《The Arrayist》 Chapter 1: Teo Char [Author''s note: these chapters are rough draft unless indicated otherwise. A newer and revised versions of the chapters will slowly be added at my site if anyone wish to read from there. It supports mobile as well] Chapter 1: Teo Char Within a mysterious realm, a simple and quiet cottage stood. A middle-aged man sat on the front porch of the cottage while holding a small white cup. He had long crimson red hair with blonde streaks. A solemn air was around him as his eyes were gazing out towards the world. While taking a small sip from his cup a silhouette appeared from the entrance of the cottage. This figure was of a male that looks about 30 years old. His short azure blue hair drifted slightly by a light breeze that flowed by. ¡°Second brother, do you know where big brother went? I have been searching for him for a while now but I couldn''t find him¡± The middle aged man who sat on the porch averted his gaze for a brief moment and turned towards the azure blue haired man. His crimson eyebrows relaxed and a calm smile appeared. ¡°Third brother, big brother told me that he will be out for a while. He went down to play with the mortals¡± After replying he continued on gazing his eyes to the distance. ¡°Big brother sure has weird hobbies¡±, the third brother said. ¡­. Yuran Plane A plane filled with mortal beings. In the Western side of the continent placed small yet prosperous Empire, Avanald Empire. Within the Avanald Empire, a small town village called Char Village. The village was situated in a grassy and fertile plain that was close to a small forest. The town was a farmland village, that grew crops and herded animals. On a peaceful day where the sky was blue and the clouds were high. A group of people was standing around the entrance of one wooden house, looking towards the door. Some praying to the gods while others softly gossiping of the event. ¡°AHHH!¡± A scream coming from the inside, the voice was so loud that it could be heard from the outside. Within a room in the house, an anxious father was staring at his wife as he held her hand. The village doctor and a hired midwife were busy delivering the baby that was coming out. ¡°AHHH!!¡± After many grunts and screams from the mother, a loud cry could finally be heard. A baby was born! The exhausted mother finally relaxed as she heard the cries of her child. Her grip on her husband''s hand loosen and she looked towards the baby that was being cleaned and wiped. The midwife took the clean baby and handed it to the father''s ¡°Look Fei, it''s our son!¡± The husband was ecstatic although he was just anxious and frighten a few moments before, it was instantly replaced with joy and glee as he held his son. The exhausted wife smile and took her son and held him gently. ¡°What should we name him Talwin?¡± she asked ¡°Let''s name him.. Teo¡± ¡­. 2 years later A black haired kid ran out of the house, jumping around with his bag as he turned towards the entrance of the house. ¡°Uncle let''s hurry¡± ¡°Hold on Aran, hold on¡± A tall dark skinned man smiled at the eager youth as he exited the house. He turned behind him and Talwin and Fei came out following them. ¡°Brother Ishwin, please take care of Aran with his divination rite¡± ¡°Ha ha, don''t worry and leave everything to me¡± Fei walked towards the eager youth and hugged him tightly. ¡°I can''t believe you are already 10, mother will miss you very much¡± Aran hugged his mother as well and gave her a kiss on the cheeks ¡°I will miss mom too¡± Talwin approached Aran as well and rubbed his head ¡°Focus on your studies.¡± he said ¡°Don''t worry, He''s a smart boy¡±, Ishwin said. ¡°We''ll head to the town hall first so he can take his divination rite, then we''ll head directly to the academy¡± Ishwin continued A little girl carrying the 2-year-old Teo came out of the house as well. ¡°Big brother, do your best!¡± she said ¡°Don''t worry little sister Rowen, I will¡± Both Ishwin and Aran started walking towards the town hall. ¡­ Another 3 years passed The little baby Teo was now 5 years old. He sat on the floor as he held a small book open. It was a children''s book that Talwin recently bought for him. As a child, his parents would often read to him and would teach him how to read as well. Both his older siblings, Aran and Rowen, were all literate as well. Teo became enamored with reading his favorite story about a turtle and a tiger. He loved the story so much that he read the story over and over. He would never get tired of reading such stories. Teo did not grow up like the other children in the village. He would prefer to stay inside the house and read books, instead of going outside to play. He would read the books his father bought him, and even the old books that his older siblings used. The only person he would go out and play with was his elder sister Rowen, but last year she also had to take her divination rite. The divination rite was taken yearly by children who turned 10. After taking it, they would be sent off to study at the closest city''s academy for 10 years. They could not return until they were 20. With his siblings gone, when his parents went out to work, he could only stay home alone by himself. Sometimes the neighbors would check in on him but would spend most of his time reading. Teo''s family was not poor but was also not rich. His father, Talwin, worked as a clerk for a village merchant. His mother, Fei, worked as an assistant to the village''s apothecarist Talwin and Fei initially accepted Teo''s interest in reading. In fact, they even encouraged him at the start, but they grew concerned with his lack of interest to go out and play. Children who played outside were always seen as healthy kids and the kids that stayed indoors were usually very sickly. They planned on motivating Teo to play outside with the others by getting him adventure books; stories of battles, treasures, and legendary adventures. The plan failed quite miserably and made Teo stay inside even more. With the new books he got, he read and re-read as if he could never get bored of it. He would even read documents and books that were not meant for someone as young as he was. When Teo turned 7, his parents finally gave up their plan and looked for Ishwin to help. Ishwin was concerned for his nephew and decided to help. Ishwin was one of the village guards that was responsible for maintaining the security of the town. He took Teo to live within the town''s dojo for 2 years. Although Teo had to live in the dojo, as the village was relatively small, it was fairly close to his house. The dojo was the place where the village guards practiced and exercised. Ishwin hoped that the environment would help Teo to become more active. He would often give Teo orders and Teo would obediently follow them. The exercises Teo had to do was relatively simple and was appropriate for his age. When his uncle left the dojo to do his duties and patrol the town, Teo would often sneak into a room within the dojo that contained different kids'' of books. The books varied in topics; from martial arts, exercises, basic stances and poses, medical treatment and many others. Teo finally returned back home when he turned 9. Compared to before, he was healthier than the average kids in the village but given a choice, he would still prefer to stay indoors. Noticing this, Talwin locked up all the books in the house. He only allowed Teo to be able to read these books only if Teo spends at least 2 hours outside. Besides being healthy, it was good for Teo to learn how to socialize with the other kids. The area around the village was relatively safe. Although there was a small forest nearby, no dangerous animals were ever found there throughout many years. Unauthorized tale usage: if you spot this story on Amazon, report the violation. ¡­. Teo went outside the very next day. As he walked along the road, he saw other kids playing together but Teo did not get close. ¡°Look it''s that kid Teo¡±, said a girl within the group ¡°Teo?¡±, another asked They heard of Teo, and some even met him once, but never really played with him before. Teo continued walking and ignored the other kids. All he wanted to do was explore around the edge of town as 2 hours expired. He found himself near the mouth of the small forest. There were many flat rocks nearby and it was a new place for him. He sat down on one of the larger rocks and picked up a dried tree branch and drew on the ground. His thoughts led to his sister Rowen Besides his parents and uncle, she was the only one close to Teo. As for his brother Aran, he couldn''t even remember him. His parents often received letters from his older brother. From those letters, he heard some stories about the academy. Apparently, the academy had a building called the library, which was filled with many different books. As a kid, he had one simple dream. To read all the books in that library. Since he kept reading the books at home repeatedly, he eventually memorized all of them. They were mostly children''s books but even so, because of this his reading speed was abnormally faster than other kids. The stories he read gave him joy and other instructional books piqued his interest ¡­. The clouds were high and the winds blew strong. The 2 hours was almost up. Teo got up and started walking back but noticed an old well among the scattered rocks. His curiosity grew and walked along a path that interested near the old well. Teo peeked inside the old well and saw that it was filled with rocks and old wood. The bottom of the well could no longer be seen as but Teo noticed a very thick book underneath a rock. The book looked old and a lot of dust covered its cover. Seeing the book, Teo climbed down the well. The depth was not too deep as the old well was filled with many large rocks so Teo easily climbed down. He tried to push the rock off the book but it was very heavy. As he was pushing the rock suddenly moved. A snake head-like figure came out of one of the holes of the rock. Four feet also popped underneath and a tiny tail also appeared from behind it. Teo''s eyes turned wide. It was a turtle! It was the first time he saw an actual turtle. Within the village, there were man animals but most of them were domesticated or farmed. Dogs were domesticated and trained to guard, herd or hunt. Different breeds of birds were used to send messages for long distance communication. Chickens, pigs, and cows were farmed for food. Turtles were rarely seen in town. Teo suddenly grabbed the turtle and petted its head. He truly liked turtles because his favorite story was about a turtle and a tiger. The turtle stared directly at Teo as it was being petted A voice came out from an unknown source ¡°Kid, can you stop that¡± Teo looked around but did not see anyone. He then turned and stared at the turtle ¡°You can talk?¡± Teo asked ¡°Of course I can, now stop petting me¡± Teo stopped and sat right in front of the turtle ¡°I didn''t know animals can talk¡± Teo''s eyes were full of curiosity ¡°They can''t. I''m no ordinary turtle though¡± He looked proud but also looked very drowsy ¡°I was taking a nap and you woke me, I assume it''s because of my book¡± the turtle continued ¡°Can I borrow it?¡± Teo was looking at the dusty old book. It looked like it hasn''t been opened for a very long time. ¡°Do you even know what this book is about? I doubt you can even understand it even if you read it¡± ¡°Of course I can understand it¡± Teo proudly declared Teo was very proud of the fact that he could read books other children his own age could not. He would often read books and when he did not understand something, he would read it repeatedly and try to understand it on his own. If he couldn''t understand it, he would ask other people to explain it, but eventually, he would understand it ¡°Hmm...¡± The turtle was filled with skepticism ¡°Well then, let''s make a bet. I''ll let you read the first 10 pages, if you can understand a bit of it, I''ll lend it to you for a bit¡± Teo took the book and started reading. The book was fairly thick and dusty but although it looked old, the pages inside were in perfect condition. The contents of the first 10 pages briefly talked about various shapes and symbols, then after that, it talked about linking the symbols together through other patterns. This was the basic introductions of the book. Teo kept read these 10 pages over and over again and after a while he turned towards the turtle and said: ¡°Can I read more?¡± ¡°Do you understand it?¡± ¡°A bit, it''s about drawing shapes¡± Teo replied The turtle showed a disappointed look but continued to ask ¡°Anything else?¡± Although the answer was not wrong, it was the very basic and did not show any understanding of the pages ¡°Umm..¡± Teo started thinking. He knew that the turtle wouldn''t let him continue reading with just the answer he recently gave. He became desperate, it was the thickest book he had ever seen. He kept thinking hard, trying to analyze if there was any deeper meaning within the first 10 pages. Then a sudden inspiration came to him! He recalled one of the books within the dojo. The book contained different forms, stances, and patterns of attack. According to the book, each form and stance allowed different kinds of paths that energy could flow through. Although he remembered what it said, he didn''t actually know what flow of energy it was talking about, but it had some similarities with the shapes and symbols mentioned on the first 10 pages. ¡°The shapes and symbols are for different flow of energy¡± Teo declared Although he sounded confident, in reality, he was merely guessing An astonished look appeared on the turtle''s face. It was indeed about the flow of energy! Or to be precise, the book was about arrays which manipulated the flow of energies How could a 9-year-old child extract that from the first 10 pages? It was even difficult for an older youth to deduce that with just 10 pages! ''Could this youth have such talent?'' the turtle pondered ¡°You are pretty bright aren''t you?¡± the turtle smiled ¡°Okay, I''ll let you read it, but you can''t take it with you. You have to come here to read it¡± Teo became excited and quickly started reading it again from the first page. The turtle watched him for a few minutes then receded back into its shell. ¡­. Time passed and it was already dark. Teo had never been out this long and Talwin and Fei became worried. It became too dark within the well and soon Teo could no longer continue reading. He decided to stop and head home ¡°Mr turtle, I''ll come back again¡± ¡°The names not ''Mr. turtle'', its ''Cien''¡± ¡°Okay Mister Cien, I''ll see you tomorrow¡± Teo climbed back up from the well and rushed home When he arrived, Talwin and Fei was finally relieved. They thought that something happened to Teo but fortunately, he was just fine. Although they were curious as to why he was so late, they did not question him. They were happy that he was out of the house. Children needed to play outside to become healthy. [Authors Note: Second Revision, added more detail and some corrections. Please tell me if you find anything wrong with the grammar, spelling, logic. Thanks in advance] Chapter 2: The World within the Shell Chapter 2: The World within the Shell A year passed Since the day Teo met the turtle Cien, everyday Teo would visit to read the array book. He would often leave the house as soon as he ate breakfast, then come back home right before dinner. Talwin and Fei were glad about Teo''s new habit. Teo would maintain his health and maybe even make new friends but most importantly, they finally got some alone time while Teo was out of the house. For the past year, Teo had continued reading the array book. He would''ve probably finished the whole book by now but after the first 10 pages, the book became more complex. Teo didn''t want to continue reading until he understood at least 80% of it, but with the complexity of the book, it became all gibberish. It was unlike any books that he had read before, so he wanted to completely understand each section of the book. He would often ask his parents or uncle if he could not understand something. He would''ve asked the turtle Cien questions but the turtle refused to help and said ¡°If you can understand the first quarter of the book without my help, I''ll help answer your questions after that¡± As such, Teo''s progress became extremely slow. He would often come across words that were so difficult to decipher that even his own parents could not answer. He started running around town asking many different adults and became known as the ¡°kid who asked difficult questions¡±. His parents eventually introduced him to an old man named Wirn. Wirn was the village''s wisest person. Although there was no library in town, Wirn had the largest collection of books within the whole village. He even started writing some stories of his own. He was originally born in the village but after he graduated from the academy, he traveled outside the empire to many different lands and eventually returned to the village when he became too old to travel ¡­. Within the old well, Teo stopped his reading. It was almost time for him to return home but was hesitant to go right away. ¡°Mister Cien, I won''t be able to come here anymore¡±, Teo said with a depressed tone. ¡°Giving up already?¡± Cien chuckled Teo shook his head and replied ¡°No, I have to go take my divination rite tomorrow. I won''t be coming back home for 10 years¡± he explained ¡°Divination rite? Hmm¡­ I see¡± The turtle looked at Teo while silently thinking. His eyes suddenly flashed. After a while, he said ¡°Okay! I''ll let you read it a bit longer¡± Teo tilted his head in confusion. He knew that the old turtle had a very stingy personality, but it loved to gamble and would always keep his word. Teo knew that the turtle Cien would not give something out for free unless he wanted something in return. ¡°I''ll let you bring the book with you, but you have to bring me along as well¡± ¡°Umm.. I don''t think I''m allowed to bring a pet with me¡± ¡°A PET?!¡± The turtle was shocked. He never imagined this young kid would call him a pet. In his mind, this child was nothing more than someone to pass his time. ¡°List here kid, I am no one''s pet. If anything, you are my pet, got it?¡± Teo nodded. He could tell that the turtle became upset and was reluctant to upset it anymore. Cien soon recovered from his shock and then continued: ¡°Don''t worry, they won''t know that I''m with you. You just have to carry me around for a while. I''m being quite generous here¡± ¡°I don''t think I can carry you in secret. You.. you''re pretty heavy¡± Teo tried to say politely ¡°Don''t worry about my weight, I''ll hide within your body. And for your information, it''s only my shell that is heavy. I''m a pretty light guy¡± ''But isn''t your shell part of you?'' Teo thought inwardly. He did not speak it out loud because he was too afraid that the turtle would quickly change his mind ¡°Come, show me your hand¡± the turtle commanded Teo placed his right hand in front of the turtle then suddenly¡­ -SNAP- ¡°OUCH!¡± Teo''s finger started to bleed. The turtle bit his finger and a small bite mark could be seen. Teo was shocked! He never thought that this talking turtle was so violent The turtle Cien was licking the blood off his cheeks then looked at Teo ¡°Sorry kid, I needed some of your blood¡±, he said but he was clearly not apologetic at all ¡°This might hurt a little¡± The turtle continued and quickly his whole body started to glow a mysteriously green glow. The turtle turned into a bright green light and shot into Teo''s chest. Royal Road is the home of this novel. Visit there to read the original and support the author. The light penetrated through Teo''s body and he felt an intense pain. It was as if his chest was being carved by a knife. Fortunately, Teo fainted quickly from the intense pain ¡­. A few hours later, Teo eventually woke up The well was dark, the moon and the stars lit up the well and Teo started to recall what had happened. He could only remember being bitten but nothing afterward. Teo looked around the well. The turtle was nowhere in sight and the book was gone as well. He climbed out of the well and continued to look around but suddenly a voice rang out inside his head. ¡°Who are you looking for?¡± the voice said in a mocking tone. Teo quickly recognized the voice, it was the turtle''s voice! ¡°Mister Cien? Where are you??¡± Teo asked aloud ¡°I''m inside you¡± Cien replied ¡°Inside me?¡± ''Did I accidentally eat him?'' he thought ¡°Yes, take a look at your chest¡± Teo peeked inside his clothes and looked. There were some strange markings on his chest. It was a green tattoo of a turtle shell embedded in his skin. ¡°This...¡± ¡°This is what I meant when I said to bring me along. Since you still can''t go in by yourself, you can just mentally tell me when you want to read the book¡± ¡°Can I read it now?¡± Teo asked Suddenly, his consciousness drifted into a hazing cloud. Soon he found himself in a strange mysterious plain. He had never seen this place before, and what surprised Teo even more was that it was completely morning inside! The plain was surrounded by a chain of mountains and trees. In the center of the plain was a huge brown pagoda with green emerald roof tiles and golden accents. The pagoda was majestic and amazing. There was also a large pond and a few benches in front of the entrance to the pagoda. Teo was too overwhelmed by the sight that he did not notice the old man looking towards him. ¡°Welcome to my home" Catching Teo¡¯s attention, his eyes focused on the old man. The old man looked about 50 years old, but still had short black hair, a short but thick looking beard. ¡°Mister Cien?¡± ¡°Ha ha, how do you like my place? Pretty nice right?¡± It was more than nice! The trees were strange looking as if each leaf was a sword. The winds were cool and the sun was warm. Including the pagoda and the pond, it was all amazing. Teo had never seen such a beautiful place before. ¡°This is inside my shell, the book is right over there. You can sit on the benches and read there¡± The old man pointed and continued ¡°I¡¯ll be laying over here, if you want to get back out, you can just jump into the pond¡± After explaining, the old man headed to a hammock tied between 2 trees nearby. ¡°This is inside the shell?¡± Teo was completely amazed, he walked towards the pond and touched the water. It all felt real! He then walked towards the entrance of the pagoda. He tried to push the doors but they were unbelievably heavy. ¡°You aren¡¯t strong enough to enter my pagoda. Ha ha and besides, you need my permission to enter¡±, Cien said while his eyes were closed Teo turned to read the book but he immediately remembered that it was already midnight Teo quickly jumped into the pond. His eyes opened and found himself laying down on the ground, he quickly got up and ran back home ¡­ Talwin, Fei, and Ishwin went out and started looking for Teo. Teo had been gone so late that his parents started worrying and called Ishwin to help. Teo would always go home just in time for dinner but it was now past midnight and he still was nowhere to be found On the way back home, Teo saw that his uncle was there on the road. A look of surprise was on Ishwin¡¯s face when he found Teo Once Teo was found, Ishwin immediately notified Talwin and Fei Teo got scolded by his parents ¡°Ha ha, don¡¯t be too hard on him¡± Ishwin tried to lighten the mood ¡°He might be just nervous for tomorrow¡± Tomorrow was the day that the village held the yearly divination rite for all children of age 10 Surprisingly that night, Teo couldn¡¯t sleep a wink; he wasn¡¯t tired at all. To pass the time, Teo spent the night in the world within the shell until morning came. [Author''s Note: Revision 2] Chapter 3: Divination Rite Chapter 3: Divination Rite The following day was the day that Teo had to depart Early in the morning, Ishwin came to pick up Teo Teo carried a small sack with him, carrying only a few things and some food for the trip. The academy provided new students with living quarters, uniform and food. Students were encouraged to only bring a few items with them once they had enrolled. Looking at his son, Talwin placed his hand on Teo''s shoulder and said: "Teo, make sure to come back home right after you graduate" Fei who was close by gave Teo a huge hug "Teo write us often so mother won''t get lonely" Teo nodded his head "Don''t worry mom, I''ll write back often" Fei became quite emotional. Her last and youngest child was leaving as well. Although Aran was due to come back this year, they received a letter saying that Aran would not come home right away. Aran planned to explore the empire, perhaps even go outside the empire''s borders. Fei tried to hold back her tears, but a few still came out. "Teo, We love you. Do your best out there", she said softly. "Mother, Father, I love you guys too. Don''t worry, I''ll be back before you know it" Teo tried to cheer up his parents. Talwin did not want to show his weak side to his child so he did not shed a tear, but in his heart, he was crying worst than Fei "Don''t worry little brother, I''ll watch over Teo until we reach the academy", Ishwin said to Talwin Talwin nodded and rubbed Teo''s head. He then placed his hand on Fei''s shoulder, gesturing that it''s time to let Teo go. Fei''s hug briefly became tighter as she gave Teo a kiss on the forehead before letting go of Teo "Teo, let''s go", Ishwin said Ishwin and Teo started walking towards the town hall. Talwin and Fei could only stand there and watch their youngest son leave for the academy. The divination rite was held at the town hall. Parents were forbidden to accompany their children. This was because the results of each child have always been kept a secret from outsiders. It also prevented one parent to become jealous of the other parents. Once the result was given to the child, the child could later send their results back to their parents if they wished. .... Ishwin and Teo arrived at the town hall. There was still some time before the ritual began but there were 13 other children already there. After a long while, the ritual finally began. A total of 24 children were present to take their divination today. The number was fewer than last year''s but was still considered a lot for the small village of Char The village chief walked in front of all 24 children. With a loud and stern voice, he spoke "Today will be the annual divination rite. Since you are all now 10-years-old, we will conduct the divination rite for every single one of you. The result of the divination will decide your potential and give us a general outline of your future accomplishments" His gaze swept through each and every child within the room. "Although it will not exactly determine your future, it will help lead you towards the right direction. Remember, just because you have been blessed with high potential does not mean that you will automatically be a success in the future. You must study diligently and work hard to become successful. The same goes for everyone who is not as blessed as the others. With enough effort, you can catch up to or even overcome the others who are blessed!" After his speech, he paused for a short while "When we call you, please come to the front" An elder sat behind a huge table at the end of the room. The table contained many different colored stones. These stones were elemental stones. Each stone was of different color, each containing a different elemental essence. The elder lit up 10 candles around the stones. One candle for each stone. These candles were special candles that were used to loosen the elemental essences within the stone. The elder took a needle and grabbed the first child''s hand and then pricked it with a small needle. A drop of blood on the needle was then dropped into a small cup containing dark-colored liquid. The candles started flickering one by one. Each flame grew and shrunk into different sizes. The essence from the elemental stones flowed into the cup and a red glow of light lit up within the cup. The elder who observed the glow within the cup wrote down the result on a piece of paper. He made 2 copies and gave one to the child. He called for the next child to come up. .... Time passed and it was finally Teo''s turn Teo watched the whole process for the other students who went ahead of him and knew what to do. He stood beside the table and brought out his hand. He braced himself for the needle that was sure to come The elder took some of his blood and dropped it into the cup. The candle light grew very small and 10 different dim glows appeared within the cup! When the elder saw the 10 different glows he was instantly shocked! The other elders who were in the room also became shocked. The elder watched the cup in anticipation, but after a long wait, the lights did not glow any brighter. A face of disbelief was on all the elders'' faces. Even the village chief looked at the very strange result. A hint of disappointment could be seen in all the elders'' faces. The elder in charge of the divination wrote the results down and gave Teo a copy. Teo looked at the piece of paper and read it.
