" Arnin stopped him from speaking once more by punching his face with his right fist. "I surr--" Een was just about to surrender, however Arnin smiled. He quickly grabbed the man''s jaw and slammed it shut. "AHHH!" The slamming of his jaw caused the man to bite his own tongue. Arnin smirked, before turning the man around and sitting on his back. He then forced the man jaw open and slowly let the blood out, along with a small piece of his tongue. "UHH! AH URRENDAH!" The man couldn''t form the words properly, so Arnin didn''t considered it a surrender. "What was that? I couldn''t hear you. You want more? Well, alright then!" The crowd was dumbstruck, as they were still processing what was going on. Everything happened way too quickly. "H-hey, kid! That''s enough!" A person from the crowd couldn''t help but jump onto the platform. Although he wasn''t friends with Een, he still couldn''t watch a fellow student he was familiar with get beaten in such a way. Arnin turned around and looked at the guy approaching him. "You also want to duel? This is bullying, but what can I do except fight back?" Arnin smiled and rushed towards his next victim. The man wasn''t able to react quick enough, and soon found himself on the ground. Arnin used one hand to grab his lower jaw, while he used the other hand to grab this upper jaw. Then, he began to pull in opposite directions. *SNAP* "AHHHHHHH!" The new person''s jaw cracked, leaving it hanging. He couldn''t move it anymore, and he was now on the ground, rolling around in pain. "You wanted to duel. I didn''t ask for you to come." Arnin smiled before walking back to Een. He looked at the macho man who was slowly getting up. Arnin kicked his bottom and forced him back onto the ground. He needed much more blood than just that tiny amount of vomit. He needed a pool, he needed all the blood in the man''s body. Arnin wasn''t able to solidify the saber properly yet, however he could still use a real blade. Arnin jumped off the platform and grabbed a small dagger from the ground. No one stopped him, or attempted to block him; they were just too scared. Most of the people in the crowd were at Essence Manifest - Earth, while the rest were still in Orb Birth. How would any of them be able to block Arnin? With a blade in hand, Arnin walked towards Een first. He looked at the man who had his mouth open, blood spilling out. "I can''t cripple your cultivation, or kill you, but no one said I can''t cripple your body." Arnin smiled, before kicking the back of the man''s head. Een''s head hit the floor, causing him to pass out. "Good, since you can''t move, it makes things a lot easier. However, it''s quite unfortunate that I can''t hear those screams anymore." Arnin''s face was cold as he shot a sinister smile at the unconscious man. He emit a sinister aura from his body, causing the crowd to freeze out of fear and sweat all over. "W-we have to stop him." A man said as he watched Arnin''s aura become more and more sinister. "Do you really think we can do anything to him? He took that guy on without a problem! We need to get a teacher! Go, quickly find one." Another person also spoke up, however he made sure that only the previous speaker could hear him. Arnin was able to hear them with his impeccable hearing, however he didn''t care. He wasn''t doing anything against the rules. Arnin lifted the knife, and stabbed him right above his elbow, letting it slide into the bicep. Een, who was previously unconscious, suddenly woke up and screamed in agony. "AHHHHH!" Blood gushed out the arm, however Arnin didn''t stop, and he continued to slowly cut through the arm. Many people in the crowd couldn''t help but vomit at the sight. It was just too disgusting. Finally, the arm was completely cut, and blood rushed out of it like a waterfall. Een began to whimper and cry. Arnin watched happily as the blood gushed out. ''This isn''t a lot, but it should be good for now. I should cultivate right away.'' Arnin sat down cross legged and began to absorb the blood components which were very rich beside him. Arnin smiled brightly because he knew that the method was very effective. Seeing that Arnin began to cultivate, two brave individuals rushed towards Een and the other man. They seemed to be friends with the other two. "Quickly grab them, and let''s take them to the medical department." They were very quiet, however Arnin was still able to hear them. He didn''t plan on stopping them since he had gotten what he needed. If he did anything else, then more problems could possibly crop up. Ten minutes passed, and a teacher ran over. The person leading the teacher was Surk and another man. The teacher in question was Xaac, and he couldn''t help but frown when he smelled strong smell of blood. When Surk first came to look for him, he was too shocked to say anything, but he didn''t completely believe him. However, when the other man told him what was happening on the platform, he rushed over. Now that he was here, he saw Arnin sitting in a puddle of blood, cultivating, while two men were being carried away. The bulky man had his mouth open with blood gushing out, and he had even lost an arm. The other person also had his mouth opened unnaturally wide. It looked as though it couldn''t even close. "W-what happened?" The teacher couldn''t help but whisper faintly when he saw all of this. 51 Helping Someone Break Through Xaac stood watching the scene in shock. He had seen bloody scenes in his life before, but he had never seen such a scene in the academy. He couldn''t help but feel dumbfounded. "What the hell happened?!" Xaac quickly snapped out of it, before asking a student with anger. "U-umm, Teacher, that child over there beat them up ruthlessly. He didn''t even give them a chance to surrender." A student spoke with shaky fingers.He pointed towards Arnin, who was sitting in the blood pool, cultivating silently. "What kind of rubbish are you spouting? That kid is a child, plus he is only in the Orb Birth realm. How the hell could he beat these Essence Manifest students up?!" Although Xaac didn''t think the student was lying, he just couldn''t believe such a thing. ''An Orb Birth cultivator beat two Essence Manifest cultivators? How is that even possible?'' Xaac was standing in shock as he watched Arnin silently sit there. He then jumped onto the platform and walked towards Arnin. "Kid, what the hell happened? How¡­ why¡­?" He couldn''t even find the right way to word his question. "Teacher Xaac, I didn''t break any of the rules, did I? It was a normal duel, and I beat the other opponent." Arnin spoke without much fluctuation in his voice. Xaac couldn''t believe what he was hearing. Didn''t break the rules? Normal duel? "Arnin, that was in no way a normal duel. You injured them so severely, and you call that normal? How is this in accordance to the rules?!" Xaac raised his voice when he spoke. He was angered because of Arnin''s attitude towards such a situation. However, he was more curious as to how Arnin beat them, than angry at his actions. "Actually, I really didn''t break any of the rules. People get hurt during duel, and that''s what happened to them. I took off his arm, but he can still cultivate. As for his tongue, Een bit it off himself, so that isn''t really my fault. Now for the other guy, he ran up during the duel, so I just taught him a lesson. Anyways, he can still cultivate, so no rule was broken here." Arnin smiled towards Xaac, however the latter found that smile to be hell sent, there was nothing pleasing about it. Xaac was about to say something more, but he couldn''t find the words. Arnin was technically not wrong. No rules were broken, and the two injured people could still cultivate, so he wasn''t able to punish Arnin for that. "If you are done here, can you please leave, and let me cultivate? I am going to need to cultivate a little." Arnin lifted his hand and waved it as though he was swatting away flies. It was a rude gesture, however Xaac was in a weird state of mind, so he didn''t take too much notice. He walked down the stage with a pale face. "T-teacher, what are you going to do? What kind of punishment will he receive?" A student asked with worry. Xaac turned his head and looked at the student with dull eyes. "He doesn''t get punished." Xaac''s words were like bombs that fell onto the ears of the students. They opened their mouths in shock, "Teacher, what do you mean? He just beat those two up as if they were his worst enemies. He needs to get punished!" The students thought that letting Arnin off the hook was completely unfair. His actions were so horrific, so why wouldn''t he get punished? "I am sorry, but there is nothing we can punish him for." Xaac said with a bitter smile. He had fully collected himself, and couldn''t help but feel frightened because of Arnin''s cruelty. "Nothing? What does that mean? He cut that guy''s tongue and arms off, and even broke another''s jaw. How can he not get punished?" The students were not satisfied with such a response. They wanted Arnin to get severely punished because of his dreadful attack on the other two students. "He really didn''t break any of the rules. He didn''t kill anyone. He didn''t cripple their cultivation, and both sides agree to the duel. Plus, no one surrendered." Xaac shook his head and felt extremely bitter. He felt as though someone threw rotten fish into his mouth and had him slowly savour the taste. All of the students, including Surk, couldn''t help but gasp. They thought about it for a few moments and also came to the same conclusion as Xaac. Arnin actually didn''t break any rules. All of them turned and looked at Arnin with some hatred. They couldn''t help but feel angry that he was able to get away with such despicable actions. Arnin still had his eyes closed and was slowly absorbing the blood essence. He was much slower than he normally would be since he didn''t want the others finding out too much about his saber. If they found out that his saber had miraculous functions, who knows what would happen. Time passed, and two hours quickly flew by. Arnin had finally absorbed all of the blood essence component into his orb. The mark for the blood component was much brighter than before, which was extremely heartening. Now that he got some blood components, Arnin wanted to practice one more thing, the Flames of Neutrality. He wanted to test out their power and see the extent to which he could control them. He was still struggling with the saber, however he didn''t want to have the same problem with the flames. He slowly got up from the ground and walked down the platform. Many people had already left the area since night was approaching. The orange sun was slowly sinking behind the horizon which told Arnin that he had very little time left to practice. He decided to practice for about an hour, and then he would head back to his house. He walked over to a training bag and stood in front of it. He took a deep breath, and tried to call out the Flames of Neutrality. Suddenly, a grey flame with two smaller flames inside appeared on his palm. Arnin was still bewildered by the change, however he considered it a good thing that he got more inside the Flames of Neutrality than the creator himself. The flame floated above of his palm, however there was something very mysterious about the flame. The sound that it made was no sizzling, but more of a snake''s hiss. It sounded extremely demonic, however to Arnin, that sounded wonderful. He then began to think of what the flame should do. He wanted to attack the training bag, however he wasn''t sure whether it could get off of his hand, and get it to go further away from his body. Yet, he tried anyways. He commanded the flame on his palm to move forward, and it began to do as it was told. Arnin then had the flame move up, and it did just that. He was extremely happy that the flame was moving the way he wanted, however he found one problem with it; it stayed in the exact same shape. Arnin wanted to see whether he could make the flames change shape. Half an hour passed by, and Arnin already figured out that he could change the shape of the flame, and make it move the way he wants, where he wants it. Throughout his experiments, he realized that the flame had a very mysterious power. The training bag in front of him before was no longer there. Unlike a normal flame, the Flames of Neutrality did not burn things into ashes, or anything of the like. It would completely wipe the object or person out, there would be nothing left of the receiver of the attack. Arnin was very happy with this attack, however he still felt that there was more he hadn''t yet uncovered. Arnin continued to practice his control for a longer period of time on different objects. Sometimes the fence, other times, the training bags, and even the platform. Another half an hour passed quickly, and he was leaving the training area. Once he went home, one would be astonished to see the sight he left behind. Many of the punching bags were completely gone. There were areas on the fences that had wooden planks that were completely missing, however there was no evidence of any attacks, or thievery. The worst of them all were the platforms. There were holes everywhere, however there was no sign of any stress or breakage, but instead it seemed as though parts of it had just vanished. ------------------------------------------------ Arnin made his way back very quickly. It was already night, and Arnin wanted to quickly rest up. His goal was to have Akig come over and watch Vilis, however he got busy with the Tower, so he didn''t have time to get Akig to his house. He was feeling very tired after the day''s cultivation and fights, however he had to go and check on Lilise and Elidia first. He felt that Elidia was acting different, and that there might be a problem, he decided to head there first. He approached the house and walked in without even knocking. "Lilise! Elidia! Are you guys here?" Arnin yelled out without concerning himself with whether they were sleeping or not. He didn''t really care about that. *THUMP THUMP* Arnin head quick footsteps and knew that the two girls were now awake, if they were not before. He made his way into the living room and sat down onto a chair, patiently waiting for the two girls. The first person he saw was Lilise. She walked into the living room, and had an extremely happy smile on her face. Arnin noticed that her eyes were somewhat red, and knew that something must have happened. Elidia was the next person to walk in, however her expression was filled with annoyance and hate, however Arnin caught a little dullness in her eyes. "Arnin? What are you doing here so late? And why are your clothes so dirty? Is that blood?" Lilise walked up with a concerned look in her eyes. She looked at Arnin''s condition and couldn''t help but feel extremely worried. "Don''t worry, I was just training and fell down. What about you two? How was your first day? Did you guys find anything hard to understand, or did you learn everything?" Arnin first asked the question that had brought him here in the first place. He mostly just cared about their cultivations, however seeing Lilise''s red eyes, he curious to know what happened. Since he was supposed to protect them and make sure that they were not harmed, so he needed to know everything that was going on with their lives. "Umm, everything was good. Sadly, I am not in Orb Birth - Earth yet, so I still find some things hard to understand, but sis was very popular. She was considered one of the talented people in our class." Lilise spoke with enthusiasm when she talked about Elidia, however at the mention of herself, she went a little quiet. Arnin of course, caught on to this and smiled. Although he didn''t really care too much about Lilise''s social life, he would still help her if she needed it. Lilise somewhat reminded Arnin of Nekaia, however there were still many differences. "Lilise, did something happen? You can tell me, you know." Arnin smiled at her, however his smile was very neutral. It contained neither warmth nor coldness. "W-well, I was just hoping to breakthrough into Orb Birth - Earth as quickly as possible so that I can make some friends too." Lilise started off speaking normally, however her voice became quieter and quieter. Elidia, who was listening from behind, couldn''t help but feel sorrowful for her sister. Since her previous condition had not allowed her to enter the Orb Birth - Earth realm, it would be difficult for her to find anyone to talk to. "So, that''s the problem. Well, if you want, I can help you break through right now. How does that sound?" Arnin looked at Lilise with a calm expression. Since his control over the saber had increased, he was able to direct essence towards other people. However, this only applied to people who were at a lower realm than him. "R-really? Can I really breakthrough right now?!" Lilise looked up with shock and couldn''t help but ask with happiness. She really wanted to make some friends and get stronger. "Of course. I am here to make sure that you guys do well in the academy. Come here." Arnin called Lilise over. "Sit on the ground cross legged." Arnin also got onto the floor. "What should I do next?" Lilise was feeling extremely excited, so she couldn''t help but ask. "Push your hands against mine lightly. After that, just close your eyes and do what you always do when you cultivate. I will do the rest." Lilise nodded her head, and did exactly as Arnin said. He then had the saber come out from his palm and attached it to Lilise''s palms. After Arnin broke through, his skill with the saber went up a notch. Although he wasn''t able to fully solidify the saber, he did learn how to insert the saber into another''s body, similar to what he would do with his threads. The concept was very similar, so Arnin was able to pick it up instantly. As the saber went slightly into Lilise''s palm, Arnin slowly began to pull his palm back in order to let the blade absorb the essence, however he didn''t pull back all the way. He kept a connection between the blade and himself. He began to absorb the worldly essence into the saber, however he directed it into Lilise''s body rather the his own. The process was extremely long and slow. Since Lilise wasn''t in Orb Birth - Earth yet, Arnin had to transfer the essence very slowly in her body. An hour went by, and Elidia watched with worried eyes as she stood to the side. Suddenly, a huge amount of aura began to collect around Lilise. It was so significantly large that people in their surroundings were even woken up by it, however no one was able to tell where the aura was coming from, so they could only stay up and feel it with some shock. "Is someone breaking through again?" Asked a girl. "I don''t know! When can I get some proper sleep?" Another girl said with some annoyance. "I agree. This happened last night as well. People just really like to breakthrough when others are sleeping." The previous girl replied replied. Inside the house, Lilise opened her eyes and her face brightened up. She looked at her hands, and then inspected her whole body. She stood up and smiled even brighter. "I.... broke¡­ through? I broke through! I broke through!" Lilise began to jump around in excitement. Elidia watched with a smile as she released a sigh of relief. Her eyes carried a tinge of gratitude when she looked at Arnin, however he didn''t look back at her. "Now then, Elidia, let us have a talk as well." Arnin smiled at her before walking out the door. 52 I Will Make Him Stronger Arnin stepped out the house, Elidia following him after some hesitation. Lilise didn''t come out since she didn''t want to come in the way, plus she wanted to familiarize herself with her new abilities. Elidia stood behind Arnin silently. She didn''t know what to say, since she still felt some fear and apprehension towards Arnin. Plus, he was the one who had scarred her princess-like life with blood and cruelty. "U-umm, t-thanks for helping Lilise breakthrough." Elidia didn''t know what to say, so she started with this. Despite his previous actions, she still thankful that he helped Lilise. "Recently, has your strength grown or become weaker? Are you cultivating faster or slower?" Arnin ignored her gratitude and dived straight into the topic of cultivation. He was unsure as to what was happening to Elidia at the moment.He would find a way to help her if there was a problem, however if there was none, and Elidia was doing better then before, Arnin could just drop the subject and allow Elidia to do whatever she wanted. Elidia stopped and started to think about what happened after the library scene. Her mindset was slightly different now, and she knew that people in this world could be very cruel. She had also learned that people would not listen to her just because she wanted them to. Her cultivation speed went up, and supposedly her talent was higher now too, which was the main reason why she was so popular in class. "W-well, my cultivation is higher, and my talent has increased. I cultivate much faster then before." Elidia spoke after some hesitation. "That''s good then. Go back inside. I''m going to go and rest." Arnin nodded his head. He understood the reason. Elidia was trapped in her own fantasy before, which limited her experience, and also prevented her from speeding up her cultivation. Now that she knew how the world worked, her fantasy was crushed and reality attacked her ruthlessly. Usually, a person would start to face problems with their cultivation when their fantasy was broken, however some people are able to accept it quite quickly. Fortunately for her, Elidia fell in the latter. She didn''t like how really worked, but she couldn''t deny that it was how it was. Arnin began to walk away from Elidia, causing her to be stunned. She was only outside with him for a minute or so, and now he was leaving? She didn''t like Arnin, but she knew that everything she was experiencing now was because of him as well. She didn''t want to admit it, but she was grateful towards Arnin. "A-Arnin, t-thank you." She spoke silently. Arni heard her and nodded his head without turning around. Her appreciation didn''t really affect him. In his mind, she was just another person who would be in his life for a small period of time, before continuing on her own path. After a few minutes, Arnin made it to his home. He was extremely tired, and just wanted to sleep. He still needed to decide what he would do tomorrow. He couldn''t work on the mark making, since he didn''t have a cultivation method yet. He would go on missions when he entered Essence Manifest, since demonic beats would start on that level. Plus, he would be able to get better missions as an Essence Manifest cultivator. ''Maybe I''ll head over to alchemy department. I could see what type of pills they have to purchase. Plus, I could also try to get some materials to create my own pills.'' Deciding on what he wanted to do, Arnin went into his house. He found Vilis laying in the corner, sleeping. Arnin hadn''t fed much to Vilis yet, which was a major problem. He needed to find a way to allow for Vilis eat in his absence. ''Akig will be my priority tomorrow. Who knows what Vilis will do when I am not here?'' He went to his small bed and laid down. ------------------------------------ Morning arrived and Arnin quickly got changed. He didn''t change last night, since he was extremely tired, plus he needed to find a place to wash himself. Arnin walked into a room and found a bucket of clean water. The bathroom in the house was very small, but it was enough for Arnin to clean himself. Arnin took his clothes off and began to wash himself. Since he had lots of blood and dirt caked on his skin, it took him a long time to finally scrub himself clean. After his bath, Arnin put on a normal robe and walked out. His Moth uniform was ripped to shreds, so he wasn''t able to wear that. Arnin walked outside and surprisingly found Lilise and Elidia standing outside, waiting for him. "Morning!" Lilise was the first to greet him. Elidia just nodded her head, while Arnin smiled back towards the duo. "Do you guys know which class chubby boy is in?" Arnin asked the two girls. "I think Akig is a part of the Blue class." Lilise pondered for a minute before saying. The Butterflies had so many students that they were separated by colors, sex and cultivation realm. For example, Lilise and Elidia were a part of the Orb Birth - Earth, Green female class. "Alright, lead me to him." Arnin nodded his head. He wanted Akig to start tending to Vilis right away. As for the boy''s cultivation, Arnin decided to take care of it himself. He would provide Akig with a good cultivation manual and have him cultivate through that. "Umm, Arnin, where is your student robe?" Lilise was wondering what happened, so she finally asked. "Remember how my robe was in tatters yesterday? Well, I can''t wear it in that condition, so I''m going to need to get a new one, or I''ll have to fix it myself." Arnin shook his head. He had to admit, the robes the academy provided were quite comfortable. "Why don''t you give it to sis? She knows how to sew." Lilise asked Arnin. The latter looked at Elidia in surprise. She was only about seven years old, so being able to sew was very impressive. "I only know how to do a little. I might ruin your robe, so it''s better not to let me do it." Elidia told Arnin after some hesitation. She also didn''t forget to give Lilise a glare. "That''s fine, I want to see how good you really are. You can go to my house after class and take the robe." Arnin smiled. He knew that Elidia didn''t want to do it, but he didn''t care whether she wanted to or not. She would do it. Elidia grumbled a little before bitterly shaking her head. Although she held grudges against Arnin, she really didn''t want him to get mad. If he did, she was scared that he might beat her, or someone else up, like he did with his servant and slave. The trio walked towards the Butterfly building, and since Arnin wasn''t wearing his Moth robe, they weren''t getting too much attention. Only a couple of kids walked over and spoke to Elidia before moving away. Arnin noticed Elidia''s popularity and Lilise''s dull face, and he couldn''t help but shake his head. Lilise was still young and it was natural that she would want friends. Arnin, however, wasn''t looking for friends, he more so just wanted slaves and servants. "How how far is the Blue male class?" Arnin asked. "We should almost be there." Lilise replied with a still somewhat sullen expression. The group finally reached a class with large doors. Arnin nodded his head and pulled the door open, walking in with the two girls behind him. When the three entered, many looked over before doing their own thing. People walking in and out of the class was a common sight, so it didn''t really catch their attention. Arnin looked around, trying to find Akig. In the corner of the class, a chubby kid sat with an angered face. There were over five people around him, however it didn''t look like these five were on good terms with him. Seeing this, Arnin smirked a little as his killing intent slowly seeped out. He liked Akig because of the kids straightforward personality. Plus, he was going to be his Beast sitter, so bullying him was the same things as bullying Arnin. Arnin walked over with a wicked smile. Elidia noticed the smile and froze. "Lilise, come with me for a sec. Let''s go and tell our teacher about your breakthrough. She will be very happy." Elidia still didn''t want Lilise to know about Arnin''s way of dealing with people. She believed that it would be a great blow to Lilise, and she wouldn''t let that happen. "What about Arnin? We can go later." Lilise was confused and decided to reject the idea. "Lilise, if we don''t go now, then all of the other students will speak to her until class starts, then we won''t have the chance to tell her. Let''s go now. Anyways, Arnin is going to do his own things later." Elidia pulled Lilise forcefully, and walked out the class. The latter was bewildered by Elidia''s suspicious actions, however she reluctantly agreed. Arnin noticed Elidia taking Lilise away and shook his head. He knew that Lilise would find out sooner or later, and he didn''t care when this would happen. Akig, whose face was now red, saw Arnin walking over. Simply the sight of Arnin rid him of all his anger. "Arnin! What are you doing here?" Akig got up and shoved the five boys aside. This annoyed them all, so they followed behind the chubby kid. "Well, didn''t you want to hang out with Vilis? I am here to bring you there." Arnin said with a smile. He saw the group of five following Akig from behind, which bugged him even more, "Really? That''s great, but I have a class right now, and I don''t know if I can leave." Akig then said with a saddened face. It was a rule that all Butterfly students needed to attend classes until a certain realm was achieved. If that did not happen, then a punishment would befall them. "Don''t worry, I will talk to your teacher. Plus, I can also help you with your cultivation, so you won''t fall behind." Arnin smiled, and then looked at the five people who had finally made it. Arnin already knew that they were not friendly, so he didn''t ask him anything and pushed Akig behind him. "Akig, let me show you what you must do when others bully you." Arnin didn''t ask any questions about the boys. He didn''t even check if they were actually bullying him, because from his angle, it looked like they were. "What do yo--" The boys heard this and became somewhat angry. However before they could finish, Arnin already launched a fist towards the supposed leader of the five. That leader flew across the room and landed on a couple of desks. "AH!" The leader''s back hit the edge of the desk, causing him to grunt. Arnin, without waiting for anything else, proceeded to knock the remaining four out cold. He then turned around and walked towards the exit. He didn''t do anything major this time since he could get in major trouble by the teachers. "W-what?" Akig stood in the same spot, shocked. The five boys actually were bullying him, and it made him very mad, but he didn''t dare to say anything because their collective might was much higher than his own. Not only that, but each person was also slightly stronger than him, with the leader being much stronger. "Let''s go. Lead me towards your teacher." Arnin said without much of an expression. He was going to get Akig out of the class as quickly as possible, and also get some information on him, such as his abilities with certain elements, and other some other things regarding his cultivation. "Alright. Most teachers should be in the teacher''s lounge, which isn''t too far from here." Akig led Arnin towards the said location. He was happy that Arnin beat the five of them up for him, and made him feel as though he had found a true friend. Arnin, however didn''t think that deeply. He found Akig to be pleasant, but only because of his personality and his crazy interest in beasts. However, the main reason he helped Akig was not because of he liked him, but instead, because Arnin already considered Akig to be his underling, so of course he would protect him. Soon the two boys reached the front door of the teacher''s lounge. This place was much larger than the classrooms they passed on the way. In fact, it was it''s own small building. *Knock Knock* Akig went up and knocked on the door. Soon, it opened up without any creaking sounds. In front of them was a beautiful teacher. She had hazel eyes, and long blonde hair. She was stunning, however Arnin wasn''t affected too much, especially since this was his second time seeing her. The first time was when she stood on stage, and explained the Butterfly group rules. She was the same Green Butterfly teacher that taught Lilise and Elida and was the Butterfly representative during the Academy introduction. "Oh, are you kids looking for someone?" Her soothing voice was extremely attractive and just her voice could cause the downfall of many kingdoms, let only her looks. Akig felt that the teacher was very pretty, but that was it. He was still a child, so he didn''t really think anything other than that. "We are looking for Teacher Lod." Akig stepped up and spoke. Lod was his teacher, and was a very respected teacher overall. He had been in the academy for an unknown amount of time, and people just knew that he was very old. The stunning teacher nodded her head, and walked back into the lounge. A few moments later, an old man walked out. He had a short grey beard, and long black hair, however the black on his head didn''t seem natural. "Akig, right? How may I help you?" Lod had a very warm voice when he spoke. There was no hint of anger or annoyance. Arnin couldn''t find any arrogance in his tone either, which made him think that the teacher probably wasn''t too bad. This time, Arnin stepped up and spoke. "Teacher Lod, I would like to pull Akig out of your class." Arnin spoke with some politeness. The teacher was shocked then his face showed a small bit of displeasure. Having a student pulled out of his class was humiliating for him, however he kept his cool. He knew that there must be a reason, so he couldn''t go on a rampage just because of assumptions. "Why is it that you would like to leave my class? Is there a family problem? Or us there another reason?" Most of the time, students would leave because of personal problems. That was the most common reason since most of the kids in the academy were from good backgrounds and anything could happen back home that would need their attention. "Nope, I just want him to get out of the class and help me from now on."Arnin spoke casually and honestly, since there wasn''t really any reason to lie. "Kid, what is your name? Why are you trying to take this student away? Don''t you think that this would affect his future?" Lod spoke with some annoyance. He was now mad. Although he couldn''t really stop students from leaving his class if they told him beforehand, he still would try to persuade them to stay. "Does it really matter? I told you that he is leaving your class, so the conversation should end now. I hope you can provide me with his information." Arnin was also getting annoyed at the old man. He felt that Lod shouldn''t be making such a big deal out of such a small situation. Lod had many students, losing one shouldn''t be a problem. "Of course it matters! If you take him out of my class and put him in a new one, I wouldn''t mind, but you taking him away is going to destroy his future. Is that what you want?" Akig stood in the back silently. He didn''t know what to say, so he allowed Arnin to speak. He honestly didn''t like his class because of the constant bullying, so if he could leave with Arnin, he would do it. "Old man, don''t be so shameless. You don''t really care about his cultivation, you only care about your reputation. Stop trying to glorify yourself." Arnin spoke with a cold expression. If his cultivation was high enough, he would probably kill the teacher on the spot, but he couldn''t do that right now. "Little brat, I am a teacher, your superior. Don''t go acting smart." Lod was extremely pissed now. Arnin knew from his reaction that he got it right. The old man really didn''t care about Akig''s future, and was simply worried about his own reputation. Thinking about one''s own reputation was not wrong, however when he lied and said it was for his students, rather than admit it was for his reputation was extremely shameless. Lod was saying that he wanted to help Akig, however he really just didn''t want his reputation getting sullied. "Technically, you are not my superior. As a Butterfly teacher, you cannot be considered the superior of a Moth student." Arnin smiled before pulling out his identity card. It showed Arnin''s status as a Moth student. Butterfly teachers were very strong and important to the academy, however Moth students were even more important. Moth students were the backbone of an academy''s future, which was why a Butterfly teacher was considered on the same level as a Moth student. Lod was shocked that Arnin was a Moth student. Now that he knew he was not Arnin''s superior, it meant that he couldn''t really do anything to stop Arnin. "Since you now know, go and fetch me Akig''s information. I will be responsible for his cultivation from now on." Arnin spoke with mockery when he saw the expression on Lod''s face. "Even if you are a Moth student, you are not qualified to teach this child. Are you trying to ruin his future?" Lod showed a little more restraint, but he still was angry. Arnin sighed, before shaking his head. He raised his hand. "If you are hiding, then come out. If you don''t, then I will go and torture my slave and servant once again. I might even go and get new ones." Arni yelled into empty space. Lod looked around and noticed a faint ripple from behind a pillar. He saw a person walk out and couldn''t help but suck in a breath of cold air. "Arnin, I still wonder, how are you able to notice my presence?" Xillar walked out and shook his head. Arnin always caught him off guard. Lod''s body shook, and looked at Arnin more deeply. He had a much higher realm than Arnin, even past the Elemental Formation realm, however even he was not able to detect Xillar. How could a child who was yet to enter the Essence Manifest realm detect him? "It doesn''t matter how I know. You should have already heard everything, right? Help me get Akig''s information." Arnin didn''t ask, but rather he commanded him. This made Xillar feel very bitter, and also shocked Lod. Lod knew that a Moth teacher had an extremely high status, so how could a student show such disrespect? What surprised him even more was that Xillar actually obeyed the command. Although Xillar was feeling very bitter, he couldn''t do anything about it. He needed to make sure that Arnin would not become an enemy of the academy. He had too much talent, and it would be a waste to kill him. "Teacher Lod, would you mind getting the information of the student?" Xillar felt somewhat embarrassed to ask. Lod''s face also began to burn a little since he lost to Arnin. Lod turned around and walked into the lounge to get the information. Xillar sighed and looked at Arnin. "You should really stop following me, but if you insist, then stop thinking about killing me. It gives away your position." Arnin smiled at Xillar wickedly. Xillar began to sweat a little, and was also extremely frightened. He did express some killing intent, however it was an extremely small amount. He couldn''t understand how Arnin could feel it. Plus, Arnin''s smile frightened him even more. "Haha! What are you talking about?" Xillar nervously laughed, trying to dissolve the awkward situation. Akig stood behind Arnin and didn''t understand much of what was going on. "Pft!" Arnin snorted and continued to wait patiently. Ten minutes later, Lod came back back with a few papers in his hand. He handed them to Arnin who immediately turned around and walked away. "You consider yourself a great teacher, but I think you are only mediocre. I will train Akig to the point where none of yours students will be able to match him. He will be so strong that he will enter the Moth group with his skills. I will make him stronger." 53 Apprentice Alchemist? Arnin walked in front, while Akig followed him from behind silently. Arnin was flipping through the pages and looking through his information. No affinity test had been done, so he wasn''t able to find Akig''s talent, however Arnin knew he could figure it out soon. There were some other bits of information, however nothing too personal, just some family background, and the town that he came from. Akig was silent through the whole trip. He knew that Arnin was busy figuring out some things, but he still felt extremely happy. Arnin had said so himself that he would make him strong, which made Akig glad. He knew that befriending Arnin was a good choice. Half an hour later, both boys arrived at Arnin''s house. Vilis was awake and jumping around. When he saw Arnin, his eyes glowed with happiness, however the sight of Akig made him whimper. Vilis began to take some steps back, however a shadow suddenly appeared in front of him. Akig leapt towards Vilis''s body and began to hug him extremely tightly. "AH! Vilis, I haven''t seen in you in so long! AHH! Marry me!" Arnin shook his head when he heard the things Akig said and saw the bear hug he gave to Vilis. Arnin was still extremely surprised. Although Vilis wouldn''t hurt his new caretaker, he was still try to escape, but Akig was too fast. Arnin couldn''t believe that Akig had such speed, plus his strength was also very high. Arnin began to ponder his new findings. There was a reason that Akig was not placed in the Moth group, but Arnin felt that he probably had some hidden talent that no one knew about. Plus, he had an abnormal love for beasts, which even made Arnin a little weirded out. Akig continued to hug Vilis, and sometimes his hand would ''accidently'' grab Vilis'' butt. "Oh, how I love touching you, Vilis. Your fur is so beautiful, and you are such a cute beast." Akig said with a look of pleasure. Arnin walked over to him and tapped his shoulder. "Akig, I''m going to go out and will be back at night. Take care of Vilis, and if he starts to feel bored, take him for a walk. If he gets hungry, then try to find some small animals for him. Don''t kill anyone while I''m out." Arnin warned. He was alright with killing, but Akig was not strong enough to protect himself. "As for you Vilis, don''t kill Akig. Also, don''t attack humans while I am out." Arnin gave his warnings and left the house. He needed to buy some things and read up on the different types of bodies in this world. When Arnin was a Demon Lord, there were humans and other species that would have special types of bodies. The most common of these special bodies were the Yin and Yang bodies. They were common in the sense that one would be able to find at least one person in a group of a billion people with this type of body. The other special bodies would be hard to find even in a group of a hundred billion people, resulting in the Yin and Yang bodies being comparatively common. Arnin had met many people with special bodies, and had even experimented on them to obtain special abilities. Although Yin and Yang were strong, they were not the strongest, and were actually quite limited. People with these body types would have to go to the route of Yin or Yang, meaning ice or fire. They would not be able to cultivate other elements, making them weaker than other people with special bodies.. He couldn''t help but feel that Akig was a person with a special body. His likes and dislikes were extremely weird. Although there were many people who loved beasts, there was never anyone who acted like Akig. It looked as though he genuinely found Vilis to be extremely attractive. Plus, his speed and strength increased when he saw Vilis. Arnin wanted to read about the different bodies found in this world to see whether Akig fell under one of the categories. If he did, then Arnin would have to make future plans for the boy. As he walked quietly, Arnin first headed towards the library. He would grab some books, and then head over to the Alchemy department. He wanted to get some small glass bottles to collect a little bit of blood from Akig. He needed to test out his affinity. Arnin quickly entered the library and asked the librarian at the front desk to lead him to where the books about special bodies were. Surk was not around because of the transfer, however that didn''t bug Arnin. He was only in the library to borrow some books. The person at the front desk this time was another young student who was around the age of eight or nine. He didn''t know what special bodies were, so he wasn''t able to help Arnin, but luckily there was an older student who did know a thing or two about them. He was able to find the bookshelves that had information about them on both the first and second floor. Arnin borrowed a total of five books. That was all the first two floors had on the subject, which made Arnin a little bit annoyed. He placed the books inside the interspatial bag that hung on his waist. He would only be able to keep the books for a month before having to return them, however if no one needed them, then Arnin could keep them for a longer time. Finishing his business in the library, Arnin headed towards the Alchemy department. He remembered that it was next to the Medical department Kurse and Torne were staying at. He didn''t see them yesterday, which probably meant that they were still recuperating. Arnin thought of going to the Medical department, but only after he was done in the Alchemy department. He needed to get some small glass bottles, or even better, some jade vials. These things were helpful to him in the past, but he didn''t know if they existed in Afloria, and he could only hope they did. It took him around twenty minutes to reach the Alchemy department. When he got there, the first thing he noticed was the crowd of people gathering on the first floor. They were all either looking through the items, or purchasing them. An alchemist was just as important as a Mark Master. Not only could the pills they make heal a person, they could also poison, or increase cultivation. To become an alchemist, one needed to be at around Essence Manifest - Hell, and have the element of fire as one of their mastered elements. Fire was crucial since it would be used through the whole process of pill making. Arnin himself was an alchemist. He knew various jobs because of his incredibly long lifespan. He had to learn many things to survive and become the greatest Demon Lord in his universe. ''Will the Flames of Neutrality be able to make pills as well, or will I have to use normal alchemic flames?'' Arnin used to use Supernova flames when creating pills. They had incredible power and were wonderful for making pills. The Flames of Neutrality were on a much higher tier, so Arnin began to wonder what effect would be created by these flames. ''I should first get myself some extra vials, and possibly a cauldron.'' Arnin already had twenty Academic points, which were used as currency in the academy. Shops would still allow one to use gold and silver, since the department still needed to buy items from the outside, but the Academic points were worth more. Arnin walked into the shop and began to look for the items he needed. He went to the section for bottles and found hundreds of different types. Some were made from glass, while others from stone, and there was a variety sizes. Arnin was even able to find the jade vials that he wanted. He looked for the small sized vials and grabbed ten. Arnin was feeling annoyed that he didn''t have more space to buy a cauldron. Alchemy cauldrons were quite big, and there was no way it would be able to fit in the interspatial bag unless the latter was empty. The vials would fit perfectly, but not the cauldron. He walked into the line and waited to check out his items. Five minutes later, Arnin was able to go to the front desk. He placed the jade vials on top of the counter and waited for the person to tell him the price. The one who stood behind the desk was a gorgeous girl. She had chocolate brown hair and obsidian eyes. Her skin was slightly tanned, but that made her all the more beautiful. She had a wide smile as she greeted each person she served. When Arnin was in front of her, she was very professional and treated him the same as everyone else. "Young man, is this all?" Surprisingly, the girl''s voice was quite low pitched, however it still sounded very nice. "This is all." Arnin nodded his head. He was interested in how this world practiced alchemy, but it would just be a waste of time for him to try and learn it. He was already highly skilled in alchemy, so there was no reason for him to try and learn a new method. The girl nodded her head and asked for five gold. Arnin was extremely surprised. Jade vials were usually very cheap in his old world. Why were they so expensive here? "Outside, these vials will sold for an extremely cheap price, but over here they will be much more expensive. I don''t recommend buying them here, little kid." Just then, a lady walked out from behind a shelf. In her arms was a cauldron about the size of Vilis'' head. This woman was wearing a teacher''s robe, however she was wearing the Green butterfly robe not the Moth teacher robe. It was the gorgeous teacher once again. "Teacher, we met at the teacher lounge, remember?" Arnin didn''t find her irritating, unlike Fae. Even though her beauty wasn''t enough for Arnin to fall in love with her, it was enough to make him look twice. "Yes, you were that boy who made Teacher Lod infuriated. Haha! You really are a funny one." The Teacher spoke with her soothing voice and her laughter caused many of the males in lines to blush, and have¡­ reactions. Arnin was thankful for the teacher''s advice, but he needed to buy the vials. He had no time to go outside the academy to purchase vials. "I will take the jade vials. I don''t have gold, but I do have some academic points." Arnin really didn''t have any money. He came from a poor background, and at most his parents would be able to lend him a couple silvers, but that was extremely rare. Plus, he had run away from his village, so he didn''t have much. "Alright then, you can use one academic point to purchase all of these vials, and you will also receive five gold as change." The tanned girl said with a smile. "Why am I receiving five gold?" Arnin said that while grabbing the five gold and the jade vials. He didn''t mind receiving money, more did not mean anything bad, but he was still confused. "Seems like you are new here." The person who spoke up was the pretty teacher. Arnin nodded his head, so the teacher continued. "Well, academic points only work inside the academies, not outside, so all of the academies have set up an exchange rate for them. 1 Academic point equals to ten gold." Arnin nodded his head when he heard this. He was still suprise that Academic points were worth so much. If one academic point could get him ten gold, then he would be able to allow his family to live comfortably with just around one hundred academic points. Such vast wealth. Arnin decided that even though he couldn''t go to his family, that didn''t mean he couldn''t support them. Although he was the great Demon Lord who killed people like mosquitoes, and tortured people without even batting an eye, he did enjoy having a new family. His family was killed right in front of him in the past in the most brutal way possible. He grew up in a terrible environment where he was betrayed and almost killed by people he truly trusted and cared about. Zhaik was all he had left, but even he began to become more formal and treated him more like a master than a friend. Ashia and Florian were his new parents that had cared for him since his new birth, this allowed him to finally feel the warmth of a family after hundreds of millions of years. Nekaia was even more important because her memories seemed to be very similar to the massacre of the demons his family was victim to back then. Nekaia was the closest person to him in all of Afloria. If he could make their lives better with money, then he would make sure that he earned lots. After deciding this, Arnin knew that he wanted to quickly begin earning lots of academic points. Missions, jobs, and competitions, all of these would get him the points he wanted. Arnin took the things and nodded towards the tanned girl and the stunning teacher. Arnin wanted to begin creating marks as soon as possible. Since he didn''t have a cultivation manual yet, he had to go back and make one. He was decently knowledgeable on cultivation, plus he had received a dozen of mysterious books from Fae. He just needed to read them and create a manual. Once he did that, he could begin creating marks using the standard procedure. As Arnin left the shop, the gorgeous teacher fell into deep thought. She quickly chased after Arnin. "Hey, little kid." Arnin was lost in his own thoughts when he suddenly heard the soothing voice call out from behind. He looked at the person chasing him and couldn''t help but scoff. Although he was somewhat thankful for her explanation, that didn''t mean she could get over his head whenever she wanted. "What do you want?" Arnin was in a rush to get started, so he looked at the teacher annoyingly. The teacher was clearly very surprised by Arnin''s quick change in temper. Just a while ago, he had a faint smile and was showing her some gratitude, and now he seemed to want her to get lost. "Well, I have a proposition for you. I can feel some fiery essence around you, which probably means that your affinity is related to fire." The teacher was shocked when she first felt the essence. She knew that only Essence Manifest cultivators would be able to work with components, so how could an Orb Birth student give off such a feeling? She didn''t understand, but she knew that Arnin was probably very talented, or was very skilled with fire at the very least, which was why she went to talk with him. Arnin knew that the real reason people could detect the fire essence around him was because of the Neutrality seed inside of him. He wasn''t able to prevent the seed from releasing tiny amounts of essence for others to detect since he wasn''t in Essence Manifest yet. "Since you have this affinity, you could probably become a great alchemist. What do you say? Want to try it out?" The Teacher looked at Arnin with some glittering eyes. "Aren''t you a Butterfly Teacher? What is your relation to the alchemy department? Plus, I am already a Mark master, I don''t want to waste my time doing alchemy." Arnin was, of course, lying to her. He was going to begin practicing alchemy soon, since it would be able to provide him with pills which would benefit his cultivation. However, if he worked for the Alchemy department, would he receive anything, except for a few extra pills? "Don''t call me ''you'', that is disrespectful. My name is Fasona, and yes, I am a Butterfly Teacher, but that doesn''t mean I can''t work in different departments. I am one of the alchemists in the Alchemy department." She acted calm on the outside, but was indeed incredibly shocked. ''Only Essence Manifest cultivators could become Mark Masters. How did he become one?'' She didn''t say this out loud and kept a calm face. Both alchemy and mark making were extremely high ranking jobs, but it was much harder to become a Mark Master, since one would have to use essence components to create stones and other cultivation materials. An Orb Birth cultivator could still do minor alchemy, however it could only be extremely easy items, like pastes and creams. "Well, becoming one wouldn''t be a problem. What can I gain from it?" Although he initially decided not to do it, but he suddenly had a thought. Alchemy could be a great way to temper his control over the Flames of Neutrality, and he might even be able to earn some extra academic points. Plus, he wanted to test out his Flames of Neutrality, so it really wouldn''t be a loss for him to join. "There are many benefits to becoming an alchemist here. You can earn academic points from what you make, and you gain extra if it sells. You will get incredible discounts on items. For example, if you were an alchemist, you would only have to pay a couple silver for those vials." Arnin listened with happiness. He wanted to make lots of academic points, both for him and for his family. "I just told you that I am a Mark Master. I will be busy with cultivation and am forced to go to the Mark Master department to create marks. How will I get the time to work here?" Arnin knew that he was going to be forced to do many things in the Mark Master department, so he wanted to know whether he had to come into the alchemy department on certain days and work. He didn''t mind doing that, but he would need to create a schedule for himself. "Well, we can figure something out with the Mark Master department once you become an alchemist. Before anything can really happen, you are going to need to pass the alchemy exam." Fasona spoke quickly. It would usually take a person dozens of years to become an alchemist, which was why she wanted Arnin to join the Alchemy department early, so that he could be trained until he could become an alchemist. "Sure, when is the alchemy exam? What do I have to do and know?" Arnin remembered from his past life that an alchemist would have to know the names and properties of billions of different herbs. He assumed that it would similar here. "Well, you will be taking an apprentice exam. Unlike the Mark Master exam, we have to have knowledge about various herbs. You probably don''t even know ten, so you will have to take an exam to become an apprentice, and then learn from real alchemists for a while until you can take the official exam." Fasona was somewhat excited that Arnin showed great interest in the job. If she could get Arnin as her apprentice, then she would be able to make him a great alchemist in the future. However, this was all based on whether Arnin was suitable to become an alchemist. She was hooked because of the fiery essence that she could feel from Arnin. Since she could feel it at such an young age, that meant Arnin would have a high attainment in controlling and absorbing fire and the fire component. Now it all just depended on him being able to understand the different herbs. Arnin thought about it and nodded his head. It made sense that he couldn''t do the alchemy exam yet. If he was not in Afloria, he could guarantee passing the alchemy test right away since he already knew about almost all the herbs in his universe, however Afloria might be different. That being said, the chance of them being different was very small, because throughout the universe, almost every planet had the same herbs. Sometimes the powers on the planet might be different, but the herbs tended to stay the same. He had a feeling that Alforia would be similar. There might be some new herbs, but most would be the similar to those he was familiar with in his past life. "Alright, I will take the apprentice test then. What are the benefits for that?" Arnin would drop the idea and figure things out for himself if there were no benefits for being an apprentice. He could slowly figure out the different herbs through books and his own experiments. "The benefits are mostly the same. You still get discounts, create some small items, and get academic points from those." Fasona smiled and explained. Arnin nodded his head. "When is the test, and what should I know?" Arnin just wanted to pass the test and begin earning and practicing. "Well, we could do the test any time you want. All we really need to do is an affinity test to see if you can use fire in the future, and you would also have to name around a hundred herbs and their properties. Here is a book that will tell you what herbs you need to know." Fasona handed Arnin a book. They didn''t have to do the affinity test because Arnin exuded a fiery essence, so all they really needed to do was test Arnin''s knowledge on the hundred herbs. Arnin nodded his head and grabbed the book. This book was helpful to him whether he took the test or not. He would need to know the types of herbs sooner or later. Arnin opened up the first page and his eyes glittered. Moon Flower - A flower that blooms only during a full moon. The flower is cold to the touch and has white petals. The pistil of the flower is a piece of soft ice that resembles the moon. Has high amounts of Yin energy and is used to create pills related to coldness and removal of Yang. Uncommon herb. The first herb that Arnin saw was something he knew. This was a common herb that would be used to make simple heat removing pills, or cultivation pills for people who used the ice or water element. He flipped to the next page and saw another herb. Solar Grass. Solar Grass - This is a type of grass that grows in areas closest to the sun. It is a yellowish color, and feels extremely hot when touched. It has high Yang energy and is used to remove coldness from a person body, or to make fire cultivation pills. Uncommon herb. Arnin continued to flip through the pages and gasped. The same! All of them were the same! Arnin was extremely happy that his luck was so high. If all of the other herbs were the same, then he could go straight to becoming an alchemist. Arnin put the book down after looking at all of the herbs. He had a huge smile on his face, which Fasona found to be very weird. "Is something wrong?" She couldn''t help but ask. She was worried that Arnin would give up right after looking at the many herbs. Although it may sound easy, it would usually take a person a month or so to memorize the contents of the book, and that was only if they fully focused on the material. "Nothing is wrong." Arnin continued to smile. He then walked back towards the alchemy department. "Huh? Why are you going back?" Fasona asked. She thought Arnin had everything, so she was confused. "I want to do the Alchemy apprentice test right now." Arnin turned his head and said with some confidence. "What?" Fasona was at a lost for words. She rubbed her ears and made confused face which was so cute that it could cause any man watching to get aroused. "I said, I am going to do the Apprentice Alchemy test." Arnin repeated, before turning around. 54 HOLY SH* [Note: Orange -> Pink -> Yellow -> Green -> Blue -> Purple -> White -> Silver] Fasona looked at Arnin with shock. She had assumed that Arnin would need at least a month or so before taking the apprentice exam. Arnin, on the other hand, was feeling very confident. He had thought that even if he did find herbs that he recognized from his previous life, they would at least have different names, but he completely forgot one point. When he created Afloria, he did not create the people and animals living there. The ancestors of everyone in the world were past citizens of his previous world. Some were alchemists, others warriors. He had relocated the people into Afloria since he didn''t have the power to create sentient beings. The ancestors brought their previous world''s knowledge to Afloria, which was why it had many similarities to the original world. Not only that, but herbs almost always the time stayed the same, regardless of the power in the place. It was a mystery why this happened, but Arnin wasn''t ever able to figure it out. Now that he knew that most, if not all of the herbs would be the same, so he was ready to do the exam for an apprentice. Not only that, but he would go for an official alchemist title as well. Arnin had entered the shop once more, while Fasona stood in a daze before chasing after him. She was still thinking about why Arnin wanted to do the exam so quickly. "Hey, wait for me!" Fasona yelled towards Arnin, ignoring the stares that others were giving her. Arnin slowed his footsteps and looked at Fasona with a calm expression. "Where do I take the test? Take me there, so I can quickly complete it." Arnin allowed Fasona to go in front of him, as he didn''t know where the test would be. "Are you sure you want to do it right now? You just got the herb book, so shouldn''t you go back and study it first?" Fasona spoke with goodwill. She felt that Arnin would do very well in alchemy if he could memorize herbs, simply because of the fact that she was able to feel the fire essence around him. "It doesn''t matter. Just take me to do the test. Is there an entry fee, or anything like that?" Arnin knew that most tests would ask a person to pay beforehand. He was alright with paying as long as he could do the test. "The apprentice test is free. Only the official alchemy test has a fee." She took a deep breath and decided to explain. "That''s good. Hurry and take me to the testing place." Arnin waved his hand nonchalantly, gesturing at Fasona to proceed. The latter shook her head and walked towards the door beside the counter. The set up was similar to the Mark Master area, where the door was right beside the counter. Everyone watched the two enter the the door and the disappear. They were momentarily shocked before moving on with their own business. Arnin and Fasona quickly arrived to the second floor. Just like the Mark Master department, the second floor also had some bookshelves and desks. People were roaming around the area, and when they noticed the duo enter, they bowed towards Fasona before moving along. Alchemist were proud people who liked to mind their own business. Although they would be happy to learn from higher ranked alchemists, that could sometimes be useless. Alchemy was heavily dependent on talent, hard work, and affinity. Only if someone had talent for alchemy, would they do well. If one practiced everyday, and never forgot the herbs that wereto be memorized, it was possible to do decently well. To do extremely well, it was mandatory to have a strong affinity with fire. This was the main reason Fasona wanted Arnin to become an alchemist. "So, how do I do the test?" Arnin looked at Fasona with a confused look. "We will have to enter the testing room on the third floor." She spoke before walking towards a different door. Unlike the connected stairs in the Mark Master department, the Alchemy department had the stairs at two different ends of the room. In the other department, Mark Masters would usually work on the second floor. They would have their own private areas on that floor, and would usually do their work there, however the Alchemy department was different. The third floor was for testing, while there was another area where alchemists would concoct pills and other alchemic materials. The third floor had a narrow passage with many doors on the left and right. The first door on Arnin''s left said ''Apprentice Alchemist Test Area,'' while the one on his right said ''Orange Alchemist Test Area''. When Arnin saw the color, he became somewhat confused. He understood that Mark Masters would be differentiated through color since the mark color determined strength, but why would alchemists also have the same types of levels? Was this some new concept in Alfoira that other worlds didn''t have? Arnin looked at Fasona with some confusion, who had noticed that Arnin was at a loss. She smiled a little before speaking. "Just like there are colors for Mark Masters, Alchemists are also differentiated in a similar manner. If you are wondering why, it has nothing to do with product color. It is simply a way to make the levels easier to understand. Pills have various colors, but their levels aren''t as numerous¡­" As she explained, Arnin finally understood. Mark Masters were ranked by colors because of their products, but the other jobs simply borrowed the ranking system. They just used colours to represent rank to make things easier to understand, and also to make sure all the jobs had similar ranking systems. Alchemy, and many other jobs, were organized into different levels of skill. Alchemists could make eight different types of pills. An orange level pill was the lowest level of pill, while a silver level pill was the highest. Things like weapons from blacksmiths were ranked using the same scale as well. "That makes sense. Do I just enter the room?" Arnin didn''t know the procedure, so he had to ask Fasona. "Just enter the room. Since you are a Mark Master, you must have been given an identity sphere, right?" Fasona looked at Arnin and asked. The latter pulled the black sphere out from his sleeve and showed it to Fasona. "Well, once you enter the room, you will place this sphere into an empty hole inside a pillar. Then, the test will then begin." Arnin knew that the sphere was not specifically for Mark Masters. Although Xillar said that it was for Mark Masters, but in reality, it could be used for multiple jobs. The type of identity items people received differed depending on their first job. Mark Masters would get spheres, Alchemists would get prisms, while blacksmiths would get cubes. Other jobs stick with cards, but those would not be able to hold as much information, and their level of security would be lacking when compared to the items used by the three big jobs. Arnin walked into the room and found that the lighting was very dim, however his eyesight was extremely sharp, so he could still see very clearly. Right in front of the entrance, slightly to the right, was a large white pillar. In the middle of the pillar was a hole. The shape was that of a hexagon. It was slightly larger than Arnin''s sphere. He slowly inserted it into the hole and found that the hexagonal shape began to change to match his sphere. Suddenly, a question came to his mind. If one didn''t have a previous job of any sort, how would they take the Apprentice test? Arnin decided not to think too much about it, since it didn''t really impact him. When the hexagonal hole finally changed into the shape of a sphere and tightly held onto his identity sphere, Arni couldn''t help but release a smirk. "Interesting." Suddenly, lights began to appear, and the whole place lit up. Arnin looked around with interest, and found that on his right, there was a platform, and on his left, a huge shelf with a small table and chair in the side. Arnin walked towards the platform first and stepped onto it. He knew that nothing bad would happen since he was taking test offered by the academy, and they would not risk hurting potential future alchemists.. When he stepped onto the platform, he felt something begin to scan him. Arnin knew that this was the affinity part of the exam. It was just a check to see whether the person had an affinity with fire or not. Arnin slightly released some fire essence from his Neutrality seed. *BLINK BLINK* A blinking noise began to sound,and then the scan was complete. "Affinity Test: Complete!" When Arnin stepped off the platform, he noticed that the pillar had some words written on it. He smirked and laughed at the technology used in Afloria. It was cool, but just a waste, in his opinion. Arnin then walked towards the other end of the room. When he got there, he noticed that the large shelf held around a hundred herbs. All of them were from the book that was given to him by Fasona. Beside the large shelf was a table and chair. On top of the table was a large stack of papers and a couple of ink pens. Arnin picked up a piece of paper and looked through the questions. They generally just asked for the herbs'' names and effects. He couldn''t help but lightly laugh. He knew more about the herbs then anyone else, so this test was way too easy for him. ---------------------------------- Outside the testing room, Fasona stood by anxiously. No one else was around, or else they would have been shocked to see Fasona acting in such a way. She was usually very calm, and didn''t show much of an expression in response to anything. "I wonder if he will pass. He did go in without even studying." Fasona spoke to herself. She thought of Arnin as a good seed solely based on the fire essence she could feel around him. She wanted to make him her apprentice, and train him to become a great alchemist. Arnin didn''t know this, but Fasona was actually a pretty good Alchemist. She was a Green Alchemist, which was considered to be quite uncommon. Plus she was very young, which only emphasized her talent. She kept walking back and forth. She was tense, because if Arnin didn''t pass, then it might be a big blow to him. This could affect his future as an alchemist, and her goal to make him her apprentice. *CREAK* Suddenly, the door opened up. Fasona was extremely surprised. Normally, the test would take around five hours, the fastest pupils finishing in a little less than four hours, however Arnin was only inside for twenty minutes. ''Was he unable to solve any of the questions?'' Fasona had this thought and couldn''t help but be really worried. ''I told him to wait, but he was too arrogant!'' She cursed in her mind, but still waited for Arnin to come out. When Arnin walked out the door, Fasona rushed in front of him and said in an anxious tone. "The test was difficult, wasn''t it? Don''t worry about it, everyone fails it on their first try, plus you didn''t even study. Don''t feel down, try again ne--" Just as Fasona was going to finish speaking, Arnin had already began to walk towards the second floor. When Fasona saw this, her face became ghastly white. ''Did this failure really make him lose all confidence? Did a person who exuded fire essence at such a low realm lose his chance to become an alchemist?'' Fasona followed behind Arnin and was very worried. She looked at Arnin''s face and found his eyebrows wrinkled. Her face became even paler when she saw this. Her mind was quickly coming up with reasons for why Arnin would have such a face. ''He failed, and is trying not to show his sadness.'' ''He is angry that he failed, but is trying to suppress it.'' ''The failure hit him so hard that he is debating whether or not to commit suicide.'' Ridiculous ideas rushed through her mind, however she couldn''t think of the reason. Armin had a wrinkle on his forehead, but he didn''t seem sad or angry, rather his face was calm. ''Maybe he passed the test? No, that''s impossible. Doing this test in twenty minutes is impossible for a new person. Even alchemists who have reached Pink level would barely be able to do this.'' She completely pushed the idea of Arnin passing aside. She just didn''t believe that such a scenario could be possible. Arnin continued to walk, while Fasona kept her silence. She wanted to say something, but she felt that giving Arnin some time to accept his failure would be a good thing. Arnin just needed some time. Eventually, he would heal. She then saw Arnin walking towards the bookshelves very slowly. He picked out a few books and sat on a table, reading quietly. He then sat down cross legged to cultivate. He repeated this process multiple times. Arnin had finished over ten books in only about three hours. Fasona continued to watch Arnin''s abnormal actions. ''Is he studying? But why isn''t he studying with the book I gave him? All the books he is using seem to belong to the Orange Alchemist level.'' Every book that Arnin grabbed was meant for the Orange alchemist exam. The topics varied from different herbs, to the creation of pills. Arnin would read, and then cultivate. Finally, he got up and went towards Fasona with a slight smile on his face. "Teacher Fasona, would you mind lending me a pill cauldron?" Arnin looked at Fasona and asked, however he already had his hand out, giving her no time to say no. Fasona was confused, but she took out an old pill cauldron that was about the size of a baby''s head. "You can use this one, but why do you need it?" She still mentally rejected the idea of Arnin wanting to create pills, or anything of the like. In her mind, Arnin was only going to look at the cauldron to study it. Arnin kept the cauldron on his side, and then extend his other hand. "Would you happen to have some Moon Flower, Ice Petal, Water Flower, ¡­" Arnin listed out ten different herbs in one breath. No matter how much Fasona wanted to reject the idea of Arnin passing the test, she couldn''t help but gape at Arnin''s mention of such a list. ''Aren''t these the herbs for the Orange level water pill?'' She thought, and then looked at Arnin in surprise. "Are you trying to create the Orange level water pill?" Even though she knew that it was very likely that he was trying to make one, she still needed to confirm, unwilling to believe. "Yes, and no." Arnin grabbed the many herbs that Fasona was slowly pulling out. She had many herbs in her bag, which was similar to Arnin''s interspatial bag, but bigger. "Arnin, shouldn''t you study for the apprentice test bef--" Arnin waved his hand and gestured her to stop speaking. He didn''t answer her and went towards the stairs to the third floor once again. "Don''t follow me up, I want to do something. Make sure that no one else comes up." With that, Arnin walked towards the third floor. Fasona stood there in shock, before collecting herself and shaking her head. ''He hasn''t even passed the Apprentice test, and wants to try and make a pill? I can only hope that this won''t be another major blow to him." She sighed bitterly and stood guard. --------------------------------------- Arnin sat down in the narrow hallway and pulled out the herbs from his robe, placing them onto the ground before him. He also put the cauldron a couple centimeters away from them. "Time to see of the Flames of Neutrality can be used to make pills." Arnin smiled before igniting a grey flame on his palm. Within the grey flame, the two different coloured flames continued to rotate. Arnin took a deep breath, and began to change the flames'' shape into a ring. He then surrounded the top of the cauldron with the ring of flames. Arnin picked up an herb and broke a piece off. He then threw it into the cauldron, and began to surround it with fire. He needed to test out whether he could rid the herb of its impurities, and turn it into a liquid form of essence. Half an hour passed, and Arnin had a huge smile on his face. It could be done! The Flames of Neutrality really could be used for pill making! Arnin was thrilled. If anyone walked up and looked into the cauldron, they would be extremely astonished. Inside the cauldron, there were five completely formed ocean blue pills.. Arnin continued to smile as he took a look at the room that said, ''Orange Alchemist Test Area''. ---------------------------------------- Three hours passed, and Fasona couldn''t take it anymore. Turning around, she rushed towards the third floor. *CREAK* When she reached the top, she saw Arnin walking out of one of the testing rooms. She gasped when she saw which room it was. ''Orange Alchemist Test Area''. "What were you doing in there? You need to pass the Apprentice test before trying the official alchemist test. These are the rules." Fasona was extremely shocked. Sh couldn''t believe that Arnin was coming out the Orange Alchemist examination room. "Don''t worry, I passed the Apprentice test when I first did it, and I also just passed the Orange Alchemist test, meaning that I am now an Orange Alchemist." Arnin smiled brightly as he stared at the gaping Fasona. It had taken Fasona one year after passing the Apprentice test to become an Orange Alchemist, and that was already considered quite fast. The Orange Alchemist test was much more difficult than the Apprentice test. Not only did one need to know more than a thousand different herb names, looks, and functions, it was essential that one was able to create an Orange level pill. This would require years of practice, and memorization. One year was already extremely quick, but how much time did Arnin take? It only took him twenty minutes to complete the Apprentice test, three hours of study, and then he was on the third floor for another three hours. That was a total of just over six hours. Fasona took a couple steps back, before looking at Arnin as though he was a demon. "Let me see your identity sphere first." Fasona was still in a state of denial. She wanted to confirm this with her own eyes before believing it. Arnin took out the sphere and handed it to her. Fasona quickly vanished. She walked into a room that had an identity analyser and placed the sphere on top of it. Some basic information quickly appeared in front of her. Arnin Foro: Age: Five Years Old Race: (D)Human Race Realm: Orb Birth - Hell Jobs: Pink Level Mark Master | Orange Level Alchemist ''HOLY SH*T!'' 55 Alchemy Dimension Fasona looked at the information in shock. Arnin really was an Orange level Alchelmesit, and not only that, but he was also a Pink level Mark Master. This shocked her even more. One was only able to become a Mark Master at Essence Manifest, and Arnin was just at Orb Birth. She had assumed that when Arnin mentioned being a Mark Master, he would just be an assistant. Although Assistant Mark Masters were similar to the Apprentice Alchemists, and could be considered the same things, however there was one main difference. An Assistant Mark Master did not need to do a test, while an Apprentice Alchemist did. This didn''t mean that one was harder then the other, but an alchemist needed to know lots of information before starting anything, while the process of making marks was very dependent on talent, and how hard one practiced. Seeing that Arnin was a Pink, not Orange level Mark Master shocked her completely. ''T-this kid is a monster! How did he become a Pink level Mark Master at such a young age, and with such a low cultivation realm?'' She just couldn''t understand this. Fasona was also very shocked by Arnin''s Alchemist level. He had actually passed the tests. This made her feel extremely wierd. She had wanted to take Arnin under her as an Apprentice so that she could train him until he made it into the official Alchemist ranks, but Arnin had done all of this much quicker than she could ever imagine. Six hours! He took only about six hours to pass both the Apprentice and Orange level tests. ''Monster!'' She couldn''t help but repeat this. Arnin really was a monster in the eyes of Fasona. Arnin had reincarnated into Afloria to level up his cultivation so it could help him break through his Demon Lord cultivation. However, he retained all of his memories, meaning he still remembered all of his skills from his Demon Lord life. Previously, he was considered one of the best Alchemists in the Universe, so passing the Orange test would not be considered something impressive. Rather if he didn''t pass, that would be remarkable. Fasona calmed her rampaging heart, and grabbed the sphere, heading back to where Arnin was. She saw him standing there causally. For some reason, this action of his made her really want to beat him up. ''Do you know how hard I had to work to get to where I am? It took me dozens of years, but you took six hours just to become an official Alchemist. Why don''t you show some sort of happiness!?'' Arnin''s apathy really infuriated her. Arnin didn''t know what was going on Fasona''s head, and he honestly didn''t care. He was unhappy with the results he got in the test. He could have completed the test in mere minutes, if he had proper control of the Flames of Neutrality, that is. The flames were extremely difficult to manage, but their effects were amazing. Arnin had prior experience with controlling flames for pill making, which was why it didn''t take him too much time to learn how to roughly control the Flames of Neutrality, however that wasn''t enough. If he had better control over the flames, he could have made more than twenty Orange level Water pills. His control was lacking, which only enabled him to create five in one batch. This disappointed him greatly. Another thing that bugged him was his result in the Orange level test. Although he passed, he just barely did so. The test wanted him to create an Orange level pill, and Arnin did that, but he almost destroyed all the herbs in the process. Unfortunately, he was only able to create a total of ten Orange level cultivation pills. If Fasona could listen to Arnin''s thoughts, she would have collapsed by now. One must know that the cultivation pills were extremely difficult to make, and she too could only make ten if she put all of her effort into making them. She would have sliced Arnin with a blade if she discovered his disappointment with such a number. Shaking his head, Arnin continued to wait for Fasona. A few moments later, he saw her walking over with a bright smile. Her face was glowing, but Arnin saw her upper lip subtly twitch. He extended his arm for the sphere. "Have you seen enough? As you can see, I passed the tests, and am now an alchemist." Arnin grabbed the sphere as she handed it to him, and placed it back in his robe. "You really are something. With such skills, it''s no wonder a Moth teacher would support you instead of a Butterfly teacher." Fasona spoke. Almost every Butterfly teacher knew about Xillar taking Arnin''s side over Lod''s when Arnin had come to snatch a student. At first, even Fasona was surprised by such actions, but now, she completely understood the reason. Arnin was just too talented. "Well, since I am done the test, do I receive anything? Like an alchemy manual, or cauldron?" Arnin received his own place to work in the Mark Master departement, and he also received a mark making manual, so he assumed that he would also receive something from the Alchemy department. "Of course you will get some things. I will take you over to the main Alchemy building where all of us work. We have tons of books there that can be used by alchemists, and it has lots of space for new alchemists as well." When Fasona spoke about the Alchemy department, her eyes began to slightly shine. She herself was an alchemist of a very high rank, and one could see the pride she felt when mentioning the alchemist building. Arnin nodded his head and walked back to the first floor with Fasona. She didn''t purchase anything, and instead went straight towards the exit. Both of them walked for about fifteen minutes, before reaching a small building. It was much larger than the houses for the Moth students, but it was still smaller then the two main building for Moth and Butterfly students. Arnin speculated that it was about the same size as the academy library. The walls were made from a grey wood with some green stone pillars. The roof was flat, which made it difficult to see what it was made from. There were no windows, or any openings for that matter, that would allow for one to look through to the other side. Arnin nodded his head, and followed Fasona towards the gates that were similar to the ones used in the library. There was even a scanner on the side, however this time, it matched the one that Arnin saw during the Apprentice test. It had a large hole that was shaped like a hexagon. Fasona walked up and placed her blue prism into it. Just like when Arnin had placed his sphere, the hexagonal hole began to change shape and firmly held onto the prism. *CREAK* The large doors that seemed to be made of some extremely dark stone began to open up. He heard a deep rumbling sound and even the pebbles that hid in the swaying grass began to jump around. Arnin didn''t show much of a reaction to the happenings. It wasn''t super impressive to someone like him. When the doors finally opened, Arnin was unable to see inside. It looked as though a black wall was placed there to prevent others from seeing the inside. "What is this? Why can''t I see anything?" He looked at Fasona and asked. With his low cultivation level, he was not able to discern what was going on. "Ignore that. Just follow me, and you will enter the building." Fasona smiled before walking straight towards the black wall. Arnin followed without hesitation. Fasona was the first to reach the barrier, and when she went towards it, Arnin found that she walked through the black wall without any resistance. He was next, and just calmly walked through it as well. When he touched the barrier, it felt as though touching the surface of water. He walked through and felt as though he entered a pool. Arnin was very surprised that such a lace could have this type of mechanism. Darkness surrounded Arnin''s eyes, and even with his amazing vision, he wasn''t able to see a thing. He didn''t move in any other direction, as it felt as though something was dragging him along onto the right path. It was all very mysterious. Finally, a yellow light shined onto Arnin''s face. Arnin looked around and couldn''t help but feel slightly astonished. ''So this place is the Alchemy building? Impressive.'' Arnin looked around and felt as though he had entered into another world. The place looked nothing like a building. There were neither walls nor ceilings. Arnin found that there was a blue sky looking over the place, with green grass went as far as the eye could see. People were walking around, carrying cauldrons, pills, and herbs. Fires were erupting left and right. Sometimes, a cauldron would explode, other times, pills appeared. The place was extremely beautiful, and looked just like the outside world. Arnin could feel a large amount of space essence in the surroundings, which told him that this was another dimension. Fasona felt very proud when she noticed the small change on Arnin''s face. Every academy had a Alchemy building, but not all of them had a dimension like Lepidoptera. Only the very large academies could afford something like a private dimension. "This place is really nice, right? Well, this is where the alchemists do their work." Fasona explained. Arnin nodded his head, as also felt that this place was quite incredible, however he was confused about one thing. An academy would need an extremely strong space cultivator to create this place. How could they afford this? "This place is very nice, but how did you guys afford it? I don''t think every academy has a private dimension like this, right?" Arnin looked over at Fasona. "You are right, only the high ranking academies can have a private dimension like this, however in the past, our Alchemy department''s creator saved a space cultivator. The cultivator then repaid the creator of this department by giving him this dimension." Fasona had a very proud look on her face. This look held some arrogance, but many would have felt extremely delighted to see it. Fasona was extremely attractive, so many men would fall for her every expression. "Well, you guys were pretty lucky then." Arnin nodded his head,. The way he spoke sounded a little weird to Fasona. He showed some interest in the place before, but now he seemed very calm, as if this was something he saw every day. "Arnin, you are now a part of the Alchemy department, so you don''t have to sound so distant. We were all lucky to have this place." Fasona smiled at Arnin while saying that. He didn''t answer her, and only smiled in a very mysterious way. She couldn''t understand such a smile, and so she decided not to dwell on the topic. "Alright, let us go and get you set up. This place you see is the public area for alchemists. Many come here to create pills and get help. Some even come to trade and buys herbs, but almost every alchemist has a home in this dimension. We will have to get you one as well." Fasona began to explain some small things. From her explanations, Arnin understood that what he saw right now was only a very small portion of the dimension. There was a huge section where the alchemists would stay. That place was, however, different from normal housing areas. Everyone would get a plot of land that they would be able to cultivate, grow herbs on, and use to create create pills. It really was incredible. Arnin smiled and was extremely happy with such a set up. He was glad that he accepted to become an alchemist. Such benefits were extremely good. Fasona led Arnin towards a small hut. Inside, there was an old man who seemed to be sleeping. Fasona didn''t disturb the old man, and just grabbed a booklet that laid on a table. She began to flip through the pages slowly, her eyes scanning whatever was on it. Arnin wasn''t able to see anything, however he just kept quiet. Suddenly, Fasona gave him the booklet and pointed towards three different houses. "So these are the three different available properties. You can look through the information on the three and decide which you want." She smiled and waited while Arnin began to read through the information. The first property was very close to where they were. The house was very large, but the surrounding area was slightly small. Arnin shook his head and decided not to take this one. He himself wanted to grow lots of herbs that were specialized towards his needs. Plus, being near the public area would result in lots of noise, which Arnin didn''t want. The next house was extremely far from the public area. The place was very isolated and the land was extremely large. The house was also very well built. Arnin nodded and liked the house description. He decided that this would be the place he wanted. He didn''t care about the other property since he was set on the second one. "I want this one." Arnin pointed towards the decided property, however Fasona was shocked. "Arnin, this property is very far from here. You would be isolated from the other alchemists, and won''t be able to make continuous trips. The land is good, but the isolation is incredibly terrible, do you really want it?" Fasona couldn''t understand Arnin''s thinking. The first property was actually very popular. Not only was it very close to the public area, but the house was also extremely big. Although the field wasn''t as large as the second house''s, that didn''t mean that it was small. The last house wasn''t as good as the first, but in Fasona''s head, it was much better than the second. Although it wasn''t extremely close to the public area, many alchemists lived around the area, making collaboration very easy. The second house did not seem to have many good points, other than a large plot of land. Almost no one lived in the area; it was completely isolated. "I am sure. This is the place I want." Arnin smiled. He didn''t mind isolation, rather he liked it. Silence would allow him to do what he wanted, and since no one else was around, he could even do other jobs. ''Maybe I should bring Vilis to this area? There is a supposed forest near the area.'' Arnin began to think. Vilis wasn''t really needed at his home anymore. After his breakthrough, his strength equaled or was just barely lower than Vilis'', which meant he could protect himself. Plus, being in such a small area all the time would be very annoying for a beast like Vilis. "I have a question though. The forest, does it have plants and animals?" Arnin looked at Fasona. The dimension was extremely big, so he felt there should be something nearby. "Of course there are animals. Let me tell you something very interesting about this place. Although the space cultivator gave it to us, he didn''t create this space. All he did was cut a chunk of real land and connected it to the academy. We call it a dimension because that piece of land won''t ever appear in public view again." She spoke with admiration. Arnin was clearly shocked. He also felt that this place was not created by a space cultivator, since only one at an extremely high cultivation would be able to do so. Afloria should not have had anyone like that, because if they did, he would have known about it when he was the Demon Lord. He assumed that the Alchemy Dimension was similar to the tower''s two worlds, where there was a portal that connected to a different location, however that wasn''t the case. The cultivator actually isolated a large piece of land for the academy. This type of skill was still incredible. "Am I able to bring others into this world?" Arnin asked. "Yes, you can, but only a limited number. The only thing is that they are not allowed in the public area unless they are apprentice level alchemists or higher. If they aren''t, then they can only stay around your property. Since you are an Orange Alchemist, you can bring a total of three people." She explained. Arnin nodded his head and was happy to hear such a thing. That was enough to bring Vilis and Akig over. It would be better for Vilis to be in the dimension because of the large fields and animals. Akig would have to join Vilis since Akig was the beast tamer, and now someone who Arnin was going to train. Fasona handed Arnin a white liquid. "This is?" Arnin raised an eyebrow and asked while taking the bottle filled with the milky substance. "Spill this liquid over your identity sphere. This will place the coordinates of your house into the sphere, allowing you to transport there easily from the platform. " She said after some reluctance. She still didn''t want Arnin moving to such an isolated place, but she couldn''t stop him since it was his decision to make. Arnin took out his sphere and spilled the liquid over it. After a few minutes, the liquid was completely absorbed inside the sphere. Arnin raised an eyebrow towards such mysteriousness. "Now then, you can stand on that platform and place your sphere into one of the hexagonal holes. You will be transported to the new house." Arnin nodded his head, and walked out the hut. He suddenly stopped, and looked at Fasona. "How do I leave the dimension?" Arnin didn''t know how to leave yet. If he got there and was trapped, he would not be able to do anything. He didn''t have the power to rip through space like he did before. "Haha! When you get to your house, you can search for a similar hole. However remember this, you cannot teleport here without going outside first. The only way to get to the public area from your house is if you leave the whole dimension, and then reenter." Fasona beautifully shook her head. This was one of the annoying things about the house Arnin chose. Arnin smiled and went over to the large platform that seemed to be made from a magical blue material. Arnin inserted his sphere into one of the holes, and then his body vanished. 