NameTeo
VillageChar
TypePure Generalist
Fire1Metal1
Water1Lightning1
Wind1Dark1
Earth1Light1
Wood1Void1
At the side, there were elders who the kids could ask if they did not know what their results were. These elders would carefully explain their results to them. Teo took his results and approached of the of elders. "A pure generalist, it is very rare", the black-robed elder said Teo became excited ''Rare means good right?'', he thought If he got a good result, he was sure that his parents and sister would be proud of him Since the majority of the children would not even have an elemental attribute, having 10 attributes was indeed rare. Seeing Teo''s excited face, the robed elder had a complicated face. -Sigh- "Although it is very rare, your growth potential is very strange. I have never heard of a ''pure'' having a growth potential of 1s." He cleared his throat as he was prepared to explain the situation in full "You see, the majority of elementalists have only 1 elemental attribute. We call these elementalists as ''specialists''. They specialize and excel at only a single elemental attribute. Like myself, I excel with fire element" "Pure generalists, or ''pures'' are elementalist who has all 10 elemental attributes, they have equal growth potential for all of their elemental attributes, a sort of ''Jack of all trades''. As I said before, it''s quite rare to have all 10 attributes, but from past records, pures should have a growth potential of exactly 3 for all 10 elements equally. This is why I said it was very strange for you to have a growth potential of only 1s" "Teo, you have to work hard and try to improve your elemental proficiency. From your results, having a growth potential with only 1s, would mean that your rate of improvement would be the slowest. Although it''s predicted to be the slowest, it does not mean you can''t improve your mastery and understanding of your elements" "Remember, growth potential does not determine your elemental mastery! Though it would be very difficult compared to having a better growth potential, theoretically, you can still master an elemental on part with someone who has a better growth potential" When Teo heard the explanation he was a little confused on what it actually meant, but seeing the expression from the black robed elder, he knew that although he was lucky to be an elementalist, his results were not that good at all. Usually, a pure could be regarded as a very rare and special talent. It could be said that most pures'' future would be bright. This, however, was not the case with Teo Pures would have equal growth potential with all of their elements, which mean that regular generalist would have higher growth potential than pures. Though it would be considered as "low", it would always be a growth potential of 3s; having a growth potential of 1s was too low. Soon, all 24 children finished their divination rites. A number of guards led the children out of the building and outside there were 2 carriages parked in front of the town hall. If you stumble upon this narrative on Amazon, it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it. "Okay everyone, get on the carriages. We''ll have to travel for 3 days straight to reach the city of Mirth .... The carriage was full of many children. Each carriage had 12 children and 2 guards within them. On Teo''s left side was a confident looking boy. He was the first kid who was called up earlier. One could easily see that this kid was trying to hide his obvious excitement. He looked at Teo and introduced himself "Hello, my name is Windle! Let''s get along" "Hi, my name is Teo" A girl on Teo''s right also introduced herself. Her hair was very short, but she had strong bright eyes "Hello, my name is Lina, but you guys can call me Lia, everyone calls me Lia" Within the carriage, different groups randomly created their own circles and talked to each other Based on their unplanned sitting arrangement, Lia, Windle, and Teo became one group "So Teo, Lia, want to share your results?" Windle said. It was clear that he wanted to brag but went about it in a subtle way. With a happy face, Windle said "I''ll start, I''m surprisingly a specialist" Lia frowned as she replied "I''m a non-elementalist" Elementalists were divided into different types. The first type was the most common. They were the ''Specialists''. Specialists were people who had only 1 elemental attribute. They were the type with the highest growth potential of all the others. Their growth potential ranged from 7 to 9 out of a 9 scale rating system. The second type was not as common, which were dual elementalist or ''Dualists''. These were people who had 2 different elemental attributes. Their growth potential were a little lower than specialists which ranged from 6 to 8, but they were deemed much stronger than specialists. Why? Because of the fact that they had more options and their growth rate was high enough to challenge most specialists. As for people who had 3 elemental attributes, ''Triads'' or 4 elemental attributes ''Quadras'' they were the rarest out of all types. Getting hit by lightning 5 times in 5 consecutive days would be more likely than becoming one. Their growth potentials were directly affected by the number of elements they had. A triad would have a growth potential range from 5 to 7, it would be barely enough to contend with dualists and specialists. This was because the variations of their attacks would expand exponentially. But in contrast, quadras would have a considerably lower combat potential than specialist''s, dualist''s and triad''s. The main reason was their number of elemental attributes. The having more elemental attribute meant that the time to switch between each elements took a longer time. Although people can have multiple elemental attributes, they can only use one type of element at a time. If they tried to use 2 or more different kinds of elements at the same time, they would end up damaging their bodies. Many occurrences of this had happened in the past, and everyone who tried this ended up crippling themselves or worst, killing themselves. Because of this delay, the feasibility of quadras in combat was put into question. The time delay from switching was much worst than a triad''s so they could be considered as being on the line between combatants and non-combatant roles, but this was not a big deal since quadras were extremely rare. The next type were ''Generalists'', these were people who would at least have 5 or more elemental attributes. Generalists were more common than dualists, and would have a growth potential of 3-4. Usually, people with have a growth potential lower than 5 were considered non-combatants among the elementalists, especially if they have 5 or more elemental attributes. This was because mastering 5 elements to a point where you can use them in combat was too time consuming. It was several times harder than mastering 1 or 2 elements instead. There was also the time lag regarding switching the use of elements which was impractical to use in combat. Of course there were outliers among elementalists like these. Some would focus on a single element, and give up on the rest. By doing this, the time lag was no longer an issue and the mastery of a single element would improve considerably compared to mastering 5 or more elements. Although they could be considered combatants this way, they were like a much weaker version of a specialist. Not many elementalists took this path. The next type were the Pure generalists, or ''Pures''. They were people who had all 10 elemental attributes. Pures were special not only because of the number of elements they had, but because the growth potential for all elemental attribute was always the same. In the history records, all pures would have a growth potential of 3. There had never been an occurrence of a pure having more or less than a growth potential of 3. Pures were considered to be the best in crafting various treasures. Aside from special and mysterious treasures, they were praised for crafting the strongest defensive items. Though they could also make weapons with many different elemental attributes, most elementalist combatants only used 1 or 2 elemental attributes, so they could not fully utilize weapons with more than 3 attributes. For defensive items, it was best if the item could defend against all different types of elemental attributes; which is why pures were theoretically better at it. In contrast, generalists were a more "specialized" craftsman. They could create better, specialized weapons with a single type of elemental attribute. Because the growth potential of generalist was uneven, they would become more proficient in a few elements more than the others. This improved their understanding of various materials to create many different items such as weapons, armors, devices and treasures. Though pures were considered better than generalists, pures were as rare as triads so the majority of craftsmen across the lands were regular generalists. Only a very small number were pures. The last group of people are the non-elementalists. Most of the population are placed in this category. They are people who do not have any elemental attribute. Within the village of Char, only a very few people were elementalists "You''re so lucky. I wish I had an elemental attribute" Lia said "Ha ha, I was worried I would be a non-elementalist too. Thankfully I lucked out" Windle happily said He looked towards Teo and Lia followed suit "What about you Teo? What was your result?" Windle asked "I''m a pure generalist" Teo answered "Wow! A pure generalist! that''s great!" Lia was extremely surprised and was really jealous of both Teo and Windle "This is the first time I''ve seen a pure generalist before. Your growth potential should be all 3s right? Not bad at all!" Windle said Teo suddenly shook his head "No, my growth potential for all my elements are only 1s" He took out his results and showed it to them. Upon seeing it, both of them did not fully understood it yet. A pure generalist is still very rare! They thought that no matter how low it should still be very good. "Don''t worry about it, even if its low, you can just work hard! it''s all about guts and effort! Don''t give up!" Windle tried to cheer up Teo Though Teo was not particularly depressed. Even though his results were low, he didn''t really find being a craftsman too appealing. He didn''t fully understand what craftsmen really do. His dream right now was to read the library in the academy. If he was to choose a job, he wanted to have a job where he could read all he want. The majority of non-elementalists usually work jobs that did not require elemental power. Some would become cultivators as a non-elementalist to become a combatant. There was even a non-elementalist and non-combatant that became a great figure that had existed in the empire''s history. It was the late Jade ''Truefeather'' Lui, a brilliant strategist that lead the empire to victory. "Thanks" Teo replied. Although he was not too depressed about the issue, he appreciated Windle''s effort of cheering him up. The trip to Mirth city was long. During the trip, the 3 of them chatted and would sometimes "sleep". The carriages stopped at least 6 times for breaks. During Teo''s "naps", he would enter the inner world and continue reading the book. After 3 days, they finally arrived near Mirth City. The city was huge compared to their village. From a distance, they could see that the whole city was surrounded by large brick walls. Everyone was excited to see the city''s silhouette but the carriages went by the city and headed towards the mountain ranges nearby. A little further from Mirth city, one could see a group of buildings near the mountain range. An area of the mountain range was enclosed by tall iron fences. The carriages arrived at the gate, one of the Char guards talked with the entrance guards. After a short while, the carriages were given passage through the gates. Upon entering, the carriages followed a winding route that led to an open area in front of a large building. There were many other carriages that were parked nearby. There were at least 30 other carriages and several children stepped out of the carriages and quickly lined up [Author''s note: Second Revision] Chapter 4: Mirth Academy Chapter 4: Mirth Academy Upon arrival, Teo became excited. He anticipated two things that made him really eager to see. One of these was his sister. Teo was deeply attached to his sister. She often played with him and even helped teach him how to read. When their parents went to work, she would be the one who spent time with him. He really missed not seeing her for such a long time. The other thing that Teo couldn''t wait to see was the library. His love of books made him the village bookworm. Unfortunately the village didn''t offer much materials to read. Teo had already read most of the books that he could get his hands on. He even repeatedly read so much that he memorized some of them. He had learned from his siblings'' letters that the academy''s library was the largest in the whole prefecture. As soon as he stepped out of the carriage, he noticed many other children forming in lines. The line of children headed towards one of the buildings and many robed men guided the children towards one of the tables. Ishwin lead the children to follow the line, after that, the other Char village guards and him waited to the side, watching over them as they neared the table. Slowly the crowd of children went through the table one by one. The staff members sorted each children, recorded their results from their respective villages and passed them a small bag. .... After a long wait, Teo finally reached one of the tables. "Please hand me your divination results" A middle aged man in charge said to Teo Teo pulled out the piece of paper with his results and gave it to the middle aged man. "Teo of Char Village, Teo Char is it?" Teo nodded Once he saw the rest of the paper, his face became very shocked and confused. It took a while before he could regain his calm. He recorded Teo''s result and got a small bag and gave it to Teo After receiving the bag, he followed the other children being led by other academy staff members. The other kids from the same village stayed together. Windle and Lia caught up to Teo as well. Once Ishwin and the other guards saw the children from their village pass through safely, they headed back to the carriages and headed home. .... The area the children were lead to was a large area with many places to sit on. In front of the area was a large platform and a podium at the center of it. Most children who came together sat together. They all waited and chatted amongst one another as other children were still being processed. Some of them took a peek inside the bags that they received; others decided to wait until later After some time, all the students were processed and the staff members who recorded all the students came towards the platform. An elderly man walked up on stage and stood behind the podium. With a loud voice he spoke: "I welcome you all to Mirth Academy. I am Elon Rizon, headmaster of this academy. I hope that you will all work hard during your stay here" He looked around the crowd of newly arrived students and continued "For the past century, the Imperial family has ordered that all residents of the empire that are 10 years of age would be educated and trained. You will all be taught and trained for exactly 10 years. During your first 2 years, you will have to take a mandatory course. This should be a great benefit to you all. It will help you grow intellectually which will help our empire to flourish. For the first year, non-elementalists can choose an elective course while elementalists have to take a course specially for them. By the second year, non-elementalists can have 2 elective courses while elementalists will have an elective courses. Attendance is mandatory for those mandatory courses, and you will have to make up for the classes you have missed. If you missed too many classes, you will be punished according to the academy''s rules. Although it might seem uneven, you can take elective courses after your fourth year in the academy." He took a pause and drank a glass of water that was placed behind the podium, and then he continued once more "On your third year you will start on your combat training. This will continue until the fourth year. Although attendance is not mandatory in these combat training, there will be a physical test and a combat test at the end of the year. If you do not pass, you will have to repeat the same training for the next 2 years. The second time around, your attendance will become mandatory." The story has been taken without consent; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident.The head master paused. Inside he was tired because he had announced this speech yearly. Although he was tired of explaining it every year, it was his duty as headmaster, so he did not show any signs of being tired. He took a deep breath and continued the drawn out explanation "Once you have successfully finished your combat training, you will have 2 to 4 years to freely choose what you want to learn. Of course the number of years you have will depend on how fast you finish your combat training. If you have to repeat it again, you will only have 2 years of elective courses, otherwise you will have 4. Your last 2 years will be spend outside the academy. You will be grouped into teams and will have to explore the northern wilderness. An elder from the academy will accompany each group. Although there will be some danger, all other academies within the empire will be exploring at the same time." Each new student listened intently to the headmaster''s explanations. Some even wrote down each and every word. Teo on the other hand just listened to the explanations. It was not too hard for him to understand the headmaster. "Your classes will start within a month from now. You can use this time to familiarize yourself around the academy and plan your schedules. Each of you are given a bag. Each bag have several items in them. There is a student handbook within the bag. The academy rules and regulations are listed within that handbook, be sure to familiarize yourself with it. It also has guides about many things within the academy. There is also a stone that looks like this" The headmaster spoke as he held a gray stone. It was so small that others could not see it clearly. "This is an identification stone. You will need to put a drop of your blood into the stone. This stone will be used as keys to your rooms as well as a way to identify you as a student from the academy. The residential area is on the eastern district. You should all register a room before anything else. Once again, Welcome to Mirth academy, this will be the place where you can decide your future" After his long speech, the headmaster left the stage and many of the staff members direct the students to the direction of the residential area. .... The new students slowly moved towards the eastern district. Within the eastern district there were several small but steep mountains, four of which were carved in and used as the student''s residence. Each students were given a cave, each cave had a stone door with strange patterns on it carve on it. Students were instructed to choose any open cave they wish. All the caves that were blocked entrances were occupied caves, while caves with unlocked entrances were unoccupied ones. Each caves had a small hallway and two simple rooms. One of the rooms was a bedroom. It contained a simple bed and a shelf. The other room had a desk, a chair and a few shelves. There were no windows in the whole cave, but there were light stones implanted within the walls of the other room, while the bedroom was completely dark. Teo did not know the mechanism of the light stones, but it would always brighten the other room as if it was he was outside in the day time. The trio picked out their rooms separately and later met up to explore the area nearby. A stream of water cut through the surrounding mountains and several buildings were build along their shores. Teo, Windle and Lia walked towards these buildings and found out that they were buildings the public bathrooms. They also found a path that led up to the another mountain. A sign with the words "Hot Springs" were placed at the entrance of the path. A little further towards the central district were buildings that held classes. These buildings were huge and could probably hold a few thousand students. There were also areas placed outdoors where lectures could take place "This academy is really big, bigger than our village" said Lia "It says on the handbook that the western district is even larger. If you take a leisurely walk, it will take about a day to reach the other end" Windle said as he flipped through the handbook Teo followed both of them as he looked at a map of the academy. He was looking for the library, but it was his first time that he actually tried to read a map. As the trio were walking, two students in uniform approached them from behind. [Author''s Note: Second Revision] Chapter 5: Sister Chapter 5: Sister A voice from behind yelled "Hey, you three!" When Windle, Lia and Teo heard the loud voice, the three of them turned around and looked where the source of the voice was. They saw two students in uniform approaching them. They both each had an armband on their left sleeve. One with a number 3 and the other a number 2 on their sleeves. Besides the number was a small silvered colored sword badges. "You guys are new students right?" A student with the number 3 on his sleeves asked. This student had a bulky body, with black hair and dark aggressive eyes. The other student with the number 2 on his sleeves had was tall and slim. He had brown air and sketchy looking eyes. These two were already certain that Teo, Windle and Lia were new students because they did not wear uniforms. The only ones who did not wear uniforms in the day and explored this area were new students. Before they could answer, the slim student asked "Are any of you elementalists?" Teo was slightly cautious, he was not used to this kind of aggressive approach by older kids. Windle on the other had was not fazed at all. He had nothing to hide so he answered: "I''m an elementalist" The two students'' eyes shone ''JACK POT!'' they both thought Both students looked at each other''s eyes as if they were conveying something to each other. Then quickly turned back to Windle. One of them grabbed hold of Windle''s shoulder and asked "Have you joined a faction yet? Our Silver Sword Association is looking for new students as well as elementalists. There are many great benefits you can get if you decide to join our association" The other followed up "Any student who wants a comfortable life in the academy will have to join a faction. Our Silver Sword Association is one of the largest and most powerful within the academy" Teo and Lia stayed quiet. Lia was earnestly trying to understand the two students'' proposal while Teo did not want to join a faction. All he wanted in his free time was to read books from the library. That was what his comfortable life in the academy looked like. Why would he need to join a faction? Windle turned around and looked at both Teo and Lia. Teo remained quiet even though he was also an elementalist. He knew that Windle did not want to join a faction by himself, so Windle looked towards them as if asking to come with him. Teo signaled Windle that he did not want to join. Lia was unsure as well so she remained quiet. Seeing that Teo was not interested, Windle was not comfortable joining a faction by himself so he hesitated. "Umm.. I don''t.." Seeing their prey hesitating, the bulky student quickly interrupted "Don''t be too quick to decline our offer. One of the main benefits of being a member of our faction is that we have protection against other factions. Anyone who dares to offend our members will have to pay a price" On the surface, it was as if he was tempting them with benefits, but in reality he was giving them a warning. "That''s right! No one dares to offend us" Noticing what his partner was doing, the tall student helped to threaten the three new students. Windle became more hesitant. At first he did not understand the bulky student''s threat, but when the tall student spoke, he noticed the threat he was saying in between his words The two students also looked towards Teo and Lia. They knew that if they can rope the friends of this elementalist, then the elementalist would have no choice but to join as well. Suddenly, a soft voice rang out from the distance "Little Teo is that you?" Teo and his friends heard the voice and turned towards the source of it. The students who were invite them also followed suit and looked. A silhouette of a tall young woman with reddish brown hair that was tied up in a bun. She had a smile like the sun and sweet dimples on her cheeks. "Big sister Rowen!" "Little Teo! it really is you! I almost didn''t recognize you. Its been 6 years and you have grown so much!" Teo immediately recognized his sister. Even though she looked more mature, she still had the same features. It was truly lucky that she found Teo. The academy was large but new students often explored the areas close to the eastern district. Rowen gave Teo a huge hug "You finally came. How was everything at home?", Rowen asked Both of them started chatting as if nothing else mattered Lia and Windle stood behind Teo The two recruiters of the Silver Sword Associations were completely ignored! After a few moments, they realized what had happened and became irritated. They were ignored by these new students just because of some woman! "Hey! So do you want to join our faction?", the irritated bulky student raised his voice, completely interrupting the siblings'' conversation Rowen turned and finally noticed the other 4 people. "Little Teo, what''s going on?" "They are from the Silver Sword Association, they were asking us to join their faction" Listening to Teo''s explanation, Rowen instantly understood what was happening. ''They are poaching new students again!'', she thought "Don''t join any faction for now. Let''s go somewhere else so we can talk more privately", Rowen said to Teo and his friends Taken from Royal Road, this narrative should be reported if found on Amazon. The four of them started to turn away from the two recruiters. Both recruiters heard what Rowen said and became a little angry ''No one steals our prey'', the bulky youth said in his head He approached Rowen from behind and grabbed her shoulder as he shouted "Hey!" But as soon as Rowen turned around, the bulky youth saw that on Rowen''s sleeve was the number 7. He was even more surprised that besides the number was a tiny bronze fist pin. The numbers on each students'' sleeves represented which school year they were currently at. The highest number within the academy was 8 because the ninth and tenth year students left the academy to explore the northern wilderness. Being a seventh year meant that she was their senior. Normally, the bulky recruiter from the Silver Sword Association would not be scared too much, but the broze fist pin was another matter. He quickly retracted his hand and gave an apologetic smile. The Silver Sword Association was the third more powerful faction in the academy. They were respected and feared by most students who were from smaller factions. They would always try to poach new students into their faction; especially students who were elementalists. Their strength grew because of the many elementalists they have poached and eventually became a powerhouse within the academy. Among the top four factions within the academy, the Rizon faction was considered to be the number one. The Rizon faction was comprised of people from the Rizon family, their servants, their allies and talented individuals they had recruited before enrolling into the academy. They seldom recruit students who had already enrolled in the academy so there were not as many members in the Rizon faction compared to other major factions. The Rizon faction''s position as number one was due to the backing of the Rizon family. The Rizon family was one of the prestigious clan within the empire. They held quite a bit of power and was on friendly terms with the Imperial family. The current headmaster, or even the previous headmasters of the academy was from the Rizon family. Although just a branch family, they were still connected to the Rizon family. As for the second strongest faction, the Martial faction, were mostly comprised of martial artists and warriors. They were established by a few elders within the academy as well as some cultivators outside. Their goal was to teach youths on how to cultivate their minds and bodies. The majority of their members were non-elementalists who wanted to learn how to fight. The Martial faction facilitate the students'' desire to become strong and taught students how to become strong through training and meditation. This was the starting point of all cultivators. Cultivators were people who cultivated their bodies in order to become strong. In the past, cultivators reigned supreme until the era of elementalists came forth. But even so, peak cultivators could still match the power of peak elementalists, so even people who were not blessed still had a chance to compete. The fourth strongest faction was strong in a different sense. Although they did not have strong members in terms of pure strength, they had the strongest resources. Their connections reached far and wide. They were a merchant faction that sold and purchased merchandise as well as information. If they caught any sensitive information, it could cause the rise or fall of other factions or individuals. The bulky recruiter recognized the badge on Rowen''s shoulder. It was the badge of the Martial faction, a faction they could not easily mess with. "Oh senior, I apologize for my mistake. I thought you were someone I knew" His face became awkward and quickly left, dragging away the tall recruiter Rowen was irritated from being disrespected by a junior, but since she had just reunited with her beloved little brother, she let the incident pass. She donted on her little brother mainly because as a little girl, Teo was like her first toy doll that she had to take care of. She saw herself as responsible for Teo, just like a mother; protecting her vulnerable little brother. After dragging Teo and his friends far away she suddenly spoke "You guys shouldn''t join a faction so easily. The Silver Sword Association earlier was one of the worst faction in the academy. Although they are the third strongest faction, only certain members would reap the benefits. Once you agree to join, they will force you to sign a contract. You would have to end up paying a monthly fee for being a member! And if you want to leave, you would have to pay an even bigger fee! If you are a non-elementalist, you would only be used as a gopher to run errands. Luckily I found you guys before you accepted" The only ones that had benefits within the Silver Sword Associations were strong people and elementalists. The rest were bound to suffer. "There are many factions within the academy that are much better. You should take time to learn all the other factions before choosing one. I, myself, is from the Martial faction. Although we don''t actively recruit members, we allow anyone to join as long as you can keep up our practice" Rowen then explained the details of several well known factions while she guided them around the academy. [Author''s Note: Second Revision] Chapter 6: Which One to Pick First? Chapter 6: Which One to Pick First? The group thoroughly visited the eastern district all the way to the central district. Rowen guided the group to many places within the academy; one of which were the cafeteria, the central office, and the medical center They eventually reached a large tall building. The exterior of the stone building was designed in a simple manner. Viewing through the windows, they could see several people with books on hand. From the outside, one could tell that the building had 5 different floors; each one significantly smaller than the next. Unlike the first two floors, the upper three floors did not have windows. Teo and the group approached the entrance door. Two young looking guards stood by the entrance as Rowen lead the group inside. "This is the academy library" An old man sitting by the entrance inside gazed at the group but slowly recovered his gaze from them. "What were those guards for?", Windle asked "Those guards? Those guards are there to keep order in this place. Making trouble within the library is strictly forbidden so there are many guards outside the library as well as some guards within it", Rowen explained "They sure are young for guards" Lia commented "Oh, its because they are students of the academy as well. Certain places in the academy offers jobs to students. Although we do get free meals and board, we still need some spending money for ourselves" As they went further in, they saw several bookcases chairs and even private rooms. Windle and Lia were awed by the sight of so many books. Teo on the other hand was like an arrow, patiently waiting to be released. "This is the first floor of the library. The books are organized into different topics. As for the second floor, you will have to wait until you reach third year." Rowen looked at the eager Teo, she had heard stories of her brother through the letters sent by Fei "Little Teo, I heard from mom that you love reading books, but don''t forget your studies. The academy gives us students a small allowance for attending classes, doing homework and getting good grades. If you forget to concentrate on your studies, you might not get any money from the academy. If you skip class you might even get banned from the library, at worst, they might even punish you or expel you, so be careful not to over indulge yourself" When Windle and Lia heard Rowen''s warning to Teo, they stared at Teo as if he was some kind of freak. Similar thoughts went through their heads ''Can someone be really that addicted to reading that they would need to be warn?'' Rowen guided them through all the different sections on the first floor "This is your first time in a library right?" Rowen asked the three All of them nodded in confirmation "Okay, then I will explain the basics. You see those bookshelves?", Rowen said as she pointed at a few nearby bookshelves Teo, Windle and Lia all noticed that all of the bookshelves were full and people did not seem to be removing any from the shelves. "The books on the bookshelves can''t be removed. People here have to use a ''Blank book'' to copy the text of the shelved books" "How do these blank books copy it?", Lia asked "I''m not too sure on the details, but there are special inscriptions embedded inside the blank books that allows it to copy the text. All you need is to tap the blank book with another book and it will instantly copy its contents. If you tap it to another book, the previous content will be overwritten", Rowen explained She pulled out a blank book with the academy''s insignia on the cover. "These are the blank books that the academy sells. It is much cheaper, but the text will disappear once you go outside the academy, so be mindful when you go outside the academy. Of course there are blank books with no restrictions sold in the Southern district but it is more expensive." Teo was practically drooling over all the books he could read; there were just too many to choose from. ''Which book should I pick first?'' Teo wondered He had the intention of dropping everything and start reading, but he soon later found a slight problem "Big Sister, how much are these blank books?" "They are worth 10 silver coins. Do you want big sis to buy one for you?" Teo would have usually declined the offer mainly because he did not want to bother Rowen too much, but the allure of the books were too tempting so he did not decline and compromised instead. "Big sister, can just lend me money and I''ll pay you back later" "No such thing! You don''t need to do that little Teo" "But.. but.. ", but before Teo could insist Rowen interrupted "No buts!", she insisted Both siblings were pretty stubborn, but they both cared for each other ''Okay big sister, if you won''t let be borrow money today, I''ll just give you a gift later on'', Teo secretly planned "Okay", Teo agreed Rowen went over to the counter in the library and bought Teo a new blank book. "Thanks big sister" "No problem", Rowen smiled as she saw Teo rushing over to the shelves Teo started looking at the books among the shelves, completely forgetting about everything else. As for Windle and Lia, they did not find the library too interesting. Although it was their first time in a library, instead of being excited like Teo, they were just overwhelmed by it. Rowen approached Teo, who was like a little kid in a candy store, and started recommending some books he could start with. Windle and Lia decided to separate from the siblings and look around by themselves. Teo and Rowen spent some time together within the library ..... After spending time in the library, Teo and Rowen headed back to the eastern district. "So that''s where your cave is. Mine is over there, at the opposite mountain", Rowen pointed at the other mountain. They chatted inside Teo''s cave for a while. She told him where he could find her if he encountered any problems or had any questions. They talked about their family back in Char village as well as their elder brother Aran. Teo did not know much about his elder brother. Aran had already left the academy by the time Teo could remember anything. Teo could learn about Aran through his parents and sister, but that was all of it. Aran''s existence to Teo was nothing more than a shadow in the wind. This book was originally published on Royal Road. Check it out there for the real experience. Rowen explained that Aran was also part of the Martial faction before he graduated. He was skilled in fights and invited Rowen to the faction because he knew that once he left, no one would take care of Rowen. Aran wanted Rowen to become strong enough so that she can take care of herself as well as their little brother. Similar to Teo, Aran had only a few memories of Teo, but he still cared for the brother he had not seen for 10 years. When Aran graduated he declined all invitations towards him and decided to travel across the empire, perhaps even go outside the empire. Although there was peace within the empire, that was only in respect with the surrounding empires. There were still many internal conflicts with the various factions within the empire. Once the war that occurred 50 years ago ended, the many surviving factions strengthen themselves and attempted to expand their influence within the empire. These factions fought each other for dominance and the Imperial family did not intervene too much and only oversaw the conflict. Competition strengthen the empire and the last one standing would clearly have strength to support the empire. .... After a while Rowen too her leave. She had other matters to attend to. The first month of the school year for new students were for them to get used to the new environment, but for the senior students, this month was for the yearly ranking tournament; where students can compete with each other and find out who were the more outstanding ones were. The school encouraged students by using this tournament to motivate students to become stronger. The higher they were in the rankings the greater the fame and rewards. Rowen planned on participating on this year''s tournament as well, so she had to prepare herself. As for Teo, he did not know about the ranking tournament so he rested and went to the library on the following day. .... A few days had passed Teo had been going to the library in the morning and went into the inner world at night to read the array book. Despite having 8 years to read the books within the library, he did not slow down in his pace at all. He also did not slow his pace when he read and studied the array book. It was because he had no way of telling when the old man Cien would decide to leave him. During lunch and dinner, Teo, Windle and Lia would often eat together. Within the academy cafeteria, the trio sat together. "Teo did you know? The seniors are having a tournament amongst each other" Windle was surprisingly well informed on the matter. He can easily make friends and knew how to deal with people. "Only the seniors who were fourth year and older are the only ones that are participating. It''s going to be exciting, we should all go watch", Windle said "What about you Teo? Do you want to come? I think senior Rowen is going to be there", Lia also asked Lia seemed to have hit it off with Rowen a few days ago. She even asked Rowen if she could join the Martial faction. Apparently, Lia wanted to learn how to fight. It was a huge advantage for the students who learned combat before their third year. They would be taught how to strengthen their bodies, increase their stamina and speed. They were also taught how to fight and how to handle weapons if they wished. Upon starting their third year, they would have a huge advantage compared to other students. Windle on the other hand was invited to join the Emerald Pavilion by his cousin. With his personality, he could easily handle customers and make a profit. It was also beneficial for gathering information and making connections. On the other hand, Teo did not intend to join a faction. Normally, the new students would be eager to join a faction. Some would be invited by their families, friends, people from the same village; some would decide to make their own faction. Students who did not join a faction would be easy targets for bullies and seniors, but the school protected new students until they were third years. They did not want young seedlings to be trampled before they knew the rules of the world. The senior students were not allowed to attack or bully the first and second years. If caught by the academy, a harsh punishment would be given out. Killing or maiming were strictly forbidden within the academy. The academy wanted the students to grow. The whole purpose of the academy was to strengthen the empire with a stronger and smarter younger generation. Although the senior students were not allowed to use violence against the first and second year students, there were other ways to bypass this rule. The best way to be protected from such threats for new students was to join a dependable faction. Teo thought about his situation differently though. The benefits of joining a faction was not too appealing for him. Maybe if the faction had a secret book collection he might have considered it, but right now, he wanted to indulge himself with the academy''s library. He had one full month to enjoy himself before the school started. "Not too interested in it" Teo responded while thinking deeply ''I also need to find a job so I can buy a present for big sister. I wonder if they are hiring in the library..'' .... Three weeks had passed The tournament was such a huge event that almost all the students came to either watch or participated. Teo was the only exception. He took the time to look for a comfortable job near the library. Luckily, he found a job at a restaurant that was close by to the library. It was usually quite busy before and after the tournament, but during the tournament was taking place, the restaurant would become empty. The restaurant was pretty popular and many rich visitors would often come in and provide huge tips to the servers. The library was also like a ghost town, Teo would be the only one there besides the staff member and a few guards. After under a week, he had saved enough money to buy his sister a necklace with the help of the tips he got. Though the pay was not particularly big, but he would get tips from the customers which was larger than normal during this time of the year. He took the time to work everyday because the usual seniors who were suppose to work participated or watched the tournament. When the tournament was over and class had started, he could only work a few days a week. [Author''s Note: Second Revision] Chapter 7: First Class Chapter 7: First Class Morning came. Teo, Windle and Lia met up together. Today was the first day of classes. The trio had never attended a class before and were filled with anticipation, excitement and anxiousness. They headed towards the buildings were the lectures would be held. There were four auditoriums within a single building. Each auditorium was fairly large. It could easily hold up to 200 students. Students were free to choose any auditorium they wished, except once they registered into a specific auditorium, they would have to attend the same class for the whole year. Students flooded the first auditorium. They rushed to register for it and since the seats were limited, it was first come first served. The same material was taught in all four auditorium, but for some reason the first auditorium was unusually more popular. The new students numbered a little over 500 and with the freedom of choice, the number of students within each auditorium was divided unevenly. Seeing the popularity of certain auditoriums compared to the others, Teo and Lia found it mysterious. Windle on the other hand did not seem too surprised. Windle led Teo and Lia towards the fourth auditorium. The number of students that registered for the fourth auditorium was the least of all four. There were only about 40 students in the fourth auditorium, while the first auditorium was filled. The second and third auditorium had around 120 students each. The students waited for the teacher to arrive. Some formed groups and chatted, while others prepared to take notes. The trio had heard from Rowen a few things about the lectures. They sat together and chatted until the lecturer arrived. A woman wearing a purple and black robe went in front of the whole class. She was tall and had long brown hair, domineering green eyes and had a serious look on her face. She took a piece of chalk and wrote on the black board and spelled out "Dina" "I am your instructor for the year. You can call me ''Dina'', ''Teacher Dina'' or ''Instructor Dina'', it doesn''t really matter" Her gaze swept through the room "It looks like that my class is as unpopular as always, but don''t worry. I am more competent than the other instructors. I assure you that you will greatly benefit from my classes" She smiled devilishly Dina was famous throughout the first and second years student. Her nickname from the students who took her classes was "The instructor from hell". All students who had heard of her would avoid her like a plague and by the second year, she would usually have no students to teach. Only the ill informed would accidentally choose her class, but she did not mind it. She was a strict teacher, but with less students to teach, there would be less work for her to do. The academy placed full control of the class within the hands of their respective instructors. As long as the specific materials were taught, they would not intervene on how the class was handled. The reason Dina was avoided by students was because of how she handled her class. There was plenty of time within the year to cover the whole curriculum. She would often teach a subject and give the class a test. She made sure that her class would get at least 90% of the answers correct before they could move on. This was the main problem. Other students would become sick of hearing the same lecture over and over again. Students were not allowed to skip classes or they would have to attend another class to make up for it. Anyone who failed and stalled the class would be targeted by other students. Since the whole class would be "tortured" from the lectures, they would harass and bully the ones who failed. The academy would turn a blind eye to such harassment among students of the same year. The strong prey on the weak, this was the iron rule of the world. The results were public so they could not hide. Dina would even call out their names and announce their scores in class and give them their tests back. She did not do this out of malicious intent but was just the way she was. Students would not be allowed to not pay attention either. If she caught anyone distracted or sleeping, she would ask them to come to class on the weekend to make up for the class that they had "missed". This would push the students to study as if their livelihood depended on it. Whether did it intentionally or unintentionally, it was all the same to students. They would all put the blame on her. And when Dina''s students found out how easy it was in the other classes. They would regret choosing her class even more. "We will be starting off with the history of the empire, followed by basic skills and knowledge you will need to survive in this world, such as arithmetic, herb identification, basic human anatomy, wild beast identification, and others..." .... The class continued on with the lecture It covered the basic history of the Avanald empire; from the first emperor, Arman Avanald, to the war that led to the empire''s creation. If you spot this narrative on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation. After the chaotic wars that lead up to the empire''s creation. The newly established empire flourished. The authority of the Imperial family had never diminished since the start of their rule. The lecture also talked about the recent war that happened 50 years ago, the first war the empire was involved in since a thousand years. The lands of the Avanald empire were the most fertile among the surrounding empires. These lands were precious and was coveted by several empires surrounding the Avanald empire. Without the Imperial family being aware, a coalition of several empires joined forces and attempted to invade the Avanald Empire''s borders. They attacked the guardian city of the Mist Valley, Mist city. Mist city was located at the edge of the Avanald borders. It was one of the crucial cities that connected the Avanald Empire to the outside and thus, it was heavily guarded by a large army. This city acted as a buffer to the outside and where most trades happened. When the city was attacked, the city''s army struggled to resist, but in the end the city fell. Using the city as a platform to invade the borders, they invaded deeper into the Avanald Empire, but a strange phenomenon occurred. The deeper the enemy force invaded the weaker they became. Like poison, the longer they stayed the greater their strength decreased. The enemy soldiers started dying one after the other and the army decided to retreat back to Mist city. The soldiers were spooked, it was like the lands were cursed but the leaders of the coalition soon found the reason why previous generations never attacked the Avanald Empire. After thousands of years, they had forgotten the reason why their empires forbid any invasions to this mysterious empire. Once the enemies retreated, the Avanald army launched a counter attack. Because the enemy soldiers did not easily enter the Avanald borders again, they could not chase the Avanald army who retreated into the border when an unfavorable situation occurred. Using their border as a platform to launch their attacks, they easily whittled down the enemy forces and eventually forced the enemy coalition to abandon the war and the invading forces retreated from Mist city. The strange barrier was attributed to the empire''s ancient ruins. A person born of foreign soil was not allowed to stay within the borders or they would eventually die. Even powerful foreign cultivators did not dare to step inside. Although they could last longer than an average person, they would still be affected by the strange barrier. This was the reason why the Empire had never been attacked for thousands of years, but for such a long time, the empires had forgotten such an important thing. The mysterious barrier was still unknown to them, perhaps only the upper echelons of the empire knew about it, but that was something the public did not need to know. .... The class lasted for 5 hours. Many of the students paid closed attention to the lecture as it was something interesting that they did not know of. After the class ended, Lia separted from Windle and Teo. She headed to her other elective while Teo and Windle headed to the elementalist class. ''That story is so interesting'' Teo thought They both arrived at the designated location for their next class. It was a circular auditorium that was located outdoors. The landscape was modified to look like an auditorium. There were a total of 27 students here, all waiting for the instructor to come. It was clear to Teo and Windle that everyone here was an elementalist. Many of them wore prideful expressions. Elementalists were all blessed by the heavens and were considered to be elites of the empire. Some wore excited expressions. This was the class where they would learn how to use their gifts. While Teo and Windle sat to an open area, they could not help but overhear the conversation between a group of students. Teo and Windle took a quick glance towards the group. A golden haired young man with an arrogant expression was loudly bragging to his group about his elemental attribute. He was apparently a dualist of both wind and fire. The others within the group also had haughty expressions on their faces. They bragged loudly about their attributes. There were three others besides the golden haired young man. One was a girl with golden hair as well and a boy were apparently dualists too. The last black haired young man was apparently a triad. The group had such a rare lineup. Three dualists and one triad! Many of the other students were in awe of the group, some even jealous. The majority of the other students were specialist and having 2 or even 3 elements had a large advantage in combat. Suddenly, a familiar figure approached the podium in the middle of the auditorium. Students took quick notice of purple and black robes that this figure wore and quickly quieted down. Many had somewhat fearful expressions as they had heard rumors about this fearsome instructor, while in contrast, Teo and Windle were just surprised. [Author''s Note: Second Revision] Chapter 8: A Brief Introduction Chapter 8: A Brief Introduction Both Teo and Windle were quite familiar with this figure. They recognized her from their previous class. It was precisely Dina. "Quite a big class we have today" her gaze swept through the class. She counted the number of students that were present and made sure it matched up with the number of students on the list. Her eyes widen briefly when she recognize Windle and Teo from her previous class as well. "I am instructor Dina, I will be in charge of teaching you how to use your elements for the next year or so" Suddenly, as she smiled, a strong wind moved across the area and encircled her. Dina''s figure rose up from the ground and levitated. It as if she was standing in midair, a few feet off the ground. After a while, she finally descended back down Seeing her display her power, the students were filled with excitement and awe. Soon they would learn how to do something similar. Off to the distance, several prying eyes were watching her class. Although other people besides the assigned students were not allowed to enter this area while the class was in session, many were currently monitoring the class from afar. "Now then, before we begin the lecture. I want everyone to introduce yourselves. State your name, elementalist type, as well as the elemental attributes you have" Dina wanted to connect each name with their faces. She pointed to a student "Lets start with you" The student stood up and spoke "My name is Grifford Driftwood, a generalists. My elements are fire, earth, water, dark and metal" The students introduced themselves one by one, until it reached to the group of haughty kids from before. The quiet blacked haired youth within the group was first to speak. "Zachery Rizon, Triad. Wind, Light and Lightning" ''So this must be the one'' Dina thought Before attending this class, the headmaster gave Dina instructions to take good care of the Triad within her class, but Dina was impartial, although she agreed, she had no plans of giving anyone in her class any special treatment. The blonde haired young man spoke next. "Kristofer Elmsfall. Dualist. My elements are Wind and Fire" "Erin Elmsfall, Dualist too. Water and Lightning" "Ash Moran, Dualist as well. Dark and Wind" .... Introductions went by until it was Windle''s turn "Hello everyone, my name is Windle Char. I''m a specialist with Fire attribute" Windle''s introduction was very friendly compared to others. Then Teo stood up after Windle. "Teo Char, pure generalist" He did not bother to say the other elements because being a pure generalist implied that he has all the other elements. When everyone heard this, they were in shocked, even the haughty kids were somewhat surprised and a trace of dissatisfaction could be seen in their eyes. They thought of themselves as the elite of the elite in this class, and although a pure generalists is a non-combatant status, the major powers of the empire would always scramble to invite them Dina was also surprised ''A pure generalists, I didn''t think that I would meet one so quickly'' she thought .... The introductions continued until all the 27 students had introduced themselves. Dina quickly remembered everyone''s names and continued on with her lecture "All of you should already know that there are some people are born with a special affinity with elements. Many have speculated that these are blessings from heavens, but no one really knows where it came from. Despite the face that we do not know where it came from, we have learned how to utilize them" Suddenly from her bag, 10 small stones flew up and floated around Dina. The stone sparkled in different colors. A black, white, brown, red, blue, green, yellow, cyan, silver and a transparent stone. "The are elemental stones, I am sure that the academy gave you a respective stone for each of your elements when you enrolled. You all will need to use these stones as a key to learn how to use the power of the elements. These stones are also called amirite stones. These special stone are able to absorb elemental energy. If the amirite stone absorbs more than one type of elemental energy, after a certain period of time, the stronger energy within the stone will push out the weaker ones; what we are left with is an elemental stone with only one type of elemental energy." Everyone in class were listening intently, as if they were afraid to miss out on a single word. "These elemental stones have a specific property. While they have a specific elemental energy within them, they can also generate elemental energy around them. These elemental energy is exactly what you will need to be able to sense the element''s pulse. The whole process of being able to control elemental energy are divided into 4 stages. In order, they are the sensing, gathering, movement, and manipulating stages. The sensing stage is to train your sensitivity to sense your specific elements. One cannot control what they don''t understand. By training your senses, you will be able to feel and understand your elements. Upon basic mastery of this stage, you should be able to see your elements as clear as day. You can even smell, touch, taste or even hear your elements if you completely master to the peak level. The better the mastery, the better you can understand the attributes and behaviors of your elements. This is the stage where all production elementalists should get to in order to be successful" As she said this, her gaze fell on Grifford and then on Teo "But of course, the more elements you have the more time it will take to master each one. Continue on, the gathering stage will be learning how to proficiently gather elemental energies. You will have to use your body''s energy, or ''Qi'' to accomplish this. By using your Qi to excite the elemental attributes in your body, your Qi will act similar to that of an elemental stone. I will go into the specifics once most of you get to this stage. The movement stage is similar to the gathering stage, but it involves controlling your Qi to be projected outside your body. Instead of gathering the elemental energy into your body, they will be gathered outside of it. Once you have gathered enough energy, you can move on to the manipulation stage. This stage is where you manipulate the energy you gather in order to perform a certain task. This stage is quite difficult to master since there are many ways of manipulating your element. Some even keep their manipulation techniques a secret, so this stage will be learned mostly on your own. I will just teach you the well known ways of manipulating specific energies but you will have to rely on yourself to discover your own techniques" A case of literary theft: this tale is not rightfully on Amazon; if you see it, report the violation. As she spoke, she saw many of her students with questions on their faces, but were too afraid to ask it openly. She predicted what questions they might have had and continued "Elemental energy come from the world Qi. The world Qi is the energy all around us so there is no danger of running out of a specific elemental energy. The world energy is like a mixture of many different colored paints. When we gather elemental energy, a specific colored of paint is extracted from this mixture, but unlike a simple mixture of paint, the world Qi is also like the sea, even if you extract a large amount of elemental energy from a single place, it would easily be filled up with the endless amount of world Qi surrounding it." After the brief introduction on the 4 stages, she continued discussing the process of the Sensing stage into much more detail. Before the class ended she said "From tomorrow until you have entered the sensing stage, you will need to bring your elemental stones to class. Don''t forget!" After the class ended, Dina returned to the central office. She went through a cabinet and looked up the information of her students from the previous class. After flipping through the pages, her face froze. She discovered something very odd within the information. She had a disappointed look on her face. "How can this be? I thought he would be an outstanding talent but his growth rate is so low!" Dina said to herself. She finally understood why the academy did not become too crazy about the prospect of a pure generalist. Although the academy was required to keep such matters secret, it would have been only a matter of time before other major sects within the empire would find about such news. But after a month, it was still very calm within the academy. A figure behind her overheard her and looked over her shoulders. The figure saw the page she was looking at and the figure quietly walked away ¡­.. After the class ended, many of the students started to leave. Zachery and his group glimpsed towards Teo. They were unsatisfied and a hint of envy and anger were on their faces. They were suppose to be the elites among elites; the center of everyone''s attention, but in the end, someone stole the limelight. Soon, they left the area as well. After a while, Teo and Windle also left. As they exit from the area, they saw several senior students standing there as if they were waiting for someone. Many of the other students were surrounded by these seniors. These seniors were from other factions within the academy. The majority of them were in their sixth or seventh year, and were inviting the newly enrolled elementalists into their factions. They could tell which ones were already in a faction thanks to the badges on their shoulders, so they easily targeted the students who did not join one but some recruiters went as far as try to poach students who had already joined a weaker faction. As for Zachery and his group, they quickly passed through the crowd. It was because all of them were members of the Rizon faction. Although the others were not of Rizon blood, they had some relation with the Rizon family before entering the academy. The seniors fought for the remaining students but when Teo''s figure appeared before them, they dropped almost everything and headed straight towards him. These recruiters watched the class from afar and knew that Teo was a pure generalist. Teo became the most important student that hey had to recruit. If they could create a relationship with Teo, it would bring many benefits to them in the future. ¡°Hello, I would like to introduced myself I am from the Blackshield faction, I would like you to join our faction¡± ¡°Would you like to join my Blue River association?