56 Secret in the Basemen A bright light appeared in a large field. The area was surrounded by wooden fencing, and in the center was a mid-sized house. It had a few windows, and seemed to be quite short, which indicated that it most likely did not have a second floor. Arnin''s looked at his surroundings a smiled with satisfaction. The place was quiet, and the field was large. Although there was still some grass around, Arnin felt that he would be able to get rid of it in a day or two. He walked towards the house while inspecting the field on the way. Other than the grass that needed to be removed, the field was in great condition. The ground was soft, and the grass was very green and healthy, which let him know that the ground had plenty of nutrients and of water. The door to the house was normal, and was made from wood that came from the surrounding forest. Arnin grabbed onto the handle and turned the knob, slowly opening the door. *CREAK* The door made a sound when it was opened, however Arnin didn''t mind. When he entered the house, he was very surprised. Unlike the houses he had in the residential area for Moth students, this one had no furniture. It was bare. The first floor was quite big, with four rooms in total. The main entrance led into a open room. Two bedrooms were to the left, while a kitchen was on the right. Arnin walked around the house and found that there really wasn''t a second floor, however, he did find a basement. The stairs to it were located in the living room. When Arnin walked down them, what he felt was very surprising. The first floor felt completely normal, as if he was back in his house in Talonton village. There was little essence, and everything seemed quite normal, however the basement was quite different. Just the stairs were made from from extremely hard wood that looked somewhat purple. The side walls also seemed to be made from the same material. Not only that, but the further Arni went down, the more essence he could feel. Plus, there was an herbal scent which continuously got stronger as he neared the basement. Finally, his feet landed on soft, fluffy ground. It didn''t feel like grass, or dirt, rather something much softer. Arnin looked down in surprise and saw that the material looked exactly like dirt, and even had some grass on it. This made him somewhat confused, as he hadn''t seen a material like this before. Arnin squatted on to the ground, and tried to scoop out some dirt, but regardless of how much force he exerted, the dirt just wouldn''t budge. He then tried to pull a piece of grass out, however Arnin was unable to do that either. The ''grass'' was tightly stuck in the ''dirt'', as if they were molded together. Arnin couldn''t help but raise an eyebrow. ''Interesting. Seems like I need to do some more research on the materials used in Afloria.'' Arnin''s knowledge was still very lacking when it came to the materials that were unique to Afloria. He was already lucky that the herbs were the same as the ones he knew in his previous life, plus they were even named the same way, but that was only because herbs were mysterious in general due to their conformity, regardless of where they grew. Materials for buildings, formations, and many other things were different on each planet. He remembered that he once visited a planet where there was almost no cultivation. It was a land ruled by humans who believed that cultivation and magic were fairytale creations. The animals there were also extremely normal. Although the planet was very weak in strength, Arnin found that the humans there were very curious about the world, and had discovered things about it that other species in the universe hadn''t. He entered that world for a few hundred years to understand their knowledge, and couldn''t help but praise their knowledge. Arnin, who was considered the strongest, and also one of the most experienced people in the universe, felt that the humans of the planet ''Earth'' were extremely remarkable. He would usually destroy the world''s he visited, but he had left Earth intact because he found that group of people very interesting, and wanted to manipulate their intelligence for his own benefit. Arnin was not omnipotent; he did not know everything. Every world had something unique about them, and Arnin did not know about them all, and Afloria was one of those. Although he created the whole planet, the weird power also made its own alterations that Arnin was unaware of. The flooring in the basement was extremely weird, but Arnin decided to figure out its properties later. He began to walk deeper in the narrow passageway that had began after stairs ended. As he walked, he discovered that the basement was much larger than the main house. He found many vacant rooms as he walked through the passage, and the smell of herbs also got stronger. Arnin began to wonder if anyone else knew about the wonders of this basement. It seemed different from a normal house, and he didn''t expect other houses to have something similar. Once Arnin finally reached the end of the passage, in front of him was a large, metal door. There seemed to be a lock around the handle, and it was even tied using chains. Arnin laughed at the sight and broke the lock with his fist. It was extremely weak, which made him wonder why it was there in the first place. Slowly, he loosened the chains and threw them onto the ground. He grabbed onto the cold metal handle and slowly pushed. *ERRRR* The door began to make a weird sound that resembled creaking, but also the roaring of thunder at the same time. It was so loud that even Arnin began to frown. ''What is it that they locked here?'' Arnin''s interest was piqued. The lock was very weak, meaning that the thing or whatever that was inside was either also extremely weak, or it was just a warning to outsider to them tell them not to enter. The door swung open, and a strong smell attacked Arnin''s nose. It was astrange mixture of the aroma of herbs and the stench of blood. Arnin''s eyebrows slightly twitched, but he moved forward. The room was very wide, and he found that in it were ten doors. What made Arnin happy was that in the middle of the room was a large cauldron. It was much larger than Fasona''s, which he had used for the Orange Alchemist test. It was about the size of a small bathtub, able to fit three people the size of Arnin, or one full grown man. Around the cauldron was the same grass that he found in the narrow passage. Plus, there also seemed to be various herbs that even Arnin didn''t know about. He swiftly walked over to the herbs surrounding the large cauldron. He crouched down, and pulled an herb off the ground. Surprisingly, it came out without much struggle, almost as if grabbing a pebble off of the ground, no resistance. *WAHHH* Arnin''s eyebrows rose slightly when he heard the sound. It wasn''t coming from the herb, rather it came from one of the rooms. Arnin looked up to see where the banshee-like wailing was coming from. *WAHHH WAHHH* He got up and walked towards one of the doors. The door he went to was the first one on the left, because it seemed as though the sounds were coming from inside. He walked over, and placed his ear onto the door. *WAHH WAHH WAHH* The closer he got, the louder and more frantic the sounds got. Arnin nodded his head and began to think about something. ''The sounds seemed to be related to the herb I picked up. The closer the herb is getting, the louder the sounds seemed to be.'' Arnin made this hypothesis because of the correlation of the situations, however he wasn''t exactly certain that was the reason. It might have been because he was inside the room, or maybe it really was just a coincidence that all the events happened simultaneously. Arnin saw that the door had a small hole on the top, however because of his height, he wasn''t able to look through it when he was standing on the ground. Arnin decided that he might as well open the door. Arnin didn''t have many fears. He had seen too many things, making him fearless towards almost everything. The sounds in the room, the smell of herbs, and even the marks of blood didn''t really frighten him, rather they made him even more curious. Arnin grabbed onto the rusty metal door handle. "Hot!" Arnin couldn''t help but exclaim. The handle was extremely hot, almost as if he was touching a smelted weapon that had yet to go into water for cooling. Arnin thought of his Flames of Neutrality and they appeared on his hand. He had decent control over his flames, or at least enough to wrap it around his hand like a glove. When the flames had enclosed his hand, Arnin grabbed the handle once again. He didn''t feel any of the heat this time, and was able to turned the handle easily. *CLICK* A clicking sound resounded in the quiet area when the handle was completely turned. Arnin pushed it open and squinted his eyes. Inside the room was a chain that hung on the wall. There was also a large black ball that had a chain coming out of it as well. In the right corner beside the entrance, Arnin found a stack of herbs that looked exactly like the one in his hand. The leaves were green, with black petalled flowers. They were similar in shape to sunflowers, however the black petals looked like rocks. Even the pistil was slightly different. Other than it being purple in colour, Arnin found that the pistil was also a liquid, rather than a solid. Arnin walked over to the herbs, the herb in his hand began to tremble. Arnin looked down weirdly, and was somewhat shocked that the herb was able to tremble like a sentient being. *WAHH* The sound came once again, but this time Arnin felt as though the sound was right beside his ear. He turned his head and found that there was nothing screaming into his ear. The whole room seemed a little weird, but the weirdest thing was not the flowers, or the chains, rather it was the extremely black spot in the front right corner of the room. It looked out of place, but what was inside the black spot was even weirder¡­ a dead body. Arnin walked over to the body. His eyes slowly inspected it and found that the body lacked five fingers. Replacing those missing fingers was the same type of flower that was in the room, and in his hand. The body lacked eyes and just had empty sockets. The mouth was wide open, showing yellow, crooked teeth. It didn''t show signs of decay, which made him think that the it died recently, however, Arnin couldn''t feel anything coming out from the body. There was neither death aura, nor even life aura. When a person died or was near death, they would begin to release a death aura. Once they died, the aura would linger for a week or so, before disappearing completely. Since the body in front of him had no aura, it should have been dead for at least a week or more, but there was no decomposition of the body, not even a little, which Arnin found to be unbelievable. Even high realmed cultivators would decompose very quickly. Arnin decided to leave the room for now, and decide what to do next after inspecting the other rooms. He walked out of the room and closed the door. The banshee sound was completely gone. He couldn''t hear it anymore, but suddenly, he felt his hand become a little lighter. He looked down and discovered that the herb was gone. Not only did the herb vanish, they was also a stain on his hand. He lifted his hand, and found that the stain was of the purple liquid. He smelled it, but found that it was odorless. Arnin tried to wipe his hand onto his robe, but he noticed that the stain was not going away. ''Who lived here before me?'' Arnin was curious as to who lived in the house before him. It didn''t seem like anyone knew about the basement, or Fasona wouldn''t have showed it to him. The basement resembled a small torture chamber rather than a pill making basement. Arnin shook his head, and continued to the second room. He opened up the door, and saw something similar to the first room. Chains on the wall, a dead body, and a stack of herbs. This time, the body was of a female who had three missing fingers. The type of herb was also very different. It didn''t look like a flower, but instead like an apple, but the exterior was like a pillow, very soft and cushiony. The herb was snow white, however Arnin felt that the inside might be a little different. Arnin picked out one herb from the batch, however before he could do anything, the herb began to wither away. It resembled burning paper, making for an extremely weird sight. Arnin walked out the room, however this time he didn''t head over to the other rooms. He walked over to the cauldron. Around the cauldron, Arnin found that other than the purple flower herb, he also saw the white apple herb. He didn''t touch any of them, and went straight for the cauldron. Arnin reached it after a few seconds, and then looked inside. He was shocked to find skeletons and a variety of herbs inside the cauldron. The herbs were dry, but Arnin could tell that each of them were the same herbs as the one surrounding the cauldron. There were plenty of bones, but they were very small, which gave him the impression that this was the skeleton of a child. He didn''t feel any sorrow or hatred for whoever put the child in the cauldron. He only held some interest. He had done many heinous things as a Demon Lord, many that even Zhaik didn''t know about, so putting a child in a cauldron didn''t make him feel shocked, or anything really. ''What was this person trying to do? Was he trying to make a pill using humans?'' Arnin had heard of many pills that used humans, or other species as ingredients. Not only that, but many high ranking pills needed a living being as an ingredient. When he was a Demon Lord, he commonly used Dragons, Phoenixes, and even other demons as ingredients. Arnin stopped looking in the cauldron and began to inspect the room for anything other than the doors. He would slowly go through the other doors at a later time, but for now, he wanted to see if there was anything else. Arnin looked around, and found a small table hiding in a corner. He walked over to the chair when suddenly, *WAHHH WAHHHH WAHHH* Screams began to sound. They were terrifying screams that would cause any normal person, or cultivator to shiver, and even faint with fright. Arnin didn''t flinch and became much more curious. He made his way towards the table while the screams got louder and extremely frantic. Finally, he reached the table, and the screams vanished. Arnin raised both his eyebrows and found two items. There was a piece of paper and small vial that had three purple pills. Arnin grabbed the page and and began to read the contents: ------------- I became an Orange Alchemist at the age of forty. My talent was low, so many people avoided me, and soon I became isolated from all the Alchemists in the Alchemist department. I found this house, and thought it met all my needs, so I moved far away from the rest. Years passed, and I finally became a Pink Alchemist at the age of eighty. People often made fun of my talent, and some would even come to my isolated home to make sure I knew of this fact. One day, I discovered a secret manual, deep in the forest. This secret manual allowed one to transform and obtain a special body, the Human Pill Body. This is a legendary special body that would allow one to transform and become the greatest Alchemist in history, however obtaining the body had too many sacrifices. The formula forced me to use children as ingredients, however a problem occurred. The sacrificed humans would turn into different types of herbs, not allowing me to create the pill. After years of research I found the hidden problem behind the formula. This land, the Alchemy Dimension, it is not from the human world. No, it isn''t from any of the continents we know about. This piece of land is from the two hidden continents, so I am heading over to these unknown lands to find the complete formula. I will obtain the legendary Human Pill Body. -------------------- Arnin read the letter and couldn''t help but scoff at the person who wrote it. Human Pill Body? Arnin had heard of a body like that, however it was an extremely rare, and demonic body. Although it allowed one to have unmatched pill creating skills, there was a catch. The body would slowly begin to turn into a pill, thus the name ''Human Pill Body''. He looked at the page and tried to see if there was anything on the pills. Luckily, there was something written on the back. --------- The pill bottle contains pills that are extremely heaven defying. They came with the formula, however after taking one, I found that taking another one do harm to my body. I ate two of the pills, but now I hear wailing and laughter. I leave these pills here and hope that whoever finds them will only take one pill. The name of the pill was on the formula sheet. The name given to this heavenly, yet demonic pill was, Body Return Pill. ------- Arnin''s face suddenly warped into a sinister smile. His hands trembled as he looked at the pill with greedy eyes. His face flushed, as he began to laugh out loud in a sinister manner. "HAHAHA!" 57 Enemies Crossing Paths "HAHA!" Laughter resounded throughout the chamber. It was childish, but also seemed somewhat sinister. Arnin''s eyes regained their clarity, and he couldn''t help but mock the person''s stupidity. ''Whoever wrote this letter is extremely dumb. The Body Return Pill is a pill specially made for people with the Human Pill Body.'' Arnin couldn''t stop laughing. The Human Pill Body was extremely rare, almost one in one hundred trillion. However, the Body Return Pill was over a million times more rare. The formula for this pill was lost, and couldn''t be found throughout the whole universe, and there were almost zero Body Return Pills left. The function of the pill was very well known to Arnin, since he had tried to find this pill for his own interest in the past. Body Return Pill: A pill handmade for anyone with the condition ''Human Pill Body''. Once swallowed by a person with such a condition, transformation into a pill will completely halt, returning the body back into the previous state. Taking two pills will allow one to then transform the body from Human Pill Body into Heaven Pill Body. If one takes the pill without having the condition, Human Pill Body, their bodies would be able to advance in their pill making skills, however if another pill is taken, then their body would deteriorate and become the Hell Pill Body. Arnin went through the information that he knew about the pill. He mocked the person who took two Body Return Pills. If he hadn''t, then he would have been able to increase his pill making skills, but now the person would slowly die in anguish and pain. The formula for the pill was lost, so Arnin running into the pills at such a time was really lucky, however there was one thing that confused him greatly. As the creator of the world, he didn''t place the Body Return Pills in Afloria, so he wondered how they got in. ''I need to find out who the person that wrote the letter is, and what formula he has in his hand.'' Arnin would luck out if he could get his hands on the Human Pill Body formula. Since he had the Body Return Pill, he could become the greatest Alchemist. He just needed the formula so he could create himself the body. ''Seems like I need to pay a visit to the mysterious continents, but which one did the person go to?'' Arnin knew that the person was at one of the two continents, but he didn''t know which one. Arnin placed the bottle of pills in his interspatial bag, and then burned the page. He didn''t want anyone else reading the information if they ever entered the basement. Arnin decided to quickly check out the remaining eight rooms. He quickly went through them all, and found something extremely weird in each one. The first two had two dead bodies that had yet to decompose, plus herbs began to form on their missing fingers. The third and fourth rooms had similar chains, and new herb stashes, however this time the dead bodies were a little different. They had full limbs turned into countless herbs. This went on until the last room didn''t have a dead bod; it was just filled with herbs. ''So, is this the failed experiment? Does this mean that the other bodies will actually turn in to herbs?'' Arnin pondered for a moment, and came to this conclusion. It seemed that the former''s failure in creating the pill turned a person into a herb. ''Is this truly a failure? What if this is a part of the formula?'' Arnin had worked with various types of pill formulas. Some were extremely weird, and had abnormal requirements. Sometimes the pill formula was a two step process, where one would need to create an object through the formula and then reuse that object to form the actual pill. In simpler terms, the formula that the person had said to sacrifice people, and those people eventually turned into herbs, so maybe the herbs that were created were the ones to be used for the pill? Arnin came to this conclusion and decided that it was possible. Maybe he could really do this. Arnin went over and grabbed the ten different herbs, but then he then stopped. ''Wait, the mysterious person had tried to add these herbs into the cauldron with the child too, so is this really possible?'' Arnin stopped what he was doing. The dried herbs that were in the cauldron were exactly the same asthe herbs in each room. This meant that herbs created from through the sacrifice of each person was already added into the cauldron and still came out as a failure. He sighed and stopped doing anything else. Of course it wouldn''t be so easy to figure out, or there would have been many before him to do so. ''Since I can''t make it right now, I can use the cauldron for my own pills.'' Arnin thought. He didn''t have a pill cauldron, so he could use the large one. Although it would expend more energy, it was still a very good quality cauldron. Arnin nodded his head and decided to go with this decision. Quickly, Arnin took out the Flames of Neutrality, and began to remove everything inside the cauldron.Since his flames didn''t burn, but instead, made them vanish completely, Arnin found it very easy remove everything. After the cauldron was cleaned, Arnin nodded and headed back to the first floor. He didn''t have any herbs to create any pills with, so he could only come back later, and plant some when he got seeds. Arnin began to look for the hexagonal hole so that he could go out of the dimension. He wanted to go and bring Akig and Vilis over to this world. Plus, he also wanted to begin making the cultivation manual so he could start Mark making. The sooner he could begin making cultivation stones, the sooner he would be able to start making some academic points. That meant he could start to earn gold and send some back to his family. Arnin looked around the house and finally found the hexagonal hole in one of the bedrooms. He inserted his sphere and slowly he began to vanish. He appeared right in front of the Academic building that held the dimension. Arnin smirked, before moving towards his home in the Moth residential area. When he got to his house, he found that Vilis and Akig weren''t home. ''Seems like they either went out to hunt, or to take a walk.'' Arnin quietly sat down in the middle of the room. He took out the dozen books that Fae had handed to him. If he was going to create his own cultivation manual, then he would need to learn about the different cultivation methods. The first manual that Arnin looked at was related to cultivating blood components. It discussed cultivation around a large pool of blood, and the path the blood essence should take in his body. Arnin nodded his head, and engraved the information in his mind. The next manual he picked up was related to ice essence. The one after was for withering, the next¡­ Arnin read through all of the manuals, and finally had a general idea of what he wanted to do. The main purpose of the cultivation manuals in Afloria was to create a path for the essence to travel from the orb and through the threads. Every element, however, had its own path that differed from others, which was why Arnin would have to read through the many different types of methods, so he could create his own. Arnin needed to create a cultivation manual that took all of his elements into consideration. Once the elemental seeds were created, and the cultivator broke through into Elemental Formation, then the seeds would sprout and allow a person to use the element as they pleased. However, they would have continue absorbing the specific element to strengthen the sprouted seeds. This was one reason Arnin needed to create his own manual, the other reason being so he could begin mark making. Although he would use his unorthodox method in the future, it would take too long to master his saber. The cultivation manual method would be quick, and allow for Arnin to strengthen his control over the saber over time. Arnin sighed. He had gone through a lot of things, and still had yet to begin proper mark making. He made a mark on his first try in the past, but for some reason, he was unable to do it again. This had bothered him, but he still maintained his calm. "Now, let''s begin." Arnin took out a stack of papers from a box. He had an ink pen, and started to scribble on the pages. Arnin didn''t have a main element that was superior to others. Instead, he had many elements that he focused on equally. This meant that the cultivation manual that he would create would have to have an equilibrium with all of the elements. The first thing Arnin did was draw a diagram of each element that he would focus on, and their circulation. Even though elements would have various types of circulations, Arnin only needed to know a single circulation to create his own. He drew one for the essence components of fire, darkness, light, withering, death, space, blood, and even life. He had yet to cultivate life, but he planned ondoing it soon. Life and death went hand in hand, so Arnin wanted to combine them together. The only element that Arnin wanted, but did not have, was the time element. There were no books on time, so he could only create a partial cultivation manual until he figured out the circulation for time. Although it may cause problems in the future, Arnin had to take the risk. The cultivation manual was important, but so was the time essence. It might have an effect on him later on, but if he could find a time manual quickly, then this problem would be solved. Arnin drew all of them and found something extremely weird that he didn''t notice before. Elements that were considered pairs had the same circulation pattern, just in reverse. Death and life were pairs, and so were light and darkness, and also¡­ space and time! Arnin thought that he might be able to create something suitable for time if he reversed the cultivation circulation, but he wanted to first make sure that this was the case for every other element too. Arnin then began to draw all the circulations for each pair. One page had life and death, while another had light and darkness, then, there was fire and water. He looked through all of the pairs, and found that his theory applied to each one. Then, Arnin began to create a new calculation method from the space''s circulation, however it was in reverse. Every element would start from the orb and end back at the orb. The space element would go from the orb and enter the threads in the arms, then it would return to the orb, then enter the threads in the legs¡­ this would continue until all the threads were covered.This would be a single circulation for space essence. Arnin created the circulation for the time essence by using the reverse, however there was one problem. If he wanted to test it, then he would need to find a place that had time essence. He began to think, and then it hit him. The Essence Tower. He wasn''t able to get time essence on the first floor, but what about the higher floors? He had some academic points, which allowed him to get onto at least some of the higher floors. Not only that, but he also had five water pills which he could sell for some points. With his mind made up, Arnin rushed towards the Alchemy department. The tanned girl was still in front of the counter, and when she saw Arnin, she smiled and waved at him. She still didn''t know that he was a Orange Alchemist, so she didn''t show him the respect someone his rank should have received. "Hello, young man. What are you back for?" She asked Arnin with a smile. "I want to sell some pills for academic points. Can I do that here?" Arnin spoke quickly. He wanted to finish things up as quickly as possible, so that he could rush towards the Tower. "Of course. Let me first get the head of this place. Only she can appraise pills, and then give you the proper payment." Arnin nodded his head and waited. The girl rushed off and came back a few minutes later with an old woman. Arnin looked over curiously, but when he saw the woman, his expression became somewhat ugly. Arnin was usually very expressionless, but he needed to get a good amount of points as quickly as possible, however judging by the appearance of this old woman, Arnin felt as though his goal would be much more difficult to achieve. His face became sinister as he began to have evil thoughts. The tan girl brought the old woman over and pointed towards Arnin. "Teacher, this is the boy who wants to sell some pills. I have other matters to attend to, so you can speak to him here." The old woman nodded and waved her hand, gesturing at the girl to leave. The girl then left the front counter and began to sell the items at a different desk. "So, may I se--" Right as the old woman was about to continue speaking, she finally got a good look at Arnin. Before, she wasn''t paying much attention, but now that she saw him, she couldn''t help but feel shocked. Arnin smiled wickedly towards her. ''Seems like she still remembers me. If this old woman causes me any problems, then I will make sure to take care of her later on!'' Arnin''s thoughts became ferocious. "So you are the boy who wants to sell some pills? Well, we don''t buy them here, sorry. You should go and find a different place to sell your pills." The old woman spoke with some mockery and a hint of anger, before waving her hand as though trying to wave off a bug. Arnin was irritated by such actions. "Old hag, I know you buy pills here. If you don''t want to buy some, then let''s see what happens to that girl. Monifa is her name, right?" Arnin had a cold smile on his face when he spoke. The old woman was none other than Teacher Zesiro. She was the one who wanted to cause Arnin trouble after he beat Monifa up for her house. She had threatened him, but was eventually stopped by Xillar, who had her leave. Her hatred for Arnin was deep. Both because he beat up her young mistress, and because he was extremely rude to her. "Little brat, you better watch your tongue. I am only sparing you because of my status as a teacher. If not because of that, I would beat you until you couldn''t ever get out of bed." The old woman looked at Arnin threateningly. "I''d like to see what you can do, wrinkly old sl*t!" Arnin spat out vulgarities that caused Zesiro to become extremely red with anger. She walked out from behind the counter and slowly moved towards Arnin. "Let me teach you what the word respect mean, brat!" Her teeth were gritting together as she spoke. Arnin was still smiling with mockery. "Make sure you know how to spell ''respect''. With your single brain cell, I don''t think you are capable of such a feat." 58 The Be Arnin looked at the Zesiro with mockery, however he was somewhat tense as well. He knew very well that his current strength was a far cry from being able to match a senior Moth student, let alone a Moth Teacher. He just wasn''t strong enough to face this woman yet. ''Since I can''t beat her in cultivation, what if I face her in something else?'' Arnin wasn''t going to go and pick a fight that he knew he would lose. He was able to become the strongest for a reason. He didn''t act brave when he shouldn''t; he knew his limits. "Old hag, you really are stooping low, trying to face me, a five-year-old. Don''t you have a conscience?" Arnin smirked as he spoke. He made sure that his voice was loud enough for the crowd in the store to hear. All of them looked over with interest. Most were students, but there were a couple of teachers lurking in the crowd as well. "Really, I am hundreds of years younger than you, and can even be considered the same age as your great-great-grandchild. Not only that, but your cultivation realm is at least a thousand times higher than mine, if not more. Shameless!" Arnin spoke sharp words, and made sure that everyone heard each and every one of them. Zesiro''s face turned ugly when she saw the crowd nearing. She had a reputation as a Moth Teacher. "Don''t try to play innocent, little boy. That vulgar mouth of yours spouts out a lot of bad things. I am just teaching you a small lesson. You must show respect to your elders!" She quickly came up with a valid reason to teach Arnin a small lesson, however she began to feel a little worried when she noticed Arnin''s smile brightening. "Then let me ask you, why did I speak in such a way? Isn''t it because of you discriminating against me, and not allowing me to sell pills? I came here with no ill intent, and just wanted to sell some pills. That girl can be a witness to that." Arnin that pointed at the pretty tanned girl. Everyone looked at her, waiting for her to affirm or deny Arnin''s claim. Seeing that she had become the center of attention, the girl hesitated before nodding her head slightly. "It is true. He really only came to sell pills but I don''t know what happened after." She quickly spoke, and added a little more. "You hear that? I only came to sell my pills, but was outright rejected without any good reason. Would anyone stay calm in such a situation? I am just a little boy. Of course I will have outbursts if I am treated wrongly." Arnin made a pitiful and angry face, trying to showcase himself as a child who had been wronged. Everyone looked over at Zesiro, and frowned. "That little boy is right. This is wrong. Teacher Zesiro, you have no right to teach him a lesson." An older Moth student was the first to speak out, and looked at Zesiro with some anger. Although Moth teachers held a higher status than Moth students, that didn''t mean that the former could anything they wanted. There were rules that people needed to follow, regardless of their status. "Exactly. Little boy, do not worry. I will not allow for you to be wronged. Teacher Zesiro, as a fellow teacher, I am telling you that what you are doing is wrong." A Moth teacher stepped forward and also spoke up for Arnin. They didn''t speak out without thinking. Initially, they didn''t completely believe Arnin''s claim, however when the girl verified that Arnin had come to sell pills, then how could they not believe him? Anyways, Arnin was not wrong. As a child, he was more likely to get mad than others, especially if he was discriminated against. "Y-you! If you do not know the full story, then do not speak up. He ruthlessly beat up my mistress a couple of days ago, and she is still recovering in the medical department. Not only that, but he also showed little to no respect to me when I asked him about the matter. Even now, he shows disrespect. I was not going to kill him, or send him to the medical department. I was just going to teach him a lesson as his elder." When Zesiro spoke, many people quieted down. It was natural for people to get mad if people they cared about were hurt. All of them then turned to looked at Arnin. If what Zesiro said was true, then she could deny buying pills off of Arnin. She had the right to do so if Arnin had done something like that. *Clap Clap* Arnin began to clap his hands and smiled at Zesiro. "I applaud you for your shamelessness, old Zesiro." This time, Arnin did not even refer to Zesiro as a teacher. Many frowned at his actions, but didn''t say anything about it. "Child, what do you mean by that? Is what she said not true? If so¡­" The same teacher looked at Arnin with wrinkled eyebrows. He was very confused. Why would Arnin call her shameless again?He didn''t think that Zesiro was making anything up because he knew that she didn''t lie. "You want to know what I mean? Well, let me call down one of the spectators of the whole situation back then. Teacher Xillar, would you mind coming out from the shadows?" Arnin looked behind him and spoke. Many turned their heads, and saw Xillar appear with an ugly face. ''Why the hell is this kid bringing me into this?'' "Teacher Xillar? How long were you hiding there for?" The other Moth teacher looked at Xillar with some surprise, and then turned his head towards Arnin, his eyes brightening slightly. Xillar waved his hand, and didn''t speak about it. "Alright, now that you are here, can you explain what really happened? Why did I beat up the young mistress?" Arnin looked at Xillar with a smile. The latter''s face went somewhat pale when he looked at Arnin''s smile and Zero''s glare. He then shook his head bitterly and decided to speak honestly. "Well, Teacher Zesiro is right that Arnin ruthlessly beat up her young mistress, and even said harsh words to her," Many people looked at Arnin. "However, there was of course a reason behind all of this. Since all of you are here, let me ask a question. What does a person have to do in order to get an occupied house in the Moth residential area?" Xillar decided that he would take Arnin''s side for this one. Although Arnin was a little excessive back then, ultimately, he didn''t do anything wrong. Plus, it was Zesiro that really went out of control. "Well, you can either live with the person, trade something in exchange for it, or¡­ duel!" Many people finally came to understand what had happened. "As most of you have guessed, the reason Arnin beat up the young mistress was because of a duel. Although he was somewhat excessive, he didn''t break any of the rules, and fairly won the duel." The people who heard this nodded their head. That meant that Arnin was not in the wrong. They could already guess the next scene with Zesiro, so they shook their heads. As teachers, they should not lose their temper with students, unless they had broken the rules. "Now then, Teacher Zesiro, will you still attack me?" Arnin looked at Zesiro with scorn. He would use the public to fight against Zesiro for now, but in the future, he would get rid of such a nuisance. The crowd also looked at Zesiro with their eyes hardened. If Zesiro made a move, then they would intervene. Zesiro''s face was ghastly pale. She looked at Arnin, and then Xillar with hatred. "Since so many of you are taking this brat''s side, I will give you all face and back down, however I will not buy his pills. I still have the right to decline him." Zesiro harrumphed as she continued to glare at Arnin. Although she couldn''t attack Arnin, she still had the upper hand. It was her decision about whether she would buy the pill or not. No one else had any say in this. The people in the crowd nodded their heads. People had to take a step back as well. Zesiro held her own hatred towards Arnin so they couldn''t say anything about that. If she was unwilling to buy them, then that wasn''t their problem. Seeing that no one was saying anything else, Zesiro looked at Arnin with a smirk. ''What will you do now, brat? Even if I can''t hurt you at the moment, I still won.'' Arnin didn''t get angered, and was still very calm. He smiled a little, before opening his mouth once more. "This is no good for me. I need to sell my pills, so we have to find a solution." Arnin spoke up, however this time, many people frowned. "Little kid, although we will stop her from attacking you, one must know when not to go too far. She has the right to refuse buying your pills, so you need to give up on this." Arnin ignored the old man and walked forward. "Why don''t we make a bet?" Arnin smirked when he said this. When Xillar heard this, his face became pale. He had seen Arnin''s bet with Torne, and the state the latter had ended up in because of it. "Hmm? What kind of bet?" Zesiro was somewhat intrigued. She hated Arnin, but if she could humiliate him, and make him lose something, then that would help decrease her anger. "Well, we will have a competition. If I win, you will become my dog, and do everything I say, however if you win, then you can do whatever you wish to me." Arnin smiled and said. Zesiro was angered by Arnin''s demand, but she couldn''t help smirk. ''If I can just get a chance to do whatever I liked to this brat, then I will be able to die happily.'' "Before I agree to your bet, explain the type of competition we will be doing, and when it will take place" She looked at Arnin with cunning eyes. She would not agree to a competition where she would lose without even being able to fight back. "Hmm, let me think. Why don''t we do a competition on concocting some pills?" Arnin smiled towards Zesiro. "Haha! Brat, are you sure about that?" Zesiro couldn''t help but laugh loudly when she heard Arnin''s words. Xillar quickly walked over to Arnin and whispered into his ears. "Arnin, Zesiro is an extremely high ranking Alchemist, a Blue Alchemist to be exact." Arnin was somewhat shocked when he heard this, however he smirked slightly. Blue Alchemists were just one level higher than green ones, but the difference between the two was as much as that between the heavens and earth. There were a total of eight ranks in total, however every two ranks there was a dividing line. Orange and Pink were considered Earth, Yellow and Green were Sky, Blue and Purple were Hell, while White and Silver were Heaven. To get to Hell from Sky, a person might need around fifty to one hundred years, so Zesiro being at the Blue rank showed that she was quite talented. Arnin waved his hand, and didn''t take Xillar''s advice. Although Zesiro might be very high ranked in Alchemy, that didn''t mean she would be better than him in the future. "I am sure about this, however we will not do the competition right now. It will be held at the end of next year." Arnin still needed to increase his control over the Flames of Neutrality, so it would not benefit him to face her off right now. "That is fine with me. Here, let us sign this contract so that neither of us will go back on our words." Zesiro quickly created a contract that differed from the ones Arnin usually made. Unlike his contracts that would bind the soul, the one Zesiro made was a tier lower, as it would only bind the orb. Arnin looked through the contents, and couldn''t help but smirk. The terms listed that whoever lost the bet would become the other''s slave. He quickly signed the contract, and suddenly felt something appear on his orb. He looked in his body, and found a snake like mark that wrapped around his orb, however it didn''t do any harm to him. It was just there to bind him upon completion of the contract. "Now that the contract is signed, you can buy my pills right?" Arnin smirked and looked at Zesiro. He still had his goal of getting academic points. "Sure. Since you will become my slave sooner or later, I will be nice." Her face was ruthless. Many people looked at Arnin with pity. Although it was considered wrong to bet with a student, Arnin was the one who initiated it. People could only shake their heads at Arnin''s stupidity. Arnin took out the five water pills, and handed them over to Zesiro. She looked them over, and nodded her head. "I will take these pills for five academic points each, so you will receive twenty five points." She said. "Would the price increase if I was an alchemist?" Arnin asked. He would kill this old hag sooner or later, so he was patient for now. He would strike when the time was right. "If you were an Apprentice, the price would rise by ten percent, and if you were a Orange Alchemist then it would rise by fifty percent." Zesiro spoke casually, however she inwardly mocked him. ''Why are asking questions that are unrelated to a brat like you?'' "Well, I am an Orange Alchemist, so I would like the fifty percent rise" Arnin smiled, and said. He took out his Mark Master sphere, and gave it to Zesiro. The latter went behind the counter and quickly brought out an item to check the sphere''s information. Her face became pale when she saw the results. ''That little brat is an Orange Alchemist? He is so young!'' She couldn''t help but be shocked. It had taken her until the age of twelve to become an Orange Alchemist. Her talent was considered decent but she was not the best. Arnin, on the other hand, had talent that could be considered demonic or godly. "Humph, you can get the increase." She snorted. Arnin took back the sphere, and handed her his student identity card. The points increased by thirty eight, giving him a grand total of fifty seven point. (Author note: I know that a fifty percent increase of twenty five is a 37.5, but I am going to round it) Arnin took back his card and walked away, leaving Zesiro with an ugly face. ''Who cares if he is an Orange Alchemist at such a young age? How much can he grow in one year?'' Although she said these words in her mind, deep in her heart, the calmness that Arnin exuded made her feel somewhat fearful. Xillar was also surprised by Arnin''s Alchemist ranking, however he just bitterly shook his head. He had the same thought process as Zesiro, but suddenly, a thought crossed his mind. ''Should I make sure Zesiro wins? Id Arnin falls under her control, wouldn''t that be the same thing as falling under the academy''s control? Not even his backer could anything about it if something like that happened. I need to tell the principal.'' Xillar disappeared, and Zesiro also vanished. Arnin, however, headed towards the Essence Tower. His face carried a wicked smile, ''I will make sure that you suffer, Zesiro. You will live a life worse than death after you fall into my hands.'' His face looked extremely sinister, which could cause many to shiver uncontrollably, however no one saw his expression. 59 Elder Sister Now that Arnin had got a hold of more points, his next stop was going to be the Essence Tower. He needed to find out whether the cultivation method he made for the time essence actually worked or not. This would help him determine if his theory was correct. If the theory he had laid out really did work, then Arnin could probably make this concept work with different elements, and might even be able to create an army using his knowledge on elements. This would be extremely beneficial to him. It took Arnin about twenty minutes to finally reach the Tower. He quickly headed over to the front desk, and found that Surk was there. "So, Arnin is back again? What can I help you with?" Surk smiled at Arnin when he saw him. "I want to head over to the upper floors. Tell me how much each floor is." Arnin looked at Surk, and directly asked for what he wanted. "Sure, I can check that for you, however you have to remember that the higher the floor, the stronger the people you will find." Surk warned Arnin as he took out a large booklet. Arnin, of course, didn''t take his words to heart since he already knew that was case. If the people on the higher floors were just at Essence Manifest - Hell, then he could still handle them to a certain extent, however if their skills were any higher, then he would be at a loss. Soon, Surk found the pages with the information, and began to recite them all one by one. "All of this information is for the Moth students. The first floor is free, the second floor is five academic points, the third floor is fifteen academic points, the fourth floor is thirty-five, then sixty-five¡­" The points had a weird way of increasing, and Arnin was somewhat annoyed because of such growth. Since he only had fifty eight points, that meant the highest he could go was the fourth floor. "Alright then, since that is the case, then send me directly to the fourth floor." Arnin shook his head bitterly, however he decided to go the highest floor he could. Surk wasn''t too surprised that Arnin was able to rack up so many points. Although he didn''t know that Arnin was an alchemist yet, he wouldn''t be too surprised. He always felt that Arnin was different. "Give me a minute... and¡­ here it is. You see the small platform in the corner? Just head over there, and scan. You will be sent directly to the fourth floor." Surk smiled towards Arnin. Arnin nodded his head, and walked towards the small platform that Surk mentioned. He saw a few people surrounding the platform, however they were moving in and out of the platform pretty quickly. Arnin reached the location, and scanned his card. His body began to vanish in front of the small crowd. "Why is that kid heading over to a higher floor? Doesn''t he know that the first floor is already his limit?" Some person couldn''t help but voice out after Arnin left. "Don''t you know who that is? That is the new Moth student who is able to beat people above his own realm. Don''t underestimate him." Another person who had seen Arnin''s fight with Torne couldn''t help but speak. He warned his friend to not say much, making the latter quiet down. Arnin finally entered the fourth floor, and looked around with calm eyes. He took a deep breath, and couldn''t help but smile. ''The essence here is more than a hundred times thicker than the first floor. Not only that, but I can feel various types of components.'' Arnin smiled and walked towards desk on that floor. When he got there, he found two beautiful students. From their clothes, Arnin could tell that they were Moth students, however he was somewhat surprised. The two girls in front of him had very high cultivation realms,Essence Manifest - Hell. They only looked to be around the age of eighteen so this was extremely rare. ''So, these are the most extreme talented? Well then, they really are very strong.'' Arnin couldn''t help but think. Not only were the girls young, strong, and beautiful, they were able to stay on the fourth floor, allowing them to cultivate in such an amazing environment. The two girls saw Arnin, and couldn''t help but cover their pink lips with their fair, white hands. One of the two, who had curly brown hair, walked towards the part of the desk that Arnin was standing by. "Little boy, what are you doing on this floor?" This was the first question that the girl asked. Arnin was extremely young so she was very surprised to see him on the fourth floor. "I am here for a room. Tell me which ones are available, or the ones I can duel for." Arnin directly dived into the topic. He wasn''t there to act like a child and explain himself. He just wanted to cultivate. The girl so astonished that her two rosy pink lips separated apart. This cute action could cause many males to blush, however Arnin continued to maintain a calm look. "Are you sure that you are at the right place? This is the fourth floor. Did the people downstairs send you here by accident? Should I help change it for you?" Arnin began to feel a little irritated at the girl in front of him. He strictly believed in the idea of not judging a book by its cover. He had met many people who looked innocent, but were extremely vicious, people who were young, but stronger than most old people, and even those who were small, but their weight exceeded that of mountains. Having the girl judge him by his age annoyed him, but he just wanted to quickly get a room, and not waste his time bickering. "Miss, I am in the right place. Don''t ask so many questions and do what you were assigned to do. Find a room that I can use, or a room that is available to duel for." Arnin spoke with irritation and some sharpness, leaving the girl speechless She soon showed a faint hint of displeasure after a moment of processing, however she didn''t begin to quarrel with Arnin. She pulled out a booklet that was similar to the one Surk had taken out previously. She began to flip through the pages, and eventually stopped on one. "You can look through these. There are five places that can dueled for. Here is the person and his cultivation realm." The academy allowed students to hide their abilities and other private matters, however, they always kept track of their cultivation realms, and kept them public. This would allow people at lower cultivations to make goals to achieve and encourage competition between students.. Arnin looked through the five, and found that three of the people were at Essence Manifest - Hell, one was at Essence Manifest - Heaven, and another was at Essence Manifest - Sky. Arnin chose the person who was at Essence Manifest - Sky, as he didn''t want to waste any time with duels, so he quickly told the girl about his selection. When she saw the person he chose, she looked at Arnin pitifully. Although the person was the weakest of the five, she was still was many realms higher then Arnin. "As your senior, let me give you some advice. These people are too strong for you, really, every person in the Tower is too strong for you. Go into one of the four other locations and cultivate there. Once you are strong enough, then come back." Although the girl with curly brown hair was displeased with Arnin''s attitude, she decided that he was only a child that had just began his cultivation path. He would be arrogant, and somewhat naive, so she was responsible for reminding him as his senior. "I don''t care about that. Just take me into the room so that I can begin my cultivation." Arnin waved his hand, and told the girl with an expressionless look. He wasn''t going to listen to the girl since he already knew that the Essence Manifest - Sky cultivator would be defeated by him very quickly. The girl shook her head and stopped trying to persuade Arnin. She could only hope that he would learn his lesson after experiencing the difference in strength first hand. The girl led Arnin to one of the hidden doors, and entered after completing a pattern of knocks. When Arnin entered with the girl, he noticed that the room was completely different from the previous one he had used. The first room he had cultivated in was made out of a single black material, however the room in front of him was constructed from green and yellow jade. There was also a small fountain in the right corner of the room. The lights were also quite bright. "What are you doing here? Is there someone who wishes to duel me for this room?" The person occupying the room was another lady. She looked to be around the age of sixteen, meaning that she was extremely talented. Chances were that she was more talented than the two girls who were at the front desk. "Yes, this young boy here would like to duel for this room." The brown haired girl hopelessly nodded her head. The young teenager who was sitting in the cultivation room was a very well known beauty in the Moth group. Her name was Lyosi, and there were many boys who were attempting to court her, however she was unwilling. Arnin only knew it was her because of the many Moth students who talked about her. Lyosi was a fairly tall woman with braided red hair. Her eyes were like white pearls that one would find deep in the ocean. Her figure was extremely slender and she was very curvy, making her extremely attractive. The main thing that made her stand out was not her looks, but a certain part of her hair. On the backside of her head, closer to the middle, one could find thick strands of green hair. This was very abnormal, however many found this feature to be very attractive. "This kid wants to fight for my room? Are you sure you aren''t messing with me?" Lyosi had a very pretty voice. It sounded like chimes from the heaven. Her attractive eyes looked at the small stature of Arnin and she couldn''t help but ask. Before the girl who led Arnin to the room could say anything, Arnin stepped forward. "I am here for the room. I will give you two options, either you leave without getting hurt, or leave after getting hurt. Of course, the answer should already be clear." Arnin smiled while he spoked. When Lyosi heard what Arnin said, she couldn''t help but look at his figure once more. She noted his height, and his baby like looks, and couldn''t help but quickly take her slender, pale hands and cover her succulent pink lips. "Pff!" Her eyes began to water as she attempted to hold in her laughter. Arnin saw this and couldn''t help but be somewhat stunned. Most people would either be very angry at his words, or would wave him off, however this girl seemed to be laughing, not with mockery, but something else. "Haha!" Lyosi couldn''t take it anymore, and began to laugh heartily. She looked at Arnin and couldn''t help but laugh a little more. She then got up, and walked over to Arnin, and got on her knees. "You are such a cute little kid. Don''t worry, your elder sister won''t fight with you. You can use the room for as long as you want." She looked at Arnin''s dashing face that still resembles a child''s. She found him extremely cute, and couldn''t help but light pinch his cheeks. She then got up, and walked out the room, not forgetting to rub Arnin''s head with some adoration. Both girls left the room, leaving Arnin standing there alone, stunned. He touched his head, and couldn''t help but clench his fists while he made a very ugly face. ''That b*tch!'' 60 Demon Cultivation Manual Arnin stood alone in the room. He couldn''t believe that Lyosi treated him in such a way. He felt anger, humiliation, and even embarrassment. The threat that he threw at her was as ineffective as an egg trying to break a boulder in a single hit. Quickly, Arnin began to calm his breathing. He collected himself, and shook his head bitterly. There were many types of people in this world, and it seemed that Lyosi wasn''t one of those who would get scared of someone like Arnin, who was more than ten years her junior. Finding the center of the room, Arnin sat down and closed his eyes. He had the circulation path for the time component memorized, and right now, all he had to do was see if it worked. If it did, then he would be able to attract more of the time component, and would be able to absorb it into his body. If it didn''t work, then the time component would just not come his way. It was as simple as that. Arnin started off by absorbing the worldly essence into his orb, but he soon began to take the normal wordly essence through the path that he had created. Usually when people started using the cultivation manual as a guide, they would circulate with wordly essence. After they gained an excess amount of essence, they would begin to separate it into the components that they needed. This was typically done during the Essence Manifest realm. Cultivators needed to collect a large amount of an elemental component in order to circulate with it. Arnin had to come to the fourth floor because there was a high chance he would be able to attract the time component. Although he had some time component inside his body, it wasn''t even enough for one circulation. He needed more. Slowly, time trickled by and Arnin had collected a large amount of the worldly essence that was around him. He then began the separation step that only Essence Manifest cultivators were usually able to conduct. The essence was split into many components. Sometimes a darkness component would appear, other times, space. Arnin would occasionally even find some of the more rare types, such as lightning. An hour passed, and Arnin finally found the component that he was looking for, time. "Haha! It works! The circulation works!" Arnin was thrilled. He was finally able to attract the time component through his circulation, and even found that there was quite a bit of it. This made him even happier. He speedily absorbed the time component into his orb, making the time mark around his orb much brighter. Seeing all of the marks laying on his orb becoming brighter and stronger, Arnin couldn''t help but grin. He had a head start in comparison to many people because of his early access to the ability of essence separation, and because of his seed of Neutrality. Only Essence Manifest cultivators around the realms of Hell or Heaven would be able to form elemental seeds, but Arnin had already done so. To further boost his advantage, his seed was a combination of three elements, making it extremely strong. Now that he was able to confirm that the time circulation was correct, Arnin pulled out some sheets of papers from his robe, some of which had the diagrams for each element that he would use. He then took out a blank sheet of paper, and began to draw. He needed to create a circulation method that would attract all of his elements together. This was very risky because if he drew something incorrectly, then he could possibly damage his orb and orb threads. Arnin had past experience with creating cultivation methods, however this time it was a little different. In the past, he would only need to create a breathing exercise that would take in the surrounding power, and then have it rotate around the center of his chest, however this time it was different. The method he needed to create had to start from his orb, travel through every thread, and then come back into his orb. Plus, he was creating a path for many different elements and they would have to travel through the same threads at the same time. If he messed up, the elements could conflict and cause a lot of damage. Arnin sighed as he continued to overlap the many circulation diagrams in an attempt to find some similarities. Hours passed, and Arnin had been sitting in the room for about three hours now. The two girls outside noticed this, and couldn''t help but feel a little worried. They had an ominous feeling that something might have happened to Arnin. "Do you think he is all right in there? He has been in there for hours." The girl with curly brown hair asked the other girl. "I don''t know, Telize. Maybe we should check on him." The other girl spoke with some hesitation. Many cultivators would take a long time in their cultivation rooms, some even lasting for a few days if needed. However to the girls, Arnin was just a child, so being in the room for three hours was already worrying enough. "Yeah, let''s go see if he is doing alright." Telize, who had led Arnin to the room, agreed with her friend. Both of them walked from behind the desk, and went towards Arnin''s room. The closer they got to the room, the more astonished their faces were. The first floor had various types of components and was already very chaotic, however the higher one went, the more chaotic the components would be. The fourth floor was much more dangerous than the first floor, and the closer they got to Arnin''s room, the more they felt that something was extremely wrong. The components weren''t chaotically crashing into one another, instead everything was very stable. This was very shocking to them so they both closed their eyes. They tried to absorb some into their bodies to see whether it was still difficult like before, or if it was actually as stable as they could see. A few minutes passed and the two girls opened their eyes. They looked directly at each other, not hiding their shock. "W-what is going on? How could the components be so calm and stable over here? Is it because of that little kid?" Telize asked the other girl, but the latter just shook her head, also clueless about what was happening. "Telize, I think that the only way we''ll find out is if we ask that little boy. I think he might know the reason." The other girl wasn''t able to stop herself from saying this. Although they had first thought that Arnin was just a little kid who lucked out by being able to come to the fourth floor, they began to change the way they thought. If the calmness of the components was caused by Arnin then he really was different from a normal five year old. He might even have some secrets that he was hiding. They were now in front of the hidden door that led into Arnin''s room. They could see the hesitation on each other''s faces. It was considered extremely inappropriate, and even punishable for someone to enter another''s room in the midst of their cultivation. The academy allowed for duels for cultivation rooms, however it did not allow entry into the room if someone was still cultivating. Disturbance could break their concentration, causing damage, or even possibly ruining any enlightenment they were going through. They wanted to give students a quiet place to cultivate for a reason. After the initial hesitation was gone, the two girls nodded their heads and Telize began to tap out the pattern. After it was complete, the door quietly opened up and the two girls slowly walked in. At first, they were unable to see anything, however once they entered the room, they were shocked. They could feel a dense amount of components gathered at a single point in the room. They were shocked when they found that it wasn''t just one component, but many different types, some even contradicting one another. They sucked in a cold breath of air when they saw Arnin sitting, and absorbing all of the essence. They didn''t even dare to breath in such a situation. At first, they had entered because of concern, and also some interest, however now that they saw that Arnin was doing alright, and was actually in the midst of cultivating, they felt very fearful. If Arnin was disturbed because of their entrance, it would be considered a major crime and they could be punished severely. The Lepidoptera academy took the act of disturbing someone''s cultivation very seriously. A common punishment was being locked up for at least a month without being able to cultivate, while a more severe punishment could be expulsion from the academy, however this was very rare. The girls stood in their spots very quietly, hoping that Arnin could finish soon so that they could leave. Sadly, that wish of theirs was not fulfilled. Arnin cultivated for another two hours before he slowly opened his eyes. Arnin had an extremely wide smile on his face. He couldn''t help but silently laugh a little. He was feeling a profuse amount of joy. Not only was he able to complete his cultivation manual, something else had also happened while he was cultivating. Since he was able to absorb lots of components directly into his orb, and even strengthened his threads because of the circulation, he had surprisingly made a breakthrough. It was a very silent breakthrough, almost unnoticeable, but the effect on his body was humongous. Arnin was now sitting at the peak of Orb Birth - Heaven. He was only one step away from Essence Manifest, and felt that if he continued to cultivate with manual, he would be able to reach that point very soon. Arnin still hadn''t noticed the two girls standing by the door, however when Telize noticed that Arnin was finally done, she calmed her tense heart and body, and walked over. "Little kid, you seem to have finished cultivating." She spoke with a soothing voice, however it also carried more respect in it. She noticed that when Arnin was done cultivating, the calm essence began to become chaotic once again. This told her that Arnin was the one that had caused the components in the surroundings to become calm and stable. He looked up and stared at the girl. When he saw that she was in the room, he frowned. "What are you doing in here? Don''t you know that it is a crime to come into another''s cultivation room while he is cultivating?" Arnin said with a deep voice. That deep voice of his sounded somewhat childish, but it still caused the two girls to shudder. "Little kid, we didn''t mean to walk into the room. You were in here for so long that we got worried but after we saw that you were alright, we didn''t have any choice but to stay. If we made noise while you were cultivating, it would have been a disaster." Telize looked at Arnin with pleading eyes. She hoped that Arnin was the type of child that would forgive others easily, however this thought of her''s was completely off. "It doesn''t matter whether you were here because of your worry or not. The fact is that you were here while I was cultivating. I wonder what type of punishment you will get for such behavior?" Arnin smiled wickedly as he spoke to the two girls. "P-please, we didn''t mean to. How about we give you this, and you can enter the fourth floor and below for free for a month." Telize quickly handed Arnin a card. "Telize, you can''t. That was specially given to you by sen--" Before the other girl could speak up, Telize gestured for her to quiet down. Arnin looked at the card and couldn''t help but feel somewhat joyful. A person had to pay a lot to get onto the fourth floor, and although they could stay for as long as they wanted, once they left the floor, they would have to pay again for reentry. With the card that Telize gave him, Arnin would be able to enter the first four floors for a month without paying a single point. He had to admit, it was pretty good deal. "Alright then, since you are begging so much, I shall spare you. Leave while I am still allowing you to." Arnin looked at Telize with a threatening glare, before waving for them to leave. The two girls quickly exited the room, leaving Arnin alone. "Now then, since this cultivation manual is complete, I should give it a name." Arnin smiled, and looked at a small stack of paper. There were descriptions and diagrams on the pages . This was the cultivation manual that Arnin had created for all of the elements that he was going to cultivate. "Hmm, let''s call this the Demon Cultivation Manual." It was a simple name, however he chose it because of his original form, and the people he hated the most. He was a Demon in the past, and it was other demons that had killed his family. This would be his only cultivation manual in Afloria, so he chose to call it such. Arnin then pulled out a small, empty book, and copied the manual instructions and diagrams onto the empty pages. Now, the Demon Cultivation Manual had been officially created. Arnin flipped through the pages, and nodded his head in satisfaction. After completing the manal, he began to circulate the essence in his body through the path that the manual showed. Since he had broken through, he needed to stabilize his realm, and see what exactly had changed. Another hour passed and Arnin was done with the stabilization. He let out a deep sigh and smiled. He found that his orb was much larger than before, and that his threads even gave off an aura of the various elements that were absorbed. Not only were his orb and threads affected, even the octogonal marks inside his body had a slightly changed. They were much larger than before, and they were scattered in many more places. He even found some around his orb. Arnin felt that he could most likely fight an Essence Manifest - Hell cultivator with some ease, and could possibly withstand a small fight with a cultivator at Essence Manifest - Heaven. This was great news to him. Everything that had happened to him during his cultivation period was positive. His seed of Neutrality looked larger than before too. He got up from his sitting positions, and began to do some stretches. Due to him being seated for so long, his body was somewhat sore, however it wasn''t too bad because his body was continuously absorbing essence components. Arnin walked towards the exit of the room, and headed towards the platform that led to the lower floors. He didn''t say anything to the two girls and just left. Since he now had a cultivation manual, he could begin creating cultivation stones as a Mark Master. As the two girls watched Arnin leave, Telize''s friend looked at her with some worry. "Why did you give him that card? That was a present that senior Su gave to you. What will you do if he finds out?" Telize let out a sigh when she heard her friend''s question. Senior Su was one of the big shots in the Moth group and he was also Telize''s fiance. Senior Su was incredibly strong and his name was known by almost all students in the Moth group. "What else could I have done? That was the only thing that I could give to him to let us off. If he complained, we could have been locked up for three months. How much cultivation time would have been wasted because of that?" Telize was bitter as well, however she could only try to calm down and think rationally. "That little kid really is such a devil. Couldn''t he just let us off? We went in because we were worried." The other girl snorted as she said with displeasure. Telize smiled at her, not commenting any further. ''Let''s just hope Su won''t find out. If he does, then that kid will be in trouble.'' She sighed before continuing her work. 61 Creating Cultivation Stones Arnin finally got onto the first floor, and headed towards the exit. Since he was now done creating his own cultivation manual, he could move onto creating cultivation stones. Then, he would be able to earn some academic points, and use them to buy what he needed. He didn''t go, and bid Surk farewell, rather he wanted to head straight to the Mark Master department. He walked out onto the large green field, and headed towards the forest that would lead him to the academy. As he walked through the grass, Arnin noticed that there were many students cultivating on the ground. Some were sitting on the grass, other on the rocks, and there even a few sitting on tree branches. Arnin noticed that the further he got from the tower, the younger the students got. Most of the students sitting around the border or middle of the green field were the same age as Arnin, and their realms were still at Orb Birth - Earth. Arnin understood that the kids here were more talented than the Butterfly students, however he didn''t feel that the gap was that large. He felt that if Akig came and was able to use his full strength, then there was a high chance that he would be able to beat these students up. However, that was on the condition that he would be able to figure out Akig''s special power or special body, if he had one. Finally, he exited the training field and forest. It took approximately twenty minutes to finally reach the Mark Master department. There were many more people than the first time he was there, but that was to be expected. People wanted to buy cultivation stones as soon as possible. Arnin headed towards the door that lead to the second floor, and found that the person sitting behind the counter was not the same old man who had implanted a strange thing inside his body. This time, it was a young boy around the age of eleven. Arnin decided to ignore him, and headed straight towards the second floor. When he got up there, he didn''t stop and kept going until he finally reached the third floor. When he got there, he found that there were about five people sitting on different tables. The floor was very large, so five people seemed to be almost nothing. Arnin understood that this was because becoming a Mark Master was very difficult. Not only would one have to be at Essence Manifest, but they would also have to have high control over Animus. Alchemists didn''t need to do this as Animus was not needed for Alchemy since the orb itself had the ability to control flames. Animus was more so related to Mark Making, and some other rare jobs. The five people saw Arnin coming to the third floor, and were somewhat surprised. However, they didn''t say anything. Even if Arnin was new, everyone knew that the third floor was only for Mark Masters, so they didn''t stop him. Although the five didn''t stop Arnin, that didn''t mean that their hearts were calm. They were all around the ages of twenty, and had dedicated a lot of their time to mark making, so seeing such a young Mark Master really hit them hard. They assumed that Arnin was an Assistant Mark Master, but even then, it took them until the ages of seven or more to become one. They shook their heads, and tried not to compare themselves to Arnin. If they knew that Arnin was not actually an assistant, but a Pink Level Mark Master, they might have actually fainted or gone into comas. One had to know that out of the five, only one was a Pink level Mark Master, and he was nearing the age of twenty five. Plus, he barely made the cut. Arnin slowly walked towards a table that had his name printed on. He noticed that out of all the tables, many had names and only a select few didn''t. He was happy to see that his working desk was in a corner, far away from others. This was something he liked. Arnin nodded his head, and looked up. He found that there was a window on the top that was letting in a small amount of sunlight. ''So this is how the Mark Master''s will collect their solar essence? Seems a little too small." Arnin shook his head, and decided to just go with it. He remembered that the mark making manual said to circulate the cultivation manual one was using and then begin to draw. As one drew, they should try to absorb the solar essence at the same time. This will allow the cultivation stones to gain some of the solar essence needed, however Arnin decided not to follow the last step. Why should he use the solar essence when his saber flames are much stronger? Arnin got in front of his desk and realized that it was too tall. He sighed at his small body and stood on top of his chair. He wasn''t able to sit on it since that would make it harder to see. Arnin stood on the chair, and looked at the large table. He found that the table had many things other than his own name. There were some books, a box filled with empty cultivation stones, another box that had nothing inside, and there were even papers and pens. Arnin looked at the set up, and concluded that the papers and pens were for testing marks out, while the empty box was supposed to be filled with completed cultivation stones. Arnin smiled, and picked out a cultivation stone. He looked at it for a bit, and began to draw the mark he knew about. His right hand''s index finger pointed forward as a small blade appeared from the tip. Arnin began to circulate his cultivation, and began to draw the mark. Arnin wasn''t creating a cultivation stone just yet. He was just trying to familiarize himself with the method. Arnin added in bits of the saber flames into the stone as he drew. A few minutes passed, and Arnin looked down. He found that a small pink mark had appeared. This showcased Arnin''s rank as a Pink Mark Master, however he was a little surprised. He assumed that he could only make a pink mark using his unorthodox method, but to his surprise, he was still able to make one using the generic method. ''Maybe it''s because of the strength of the saber flames, and the Demon Cultivation Manual being abnormal.'' Arnin concluded that these two factor played a large role in the creation of the marks. Right now, he just needed to practice creating marks, and after that, he would begin to create the cultivation stones needed. An hour passed and Arnin was finally able to familiarize himself with the technique. In front of him were about a dozen stones. Some of the stones had pink marks, while others were orange. During his practice, Arnin found that he would occasionally stop circulating his essence, or would even lose control over his saber, however he was still able to create a mark. If others were to know Arnin''s trials, they would have lost their minds. Normally when a person stopped circulating essence, their stones would burst apart, let alone create a mark. Even if someone would begin to lose their control over their drawing fingers, damage would be inflicted upon the stones, making them unusable, however Arnin was able to continue drawing under such conditions, and was even able to reach the Orange level. This was considered terrifying talent. Arnin stopped practicing after he was able to get three pink marks in a row. He then pulled out a book that was neatly placed on his table, and looked at the title, ''Creating Cultivation Stones I'' He flipped through the pages. The book was somewhat thick, but nothing terrible, only around a hundred pages or so. Arnin quickly went through the begining information, and found the most simple cultivation stone one could make. This cultivation stone would be the lowest level, and required one to use worldly essence. Arnin nodded, and found the marks needed and their orders. The shapes of the marks used were a language that Arnin was unable to understand, however after reading the description, he found that the collective marks meant ''neutral''. They allowed for anyone to absorb them, regardless of their cultivation method and element. Arnin made sure to read every step, and completely memorized it after he read it a few more times. His eyes glinted as he grabbed an empty stone, and began to draw. It was both easier, and harder than just placing down a single mark. It was easier because he didn''t need to insert any of the saber flames, while it was harder because there were more marks. Arnin worked slowly, and after doing it for about half an hour, he finally completed the mark.When he looked at it, he realized that it was orange, not pink. This disappointed him, however he threw the cultivation stone into the empty box, and grabbed a new stone from the stone basket. He thought that his skills would increase as he made progress and gained experience. Time slowly moved by at a snail''s pace, however that slowness allowed Arnin to create tens of cultivation stones. Inside the previously empty box, one could find many cultivation stones. The stones that were on the lower levels had orange marks, however the ones on the top were all pink. This showed that Arnin''s skills were increasing while he created the marks. Arnin had a bright smile as he made a cultivation stone in under ten minutes, and then moved onto the next. He was extremely thrilled because he found that his skills with the saber was increasing as well as he made the cultivation stones. This was one of the goals Arnin had. Soon, he found that he was able to make the neutral cultivation stones with ease, so he moved onto the next type. He flipped the page and found that it was a cultivation stone for the element of fire. After reading the description, Arnin understood why his unorthodox method was so amazing, and why one needed to be at Essence Manifest to be a Mark Master. A Mark Master would need to absorb essence into their body, and then separate it into the elements that they needed. They would then direct those elements onto their drawing pens or fingers and they would add them into the stone. Separating essence was a skill that people would only gain once they entered the Essence Manifest realm, however Arnin was still able to do it. He smiled before beginning the creation. The marks this time were different, and one needed to use solar essence, however Arnin didn''t because he could just use his saber flames. Just as Arnin was going to begin, he stopped. He thought about what would happen if he used the fire component from his Flames of Neutrality. Would the stone become stronger? Arnin decided to try this method. He had relatively high control over his Flames of Neutrality, so he was able to bring it onto the blade quite easily. Arnin circulated the essence in his body, and began to draw. This time, the process was much easier than the first time he drew the neutral mark. Because of his experience, he was now able to create the mark quite easily. Arnin then began to mass create the cultivation stones. Hours passed, and Arnin''s box was now filled to the top and it wasn''t able to hold anymore stones. Arnin wiped his head and was satisfied with his output of cultivation stones. Arnin didn''t feel physically tired, but he did have a splitting headache. ''This must be related to the Animus usage. Seems like I used too much.'' Arnin sighed but he was still happy with the result. He immediately picked up the box, and headed towards the first floor. One would need to hand in their created stones to the person behind the counter to retrieve their academic points. A Mark Master would usually have an assistant to these minor jobs, but Arnin''s assistant, Kurse, was in bed, unable to do it. So, Arnin had to do this job himself. As he walked towards the staircase,Arnin noticed that other than the previous five people, there about ten more people present, however, they were all teachers. Most of them were Butterfly teachers, but there was a rare Moth teacher also working here and there. When they all saw the box in Arnin''s hands, they couldn''t help but take in the a sharp breath of cold air, especially the five people who Arnin saw previously. They looked at Arnin as though they were looking at a monster. ''Did that create all of those stones himself? I don''t see anyone else from where he came.'' One of the five thought. ''This kid is a monster if he created those. What rank is he as a Mark Master.'' Another one thought, but still didn''t say anything. He had his own pride, and wasn''t willing to ask Anin for pointers or questions. He just kept doing his own work. Arnin traveled down the stairs, and finally got to the first floor. He found that there were less people than before, and so he walked over to the counter. There wasn''t a line since most people were still looking around, however they all noticed the box in Arnin''s hands. When they saw the various cultivation stones, they also couldn''t help but take in a deep breath. ''Which Mark Master created those?'' One of them thought quietly. They didn''t believe that it was Arnin because he was just too small, which made them all assume that it was someone else. The person behind the counter saw Arnin coming and smiled, but his smile froze when he saw the things inside the box. His face became pale, and he showed a large amount of shock. ''Pink! Most of those are pink leveled cultivation stones.'' He began to sweat a little. This sweat was not of fear, but of excitement. It was as if he was going to retrieve a large bucket of gold. "Little kid, how may I help you?" The boy looked at Arnin and said. "I want to sell these for academic points. How much will I get?" Arnin put the large box on the counter and took out his identity card. When the person saw this, he felt somewhat bewildered. ''Why are you taking your card out? Shouldn''t you give me the card of the Mark Master who created this?'' He didn''t say this directly, but instead questioned Arnin. "Little kid, would you mind telling me who made all of these stones?" He asked with a smile. "Sure. I did." Arnin replied with his own smile. The boy looked at Arnin with shock. 62 Flame Suppressant Pill Arnin replied to boy with a emotionless smile. He just wanted to sell the cultivation stones, and move on. Plus, he still had to relocate Vilis and Akig to the Alchemy Dimension. The boy stood behind the counter, looking at Arnin dumbly. ''W-what? This kid made all of these? T-there is no way that is true.'' The boy was in a complete shock. He was older than Arnin by a few years, however he was still only an Assistant Mark Master that wasn''t even allowed to practice mark making. "L-little kid, you must be joking. How could you cre--" Just as he was going to finish speaking, he saw an old man come down from the second floor. Arnin also looked over and when he saw the old man that he came, he couldn''t help but frown. It was the same person that had placed something inside his body when he first came to the Mark Master department. "What seems to be the problem here?" The old man looked at the boy behind the counter and asked. "Manager, this boy is here to sell cultivation stones, however he is claiming them as his own. I am not sure what to do." The boy was somewhat panicked but he explained what happened. The old man looked over at box filled with cultivation stones, and then back at Arnin. He couldn''t help but raise his eyebrows, however this subtle movement would have shocked many teachers. The old man usually was calm and didn''t show much of an expression in response to anything, so him raising his eyebrows meant that he really was surprised. "Did you really make all of these?" The old man looked at Arnin and asked. He already knew that the answer would be yes, however he still wanted to confirm it for himself. "Yes, I did, so can we move on? Just give me my points." Arnin was frowning as he spoke. He really just wanted the points. It wasn''t hard to understand. The old man nodded his head when he heard Arnin''s words. He then sighed and began to look through the box. After a minute passed the old man was done inspecting, and looked towards the boy who stood beside him. "Alright, give him a thousand academic points." The old man said his words calmly, however the boy was shocked. ''A thousand academic points? But these are worth eight hundred at most. Why is he giving so many?'' The boy thought this, but didn''t say anything. He didn''t want to get on the bad side of the old man since he sort of ran the Mark Master department in a way. His decision was final and no one could say anything about it. The boy quickly added one thousand academic points into Arnin''s card. Arnin nodded his head, and walked away without saying anything more. He didn''t know whether he got a large or small amount, however with one thousand academic points added into his card, it gave him a grand total of one thousand twenty three points. This was a hefty sum and Arnin felt that he could possibly buy many things with this. He might even be able to get himself some herbs for alchemy, or some good quality weapons. Arnin walked out of the Mark Master department, and decided to head over to his house in the Moth residential area. He needed to move Akig and Vilis over to the alchemy department. This was something he would have done a while ago, but he had other pressing matters he needed to attend to. After half an hour passed, Arnin finally reached his house. When he went inside, he saw a scene that dumbfounded him. Vilis, who was previously frightened of Akig, was purring on his lap. Not only that, but Vilis seemed to be a little bigger than usual. His overall size had increased and his power level was also a little higher. Arnin was shocked so he moved closer to see. Suddenly, Akig, who was lying beside Vilis, woke up and saw Arnin walking over. "Arnin!" Arnin nodded towards the boy, and went over to begin inspecting Vilis''s body. A closer inspection gave Arnin results that he never expected. Inside Vilis'' body, the power was somewhat chaotic. It seemed as though he was about to break through into Rank One - Heaven. This was equivalent to Essence Manifest - Heaven. Arnin looked over to Akig questionably. "What happened? Why is Vilis about to break through?" He knew that the way beasts cultivated was different from humans. They would devour other objects, and take their energy from them. They could kill a living being and absorb their energy to break through, however there was another way the beasts were able to become stronger. Evolution! "Well, we were walking around a forest, and ran into a two horned tiger. It had white fur that kind of looked like snow. Vilis attacked the beast, and began to eat it. Of course, I also¡­ ate¡­ some¡­" Akig spoke with some hesitation, however Arnin was shocked. Although many people did eat demonic beasts, they would first have to get rid of all the energy inside. The energy in a beast could cause damage to the human body and orb because of how different it was, but since Akig ate the beast with Vilis, that meant he was able to take in the energy with no issues. Arnin thought for a moment and came to the conclusion that Vilis was most likely evolving and that he would not stop at just Rank One, rather there was a high chance that he would enter the Rank Two category. As for Akig, Arnin began to feel that he was becoming more and more mysterious. "Akig, come here for a second. Let me check something." Arnin hadn''t actually checked the condition inside Akig''s body, and had only looked at his realm. Beasts did not have orbs like humans, instead they had something called demon crystals inside their bodies. These demon crystals worked somewhat like a human''s orb, but it also affected a beast''s bloodline. This was the reason people used demon crystals to suppress or tame beasts, as a demon crystal that was on a much higher level than the beast itself would forcefully suppress its bloodline. Not only that, but a demon crystal was like a cultivation pill for beasts. It would help to strengthen their bloodline, possibly resulting in an evolution event. When Arnin looked inside Akig''s body, he saw something extremely shocking. Akig did have an orb like a normal human, however a crystal was orbiting around it. Arnin was extremely shocked, and couldn''t help but look at Akig once more. ''So, he does have a special power inside of him. It seems like he''s related to beasts. Was one of his parents a beast?'' Arnin couldn''t help but question. It didn''t look like Akig had a special body as Arnin thought initially, rather it seemed that he was a hybrid between a human and beast. Arnin nodded his head. The demon crystal seemed like the only thing inside Akig''s body that came from his beast parent or ancestor, which was why he did not have any beast parts on his body. "Akig, let me ask you a question. Are one of your parents a beast?" Akig was stunned for a moment before his face became somewhat red. "Arnin, we are friends so I will not say much, but do not insult my parents." Akig had some anger on his face, but it seemed like he was suppressing it. Arnin shook his head and asked once again. "No one is insulting your parents. When I say beast, I mean like Vilis and his kind. Your body is different from others, so I have a feeling that one of your parents, or maybe one of your ancestors was a beast. Am I wrong?" When Akig heard Arnin, he calmed down and began to ponder. His eyes were closed as he thought about things related to his family. "I am not certain, but I think I might have heard about one of my ancestors having a wife that was a tiger beast like Vilis. However, that is only a rumor. No one knows for sure." Akig spoke with some hesitation. Arnin nodded his head and sat down quietly. He knew that the rumor was most likely true, or else Akig''s body would not have a demon crystal that only beasts possessed. He then began to think about the cultivation path that Akig should take. Although he had an orb, it didn''t seem like he had high talent due to that, rather his talent seemed to stem from the demon crystal. ''Maybe I should create a cultivation manual that supports both the demon crystal and the orb?'' Arnin had this thought but he knew that it would be very difficult. A beast didn''t use cultivation manuals since they devoured things to increase their power. Plus, Arnin needed to understand the elements that Akig would focus on, and this depended on what type of tiger beast his ancestor had mated with. ''Seems like I am going to need to pay a visit to Akig''s hometown soon.'' Arnin shook his head. He then pulled out a piece of paper, and began to scribble some words that were foreign to the people of Afloria. The language he used was that of the demon''s, it was the language from his past demon clan. Arnin finished making the contract and threw it towards Akig. "Sign the contract. Do not ask questions. If you want to become stronger, then sign it, however if you don''t, then you can leave right now, and find a way to become stronger yourself." Arnin looked at Akig threateningly. He wasn''t going to help him become stronger for free. If he was going to help him, he wanted some benefits as well, and that benefit would be Akig''s loyalty towards him. The contract that he gave to him was a servant contract that would bind his life to Arnin''s. No harm would be done, however if the master were to die, the servant would too. It was a parasitic contract. Akig hesitated for a moment before signing the contract with his name. Although he was extremely young, he wasn''t dumb. He understood some things, and knew about how the real world worked. Some people could be trusted while others could not, however had faith in Arnin. He believed that Arnin would not harm him, which was why he signed the contract. "Alright, now that we have finished that, let us head over to a new place I got. From now on, you will live there." Arnin said as he got up. "What about Vilis? Isn''t he coming as well?" Akig asked. He really liked Vilis, and had developed a good friendship with him when Arnin was gone. "Don''t worry. Vilis will join you right after he evolves. We can''t disturb him right now, or else something might go wrong." Arnin headed towards the door. Akig followed after a little bit of hesitation. Both boys headed towards the Alchemy building which held the dimension. Although Arnin was not allowed to bring others to the public area, Arnin had no other choice. He needed to get to his house and didn''t know any other way. Soon they arrived in front of the building and Arnin inserted his sphere into the hexagonal hole, which caused the doors to open. The same black wall appeared in front of him, however this time Arnin was the one leading. When they entered the dimension, Akig was shocked. His mouth was open and his eyes looked like they were about to pop out. "T-this place is amazing!" He couldn''t help but exclaim somewhat loudly. People nearby looked over, and acted somewhat prideful before looking away. They assumed that Arnin and Akig were new Apprentice alchemists since they were so young. Arnin walked over to the platform that would transport him to his house. "Akig, stay here and don''t go anywhere. I am going to quickly go and purchase some items." Arnin needed to get himself a small cauldron that he could take around with him. The large one in the basement of his house was not something he could drag around in public as it was too eye catching and heavy. Akig nodded his head, and sat down in the middle of the crowded platform. No one spoke to or disturbed Akig as he sat quietly. All the alchemists just minded their own business. Arnin walked into the public area and began to look around. Other than a pill cauldron, he also needed herbs and seeds, and maybe even some gardening tools. Arnin looked around and found many shops. Some were selling herbs and pills for points, while others were only looking to trade. Arnin entered the shops that would sell for points, and bought himself a bag of seeds. These seeds weren''t of high-level herbs, rather they were just for low-level herbs. Arnin just needed to create Orange level pills, so he didn''t need anything fancy or high leveled. Arnin used about twenty points to get himself at least a thousand seeds of various herbs. Seeds were much cheaper than herbs since the latter had already reached maturity, and could be used directly for pill making, while seeds needed to be grown, resulting in time being wasted. Arnin was carrying the seeds around in a large bag that was tied onto his back. With his small body and the large bag, Arnin looked quite funny to others. He, of course, ignored their giggles and laughter. He needed to find himself a cauldron now that he got the seeds. Arnin walked for ten minutes before finally reaching a place that sold cauldrons. "Hello there, little kid." An old man was sitting on a wooden chair as he looked at Arnin with a smile. Arnin nodded his head towards the old man, and began to search for a cauldron that met his requirements. He needed the cauldron to have ten holes for the fire, and have enough space to hold at least fifty pills. Not only that, but the cauldron needed to be made from materials that were extremely fire resistant. Ordinary cauldrons were resistant enough to handle normal fire, however Arnin''s fire was different. He had the Flames of Neutrality, so he needed a cauldron that was like Fasona''s, very high leveled. Arnin slowly looked through the shop, and began to walk in deeper, and as he did so, the prices also began to increase. The cauldrons he was looking at costed about sixty points. They were good, but they didn''t meet Arnin''s standard. The old man watched Arnin look around, and couldn''t help but smile and walk towards him. "Little kid, if you have a particular cauldron in mind, why don''t you tell me? I can help you narrow down your search." Arnin thought for a moment and agreed. He began to explain the number of holes needed, the size of the cauldron, and also the level of resistance he required. The old man stood in shock. He looked at Arnin weirdly before asking after some hesitation. "Little kid, which alchemist needs this cauldron? Although a big cauldron is common, ten holes are extremely hard to control. Even Purple Alchemists can barely control them. Would you mind telling me which alchemist needs this cauldron?" The old man spoke with reverence at the mention of a Purple Alchemist, which was likely because the Lepidoptera Academy only had a extremely small number of Purple Alchemists. Arnin thought for a moment, and decided not to mention who the cauldron was for. It was better to remain a little mysterious, and hide some of his cards so that others would be caught off guard when he did reveal his skills. "Sorry, I cannot mention his name." Arnin''s reply caused the old man to sigh deeply before shaking his head bitterly. "That is fine. People of such caliber usually do not like to be known and disturbed. This is normal." The old man looked at Arnin with a little more respect. Since Arnin was here to buy a cauldron for the ''Purple Alchemist,'' that meant he had some sort of connection with him. The old man gestured for Arnin to wait, before he quickly ran deep into the store. He came out a few minutes later with a red and black cauldron. "Here you go. This cauldron meets the requirement, and is also very special. It is made from the bones of a fire phoenix, and was discovered around the borders of one of the mysterious continents." The man smiled, and handed Arnin the cauldron. He looked at it, and began to silently inspect it. He was satisfied, but felt that the price would be much higher then he could afford. "Old man, I only have about a thousand points, so I don''t think that would be enough." The old man was somewhat shocked. Usually a cauldron at the level Arnin described would go for tens of thousands of points. The old man thought for a moment, before his eyes brightened. He nodded his head, and looked at Arnin. "Since you cannot use points, why don''t we make a deal?" The old man said. "Deal? What kind of deal?" Arnin was suspicious, and decided that if it was something too difficult, then he would just get the cauldron when he had the points for it. The old man quickly ran to the table he was sitting by, and opened a hidden drawer that Arnin didn''t even notice. He pulled out a sheet of paper and gave to Arnin. "You can take this cauldron as a gift for that senior, however I hope that he could concoct this pill for me in return." Arnin looked at the pill, and was somewhat dumbfounded. Purple Level Pill: Flame Suppressing Pill Flame Suppressant Pill: A pill that can be taken to suppress flames of the Hell rank. Can also be used to tame flames of the Sky level. Arnin was shocked at the description. He knew about the flames ranking system. They were ranked as Earth, Sky, Hell and Heaven. There were about ten thousand Earth flames, a thousand Sky flames, a hundred Hell flames and only ten Heaven flames. Inside each each category, they would be ranked based on their strengths and abilities. Most mortals could only use the Rank Ten Thousand Burning Earth Flame. It was the most simple of the all. It didn''t do much damage to cultivators, and was really only used for bonfires, and possibly to boil water. It was the weakest of them all. If this pill was able to suppress a Hell ranked flame, then its use was extremely high. "Alright, I will tell him about your request." Arnin nodded his head and quickly placed the formula inside his robe. Arnin didn''t even know the ranking for his Flames of Neutrality, but he felt that the original version of the Flames of Neutrality would be ranked as Heaven flames, however he felt that his version of the Flames of Neutrality were much stronger, and could place as peak level Heaven flames, or even higher. 