¡± Many seniors started speaking at the same time and Teo easily became overwhelmed. They also looked towards Windle as well but saw he was already a member of the Emerald Pavilion, a large faction they could not compete against. Seeing Teo overwhelmed, Windle quickly stepped forward and spoke loudly. "Seniors, my friend here is not interested in joining a faction. Please let us through" A tall burly man pushed through the crowds. When the other recruiters saw this man, they all became quiet and stepped aside. "Junior, I think your friend should speak for himself. What gives you the right to decide for him?" When Teo and Windle saw the burly senior, they immediately recognize the badge on his sleeve. Besides the number 7 of his sleeve was a small silver sword badge. This senior was a member of the Silver Sword Association! Windle looked towards Teo, waiting for him to respond "Seniors, at the moment, I do not wish to join a faction yet" Teo said "Junior, I think it is the best if you join my faction early or you will not be rid of these pests" The burly man spoke as he looked at the other recruiters Although he was disappointed and annoyed by Teo''s statement, he did not easily give up. "Are you going to reject my offer? I, who is a senior member of the Silver Sword Association?" The burly senior tried to intimidate Teo into joining, but still kept a friendly smile. Seeing this Windle quickly interrupted. "Senior, my friend here already has some connection with the Martial faction" Windle said as if he was warning the senior not to overstep his bounds The burly senior became quite annoyed with Windle, but he clearly knew that both the Martial faction and Emerald Pavilion were not to be messed with. He was a senior student, respected and feared by many. Being rejected and even warned by first year students was an insult to him, but he wanted to remain on friendly terms with Teo. "Junior, if you ever change your mind and want to join a faction, our Silver Sword Association will gladly welcome you with open arms. I am called Nathan Ashbringer, I really hope you consider in becoming one of our members, with your talents you will definitely be given a high position" Nathan did not fully gave up Teo. He knew that once he roped Teo in, their faction''s standing would catapult to be second ranked. After graduating, having a connection with a pure generalist would also bring him many benefits. Compared to the Silver Sword Association, the other factions are worth less than a fart. Seeing Nathan leave quietly, the rest of the recruiters decided to follow suit and give up on Teo [Author''s Note: Second Revision] Chapter 9: Road to Fame Chapter 9: Road to Fame News traveled fast across the academy and within half a day the whole academy had heard the breaking news. The focus of the news were the triad, Zachery Rizon, and the pure, Teo Char. Every corner of the academy started talking about them. "Hey did you hear about those two new students? A triad and a pure appeared in the academy!" "What are the odds of having both of them enroll in the same school at the same time? its almost impossible! If it wasn''t already confirmed I wouldn''t have believed it" "The triad is from the Rizon family. Despite that he is from the branch family, I''m sure that he''ll get invited to the main family after he graduates" "Do you know anything about that pure?" "They said he was from Char village down south" "Hey, isn''t that senior who recently graduated from Char too" "Yeah he was, I believe his name was Aran.. Aran Char" "Probably no relation, but man Char village sure is producing so many uniquely attributed people" "I know right? Senior Aran was a dualist, but his elements are total opposites, dark and light? there is no synergy at all!" While a group of people were talking about them in a bar, a figure approached wearing an emerald green badge shaped like a building, embroidered with golden yellow threads. "Big news guys!" "Whats up Socho? whats the big news?" "You know about that pure new student?" "Yeah we know about that news already, we were just talking about it" "Did you know that what his growth potential was? it is all 1!" Everyone on the table stopped everything that they were doing; people who were eating stopped chewing, people who was drinking stopped swallowing. They all looked at Socho as if he was crazy "What do you mean all 1s? Doesn''t all pures get a growth potential of all 3s?. There must be wrong with your sources" "Yeah, I don''t think I''ve heard of a pure who didn''t get a growth potential of 3s before" "It isn''t wrong! I have a reliable sources" "What sources?" "I have a friend who has a cousin that works at the central office. He saw Dina flipping through the information of the student and saw that pure''s result from his divination. Other teachers confirmed it. The Pavilion also confirmed it too. My cousin even confirmed it, he knew the guy personally" After the group thought about what Socho had said, one finally broke the silence "What the hell? Wouldn''t he be too old to be useful?" The growth potential evaluation was a very important factor to ones growth. Normally, only generalists were the only type of elementalists that could get an evaluation of 1 in a specific attribute. Having an evaluation of 1 in one''s growth potential meant that it would take a very long time for them to have any accomplishments within that attribute. When a generalist get such an evaluation, they would often ignore practicing the attribute in question. This was because it was not feasible in their lifetime to master such a time consuming attribute. It was more productive to master an attributes that they had more potential in. "I guess Char village really does produce unique people. HA HA HA" "I got excited for nothing, he is basically a non-elementalists until he is 80!" "Maybe is born under the a bad star HA HA HA" A female figure was at the corner of the bar sitting across another person. She had over heard the conversation from start to finish. At first she was elated hearing the news but as the conversation continued her elation vanished. A hint of sadness on her face, as well as anger towards people who were laughing ..... In the evening, Teo was heading back from the library to his residence. He was ecstatic being able to read at least 2 new books a day. He didn''t have to reread them like before, there were too many to pick from. The books were also easy to read, unlike the array book. Upon nearing his cave, he saw a shadowy figure leaning near his door. As he approached closer, the moonlight revealed to him the person. He instantly recognized this person. It was his big sister Rowen. "Big Sister! what are you doing here?" with a smile on his face hurriedly walked closer. This tale has been unlawfully obtained from Royal Road. If you discover it on Amazon, kindly report it. The siblings did not meet each other everyday, but they met at least once a week. "Little Teo, your finally back", she said as she saw the book in his hands "I should have known that you were at the library", she smiled Teo invited Rowen into his cave so they can talk "Little Teo, I heard the news that you were a pure generalists, that''s great!" A warm smile was on her face, but a hint of sadness was there. She also heard the news of his growth potential but did not mention it at all "I knew you were also special. Big brother Aran and I ended up being elementalists too. Mom and dad decided to not tell you because you might feel down knowing both your siblings are elementalists and you were not. I didn''t plan on mentioning it until I heard the good news earlier today" "I see. So thats why big sister is here" Teo smiled and felt a little guilty "Sorry I didn''t tell you before, its just that I forgot" "You forgot?" Rowen was a little surprised ''Who could forget your own divination rite evaluation?'' she thought Teo awkwardly smiled like a rascal who was in trouble "To me big sister, I don''t care much about it. Being a craftsman and all that isn''t what I want to do. I just want to be a librarian" Despite Teo''s knowledge about craftsmen being shallow, he had already decided that his future should be something related to books. When Rowen heard Teo''s statement, her sadden heart felt a little relieved. A normal boy would be disheartened if they were in Teo''s situation, but surprisingly Teo wasn''t affected at all "I see" she smiled ..... The siblings chatted for a long time. After Rowen left, Teo continued reading the book he just got from the library. When it was time to sleep, Teo entered the world within the turtle''s shell As usual the old man Cien was still laying on his hammock as if asleep. Cien picked up the book and continued to read and study the book. After 2 hours, Teo grabbed the book and walked over to the old man Cien. "Mr Cien, I have finished understanding the first quarter of the book. You will help me understand anything onwards right?" The old man opened right eye a bit to peak at Teo for a bit. "Are you sure you completely understand it?" It was only a little over a year since Teo started reading his book and now this little child no older than 10 actually says he understood it? A regular person who is age 20 or older would take at least 4 years to completely comprehend the first quarter of the book. Teo nodded "Yup, I understood all of it. It was hard but I did it" The old man sat up and looked at Teo, a suspicious smile was across his face "You say you understand it, so I''ll give you a test. If you pass the test not only will I help explain the contents of the book, I''ll even explain this you want to know that isn''t related to the book. That is of course to an extent, there are things you are not qualified to know" Then right after saying that his suspicious smile grew bigger "BUT, if you fail my test, you will have to do a few things I ask you to do for a full year" "Things like what?" Teo asked "Nothing much, maybe massaging my back when its aching, or buying me food. I know you recently got some money to buy some delicacies" the old man was basically asking him to be his gofer for a whole year, even coveting his hard earned money "What are the conditions for passing the test?" Teo wanted to know so he wouldn''t get cheated. He knew that Cien''s personality was quite shrewd, last time Cien gave him a "favor" he experience unimaginable pain that he had never felt before, so Teo was quite cautious "Nothing much I''ll ask you 100 questions, if you can answer any 80 of them correctly you pass, if not, I win -cough- I mean you fail" "Deal", Teo quickly agreed. He was confident with his understanding of the first quarter of the book. He even memorized it to the letter. He also memorized all the symbols and shapes that first quarter of the book covered. [Author''s Note: Second Revision] Chapter 10: Failure Author: Cienz Edited by Thisisnate _______________________________ Chapter 10: Failure The following day after the first class had ended, Lia sat around with her head hung and felt quite down. She had just heard about the notorious reputation that their current instructor Dina had from a friend within the Martial faction. What she didn¡¯t know was that the well informed Windle knew and even planned this from the very beginning! He wanted to take Dina''s class because she was also the teacher of this year¡¯s elementalist class. Windle lured both her and Teo to join the class with him! "I wish I knew about this earlier.. -sigh- Why did we have to pick that class?!" Lia felt extremely frustrated and regretful. Although it had only been 2 days since class had started, she had heard all the rumors about Dina''s classes. Monthly tests and extra lessons if you scored below 90% which caused bullying and harassment from the other students if you held back the class. Sometimes there were even mandatory classes during the weekends! It was all too horrible. Before enrolling into the academy, their lives were as free as a bird. They had all the time in the world to themselves but now this highly "motivated" instructor might even use up their remaining free time. "Ugh..." Lia sighed again as she hung her head in despondence "It''s not all bad, cheer up." Teo said as he tried to cheer her up "That''s right, as long as we don''t slack off, we should easily get at least a 90%, or perhaps even 100%." Windle chimed in. "Besides there are three of us! If we work together, I''m sure it''ll be even easier" Teo reassured Lia Lia''s eyes grew watery, as she felt touched from the camaraderie her two friends brought her in her time of despair "You guys..." She had a new found hope! ¡®I, Lia Char will not get below 90!¡¯, she said inside as she felt hopeful .... As Lia left Windle and Teo to attend her other elective class, Windle and Teo began to head towards their elementalist class. As they walked, people along the way were seen furtively whispering things to each others as they blatantly stared at Teo "Look it¡¯s him! He¡¯s the one right?" "I''m not sure, but according to the descriptions, it might be him" .... As they arrived at the predestined elementalist classroom, the low din of the classroom fell silent as everyone turned and stared at the newcomers. "Look it¡¯s the purist!" someone whispered The arrogant blonde Kristofer suddenly smiled in disdain. "Haha look who it is! The most famous man on campus" Kristofer said loudly, not bothering to hide his disdain or ridicule for Teo. "Is he even allowed to be here? Isn¡¯t he just essentially a non-elementalist? Heh" Ash, the brown haired youth within the group, followed up. "What a failure!" Erin, the blonde young lady added. Some laughter erupted among the students but Teo was unaffected, it was like he was in his own little world. Windle knew what the other kids were implying, but after seeing Teo seemingly unaffected, he also did not show any reaction. They moved towards the same seat they had last class. The mockery eventually died down. Only the arrogant group was still laughing, opening mocking Teo. They felt justified as they felt that Teo had stolen the limelight that they were supposed to have but, the it turned out that the heavens were fair and he was just trash. Seeing Teo looking quite nonplussed, their disdain only increased. But soon, Dina walked into the center of the circular auditorium. "Looks like everyone is here. I hope everyone brought their elemental stones. We will begin with feeling the energy from the stones." "Everyone bring out one elemental stone and place it in your hands." After everyone had one in their hands, Dina continued "Okay now, close your eyes and try to feel a pulse coming from the stone in your hand." As Dina saw her students closing their eyes in efforts to sense the elemental energy, she saw that some of the students were already at the Gathering stages. In particular, Zachery, Ash, Kristofer and Erin. ''As expected, they have do possess some skills to be arrogant.'' She then looked at Ash from the group and could sense that although he was still in the Sensing stage, he was not too far from the next stage. Teo closed his eyes and tried to feel the pulse of the elemental stone. With his eyes closed, he could smell the grass in the surrounding area, he could hear and feel the wind blowing through his hair and skin. Slowly he tried blocking each sense out one by one, in attempts to focus on his pulse, eventually succeeding in blocking out both of his senses of sound and touch. -Badump- -Badump- -Badump- Teo could hear his heart beating. Feel his heartbeat through his flesh, feel them through his veins and blood.. The sound and feeling actually started out quite soft but eventually got louder and louder... it became clearer and clearer, as if nothing else existed in the world besides his heart beating. Reading on Amazon or a pirate site? This novel is from Royal Road. Support the author by reading it there. -Badump- -Badump- -Badump- -Badump- -Badump- -Badump- Suddenly, another pulse appeared... ''This! Is this the pulse of the elemental stone? Is it this easy to feel its pulse?'' he thought as his mind wandered. -Badump- -Badump- -Badump- -Badump- -Badump- -Badump- The second pulse continued, and even got louder and clearer. But Teo suddenly noticed something was off. He could easily tell source of each heartbeat. One pulse was coming from his heart, while the other was a few inches away from his heart rather than his palm... -Badump- -Badump- -Badump- -Badump- -Badump- -Badump- ''Is it the Mr. Cien''s pulse?'' he wondered. ¡®How could this be? And wouldn''t listening to an elemental pulse become so much harder with another pulse here?¡¯ He continued to listen. 5 minutes passed... 10 minutes passed... 1 hour passed... Finally nothing... The two pulses were too loud for him to hear anything else. Teo recalled what happened last night.. ..... "100 questions! Let''s see if you can answer any of them." The smile on the old man''s face was full of confidence, as if he already won. "Let''s start with an easy one. What symbols are related to using fire elemental energy?" Teo was speechless, he thought it was a one question, one answer format. He didn''t expect that this old man was so shrewd that he wanted a list of answers for 1 question. Teo began drawing on the ground the 18 different symbols then looked at the old man as he finished. "Not bad, your memory is pretty good. Next, which set of shapes are compatible with these 4 symbols?"... "What is the meaning of this shape?"... "What would you do if this symbol was placed in the lower part of the array?" ... "What does this symbol do?"... The questions came unceasingly. Finally, after the 74th question, Teo had only gotten 3 wrong, and 71 correct. The questions were getting progressively harder and harder. Each question only asking information on the first quarter part of the book. The first quarter of the book consisted of the introduction of the flow of energy and the complete set of shapes and symbols. It even had symbols not known to modern world, such ancient symbols could unlock a whole field of study within the empire. The old man Cien was getting flustered. He didn''t expect that this ten year old youth''s memory and comprehension to be at this level. But in reality, only Teo''s comprehension was outstanding, as memorization was not his strong suit. The only reason why it seemed like Teo¡¯s memory was top tier was because he repeatedly re-read the each part of the book. Since he could not bring any other books into this world inside the shell, he just kept re-reading it over and over again. His persistence and concentration, paired with his comprehension, allowed him to answer all the difficult questions that Cien had thought of. "Which pattern would you use if you had to use these specific symbols?" Cien was getting desperate, he needed 18 wrong answers while Teo only needed to answer 9 questions correctly. "I don''t know." Teo said "HA! Finally I got you!" Cien was ecstatic, after consecutive correct answers he had finally found a question where Teo was clueless with. "But Mr. Cein, the first quarter of the book does not mention anything about patterns." Teo quickly countered. When Cien heard this his face fell, as he quickly grabbed the book and flipped through the pages. It was exactly as Teo had said, the section on patterns was on the next section of the book. His face turned red with embarrassment. Teo did not know that the one who wrote this book was Cien himself, and that Mr. Cien had actually forgotten the contents of the book he wrote himself! After a while Cien calmed himself and turned to Teo and coughed "Good, good. I see you were paying attention. It was an intentional trick question to see what you know! Now let¡¯s move on to the next question." He quickly directed Teo''s attention to the next question but soon the test was over. The final results was that Teo answered 80 questions correctly and only had 5 wrong answers. Cien lost to Teo. .... After 4 hours the class ended. Teo still had no luck in feeling the pulse of the stone. "Teo how did you do?" Windle asked beside him with a brow full of sweat. "No luck today, but I''ll try again later in my cave. How about you?" Teo replied. "Actually I could sense the pulse quite strongly. I guess I''m luckier than you." Windle smiled jokingly. He knew the reason why there was a difference in results. It was because he was a specialist with a very high growth rating, while Teo was rated at the end of the other side of the spectrum. ''Mr Cien, do you know a way to easily get through these stages?'' Teo mentally sent a message to the old man Cien. Since he had won the test last night, it would be a waste not to take advantage of it. The old man within the inner world had a face of regret! ''This is gonna be a pain in the ass...'' he thought to himself. Chapter 11: Void Specialist Chapter 11: Void Specialist Windle left to go to the Emerald Pavilion and Teo started heading to his work place He walked slowly as if he was in deep thought, he could not see the gazes of some people who recognized him. Some looking at him with pity, some filled with joy and mockery, but all of that was completely ignored. He was conversing with the old man Cien mentally so he was concentrating on the discussion at hand "Tell me what you tried to listen for when you were doing that exercise earlier" "Well I was listening for a pulse, at first I could hear my heart beating then I heard another pulse thats probably yours. Then I concentrated for the rest of the time but couldn''t hear anything" As Cien heard this, he tried to analyze the situation. Indeed, Teo would hear two pulses because he attached himself onto Teo but it shouldn''t affect it too much. Cien''s eyes flashed Teo suddenly felt as if someone was looking into his entire body. It was an uncomfortable feeling as if a slimy substance was crawling through his body bit by bit. Teo suddenly stopped walking and shivered "What is happening?" Teo mentally asked "Nothing much, just bare with it for a while" Cien replied After the feeling subsided, Teo continued walking "Its strange, your constitution isn''t bad at all, your sensory organs are pretty good too so your perception should be pretty high. With all of that you should be able to sense something right away if you concentrated hard enough" Then a thought suddenly occurred to Cien "Kid! which stone did you use today?" Teo suddenly opened up his bag and reached out looking for the stone. He pulls out a transparent elemental stone "This is the one" When Cien saw this his face twitched a bit "You use this stone and was trying to listen to its pulse? Do you even know what the elemental pulses suppose to feel like?" Cien was irritated because the stone that Teo pulled out was a void stone. The void element was a very mysterious element that was rarely obtained by elementalists. Only pure generalists usually obtain it as an elemental attribute but there was one occurrence that a specialist obtained it hundreds of thousands of years ago. That specialists became famous as he had full understanding of the void, even the strongest cultivators and elementalists could only give him respect. His understanding of the void element''s ability to distort space allowed him to design the procedure to create ''space jewelry''. It was a type of jewelry that distorted space and created a pocket of space. The process of creation of such jewelry was complex, but once he revealed his process to the world, it was used by only the most talented pure generalists. By being able to create such jewelry, one would never have to worry about money at all, but there was down side to all of this. With such a precious skill, if one did not have enough power and luck, they were bound to be abused. Some of them were invited as respected members with high positions, while others were abducted and tortured, some had their families and friends taken as hostages, just to force them to create such jewelry. Pure generalists were rare enough as it is, but finding a talented pure generalist that could create such things was like finding a specific blade of grass across 3 empires. People coveted them to the point that they would resort to anything to obtain them. Eventually, the great powers across the lands ended up taking the same decision. Since the rarity of such figures that could create this space jewelry was so exceedingly rare, they planned to share such a figure. They would not mistreat them, and even buy the jewelry at such exorbitant price that only they could afford it, as long as they all have equal access to them. Other great powers that did not form such treaty only ended up with war and eventually the pure generalists that they fought over would somehow be accidentally killed. The weaker faction would end up killing the pure generalists because they had no other hope to obtain such figure. ''If we can''t have him, no one can'' Stolen from its original source, this story is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings. Such was the result of one specialist with a void attribute hundreds of thousands of years ago, but that was not his only accomplishments. He traveled across the globe setting down array formations used for teleportation. People wanted to stop him or even capture him but with his power of the void, no being could catch him. Eventually he disappeared off the face of the earth, and after only a few hundreds of years since his disappearance his teleportation array formations were destroyed, eroded by time or by human hands. .... After recalling such a figure, Cien continued "I don''t know what kind of idiot tries to listen to his heartbeat while trying to listen to the pulse of a void stone. I can''t believe an idiot like you passed my test" "When you are listening for the void pulse, you must block out everything and concentrate. Don''t let your mind wander around. The void elemental pulse is the hardest to sense because its very minute" "You should start with a different element, if you have felt the heat for fire, you should be able to feel its pulse. Similarly for other elements, try to surround yourself with the element you are trying to sense and you should be able to sense them. After you sense them, then you will never forget the process of feeling them. Since that''s all I''m going to sleep, don''t disturb me for a while" Teo listened to old man Cien, but decided to keep using the void stone. He grew a stubborn personality, never wanting to give up on something he could not learn. This made him the perfect student for Ms Dina''s class. .... Teo arrived at the restaurant He entered from the back where only employees could use. "Hey little celebrity, I''ve been hearing about you since yesterday" A loud firm female voice rang out. Teo turned to the source of the voice. A figure had long black hair that was tied with one big ribbon at the ends, tanned complexion, brown eyes underneath a pair of glasses. It was his coworker and senior, Gina "Senior Gina" "I told you not to be so formal, you can call me Sister instead" "Senior Sister Gina" "... Oh well I guess that can work" Gina was a 7th year senior who was quite friendly with Teo. Gina was the main reason Teo got hired to this restaurant that was fairly close to the library. She had a very outspoken character, not afraid to tell it how it is. "Come its very busy tonight, and Tony can''t be here tonight so you have to help out at the back" Teo''s job ranged from helping out in the kitchen to cleaning tables, getting orders, running errands and bringing ingredients to the restaurant. The restaurant was quite large, and was often busy, but tonight it was packed. The restaurant also had a long bar and served alcohol so it was often rowdy as well. .... As Teo was working in the kitchen, a group of people were talking to each other "That kid is so arrogant, ignoring us today" a blonde young man said "We should go teach him a lesson" another young man with brown hair said This group was exactly Zachery''s group of arrogant elementalists "Leave him, he''ll just dirty our hands" Zachery stated indifferently .... Within the kitchen "Teo can you bring these over to table 13" Gina asked Teo Teo grabbed 2 plates of food and went out of the kitchen. As he was heading to table 13, he suddenly felt his foot being blocked causing him to fall. The dishes landed to a bunch of people within a table. Teo looked at his food and saw leg sticking out. He looked at the figure and saw Kristofer''s leg sticking out with a huge smile on his face. The others within the same table were smiling, and even Erin the blonde young woman laughed. Teo understood that he was tripped by Kristofer Chapter 12: Trouble Chapter 12: Trouble [Note: warning, explicit language in future chapters as well] As Teo was looking at who caused this incident to happen he was suddenly grabbed and lifted up in the air "Bastard! what the hell do you think you are doing!?" Teo was grabbed by the collar of his shirt and was lifted 2 feet above the ground. His gaze quickly turned to the person grabbing him. He recognized this tall burly man, it was Nathan Ashbringer Other people that sat in the same table all stood up, some of them had food all over their clothes. They were all clearly pissed. Looking at all of them, Teo discovered that they were all from the Silver Sword Association When Nathan looked towards Teo''s face, he instantly recognize him. "Its you!" Nathan was even more pissed. He recalled what happened yesterday. He gave this little punk a lot of face in public by acting very polite and friendly and he was rejected in front of everyone, belittling him. Although he was glad he did not succeed in inviting Teo, he still felt like his face was slapped by being rejected by this trash and even now he dared to mess with him and his faction members in front of all these people. He felt humiliated which turned into rage! "MOTHER FUCKER!!" His fist clenched hard and was about to punch this punk ass bastard At the corner of his eye, he saw a silver flash coming towards him -Swish- A kitchen knife flew by, barely missing his face, a red line appeared along his cheeks. If the cut was any deeper and blood would''ve flowed. The knife ended up being embedded into the wall. His fist frozen mid punch and he turned his head "LET GO OF HIM NATHAN!" a loud powerful voice descended towards the kitchen entrance "Gina? What the fuck? Stay out of this!" Nathan replied Gina quickly dashed forward towards Nathan and threw her own punch Nathan quickly moved his hand that was holding Teo and used him as a shield The expected punch did not appear, Nathan looked around and Gina''s figure vanished Nathan quickly let go of Teo and blocked above his head. A leg that suddenly appeared above his head was quickly blocked. Gina retracted her leg and moved to the side of Teo. "Nathan! Gina! no fighting in here" The old man behind the bar counter said. It was not loud but it was loud enough for the two to hear. Both Gina and Nathan then dropped their stances "Gina why are you protecting him? This bastard dares to disrespect our Silver Sword Association. He needs to pay" "Your Silver Shit Association? Fuck that! You mess with him, you mess with Me and Rowen!" Nathan''s face twitched ''Whats his connection with Gina and Rowen?'' then he suddenly remembered when that friend of Teo said that Teo had a connection with the Martial faction Teo who was shocked by everything that happened was trying to understand the situation. Everything happened so fast, he saw Gina was dashing in then he just blinked and she suddenly vanished and next thing he knew Gina was attacked from above then quickly pulled him behind her. ''My sister and Gina? they know each other?'' he thought to himself "You think we are scared of your Martial faction!?" Nathan roared "Just try! don''t tell me you forgot who kicked your ass a few weeks ago in the rankings" Gina was domineering, she looked gentle normally but this was the first time Teo saw her like that. The old man behind the counter looked stern and said "You, get out of here! You are causing a disturbance" as he pointed at Nathan and his members "And you too! back to work, clean that mess up. I''m deducting this from your pay" pointing towards Teo and Gina The narrative has been taken without permission. Report any sightings."We''ll meet again. This is not over." Nathan said solemnly and they quickly left The crowd that were watching started whispering again. At the start of the conflict they all became silent and once the Silver Sword members left, the noise and chatter grew even louder than before. Most of them talking about the incident that just happened Gina walked towards the wall and pulled out the kitchen knife and returned it in the sheath that was placed near her lower back. They both cleaned up the mess, and returned to the kitchen. .... Back at the kitchen "Senior Sister Gina, thank you for what you did back then" "No sweat, don''t mention it" Teo had a look as if he was deliberating of asking her a question. Gina guessed what Teo was going to ask "Your sister and I are friends. We are also both from the Martial faction" "Oh..so that''s why I got this job so easily" Gina smiled. It was as if the domineering version of Gina never had existed before. "That''s right, your sister asked me to do you a favor. We have been best friends since first year. This is why you should call me ''Big Sister'' instead of ''Senior Sister'' " she laughed Teo awkwardly smiled. It wasn''t that he didn''t like to call Gina that, it was just weird for him. They weren''t that close yet "....Big Sister Gina.." Teo meekly said Hearing Teo say those words Gina gave him a big hug "Ha Ha you finally said it" Teo was uncomfortable, he has never been hugged by anyone besides his family before ..... Their shift ended and were just going out of the restaurant from the back "You should really consider joining the Martial faction. I know Rowen didn''t ask you to join because she respects your decision, but with the trouble you have right now, it will be hard to get by" She looked at him intently, trying to convince him to join. Her face was so serious, but it was not a fierce look. It was like when a little girl was expecting something from her parents, it was quite cute. "Even though the academy tries to protect first and second year students from being bullied, there is an exception and that is when they are provoked, you should really come join us" "I''ll think about it Big Sister Gina" Gina wanted to walk Teo home but Teo insisted that he was alright by himself He went straight to the library and after an hour he exited the library On his way home, he was smiling with glee. It was as if the incident from today didn''t happen. On the outside he seemed fearless, walking alone without a care in the world. He even had a stupid smile on his face. Suddenly a 5 figures stepped forward blocking his path, as he was still looking into his book he did not notice them and eventually bumped into them, his butt falling flat on the ground. He looked up and saw Nathan and 4 other Silver Sword members. He quickly got up and turned around, but behind him was 4 other Silver Sword members. "Hey there kid, I hope you didn''t forget about me. Lets go somewhere and talk about our differences what do you say?" Nathan disdainfully smiled It was not a situation where he could reject .... The dragged into a very remote location, with no people. Teo recognized two of the members as the bulky and tall 3rd and 2nd year students that invited Windle a little over a month ago The rest were 3 first years, all of them were familiar faces within his elementalist class, and the remaining 3 members were from different years ranging 2 to 4 A first year elementalist shoved Teo so hard that he fell on the ground A voice rang out in Teo''s mind "Kid, just stay on the ground and cover your head" Chapter 13: Like a Turtle Chapter 13: Like a Turtle "If you try to fight back it''ll only make things worst, just cover your head the best you can and endure" Cien''s voice rang out into Teo''s head Teo wanted to try to run away or even fight back, but when he heard old man Cien''s voice his thoughts quickly weighed his options. If it was going to end here then he might as well just take it instead of resisting and adding more fuel to the fire, he should just endure it. Besides, he was confident that the Silver Sword members won''t go too far because of his sister and Gina. Teo tucked in his legs and use his hands to cover the back of his head. His arms cover the sides of his head as his face was facing down into the ground. He was like a turtle waiting for punishment When the Silver Sword members