63 Flickering of the Mysterious Page Walking out of the cauldron shop, Arnin''s expression was that of satisfaction. Not only did he get a free cauldron, he also got himself a Purple ranked pill formula, that in itself was an unexpected surprise. In the future, even if he didn''t give the old man a pill, nothing could be done to him since he was just an ''assistant'' for the supposed master. Arnin couldn''t help but grin at his own luck. All that was left was for him to do was go and buy some tools for gardening and planting. He had already bought some low level seeds, which were extremely inexpensive. All he had to do now was go back to his home and plant them. After that, he would wait until they grew so that he could use them for his own pills. He continued to walk through the public area, and thought about Akig''s condition. That kid was a hybrid human, and had the abilities of both a beast and a human. Arnin already planned on going to his village to find out what type of tiger his ancestor mated with, however before that, he had to do many other things. Arnin knew about many pill formulas that were specifically for hybrids who had yet to awaken their powers and he also knew ways to strengthen a beast''s bloodline. As a past Demon Lord, he was in command of both normal beasts, and divine beasts like dragons, so he knew many ways to power them up. His mind began to think about the many formulas that he possessed. He could only work with simple ones at the moment since Akig''s body was still extremely weak and he was not able to absorb too much essence. The gears in his mind turned until finally he remembered a specific formula that was specifically for the tiger beast race. Arnin had created this formula for one of his generals, the White Tiger Lord of the West. He was a divine beast that controlled space, and had power over all tigers. Not only that, but as one of Arnin''s four generals, he was the ruler of the west. In the beginning, the White Tiger Lord was just a small infant that Zhaik had found in a world where tiger''s ruled. Not only was the White Tiger Lord extremely weak, he was the target of every other tiger because of his easily seen white fur. Zhaik had brought the White Tiger back and Arnin found that there was some special bloodline deep inside of its body. Because of this, Arnin began mass experimentation on millions of tigers, some were tortured, while others were just test subjects. It was all just to find out whether every tiger had this bloodline. At the end of this experiment, Arnin found that every single tiger had a small amount of special blood, some had more, while others had less. The White Tiger that Zhaik had brought possessed the strongest and highest amount of that special blood. Arnin then created a pill that awakened that special blood, which allowed the White Tiger''s strength to soar so he could become the White Tiger Lord that ruled over the western part of the universe. Arnin knew that there was a high chance that Akig also possessed this special blood, but it would be much lower in quantity than the White Tiger Lord since the former was a hybrid. ''I can create this pill for Akig, however he might not be able to handle it until much later on. Maybe I can start by slowly strengthening his bloodline?'' Arnin nodded his head at the thought. Although he knew that creating another Divine White Tiger like the White Tiger Lord would be extremely hard, Akig would be able to get infinitely close to having such power. Plus, Akig also had the bloodline of the humans, who had the highest adaptability of all the races. There was a chance that a new type of tiger would be created because of his mixed blood. Arnin couldn''t help but smile at such thoughts. The stronger Akig got, the more useful he would be in the future. Arnin wasn''t going to keep anyone around unless they had some use for him. If Akig became a burden in the future, then the only thing that Arnin would do is get rid of that burden. After determining his next course of action, Arnin tried to recall the pill formula. Different amounts of information began to appear inside his mind. Bloodline Pill: A pill used to awaken the hidden bloodline of a beast. Has high amounts of energy and requires a strong physical body. One must reach the Emperor realm before taking the pill. Created by Demon Lord Arnin. Arnin nodded his head when he recalled the information, but he also sighed when he saw the requirement. The Emperor realm was a rank that was used in his previous life, and it was the second highest realm that was known in the universe, just below the Lord realm. That was the highest known realm, however Arnin had already far surpassed it, but one knew what realm he was at, not even the Heaven Lord. Since the Bloodline Pill had such high requirements, Arnin had to find a way to make it simpler, so that it would allow Akig to take the pill. He began to ponder the formula and the ingredients used. He looked through them and found that he needed the body of a Emperor level beast, a Devil Devouring flower¡­ A list of ten different ingredients appeared in his mind . Arnin shook his head as he knew that these were extremely difficult to find in Alforia. Although he could get all the herbs if he searched hard enough, the problem was the Emperor level beast. Not only that, but he specifically needed an Emperor level Tiger beast since he was trying to awaken a tiger bloodline. He already had all of the replacements for the herbs figured out. They were not too difficult to change since he just needed to find the lowest form of the said herb. For example, the Devil Devouring flower was the highest evolution of the low level herb, Blood Devouring flower. The only problem that Arnin was running into was finding a suitable tiger to replace the Emperor level tiger. A tiger that would be around the realm of Essence Manifest or Elemental Formation was suitable because he was making a weaker form of the pill. He began to think, and suddenly, it hit him. ''Vilis is about to evolve soon and he is also a tiger beast. Maybe I can use him as the replacement ingredient?'' Arnin smiled wickedly before nodding his head. Vilis would be used as the ingredient to replace the Emperor level Tiger beast. Arnin didn''t have much affection for Vilis. Although he found him to be better than most people, that didn''t mean that he was loved. Arnin knew that in the long run, Akig would be a lot more helpful than Vilis, plus it was very difficult to care for a beast like him, so since he would be useless, why not sacrifice him? Arnin was alright with his decision so he began to look for the herbs he needed. Since he altered the Bloodline Pill, and was making it for a low realmed person, he had to look for low level herbs. He walked around, and after an hour, he was able to find eight out of the nine herbs. All that he was missing was the rare Blood Devouring flower. This flower was very vicious, and although it was considered low level, one needed to have strong mental energy and lots of battle experience to acquire this flower. The flower had a special characteristic; it would release a baleful aura that would creep into a person body, slowly corroding their insides along with their mind. That person would eventually completely lose themselves to bloodlust, and begin a mass slaughter. As the slaughter continued, the flower would slowly devour the blood spilled, and use it to evolve into its next form. Arnin had been looking for a while, and had checked all of herb shops, but he was unable to find the flower. ''What a pity. Seems like I will need to ask Fasona, or maybe even Fae if they know where to find the flower.'' Arnin shook his head and carried the large amount of supplies back to the platform. Ever since he read the dozen cultivation manuals that Fae had given him, he never put them back into his interspatial bag. At the moment, the eight herbs and the formula for the Flame Suppressant Pill were taking up the space. On his back was the large bag filled with seeds, while he was holding the cauldron in front of him. ''I need to get myself another interspatial bag for larger items, or maybe even increase my control over space.'' Arnin had never used a interspatial bag in his past life. Because his mastery over space was extremely high, he was able to create space pockets and store items in them. This allowed him to carry around whatever he wanted. Arnin sighed and walked back to the platform. His goal of finding gardening tools was gone since he knew that he would be unable to carry anything else. Plus, he wasn''t allowed to bring Akig into the public area and make him carry stuff, so he would need to come back to purchase the gardening tools at a later time. Right now, Arnin only had about seven hundred academic points left. The herbs were very expensive since they were fully matured, plus they were somewhat rare. Arnin, however, found that they were actually sold for a good price. Of the ten ingredients he needed, he had gotten eight of the herbs, and already decided to use Vilis, so last one would need to be searched for later. He had a feeling that the Blood Devouring flower would be extremely expensive. When Arnin finally got to the platform, he found Akig sitting in the middle. He was looking at all of the people that vanished into thin air with shock and amusement. He had never entered a portal himself, so seeing others use one piqued his curiosity. "Akig, get up. We are heading over to my house." Arnin said in an expressionless tone. "Alright. What did you get? Did you get food? I am actually very hungry." Akig began his non-stop chatter, making Arnin a little irritated. "I didn''t bring any food." Arnin said with a wicked smile. "What? Why not? What are we going to eat then? You should know that I have a very large appetite. My dad would have to get me a full animal for a meal." Akig spoke with sadness yet there was also a hint of pride in his voice. It seemed like he was upset over the lack of food, however he was feeling very prideful at the mention of his own appetite. "Don''t worry. I didn''t bring food, but that doesn''t mean that you can''t eat." Arnin smiled, and hand ed him the cauldron. "Hold this for me." Akig held onto it with both his hands, while Arnin grabbed his left arm. He placed the sphere into the hexagonal hole before both of them vanished. At the location where Arnin''s house was, both of the boys appeared rather quickly. Arnin had his usual expression, however Akig was extremely pale. He then got onto his knees before suddenly¡­ *BEEURG* Akig began to vomit. "That was not fun at *BEEURG* all. Please don''t make me do that ag- *BEEURG*." Akig continued to barf, however Arnin ignored him. He grabbed the cauldron from Akig, and began to walk towards the house. "Don''t come in until you finish vomiting. I don''t want to dirty the house." Arnin was strict when he spoke. Akig could only helplessly nod his head as he sweated profusely, and continued to vomit. His face was ghastly pale, however Arnin didn''t plan to help him. Akig needed to get used to teleportation since the academy used it for transportation. Arnin walked into the house, and placed the big bag of seeds by a wall. Arnin then chose a room from the many available, and placed his interspatial bag onto the large bed. He didn''t plan on taking the herbs out just yet, but he did pull out the formula for the Flame Suppressant Pill. He looked through it one more time, and checked whether the herbs were hard to find. As he slowly looked through it, his expression became serious. Flame Suppressant Pill Formula: Five cores of Sky Flames that are ranked five hundred or lower. Three flame type demon crystals of beasts reaching Elemental Formation - Heaven or higher. One one thousand year old Wolf Howling Grass¡­ Arnin hadn''t looked at the ingredients needed until now, and when he looked over them, even he felt somewhat shocked. All of the items needed were extremely precious. The only thing that he could possibly get very soon were the three demon crystals, but other than that, everything else would be very difficult to find. A Sky Flame was rare, but finding the cores of those flames was even harder than finding a Blood Devouring Flower. A Sky Flame core required the condensation of the flame, and this would usually last at least a thousand years. Finding one was extremely difficult, let alone five. Arnin began to get a headache. He didn''t even think about the fact that such a precious pill would obviously require so many materials. He shook his head helplessly, and lightly massaged his forehead. ''Seems like I am going to have to find a way to collect all of these materials. Where should I begin searching?'' Arnin lifted his hand and rubbed his chin. ----------------------- Back at Arnin''s house in the Moth residential area, there was a hidden bag underneath a wooden plank. A sound came from the bag, along with a small white light. It sounded like the buzzing of bees, however no one was able to hear it. Vilis was in the midst of evolution, so he of course couldn''t hear it either. If Arnin was nearby, he would know right away that the bag itself was not making the sounds and releasing the light, rather it was the thing inside. The item was none other than the mysterious blank page that Fae gave to him. It was finally having some reaction, and it was also earlier than predicted. Silently, the page flickered for ten minutes before becoming silent once again, leaving the dark room in eerie silence. 64 Hybrid Akig finally stopped vomiting and came into the house. He started to look around and was extremely surprised. The house was a lot bigger than the one in the Moth residential area. "Hey Arnin, which room is mine?" He looked and asked. Arnin pointed to the room next door. "Take this one. This will be your room for now." Akig nodded his head, and walked into the room. The first thing he did was jump onto the large bed. *BOOM* "What happened!?" Arnin hurriedly came into Akig''s room and the sight dumbfounded him. The large bed that should have been pretty sturdy collapsed from the middle as Akig was right in the center of the wreckage. His face carried a weak smile as he embarrassingly got up and scratched his head. "This bed was a little weak. Hehe." Akig spoke awkwardly, however, Arnin then began to ponder something. He decided to ignore what happened and walked into the living room. He sat on the ground since there was no furniture. ''Alright, it seems like Akig''s weight is abnormal. This is probably because of him having the bloodline of a beast inside of him, making him heavier than normal people.'' Arnin nodded his head and took out a small booklet. He grabbed a pen from his room and began to walk towards the exit. "Akig, follow me. We will begin your training now." Arnin smiled and walked out. Akig was astonished before he became somewhat pale. "But, I haven''t eaten yet¡­" Just as he was going to say more, he saw Arnin glare at him. "Forget about food for now. You can eat soon." Arnin had a wicked smile when he mentioned food, however, Akig was unable to catch the intent and only thought of it as a normal smile. Both of the boys stepped out of the house and Arnin walked towards the forest. "Why are we going into the forest?" Akig questioned Arnin, however, he didn''t receive an answer. He looked slightly to his left and saw that there was a strong smile on Arnin''s face and he couldn''t help but shiver a little. Although he was still very young, he was somewhat able to sense something bad, and he felt that Arnin''s current smile was a little evil. ''What is Arnin going to do?'' They walked for about half an hour before finally entering deep into the forest. Even though the trees were not super plenty, the forest was extremely dark. It was as if it was night time. Akig looked around with a bit of fear as he trembled. "Arnin, what are we doing here? Why can''t we train back at the house?" He continued to question Arnin, however, Arnin didn''t answer him and stopped suddenly. Arnin looked around and smirked. He closed his eyes and began to inspect and see if there was enough essence in the area. After confirming that the essence was abundant, Arnin opened his eyes and looked at Akig. His face was no longer smiling and was somewhat serious. "W-what is it? Why are you looking at me like that?" Akig took a couple steps back as he felt somewhat frightened by Arnin. "Akig, let me ask you a question. What kind of place was your village?" Arnin suddenly began to ask about his village with confused Akig. "Just answer my questions!" Arnin said deeply. "A-alright. Well, my village was a large place with lots of people. We were near a small forest, however, the forest didn''t have any demonic beasts. Everyone was very nice and it was a happy place." Arnin nodded when he heard this. "Have you ever been in a place like this? Have you ever adventured alone in dangerous areas?" Arnin asked another question. "Never. My parents would never let me enter anywhere dangerous. This is my first time in such an area." Akig said without any hesitation. "Alright then. We will begin your training in a bit. First, let me do some tests on you." Akig reluctantly agreed. Arnin walked over and began to write down things like Akig''s height, weight, waist, etc. As he had done tests like these hundreds of millions of times, Arnin was able to calculate all of the information with just a touch or look. Arnin wrote all the information down in the booklet. Suddenly. He walked in front of a tree and punch it three times. The first punch was much weaker than the second, which was weaker than the third. Arnin looked at the three holes he made and noted something down on the booklet. "As you can see, I have made three holes in the tree. The first hole is is the size a normal Orb Birth - Earth cultivator could make. The second hole is for a normal Orb Birth - Sky cultivator, while the last one is of a normal Orb Birth - Hell cultivator." Arnin said and Akig nodded his head with some confusion. He understood what the holes represented after Arnin''s explanation, but what he didn''t understand was why Arnin punched the tree to make the holes. "Umm, why did you punch the tree?" Arnin nodded his head with the question and walked over to another tree that was similar to the one he punched. "Well, those holes represent the basic strengths of the different cultivation realms. What I want you to do and punch this tree as hard as you can. Use all of the strength that you have, don''t hold back anything." Arnin said with some serious. Akig was still a little confused, but he did just as Arnin said. He used all of his force to punch the tree. His fist landed on the tree and a small hole appeared. "Arnin looked at the hole and nodded his head. "Akig, again," Arnin said. Akig felt a small amount of pain in his fist, but it was bearable. Arnin noticed that Akig didn''t feel too much pain and wrote something down on the page. A minute passed and Arnin had Akig punch five times in total. He found that all of the holes were the same size and so he wrote it down on the page. "So, if you look at the five holes you made and compare them to the ones I made, which level of strength would you say you are at?" Arnin asked Akig. The later looked at his own holes and looked at the ones Arnin made. He closed his eyes and began to think. Arnin didn''t disturb and waited for him to think. "Well, my holes seem to be slightly bigger than the Orb Birth - Earth hole. Which should mean my strength is around Orb Birth - Earth, but why is this important?" Akig answered arnin''s question, but also asked his own. "You will know in a bit. Now, I am going to move a few meters back, and I want you to run towards me as fast as you can." Akig nodded his head and waited for Arnin to give him the signal. Arnin moved around ten meters away from his spot and gestured Akig to run towards to him. When Akig got to him around three seconds later, Arnin scribbled something onto the booklet. He then looked at Akig. "Wait here. I will be back in a second." Arnin suddenly vanished, leaving Akig alone. Akig looked around worriedly as he felt some apprehension towards the surrounding. A few minutes passed and Akig began to panic. Arni hadn''t returned and he was still alone in the forest. Plus, he was also feeling extremely hungry. *Rustle Rustle* Akig quickly turned around and tried to search for the sound. Fear was quietly building up, but then his nose began to twitch. He smelled something, something good. *Sniff Sniff* It was the smell of blood. Normally, Akig would have been frightened, however this time he had a completely different reaction. The smell made his blood boil and also began to increase his heartbeat. His eyes dilated and he began to move closer to the smell. Akig''s kept twitching as he continued to sniff. Not only that but the closer he got the more he breathed and it even got to the point where his mouth opened up and some drool began to escape. *Rustle Rustle* Suddenly, something rushed from the bushes. Akig tried to follow the sight with the best of his abilities. He used his nose to sniff out the bloody smell and when he turned around, here was nothing. *Drip Drip* The sound attracted Akig and so he looked up. His eyes suddenly became heated as his breathing quickened even more. On top of a tree was a dead rabbit that was soaked in blood. It was very high up and Akig tried to jump for it, however, he was unable to reach it. Akig stopped for a second before walking right in front of the tree trunk. With his fist raised, he launched an attack straight at the tree. *BOOM* His fist penetrated the tree, however, the tree didn''t collapse. Akig punched three more times before the tree finally began to fall. Akig watched the rabbit intently and when he saw it fall towards the ground, his body vanished and appeared right next to the rabbit. He quickly grabbed the rabbit and threw it into his mouth. *Crunch Crunch* The sounds of bones being chewed resounded in the forest. Akig devoured the rabbit as if his life depended on it. His eating style was more like beasts, rather than humans. *Ssss* The sound of sucking was heard from Akig. he sucked the blood from the rabbit and drank it like water. *Rustle Rustle* "Grrr!" Akig became to lightly growl at the sound. His eyes were bloodthirsty, however, when he saw a figure come from the bush, he dropped the rabbit. "Well done Akig." The figure was none other then Arnin. He looked at Akig with a smile as he slowly approached. Akig looked at the surroundings and saw a half eaten rabbit on his lap. "AH!" He quickly jumped away and looked at the scene with some fear. "Arnin, w-what happened?" There were some tears in his eyes as he looked at Arnin for some answers. Arnin smiled and walked over to the dead rabbit. He lifted it and inspected its condition. He nodded his head and began to write something in his booklet with bloodied fingers. "A-Arnin?" Akig looked at Arnin with tears. He couldn''t help but call out once again. Arnin looked over and saw that Akig was trembling with fear. He snorted before sitting down onto the grass. "Let me ask you a question Akig. Do you remember anything that happened after I left?" Arnin looked at Akig with a serious face. "I don''t know. All I remember was hearing a sound and smelling something before everything went dark." He explained with fright. Akig looked around with caution and even backed away from Arnin a little. "Well, let me explain what happened. Do you see this tree that collapsed?" Akig nodded his head, however, his body continued to tremble. "You did this." Arnin''s words were like drums bangning near his ears. "I-I did this? No way! You saw that my five punches could barely make holes in the tree." Akig denied the claim right away. He knew his own strenght and felt that it was impossible for him to do such a thing. "Whether you believe it or not doesn''t matter. It was your doing and that is an undeniable fact. You want to know something else?" Arnin looked at Akg, however, the latter stood frozen in his spot. "You were able to cover five meters in a blink of an eye. Not only that, but you were in the air for a but too. But it all happened in a blink of an eye." Arnin explained as he slowly got up. He lifted the rabbit and threw it towards Akig, who immediately took a couple steps back in fright. "This rabbit use to be a whole animal. You damaged it to this extent by trying to eat it." Arnin''s words continued to rampage inside Akig''s head. ''How is it possible? I am not this strong or fast. I don''t even eat raw animals, and when I do eat something I never make such terrifying marks.'' Akig was in his own thoughts as he was despairing. "Akig, let me tell you why you did all of this and how. Remember when you told me about a rumor that one of your ancestors mated with a tiger beast?" Akig nodded his head, however, his eyes were extremely unfocused. "Well, that rumor is actually true." Akig looked up and stared at Arnin with confusion and shock. "What do you mean? There is no way that is true. Humans can''t mate with beasts." Mating and talks about such things were very common. Most children would already understand some things about it. Akig also knew some things about mating and also knew that humans could only mate with humans. "That isn''t true. Anybody can mate with one another. Plus, a beast is able to become humanly at a certain cultivation realm." Arnin slowly explained and Akig began to pay attention more. "Even if this is the case, what does this have to do with me?" Akig asked with impatience. He was frightened by the things he did, but what frightened him more was that he didn''t even remember anything. "It has everything to do with you. When a human mates with a different race, there is a high chance that the offspring will die or there wouldn''t even be an offspring, but that there is another possibility." Arnin looked at Akig and had a dee smile. "What? What is the other possibility?" Akig was becoming frantic. Arnin couldn''t help but shake his head when Akig wasn''t able to figure it out with so many hints. "The last possibility is a Hybrid being born." Arnin started with a calm expression. "Hybrid? What''s that?" Akig was somewhat confused since he wasn''t able to understand the term Hybrid. "It''s when a child is born that has characteristics of both parents. That child will be half of each of the parent''s race, just like you." When Arnin said this, Akig took a couple steps back before falling onto the ground. His face began to warp as he looked at Arnin with fearful confusion. "N-now way. I am a human, fully human. I am not a hybrid!" Akig got up and quickly ran from the scene. "Childish!" Arnin snorted before vanishing from his spot. He reappeared in front of Akig. He held the rabbit that he threw towards Akig in his hand. "Stop acting like a brat!" Arnin raised his voice before quickly shoving the rabbit into Akig''s mouth. Tears fell from Akig''s eyes as Arnin forcefully fed him the rabbit. What made him even more fearful and sorrowful was that he somewhat enjoyed the taste. 65 The Tenth Floor *HMPHH* The sound of someone breathing from their nose appeared in the forest. It was a sad sound and one could even hear the breath tremble. Arnin was silently watching Akig eat the rabbit with tears running down his cheek. "Why did this happen? Why am I a Hybrid? Now, no one will like me." He finally finished the rabbit, however he felt extremely sorrowful. As a child, he didn''t want to be different from his friends. He wanted to be the same so that he could continue playing with them, however now that he knew he was different, he felt that no one would ever play with him. "Akig, you need to stop acting like a child. Being a Hybrid is not a bad thing, rather it is actually extremely rare and good." Arnin slowly explained. "Look again at all the damage you did. Do you think any of your friends could do this?" He asked. Akig was silent. After looking at the scene again and again, even he felt that his strength was extremely high. This type of damage was not something his friends could do, not even if they trained for many years. "What should I do then? Will people still want to be friends with me after knowing that I''m only half human?" Akig still had this concern. Afterall, he was still a child, and to him, friends were very important. Arnin shook his head, and couldn''t help but sigh. "You need to understand something, Akig. From now on, you will be staying here. You will not be going back to the academy until you are stronger." Arnin looked at Akig with little to no expression on his face. "In this world, people will want to be friends with the strong. If you are strong, everyone will be your friend, however if you are weak, then no one will like you." His words were like waves crashing onto Akig''s heart. What Arnin said was actually not entirely true. If the strong were the only ones that could have friends, than Arnin would have been the most popular person in the universe, but that wasn''t the case. People hated and feared Arnin, many wanted him dead, some even desiring to torture him, and make him live a life that would be worse than death. "What about my three friends? We always play together and they don''t care about my strength." Akig said in an almost mouse-like voice. "If your friends find out that you are only half human, they will hate you. Do you want that?" Arnin glared at Akig and questioned. "N-no! I don''t want to be hated!" Akig firmly rejected the idea of being hated. "Then you have to get stronger." Arnin said with a look of seriousness. He also felt that Akig was extremely strong and had great potential. All Hybrid creatures were extremely talented and powerful. "T-then what should I do? How will I become stronger?" Akig calmed down and got up from the ground. He wiped snot and tears off of his face, and looked at Arnin with resolution. ''I will not be hated! I will become stronger so that I can still have friends.'' "If you want to become stronger, then you will do everything that I say. I will make it so that in the future, no one in Afloria will look down on you." Arnin said with seriousness. When Akig heard Arnin''s words, he couldn''t help but become emotional, however he was also oblivious to one fact. ''Akig is such an easy person to control. Once he becomes stronger, I will be able to dominate Afloria with him as one of my generals.'' Arnin couldn''t help but inwardly smile. He didn''t care about Akig''s friendships with others, all he cared about was his usefulness. "Now then, the first step to making you stronger is very easy. You will live in this forest all day and come back at night. If you want to eat, you will hunt. If you want to drink, you will find water." Arnin''s words thundered inside Akig''s head. ''This is the perfect training method for him. He will need to embrace his animal instincts, and slowly awaken his tiger bloodline. While he is doing this, I will be able to collect all the ingredients needed to make him the low leveled Bloodline Pill.'' "H-how am I going to survive out here? The beasts are much stronger than me." Akig''s eyes became red once again. "Don''t worry, I will make sure that you aren''t here alone. I will allow your friends to train with you." Arnin smiled wickedly. He had a plan to make him stronger. "Really? My friends can come here as well?" Akig''s eyes brightened when he heard this. The three friends that he always hung out with were from his village. They grew up together, and so they were extremely close. If he could train with them, he wouldn''t mind hunting and eating in the forest. "Now then, I am going to head back. For now, you come back with me and once I bring your friends over, you will begin your training." Arnin turned around as he spoke and headed towards the exit of the forest. Akig was no longer crying, instead, he was feeling extremely happy. He looked at Arnin with gratification, however Arnin''s face carried a wicked smile. No one knew what he was thinking. Soon, they arrived back at the house. The sky was darkening and Arnin decided to leave the dimension. "You can sleep in the house for now. I will bring your friends tomorrow." Arnin walked towards the hexagonal hole inside his bedroom, but just when he was about to insert his sphere, he found Akig curiously looking down at the basement. "Akig!" Arnin said in a deep voice. He was startled, and quickly looked at Arnin, who had a serious face. "Yeah?" Arnin glanced at the basement, before looking at Akig once more. "No one is allowed to enter the basement. If I find that you have entered without my permission, then I will make sure that you stay weak, and have no friends." Arnin said seriously. Akig jumped back, before quickly nodding his head. He walked away from the stairs that went down in the basement, burying his curiosity. The sphere entered the hexagonal hole before Arnin vanished from sight. He appeared back in front of the Alchemy building, and went back towards his house in the Moth residential area. The sky was darkening, and Arnin wanted to head back to his home and rest. He had many things that needed to be done now. He had to find the Blood Devouring Flower, and begin the hunt for ingredients of the Flame Suppressant Pill. Not only that, but he needed to get stronger, much stronger. Arnin was a little excited about all of the things that needed to be done. The boredom he had faced as the strongest in the universe was now gone with all of the excitement in Afloria. ----------------------------- After reaching his house, Arnin noticed that Vilis was still in the midst of his evolution. He saw changes in Vilis'' body, and noticed that he was now much larger, and his fur was becoming somewhat lighter, with hints of white here and there. Not only that, but Arnin noticed an extra horn growing from Vilis'' forehead. Arnin nodded his head, and began to feel the fluctuations that Vilis released. ''Hmm, his aura is higher then Essence Manifest now. Let''s see how far he can evolve. He can''t go too high in realm cultivation, or I won''t be able to concoct the low level Bloodline Pill for Akig.'' Arnin''s expression became somewhat serious. Vilis had most likely reached the realm of a Rank Two beast by now, but his evolution didn''t seem to be nearing completion anytime soon. This was troublesome for Arnin. Arnin sighed, and shook his head. If Vilis'' strength did become higher than he wanted, then he could just try and strengthen Akig a little more. He walked past Vilis, and sat down in the middle of the room. He crossed his legs and began to silently cultivate. ''I have already created the cultivation manual, and even have an elemental seed from a combination of three elements.'' Arnin thought in his head. He already had the elements of light, darkness, and fire combined, but he began to think about combining other elements together. A combination were able to exponentially increase the power of each component, which made it very beneficial to the cultivator, however it was also extremely difficult to control and create. Arnin pondered which elements he should combine, but then he suddenly remembered a very important skill that he had in his past life. Reincarnation. This was a skill that Arnin didn''t have complete control over, as he could only use it on himself, and not on others. Although his control wasn''t high, he still had a good understanding of the power. Reincarnation was a mixture of life and death. One would die, and then gain life once again. This was an ability that every phoenix possesed. ''I have death and life stored in my body, so maybe I can try and create the seed of Reincarnation?'' Arnin considered. Once this thought took hold, it was hard to extinguish. Arnin smiled as he decided to create such a seed. Although there was a large chance of failure, or even a completely different power being created, Arnin wanted to try. Reincarnation was a very peculiar subject which greatly interested Arnin. In the past, he infiltrated the great Phoenix clan and began a massacre because he wanted to see how a phoenix would reincarnate after death. This whole experiment lasted about a thousand years before Arnin was able to understand what he wanted. The problem that frustrated him was that he could not control the reincarnation of others. He simply didn''t have the power to. Now that he possessed the elements of life and death, there was a chance he could control reincarnation. With that thought in mind, Arnin decided to head over to the Essence Tower. It never closed, and was always opened for students to utilize. He wanted to head over and see if he could create the elemental seed using the vast amount of essence. He got up and walked towards the door. *BUZZ* Suddenly, a buzzing sound began to resound in the house. Arnin raised his eyebrows and he looked around. *BUZZ* Arnin followed the sound, and found that it was coming from underneath a wooden plank. He immediately knew that it had to do with the mysterious page Fae had given him. ''Seems like there is finally a reaction.'' Arnin had a smirk on his face as he removed the plank and brought out the bag that contained the page. He pulled the page out, and noticed that there were some words written on it. He tried to read the writing, but found that it was in a language that he couldn''t understand. ''Maybe I need to research this language, or find Fae and have her decipher this for me.'' Arnin had this thought, but decided that he would figure out the information later. He only had some interest towards the mysterious page, so there was no need for him to wrack his brain to figure it out. "I''m going to first head for the Tower before doing anything else." Arnin prioritized increasing his own strength over anything else. It was one of the only things that mattered to him. If his strength didn''t increase, then what was the point of him reincarnating? Arnin stuffed the mysterious page into his interspatial bag, and quickly headed towards the Essence Tower. ------------------- An hour later, he finally arrived at the tower. Right now, he had an abundance of points. With around a thousand points he would be able to enter the tenth floor with no problem. Although the cost was very high, around 365 academic points, that would take a little more than a third of his total points. He found that the person who was at the first floor desk was not Surk, rather it was a teacher, but not only that, it was a teacher he knew. "Teacher Xaac." Arnin called out to him as he approached. The latter looked over, and was somewhat surprised to see Arnin. "Arnin, what are you doing here so late?" Xaac, of course, knew Arnin''s name after the whole incident involving him beating two students behind the Tower''s training field. "I am here to cultivate." Xaac nodded his head when he heard what Arnin was there for. Although it was late, there were still many students that were cultivating in the Tower. "Would you like me to help find you a room on the first floor?" Xaac asked with a smile,however it was a little forced. Initially, he only thought of Arnin as a very talented child, but after the whole incident behind the Tower, his impression of Arnin was a little different. "No, I want to go higher than that. I want to enter the¡­ tenth floor." Arnin words entered Xaac''s ears, almost causing him to fall down. "A-Arnin, you must be joking? The tenth floor is filled with the strongest students in the academy. All of them have already reached Elemental Formation realm." As a teacher, Xaac had to make sure that Arnin wouldn''t do anything that he was unable to do. Although he was aware that Arnin was extremely strong for his age, he knew that there was no way Arnin would be able to beat an Elemental Formation cultivator, at least not for now. "Teacher Xaac, it is alright. Just send me to the tenth floor. I will handle the rest myself." Arnin said without much of an expression. Xaac shook his head, and was a little hesitant before extending his hand out. "Alright, pass me your Identity card." Arnin handed it over to Xaac, who took out the points required. "Here you go." He then hesitated before asking Arnin once again. "Are you sure that you want to head over to the tenth floor? If you change your mind, I can immediately give you back the points." "Teacher, I have already decided." Arnin said before walking away towards the platform that would lead to the higher floors. Xaac watched Arnin disappear with bitterness. "These students really are becoming more and more gutsy." He said, before sitting down on a chair. Arnin appeared on the tenth floor. When he stepped off of the platform, he began to stagger. Sweat poured down, as if he was sitting right next to the sun. ''This floor really is much higher leveled. The amount of components is too high, and is even suffocating me.'' Arnin continued to sweat as a smile formed on his face. 66 Danger from the Flames of Neutrality The tenth floor was a place that even caused Arnin to feel pressure. This type of pressure might have been a problem for many people, however Arnin found it to be extremely good and beneficial. He took a deep breath, before closing his eyes and beginning to inspect the various components on the tenth floor. What he really needed to find was an area where there was an abundance of life and death components. As he began to sense his surroundings, he found that the life and death energies were mostly found to his right. There seemed to be enough for him to possibly create the seed he wanted. Arnin opened his eyes and walked towards the desk in the middle of the room. Since it was night, there was no student occupying the desk, rather he found another teacher behind this one too. This time, the teacher was a female with short red hair. Her eyes resembled the grey moon as she watched Arnin approach her without much of an expression. "How may I help you?" She asked. Unlike the many people who tried to obstruct his path or question him, this teacher didn''t do any of that. She went straight to the point, causing Arnin to nod his head. "I need a room around that area of the Tower. Is there any available room?" Arnin would prefer to get a room in that area, however if he couldn''t, then he could still get another. Although life and death were abundant in the area he pointed out, that didn''t mean that there was a lack of the components elsewhere. "Let me check to see if there are any." The teacher spoke professionally. Even her expression remained normal, not showing any changes. She pulled out a booklet and began to look through. Her eyes stopped looking after a few minutes and then she passed the booklet towards Arnin. "There is one room that is available, however you must duel for it." Arnin nodded his head, and grabbed that booklet. He looked at the person''s picture, hoping that it was the man who had humiliated him, but sadly, it was someone else. The person in the picture was a young man. He looked around the same age as Torne, however Arnin was shocked to see his cultivation realm. Name: Kosok Boyle Age: 21 Realm: Elemental Formation - Sky The information was vague, but it allowed Arnin to see who was a part of the real talent in the Moth department. Surk, who was around the same age as Kosok, was only at Essence Manifest - Sky. Arnin began to think deeply. He knew that there was no way he could beat Kosok with his current strength. He would be humiliated again if he tried to fight Kosok head on, however there was always another way. "Alright, I want to duel for this room." Arnin said. He had a plan in mind that he hoped would work. Since he had never met Kosok, and didn''t even know the type of personality this person had, Arnin was going to be taking a risk with his plans. The teacher nodded at Arnin, before walking towards the room where Kosok was staying. She did a series of knocks before the door swung open. Arnin followed the teacher in, however once he stepped in, he began to feel large amounts of life and death components try to invade his body. Arnin calmed his breathing before preventing anything from entering him. His orb had an attraction towards the death and life components since he had already made marks for them in his body. Inside the room, Arnin found that it was like a small field, however there something very peculiar about it. One could see that there was a strange slit where half the room had dead grass and shrubs, while the other half was filled with life. This discovery led to Arnin understanding that the room he was currently in focused on the death and life components. This was surprising since the Tower didn''t have calm elements. Every element was basically at war with one another, so making a room where two components were evenly distributed was extremely difficult. If once looked at the field that was filled with life and vitality, they would be able to see a man with spiky white hair. His robe was also white, making him look like a saint. His expression was calm and one could even find a hint of gentleness in his expressionless face. This was Kosok, a talent that even Arnin found to be somewhat impressive. The teacher walked towards the silent Kosok before speaking out. "Student Kosok, I know that you aren''t cultivating at the moment, so get up." The teacher said in an expressionless tone. "Haha, Teacher Spiras, you caught me." Kosok opened his eyes and smiled brightly at the teacher in front of him. He looked at her with more than just respect, which Arnin couldn''t help but smirk towards. ''This Kosok person seems to like this teacher.'' Spiras wasn''t oblivious towards Kosok''s small crush on her, but she still had an expressionless face. "Kosok, this boy here would like to duel for this room. You know the rules." Spiras briefly explained before pointing towards Arnin. The later nodded towards Kosok, who also nodded back with a smile. "Wow, the new students are very talented this year. Not only that, but this one here has quite a lot of courage. I like that." Kosok smiled gently towards Arnin before getting up. Teacher Spiras moved to the side of the room and began to watch the show with little interest. Arnin stepped forwards, and also smiled at Kosok, however this smile was neither gentile, nor vicious. There really wasn''t much expression or emotion in the smile. "Senior Kosok, I would like to duel you for this room, however I was wondering if you be willing to change the dueling style?" Arnin asked with a faint smile on his face. He wasn''t stupid enough to fight someone like Kosok with his current strength. "Oh? What do you propose?" Kosok asked with interest. He clearly knew that Arnin was much, much weaker than him. He also wasn''t willing to fight Arnin and beat him in a one sided battle. If Arnin could make the duel interesting, then he was willing to take him up on that. "I will give you two options. It is up to you which one you choose." Arnin smiled before lifting up one finger. "The first option is that you and me have a fight without using any of our essence. We will fight as normal people. Whoever wins gets to have the room." Kosok nodded his head. "What about the second option." The first option was interesting, but Kosok didn''t find it too enticing. Having a physical brawl seemed a little too¡­ primitive and brutal. Kosok wanted to hear the second one, and hoped that it would be more interesting. "The second option is that you and me competing with¡­ our elemental seeds. One attack each, and they will be launched at the same time. Whoever is able to make their attack last the longest, or even injure the other wins." Arnin said. This was the option that he was truly hoping for Kosok to agree on. "Elemental seed? Little kid, you are only at Orb Birth - Heaven, how will you even use such an attack. Only people at Essence Manifest - Hell or above can create an elemental se--" Before Kosok could finish, he saw that in Arnin''s palm, a small black flame began to appear. It was extremely dark, however in the middle were two smaller flames that revolved around each other. "H-how did you create an elemental seed?!" Kosok was extremely shocked. Even Spiras had her mouth opened widely and her eyes almost popped out. "It doesn''t matter how I am able to do this. Just tell me, which option do you choose?" Although Kosok could decline both of them, Arnin knew that he wouldn''t do that. Kosok looked at the flames intensely. For some unknown reason, he felt a great amount of danger from the flame in Arnin''s palm. This astonished him, however he wasn''t able to figure out why he felt such a sensation. ''No matter what, I am still an Elemental Formation realm cultivator. This boy might have found a trick to create an elemental seed, however mine''s is genuine. I shouldn''t lose to him, right?'' He felt a little hesitation. He looked over at Spiras, who looked back at him, waiting for him to make a decision. Kosok took a deep breath before calming his nerves. "Let us go with the second option. Each of us will send out one attack towards each other. Whoever lasts the longest, or is able to endanger the other wins." He agreed, repeating the rules once more. Arnin nodded his head before a small smile appeared on his face. "Senior, after you." Arnin gestured towards Kosok with a smirk. He was extremely confident in his Flames of Neutrality. He had seen the power they held in his previous life, and the one he had was even stronger, so he felt that winning would not be a problem. Kosok nodded his head, before bringing his hands in front of his chest. He struck his palms forward, forming a small white cube. Arnin looked at the cube with interest and found that it was completely created out of the life component. "Little kid, I will be using all my power in this attack. Surrender if you are not able to withstand it." Kosok still had some goodwill towards Arnin, which was why he was reminding him. However, he was still going to use all of his power in his attack. Although he knew that Arnin was still but a child, he felt an intense amount of danger from the Flames of Neutrality. This risk caused him to not underestimate Arnin''s flames. "I send those words right back at you. Surrender if you feel that you might be injured. Teacher Spiras, please make sure to save Kosok at any point." Arnin smiled wickedly as he arrogantly spoke. Spiras didn''t say anything, and continued to watch the flames in Arnin''s palm. As Kosok began to gather up power, Arnin also began to change the form of his flames. Right now, his control over the flame was extremely high. One could say that it was almost perfect, but there was still something that Arnin was not able to do with the flame. The two smaller flames inside were still silent and uncontrollable. This was the only problem that Arnin had, but other than that, everything else was perfect. Soon, the small flame on Arnin''s palm began to increase in size. It continued to grow, and quickly became much larger than Spiras and Kosok, however it''s growth didn''t stop. Spiras watched the scene as her eyes contracted slightly. The grey flames became so large that the grass on both sides of the room began to vanish like burning paper. This sight somewhat frightened Spiras, her body growing tense as she moved a little closer to Kosok''s side. Suddenly, the large flame in Arnin''s hand stopped growing and became extremely small. It turned into a shiny sphere, however that small sphere gave off a more dangerous feeling than the previously huge flames. ''These flames are not simple. Kosok might not be able to take them head on.'' This thought came to her like a wave, crashing and causing havoc in Spiras'' mind. She felt that it was impossible for something like that to happen, however the thought didn''t fade away. It only grew stronger as the grey sphere in Arnin''s hand began to get bigger. Kosok also felt shocked as he watched the scene in front of him, however he gritted his teeth, and finally formed a cube that was about the size of a chair. He looked at Arnin as his eyes grew slightly red. "I am about to release my attack. Get ready, little kid." Arnin smiled because his sphere was also completely formed. It looked like a shiny pearl that one would find under the ocean, however the color was grey. Suddenly, a beam darted out of the cube that Kosok formed. It was insanely quick, and even Arnin found it difficult to keep up. Something peculiar about the white beam was that it didn''t not travel in a straight path, but rather it travelled in a zigzag pattern, almost like a large white snake. As Arnin saw the blurriness of the beam getting closer, he began to control the small grey sphere in his hands. A large grey flame seeped out of the sphere, almost like a angered python. "Senior, take my attack!" Arnin also gave a small shout as his slow flames collided with the snakelike white beam. An explosion occurred as the two powers collided, causing Spiras to sweat. ''Those flames are¡­ too dangerous.'' 67 Suspicions A room was filled with both white and grey light. Sounds similar to that of a beast''s roar and a snake''s hiss resounded throughout the room. Grass that was both filled with life and death began to wither away like burning paper. The room was slowly losing it''s previous tranquility and splendor, turning into a world of ruins. In each end of the room, two people stood. Both had a different expression on their faces. The older man had the expression of horror and anxiety. Sweat poured down his face quicker than water in a raging river. His teeth chattered as if he was standing on top of a cold, snowy mountain without any clothing. His eyes contracted to the extreme, as if he was looking at a bright sun, not allowing any more light to enter his eyes. His extended hands were trembling excessively, his face ghastly pale, lacking a healthy color. On the other end of the room stood a child around the age of five. Contrary to the previous person, this child had an extremely calm expression. Not only was it devoid of any fear, a mocking smile was even plastered on his young face. His skin remained without a drop of sweat, his hands as stable as a mountain. Grey flames were entangled in a war with a snake like white beam. On the surface, it looked as though both lights were evenly matched, however if one took a closer look, then a horrifying sight would be meet the eye. The white beam that moved with the speed of sound was being devoured by the grey flames. They weren''t quick, however the flame met no hurdles; there were no pauses. Arnin watched everything with a knowing smile. He had already predicted such a situation, however even he felt that the power of the Flames of Neutrality was extremely strong. This was especially true considering they were still in the beginning phase where the seed had only just been created. Arnin could already imagine the insane amount of power the Flames of Neutrality would have once he began to develop the seed of Neutrality. If he reached the same point as Kosok in developing the seed, then he would be able to entirely destroy the latter''s life beam much faster. As the two powers were in the midst of battle, Spiras watched on with an ugly expression. She could tell what was happening and knew that Kosok would not be able to win such a battle. Not only that, but she also felt a hint of horror from the flames that Arnin was releasing. What really confused her was the kind of special skill Arnin must have had in order to create such a power. It was common knowledge that only people in Essence Manifest - Hell and above would be able to create and develop an elemental seed. Of course, people with extremely high talent would be able to create one a little earlier, but even then , they would have to be in Essence Manifest realm at least. An Orb Birth cultivator was not able to do such a thing through normal means, it was simply unheard of. This led Spiras to believe that Arnin had used special means to acquire such a power. As time slowly progressed, the expression on both Spiras'' and Kosok''s face began to turn even more grave. Arnin''s flames were too strong. The light beam was almost completely devoured. The result was clear, Arnin would acquire victory in the end. As both of them thought, something began to happen within the flames that made their expressions ugly, a transformation. If the flames before could previously be considered a rampaging bull that would get rid everything in its path, they were now like an enraged dragon. The intensity of the heat increased exponentially, and the flames grew a dozen times larger. It was as though the white beam was being converted into energy for the flames. Even Arnin was a little surprised to see such a scene. He thought that the flames only had the ability to damage, but he never thought they could absorb. ''This flame really is different from the past.'' Arnin recalled the first time he saw the Flames of Neutrality. Other than the grey color, the current flames were much too different from before. "Arnin, recall your flames. Victory is yours." Seeing that the situation was becoming much more grave, Spiras couldn''t help but shout. Arnin ignored her calls, and continued to send his flames towards Kosok. "Teacher Spiras, I believe that the duel stated that the other party must either be out of strength, or get hurt before the duel would end. Am I wrong?" Arnin smiled towards Spiras. Now that he could see a hidden ability of the Flames of Neutrality, there was no way that he would let go of such an opportunity to test its capabilities. "Arnin, stop your attack!" Spiras couldn''t help but shout again. As a teacher, she needed to make sure that a talent like Kosok was not hurt because of small matters. "Teacher, I don''t know why you are screaming at me. If you truly wanted to stop me, couldn''t you directly stop me or the attack?" Arnin scoffed at Spiras'' actions. So far, he had seen such a scene more than once. He knew that something was going on with the academy. If the teachers truly wanted, he would not have been able to make Torne a slave, or turn Kurse into his servant. Something was going on, and he wanted to find out what that was. When Spiras heard Arnin''s words, she couldn''t help but glare at him. She could indeed block Arnin''s move with her strength, or go and directly stop him. ''This kid!'' She thought, but nevertheless, she didn''t take anymore action. Kosok also saw all of this, and couldn''t help but feel a little suspicious. He knew that he was unable to resist Arnin, and also wanted Spiras to give him a hand, however Arnin''s words also struck him. ''She could stop him whenever she wants to, so why doesn''t she?'' This thought ran through his head, but he couldn''t think of a good reason. Arnin saw Kosok''s reaction and couldn''t help but smirk. Suddenly, the large flame that was about completely devour the white beam vanished into thin air. "Senior, I have won this exchange. Leave." Arnin showed no politeness. Since he won, there was no reason to act humble. He felt a little surprised, but he sighed in relief. He didn''t mind Arnin''s tone towards him, instead he felt some respect for his junior. At such a young age and low realm, he was able to create a elemental seed, even if this seed may have been created through special means. "Since you have won, I will take my leave. I will try to meet you later if that is possible." Kosok gave Arnin a mysterious look, before walking towards the exit. When he passed by Spiras, he looked at her with an expression that lacked both love and hate. There wasn''t any of the previous nervousness or giddiness, rather his eyes glinted with some other emotion. Arnin noticed this, however he only replied with a nod. Soon, both Spiras and Kosok left the room, leaving Arnin all alone. The latter sat down onto the ground at the intersection between the grass filled with vitality and that which was dying. Although damage was done to the room, it was still much better than the rooms of the lower level. His eyes were closed, however he didn''t begin cultivating right away. He had a smirk on his face, however it held a slight bit of mockery. ''What is this academy really trying to accomplish? This Spiras woman had the same reaction as Xillar; she didn''t protect Kosok when she had clearly been able to. Seems like I need to become more aggressive in order to figure out this school''s plot.'' Arnin had been suspicious of the academy for a long time. Ever since he saw the reaction Xillar had towards his words of destroying the academy, he had felt extremely suspicious towards the whole situation. If a person who was on the same standing as Xillar had said such words, then Arnin could understand a reaction like that, however Arnin was low in cultivation realm and extremely young. There was no reason behind Xillar wanting to hurt him back then, even if he ''joked'' about it. Not only that, but when Arnin began testing the school, he got some suspicious results. Back when he went to duel Kurse, he felt the presence of Xillar, however even after he made Kurse his servant, Xillar didn''t move. Xillar giving Kurse the Mark Master Assistant badge when he himself was not a Mark Master was extremely suspicious as well. ''That bastard, the principal, is probably up to something, and it seems that I am a focus.'' Arnin always thought that Xillar hiding around was very suspicious, however he felt that Xillar allowed himself to be found. Arnin shook his head, and decided to think about the situation later. He had been utilizing many aggressive tactics in order to attract the attention of the higher ups in the academy, however, it didn''t seem like anything was going to happen anytime soon. His treatment towards Torne and Kurse seemed to be ignored by the academy. Now, even Spiras was acting somewhat suspicious when Arnin was going to do something extremely bad to Kosok. Arnin began to circulate the Demon Cultivation Manual. Slowly, he began to absorb the life and death essence, however this time, he was not going to absorb it right away. He needed to create an elemental seed that might have abilities similar to reincarnation. He looked extremely weird from the outside as he collected an abundance of life and death energy in his body. Half of his clothes looked worn out, while the other half looked completely new. Arnin opened his eyes, and took out a piece of paper. Now that he was more skilled in mark making, he wanted to create a mark that combined both the life and death components. This was going to be similar to the process of creating the seed of neutrality. Arnin calmed his breathing, and began to draw out what he needed. -------------------------------------- Inside a dark room, four people stood present. It was extremely dark, however there was barely an ounce of light present. A small, dim candle in the corner allowed one to barely make out vague figures in the darkness. "Principal, that boy seems to carry a special ability." The person who spoke was none other than Spiras. She stood behind two people, her expression solomon. "Kelnorin has already informed me about the situation." The principal spoke without much of a change in his voice. "That boy seems to have the ability to make a elemental seed before even entering Essence Manifest. His talent is the highest I have ever seen, however¡­" The man became quiet. No one spoke for a while, but then another person sighed heavily. "Principal, should we get rid of the boy? It seems that Fae has made contact with that boy again. This seems to be the fourth or fifth time." The person who spoke this time was Kelnorin, standing directly beside the principal. "We need to get rid of him soon. Xillar, you continue to watch the child, and make sure that his contact with Fae is limited. Although she is from the others'' side, that doesn''t mean anything." "Yes, Principal!" Xillar responded with a grave expression. "Kelnorin, I want you to continue watching Arnin from afar while Xillar distracts everyone else. When you see a chance, try to strike that boy down. Even though his talent is high, there is a low chance that we can bring him over. Even the other side has made contact with him." The principal''s voice was different this time, there seemed to be some traces of ruthlessness and anger. "What about Fae? I don''t think that Xillar could distract her. Only I can fight her." Kelnorin said helplessly. "Not only that, but Fae isn''t alone." "Don''t worry about Fae, plans will be made for that woman." ------------------------------- Although Arnin didn''t know exactly what was happening, his hunch was right. Now only was he attracting the attention he wanted, he would even be able to begin the plan he had in mind. The academy, which seemed calm on the surface, was slowly beginning to get a little tense. However, only people like Arnin would be able notice such things. 68 Title at the End of the Chapter As Arnin began to draw the two marks, he used the same method as mark making, however he was using his own unorthodox style. It was the best, as it utilized the life and death components completely, which would allow him to better understand the new marks. Hours passed, and Arnin was finally able to create marks that used the life and death components completely, however, there was a problem. Instead of him having only one option like he did when he combined light and darkness, Arnin found that he had three different options. This was unexpected, and he took it very seriously. His goal was to combine life and death in order to create the seed of reincarnation. He didn''t want any other powers, but now he had to choose. This would have been fine if he could just find the one that gave off the aura of reincarnation since he knew exactly how it felt, however that wasn''t the case. All three of them were emitting an aura of reincarnation, and not only that, but they all emitted the exact same amount. ''What the hell is this? All three of them have the aura of reincarnation, but what are those other powers I am sensing?'' Arnin closed his eyes as he tried to figure out what the other unknown powers were. Another few minutes passed and Arnin was unable to tell what the three different powers were. He felt that they had some similarities, however he was just unable to decode what each one was. ''If I don''t even know what the three powers are, then how am I going to decide which combination of marks to use?'' This thought struck Arnin, causing him to get a small headache. He just didn''t know which to go with. ''If I were to choose the weaker one of the three, wouldn''t that mean that I have basically just wasted my time?'' Although Arnin knew that the unknown powers were just bonuses, that didn''t mean that he would try and select the weakest one. If he could get the strongest one, why wouldn''t he? Arnin sat in contemplation as he began to think about the three options in front of him. Right now, he had to make a gamble that affected his future cultivation with life and death. Although the effect would not be anything bad, he wanted the best outcome rather than the worst. Suddenly, an idea came to his mind. ''What would happen if I made them all? I have enough life and death essence to accomplish such an act.'' Arnin was smiling when he thought of this, however he stopped before going through with the procedure. ''No, that would just waste essence, and force me to nurture three different seeds. This isn''t a good idea in the long term.'' Arnin sighed when thought of this. He felt as though each of the three had their own specialties, however if he were to create seeds for all of them, then he would need to nurture all three of them evenly. Not only would this waste time and essence, but the three different powers might not be entirely compatible. They could be conflicting powers that would try to devour the others, which would ultimately harm his body. ''Maybe I can redraw the mark, but with all three of these designs in mind.'' Arnin nodded his head and tried it. If he could successfully combine the three marks, then there was a chance of creating an equilibrium between the three unknown powers, and the reincarnation aspect of the mark might be boosted in strength. Arnin took out a large page, and began to draw. Although these pages were normal, they were able to hold mark designs, however there was one problem. These papers were very weak when compared to the marks, which would force one to decrease the amount of components put onto the page to prevent it from being completely destroyed. This was also one of the factors that did not allow for Arnin to detect the unknown powers. Slowly, he began to draw a new mark. Of course, he was unable to do it on his first try, but after using nearly a dozen pages, he was finally able to create one. This mark, however, only had two of the unknown powers inside. Even though this was the case, Arnin couldn''t help but smile. At first, he was worrying whether these marks could even combine, however seeing it now, he knew that it was possible. He redrew them a dozen more times, destroying many of the pages in the process. Finally, he was able to combine two powers together again, but this time, one of the powers were different. This continued until Arnin was able to combine all three powers together with one another. However, this final step was the most difficult, as he needed to combine all three of the marks onto one page. He knew that the three powers were only able to interact with one another if there were a total of the two marks on a page, however he was unsure as to what would happen if he placed all three powers into one mark together. Arnin took a deep breath, and went back to drawing. "Haha! This power! Haha!" Laughter resounded inside the room that had less grass than before. There were craters, and even flames in the corner. It was obvious that the room was in an unstable position. However, all of this was not the weirdest part. If one looked at the piece of paper, they would notice a weird mark on it that was half black and half white. Not only that, but around the paper in a five feet radius, the grass was dying and regrowing simultaneously. Sometimes, the grass would become dry and dead, soon to disappear, however, it would then grow back and look completely revitalized. It was extremely weird, yet also fascinating. ''This is it! This is the mark.'' Arnin looked at the mark on the paper with his smile reaching his ears. After finding the mark that he needed, and seeing the power it released by just being on the page, he felt extremely excited. Arnin calmed himself down, and observerved his orb. Creating the mark inside his body would make things extremely difficult since he could see that the power level was extremely high. It was just as strong as the Flames of Neutrality that Arnin created, however unlike the Flames of Neutrality, which were peaceful inside his body, this new power was extremely aggressive and tyrannical. ''This may cause problems, but I need to control it.'' Arnin gritted his teeth, and began to draw the new mark onto his orb. A couple of hours passed, and the sun was already peeking out from the horizon. Arnin was just about to complete the mark, and only needed to draw a few more lines and symbols. Soon, the mark was complete, however¡­ *SIIIIIZZZZZLLLLLEEEEE* A sound that was similar to that of a frying egg exploded throughout the room. It became louder and louder, and noise of bombs exploding also began to sound. The whole room was rumbling as if there was an earthquake happening right under it. Arnin, who was the center of the sounds and rumbling, was not in a good position. His previously childlike skin would sometimes dry up and he would be near death, however the very next moment, he would look as if he was filled with lifeforce. His young body would wrinkle, and then become a new. His face was a ghastly pale, and his whole body was trembling greatly. Blood also slowly fell from his seven facial orifices, and his clothes were now completely gone. His body seemed to have bruises everywhere, and small bits of ghastly power even seeped out of his fingernails. Arnin scratched his body with his nails, as if trying to rip open his own skin. Clawlike cuts began to appear all over him. He was bleeding profusely, and looked like he was in extreme pain. ''This damned power, it is so painful! They won''t stay still, they won''t!'' Arnin screamed internally as he slowly opened his eyes. Blood continued to seep out, making everything red and blurry, however from the corner of his eyes, he saw something horrifying. The page that had the mark was wrinkling and disappearing. Arnin knew from the scene in front of him that this would be him sooner or later. ''No! I won''t let that happen, I am the Demon Lord for a reason!'' Arnin gritted his teeth as he tried to use the Flames of Neutrality to fight against the new mark he had created. Both of them had about the same strength, so the flames were able to counter them relatively well, however the damage caused by the fighting was even more devastating. ''This is not working! I need to find a different solution!'' Arnin could now only think, as speaking had become too difficult. Arnin''s options were limited. The Flames of Neutrality helped suppress the new mark, however there was still a lot of damage being done. ''What should I do?!'' He kept thinking about all the possible ways he could deal with the situation. His saber was extremely powerful, however he needed to manually control it in order to do anything, so this would not be a good decision. His tattoos did have abilities that could help, however he didn''t have complete control over them either. Plus, he didn''t exactly know how to activate them. ''Seems like there is only one thing that I can do.'' Arnin resolved himself, and resorted to the only solution he could use at the moment. Arnin''s mind slowly appeared in front of a large cube that was floating in front of the white saber. Although it felt extremely dangerous, Arnin felt something familiar from the powers. ''My powers, I shall use you to help me seal this mark and complete the seed creation.'' Arnin''s control over his powers was at perfection, however just a tiny bit of strength would absorb essence completely, and it might even destroy his orb. Although this was true, and the risk was high, Arnin knew that there was a way to pull out a small amount of power from the cube, and make sure nothing was absorbed. Although the amount would be very insignificant, almost like a small hair from amidst a million bulls, Arnin felt that even that much would be very helpful. The saber. This was something that had the abilities of both the tattoos and the orb. With the saber, Arnin could control some of his original powers without allowing them to do major damage, however the whole procedure was extremely risky. ''Let''s just take the risk!'' Arnin calmed his breathing, and began to use the saber to pull out some of his Demon Lord power. (Authors note: Let us call his original powers, Demon Lord power from now on. The rest of the powers will be the same.) The previously white blade was now completely black, however because the saber did have some of Arnin''s Demon Lord power during its creation, the saber''s ability to control the Demon Lord power was very high. Arnin led the Demon Lord power infused saber towards the tyrannical new mark. He then began to attack the mark ruthlessly, however he made sure not to cause it any damage. He wanted the mark to quickly transform into a seed like the Flames of Neutrality. Another hour passed, and the new mark was completely subdued. There was no more violent or tyrannical aura being released, rather the mark seemed extremely submissive. Arnin couldn''t help but sigh in relief, until another problem occurred. His moment of distraction led to the Demon Lord power becoming somewhat out of control. It began to travel throughout his body, aiming for the orb. He went extremely pale. ''Sh*t! It''s trying to absorb the orb!'' Arnin''s face became extremely ruthless. ''Don''t act so arrogant in here, I am your owner! Stay still!" Arnin yelled towards the power, and unexpectedly, the Demon Lord power halted. ''Go back into the seal!'' Arnin said in a serious tone. The Demon Lord power acted as if obeying a god, and went back towards the cube, and sealed itself. Arnin sighed in relief when he saw this. He knew that this only worked out because of the power being extremely insignificant when compared to all of his Demon Lord power. If there was any more, Arnin knew that his orb would have been devoured and he would have lost his chance to cultivate in Afloria. ''That was way too close. I need to make sure I find a way to control future problems like this without using my Demon Lord power.'' Arnin sighed, but shook his head, and continued to observe the mark slowly transform into a seed. He saw all the damage that happened to his body due to the Demon Lord power. Many of his threads were gone, and even his internal organs were extremely damaged. Arnin felt his body weakening, and knew that if he didn''t do anything soon, he would die. ------------------------------------------------ Kosok, who Arnin previously faced off against, did not actually leave the tenth floor. Rather, he was waiting outside Arnin''s door. He wanted to speak with Arnin, and had some questions. He had been out there for many hours and couldn''t help but begin to feel a little impatient. ''What is that kid doing in there? It has been so long already!'' He felt a little frustrated, but was also very curious. Although he would sometimes stay inside a cultivation room for a couple of days, he was only able to do so because of his patience increasing with age. Arnin was only five, and he couldn''t fathom such a child having such diligence in cultivation. ''Maybe this is why that kid is so strong.'' He shook his head and smiled bitterly. ''Seems like I am still incomparable to that kid.'' Kosok continued to wait as people who came out of their cultivation rooms looked at him curiously. ----------------------------------------- The seed was finally complete. Arnin stared at the seed that looked completely different from the flame like seed of Neutrality. This new seed, although shaped like a seed, looked nothing like his first one. The tip had two extremely tiny black and white seeds revolving around it. The main seed was three different colors, purple, green, yellow. Arnin looked at the three, and could finally feel what the three unknown powers were. When he understood, he felt extreme shock. The purple was Samsara, the green Nirvana, while the yellow was also another form of Nirvana. Arnin was dumbfounded. He knew that Nirvana had two stages, however it was considered impossible to achieve, or have control over both. For the first time, Arnin possessed both of the Nirvana''s powers. Previously, he was able to touch upon one of the powers of Nirvana, emptiness, however he was unable to master it. Now, he was able to obtain both of the Nirvana''s powers. Arnin was happy, also felt extremely worried. His internal organs were in an extremely bad state. He would die if he didn''t get any treatment. Plus, many of his orb threads were absorbed by the Demon Lord power, which weakened him greatly. He felt that his realm was sitting around Orb Birth - Earth at the moment. If he didn''t treat his condition right away, he would probably not be able to move further up in his cultivation, plus he might even die because of his injuries. ''That power of mine is truly not something I should unseal. Just that tiny amount, even smaller than a grain of sand, was able to put me in such a condition. I have been lowered in cultivation realm, and even my injuries are life threatening. What should I do?'' Although Arnin had was highly skilled in medicine, he just couldn''t do anything in his current state. He was barely able to move, for if he made any sudden or drastic movements, he would die on spot. Things were looking extremely bleak for Arnin. Suddenly, his eyes began to close. He tried to keep them open by gritting his teeth, but he couldn''t with his current state. His essence was slowly leaving his body, and blood also escaped from all over his body. Arnin could feel his organs not being in their proper spots. ''Am I going to die? Do I need to unseal my power in order to stay alive?'' Things slowly went black. Title: {New Elemental Seed and Life or Death Condition} 69 Second Thoughts Arnin was in a state of panic as his vision slowly blackened. He didn''t want to unseal his powers in order to stop the purge that was occuring inside his body, however he felt that if things progressed too far, he would need to completely unseal everything and turn back into his Demon Lord form. ''This isn''t going too well.'' Arnin felt bitter. On the surface, his body could be considered as unconscious, however, Arnin could see everything that was happening inside of his body. A large amount of his orb threads were missing, and even his organs were in a severe condition. ''Sh*t! What the heck do I do? I am not awake, so things are even more dangerous!'' Arnin would have been able to handle the situation better if he was still conscious, however he was not. He wasn''t able to move his body around, and wasn''t even able to find a way to heal himself. Right now, if he wanted to do something, he would have to depend on what was inside of his body. Arnin looked through everything and tried to see if he could find any solutions. Right now, the only things inside of him that were in optimal condition were the elemental seeds, his orb (not orb threads), the saber, and his Demon Lord powers. Although his orb threads were damaged and he was in a lower realm than usual, it still wasn''t anything life threatening at the moment. Although there was a chance of him dying if the essence continued to seep out of his body, that would not happen right away. The most important things to deal with currently were his physical injuries, however he just couldn''t figure out how. He needed something that would repair his organs, and allow his blood to replenish back to the normal amount. Right now, he was bleeding internally, and had lost quite a bit of blood. Normally if this were to happen to him, he would be able to use pills, or other special items in order to save himself, however he currently had no way to get to them. Another problem was that if he did decide to awaken his Demon Lord powers, then there was a large chance of him dying. His body was currently too injured to endure anything like that. Arnin knew that this was most likely one of the most grave moments of his life. Although he had been injured more severely, and had literally been to death''s door many times, he had his full power back then. He was able to hold himself longer and slowly heal, however right now that was impossible. Things were extremely bleak. ''What should I do!?'' Arnin was still extremely confused. He had never been placed in a situation where he was physically injured and had no way to help himself. Plus, he was also losing his powers slowly. He had nothing he could do to help himself. As Arnin was in this state, his new seed began to tremble. ''What the hell is happening now?!'' Arnin began to get a little agitated when he saw the new seed begin to react. ''Is this seed going to continuing attacking me since I am in this condition?'' Arnin cursed the seed inwardly. However just as Arnin was cursing the seed, something strange began to occur. The two tiny seeds that revolved around the tip of the main seed began to shine in a black and white light. The lights traveled everywhere around his body, however Arnin wasn''t able to notice any changes. After a while, the black and white light had traveled all around his body, and had even left some of their light in a few places. One could see a jumble of black and white light masking his injured organs, and also surrounding any other part of his body that was injured. Arnin assumed that this black and white light would start to heal him, however that wasn''t the case. Nothing was happening. They just surrounding his injured areas, not doing anything. After a few minute passed, Arnin saw another light appear, however this time the light was purple. It was the glow of Samsara. As if breaking through a dam, the light rushed out the seed and went throughout his whole body. Any place that had the black and white began to glow brighter. ''T-this¡­'' --------------------------------------- Outside the door, Kosok was still waiting, however he was feeling a little worried now. Although one could not feel exactly what was going on inside of the room, people could tell if the surrounding energy was changing or being absorbed. This would show if someone was cultivating or not. As he was standing right in front of Arnin''s room, he could tell that there was no change to the room''s essence. There was a large change before, however for the last hour or so, everything was silent. This very silence worried Kosok greatly. He didn''t have great feelings for Arnin, however he didn''t find him to be annoying either. In fact, he found the latter to be interesting, and even wanted to ask him some questions. Some were related to the elemental seed that Arnin was able to produce, while the others were related to the reaction Spiras had towards their duel. He wasn''t able to understand the reason, however a gut feeling told him that Arnin knew something. Kosok had liked Spiras since the day he saw her, however since she was a teacher and he was a student, a romantic relationship was considered inappropriate. Because he didn''t want to ruin his beloved teacher''s reputation, he never said much, but he always felt that Spiras might not hate him either. At least he hoped that she felt something more for him than just the feeling a teacher would have for a student. Yet, when he was dueling Arnin, she never tried to help him. He knew that Arnin''s attack would hurt him greatly, and also knew that Spiras was aware of this fact, but her not doing anything other than speaking once really hurt him. It was alright if she didn''t like him, but to just stand and watch him get hurt was a blow to him. This was the reason he was waiting for Arnin. He wanted to know why something like that happened. He felt that there must be a hidden reason that he didn''t know about. Plus, he was hoping that there was a hidden meaning, so then he would be able to feel less hurt, albeit slightly. ''What the heck is taking him so long. It''s already morning and people have headed to class. This is taking way too long. Is he even cultivating in there?'' Thinking about this, Kosok decided to go to the tenth floor information desk, and find out what was happening. (Author''s note: Imma call those desks in the middle of each floor, information desks. Like this was where Surk, Spiras, and the two girls were.) Kosok quickly headed towards the information desk, and found that Spiras had been replaced by another teacher. This time, it was a man who looked around the age of thirty. He had long hazel hair and white eyes. These eyes of his looked extremely weird as there was no pupil visible, but people around the same status as Kosok knew that the teacher in front of him had this condition because of a certain cultivation manual he used. It was simply a side effect of it. "Teacher Drem, how are you?" Kosok quickly asked. The teacher in front of him, although he looked young, was extremely strong, even among the Moth teacher group. Plus, he was considered a huge talent during his own generation. This alone was enough for him to receive great respect. Drem turned his head and looked at Kosok with his eerie eyes. For some unknown reason, Kosok felt a chill run down his back, and couldn''t help but feel himself become extremely pale. Not only that, but he felt somewhat nauseous. "So it is student Kosok. What can I do for you?" Drem smiled towards Kosok who felt everything turn back to normal. The latter couldn''t help but shudder when he remembered his previous state, however he kept a smile on the surface in order to hide his horror. He quickly walked closer, clasped his hands towards Drem, and slightly bowed. The other man nodded his head, waiting for Kosok to speak. "Teacher, I was wondering if you can look into a specific room for me. I want to know whether the person is cultivating or not. If he is not, then I would like to enter the room." Kosok spoke with a smile. The teacher lifted his eyebrow, but he still nodded his head. "Alright, please tell me which room you wish to look into." This was basic information that one was permitted to ask for. They were allowed to know whether the person was cultivating or not. Of course, there wasn''t a way to see what the person was cultivating and how, unless they were inside. "The room is in that corner, and is the Life and Death field essence room." Koskok explained. Drem nodded his head, and began to look through a booklet for the room. He found it and passed the book towards Kosok. "As you can see, the person inside is not cultivating, however the room is not free for dueling. This means that the person inside is either asleep, resting, or injured." Drem spoke with a monotone voice. No one knew how, but the rooms in the essence tower were able to determine what condition the person was in, however, there were only three different conditions that could truly occur. The first was the cultivating state, where entry was not allowed no matter what. If someone did enter at this time, then the rule breaker would be punished. The second condition was when one was done cultivating, and would be able to leave at any time. This would allow anyone to enter in order to duel. The last condition was similar to the second, however it was a little special. This would be when the person was exhausted from cultivation and would need some rest before continuing, or if they were injured and were unable to continue for a while. During this moment, one could enter the room, however dueling was prohibited. This was only to check on the person inside, in order to make sure that they were still breathing. The third condition was fairly normal in the Tower. People would often feel tired, or get injured quite a bit, so many would not enter the room even if this condition was listed. "Injured? Teacher, do you think that the person inside might be injured?" Kosok didn''t really care much for Arnin''s health, and he just wanted some information from Arnin. If the latter was injured and in no condition to speak, then that would be detrimental towards his cause. Drem rubbed his chin and pondered slightly. "I am not quite sure. As you should know, the rooms only tell us these three conditions. It is impossible to know what is really happening inside without actually entering the room." He spoke while shaking his head. "Why are you so worried? Is the person inside someone you know?" "Yes, Teacher. It is a friend of mine. He has been inside the room since last night and I couldn''t feel any changes from the room for the past hour. I am just worried that he might be injured." Kosok sighed a little. "Well, since it is the third condition, we are allowed to go inside and check what is going on. Let me lead you in." Kosok''s eyes brightened. This was