saw this, they all laughed. They expected Teo to at least resist in some way but he was actually this pathetic "This punk is even more pathetic than I thought! HA HA HA" Nathan laughed loudly "You guys go and punish him for his mistakes" he ordered the other members The first and second year students surrounded the pathetic turtle. Some even picked up large branches from a nearby tree. They started kicking Teo that was laying down and the ones with branches swung down the huge branches onto his back. They kicked towards the side of his head and where his arms were covering. A student kicked into the side of his stomach. The impact was so strong that it lifted Teo up a few inches off the ground and landed back, maintaining his turtle stance. The other members from the Silver Sword Alliance just watched and laughed. They let the younger members handle their revenge because if also joined in and anyone found out they could face some trouble in the future. They laughed and mocked "This turtle is quite pathetic, even a dog would try and resist! HA HA HA HA" After 10 minutes of unrestrained beating the first and second years member were spent. Although they could not see his face, they knew that Teo was seriously wounded. After seeing that the younger members'' attacks slowing down. Nathan gave the signal to stop. He walked towards Teo and bent down and said "Remember this you piece of fucking trash, next time you irritate me even in the slightest, we will ''talk'' about our differences again" Then he suddenly slammed his foot into Teo''s side and Teo quickly flew into the bushes. The Silver Sword members laughed as they walked away. They loved bullying the weak, it gave them a refreshing feeling; a feeling of superiority .... After the Silver Sword members left, Teo was still in his turtle stance. "Good job kid, you''ve endured it well" Cien mentally said Teo slowly removed his hands covering his head and stood up. Teo had a surprised looked on his face, he was shocked that although he felt some pressure from their attacks, it didn''t hurt at all. There was not a single scratch on his body. All the attacks to him felt like someone lightly tapping him. "Thanks for saving me Mr Cien" Teo said. He assumed this was because of old man Cien. When Cien heard this, his eyes quickly flashed Teo could feel that same slimy feeling he had felt earlier before Cien was looking in at his body with his mysterious eye technique. Although Cien could see what Teo was seeing, he himself could not see Teo without using this technique. Cien was also shocked that Teo was completely uninjured then he suddenly remembered. When he entered Teo''s body the array formation on his turtle shell was left onto Teo''s chest. This narrative has been purloined without the author''s approval. Report any appearances on Amazon. This array formation was a very ancient formation that had a very high defensive properties. This defensive property must''ve protected Teo''s body but there was something wrong... "To activate this array formation... one needs to..." Cien whispered to himself. Then he remember what had recently happen and he completely understood it He quickly replied "Of course, do you think that I am such a cruel person to let you get lynched on by several people?" Actually, he did hope for Teo to get beaten up a bit. After all he was still bitter about losing that recent bet with him. Teo also thought the contrary. He was getting used to the petty character of old man Cien. He knew the old man would not do anything for free. He loves to gamble but also was very petty, the only positive characteristic that Cien had in Teo''s eyes was that he always kept his promises. Even when he lose the bet, he would follow through the conditions of the bet. Seeing Cien take the credit for his safeguarding, Teo saw the old man Cien in a better light He soon headed back to his cave. He took a route that had not a lot of people. He was still thankful for the long sleeve uniform that the kitchen workers had to wear because if it was not for that, the Silver Sword members would have seen his arms being uninjured after being kicked. Teo decided to keep the old man Cien a secret. From the books he have read before, he knew that "the tallest tree gets the most wind". If one stood out the most, it might invite unwanted attention and even trouble. He finally arrived at his cave. He quickly changed his clothes while he checked his body thoroughly. There wasn''t even a single scratch from the "beating" he received. He took out the void stone from his bag, and sat on top of his bed in a lotus position. Within the dark bedroom, he closed his eyes. Within his cave, he did not need to concentrate as hard because there was no noise, no wind, himself. He could easily hear his own pulse. Moments later, he started hearing old man Cien''s pulse. Then he concentrated his mind and the two pulses faded away. He could not sense anything at all so his mind started to wander. He kept trying to maintain his concentration. He tried to feel the pulse of the void stone for a little over an hour and then gave up. He could still not feel the void pulse at all. He went back into the world within the shell. While being in this world, his body outside was sleeping, and thus he didnt need any sleep. He walked to where the benches and the book was. He looked at old man Cien and he was as usually, laying on his hammock. Teo was wondering if Cien really did intentionally save him earlier. ''Maybe he saved me by accident?'' Teo then gave up on that idea and shook his head. ''I shouldn''t judge Mr Cien too harshly, if it wasn''t for him, I would''ve been black and blue'' Teo opened up the book and the a gust of wind blew past him, the pages flipped as the air blue through it. Seeing the pages being flipped by the wind, a sudden idea popped out of Teo''s head ''Hmm... could it be possible?'' Teo looked at old man Cien and then his gaze horizontally moved, gazing across the world within the shell. The took the book that was in his hand and closed the book then placing it on the bench. He sat down on the bench in a lotus position and closed his eyes. Chapter 14: Injured Chapter 14: Injured Darkness.. pure darkness Teo could not see anything but the back of his eyelids. He could feel the wind blowing through his hair, the light shining down his skin, the smell of the grass and the sound of the pond''s water gently hitting the shore. He concentrated his mind until all distractions vanished one after the other. His own pulse became louder and the second pulse did not come this time. His concentration peaked and the sound of his heartbeat vanished. He could not see or feel anything... a few hours later a soft of sound came. The sound was so light that he thought he imaged the sound but after a while the same sound rang again, but this time two different sounds came. After a while 4 different sounds came. ''Is this the elemental pulse?'' he wondered After 2 hours the could hear an infinite amount of sounds in his surroundings. He could tell that many of the sounds were the same, but they were still too soft to differentiate. ''These sounds must be the elemental pulses'' he figured. He continued on until it was 6 am. Cien opened his eyes and with a flick of his hand, Teo who was in deep meditation floated and was dropped into the pond -SPASH- Teo woke up from his deep meditation and found himself on his bed. He was forcibly kicked out of the inner world. -KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK- An urgent knocked could be heard from his door. It quickly repeated over and over and Teo finally understood what happened. He got off the bed and headed to the entrance to answer the door. As he opened the door a figure suddenly rushed and gave him a hug. The figure rushed so much faster than Gina''s speed last night that before Teo could tell whats going on, he already felt a body against his own. "Oh little Teo are you alright?" The familiar voice quickly said and Teo recognized her right away "Big sister Rowen, I''m fine, I''m fine" Teo replied Rowen quickly took of Teo''s shirt. With Rowen''s speed and strength Teo could do little to react, much less resist She soon found out that there were no injuries on Teo''s body at all. "That DAMN Riss! She worried me for nothing!" Rowen angrily roared. She had heard the news about the incident between the Silver Sword Association and her brother last night from Gina. She didn''t think that the Silver Sword Association would dare make a move on her brother, but this morning she heard from her friend Riss that was from the Emerald Pavilion that several Silver Sword members were talking about how they beat up Teo. Hearing that news Rowen quickly rushed towards Teo''s cave to confirm Riss'' information. On her way to Teo''s cave, she was full of worry and anger. ''If you injure one hair on his head I''ll break your limbs that it will take a full year to recover!'' she shouted in her head But now seeing Teo perfectly fine, she concluded that Riss played a trick on her. She had involuntarily cursed Riss aloud in front of Teo as she dropped the bag she was holding. Teo who had never heard her sister curse before was deeply shocked. Seeing Teo with that look on his face, Rowen quickly continued -cough- "I''m sorry little Teo, a friend of mine must''ve played a prank on me. She told me that you were attacked by some Silver Sword members" Hearing Rowen''s sentence, Teo decided to tell her about the events last night "Big sister Rowen, I was attacked by them last night" Rowen was confused ''If you were attacked last night, why aren''t you injured?'' she thought Guessing what his sister was thinking Teo continued "But, luckily a friend of mine gave me protection talisman. They thought I was injured but I was perfectly fine" Teo purposely hid any facts regarding the old man Cien and made up a story. Rowen was easily convinced by Teo. She recalled that one of Teo''s friend she met before was actually from the Emerald Pavilion. Though a protection talisman was not that cheap, it wasn''t expensive as well. It should be able to protect Teo and Windle might have even given Teo a discount. If you discover this tale on Amazon, be aware that it has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road. Please report it. "That Silver Sword... Nathan.." she growled in a low voice. Although Teo was unharmed, the Silver Sword dared attack her little brother! She must exact revenge! When Teo heard Nathan''s name from his sister''s lips, he quickly said "Big sister, don''t tell anyone that I am actually uninjured. If they find out, they might come again." Rowen agreed "Okay little Teo, we can keep it a secret, but I''m still going to give Nathan a good thrashing. Maybe last time I hit him too hard that he forgot who easily defeated him in the ranking tournament. Don''t need to worry about it, I''ll challenge him in the Arena, if he has any face left he will definitely accept it and even after I beat him, he will probably not go after you again.. unless he wants to die" a killing intent quickly vanished as quick as it came. Rowen picked up the bag she dropped and took out some bandages. "Here, we should cover up your body so they will think you are still injured" Rowen helped wrapped Teo up in bandages, left a protection talisman as well as the bag full of medicine and bandages and quickly headed for the Area. ..... In the morning, Teo usually waited for Lia and Windle. When they both saw Teo covered in bandages, they were overly worried "Teo what happened to you?" Lia quickly asked "I was attacked last night by some people from the Silver Sword" Teo answered "Are you sure you want to go to class? Maybe it would be better to stay home today" Windle suggested "That''s right, Oh we can take you to the medical center, they should be able to give you some medicine to help you recover faster" Ever since Lia joined the Martial faction, she would often be covered in sores and injuries, She would often go with other members of the faction to the medical center, which healed minor injuries and oven sore muscles within a few minutes. Teo smiled and then suddenly grabbed both their shoulders, moving them closer to him Teo whispered "Don''t worry, I''m not really injured. My sister gave me a protection talisman so I am completely fine. I just don''t want anyone else to know because Silver Sword might come back again" Windle and Lia quickly understood the situation. They smiled and headed for class. ..... After the first class Windle and Teo headed straight to the elementalist class. When they arrived, the class became silent again and stared at Teo. This time Teo was not unaffected like before. His gaze swept through the room and saw Zachery and his gang as well as the the 3 other elementalists that was part of the Silver Sword Association. Windle and Teo went to their usual seats, like everyone else. From the start of the first class to since today no one changed seats. This meant that the circles within the class was already established. Zachery and his group of friends all laughed. Not just them even the people from the Silver Sword laughed loudly. Teo''s face, besides his brow was mostly unchanged. His brow wrinkled. He was clearly upset. ''I need to get revenge''. It was the first time he was ever angry at someone, but surprisingly he was relatively clearheaded. From the books he had read before, he knew that he can''t just lash out at them. Both groups had a strong backing. One was the Rizon faction, the other was the Silver Sword Association. If he had to take revenge, he must do it anonymously. A well crafted plan quickly formed in his head ... As he was finalizing his plans for revenge, Dina arrived. "Okay class let us continue on our exercises, bring out your stones" Unlike everyone else, Teo did not immediately take out his void stone. He quickly closed his eyes and started meditating. Chapter 15: Preparation Chapter 15: Preparation 2 hours passed and Teo opened his eyes A confused look was on his face ¡®This is weird, how come I cant hear anything?¡¯ he thought to himself Dina who had been watching everyone saw Teo opened his eyes. ¡°Teo, you should take out the elemental stone. At your level, you won¡¯t be able to feel the pulse without it. Don¡¯t rush, I know you must be worried about your growth rate evaluation, just keep a steady pace. Remember, ¡®slow and steady wins the race¡¯ ¡± Dina tried to encourage Teo. With Teo¡¯s growth rate evaluation, it would take a long time for him to feel the elemental pulses unaided, and even longer mastering the Sensing stage. But once he could completely sense the elemental pulses for at least 5 different elements, he would be considered as an outstanding figure even if he has reached it when he is older. What Dina wanted to do was to encourage him and guide him while he was still in the academy, so that even after he graduates he would know the what to do in the future. Teo pulled out the void stone and resumed his meditation. ¡­. After class Instead of going to the library, Teo headed home He needed people to believe that his injuries were real so he should change his habits at least until a week had passed. As he was walked he mentally asked ¡°Mr Cien, can I ask you a question?¡± ¡°Aren¡¯t you already asking me one?¡± Cien was snappy as always Teo continued ¡°I was wondering why I couldn¡¯t feel any pulses during class today. Last night I felt many very easily¡± ¡°Silly kid, how can you compare my inner world to that world out there¡± Cien bragged ¡°This inner world of mine is very special. Unlike the world outside, my inner world has a very dense world Qi, almost a thousand times as dense compared to the outside world. Which is the reason why you can sense the elemental pulse more clearly when you are in the inner world¡± Teo somewhat understood the old man Cien. Though he could not feel the world Qi, it must be something like water and honey. Water is much thinner compared to honey, so it was much harder to grasp, while honey was thicker and it does not easily flow out of your hands. ¡°If only I can bring my elemental stones inside..¡± Teo said to himself ¡°Who said you can¡¯t?¡± Cien asked When Teo heard Cien¡¯s question his face fell¡­ ¡®I can bring stuff inside the world?¡¯ Teo realized what it could mean ¡°Why didn¡¯t you tell me?¡± Teo asked ¡°Well.. you never asked, besides if you keep bring stuff in and out again and again it would be too annoying. I am not your servant¡± Cien answered in a carefree manner ¡°Besides, once you get to the second stage in your class, only then can you freely move things into the inner world on your own, but before that you shouldn¡¯t get your hopes up¡± Cien suddenly thought of something and smiled ¡°¡­hmm I can let you bring in things once, but you will owe me a favor that you can¡¯t refuse. Of course it will only be something you can do¡± Teo contemplated. ¡®One favor.. it could be anything.. it might be even something dangerous¡¯ He hesitated but then recalled ¡®Well he did save me once, with his mysterious power I¡¯m sure that he won¡¯t let me do anything dangerous, and even if he did, he should protect me¡­..right?¡¯ Teo was trying to convinced himself. A favor in exchange for advancing through the sensing stage. ¡°One item for one favor?¡± Teo asked ¡°Yup, do you agree?¡± Cien confirmed ¡°Okay, but you can¡¯t ask me to lose on our bets on purpose¡± Teo agreed. This story is posted elsewhere by the author. Help them out by reading the authentic version. Teo covered his back. Although he was starting to believe old man Cien, he still had to stay cautious ¡°Its a deal then¡± Cien agreed ¡®Though I don¡¯t think I¡¯ll ever become a craftsman, learning at least the sensing stage might be useful in the future¡¯ Teo thought to himself ¡­ He arrived at his cave ¡°So kid which item do you want to bring in?¡± Cien asked. He was impatient to seal the deal. Once he performs this action, it would mean that the kid will owe him ¡°I¡¯m still deciding, but I have another request to ask you¡± ¡°You¡¯re rather bold today aren¡¯t you, but I don¡¯t hate it. Let me hear what you want and I¡¯ll see what we can work out¡± ¡°Can you teach me how to make an array?¡± ¡°Hoh.. finally interested in arrays huh? Well sure I can teach you how to make an array. Hmm since you are already going to owe me a favor, why don¡¯t we make this into a bet of sorts¡± Another smile appeared on Cien¡¯s face ¡°Bet of sorts?¡± Teo wasn¡¯t sure what Cien meant ¡°I will help you in making an array, with the book''s help you should be able to make one. But in 1 year, I¡¯ll need you to make a medium level array. If you fail we can cancel our previous bet conditions, if you succeed then you won¡¯t owe me anything¡± ¡°Previous bet conditions?¡± ¡°Yes, If you fail, I will stop answering your questions and neither help you with understanding the book.¡± Cien felt that he was forgetting something else. Something very important. But before he could remember what it was Teo responded ¡°Okay deal¡± ¡°Okay very good. Now which array do you want to try to make?¡± Teo suddenly felt that his consciousness was fading. He was forced to enter the world within the shell and without warning a thick scroll was thrown towards him. He had barely manage to catch the scroll in time. ¡°Here is a list of some commonly known arrays ranging from the very basic to the advance and a brief explanation on what the arrays do¡± Teo opened up the scroll, there were an uncountable amount of arrays listed on the scroll. ¡°Mystic fog array, traps people into the array, making them lose direction¡± ¡°Vanishing array, conceals any objects within the array¡± ¡°Teleportation array, allows anything to be transferred to a specified location¡± ¡°Temporal array, slows down enemy¡¯s perception of time¡± Teo looked through some of the medium and advance level arrays. Cien was curious what kind of array Teo wanted to make. He thought it would be hilarious if Teo tried to make an advance array right from the start. Teo moved to the basic arrays and found an array he was looking. ¡°I choose this one¡± Teo announced As expected, Teo wasn¡¯t a complete idiot. Although Cien really want to win the bet, he had an even bigger bet that was riding on Teo right from the start. ¡°Okay first you will need to have these 7 symbols, as for the shapes you must at least have this one and this one, as for the patterns, at least try to figure it out yourself¡± A few symbols and shapes were drawn into the air. Teo quickly memorized them. Cien¡¯s ¡°help¡± seemed vague but there was no singular way to create a single type of array. Of course there are many well documented arrays, but a person can create a different array with the same function. Old man Cien only gave the very basic of the basic of ¡°help¡± ¡°Oh I almost forgot, you will also need elemental powder to see that your array works¡± Cien concluded ¡®Elemental powder¡­ I guess I have to go make some preparations¡¯ Teo thought to himself Chapter 16: Emerald Pavilion Chapter 16: Emerald Pavilion A hooded robed figure was walking long emerald road. Emerald road was in the southern part of Mirth academy, where the commercial area of the academy, the Marketplace The robe figure had his head tilted downwards, underneath his hood he wore a black mask to cover his face, only a small black hair and his eyes could be seen This figure is in fact, Teo After a few days, he carefully thought of a detail plan of exacting revenge. In his mind, it was the perfect revenge but if anyone found out about his plans, they would see it as very immature Teo needed to buy a few things, and the best place to buy those things would be the Marketplace. Of course he could leave the academy grounds and head for Mirth city but he decided not to. Although buying the items that he needed from Mirth city would be comparably more safer because the likelihood of a Silver Sword member there would be astronomically small, he decided that wearing a hood and covering his face and just buying from the Marketplace would be enough. As usual, this place was packed Many stores lined up selling various things. If one was not too well-informed he would be easily cheated by these merchants. The academy allowed certain individual merchants and a few merchant organization to establish a shop within the academy. It helped foster the students'' minds and it also gave students jobs and experience. This place was not a new place for Teo. When he bought his gift for his sister he went here with Windle and Lia. With both their help, he found a really nice necklace for Rowen and thanks to Windle''s connections, he had a substantial discount on it Teo walked through Emerald road. He did not stop at the other small shops and headed to a huge red building. The building was one of the largest within the Marketplace. From the outside one could see that this building should have at least 4 floors. It was difficult to tell seeing as there were no windows around it. Only a large door with a few guards standing beside it and a fairly large sign above the door "Emerald Pavilion". The letters painted with emerald green and gold colors which made it look magnificent. The Emerald Pavilion was a large merchant organization across the empire and within the academy, they were the biggest. With an agreement between the Emerald Pavilion and the academy, they provided discounts for the students under certain conditions. .... Inside the building was a fairly large room. It was connected to a hallway which led to several other rooms each rooms containing different classification of items. The room contained a wide staircase at the very back of the room and a a fairly large desk with a woman behind it. The woman had a very dazzling appearance. Long brown silky hair flowed down her shoulders. Her skin was fair, without a hint of imperfection. She looked young, but had an aura of an experienced woman. Two pair of seductive eyes blinked slowly as she saw a short robed figure entered. Her eyes widened slightly but it quickly returned back to normal. As the person designated to greet the customers she always had to keep her composure. The robed figure wore a mask, which only revealed a few strands of black hair and eyes. She gave him a welcoming smile as the figure came closer. "Greetings dear customer what would we help you with today" She spoke very politely her voice was sweet and gentle The robed man let out a muffled replied "I''m looking to purchase some elemental stones and powder" Upon hearing the man''s replied she said "I understand" while keeping her smile She turns around to look at the several female attendants sitting on the side "Aisha, can you please escort our esteemed guest to room 3" A young female attendant with short hair in uniform stood up, She walked towards the robed man and politely said "Esteemed guest, please follow me" She led him to the hallway and as they walked she openly said "Esteem guest, is this perhaps your first time in this Pavilion?" Teo, underneath the robes did not speak and just nodded his head Aisha already knew that the robed figure was a new customer because unless a customer required something help, they would not go to the front counter; they would just go straight through the hallway and browse by themselves. If you spot this story on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation. The front counter was mainly for new customers or customers with special request. Elemental stones and powder were not anything too special. She still asked the question just to be polite. "Is that so, well esteemed customer, here in our Emerald Pavilion, you can find most things you would ever need. The rooms contain different classification of items that you could possibly need" As they walked pass the first open room, Aisha slowed down her paced and gestured with her hands towards the door "For example, Room 1 contains weapons merchandise, if you are looking for a weapon you can come here directly" The room was full of weapons. Many glass counter were there showcasing the more expensive weapons, while cheaper ones were stacked together onto the weapon rack. A large man was behind the counter with a few male attendants nearby awaiting for the large man''s orders. "Each room is labeled to what classification of merchandise it has and our customers are free to browse anywhere within the first floor. We have everything from weapons, armors, clothes, jewelry, crafting tools and materials, and even some miscellaneous items. If you feel that you cannot find an item, please inform any staff members we have" Teo who was listening intently let out a muffled voice "What about the upper floors?" Although the the robe man''s voice was muffled by the mask he wore. Aisha could also tell that the voice was that of a child that has not matured yet. Judging from the man''s height and figure, she could tell it was a young man possibly a first year student. "The second floor requires that you have enough sufficient funds before you can enter. It is like the first floor, except that the items are of higher quality or rarity and priced higher. The third floor is only for special guests with special purchases. As for the four floor, it is just a floor for our Emerald Pavilion members" They quickly arrived at room 3, the materials room. The room had many class counters with all different kinds of materials. There were different types of wood, shiny ores, metallic bars. Teo''s eyes looked around the whole room. ''Theres so many materials here, I wonder what they are for?'' he thought to himself There were other customers in the room, and several people behind the counter helping the customers or finalizing the customer''s purchase. Aisha guided Teo towards the woman behind the counter and spoke "Esteemed guest, this person here can help you will be helping you with your purchase. If you need anything else, please inform any of our staff members and they will be happy to help" After that Aisha left the room "Esteemed guest what might you be looking for?" The woman behind the counter asked She looked young, but a few years older than Teo. He orange hair was fairly short and was tied into a fairly cute twin tail. "I am looking to buy some elemental stones and some elemental powders as well" Teo replied "Which kind of stones and powder were you looking to purchase and how much of them would you like to purchase?" Teo reached into his inner pocket and pulled out a list and handed it to the orange haired woman. She took the list and looked through them. After looking through the list, without even a pause the woman quickly said "Everything on this item amounts to 3 gold and 50 silvers in total" When Teo heard the price his mouth behind the mask dropped. 3 gold and 50 silvers!! He hardly had enough. He had only been working for a little over a month and he already used some of his money to buy a gift for his sister. Even with some tips he received the amount of money he had was only 32 silvers. [Author''s Note: Thanks for reading guys. I really appreciate the comments as well as the many followers that started following the series. If I haven''t mentioned it yet, this is the first novel I am writing so there will be some mistakes and a few edits as time goes on. I am planning on released chapters regularly. I hope you enjoy!] Chapter 17: A Bag Chapter 17: A Bag Before Teo could say anything the orange haired clerk immediately said "Of course if you could provide an academy identifying stone, you could receive a discount" Teo had almost no hope ''how much discount could there possibly be?'' But he still tried to see how much he could get the items for. If for some miracle he could get them all, that would be best. If not, he would have to weigh his options. Which is more important? Advancing through Sensing stage or getting revenge on those people who tried to harm him? ''Why am I even considering the other option, its obvious which one I should choose'' he thought to himself Both his fist and teeth clenched together ''Of course revenge is more important!'' May it be his sister''s influence, his blood or his youth, he wanted revenge more than anything. It was the first time he experience actions with such malicious intent ever done against him. They all had to pay! He reached inside his bag and took out his identification stone and handed it to the orange hair clerk The woman took the stone and performed a small ritual. She had a small table behind the counter with 10 lines going going outwards forming a circular pattern. She placed the identification stone in the middle of the circle and a small part of the lines suddenly glowed. As the clerk saw this she quickly took another glance at the masked man. A smile appeared on her face. The ritual she performed was a divination ritual. The identification stone proved that the masked person was a student of the academy, and after performing the divination rite, she instantly knew who this masked person was. There was only one pure generalists in the whole academy, maybe even in the whole prefecture. Teo who was watching the ritual also understood what had happened. If he wasn''t wearing a mask, his dumbfounded look on his face would be seen by everyone. He quickly looked at his surroundings. The other customers didn''t seemed to have notice the ritual. Even the other clerks was too busy. Only the orange haired clerk who was helping him knew his identity. His face was full of regret ''Why did I give her my identity stone?!'' he mentally shouted at himself Seeing the smile on the orange haired clerk, Teo knew that if the Silver Sword hear about him walking around and about after being beaten, they would find it suspicious. It would be understandable if he was only going to class or going to the cafeteria to eat since they were both close to the residential area but he went to the Emerald Pavilion, which was quite a distance from the residential area would only mean one thing. He wasn''t that injured at all! ''Should I pay her off to keep her silence?'' he thought but with only 32 silvers, he might not be able to buy anything if he were to bribe the clerk As he was thinking of what to do, the clerk''s attitude changed. Could it be she planned on blackmailing him? She motioned her hand, gesturing for Teo to get closer "He he he" she snickered "I didn''t think it was the famous, little brother Teo, that had come to be my customer today" she whispered She still had a huge smile on her face, even though she called him "little brother", her previous respectful attitude was gone. It was replaced by this friendly attitude which made Teo even more suspicious. Seeing the beads of sweat on Teo''s forehead, she could generally guess what Teo was thinking. Her face instantly tighten, it was as if her mouth was going to explode. She tried to quickly close her mouth and even blocked it with her hands. Teo could hear a muffled laughter as he saw the orange haired clerk trying really hard to hold back her laughter. Tears formed in her eyes until she could not hold it any longer. She gave out a few loud laughs, followed by a few muffled ones. Everyone in the room turned to look at who was laughing loudly, they saw the orange haired clerk who''s laughter eventually died down. After a while, the orange haired clerk was finally calm. Everyone else in the room looked at her for a few moments and then continued with what they were doing Her hands reached out a pinched both of Teo''s cheeks through the mask "Little brother Teo is so cute, just like Rowen said ha ha" she said ''Rowen?'' "Do you know my sister?" Teo asked "Of course I do, ha ha, we''ve been friends from the first year. I am called Riss, Riss Tofen. Of course... unless you want your secret exposed you have to do one thing for me" Teo was kinda relieved to hear that the orange haired clerk was his sister''s friend, but after her sentence his hope vanished. This