exactly what he wanted. "Thank you, Teacher." Kosok bowed again, while Drem gestured him to stop with a smile. Soon they arrived beside the room, however something completely out of Kosok''s expectations occurred. Drem, who was previously smiling, now had a grave face. Sweat appeared on his forehead as he looked extremely alert now. "Teacher?" "Kosok, let me ask you a question. Who is the person inside? Tell me everything you know about him!" Seeing the grave expression on Drem''s face, Kosok couldn''t help but feel somewhat shocked and confused. "Well, from what I know, his name is Arnin. When I dueled him, he was at Orb Birth - Heaven, however his age only seemed to be around five or six. This is already quite incredible, but that isn''t all¡­" Kosok recounted all the things he knew about Arnin Drem, who was listening intently, couldn''t help but widen his eyes when he heard the different things about Arnin. He had never heard of such talent, and never even imagined it either. It was just too high. Almost all five and even six year olds would be a Orb Birth - Earth, and even in rare cases, the highest one would at the peak of Orb Birth - Sky. "What else is there?" Drem still couldn''t believe what he was hearing, however his face became even more grave. "Arnin, although only in Orb Birth - Heaven and extremely young, was able to create an elemental seed. Not only that, but the power of his seed was so strong that I was unable to do a single thing against it." Kosok spoke about Arnin''s Flames of Neutrality with fear and awe. Those flames were just too strong and magnificent. Drem almost tripped over himself. Everything he heard about Arnin already was unbelievable, however there something even more ridiculous? Elemental seed at Orb Birth - Heaven? And to add on to that, it was even stronger than the seed of an Elemental Formation - Sky realm cultivator? What the heck! "Kosok, are you sure that you aren''t making all of this up? This should not be possible, not even in the other four, or even the central section of the human continent. This talent, it is just too¡­" He didn''t finish what he was saying, but Kosok already understood the latter''s words. He felt shocked, but understood him as well. Although it still might be possible for someone to find another person that achieved the same realm as Arnin at such a young age, it was impossible to find someone that could form an elemental seed at such a low realm. Plus, that seed was stronger than an Elemental Formation realm''s cultivator. "Teacher Drem, every word I spoke was the absolute truth. Even Teacher Spiras was there to witness all of this." Kosok spoke with great seriousness. All of this shocked Drem greatly. He had very high talent as a kid, and could be considered one of the stronger Moth teachers, however even during his time, Arnin would be considered a monstrous, or a demonlike talent. People would have said that he was blessed by the heavens, or even descended from them. Such talent was just too amazing. Yet, all of this did not excite Drem, rather it caused his face to become extremely ugly. "Kosok, if everything you said is true, then something major might have happened inside the room." Before Kosok could even ask anything, Drem quickly did a series of knocks, before rushing into the room. Kosok followed, however when he entered the room, the sight frightened him. The two sides which were evenly cut into life and death fields were not in any good state. The essence in the room was in great turmoil with grass growing and dying at the same time. Plus, craters were everywhere and one could even see a small bit of multicolored flames burning away grass. In the middle of all the chaos was a bloody body. The whole body was a mess. There were lacerations and burn marks all over it. The body was drenched, as if the person had been swimming in a pool of blood. One could even see small bits of of internal organs lying around his mouth, it was as if the person coughed out pieces of flesh. The sight was gruesome. Kosok almost barfed at the sight, even with his high tolerance towards gore. Even Drem had a serious face. Both of them would have thought that Arnin was dead, if not for the slight rising and falling of his chest. "T-Teacher, what happened!" Kosok couldn''t help but ask while his face was ghastly pale. Right now, he had genuine worry for Arnin. The former was considered a very nice person who loved to see talents and newcomers rise. He was a person who many juniors adored because of his humility and kindness. Although he did just want to use Arnin for his own purposes before, right now, he truly wanted Arnin to stay alive. "I don''t know, however I need to report this to someone higher. They might know what is happening. You go and get a medical team here as quickly as possible. Go!" Drem was also considered a good teacher who looked out for the students. Although he would allow injuries and ruthless tempering of the students, he didn''t feel that they should die because of the tempering. The academy had a limit, and that was killing. Unnecessary deaths were things that the academy would not allow. Kosok nodded his head as he quickly rushed out the room. As soon as he left, Drem also began to rush out, however he bumped into a familiar face. "Teacher Xillar!" Xillar was older and more experienced than Drem. Plus, the latter looked up to Xillar slightly because of his passionate pursuit towards mark making, even though everyone knew that he was unable to achieve the step to become a Mark Master. "What happened?" Xillar had a serious face when he saw the panicked Drem. "Teacher Xillar, please come and look at this child. I found him extremely injured in this place, and it looks like he is about to die if he does not receive help." Drem spoke seriously. Xillar quickly went into the room. He had been following Arnin for a while, and also felt that something was up. However once he saw the condition of the boy, he couldn''t help but feel as though he was electrocuted. Arnin''s condition was extremely severe. "W-what happened?!" Xillar couldn''t help but raise his voice slightly. For some reason, he felt a slight pain seeing Arnin in such a condition. Although he knew that Arnin was meant to die, he still felt somewhat hurt seeing him like that. The first time he saw Arnin, he wanted the child to do what he himself couldn''t. He wanted Arnin to become a Mark Master and achieve his dream for him, but soon he was told to follow Arnin and watch him. Although Arnin was excessive at times and he even found the boy to be somewhat frightening and evil, there was still a bit of pride that he had. He had discovered Arnin''s talent in mark making, and even considered himself Arnin''s mentor, whether the latter accepted it or not. After the principal decided that Arnin should be killed, he felt like his heart had been cut into pieces. He had been watching Arnin ever since the latter entered the academy. Although he knew that Arnin was not going to be loyal to the academy, he never felt the latter to be a threat. He saw Arnin intently focus on his training, and even though Arnin did horrible things to Torne, Kurse, and some of the other students, he didn''t truly mind such actions. The real world was much more dangerous and wicked, if Arnin was already such a genius and possessed such ruthlessness, one could say that he was mentally ready for the real world. "I don''t know, he was like this when I came. A student told me that he was most likely in this state for at least an hour." Drem had serious look on his face. Although he was also extremely anxious, his reaction was more normal, while Xillar seemed to be a little more emotional. "Teacher Drem, go and find me the medical staff. Get me a physician right away. It would be best if you could bring Teacher Zilu." Drem was shocked, however he just nodded his head. After he left, Xillar couldn''t help but sigh emotionally as he walked closer to the dying Arnin. "W-what did you do? What were you doing in order to become like this?" Xillar couldn''t help but whisper. He suddenly felt extremely confused. He had always liked Arnin, and considered the latter to be like a disciple, however he never tried to stop the principal from trying to kill him. ''Maybe the reason I helped you when you were in trouble was to make sure you weren''t going to become an enemy.'' Xillar was extremely confused. He couldn''t understand his own feelings. He truly never wanted Arnin to become the enemy since they would be on opposite ends. His mission was just to observe him from afar, however he rushed to the scene to save Arnin many times, which made no sense to him either. "Xillar!" Suddenly, a voice came from the entrance. The latter looked up with somewhat dull eyes. "Is he dead? Wait¡­ no, he isn''t." The person who came in was none other than Kelnorin. "Teacher Kelnorin." Xillar''s face went slightly pale. He felt somewhat worried, and even a little anxious now. He didn''t know why, but he just didn''t want Arnin to die. "Since no one else is here, let us complete our mission and finish this kid off." Kelnorin''s face was ruthless when he spoke, however every word that came out of his mouth caused Xillar''s fist to clench tighter and tighter. Kelnorin began to walk forward as a spiritual blade similar to Arnin''s saber appeared in his hand. Right when he appeared next to Arnin, Xillar''s face became ghastly pale. "WAIT!" 70 Fae and Kelnorin "WAIT!" Xillar quickly screamed out towards Kelnorin. The latter knitted his eyebrows before looking at Xillar with confusion and even some irritation. "What is it? We need to finish this kid off and make sure that he doesn''t become a threat. Are you planning on disobeying the orders of the principal?"Kelnorin asked with anger. "N-no, that''s not it. Inspect him once more. He is not at that high of a realm anymore, plus he is dying already. Do you think he is still a threat?" Xillar pointed towards the blood covered Arnin. He still felt heartache looking at his current state. Kelnorin looked at Arnin and began to his own inspection. It was true that Arnin was dying, and that his cultivation was extremely low, plus it was continuing to decrease. "Even if he is already dying, then it shouldn''t matter if I end him now, right? Either way, he will die. Move aside!" Kelnorin continued to walk over, and his aura slowly seeped out of his body. Although both Xillar and Kelnorin were considered Moth teachers, there was a large gap between them. Just a tiny bit of Kelnorin''s aura suppressed Xillar. He couldn''t help but clench his teeth as he watched Kelnorin finally reach Arnin. The spiritual blade in his hand began to swiftly move towards Arnin''s head, which made Xillar close his eyes in deep pain and regret. *SWISH* Suddenly, both Kelnorin and Xillar heard something rushing in the wind. Kelnorin''s blade didn''t stop making its way towards Arnin''s head, however he looked at Xillar and screamed. "Block the blade. We have to kill him now!" Xillar looked at Kelnorin and the flying blade that was rushing towards the latter. He hesitated. Kelnorin noticed this hesitation and his face darkened. "Xillar! Block the blade, or else I will make sure you pay for your betrayal!" Kelnorin threatened Xillar, which finally made the him take action. Xillar rushed towards the blade, and just as he was going to block the flying blade, a shadow flew passed him with ridiculous speed, shocking even Kelnorin. He stopped his blade, and parried the incoming figure. *TIING* Two blades met one another. The shadow did a backflip, falling back, while Kelnorin had his blade ripped out of his hand by the shadow. His body also was pushed back a few steps. "Who is it?!" Kelnorin couldn''t see the figure''s face, however he felt that it was someone familiar. "Fae? Is that you!" The figure landed on the ground and dropped the blade that was previously in Kelnorin''s hand. Then, the figure lifted the hood that hid the face. "Hehe. Master Kelnorin, you are still as evil as ever. You would even try and strike an injured student? Do you not have any shame?" Under the hood, the face of Fae appeared. Her face held the smile that Arnin despised, however this time there was some killing intent hidden in her eyes. "You b*tch! You still dare to come here?" Kelnorin looked at the woman in front of him with anger and extreme hatred. Fae put on a face that looked as if she was offended. "How could I not dare? I was previously a student here, was I not? Plus, weren''t you my master back in the day?" Fae played with the blade in her hand while looking at Kelnorin with a smile. "Don''t you dare still try and call me your master. You are nothing more than a traitor that was willing to go to the other side!" Kelnorin crossed his hands over his chest. "Master, why do you still call us the ''other side''? Aren''t we all a part of the Academy Alliance?" Fae said with a pout, however this only caused Kelnorin to become even more infuriated. "Academy Alliance? Does your side even consider itself an academy? You are nothing more than a slaughterhouse. All of your so called students have their swords pointed towards one another. Murder is as common as grass in your dark academy!" Kelnorin said with deep hatred. Fae couldn''t help but shake her head and sigh. "Master, is your side any better? All of your students will eventually become puppets, only to be used by the academy until their deaths. Our academies may allow students to slaughter one another, however we also allow the to have their freedom." "Shut up! You dare to still call me master? Do you even know what that word means?" Kelnorin spoke with his eyes turning savagely red. Fae was his first and only disciple in the past. He treated her like his own daughter, however not only was he betrayed, but she also joined the other side that he completely loathed. "Yes, I do know what it means, however I don''t know if you do." Fae said with some anger. "What the hell are you talking about?" Kelnorin''s rampaging emotions were completely new to Xillar, who had only ever seen the calm Kelnorin. "You know exactly what I mean. I called you master and treated you like a father, however you only nurtured me to create another puppet for the academy. You are extremely despicable!" This time, it was Fae who lost herself in anger. Kelnorin quieted down. His face calmed down slightly when he saw his previous disciple become angry and lose herself. He couldn''t help but sigh. He then looked at Arnin and pointed towards him. "What are you guys planning on doing with this kid? Why are you trying to bring him to your side?" "I do not need to answer your questions. You should already know the reason we want him, however I wonder, why do you wish to kill him?" Fae asked as she slowly moved forward. Xillar kept his guard up, however he didn''t take a single step forward, rather he didn''t dare to. "You guys want his talent, and so do we, however if he becomes a threat, then he will be disposed of." Kelnorin spoke truthfully. He already knew that the other side knew the reason for the academy''s actions. "You guys are still the same. Well, I don''t want this kid dead. You have two choices. Either you let him stay in the academy without trying to kill him, or I take him with me to my side." Fae said as she finally arrived in front of Arnin, however she was only a few steps away from Kelnorin. "Why do you continue to give out pointless conditions? You should know me well enough. I will not let this kid live. As long as I live, he will be an enemy!" Kelnorin said as he completely released his aura. "Let me see how much stronger my dear disciple has gotten!" Fae also completely released her aura, her eyes looking at Kelnorin with anger and some conflicting feelings, portraying the complicated emotions she was feeling. "Let''s hope that you can still match up to me, or else this might be quite humiliating. Hehe!" Fae lifted her hand and put it over her rosy lips, laughing lighty. Both of them rushed at each other, not showing any restraint. Xillar couldn''t help but feel suffocated under the pressure that the two of them released. Kelnorin''s fist rushed towards Fae''s left cheek, however the latter dodged it and countered with a kick. Although the kick landed on Kelnorin''s stomach, it didn''t do much damage. Fae used the kick to push herself away from Kelnorin, who was also pushed back a couple of steps. "You have become stronger, Fae!" Kelnorin smiled viciously as he lunged towards Fae. "Master, it seems that you still have strength, even after living for so long." Kelnorin wasn''t considered old, rather he was actually quite young. However, one could not tell the difference because for cultivators, age barely affected their appearance unless they were willing to look older. Disciple and master, both of them held hatred for each other, saying that the other was the traitor. They attacked each other without mercy. Xillar watched on. The room was small, and damage was being done to the walls in the surroundings. They were both very close to Arnin''s bleeding body. This caused Xillar to panic slightly. Suddenly, both of the fighters stopped. "Fae, you know as well as I do that if we continue fighting, it will attract the attention of others." Kelnorin was lightly panting, however he still looked like somewhat ready for a fight. "Master, then why don''t we stop for today? We should continue in the future. I will escort this little one, so don''t try to stop me." Fae smiled lightly as her condition was much better than Kelnorin''s. Although they looked fine on the surface, only people around the same level as Xillar could tell that Kelnorin had received many internal injuries, while Fae received almost none. ''Even Teacher Kelnorin isn''t a match for Miss Fae.'' Xillar found the situation to be very alarming. Kelnorin was one of the strongest fighters in Lepidoptera Academy, and while Fae was also one of the strongest on her side, it didn''t seem like Kelnorin could get any advantage over her. As both of them stopped, Fae went towards Arnin''s body and lifted him up lightly. Kelnorin didn''t stop Fae, and only watched on with a calm expression, however one could see that Kelnorin''s body was trembling slightly. Soon, Fae disappeared from the room. Right after she left, Kelnorin fell onto one knee and coughed up large amounts of blood. "S-she has grown much stronger. I am no match for her unless I make a breakthrough." Kelnorin clenched his teeth, and pounded the ground with his right fist. Under all the anger and hatred, one could see that his eyes carried a hint of sadness and even some¡­ pride. Xillar stood by the side, not knowing as to what he should do. Suddenly, Kelnorin turned his head and looked at Xillar with a glare. "If you didn''t hesitate, you know that we could have killed that child, right?" Kelnorin said with anger. Xillar looked down and kept his silence. There was a high chance that Arnin could have been killed if he didn''t initially obstruct Kelnorin, or if he didn''t hesitate to block the speeding blade. "Since you brought us another threat, you will enter the punishment grounds for a month!" When the words came out of Kelnorin''s mouth, Xillar''s body trembled greatly. He looked at Kelnorin with fear, however seeing that the latter was extremely angry, he held back his words and didn''t say anything, silently accepting. ----------------------------------------- Far away from the Essence Tower, Fae carried Arnin on her shoulder. She had some blood falling down her mouth to her chin, however there wasn''t much else. She looked at Arnin, who was lying on her shoulder, and couldn''t help but shake her head. "It seems like you have become an enemy of the academy now. This is great!" Fae smiled and said, however Arnin, who continued to watch the amazing changes inside his body, didn''t hear a thing. Inside of his body, the purple light was gushing everywhere. All of the black and white lights were glowing brighter and brighter. Arnin could see that all the blood that was previously extremely chaotic was now calming down. Everything inside of his body was now calm, however his injuries were still present. Suddenly, another strange light appeared along with the black and white lights. Arnin looked closer and found that the new brown light that had appeared in his body was actually from the octagonal marks all around his body. Each of them shined with the brown light, attracting the purple light towards them. "T-this!" Arnin saw something that completely astonished him. When the purple light passed through the the brown light, a red drop would enter the symbols. New things slowly occured. The previous shining white light became green and rushed towards the injuries, as if adding life to them. The black light, on the other hand, turned grey, and rushed out of Arnin''s body, carrying something dark with it. Arnin, who was still unconscious, was extremely surprised, and even Fae, who was carrying Arnin, could see a grey light coming out of him. "W-what is going on with this kid!" 71 Purple Runic Eyes Arnin watched everything with extreme surprise. The white light that had turned green was actually not green, rather the thing inside the light was green. Arnin tried to feel what the green energy was and became extremely surprised. Vitality! The light carried vitality and life force. Arnin was shocked, however he began to understand something. As a past Demon Lord, his comprehension and ability to understand the unknown was much higher than normal people. ''Seems like my body is going through Samsara.'' Arnin came to a conclusion. He knew that his condition was so bad that high leveled pills would be required just to heal him slightly, however he didn''t have anything like that at the moment, but one thing he did have was an elemental seed that contained the two Nirvanas and Samsara. Samsara was the cycle of rebirth and Arnin knew that his body was going through a physical transformation right now. Previously, black and white lights had burrowed themselves all over his body, with his injured areas having the highest concentration of them. After that, a purple light began to move around, making the black and white lights turn brighter. Soon, a brown light, which Arnin knew was from the octogonal marks, began to also appear. The purple light then completed another circulation around his body, however this time, things became different. Drops of red blood entered the brown light while vitality and life force entered the white. Now all he needed to do was figure out what the grey light leaving from the black light was. Arnin inspected for a while and found that what was leaving his body was the exact opposite of life force, death energy. This was different from the death essence that one would absorb into their bodies to cultivate. When cultivating death essence, people would absorb it from the outside in order to increase their own understanding and control over death, however the body''s death energy was never touched. This death energy, which was inside one''s body from birth, would lurk around and try to deteriorate muscles, organs and anything really. It was harmful and the only job of this energy was to slowly kill the main body. Arnin was exhilarated seeing the energy leave his body. Arnin had only gotten rid of the death energy from his Demon Lord body when he first entered the Emperor realm. That took him hundreds of years to accomplish, but it was happening right now for this body, plus the death energy was leaving in enormous amounts. Arnin knew that he was currently being cleansed, and would be completely reborn when he next opened his eyes, however there was one thing that still worried him. His orb threads didn''t seem to be going through the same healing process, rather they continued to die and deteriorate. ''Is my physical body the only thing that is going through the rebirth?'' Arnin had this thought, and the more he looked at his dying orb threads, the more he was assured that this was most likely the case. His physical body would be greatly powered up later on, however he might not be able to live long enough because of his rapid decrease in essence. Time passed, and the green and grey finally turned back into white and black respectively. Arnin could see that there were no more injuries, but everything inside of his body seemed completely different. The organs that were previously injured shined like metal balls. His muscles, which were previously completely torn, looked extremely resilient, as if they were made from carbon fiber. Arnin was extremely happy with the physical changes he could see, however his orb threads and the loss of essence were still a large headache for him. ''Seems like I need to find a way to heal this.'' Arnin sighed internally. Fae had been carrying Arnin for over four hours. She had to make a couple of rest stops, not because of her exhaustion but because of Arnin. Although the later was still unconscious, she could sense that a great change was occurring inside of his body. Every half an hour, there would a large release of some grey energy which would cause damage to her own body. This frightened her, so she would stop and place Arnin down. This grey energy was very peculiar, and wasn''t something she could comprehend, however she felt that if it lingered around her for too long, then death was certain. It was because of this reason that she stopped and rested, allowing for the grey energy around Arnin''s body to disperse. "This kid is something else. What is that grey energy?" Right now, she was looking at the largest amount of grey energy she had seen yet. It was ten times larger in quantity than the previous outbreaks. This caused her so much fear that she moved at least ten meters away from his body. On the outside, the grey energy was rapidly exiting his body, while on the inside of Arnin''s body, there were no more flashing lights. Suddenly, the grey light outside of Arnin''s body began to transform. It turned from a normal ghastly light that lingered around Arnin''s body into a grey beam that shot into the sky with great speed. "W-what is going on!" Fae watched with horror. Where the grey light went, things would disperse. Some clouds would even disappear like burning paper. It was extremely abnormal and frightening. Fae''s mouth stayed wide open as she watched the scene with dilated pupils. The calmness in Arnin''s body was also completely gone. "What is going on? Isn''t the rebirth done? Why are the wounds opening up again!?" Arnin yelled inwardly. All of the great changes that happened before were gone. Although outside his body, a grey light was piercing the sky, inside of him, the purple light was turning into a large ocean. His organs were more injured than ever before and even his muscles seemed completely obliterated. ''What the hell?!'' Arnin cursed as his consciousness faded into the dark purple area. ----------------------------------- Ten days went by. This time, Fae was unable to move Arnin''s body at all. The grey beam was still present, however it was much larger and terrifying then before. She was over a hundred meters away from Arnin, but she could still feel the terrifying presence of the grey energy. There were no trees or grass around Arnin''s body. Clouds seemed as though they were hiding from the grey beam, while no animal neared the light. Fae was horrified, and even debated whether she should stay or not. What was happening around Arnin''s body was way too ridiculous. "I need to tell Headmistress about this. She needs to know about this before taking this kid in." Fae realized that Arnin was much more terrifying than she could have previously imagined. Suddenly, the grey light completely vanished. Without any warning or anything, it just¡­ disappeared. Right after the grey beam vanished, a green ocean like aura began to sweep through the area. This time, Fae felt extremely comfortable and safe. Grass that was previously destroyed grew with even more splendor. The trees that vanished began to appear everywhere, trying to pierce the sky. The clouds that burned away came out of hiding and began their lazy journey. "H-how?!" Fae was bewildered. Everything that was happening was too astonishing. As a well learned person, she had heard of many tales and stories, but right now, everything was almost too¡­ godly. Fae couldn''t help but think that Arnin was a god, albeit just for a second. The way things began to return back to normal and become even stronger and vitalised was something only a high realmed cultivator could accomplish. ''Is this kid really only at Orb Birth? Can he be stronger than the Headmistress?'' Fae had this thought but she shook her head, denying it. She knew that Arnin was not that strong. Plus, many tests were conducted on him, so there was no way that Arnin could possess such power. Fae just knew that everything she saw needed to be reported. --------------------------------------------- A few days passed, and Arnin finally opened his eyes, however the previous black in his eyes was gone. Right now, his eyes carried a tinge of purple. It looked extremely demonic. Arnin got up, and found that his body was naked. He looked around, however he didn''t see anything out of the ordinary. Suddenly, he caught sight of Fae from the corner of his eyes. He saw her standing a hundred meters away with fear and shock on her face. Arnin held his chin and thought about why this would be the case, and related it back to the events that happened inside of his body. His eyes became sharp as he looked at Fae with a deadly stare. "What happened while I was out?" Arnin needed to know what happened, and how much Fae had seen. The latter quickly rushed over, and looked at Arnin with a slight bit of trepidation. She noticed the change in his eyes, and couldn''t help but gasp. "Arnin, your eyes. They changed!" Arnin got up and reached for his interspatial bag, which was luckily still on him. It didn''t disappear with all of his clothes. He pulled out a small mirror, and looked at his eyes. When he stared long enough, he also couldn''t help but gasp. Others wouldn''t understand what happened, but he clearly knew exactly why his eyes changed, and what it meant. ''Seems like my physical body has been altered by Samsara.'' He knew that this wasn''t the only reason. His purple eyes were different from normal purple coloured eyes one would see in Afloria. His eyes carried with them a small rune like shape, which was hidden extremely well. The rune was shaped to look like eight small petals, each petal having two smaller horns. The shape was extremely mysterious, however Arnin had read something about Runic Eyes. ''Back then, I read about an extremely small group of people having this type of eye. These people are called Successors, however that is all I know.'' When Arnin was a Demon Lord, he visited the Heaven Clan, and was luckily able to ''borrow'' some of their books. In one of their books, there was a description of many mysterious occurrences. There were various topics, however a certain one intrigued Arnin greatly. There was a special type of eye that only a few selected people could possess. Just like the special bodies, these eyes also had their own abilities or drawbacks. These eyes were called the Runic Eyes. They would appear in extremely small amounts of people, and were one of the most rare occurrences in history. Not even those other places had many Runic Eyed people. Of course, everyone had a different Runic Eye, and a different color. There would never be the same Runic Eye, at least that had never occured in all of history. ''Haha! I have Runic Eyes! Doesn''t this mean I am also considered a Successor? But of what?'' Arnin laughed, but also became confused. People with Runic Eyes were called Successors, however Arnin didn''t know why this was the case. He had tried to obtain more information on them, and even confronted the Heaven and Hell Lords about the topic, however neither knew a thing. "Well, since I will be visiting those other places in the future, I could get more information from there." Arnin whispered quietly, however Fae was able to hear him. ''What places is this kid talking about? What information does he need?'' Fae didn''t speak out though. After Arnin consoled himself on the topic, he began to inspect the inside of his body. He completely ignored Fae. He looked at everything thoroughly and the more he looked, the more shocked he became. Currently, his physical body greatly resembled his Demon Lord body, however there were some small differences. His physical body was weaker than his Demon Lord body, however that was because he hadn''t trained it as much as his previous body, but that wasn''t something that Arnin considered important at the moment. The most important difference was that his muscles and organs were surrounded by a purple hue. The purple hue was actually the Samsara light, however it didn''t seem like it was ever going to disperse. It seemed as though the muscles and organs were connected to the purple hue, which made them look sturdier and even more mysterious. ''I obtained a lot in this, the Runic Eyes being the greatest benefit, however what should I do about my depleting essence and lost orb threads?'' 72 Fear and Excitemen Arnin silently stood in his spot, inspecting the purple hue around his organs and also his new Runic Eyes. These eyes, which only a small amount of people knew about in the whole universe, were now with him. This was a great shock but also a pleasant surprise. Arnin knew that at the moment, he was much stronger than before, only based on his physical body, however, his greatest concern was his depleting essence and orb threads. He sat back onto the ground with his legs crossed. Right now, he needed to find a way to prevent any more loss of essence, or at least slow down the process. ''This isn''t good. With the rate of depletion, it is only a matter of time before the essence in my body runs dry and I¡­ die!'' Arnin was feeling somewhat panicky, however, he kept his composure. He had been in many scenarios which were extremely life-threatening, however, right now he was in one of his weakest moments. The heaven-defying pills, godly physicians, or even demonic herbs were unavailable to him. He didn''t have anything to fall back on like the past, he had to completely depend on the limited resources that were available to him. His eyes remained shut the whole time. Fae watched Arnin silently. Although she was able to notice the change in Arnin''s eyes, that was it. She didn''t know what the eyes meant or even what was truly going on with Arnin. Of course, her not asking did not mean that she wasn''t curious, rather her curiosity was reaching the clouds. She wanted to know exactly what was going on with Arnin. After hesitating for a moment, Fae resolved her will and decided to ask. "Arnin, what happened? Other than the purple eyes, other weird things happened around you. A grey¡­" Fae quickly explained everything she saw. The latter didn''t notice it, but the more she spoke, the more Arnin''s face became grave and ferocious. ''She has seen a little too much.'' Arnin smirked slightly as his face became normal once again. He looked at Fae with a deep smile, which Fae was not able to understand. "So, all of that happened? That really is surprising. I truly don''t know what happened, I was just in so much pain that I fell unconscious." Arnin shook his head bitterly while showing a surprised look in his eyes. Fae raised an eyebrow and looked at Arnin for a few seconds before also smiling with the same irritating smile. "Well, if you don''t know then that is fine. Your physical body is better than before¡­" Fae said the words casually, however, Arnin was able to pick out the emphasis on the word ''before''. "Yea, I was in a very bad state before, luckily I was able to make it through." Arnin smiled while he spoke, however, his eyes didn''t show the slightest bit of goodwill. He didn''t plan to do anything as of yet, Fae was much stronger than him, plus he was already injured quite badly. "Hmm, although you look fine on the outside, your essence seems a lot lower than before. Would you mind allowing me to check your orb?" Although Fae spoke as if she was asking Arnin''s permission, her movement was anything but. She was already in front of Arnin and had her hand reaching for Arnin''s wrist. Quickly, Arnin pulled his wrist back and took a couple of steps away from Fae. "Don''t worry about that. I think I should be able to handle such a minor injury." Arnin made sure not to speak in the same manner as he would in the past. Right now, he was alone with Fae, plus he was not able to do anything to her. Even his Demon Lord powers were unusable. Just using a tiny bit almost killed him, plus he wasn''t even fully healed and death was nearing. If he released the powers again or even fully unlocked his Demon Lord powers, then death was guaranteed. Arnin knew that at his current state, being too aggressive or even getting on Fae''s bad side would result in a dire situation. Fae pulled her hand back as her smile grew a little deeper. "Are you sure? Your condition seems to be getting worse every second." Arnin inwardly spat. ''Does this woman not understand something so simple? Or is she doing this purposely? What is her goal?'' Arnin kept a slight smirk on the outside, however, he continued to talk down on Fae in his head. "I am truly fine. This is just a simple problem that can be healed with some pills and herbs." Arnin spoke as if it was an everyday problem, however, he knew that death was closing in on him. Fae looked at Arnin with a smile and after a few moments, nodded her head. "Alright then. If you say that everything is alright, then we can head back." Fae turned around and walked away from Arnin, slowly. Arnin waited until Fae was about ten steps away from him before following behind her. Although his cultivation realm was low once again and he had extremely low amounts of essence, his physical body was in an extremely good state. With just his physical body, he was able to keep up with Fae. --------------------------------------------------- Kelnorin walked through a dark hallway with his eyebrow locked together. Inside the hallway, there was no rooms or doors. Even a candle only happened to come by rarely. It was a very eerie hallway. After walking for around ten minutes, he finally reached a large, towering stature. The statue was of two insects. One a butterfly, while the other being a moth. He walked towards the right of the state, where the moth figure silently stood. He then used his left thumb to lightly cut his right palm. Blood slowly dripped onto the floor. Kelnorin extended his hand and placed it on a pedestal under the moth figure. The blood began to enter the pedestal and a miraculous sight occurred. *BOOM CRASH* The moth figure began to split from the middle. As if a door was opening, the moth''s body opened up, revealing a small staircase. Kelnorin walked into the figure and ascended the stairs. *BOOM BOOM CRASH* The thundering sound occurred once again, as the moth''s split body returned back to its previous state. ---------------------------------------- Arnin traveled behind Fae, who leaped from branch to branch. Luckily, he was able to keep up with Fae and he didn''t even lose much of his breath. It was all thanks to his new physical body. Fae turned her head and watched as Arnin kept a constant distance from her, however, he never once fell behind. She smiled slightly, but this time the smile had some deeper meaning. "Where are we going?" Arnin asked when he saw Fae looking at him. He wanted t head back to Lepidoptera Academy since he had a lot of things to do still, including Akig''s training and also he needed to abide by a contract and care for Lilise and Elidia. Yet, going back would endanger him, so he needed to find a way to get back to the academy without being hunted down by the teachers, especially Kelnorin. "How much do you know about the academies?" Without answering Arnin''s question, Fae asked her own. Arnin didn''t mind and just pondered for a moment. He knew that right now was the chance for him to learn more about the conflicts and parties of Afloria. Plus, the academy alliance was said to be a very strong alliance, but Arnin knew that not everything was as perfect as it seemed. "What I have been told is that the Academy Alliance is extremely strong and that every academy always has each other back," Arnin spoke about what he knew. When Fae heard this she shook her head slightly, which made Arnin''s ear''s slightly perked up. "That is both right and wrong. The Academy Alliance is indeed very strong, however only when facing external threats." "Does that mean that the academies are actually not so close?" Arnin asked with a slight smile. He began to feel somewhat excited. "Exactly. On the surface, the Academy Alliance is very strong and close, but that isn''t the case. The Alliance is actually split into two major groups. These groups have their own beliefs." Arnin closed his eyes for a moment to ponder something. "When you mean beliefs, do you mean religion or belief in say¡­ teaching." Arnin only mentioned religion because it was something major when related to an individual''s or a group''s beliefs, but he didn''t truly believe that religion was a reason for the conflict in the alliance. Fae looked at Arnin and slightly frowned. She stopped leaping and stood still on a branch, Arnin did the same. The latter watched Fae with a smirk. Fae lifted her right hand and grabbed her lower lip in a seductive manner. Arnin didn''t show any reaction and watched on with a smirk, however, his eyes hid a tinge of shock. Noticing that Arnin was unperturbed, Fae faintly pouted, however, this increased Arnin''s shock. "You really jest, little Arnin. Religion? Now is that really something an academy should have conflict over?" For some unknown reason, Fae''s voice was a little higher pitched and the rushing wind seemed to have stopped in its place. The leaves on the trees froze as if inside of ice. ''Could she really have¡­'' Arnin wondered. "Religion is not the reason for the conflict, your second guess was the correct one. Teaching!" Fae said as she extended her arms in the air and stretched, showcasing her curvy body. Arnin continued to remain silent, hiding the shock that began to grow in his body like bamboo. "Why would teaching cause such great conflicts? Even if there are disagreements, shouldn''t people with great wisdom find a middle way?" Arnin said in a questionable manner. He ignored the seductiveness of Fae and spoke his mind. Since he was ''five'' he could play it off as if he didn''t understand anything about the females. "That would be easy if the teaching methods were somewhat similar, however, the two groups have completely different ideologies," Fae said as she fiddled with her hair. "Oh? And those ideologies are?" Arnin had a thought on the ideology of the group that Lepidoptera Academy was a part of, however, he was unsure. Fae smiled with his pearly white teeth before extending her fair hand forward, waving towards Arnin. "Come closer, I will tell you secretly." Her smile seemed extremely beautiful and pleasant on the surface, however, Arnin felt something completely different. Killing intent. Danger. Arnin was not new to these feelings, so he knew that going to close to Fae would result in anything but goodness. Arnin waved shook his head and said with a smile. "That is alright, I will figure it out myself." Fae was surprised at Arnin, however, her smile increased and she couldn''t help but hum something silently. The roses are thorny And my blood may fall But keep them for me So I can have them all As if a silent devil was lurking in the forest, the silent tune was like a thunder strike to Arnin''s ears. Sweat slightly appeared on his forehead as he looked at Fae with something he hadn''t experienced in millions of years. Horror. ''She¡­ Has¡­ It¡­!'' Arnin shook his head as he watched Fae leap off a branch and continuing moving further away.As her figure began to blur, the sweat on his forehead increased, however a maniac smile appeared on his face. ''She has it! She has that¡­ that¡­ f*ck!'' Arnin''s smile grew wider and wider as if a tiger getting excited after seeing blood. Calming himself down, Arnin''s heartbeat became normal as he followed the distancing Fae. The smile on his face, however, didn''t vanish, rather the closer he got to Fae, the more demonic it became. The roses are thorny And my blood may fall But keep them for me So I can have them all ''Sing, you wretch! Haha!'' Arnin''s inwardly laughed when he heard the lullaby once again. His body was shaking as he closely watched Fae. His Purple Runic Eyes also had some movement. The runes began to move like snakes as if reacting to the lullaby that Fae continued to spout. Fae finished her little lullaby before turning her head, looking at Arnin. When her eyes met Arnin''s she froze. The evilness in Arnin''s eyes was not hidden, while his smirk seemed even more sinister than the depths of hell. She felt her body lose all movement and even felt as though there was a giant demon-like creature behind Arnin. ''W-what is this!'' 73 The Headmistress Arnin followed behind Fae with eyes that resembled a hungry beast. Fae decided not to look at Arnin anymore because of those terrifying eyes. For some reason, his new Runic Eye''s made her extremely scared, as if she was looking at some ruler. "W-we will arrive at the location in about an hour." Fae decided to break the stifling silence. It was suffocating her and just the glare that Arnin gave her made her want to die. Arnin didn''t reply with his mouth, rather he just smirked and nodded his head. His eye''s never left Fae''s back, he just kept staring. This caused the latter to tremble a little, however, she kept her composure. ''What the heck is going on? Why is this kid''s stare so weird and terrifying?'' Although she loved to tease Arnin and even get close to the latter, right now that wasn''t the case. She wanted to be far away from Arnin. "Fae, I have a question for you." Arnin finally spoke after a few minutes of silence. "What is it?" She asked after some hesitation. Unknowingly, she shivered when Arnin spoke. "I just wonder, where did you learn that lullaby?" Arnin smirked and watched Fae''s back tremble slightly. "Oh? Are you interested in it?" She asked with a shaky voice, however, she still tried to tease Arnin a little in order to hide any changes to her voice. "Very," Arnin said a single word, however, Fae felt as though she was being judged by the devils themselves. "So? Are you going to tell me or are you going to leave me curious?" Arnin spoke again with great interest. Fae didn''t turn her head and took a deep breath. Although she was still quite shaken, she kept her composure on the surface to the best of her abilities. "Well, if you are that interested, then I don''t mind telling you." Fae put on a ''gentle'' smile as she continued to jump from branch to branch. "This lullaby was created by me." When Fae said this, she secretly turned her head and glanced at Arnin. She tried to be as discreet as possible, not wanting Arnin to see her actions, however when she turned her head to see Arnin, her whole body froze. A towering image of a Demon with three horns. A long white saber in one of the hands of that Demon. This was what she saw behind Arnin. She blinked a few times and the image disappears, however a manic smile appeared on Arnin''s face. Sweat fell from her forehead and even her clothes were getting a little wet because of that. ''What the hell was that? That image!'' She kept these thoughts in her mind, however, she decided not to speak anymore. She wanted to report everything to the headmistress and see what would be needed to be done about Arnin. Arnin felt his blood boil as the runes in his Runic Eyes began to twist and turn. Of course, this was not seen by Fae and would be impossible to be seen by many people. His blood rushed and he felt his heartbeat accelerate. There was fear and also great excitement in his eyes. He continued to look at Fae and licked his lips. Arnin began to calm his breathing and reverted back to his previous state of calmness, however, no one could understand how much his heart was rampaging at the moment. ''This little thing really surprises me. To think that I would be able to find another person with that devilish physique. Last time, I wasn''t able to get a hold of the physique because of that woman''s early death, but this time I need to make great preparations.'' Arnin''s thoughts began to turn like a gear. A single woman appeared in his mind. There was no love or hate when she appeared, however, the only thing that ran through Arnin''s mind was obsession and greed. ---------- An hour passed and Fae finally led Arnin out of the forest. When they escaped the large forest, the first thing that caught Arnin''s attention was a certain smell. He sniffed the air a couple times before he looked at Fae with a smirk. "It seems that this place is not as clean as I thought," Arnin spoke with a smirk. Fae was shocked at Arnin''s words before showcasing one of her famous smiles. "No wonder you are different from other people. You really are a special case. You probably have figured out that the smell is of blood, am I right?" Fae looked at Arnin while maintaining her smile. Arnin didn''t answer and only smiled back at her. This time, Fae noticed a change in Arnin''s eyes. In the past, there would always be some disgust and annoyance hidden in his eyes when he looked at her, but now a completely different sparkle was present. It was dangerous and Fae couldn''t help but take a step back, however, this was an unconscious action. It was as if her survival instincts were warning her to stay away from Arnin. "Well, since we are here, would you mind telling me where this is?" Arnin turned his head and looked at the sight before him. Other then the smell of blood, he could distinguish that there was a lot of sweat and other kinds of nauseating stenches in the air. However, Arnin didn''t find any of the smells annoying rather he continued to maintain his smiling expression. The place that Fae brought him to was different than expected because all he could see was a large hill. This hill was different from other ones because of the tens of holes that were on it. "This place is one of the hideouts for the academy I am from," Fae spoke with a casual tone. She, however, kept an annoying smile planted on her face. Arnin nodded his head and began to closely examine the area. Everything else seemed normal, however, he felt a threatening aura from one of the holes in the hill. It was the hole directly in the center, plus it eh smallest of all the holes. "If you are going to continue lurking in the dark, then I might take that as you being hostile." Arnin smiled before speaking in a loud voice. Fae looked back at Arnin before looking at the smallest hole. There was some surprise in her eyes, but she kept it hidden. "Headmistress, this is the boy. You can come out now." She also knew that someone was hiding in the hole but that was only because of the person releasing there aura purposely for her to detect, but she had never thought that Arnin would be able to detect that subtle aura. "Hehe! This boy is really something different, I never thought that he would be able to find me so easily." A woman''s voice came from the smallest hole. Arnin Kept his guard up, however, he kept a mocking smile on his face. "So, it seems like you are the big dog around this place? Why the need to hide? I don''t bite." Arnin spoke ruthlessly. He didn''t fear being attacked by the other party since that would be detrimental to them. Arnin already figure that the other party had some uses for him, so there was no way they would attack him, "Little boy, you need to watch what you say. You never know when those words could cause your death." The woman''s voice had no fluctuation, it continued to hold some interest. "Maybe, but will you kill me. Rather, can you?" Arnin shrugged his shoulders and didn''t intend on backing away. "Haha! You really are a funny one." The woman''s voice sounded out from the hole. There was no anger in the voice, it continued to be playful and interested. Finally, the woman who was speaking from the center hole walked out into the open. She looked around her thirties, but Arnin could feel that she was much older than that. The woman had short silver hair and chocolate skin. Her eyes were ink-like, however, something that made her threat level really high was the fact that Arnin was unable to sense her power. ''Interesting.'' Arnin smirked when he was unable to tell what cultivation realm the woman was at. "I presume that you are the leader of this so-called cult?" Arnin continued with his sharp words. "Hehe, you are right. I am the leader, or you could say the principal." The woman didn''t get offended and just continued to casually speak with Arnin. Fae kept her silence, however, something that surprised Arnin suddenly occurred. The woman walked out of the hole and when he thought that she would leap onto the ground, he found that she began to slowly step on the air. It was as if there was a platform hiddenly put on the air for her, however, Arnin knew the real reason for this. ''Flight!'' Arnin was only shocked for a moment before smiling inwardly. The real reason he was shocked was not because of the hidden cultivation realm of the headmistress, rather because of the low cultivation realm needed for flight. From his knowledge, almost in any world he visited, the ability of flight was only possible after one reached the Fusion Realm, which was only two realms lower than the Emperor Realm. However even achieving this would require a talented person at least a few tens of thousands of years. Arnin knew that there was a possibility of people being in the Fusion Realm inside Afloria, however, he was certain that the headmistress was nowhere near that level. ''Seems like the order in this world is a little different than the outside. This weird power continues to intrigue me more and more.'' Arnin couldn''t help but smirk when he thought of the weird energy that powered Afloria. "Since you are here, let me introduce myself. I am the Headmistress of Thorn Academy." Arnin nodded his head before looking at Fae with a smile. "Does that mean that this so-called Academy is a part of the group that opposes Lepidoptera Academy?" Fae nodded her head with the same irritating smile, however, this time Arnin did not scoff. He continued to star at Fae and even licked his lips in front of her, allowing her to see every one of his actions. Fae couldn''t help but tremble slightly at such a sight. She quickly looked away and continued to stare at the headmistress. "How much did Fae tell you about this place and the two opposing sides?" Arnin felt everything distort in front of him before finding himself standing inside one of the holes. Beside him was the headmistress who looked at him with a smile. "I know nothing of this place and only know that there are two opposing powers in the Academy Alliance. She has told me nothing else." Arnin pointed towards Fae with his thumb. "Than, let me clear some things up for you. The two opposing sides have different methods of teaching the students. The side that Lepidoptera Academy chose was a gentle, yet snake like method. I won''t go into to too much detail though." Arnin nodded his head. He knew that right now was not the best time to know everything. Plus, he would be able to figure out things himself later on. "As for Thorn Academy, we have a more aggressive teaching style." The headmistress spoke with a mysterious smile. "When you mean aggressive, do you mean¡­" Arnin caught on quickly and also smiled somewhat. The headmistress gave an approving nod to Arnin before pushing his back slightly forward. "Keep walking straight, you will see what we do here." She spoke a little more before vanishing into thin air. Arnin nodded his head and walked into the dark tunnel. He didn''t have much hesitation, rather he felt some adrenaline. He already had a feeling as to what he would see, so he felt a little excited. Half an hour passed and Arnin noticed a light in the distance. When Arnin saw the light, he noticed a small red gas appearing around the exit. Arnin sniffed and smiled. ''Blood!'' Arnin walked closer and suddenly a few sounds landed in his ears. "Hiya! Hah!" "Take that! ARG!" Arnin walked towards the edge and when he saw the scene in front of him he nodded his head in satisfaction. It was a scene that he loved to see. Desperation. Fear. Anxiousness. Bloodthirsty. Excitement. Horror. Despair. These expressions that appeared in the faces of others were things Arnin enjoyed to see. Especially when he was bored out of his mind. In front of him, thousands of people were having a bloody battle. Death and tears were everywhere. Every single person on the ground was between the ages of twelve and twenty. There were blades in some hands, while knives in others. People were screaming in both fear and excitement. Others were crying with blades either entering their bodies or another. The sight in front would have broken down many people, and probably would have angered them, however to Arnin, such a scene was nostalgic. It reminded him of the battlefields that he would go to during his time as a Demon Lord. Of course, back then things were much more horrifying. Death was a wish many had back then. Suddenly, Arnin felt something tap his back, pushing him forward, towards the battlefield. He turned his head and saw the Headmistress looking at him with a smirk. "This is a test for you. Make it out alive and prove to me that I didn''t waste my time." She then disappeared. Arnin ignored the Headmistress'' words. He wasn''t going to do things for her, rather he wanted to join the battlefield in front. ''Although I am losing essence quickly and death is near, that doesn''t mean I cannot fight. Let''s test out how great this new body of mine is!'' 74 Bleeding All Over Falling from a great height, the wind pushed against Arnin''s body. His hair was rapidly swaying as a deep smile appeared on his face. Closing in on the battlefield, Arnin felt that his body was becoming tenser and a type of essence was entering his body. Arnin looked around as he fell and found that the essence entering his body was red, while inside of his body he saw his blood begin to boil and showcase a splendid light. ''Blood component! This is blood component and it seems to be affecting my new body greatly!'' Arnin''s smile became more wicked as he fast approached the battlefield. Amongst the constant fighting and killing, no one noticed Arnin arriving on the battlefield. Everyone was busy trying to kill or keep themselves alive. By a tall rock wall, a group of ten people was looking at a little girl. She looked around the age of ten, her body filled with lacerations and bruises. She had torn clothes and blood seeping out of her pale lips. Her breathing was stagnating and her eyes were half shut, but within those dull eyes, a glint of fear was hidden. The group of ten consisted of all males. They were around the ages of thirteen and fourteen, however, their eyes contained a look that should only appear on adults. Lust. They looked at the little girl with exposed lust, which could make many noble people thrash them to death. "What are you going to do? If you want to kill me then just do it! Stop looking at me with those¡­ eyes!" The little girl spoke while her red stained teeth gritted against each other. The little girl didn''t seem oblivious towards the looks she was getting, however it didn''t seem like she could completely understand them either. It just made her very fearful and uncomfortable. "What are you talking about? We aren''t going to kill you. We only put you in this state because of you resisting, however, we truly do want to help you." A boy with spiky blond bronze hair walked forward and spoke out. He seemed to be the most mature and strongest out of everyone apart of his little group. Plus, the lust in his eyes was the strongest out of everyone. "Don''t try and lie. If you really wanted to help me, then why would you attack me before even saying anything? You didn''t even ask me anything, and just started to attack and¡­ touch¡­ me." The girl continued to speak and grit her teeth at the same time. The look in her eyes, although showed fear, also showed some maturity. As if, she experienced many of the difficulties of life. This was not something a ten-year-old girl should possess. "Why do you continue to hurt us? We truly do want to help you, however, you must help us with something first." The spiky-haired boy walked forwards with a wicked smile and kneeled in front of the girl. The little girl crawled backward slightly as she began to panic. The fear present in her eyes grew a little more, however, she knew that in her current state, things were not going to end well if she resisted. "What is it?" There was hesitation on her tone, however, what else could she do? She was surrounded and injured. There was no one that would help her, so survival looked extremely bleak. The boy smiled before extending his hand. He reached out and quickly grabbed onto the girl''s wrist. His eyes glinted more, however, the fear continued to increase in the girl''s eyes. "Get up and come with me. You will know once we get there." She tried to recall her hand, however, the boy had more strength than the exhausted her. She wasn''t able to release herself from the boy''s grip. "L-let go! I will¡­ follow!" The little girl twisted her wrist in the boy''s hand, but it was all for naught. She just couldn''t get out of his pincer-like grip. With a great jerk, the boy pulled the girl to her feet. She wobbled when she stood up and even almost face planted, but she gritted her teeth and held her ground. This was a sight inconceivable for many since it was usually impossible for any ten years old to have so much perseverance, let alone a little, injured girl. The boy smiled and walked away from his group. When the others wanted to follow he raised his hand. "Be on a lookout for now. MAke sure no one disturbs them¡­ chat I am going to have. It might be a long chat, so be patient. All of you can¡­ talk to her later." The boy played with his words, making the girl feel extremely uncomfortable and confused. ''What does he mean I can talk to them later? Talk? Why does he want to talk?'' The girl was extremely confused but knew that the talking was not going to be anything good. PLus, the expressions of each male was hideous when the word talk was mentioned. This caused her to shiver and tremble, but there was no way she could resist in her current state. The spiky-haired boy took the injured girl into a corner. It was exposed for everyone to see, however, it was away from others as well. When the boy stopped walking, so did the girl. She still tried to release her hand from the boy''s grip, but still¡­ nothing changed. Suddenly, she felt a great force begin to pull her. Since she was still somewhat lost in her thoughts on how to escape, she wasn''t able to prepare herself for such a sudden tug. The girl flew towards the tall, rocky wall, her right shoulder and arm hitting it directly. She slowly collapsed to the floor as her eyes glared at the boy. "I thought we were going to talk, why did you do that!" "What do you mean? We are going to talk, however, this talk is going to let us get to know each other¡­ very well." A lascivious smiled appeared on the boy''s face as he slowly walked towards the girl. "Let''s begin!" With that, the boy then pounced towards the girl. "Ahhh!" A fearful shriek resounded in the air. *BOOM* Suddenly, a huge crashing sound appeared from behind the boy, who was already on top of the girl. Both the girl and the boy looked over, only to see a cloud of dust. The rest of the boy''s group appeared one by on, surrounded the cloud of dust. "What was that?!" One of them couldn''t help but ask the others. However, no one had an answer. They all looked over at the boy who was still forcing himself on the little girl. Don''t look at me, I was busy, so I didn''t see anything." The boy got up with an unsatisfied looked. The girl was lying on the ground with dull eyes and shredded clothes, however other then bruises and lacerations, there wasn''t anything else wrong with her body. The group looked over at the spiky-haired boy and then at the girl, with confused looks. "Stop making those expressions, this stupid¡­ thing appeared right when things were getting good. My mood is completely ruined, so don''t expect me to give you guys a turn after we settle whatever this is. I need to have my turn first!" The boy spoke while spit flew from his mouth. His eyebrows wrinkled together as frustration and anger were clearly written all over his face. He looked at the dust cloud as if he was staring at his greatest enemy. The dust cloud began to clear. As the brown cloud slowly dissipated, a black figure appeared on the cover. "So, it wasn''t a rock, huh? Who the hell is it that ruins my mood!? The boy walked forward with anger. However, he didn''t get too close. He knew that if a person that is much stronger than him appeared, then there was no way he could handle the situation. The black figure began to walk forward, out of the dust cloud. Every step he took, caused the group of ten to tense up. Although they weren''t too strong and did what they wanted, that didn''t mean that they were stupid enough to charge forward, losing all decorum. They knew that without knowing who they were messing with, it wasn''t smart to charge forward. The spiky-haired boy''s eyebrows wrinkled further. He saw that the height of this figure was extremely short. It was barely meeting his hip, causing him to slowly loosen his guard. "Who is it!? Come out and explain yourself!" The spiky-haired boy walked forward, slowly releasing his aura. The aura he released was actually extremely weak. It was much weaker than an average fourteen-year-old Moth student. Rather, judging from the strength, it barely reached an average fourteen year old of the BUtterfly group. The aura was pitifully at, Orb Birth - Sky. Even a Butterfly student would look down on such a realm at such an age. However, it was much stronger than the rest of the people. Although the rest of the boys were also at the Sky realm, it seemed as though they just entered it making them all even worse than the spiky haired boy. Something which was very eye-catching was not the boys, rather it was the little girl. Her realm seemed much higher than the rest, Orb Birth - Hell! Even in the Moth group, this would be considered good, but because of her lack of experience and battle skills, she was unable to stop ten people from beating her. "Hehe! What do we have here? I seemed to have landed in a herd of lambs!" A sinister voice, which was filled with a great amount of bloodlust, appeared from behind the dust cloud. This voice, of course, belonged to Arnin. He walked out of the dust cloud with a wicked smile. His eyes examined the people in front of him as he began to nod his head. "Truly a herd of lambs." "What did you say?! Say it again, I didn''t hear you properly!" The spiky-haired boy was extremely arrogant when he finally saw Arnin come out. He could tell that Arnin just started to cultivate, both because of age and because of the tiny amount of aura that he was releasing. Orb Birth - Earth. Not only that but Arnin''s Orb Birth - Earth aura was extremely weak, making the group very confident. Arnin smiled at the boy before shaking his head. "How could you not hear what I said? I think it was pretty clear and loud. Are you deaf, or are you acting deaf?" Arnin smiled even more at the boy''s arrogance. "Don''t try and act all cool! With your strength, even a fly could injure you!" The boy was angered by Arnin''s words so he tried to mock him back. "A fly, huh? If that is the case, then it seems like you all consider yourselves worse than bugs." Arnin''s smile brightened as his eyes focused on each and every person that surrounded him. He felt their auras and couldn''t help but sigh. "What do you mean by that!?" The spiky-haired boy was dumbfounded, however, anger boiled within. He raised his hand towards boy that surrounded Arnin. That boy slowly walked forward, completely releasing his weak Orb Birth - Sky aura. Ignoring the approaching boy, Arnin looked at the spiky-haired kid. "Not only are you weaker then a bug, it seems like your wits are lower as well. What I mean¡­ you know what, forget it. With your brain, learning anything would cause you pain." "Kill this kid, Jisk!" The spiky-haired kid lost his temper and yelled out towards the boy that approached Arnin. Jisk nodded his head and rushed towards Arnin. ''Well, let me see how well I can manage without any essence. Finally, I can test out my physical body.'' Arnin did possess some essence in his body, however, because of it constantly leaking, he didn''t dare to use it and quicken his death. Muscles began to tense up in Arnin''s body, as he faced the incoming Jisk. This would be the first time he would fight with his physical body only, especially against someone who was a minor realm higher. Arnin intensely watched Jisk''s fist fly towards his face. Without him even knowing, his Runic Eyes'' runes began to rotate. Things slow down, and Arnin was able to see everything extremely clearly. Something that astonished Arnin was that it wasn''t him seeing things in slow motion, but everything really did slow down. He didn''t understand how and why, but it seemed as though everything was slower than before. ''Interesting. Seems like my physical body is not the only thing that will be used in this fight.'' Since everything was much slower, Arnin reacted quickly and rushed behind the approaching Jisk. In the point of view of Jisk, Arnin moved with lightning speed, however, he didn''t know that it wasn''t Arnin , moving quick, rather he himself was moving slow. "UGH" Suddenly, Jisk felt himself being lifted into the air. He felt suffocation, however, he didn''t completely understand what was going on. However, just as he was being lifted, he felt the latch around both the front and the back of his neck loosed until he finally dropped to the ground. "Ahh! My¡­ my eyes! My¡­ ARGH!" An agonizing scream appeared around the group. Looking for the sound, everyone saw a child rolling on the ground, holding his face. Arnin covered his bleeding face. Blood dripped from his eyes, ears, nose and he even constantly vomited blood. One could even see a deep blood stan getting bigger around Arnin''s crotch and back side area. All the boys looked at Arnin with some horror. It wasn''t Arnin''s power that scared them, however, Arnin looked like a pile of bloody flesh. It scared and disgusted them. Arnin howled as blood continued to drop, his vision began to blur, but it didn''t darken. It didn''t seem like he was falling unconscious, rather he was slowly losing sight. Pain coursed through his body, causing his howls to strengthen. His fingers dug themselves on the ground as he scratched and scratched. His nails came off as more blood appeared. "MY EYES! AHHH!" The greatest pain he felt came from his eyes. Arnin screamed loudly on the surface, however, he was thinking of a way to stop everything from happening inside his head. ''What the hell is going on! These Runic Eyes, they, they, are sucking my essence. They are absorbing my blood!'' Arnin knew what was going on. He finally understood how he managed to slow things down. The Runic Eye''s was absorbing his blood and essence in order to slow things for Arnin. Not only did they not help, but they made things worse. His essence was leaving at an even quicker rate, but that wasn''t the most worrying part. His blood. He lost so much blood and blood essence that he could even see death. ''No! I am not going to die! I need¡­ I need¡­ BLOOD!'' Arnin howled inwardly, as his physical body slowly stood up. When everyone was able to see Arnin''s whole body, they saw everything. He was bleeding, everywhere. The ground he was standing on was already a pool of blood, while even his hair was dripping with crimson liquid. The only thing that was not crimson red on his body, was his eyes. Those eyes petrified everyone. Purple and black. Almost abyss like demon-like. These eyes apart, Arnin was bleeding all over. 75 Bloody Demon "ARG! MY EYES!" Arnin screamed in agony. Although he had extremely high tolerance towards pain, to the point that torture had no effect on him, however the current pain the was going through his body was intense, especially the pain in his eyes. He had lost so much blood that even his body was skinnier than before. He looked like a shriveled, bloody corpse that had just been drained. ''Blood! I need blood, or I will die! But how?!'' Arnin was in a state of confusion. He didn''t want to begin drinking others blood because of the chance of his own body being contaminated and causing further damage. ''W-wait! Blood Cultivation! I can cultivate blood in order to heal!'' Arnin came to sudden realization and stopped panicking. All he needed to do was absorb blood essence which help to heal his own body. Plus, with such a battlefield, Arnin knew that obtaining what he wanted would be as easy as breathing. Blood riddled the whole place. Calming his mind, Arnin brought his hands beside him. His body was still trembling under the pain of his eyes, however he was much more relaxed the before. The group of boys looked at Arnin with some fear, however the spiky haired boy calmed down and slowly walked towards Arnin. He ignored Jisk, who was on the ground controlling his breathing. "What the hell are you doing? Since you want to die so early, I will assist you." The spiky haired boy then launched himself towards Arnin. Although Arnin was in extreme pain and also found everything hard to see, that didn''t mean that he could not fight. He had fought many battles in the past with various handicaps, one even being him not being able to see. As the spiky haired boy rushed towards him, Arnin began to circulate the Demon Cultivation Manual. He needed to absorb blood essence and the best way was through the Demon Cultivation Manual. The spiky haired boy fist flew towards Arnin''s face, and unlike last time, Arnin did not dodge. Rather the fist met with Arnin''s face. "Weak! Just too weak!" The spiky haired boy had expected Arnin to be sent flying, unexpectedly Arnin was holding his ground. Just as the spiky haired boy was going to retract his fist, Arnin used both of his and quickly clutched onto the boy''s wrist and forearm. This locked him in place, unable to do anything. "What are you doing!? LEt go of me, you little sh*t!" The spiky haired boy was not scared, rather he was surprised at Arnin''s actions. Plus, he was angered at Arnin''s audacity to grab a hold of him. "Let go? Why should I do such a thing? Let me just take some of¡­" Arnin''s voice was shaky, however the weakness in Arnin''s voice caused the spiky haired boy to feel some horror. It was as if he was listening to the words of a devil that crawled from the depths of hell. He struggled to pull his arm, however all that struggle was useless. Arnin''s hold on him was just too strong that the boy was unable to release himself. Quickly, the boy decided to use his other hand to attack Arnin, and so he released a lightning speed punch. Noticing the fist nearing, Arnin used his thumb to dig deep inside the flesh of the boy''s wrist. "UGH!" The boy grunted, as his fist slowed down and even became a little unstable. Taking this chance, Arnin used the hand that was holding onto the boy''s forearm to get a hold of the second arm. The spiky haired boy panicked when he felt his other arm being grabbed by Arnin. "Sh*t! What the hell are you guys doing?! Kill this kid!" The rest of the boy''s finally reacted. With Jisk in the lead, all of the boy''s quickly rushed towards Arnin. A smirk appeared on Arnin''s face. He looked menacingly at the spiky haired boy as his blood masked face became extremely ruthless. "Do you think that escaping will be so easy?" Hearing Arnin''s words, the boy panicked and struggled more, however he suddenly felt a tearing pain from his shoulders. "AHHH!" With a tragic scream, the boy walked backwards as tears and snot began to appeared on his face. The rushing boy''s stopped running and looked over at their boss with fright. "B-boss, y-your arms!" Jisk spoke out with a trembling voice. In Arnin''s hands, he was holding onto something that the spiky haired boy was extremely attached to. His arms. Not only that, but Arnin was holding onto both of the arms, not only one. On the other side, the spiky haired boy was already on his knees. On his left and right, blood rained to the ground. "No! No! Give it back! Give me back my arms!" The boy yelled at Arnin with a tearfilled face. "You want these arms back? Alright, but let me clean them up for you first." Although no one could completely see Arnin''s face since it was covered with blood, everyone was able to make out the terrifying smile that appeared on his face. As everyone watched Arnin, the latter lifted both of the arms and directed the blood part towards his face. Clenching with great strenght, blood squeezed out of the arms. It was as if Arnin was squeezing lemons or oranges. There was only a sinister smile plastered on his face. Blood fell onto Arnin''s face. He showered in the blood and allowed to go onto his whole body. *BEURG* Some of the boys were unable to handle Arnin''s terrifying action and vomited. All of them had seen death and even killed some people themselves, but they had never seen someone showering in blood. A few minutes passed and the arm was devoid of any blood. Arnin was able to squeeze out every last bit of blood all over his face and body. This made him look even scarier. "What the hell is wrong with this kid." One of the boy''s couldn''t help but whisper to another. The later only shook his head and watched on with terror in his eyes. Arnin ignored the people in the surrounding and quickly absorbed the blood essence into his body. Another minute or so passed. Everything was silent. No one dared to move and they continued to watched Arnin. Even the spiky haired boy was silent. Rather then quiet, he was just unable to speak. He was lying on the ground, covered in his own blood. His face was pale and it looked like he would die at any moment. He had lost too much blood. Finally, ten minutes passed and Arnin finally opened his eyes. ''My vision seems to have returned and I even stopped the high leakage of essence. Arnin smiled when he found out that his body was almost back to the state before his eyes had gone bad. Although that state was very dangerous, it was still better then him bleeding from all over and losing an insane amount of essence. Right now, Arnin''s essence was much weaker than before. Some would even question whether Arnin could be considered an Orb Birth - Earth cultivator or not. There just wasn''t too much essence left in Arnin''s body. One thing that Arnin was able to find out was that there was a way to increase his essence. Blood essence. Blood essence was one of the ways that would allow him to slowly increase his essence once again and even allow his body to heal slightly, however that did not completely fix the leakage problem. Arnin still had to go and find a solution for his leaking essence. Arnin threw the two arms onto the ground and smile. He ignored the boy''s in the surrounding and directly walked towards the laying spiky haired body. Using his right foot, Arnin tapped the boy''s head. "You still awake? You can have your arms back now. Hehe." Arnin slightly snickered as he watched the quiet boy. Seeing that he didn''t get an answer back, Arnin crouched on the ground and leaned over to boy''s face. "Didn''t you hear me? You can have your arms back now." Arnin continued to speak with his causal tone, however there was a bit of demonicness in his tone. Arnin shook his head and got up. "Since you don''t want your arms back, would it be ok if I take something else from you? As you can see, I am still in dire need of some blood, so if you wouldn''t mind, I am just going¡­ to¡­" In front of everyone''s widened eyes, Arnin grabbed onto the spiky haired boy''s head and lightly tugged it. The tug did not break the neck, rather Arnin was able to pull the whole head off the body. "Thanks for the patronage friend." Arnin lifted the head and looked at the face and spoke. This scene caused everyone to tremble in fright and horror. No one showed any sorrow, rather they were just frightened beyond compare. Every action that Arnin made so far was extremely terrifying and demon like. "T-this kid is too much. I have to get out of here." "Y-yeah, me too!" "Let''s get out of here!" Many of the boys began to quiver and their legs weakened. They wanted to run and escape from Arnin, however just as they were about to move, Arnin turned his head and look at the boy;s that spoke. "Did I give any of you permission to leave? Stay right there, I am still going to need some donations from you guys." Arnin spoke with his mouth, but used his hands to move the mouth of the head in his hands. This act made the boy''s fall on the ground. They didn''t have enough courage to move. Arnin''s was just too¡­ horrifying. "Now then, let us continue." Arnin turned and looked at the head in his hand. He smiled and began to squeeze once more. Blood rained down onto his face. In turn, Arnin absorbed the blood essence into his body in order to replenish his lost blood and also help to increase the decreasing essence inside his body. A few minutes flew by quickly, however to the group of boys, the minutes were like hours. They didn''t even dare to breathe. Although they believed themselves to be stronger then Arnin, if not individually but as a group, they just didn''t have the guts to do anything. "Now then, I need a donation from you guys as well." Arnin looked over at the other boy''s and smiled. The way he spoke made it so that Arnin was commanding, rather than asking. Many of the boy;s were also dumbfounded by Arnin''s word usage. He said donation, which would usually be optional, however Arnin was not giving them an option at all. Arnin was forcing them, threatening them with his actions. The first person Arnin walked over to was Jisk. "Let me start with you." A sinister smile appeared on his blood face, causing Jisk to tremble. "N-no, please s-spare me. I d-don''t want to d-die!" His body trembled as tears poured down his cheek. He could see death when he looked at Arnin and he knew that the death was not going to be pleasant. "Spare?" Arnin walked over with a confused look, however no one was able to clearly see what kind of expression he had. Arnin grabbed Jisk''s hair and looked him directly in the eyes. Jisk saw Arnin''s purple Runic Eyes and almost urinated in his own pants. He could see that the purple was more terrifying than beauty. Plus, when he looked intently, he could see tiny symbols deep within. Swaet appeared on his forehead as his mouth quivered. "D-demon. Demon. DEMO--!" He screamed loudly, however right then, Arnin separated his body and head. "You need to learn some manners. You shouldn''t scream in another''s face." Arnin did not showered in the blood this time. Rather, he allowed the blood collect in one spot. "Let me make a large pool for myself. Keke!" Arnin laughed as he looked at the rest of the boys. "DEMON! RUN!" The boy''s finally had a reaction and began to stumble and fall. Arnin smiled and then vanished from his position. An hour passed and all that was left were bodies stacked on top of one another. Each body was missing a head, while a head was missing it''s body. The pile of bodies and head looked extremely terrifying, however Arnin only smiled. "Now then, let''s just wait until the blood collects." Nodding his head, Arnin began to sit, however right when he was going to completely sit, he heard a sound. "MMPPSH!" The sound was of a person breathing from their nose came from a rock a little ways away. Arnin turned his head and smiled. ''Seems like there is one more left.'' Arnin got up and walked towards the sound. ------------------------------------------- Lying on the ground was the little girl from before. She had seen Arnin come, however when everyone was distracted she took the chance to escape. However she was very injured so she could only crawl. Because she was so exhausted she was unable to get too far. She had to take many breaks and catch her breath. *CRAA* The sound of rocks breaking and moving around was heard from behind. Quickly, she turned her head and found someone walking towards her. It was a person completely covered in blood, and his height was extremely short. "W-who are you!?" She couldn''t help but shout at Arnin. Arnin walked closer with a smile and went in front of her. He then squatted in front of her and looked her deep in the eyes. Everything was silent before Arnin spoke up. "Are you really going to talk to someone who just saved you?" Arnin said with a ''hurt'' look. Of course, she wasn''t able to clearly see his expression, but the child like voice coming from Arnin made her drop her guard. "You saved me? Did you really? What happened to those boy''s?" She questioned with some caution. Although her guard against Arnin was lowered, that didn''t mean that she completely trusted him. "Do you see anyone else here? Do you really think that if they were alive, they would just leave you?" Arnin asked his own question. This caused the girl to freeze. She thought hard for a moment before a smile appeared on her face. The smile was extremely sad, almost tear jerking. "Can you take me to see the bodies of those people? I want to personally see them dead to relieve my heart." She now completely believed Arnin. Although she was stronger than most people her age, at heart she was still a little girl. Being able to fool her and trick her was as simple as eating for someone like Arnin. Arnin nodded his head and helped the girl up. "I will take you to see them. They are all dead." The girl smiled and didn''t say anything else. Arnin couldn''t help but mock the girls intelligence. He hoped for something more fun, but the girl was so easy to trick that even Arnin was slightly stunned. She believed after just one sentence. That was way too simple. Although Arnin felt that it was too easy, he didn''t lower his guard. There was always a chance that the girl was tricking Arnin. Finally they reached the location. The hill made from bodies was covered with clothes and blood now and there was even a large pool around the little body hill. The girl looked around and when she saw the hill, she couldn''t help but suck in a breath of cold air. "What the he--" Before the girl could finish, she felt pain from neck, and fainted. ------------------------------- A pale face that looked heart wrenching, had its eyes closed. The lips had low amounts of blood and even the cheeks sunk in slightly. The sight was heartbreaking. The eyes on hat very face finally began to flutter. Soon, the eyes opened and the head began to turn and look around. She panicked when she felt something odd about her body. "W-what is going one! Where am I!?" She panicked and tried to inspect her body with her hands, but nothing moved. Looking down, she noticed that instead of her arms, there was empty air. Her arms were missing. "AHH!" "Little girl, are you look for these?" A sound appeared from afar. The girl looked over with a tear stricken face. Sitting on a couple heads, she saw a little boy. His face had blood stains, however not too much present on his face anymore. She looked at the objects that the boy was waving, and saw that he was holding onto two arms. She then saw him smiling brightly towards her. "What are you doing?! Why are you doing this?! Didn''t you save me?!" She could instantly tell that the person in front of her was the blood boy from before. "Well, I saved your life and in return I wanted something too." Arnin spoke with a smile. A got up from the seat made from heads and walked over to the girl. He used the girls arms to touch the girls face. This made the little girl extremely uncomfortable. "Now then, fulfill your debt to me." Arnin smile before piercing the girls arms into the girls stomach. "AHHHHHH!" 76 Demonic Joker Watching the blood pour onto the ground and create a large pool, Arnin couldn''t help but smile. He had discovered a way to control his essence and blood, however it was only a temporary solution. Plus, this solution could cause many problems if he continued to use it in the future. Kill! That was his solution. Draining others of their blood, and then using it to cultivate was an extremely efficient way to stabilize his own blood and essence. It was easier than cultivating other elements, especially on a battlefield where blood was almost everywhere. After an hour of sitting and waiting silently, the blood had collected into a large pool. Arnin walked over to the pile of bodies and climbed to the top. He didn''t care about the corpses and showed absolutely no respect towards them. To him, the bodies beneath him were just tools to increase his power. Arnin climbed to the top and sat down with his legs crossed. He then closed his eyes, and began to silently cultivate. He disregarded his surroundings and focused on healing himself as much as possible. Plus, there was no one around for a good distance so Arnin had some time to cultivate. The silence was extremely eerie, especially with the large pile of dead, bloody bodies, and the person that sat on top of them. What was even more sinister was the fact that the person on top of the heap did not look normal in any way. He had crimson hair that showed hints of obsidian black, deep purple eyes that glistened like the moon, and pale skin that resembled that of a ghost. The person looked extremely terrifying and demonic. This person was, of course, Arnin. Due to the fact that he was completely depending on the blood cultivation, combined with the high density of blood essence, there were some changes to his body. These changes surprised even Arnin, and made him come to a realization. Having the ability to use blood was actually not so simple. Other than strengthening the physical body and gaining essence through blood, there was also other amazing abilities that Arnin discovered in the midst of cultivation. Although he only discovered some of the abilities, they were still a large gain. One method of utilizing blood was using it as a poison. Although only one place knew the reason behind such occurrences, blood was able to kill or cause damage to other people just by being added into their circulation. Arnin had gone to Earth and discovered the reason, of course. After knowing that there were different blood types, he was able to find out which blood types affected each other, and whether the effect would be positive or negative. This topic had interested him so much that he had started his own investigation. He found that other than the four main blood types (A, B, AB, and O, not including the RH factor), he was able to discover many more. After understanding how the new blood groups affected each other, he had a very thorough understanding of topics regarding blood. Arnin wasn''t the only one who discovered Earth, however he was the only one who had been able to enter and gain information. Ever since he found out that Earth was filled with great minded humans, he had the whole place become a personal property that not even his generals could enter. Anyone that did would be given an automatic death sentence. Using blood as poison was one of the abilities that Arnin was impressed with, but there was still a lot more. Arnin could use blood in order to affect the movements of another''s body. Since blood was rushing everywhere, he could forcefully control the flow of that blood and begin to affect the actions of the victim. The last ability that he was able to gain some insight on was blood transformation. Although he could use blood to strengthen his physical body, there was also another way to enhance his strength through blood. This blood transformation would allow him to absorb different kinds of blood and pull it into his body as his own. He would gain all the benefits of the blood, and sometimes even acquire a new ability. If Arnin was to absorb the blood of a phoenix, there was a chance that he would increase his control over nirvana, or even gain some insight into it since a phoenix was associated with nirvana. Arnin was pleased with the new abilities that he learned through his enlightenment. He knew that having more abilities was beneficial since it would increase the trump cards in his arsenal. Plus, he didn''t have the problem of not being able to master each ability. He knew that it would only take a small amount of his time to completely master each of his abilities. Another hour passed, and Arnin was done with his cultivation. His hair was still crimson because of the large amounts of blood essence he absorbed. Not only that, but his eyes continued to glisten with a strong purple. They didn''t seem as dull as before. Arnin jumped down from the pile of bodies. He clapped his hands together a couple times in order to remove any dust off of them, of course he only did this to tease the dead bodies. Arnin started to walk away before stopping in his footsteps. He turned his head and looked at the bodies one last time. "Thanks for your patronage." Arnin smiled before disappearing from the area. ---------------------------------------------------- In the large cave, other than the battlefield on the ground, there was another area. A large, flat rock was in the middle of the cave, which looked sort of like a table. This area was filled with blue candles that floated midair. Sitting in the middle of the table was an unknown green rock. This green rock was shimmering with splendor, however if one looked hard enough, they would notice something very peculiar about stone. A video. The rock was showing a video of some battle. Clearly, the green rock was like a surveillance camera that allowed others to see live footage of the battle. The green rock was displaying five different projections. Each individual projection showed different people. Sometimes, it would be an individual fighting, or other times, a group battle. Four of the projections showed intense fighting, however the fifth was anything but. The last projection was something that was very different, and also somewhat sinister. It showed a boy sitting on top of a pile of headless bodies with his eyes closed. The video was extremely weird, and many would even call it terrifying. In the cave, the projections were being watched by about ten people. Eight of them had their faces covered and their bodies wrapped, however two of them were completely exposed. The two exposed people were none other than the Headmistress and Fae. They were intently watching the projection with the other eight people. "Headmistress, this new kid that you brought, are you sure that he is five years old?" One of the mysterious people spoke up. This person had a deep, masculine voice, however even that wasn''t enough to clarify the man''s gender. It was still unknown. "He is five years old. We did a thorough investigation on this boy''s family background, and found nothing too peculiar." The Headmistress spoke with some confidence, however there was also some hesitation within her voice. It could be seen that even she was in disbelief. Fae looked at the Headmistress, and then turned her head towards the mysterious person. After looking at both for a bit, she began to observe the video that showed Arnin. "I can guarantee that this child is only five years old. However, there were a couple things that happened in the past when I was getting information." The mysterious people turned their heads to look at Fae, including the Headmistress. "Go ahead, tell us." "Well, Arnin is actually from a small village that is about a day''s flight from Lepidoptera academy. Of course, if someone went by foot then it would take longer. His village is called¡­" Fae went ahead and began to describe where Arnin was from, and who his parents were. She was also able to recount his childhood in a detailed manner. This showed how well the academy was able to gather information.. All of the listeners nodded their heads, but the Headmistress looked at Fae and couldn''t help but ask. "But what was the problem with him? You said that you found some other information about his past that we weren''t able to?" Fae nodded her head and handed a small piece of paper to each person in the room. "This here is the information from his Orb Identification. This was extremely difficult to obtain since almost no one would be able to see these other than the people themselves or their families." The people in the room looked at the contents written on the piece of paper. Although the faces of the mysterious people was hard to see, one could tell that they were in shock due to the sounds that came out of their mouths. ''(Arnin) Sex: Male. Species: (D)Human. Realm: ???. Talent:??'' The Headmistress looked at Fae with bewilderment. "Fae, what is this? Other then his sex, everything else is different. Even his species has the letter (D) in front of it. What does all of this mean?" "I am also unsure. As I have already talked about the boy''s background, we know for a fact that his parents are both human, and even looking at the history of the village, there were never any attacks from demonic beasts, or other sentient species. It has a rather peaceful history." Fae''s clarification stupefied many. They assumed that there might be a chance that Arnin''s parents were not necessarily human because of past events, however that didn''t seem to be the case. Both of his parents were certainly human. "Then what about these question marks? I have seen unknown talents before, but why is his realm also unknown? Shouldn''t he be at Orb Birth - Earth?" One of the mysterious people voiced out. Unknown talent was uncommon, but not rare. There were many like that, however having an unknown realm was extremely rare. Even if one had a problem with their orb and they weren''t in Orb Birth - Earth, the information would state that. That had been the case for Lilise. "I am also not too sure about this. There was no other information. All I know is that Arnin was different from other children his age. He was extremely mature and had no friends from the very beginning. This may seem to be nothing out of the ordinary, but it was said that people would find him sitting in secluded areas with his eyes closed." When these words came out of Fae''s mouth, the room became dead silent. It was so silent, that one would feel chills all over. "Are you sure that he wasn''t just resting?" One of the mysterious people spoke out after some hesitation. "I am not saying anything. All I know is that he sat everyday with his legs crossed and his eyes closed. He would do this for long periods of time, however no one knew what he was doing. It might have just been him resting, since it would be nearly impossible to begin cultivation or even knowing how to cultivate at such a young age." Fae spoke out what she knew, but nearing the end, even she felt some hesistion. She had seen Arnin''s ways in Lepidoptera Academy, and did not believe that he would so simple. -------------------------------------------------------- While there was discussion going on, Arnin was oblivious to the fact that his whole background had been investigated. He continued on his way, and killed any individual that came into sight. He had already killed two more boys and three girls. Some of their deaths were extremely brutal, while others were instantly killed through a head slice. Arnin did not spare anyone and just killed continually. His essence was still continuously leaking, however because of him constantly absorbing blood essence, he was able to bring his realm back to around Orb Birth - Sky. Of course, his body was in a very unstable position. He had too much blood essence and the equilibrium between all of the essences in his body was broken. This caused his hair to remain crimson. Arnin walked around with a smile on his face. He carried a silver dagger that was soaked in blood. This dagger was not his, rather he found it on one of the girls he had killed. It was helpful since it was not rusty, and had not been used too much. He had killed so many people that he was slowly becoming known to other, stronger students. Although Arnin had only killed weaker people, that still did not affect his new nickname, ''Demonic Joker''. This name was given to him because of his red hair, and his way of killing. Many had seen how Arnin would kill his victims slowly, or even torture them just for fun. This resulted in his dark nickname. Of course, the name only brought fear to people around Orb Birth - Sky or below. Everyone else found Arnin to be a joke, so many didn''t care to waste their time on him. Arnin, of course, knew about the nickname and he did not mind it. He really did like killing others, and found it enjoyable to see others in pain. Plus, he wasn''t too concerned with how others perceived him. In the end, he still planned to kill them all. 77 Wicked Smile Demonic Joker! This name, which at first only seemed to be a trivial matter, began to become something more serious. The deaths of the people who crossed the path of the Demonic Joker were anything but pleasant. Many of the victims would have bruises and lacerations all over their bodies, some would have missing limbs, and there even a few that continued to breath. The number of victims left alive was small when it came to the Demonic Joker, however their state would be extremely disturbing. Some of the barely living victims would have their stomachs cut up with their organs showing, while others would even have things shoved in their mouths. Of course, whatever was in their mouths came from their bodies, not from the surroundings. Because of all of these disturbing occurrences, many were enraged and wanted to hunt down Arnin, however the only people who actually did so were the strong. Although the battlefield was filled with death, no one wanted such a gruesome ending. Plus, seeing others in such states made them extremely uncomfortable. Information on the Demonic Joker spread like wildfire. Everyone knew how he looked and what his cultivation realm was, at least on the surface. Crimson red hair, with deep purple eyes. His skin was pale like a ghost''s, while his forehead had three horn tattoos. His cultivation realm was sitting around Orb Birth - Hell, however it seems to drop at certain times, and sometimes even rise after killing. This was all the information that could be collected. It was extremely easy to distinguish Arnin from others, mostly because of his hair and tattoos, since these attributes could be seen from afar. Arnin did not mind all of the attention that he was getting, rather he actually wanted people to come and find him. He knew that there were people at Essence Manifest somewhere in the battlefield, and with his cultivation finally reentering Orb Birth - Hell, he was able to fight many Essence Manifest cultivators head on. The only problem that he was facing was that he did not have the power to control any of his other abilities. He had received so much damage that he could not rely on any of his strongest abilities for the time being. He could use his blood essence and fight with his physical body, however that was all he was capable of for now. He didn''t completely understand the full usage of his new Elemental Seed, preventing him from being able to use it in actual combat, and since his Seed of Neutrality was unusable, he was not well off. "Huh, seems like I need to quickly get rid of all of these pests and find a way to heal myself. I can''t keep going in such a state, it''s too risky." Arnin walked in a large area with slightly red rocks and dead grass that looked like blood. Behind Arnin was a small child around the age of seven. This child seemed to be a boy, however it was difficult to determine. The child was completely naked, and had an arm chopped off. That missing arm did not disappear, rather it was wrapped around the other arm. Of course, it did not look normal at all. Since the arm was twisted in such a forceful way, the bones in the arm stuck out and there was blood leaking from all the wounds. However, this wasn''t the most unpleasant sight. The child had blood dripping from his crotch and it was completely mutilated. The child''s face was covered in bruises and one of the eye''s was even missing. His death did not seem pleasant in any way, however Arnin ignored the state completely and continued to drag him across the rocky ground. Behind the child''s body, a bloody trail appeared, however this was not done unintentionally. Arnin knew that he was going to be targeted by stronger people from now on because of his ways of killing, and this was exactly what he wanted. Although it was risky to fight someone when he was so weak, he still wanted to completely understand and master his usage of blood. He was now much better with using blood in fights, and had discovered that blood was very efficient to use during dire moments or in group fights. Although blood could be an extremely powerful offensive power, right now Arnin could only use it to affect movements or kill others through discreet means. The blood trail was meant to lure people to him, and it was working very well. His name was infamous and many avoided him, but now there were people looking for him. *SHHH* Finally, Arnin heard a sound from behind. His lips couldn''t help but rise into a sinister smile, while his eyes began to brighten. One other thing he could now do was somewhat control the time ability of his eyes. Well, more so turn them on and off. He did not know any other abilities of the Runic Eye''s yet, however the time pause, or or at least slowness, was extremely beneficial. The only problem that came with the ability was the large amount of blood and essence needed to activate it. Arnin had a feeling that such a problem would slowly disappear as he mastered the power of the eyes because when he finally gained the ability to willingly use the eyes, the amount of blood and essence needed to activate the time ability lessened slightly. "They finally come crawling. Hehe." Arnin couldn''t help but snicker quietly as he continued to walk with the dead child behind him. He didn''t show any signs of stopping or acting like he noticed them. He just wanted to play with them for awhile until he figured out how many there were exactly. ------------------------------------------ Back in the cave where Fae, the Headmistress, and the mysterious people were watching, the air became extremely chilly. Although the faces of the mysterious people could not be seen, one could tell that each and every one of them was angered. Even Fae and the Headmistress had uncomfortable faces. "Fae, what is wrong with this child? Isn''t this a little too gruesome?" The Headmistress looked at Fae questionably. Her shock was reasonable as the Headmistress only knew about Arnin because of Fae, as she was the only one that provided information about him and closely observed him. "I don''t know, but this child is really too¡­ cruel." Fae was also at a loss for words. All of them watched Arnin gruesomely kill each child and even leave some alive in near death situations. None of them expected Arnin to be so cruel and evil. They applauded the person who came up with Arnin''s nickname, Demonic Joker. It worked well because Arnin''s methods were extremely demon like, and he even seemed thrilled when committing such actions. One of the mysterious people walked forward and looked at Arnin''s projection closely. "Tell me something, have you all noticed this boy''s eyes?" The voice was hoarse, however there was a bit of astonishment contained within it. Fae was surprised and asked with some confusion. "What do you mean? He has purple eyes. Don''t many people have weird changes because of different cultivation techniques?" The person shook their head and continued to speak. "That isn''t it. This boy''s eyes are a little¡­ different. They seem like an, I don''t know,an ability? I can''t explain it, but they are not normal." Because of this person''s persistence, the others in the cave also began to pay closer attention to the eyes. --------------------------------------------------- Behind some large boulders, there were three young girls that looked identical to each other. All three had lapis eyes with coal hair. Freckles were scattered around their nose, and their pink lips moved as they spoke with one another. "Is this it? Is he the Demonic Joker?" One of the girls asked. Although all three were identical, there was a single difference between them which set them apart, their style of hair. The one that just spoke had short hair, another had long curly hair, while the last had her hair in a bun. "He should be. He meets the description, and look at what he is doing¡­ what a beast!" The long haired girl couldn''t help but speak with great disgust. She saw Arnin dragging the boy and felt extreme rage. They themselves had killed a few people, but they would never torture their enemies. They gave them all a quick and painless death. The girl with the bun also had fury in her eyes. "Don''t go out yet. Let''s keep following this kid. Once we see that he is distracted, we''ll end him right away." "Isn''t he distracted right now? He doesn''t even know we''re here, plus one of his arms is occupied. Isn''t this the best time to strike?" The one with long hair couldn''t help but ask with confusion and impatience. It seemed like she really wanted to devour Arnin at any moment because of his beastly actions. "You¡­" The girl with the bun couldn''t help but shake her head bitterly. "You really are clueless. Although he has not discovered us, if you look closely, he is ready to attack. The hand that is occupied is actually quite loose, while his other hand seems to be a little different from the rest of his body. Although he hasn''t found us, it seems like he knows that someone will attack him." The other two girls were shocked by their sister''s analysis. The two gave Arnin a closer look and found that their sister was right. Arnin, although oblivious of them, was in attack mode. "This kid is really cautious." The girl with short hair exclaimed with displeasure. ---------------------------------------- Arnin wasn''t as oblivious as the three girls thought, rather he had actually already found out how many people were following him and where exactly they were located. In reality, the three girls were the ones oblivious to the fact that they were not the only ones following Arnin. A total of seven people were following Arnin. Because of him being in the best position, Arnin was able to figure out the general strength of the group. The weakest was surprisingly at Orb Birth - Hell, while the strongest reached Essence Manifest - Earth. This could be considered a very strong lineup for someone like Arnin, however the latter was not worried one bit. Because of the amazing crowd control that his blood ability had, Arnin was not too worried about dying, however he still felt unsure about his firepower. His physical body was frightening, but it wasn''t as powerful as his Flames of Neutrality. He knew that fighting such a large group would be a little more difficult, plus he needed to reserve lots of essence throughout the fight because if he lost it all, there was a high chance of death. Arnin was in attack mode, however he was also acting somewhat loose. He wanted to show the people following that he was somewhat cautious, however only a little. He didn''t want them thinking that he had already discovered them. As time passed, the blood trail began to slowly fade and become lighter. Arnin continued to walk straight, acting oblivious to the surrounding people. After walking for a few more meters, Arnin pretending to lower his guard by taking back his essence and aura. Right then, he ''tripped'' on a rock and began to lose balance. "NOW!" A loud roar that seemed to come from multiple people resounded in the surroundings. Arnin''s face brightened and a wicked smile appeared on his face. He looked around, and saw seven people rushing towards him from all directions. He saw that there were three groups. The triplet girls, a pair of chocolate skinned lovers, and even a person with a beast. Arnin couldn''t help but smile. The strongest of the group were the lovers, while the weakest were the beast and his partner. Right away, the pair of lovers struck towards Arnin, both of their fists flying at the same time. The crazy thing was that both of them were at Essence Manifest - Earth. The rest hesitated for a moment when they saw each other, however they also shot towards Arnin with attacks of their own. The triplets grabbed onto a large spear that they held together. The spear shockingly carried as much power as the lovers, while the beast and partner had a weird unique cooperation. The partner actually held onto the beast, did a small twirl, and released the beast towards Arnin. Large fangs that dripped with a white liquid were aimed directly at him. Arnin was attacked from all sides, there was no escape. All of the attacks were deadly, however Arnin maintained his wicked smile. 78 This is not a Bargain, This is a Command A smile that caused others to shiver uncontrollably was plastered on the face of a five year old child. From all sides, three groups of people were launching themselves towards this child. Triplets that held onto a large spear, a beast thrown by his partner, its sharp fangs releasing a white liquid, and a couple with their fists flying with great speed, all attacked Arnin from each side. They showed no mercy even though Arnin was much younger than them, and also seemed a lot weaker. Although his name was resounding throughout the battlefield as the infamous ''Demonic Joker'', it was still somewhat of an overkill to send a group of people who were at least around Orb Birth - Hell, with the highest being at Essence Manifest - Earth. Of course, this was only true for normal Orb Birth - Hell cultivators, and Arnin was anything but normal. To him, these mice were just giving their lives to him as a gift. "Come, all of you come!" Arnin suddenly began to laugh maniacally The three groups were somewhat startled, however their attacks did not falter. The first of the attacks to reach Arnin were the two fists from the lovers. With great agility, Arnin dodged the two incoming fists, however he didn''t allow the two lovers to leave just yet. He grabbed the woman and tossed her towards the triplets'' spear, while the man was tossed towards the fangs of the flying beast. All of this happen in an instant, not giving either of the parties a chance to react. "NO!" The woman was the first to react. The spear was extremely sharp, and the power it contained was nothing less than her ultimate fist ability. Quickly, the spear pierced her back and came out from her bellybutton. The man saw the horrifying sight of his lover being pierced, however he didn''t have the time to do anything as he quickly entered the mouth of the beast. Even though the beast wasn''t able to swallow him, it''s razor sharp teeth were easily able to pierce the man''s hip, releasing the white liquid into his body. "AHH!" The white liquid entered his body, and began to corrode his insides extremely quickly. The pain he felt, however, was not only felt in his hip. A unique quality of the white liquid was having the ability to travel through his bloodstream and spread throughout his whole body. Although it wouldn''t kill him, it would still cause heavy damage. Arnin watched all of this with a smile. Since he tossed the woman towards the spear, the triplets were not able to reach him, and the same went with the beast that was tossed toward him. ''These little pests really like giving me great gifts. I should be able to recover to the peak of Orb Birth - Hell if I absorb all of their blood.'' Arnin thought for a moment before slowly walking towards the triplets. The beast was the strongest support for the beast partner, so that he would not run away without his beast. The man was not able to move for a period of time because of the corrosive white liquid that was spreading throughout his body like wildfire. The woman was also heavily injured, so she would not be able to make a move for a while, leaving only the triplets that could cause slight problems. As Arnin walked towards them, the three looked at Arnin with shock, horror and confusion. They were confused because of the turn of events, and how it happened, while they were shocked by the speed with which Arnin delivered his attacks. This speed and power also contributed to frightening them greatly. Of the three, the girl with the bun walked forward first. She took a deep breath before her eyes began to burn with fire, "Demonic Joker, you have been killing people so viciously! You don''t deserve to live, so either kill yourself, or be killed by us!" The girl had a heroic aura around her when she spoke. It was true that Arnin''s methods were extremely vicious, so vicious that even the higher ups felt disgust towards his actions. Arnin, however, didn''t really care. He smiled, and continued to walk towards the three girls. "If you want to kill me, then please do. I would love to see myself die, it would be an eye opener. Haha." Arnin couldn''t help but laugh wickedly, causing the three girls to shiver. The three knew that Arnin was extremely strong, however they felt that there was a chance to defeat him if they worked together. Their power, when combined as one, was as strong as the two lovers. Although Arnin was able to quickly handle the two lovers, and even cause them serious injuries, they felt that it was all because of luck. The three picked up the spear which had its head covered in blood. They pointed it towards Arnin, who continued to casually walk towards them. The three girls didn''t dare to move right away. They had to wait for the right moment. They had to find an opening in which they could attack Arnin and finish him in one shot. Arnin could already tell what the three girls were planning, however it didn''t matter to him. He was able to handle the lovers with ease, so the two girls in front of him were nothing more than bugs. Slowly, Arnin walked towards the bloodsoaked spearhead. The woman was lying on the ground, close to the triplets, her stomach bleeding profusely. Arnin smiled towards the girls, slowly releasing his aura. His aura showed that he was barely at Orb Birth - Hell. It may have seemed that his movements were easily conducted when he was attacked from all three sides, but the truth was that Arnin had to use some of his essence in order to fight back. "Big sis, this guy is only at the early level of Orb Birth - Hell. I think that what he did before was most likely a fluke." The short haired girl looked towards the bun hair girl. "Don''t be so stupid. Whether it was a fluke or not, we need to get out of here!" The sister with the bun spoke with fear in her eyes. Her previous heroicness dissipated, and what trapped her was the feeling of fear. The other two girls were shocked. The girl with the long hair couldn''t help but questionably look at her sister. "Why do we need to run? Didn''t you say that we would kill him, and that what he did was a fluke as well?" "You girls really are too naive! I only spoke those words in order to try and frighten him, even a little if possible, but it didn''t work. Those two Essence Manifest cultivators are severely injured, while even the beast had one of his teeth broken. The beast''s partner is weak and useless, so what can we do against this monster?" The girl with the bun hair spoke with great intelligence. She could tell that although Arnin was below them when it came to essence and cultivation level, he was still countless times stronger than them in strength. At first, she truly did believe that Arnin was able to injure the two Essence Manifest cultivators because of a fluke, but the more she thought about it, the more she found that to be impossible. If Arnin had dodged the two lovers'' attack, but in turn got hit by either the beast or the triplets'' attack, then she would have thought that Arnin was only able to dodge because of luck, but Arnin did not do that at all. He only slightly the dodged the lovers, but he didn''t let them go either. Instead, he used the two lovers to block the other incoming attacks. This was not something that could be based on luck alone. Arnin had frightening skills that they could not confront. The two sisters thought for a moment before looking at the two injured lovers and the beast with his broken tooth. They couldn''t help but look back at Arnin, who walked towards them without a scratch. "T-then what should we do? How should we escape from here?" The three knew that Arnin was most likely faster than them just by the speed of his dodging. "We have to buy some time for the other two to recover. If they can get back up, then they will most likely fight again, however that is only if one of the two recover. If both of them get up, then there is a high chance that they will escape together." The girl was extremely smart with her analysis. She could tell that the two lovers did not have a superficial relationship since the woman kept frowning when she saw the man''s condition, and the same went for the man when he looked at the woman. From this alone, the bun hair girl was able to tell what would happen if one of them got up, or if both. The three girls whispered this amongst themselves, however they didn''t know that Arnin was able to hear everything that they said. Even Arnin felt that the girl with the bun was extremely smart for such a quick analysis of the situation. He couldn''t help but feel that she might have some more use for him. ''I have yet to figure out who the real powerhouses are in this battlefield. This girl can be of some use if I want this information.'' Arnin suddenly thought about what he was lacking at the moment. Information. He could slowly increase his powers by absorbing the blood of the people he killed, however not everyone was willing to tell him what he wanted. Plus, most of the people he killed only knew the bare minimum about the place. Arnin thought for a moment before suddenly sitting down onto the ground. This sudden action of his caused the three girls to open their mouths, but also become more tense. Such strange actions worried them because they didn''t know what Arnin was planning. "Girl with the bun, I have a proposition for you." Arnin smiled when he said this. Then all of a sudden, Arnin vanished into thin air from his sitting position. "AH!" The girl being addressed heard a scream from her left and looked over quickly, only to find that her sister with the short hair was missing. "Let go!" Another scream came from her right, and she found that her sister with the long hair was now missing as well. "Over here!" Suddenly, she heard Arnin''s voice from the place he was sitting before. She looked over, and to her horror, she found her two sister being held by their throats by Arnin. Anger boiled inside of her as her face became vicious, "Demonic Joker, let go of my two sisters!" She didn''t move from her spot because she knew that Arnin had control over the lives of her sisters. She could do nothing at the moment except watch and scream. "Do you want your sisters back? Then listen to my proposition." Arnin didn''t have to go through the process of taking the two sisters as hostage, since girl would most likely still listen. "Speak!" The bun girl began to feel impatient when she saw her two sisters'' faces becoming blue. Arnin slowly laid the two girls down to the ground and pulled out a knife. He stacked the four hands onto one another before moving the knife towards the top of the pile. "N-!" The remaining sister couldn''t scream in time. Arnin pierced the four hands with the knife like a kebab, and stabbed them into the ground. Then, he quickly numbed the arms and legs of the girls, however he left their hands so the two girls could feel pain. "M-my hands! Get them out! Get them out!" The two girls couldn''t help but scream from the tops of their lungs, but because their arms were numbed and they couldn''t get up, their mobility with only their hands to rely on was very weak. "Y-you! Why did you stab them! I was going to listen to you!" The bun girl couldn''t help but tremble as she could barely hold herself from attacking Arnin with all of her might. "Just a precaution." Arnin smiled before sitting on the back of the long haired girl. He found it to be more comfortable than the solid ground. "Now then, shall we discuss?" Arnin looked at the girl in front of him with an innocent look. ] Since he was still in the body of a five year old child, the innocent smile looked even more adorable, however to the bun girl, it was similar to the smile of the devil. "Let go of my sisters first!" She felt extremely angry when she saw Arnin sit on her sister''s back, however there wasn''t much she could do. She could only ask for him to let them go, since she could tell that he wanted her for something. Arnin continued to smile before reaching out and grabbing the hair of the long haired girl. "You want this back? But she is so useless." Arnin used the girl''s hair to continuously smack her face on the ground. The girl''s forehead began to bleed, and she even fell unconscious. "STOP IT!" Seeing her sister fall unconscious, she couldn''t take it anymore. She grabbed her spear and rushed towards Arnin, however the latter smiled before grabbing the skirt of the girl. He slowly began to pull it up. "Are you sure you want to come over? If you do, then sure, you will get a first class seat for when I begin to tear your sisters clothes to shreds and begin to play. Haha!" Arnin laughed wickedly as he reached his hand deep into the skirt,petrifying the bun girl. She quickly halted and looked at Arnin with dagger like eyes. "O-ok, stop! I won''t come closer!" She couldn''t help but scream, her eyes becoming red. Arnin placed the skirt back into its original position, however he didn''t forget to tap the girl''s bottom before looking back at the bun girl. "Are you calm now? Will you listen like a good girl?" Arnin spoke like an elder teaching a little girl a simple lesson, however the way Arnin spoke only irritated the bun girl even more, however she kept her mouth shut, only nodding at him slightly. "Alright then. What I need from you is some information about the people in this battlefield. I will also need you to follow me for a period of time." Arnin did not ask her anything, rather he commanded her. Not only that, but he spoke while stroking the long haired girl''s hair with his hands. This causal action was more than a simple reflex, rather it was a threat. The bun haired girl looked at her two sisters before turning her head back to Arnin. "If you release my sis-" Before she could finish speaking, Arnin grabbed the neck of the long haired girl and¡­ *CRACK* "N-n-no! L-l-little sister! NO!" The bun haired girl screamed loudly as her eyes filled with tears. She looked hatefully at Arnin, and rushed towards him with her long, sharp spear. "I will kill you, Demonic Joker! Kill you!" Arnin slowly got up and walked towards the third sister, the one with the short hair. He then sat on her back and grabbed her neck. "Listen here. I was never asking for your opinion. I wasn''t looking for a trade. This is not a bargain, this is a command!" 79 Making Ar With the short haired girl''s neck in Arnin''s grasp, the one with a bun couldn''t do a thing. She halted her steps and looked at Arnin with a great murderous desire and her eyes red like an animal''s. "You beast! As a child, your mind is nothing less than demonic! Let my sister go!" Arnin didn''t do anything other than stare at the girl with his calm, purple eyes. Seeing that Arnin was not willing to do as he was told, the bun haired girl stood in her spot, biting her lips until they bled. She was extremely agitated. She regretted coming to attack Arnin. If she hadn''t, then such a drastic event would not have occured. Sadly, there was no medicine or cure for regret, so she could only try and think of a way to get out of the situation with her remaining sister. "F-fine!" Finally, she broke down and accepted Arnin''s ''proposal''. He slightly smiled before getting off of the girl''s body. He walked towards the bun haired girl with no fear of her attacking or running. Arnin would easily be able to overpower the girl with his strength. Plus, everyone around him was injured to the point of being unable to move, except for the bun haired girl and the beast''s partner. The bun haired girl looked at Arnin with extreme hate, and a slight amount of fear. She gripped tightly onto her spear, preparing herself to attack, however just as Arnin was going to approach her, she found that he turned and walked in a different direction. Arnin looked straight at the injured woman who was bleeding profusely from her stomach. He slowly walked towards her, step by step. He knew that walking away from the third sister was somewhat risky because she could run away with her at any moment, but Arnin was confident that he would be able to chase the girl down fairly easily, especially since the third sister was still unconscious. "Y-you d-demon child!" The woman could only speak with a hoarse voice as she hatefully looked at Arnin. She only came to attack Arnin because of his atrocities, however she had never expected that she and her lover would end up in such dire states. Arnin calmly gazed at the lady. There was no fluctuation in his eyes, however the woman on the ground couldn''t help but tremble under such a gaze. "What do you mean? You are here because of your own choice. I never called you here. Plus, all of you attacked me first, so aren''t you the real demons?" Arnin crouched down, and looked straight into the woman''s eyes. The woman had no reply. She only stared at Arnin, stupidfied. He lifted his hand, and began to slowly move it towards the bloody wound on the girl''s stomach. *SWISSH* Suddenly, the woman''s right fist flew towards Arnin''s face, aiming to give him a strong hit. "Tsk tsk!" Arnin shook his head as his body vanished and he reappeared behind the woman. His hand then quickly pierced the bloody hole on the girl''s abdomen. "AHH!" She screamed in agony as her eyes became red with both anger and pain. She turned her head and looked at Arnin, who continued to look at her with a calm gaze. Arnin''s hand had penetrated through the abdomen, and appeared on the other side, however Arnin did not move any further. Rather, he used his fingers and slowly sunk them into the blood soaked flesh. "STOP! AH!" The woman continued to scream loudly as tears began to appear. As a cultivator, her pain tolerance was much higher than normal people, however even she could not bear such agony. The injured man, whose body was completely pale, looked at his beloved. He clenched his teeth, and slowly got up from the ground. His body wobbled as he slowly stood up, however a white foam fell from his mouth, mixed with his own blood. "L-let her go! Let h-h-her go! LET HER GO!" The man then rushed towards Arnin in a crazed manner. His eyes were completely red and his power seemed to have increased slightly, however Arnin maintained his calm gaze. The man was completely berserk. He felt extreme hate for Arnin and his murderous intent grew heavy. ''This is my chance! With that Demonic Joker distracted, this is the best time for me to leave.'' The bun haired girl was extremely cautious. She knew that escaping from Arnin would be extremely difficult, especially if she was going to carry her sister, but she had little choice. Although Arnin said that he would release her and her sister when he was done with them, she couldn''t trust his words. He had already killed one of her sisters without even batting an eye, who''s to say he wouldn''t do the same to them? ''My usefulness is only temporary. Once he is done with me, this demon child will most likely kill both me and my remaining sister.'' The bun haired girl had thoroughly thought about the consequences of following or not following Arnin. Both would lead to death, while at the same time, both also gave her a chance at survival. One thing that still terrified her were Arnin''s evil means. He was only a five year-old child, yet he was already so ruthless and demonic. What would become of him when he grew up? This thought continued to terrify the girl. Arnin didn''t look at the bun haired girl once, nor did he care to look at her. He already knew that her trying to escape would be extremely likely, however that didn''t worry him too much. He just needed to handle the current opponents, and then he would deal with the bun haired girl. The beserk man was nearing Arnin with great speed. His aura seemed much more terrifying than before, however there was also a hint of instability within that aura, which Arnin knew would be the downfall of the man. Arnin lifted the injured woman from the gaping hole and threw her towards the man. Seeing this, the man''s eyes regained some of their clarity. He quickly grabbed onto the woman and lifted her face towards his own. "Bel--" *SCRRRR* A bone piercing sound exploded right in front of him. The most horrifying scene he had ever seen in his life took place before him, however it only lasted a moment before everything went blank. -------------------------------------------------------- ''This is it!'' The bun haired girl saw Arnin slowly get up and stare at the approaching man with nothing else in his sight. She quickly made the choice to grab her sister and run. Although she was weaker than Arnin, her speed was still that of an Orb Birth - Hell cultivator. She was fast. The bun haired girl quickly reached her sister, and pulled out the daggers stabbed through her hands. Lifting her sister, she sprinted away from the scene, not even taking the time to give her dead sister even a glance. There was just no time to mourn; she had to escape. Just as she was about to finally feel like she almost escaped, a shadowy figure appeared in front of her. It was smaller than her in size to the point where she had to tilt her head down just to see it. This shadowy figure was the last thing that she wanted to see. Rather, she didn''t even want to see it if it was the last thing ever. "D-Demonic Joker!" Suddenly, Arnin did a small hop and grabbed her bun. As he landed, the girl fell down with him. "Ouch, Ah!" The tug was so hard that the bun haired girl felt that lots of her hair being pulled out. Arnin dragged the girl to the ground. When she finally fell, Arnin kicked the unconscious sister off of the bun haired girl. "Get rid of this garbage and look at that piece of art I made just for you. Hehe." Arnin snickered as her forcefully turned the girl''s head towards a gruesome scene. Two people, a man and a woman looked towards one another. Both carried a different expression. The woman had a smile of relief, however the man''s face seemed frozen in shock. Not only that, but a long spear was pierced through both of their heads, nailing them to the ground. "Isn''t it beautiful?" Arnin chuckled as he looked thoughtfully at the scene in front of him, not caring about the terror that was written all over her face. "T-t-this, what is this!" The bun haired girl was still stuck in a trance. The scene was just too terrifying. Although calling it art was extremely disgusting, from a certain angle, it could be seen as just that. One would shiver in fear, feel grief and even a hint of happiness from the way the bodies looked. The woman''s smile was warm, however the pale, shocked expression on the man''s face was extremely heartbreaking. Plus, the whole scene was extremely gruesome, making one feel horror and nausea. "This is something I made just for you. Do you like it?" Arnin stared at the girl who was kneeling on the ground with unshed tears. Suddenly, Arnin walked towards the injured beast. His partner was struggling to pull on his large companion, however it was just too heavy and injured to be moved. Seeing Arnin come over, the man couldn''t help but feel fear, anger, and grief. "W-what do you want now?! You already caused so much damage, Demonic Joker!" The beast''s partner screamed at Arnin with tears in his eyes. Although the beast had received the lowest amount of injuries, its fangs were broken and some of the white liquid had even entered its body. Just because it could secrete the unknown white liquid didn''t mean that it could handle it. The beast was still not strong enough to resist its own corrosive poison. Arnin didn''t say a word, and only continued to walk towards the two. After arriving near them, Arnin stopped in his tracks, lifted his hand, and began to scratch the back of his head. This action would be considered cute if it was in a completely different setting, however right now, it was anything but. "Hmm, maybe that¡­ no¡­ something like that?" Arnin stood in front of the two, mumbling random things. The beast''s partner couldn''t help but feel irritated by such actions. Although he could be considered the weakest of the whole group, he was still an Orb Birth cultivator that could somewhat match up to one of the sisters. "What are you--" Before the man could finish saying what he wanted, Arnin suddenly looked at him with a terrifying glint in his eyes. "I have found it." With that, Arnin vanished from his position and reappeared in front of the beast and his partner. *RAWWWRR* *AHHHHHHH* *RARWR* *AH HAH* Screams covered the whole place. The terrifying screams, that were filled with pain and horror hit the ears of the bun haired girl like bricks. The scene in front of her was, however even more terrifying. *BLEUGH* She couldn''t help but throw up by watching the scene in front of her. Only one word could be used to describe what she was seeing. Revolting. Quickly, the bun haired girl closed her eyes and covered her ears with her hands. ''This is not happening! This is not happening!'' She continued to mumble these words to herself in order to console her will, however the screams penetrated through her hands and entered her ears, reaching the depths of her soul. Even with her eyes closed, the images from what she had already seen were crystal clear. There was no erasing what she had already seen. ''Why is this happening?! Why did I have to come here?! Sister, mother, aunt!'' She continued to tremble in fear as tears escaped through the cracks in her eyes. Everything seemed to become extremely dark to her. Even with her eyes closed, the darkness only got blacker, as if she was approaching a black hole itself. *THUMP* The bun haired girl suddenly collapsed, fainting on spot. Arnin heard the thump and turned his blood masked face. He saw the bun haired girl on the ground, with her eyes closed and tears still streaming down her face. He couldn''t help but snort, "What a weak willed person. I''d hoped she could atleast stay away to see the final piece." Arnin then walked back and looked at the art he created with his bare hands. What stood in front of him was extremely disgusting, something that even the most almighty might not be able to handle. The beast and beasts'' partner were now mix and matched in such a way that it was hard to even figure out who was who, or in this case¡­ what was what. Their eyes were completely switched out, with the man have the pair of beats eyes in his sockets, while the beast had the man''s eyes in its sockets. This wasn''t even the worst of it all, there were some changes that others wouldn''t even think of trying in their life, however Arnin did them all. "What a way to relieve boredom. It was much better back at the mansion, I had many more specimen to work with, plus their vitality would force them to stay awake throughout the process." Arnin shook his head as he walked towards the fainted, bun haired girl. 80 Fisherman Arnin *AHHHH* *RAWWWR* *S-STOP AHHHH* *AOOO RAWWR* The darkness was everywhere, but the horrifying sounds continued to resonate. The howls of a beast, and the shrill shrieks of a man were the only things that reverberated throughout the void. "P-please, I don''t want to hear it, I-I d-d-don''t want to." The quivering voice of a young girl appeared in the corner of the isolated blackness. It was full of fear, sorrow, and regret. Suddenly, the darkness began to fade, and a new image appeared. A beast and a man were being taken apart, piece by piece, by a small red haired child. There was no longer any sound, but the facial expressions were enough to show the pain and horror the pair was feeling. The silence of such a scene was suffocating, almost unbearable. "N-n-no, stop. Stop! STOP! Someone make it stop!" The little girl''s voice was all that one could hear in such a stifling place, however something happened that caused the little girl to panic more. "Stay away! Stay away! I don''t want to die! Please, leave me alone!" The small child, with his hands covered in a liquid that matched his hair, and his face masked by the crimson blood that gushed out of the bodies, walked closer and closer. There was neither fear, nor sadness, or any expression for that matter, on the child''s face, yet this boy seemed even more frightening because of this. The unstaggering calmness that could be seen in his demonic, purple eyes, pierced the eyes of the watcher. The little girl''s mind trembled, however when she finally came to be, she noticed that her body was frozen. She couldn''t move; every muscle in her body was tense. "What a weak willed person. I''d hoped that she could at least stay awake to see the final piece." Dreadful words that seemed so casual came out the child''s mouth. He walked towards the girl and crouched in front of her. "She really is unconscious, and so is her little sister. Should I try to make another art piece?" "No, leave me and my sister alone!" The little girl''s voice only resounded in her mind, nothing actually coming out of her mouth. "Move, move, MOVE!" She forced her eyes open, albeit extremely slowly. "Look at this. Seems like the girl is awake." Arnin, who was just about to get up, looked at the awakening girl with a calm expression. Arnin''s blood covered hands reached towards the girl''s face, as he slowly stroked it, leaving a blood print. "Now that you are awake, we can begin our little expedition." The bun haired girl''s face was extremely pale. She was only barely able to open her eyes, however she still couldn''t completely control her body. The scenes she saw prior to waking up were just too frightening. "S-s-sis...ter." A low mumble escaped the girl''s mouth, however Arnin was able to clearly hear what she said. "Oh, are you looking for your sister? Let me go and get her right now." A slight smirk appeared on Arnin''s face when he said these words. He then quickly vanished from his position. A couple seconds later, Arnin came back. With her body unable to move, She couldn''t see her ''sister'', however she felt something fall on her face instead. *Drip Drip* It was a cold liquid, however she couldn''t make out what it was. Her body was like a rock, unmoving. *Drip Drip* The unknown substance continued to fall on her face. Suddenly, a shadowy object appeared over her. She blinked a couple times, allowing her eyes to lose their blurriness and regain their clarity. "Here''s your sister. You have been calling for her so I decided to be nice and bring her over." Arnin''s lips cracked into a wicked smile as he held something in his hand. Escaping from his fist were bits of hair that seemed to be trapped in Arnin''s hand. Following the long hair down to their source, what appeared was a head. "No! No!" The bun haired girl broke free from her frozen state as the blurriness in her eyes disappeared, and what appeared in front of her was the head of her dead sister. It was the long haired girl that Arnin had killed before. Blood dripped from the severed area, falling onto her face. The head was dangling in the air, the eyes of her sister were closed, but they were anything but peaceful. The mouth was open for some unknown reason, however this caused the bun haired girl to become even more sad and enraged. "Y-you beast! You beast! Demon child! I will kill you! I WILL KILL YOU!" The bun haired girl''s previous fear completely disappeared, leaving only an enraged monster. Arnin tossed the severed head towards the bun haired girl before slowly walked towards the remaining sister. She caught her sister''s head, tears streaming down her face, however her face became extremely white when she saw where Arnin was now. "Alright then, since the garbage here is now cleared, shall we head out?" Arnin was holding the remaining sister by her throat as his purple, demonic eyes looked at the bun haired girl. "Y-you, let go of h--" Before the bun haired girl could say anything, Arnin''s eyebrows wrinkled a little as he began to lift the last sister up. "Enough! You are starting to irritate me. I will kill your sister in front of you if you continue to act like such a pest. Let''s go, I am not waiting anymore. I will give you to the count of three, but if you don''t follow me, then just know that you will be meeting your sisters in the afterlife." Arnin began to get a little annoyed with the bun haired girl. Arnin turned around, and dragged the remaining sister''s body as he held onto the throat. His free hand was lifted into the air as three fingers reached for the sky. Then there were two, then there was one, then¡­ *SWOOSH* Suddenly, the bun haired girl appeared a little behind him. Walking closely, but not too close. Arnin pulled his hand back beside him, and continued to walk in silence. ---------------------------------------- In the cave, where the multiple people watched the scenes unfold before them, the Headmistress stood on one side with Fae beside her. There was a deep frown on her face, however there was also a glint in her eyes. "This kid, Arnin, is extremely brutal. He is only five, yet he is even more evil than the Snill Man, who could be considered the most ruthless person in this region." The headmistress was feeling a little complicated when she saw Arnin''s evil deeds. The battlefield did allow for the students to kill one another, and there really weren''t many restrictions, but even then, Arnin''s actions were a little too much. Fae looked at the headmistress, and hesitated before speaking up. "Should I go and force Arnin out of the battlefield?" Fae also felt that he was taking things too far, however since there were never any rules, Arnin could be said to be doing nothing wrong. The headmistress shook her head. "No, that is alright. Although this child is extremely ruthless, he is very powerful. His talent is also very high and he is useful to us, so why should we remove him? Anyways, he isn''t breaking any rules, rather he has killed fewer people than the top one hundred cultivators." The Headmistress then removed her gaze from the screen that showed Arnin and focused on the ones that showed other people. Fae continued to watch Arnin''s screen, ignoring the rest. "The top one hundred are really nothing when compared to Arnin. He is too much of a demon. Let''s see who takes the championship in this battlefield. Hehe" Fae laughed slightly as her eyes looked deeply at the red haired child who was nothing short of demonic. -------------------------------------------------------------- Arnin continued to walk with his hand holding onto the throat of the unconscious sister. He dragged her on the ground while also keeping a lookout for potential victims. "Give me information about this battlefield. Who is the strongest? What are the rules?" Arnin listed out the things he wanted to know. Although he could figure out these things by asking every person he killed, that would take too long. Some would be too scared to speak, while others would lie to him. Although he knew that the bun haired girl may lie to him as well, he had ways to test out what she was saying. The bun haired girl was silent for a moment before clenching her teeth and fists. "T-there are thousands of people participating in this battlefield. Each person has to continue killing or hiding until the official top thirty students are chosen. Currently, there is an unofficial top ten, thirty, and hundred." Arnin nodded his head. The unofficial list was usually set by the cultivators who were a part of the battle. This unofficial list would usually just hold the strongest people, or the people who had killed the most. It also showed who the winners would most likely be, but not everything was set. The people in these lists would fluctuate in rankings, and sometimes a ranked person would die, making room for a new person to join. This list, however, would be spread through word of mouth. It was unofficial was due to all of these reasons. Still, the unofficial list would usually be similar to the official list, with only a few small differences between the two. "Do you know who the top people are, or atleast who we should watch out for? Also, what is the average cultivation realm for these so-called top players?" Arnin was not going to attack people who were much stronger than him. He was not going to risk his life because he wanted to be strongest or the best. He found that to be utterly stupid. He was going to survive and kill as many people as possible, but he was not going to mess with the truly strong people because he knew there was a high chance that he would die if he did that. "When we first came, everyone would have to go through a cultivation realm checker, however because of the time that has passed since then, many have probably broken through their cultivation realms." The bun haired began to explain. She was trying to be as obedient as possible since Arnin was literally holding her sister''s life in his hands. "Understandable. Fighting for life and death is usually the best way to have a breakthrough, plus it could allow many people to gain sudden enlightenment." Arnin didn''t deny anything she said thus far, however he was being vigilant and paying attention to every detail. Although he couldn''t make sure she wasn''t lying, he could use common reasoning and his own experience to differentiate between what was true or false. "Although I do not know what the highest realm the people are currently at, I do remember what realms the strongest people were before the battle started." The bun haired girl continued to clench her teeth as she spoke. "People like me and my sister were considered the weakest. The Orb Birth realm was the minimum one needed to participate, and this included at least a few hundred people, while what was considered to be middle strength was around Essence Manifest - Earth to Hell. These people were considered fairly strong and had a good chance of survival. There were at least three hundred people with these realms." Arnin was somewhat surprised when he heard the statistics. He couldn''t help but compare such strength to Lepidoptera Academy. Even in the Moth group, the majority of the people were sitting at the late stages of Orb Birth, or even at the early stages of Essence Manifest. Of course there were many hidden talents, such as the group that lived in the top ten houses, however they would probably be weaker than the students of Thorn Academy since they did not have to go through such brutal tests. Although Lepidoptera Academy probably had more students, the quality of students much lower than Thorn Academy''s. "What about the strongest? Did all of them reach Elemental Formation or higher?" Arnin wasn''t too worried about facing these strong contenders because he would try to avoid them as much as possible. He didn''t intend on fighting such strong people unless he could match them equally. "Well, there were actually only a couple people who were sitting at Elemental Formation, but the truly strong people were the ones that were at Essence Manifest - Heaven. Almost all of them, with a few exceptions, could fight people at Elemental Formation. They were the true geniuses and powerhouses for this battlefield." Arnin nodded his head, and couldn''t help but sigh. He was also extremely strong and could face people above his own realm, however he knew that people who were similar to him were the most difficult to handle. Of course, Arnin knew that if he became just a little stronger, he could probably wipe the floor with the so-called ''geniuses'' since he himself was one of the most talented. The only problem that Arnin had so far was that his realm was too unstable, and could fall at any given time. He was at his weakest, and he didn''t have a solution to his problem. Although his physical body was extremely strong, and his realm was sitting around Orb Birth - Hell, it wasn''t enough for him to face the strongest contenders. ''Seems like I am going to need to play fisherman again. It reminds me so much of the past, hehe.'' Arnin laughed inwardly as he remembered his own growth in the past. Back then he was much weaker than he was now. He was actually not evil or ruthless, rather he could be considered a naive demon child, but because of this, he was betrayed and almost killed countless times. Arnin and the bun haired girl walked for a while before finally hearing sounds of fighting. "Jia, you piece of trash! You think that just because you made a breakthrough, you can match me?!" The voice of a woman sounded from the battle area. "Oh, shut up White. You are much weaker than me now, so prepare to die!" The man facing the woman also screamed back. Arnin appeared near the sight and began to investigate the people''s strengths. Essence Manifest - Sky. They were much stronger than the lovers he killed before, plus it seemed like the man was stronger than the woman in the fight, albeit barely. "The man should win if nothing goes wrong. My time to fish has come." Arnin smiled as he sat on the ground, patting the unconscious sister''s neck in front of the bun haired girl. 81 This Little Sh* Arnin silently watched as the two cultivators attacked each other as if they were mortal enemies. The man who was named Jia seemed to have just broken through to Essence Manifest - Sky, however it seemed like his strength was a little higher than the woman named White. Arnin wasn''t too surprised by this. Other than him, there were many others who could also fight people who were on a higher realm. ''Judging from the way this White woman is speaking, this Jia guy must have been slightly weaker than her before breaking through, but now he is stronger." Arnin smiled at this. He could tell from the way the man fought that Jia did not spend too much time stabilizing his realm, or rather he didn''t get the chance to. If he did stabilize his realm, then he would most likely be more than just a little stronger than the woman. This, however, didn''t really matter to Arnin, rather, it worked for him quite well. Since both of the people fighting were around the same in strength, there was a high chance that they would fight until both of them were tired. The man having a slight advantage, but overall, both of them would become extremely tired and run out of energy at the end. This created the perfect opportunity for Arnin to strike. The only problem that Arnin could see was both of them giving up. Because of how aggressive both of them were, the chance was low, but it was still there. If they began to feel that fighting would do them little good, there was a chance that Jia and White would leave, and not continue fighting. If this happened, then Arnin would not be able to strike them when they were weak. He would have to either leave, or fight one of them alone, since fighting them both would not be a wise choice. With his strength, he would technically be able to fight both White and Jia, and even beat them, but that would waste a lot energy and essence that he did not have to spare. He was already becoming weaker by the second, and there was also the bun haired girl he needed to keep an eye on. ''This is becoming interesting.'' He smiled slightly when he thought about the situation he was placed in. Everything would depend on whether the two people would fight till the end, or leave midway. ---------------------------------- White was a sword wielder. She had long silvery hair with extremely pale skin. Her clothes were not like the normal robes that cultivators wore, rather she had a luxurious blue dress with grey footwear. She looked like a snow goddess. Jia, on the other hand, was very muscular. Rather than using a hammer or any other large, blunt weapon people would expect a person of his size to use, Jia held onto a rather thin staff. This staff was half black and half yellow, with a crystal sphere on the tip. It was transparent, but within that sphere, one would be able to find a yellowish substance that looked extremely chaotic. Jia had black hair which was dusty like his brownish yellow robes. From the way he fought and defended, Jia was more of a long distance fighter than a short distance. White was able to overtake him completely in close combat, and his defense was barely able to keep himself safe. When Jia would get far away, a yellow streak of light would be released from the crystal sphere, attacking with light speed. Instantly, one could tell that the power of the yellow chaotic substance was lightning, although weaker than what one would normally see in nature. "White, just give up. In the past, I was on par with you, but now that I have reached the same realm as you, I can beat you with ease." Jia was laughing maniacally, however the arrogance of his words was actually not seen on his face. He was sweating, and his bronze skin seemed to be pale. He was struggling. "Haha! You really jest, Jia. Have you seen how you look? You are sweating more than a pig. Don''t act all high and mighty in front of me. Once I slash you with my blade, then we will see who is stronger." White replied with her own arrogant words, but even she found it difficult to keep up. Although Jia was not yet a lightning cultivator, as he had yet to make an elemental seed, he was still extremely quick, much quicker than her. This forced her to chase him with all her might, making her lose even more energy, however she knew that once she caught up, Jia would be in for one hell of a beating. Both cultivators continued to fight as if there was no tomorrow. White would slash at Jia, but miss because of his great dodging speed. Jia would aim his lightning staff and shoot his bolts, with only a few of them reaching White, but not causing large amount of damage. Although the injuries weren''t detrimental, Jia did not mind because his goal wasn''t to cause life threatening injuries with his bolts. His lightening was not the extremely brutal type, rather it was like a snake with numbing poison. Whatever was hit would be numbed for a period of time. White was lucky that she knew about this. If she did not, then the situation would have been much more dire. Arnin was standing far away, watching with interest and patience. He completely ignored the bun haired girl, however he did not once let go of the unconscious sister. The bun haired girl was also watching the fight, but she payed more attention to Arnin. She wasn''t going to attack him since she knew that nothing good would come out of it, but she was still looking for an opportunity to take her sister and escape. Although she knew the gap between herself and Arnin was significant, she truly did not have any other option. Death was certain whether she followed Arnin or not, so she hoped to use any chance to escape the clutches of such a demonic child. She looked at her unconcious sister, and couldn''t help but sigh. ''Why aren''t you waking up? I need you awake so that we can do this.'' Although she thought this, she did not actually wish for her sister to wake up now. If she did, then Arnin would most likely knock her out once again, or possibly even do something worse. That was not her goal. The fight progressed for another two hours. The two fighters were breathing heavily, however the fighting intent in their eyes did not lessen one bit. They looked hatefully at each other, as if trying to kill with just their eyes, ''I wonder what caused these two to hate each other so much. Normally, cultivators leave when they know that a fight will result in nothing, with only mortal enemies continuing on until one side dies.'' Arnin was somewhat curious, and wanted to know what ignited such a fight. As the two exhausted fighters stared at each other with great hate, White straightened her body and slowly made her way towards Jia. Her sword dragged across the damaged ground, make a small cut as she moved forward. "Jia, we both knew that this would be the result if we fought. You may be stronger than me now, but you did not have enough time consolidate your realm. Your essence is unstable, while mine is not. Plus your attacks required you to use more energy than my own. You lose, Jia." White spoke with an exhausted smile, however that smile suddenly froze. *BLEUGH* She, for some unknown reason, spat out a mouthful of blood. Her hand that held the blade loosened as the sword fell to the ground with a clank. Both of her hands, and even her legs began to tremble, as if they were unable to support her weight any longer. She fell to her knees, and her arms held from falling to the ground, however because of the weird reaction, her arms were only able to hold her up for a short period of time before also giving in and making her face hit the ground. "J-Jia, what i-is this?!" White lifted her head, and looked at the fallen Jia with confusion and hate. The latter suddenly got up, and also made his way towards White. A wicked smile on his face, sweat pouring down the side of his eyebrow. "Haha! You really are so pitiful. Do you really think that you would win? If I were to lose to you even after breaking through, then I should have died the day I was born!" Jia wildly laughed, however his laugh was short due him running out of breath. "Cut the crap! What did you do to me?!" White did not care about the ramblings of Jia. She wanted to know why she was in her current state. "You really don''t know anything, do you?" Jia shook his head, before lifting his staff and shooting out another bolt of lightning towards White. This bolt didn''t do any serious damage, rather it seeped into her arms. "These bolts of mine are not meant for killing, rather they are used to weaken and numb... " He began to slowly explain. The more White listened, the more shocked she became. She always thought that the numbing effect of the bolts was low, and never thought that they would cause her four limbs to become unusable. "When? When did you get the time to make your bolts so strong?!" White was feeling panicked. She knew that nothing good would come of the fact that she could not move. Jia looked hard at White, before taking out a small object from the inside of his robe. When he pulled out the small, stick like object, White couldn''t help but frown. "What is th--" Suddenly, the object expanded into a large staff, about the same size as the current one he was using. "Y-you have two staffs!?" White was extremely shocked. "Jia smiled before shooting another bolt of lightning towards White, but this time he used the staff he just pulled out. "Do you feel it? The numbing effects are just like what you remember right? Well, this is the staff I used to fight you in the past. It is much weaker than this new one." "W-why, didn''t you use it before? If you had such a staff, then you could have finished me off a long time ago. Were you trying to make a fool out of me?!" The more White thought about the situation, the more angry she got. "That isn''t the cas--" Jia was just about to explain when he heard a voice. "I can explain that to you." Both White and Jia turned and looked at the person who said those words. All they saw was a child around the age of five or six. He looked very handsome for his age, however his red hair and purple eyes gave him a demonic charm. "Who are you?" Jia was the first to ask, however he was extremely calm. He investigated Arnin''s aura, and felt that it was only sitting at Orb Birth - Hell, plus it seemed to be quite weak. He wasn''t nervous in any way, but what made him look at Arnin a little weirdly was the fact that he was holding onto the throat of a young girl, and dragging her across the ground. "I can answer that after my explanation." Arnin smiled slightly. "This man, Jia, did not use the staff because of his own inability, not because he was trying to make a fool out of you." Arnin spoke out with no fear. Jia narrowed his eyes, and looked at Arnin with a hardened look. "Little child, I am not so nice that I will leave you alive because of your age. You better scram if you know what''s good for you." Jia knew that everything in the battlefield was dangerous. There was no need to show mercy to anyone, not even a child who was much younger and weaker than him. "Why are you so aggressive? I am just speaking the truth, right?" Arnin looked at Jia with a calm gaze before turning his head towards White. "So White, as I was saying, this Jia person was not strong enough to use the staff, and now he is, simple as that." "Then why is my body like this?!" Although White did not completely trust Arnin, she still couldn''t help but ask. "Are you really asking such a dumb question?" Arnins words made White extremely angry, but she didn''t say anything, and only continued to glare at him. "Whatever, dumb people still need to be taught, am I right? Basically, the bolts of lightning are weak, yes, but they get stronger as they begin to gather in an area. This Jia person looks like a muscle head, but he is actually very calculating. He made sure to repeatedly hit you in the same spots in order to increasing the numbing effect until you were unable to use any of your limbs." Arnin looked at Jia and gave him a nod of approval, however this made Jia more angry than happy. White, however, fell silent. She began to think back to the fight and also remembered how every attack hit either her arms or her legs. There was no attack directed towards her vital spots. "You really are a calculative person, Jia." White spoke with more hate, however she couldn''t do anything else. She was already in such a dire situation. "Child, since you love to explain so many things to others, why not go to the afterlife and explain what you know to the dead? They will love listening to you." Jia walked towards Arnin, holding his stronger staff in one hand and the weak one in the other, Arnin shook his head, and waved his hand in the air. Suddenly, a shadow rushed out from the bushes. The person who came out was the bun haired girl. "What do you want? I am only here to give you information. Why are you making me fight? This was not a part of the deal." The bun haired girl flared up as she angrily spoke to Arnin. *UNNNNGG* The girl in Arnin''s clutches began to painfully moan, as she knit her eyebrows, and her body trembled slightly. "Do you want to really question me?" Arnin looked at the girl calmly. "Alright, alright. Stop hurting her, please." Thebun haired girl panicked when she saw her sister''s pain filled face. "Remember this, you follow what I say. The more you question me, the faster your sister will approach death. Plus, I now decided that you are going to be my scout. You will go forward first, and tell me if all is safe." Arnin spoke with a smile, however his smile was anything but friendly. "B-but, I am weaker than you. Me going in will do you no good." The bun haired girl quickly tried to reason with him. She knew that this was Arnin''s way of giving her a death sentence. "That''s fine, if you don''t want to do it, then I can just make your sister go in for me." Arnin began to slowly lift up the unconscious sister. Seeing his actions, the bun haired girl grit her teeth, and began to walk forward. "Ok, tell me what you want me to do." Jia watched all of this happen, and his anger was reaching its peak. Ignored. He was completely ignored by Arnin. Suddenly, Jia saw Arnin point towards him while looking at the girl standing beside him. "Go and fight that man. You just need to fight him for a short duration." Arnin''s words shocked both Jia and the bun haired girl. "Y-you want me to fight him?" The bun haired girl''s fingers pointed at Jia as her face twitched. ''This little sh*t!'' She couldn''t help but curse Arnin. 82 Chop Chop Chop The bun-haired girl was shocked and angry at Arnin''s ridiculous demand. She had to go and fight an Essence Manifest - Sky cultivator? She was barely able to fight against someone who was at Orb Birth - Heaven, let alone someone at Essence Manifest. ''This little demon is really pushing it. It seems that I may really die earlier than I want to.'' She knew that she was no match for someone in Essence Manifest, even if that person was injured and tired. Of course, if all of her sisters were present and they were able to coordinate together against a single Essence Manifest cultivator, then it should be possible to fight one, but making a kill was still difficult. Arnin looked at the bun-haired girl, and then back towards Jia. "Come on, go and attack this person. I want to see how long he could hold." Arninn didn''t keep his voice down, allowing Jia and White to hear what he was saying. "Don''t act all high and mighty, little kid. Even if the both of you came at me together, I would win with ease." Jia was a prideful person, so hearing Arnin''s words made him extremely annoyed. Arnin ignored Jia and continued to stare at the bun-haired girl, waiting for her to make a move. Seeing that she was still hesitating, Arnin tightened his grip. "Uggh" The painful moan of her sister reached the bun-haired girl''s ears. Gritting her teeth, she walked towards Jia, her aura being released to the fullest. Seeing this, Jia also stood straight, and looked at the bun-haired girl with cold, piercing eyes. He was angry with the fact that he would need to fight such a young girl. It was an insult to him that someone made such a weak person face him. "You better watch out, little girl. I won''t hold back." He wasn''t reminding her out of goodwill. He was doing it in order to show Arnin that the latter was being overconfident in his own skills. "Hurry and attack him, girl." Arnin ignored the taunts of Jia. It didn''t really affect him since he could fight Jia and kill him if he needed, but he didn''t want to waste too much energy. He would rather conduct a sneak attack, and kill him in an instant so that little energy would be wasted. The bun haired girl walked forward. She didn''t have a weapon on her since Arnin used her spear to create ''art'' a little while ago. Right now, all she could depend on were her fists and legs. As she slowly approached Jia, Arnin also made his way towards the woman laying on the ground. Jia of course noticed this, but he didn''t do anything to stop him. He was confident that Arnin would not be able to help White, and even if the kid tried to help her, he would be able to stop him. Just as Arnin reached White, the battle between Jia and the bun-haired girl began. Right from the beginning, the girl was at a disadvantage. It didn''t matter how weak Jia was, he was still significantly stronger than the bun haired girl. Arnin reached White and stood above her, looking directly at her face. The latter also looked at Arnin, not knowing what he truly wanted to do. "Little boy, if you can help me, I will owe you. I can make sure that this old man won''t do anything to you." Although she knew that helping her situation was near impossible, she still felt that if Arnin tried, then she could help him figure out a way to fix her up. But, that was only if Arnin agreed to help. Arnin sat down right next to White with the unconscious girl laying beside him. "White, that''s your name right? Well, here''s the thing, you are useless to me. You are weak, injured, and also stupid. Tell me, should I help someone like that?" Arnin''s words caused White to become furious, but she calmed herself down. Right now, the only person who could help her was Arnin. "Little kid, trust me. I am the only person who can bring you of this mess." She continued to try to persuade him, but Arnin only smiled towards her. "Oh little woman, do you really not understand anything? Let me repeat my words in a way you might understand. I don''t need help." Arnin continued to smile and watch the battle in front of him. Bun haired girl was losing, however she wasn''t in any danger of dying since the old Jia was also extremely tired. Arnin knew that his moment to attack would come quite soon, however he had to make sure that the bun haired girl wouldn''t die since he still had some plans for her. "Little White, let me ask you a question." White looked at Arnin with her eyes brown furrowed. She felt displeased with the way Arnin referred to her, plus she didn''t have any goodwill towards him since he would not help her. "Have you heard of anything new lately?" "What do you mean?" She further scrunched up her eyebrows, not completely understanding what Arnin meant. Arnin lifted his hand, and picked up the sword beside White. He brought it up in front of him, and began to inspect it. "Like, have you heard of anyone new making an appearance? Someone evil, someone good? Anyone?" Arnin continued to question her while gazing at the sword. White saw Arnin pick up her sword, making her heart vigilant. ''What is this kid trying to do?'' "I have heard of a few things. I have been traveling alone, and have not encountered too many people, but I have heard a couple things. There seems to be a woman with the title ''Death Lore'' roaming the battlefield. Another person named, ''Peasant Fu''..." She continued to list out the titles of many famous killers and people throughout the battlefield. Arnin firmly kept the names in his mind, however he continued to wait. White spoke more and more and then suddenly, she remembered something. "Also, there was another person who recently rose to prominence, but of course, he is still considered a little weak. His title I think was¡­ ''Demonic Joker''. Yeah, this person is supposedly the most evil out of the many famous people, and he also seems to be very young." Arnin nodded his head, his crimson hair swaying. "Good. Now, can you tell me what you know about this so called most evil ''Demonic Joker''?" "Well, he is extremely young, and kills people who are only in Orb Birth. His methods, however, are quite savage and ruthless. Every victim is brutally tortured before death, or is even occasion is left to suffer after being tortured. He supposedly has purple eyes and...red hai--" As she continued to speak, her eyes slowly widened. Arnin''s demonic purple eyes looked at her calmly, however this calm gaze caused the hairs on White''s neck to rise. The infamous ''Demonic Joker'' was extremely well known. Although everyone knew that he was still very weak, most tried to avoid him since he was so ruthless. Even the strongest had heard of his name. "You really are a slow person." Arnin shook his head before lifting the blade and pointing it towards White''s pale neck. "Now then, should I kill you or not?" "N-no, please don''t kill me. Don''t kill me. I am strong. I can help you kill this Jia person. Please!" White begged, but she couldn''t move so she simply stared at Arnin''s neck. She couldn''t see his menacing smile. "Ahh!" Suddenly, a scream came from the surroundings. Arnin looked over and found that the bun haired girl was just hit on her arm extremely hard. A bruise instantly appeared, plus if one looked closely, they would notice that all of her fingers were in weird positions. She was heavily injured. "Seems like it''s time to interfere." Arnin smiled as he made his way towards Jia with White''s sword in his hand. He was planning a sneak attack against Jia, but that didn''t seem possible since the bun haired girl was just too weak. Jia didn''t notice Arnin walking towards him just yet as he glared at the girl in front of him. "Little girl, you are not strong enough to face me, but since you already tried, forget trying to leave this place alive." Jia was already pissed off because of White, and now he had to face a couple of children who kept taunting him. He wasn''t the type who would take that lying down. "Hey, since you are done playing with little girls, want to try to fight me?" Suddenly, Jia heard a voice on his on his left. He turned his head and saw Arnin walking over with a sword about the same size as his child like body being dragged beside him. "Brat, do you really think you can face me? Especially with a blade that you can barely carry?" Jia found this humorous, however Arnin''s gaze continued to remain calm. "Whatever." Arnin ignored his taunts, and quickly sprinted towards Jia. The sword was actually quite easy to hold for Arnin. Jia also prepared himself for the fight. He knew that Annie was most likely much stronger than the bun haired girl, so it would be a little more difficult to face him with his current strength, however he was still confident in his abilities. He continued to look down on Arnin since he was still a child, and also quite weak. "Come! Let me show you what real strength is---" Just as he spoke, Arnin vanished from his sight. "ARG!" He felt a piercing pain shoot from his leg, so he quickly looked down. To his horror, he found that his left leg was missing. He suddenly turned around with his face bright red. "I am going to kill you--" When he turned around and was about to hit Arnin with his staff, he felt another burst of pain rush from his arm. He looked over and saw his right arm falling onto the ground, blood rushing out of the wound. Arnin gazed at Jia calmly. "You are actually quite slow and weak. If you were at your full strength, then I may have needed to put some effort into killing you, but now?" Arnin had a cold smile on his face. He then swung the large sword once again, chopping the remaining leg and arm off. "AHHH!" The bun haired girl watched all of this happen with grimness. Although she had seen Arnin do worse, she never knew that he was actually this strong. She used to think that he could probably barely fight a Essence Manifest - Sky cultivator, but never dominate one. ''There is no way I can escape from him unless someone saves me, and that person needs to be much stronger than this demon, if not, then there is no way I can be saved.'' She sighed internally as she thought about this. Arnin was just too freakishly strong. Only the stronger contestants could do anything to him, but why would they try to help her? She neither had anything worth giving to them, nor any sort of special status. Jia quickly fell to the ground, blood gushing out from the four major wounds he just recieved. Although it seemed that Arnin killed Jia without spending much effort, in reality he had used a little more essence than he intended. The sudden speed increase forced him to use so much essence that he was on the brink of falling into Orb Birth - Earth. ''This is just great. Seems like I need to go on another massacre in order to get some more blood. When will I find a way to heal myself?'' Arnin was getting irritated by the fact that his orb threads continuing to leak essence. He just needed to quickly find a way to heal them, and then he could fight as he pleased. Arnin''s calm gaze locked onto Jia as he lifted his sword and began to chop. "AH!!" The painful screams of Jia started off loud, but slowly turned into whimpers, and then¡­ nothing. White saw everything, and couldn''t help but feel fear. Jia was dead. Plus, the death was not peaceful or quick. It looked extremely painful. ''This Demonic Joker won''t let me go either. I need to find a way to survive this, or at least not go through the same pain as Jia.'' White was extremely scared. Although Arnin had recently rose to prominence, his name was still somewhat scary to weaker cultivators. Some weaker cultivators even made up a little saying or warning revolving around Arnin. ''When you see the Joker, run before he sees you. If the Joker wants your head, then give it to him yourself, do not let him take it himself.'' Basically, avoid the Joker, but if that''s not possible, then commit suicide. This was what people would say. Arnin''s ruthless methods were just too frightening. Plus, many were able to see the way he killed from afar, and this frightened them silly. Blood began to pool around Jia rather quickly, however Arnin knew that this was not going to be nearly enough to increase his powers. He needed lots of blood. His gaze then landed on White. When White saw Arnin look at her, she felt as though the world just ended. She did not want to die, but she also didn''t want to be tortured to death. ''What should I do? He won''t let me live, but I also can''t leave. Damn this numbing!'' She was crazily mumbling to herself as she saw the Death God like Arnin move towards her, slowly getting closer. When Arnin finally reached her, his gaze locked onto her hair. "Please, can you le--" Just as she was about to finish speaking, Arnin grabbed her hair and began to drag her towards Jia''s body. "No, no, no! I don''t want to be tortured. No, I don''t want to die!" White screamed from the top of her lungs, but there was nothing that she could say which could stir Arnin to stop. His facial expression was calm and unchanging. Her every scream was like a small breeze to Arnin. Insignificant. Arnin threw White on top of the badly tortured and bleeding Jia. He then lifted the blade and started to chop away. "AHHH!" The bun haired girl watched this from afar. She then quickly looked away and squatted on the ground. Her hands were covering her ears as she closed her eyes. She tried to block out the scene and sound, however it was just as useless as the first time. Half an hour passed. The screams stopped a long time ago, however Arnin was waiting for the blood to pool so that he could absorb as much as he could. The bun haired girl opened her eyes and looked at the scene. She couldn''t help but vomit right away. Skinned! The bodies were skinned like those of animals. She started to debate whether she should just kill herself and escape the hell she was currently in. Arnin ignored everything, and sat down beside the pool of blood, beginning to cultivate with the Demon Cultivation Manual. He slowly absorbed the blood and turned it into usable essence. ----------------------------------------- While Arnin was silently cultivating, he didn''t know that a particular person was slowly making their way towards Lepidoptera Academy. 