novel is published on a different platform. Support the original author by finding the official source. "What do you want me to do?" "Call me ''Big sister Riss'' of course. Its not fair! I heard from Gina that you called her ''big sister'' already and Rowen hasn''t even introduced us together yet" She then leaned over the glass counter, and quickly pulled Teo''s shoulder. She looked around and then quickly pulled down Teo''s mask and quickly put it back on "Ha little brother Teo is so handsome, just like Elder Brother Aran" As she mentioned Teo''s brother''s name, her eyes looked as if she was reminiscing the past. It was as if hearts started appearing behind her. Then quickly returned focus on Teo "Maybe you should call me Sister-in-law that would be good too" "Sister-in-law?" Teo was confused as he asked When she heard him ''call'' her "sister-in-law" she was extremely delighted "Alright! Since my little brother-in-law is purchasing some stuff, I''ll give you a good discount. The total will be 31 silvers and 50 bronze coins" ''31 Silvers and 50 bronze coins'' the amount echoed in Teo''s head What luck is this? From 3 gold and 50 silvers to 31 silvers and 50 bronze coins.. is this discount even right? "Are you sure thats the right price?" Teo could not believe that this price was actually true. She might just be messing with him "Of course I''m sure, if you want the break down here it is" She quickly wrote on a piece of paper and showed it to Teo "Student discount is 25%. Since you are an elementalist, The school pays 60% of all elemental materials, this includes stones and powders. Finally, since I am your sister-in-law, I can give you a 6% family discount. All in all, its a 91% discount, which is 31 silvers and 50 bronze coins" She explained as she pointed her fingers on the paper where she wrote the breakdown of the price and discounts "Elementalists are so lucky don''t you think? normally an elemental stone is worth 30 silvers each and a bottle of elemental powder is 50 silvers. Thank goodness the academy highly values elementalists or else elementalist students won''t even be able to buy so many elemental materials" As Teo listen to the explanation, he tried to calculate it...91% of 3 gold and 50 silvers but 91% is such an awkward number and he only knew basic math that his parents and uncle taught him. He also felt a little guilty by being given a ''family discount'' but what Riss did not tell him was that it''s actually a ''friends and family discount''. ''Oh well, I guess I might as well accept this miracle'' Teo thought to himself. He didn''t want to make Riss change her mind, so he quickly pulled out 32 silvers and Riss took out the items that Teo needed from the cabinets behind the counter, put it in a bag and gave it to Teo with 50 bronze coins as change "Thank you big sister Riss" Teo smiled, but he saw one of Riss'' eyebrows raised and quickly corrected himself "I mean Sister-in-Law" Riss was happy she wanted to shout but she had to keep talking quietly so others won''t hear ''Hmph, Rowen didn''t even tell me that Teo was fine" For some reason, Rowen didn''t want Teo to meet Riss. It was probably because that Riss was madly in love with Aran. She was afraid that Riss might even fall in love with Teo, since they had similar features. Teo and even Aran was not handsome at all, but not ugly either. They had average faces that you could easily forget in a crowd. But in Riss'' eyes, Aran was the most handsome man alive. Ever since Rowen, Gina and her were saved by Aran from a few bullies when they were in their 3rd year, she became head over heels with Aran. She even got enough courage to confess to him a year before he had to take his expedition outside the academy, but he never gave her a clear answer before he left. .... After buying what he needed, Teo started going back to his cave. ''50 bronze coins left until next my next pay, I guess I have to go eat in the cafeteria until then'' The food provided by the cafeteria was free for all students and staff, a lot of students eat from the cafeteria, but those who could afford not to, didn''t. It was because the meals were always the same. After eating the same food all day for a few days, one would get tired of the menu, so they chose to go to restaurants instead. When Teo arrived home, he quickly got the bag full of items and he mentally said "Mr Cien, I would like to put this one bag in there" [Author''s Note: I did not explain in properly but, the currency system here is 1 gold = 100 silvers, 1 silver = 100 bronze] Chapter 18: Rock Garden Chapter 18: Rock Garden When old man Cien heard what Teo said he almost choked on his saliva "I said you can only bring one thing inside. ONE" "But this is one thing" Teo replied Teo knew that there were more than one item in the bag, but the bag instead is one item. This was the loophole Teo wanted to take advantage of. If his plan was to have a higher chance of succeeding he needed old man Cien to approve of this loophole. He was hoping that the old man Cien wouldn''t cancel their agreement but it he could not be sure, the old man is after all very petty. But on the bright side, he keeps his word on promises and bet results. Since he already agreed to let Teo bring in one thing inside, technically, it should be okay. Cien knew what Teo was doing. It wasn''t a big problem, but he it would leave a bad aftertaste in his mouth if he allows Teo to do this. "Nope. One thing only. You can bring in the bag, but empty it first" ''What would I need an empty bag for?'' Teo wanted to say, but held back "But I just wanted to bring this bag in, just the way it is. It shouldn''t matter if the bag is full or not right?" Teo was trying really hard to convince Cien "Okay fine, I guess I''ll just ask you to bring this whole mountain inside" Teo subtly threatened. If Teo wanted to bring a whole mountain into the inner world, would Cien ask him to empty the mountain first? Cien was irritated. He knew what Teo meant. If he did ask him to bring a whole mountain in, and even if Teo did empty the mountain. A mountain in the middle of his oasis, was like a piece of shit on his bed. -SIGH- ''When did this kid become so crafty'' Cien thought to himself. He had no choice but to allow Teo to take advantage of this loophole. Since he already agreed before to one thing, he couldn''t bring himself to cancel the whole deal "FINE. place the back near the array on your chest" Teo lifted the bag towards the left side of his chest, over the green tattoo shaped turtle shell. Certain lines within the shell''s tattoo started to glow a soft green light. The light moved along the lines and before Teo knew it the bag had already vanished. Teo also found his consciousness to be fading as well and he quickly sat down on the bed and collapsed as his consciousness completely faded. Teo found himself inside the world within the shell and picked up the bag on the ground nearby. Old man Cien was staring at the smiling Teo ''This brat, I better start being more careful when making deals with him.'' Seeing old man Cien vexedly staring at him without saying anything, Teo gave an apologetic smile on his face and bowed. He was thankful that Cien allowed it. "Just you wait, when its my turn to cash in that favor, I''m sure you''ll remember this moment" old man Cien threaten but he slightly quite pleased. It reminded him of himself in his past. He used a similar trick to win a bet with an old acquaintance. ''This boy as some potential, maybe he''ll turn out into a fine man'' thought as he rubbed his chin in thought ''But I can''t let myself be rolled over by him, I''ll teach him a few lessons in the future'' Old man Cien then regained his focus and said "follow me" Without any explanation, he started walking around the pagoda. Teo quickly followed, but was slightly worried ''Could it be he is really angry?'' When they reached at the back of the pagoda, Teo saw a beautiful rock garden. It had rocks and sand carefully and beautifully placed. The sand had rows of grooves which made it looked like untouched snow. The grooves itself was shaped into patterns similar of that mentioned in the array book. A stone path laid along the rock garden, in the middle of it was a stone entrance. The entrance was connected to a stone staircase leading down underground. Teo followed along the stone path and old man suddenly said "When you come here, you are not allowed to step anywhere else but this stone path" Unauthorized tale usage: if you spot this story on Amazon, report the violation. He didn''t want Teo to ruin his precious rock garden that he designed for a very long time. Unlike normal arrays, this rock garden had an array written into the sand, but was not permanently placed, so anyone stepping on it could ruin it. When Teo saw down the stone entrance, he saw nothing but darkness. Cien continued to lead him down. As Cien stepped down the stairs, the originally unseen inscriptions that were carved into the walls slowly lit up. ''What is this place?'' Teo thought to himself. Even though he had been in this inner world for a long time. He did not explore any part of it. He just stayed in the benches near the pond and read the array book. After walking down a long while, they finally reached the bottom of the stairs. Teo saw a room that was dimly light by the inscriptions on the walls. The room was very large, even larger than 3 combined rooms of the Emerald Pavilion. The ceiling was also very high, it was quite a sight to be hold. Old man Cien handed Teo the array book and said "You are not allowed to make any arrays outside this room." He didn''t want Teo to ruin the beautiful landscape outside with his failed array attempts. He also didn''t want to be disturbed by any loud noises that the array may cause. The room''s inscriptions reinforced the strength of the walls so it could not be easily damaged and being so deep underground, no noise should be able to reach him on his hammock. After that old man Cien went back up and left. Teo looked at the book in his hand. He was considered on starting to figure out how to draw the array he needed for revenge but decided to hold it of. He took out a void stone within the bag, sat down in the lotus position and closed his eyes. In the darkness like before he concentrated into blocking out all distractions. His concentration speed as a little faster than last, and quickly blocked his heart beat Not even a minute Teo could already hear a few faint sounds coming near his hand. The stone that he held had attracted the faint sounds and started to gather around his hand. As it gathered more and more, Teo could faintly feel something moving. A pulse very slight pulse the could be mistaken as blood flow or even his own pulse. If he did not initially blocked them out he would have not felt it. The feeling was very minute, as he tried distinguishing what it was. A very tiny vortex was contracting space and then a faint -papop- sound was created and immediately that same vortex started to expand the previous contracted space. It was the oscillation of the void. A mysterious event that occurred within the elemental energy level that was so small that it was difficult to feel. This oscillation was the void pulse! As the void elements gathered around the void stone, many faint sounds could be heard. He could tell that these sounds was the distinct sound of the void pulse, but he needed to feel the void pulse itself. Trying to understand something he could not see with only listening to the faint sounds was very difficult, but at least now he can distinguish this sound. If one were did not know what sound to look for one could not even detect it. Within the stone a stronger pulse suddenly sounded -PAPOP- His attention went from the surrounding sounds to the center of the stone. He could feel the faint expansion of space -PAPOP- As he was concentrating into the stone the direction that the space was moving slightly changed and the space was contracting. It happened so fast that a normal person would not notice such difference, but with the dense world Qi, a change in space was noticeable His perception instantly changed! Within the surrounding darkness, there was a vague sense of a ball like aura that he could feel covering his hand. He could feel it! He could feel the void element aura! it had a distinct oscillating pulse! Chapter 19: The World in Different Eyes Chapter 19: The World in Different Eyes Teo was elated! He finally felt the void pulse! He could even feel the aura when they were clustered together. He slowly opened his eyes. Sight Sound Smell and Touch immediately came back into his senses. He could feel that the air around his hand was a little thicker than the rest. He was still able to feel the aura, although faintly, he could still feel it and whats more is that he didn''t even need to concentrate as hard as before. He moved the void stone in his hand and the aura slowly followed it. He threw the stone up in the air and he could still sense the aura but it was slightly weaker. Once he caught the stone, he placed it in the bag, and the aura was almost invisible. When he peaked inside the bag, he found out that the aura was stronger within an enclosed space. He was extremely happy. It was a huge advancement; it was the watershed, once he passed it, then it would be easier to make more progress. As a pure generalist all he needed to do was to get to the Sensing stage and advance in understanding the elemental energy. ''Gathering Stage? Movement Stage? Manipulation Stage? who needs those? HA!'' He was practically almost done! he praised himself as if he was the most talented person alive? ''Could this be my hidden talent? Everyone said it would take years to even start feeling the elemental pulse but now I can even feel the aura it produces! In your face world!'' After some time he finally calmed down. He knew his previous thoughts just came from himself being so happy. Bragging and being confident to yourself shouldn''t have any harm. He knew that probable reason why he could advanced so quickly was this mysterious inner world. He quickly popped out a different stone in his bag. The sense of euphoria within his mind still lingered from his previous accomplishments that he forgot all about taking his revenge. It was like the feeling he felt when he read a good book. This feeling made him want to sense all the other kinds of elements! .... After a long time had passed, Teo who was still trying to sense other elements was interrupted by a voice in his head "Kid, are you planning on skipping classes?" ''Skipping classes??'' Teo thought, ''but I should have only been here maybe 5 hours'' He quickly left the underground room. He ran through the rock garden carefully and then jumped into the pond. -SPLASH- He quickly got out his cave and saw that it was early morning. Yesterday when he arrived at home it was a little past the afternoon. How can it suddenly turned morning? Teo was too caught up into sensing other elemental pulses that he lost track of time. Within the inner world, he had no perception of time. It was always daylight within the world, and even if it did change, he was underground the whole time! He quickly ran back inside and started to change. He was still wearing that robe and mask he wore yesterday. While he was changing he felt hungry. After not eating dinner yesterday his stomach was growling ferociously. He bandaged himself in a haste, grabbed some dried piece of fruit on the table and quickly ran towards where he usually met with Windle and Lia .... "Sorry I''m late" he said while he panted "Teo, you are so late. We thought you were planning on skipping" Lia smiled "Sorry I overslept" As he said that his stomach growled -growl- "Ha ha looks like you are hungry as well" Windle laughed. Took out a few pieces of dried meat and gave it to Teo "Here you can eat this on the way, lets hurry" "Thanks" "Don''t mention it" As Teo was eating the meat on his way to class, he noticed something odd about Windle ''Fire aura!''. His eyes widen as he could feel that fire elemental energy was gathering around Windle''s body Lia saw that Teo was strangely staring at Windle and asked "What''s wrong Teo?" Stolen from its rightful place, this narrative is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings. Windle heard it and he saw Teo staring at him "Hm?" Hearing Lia''s question and seeing Windle looking at him, he said "Windle did you advanced to Gathering stage already?" "Oh? You can feel it? thats great! you''ve successfully gotten to the Sensing stage! By the way, yeah I got to the Gathering stage last night" "Teo you advanced to the Sensing stage?" Lia asked Even though Lia was not an elementalists, they often talked stuff about class with her. She had the basic understanding of each stages. "Yeah last night too, its why I overslept" "Ha ha, you should''ve come to our usual spot last night. Lia and I were waiting for you. She actually helped me advanced" "Help you advanced?" Teo asked "I just gave him some tips that my seniors at the Martial faction gave me" Lia responded "Maybe Lia can help you advanced to the Gathering stage too. The Martial faction have some exercises that helps people control their Qi. Is really helpful and they have a similar stage for gathering Qi" .... After the first class, Teo and Windle headed to their elementalists class During the a few classes before, the majority of the class was still practicing the Sensing stage exercises. Dina would gave small guidance to students who seemed to be having trouble. Sometimes she would lecture on a specific element for the whole class, while other times she would give a lecture to a single student as others continue to feel the elements. As both of them arrived, Teo could instantly feel other students that had already advanced into the Gathering stage and was gathering elemental energy. Teo could only sense 4 elements so far. After being able to sense the void elemental energy, he learned to sense fire, wind, and finally light. Sensing fire and wind energies was a lot easier than when he was learning how to sense the void. Sensing light energy was a little harder than fire and wind energies, but it was still easier than sensing void energy. They sat down in their usual spots, he glanced at his targets briefly but quickly shifted his gaze away from them. When Dina came, instead of asking everyone to continue with their Sensing exercises she said "I see that most of you are all in the Gathering stage already" She was using her Qi to sense the other energies that were floating about. Within the class of 27 students, only 2 of them were still in the Sensing stage. One was Grifford, the generalists and the other was Teo, the pure generalist This was the normal pace of progression with their attributes. She expected that Grifford should enter the Sensing stage within 6 months, if you account for how many elements he had, he would finish 30 months, around 2 years and a half and that is only entering the stage, as for mastering it, it was still ways off. With his growth potential, he should somewhat master and understand it by the time he became a 6th year student As for Teo would be lucky if entered the sensing stage within 2 years. Mastering the sensing stage and understanding a single element would probably take 6 years. Since Teo had 10 elemental attributes, if he wanted to completely master the sensing stage and understand all his elemental attributes it would take 80 years. A human''s life span was not longer than 120 years. Maybe if he was a cultivator he could extend his life by a bit, but becoming a cultivator was much harder than mastering the Sensing stages for all 10 of his elemental attributes. After 2 years, he will learn combat training. If he wants to give up being an elementalist and become a cultivator, it will be then he could choose to switch. Dina couldn''t afford to hold back the class for the 2 students that would take years to progress, she had to move on to nurture the other students that had move pass the Sensing stage. Chapter 20: Ten Elements Chapter 20: Ten Elements "I see that most of you are all in the Gathering stage already" "Then lets a break for a bit from our exercises and I''ll lecture more about the Elements so that you can better understand the history and nature of your elemental attributes" "Elements have been around for millions of years. Several ancient civilizations had left recorded documents that spoke of such elements, but such documents wouldn''t have come to light if it were for a single sage" "This sage was famous for analyzing those ancient documents and bringing the knowledge of elemental energies into the world. His name was Rio Hen." "Rio Hen was a scholar who studied ancient civilizations. He traveled through various lands to study ancient ruins left behind by fallen civilization. After years of analyzing these ruins, he found out 4 different tablets in different corners of the lands that told of 4 different elements. These elements were Fire, Wind, Water and Earth. Each of these ruins worshiped these elements as gods because there were certain individuals who had gain these element''s power as it was recorded in these tablets" "These ancient ''Gods'' were precisely elementalists. They were specialists who had great elemental affinity that they did not need elemental stones to use the power of elemental energies" "Rio then deduced that certain people were able to obtain such powers if a certain condition occurs. With either luck or the will of the heavens, Rio encountered a fire elemental stone. With the stone he came to understand more about the elements and his fire elemental attribute allowed him to gain control of fire elemental energies" "This was the basis of the exercises that we are doing. Rio Hen continued to travel across the lands showing his remarkable powers and spread the knowledge of elemental control. He became a great figure of his time and legend was recorded throughout the lands and was called the ''The Great Elemental Sage''. He also develop a way to tell if a person has a specific elemental attribute with these 4 different kinds stones" "Until hundreds of thousands of years passed, these 4 elements did not change. It was when the value of elemental stones rised and people scoured the earth to find such stones. Because of this, five other elements were discovered, which were Light, Dark, Wood, Metal and Lightning" "A great boom of power spread across the land, this caused wars to break out. Elementalists leading people to fight another. A fight for dominance ended until many countries were destroyed. Luckily, because of Rio Hen, the importance of ancient records were known and thus the knowledge of elemental control was not lost" "After more than 500,000 years, only then the void elemental stone was discovered, discovered which completed the ten elements we now know today" "There were rumors that there could be more undiscovered elements, but from then until today, no one has discovered such element. Perhaps some discovered it in secret and did not reveal it to the world, but that is just speculation." After a long pause, Dina looked around to see all her student''s eyes filled with wonder. ''An undiscovered element!'' everyone thought Suddenly a young voice sounded "Teacher Dina, how does this help us in understanding the nature of our elemental attributes?" This young man was Windle Dina looked at Windle and smiled. It was a great question. "From knowing the history of how we came to know of elemental energies, we can tell the range of difficulty of detecting each elements" "For example, the first four elements, fire, wind, water and earth, are the easiest elements to sense. They are followed by Light, Dark, Wood, Metal, Lightning and finally Void" "A record of the legendary void specialist, who created space jewelry hundreds of thousands of years ago, was said to have some trouble in sensing the void pulses. Let me remind you that he was the only void specialist ever recorded in history and it was said that he had a growth potential of 9!" "So coming back to your question, it is mainly for people who are dualists, triads, generalists or pures. If they want to pursue in mastering their elements, they should concentrate on the first original elements." Support creative writers by reading their stories on Royal Road, not stolen versions. "Okay, that is it for the lecture. Does anyone else have any questions?" .... After the class ended Teo went straight back to his cave. He was focused on learning the other 6 elements, and it took him 2 days until he succeeded. He celebrated with Lia and Windle, but because he was lacking funds, the celebration was held in the cafeteria. Teo initially wanted to pay for their meal but both of them declined. They were sick of the food after eating it from the start. Both of them had part time jobs as well. Windle easily got a job within the Emerald Pavilion and Lia got help from her senriors from the Martial faction. They could afford not to eat cafeteria food. The instead brought their food over to eat with Teo. "Ha ha Teo why did you want to us to eat here tonight?" Windle asked "If I knew you were going to bring your own food, I would''ve just buy my food here and meet you guys at our usual spot" Teo said "Don''t worry, I kinda miss this place" Lia said They haven''t been here for such a long time, ever since they could afford to eat at other places "Teo did you hear about your Senior sister Rowen''s duel today?" Lia asked "Nope, what duel?" "You know that Nathan guy, the senior of the Silver Sword? Your sister demolished him today" Windle answered "Yeah, Senior sister Rowen, broke a few of his bones today. The medical staff said it would take 2 months to heal" Lia said "Your sister is seriously fierce, I can''t imagine her doing something like that. Every time I see her, she looks so gentle" Windle said Teo was also speechless, he was glad that Nathan got beat up. He also made a promise with himself to never ever anger big sister Rowen. ... After changing the topic a couple of times Teo finally asked "So Lia what kind of exercises would help you improve your Qi?" Lia who was already finished eating before Teo and Windle replied "Well, there are several. There are some specifically for increasing your Qi, while others help you control them. I only know the basics, if you ask Senior sister Rowen, she might be able to show you some advanced ones" "Nah its okay, I just want to learn the basics too" Lia told him a few basic breathing techniques that will improve the amount of Qi he has. It was the most basic of the basic and everyone started off with this. As for the Qi control, it was a set of poses he had to do in sequence as he practiced the breathing technique. The breathing technique was relatively easy, but the poses were complicated. You would need to be in a moderately healthy level of fitness to hold these poses for a long time. Teo was surprised that Windle could do it, but compared to Windle, he was basically a bookworm. Back in Char village, he was made to exercise by his uncle and parents, but since he moved here he did not even run to the library. After they ate, Teo headed back to his cave. Although he wanted to walk around with Lia and Windle some more, he was still "injured", a week almost passed since he was attacked. He was counting the days, since then. He didn''t go to the library or work since then due to being "injured". Luckily Gina was able to cover for him or else he might''ve gotten fired. He had didn''t get any pay for this week because of this injury. But even worst, he couldn''t go to the library at all. He had to ask Lia, Windle or sometimes his sister to copy a new book for him to read. At least these past 3 days he was too concentrated on his Sensing stage to notice, but after his accomplishments he recalled all the time he lost not reading a book in the library. Revenge was now once again the top priority on his list. [Author''s Note: It has come to my attention that I am pretty stupid... I was sticking with the title "Master Arrayist" because I thought it was permanent, but only up until recently I found out that I can edit it. So, I will be editing the title later 1-2 days from now to let the readers, who are still interested in reading this in the future, have time to see this notice and know of the transition. Thank you for your support] Chapter 21: Kicked Out Chapter 21: Kicked Out Back in the underground room Teo was sitting on the floor, with a bunch of paper scattered across the room. With a book on his left hand and an inked quill on his right hand, he was intently trying to design an array with the specific symbols. Since old man Cien only "helped" by indicating which symbols and shapes to be use, he didn''t know the placement of each pieces went. The pattern or rather design of the array was still unknown to Teo. He briefly looked at several basic patterns within the book. These basic patterns were not complete arrays, and was just a diagram with a few words indicating the usage of the pattern. "This pattern is an example of promoting the mixture of 3 different primary symbols" "In this example, the pattern purifies energy of supporting symbols while the shape distributes the facilitates the fluctuations of the primary symbols" Without much understanding of the patterns he could not understand what each descriptions meant, but he was trying to find a pattern diagram with a similar set of shapes and symbols that old man Cien listed Although Teo knew the usage and compatibility of each symbol and shape, he had no knowledge on how to build one. All the arrays he had seen were mostly diagrams within the book, and the only other array he did not see from the book was the tattoo on his chest. ''Why are they designed like that? How does this pattern do what it says? Ah this is the symbol for restricting the flow of energy'' He searched page after page to a pattern with the symbols needed. After turning another page, Teo became shocked at what he saw. Around half way through the book, the pages were blank! He couldn''t find the pattern with the specific symbols that he was looking for and suddenly the pages half way through was blank. ''this book was actually an unfinished?'' He took the book and headed back up ... Old man Cien was sitting by his pond with a fishing rod in his hand with a peaceful look on his face. When he heard the sound of Teo approaching he glanced and said "Done already?" Teo shook his head "Mr Cien, I have briefly read the pages of the book, but this book is actually unfinished" ''Unfinished? this brat..'' Teo continued "And the person who wrote this even left out any instructions on how to actually make an array. What kind of author writes a book about arrays without even writing the part of how to build one" Teo was clearly dissatisfied. The book built up knowledge on the fundamental building blocks of an array, but didn''t have any instructions on how to build it. "This book I wrote isn''t finished? Fool! This book is already finished! You are just too unqualified to see the rest" Teo finally learned that old man Cien was one who wrote the book. He became panicked. He had criticized old man Cien in front of his face. "Hmph! ''not writing about how to build an array''? with just the first half of the book, anyone who studied it enough would easily know how to write any array they want. One would be able to easily glance at an array and tell what its functions are. You think skimming my book would be enough for you build one?" Cien continued to lecture Teo endlessly This story is posted elsewhere by the author. Help them out by reading the authentic version. After a while, old man Cien was almost finally done with his lecture until Teo decided to open his mouth again "Mr Cien, I am sorry that I said those things earlier. Can you please instruct me on how to build that array?" Old man Cien''s eyebrow lifted. He was clearly annoyed by the kid. First he was forced to give in to Teo by using a trick and now this? How audacious, a mere human child to criticize his work? Hmph! "If I showed you everything step by step, how will you learn? Why don''t you figure it out yourself!" He waved his hand and Teo was thrown into the pond -SPLASH- Teo was forcefully ejected out of the inner world. Old man Cien''s voice rang out in Teo''s mind "Try and figure it out on your own for a while, if you really can''t I will give you a hint but it will cost you again. And don''t bother me in 2 days!" Teo was scared. He had never seen old man Cien this angry. "Mr Cien? Mr Cien?" he tried to call old man Cien, but no reply was heard. After a while of calling, Teo was sure that Cien completely blocked him out. -SIGH- ''me and my big mouth'' he regretted talking too much "I guess I have to find a way some other way" Teo softly said to himself .... Next morning It was his first time sleeping since a long while. He used to be always in the inner world "sleeping" but now that he has been kicked out. He had to sleep normally. Teo got up really early. There was still a lot of time before he had to meet up with Lia and Windle. He got dressed and went out to head to the cafeteria. He decided that even though it has been a little under a week, he should be relatively safe to not wear his bandages anymore. People would probably think he took some sort of medicine so that his bruises had heal pretty fast. They also knew that Teo attended class even after being beaten up, so Teo didn''t have any broken bones. Teo arrived at the cafeteria, thinking hard about this problem. As he ate breakfast, he saw a familiar figure sitting in a distant table. It was Grifford, the generalist from the elementalist class. Grifford was eating breakfast while reading a book on one hand. Teo could tell that this book was not a blank book from the different cover that it had. It was brown in color