83 Uncertainty Arnin silently continued to cultivate using the pool of blood created using the two bodies. The amount of essence he gained was not negligible, but it wasn''t too great either. The only positive thing about this essence was that it was from two cultivators from the Essence Manifest - Sky realm. It was more abundant in energy than blood from normal Orb Birth cultivators. The bun haired girl did not try and take her sister away during this time. She had completely lost any thoughts of trying to escape. In the past, she knew that escaping would be extremely difficult, but now¡­ she knew it was nearly impossible. Arnin was just too strong and fast. The only thing that confused her was what would happen to Arnin after every fight. ''Why does it seem that he gets weaker after his every attack? Is this supposed to be a trick to lure people towards him, or is it something else?'' She didn''t say this out loud though since she felt that it could put her in danger. Everything was silent on the battlefield around Arnin. His aura was slowly increasing and becoming more stable, which the bun haired could feel with her senses. She was confused, but did not question. An hour passed by quickly; no one disturbed them or even tried to get close. Weaker people had engraved Arnin''s special physical characteristics into their minds. They would avoid him more than anyone else. If they did die, they would rather die quickly and painlessly rather than slowly and painfully. Arnin slowly opened his eyes. His purple eyes glimmered under the artificial light of the battlefield. He stood up and stretched his body slightly, taking a deep breath. ''My essence is still around the early stages of Orb Birth - Hell, but its a little more than what I had before though.'' Arnin had this thought but it didn''t make him feel too great. He needed to quickly find a way to heal his body so that he would not need to worry about his realm dropping after every fight, or dropping while he wasn''t doing anything at all. This whole idea of his realm dropping every second was not suited for the battlefield, especially when his life could be endangered at any moment. Absorbing blood was not a long term solution; it was too risky. Arnin walked towards the unconscious girl''s body and picked her up. He then looked at the bun haired girl. "Hey, take your sister. I am not going to hold onto her anymore." Arnin tossed the unconscious girl towards her sister. She was shocked when Arnin let her hold her sister. Quickly, she moved forward and caught her sibling, and then turned around. There was a slight smile on her face, but it was still filled with caution. She didn''t say anything to Arnin since she was scared that if she stayed any longer, he might change his mind. After she got her sister, she began to walk away from Arnin, however the latter only scoffed at her actions. "Where are you going?" Arnin called from behind. The bun haired girl turned her head and looked at Arnin with confusion and fear. "C-can''t I g-go now?" She was confused by Arnin''s action. Arnin walked towards her with the blade dragging beside him. A slight smile that was cold as ice was on his face as his demonic purple eyes looked at the girl. "I never said you can go. All I said was that you will be holding your sister from now on." When she heard his words, she felt as though the last shimmer of hope she had completely dissipated like a fire''s heat during a cold winter. Even though she was holding onto her sister, she knew that escaping would not be possible. Arnin was not worried that his actions would give the girl a chance to escape. He knew that because of how swiftly he killed the Essence Manifest - Sky cultivator, the bun haired girl would not even think about escaping anymore. He had done his job of scaring her into a form of submission. "Tell me, do you know where the highest concentrations of cultivators are? Is there a certain place where most people will gather?" In every battlefield, there was always a focal point. It was the place where the most people gathered. Although this was a competition, there would be a place where most people would come and fight since roaming around randomly would not do anyone any good. The bun haired girl quickly snapped out of her sorrowful state and looked at Arnin with dull eyes. She held more fear for Arnin than hate now. The type of fear that she knew that would never leave. "Gathering place?" The bun haired hair began to think about whether she had ever heard of such a place being mentioned before. Suddenly, she remembered a something that she and the other contenders were told before the competition began. ----------------------------------- ''During this competition, many people will be killed. Most will be a part of the weakest group entering, however that doesn''t mean that the weakest don''t have a chance of surviving.'' In this flashback, the bun haired girl remembered the words of a certain proctor. ''Our school has set up three areas in the battlefield that the weakest and even the strongest can use to quickly increase their strength.'' ------------------------------------------------ Her eyes sparked a little when she remembered this. In the past, her sisters wanted to head over to one of the three places in order to see what they had, but due to them deciding to attack Arnin first, that never happened. "I can''t say where everyone is going to gather in the end, but there are three places where lots of people are likely to gather." She spoke after some hesitation. If Arnin did take her to one of these three locations, then there was a chance that she would finally be able to escape his clutches, but she also felt scared that he would kill her before going to the places in order to prevent her from ever escaping. Arnin raised one of his eyebrows and calmly gazed at the bun haired girl. "What are these three places that you are talking about, and where are they located?" The bun haired girl took a deep breath. ''This is my only chance to escape from him. I need to tell him. If he takes me there, then that would be for the best, but if he kills me now, then I can only blame myself for being too confident in the past.'' She sighed a little before strengthening her resolve. "Before the competition started, we were told about three special locations. These locations would supposedly give weaker cultivators a chance to survive in the competition. We were also told that it would allow both weak and strong cultivators to increase their strength. I am assuming that most people are heading there, if they''re not there already." Arnin nodded his head as he heard her explanation. This made sense to him because if there was no way for weaker cultivators to survive, then why would they partake in such a competition? Why not just make the stronger ones fight it out and see who can get in and who can''t? Strength was very important, but being talented and having high comprehension skills was also extremely important. Allowing cultivators to fight in such a deadly place and seek out opportunities would only make them stronger. "Alright, lead me to one of these so called ''special places''. I want to see for myself how ''special'' they really are." Arnin wasn''t really interested in the opportunity to increase his strength since that would do him little good. He already had his own path figured out, and was skilled enough to go through with it without needing special encounters. Right now, he needed to heal his body before doing anything else. Going to a place where large amounts of cultivators gathered would allow him to kill more people and absorb their blood. Plus he could possibly run into some stronger cultivators and use their blood to boost his quantity of essence to a higher degree. Of course, these people could not be too strong, or else that would lead him to death. With no other choice, the bun haired began to lead Arnin. She still held some hope that this place would be her chance to find some way to escape, however she didn''t keep her hopes too high. Arnin was extremely strong, and only people around the late stages of Essence Manifest would be able to deal with him, especially those who could fight above their own realm. Alas, she did not carry any thoughts of asking such geniuses for help. Why would they go out of their way to help her, a weak cultivator, out? As Arnin was following behind the bun haired girl, he began to thoroughly inspect the inside of his body. He still carried hopes of healing himself, and knew that with enough time he would find a way to accomplish it, but he needed to do it quick. He needed to gain enough power in order to fuse with his Demon Lord power and then enter a new realm. Only then would he be confident entering the other worlds. ----------------------------------------------- As Arnin continued to build his infamous reputation as the Demonic Joker in the deadly battlefield, the many people he left behind in Lepidoptera Academy were living quite blissfully, especially his two slaves. No one except the top echelon of the academy knew what happened to Arnin. The principal had commanded that the news of Arnin being attacked and taken away should be kept secret until he was located and killed or imprisoned. This was to make sure that the academy''s reputation would not be tainted, or become known as a place where others can rampantly enter and kidnap students. Plus, students would begin to lose their trust in the academy, thus lowering their loyalty to a place that could not even protect them. This would not be good for the principal as that would not allow him to create any future puppets that would risk everything for the academy. The biggest reason that Arnin''s disappearance was not suspected was because many knew that he visited the tenth floor in order to cultivate. Although it was very rare for people of such low realms to cultivate for an extended period of time, it wasn''t impossible. Plus, with the way Arnin was growing in power so quickly, it made more sense that he would spend more time training than others. Torne and Kurse, although scared that Arnin would return and continue torturing them, still felt that it was heavenly to have such a demon master missing for around two weeks. They were able to finally cultivate a little in peace. Although their strength had not improved greatly, their bodies were much more stable than before, especially Torne''s. He didn''t make a complete recovery from Arnin''s ''experiments'' but he was able to walk around without feeling any pain. The only problem that Torne still faced was that he found it exceedingly difficult to speak, and whenever he took a breath from his mouth, he would feel intense pain. After he was tortured by Arnin, the physicians questioned how he got so injured overnight. He didn''t divulge any information, in fear that Arnin would conduct worse experiments on him, plus saying anything would be useless. Other than the two slaves, Lilise and Elidia were also doing quite well. Although Lilise was curious as to why Arnin was taking so long with his ''cultivation'', she couldn''t do much about it. Lilise had gained some favour from her fellow students ever since she made a breakthrough into Orb Birth - Earth, plus others witnessed her quick cultivation speed, making her a little more popular. She was around the middle stages of Orb Birth - Earth now, but still had a long way to go before reaching the Sky realm. Elidia, on the other hand, was even more monstrous. In just two weeks, she had made it to the peak of Orb Birth - Earth and was extremely close to breaking through into the Sky realm. Even the Butterfly teachers were praising her talent, and many were even debating whether they should move her into the Moth group. Of course, all of this was because of the hint of blackness that had appeared around her Orb after the experience she had with Arnin. Although she was getting more attention from students and teachers alike, Elidia maintained a cold front. She was still somewhat traumatized after Arnin''s deeds so she felt that staying away from others would be better for her. Akig was the only one out of the many people who had done nothing at all. All day, he would sleep, occasionally eating things from the forest. He had been waiting for Arnin, and with him not coming back for a while, Akig was very bored. He didn''t have much to do other than stroll around the outer forest and sometimes sneak back into the house. Even though he was the laziest of them all, he made significant progress in his strength. Since he was constantly in the forest, he was able to slowly overcome some of his fears and even learned to use some of his beastly strength. Even Akig didn''t notice his own progression in this area. Out of the many that were in the academy, the one that had yet to make any appearance was Vilis. He was still in his slumber which should have ended a long time ago. Even Arnin assumed that it would just last for a few days, or maybe a week, but it was the second week and Vilis was still deep asleep. One could only imagine what kind of tiger he ate. Although it seemed quite normal on the surface, it was probably much more mysterious than that since it allowed Vilis to stay in slumber for such a long period of time. --------------------------------------------------- Far away from the planet of Afloria, back in the black hole where Arnin''s mansion was located, a group of mythical beasts gathered. All of them were on their knees, facing a large demon with two horns. This was Arnin''s demon servant, Kulgag, who was assigned to watch over his home while he was away. "Fellow Lords, please listen to some urgent news that I have just received." Kulgag spoke out loud. The kneeling lords lifted their heads and looked towards this two horned demon servant. "I have just received word from the Wolf Lord that out great Demon Lord Arnin has already begun his travels and he will not be coming back for a long period of time." When the Lords heard this, chaos spread throughout the hall. "So it is true, Great Demon Lord Arnin has truly gone out for his own tasks and it seems like this time, he will be out for much longer the usual. We may be able to have at least a million years of peace now." Some of the Lords discussed with smiles plastered over their faces. Most stayed in their humanoid forms inside the Great Hole Mansion out of fear and respect for the great Demon Lord. Kulgag didn''t mind the reaction that the many Lords had. It was a given for them to be happy that Demon Lord Arnin was gone. Arnin was a bloodthirsty Demon who would kill when he felt and had even exterminated over a thousand races. Even the Heaven Lord and Hell Lord quaked in his presence, let alone such small Lords. ''Maybe we can truly have peace for a longer period of time now, but why does it feel like the future will be more bleak? Hmmm, Wolf Lord¡­'' 84 Three Arnin and the bun haired girl made their ways towards one of the three special places in the battlefield. Although the bun haired girl knew of the three locations, she wasn''t sure how to get there from where she was currently located. When Arnin found out, he began to search for other cultivators. He needed more information as to how he could find these places. He knew that the information the bun haired girl could provide him with was becoming more and more limited, but even then, she still had some use. He still needed someone to point out who each person was, and how strong they approximately were. She also needed to run into dangerous areas first in order for Arnin to decide if he would go as well or not. The name ''Demonic Joker'' had begun to spread widely, and some who were very smart began to notice the general direction he was heading towards. Others even heard the types of questions that Arnin would ask his victims before killing them. "Cave Temple Zone!" This was the name of one of the special areas in the battlefield. Arnin was closest to this place, and so he decided to go towards this special zone first. "The Demonic Joker is heading towards the Cave Temple Zone! We need to avoid running into him!" Some who were also heading towards the Cave Temple Zone began to doubt whether going would be a good idea. They did not want to run into the Demonic Joker and then get tortured to death. "Why are you guys so scared? It''s just a single Demonic Joker. What can such a little bug do? If I meet that devilspawn, then watch what I do to him!" Some, however, were not scared. They wanted to run into Arnin in order to teach him a lesson that would cost him his life. "Yeah, I truly want to fight someone like the Demonic Joker. I heard he is quite strong, hehe!" There were even some battle maniacs who wanted to fight Arnin to the death in order to get a thrill out of the battle. Everywhere, people had different reaction to this news, however even though many people talked about Arnin, he was still considered less important than the truly major figures in the battlefield. The truly strong had many paying attention to their every movements. Some people even stalked them from the shadows and kept watch on them, reporting what they saw to the majority. Whenever the strongest people made any movements, the news would spread like wildfire. Most, if not all of the cultivators on the battlefield would know about their every move. ---------------------------------------------------- Back in the cave where the major figures of Thorn Academy gathered, all of them watched as many people made their way towards one of the three special places. "Seems like Arnin finally learned about these places, and judging by the general direction he is heading towards, he should reach the Cave Temple Zone in about a day or so." The cave was much larger than others thought. Rather than calling it a cave, it was better suited to be called a private dimension. It was in a pocket of space, and was one of the greatest treasures of Thorn Academy. Fae, who continued to watch Arnin, told the other people in the cave. All of them also looked over and saw that Arnin was indeed heading towards the Cave Temple Zone. "Who else is heading towards the Cave Temple Zone? Are there any top one hundred cultivators?" Fae asked the other people around her. She wasn''t worried about Arnin, rather she wanted to know who he would most likely face in the Cave Temple Zone. She had never seen him fight with full power, but if he was pit against one of the strongest in the battlefield, then there was a high chance that he would be forced to fight with full strength. That was the one thing she was looking forward to. "It seems like rank seventy Kani and rank fifty four Ararare are heading towards this zone." One of the mysterious people replied. The others also began to voice out the different people they saw head towards this zone. "Rank eighty nine, thirty one, fifty seven, ninety nine¡­" Many ranks were called out. When Fae heard them all, she couldn''t help but smile. "What about people in the top twenty?" These twenty people were the strongest so far, and she really wanted to make one of them fight Arnin. "Most of them are heading towards the Elemental River Zone. While some of them are not heading to any of the Zones." The person who spoke was the headmistress. She head been keeping a keen eye on the top twenty since they were the strongest, or the most talented. She had to make sure that she watched them and learned their specialties and skills in order to provide them with the best training if they survived. "The Elemental River Zone? That place is always the first target of the most talented." She grumbled as she spoke. ''Arnin doesn''t even know which ones are the best and which ones are the worst.'' She was somewhat upset because she always felt Arnin was the most talented freak. If she didn''t feel that Arnin was talented, why would she risk so much to bring him over to her side? The three zones significantly helped the cultivators of the battlefield, however there were differences between them all. The best zone was the Elemental River Zone. It was filled with the essence of variety of elements, so much so that if one drank some of the liquid, they would be able to completely fill their orb with the maximum amount of essence. An added bonus was that the essence was extremely pure. The only problem with the liquid was that there was a high chance of death by implosion if one drank the liquid without enough strength. Not only was the river magnificent, it was also unique, as one could not lift any of the water out. The whole river was one body and the only way to drink the water was if you could find a way to isolate a drop or two. Other than that, one just needed to step into the liquid and begin absorbing the essence. The place was fantastic for almost every single type of cultivator, however it would not be able to assist people who wanted to work with the more mysterious and rare types of essence, such as space, time and blood. The next zone, which was the second best zone, was known as the Body Torture Pillar Zone. This zone didn''t help cultivators with their realm or essence, rather it helped improve their physical body. As the name suggested, the way it helped was comparable to torture. The Body Torture Pillar Zone would have been ranked as the best Zone if body cultivation was mainstream, but it was not. Very few people even cared about their body''s condition, and worked solely on their orb and essence. Even though this was true, the Body Torture Pillar Zone was able to maintain its ranking as the second best because of another very astonishing tempering mechanism it had. After the torture was finished, the people who survived would have a more calm and collected disposition towards unexpected situations. This did not improve their comprehension, rather the torturous pain was so immense that it would be similar to a life and death experience, resulting in the cultivators being more calm during other dangerous situations. The Cave Temple Zone was actually the worst of the three, but it was still very beneficial. This zone was a large battle arena type area, however it distributed rewards as well. If anything, this place would allow one to gain more power through external means. If one survived a battle, then the Cave Temple would give them a reward based on how well they did. However, the catch was that only one person could stay alive. There was no way for two people to exit the arena, unless they were much stronger than the defenses of the Cave Temple. Arnin was headed towards this exact location. This bothered Fae a little because she wanted him to go to the best place, and gain the same amount of essence as the more talented cultivators. Alas, the problem lied in the fact that Arnin arrived late, and did not know anyone who knew the secrets behind the test. Fae regretted not telling Arnin anything beforehand. She really wanted to Arnin to come out on top because if he turned out to be the most talented student, then she, as the person who brought him to the academy, would receive lots of recognition as well. ''Let''s just hope that he can eventually head over to the Elemental River Zone.'' She thought as she continued to watch Arnin make his way towards the Cave Temple Zone. ---------------------------------------- As Arnin and the bun haired girl made their way towards the Cave Temple Zone, they met many cultivators along the way. Some were killed by Arnin and used to increase his amount of essence. Other cultivators who noticed Arnin and knew that they couldn''t face him decided to run away as quickly as they could, however there were still many who were confident in themselves and continued towards the Cave Temple Zone without stopping. Arnin didn''t attack every single person in his path. Only lone cultivators would be killed, while those in groups would be left alive. He still wanted to conserve his strength for future troubles, plus he wanted to wait until a good amount of people were gathered before commencing any sort of massacre. After a few hours passed, and the three finally reached the Cave Temple Zone. Arnin looked around and saw hundreds of people gathering around a large hole inside of a mountain. This mountain was much taller than the one he was pushed off of, and even reached the so called ''ceiling'' of the cave. In front of the large hole, there were three statues. All three statues were the same in height, but each one had a different design. The first statue, which was on the left side of the hole depicted a woman holding onto a sword. Anger and a thirst for blood was magically shown on her frozen face. The long, snake like sword was pointed towards the second statue which stood on the right side of the Cave Temple entrance. This second statue depicted a man with a large, brawny build. The man''s face was ferocious, but also looked somewhat heroic. The weapon he held in his two large hands was an enormous warhammer. This warhammer was lifted over his head, seeming to want to smash the woman''s statue. Both statues were able to make a cultivator''s blood run cold because of how lifelike they looked. It was as if the fight was going on in front of them, and all of the bloodlust that the two statues exuded was suffocating them. Arnin looked at the statues and saw the misty eyes of the other cultivators and couldn''t help but scoff. He was the great Demon Lord that could destroy the planet with just a gaze, why would such insignificant people affect him? While everyone else was paying attention to the two fighting statues, Arnin turned his gaze towards the last statue. This one was a little different from the rest. It was placed inside the mountain, right on top of the Cave Temple entrance. The depiction was hard to see because of how the person or thing was covered by a shadowy robe. The depicted being had his palms facing the two fighting statues. His left palm, which was faced the sword woman was releasing some sort of item. Arnin scrunched his eyes and looked closely, only to see that the item was the hilt of a sword. "Is that hilt¡­ moving?" Arnin turned his head and noticed a young man also looking towards the statue in the middle. It seemed like this young man was more interested in the middle statue, rather than the two fighting ones that the rest of the group was paying attention to. Arnin wasn''t too interested in the young man because he could tell that the latter had fallen for an illusion that the statues were creating. If one was too weak, or did not have a strong mind, they would easily fall for such illusions, and this young man was a prime example of just that. ''This place is a little different from I imagined. Seems like it isn''t a place filled with essence like the Essence Tower.'' Arnin thought inwardly. He had assumed that the zones would be places where people could cultivate essence and increase their powers through that, but looking at the statues, Arnin could tell that what he originally thought was most likely not the case. "Is that blade also moving?" The young man unconsciously spoke out once more. Arnin turned his head and looked at the right palm of the middle statue. There was a blade that pointed towards the man holding the warhammer. ''There should be a meaning behind these statues, but what is it?'' Arnin began to think about what the statues meant. He knew that most things would have a meaning or purpose behind their creation, and these statues fell under that category. ''All the information that I know so far is that the woman and the man seem to be fighting, and the middle statue is pointing at them with two different things. The woman gets the hilt, while the man gets the blade.'' Arnin pondered the meaning behind this, but it took him a few minutes to figure out some of the other small things. ''This blade towards the man probably means that he is going to get attacked by a third party, and the hilt for the woman probably means she is going to get an ally? Or is it something else?'' Arnin wracked his brain, and although he was extremely smart there just wasn''t enough information. He could only come up with two other theories, which was incredible considering the lack of information Arnin had. He could only sigh and wait until he walked into the Cave Temple. Unlike others, he wasn''t super curious about what the statues meant. He understood that the Cave Temple was probably about battle, and maybe even group battles judging by the middle statute, but he couldn''t figure out why such a thing would help others. The whole battlefield was filled with fights, so the Cave Temple was really just another place to battle each other. ''Whatever, I will only find out once I walk into the place.'' Arnin waved his hand and had the bun haired girl follow him in. Soon, others also began to follow, their faces filled with expectation and some excitement. The third zone, Cave Temple Zone. 85 Arnin鈥檚 Murder鈥檚 Effects Near Arnin''s home village, a group of people were slowly walking away from the front gates. The path they were taking was the similar to the one that Arnin took to get to Lepidoptera academy. This group consisted of seven people, both old and young. If Arnin was here, he would recognize most of the people in the group. There were two young girls walking within this group. Both were about the same age, and extremely pretty. The first girl had long blonde hair and azure eyes. She gave off a somewhat demonic aura, however there was also a magnetic attraction that she had towards others. She looked extremely welcoming, almost like an evil fairy. Her most bewitching aspect was a single horn that seemed to be tattooed on her forehead. For a child, she was gorgeous. The second young girl wasn''t as pretty, but she was still very cute. She had short platinum blonde hair, but the hair near her scalp was an ashen grey. It was extremely uncommon, yet beautiful. Her malachite eyes looked lifeless, as if all the light in them had been stolen. This little girl was the younger sister of the seven year old that Arnin had killed back in the village. Surrounding these two girls were three others. They were Ashia, Florian, and Avian. Of course, the reason they had the girls stay in the middle was to make sure that no harm would come to them during their travels. The last in the group were two old men. Surprisingly, one of the old men was actually Zuko, the seven year old''s grandfather. This old man did not have any goodwill towards Arnin''s family and would have killed them, if not for Avian and the village elder. Plus, he decided that he would not get revenge for his dead son, daughter-in-law, and grandson. His precious granddaughter was still alive and he decided to look after her and allow for her to live the best life he could possibly give her. The last old man was the village elder; he was the one leading the group. He had a somewhat awkward look on his face. When he arrived back to the village from Lepidoptera Academy, Avian came to visit him about a week later. She wanted him to lead her there. Although the village elder knew that Avian would find out where Arnin was with her connections, he didn''t think that she would find out so quickly. The academies were very careful when taking in information. They tended not to spread it, even if they were threatened by a major force. Of course, some could find loopholes in this if they had connections with higher ups in the Academy Alliance. With Avian threatening him, the village elder had no choice but to lead them to the academy. Sadly, he didn''t have a mount, and the academy''s flying mount had already left, so he had to take them by foot. Although he felt some pressure from Avian, he still had goodwill towards Ashia and Florian, so he was alright with leading them, but then Zuko also wanted to head over to Lepidoptera. He and Zuko were extremely good friends so he found it hard to decline him, however because of his presence, the trip became very tense and awkward. "So, the trip to the Academy should take us around a week, give or take a few days since we will be taking more breaks than usual." The village elder spoke up after they were approximately twenty minutes away from the village. It would usually take three days, but because walking long distances would be hard for Nekaia and the other little girl, the village elder knew that they would be taking longer breaks, and would probably not be travelling during the night. "That is fine with me. I don''t want Nekaia getting too tired and falling sick during the journey." Ashia said with a smile as she held onto her daughter''s hand. Although most cultivators would not usually get sick, there was still a chance for people in Orb Birth to get sick if they pushed themselves too far, especially if their bodies were weak. "Mommy, I won''t get tired, I swear." Neakai pouted her lips slightly as she looked at Ashia with a face full of determination. "I want to see Arnin as soon as possible too. He forgot to say goodbye to me before he left, there is no way I am going to let him go." Nekaia put on an angry face as she spoke about Arnin, however there was also a hint of longing in her eyes. As twins, she and Arnin were closer than most siblings, and with Arnin leaving so suddenly, she felt extremely wronged and saddened. Ashia saw Nekaia getting upset so she gently stroked her head. She didn''t plan on telling Nekaia about what really happened, so she lied and said that Arnin had left for the academy earlier than expected. Avian scoffed slightly as she walked. She felt that Arnin was a little too stupid, but there was still some worry in her eyes. She was troubled because Arnin was much more sinister than she had initially thought. Not only was his way of speaking and handling situations beyond his age, he had even killed three people at just the age of five. That was not normal, and it was not a good sign for his future. She worried that because of all these things, Nekaia and her family might not be able to handle Arnin running into future troubles, or going on a rampage. ''That kid needs to be closely watched. Once I get to the academy, I need to take him with me and keep him close by, or else he might commit other horrendous acts and slowly fall towards a very evil path.'' Avian had always felt that Arnin was different from others kids, but she hoped that this difference was only because of his maturity, but the more she thought about it, the more she felt scared. She did not have any goodwill left for Arnin, but she still had hope that he could be changed. She couldn''t help but sigh with a slight frown appearing on her face. Zuko also had a frown on his face as he walked. He did not like anyone related to Arnin because of what Arnin did to his son''s family, but he never mentioned it to his granddaughter. That day, when his son was killed along with his daughter-in-law and his grandson, his granddaughter was fortunately out with him. He felt pain just thinking about the fact that he only had his granddaughter left. When he thought back to how his granddaughter asked him about her parents and brother, his eyes couldn''t help but redden. He choked up back then and cried in front of her, scaring the poor little girl. He didn''t plan on hiding the fact that they died, but he did hide the fact that they were murdered. He did not wish for his granddaughter to pursue revenge and put her life in danger. He only wished for her to have a life without worry. Of course, the news of what happened to her parents and brother did shock her, but because she was still a child, and death wasn''t something she completely comprehended. She waited for day, but her parents never came back, and eventually she knew that they never would. He still remembered how she came running to him and cried until she fell asleep. He still trembled when he thought back to that day. Now, he decided to take his granddaughter away from the village. He felt that there was a change in his previously merry granddaughter. She was more quiet than before, and even her eyes lost some of the light they previously held. ''Arnin, you demon! You caused this! You did this to my granddaughter! What did they do to you! WHAT?! Now¡­'' He thought angrily, and couldn''t help but shake as he watched his granddaughter walk like a puppet. She seemed lifeless. Ashia was clueless as to who the old man was. This was only the second time she had met him. The first was when Avian took her to meet the village elder and get some information out of him. Avian, on the other hand, knew who Zuko was. She investigated almost everyone in the village so she knew that this old man was the grandfather of the seven year old that Arnin had killed. She somewhat regretted her actions back then, but even still, she wasn''t willing to let the old man act as he pleased. She pitied him and his granddaughter, but that was it. Arnin was still the twin brother of her personal disciple. Since she wasn''t willing to help the old man, and even planned on becoming an obstacle for him, Avian treated the granddaughter just as well as she would Nekaia. Even though she treated the young girl nicely and tried to talk to her as much as possible, she noticed the dull and lonely look in her eyes. ''For such young girl to experience something so¡­ Arnin!'' Avian gritted her teeth and thought of Arnin''s evil actions, and couldn''t help but think worse of him by the second. All of them continued to walk slowly. Nekaia spoke to the young girl often in an attempt to become friends with her, but the little girl remained somewhat distant. However sometimes she would smile slightly, which would make Nekaia and Zuko extremely happy. Soon, they had walked for about two hours. "Mom, can we take a break? My legs hurt." Nekaia complained to Ashia with a small pout. Ashia smiled at Nekaia and looked at her with a chuckle. "Weren''t you going to not rest? Didn''t you say that you can handle it?" Although Ashia teased Nekaia, she still slowed down. Zuko also looked at his granddaughter and spoke warmly. "Szerra, do you want to rest as well?" Zuko spoke with a very light tone, as if afraid that a loud noise would break the small child. Szerra looked at Zuko with her dull malachite eyes and then nodded her small head. "Sure, Grandpa." She walked towards Zuko and held onto his large hand. The latter smiled lightly, and also stopped walking. Ashia pulled out some food from a bag she was carrying and handed a candy to Nekaia. She then turned her gaze towards Szerra, "Little Szerra, do you want to eat some candy as well? I have lots of them." Ashia didn''t know about what really happened to Szerra, but she noticed that the little girl was always a little down. This made her feel sad, so she tried her best to make her happy. Szerra looked towards the soft candy in Ashia''s hand with a tiny bit of desire showing in her eyes, however she looked towards her grandfather before acting. The latter looked down and noticed that there was something different in her eyes and couldn''t help but smile. "Go ahead, Szerra." He gave her a little push on her back. Szerra walked towards Ashia and grabbed the candy with shaky hands. Ashia noticed this, and pushed the candy towards her gently with a warm smile. "We also have some water. Would you like some?" Ashia brought out a small gourd that was filled with water, handing it over to her. Szerra looked at Ashia''s smile, and couldn''t help but think back to her mother who looked at her the same way. She felt her eyes redden a little, before slowly grabbing the gourd. "T-thank you." She spoke in an almost mouselike manner. Zuko, although he held immense hate towards Arnin, did not feel the same way towards Ashia. The way she treated Szerra made him somewhat happy, but he still didn''t try to approach them. He knew that Ashia and Florian did not know that Szerra was the daughter of the people that Arnin killed, and that he was their relative as well, but because they were related to Arnin, he couldn''t bring himself to completely like them. "Szerra, do you want to play a game? I''m bored, and there is no one else to play with." Nekaia walked over to Szerra with her mouth stuffed with candy. She wasn''t the type of person to feel hate or dislike towards many people, and liked to make friends with almost anyone she met. Szerra was confused as to what she should do. She thought for a moment, before nodding her head and walking off with Nekaia. "Girls, don''t go too far, alright?" "Don''t worry, Mom. We are only going to play by that tree." Nekaia replied hurriedly, before running off with Szerra. "Honey, would mind keeping a watch on them?" Ashia turned and looked at Florian, who was silently drinking some water beside her. Florian smiled and got up from the ground. He walked towards the direction that Nekaia ran off to. They were in the middle of the forest, and although they were is an area that was safer than other places, it was still a forest. Animals would be roaming around, and could potentially hurt the little girls. Though, the animals in these parts would usually be very small and practically harmless. After Florian left, Zuko also got up from the ground. "Where are you going, Zuko?" The village elder looked at the old man and asked with a small smile. "If you already know, why bother asking?" Zuko said with a cold tone, before walking away. The village elder sighed slightly as he shook his head. After the incident between him and Zuko, the latter had become quite distant. This saddened the village elder greatly, but there was nothing he could do. ''Arnin, what did you do? Why did have to be so rash and act so¡­ sinisterly?'' Even the village elder was shocked when he learned of Arnin''s actions. He felt that Arnin was a little too sinister for his own age, and that bad things would happen to him in the future because of this. Avian watched from the sides and couldn''t help but sigh angrily. ''Arnin really caused so much trouble and ruined so many lives. What a¡­'' 86 Ruthless Rules Arnin entered the large Cave Temple with the bun haired girl following close behind. When he first walked through the opening, what met him was pitch darkness. Only after walking another few steps did everything begin to clear up. When the darkness faded, the first thing that Arnin saw was a large board. The board seemed to be made of a special type of dark wood which had empty slates split into three different groups. ''What is this?'' Arnin looked at the wooden board and began to consider all possibilities. ''This must be related to the statues that were stationed outside.'' He tried to relate the information he got from the three statues to the wooden board in front of him, and suddenly, it hit him. ''This must be a place for battle! That''s the only explanation. Two statues fighting against one another, with one dictating who dies who survives. This board must be for the names of the participants.'' Arnin nodded his head and knew that he was either correct or very close to the answer. He began to look around the Cave Temple, and found that there were five doors. Each door had a wooden plate on top to inform others about what was behind them. The first and last door had signs that said ''Spectator'', while the three middle doors were labelled as the Bronze, Silver, and Gold Arenas. The Bronze Arena door was on the left, while the Silver was on the right, leaving the Gold for the middle. ''Which door should I enter? Maybe I should head through the spectator door first and have her go and check things out for me in one of the arenas.'' Arnin looked at the bun haired girl, who was also looking around curiously. She held onto her unconcious sister as her eyes scanned the Cave Temple. As Arnin was debating which room to enter, people began to swarm into the Cave Temple. The first person that Arnin saw was a young man around the age of twenty. He had bright blue hair and brown eyes. His skin was somewhat dark, and seemed to be covered by peculiar black lines that were hard to notice at first glance. The next person that walked in had blond hair and yellow eyes. He seemed to be friends, or at least partnered with the blue haired young man since both young men had weird black lines, however the blonde haired boy''s marks were easier to notice because of his pale skin. More and more people walked in, some with unique features on their bodies, while others were quite normal. Arnin nodded his head and dragged the bun haired girl to one corner. "Listen here, I am going to go into one of the spectating rooms, and you will enter the Silver arena so I can see what this place is really about." Arnin was not going to waste essence on something like an arena since he didn''t know the secrets of the Cave Temple Zone, which was why he was sending the bun haired girl first. "Bu--" Before she could finish, Arnin snatched the unconscious girl from her arms and began to walk through one of the spectating doors. He turned his head and looked at her with a sharp glint in his eyes. "You know what I could do if you don''t follow what I say. I can finish you and your sister wheneverI want and get myself a new scout; dont think I won''t." Arnin then turned and walked through the door, leaving her gritting her teeth in increasing anger. Although many were not watching the others around them, they still had their guard up since a fight could occur at any moment. Some were even able to hear Arnin''s conversation with the bun haired girl. The blue and blonde haired boys were the closest to Arnin so they heard everything, as if they were right next to the three. "That kid¡­ doesn''t he seem familiar?" The blue haired young man looked at the blond haired young man with his eyebrow raised. "Yeah, don''t you know who that is?" The latter looked at his friend with a small smile. "Oh? It seems that my knowledge is not as boundless as yours, great sir." The blue haired man said jokingly as he waited for his friend to explain who it was. "Haven''t you heard about a recent infamous boy rising in¡­ let''s say prestige?" The blue haired boy held his chin and began to ponder a bit before his eyes brightened. "Red hair, purple eyes, and¡­ three tattoos on the forehead. The Demonic Joker! It''s really him?!" The man was shocked since Arnin did not seem super strong, and although everyone knew that the Demonic Joker was very young, he did not think that he would be a child that just began to walk and cultivate. The blond haired man smiled as he looked at the bun haired girl. "That girl is also somewhat famous, well her gang was at least. She and her two sisters make up the Triple Piercing¡­ however it seems that one is missing or dead." The more the blonde man spoke, the weirder the situation got. "Seems like this Demonic Joker took down the Triple Piercing, and is possibly even controlling the remaining two. Doesn''t that mean that his strength is around Essence Manifest - Earth?" Although the bun haired girl''s group was not extremely famous, there were still news of them because of their ability to fight people in Essence Manifest - Earth despite their Orb Birth strength. Although the three needed to work together to barely achieve this, it was still not a common sight. "Let me see if I can remember that girl''s name¡­ the tactician and leader of the Triple Piercing should be called Canae." The blond haired man spoke aloud, allowing his friend to hear every word that came out of his mouth. "You really know a lot, don''t you? How do you know about such insignificant characters?" The blue haired man was surprised that his friend even knew the name of the leader. The blond haired man snorted with an annoyed smile. "Unlike you who only looks for his next prey, I actually look into most, if not all of the people participating. I don''t want to waste time with weak people if we meet them or die in the hands of the strongest either. I need to make sure I know who I am up against before fighting them." The blue haired man smiled embarrassingly and coughed lightly before looking back towards Arnin. "So, do you want to fight that Joker or no?" Although the blue haired man was stronger than the blonde, the latter was still the tactician in the pair due to his vast knowledge and his cautious nature. "Hmm, well I don''t think that killing him would be too difficult, but I still want to see more of his strengths. He was able to defeat Canae and her sisters with the measly strength of Orb Birth - Hell, meaning that he is able to fight people above his own realm. Although he probably can''t make large leaps, it''s still pretty good. We might even be able to rope him in with us." The blond haired man spoke quietly but his eyes glistened slightly when he looked at Arnin. Although fighting above one''s own realm was considered uncommon, it wasn''t rare, but fighting someone who is in a different large realm was considered rare. The blonde man saw Arnin as a potentially talented person who could assist them in getting through the battlefield test. ''I need to find a way to learn more about this Demonic Joker. He is still a mystery in the battlefield. He appeared out of nowhere and no one had ever heard of a red haired child with such ruthlessness before. Plus, it doesn''t seem like he has shown his full potential and strength to anyone thus far.'' The bun haired girl, Canae, looked at Arnin with an aggrieved expression before walking through the Silver door. Arnin noticed that the board then showed something new as soon as she entered. [Canae - Female - Twelve - Orb Birth Hell] vs [] Arnin nodded his head, and walked through the spectating door after he saw this. ''Seems like this is like an arena and others need to walk through the door in order to challenge Canae.'' Others also saw the change on the board and couldn''t help but look at the Silver door. Canae was below average in strength when compared to the overall strength of the group, which made others want to go and attack her. The blue and blond haired young men saw Arnin enter the spectating door closest to the Silver door and nodded their heads, following behind him. The blonde man''s goal was to rope in Arnin, so he wasn''t going to waste time on a weak character like Canae and ultimately displease him. Suddenly, another young boy with long silver hair walked towards the Silver door. "Let''s see how strong this Canae is, and what this Cave Temple is really about." Soon, he too stepped through the Silver door, disappearing behind it. [Canae - Female - Twelve - Orb Birth Hell] vs [Piri - Male - Thirteen - Orb Birth Hell] Arnin wasn''t present to see the challenger, but that didn''t matter too much because he was able to see what was going on inside the arena from the spectator area. When he entered the spectating door, he was met with the typical grand seats that one would find in amphitheatres. There was a long fence that circled the large arena set on a lower level. Arnin looked at the air above the fence and snickered slightly. ''Looks like a barrier to prevent intervention in the fight.'' Arnin didn''t find it surprising for such a thing to be inside the spectating area since the fights needed to be ''fair''. He looked around elsewhere and noticed something on the other side of the seats. It was a large wooden box with two tiny square holes. Arnin walked closer and noticed that there was a sign on the top of the wooden box. It had the word ''Bets'' written inlarge letters. ''Bets?'' Arnin walked closer and found that there were two different holes for two different types of bets one could make. The first tiny opening was for people who wanted to use normal currency of Afloria, such as gold, silver and copper coins. The second hole, however, was different. One would use something called Death Coins. Arnin looked around and found that other than that, there was nothing else on the wooden box, however that only lasted for a few minutes. Suddenly, a name appeared on the wooden box. [Canae: Win or Lose] Arnin saw the name appear as soon as he felt the aura of the bun haired girl enter the arena. He looked down and saw that she was finally inside, but had a very cautious and nervous look on her face. ''So, it seems that the fighting will commence very soon.'' Arnin waited for a little while longer before another change happened on the wooden box as someone else entered the arena. [Canae: Win or Lose] vs [Piri: Win or Lose] He nodded his head when he saw this. He didn''t have any money on him to bet, nor did hehave the so called Death coins, so he simply waited until others entered the spectating area. Half an hour passed, and the spectating seats were finally filled with many cultivators. Some others also went over to the wooden box and decided to bet with silver coins, however no one had any Death coins, or even knew what they were for that matter. Arnin was sitting idly, waiting for the fight to start. The arena was an open field, but there seemed to be a barrier that separated the fighters from the spectators. He didn''t know when the barrier separating the fighters would disappear but he knew that it would happen very soon. A couple breaths after that thought, a shadow appeared in the middle of the arena. Everyone, including Arnin, looked up at the origin of the shadow and saw that something was falling down. As they looked closer, they found that the object was actually a statue. ''Isn''t that the statue that was¡­'' Arnin also noticed the descending statue and found that it was the exact same statue that he saw outside of the Cave Temple. It was the one that stood in the middle. *BOOOM* It landed with a thunderous rumble, picking up the dust and creating a small screen. The dust screen surprisingly didn''t go back to normal, rather it began to solidify into a large cylindrical pillar. "Welcome to the Cave Temple!" A deep voice, resounded throughout the arena and specting platforms. Arnin looked at the pillar with a smirk. "This is a one time explanation of the rules in the Cave Temple." The deep voice did not sound robotic or preprogrammed, rather it sounded like a normal person. ''This is probably a teacher or someone else associated with the Thorn Academy. The other zones most likely have a person like this as well.'' Arnin pondered this thought as he listened to the person inside the pillar. "The Cave Temple is a battle arena with rewards. The better you do, the better the rewards you shall receive. Most have already seen that the Cave Temple is separated into three different arenas; Bronze, Silver, and Gold. The ones who are even slightly smart should understand that the Gold arena is for the strongest while the Bronze is for the weakest, Silver sitting right in the middle." Many people nodded their heads when they heard this. Something like that was not too hard to figure out. Suddenly, a cloaked figure appeared on top of the pillar, looking exactly like the statue that landed previously, but this time it was moving. "Anyone who enters the arena can only leave after the killing their opponent, however if I feel that the battle will not end quick enough, then I myself will intervene and decide a winner. The loser will, of course¡­ die." When everyone heard this, they began to look towards one another, slightly nervous, but also a little excited. "Although battles to the death are also happening outside the Cave Temple Zone, this place gives you rewards if you win and also something called Death coins." At the mention of the Death coins, everyone''s ears perked up. They wanted to know what these things were since they could be used for betting. "Death coins are earned through killing in the arena. Of course, you can earn some more if you use them in bets, but the only way to obtain your first coins is through battling in the arenas. I decide how much you earn depending on how well you do during your battles." The more Arnin listened to the person in the cloak, the deeper his frown became. ''The only way to earn Death coins is to kill someone, but the amount you get is determined by this cloak person. You also get rewards based on how well you do in battle, which is also determined by the cloak person. Not only that, but if the cloak person is tired of your battle, he will kill the person he feels should lose. Seems like one has to get in this person''s good books in order to benefit from the Cave Temple.'' Arnin was not the only one who thought this. Some of the more intelligent people also came to this conclusion, which included the blonde haired man with the black marks. ''Interesting.'' The blond haired man also had a small frown. Although strength was a factor in the arena, what really mattered was becoming a favorite for the cloak person, because only then could one get good things from the Cave Temple. "What is the use of the Death coins? Other then betting, can they be used for anything else?" A fifteen year old or so aged girl couldn''t help but voice out what was on most people''s minds. If the Death coins could only be used for bets, then they were virtually useless. "The cloak person ''stared'' at the girl and continued speaking. "The Death coins have three uses. One, they could be used to trade for Afloria currency. A single Death coin is equivalent to twenty silver coins. The second usage for them is towards rewards. The more your earn, the better reward you can get. The last and best usage of the Death Coins is towards academic points." When these words came out of the cloaked figure''s mouth, Arnin couldn''t help but smile. He knew that academic points were the currency used within the academies and they could be used for academy exclusive items and other things. They were not too difficult to obtain for someone like Arnin who could trade pills and cultivation stones for points, but for many of the common students, getting academic points was extremely difficult. "Now then, there is one last thing that everyone must know. Although you cannot enter the arenas from the spectating seats, you can enter the arena mid battle if you desire from the original gates." This news hit everyone like a lightning strike. Anyone could enter mid fight? Didn''t that mean that once a person died, someone else could enter and steal the points? People began to wildly think about all that could happen, and the more they thought about it, the worse the expressions on their faces got. Most even planned on leaving the Cave Temple zone since winning could still lead to death. The cloak person stood silently before lifting his arm. "I am not finished yet. Although anyone can enter midfight, that does not mean that they can enter after a victor is decided. Once someone wins, then that means that they can leave the arena unharmed." Arnin listened and couldn''t help but shake his head. He knew that there was still a major loophole one could use during the fights. Although one could not enter after a winner was decided, that didn''t mean that someone couldn''t enter right before the winner was decided. If someone could appear at the best time, then they would benefit greatly by killing two exhausted fighters. ''These Thorn Academy teachers really encourage killing, but this is also a very good way for me to kill and cultivate with others'' blood.'' Arnin thought silently as he waited for the cloak person to finish. "Now then, let us begin the battles. Bet all you want, and lets see who dies and who lives!" With that, the cloak person disappeared and the invisible barrier that separated the two fighters also vanished. Arnin''s eyes narrows as he looked at Canae. ''I have to make sure that she does not die too early. I still need her for now.'' 87 Rewards of the Top One Hundred Arnin already planned to make sure that Canae would survive for as long as he needed her. For that, he needed to prevent others from interfering either through coercion or force, however for now, he just wanted to test out how strong Canae was against people in her own realm. The battle began rather quickly since the person named Piri attacked immediately after the barrier was released. Arnin could tell that Piri was more suited towards battle from the way he fought, however as he watched Canae struggle, he noticed that her strategic methods were quite amazing. Her battle style forced Piri to think before attacking and prevented him from doing any major damage to her. Canae did not have the large spear that she and sisters used in the past, rather she was using a small double bladed staff. This was given to her by Arnin when he killed a cultivator that primarily used the spear. ''Although she isn''t able to completely match up with axe wielding Piri, that is only because of her lack of experience fighting alone, other then that, her combat sense is quite high and her control over her opponent is also exceptional.'' Arnin rarely praised others about combat but he couldn''t help but complement Canae. He had always felt that Canae was really smart and her sense of danger and ability to adapt to a situation was also quite high, but seeing her use it in combat was surprising to him. ''I can probably make her much stronger and teach her to better control her power, but I first need to make her into my servant and gain complete loyalty.'' Arnin knew that he needed many people by his side in order to cultivate in Afloria to a higher realm. He already had Akig as one of his future commanders. Plus, he wanted to experiment on Akig and create a new type of tiger that could rival his White Tiger commander. Now, he felt that Canae could also make a good captain with enough training, and could possibly become someone who could rival Akig in the future. ''It is decided, I will make her into one of my commanders. She has the brains and also has great potential. Seems like I found an unpolished gem without knowing, interesting.'' Arnin had to find a way to bring Canae to his side voluntarily. Although it was going to be almost impossible for that to happen since he killed her sister, he knew that it could happen if he showed her enough benefits and also made her ''promises''. "Hey." Suddenly, he heard a sound coming from behind him. He turned his head and found two young men looking at him with a smile. The person who spoke had blond hair with black marks on his arms and neck. The man the speaker had blue hair with darker skin, but he also had the black marks on his arms and neck. Arnin''s purple eyes looked directly at the two men, causing the latter two to shiver slightly for some unknown reason. This caused them to be terribly startled and they looked at Arnin more seriously. ''He is more mysterious than I thought.'' The blonde haired man felt his body tremble slightly and his eyes couldn''t help but secretly contract. "You''re the Demonic Joker, right?" The blonde haired man spoke quietly, trying not to attract the attention of others. Arnin didn''t reply and only continued to look at the two men. His deep purple eyes made the two very uncomfortable, the blue haired man, with his lack in self control, couldn''t help but turn his gaze. Seeing Arnin not replying made the blonde haired man somewhat embarrassed. "Well, we have heard about your thunder like name appear in the battlefield and meeting you right now is a great blessing to us." The blonde haired man flattered Arnin as he spoke. Although he was not scared of Arnin, the more he he looked at Arnin the more he wanted him to join their side. He felt more and more that Arnin was key in ider to allow them to do well in the battlefield. "Blessing? Are you sure it isn''t a disaster?" Arnin spoke in a mysterious tone with his mouth cracking into a evil smirk. The two men were startled when they heard Arnin''s words. The blue haired man was about to erupt, but the blonde haired man quickly quieted him down with a wave of his hand. "I truly believe that us meeting is destined. We were always looking forwa--" Before the man could finished, Arnin waved his hand in the air. "I don''t want to hear you speak so much crap in front of me. Get to the point, or get lost." Arnin continued to smile as he spoke. The blue haired man was getting infuriated, but the blonde haired man felt something completely different. ''He is testing us. He is trying to find our bottomline and make us angry. He is toying with us.'' "Sure. I want you to work together with us in this battlefield. With you and us working together, we can probably make it to the top fifty if not twenty." The blonde haired man clearly stated his goal. "Explain the benefits of getting into the top fifty, and why you want me and not others." Arnin still did not know much about the battlefield. Since he was able to get some information, than that would be best. Plus, he was slightly interested in the duo that stood before him. The marks on their bodies remind Arnin of something from the past. ''These two probably have inherited the bloodline of that race, but it seems that their bloodline is extremely dilute.'' Arnin had traveled around his whole universe and enslaved most if not all races. The only races that he could not completely control were the Heaven and Hell race. The blonde haired man was shocked that Arnin asked the first question. The second one was normal to ask, but he felt that it was weird that Arnin did not know the benefits of coming into the top fifty. Everyone knew about them. Although he felt that it was weird, he decided not to bother with and just answered the questions. "As you know, this competition has thousands of participants. In the end, only a hundred will get entry into the academy. These will be the top hundred cultivators." Arnin nodded his head as he already knew this much. The battlefield would have lots of deaths, numbering in the hundreds or even more, but that did not mean that only the last one hundred would be declared the winners. If that was the case, then who would be willing to come if they did not have unparalleled talent and strenght? The battlefield would last for three months, and the top on hundred would get into the academy. The rest would be sent away to where they came from and could participate in the next battlefield if they wished to. Arnin had entered the battlefield just after the second week had ended. So his knowledge was still lacking and many rules were unknown to him. "Well, everyone in the top on hundred will be students at Thorn academy, but depending on your ranking you can get certain benefits before joining¡­" The blonde man went on to explain the different benefits that would be given. Top one hundred students only got fifty academic points and a small private lodging in the academy. Anyone who was in the top fifty would five Pink ranked cultivation stones with neutral energy. They would also receive one hundred academic points and a private lodging in the academy. People who were in the top twenty would get ten Pink ranked cultivation stones, but instead of neutral ones, they would get it for the elements of their choosing. Other then that, they would get two hundred academic points and a private lodging. Top ten would get same things as the top twenty, however they received another item. It was a special type of pill for cultivators who were going to break through to the Elemental Formation realm. It was the Seed Blooming Pill. The Seed Blooming Pill was just as the name described it. Usually, when someone was breaking into Elemental Formation realm from Essence Manifest - Heaven, all the elemental marks on their orbs would condense and form a seed. Once the seed was formed, that person would be considered to have stepped into Elemental Formation - Earth. After reaching Elemental Formation - Heaven, the seed would have some changes to it, but once it bloomed into a certain plant, then it would considered stepping into a completely new realm. The Seed Blooming Pill was meant to purify the elemental essence inside the seed during each phase of Elemental Formation. Then, in the end, when the cultivator would begin the blooming of their seed, the Seed Blooming Pill would have a final outburst of energy, completing the purification of the seed and making the bloomed seed much stronger and larger then it would have been. Everything before the blooming of the seed was considered the foundations of cultivation in Afloria. Only after Essence Manifest, would one enter the true world of cultivation. Orb Birth realm was when the body would begin to reinforce and feed the orb essence, making it stronger and stronger. Essence Manifest realm would be when essence could be split into components, or elements. This would also be the time when a person would find their best element and begin to create elementals marks in order to further their control over that element. Elemental Formation realm was when the elemental seed would form. This seed would the foundation of the element that the cultivator would be pursuing. Not only that, but the seed would begin make the body adapt better to the respective element, strengthening it close to the limits of the human body. The more pure the seed was, the greater strength the body would have the more it could adapt to the element. "What about the top three?" Arnin was already somewhat shocked to hear about the Seed Blooming pill and felt somewhat moved by its effects. Currently he was not his old self with crazy strenght. Right now, he was weak and starting from the beginning. The better resources he could acquire, the easier it would be to gather strenght and eventually combine with his Demon Lord body. If the Seed Blooming Pill was so amazing, he wanted to know what the top three would receive, and even the reward for the person in first place. The blond haired man looked at Arnin with a more solemn expression. "The top three would not only receive the same things as the top ten, they would also be able to become personal disciples of the Thorn academy masked elders." "Masked Elders?"Arnin raised an eyebrow when he spoke. Both men were shocked at Arnin''s question. "D-do you really not know who the masked elders are?" Arnin shook his head slightly, indicating his lack of knowledge. "T-this. Since you don''t know then let me explain. The ten masked elders are the strongest elders in Thorn Academy, only second to the Headmistress in strenght and that is only by a extremely small amount." As he spoke, the blonde haired man had sparkles in his eyes, even the blue haired man seemed to be close to drooling. Arnin on the other hand felt somewhat shocked. To the current him, the headmistress was a very mysterious and dangerous person. To think that there are ten others who are at basically the same strenght was indeed astonishing. "What about first place? What would they get?" Arnin was even more interested in the first places rewards. Becoming a disciple was not interesting to him, but having someone as strong as a masked elder as your backing was indeed very enticing. "Well, that is the one thing that no one knows. The first place rewards are never told before the battlefield. It is always kept in the dark." The blonde haired man had a bitter smile in his face as he explained. Arnin nodded his head and found nothing surprising about that. If the first place prizes were too amazing, then that person would be targeted by hidden experts from different places. If it was kept in the dark, then it would make other hesitate since the reward could very well be only slightly better than the top threes. "So what do you say? You want to join us?" The blonde haired man spoke again, his eyes sparkling. Arnin smirked slightly. "I remember asking you two questions, not one. Tell me, why me? There are stronger and more experienced people in the battlefield, why go for me?" He was still curious as to why they wanted him. He knew that he was considered one of the weak-average strenght cultivators in the battlefield. The blonde haired man and the blue haired man looked at each other before both of them nodded. "Both of us are cultivators of Essence Manifest, so we know how large the difference between Orb Birth and Essence Manifest is. You being at Orb Birth - Hell and still being able stop Essence Manifest - Earth strenght people shows how strong you are." Although those words could be persuasive, Arnin knew that there were many people who could do what he did. Although no one knew that he could actually fight Essence Manifest - Hell cultivators with his strenght, just the little strength he showed was something that the average genius could do. Seeing Arnin unmoved, both men hesitated before releasing a sigh. "The two of us are not, lets say, welcome by other contestants. Our reputation outside of this battlefield is not very good and many people even want us dead. Because of this, we are not able to work with other people, however you are different. Demonic Joker, this title was given to you because of your ruthless and evil killing methods. You are just like us, hated and wanted dead by others." Arnin couldn''t help but nod to this point. He was hated. So much, that there were three different groups that actively searched for him and even tried to kill him. Of course those three groups didn''t end well, with one of them even falling under his control. "Since you are both strong and unwelcomed by the rest, then would it not be better for us to work together?" The blonde haired man spoke persuasively. *BOOM* "AHH!" Suddenly, a large crashing sound and a terrifying shriek came from the battlefield. Arnin''s eyes narrowed as he looked at the two fighters. Piri was breathing hard as he held onto his large axe. In front of him was a large dust cloud. ''Seems like it is my turn to enter the fray. I can''t have her dying now since she will be my future.'' A sinister smile appeared in Arnin''s face as his purple eyes became darker, almost eerie. The two men saw this and couldn''t help but feel goosebumps appear all over their bodies. 88 Wiping the Floor Arnin began to walk towards the exit of the specating area. Of course, him heading towards was noticed by most people. He was the first person to move. "Seems like that child is about to make his move, but he is so little, can he even do anything?" People began to discuss amongst one another when they saw Arnin move. The blue and blonde haired men looked at arnin leaving with a sinister smile. They hesitated a little before following him. "Bro Relshe, why are we following him?If we enter the arena, we would have to fight each other, let alone him. Isn''t that completely opposite of what our plan was?" The blue haired man spoke with confusion. He thought that maybe the blond haired man made a mistake this time. The blonde haired man, Relshe, didn''t look at the blue haired man and instead spoke as his gaze remained steady on Arnin. "Srida, although we can''t enter the area, that doesn''t mean others can''t. We just have to make sure that no one too strong goes into the arena." Relshe also smiled slightly as a plan began to formulate in his mind. Although he wanted Arnin to follow them for a greater chance in the battlefield, that didn''t mean that if Arnin was weak he would let him join him. He only knew from what others would say that Arnin is stronger then his realm, but he still wanted to test this. He wouldn''t prevent others from going in, but he would prevent the truly strong from entering the arena. Not only would he be able to see Arnin''s true strenght, he could also try and get on Arnin''s good side. ''I just have make myself look miserable in front of him to show that I tried to stop people from entering.'' He couldn''t help but laugh wickedly. Srida nodded his head and followed Relshe without anymore questions. Although he couldn''t understand everything, he trusted his partner, so he just went with it. Both of them followed behind Arnin, of course the latter knew that they were behind him, but he could care less. He already somewhat understood their intentions and couldn''t help but inwardly scoff. ''Sometimes being in a smaller body has its perk. Everyone thinks that I am foolish and easily tricked. Since they want to play games, then maybe I should play along with them.'' Arnin didn''t understand everything, but he was able to see that they wanted to suck up to him someway. What was the best way to suck up to him right now? Block others from entering the arena and make themselves look beaten in order to win his gratitude. This would be a good plan against truly foolish and emotional people, but Arnin was none of that. Other then his parents and sister, he had little to no attachment to anyone. Akig and Canae were just future commanders that would be under his control. It would be unfortunate if he lost them, but that didn''t mean he was desperate in wanting them. Arnin walked in front of the Silver door. Before entering, he looked back at the two men and smirked before saying in a quiet, yet audible tone. "Defend well." With those words said, Arnin walked in with a sinister smile plastered on his face. Relshe of course heard his words and his smile hardened a little. ''Seems he isn''t as foolish as he seems, but that is still beneficial to us.'' He still had no fear towards Arnin, other then the few times he felt that Arnin was a little more mysterious than he first thought. Relshe believed that if the worst does come and Arnin wanted to attack them, he could just finish his off with Srida. After all, both of them were Essence Manifest - Sky cultivators, not only that but they were at the peak of the realm. ------------------------------------------------------- Back in the cave with all the masked people and the headmistress, Fae watched the screen with Arnin with great intensity. She was basically the only one who truly paid attention to him, even the headmistress only glanced sometimes. ''Is he going to kill that girl now? He truly is a heartless child, but if he was going to kill her so early, why would he keep her alive this whole time?'' Fae felt that Arnin''s actions were too peculiar. He didn''t truly need the girl to guide him or anything since his strenght was enough to scare others into telling him information. Little did Fae know that Arnin only took Canae because of her intelligence and because she was conveniently easily to threaten. ----------------------------------------------------------------- When Arnin entered the arena, he saw a person flying towards his direction. ''What are the odds of her coming right in front of me?'' Arnin smirked slightly at the convenience. Now he would not have to walk a great distance to save her. Canae slowly got up with her body covered in bruises. She was already bruttly injured because of Piri''s previous attack, but she was even worse now. She knew that only a miracle could save her. "Are you really going to die so quick? What about your remaining sister? What will she do without you? You should know that if you''re gone, then your sisters fate would be very bad." A sudden voice came from behind. Most would take it as their saviour, but Canae couldn''t help but find her body tremble intensly. Slowly, her head turned back and found the last person she wanted to see. Arnin saw the horror and disappointment in her eyes. He knew that she hated him to the bone, but he already decided that she would be his future commander when he went to the other worlds. He already had a sinister plan made for him to obtain the loyalty of Canae. Loyalty was a bad term, rather he planned a way to make her his loyal slave that would heed his every command. "W-what are you doing here?" She looked at Arnin and her heart began to beat wildly. She heard the rules from the statue person and knew that anyone who entered the arena would have to fight to the death until the last person. ''If this Demon is here, doesn''t that mean¡­'' The thought scared her. Even though she knew she would die from Piri if not Arnin, she prefered to be killed by the former. Canae had seen the methods Arnin used to kill his victims, and she did not want to die the same way. Suddenly, a thought struck her. "W-where is my sister!?" She couldn''t help but yell a little. The only reason she hadn''t committed suicide or even accepted her death was because she still had a sister. Plus, this sister was in the very hands of the person who she hated and feared most. Arnin smiled a little before pointing his finger towards the spectating area. "Don''t worry, you''re sister is perfectly safe, of course that is only if you hurry up here. Who knows what the people up there will do to such a cute girl that is deep asleep. Even I get weird thoughts just thinking about such a situation." His smile was sinister, but his eyes were deadly calm. Canae knew that Arnin was not joking around. Who knows what would happen to her sister when surrounded by a bunch of murderous and lustful cultivators. She gritted her teeth a little, with her eyes looking at Arnin with seething hatred. "If you planned on killing me, then you could have done it on that day. You didn''t even need me for information since anyone could be used, so why are you torturing me so much?!" Canae couldn''t take it any longer and got up from the ground. She suddenly got a burst of strenght and rushed towards Arnin with her weapon. The latter shook his head. "Familial love such a¡­ bulsh*t thing." Arnin did a side step and grabbed Canae''s wrist. He snatched the weapon from her hand and threw her towards the arena wall. Then, using a little bit of strenght, Arnin hurled the double bladed staff towards one of Canae''s hands, pinning her to the wall. "Stay there and watch the show. Of course, if you want to help your sister before anything bad happens, then you better find a way to get to the spectating area as fast as possible." Arnin said with a sly smirk before walking towards the exhausted Piri. The latter was standing there the whole time, not interfering with Arnin''s business, but that wasn''t because he was being polite, rather he couldn''t. He was doing only a little better than Canae. Although he had no major wounds, the high quantity of minor wounds made him lose enough blood that he felt somewhat unstable, plus his stamina was running extremely low. Piri could only look at Arnin with alert eyes. When the latter first entered the arena, he felt that Arnin was going to be an easy target to get rid of because of his young age, but when he saw easily he took care of Canae, he felt a major threat from Arnin. "You aren''t too bad in skill, but sadly you hurt someone I need and the rules state I must kill you." Arnin spoke with little remorse. He didn''t really care that Canae was injured, he only needed her alive, plus he should be thanking Piri. It was only because of this person that Arnin could see the potential in Canae as a commander. Exhausted, Piri could only breathe heavily, not willing to waste energy by replying to Arnin''s taunts. Slowly, Arnin approached the exhausted boy in front of him. He had no weapon, but he didn''t feel that the large axe could do anything to him. He was confident in his skills to easily take down Piri. "Watch with your eyes wide open, Canae. This is how you kill someone swiftly." When the words left his mouth, Arnin vanished. *BOOM* "ARHG!" The boy screamed loudly as his body fell to the ground. Everyone on the spectating stands looked at Arnin with some shock, Canae on the other hand closed her eyes. She already knew the fate of Piri. Arnin ignored everyone''s shock and leaned forward, grabbing the large axe from Piri''s hand. He lifted it up high, and without any change in expression, smashed it onto the boys head. The head was destroyed and created a gory scene. Some of the remnant pieces of the brain got onto Arnin''s face, plus lots of blood. People on the spectating area couldn''t help but feel disgusted and frightened by the sight. Some of the weaker males and females began to vomit. Canae had her eyes closed, but when she heard the sound of something splatter, she knew that it would be bad to open her eyes or else she would see something she would not want to. Arnin stood still for a while and noticed that nothing happened. He snorted before walking towards Canae. ''Seems like I wont get any sort of reward until I am the last one standing. Let''s wait until more people enter.'' He stood close to the pinned Canae, of course he didn''t help her, but still stayed near her. He wanted to wait until someone entered the arena. He knew that there was a extremely high chance that the pair of men would send someone to test his strenght, until then he could only wait. "If someone wants to fight, then come down. All of you weak little bast*rds are scared of someone like me? I haven''t even reached Essence Manifest, so someone let me cut you up as well." If someone with a high realm said the words that Arnin did, then most would not come, but many were infuriated by Arnin''s taunts. "This little boy who just came out of his mother''s womb has a nasty mouth. Just because he killed someone, he thinks he is all high and mighty. Let me go and see how strong he is." Lots of people were immediately baited by Arnin. Even though the scene of Arnin because covered in gore was clear in their memories, that didn''t scare them away. Who hadn''t experience life and death? How many would truly be scared? "Don''t be in a rush guys. Don''t you know who that is? That is the Demonic Joker. He kills without batting an eye and said to be ruthless towards everyone." Some of the more knowledgeable people spoke up to warn their friends or neighbors. "So what? He is in Orb Birth - Hell, how strong can he be? Plus, he is only a child, do you really think that he can be so strong and skilled? I think the previous scene just frightened you''re weak *ss!" The more arrogant people spoke with pity and disappointment in their tones. Of course, most people who did get up were in Essence Manifest. The people still in Orb Birth remained silent. They had little confidence in beating Arnin, mostly because of his title as the Demonic Joker. Arnin listened to all the ramblings that happened in the spectating area. He knew that some would not come, but people who were in Essence Manifest would try and attack him. Extremely few people knew that he killed a couple of lovers who were in Essence Manifest - Earth, since everyone who saw was either dead or under his control. Arnin looked up at the people arguing and spoke up again. "Just a couple of Essence Manifest weaklings? You guys aren''t even enough to face me in fetus form, and you think you guys can trample me? Please." He didn''t stop his taunts. Although wasting essence was bad for him, he could obtain more from killing others, plus he was interested in the awards and wanted to see if there was anything useful for him. Many people glared at Arnin and then walked out of the seating area. They saw the two men standing in front of the door and became even angrier. "Move aside, or else you will die as well." Relshe and Srida looked at one another before shrugging their shoulders. "We can only let you go in one at a time. If you wont listen, then¡­" Both men released their auras, scaring the arrogant men in front. "So, who will be first?" A man who seemed to be around the age of twenty walked forward. He had a large scar on his bald head, while also wearing a red bandana on his left wrist. He carried a sword that was around the same height as his body and the aura he released was at the peak of Essence manifest - Earth. Relshe nodded towards Srida and both men moved aside. They allowed him to pass by into the Silver arena. Arnin saw the man approach and his smile couldn''t help but widen. ''Seems like I can get lots of blood essence and make my strenght a little higher.'' When the twenty or so aged man saw Arnin, he smirked before pointing his large blade towards Arnin who stood beside Canae. "Arrogant little brat, let me send you back into your mother''s womb." Arnin smiled and pulled the double bladed staff from the wall, allowing Canae to fall on the ground. He looked at the bald man with a confused face. "You''re sending me into my mom''s womb? Seems like you pioneered a path the last time you went into your own mother''s womb." Arnin shook his head and sighed. "Experience is really key. ONly people like you would know how to enter and exit a person''s womb." The bald man was immediately enraged. He rushed towards Arnin with his large blade in hand. "Watch how I use this weapon, maybe you can learn a few things." Arnin looked at Canae before twirling the double bladed stand in his hands and also rushing towards the bald man. The man aimed his sword not towards Arnin''s head but towards his arm. He felt that Arnin could be easily disarmed and he could play around a little because of his high strenght. But his arrogance blinded him from Arnin''s wicked attack. The double bladed staff spun and knocked the sword away with one end, while the next end aimed for the man''s legs. *SWISSH* With his eyes wide opened with shick, the man who was above Arnin fell to the ground with a loud thump. "AHH! MY LEGS!" Everyone saw that the bald man''s legs were sliced off. He fell to the ground and blood flowed out intensely. Arnin then aimed one the bladed towards the bald mans arms and sliced them off as well. "ARHH!!!!" With everyone watching the scene, Arnin grabbed onto the man''s neck and dragged him to the gory scene where Piri died. He stopped when they were in the middle of the gore. With a calm gaze, Arnin looked at the trembling and half dead bald man. "Lick the floor clean. If you do, I may let you live and even repair you''re wounds." Outside the Silver door, the Essence Manifest cultivators were yelling to go in. hearing that the arena was silent, Relshe and Srida allowed one more to go in, with confusion on there faces. However, just as the door opened, they got a glimpse of what was happening inside. Everyone had their mouths dropped and their eyes opened with fear and dorror. Even Relshe and Srida were shocked and terrified. ''This kid is literally making someone wipe the floor.... With their tongue!'' 89 Power of Blood Everyone watched the scene with shock. A man with four missing limbs was desperately wiping the floor with his tongue under the threat of Arnin. Even people who were weaker than the bald man found his actions to be disgusting and disgraceful, but only the spectators knew what happened. The people who stood outside the Silver door were not able to see what Arnin did in order to create the current scene; they only saw the heavy damage on the bald man, but even then they found his actions to be distasteful. "If I lost, I would rather accept death than lick the floor with my tongue. This person is disgusting." The cultivators who were behind the Silver door scorned the bald man''s actions, however Relshe had a different reaction. ''The fight barely lasted for two minutes. He was crippled and put into such a state so quickly. This Demonic Joker is much stronger than I thought.'' Others ignored how swiftly Arnin finished the battle, however Relshe was beginning to fear Arnin a little more than before. Even he couldn''t be this fast when attacking. Not only that, but Relshe knew that even if he joined hands with Srida, they would still be unable to finish the battle as quickly as Arnin did. It was impossible for them to do something so quick. Arnin knew that his actions would attract the attention of others and make him stand out more, but he wasn''t scared. He knew that the truly strong people would still find him insignificant, and only people who were weaker than them would attack him. The bald man lost so much blood that he fell unconscious as he was licking the floor. Of course, the amount of blood that he lost would lead to his death unless someone saved him, but who would do that? Death was the only end for someone who entered the arena unless they were able to come out on top and slay the rest of the people. Relshe moved away from the Silver door and waved his hand towards the group that was slowly gathering. "Three people are allowed to enter next." He smiled and decided that he would take a risk and test how strong Arnin truly was. This would probably put him in Arnin''s bad books, but when was he ever in his good books? If anything, he knew that controlling Arnin would be much more difficult than he first thought. Not only was he extremely perceptive, his strength was also quite high. Plus, Relshe had yet to see the limit of Arnin''s strength. Everyone was stunned by Arnin''s power and no one noticed that his aura was weaker than before. It was barely in Orb Birth - Hell, and it even felt like it would drop to the Sky realm at any second. Arnin didn''t show any fluctuations on his face, but he knew that he would not be in a good situation if someone around Essence Manifest - Hell came and attacked him. Even a large group of Essence Manifest - Earth cultivators could put him in a bad situation. He watched the door with cold eyes and noticed a person walk through, then another one followed, and after that, one more. Arnin''s eyes became even more cold when he saw this. These three no weaker than the bald man, there was more than one. ''Seems like things are getting a little more dangerous. I need to quickly finish these two off and find a way to leave the arena with Canae.'' Arnin would be alright if only one had come through, but even if two people tried to fight him, he would be able to barely make it, but with three, he would need to use more strength than usual. ''Maybe I can finally deploy the secrets of the blood essence power.'' When this thought struck him, Arnin began to smile a little. He was confident he could handle the three but he knew that if more followed after the current trio, then the situation had the possibility of ending badly for him. In that case, he would probably not survive unless they were weaker than the three in front of him, but chances were that whoever followed would be stronger than their predecessors. The three men that walked through the Silver door looked at Arnin with frosty eyes, but Arnin noticed a little bit of apprehension deep within their eyes. This caused him to smirk and he knew his previous treatment of the bald man had an effect on them. ''I need to make a greater example out of these three in order to make others hesitate before attacking me.'' Arnin lightly smirked and then looked towards Canae, who had an anxious look on her face. He immediately knew why. "Canae, if you want to leave this place, then I can help you with that. I can make it so that both you and me will survive, and then you can also save your sister." Arnin smirked a little before slowly making his way towards Canae. Of course, his eyes continued to focus on the three that were slowly approaching. "W-what do you mean? Only one person can leave this place, so your tricks won''t work on me. How can both of us leave?" There was some irritation on Canae''s face, but deep within her eyes, Arnin noticed a hint of hope. He smiled a little before he lifted the double bladed staff and put it on his shoulder. He thought back to a certain book he picked up when he was reading in the library of Lepidoptera Academy. He knew that his contract making skills were already known to some people, but there was also a risk to publicising all of his talents. The only people who knew about his contracts were the village elder, Xillar, Avian, his slaves, and his family. Maybe even Fae knew something about them, but he felt that none of these people would spread news about him knowing how to create contrats. In order to prevent more people from finding out about his skills, Arnin began to read on different ways to bind people. He discovered in a book that a person would become a slave if they allowed someone to place a mark on their orb. Of course, this was only if both parties agreed, or if the one creating the mark was extremely powerful. However, this was still something that he should not be able to do just yet, so he read further and found something similar that could be used for temporary bondage. "Swear upon your orb that you will be my slave for six months. If you do, then I will bring you out of here, but think fast. I will only give you until the time I kill these three ants. If you haven''t decided by then, I will have you watch as your sister is humiliated by everyone here. Not only that, but I will kill you and have someone humiliate her on top of your dead body. Quick, quick, time is ticking." With that, Arnin walked towards the three with a small smile. He used six months because that was neither too long, nor too short, plus it was enough time for him to permanently bring Canae to his side, whether it was voluntary or through force. "Kid, you got guts calling us ants. Just because you can kill that guy doesn''t mean that you can kill all of us." The first person who walked into the arena had grey hair and his weapon was a short dagger. He was the one who spoke out first, while the other two nodded their heads with hate showing in their eyes. "I can call you ants, or even trash if I want. I don''t think I need your permission to talk about what you truly are. Anyways, whether you kill me or not, two of you will certainly die since at one point, you will have to fight one another." Arnin said these words casually, but it was somewhat effective because the three looked at one another with apprehension. The arena only allowed one winner, so they would indeed eventually fight one another, but what if they attacked each other mid fight? The three were more cautious and fell for Arnin''s trick right away. Arnin knew that their battle strength would decrease by a lot because of them watching their backs against their own allies, which made them easier to kill. He then quickly rushed towards the trio with the double bladed staff spinning in his hands. The blades would spin and hit the ground, causing sparks to appear. These sparks were small, but it caused the three to be more careful. Although the sparks would do nothing, just because Arnin made the effort to create them, the three felt that it might be related to an attack. This moment of distraction gave Arnin the window to jump towards the grey haired man. The latter quickly lifted his dagger and met Arnin''s staff head on, and with a low growl, he exerted forced and pushed Arnin away. This forced Arnin into the air and towards another person, however Arnin knew this would happen, so he quickly turned his body mid air, surprising the rest of the people. With everyone still in shock, he spun his staff and attacked the second person. This time, the individual did not react as swiftly, resulting in a small cut appearing on his left bicep. The small cut made Arnin smile wickedly. He bit his own tongue and spat a small amount of blood towards the cut, and then jumped back with a somersault. The second person was confused by Arnin''s actions, but he didn''t pay any attention to it. He only smirked and looked at Arnin arrogantly. "You can''t even handle a head on collision with us. If you puke blood with just that, how will you survive the ne--" Before the man could finish, he felt a burningpain on his left bicep. He looked over and found that it was slowly turning purple and the source was¡­ his cut! "What is this! What the hell is going on!" The purple color spread quickly and he gradually lost control over his left arm. The pain continued to seep throughout his arm and he felt it moving towards the rest of his body. Arnin saw this and couldn''t help but smile. He didn''t say anything and rushed towards the purpled armed guy once more. With his left arm disabled, the second man used his right arm and blocked the staff with his own sword, albeit barely. Sweat appeared on his face as he used all the energy he had to push Arnin back, but something unexpected happened right as he opened his mouth and yelled. *SPIT* Another globule of blood came out of Arnin''s mouth. This time, the aim was none other than the other man''s¡­ mouth. "Enjoy the torturous death." Arnin didn''t jump back this time and instead leaped onto the man''s shoulders and spoke quietly. *SNAP* Arnin''s fingers snapped and the man''s chest began to turn purple just like his arm, and his neck engulfed soon after. Slowly, the purple reached his head and his eyes dimmed after a few minutes of spasms. Silence. No one could say anything and they watched the scene with confusion and shock. He died. The man died so quickly, but how? Arnin saw everyone was shocked and slightly cut man''s neck. A slimy blob of blood oozed out, making others want to puke. While everyone was still shocked, the two men who came with the dead one became more cautious. They looked at one another and nodded their head. The grey haired man stabbed his dagger towards Arnin, while the third man with black hair stabbed Arnin with his long sword. Arnin scoffed, and quickly ducked from the long sword, however the dagger was still making its way towards him. With his double bladed staff spinning, Arnin knocked the dagger out of the way, and simultaneously cut off the head of the dead man. A large blob of blood fell out, which Arnin picked up and threw towards the grey haired man. "Explode!" The blob burst right in front of the grey haired man''s face, covering him in blood. Arnin took advantage of the blood on the man''s face, and began to whisper some words. Suddenly, the blood began to squirm like a bunch of worms. "AHH!" Some parts of the blood began to solidify into small blade like objects. Of course, they were still connected to the splattered blood, but the small blood blades curved and stabbed his face. This was not enough to kill the man since the blood was not super strong, and the man had thick skin, but after the constant stabbing, a small hole was made that released the grey haired man''s blood. He saw a ruthless look appear on Arnin''s face and he couldn''t help but feel an intense amount of horror and almost screamed. Arnin had the blood enter the mans face and it too slowly turned purple, just like the second man''s. A few seconds later, he also fell to the ground. This time, everyone collectively took in a cold breath of air. People on the spectating stands were relieved that they did not enter the arena, while people behind the Silver door heard the commotion and ran to the spectating stands as well. When they saw the scene before them, they began to sweat like pigs. ''He already killed two? If he could kill them both so efficiently, then what can I do to him?'' The people who hadn''t yet entered the arena decided to no longer pick a fight with Arnin. They knew that they would be killed just as easily if they fought, plus the deaths did not look pleasant in any way. "All that remains is you." Arnin''s face was covered in sweat and his aura had actually dropped down to Orb Birth - Sky, although it was at the peak. The few moves that looked extremely easy were actually very difficult to conduct. He had to use lots of mental strength to control the blood and make it attack the blood flow and force it to stop. Plus, he had to do it quickly so the men could not react. The black haired man looked at Arnin with fear. Sweat wouldn''t stop pouring from his forehead, but he knew that there wasn''t anything he could do. There was no way he could leave the arena, however a thought struck him. ''If I waste enough time, others might enter, and then maybe we could work together to destroy this demon child.'' Once this thought entered his mind, it didn''t leave. Although he knew that the chances of someone appearing to save him were slim, he knew that nothing else could save him. He quickly dashed towards the right and headed towards the direction of the bald man''s dead body. He wanted to keep some distance from Arnin and waste as much time as possible. Arnin ignored the man''s actions and looked at the anxious Canae. "So, what''s it going to be? You only have a little bit of time left, so you better decided your next move quick. Will you allow yourself to serve me for six months, which would be beneficial to both you and your sister, or will you die watching your sister become a plaything for everyone here?" Canae was struggling to make up her mind. She didn''t want to become Arnin''s slave but she also knew that it was probably the only thing that could save her. "Even if I become your slave, how will you get me out of here alive? The rules clearly stated that only one person will come out alive." Canae knew that she had little to no choice. Arnin looked at her with a calm gaze. "You can leave that to me. Now tell me, what will it be?" Canae bit her cracked lips that lacked the pink from before. After some hesitation, she sighed and stood up, looking at Arnin. "I will serve you as your slave for six months, and if I go back on my word, then may my orb be completely destroyed." Her vow was very simple, and even a little rusty, but it satisfied the condition that Arnin wanted and he smiled. Suddenly, a white light appeared from Canae''s chest and entered Arnin''s body. The latter was not surprised since he knew that this was a sign that the vow was now officially in place. Canae, however, was quite surprised and knew that her fate was set and she was going to be Arnin''s slave for the next six months, but for some reason, she felt a slight release. At least she knew how long, and that Arnin would not kill her anytime soon. Arnin nodded his head, and then turned around and looked at the black haired man who stood in the middle of the gore that Arnin had made. His eyes glinted as he dropped the staff in his hands and slowly walked towards the black haired man. He suddenly raised his hand and pointed his palm towards the black haired man. Then, he quickly closed it and created a fist. As soon as the fist was made, Arnin spat out a large amount of blood as his face paled. *RUMMBLE* The black haired man looked down and saw a scene that caused his heart to reach his throat. Blades upon blades were formed from the blood that was around him, circling him. "AH!" With a low beast like yell from Arnin, the blades rushed towards the black haired man. His whole body was pierced everywhere, and blood seeped from his mouth as the blood blades returned to liquid form and fell to the ground. The black haired man also fell, his face still showcasing shock and fear. Arnin smiled weakly as he felt his aura drop to the beginning of Orb Birth - Sky. ''So this is the power of blood?'' 90 Death Coins and Three Weapons The people in the spectating area were in complete silence yet again as they looked at the ground covered with blood and bodies. They saw globs of coagulated blood and other horrific things. Some couldn''t help but shiver at the sight. Arnin waited a few minutes and found that no one else was entering the arena, so he took a deep breath and sat onto the ground. He looked at Canae with a calm glance and waved his hand. "Come here, and massage my shoulders." He wasn''t worried at all that she would attack him. Since she vowed to be his slave for six months, it was impossible for her to go against him. Even if she tried, her orb would be destroyed before she could even touch Arnin. Just the thought of killing Arnin could cause her instant death. Canae didn''t try and avoid Arnin this time. As his slave, she had to listen to his every command, so she got up, walking towards Arnin and kneeling behind him. He knees were instantly covered with blood as Arnin was sitting in a blood pool. Knowing that no one would attack him in the short run, Arnin decided to calm himself and begin to cultivate. He was currently very weak, but he was extremely happy. There was a large quantity of blood around him, and a lot of it was high quality with great quantities of blood essence, allowing him to get back to Orb Birth - Heaven. Although he could only reach around the middle stage of Orb Birth - Heaven, that was still very good. The scene was quiet and eerie. Arnin''s red hair became a brighter red and someone even though that Arnin''s hair was actually made of blood, not strands of hair. Everyone else was sitting far away, but Canae was right behind Arnin so she saw the greatest change. ''His aura is slowly increasing?! Why does it feel like he is in Orb Birth - Sky right now? Wait, he''s in Hell now?!'' She felt Arnin''s aura clearly, but she was still in a state of shock and confusion. She had always thought that Arnin was at Orb Birth - Hell, but she found that he was actually at the Sky level, and had just entered Hell, but the climb in essence didn''t stop there. Half an hour passed in stifling peace. Canae was probably the only one that wasn''t truly scared or worried. Since she was already in Arnin''s hands, she wasn''t too worried about anything. At most she would die, and if she was going to be tortured, she could commit suicde using the vow. *SWISHHH* A red aura began to seep out of Arnin. It was similar to the smoky black aura that he would release in the past. Canae felt suffocated by the aura, and almost barfed because she could smell the strong stench of blood. It was so concentrated that she felt that she was swimming in an ocean of fresh blood. ''What is going on?! His aura has clearly reached Orb Birth - Heaven, but why does it seem so much more powerful?!'' Arnin didn''t notice the commotion that was rising because of his blood aura. Of course, he didn''t make any breakthrough, rather there was just so much blood essence around that he wasn''t able to absorb it fast enough, which was why there was a smoky red aura around him. --------------------------------------------------------------- Inside the cave with the masked elders and the Headmistress, Fae had a face of shock. Although she knew that there was a problem with Arnin''s body which made his aura and cultivation unstable, she didn''t know the exact problem. She didn''t even know that his essence would continuously leak out of his body, making him weaker by the second. "T-this is blood essence? I remember giving him a blood essence cultivation manual as a gift back then, but I never thought he would actually cultivate it. Plus, this is the first time I sensed blood essence around him. I would usually sense fire or death, but blood?" Fae was so shocked that she spoke loud enough for the people in the room to hear her. All of them looked over to the screen that showed Arnin and some of them took a deep breath. The Headmistress also looked over and her eyes hardened a little. ''Such strong blood essence. Is this truly the cultivation manual that Fae gave him?'' Of course, the Headmistress knew about the cultivation manuals that Fae gave to Arnin since she herself had given the nod. Even though that was true, she had never expected that Arnin would cultivate that cultivation manual, let alone to such a degree. Although everyone in the room was somewhat shocked, almost all of them turned their heads towards a single masked elder. Even Fae and the Headmistress looked over to this masked elder. His body seemed a little robust behind the cloak, and one could even see ghostlike silver hair from behind the mask. The mask on his face was completely red and had a sinister frown. His body was releasing a bloody stench that wasn''t any weaker than the one Arnin was releasing, but of course, no one could smell Arnin''s offensive odour. The Headmistress couldn''t help but have a small smile on her face as her eyes brightened a little. "Elder Kocyte, doesn''t this boy match your cultivation style? What do you think?" Of course, everyone else also had the same thought. Elder Kocyte was not the most powerful of the elders, but he was the most bloodthirsty. Since his main element was blood for his cultivation, he needed lots of fresh blood in order to progress. This made him one of the most feared masked elders because he would kill without batting an eye, and no one would stop him. Plus, he would look for excuses to kill some of the most famous people with good backgrounds for the higher purity of their blood essence, so even if he did kill one, the people the victim left behind would not be able to complain too much. Elder Kocyte had over a dozen disciples, all of them cultivating blood essence, however the power of blood that Arnin released was much stronger than any of his disciples. The elder nodded his head and his hoarse voice resounded in the room. It was familiar, but also has some murderous intent in it. "This boy is great. Not only is his cultivation method related to blood, even his personality is to my liking. He is just as murderous as me, plus he is already like this at such a young age." Some elders in the room couldn''t help but snort at his words. Although Elder Kocyte was strong, he was disliked by many of the other masked elders because of his nature. Some even lost their own disciples to him, so they found him repulsive. Now that he was saying that he liked the thought of a five year old being just as bloodthirsty as him, many found him even more disgusting. Them allowing a child into their battlefield before the age of ten was already quite rare. Although there were some others in the battlefield under the age of ten, that was due to them having special connections, but even then, there were not many at the age of five in the competition, the majority were age 10 or older. "So, do you plan on taking him as a disciple?" The one who was actually the most excited was none other then Fae. Since a masked elder took notice of Arnin, that meant that her decision to bring Arnin over to her side was a good thing, and she would receive rewards for it. "Of course! If he survives this, then I would make him my personal disciple and if he doesn''t want that, then I don''t mind using his strong blood essence for my own cult--" Before he could finish, he turned his head and looked at Fae. *BOOM* A strong aura that caused the cave to shake was released from Fae. Although she was weaker than the ten masked elders, it was only by a little. Her eyes became frosty and her tone also became much more deep, and extremely threatening. "You can take him as a disciple, but if you lay a hand on him, then don''t blame me! I will kill all of your disciples and break all four of your limbs and allow him to drink your filthy blood!" Everyone was shocked and looked at Fae with weird glances. Although they knew that Fae was extremely powerful, only a tad bit weaker than them, they would still have to pay a certain price in order to defeat her, but that was only defeat. If they wanted to kill her, then that would be another problem. Plus, if she was set on making trouble for them, then they could forget about living another peaceful day. Elder Kocyte snorted before releasing his own aura. "Little girl, you better watch your tongue. I can slay you where you stand. You, break my limbs? You, kill my disciples? Over my dead body. The day you attack me, or any of my disciples would be the last time you ever even get the chance to attack in your life!" Even though Elder Kocyte''s voice seemed calm, it was filled with great bloodlust. Everyone knew that Elder Kocyte was a very vengeful and arrogant person. His disciples would rampage everywhere, doing whatever they wanted to because of Elder Kocyte''s attitude. He allowed them to be arrogant and cocky, and if anyone even harmed them in the slightest, Elder Kocyte would attack as if his life depended on it. No one wanted to mess with a crazed blood demon like Kocyte. Even the strongest Masked Elder was apprehensive about Elder Kocyte. "Pfft! You think you can scare me? You want to take my life? Don''t make me stitch that *ss like mouth of yours to a Pig Beast''s p*nis! In this world, nothing scares me, and those who want my life will have to think a million times before even breathing in front of me!" Fae didn''t back down and spoke in a more aggressive manner. Some of the masked elders took in a breath of cold air, but the strongest in the room, including the Headmistress, didn''t really have much of a reaction. By power alone, Fae was weaker than the rest, but her skill was high. She was incredibly strong, plus she cultivated extremely quickly. Headmistress knew that the two would continue to bicker back and forth so she took a step forward and released her own aura, dispelling the other two auras. "Both of you should calm down. You guys are acting as if Arnin will survive this arena. Didn''t you see that he is trying to bring that girl, Canae, out with him? Do you truly think that Teacher Statue will allow that? He might kill them both if he gets annoyed." Hearing his words, both Fae and Kocyte retracted their auras. Fae had a sullen face and the one could see that Kocyte''s body was slightly trembling. "If that rock kills Arnin, my disciple, then I will turn him into a decoration for the academy!" Both of them spoke at the same time with their faces twisting with anger. Although Kocyte said that he would kill Arnin if he didn''t accept him as a master, that didn''t mean he didn''t want Arnin as his disciple. If anything, he wanted Arnin to be his disciple so much that his face was filled with expectation, and thoughts of his future with Arnin would pop in his mind. Fae and Elder Kocyte disappeared from the cave. There was a screen that showed a few Teachers, and she couldn''t help but shake her head as she looked at the one that showed Teacher Statue. ''Hopefully he doesn''t do anything to that kid, or those two might really go berserk.'' ------------------------------------------- Arnin slowly opened his eyes, which were now a more sinister purple, and one could even see a crimson dot in his pupil if they looked long enough. It was extremely sinister. He took a deep breath and a small smile appeared on his face. ''I reached the middle stages of Orb Birth - Heaven, which is even higher than the realm I had before getting injured. If only I could heal my orb threads.'' He sighed, ''Using my Demon Lord powers is too dangerous. If I didn''t happen to create the Seed of Rebirth, then I would have died.'' Arnin shook his head and got up. He turned his head and looked at Canae, who was looking at him with widened eyes. "Get up. Let''sleave this place." Arnin said this with a casual tone, and Canae quickly awoke from her stupor. Her face showed some worry and she looked around at the dead bodies, and then back at Arnin. Of course the latter knew what she was thinking. He pulled Canae up and waved for her to follow him. They walked towards the exit, but just when they were about to reach it, a strong force appeared out of nowhere and pushed them back. Canae was weak, so she flew back a couple of meters, but Arnin held his ground, only taking a step or two back. "What do you think you are doing? Only one person can leave this place!" The voice was the same as the one that explained the rules in the beginning. Arnin looked up and his eyes looked towards a certain large lamp on the ceiling. He knew that the voice was coming from there, and he could even see a small black shadow standing on top of it. Of course, only Arnin could see him, no one else. "What do you mean? I am taking everything that I own outside. I ignored the fact that I didn''t receive any rewards from this place, but you won''t even let me leave?" Arnin snorted as his eyes became colder. Even though he knew that he would offend the other, Arnin wanted to test out the other''s attitude towards his words. Who knew, the person might have hated weak willed people, and prefered those with a strong will. It could also be the other way around, but Arnin felt like the person would like strong willed people. Of course, this was only a conjecture from the fact that the man use a stone statue to appear from rather than something weaker like brittle leaves. Arnin guessed that the statue was related to the man''s personality, hard like a rock, with an unbreakable will like a stone''s. This was, however,just a guess that Arnin wanted to test out. He knew that this was just a dumb guess, and that he might be playing with his life, but Arnin had a gut feeling that even if he completely angered the man in front of him, nothing would happen to him. This was mostly because of Fae, and he knew that she wouldn''t let him die, but he still didn''t quite understand why this was the case. Teacher Statue went quiet and he looked at Arnin with a deeper glance. He knew that Arnin could see him, which surprised him and made him more apprehensive. He wasn''t scared of Arnin, rather he was worried about the power behind Arnin. He had a feeling that no one with such capabilities would be without any backers. He then looked at Canae, and although the latter couldn''t see him, she felt as though she was being watched. "Even if she is your woman, one of you need to die in order to escape. Those are the rules; even I can''t change that." The mans said with a ''helpless'' tone. "You can''t change it? Is that true? Well, she is not my woman, she is my possession. She is my slave, my weapon, an item for my disposal. Is that not enough reason?" Teacher Statue didn''t know about what happened in the arena, rather he never really paid attention to such things. It was a bore to him, so he would usually sleep and only wake up when the arena barrier reacted to someone leaving when another was still in the arena, or once a winner had been declared. So when he heard the way Arnin described Canae and called her his slave, he saw the former''s face become red. "That may be the case, bu--" Just as he was about to finish, his face turned pale and a small amount of blood leaked from his mouth. Of course, Arnin saw all of this and he couldn''t help but evilly smirk. ''Seems like I wasn''t wrong. Fae, or someone related to her will make sure that I won''t die in the hands of such people.'' Arnin was only confident because the person who was going to attack him was a teacher or elder of Thorn Academy. He knew that Fae may not save him if he was killed by other people in the battlefield, but he was certain that she would protect him from the officials of the academy. "Alright then, you can leave the place. Since she is your slave, then she counts as something you possess. Before you go though, take the Death Coins and the reward." This time, the man''s voice was a little shaky and even a little¡­ wronged? A bright light then appeared in front of Arnin. The latter turned his head and saw a large amount of death coins appear, along with a selection of three weapons. One was a black long sword. It had a very sharp blade, and there were even yellow lines circling it like a seal. The second weapon was a dagger. It was completely brown, but due to the flaming tip, anyone could tell that it was very good for fire elemental users. The handle seemed to be made from a white pearl and it released a similar fiery aura. The last was a weapon that made Canae''s eyes brighten slightly. It was a double bladed staff. The staff was made from a black wood that released a eerie death aura, while the blades were made from a grey metal that released an aura that seemed similar to withering. "You can only choose one weapon, but these Death coins are all yours. Of course, you have to find a way to store them yourself." With that, the voice disappeared. 91 Yinsi Shredded The three weapons were right in front of him. There was the long sword, the dagger, and the double-bladed staff. Of course, Arnin knew which weapon he wanted. His hand reached out and grabbed the double bladed staff almost instantaneously and tossed it to Canae, who was standing behind him in shock. ''H-he gave me the weapon? B-but why?'' Arnin ignored her reaction. The biggest reason for his choosing the double bladed staff was because it was the only weapon that could be of use to him. He himself didn''t really need a sword since the white saber would be able to turn into a physical weapon once he figured out how to utilize it properly, but that didn''t mean others around him didn''t need one. Not only was the double-bladed staff almost exactly the same as the previous weapon Canae had, but it also was made from materials that would even help Arnin if he used the weapon. Anyways, Arnin wanted to obtain the voluntary service of Canae, if not that, then he at least wanted her to work a little harder for him then she would for just the slave contract. The weapon he gave her was the first step towards this. He would eventually win her goodwill and she would become a stronger asset for him. The next thing Arnin looked at was the pile of Death coins. Teacher Statue had already stated that he would need to find a method to keep these coins himself, which actually wasn''t a big deal to Arnin. In the past, Fae gave him an interdimensional bag, and currently, it wasn''t too full. He stuffed all the coins in the bag, but of course, they left no room for anything else. In fact, he had to take out some small weapons that were in the bag previously in order to make more room. After taking all the rewards that he could, Arnin walked out of the Silver arena with Canae. He didn''t plan on staying in the Cave Temple Zone for too long since there wasn''t much he could gain from it. Of course, this wasn''t the case for others, because people still wanted rewards and Death coins. Plus, anyone who saw the double bladed staff that Canae received knew that the weapons in the Cave Temple zone were of extremely good quality, and quite strong too. Plus, they had elemental properties, which was something difficult to get. Stepping through the Silver door, Arnin saw Relshe and Srida staring at him with a weird gaze. He could even see Relshe showing slight fear and apprehension in his eyes. "So, how was your little test? Am I strong enough?" Arnin spoke with derision in his tone. He knew what they were trying to do before he even entered the arena. He couldn''t, however, claim that what they did didn''t help him. If they hadn''t blocked the door, then he would have had to face more than just four people. He would probably have to fight every Essence Manifest cultivator that he taunted. He might have even been seriously wounded, or in the worst case scenario, killed. Both men looked into each other''s eyes with wry smiles. "Of course you''re strong enough. If anything, you are much stronger than expected, so what do you say? Do you want to join us? You won''t lose out." Relshe was still persistent, but he knew that it would harder than before. Arnin was much stronger than their expectations, and he might even be stronger than them. Arnin snorted and walked into the spectating area with Canae. This time, he just grabbed the unconscious girl who hadn''t been touched and then walked out. He did not leave the Cave Temple zone, as he still had some interest in the Gold arena. It was where the strongest would gather, meaning it was also where the rewards would be the best. He decided to walk into the other spectating area and see how strong the people in the Gold arena were. As soon as he walked in, he felt a strong pressure rush towards him. This didn''t affect Arnin too much since he was able to stay perfectly fine under the pressure exuded by Xillar, but it was not easy on Canae. She was sweating fiercely, and even her unconscious sister had a scrunched up face. Arnin looked around and found that almost everyone in the area was around Essence Manifest - Sky or higher. There were only a few in the Earth realm, and even less at Orb Birth, but each one exuded more power than the people in the other spectating zone. ''Interesting. Seems like the truly strong are gathered here. Maybe I can find some people in the top hundred here. I can try my luck and see how strong they are.'' Arnin looked around and found a spot to sit near the door he came from. He didn''t really mind where he sat, it was all the same to him. Canae also sat beside him in silence. Others looked over at their group of three and seeing that they were exuding very weak auras, especially Arnin, they just ignored them. "Canae, look around and tell me if there is anyone from the top hundred around." Arnin didn''t know anyone from the top one hundred so he could only depend on Canae to point some out for him. With a nod of her head, she began to look around. "I can see quite a few here actually." She was somewhat shocked to see people in the top one hundred. She assumed that almost all would be heading towards the other two zones since the Cave Temple zone wasn''t really helpful. "Go on." "I see the person ranked at ninety-nine, thirty-one, eighty-nine, fifty-seven¡­" She went on named a dozen or so ranks. "Tell me, how does everyone know who the top hundred are? I don''t remember seeing any boards." Arnin never understood how everyone would know the top hundred. It was an unofficial list, so there shouldn''t be a board for it. Canae looked at Arnin for a second before explaining. "Before we entered the battlefield, there were a few tests we needed to pass. Although the tests themselves were easy, there were still some who did exceedingly better than others, especially during the sparring round. We just chose the top hundred fighters from the sparring rounds and called them the top hundred." Arnin nodded his head and finally understood how the top hundred were chosen. Although the spars weren''t life-threatening, they still allowed people to show their abilities. Since he was late to the battlefield, of course, he would miss out on all of these pre-battlefield tests. ''Although I am slowly falling from Orb Birth - Heaven, I still need to fight the strong people here in order to test out their strength. Plus, if I can enter the top fifty, then I wouldn''t have to worry about gaining a few resources.'' He suddenly got up from his seat, took the double bladed staff from Canae, and walked towards the exit of the spectating area. "Canae, stay here and watch how I use this." The people in the surroundings looked at Arnin in shock. They used their senses to feel Arnin''s aura and when they saw that he was only at Orb Birth - Heaven, they couldn''t help but snicker. "Kid, this is not a place for you to fool around. You never know when you might just lose your life." "Little boy, don''t expect others to go easy on you just because you are still a child. This is the real world, it''s not a place for a kid who just stopped breastfeeding to come and play in." People started to yell and make fun of Arnin, however, the latter only stopped his steps and stared at them all with his crimson eyes. "If you guys think your so strong, why don''t you come and kill this milk drinking baby? Or is it that you grew up drinking from a pig, waiting to be slaughtered on the side?" Arnin''s words were sharp. He then walked out the door and headed towards the Gold arena. "That little bastard. Who does he think he is?" The cultivators couldn''t help but gnash their teeth. Arnin had basically called them all pigs waiting to be slaughtered. Weaklings who would watch as death comes. A young girl suddenly got up from her seat. She looked around the age of sixteen, but the air around her was not something a normal sixteen-year-old girl could have. It was heavy like a blood-filled wave. It exuded strong killing intent. "Isn''t that Yinsi? Rank eighty-nine?" Canae whispered under her breath as she looked at the baleful girl walk out the spectating area right after Arnin. "That kid is dead. Although she is only at Essence Manifest - Earth, her strength exceeds most of the Earth realm cultivators. Plus, she is extremely bloodthirsty." Some people began to speak to their neighbors as they saw the disappearing back of Yinsi. Even though it may seem easy to be in the top one hundred, it was anything but. Only the strongest hundred out of thousands of people could be ranked in the top. Not only that but, Yinsi herself was ranked at eighty-nine even though her cultivation was lower than most, meaning once she broke through there was a high chance she would overtake many of the people ranking above her. She was a powerhouse. --------------------------------------------- Arnin didn''t hear or see anything that happened after he left, but he already knew that someone would come and face him. Of course, he hoped that someone from the top on hundred would come since that would be a good way to gauge out their strength. He entered the Gold arena and sat down in the middle of the place. He closed his eyes and cultivated, trying to increase his essence as much as possible. ''I need to quickly heal myself, this is not something that can be left to the side.'' With his essence continuously leaking, Arnin was feeling vexed. Not only could he not use most of his strength. Even his Runic Eyes were not dependable since he was just too weak. After a deep sigh, a few breaths passed and his eyes snapped open. In front of him was a young girl exuding a very baleful aura. She had long black hair and her brown eyes were sharp like daggers. "Who might you be?" Arnin smiled as he asked this question. The girl in front didn''t say a word and only looked at him silently. "Since you already here, that means you found life to be boring, right? Let me appease you then." With a faint smile, Arnin got up and walked towards the girl. He could feel her strength, but he wasn''t worried. She may have seemed stronger than most Essence Manifest - Earth cultivators, and even some Sky realm ones, but how many had he already killed? Plus, he was only at Orb Birth - Sky or Hell at that point. Right now, his realm was at Orb Birth - Heaven, he could easily slaughter her like a lamb. The girl pulled out a thin sword from her belt. She pointed it towards Arnin''s throat, but the latter didn''t stop moving. Her eyes flashed slightly before she opened her mouth. "I don''t care if you are a kid, but since you courted death, don''t blame me, Yinsi, for killing you." Arnin only smiled at the girl''s words and pointed the double bladed staff towards her. "Let me see how strong you are." He could feel that she was stronger than the average Essence Manifest - Earth cultivator, but so what? He was stronger than the average Essence Manifest - Sky cultivator while he was Orb Birth - Hell. Now he was already in the Heaven realm, how strong could Yinsi be? He slashed to the side as he rushed towards the girl. The slash caused a bit of wind to form and push dust to the side. It looked flashy, but it wasn''t strong. She raised her thin, silver sword and met with the double-bladed staff head on. Arnin smiled but did not use any of his blood powers. He wanted to beat her with just the blade in hand. This would not only benefit Canae, but he wouldn''t have to use too much essence either. When the blade and the sword met, Arnin raised his foot and aimed towards the girls gut, but of course, the latter wasn''t going to stand around like a target, so she moved her body slightly to the side. A grin appeared on Arnin''s face when he saw the girl move. With a quick pull, he was able to get out of the stalemate, but he didn''t stop there. He took a small leap back and threw the blade toward the girl. Seeing such sudden movements, she couldn''t help but be startled. With a swing of her arms, the sword met the blade, but because she wasn''t prepared, she quickly lost her balance. Arnin saw this and vanished from his spot. He reappeared right in front of the girl and used his leg to kick both of her calves, forcing her onto the ground. With a raise of his hand, he swooped down and grabbed the hilt. He twisted his hand, causing the blade to point towards the girl''s chest. With a push of his hand, the blade started to make its way towards Yinsi''s chest, but she was able to quickly move her body to the side. *RIP* He clothing slowly ripped, causing the tip of the blade to even scrape her flesh. She gritted her teeth and quickly got up, taking a leap back. Arnin, however, did not give her a chance to rest. Thrusting his hand forward, he threw the blade towards the girl, while at the same time he rushed towards his double bladed staff and picked it up. He followed behind the flying sword with a cold glint in his eyes. "It''s over," he spoke silently as he watched the girl barely deflect the sword away from her palm. He spun the double bladed staff over his head and rammed into the girl. "AHH!" She screamed out in agony as her body was slowly being shredded by the blades, almost like a blender tearing apart vegetables. Her screams echoed in the arena, but soon the sound vanished as if it never existed. The only thing left in the arena was a young boy and a mutilated body. Large lacerations were all over the female body if it could even be recognized as that anymore. Everyone in the stands saw the scene and couldn''t help but swallow a mouth full of cold air. Some even showed bits of fear and horror, others vomited on sight. The scene was just too gory to look at. What made them even more nervous was the fact that the red-haired child was calmly looking at the sight as if it was an everyday occurrence, There were no fluctuations in his eyes.it was calm like the top of a silent lake. Arnin then looked back at the stands. Not seeing anyone else coming up, he looked at the ceiling of the room once more. "Since this is done, can I get my reward now?" His voice wasn''t too loud, but the person on the stop heard. A sigh escaped from his mouth as he made his way down. This time, there was no light or loud rumbling. Rather, an old man appeared with no fluctuations on his body. He walked towards Arnin and pulled something out of his pocket. There were two items. One was a piece of paper, while the other was a small pill. "You can choose one of these as your rewards. One is a pill formula of a Blue leveled pill. The other option is this Green leveled Body Rebirth pill. Pick one." Everyone saw this and couldn''t help but suck in a breath of air. Both of the items were very good, much better than a weapon. Although they didn''t know what type of Blue leveled pill formula it was, just the rank being at Blue made many peoples eyes red. Even the Green Body Rebirth pill was amazing. It could heal broken bones and help to alleviate severe injuries to a certain extent. Its worth was especially doubled because of the battlefield they were in. Injuries were as common as the grains of sand. Having such a pill was basically a second life on the death-filled battlefield. Arnin didn''t need to think too much about it as he picked the Green Body Rebirth pill. Although the Blue leveled pill formula could be useful to others, it wasn''t so much for him. He had vast knowledge on pill formulas, so why would he need another? Teacher Statue handed Arnin the pill and then gave him a card. "This is filled with a good amount of Death Coins. Once you leave, if you leave this place alive that is, then you can use this to claim some Death coins for yourself." Without saying another word he disappeared from everyone sight. Arnin glanced at the card and then threw into his interspatial bag, with the pill. He sat down and cultivated for a few minutes, absorbing however much blood essence he could before quickly leaving the arena. When he entered the spectating area, everyone looked at him as though they were looking at a monster. Some even took a few steps away from Arnin. The latter in turn, ignored them and walked towards Canae. "Let''s go. I am done with this place, there is nothing useful here to me." He didn''t need to find weapons or treasures currently. What he needed was a method to heal his threads, however, he couldn''t ask for it openly since that could put him in danger. Canae subconsciously nodded her head and followed Arnin out. She picked up her sister and left the spectating area. Just before they were about to step outside the Cave Temple zone, she stopped walking. "M-master, I have a small request." She spoke in a mouse-like voice. Arnin turned his head and looked at her with his crimson eyes. "If you want to wake your sister up, that is fine, but she is to become my servant with you. If not, then you can hope that I let her off easy." Canae nodded her head and quickly woke up her sister. After explaining everything that happened and the risks and danger they were in, her sister, who was called Sinfallel, also became Arnin''s servant. Although she wasn''t as strong as Canae and didn''t have the same potential and intelligence, she was enough to do a menial task for him. Plus, if he treated Sinfallel well, then he could slowly win Canae''s loyalty over. If not, then he could just use Sinfallel as a tool for threatening Canae over and over again. 92 I Saved One of You Back in the spectating area for the Gold arena, there was a group of people sitting around a single young man. His face was covered in a frown as he looked at the shredded body of Yinsa. His eyes contained a bit of sorrow and a great amount of hatred. "Go and find that kid and bring him to me. I have to destroy his body and torture his soul for laying a hand on my woman." This young man was Fxi, ranked thirty-one out of the top one hundred. Although Yinsa wasn''t his woman, she was someone he saw as his. Plus, they grew up in the same town, so he knew her quite well. The people around him nodded their heads and chased after Arnin and his group. Not only did this group of people run after Arnin, but there was also Relshe and his friend Srida who followed the latter as well. They were still set on having Arnin join their group, especially since his strength was no lower than theirs, and possibly even higher. --------------------------------------------------- Arnin walked slowly as Sinfallel and Canae followed closely. Both of the girls had different expressions on their faces. Sinfallel looked at Arnin in disgust and hatred, while Canae was thinking back to the two times Arnin used the double-bladed staff. Although she felt a seething hatred for Arnin, there was little point in thinking about it since she was already his slave. She wanted to use this opportunity to get stronger, and she actually felt that Arnin was actually trying to do just that. "Master, you gave me this weapon and also told me to watch you use it twice. I was wondering if you could explain why this is." She was feeling extremely irritated because she didn''t know why she was being helped by the person she wanted to kill the most. If he was trying to win her over, then why did he kill her sister and mentally torture her? There were multiple ways to win her over, and those were not it. Arnin turned his head and looked at Canae. His eyes turned sharp before he stopped walking. Both of the girls also stopped walking and looked at Arnin nervously. "Seems like we are being followed. Slave, now it is time for me to see if you have had any improvements. We are being followed by multiple Essence Manifest cultivators, with some Orb Birth cultivators in the group as well. I want you to kill those Orb Birth cultivators on your own. Even if you are losing I won''t help you. Consider this an opportunity or death sentence." Arnin walked towards the girls and then stood in front of them. Lifting his hand, he knocked out Sinfallel and threw her on the ground. "Your goal is to protect her from dying. Let''s see how well you do. Hehe." This time Canae didn''t show any expression on her face when she saw Arnin knock her sister out. She was glad that Arnin didn''t do anything else and only knocked her out. With a nod of her head and stood behind Arnin, waiting for the people. As a slave, she could not deny Arnin anything. ''Let''s see how well you fare." Although it had barely been a dozen minutes since they left the Cave Temple zone, he needed to see how much Canae comprehended in that time. If she met his expectations he would think about saving her if she was about to fall, but if she didn''t meet up to his standards, then he could only sigh at his own misjudgment. A few minutes went by and Arnin saw about ten people coming. Eight of those were Essence Manifest Cultivators, while two were at Orb Birth - Heaven. Even though he would be facing lots of people, Arnin didn''t really feel much pressure. All of them were at Essence Manifest - Sky with one being at Earth, but he could handle them. "Let''s begin." With a push, he leaped towards the group of people. He pulled out a small dagger from his clothes which he got by killing a person before entering the Cave Temple zone. The group also saw Arnin coming and all them were shocked. "How the hell did he notice us?" One of them yelled this out, but they had no time to spare. They pulled their weapons out and rushed towards Arnin. Canae also joined the battle and started to attack the two Orb Birth cultivators. -------- The group fought with great fervor. Arnin had already killed the Essence Manifest - Earth cultivator by stabbing him in the head. He also slew a couple of the Sky realm ones as well, but the few that were left did not back off. He glanced at Canae who was covered in lacerations and bruises, however, he noticed that she was barely holding her own against the two cultivators. Deciding to ignore her for now, Arnin continued to rampage in the group fight. A dagger in one hand, while a sword he robbed from the Earth realm cultivator in the other, he was like a demon. In the distance, Relshe and Srida watched everything with their mouths agape. They felt a shiver run down their spines as they watched the fight. "This kid, he really deserves his title as the Demonic Joker. He is clearly much stronger than both of us." Relshe felt the scene was a little surreal. He knew that Arnin was extremely strong, but not this much. They began to contemplate on whether they should let him join them or not. He was much stronger than them, which risked them being subjected under his rule. "Bro Relshe, let''s just go and help him. Even though he doesn''t need it, it could make us look good." When Relshe heard these words, he fell under deep thought. After a few breaths, he nodded his head. ''Let''s go then." He then sprinted towards the fight scene with Srida. Arnin saw the two coming and he couldn''t help but snort. He already knew that they were watching from afar, but there was no reason for him to say anything. Instead, he already had a plan being created in his head. "Srida, Relshe, good thing you guys came. Kill these people with me." Arnin spoke out in a rushed manner. The two abruptly stopped when they heard Arnin''s roar for help. Relshe even hesitated to move forward. "What are you guys waiting for. Didn''t you also help me plan out the death of that girl, Yinsi?" When those words came out of his mouth, the group that was sent by Fxi looked at the two friends with red eyes. "So, you two are also a part of this?" Although he put on a strong front, he still felt deep apprehension towards the two. They were already struggling to face Arnin, now that two others came, not any weaker than them, how could they survive. Arnin saw this scene and knew that his speculations were correct. He had seen this group in the spectating area for the Gold arena, and the reason be would enemies was either because of his comment before fighting or because he killed Yinsi. The first reason was unlikely to cause so many to follow him, especially after killing Yinsi, meaning that the death of that girl was the only other reason. The battlefield came to a sudden halt. Arnin stood in his spot as if the previous battle was just a game. While the two friends and the group that came to kill him were still very nervous. "Retreat first. We need to tell Fxi about this so he can think about countermeasures." The leader of the group told his people and then turned around, before sprinting away. Arnin turned his head and saw Canae still struggling to face the two Orb Birth cultivators. He walked towards them, causing their battle to stop. The two cultivators saw their group leaving them behind and couldn''t help but grit their teeth. One of the looked at Arnin and spoke. "If you let us go, we won''t come and bother you again, we will even tell you who made us come here." His way with words wasn''t too bad. Not only did he put himself in the position of a victim, but he also made himself seem like someone who only came to cause small problems, not to kill. "I will let you guys leave¡­" Arnin''s words them both sigh in relief. "...however, you have to kill that girl first before leaving. If you can do that, then both of you can leave." Arnin pointed at the unconscious Sinafellel and smiled. His words caused Canae''s face to lose all of its colors. Her hands shook slightly. Arnin then looked at Canae and said with a helpless tone. "I am giving you a chance, slave. Protect your sister and you will be safe, but if she dies, so will you. But don''t worry, if you die first, then I will make sure your sister has a very good future." With those words said, Arnin found a rock and sat down, watching the play that was about to start. Canae gritted her teeth. She was only at Orb Birth - Hell. She was barely able to face others in the same realm, how could she face two who were stronger than her? The two enemy cultivators looked at the unconscious Sinfallel before looking back at Canae. "You go and kill that girl while I keep this one at bay." The stronger cultivator spoke to his comrade before rushing towards Canae. Seeing them both run to different paths, Canae rushed towards Sinfallel and held her blade tightly. Her eyes were sharp, but her face pale. She knew that this was a chance. If she got through this then there was a high chance that Arnin would not continue to bother them as much, but if she failed then death was the only escape. She took a deep breath before a light flashed in her eyes. The two cultivators rushed towards her from the right and left. She looked at the slightly weak cultivator and gritted her teeth. ''I can only resort to this move, if it works then I will have a chance of surviving, but if it doesn''t¡­" She loosened one of her hands from the weapon and reached down to grab Sinfallel. Pushing off the ground, she sprinted towards the weaker of the two. The cultivator couldn''t help but a little surprised, but then a smile appeared on his face. As they got closer to one another, Canae saw that the cultivator was mostly paying attention to the unconscious Sinfallel and couldn''t help but faintly smile. With a snap of her hand, she threw her sister to the left, causing the person to get distracted for a few seconds. Before he could recover, Canae was already in front of him. *SWISH* She twirled the double bladed staff just like Arnin had done previously and sliced off the head of the cultivator. Arnin watched this and couldn''t help but smile slightly. ''Seems like she is using her head now. Let''s see how she handles the last person.'' Arnin didn''t expect her to be as strong as him, but he did expect her to handle a few people higher than her own cultivation at the very least. He would then slowly train her into someone strong. Seeing his comrade being killed, the cultivator panicked slightly but didn''t stop his movements, rather he ignored Canae and rushed towards Sinfallel. He just needed to kill her and then he would be free. Canae recovered quickly from her kill since it wasn''t her first. She turned her head and saw the cultivator rushing towards Sinfallel and couldn''t help but get angry. "AH!" With a low roar, she threw her weapon towards the cultivator and rushed towards her sister. Seeing the weapon coming towards him with lightning speed, the man quickly fended it off with his own sword, however, this caused him to slow down for a second, allowing Canae to quickly appear in front of her sister. With no weapon in hand, Canae''s battle strength went down significantly, however, her face showed no hesitation, only battle intent. This was her first time battling like this, and although it wasn''t a great situation, she couldn''t help but feel her heart pumping. The cultivator rushed towards Canae and waved his sword towards her head, but with a slight movement to the left, she only got a deep cut, nothing life-threatening. However, the man was in no good position. Canae lifted her hand and aimed towards the person''s neck. With speed faster than even the cultivators, she was able to pierce his throat with her hand, ending him indefinitely. "Good kill." Arnin couldn''t help but comment from the side. He then got off the rock and walked towards Canae. The two cultivators were dead, while the rest of the group escaped. Canae had completed the task he assigned. Canae fell onto her knees as tears fell down her face. She looked at Sinfallel and couldn''t help but fall on her body. "I did it. I was able to protect at least one of you. Just one of you." Her eyes slowly shut as she fell asleep. Arnin didn''t mind this since he knew that she was barely able to keep her mental barrier up. Now that she was able to protect at least one of her sisters alone, she would grow at an exponential rate. This was extremely beneficial to him. Lifting his foot, Arnin tapped Sinfallel''s face a dozen times. She slowly opened her eyes and saw Canae on top of her and then saw Arnin looking down on her. The first thing that came to her mind was the possibility of Canae being dead. "She isn''t dead, just tired. Pick her up and follow me." Arnin then turned around and began to walk towards Relshe and Srida who stood in their spots. "As for the both of you, don''t act like you came to save me with your hearts. You guys are just rats who wait until the end to benefit, so you can forget about me joining you. However, if you guys are willing to pledge to follow my every command until the end of the battlefield, then you can follow me." Relshe looked at Arnin before sighing. "We can''t accept that, so we will take our leave. Hopefully, you won''t die." He then turned around and began to walk away. "Don''t end up in my hands because then you will only be able to hope for death." Arnin turned around as well and walked away. He didn''t need the two friends to follow him since they would not contribute significantly to the group''s strength, plus they might even present hidden threats towards his safety. He approached Sinfallel who carried Canae on her back. "Your sister knew a lot about the three zones, so which one is closest to us now?" Sinfallel thought for a moment before speaking out. "From what I remember, the closest zone should be the Elemental River zone." Arnin nodded his head. "Then our next stop will be the Elemental River zone." He smiled wickedly before moving towards the general area Sinfallel pointed towards. "Let us head out." 93 Dyeing the River Red Arnin, Sinfallel, and the now awake Canae walked for a while before reaching the Elemental River zone. They met some others on the way who Arnin took care of and got some information out of. His name also spread further as the infamous Demonic Joker. Although his actions weren''t as brutal anymore, just seeing a path of beheaded people was enough to frighten anyone. On their way, Arnin made sure to let Canae kill others as well in order to sharpen her slowly and turn her into someone useful to him. In front of the Elemental River zone, Arnin saw that the whole area was an open ground. The river flowed into a forest type area, however, Arnin felt a strong presence from inside which told him that going inside would be a dumb idea. People were sitting either inside or beside the river with their eyes closed. Many of them were covered in all sorts of lights, which was most likely the light emitted from the element that they were absorbing. Arnin slowly walked over to the side of the river with Canae and Sinfallel. "Both of you go and find a place to cultivate. I will fetch you when I am done here." Both of the girls nodded before quickly scampering away. He didn''t care too much for where they went. He would eventually find them if needed, plus they were his slaves, so there was really no way for them run. Inspecting the water with his threads, Arnin''s face couldn''t help but turn red from excitement. ''I can feel it. I can feel my threads getting nourished by this river!'' his eyes turned a darker red, akin to a beast who found food after many weeks. Without any hesitation, he jumped into the river, however, there was no splashing. Rather, the river water only slightly trembling while he himself felt like he had just jumped into a pile of mud. Although it was strange, he didn''t feel like inspecting it right away. He could sense that there was no danger, so he closed his eyes and began to recuperate. For him, the river was a heavenly gift meant just for his healing. An hour went by quickly, but Arnin''s previous excited face couldn''t help but darken slightly. His threads were healing, albeit extremely slowly. It was so slow that the hour he spent could barely heal one-millionth of a single thread. With this type of speed, he knew that it would take him years before he finally recuperated to the max. ] ''I don''t have time to wait a few years. Not only will this close in a few months, but I also can''t continue to sit around for a few years and fall behind in my cultivation. I must find a way to speed this up.'' He looked down at the crystal clear water and placed his hand into it. He tried to lift some of the water, but he just couldn''t. With a frown, he placed both of his hands in and exerted as much force as possible, but nothing happened. He only felt that he was trying to lift a mountain, but he couldn''t. "You can''t lift the water. This whole river is one body." Suddenly a voice came from behind him. Arnin turned his head and saw two people approaching. There were a girl and boy, both around the same age. The girl had long silver hair, while the boy had hair that resembled the night sky. They were a little older than Canae, looking around the same age as Yinsi. "Then how does drink this water?" He looked at the two. They didn''t show any hostility, and he couldn''t either since he was surrounded by hundred cultivators. Any sort of battle would attract the attention of others and he could very well be killed for making trouble. The young girl looked at Arnin with some shock. "Although it is shocking to see someone you''re age here, you should know about this river at least." Seeing that Arnin didn''t really know about it, she shook her head and began to explain. "Well, this river is filled with various types of elements which you probably know already, however, this river is really only one body. The water here won''t splash and even finding a single drop of water is harder than finding a drop of water in a pool of lava. Almost impossible." Arnin listened quietly. ''This river seems to be similar to the Great Light Lake that is on the Heaven Clans land.'' Arnin had gone to the Great Light Lake as a ''guest'' many times. He was also able to ''borrow'' lots of its water. He knew a couple tricks, but he didn''t know if they would work here. Seeing that the girl was still talking, Arnin waved his hands. "That''s all the info I need." Although he was a little rude, he didn''t care. He sat back down and closed his eyes. He just needed to isolate a couple drops of water and then he could probably boost his recuperation significantly. The girl looked at Arnin and couldn''t help but pout slightly. "What a rude little boy." She crossed her arms of her chest and walked away with the boy beside her. "Last time I am helping a kid out of pity." The boy looked at Arnin for a few breaths before his pupil retracted. He turned around and grabbed the girls arm and rushed out of the water. "Ah! What are you doing?!" They landed a few hundred meters away from Arnin and the boy finally released a sigh of relief. His back was covered in cold sweat. He looked up and saw the girl glaring at him. "You need to stay away from that kid, alright?" "Adilis, what the heck! You may be my fiance, but you can''t just do that without warning, plus you can''t tell me what to do. Hmph!" The girl looked away in anger. Adilis shook his head helplessly. Although the girl in front of him was his fiancee, it was more of a family arrangement. He didn''t feel much love towards the girl, but he had to protect her or else he would get in lots of trouble from his family. The girl was weaker than him, sitting at Essence Manifest - Sky, while he was at Essence Manifest - Hell. Not only that, but he was ranked in the top twenty. He was much stronger than his cultivation realm, but he was also a cautious person. "You need to understand that we are not the only people here. You may want to help others, but sometimes you will only get you in trouble." His eyes sharpened as he looked at his fiancee. "Look closely at that boy, tell me. Does he remind you of anyone?" The girl looked at Arnin and then shook her head. "Why does it matter who he is? He is only at Orb Birth - Heaven, while you and I are at Essence Manifest, plus you are in the top twenty. How could you be frightened by a child? Hehe." She giggled as she looked at Adilis with a hint of mockery. "You really don''t know when to stop until someone forces you to, will you? Let me tell you who he is. A red-haired boy bathed in the crimson blood of his victims. With the cultivation of Orb Birth - Hell, he slaughtered someone at Essence Manifest - Sky with ease. Ring a bell?" The more he spoke, the quieter his voice got. The girl''s eyes widened in shock as her body slightly trembled. "D-don''t tell me that he is that¡­" "Demonic Joker, the most infamous cultivator in the battlefield so far." His eyes looked at Arnin with some apprehension. Even though he was in the top twenty, he knew that Arnin was extremely strong, plus he was also extremely ruthless. He wasn''t scared of him, but he preferred not to mess with him either. "Can''t you beat him?" She looked at her fiance with hope. She was also not interested in the marriage, but her family really wanted it so she accepted it reluctantly. She knew that her future husband was extremely strong, but the only flaw she saw in him was that he was a little cautious. He didn''t have the heroic air that most youths did, which made her look down on him. "I should be able to beat him, but I am not too sure." Taking a deep breath, he got up. "He was able to kill Essence Manifest - Sky cultivators when he was only at Orb Birth - Hell, plus others say he didn''t use his full strength. Now that he is in Orb Birth - Heaven, I am not too sure, but it should be my win." Many people in the top one hundred had heard about Arnin. Most said that they could kill him, but the smarter ones withheld their comments. Just the rumors about Arnin''s battle prowess told many that he was not one to be messed with. Other than the top ten, most likely others would find it difficult to beat him, let alone kill him. Adilis was one of the few that felt that Arnin was hiding much more than what meets the eyes. Rumors stated he looked injured and pale, and then the color of his hair was black in the past. Some even stated that they saw him take out a group of ten in less than a second. The more exaggerated the rumors got, the more apprehensive Adilis got. He was confident in himself, but he knew that Arnin would be a tough opponent, especially since he had broken through into a new realm. "Maybe only those real geniuses could handle this monster." Although he himself was a genius, he knew that he was nothing but an ant compared to the top ten, even the top fifteen were much much stronger than him. With a deep sigh, he grabbed the girls arm and walked away. "H-hey!" ------------------------------------- Since he was in deep cultivation, he didn''t know about the couple who were talking about him, but he wouldn''t care too much about it either. He was looking at his orb and damaged threads while he about how to heal them and isolate the water. ''If only I could find a way to let the water touch my orb directly.'' He couldn''t help but sigh. He tried to open his mouth underwater and see if he could forcefully swallow some of the water, but that wasn''t helping him. If he could allow the orb to directly touch the water, that could solve most of his problems. He would be able to heal his body with lightning speed. Suddenly, a thought came to his mind. ''What if I forcefully tear open my chest? Wait, that is too damaging and there is a risk of this water doing more harm to me if I take such a path.'' He couldn''t help but shake his head. He would have torn open his chest, but there would be a high chance of dying just by the loss of damage or too much damage to his body. There was a method that he used too ''borrow'' the water from the Great Light Lake in the past, but that method was too difficult to use, plus his strength was much high then it was now. Back then, with his control over space is extremely high, he was able to isolate a large amount and transfer it through space tears and black holes, but he couldn''t do that currently. He began to think deeper and see if there was another solution, suddenly another thought struck him. ''That''s it! I can use that to heal myself.'' His face began to show excitement once more. Back then, he created a seed right before being injured. This seed was what he called the Seed of Rebirth. Not only did it cause him major damage, but it also saved his life too. If he could somehow communicate with his Seed of Rebirth and allow it to absorb the water from the Elemental River, then there was an extremely high chance that he could be healed completely. His Seed of Rebirth had made many movements after him being injured, such as awakening the Runic Eye and even strengthening his body to a new level, but after that, it never reappeared. Using his internal vision, he quickly located the dormant Seed of Rebirth. He tried to ignite its power, but it wouldn''t move. Then another thought came to him. ''Let me try and direct my threads towards the Seed of Rebirth and pour in some of the essences from the river into it.'' Arnin began to slowly absorb the pure and rich essence inside the river, pouring it directly into the Seed of Rebirth. A small light flashed from the Seed of Rebirth. ''It''s working!'' Absorbing the river essence as fast possible, he poured everything into the Seed of Rebirth. The light got more and more prominent. Suddenly, a white and black light escaped from the Seed of Rebirth. Seeing this, Arnin couldn''t help but feel excited. Both of the lights began to surround his body and his orb. Outside, a white and black beam escaped his body. "What''s that?" "What the hell is going over there? What''s with that kid?" "Is he breaking through? No way, that is not what a breakthrough looks like." People looked over in shock, only to see Arnin covered in black and white light. His face was getting paler by the second, however, his aura was slowly rising. Inside his body, Arnin''s threads were healing at a rapid pace. The healing could be seen with the naked eye. *BLUERG* Suddenly, a large amount of blood gushed out of Arnin''s mouth. His body began to slowly thin. The white light began to surround his bloodstream and the light turned green. Rather, it was the same situation as last time he went through Samsara. The white light was inserting the green Vitality into his orb and threads. ''This is bad, the white light is taking vitality through my bloodstream. If this goes on, then I will really die.'' Arnin panicked as he opened his eyes. The process didn''t stop even though he stopped cultivating, rather it sped up and absorption was going faster. "BLOOD! I NEED BLOOD" He howled loudly as his thin figure rushed towards the closest person. With his mouth open, he bet the person neck, separating the neck and body. The blood essence from the body was absorbed in an instant leaving only a red patch in the river. "MORE, THIS IS NOT ENOUGH!" With his body absorbing his blood essence quickly, he needed to fill his body with more blood essence in order to maintain an equilibrium. He jumped at the next person and devoured his blood essence. And then the next. Then the next. He was on a complete rampage. "AH! RUN THIS GUY IS GOING CRAZY!" "DON''T RUN, KILL HIM!" "EVERYONE GET AWAY FROM HIM, HE IS TOO STRONG!" Havoc appeared in the river as Arnin ran around killing anyone in sight. People were either running or attacking Arnin. Some were even in the top hundred, but none could kill Arnin. Most couldn''t even get close to him before being killed. "Don''t attack him, he is not thinking straight right now. Just get away from him and you should be safe." Adilis and some other people in the top fifty appeared and began to direct the people away from Arnin. Currently, the aura he released was too strong for even them. "We will take care of him when he settles down, right now he is probably releasing every strength in his body." One of them spoke silently to Adilis. The latter nodded his head heavily as he heard the screams of others and saw the Elemental River slowly become red. Even though blood wasn''t falling into the Elemental River like it would in a normal river, but then the blood still floated on top, creating the facade of a red river. 94 Frightening Demon Lord Slaughter continued in the river as many tried to escape. Arnin''s aura kept rising, getting higher and higher, however, his body was still very thin. Canae and Sinfallel were watching from afar with fearful expressions. "What is going on sis? Although this person is a beast and ruthless, he isn''t stupid enough to make everyone his enemy, right?" Sinfallel looked at Canae with a fearful expression on her face. Canae took a deep breath before shaking her head. "Although he isn''t scared from making enemies with everyone, he probably wouldn''t do it without a good reason. Look at him closely, he seems to be in a berserk state, something that usually happens during a failure in cultivation." Although she said this, even she was reluctant to believe that Arnin failed in cultivation. It wasn''t because she felt close to Arnin now, rather to her Arnin was just too monstrous to fail in his cultivation. Plus, she could see that his aura was rising and that he seemed conscious. ''Maybe the thinning of his body is the cause of this?'' She was able to clearly see that Arnin''s body was thinning rapidly. She could even see some of his bones, which was not a pleasant sight. ---------------------------- Arnin continued his slaughter. He didn''t stop and kept killing anyone in sight. He didn''t care how many people would want to kill him later on. Only if he lived would that matter. ''More, More, MORE!'' He was unable to stop killing. Suddenly, in front of him a new person that was much stronger than the others appeared. An Essence Manifest - Hell cultivator. He wouldn''t be scared even if a person at Elemental Formation realm came and attacked him, let alone someone at Essence Manifest - Hell. He bared his teeth and jumped towards the Essence Manifest - Hell cultivator. The latter snorted and pulled out a weapon. With a slash, a small cut appeared on Arnin''s arm, however, he didn''t stop there. He aimed for Arnin''s legs next, but what shocked him was that Arnin vanished from his vision. He looked around and then smelt some stench from behind him. Turning around, he saw Arnin looking straight at him with a frown. Just as he was about to jump back, Arnin reached for the latter''s blade and took for his own. He then slashed the cultivators head, beheading him. This time, the blood wasn''t instantly absorbed, and his body was even slightly rosy. ''I need to find stronger prey. I can''t keep killing these ants.'' Arnin then rushed out the river, slashing anyone in sight. He had only killed a single Essence Manifest - Hell cultivator, but he knew that he would need more. Looking around, he found a group of people exuding a strong aura gathering together. They looked at him with apprehension yet sharpness. Adilis was also a part of this group. A wicked smile appeared on this face as he stared directly at them. "I FOUND YOU!" With a low roar, he sprinted towards the group. The group was startled and some of them even took a few steps back. Adilis saw this and he grabbed the hand of his fiancee. "Go and hide, I will try and hold him back for now." Adilis wasn''t one to hide, he was just cautious. But if someone came knocking at his door, he would gladly host them. The girl nodded her head as she looked at Arnin in horror. ''So strong. So frightening.'' She looked at Adilis once more, who gently smiled her way. After he turned his head and looked at incoming Arnin, a sharpness that only belonged to the top twenty exuded from him. With a push from his feet, he flew towards Arnin with a saber in hand. ------------------------------------- Far away from Arnin slaughter grounds, a group of people watched everything with cold eyes. "So that is the infamous Demonic Joker? He doesn''t seem like much." A young man spoke coldly as he looked at Arnin. He looked around the same age as Canae but the aura that he exuded was that of Essence Manifest - Sky, much stronger than even Adilis''. A girl stood beside him and also smiled. "He is definitely strong, but can he match up to any of us? That''s probably giving him too much credit." The girl also looked around the same age as the boy, but her aura was much stronger than his. Essence Manifest - Hell! This group consisted of many young people who released auras far beyond their ages. They were none other some of the top ten cultivators. The real geniuses on the battlefield. "Whatever, I am going to go back and cultivate, I can feel that I am about to breakthrough soon." After saying those words, he leaped back into the Elemental River and closed his eyes, not paying attention to anyone else. The girl shook her head before also leaping into the river and closing her eyes, followed by the rest of the group. -------------------------------------- Arnin didn''t know that he was noticed by people in the top ten and how strong they were. He was too buys facing off with Adilis and a few other Essence Manifest - Hell cultivators. His whole body was covered in small cuts. He was too worried about his internal body that he was only able to half pay attention to his opponents or else they would have died multiple times over. Adilis looked at Arnin in shock as he breathed heavily. There were a few claw-like marks on his arms and chest. His clothes were ripped to shreds, showing his refined body on the inside. His fiancee, Clareena, watched from afar. Her face was sweating as she watched the fight. She was pregnant with worry, especially seeing how horrible her fiance looked. "You are extremely strong, enough to even be in the top twenty, but is this your true strength? Are you going to depend on such a life-threatening method to fight us?" Adilis looked at Arnin and spoke loudly. He was still under the assumption that Arnin was using other means to fight him, little did he know that he hadn''t even seen Arnin''s full strength. Ignoring the Adilis'' speech, Arnin launched another sequence of attacks. This time, he avoided the annoying Adilis and aimed for the weaker people. "AH!" One of them was slain in an instant. Arnin quickly absorbed his blood and his body began to slowly return to its normal state, however it wasn''t there yet. He was in extreme pain, but excitement couldn''t be hidden from his eyes. Not only was his physical body being baptized, but his orb was also growing larger as his threads were making a swift recovery. ''Just a bit more and I should be good.'' Arnin continued to slaughter the people as he avoided Adilis. The latter wasn''t just strong, but he was also extremely resilient. There was a reason he was in the top twenty. He was in no way weak. A few more were killed and suddenly, a black beam shot out of Arnin''s body, slowly turning grey. Arnin stopped what he was doing and ran back into the Elemental River. He began to absorb the essence as quickly as possible. The black beam became darker and darker, while a white smoke escaped Arnin''s body. It slowly sunk into the river. Vitality began to appear inside his body, however, it wasn''t the same vitality that could strengthen his physical body, rather it was primarily for his threads. "AOOO!" A howl escaped his mouth as his mouth as a bursting pain came from his threads. It felt as though they were about to explode under the intense green light. Just as he was about to pass out, Arnin saw the black beam surround the threads as well, as a grey light escaped from the threads and began to eject through the black light. The process was long, however, Arnin was getting more and more excited as he watched everything. He was healing. His body was finally going to heal. ----------------------------- Unlike the excitement that Arnin faced, everyone outside watched him in horror. Even Adilis watched Arnin with trembling hands. "W-what the hell is that?" In front of everyone''s eyes. The black beam that was being shot from Arnin''s body took the form of a three-horned demon. Its eyes contained nothing but mockery for the world, while the power it exuded was stronger than the heavens themselves. The white smoke turned into a white saber that the demon held onto. As if angered by the heaviness of the Elemental River, the Demon began to slice it apart. Causing drops to fall onto the patches of ground. Waves formed around Arnin as the Demon caused havoc. -------------------- Inside the cave where the elders and the headmistress were gathered, they watched the scene in the Elemental River with sharp eyes. The headmistress released a deep breath as she spoke heavily. "This aura, it seems to be unimaginably strong. I don''t know if it is from the boy or not, but we have to investigate this further." She then turned her head and looked a fae who was also watching the scene with shock. "Are you hiding anything else from us?" Fae was lost for a second before she released a sigh. "I wasn''t hiding anything since it is also something that I can''t truly understand myself. On our way¡­" Fae began to recall what happened on their way to Thorn Academy and how she saw a similar sight. The headmistress''s face hardened and her eyebrows knit into a frown. "It seems that this boy either has a special physique or some other secret. We should try and figure it out before he causes future problems for u--" "No!" The headmistress looked at Fae weirdly. "What I mean is that, isn''t this similar to what happened to me in the past? Although it wasn''t as crazy as this, the effects were somewhat similar. I pink mist surrounded me and took the form of a weird creature. It might just be he is awakening a physique similar to mine." Fae, for some unknown reason, did not want Arnin to be harmed by anyone. She herself felt some fear towards him from the bottom of the heart, but still, she couldn''t bear to see him harmed by others. It was a weird feeling, but it came from the depths of her soul. Plus, she was not lying about herself experiencing something similar. Her experience wasn''t as chaotic or frightening as Arnin''s but it wasn''t any less terrifying. Back then, she was covered by a pink mist that forced others to sleep, no matter their strengths. Then they would turn into bones as their energy was transferred over to her. It was so terrifying that everyone at a three-kilometer radius was put to sleep and then silently absorbed. The headmistress frowned before nodding her head. "It seems like you are right, it resembles your physique awakening quite a bit. Alright, when he is done, I will have you watch over him and make sure he doesn''t cause any problems. Remember, we want him to be useful to us, not harmful. I will leave that to you. As for Elder Kocyte, you can take him as a disciple as well, but make sure to bring him to our side voluntarily, I don''t want any mishaps." Others didn''t know the significance of Arnin''s terrifying event, ut the headmistress knew it all too well. She had seen the event that Fae had displayed and how her power skyrocketed right after. She was far from their cultivation realms, but her power was very close to theirs. If she could have another person like Fae under her then that would be a terrifying force. Something that could allow her to trample other schools easily. Although the event that Arni caused was terrifying, it had a very large difference from the one that Fae had. Fae was awakening her physique that even Arnin wanted to possess, however, the latter was just healing himself and getting rid of any residual Demon Lord powers that were hidden in his threads. -------------------------------- Back at the Elemental River, Arnin continued to cause havoc. It even got to the point where the top ten cultivators who were cultivating nearby had to temporarily evacuate away from Arnin. They were seething with anger, but they couldn''t do anything about it since the power that Arnin was erupting with was just too strong. Adilis had also moved much further back and was laying beside a rock while Clareena tended to his wounds with swollen eyes. "It''s alright Clareena, I am not going to die." He smiled at his fiancee who only glared back at him. "Stop talking, he could have killed you. If you died, then I would have been a widow, do you know that?" Clareena berated Adilis with anger, however, the latter actually felt some happiness. Even though he did not love Clareena yet, it was only a matter of time. Plus, no one would like to see their wives looking at them with mockery at all times. He turned and looked at the chaotic area where Arnin was and he couldn''t help but feel some gratitude. ''Although you almost killed me and are frightening as hell, at least you allowed me to get a little closer to my fiancee, Clareena.'' Canae and Sinfallel looked at the shadowy Demon Lord that appeared around Arnin. They felt more and more fear towards him, while their hope of being saved was completely extinguished. Who could save them from such a monster? "Maybe this is for the best. Although he had killed out sister unfairly and my hatred for him will never lessen, it was our fault for even attacking him. Maybe this is our retribution, and also an opportunity to become much stronger." Canae spoke silently as she watched the river around Arnin split over and over again. -------------------------------- Arnin''s body was constantly being fed with great amounts of essence. Although the slashing of the river may seem like just an act of rage, it was anything but that. Using the residual energy of the Demon Lord powers, Arnin wanted to absorb the essence in the Elemental River by cutting it with the white saber which had the special property of absorbing the essence of any and every kind. Inside his body, things were going very smoothly. His threads were almost completely healed and all of his elemental seeds and elemental marks recovered. He needed just a little more time and he would be completely healed. He would also be at the peak of Orb Birth - Heaven. 95 Entering Essence Manifes Slowly, Arnin''s body began to heal. Even the Demon Lord show began to dissipate into nothingness. He couldn''t help but sigh a little at the sight of his body. His blood reverted back to being two different colors, while his two seeds were completely healed. Not only that, but his insights on his blood component began to rush to his brain. ''Seems like I will be able to break through into Essence Manifest very soon. If I am able to create an elemental seed for my blood component, then I should easily enter Essence Manifest - Earth.'' Arnin thought in his head as he felt that his aura was much stronger than before. He was currently at pinnacle Orb Birth - Heaven. The Elemental River was of no use to him anymore since he just needed to create his elemental seed for blood, which required lots of blood essence, something the Elemental River lacked. ''What place would lots of blood essence?'' Arnin thought about this and then remembered about the last zone in the battlefield. It was some sort of body tempering zone where others would have to go through extreme torture in order to improve their bodies. Arnin walked towards Canae and Sinfallel who looked at him with different gazes. "Take me to the last zone. I have something to do there." Canae immediately nodded her head and led the way. Seeing how obedient Canae was, Arnin was a little startled. ''Seems like this slave is slowly turning into an obedient commander.'' he smiled slightly as he walked behind them. As they made their way, Arnin saw two people blocking his path. He was familiar with the two and couldn''t help but raise an eyebrow as to their sudden appearance. "What do you two want?" The two in front of him were none other than the rank twenty Adilis and his fiancee Clareena. Adilis walked forward and slightly bowed towards Arnin. "I don''t know if you remember me, but when you were in your berserk state, I was someone who faced your head on." Arnin, of course, remembered this annoying ant. "I will ask you again, what do you two want?" Arnin was in no mood to talk with others since he knew that breaking through into Essence Manifest was only a step away. Adilis was startled and then smiled bitterly. "I just wanted to thank you for a great battle and hoped that in the future we could have a fair fight." With that, he turned around and disappeared. Arnin couldn''t help but snort coldly. "Next time, I will make sure your girlfriend is humiliated thoroughly if I see you come face me." He stated this coldly as he followed Canae. ------------------------- They soon made it the Body Torture Pillar zone. Unlike the name it was given, one could see hundreds of pillars. There wasn''t a single pillar at all. The second he saw the pillars, Arnin smelt a strong stench of blood and could feel a vast amount of blood essence. ''This is it. I just need to cultivate here for a while and I should be able to break through.'' "Both of you follow me. I need to go and cultivate in this area and I need you to watch out for any trouble." he waved his hand and headed deep into the zone. "AH!" "This is HELL! WHY THE HELL AM I DOING THIS!" "Screw this! My girl can just enjoy my flabby body!" People were screaming loudly as he made his way through. The pillar was covered in lots of blood and the torture methods were extremely gruesome. Sometimes, people, would e burnt by flames that wouldn''t take their life but would cause them immense pain and refine their bodies. Other times, they would be poisoned causing their skin to corrode and then regrow. There were even pillars that would continuously stab the cultivators, making them feel the pain of slowly being pierced by blades. Although the method was painful, it was extremely beneficial towards the bodies cultivation. It would increase resistance towards pain and bodies sturdiness. Not only that, but the cultivators would also have their mental states baptized, making them more clear-headed during dangerous situations. Overall, the benefits far exceeded the determinants. Arnin didn''t really need the mental state baptism and the body strengthening since he was already at the peak of them. It wouldn''t benefit him too much. His body was continuously refined by extremely pure essence since he was a baby, plus his Demon Lord powers had also helped him. Even the Seed of Rebirth increased his physical bodies strength by multiple folds, what could torture do to him now? As he made his way towards the center of the zone, he felt that blood essence thickening. He hurriedly closed his eyes and began to slowly debate on the mark the blood element should take. As he finally reached the center of the zone, he quickly sat down and took out a piece of paper from his interspatial bag. He began to continuously draw marks, trying to find the perfect and most efficient way to create the elemental seed for blood. --------------------- Inside the cave where the elders gathered, they all watched the different students undergoing the exam, however, they would always glimpse at the screen that showed Arnin. "What is he doing now?" An elder couldn''t help but ask. Fae looked at elder and smiled. "This is something I secretly witnessed once. Did you know that this child is a really talented Mark Master, already at the Pink level?" When she said those words, others looked at her with shock. "That may be great, but what does that have to do with anything?" The confused elder asked once more. "It has everything to do with this." The elder just stared at her. "Well, he uses these marks in order to create the elemental mark. It is quite ingenious if you ask me." Everyone in the room, including the Headmistress, sucked in a breath of cold air. "Elemental mark? Aren''t only Essence Manifest cultivators able to create those? At most, Orb Birth cultivators should be able to sense and absorb the elements, but creating elemental marks?" The elder spoke with an astonished voice. "If you can''t do it, does that automatically mean it''s impossible to accomplish?" Fae looked at the elder with scorn. "Arnin is a genius and has high talent in many fields. He was able to figure this method out himself without anyone''s help, if not for his talent, why would I be so adamant on protecting him and bringing him here?" "Haha! My disciple is indeed a monster in human form. Haha, you have done a great deed Fae, you have done a great deed." At this moment, Elder Kocyte laughed loudly as he looked at Arnin''s screen. "Hmph, just make sure you train him well or else there will be consequences." Fae couldn''t help but feel unpleased at Kocytes casual comments. The latter completely ignored Fae and happily looked at the screen that Arnin was in. "Does this mean he is creating a new elemental mark?" The Headmistress looked at Fae questionably. The latter nodded her head. "He should be creating the mark for blood because of the dense blood essence in the Body Torture Pillar zone. If not that, then he could have just stayed in the Elemental River zone." When she said those words, Fae looked at Kocyte subconsciously. "You are really lucky after he creates this mark he should have much higher control over blood than before." Elder Kocyte only nodded his head, not replying to her. This caused Fae to snort coldly before looking back at Arnin''s screen. ''You really do have such high talent. Hopefully, you can grow up quick enough to accomplish something in this life.'' ----------------------------------- Arnin was able to create five different mark patterns. All of them exuded a sense of blood, but each was slightly different. The one that Arnin was debating between was the one that exuded a very chaotic feeling as if the blood would rampage everywhere and absorb everything in sight. The other option that he found was a type of pattern that gave a very hidden and quite feeling. It was as though it wasn''t there at all. ''Both of them have their strong points. The chaotic one is probably really good for direct attacks, but I have the Seed of Neutrality for that. The other one is something that I don''t have and it might be much more terrifying than the chaotic one.'' After thinking for a few more moments he decided to take the silent yet deadly one. Not only could he use it for sneak attacks, but he could also use it for direct battles, silently poisoning his enemies blood or even manipulating them. It was terrifying to fight against something that is hard to detect. Closing his eyes, Arnin released his white saber all over his body and began to rapidly absorb the blood essence in the air. Slowly, the Seed of Blood began to form. A large whirlpool formed around him as red mist surrounded him. Canae who was the closest to him turned her head and her mouth went agape for a second before she shook her head. ''What''s the point in being shocked anymore?'' She had seen too much around Arnin that it wasn''t shocking to her anymore. This acceptance could be considered as a type of relief for her. Suddenly, she felt as if a dam broke in her brain and water gushed out. She felt faint as she quickly sat down and began to cultivate. Essence also gathered around, being quickly absorbed. Sinfallel saw this and felt shocked. "Sister is breaking into Orb Birth - Heaven? This is great." She felt joyful at the scene but then her eyes became misty. ''If little sis was here to see this. She would have been so excited.'' She shook her head and just watched the surroundings to make sure no one came and disturbed them After a few hours went by, Canae snapped her eyes open as a smile appeared on his pretty face. She lifted her hands and stared at them happily. "I broke through. Hehe." With the previous stress of life and death gone, she was finally able to break through. Although sadness over her sister''s death was still there and hatred for Arnin lingered in her heart, she wasn''t as upset as before. Rather, she knew that the fault was there and that the only way to move forward just to accept it. Because of this way of thinking, she was able to break through in both cultivation and her state of mind. Her head also looked at the sky and a small tear fell down. "Little sis, although I am unable to avenge your death, I will make sure to live well in your stead and slowly climb the top. Who knows, maybe one day I will be able to bring you back." When she thought of bringing her sister back, a new fire burned in her heart. A goal for her to achieve finally appeared in her mind, giving her a stronger reason to live. She subconsciously glanced at Arnin and her hands tightened. ''If I can only become stronger by following you and you are the only hope I have to bring my sister back, then let me follow you until I can achieve my goal.'' ----------------------------- Arnin knew nothing of what change Canae went through, and if he did, he would have felt surprised yet happy. He had been thinking of ways to make Canae his commander, and now it happened without him even knowing. Right now, Arnin was very close in finishing his Seed of Blood. A few more marks and he would have a completely Seed of Blood that would be under his full control. Another few hours went by and Arnin finally finished the creation of the Seed of Blood. Although it revolved around his orb the like the rest of his elemental seeds, some peculiar about this Seed of Blood was that there were red threads coming out from it that directly inserted his bloodstream. Arnin couldn''t help but look at his bloodstream to see if there were any major changes, and when he did even he felt shocked. Previously, his bloodstream contained two different blood colors, red and black. The red was his human body blood and his black blood was most likely related to his Demon Lord powers. Before, they were separate from one another, but the sight in front of him showed anything but that. With the support of the Seed of Blood, the two different blood began to merge, creating a type of purple blood. It was extremely peculiar, but Arnin didn''t know what to say about it. His vision showed that the blood was now purple, but the peculiar thing about it was that others would only see it as red. It was similar to his Purple Runic Eyes where no one would be able to see the runes in his eyes, only the purple pupil. ''Who knows how strong I am now, but it doesn''t matter. With my Seed of Blood formed, I should be able to break through into Essence Manifest - Earth quite easily. My power should skyrocket from there. Maybe sneaking into Lepidoptera Academy wouldn''t be impossible.'' After collecting his thoughts, Arnin began to slowly absorb worldly essence. He refined it slowly and began to break through into Essence Manifest. Unlike breaking from a small realm into another small realm, a breakthrough into a new large realm had a completely different concept. Not only would he have to absorb a large amount of essence and purify it, but he also needed to expand his orb and orb threads. The process would somewhat painful, but it was a must. With a deep breath, Arnin began to fill his orb and orb threads with significant amounts of essence. Even when they were filled to the brim, he didn''t stop. He kept filling them up and forced them to expand. *BLEURGE* He barfed out a mouthful of blood, but he kept going. Although the method he was using was extremely forceful and dangerous, it was alright to him. It had the same effect as others, plus he knew that his method would be very damaging, which was why had the Seed of Rebirth continuously work to heal his body and threads. Even the Seeds of Blood and Neutrality were in motion. In order to thicken his threads and orb, he used the flames from the Seed of Neutrality to burn them, and the Seed of Rebirth would heal them. When he burned his blood, the Seed of Blood would replenish it. The cycle went on for another two hours. He spat out lots of blood and his body would ignite in flames at some times, while a green light would cover him in the next. *BOOM* A large sound went off in his head as he saw his orb become two times larger, and his threads increase in both numbers and size. Even his elemental seeds and marks (time and space elements are still in mark form) increase in size as they revolved around his black orb with high speed. "WAOOO!" Standing up, Arnin couldn''t help but howl into the sky. He finally broke through into Essence Manifest - Earth. 