and looked worn out. Teo was curious what kind of book it was merely because it was not a blank book. He suddenly recalled that the Emerald Pavilion sold miscellaneous items. ''perhaps they also sell books there?'' Teo figured that if they did sell books it wouldn''t be books easily available in the library. Then he thought of an idea! ''Maybe the library has books on arrays, if not maybe the marketplace had them'' Although Teo considered going to the marketplace as an option, he had very little funds right now. He truly hoped that the library had an array book that could help him After eating, he went to the place where Lia, Windle and him would usually meet up "Good morning" Windle first to arrive greeted Teo "Windle, I want to ask for a favor" [Author''s Note: I have changed the title to the original title that I had in mind which was "The Arrayist", I will update the cover image later though] Chapter 22: Inscriptions Chapter 22: Inscriptions After class ended Teo headed straight to the library It has been a long time since Teo went to the library, he wanted to indulge himself silly but he still had something to do first. On the first floor of the library, the books were divided into 4 different categories. There were General Information section, it was all about things learned in the two years, from basic plants, to monsters, to different known places within and around the empire, all the general known information. there was also general information relating to elementalist. Then there was History section, it contained mainly the history of the empire but it also contained information on famous individuals known across the lands, like Rio Hen, or the famous strategist Jade Lui. It also contained other history that was outside the empire, but there was very little of it. There was also a Production section. Teo didn''t go to this section of the library too much, but he had a general understanding of the topics it had. It had topics from farming, to animal herding, to building tools, houses and even techniques in mining and processing elemental stones. The last section was the Miscellaneous section. It was for the books who were not categorized within the 3 sections. Teo often went to this section the most. They contained several journals of people''s travels. After each journey, they would donate their journals to nearby academies. Even students who had to go on their expedition years would leave their journals there for other students to read. There were also books that were so dubious that some thought that these stories were just fantasies. They often contained unexplained phenomenon, unknown monsters, or mysterious places they could not return to once they had come out. Of course there were other books in the upper floors. It was just that Teo was not allowed. The second floor were for older students. It contained more technical information that could not be brought down. If a blank book was used to copy a book, the book''s contents would be automatically erased if they went down to the lower floor. There were incidents when a student tried to hand copy a book from the second floor. The academy did not care too much about it, because these books were complex and some even extremely long. The books on the second floor would be free to read once students reached the third year so not many saw any value in copying the books. The only reason the academy did not want first and second year students going up to the second floor was so that they could build a solid foundation of knowledge first. Teo wasn''t sure where another array book could possibly be in the library so he went up to a staff member. "Excuse me, do you know which section has books on arrays?" Teo asked "Arrays? hmm I''m sorry I don''t know what those are" Teo did not expect the staff member to not what arrays were The staff member tried to recall if he had heard of it before, then said "Maybe you should ask the elder over there" the staff member pointed near the entrance. Teo saw an old man sitting near the entrance. He thought that the elderly old man was just a senior guard, but apparently he is an elder of the library. "Excuse me elder, do you happen to know where I could find a book about arrays?" "Hm? Arrays?" The elder looks at Teo and notices that he was a first year "Little one, it seems to be that you are a first year. How did you know of arrays?" A normal first year should not know about arrays. In fact, even older students would''ve heard of arrays. Arrays were mysterious ancient techniques. They were so mysterious that they could not be completely understood even today. Arrays have been studied by many different scholar but only a small fraction was understood. ''Is it strange for me to know of arrays?'' With some hesitation, Teo replied "I heard a teacher mentioning it once" Teo thought that in case it was strange, then he should just say he overheard it from someone else. If the elder continued to question him, he could pretend ignorance by saying that he didn''t know the person who spoke of it. "So you''ve heard it from a teacher, I see" Seeing that the elder was easily convinced, Teo was relieved The elder continued "Little one, the books containing information about arrays are on the second floor. But for a first year student like yourself, they are too complicated for you. Even the greatest minds in the empire could only solve a small fraction of it" Unauthorized tale usage: if you spot this story on Amazon, report the violation. Seeing Teo''s disappointed face, the elder continued "If you really want to know more about arrays, you should start off with something simple first. There is a subject you should look into first, it''s called ''inscriptions'', it was derived from scholars spending thousands of years of studying arrays. It might prove helpful" "There is a basic introduction book that should be in the Production section. The person who wrote the book is a faculty member of the academy. He teaches inscriptions available for second year students. He is called Deacon Quin, if you have any questions about the book, maybe you can find him in the central office and ask him" "Thank you elder" Teo bowed and headed towards the Production section. ... Although the books within the library was divided into different sections, the books were organized in a chronological order. It took quite some time for Teo to find the book ''Introduction to Inscriptions by Deacon Quin'' Using a blank book, Teo copied it, sat down in the nearby chair and started reading The booked first introduced the author, Deacon Quin. He was a generalist that worked in the academy that had studied inscriptions since a young age. The booked moved on to briefly describing what an inscription then talked about the origins of inscriptions. "Inscription, a method by which we can enchant a weapon with elemental attributes. There are 2 different methods of inscription. They are drawing and engraving. The difference in both method is one uses elemental ink, made from elemental powder, to draw on the inscriptions while the other carves in the inscriptions into the material itself." Teo continued to read patiently Both have different advantages and disadvantages. Because of the usage of elemental powder, the drawing method can easily use the elemental attributes of that powder. The disadvantage is that inscriptions drawn in different elemental ink could not be connected easily. The only method of connection is to use a Qi ink made from Qi stones. Qi stones are similar to elemental stones, but instead of absorbing elemental energy, they absorbed world Qi. Qi stones were so valuable that they can be even used in place of currency. There were different grades of Qi stones, the grade of the stone is determined by the purity of the stone. A low grade had at least 50% purity, a medium grade at least 70% purity and a high grade had at least 90% purity. Qi stones that had less than 50% were under grade stones. Instead of using them as currency, people often refined them and make a more purer stone. The price of a low grade Qi stone was around 100 gold coins, so using Qi ink to connect inscriptions with different elements was very expensive. Because of this, most inscriber tend to use the same elemental ink throughout the material, or not connect them at all. The method of engraving do not use elemental ink because the materials being carved all had elemental properties already. Elemental powder is usually mixed in when these materials so it was unnecessary to use elemental ink. In this process of inscription, it was absolutely tabooed to mix more than one type of elemental powder into a single material. This is because elemental powder themselves are made from elemental stones that absolutely rejects other surrounding elemental energies. The effectiveness of the inscription would lessen and often times even explode. Qi stones could also be turned into powder and be used in a similar way, but it was too expensive to make, and only rich families and factions could afford such materials. There was also a matter of durability. Inscription by way of drawing was less durable than that of engraving. Drawing inscriptions that had special drying method that kept the inscription from fading, but if it was hit by a strong enough force, the inscription would become damaged. A damaged inscription would no longer function, but a drawn inscription can easily be fixed. An engraved inscription was less susceptible to damage, but once they are damaged it was more difficult to repair. The book continued on the history of inscriptions, from its discovery to its study. Apparently, it was also Rio Hen who discovered inscriptions but it took a very long time for it to be developed to what it is now today. Chapter 23: Prelude to Revenge Chapter 23: Prelude to Revenge Teo learned that inscriptions used several symbols, but comparing the amount of symbols within the book that old man Cien wrote, they only used a very small amount Since from the beginning of history, the empire''s scholars have only discovered 47 different symbols and among them, only 23 were understood. In the array book that old man Cien wrote, he had well over a thousand symbols, with all different explanations on the function of each symbol. Teo continued reading "Inscription lines between each symbols are key in using the power of each symbols. The width and length has to be precise so that the effectiveness of the symbols can bring out the full potential of the material. The lines must flow in accordance of the symbols that are being used, as well as what kind and quality of materials being used and even the shape of the material" ''That''s it!'' Like a broken dam, his reasoning burst forth endlessly. Every thing he knew fell into place! The missing clue that connected everything from symbols and shapes to patterns diagrams was revealed! The symbols had different functions that created or affected the flow of energy. The lines were also like symbols, they restrict or allowed the flow of energy, but they also connected the major parts of the inscriptions. Arrays had patterns that functioned as these lines but in a more profound way. The patterns used in the array depended on which symbols were being used. Each pattern consisted on several lines, with varying thickness and length; all with a precise design, so the placement of the symbol also depended on the type of pattern being used. So both pattern and symbols used were dependant on each other! When the old man Cien''s listed the different shapes and symbols he had to use, it was as if old man Cien already told him which patterns he could use for the array! Like a fog being lifted, everything was clear. Teo wanted to immediately go into the back into the inner world and started working on it, but still had to wait 2 days before he could go back inside. It was as if he had an itch he couldn''t scratch, he became slightly irritated but a grin suddenly. He quickly remembered that he was still in the library. Although he couldn''t start working on the array that he planned on making, he could pass his time catching up on some reading. ..... Next morning Teo met up with Lia and Windle Windle hands Teo a small bag and said "Be careful with it" Lia seeing the exchange asked "Whats in the bag?" "Want to see?" Teo asked with a smile Windle quickly held the bag that Teo was about to open, and looked at Lia "Its better if you don''t look" He had a look of panic "Hm? " Lia became more curious but when she saw the look on Windle''s face, there was a hint of nausea that could be seen Teo also noticed Windle''s face and smiled "Looks like you opened it" Windle saw Teo''s smile and got a little irritated "Teo you owe me for this" "So what''s in it?" Lia was still curious "Well, I asked Windle to get something for me.." ... After Teo explained what was in the bag, Lia decided to walk on the other side of Windle, using him as a shield Windle still had a face of regret. He found the item that Teo was looking for. He bought it but was so curious what it was so he opened something that he shouldn''t have opened. ... Two days went by fast Old man Cien finally let Teo inside after some more lecture. Stolen content warning: this tale belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences elsewhere. Though his anger already subsided within a few hours when he kicked out Teo, he still didn''t respond to him for 2 days. This was because he was enjoying his time not being bothered by Teo. Back in the underground room, Teo was busy flipping through the book back and forth. Since he figured out that clue, with the help of the array book, it was easy for him pick which pattern to use. The main problem was drawing it. Drawing the array was difficult. One had to be precise with each line, dot and curve Teo was on the floor with several pieces of paper. These pieces of paper had several failed array pattern draw on them. Teo didn''t use the elemental powder yet. He wanted to completely master the drawing before he used the elemental powder. Although he had been reading the array book for over a year, he had never really tried to draw any symbols, much less the patterns. He had amazing concentration, but his hand often shook. After a few days, Teo eventually drew a perfect array. Even though he drew a perfect array, he still continued redrawing it. He had to make sure that he could accurately draw it without any mistakes because he had limited amount of elemental powder. If he were to waste it, he wouldn''t be able to test it within the inner world. If he tested it outside and someone saw him, he would be exposed and his targets might find out it was him. It was also the reason why he asked Windle to buy him that thing in secret. Windle was a member of the Emerald Pavilion; although they specialize in information gather, if one of their own decided to buy something, they wouldn''t investigate it too closely. Besides, many hunters bought that thing as well, so Windle shouldn''t be found out. A plan can only be perfect if you can get away with it. Teo had meticulously crafted such a plan. .... A week passed Within the underground room Teo was finally confident with his hand control. He could draw the array accurately 19 out of 20 attempts. He thoroughly mixed the red elemental powder with a full bottle of ink. Usually elemental ink were dyed with the specific colors to indicate which which element it was. The natural color of the elemental powder was not enough to completely dye the ink mixture so a separate dye was needed. Regular ink had the same ink mixture without any elemental powder, so creating elemental ink was pretty easy. Once he finished preparing the ink, he drew a small array within the piece of paper. He drew it smaller in order to save some ink but the decrease in size made drawing the array proportionally harder. He finally finished drawing the array. It was half the size of the paper. Teo tested the array and found that it didn''t work as he planned. He analyzed his design again, making a few adjustments, carefully checking if he made any mistakes on his drawing After a few more hours he finally succeeded in making the array that worked as he wanted to. It was finally time for his revenge. Although it has been over 2 weeks now since the incident, he still didn''t forget his revenge. Perhaps he was becoming as petty as old man Cien or maybe it was just his youth, but in any case he still wanted revenge He packed up everything and left the inner world ''Soon I will get even with them'' He smiled a mischievous smile Then headed to meet Lia and Windle for dinner Although there were still some variables that he could not control, he was still certain that his revenge would succeed Chapter 24: A Sour Revenge Chapter 24: A Sour Revenge Morning came As Lia was getting dressed, she recalled last night during dinner. Teo was strangely upbeat. She knew that Teo was recently up to something, or else why would he even ask Windle to buy him that thing? She looked at her own figure in the mirror that had in the room. She smiled as she saw her hair getting longer. Although it has only grown by a bit, she was still very happy. Before she came to the academy, her parents always trimmed her hair when it got too long Recalling the past.. "Lina, you''re hair is getting long. Let mom cut it for you" "But mom, I want to grow my hair longer" "You look so much cuter with shorter hair, Lina come sit here while I get the scissors" Thinking about it, her mother also had short hair. It seemed that her father loved her mother''s short hair. But now that Lia was living alone, without her parents, she decided to grow her hair like the other girls in the academy. Lia headed for their usual spot to meet up. Once Windle arrived, Lia walked up to him and said "Lets go" Both of them walked towards their first class side by side. "I wonder what Teo is up to" Lia said aloud "There''s probably something happening today" Windle responded in a soft voice Teo told both of them that he was going to be late this morning so they should both just go on without him "Do you think its because of that thing?" Lia wondered "Shhh! Teo said to keep it a secret" Windle looked around to see if anyone over heard Windle was a little more paranoid than Lia. He could roughly tell why Teo needed that thing and there was a chance it could lead back to him. ..... When they arrived at the first class, Teo was still not there. They sat down to the usual place and chatted as they waited. Soon Dina arrived and a figure from behind was running as if to want to catch up. This figure was Teo. Teo arrived right after Dina arrived. Since class has yet to start, Teo was technically still on time. In Dina''s classes, when one is late or absent they were forced to attend a make-up class, which is why Teo didn''t want to be late. Teo went and sat down with Windle and Lia. Although he was panting, he looked surprisingly cheerful. "So, what were you up to?" Lia asked "Just a little surprise" .... When class ended Lia went ahead to her class, while Teo and Windle stayed for a bit longer. Teo didn''t want to go to their second class too early. So he told Windle to hang around here for a while. After enough time passed, they headed to their second class. When Windle and Teo got near the class, they could see black smoke risking up in the air. When Teo saw this, a smile came to his face, but with enough effort he quickly hid his smile and pretended to be shocked. Windle beside him was actually really shocked ''What happened?'' he thought. Then a realization came to his mind, he slowly turned and looked at Teo. He caught the glimpse of Teo''s brief smile as it turned to a shocked expression. Both slowly got near the area and saw other students running away from 4 figures. 3 of the figures completely covered in black smoke residue and while the other figure was only partially covered. The 4 figures were on the ground puking and their closed eyes dripped of tears. A strong unbearable stench came from the 4 of them. This was the smell produced by a ash horned skunk. The ash horned skunk was a wild beast that could only be found in dense forests. It had black and white fur with small white horns on its head and were subspecies of the ordinary skunk, but compared to the ordinary skunk, the ash horned skunk produced such a foul odor that ordinary skunks would become paralyzed from the smell. The smell also lasted for 3 days, so humans and beast tend to avoid them. Teo asked Windle to buy him the foul smell producing gland that was harvested from a ash horned skunk. This gland is often used by people who often explore the wilderness. Its stench is so strong that even the strongest beasts avoid it and thus it was treated as a life saving item. Hunters that hunted these wild beasts must kill them with with a projectile in one blow, if not, the ash horned skunk would leave a trail of its putrid smell in the surrounding area and would easily escape. If they were to get close to it, the ashe horned skunk would release the stench as well. The array that Teo chose was, the smoke generating array, an array that produced a meter wide smoke when pressure was placed on the array. Teo plugged his nose and carefully mixed some of the liquid, extracted from ash horned skunk''s gland, with the elemental ink he made. In the morning he placed the finished array under the seat of where his targets usually sat. Once they sat down, the array would activate and produced smoke containing the foul stench of the ash horned skunk, covering anyone nearby. If you come across this story on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen from Royal Road. Please report it. This was Teo''s revenge, his sweet sweet revenge. Although these people dared to try to harm him, his revenge was not to hurt these people, but rather embarrass them! Although they are puking from the smell and their eyes were irritated to the point that they started to tear up, he did not think he was hurting them at all. But in fact they did feel pain from vomiting out so much, and their eyes could not be open as the stench infused smoke had irritated them. Teo was secretly laughed inside when he saw his targets on the ground suffering from the smell. Although they could wash most of it off, there would still be a faint foul smell that would remain for 3 whole days. Teo expected that his targets would not be able to even step outside their caves from such embarrassment. ''HA HA HA now we are even'' In retrospect, his revenge plot was quite immature, but for a 10 year old boy, it was the perfect revenge. Teo almost could not contain his smile as he watched his 3 targets suffer. But as he enjoyed this scene, his face suddenly froze. He saw a 4th figure that was covered in smoke. His target was the 3 members from the Silver Sword Association but there was a 4th person who was in the range of the array! The fourth figure was a girl in the class. For some reason she was caught up in the blast. She helplessly vomited and coughed, her cries of pain echoed in Teo''s ears A sense of guilt rushed in his mind. ''This can''t be possible, why was she there?'' Teo thought he crafted the perfect plan. For over 2 weeks everyone in class sat in the exact same spot they had been sitting on since day one. No one should''ve been near his targets, but unfortunately someone was. ''Did I make it too strong?'' Teo wondered as a sour feeling in his gut emerged ''Why didn''t it go according to plan'' he asked himself, but he couldn''t know the answer. He intentionally delayed his arrival so that people would be less suspicious of him, a person who just arrived after the incident occurred. Teo who was originally full of joy when he thought his plan was executed perfectly, was stricken with guilt. He didn''t want to involve an unrelated bystander in his revenge, but intentionally or not intentionally, it didn''t matter. He had already done it, his ''perfect plan'' wasn''t as perfect as he thought it was. A wretched feeling bubbled inside him. He quickly rushed forward, not caring about anything else and tried to help the girl, but as soon as he arrived he began to vomit. His eyes became so irritated that he could no longer keep them open. He collapsed on the floor and continued to cry and vomit. He wasn''t crying only because of the painful convulsions from his stomach, nor because of his eyes being irritated. He also cried because of this terrible feeling of regret in his heart. He regretted coming up with this plan. If he knew that this would''ve happened he would''ve just swallowed his pride and forgiven his aggressors. No one else dared to get any closer. Windle also stood there and watched. He was unable to do anything. The other 4 students who were on the ground had already passed out from the event, while Teo was still on the floor, vomiting and crying. His cries became louder and louder. His perfect revenge left him feeling empty and disgusted with himself. [Author''s note: If anyone did not get the explanation with the arrays last chapter, its basically like a little kid''s block set. When Teo had the specific symbols (shapes) he had to pick the specific pattern (box that fitted all the shapes). And the placement of where the symbol would go would also be determined by the pattern. Also, the first arc is going to be finished soon. Its kinda short but I want to accelerate the story for a bit. Finally, when some readers are asking me whats going to happen and why is this the way it is. I usually don''t respond because I don''t wish to spoil it. If it is about a plot hole I did not planned for, I will respond to that comment, but if it a mystery I intentionally placed, I don''t have any plans on revealing it through the comments Cheers and thanks for reading] Chapter 25: Investigation Chapter 25: Investigation When Dina arrived at the scene, what she saw was complete chaos. She immediately controlled the wind elemental energy and blew away the smoke far outside the academy. 5 collapsed students were laying on the floor, unconscious, covered in their own vomit. She quickly alerted the other staff members of the school. The 5 unconscious students were washed by a water elementalists staff member and then they were quickly taken to the medical center. A faint scent was still linger from the unconscious and many staff members who smelled this scent knew what this smell was ''This is a smell produced by the ash horned forest skunk!'' They understood why the students collapsed and became unconscious, but they could not explain the previous smoke. ''Someone clearly was responsible for this incident'' most of the staff members thought Class was suspended until further noticed and the news about the incident quickly spread throughout the academy. Speculations started to appear from the public. "Someone dared to attack the academy" "It must be an outsider" "But why would they attack with such methods? Using a white horned forest skunk''s scent of all things. What was their intention?" An investigation team was formed by the academy. They tried to figure out who this mystery attacker was and what was their purpose Their only clues were the white horned forest skunk''s scent and the burnt surface where the array was placed. ..... After a day, Teo and the other 4 students regained consciousness. They were all laying in beds within the medical center. They found themselves wearing masks to cover their noses with a strong flowery scent. The flowery scent was used to block off the lingering smell that was around them. Teo was last to regained consciousness. The other 4 students were already being questioned by investigators who also wore masks.The investigators asked them what they could recall about the incident, but did not know what happened. It all happened too fast, smoke suddenly appeared out of nowhere, they eyes became quickly irritated and could only helplessly close their eyes. They could remember constantly vomiting due to the smell that appeared with the smoke. They tried to run but could only collapse into the ground as they blacked out. The investigators told them what had occurred. A life saving tool used by most travelers was maliciously used in the attack. They also told them that Teo was seen trying to help them by various witnesses, if he did not try to help, he wouldn''t have suffered from the attack as well. The 4 students were touched, especially the 3 Silver Sword members. Even though they had attack this guy mercilessly but he still tried to help them. He even suffered greatly from it. They knew the excruciating feeling of being smothered by that disgusting smell. They felt guilty for lynching on him before. The investigators asked if they knew anyone who could have done this, but the 4 student had no clue. The 3 Silver Sword members completely removed Teo from their list of suspects. In fact, they had offended many people, but with the backing of the Silver Sword Association, no one dared to do anything to them. Even if they did, who would be foolish enough to do such a thing within the academy. They also did not want to expose their deeds to the investigators so they said that they had no idea. As for the girl, she as she was completely unrelated, she also said that she had no idea as well. When the investigators noticed that Teo had woken up. Some of them went over to talk to him. Teo slowly remembered what happened. A guilty conscious still left him feeling sick. He looked towards the girl that he accidentally caused grief to. Her blonde yellow hair was a mess, her face looked a little dirty, and she looked dazed and unfocused. "Do you remember what happened?" an old investigator asked him. The investigator''s voice resounded in Teo''s ear and he turned and looked at the investigator. The investigators wore similar clothes to the staff members of the academy, except there was a red armbands on the left arm. The old investigator looked to be around 60 years old. With a face with a bit of wrinkles, he gave a friendly feeling, but his eyes were sharp as a hawk. The author''s content has been appropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon. These investigators were part of the ''Red Guards'', a part of the academy''s elder members who were strictly responsible in keeping peace within the academy. They were not seen most of the time, but they often patrolled the academy unnoticed by many. The only time they would gather in such an extravagant fashion was during the yearly ranking tournament. They acted as guards during the tournament, but their real role was to apprehend anyone who broke the rules. Killing and maiming within the academy was strictly prohibited, broken bones and bruises were allowed as they could be healed. For other serious wounds that one could not recover from, they were met with punishment. Teo shook his head and feigned ignorance. He considered telling everything the truth but seeing the Red Guards investigating the incident, it make him reconsider this idea. His little revenge cause such a stir within the academy, the punishment wouldn''t be light. Although he did not maim or kill anyone, the incident was still considered as an attack towards the academy. The punishments given by the Red Guards were known through various rumors. It ranged from being expelled from the academy, tortured, and if the crime was severe enough, perhaps even death. Because of these rumors, there were hardly any people who broke rules, and people who were punished and came back to attend the academy, they were sworn to secrecy not to divulge their punishments. Teo didn''t want to be punished. Even though he felt really guilty about it, after some thought, he couldn''t risk being punished. Even the lightest rumored punishment, being expelled, was something he didn''t want. He still valued his time in the academy. His friends were here, his sister was here and the library was also here. So he didn''t confess to the investigator and only told him that he saw the incident and tried to help. "You are quite brave, but next time don''t risk endangering yourself. You should just call for help next time an incident like this happens again" said the investigator The investigator had a biased to not suspect the victims of causing this incident. In his view, a normal 10 year old would not dare harm themselves with such a thing, so he did not doubt Teo''s words. Besides, there were many witnesses among the other people in the class that said that Teo arrived after the incident occurred, so it was even more unlikely that he was involved. .... When the investigators left, the 5 students were left in the same room. An awkward tension was within the room. They all suffered from this event. Teo was feeling guilty, the girl was still shocked by what happened and the other 3 were feeling guilty when they heard the investigator said that Teo tried to help them. The silence in the room only lasted for 5 minutes until the door opened again. Several visitors also wearing masks came through the door. Teo recognized a few from the group. Two of them came towards him, it was Rowen and Windle. "Little Teo are you alright?" Rowen said Rowen was worried when she heard that Teo was involved in the recent incident. The investigators told the several visitors what happened and although Rowen was still worried, she was relieved to hear that Teo was not injured. Teo nodded "I''m fine big sister" and tried to smile Rowen had felt that something was in did wrong with Teo. It was her woman''s intuition that was telling her that Teo was somehow depressed She thought that he might''ve been depressed because he also accidentally suffered. She looked at the other 4 students in the room. They were being visited by relatives, friends or fellow faction members. Rowen''s eyes caught the blonde girl who was one of the four. Teo''s eyes sometimes drifted towards the blonde girl too, and Rowen caught