96 The Extremes of Life and Death He had finally broken through into Essence Manifest - Earth. Although he was progressing extremely fast, to someone like Arnin who still needed to reach his previous life''s strength, he wasn''t even close to his goal. If anything, this was just his first step towards his previous state. Arnin got up from his spot and when he looked at his current state, he was pleased. His skin seemed much more smooth, and even his hair reverted back to its usual ashen greyish black color. All the blood stains on his body were gone and his height had also slightly increased. Although he still looked like a child, he now looked more like a seven-year-old. His purple eyes roamed the area, quickly locating Canae and Sinfallel. When he looked at Canae, he noticed that her aura was also a little stronger and there was more vitality on her face. She seemed a little different from before, less depressed and more spirited. ''Seems like I am not the only one who made a breakthrough. This is good though; the more power she gains, the better it is for me.'' Arnin walked passed the two girls as he headed towards the exit of the Body Torture Pillar zone. This zone wasn''t much use to him, especially after his breakthrough. Plus, he needed to find some people to test out his strength. Even though he felt that he was significantly stronger than before, possibly unmatched in the Essence Manifest realm, there were still people who might be similar in strength to him. He had high hopes that the people in the top ten could put up a fight and make him feel some pressure. He also hoped to meet the few that had already reached Elemental Formation and see how he would fare against them. Soon, he left the last of the three zones. He had about two and a half months left until the end of the battlefield. Although he wanted it to end quicker, he knew that there was no way to make that happen unless of course, he killed every contestant until there were only a hundred left, but that was unlikely. Since he had lots of time, he wanted to sharpen his skills, learn more about Essence Manifest, and try to earn a spot in the top ten or twenty. Although he wanted to play it lowkey, now that he broke through, he was willing to go against much stronger opponents. Plus, he was keen on fighting people from the top ten. "Canae, where would most of the top ten gather?" Although he felt that one of the three zones would be the most likely locations, he was hoping to find another place where they would gather in the end. If there was such a place, he wanted to head over as soon as possible and wait for the strongest people to show up. Hearing Arnin''s question, Canae quickly spoke up. "The Elemental River zone is the most likely place. When we went there last time, there might have been a few top ten cultivators around, however, we probably just didn''t notice them." Arnin fell into deep thought. He also felt that the Elemental River zone was like a beacon for strong cultivators, however, he never met anyone there that was strong enough to contend against. There was a chance of him missing them or them not being there yet, but he didn''t want to go there just for such a chance. Suddenly, an idea came to him. "Does everyone know the general area for the center of this battlefield? Was it spoken about in the introduction before you guys entered?" Canae shook her head. "There wasn''t any mention of the center since it was just a barren place like the rest of the battlefield. However, most people should know how to get to the center of the battlefield or at least the general area." Arnin nodded his head as he began to ponder a little further. "Was there a gate you guys entered from?" This time Canae nodded her head. "There wasn''t a gate, but there was a large area where everyone first gathered before separating." Arnin''s eyes glinted with a cold light. "Lead me to that place, and spread the word that I, the Demonic Joker, am looking to fight the trash known as the top ten. If they don''t come, then they should wait for me to find and slaughter them." Arnin''s words were loud enough that anyone in the vicinity could hear him. This was his goal. He wanted people to know about his intentions and spread the word for him. Of course, Canae and Sinfallel would also go and help circulate the news. ''Why should I go look for others when they can come and find me instead?'' Arnin smirked slightly as he waved his hand. "Go and spread the word. Make sure it spreads quick. Everyone should know that the top ten will be slaughtered by me and that I will be waiting for them at the place where everyone first arrived. All challenged are welcomed." Canae nodded her head, and so did Sinfallel. "I will lead you to the location first. Sis, you go and propagate the rumor and meet us at the location later on. Make sure to be quick and to not mess with anyone beyond your level." Canae warned her sister before taking the lead with Arnin following behind her. -------------------------------------- The gossip spread like wildfire. With Sinfallel shouting Arnin''s words and even adding in her own exaggeration, people began to talk. "Did you hear? The Demonic Joker is challenging the top ten!" "He even called them trash and claimed the top twenty are beneath him. The Demonic Joker even said that he doesn''t want to waste his time with them!" "He is courting death for saying such things. Who does he think he is? Just because is a little famous and is able to kill a few people above his realm, he thinks he can fight the top ten?" Back at the Cave Temple zone, Fxi had a smirk on his face when he heard the report from his people. "Seems like he has guts. First, he slaughters my woman, then my people, and now he''s calling me trash along with the others." Although Fxi was not ''officially'' in the top ten, or even the top twenty, he was not any weaker than the two groups. He was a part of the group who hid their strength from the rest, revealing his power at the most unexpected times. Fxi sneered before getting up from his spot, exiting the Cave Temple zone. "Let''s go and find this so-called Demonic Joker and see what he is truly made of. " With a wave of his sleeve, he and his people vanished from their spot. ----------------------------- In another location, a young girl who looked around the same age as Yinsi, possibly even younger, had a deep frown plastered on her face as she heard the report from a kneeling girl. "That trash Joker or whatever thinks he can talk so haughtily here? Just where does he get his courage! Take me to where he is. Let me show him how to spell death slowly!" Her anger erupted with her extremely powerful aura, Essence Manifest - Heaven. In comparison to her age, such strength was considered amazing, almost monstrous. ------------------------------------ "Take me to this brat who doesn''t know what fear is!" "This bastard! Where is he?!" "This little kid has been making a commotion ever since he became famous. Come, let us go and watch the show together." The voices of various people came from all over the battlefield. Some found the situation laughable, others were angered, while a few even saw this as an interesting event to spectate. Soon, people began to rush towards where Arnin was. A large fight was about to commence far before the final stages of the battlefield exam. --------------------------- Back where Fae and the elders were watching, some of them couldn''t help but laugh at the scene. "Haha! That''s my disciple for you! He isn''t scared of anyone, not even the shitty top ten! Everyone will drown under his blood, simply becoming a source of cultivation for him. Haha!" Elder Kocyte was one of the few who kept praising Arnin''s courage. Although he didn''t really think that Arnin would be able to slaughter all of his opponents, he was happy to see his future disciple now being a wimp. Plus, there were a few hidden dragons in the top hundred who also held fearsome power. They didn''t lack any talent, only a stage to shine. Now that they were given a stage by Arnin, a bloodbath was inevitable. Fae also saw this and couldn''t help but shake her head. "He may be strong, but he isn''t able to handle the top ten just yet. Maybe he could fight the few in the last positions of the top ten, but the ones in the forefront are just too strong for him right now." She felt that although Arnin''s courage was commendable, he was being too rash. Indeed, his strength was monstrously high and he could fight people much stronger than him, but couldn''t the people in the top ten also do this? Just like Arnin, they could fight a few small realms higher than them and a couple could even fight cultivators from a large realm above themselves. It was unwise to underestimate them because their skills weren''t completely displayed yet. Underestimating them was a deadly mistake because it could lead to one''s imminent death. --------------------------- If Arnin knew about the different occurrences around the battlefield, he wouldn''t find it too worrying, rather it would be pleasing. His goal was to find some people who could make him fight to his highest potential, not people who could easily be slaughtered like lambs. If he couldn''t get a good fight, then how could he sharpen his skills? How would he be able to test his limits after breaking through into Essence Manifest - Earth. Currently, he was sitting on top of a large rock with his eyes closed. After breaking through, he had yet to properly consolidate his realm. Plus, he wanted to see if the Seed of Rebirth had any other property other then healing his body. If he could use the Seed of Rebirth in combat, then his strength would increase by multiple folds. ''I was able to make myself go through Samsara, but life and death are much more than just that.'' He began to ponder more about his elemental seed and their uses. ''Where life exists, there will also be death. Right when something is born, it is already filled with the essence of death, slowly accumulating more death essence and moving further away from life. But, where there is no life, death also ceases to exist.'' Arnin pondered deeply about the idea of life and death. These two elements were polar opposites, yet could not exist without the other. If there was death, there had to be life, and the opposite was true as well. It was similar to light and darkness, where one could not be without the other. ''That''s it, just like how darkness is just another form of light, light is another form of darkness. The concepts of life and death are similar. Life is death, while death is life. It''s the reason why the curse I afflicted on that witch in the past was so effective. She used to grant others life, however after being cursed, she could only steal life, granting others death.'' Soon, his whole body was shrouded by a black and white light. Wherever the black light went, things began to decay and lose vitality, however where the white light passed, things were rejuvenated with life and energy. While there were areas of life and areas of death, there were also areas where life and death met at an equilibrium. In this place, the plants and even the rocks shifted between maturation and rejuvenation until they eventually fell apart, not being able to bear the pressure of both extremities. Seeing this small event, Arnin''s face was filled with an evil smile. "Seems like the Seed of Rebirth can also be called the Seed of Extremities. It causes everything it touches to face the extremities of life and death, forcing it to succumb under its power and disappear from sight." With a nod of approval, Arnin got up from the rock and began to practice his Seed of Rebirth/Extremities. He began to release life and death energy everywhere around him, causing a change in the elemental distribution. The life essence could either give or steal life, increasing Arnin''s life essence and rejuvenating his body while the death essence would either extract death energy from the surroundings or insert itself wherever it passed, causing the surroundings to slowly die. The two worked in sync, with life essence being able to cause death and vice versa. The more he used these powers, the more excited Arnin got. Although he had used the essence of death as a Demon Lord, he used it more forcefully, ridding anything of life instantly, but currently, he was using it in a more creative and deadly manner. Not only could he control the amount of life essence something had, but he could also manipulate the amount of death essence it contained. He could sap something of its life instantly. An hour passed, and Arnin couldn''t help but vomit a mouthful of blood. His face was extremely pale, almost sickly. Dense death energy surrounded him, but at the same time, dense life energy enveloped him for protection. This double layer was, however, causing more damage to his body. He was yet to completely adapt to the changes of life and death with his current body. It was just too strenuous for him. He quickly sat down and began to circulate is essence using the Demon Cultivation Manual, slowly ridding himself of the extreme death and life essences harming him. After a period of recuperation, he opened his eyes, revealing his cold purple eyes. *SWISSHH* The sound of the wind appeared from all around. A smirk appeared on his face as he quietly spoke under his breath. ''Seems like they''re finally here.'' 97 Hell Ranked Soothing Flame A smirk appeared on Arnin''s face as he stood up from his rock. The sound of moving wind approached him. He took a few steps forward as he saw a small group of people appear in front of him. There were four people in this group, with the leader being a tall man with white hair. His eyes were dark brown, and his clothes were completely red. The contrast between his clothes and hair made him look a little weird, however the strength he exuded prevented anyone from commenting on it. The man was in Essence Manifest - Hell. The people behind him were in the same realm, however in comparison to the strength of the leader, their auras were like small lakes in front of the ocean. A small smile appeared on the white haired man''s face as he approached Arnin amicably. "Little kid, you should really control your mouth since it could lead to large problems for you. You see what happened after speaking so much? Others are coming for your head." The white haired man shook his head, however the smile never disappeared from his face."Luckily for you, I am here to give you a hand with the matter." When Arnin heard his words, he couldn''t help but smirk. "Oh? You want to help me? Please, do tell me how you will do so." Seeing that Arnin was only speaking to taunt him, the white haired man couldn''t help but laugh a little. "If you continue with that attitude, it will be difficult for me to help you." Although his words sounded nice, in reality, they were filled with deep threats. What he really meant was ''If you keep talking like that to me, I don''t mind watching you die.'' Everyone knew that Arnin had challenged the top ten and called everyone else trash. If no one helped him, then the only ending for him would be death. "I''m sorry, do you find it hard to help me? That''s alright, most trash can''t help other people, but it''s ok, you don''t have to worry about that. You can watch from the side with the other trash." A wicked smile stayed on Arnin''s face as he taunted the white haired man. Hearing the words Arnin spouted, the white haired man frowned slightly, however it quickly turned into a smile. "Since you have this under control, then I shall just watch from the side. Please do tell me if you are in need of my assistance, I am willing to support you if you just ask." Ignoring the thick skinned man, Arnin continued to wait for more people to arrive. His expectations were risen to a higher level because of the white haired man. ''If this retard is so strong, how powerful might the top ten be?'' To him, people who were able to jump levels and fight were the real opponents. The white haired man seemed like this type of opponent, however Arnin wasn''t going to take the initiative until everyone gathered. He didn''t want to be attacked in the middle of his fight by someone who didn''t mind resorting to such tricks. A few hours passed by quickly and many people began to gather. Canae and Sinfallel had already returned to his side. He even saw a few other familiar faces, such as Relshe and Srida, and even the couple Adilis and Clareena. He wasn''t too surprised to see them. In the large group, other than the white haired man, there were a few people who he sensed danger from. One of them was even in Essence Manifest - Sky, just a small realm higher then him. Although this surprised him slightly, he didn''t find it unbelievable. If he could jump many realms and over power people much stronger than him, then who was to say that others couldn''t. "Canae, name anyone that is in the top twenty. Ignore everyone else." Although Arnin did call people other than the top ten trash, he knew that it was not the case. Adilis was a very resilient opponent who was able to fight him when he was aggressively attacking. Plus he was only at he back of the twenty, there were nineteen more who were much stronger then. Canae nodded her head and began to point out the big shots. She pointed towards the white haired man first. "That person is ranked number twelve." She then pointed at a ten year old boy who had the cultivation at Essence Manifest - Sky realm. "He is ranked eleven." She went on and named all of the people ranked behind the top ten. "Is there no one from the top ten in this crowd?" Arnin found it weird that none of them were here yet. If anything, they should have been here first. "I don''t see any of the top ten here." She placed her hand on her chin as she spoke hesitantly. "Maybe they are here, but not in this crowd?" When she said this, Arnin''s eyes glinted coldly. "That is most likely the case. They must want to see if I am even worthy of their presence. Such pretentious cowards!" Arnin shook his head, but then nodded with satisfaction towards Canae. "You are just as sharp as I want you to be. Now then, you shall face some people here to increase your strength as well." If Canae was going to be his future commander, she would need more battle experience. Although she was able to kill two people in a higher cultivation realm than her, that was only through trickery and surprise attacks. This time, he wanted her to fight them in a more fair battle. In the past, Canae would have hesitated to go up, or even cursed Arnin for being such a ruthless person, but this time she gladly walked forward. ''Since I am determined to follow him until I can achieve my goals, then I must do as he says and increase my strength.'' As Canae walked forward, Arnin looked at all the people who were gathered. "Other than a few of you, the rest are just trash, so before facing me, you must go against my slave. Every person that can beat her, will be able to fight me with a partner of their choice." Arnin didn''t contain any of his insults. "This kid is too much! Face that little girl? She''s too weak!" Someone couldn''t help but speak with some discontent. Arnin looked at this person and found that his realm was at Essence Manifest - Sky. "You seem pretty confident, however do you really want to face a little girl at Orb Birth - Heaven with your ''great'' strength?" Arnin spoke with a voice filled with derision. The man just snorted and didn''t walk forward. Although he talked big, he knew that Arnin was not someone he could actually beat. There were rumours that his strength had already reached the level of the top twenty, and maybe even the top ten. "For the first few rounds, let''s do a battle for cultivators at Orb Birth - Heaven. If any of you can beat her, then I don''t mind fighting against a group." He spoke out again. Even though he wanted Canae to fight against higher realmed people, he knew that setting her up with Essence Manifest cultivators right away would only be suicidal. She had neither the strength nor the experience for that. "Who the hell do you think you are to decide the rules? I say we all should just attack him and get this over with. What do you guys say?" A young man with a heroic spirit walked out from the crowd showing his strength, which was at Essence Manifest - Earth just like Arnin. This man also had a decent rank and a relatively well known name in the battlefield. Rank twenty two, Sword Hero. He had heard that Arnin challenged the top ten and called the top twenty trash, so what did that make him? Less than trash? With his personality, how could he take such insults? "Come, then." Arnin looked at the young man with dull eyes. To him, anyone in the same realm as him was no different from an ant. Arnin lifted his hand as a grey flame appeared on his palm. The Flames of Neutrality. The power of these flames was extremely terrifying. The heat exuded by them couldn''t even be felt; it was at such a high temperature that everything would turn into nothingness against it. Striking forward, the flames snaked towards the young man who tried to block it with his sword. Almost instantly, the flames began to disintegrate the sword into thin air as if it was paper. A horrified expression appeared on Sword Hero''s face. He quickly released the sword and jumped back, distancing himself from the flames, however the Flames of Neutrality didn''t stop. Ignoring the vanishing sword, the flames continued to chase after the fleeing Sword Hero. Realizing that escaping would be useless, the terrified Sword Hero calmed his nerves slightly. He unsheathed his last sword from his back. This sword was a little different from his last as it released a bit of elemental energy. With a low roar, he charged towards Arnin, dodging the flames with a sidestep, however little did he know that the flames could split themselves. The fire had no definite form, allowing it to bend and twist in different manners. Seeing the flame aim for his head, he gritted his teeth as he ducked down. With a swing of his arm, the large elemental blade slashed against the flame that approached from below, parrying it with some difficulty. A bit of the flame caught on his blade, trying to erase its existence as well, however he waved his sword in the air, extinguishing the small flame. Unlike normal swords, the elemental blade was able to defend against many different types of attacks. "Oh, that blade is pretty good." Arnin smiled as he thought about how the battle might be a bit more interesting than he originally thought. ''If only I could use my saber as a physical weapon, then maybe I could directly add the flames into it, amplifying them greatly.'' He shook his head as he stopped releasing flames. He lifted one of his hands and slit his wrist, allowing his blood to pour out. "Lets see if you can fight against my blood blade." He was able to change the form ofblood in the past, and now he was able to magnify that property due to the Seed of Blood. When the blood sword formed, it didn''t release any aura, making it seem nonexistent. However, this feeling startled the Sword Hero. Not only did the sword not release an ounce of essence, even Arnin''s aura became harder to detect. "You are making a mistake, Demonic Joker. There is a reason I am called Sword Hero, I am second to none when it comes to the use of swords." His eyes sharpened when he noticed Arnin''s new tactic, but he felt more relief than worry. In a battle of blades, he was confident he would come out on top. "We will see whether you''re second to none or second to me." With a faint laugh, Arnin dashed towards him. His blood blade was on his right and when he approached the Sword Hero, he gracefully cleaved towards the latter''s neck. The swordsman quickly parried the blow with a thrust, successfully protecting himself. He didn''t stop there though. After deflecting Arnin''s blood sword, his leg rose in the air towards Arnin''s stomach. Seeing this move, a wicked grin appeared on Arnin''s face. His blood sword, which wasn''t blocked by the other sword anymore aimed towards the young man''s neck. "You''re crazy!" Normally, a person would either jump back to dodge the kick or attack the leg itself to prevent oneself from being hurt, however Arnin didn''t do any of that. The blood sword aimed directly for his neck and with no time to avoid the hit, the young man cursed Arnin for his ruthlessness. *BLEURG* Being kicked so hard, even Arnin couldn''t help but spew out a mouthful of blood. His body may have been tough, but it wasn''t invincible. *SKSHH* As Arnin got kicked, the Sword Hero also lost his head. Arnin only fought the way he did was to show others that he wasn''t just strong with essence, but instead his abilities were well rounded. He could kill anyone with anything. This effect worked as planned and others couldn''t help but take in a breath of cold air. The Sword Hero wasn''t exaggerating in his claim that he was second to none with the sword. In a normal duel, not even the top ten could match him in swordsmanship. "Now then, since none of you have any complai--" Another person suddenly walked out from the group. "I would like to fight you as well." The person who walked out was someone ranked in the top twenty. He had scarlet hair resembling fire, and his bronze skin looked extremely beautiful, however his arms were completely burnt. This person was none other then rank fourteen, Soothing Ash. His specialty was fire, and his signature trait was burning someone to ashes, letting them become one with the earth and wind. However, his flames were very special as they were a part of the Hell flame rankings. These flames were exceedingly rare. When Arnin first heard that a person had Hell flames, even he was greatly shocked. There were only a hundred Hell flames in Afloria so someone having one either meant that they were extremely fortunate, or they had a major backing. ''He probably had great fortune to get those flames. Why would he come to Thorn Academy if his backing was much more magnificent.'' Arnin had learned some things from Canae and also made his own guesses on how big Lepidoptera and Thorn Academy were when compared to the whole Human continent. They were almost ant-like powers. These schools were barely able to get Sky level flames so it was close to impossible to get Hell level ones. This allowed Arnin to further understand that only major powers could have top notch flames. The particular flame that Soothing Ash had was known as the Soothing Flame. It was able to burn someone without causing them any sort of pain. It was a very peaceful death, however that made it even more scary. It could be used for sneak attacks and one wouldn''t even know that they were burning. "I would like to test my flames against yours. Let''s see whose flames are stronger." Just like his flames, Soothing Ash had a very calm and quiet personality. Arnin nodded his head. "Alright, allow me to decimate your flames." He smiled slightly as the grey Flames of Neutrality appeared once again. Soothing Ash didn''t mind Arnin''s words and released his own blue fire. With a thrust of his palm, it shot towards Arnin. The latter also quickly threw out his flames to counter the other. *BOOM* There was a loud explosion as the two flames collided, causing a smoke screen to form. A smile appeared on Soothing Ash''s face. "Seems our flames are similar in strength, and mine might be slightly stronger." When Arnin heard his words, he shook his head, but then his face scrunched into a frown. From the smoke screen, a large blue flame continued to fly towards him. ''Seems like my flames are not actually as strong as I thought they were.'' A bitter look appeared on his face as he sent multiple bursts of grey flames towards the incoming blue flame. After a few dozen of his attacks landed on it, the blue flame was finally gone. "I wonder whose flames decimated the other''s?" Soothing Ash spoke with a calm voice, his voice as ethereal as his flames. 98 Ice and Fire Arnin couldn''t help but slightly smirk at Soothing Ash''s remark. "This is good. If you weren''t at least this strong, then it would have just been boring." After he spoke, flames began to quietly seep out his body covering him head to toe. "You want to see how strong my flames are? Well, let me show you." He began to crazily pull power from the Seed of Neutrality. Surprisingly, the more power he pulled, the more silent it got. It was as if the flame wasn''t even there. Soothing Ash frowned slightly as he felt his Hell flame become a little sluggish. "Interesting." He smiled as he began to wrap himself in flames as well. Unlike Arnin, the Hell flame he had was more of an external weapon like a sword, so he was unable to create a Seed of Fire with it as it''s core. At least, he didn''t know how to yet, but even then his flames weren''t any weaker than those that had the Seed of Fire. "GO!" Raising his hands, Arnin blasted fireballs towards Soothing Ash in rapid succession. The latter also began to shoot balls of Soothing Flame towards Arnin. Just like last time, Arnin''s Flames of Neutrality were on the losing end, but this time it took about five fireballs to take out one ball of Soothing Flames. ''This is still not good enough. Since my flames can''t outmatchhis flames in a battle of power, what about when it comes to killing the other?'' Arnin could already control the shape of his flames at will. Arnin began to change the shape of the flames from balls into small needles and large spears. The needles were meant to attack Soothing Ash, while the spears were to pierce the Soothing Flame balls in one spot, splitting them apart. Of course, Arnin was simply guessing that it would work. There was a chance that even as spears, the Flames of Neutrality would be unable to match the others flames. Seeing spears in Arnin''s hands, Soothing Ash couldn''t help but frown. ''Seems like he is able to change the shape of his flames at will. This might be tricky.'' He already knew that Arnin could change direction of his flames as he saw in the fight against Sword Hero, but changing form was much harder. One needed to be in full control of his flames, plus they needed to understand the properties of their flame extremely well. Even now, he could barely change the direction of his flames, let alone shape. "Let''s see if you handle this." Arnin swung his arm, throwing the Neutrality spears towards the Soothing Flames. *SCRRR* A sound similar to something being shredded resounded from the collision between the two flames. Arnin''s eyes were glinting with a cold light while Soothing Ash couldn''t help but frown deeply. He squinted and saw that the spear had tore through his flames and was making its way towards him at a much slower speed. With a sidestep, he moved away from the place where the spear was landing. "Idiot." Arnin couldn''t help but speak these words as he waved his hand, discreetly throwing the small flaming needles towards the dodging man. *PING PING* The sound of penetration came from Soothing Ash''s body. His eyes widened as he looked down and saw long, thin lines piercing his body. He raised his head and looked at Arnin. "So you''re going to resort to trickery? I can do the same." As blood seeped from his mouth, a wicked smile surfaced on his face. Arnin had a look of confusion before he quickly looked down. Wrapped around his right leg was a bright blue face. His ankles were already heavily burnt, however the flame didn''t stop there; it was slowly making its way up. ''This flame is truly extremely powerful in sneak attacks. Even I couldn''t feel when I started to burn.'' He felt a little apprehensive, however he wasn''t worried about being killed by the flames. Covering his hand in the Flames of Neutrality, he grabbed the other flames and tossed them aside. He looked at his charred ankle and began to slowly revolve his Seed of Rebirth. A white light seeped out of his finger and snaked towards Sword Hero''s body. Although the latter was dead, the life essence had yet to completely dissipate from his body so Arnin wanted to absorb it as quickly as possible. Soothing Ash saw this scene and his pupils constricted as a sense of fear appeared in his heart. ''That, what is that? How could he heal his wound so easily?'' Everyone''s heart shook when they saw what Arnin was doing. They could visibly see his ankle reverting back to normal, as if there were no burns to begin with. When they looked back at Sword Hero''s headless body, they found that it had become dry like a raisin. "This is appalling! This Demonic Joker is disgusting." A girl from the crowd couldn''t help but begin to vomit at the sight. Although most of the people in the battlefield killed, there were a rare few that had avoided killing anyone so far. This girl was a part of this rare group, so seeing such a sight was bound to sicken her. Arnin kicked his leg and moved his ankle around for a few seconds and then a smile appeared on his face. "Now then, let us continue." Spears continued to form in his hand as he began to throw them towards the previously injured Soothing Ash without pause. The latter began to sense death as he dodged everything that was hurled towards him. Even then, the spears kept coming. They were even being used to hide needles that he couldn''t dodge. He was struck over and over again. "STOP! I GIVE UP!" The previously calm Soothing Ash lost his cool and couldn''t help but shout in desperation. Facing death, even the most almighty would become fearful, let alone a kid that had yet to experience all the horrors of the world. Soothing Ash''s voice entered one of Arnin''s ears but escaped from the other. Why would he stop now? He was going to kill the flaming guy and be done with this fight. Seeing that Arnin wasn''t going to stop, Soothing Flame grit his teeth as he wrapped himself with his flames again, but this time they seemed much stronger and chaotic. ''This suicidal fool really intends to pay such a price to escape?'' Arnin could see exactly what Soothing Ash was doing. He released powers from the flame he couldn''t control yet, just for a chance to escape. *SOOOSH* With a leap, Soothing Ash escaped from the scene, his flames making him look like a blue star. Arnin didn''t chase after him or even attack him since the latter would already be in critical condition after being burned by his own flames. There was a chance the latter would die anyways due to his heavy wounds. "Now that the warm-up is done, who shall I face next?" Arnin felt much more apprehensive towards the top twenty after facing Soothing Ash. Although the latter lost, there was a high chance that Arnin could have been finished if he didn''t have better control over his own flames. The opponent''s flames were much more developed than his own, making them extremely powerful. Suddenly, the person ranked eleven walked out from the crowd. It was the young boy that Arnin felt to be the largest threat. Even though his realm was lower than Soothing Ash''s, he gave off a much more powerful aura. "You and me can have a go." When those words came out from his mouth, his body bursted with a large amount of essence. Some people fainted where they stood, while others found it hard to even move. Arnin also frowned deeply. ''He is extremely strong. I can sense auras of ice and¡­ fire?'' This shocked him greatly. Although he himself was able to fuse two opposing elements, that was only because of his experience with various elements from the past. If he hadn''t had that, even he wouldn''t be able to fuse two opposing elements easily, and it might have even be close to impossible for him. What shocked him even more was that the boy in front of him was able to combine the powers of fire and ice. This was even harder than combining life and death, or light and darkness. Fire and ice were completely opposite. They had no similarities that could be used to merge them. ''I can''t hold back against this person.'' Arnin replied with a burst of his own aura. A bloody red mist surrounded his body. His palms were covered in the Flames of Neutrality, and there was even black and white smoke surrounding his arms. The Seeds of Extremities, Blood, and NEutrality were all released to their fullest. "Although I am ranked at eleven, I do not consider myself weaker than anyone in the top ten. If anything, I should be stronger than a few of them. Back when I faced them, I was only at Essence Manifest - Earth and even then, they could barely fend me off. Now that I have broken through¡­" Although he didn''t finish his sentence, the meaning behind his words was quite clear. He was strong, much stronger than the some of the top ten. Of course, that is only if those in the top ten didn''t make breakthroughs in their own strength as well, but Arnin didn''t feel that the lattr was speaking nonsense. Just his ability to control ice and fire simultaneously showed that his talent was monstrous. "Come, then!" Arnin looked at the boy and spoke with a low roar. He put his guard up to the fullest and his purple eyes began to sparkle. The boy crouched and a ball of fire and a shard of ice appeared in each of his hands. Both of them turned into different weapons. The fire transformed into a large hammer, while the ice shard became a sharp spear. He closed his eyes and took a deep breath. When he opened them once again, his previous black pupils changed into a icy blue and a flaming red. "You are worthy enough for me to use all of my strength. Even the top ten didn''t force me to this step." When those words left his mouth, two wings formed on the back, each exuding a temperature of different extremes. Arnin inhaled a deep breath. The blood mist turned began to shoot out bloody spears, while the black and white smoke turned into beams, aiming to kill the boy in front of him. Even his Flames of Neutrality didn''t fall behind as they aimed to burn the boy to crisp. "Indeed terrifying. AH!" The boy flapped his wings and thrusted his body towards the incoming attack. His two weapons rose and slammed against the incoming attacks. Seeing that he was being pushed back rapidly, his wings began to shoot out icicles and fire balls aimed at Arnin''s body. Unlike Soothing Ash, he wasn''t going to try and fight Arnin''s attacks directly because he knew that he would be overpowered if he were to try that. The only way to win was to keep attacking Arnin''s body. Arnin saw the incoming attacks and he quickly jumped to his side, however little did he know that the boy was also able to control the form of his attacks like Arnin. "Hehe!" The icicles which were dodged by Arnin made a sharp turn and stabbed directly into Arnin''s shoulder blade. *BLUERG* A mouthful of blood spew from Arnin''s mouth as the icicles seeped into his body, freezing his blood. A cold glint flashed from his eyes and he quickly began to use the Flames of Neutrality to get rid of the coldness, however the more he tried, the darker his face got. ''What the hell is with these icicles? They aren''t burning away!'' The young boy smirked as he quickly jumped back, stopping the clash with the three different powers from Arnin. "Its futile, that ice is not normal ice. It is formed with hints of fire, making it hard to burn away. In fact, you may even be increasing its freezing properties by feeding it with your flame." Arnin''s face couldn''t help but pale when he heard this. The combination of fire and ice was one of the most deadly powers in the universe. He had only met one person who had this ability, and that was a day where even he almost lost his life. If not for his higher cultivation, there would not have been a Demon Lord Arnin after that fight. The only elements that could equally match the combination of ice and fire was timespace. Ice and fire defied the very order of elements, which was why they were powerful. Arnin''s heart was still calm even though he was in danger. He had faced a person with ice and fire powers before so he knew of some small tricks. Taking his finger, he quickly tore a large hole in his arm and the frozen blood began to fall out like blocks of ice. There were even a few veins in the mix. *BLUERG* Blood rushed from his throat and out of his mouth again. His face was extremely pale, losing all of its color. This was the toughest opponent he had ever faced, and he doubted the people in the top ten would be stronger in terms of ability. The young boy saw this scene and a smirk appeared on his face. "You''re really ruthless, aren''t you? Who would have thought that there would be such a kid in this world? Now take this attack from me. If you are able to block it successfully, I won''t mind letting you go." When those words came out of his mouth, the wings on his back began to dissipate slowly. His weapons also began to disappear, however Arnin felt a stifling aura surround him. It wasn''t an aura that came from ones cultivation realm. It wasn''t domineering like Xillar''s, rather it was a very silent aura, as ifit caused even nature to be silent in fear of making any sound. Arnin''spupils contracted into pinholes when he saw a small drop appeared in front of the young boy. "C-complete merger?!" His face quickly paled and sweat began to drip from all over his body. Previously, he was barely able to fend off ice with bits of fire in it, and he even had to sacrifice a large amount of blood for that, putting himself in critical condition. Now that a complete merger was happening in front of him, alarms of danger went off rapidly in Arnin''s mind. He knew that if he faced that attack, even the slightest touch would kill him. Just a scrape from the ability would end his life completely, leaving nothing behind. He couldn''t release his Demon Lord powers because he knew that he would be risking the death of his human body. Last time he was lucky, but there was no second chance. This was the first time he felt the possibility of death in Afloria. There was no escape and facing the danger head on would be suicidal. ''F*ck!'' 99 Power of the Merger Arnin''s face was pale and his hair was erect as he saw the purple sphere begin to form in the young boy''s hand. The air began to fluctuate as if panicking at the merging of fire and ice. ''This can''t go on. I have to do something. Maybe I can use¡­" Arnin thought of an idea which could possibly save him, but there was a high chance that it would recoil and cause him some damage as well. His Runic Eyes seemed to have an ability related to time the last time he used them. He could slow everything around him, making him seem extremely fast. It was a very helpful move, but last time used it, his body was seriously damaged. It was also extremely painful, unbearable to even him. ''It is the only chance I have. If I can mix the eyes with the Space mark that I created, then it will be much more helpful. Even the Time mark which I''ve barely begun to work on might be somewhat helpful in this situation.'' His space mark was created very early on since space was very easy to comprehend for him, plus it was much easier to detect than time. The time mark on the other hand was very miniscule. It had very little essence and was almost nonexistent since it was one of the hardest elements to master, if not the hardest. If he could combine his Runic eyes with the two marks, there was a chance for him to create the never before seen spacetime effect that ruled the natural world but simultaneouslydefied the very essence of nature. He could survive the attack if he was successful. Although ice and fire combined was said to be equal to spacetime since both of them defied the natural laws, Arnin still felt that spacetime had a certain level of superiority when compared to the former. He could create a tear in space, trapping the attack, and then use time to revert the power to a state where it never occured or speed time and make it seem as if the essence in the attack was used up. The purple sphere in the boy''s hand continued to form. It grew larger and larger and the power contained in it didn''t seem to grow, however the feeling of fear was skyrocketing in the hearts of everyone watching the scene. Suddenly, the large sphere disappeared. Arnin''s eyes narrowed and his heartbeat quickened. It had not actually vanished, rather it was condensed to an insane degree, becoming as small as ones fingernail. The power of the condensation was almost as frightening as his own Demon Lord power. His thoughts began to turn as he thought back to the fight he had with the first ice and fire user. ---------------------------------------- "Arnin, you may be strong, but your power is still not as strong as mine. The only advantage you have is your cultivation. If not for that, then there would have been no way you could survive this far." An old voice sounded in the middle of space. His hair was half blue and half red with a thin purple line in the middle. He had scarlet and sapphire pupils that were sharp like blades. "Whether my cultivation is higher than yours or lower is not a concern to me. Killing you is more important. I have ruled with the thought process that the end is all that matters, not the means to reach that end. To reach my goals and kill those I wish to kill, I don''t care about how much stronger or weaker I am. I shall achieve what I want without any hesitation." A deep voice tinged with coldness came out the mouth of a three horned demon who stood loftily in front of a large black hole. His ashen grey skin was covered in cuts and scrapes, and one of his arms was missing. The old man stared at Demon Lord Arnin with hatred. "How do you feel being attacked by someone you considered only an ant? If you had not slaughtered and tortured my family, forced my sister, mother, and every other woman in my home planet to become your sex slaves, and used my siblings, who were only children at the time, for your wicked experiments, then this day would have never come. This is what you sought, Demon Lord. Your death is inevitable." Unshed tears filled the old man''s eyes as he looked angrily at the demon in front of him. A small smirk appeared on Arnin''s face as he looked at the old man. "Death? Do you really think that I will be the one to die here? For hundreds of millions of years, I have fought foes with much greater strength than myself. I have faced death so many times that death itself finds it difficult to come to me. Your family is only part of the many that I have slaughtered, don''t expect me to remember every trash planet that I have destroyed. You can come and look at the torture chambers or my servant''s bedrooms to see if your mother and sister are still alive. Haha!" "AH! YOU BASTARD!" Multiple needle sized balls appeared around the old man as they turned into beams and shot towards the great Demon Lord Arnin. ---------------------------------------------------------- "Take this!" The young boy''s face was a little pale as blood seeped from his mouth, however the smile didn''t disappear. The purple nail sized ball erupted with strength and a purple beam shot towards Arnin. Seeing the light, Arnin activated his Runic Eyes, space mark, and time mark. ------------------------------------- "COME!" Demon Lord Arnin activated his power over space and created slits everywhere to devour the beams. ------------------------------- Arnin created a small space tear with his limited powers, hoping to lessen the power or even consume the purple beam. Just as the purple beam entered the beam¡­ -------------------------- *BOOM SZZZZ* The purple beams destroyed the space tears in almost an instant. They continued to rush towards Arnin with speed almost untraceable. -------------------------- A cold light beamed in Arnin''s eyes when he saw his destroyed space slit. The time power activated around the beam, slowing it down greatly, however it was still at almost lightening speed. Blood sprayed from his mouth as tears of blood fell from his eyes. -------------------------- With a quick wave of his hand, he pulled out a large sword. Opening up a portal bhind him and the old man, he stabbed back. --------------------------- Seeing a grey flaming sword and a blood red sword appear behind him, the young boy was shocked. "You¡­. ------------------------ "... Bastard!" *BOOM* The large blade stabbed his neck, severing his head. ----------------------------------- The red and grey sword were just about to reach the neck, but the young boy was never injured to begin with so he quickly took a step back and shot a fire and ice wave towards the swords, successfully blocking them . Arnin saw the young boy dodge the attack and he sighed helplessly. Although his eyes and miniscule time mark were activated to the fullest, he knew that dodging would still be impossible. He rushed towards the purple beam with no fear. Since he was going to face death, he might as well see if there was even a chance of survival. Running and dodging were impossible, so he could only attack. A large, smoky white saber formed in his hand. The abilities of space, neutrality, blood, and extremities cloaked the saber. The saber began to exude an extremely tyrannical aura. Arnin, however, didn''t stop there; A new purplish light wrapped the sword as well. It felt like the aura of¡­ time. --------------------------------------- Demon Lord Arnin brought out a black blade. The auras of death, darkness, space, and even bits of time, surrounded it. "If I can''t even take the final attack of a dead man, there is no need for me to continue to ruling my universe." His angry howl spread across the empty, dark land. With his remaining hand grabbing the hilt, he raised the blade and swung down against the purple beams with full power. -------------------------- Lifting his white saber covered in numerous strong auras, Arnin swung down at the incoming purple beam with full force. It was his final attack. There was a chance he could die from this, however there was also a small possibility of survival, albeit a very insignificant chance. "AHH!" With a low roar, his blade came into contact with the purple beam. "BREAK FOR ME YOU BASTARD!" ----------------------------- "DIE!" Demon Lord Arnin''s body was continuously being stabbed from all angles by the purple beams. Holes appeared on his chest, legs and even his last arm was on the verge of being ripped apart. ---------------------------- Arnin''s body was lacerated by the residual energy from the purple beam. His attack, although insanely powerful, was still not enough compared to the purple light. "ABSORB IT, YOU BASTARD!" His white blade formed a small whirlpool that slowly absorbed the purple beam. The young boy saw this and his smile widened. "Nice move, but that''s not enough to stop my attack." A sigh escaped his mouth as he walked away from the fight. "Maybe you could have challenged most of the top ten, but you could not handle the people in the top three. There is a chance that my full powered attack is the only thing that could destroy them, but maybe not. I have yet to see their full power as well." Being in the middle of a life and death situation, Arnin couldn''t bother with the young boy. He didn''t care how strong the top three were. If he couldn''t even handle this attack, then fighting others would be the last thing on his mind. *SZZZ* The beam began to sizzle and make sounds like a hissing snake being slowly burned. It was frightening. Most people watching the fight had already stepped around a hundred meters back as they couldn''t handle the residual energy of the fight. Sinfallel and Canae also watched the fight with their fists tightened, however both had different thoughts. The former was hoping for Arnin''s death while the latter was hoping that Arnin would survive. Canae still held hatred for Arnin, but she knew that only by following him would there be a chance for her become much stronger and possibly bring her sister back. "This fight is just too¡­ terrifying!" "Yeah, who knew that the Demonic Joker was actually this strong?'' "What the hell are you saying? Not the Demonic Joker, but who would have thought that Rank Eleven was this strong? His powers are comparable to the top three, maybe even more." People discussed heatedly. The news about the strengths of Rank Eleven and the Demonic Joker spread everywhere at an insane speed. While this went on, the beam was slowly becoming weaker under Arnin''s blade, however the price he was paying was just too high. He had already thought of releasing his Demon Lord powers, but now it was too late to do that. If he did, then death was certain. All the cells in his body were shaking, his tissues were torn, and there was even significant damage done to his organs. Just a tiny fraction of the Demon Lord power would instantly lay him to dust. ''Just a bit more. I can survive this if I can last just a bit more!'' His whole body was covered in blood and there were terrifying wounds on his arms, legs, chest, and even face. His eyes were dull and the purple seemed to lessen. "BREAK! BREAK! BREEEAAAKKK!" With a final push from his weapon, he created a small portal in front of his blade that decreased the beam''s power, however the portal broke. His saber also began to dissipate. The beam finally broke through, penetrating his chest directly. *BLUERG* His body flew in the air as it was sent flying back. A huge hole appeared right next to his heart, barely missing it. His eyes completely blackened and his face began to wither. ''In the past, I was able to survive the attack, but now, that may not be the case.'' His voice disappeared from his mind as everything quieted. The crowd watched the scene with their breaths held tightly in their chests. "This demon might finally die." Canae began to worry as she also held her breath. Her eyes looked at Arnin as she and the others slowly moved towards his body after some hesitation. 100 Demise Seeing his body land hard on the ground and a huge hole appear on his chest, Canae quickly made her way towards him with some anxiety. She knew that Arnin was her only hope currently, and even though there was a burning feeling in her heart telling her to kill Arnin, she couldn''t. Sinfallel also made her way towards Arnin, but here thoughts different from those of Canae. ''This is the perfect chance to kill him. He is seriously injured, and also unconscious. If I don''t end him now, then when would I get such an opportunity in the future?'' Although she had these thoughts, she knew that she was not able to kill Arnin herself or else the contract would backfire on her. "Arn- Master!" Canae made her way quickly towards Arnin and couldn''t help but widen her eyes as she saw a huge, gaping hole in his chest. She knew he was injured, bue the scale of injury he had on him currently was so drastic that she didn''t know whether he would be able to live through this or not. Sinafallel smirked slightly when she saw this. ''This is what you get for killing my sister and putting me and Canae in such ba conditions.'' Blood began to surround Arnin''s body, and his breathing was unstable and rapid. He seemed close to death. ------------------------------------------------ "I know you can''t make a move yourself, which is why I say, let me through and it would benefit us both. Trust me, this is the perfect chance." A young man stood in front of a glowing orb in the middle of space. Below him was a large planet, much larger than any planets seen in the universe. He had two horns coming out from his forehead, while his hair was crimson red. Black bat like wings grew from his back as he held a grey triendt in his right hand. Surprisingly, he exuded a aura which was only a little bit weaker than Arnin at his peak. "You still dare to intrude into his Universe and expect me to kill him? Do you not know who he is to me?" A feminine voice came from the sphere which clearly showed anger, but also bits of anguish. The red haired young man shook his head a little before smiling slightly. "The main Hell clan wants him dead. He is the last survivor of that family, we can''t have him continue living. You are also from the Heaven clan, how could you even think to love him? Did he not slaughter half of your people in this universe?" Clearly, the young man was confused. HE couldn''t understand the thoughts of the being behind the sphere. "You cowards only know to strike him when he is weak! If he was at his strongest, not even the Hell clan Clan Leader can''t guarantee killing him if he was at his strongest-" "Which is why this is the perfect chance. I am asking for your permission only to make the job easier. If you do interfere, you know very well that your own clan will not spare you!" The young man''s face became ferocious as he looked at the sphere in front of him. HE turned his body and suddenly disappeared. The sphere silently floated in the universe before transforming into a stunning woman. She had bright blue, featherly wings on her back and a heart tattoo on her forehead. Her figure was extremely attractive and her looks dazzling. Tears fell from her hazy sapphire eyes as she turned her head and looked down at the planet. "I am sorry my love, I don''t think I can save you from this. Those people have found you and know that you are currently at your weakest." A sad look appeared on her beautiful face, but her eyes became sharp all of a sudden. "But who could have told them about this? Only a few people know about him being so weak." ''Ah, the great Heaven Lord. I think the answer is right in front of you. Hahaha!'' -------------------------------------------------- The crowd looked at Arnin laying on the ground, on the brink of death. They were confused as to what they should do. "Do we attack him? Is it even needed anymore?" "I don''t know, but this kid is too evil, we should eradicate him!" Many voices sounded out from the crowd and when Canae heard them, her face became ghastly pale. ''What do I do? I can''t help him with my current strenght. I can barely fight a person above my realm, let alone so many. What do I do? What do I do?" While these thoughts were going through her head, Arnin''s body was losing blood at a rapid pace. His face was becoming paler by the second. --------------------------------------------- *THUMP* "Ashia, are you alright?" In a forest, far away from where Arnin was, a group of people were slowly making their way towards Lepidoptera Academy. As they were walking, a woman suddenly fell onto the ground with a pale face. "Something is not right. My chest is hurting. I feel pain, I feel some sort of deep heartache, but also fear." Ashia was sweating profusely as she looked at her husband with a frightened look. *THUMP* "Nekaia!" Florian turned his head and saw his daughter also fall to the ground suddenly. His face became pale as he rushed towards her and brought her beside Ashia. "Daddy, I feel pain in my head and my chest. I hear noises, scary noises. They sound similar to the monsters you told me about. Even Arni''s voice is there. Is Arni alright?" Ashia and Florian''s face became pale. Ashia began to feel anxious as her eyes reddened. "Florian, we need to find Arnin quickly. I don''t know what this feeling is, but I know he is in danger. I have been getting similar feelings before, but they were never this bad. Something is wrong, something is wrong with Arnin." Ashia didn''t doubt a single thing that Nekaia said. It was a common thing for twins to feel pain and other emotions at the same time. Plus, one twin was able to detect if the other was in danger or not. This was the connection amongst twins in Afloria. Florian nodded his head as he began to feel himself get a large headache and heartache. ''Where the hell are you Arnin? What the heck is going on with you?'' -------------------------------------------- In the caves where all the upper echelon of Thorn Academy gathered, Fae and Elder Kocyte had pale faces. They looked at Arnin''s body through the screen and became agitated. "I have to get him to safety. Screw this test, he is the most suited to be my disciple, I can''t let him die like this!" With that Elder Kocyte disappeared and so did Fae. The Headmistress also looked at Arnin''s body state and became somewhat worried. ''He shouldn''t die this early, he still hasn''t completed the task I wanted him to do later.'' She had goals for Arnin and knew that only Arnin could do them, since he was someone from Lepidoptera Academy and could possibly be the only person suitable to spy for her. She also disappeared from her spot. ------------------------------------------------- Arnin was in a state of panic as he saw the the inner structure of his body. ''Why the hell is my luck so bad? I keep getting injured to the point of death!'' He felt extremely angry at his current state. This not his first time being put in such a state. He looked around and tried to activate his Seed of Rebirth, however only a small green strand came out from the seed. It seemed too exhausted to help him. ''This is a really bad situation. I can only hop that slave of mine can keep me alive until I wake up atleast.'' ---------------------------------- "Move you little shit! This bastard has to die!" The crowd moved towards Arnin with ruthless faces. They held weapons of many kinds. Their eyes blazed with a burning passion as they looked at the fallen Demonic Joker. If they could kill such a horrific person, would that not be commendable? Who cares if he is a kid, he is not a person that should be kept alive! "You guys are cowards! You want to strike him when he is down? Strong! You people are truly strong!" Her face showed no fear, only disgust as she looked at the crowd. Everyone was incited by her words and howled in ager, "Screw it! She is so weak, just kill her too. We must kill the Demonic Joker!" A man yelled to the rest as he rushed towards Canae with his long saber. People followed behind as they howled like wolves. It was like a pact found some prey, They lunged and attacked with great speed. Canae''s eyes showed remosrse and hatred as she faced the crowd. ''What should I do? If he dies than that would help me with my revenge. But if he lives, I can possibly bring my sister back to the life.'' Her eyes became red as she thought about her dead sister. Then a deep hatred began to brew as she felt a picture shatter in her mind. She turned around and looked at Arnin''s body. "You killed my sister and I couldn''t do anything to you. Now that you are on the brink of death, I still can''t attack you because of the contract." A sigh escaped her mouth as she moved to the side and avoided the crowd rushing towards Arnin. ''I have tried my best to protect you. If you die, then atleast my dead sister can get some peace¡­ and so can I.'' The crowd noticed Canae move and they howled even louder. *SWWWIIIIISHHHHH* "YOU BASTARDS BETTER NOT TOUCH MY DISCIPLE!" Suddenly, a lightening fast blade appeared out of nowhere, landing beside Arnin. A red hue followed behind that blade, surrounding Arnin like a shield. The crowd was forced back as they began to spit blood. The weaker ones were even blown back, fallen onto their buttocks. Elder Kocyte and Fae looked at the crown with dagger like eyes, then they quickly turned their bodies and looked at Arnin''s injured body. "This is bad! He has lost too much blood, and his organs are ruptured." Fae''s countenance was pale when she saw Arnin''s body in person. "Blood?! Easy, I can give him some right now!" Elder Kocyet quickly waved his hand as the crowd behind him instantly turned into a large pool of blood. Then the blood flowed towards Arnin, entering his body. Arnin''s pale face showed some rosiness, however it was still deathly pale. "More! More! He will die if you don''t hurry up!" Fae yelled at Kocyte with a somewhat panicky tone. Even she found her unstable mind to be something of a shocker. She still couldn''t figure out why she cared so much about Arnin''s life. "Hmph! I know what to do!" Kocye waved his hand once more and the blood flowed a lot more quickly and filled Arnin''s body at a much faster rate. -------------------------------------- "Heaven Lord, move out of the way, this is the last time I am saying this. My clan members are already here, plus an elder came too." The young man with red hair appeared in front of the planet once more, but this there were a few people with him, exuding a similar or stronger aura. "Just kill me as well. I am unable to watch you kill him and do nothing." The Heaven Lord sighed and said with some sadness. The young man sighed a little before his eyes became sharp and filled with ruthlessness. "Since that is what you want then I shall make it happen, of course this is not a death you would want. Only something equivalent to death. Brothers, grab her and take her back! SHe shall become a breeding machine for us!" His voice was filled with iciness as he spoke. There was no lust whatsoever, but the people behind him began to howl and laugh pervertedly. "Get her! I will play with her first and then you brothers can have her next, After we eat her once, the rest of the people back in the clan can have their fun as well. HAHA!" The Heaven Lord''s eyes contracted as a horrified pressure pushed against her. "W-what are you doing?! Don''t you know my standing in the Heaven Clan?! They will slaughter you for this!" She moved back quickly, but her body was already under so much pressure that her speed slowed greatly. "Your clan has abandoned you!" The young man smirked as he spoke, before waving his hand. "Get her!" Turning around, the Heaven Lord tried to escape, but a hand grabbed her shoulder cloth and pulled. *RIIP* "No!" Her face paled greatly as she pulled her sword and cut the hand that tore a piece from her clothes. "AH! You b*tch! Now you''re going to get it! I''m going to make you wish you never did that. I will turn you into a dog that only lust for me!" Smoke came from the man''s severed arm as his face became crazy. "You aren''t worthy for such a task! Cowards like you aren''t worthy of making me follow you, only my great Demon is someone I can submit to." After screaming those words out, a flame appeared on her slender hand. It grew in size rapidly and suddenly devoured her. The young man saw this with a frown. ''So she used that suicidal move? Other than being able to reincarnate right away, there is no benefits to that move.'' He shook his head before turning his body and bowing to a cloaked man. "Elder, you can begin the attack. You just need to strike once and he should die." He then took out a glass filled with black smoke. "This is his aura. You can use this to detect him, elder." The cloaked man nodded his head and grabbed the glass, shattering it and absorbing the smoke. His red eyes glinted as he looked at the planet. A few hours passed as he continued to looked at the planet. Then a smirk appeared on his face. "Found him!" --------------------------------------- "Good, this is going well. He should heal in about three months or so, but he will survive." Fae looked at Arnin''s body that was still laying on the ground and saif with a sigh of relief coming out from her mouth. The Headmistress also sighed a little when she looked at Arnin. "Seems like we are going to have to push our plans back a little. Huh¡­" "Headmistress, this boy is going to be my disciple, so I would appreciate it if you would not comment about such useless things while my disciple is on the verge of death." Kocyte showed anger as he looked at the Headmistress. He was the elder that pampered and protected his disciples the most. The Headmistress was somewhat upset but didn''t say anything. She knew that voicing out such thoughts would incite Kocyte''s anger. As they were all thinning about different things, a red and black light shot down from the sky. All three were shocked, but they couldn''t react to it at all. Looking at the angle of the light, it was aiming for Arnin''s head. ''Sh*t!'' Fae was the first to come to her sense as she prepared block the light, however it was too late. The light penetrated Arnin''s forehead cleaning, leaving a large, bloody hole. "ARRGGHHHHHH!" Suddenly, a terrifying screamed came from Arnin''s body which began to shake the whole world. Fae and the other two were thrown back with blood coming from their seven facial orifices. Camae and Sinfalle who were nearby also shot back because of the terrifying pressure. They went out cold. "ARRGGHHH!!!!" *RUUUMMMBLLLLE!* The ground began to shake as the ceiling collapsed. A large black shadow appeared from out of Arnin''s body as it howled towards the sky. Three horns come from its forehead and a long white saber was held in its hand. However, the shadow had a hole in its head and chest. It swung the saber with a=unlimited might, causing the surrounding area to vanish into nothingness. "AHH!" Fae and her group screamed in horror as they disintegrated into nothing under the power exuded by Arnin. The battlefield disappeared and the whole planet began to crumble with Arnin being the centre. "ARGGHHH!!" Howls escaped the demon as it looked into the sky with anger and frustration. A sharp glint appeared in its eyes as it quieted down. "H-HEAVEN LORD!!!!!!!" The scream was filled with some agony as it looked at the group that stood outside the planet. "YOU ALL SHALL PAY! YOU BASTARDS!!!!" Arnin recognized the group right away. They were the group that destroyed his family, and also the people he wanted to the most in his life. It was too late. He was dying, there was nothing he could do. His power was disappearing and nothing could stop it. His howl''s then stopped as a small hint of sadness appeared in his eyes. He lifted his large hand the saber flashed slightly. WIth a swing he chopped his own head. His power blasted otu from his body with intense strength. ------------------------- Akig felt the tremors as he looked around with his beastly eyes. "W-what is happening. This feels like Arnin''s aura. AH!" HIs body broke apart, leaving only air. ---------------------- Ashia and Florian bled from all over as their bodies also began to disappear and break down. "Nekaia!" Both of them screamed as they saw A shadow escape from Nekaia''s body. It was similar to Arnin''s demon shadow, only slightly smaller and more feminine. It also only had a single horn. The shadow looked at the sky with anger and the planet with agony. "DEVIL CLAN!!!" The shadow screamed as it died under the pressure from Arnin''s explosion. ----------------------------- Outside the planet, the young man was vomiting blood continuously as the brother around him floated around him lifeless. The elder he brought was also spitting out blood profusely. "Thank you elder for saving me." He said with a grim voice. "Young master, I could only save you from that power. I am sorry for causing you pain." The elder suddenly kneeled a little in front of the young man. This young man was respectful to the elder because of this strenght, but in reality, he was much higher in status. He was the heir to the Hell main clan. Both of them watched as the planet exploded and a black hole appeared in its space, devouring everything in the surrounding. "That is the end of that terrifying demon clan. This Arnin was more terrifying than the clan leader of that Demon clan. If he had the same strenght, then no one could have stopped him." The elder sighed. The young man''s eyes glinted with some sharpness as he said heavily. "Hopefully this is the end of him. He was the last survivor and also a direct descendant of that Demon. Now only was he the most terrifying enemy, he has even more potential than any of his ancestors. We can only hope this is his true end, if not then¡­" The young man didn''t continue, but the elder knew what he wanted to say. They both had a pale countenance as such a terrifying thought spread in their minds. Watching the planet die with the most terrifying person in this universe, they turned around and disappeared. Far away, a green wolf appeared and looked at the planet turn into a black hole with a smirk. "What a pity." --THE END-- 101 What My Plan Was! Part 1 So this is the summary of what I planned for TDDL when I started writing it. Issues appeared which I am slowly resolving, but still finding difficult to handle which was the reason I couldn''t continue writing this. One thing that is weird about me is that I cannot do hiatus''s, (like more than a few months). I know I had times where I didn''t write for a month, but it was only because these problems I have to deal with. I won''t continue TDDL (I am sad too). If you ever read my first book, The Lost Shadow, I went on a long 3 year hiatus because of school and stuff, but when I came back I was unable to keep writing it. I am unable to write after a hiatus that lasts too long, I don''t know why, but I find it difficult to get back into the same mindset and mood. Enough of the chit chat, this was my goal, you guys can try to imagine it if you want. I will split this into different parts because there was just too much planned. ------------------------------------------------------------------ During the fight with the ice/fire guy, Arnin would have lost of course, but not become as injured as he was. He would only experience slight injuries, but this would have been his first loss (like in a fair fight). After healing up, he would head towards the final battle that would happen between the top ten. He would join in this fight, and end up entering the top ten, but not any higher. He loses some matches and understands that his cultivation is too low and that he is too dependent on his previous powers (as in his previous understanding of the elements). Arnin then begins to mess around with his Elemental Seeds and learns how to use them more efficiently. His Flames of Neutrality is upgraded and can basically burn Hell flames and also match Heaven flames. His Seed of Blood remains the same strength as it is already very strong, while he is able to learn more about the concept of time. The battlefield ends and the result is out. The ice/fire guy comes out as the first place, while Arnin is fifth. Now begins the 2/3 of the second book. This time it is taken place in Thorn Academy. Not the cave, but the actual academy, which is connected to the battlefield through a teleportation formation. In the academy, the top three are taken under different masters, with the ice/fire guys being under the strongest elder. Elder Kocyte asks (kind of forces) Arnin to be his disciple, and Arnin agrees since there isn''t much to lose. Plus, Arnin learns that Kocyte is the most protective of his disciple, which Arnin wants to exploit. He begins training under this elder and meets a few of his fellow disciples. The oldest disciple is actually past the Elemental Formation realm and is in a realm known as the Tiny World realm. It is the realm where one would begin to create a small world inside the orb in their body. The thing is that this world is not like the spatial rings or interspatial bags where they can store external items. No. It is a different world. This world would basically be built around the Elemental Tree (Which is what one achieves at the end of Elemental Formation - Heaven) and this world used essence to create items and life-based on the element(s) of the cultivator. But whatever for now. Arnin doesn''t really want to be under this Tiny World realmed fellow disciple, so he basically starts to go into seclusion. He already has good knowledge of most of his elements (even a bit for the time element because of his previous life) and begins to consolidate his realm and understating. During his seclusion, he also practices his alchemy and mark making skills. He breakthroughs in each and enters a new realm. For mark making, he is finally able to revert to his unique method and becomes a Green Mark Master (huge boost), while his alchemy reached the Yellow realm. (refer to chapter 54 to know the order in colors). No one finds out about these breakthroughs as he plans to keep it a secret. He comes out of seclusion (a few weeks later). Coming out, he finds out that his new rival, ice/fire guys reached Essence Manifest - Hell, while he himself was still in Essence Manifest - Earth. Arnin decides that he wants to go and check out the library of Thorn Academy. He has enough academic points (which he earned in the battlefield). He goes and hears news about his slave, Canae. After coming out the battlefield, she became an outer disciple (butterfly equivalent). He learns that she had made a reputation of herself by fighting people a realm higher than her. She was even accepted by a teacher as a disciple, but she declined. Hearing this, Arnin makes plans to bring her back to his side. In the library, Arnin looks for books that would talk about time and space. Currently, that is his focus since his Seed of Neutrality and Seed of Blood, and Seed of Rebirth wasn''t too difficult to understand. Only time was lacking. He reads more and more and finds out that there are actually people who have masteries over the time element, but they could on be found in the central region of the Human continent. Arnin makes it his plan to reach the central region. After coming out of the library and getting every news he does, he looks for his'' master'' and tells him to bring Canae to him and let her stay with him. HIs master of course readily agrees, but under the condition that Arnin showcases his blood element for him. Arnin doesn''t mind and does so, it wasn''t like he could lose anything. Kocyte gains new understand and then showcases his own blood, which Arnin surprisingly finds to be very helpful. Soon, Canae is brought to him and Arnin begins his plan to train her into becoming his commander. Canae asks about her sister and Arnin says he doesn''t know and that Canae will not meet her sister until she becomes strong enough. Arnin also ''promises'' to make her sisters life easy. Canae agrees and focuses completely on increasing her strength. Little does she know that her sister, Sinfallel, is actually being used by Arnin for experiments. It is in his own private home, so no one knows. Arnin does real experiments on her, like testing different medicines and also testing out his powers on her. However, Arnin has a real goal in his long term experiment. To add more orbs into the human body. With one orb absorbing essence to increase his strength, Arnin wants to know whether he could have multiple orbs in the body and completely replace the organs. If he could have an orb replacing a heart, and actually make it function, he could become much stronger and also make his body double the power of his elements by creating elemental seeds in each orb and have them specifically focus on it. To do this experiment, Arnin begins to kidnap outer disciples without catching anyone''s attention. He dissects their orbs out and implants them into Sinfallel. The first few times it fails and the orbs just don''t work with her body. These experiments go on throughout the whole Thorn Academy arc. Other then that, Arnin keeps lowkey and focuses on cultivating. He wants to increase his strength, train Canae and also do his experiments. A month goes by like this (events of course happen, but I won''t go into detail). He meets the Headmistress and Fae one day. They want him to go back to Lepidoptera Academy as their academies spy since people already know of him there and only a few people know about him being chased out and almost killed. Arnin only agrees when he told that the top echelon (kelnorin, the principal, a few reclusive elders, and many Moth elders) are heading out to fight for a new dimension that was discovered. Of course the top echelon of the Thorn Academy is also going to fight for the dimension because it has many resources that are important to them. Before Heading out, Arnin prepares Canae''s proper training plan and also hides all his experiments. HIs master gives him a saber before departing with the rest to fight for the dimension. This would be the end of Book 2. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Book 3 would start again with Lepidoptera academy. Arnin acts like nothing happened and explains to many people (his slave/servant, the two sisters, and his first commanders (fat guy) Akig) that he was seclusion. They all believe him because of his rise in realms. Arnin notices that Akig is actually much stronger than when he left, Orb Birth - Hell, while his beast powers were equivalent to a Rank 1 Beast (just gonna call demonic beasts and Essence beasts as beasts for simplicity). This was shocking. (Akig is in the alchemy dimension during this time, so is Arnin). Arnin decides that it is time to begin the next step in training Akig. He goes out the alchemy dimension and brings Akig''s three friends (again a lot of excluded and conflicts that arise to get them, but in the end, he gets them and loses nothing). Akig is going to train with his three friends, at least that is what he thinks. His friends don''t know a thing about Akig being a hybrid, all they care about is getting the so-called ''private'' training. During this training, Arnin basically indirectly causes the death of Akig''s friends deaths (most brutal way possible) by using Akig''s hands. Of course, Akig doesn''t know that Arnin has a hand behind this. At the same time, Arnin begins the creation of the bloodline pill by sacrificing Vilis (not vilis! Nooo). Vilis couldn''t struggle because he was killed by Arnin secretly (Arnin couldn''t fight him directly because Vilis followed Arnin voluntarily and was not his real tamed beast. Plus Vilis ends up evolving to Rank 2 - Sky) Arnin creates the pill and places it inside the body of the last remaining friend. This time, Akig is already mentally broken down because of his two friends deaths. However, the benefits are that his beast strength and normal strength are alot higher. (Essence Manifest - Earth, and Rank 1 - Sky strength) He finally kills his last friend (again caused by Arnin indirectly) and he swallows the bloodline pill, completely turning into a hybrid and awakening his tiger blood. His transformation is kind of crazy as he becomes able to transform into a tiger (albeit smaller then Vilis) and also back into a human. He is also able to become a half human - half tiger. (cool sh*t) This process takes three months. During these three months, Arnin is also doing many other things. Lilise and Elidia are looked after of course because of the contract, but Arnin is also collecting different information from the academy. He learns new things such as how many cities and towns are supporting Lepidoptera. Quick thing: Xillar is in seclusion after Arnin escaped. He doesn''t know Arnin is back, just so you all know. But yea, Arnin is collecting information and stuff, while also making lots of academic points by selling pills and cultivation stones. He converts most of the points into coins and real currency. Arnin also enters Essence Manifest - Sky during this time. He is not totally focusing on increasing realm, rather he is trying to consolidate his realm. All the information he gets is kept and only a few things are told to Thorn academy. He has his own plans. Later on, Arnin learns that his parents visited Lepidoptera academy while he was at thorn academy. He takes this into account and understands that they are headed to the central city. Arnin continues to gather information on Lepidoptera and continues to strengthen Akig and himself. What Thorn Academy doesn''t know is that Arnin is spreading information about them as well to the remaining higher ups secretly. (he learns all of this before heading to Lepidoptera) Another few months go by and the time for the bet is nowhere. Arnin meets with the Moth teacher known as Zesiro and duels on pill making. She is a higher level than him, but Arnin ties with her in the end. Although she makes a better pill, Arnin ''creates'' a new pill that is much more useful (this pill is a good one from his past life). The bet ends with no one gaining anything, but surprisingly Arnin apologizes to Zesiro for his past actions and says that he has thought long and hard and he knows he was in the wrong. Caught by surprise, Zesiro doesn''t really know what to do but tells him to apologize to her young miss. Arnin obliges and does just that. Little does she know Arnin has a plan behind all of this. benefiting himself greatly. Arnin meets the young miss he beat up and apologizes profusely. The girl accepts it in the end, and they both slowly become friends. (process takes a while, but eventually Arnin wins her over). Arnin is now six and considered somewhat of a prodigy in the academy which him being at Essence Manifest - Hell (he breaks through and begins to rapidly grow in strength.) Arnin then looks for the first person to ever humiliate him in Afloria (the guy who was in Elemental Formation and kind of threw him out). Arnin privately finds him and asks to duel with him. If Arnin wins, the boy has to do one thing for him, while if he loses, Arnin will become his dog. Arnin fights the guy and beats him, but surprisingly it is not brutal. Arnin makes sure to give him little to no injuries. Arnin requests the guy something and then the guy disappears to get that task done. Students are now allowed to go back to their homes to visit for two weeks. Arnin meets Lilise and Elidia''s parents for the first time. He finds out that they are actually at Elemental Formation - Earth each. Lilise praises him greatly, while Elidia keeps quiet. He makes sure to seem like a good child and they take their leave, of course, the father leaves his contact info behind for Arnin. Akig''s family comes to pick him up as well, they see that he has changed a lot, but the oldest man seems more happy to see the change. Arnin meets with Akig''s grandpa and asks about the whole tiger situation. The old man is surprised but tells Arnin some things. He thanks him for helping and caring for Akig, before departing. Arnin tells the old man something before he leaves, which makes the old man leave with Akig with a heavy expression. After settling this, the girl Arnin previously beat up and apologized to, Monifa, also leaves after bidding Arnin farewell. As for his two slaves/servants, they don''t really need to go home since their family is too far. After everyone leaves, he gets a message that he is being called back to Thorn Academy. A storm is brewing in the back that only the top echelon of each academy know about. Arnin finds it amusing and he heads back. End of Book 3 -------------------------------------------------------- Book 4 (Extremely long and lots happen) starts in Thorn Academy. Arnin gets rid of all evidence related to his experiments but keeps Sinfallel alive for a plan. Arnin tells Canae to do a task for him in a certain location. He tells her to go to a certain place and wait for him if she completes it early. He will let her meet her sister there. Canae agrees and leaves the academy. Arnin meets with Fae, Kocyte, and the Headmistress. They make him tell them what he learned so far and he does (of course he leaves some vital information, but tells them some important things in order not to make them suspicious). He learns that Thorn Academy got the dimension, but a huge battle happened and they lost a few masked elders. Many elders in Lepidoptera were also killed. Things become tense between both academies. A week later, the headmistress goes to one of the major supporters of Lepidoptera Academy and wins them over, while destroying a few of the smaller supporters of Lepidoptera academy. (When I mean supporters, I mean people who send resources, money, and also fresh blood (people)) Lepidoptera strikes back by destroying a few supporters of Thorn Academy (which Arnin informed them about, hehe) The headmistress gets mad but doesn''t do anything rash. Another week goes on with these conflicts occurring. Later, the news is released about a certain item being found near the border between Thorn Academy and Lepidoptera Academy. (this border is more like the edge of their control) A few disciples are sent out, including Arnin''s senior disciple (the Tiny World realm one). News return that there was an ambush and everyone was slaughtered. Kocyte goes crazy and finds out it was done by disciples from Lepidoptera. He finds those disciples and massacres them and their families. Lepidoptera learns of this and sends their own elders to find and destroy any Thorn Academy disciples. Storm grows. Both sides already beginning major conflict in each others territory. Disciples begin dying from each side. Arnin sends out Sinfallel to a place near Canae and spreads a rumor. Thorn Academy disciples follow the rumor and in the end kill Sinfallel. Canae finds out and rages. Arnin meets Canae and promises her to help her seek revenge if she vows to follow him from then on. She agrees. Arnin gives her another task to do and she agrees reluctantly. With her gone, Arnin takes his plan to the next phase. He goes back to the academy and asks to go to the dimension that was taken by Thorn Academy. The headmistress agrees and assigns two Tiny World cultivators with him. Many of Arnin''s fellow disciples (as in Kocytes disciples), and even the Ice/fire guy are told to go as well. They are teleported there, but right when they enter the realm, they find themselves surrounded by people from Lepidoptera academy. There are four Tiny World realmed cultivators and dozens of Elemental Formation realmed ones. A huge battle ensues, and Kocyte rushes to the dimension when he notices something wrong. Entering the dimension, he finds half the disciples dead. Only one of the Tiny World cultivators from Thorn Academy is alive, while two from the other are dead. Kocyte goes crazy again and goes to slaughter the remaining Lepidoptera academy disciples. He is only able to kill one of the Tiny World cultivators before an equally strong elder stops and begins to fight him. The two elders fight while the disciples also fight. Both elders receive gruesome wounds. Arnin helps to kill the Tiny World cultivator from Lepidoptera and then tells his fellow Tiny World disciple to go and support Kocyte. Kocyte eventually kills the elder, but he is on the brink of death and the Tiny World cultivator who helped him is also dead. He asks Arnin to give him a pill from his ring. Arnin agrees and feeds him a pill. Kocyte closes his eyes and absorbs it and finds that it is not a healing pill, rather it is poison. He curses Arnin and goes to attack him, but Arnin sees this coming and dodges easily. Arnin explains that everything that has happened so far was incited by him spreading false and real information. Even the ambush in the dimension was because of him informing the other side beforehand. Seeing Arnin kill Kocyte, the ice/fire guy panics. Arnin doesn''t slaughter him right away, rather he does something else. Because of his many experiments related to the implantation of orbs, he knows how to store orbs without making them dissipate or break. Arnin takes the ice/fire guys orb and kills him. Kocyte''s orb was too strong for him to take so it is just left. He steals Kocytes ring and stores everything inside. He then swallows it to hide it. Arnin sends news back to Thorn academy that a problem occurred in the dimension. He knocks then falls unconscious. Arnin wakes up back in the academy and finds himself being questioned by everyone about what happened. He explains that they were ambushed and that the news was somehow leaked. He puts blame on ice/fire guy by showing wounds he received from him. Headmistress and Fae are suspicious, but they feel angrier. They declare war on Lepidoptera. A month goes by and Arnin finally ''recovers''. Preparations are complete and the war begins. Both sides meet at the border. Each send their strongest and begin fighting. The headmistress fights the principal, while Fae fights Kelnorin. It is mid into the battle and both sides have greatly lost. Arnin has killed lots of people and stolen many orbs without others knowing from both sides. Arnin fights and gets closer to the place where high-level cultivators are. He sneaks attack injured ones and barely escapes each time. Soon, he finds that his rep in battle is huge, and people are referring to him as the Demonic Joker once again. Fast forward, elders have died from both sides. Right now it is even. There are lots of Death Moth Students from Lepidoptera. (These are the students who were brainwashed and forced to become soldiers unafraid of death by the principal.) Headmistress and the Principal get to their most heated moment. Each equally strong. Arnin gets closer and uses his eye ability to slow down time around the Principal. With this window of opportunity, Headmistress attacks and gives her enemy a fatal wound. All elders notice this and freak out, each with their own reasons. Thorn Academy elders cheer, while their enemies panic. Some of the smart elders, including Fae and Kelnorin, notice that Arnin was close to the two strongest people and that his eyes were bleeding. They know right away that he did something. The Lepidoptera elders go crazy and try to kill Arnin, but are blocked by the Thorn elders. The fighting gets worse and more losses to occur on Thorns side because of their protective stance. Arnin smiles at the scene. He then continues to watch the fighting. He uses his move once more, but this time on the headmistress. No one notices this as it was something they would never expect. The headmistress is fatally wounded, but the principal is already almost dead. Both people fight and then plan to give up and stop, but Arnin does something to prevent this. He uses his ability once more, (this is his last time cause it is way too strainful). He stops time around Kelnorin and screams at both fae and the headmistress to attack. They do just that and Kelnorin falls. Seeing his right hand fall, the principal doesn''t stop and attacks weaker elders. The battlefield goes wild once more. Arnin ignores this and travels to where Kelnorin fell. He finally finds the body and steals the elder''s ring. He can''t take the orb because he is too weak. The battles reach its end with all elders dead, and the headmistress fighting the principal all alone. They both stab each other (hard to explain the battle but both kill each other basically). Arnin runs and finds the breathing Fae on the ground. She asks for his help, but Arnin walks over and strips her clean. He looks at her naked body and finds a weird, yet demonic tattoo on her bellybutton. Fae is worried and somewhat freaked. Arnin then begins to tell her about himself and the reason behind the war that never should have happened. Fae panics when she finds out the truth. Arnin restrains her by drawing something on her bellybutton. She becomes fully restrained. She asks what happened and Arnin explains that her body is the rarest in the whole universe. He tells her that he had met only one other person with such a body and he wanted to acquire the powers of it, but she died too early. She asks how he knew, and he says because of the lullaby she sang. It was only known to the user of the body type, and he was one of the only people who knew the lullaby since he met that person in the past. Fae learns that her body is called the Bloody Rose Physique, a part of the Universe Defection Bodies. He tells her that he had seen the Blue Cloud Physique in the past. These physqies gave one crazy strength and power from outside the universe itself. It was the only body type which could absorb the power from outside any universe and break the laws in the world. If one absorbs the body, then they could gain such powers. They could begin going on the path that no one ever has. Arnin then tells her that people which physiques could never live past the age of five hundred, and that no one has ever absorbed the body in the past. It was just too rare, even in the other worlds. Fae asks how the absorption is done, and Arnin smiles at her questions and begins to tears her skin and flesh. He devoured it bit by bit as her screams echo everywhere. After cannibalizing Fae and also eating her orb (which is a little different from normal orbs) Arnin''s power rampages. His eyes release a purple light and begin to change slightly. One of them remains purple, while the other becomes golden. After the eyes transform, Arnin finds his white saber also go through a metamorphosis. It begins to turn pure white while strands of purple and golden attach to the smoke coming from it. The saber then splits and becomes a purply golden saber. Arnin throws up the new saber and the ring he swallowed before. He finds that the new saber is bound to him just like his white saber. It suddenly turns into a tattoo and appears on his arm. Arnin is shocked but discovers that the saber would turn into a physical entity at his very thought. He just needed to think and it would appear in his hand in the full purply gold form. Arnin wore the ring he threw up and then felt a heat rise in his body. He looked up as his energy began to grow. Essence Manifest - Heaven! He broke through. He then hears a crack and his Elemental Seeds all turn into plants that go into the orb. Elemental Formation - Earth! He breaks through again and stops. The tattoos on his head also begin to shine. His hair grows and slowly his body as well. He doesn''t turn into an adult but just grows slightly in height while his hair also becomes much longer. The tattoos disappear and three small horns appear on his forehead. He is able to make them appear or disappear at will. His transformation ends, and he finally leaves the battlefield, stepping on each corpse, crushing skulls and alike. This is the End of book four, which is one of the longest ones. I might have split it into two parts, but right now imma put it all in one. A lot would have happened. Arnin''s eyes changed again, he ate Fae (?!), his tattoos turn into horns which disappear and appear at will, the two academies are destroyed, and he became much stronger. I will upload the next part of the summary later. Sorry again for the ending of the book, but hopefully these summaries are able to somewhat make it better (probs not though) 2 Lord Arnin and the Cloud Sovereign Silence resounded in the suffocatingly cold void. White and black appeared in small patches, placed randomly around, yet still focused on small areas. Lights flickered above the directionless space, or atleast above the two individuals many hundred meters apart. "You call yourself the Cloud Sovereign? The one that old man was trying to hide from me?" With these questions, the space became clear of all white and black, leaving only two people. Golden eyes with a hint of purple rings, long black hair tied into a lavish ponytail, a slender build, with a tranquil aura; these were the features present in the eyes of the man that had just spoken. "It doesn''t matter what people call me, I don''t care about all of that. You killed so many people, caused so much panic, and didn''t regard life as... life..." The man referred to as the Cloud Sovereign spoke with a frown, yet his tranquil aura never escaped him, even with the lack of tranquility on his face. "You don''t care about what I did, you only care about how it is affecting you. Don''t act righteously in front of me, I know you well, Celius Illeaf." A smirk formed on his light bronze face. His deep, amethyst eyes, glinting with a hint of craze, stared at the man in front him. Lifting his hand, he rubbed his nape while using his other hand to rub the hilt of his simple sword. "That old man thought he was hiding you, but how could anything be hidden from me in the multitude of universes? How could that even be a possibility? Think about it, you''re smarter than that." Lord Arnin, the strongest, most vile being in the multitude of universes. His reputation was vast, known to almost every creature of all shapes and forms. Slaying millions of Originals singlehandedly, being the evil dictator for all beings. He was the most hated and feared being to ever exist. "I agree with that." Celius was alert and cautious, yet there was no fear in his expression. "I don''t care what you do or will do, nothing concerns me... except the well being of my family." A white fog filled with black lightening began to hover around him. "You harmed them and now they''re gone, for that, I will rid this world of the reign of Arnin." His voice was low, almost growling. His eyes sparkled with a golden light, yet Arnin had no reaction. He didn''t move from his spot nor did he make any sudden movements, he just looked at Celius with a bland smile. "Maybe I was wrong, you might really be an idiot." He suddenly snapped his fingers and a black throne like seat, appeared behind him. On the top, skulls hung like a necklace, yet there was something peculiar about the skulls. Arnin motioned for the middle skull, which appeared on his palm. "This is the skull of the strongest Human Original. Now this man, he was truly a strong fellow." Arnin hand his fingers holding the skull from the eye sockets as he tossed it up and caught in the same position. "Before me, he could be considered the ruler of the multitude universes, right? From our fight, I noticed that his Origin was similar to what you show right now. Still, I killed him and here I am, in his place. You would think that I would have tried to develop my Origin a lot more after what happened in that battle, but the fact is..." Arnin suddenly threw the skull towards Celius, who caught it carefully. The Human Sovereign was a respected individual, the ruler of all Humans, alteast before his death. Sitting causally on his seat, a dark purple aura began to surround him, causing the void to tremble. "T-this..." Celius looked at Arnin with an expression of disbelief, yet a bit of hope appeared in his eyes. Seeing this, Arnin smirked. "You must be thinking why my Origin is so low? Maybe you stand a chance?" He didn''t get up from his seat, he just stared at Celius. "The truth is, I kept my Origin low, I wanted to see whether you could a greater opponent then the Human Sovereign. I gave you the chance to grow and become stronger. You currently have about a hundred or so times more condensed Origin, which should mean you could wipe the floor with me." Getting up from his seat, he pulled the sword from his wast and casually placed it on his shoulder. "If this is what is going on in your head, let me show you why I''m called Lord Arnin." With a smirk, he vanished from his spot. Celius''s eyes suddenly dilated as he felt something cold touch his forehead. 3 Comeback of The Dark Demon Lord? Red lights flickered with great intensity. Yellow flashed through the sky, piercing through the gloominess enveloping everything in the surroundings. Mountains roared painfully as they began to collapse into rubble, causing destruction to the various creatures below. Clouds swirled into nothingness. The world shook. \t"Lord, these enemies, we can''t gauge their power. They are too powerful. Just a swing from their scythes is destroying everything. We need you to step out, Lord." The world outside was in turmoil; chaos spreading like fire in oil. Yet, within a grand hall, filled with green lanterns and ebony crystals, everything was still. It was unaffected by the outside. In the centre of this hall was a kneeling creature. It resembled a human from afar, but upclose, it was anything but. A pair of wings wrapped around its body, with a single horn piercing through its head. His skin was grey like coal, yet also resembled metal. His ears were nonexistent, rather scales covered the area where his ears should have been. Truly, something non human, yet even in human terms, it could not be considered hideous. "This battle is not something that could be won, even with my power." Other than this creature, something else was present in the room. It was something large, much more the kneeling creature. It didn''t have wings, or rather not anymore. They were torn and shredded. A red pattern raced through its body, seemingly brimming with a mysterious aura, yet completely contained. Its eyes were a pale red while it had three horns protruding from its head. Each horn released a jet black smoke, thick enough to be felt. "Lord, with your power, this battle can be won with ease. You are the most powerful akathartos in this whole Universe! You reign over the whole Universe as the Akathartos Lord, with everything and everyone quivering at the mention of your name. These enemies may be strong, but they are nothing next to your greatness!" The creature spoke genuinely, not trying to bootlick or anything alike. His voice grew with excitement as he spoke more of the glory of his Lord. "Hehe." The Lord looked up towards the ceiling of the hall. His face still showed calmness, yet a glint flashed through his red eyes, turning them into a deep crimson. "Most powerful akathartos? Everyone shakes at your name? How laughable!" The hall trembled as the voice echoed through. The creature kneeling began to spasm under the sound. "Calm your mind." With just a wave of his hand, the Lord brought the kneeling creature towards him and calmed his body. "My servant, you have served well these years, so let me rid you of any more pain." Suddenly, the Lord''s eyes brightened for an instant, yet at that moment, the servant''s body began to burn like paper, however there was no sound. No fear, no painful shriek, it was a silent and eerie death. "So cold to your own people? This is the so-called ruler of the Universe?" The voice sounded again, with a strong sense of mockery in its tone. "Of course, only in this small Universe can you dare call yourself the ruler. A small place like this is truly not worth my time. I don''t understand why those old bastards sent me here. You have some strenght, but it isn''t enough to cause us any problem." "If you have come to only speak, then do so elsewhere, you are not worth my time. Call out those old bastards protecting you, only they can cause me some harm." The Lord turned around and sat on a majestic seat. "Haha! A puny akathartos like you dares to speak to me like this?! You are a worthless race, degenerates! Your blood is dirty, your soul is impure. How dare you speak to a Kolasi member with such disrespect!" A howl shook the room, the lanterns flickered before completely darkening the room. "Your kind disgusts me. Mating and creating such a disgusting race, tainting the world with your -unclean- selves." His voice hid nothing of his hate towards the Lord''s race. "Alright, that is enough." Suddenly, a deeper, much more collected sound appeared in the room. This time, the Lord didn''t show the uncare he had before, rather the red in his eyes erupted like a volcano as he slowly pulled out an inky saber from thin air. It had a small curve and the hilt was not soft, rather it was the blade itself. "You have finally decided to come out. Where are the rest, I know there are three more with you." The Lord spoke slowly, yet his face didn''t show the previous calm, rather a smile appeared on his face. Something wicked was in his smile. "Let the three come out and all four of you fight me together! I will take a few of you with me atleast!" A psychoticness was contained within the voice of the Lord. It contrasted completely with his calm demeanor presented before. "Lord Arnin, the strongest Akathartos is truly a title befitting you. Even from where we come, your power can only be considered deadly, approaching those of the Kolasi, Vir, and Paradeisos high members." The old voice seemed calm, yet a dreadful aura began to fill the room. "Although we Kolasi members are not worried about you, the Kolasi Original fears the potential that is bottled within you. So, Lord Arnin, we must eradicate you." With that, everything suddenly silenced, but the Lord vanished from his spot. The room was like still water, yet what was happening underneath all the water was dreadful.