sight of it. She now thought she understood what was happening. Teo wouldn''t save those 3 Silver Sword members because of their history, but Teo might''ve tried to save this girl. ''Could Teo had some feelings for this girl?'' she thought A faint smile appeared on Rowen''s face, but she didn''t say anything. But then Teo, Rowen and a few others within the room suddenly noticed something strange about the blonde girl''s visitors Chapter 26: A Strange Girl Chapter 26: A Strange Girl The blonde girl was visited by several men, one of which was someone who looked similar to the girl. He had blonde hair, blue eyes and there was a different air about him. All of them had solemn expressions on their faces and they spoke in a quiet voice. These men were clearly too old to be students of the academy, but from how fast they got here, they must be staying either within the academy or within Mirth city. The several men attracted everyone''s attention. The blonde girl on the bed got up and the men escorted her out. It was a strange sight because the patients were ordered to stay in bed until the scent on them wore off. ''Could it be we can leave as well?'' Teo thought. He did not want to stay in the same room as his targets, it would''ve been too awkward. The other 3 also thought the same, but when they tried to get up, they were told again to stay in bed. It was very strange, why could the girl leave while they couldn''t? "Little Teo you should stay here and rest" Rowen said She pulled out some fruits from her bag, but realized that Teo couldn''t eat with the mask on. "How are you suppose to eat with that thing on?" Rowen asked Teo lifted up his mask while keeping his nose covered by it and took one of the fruit and ate it. Seeing Teo eating happily, Rowen was now fully relieved. She smiled and asked "So Teo, who was that girl?" as if she was hinting something to Teo "Just a girl in the same class" Teo responded He did not understand what his sister was hinting "A girl in class huh?" she said as she grinned ... After staying for quite some time, Rowen left first. Windle stayed behind to talk to Teo in private. Windle and Teo talked in a very quiet voice. "Teo, these investigators are looking for the people responsible for this incident. If they find them, they will be heavily punished" said Windle He spoke in a cryptic message so that even if for some chance someone could hear them, it would be considered as nothing more than small talk within two students Teo understood Windle immediately. Windle was very worried because he could be considered as an accomplice to this incident. "If only I knew who was responsible, but I don''t know anything" Teo replied Windle nodded and also understood. They both had to pretend not to know. The only way they would be exposed if either one of them talked. As for Lia, Windle already told her not to speak about the things she knew. As for Lia, she had already connected the dots and knew that Windle and Teo was involved in this incident, but since she was their friend, she decided to follow Windle''s instructions and acted as if she did not know anything about it. .... After all the visitors left, Teo was stuck in the room with the 3 other members of the Silver Sword Association. The atmosphere was quiet and awkward, the 3 members quietly talked among themselves. "Hey, what should we do?" the thin member said -Sniff- -Sniff- "We should apologize to him" the largest one of them said "Idiot! why should we apologize?" the shortest member said "Thats right! its not our fault that he pissed of Senior. Besides its not our fault, Senior made us do it" "But.. but he tried to help us, even after everything we did to him" the largest one said. Although he looked the scariest, he was the most emotional within the 3 "...." the other two became silent. From their perspective, Teo did try to help them. There was a sense of guilt but they didn''t want to admit their faults While the 3 were discussing among themselves Teo who couldn''t stand the awkward atmosphere just went to "sleep" ... Within the inner world Ensure your favorite authors get the support they deserve. Read this novel on the original website. Old man Cien who saw everything acted as if nothing happened When he saw Teo completed his basic array, he was slightly pleased, but he didn''t give out a single word of praise Teo was there sitting on the bench, reflecting on his actions. ''What can I do to make this feeling go away?'' He thought He wanted to confess, but he didn''t want to get punished. He sat there for almost 2 hours just sighing as he stared off the distance, sometimes staring at the pond. -Sigh- -Sigh- Old man Cein finally couldn''t take it anymore. With such a depressed person around him, old man Cien''s mood was also affected "Why are you there sighing for so long?! You should be celebrating that your revenge succeeded. It''s okay, even though the array was only a basic trigger array, you shouldn''t be so depressed" Old man Cien thought that Teo was depressed because his array was not that great. "Also, if you weren''t an idiot, you wouldn''t have fallen for your own trap. Take this as a lesson in the future" Cien lectured. Although Teo''s revenge was immature, it was well planned out, which was praise worthy enough for Cien to try to cheer him up. When Teo heard this, he shook his head and said "I''m not depressed about that.. I... I.. shouldn''t have taken revenge" -sigh- "Hm? ''shouldn''t have taken revenge''?" Cien quickly understood "Boy, I didn''t think you would be this soft" "You shouldn''t worry about unrelated people getting hurt" Teo looked confused. Since he was little, his parents and uncle taught him his basic moral values. He also learned from reading books that the heroes always protected the weak and innocent. Old man Cien''s words were contradicting to his values. Seeing Teo''s confused face, old man Cien continued "Listen kid, the weak can only blame themselves for being weak; the unlucky can only blame fate for being unlucky. This is why, you should not let those kinds of things affect you" Teo could not accept the concept and it showed on his face. He truly believed that the righteous would always prevail, like the legendary heroes that he read about from many different stories. When old man Cien saw Teo not completely accepting what he said he could only sigh himself ''Truly, what an idiot'' he thought to himself .... Within a room 3 students were staring intently at a sleeping student. These 3 students were the 3 who were the targets of Teo''s revenge After much discussion, all 3 of them decided to apologize to Teo, but after deciding it, they noticed that Teo had been sleeping for almost the whole day now. The 3 waited patiently for Teo to wake up, but there was no sign of him waking up. "Is he still breathing?" one of them asked "Could it be that he is dead?" the largest student went near closer and saw that Teo''s chest was still moving up and down "He is still alive, but how can he sleep so much? He even skipped lunch and dinner" "Maybe he is just pretending to be sleeping" "Hey! Hey turtle!" "It''s no good, he isn''t waking up" They tried poking him but did not woke up "Maybe he is in a coma, we should call the doctor" "If he is in a coma, they might blame it on us" They were afraid to get the blame. Teo who was awake earlier suddenly fell asleep and now won''t wake up after everyone left? Who else would be blamed? They have heard that their Senior from the Silver Sword Association, Nathan, was brutally beaten by Teo''s sister. If they were blamed for Teo''s coma, then even if it was against the rules, Teo''s sister might become merciless to them as well. "Lets pretend we didn''t notice.." The other 2 quickly nodded in agreement Chapter 27: Her Name Chapter 27: Her Name The investigation continued on for a week. As expected, the investigators used one of their main leads, the ash horned skunk gland. Unfortunately, there were too many hunters who bought the gland or liquid extract from the gland and there was no way to track all of them. The Mirth academy was located a little distance away from Mirth city, and it encompassed several mountains. Outside Mirth academy was a very large forest that hunters often visit. Many people who wanted go to the forest or pass through it usually stopped by the academy for supplies. It was also relatively cheaper to buy supplies in the academy as they were originally priced for students. Finding out who bought an ash horned skunk''s gland or an extracted fluid was difficult, but the investigators eventually found a few names through the Emerald Pavilion''s information network. They also found out that a student within the elementalist class had recently obtained it. This student was Windle. He was a member of the Emerald Pavilion, but the Emerald Pavilion wasn''t only a student faction within the academy; it was also business partner of the academy, so finding out such a purchase was easily known by the Emerald Pavilion. A junior member who just recently joined the faction did not have much leverage within the faction, and thus the Emerald Pavilion did not keep it secret. Although such a connection was found, the investigators did not think much about it. They found no motive for him to do this. He also had a good relationship with Teo, and arrived late at the scene. Either way, Windle was continuously questioned by the investigators but also feigned ignorance. ... Windle was in a room being interrogated by an investigators "We have reports saying that a few weeks ago, you purchased an ash horned skunk''s gland, is this true?" Windle couldn''t deny it so he answer "Yes I did" "Do you know what does this item do?" "No I don''t" "Then why did you purchase such an item?" "A hunter offered me a good deal to buy it for him. He told me if I buy it for him, he would give be 3% cut" This "hunter" would have gotten 7% discount if the deal was done. This explanation was plausible, so the investigator asked him details of this hunter Windle was answering the questions without hesitation. He had already thought of various questions that could be asked by the investigator and prepared a well written story. Windle''s excuse for purchasing it was that a hunter asked him to buy it for him using an "employee discount". Employee discounts usually are reserved for employees. It was a 10% discount but was strictly for employee''s use only. They were disallowed to use it for family and friends since they had a separate discount for them. Although this practice was frowned upon by the Emerald Pavilion, many members did this in secret. It was like an open secret within the faction. When the Emerald Pavilion heard his excuse, he was punished and certain privileges was restricted and his employee discount would be removed for 3 months. Even though it was an open secret, he shouldn''t have revealed this ''deal'' As for the second clue, they could not figure out what that burnt mark was. The burnt area was so small but it produced such a large amount of smoke. None of the investigators have seen this kind of event before so this clue did not help at all ... The investigation concluded as an outsider''s prank. The incident was mischievous but it was not deadly. It was clear that it did the person responsible did not intend to cause any permanent harm, but to the academy, it was a slap to their face. This story has been stolen from Royal Road. If you read it on Amazon, please report it The academy requested that all merchants residing within the academy to keep track of certain purchases. An outside also had to now identify themselves when purchasing within the academy. This increase in security was the academy''s only response to the incident. It was to prevent future incidents like these from happening again. ... After the investigation ended, 3 figures were talking within a cave. "We must move Emily now" "But our orders were to stay, we can''t right now. I have already sent a request so they can allow us to move" "Those incompetent investigators, they couldn''t even find who was responsible. Don''t worry Emily, I will keep a closer watch from now on" A blonde girl within the group nodded. This blonde girl was the same blonde girl from the medical center. She was the one that was accidentally caught within the incident. She looked totally different, her hair no longer messy, but was instead well styled. Her curly locks bounced up from her nodding. Her complexion was fair, and her blue eyes looked very gentle. If the class saw her, they wouldn''t recognize her as well. She usually wore a hood over her head and kept her head low. No one else in class besides Dina paid any attention to her but if they saw her now, they would be stunned by her beautiful face. Although her face was seen by many others within the medical center, it was covered in soot and dirt so they could not clearly see her face. She finally recovered from the ordeal that she had experience, but the man in front of her wouldn''t relax at all. "Don''t worry big brother Will, I am fine now" "Master William, please do not worry. We should have a reply arriving within a few days. I have also informed the Rizon faction of our predicament. We shall stay within their protection until we get further instructions from the Lord" ..... Teo, Windle and Lia were also in a cave. This cave was Windle''s cave. Unlike Teo''s cave which didn''t differ much from when he moved in, Windle cave was well furnished. A soft carpet was laid on the center of the room. It had 2 large comfortable couches, a few paintings on the wall. It was well decorated as if it was a place of a rich noble. Apparently, working at the Emerald Pavilion was very profitable, especially if one had the people skills to rake in customers. "Are you sure they''ve stopped investigating?" Teo asked "Yup, I heard it from my cousin. Luckily, you didn''t leave much clues. But you seriously owe me for this" Windle said "Alright, alright" Teo said "You will do my homework for a whole year" Windle demanded "Windle, if you don''t do your homework how can you pass Ms Dina''s tests?" Lia asked "Don''t worry about that, I have some ways" Windle smiled Teo did not argue with Windle''s demand, Teo was lucky enough not to get caught and he didn''t dislike doing homework. "I heard class is resuming soon" Teo said. He wanted to apologize to the blonde girl, but didn''t want to get exposed. The only way to make it up to her was to become friends with her. "Yeah, I''m gonna miss these days without classes" Windle said "You guys are too lucky, maybe I should do something too to skip my classes" Lia joked "Windle, do you remember that girl''s name? The one in the medical center" Teo asked "A girl?" Lia was also curious "Hm? Teo how can it be that you can easily remember the class'' material but can''t remember your classmates names and faces?" Windle joked "If I remember correctly, her name was Emily, Emily Avi" "Thanks Windle" Teo said Chapter 28: Blocked Chapter 28: Blocked After suffering from the recent attack, the elementalist class was moved into an indoor auditorium. This auditorium was smaller that other auditorium, but it could still fit around 100 students. This auditorium was different from the other auditorium that the class had seen before. Apart from the difference in size, the walls were particularly different. There were strange carvings on the walls. If Teo did not read about inscriptions he would not recognize these carvings at all. The inscriptions that were carved into the wall increased their durability. Because of certain elementalist exercises, classes were usually held outside to prevent any damage to the buildings but with the recent incident, the academy decided to move the elementalist class into these special auditoriums. ... As Teo and Windle approached the building, they saw a familiar guard standing besides the entrance. This guard was one of the people who visited the victims within the medical center. The guard also recognized Teo and gave a smile. Teo did not know who this guard was. He could only vaguely remember the guard''s face from when he was looking towards Emily. This guard was one of the people who visited Emily. Teo found it strange that this guard would smile at him. ... When Teo and Windle entered the auditorium, Teo looked around the class. He started looking for that blonde girl who he saw in the medical center but could not find her His eyes suddenly stopped at a strangely hooded figure ''It must be her'' Teo thought He knew that the class only had 27 students, and since no one was absent. The only conclusion was that this hooded figure was her. He wanted to apologize but decided not to reveal his secret. If it was revealed, not only that he would be punished but Windle and perhaps even Lia would be punished as well. He convinced himself that he should keep it a secret. Not just for protecting himself, but his friends as well. Teo decided to sit down nearby the hooded figure, since the auditorium changed, it wouldn''t be weird for him to choose a new seat. Windle noticing Teo''s intention quietly followed Dina arrived early than usual She looked at everyone to see if they were all present "Welcome back everyone, I''m sure you all must know about the incident, but I assure you that from now on, the academy will ensure your safety from future incidents like the one before" "Now, lets get on with the class" "Since the majority of you have already reached Gathering stage, it is important to learn how to increase and use your Qi" "I am sure that all of you know, that everybody is born with Qi. Qi is the mysterious force of heaven and earth. everything in this world has Qi. Elemental energy comes from the world Qi, but people have their own personal Qi." "People knew about Qi even before we knew about elemental energy. Before the discovery of elemental energy, cultivators ruled the land by using their Qi and martial arts" "In the same way that a cultivator''s strength is directly dependent of how much Qi they have, elementalists'' strength is somewhat determined by how much Qi you have." "It is not guaranteed that you will be stronger with more Qi, but you will have more options if you have more Qi. An elementalist that runs out of Qi is basically the same as a non-elementalist" "In this era, elementalists can stand on even ground with cultivators because to use the elemental energy, we do not have to use a lot of Qi, but if you run out of Qi, a cultivator can easily defeat you" "Everybody has a container of Qi inside them and we can absorb Qi from our surroundings. We can also absorb Qi from herbs and refined pills but absorbing that way has its own disadvantages. By absorbing more than you can handle, you can stretch that container and thus increase the amount of Qi you have, but if you absorb too much too quickly, there is a dangerous risk that it could permanently damage your container so be careful and increase it slowly" Unauthorized usage: this narrative is on Amazon without the author''s consent. Report any sightings. "I will now teach you the different breathing techniques you can use to increase your Qi" "Teo, Grifford, I know both of you are not yet at Gathering Stage so you can listen and learn the breathing techniques then go practice do the Sensing stage exercises" When Dina mentioned Teo''s name and looked at him, the hooded figure looked to where Dina was looking at. Emily was surprised that Teo was sitting so close to her. Teo and Emily''s eyes met. Emily abruptly gave a slight bow and then turned to listen to Dina ... After Dina''s demonstration of breathing techniques, Teo continued on practicing his Sensing stage. Although he could sense the auras of 10 different elemental energies, he still continued to practice it. Other students within the class, who mostly had 1 elemental attribute could see their elements with their naked eyes as if they were mist in the air. But there were some students who couldn''t see them as clearly but still moved on to the Gathering stage. They were mostly the impatient students that didn''t master the Sensing stage. Even though they didn''t master it, they could still start Gathering elemental energy. Although it was recommended to master the Sensing stage, most combatant rare do early on. They naturally master the sensing stage as the moved on through the other stages. As for Teo, he didn''t choose to move onto the Gathering stage. He believed that it was useless for him to advance to the Gathering stage. In his perspective, since he knows how to build simple arrays, he should be able to easily use his knowledge into inscriptions. A pure generalist''s path is through inscription and although his potential deemed to be really bad, he enjoyed the fulfillment of designing and creating arrays. So mastering the Sensing stage should help out with inscriptions and arrays. He also had that bet with old man Cien. .... After the class ended, Teo looked at Emily. He approached her and said "Hello, my name is Teo" Teo hoped to become friends with Emily who he had wronged. When he becomes her friend, he can make it up to her by doing her favors. That was at least what Teo thought, but the girl just nodded and turned away. She didn''t even introduce herself. Teo was considering on what to do when his eyes met with the 3 members of the Silver Sword Association. When Teo woke up in the medical center, the 3 of them apologized to him earnestly. They no longer looked at him with disdain and mockery but instead with respect. Although they did not approach Teo to talk to him, they did not cause trouble for him either. They also called Teo "turtle", behind his back, but it wasn''t with ill intentions. Teo slightly bowed at the 3 and the 3 returned the bow. Then Teo turned and chased Emily. When he was about to reach her, a figure blocked his path. "What do you want?" the figure said in a firm voice The figure was the blonde visitor from the medical center. When Emily heard the voice, she quickly turned around and said "Elder brother Will, you are here" Teo became slightly intimidated. The look of the girl''s brother, Will, seemed hostile and slowly gathered up the courage to reply "I just wish to become friends with her" Teo pointed towards Emily Emily also heard this and looked at Teo, but Will covered their line of sight. "You are not worthy enough to become friends with my sister. Please stay away from her" After saying that, Will immediately left with Emily Teo could not say anything back. He wanted to be friends with Emily so that he could somehow pay her back, but Emily''s brother did not want him anywhere near Emily. The guard who smiled at him earlier gave an apologizing look and quickly followed Will and Emily. [Author''s note: This chapter marks the end of the first Arc] Chapter 29: Condition Chapter 29: Condition The sun and moon crossed the sky many number of times. 7 months slowly passed by since the incident occurred During the first 3 months, Teo tried to approach Emily every so often before the class started, but every time he was ignored. After class was even more hopeless, Emily''s brother always arrived early to take Emily away. From such fruitless endeavors, Teo eventually gave up. As time passed his guilt became buried within his heart. He slowly accepted that if she did not want to be friends, there was nothing he could do. After that, life within the academy was not eventful Teo spent his time the same as before the incident happened. He practiced his Sensing stage exercises during class, read books from the library work, and read the array books within the inner world. When he was not working, he hanged out with Windle and Lia. As time flowed, Teo''s mastery of the Sensing stage made a lot of progress. It was almost at the point where he could see the elemental energy of all his elemental attributes. The inner world really helped him develop his senses at a much faster rate than he had anticipated. Although he could probably master a few of his elemental attributes, he slowly advance the sensing stage for all of his elemental attributes equally. ... Within the inner world, the motionless sun shone brightly in the sky. Teo who was sitting down on the bench slowly showed a smile on his face. He slowly closed the array book and looked towards the sleeping old man. ''I wonder what I''ll get this time'' he thought Within the past months, Teo and old man Cien often made small bets against each other; sometimes Teo would win, other times old man Cien would win, but in these bets the size of wager wasn''t something big. When Teo won, he would get hints of building different basic ranked arrays. When he lost, Teo would have to treat old man Cien with food, massaging his shoulders, purchasing things that fancied him. As such, Teo was expecting a bet this time too Teo approached the ever sleeping Cien and said "Mr Cien, I have completely finish understanding half of the book, can you tell me how I can read the rest?" Ever since his first array, his understanding of the patterns dramatically increased. And with the minor bets that he had with the old man, it helped him even further. Old man Cien slowly opened his eyes. He did not looked surprised at all, but instead was quite happy. ''This brat truly doesn''t let me down'' "Hoh hoh hoh. So you ''completely understood'' it is it?" Teo nodded his head in reply "Well then let me test you" Teo had expected this. He was confident, but strangely enough, old man Cien did not propose a bet. Before Teo could even ask why, the old man began his questions .... "Very good, very good indeed" said the old man Teo found all of this strange. The old man didn''t gamble with this test, and even stranger, the old man praised Teo for doing so well "A perfect score, I guess I can let you see the second half, But.." The old man made a short pause. This pause made Teo become more cautions ''but what?'' he asked in his head "But you have to become my disciple" the old man said with a proud look on his face ''Ha ha kid, aren''t you speechless of my generosity?'' The old man thought Teo who heard the condition, was speechless, but he did not fully believe it. ''What does he mean by disciple?'' "You are going to personally teach me about arrays?" Teo asked. Ever since he met the old man, he had never received much help from him. Although the old man gave him clues due to their bet before, the clues were at bare minimum. He basically had to think of it on his own. "No" The old man quickly replied "Then what do you mean about me becoming disciple?" "You just have to follow what I tell you" The old man said with a solemn face ''Isn''t that basically becoming your slave?'' Teo thought. "What you don''t want to be my disciple?" The old man was somewhat surprised. He was willing to accept this kid as his disciple but this kid was hesitating ''If he doesn''t accept my offer, it might take another hundreds of thousands of years till I find a suitable candidate again'' Before Teo could reply, the old man continued "Kid, there are many other advantages to becoming my disciple" "Advantages?" Teo became hopeful of the benefits he could get "Like.. you can read the second half of the book!" Teo''s hopeful face sank down. Although the offer was tempting, it wasn''t worth it if he becomes the old man''s slave Stolen story; please report. The old man sensed this and quickly said "Uh.. I will even cancel our previous bet! I won''t even ask you to do much, just a few conditions and I just need you to help me with some stuff in the future" The old man didn''t hold that bet of any value anymore. With Teo''s rate of improvement with understanding arrays, he should be able to make a medium ranked array before the year was over Teo could tell that the old man was somewhat anxious. Being able to read the second half, canceling that earlier bet, and only have to help him with something in the future. Teo was carefully thinking about the offer and couldn''t help but ask "What conditions? What do you need me to do in the future?" "For the conditions... I need you to keep arrays a secret once you start reading the second half of the book. I also need you to swear that you will not betray me. As for what I need you to do in the future, I will tell you went you are strong enough" The old man remembered his last disciple and his teeth clenched together "When I am strong enough?" was still confused "If you become strong enough to be able to help me then you must help me, if you don''t then you don''t have to do anything" The old man Cien was taking a big gamble with himself. With Teo''s capabilities and his guidance, Teo will have a chance to help him and this time he can take precautions When Teo heard this, he evaluated the situation. By becoming a disciple, he would be able to continue reading the array book, cancel the previous bet, and he wouldn''t have to do anything if he didn''t have the ability to help On the other side, if he had the ability to help, he would have to and he must never betray the old man Cien As for keeping the arrays a secret, Teo had already planned on keeping it a secret unless absolutely necessary Old man Cien tried to hide his anxiousness as he waited for Teo''s reply After giving it some thought, the deal was not bad at all, but Teo was still cautious. The offer was almost too good to be true! If he failed making a medium ranked array it wouldn''t matter because he couldn''t read the second half of the book. Teo already knew how to make certain basic ranked arrays; as for medium ranked arrays, he just needed more time to make one as well. Teo was well satisfied with what he knew about arrays and although he was curious about the second half of the book, the old man''s offer was too suspicious. Teo shook his head and said "I am sorry Mr Cien, I will have to decline" When the old man heard Teo, he was slightly annoyed. A good candidate finally falls on his lap and this kid was resisting. It would take him too long to find another candidate as capable as Teo. When he saw Teo back in the well, he had seen the kid''s constitution and found that it was rare even by his standards. Even if the heavens blessed you with this kind of rare constitution, it wouldn''t matter if you can''t make full use of it. So the old man decided to take a gamble and test Teo''s comprehension. ''I guess I have no choice but to use it'' Old man Cien thought to himself. He wanted to convince Teo with his "benefits" that really amounted to nothing. He was lazy to offer more than he should and it was also too troublesome to find another candidate. The old man had a sinister smile and said "You owe me a favor" Old man Cien''s eyes lit up and his fingers danced in the air Words form in the air and Teo slowly read it. It was a contract with the previous conditions listed out. Although he was forcing Teo to become his disciple, the conditions he offered before was still within the list "Accept the contract" Teo hesitated. He truly did owe old man Cien a favor. Teo also knew how powerful the old man was. If he went back on his words, he might face the old man''s wrath. Without much choice, Teo nodded "Don''t resist it" old man Cien said Then the contract split into 2 lights. One flew into Teo''s body while the other flew into the old man Cien''s body. Once the contract was complete, old man Cien''s anxiousness quickly faded ''Yes! My candidate this time is pretty good and with this contract, it won''t turn out like that bastard before'' He waved his hand and Teo''s body suddenly became restricted. Old man Cien had a smile on his face With his body unable to move, Teo saw the old man''s smile and he grew worried. The old man slowly walked near him and said "This might hurt a bit" [Author''s note: This chapter is the start of the Second Arc] Chapter 30: Peer Pressure Chapter 30: Peer Pressure The old man Cien took his index finger and started drawing 2 arrays in the air in front of Teo''s eyes. Both arrays were identical to each other and was drawn to the size of an eyeball. Although it was a small array, the number of symbols were countless and the lines and patterns connecting it was very complex. Teo who saw the arrays recognized that this was no basic array. He could not understand it at all. It was not a normal 2 dimensional array shown in the books, but rather a spherical array; an array with 3 dimensions. The array was so complex that Teo forgot his initial worries and was immersed into trying to understand such array. Although he recognized some of the symbols, it was totally different from his own understanding of arrays. The old man''s fingers were so fast that Teo could not even see the old man''s arms. It was as if his arms disappeared not even a shadow of the arms were seen. After a long while, old man Cien''s fingers finally slowed down. The old man''s two arms finally revealed themselves. The two arrays were completed, and a look of exhaustion was seen on the old man''s face. He then pushed the arrays forward and each array slowly entered Teo''s eyes. As the arrays touch his eye, pain surged out from his eye. The pain was more painful than what he experience back in the well when the turtle tattoo became engraved into his chest. Although the pain was similar to that time, this time he couldn''t pass out. His eyes were kept open, he could not blink at all. Both arrays slowly inched into his eyes and for 2 hours he felt this indescribable pain as if his eyes were being roasted in flames. It was torture, and he had no way of fighting back. His eyes were dried and his breathe had already stopped, but for some reason he was still alive. After both arrays completely entered his eyes, and the pain quickly receded The restriction that bound Teo vanished but he was still in a state of shock. He was like a lifeless doll without thought or emotions. Even after he was tortured he could not pass out. The exhausted old man flicked his hand and Teo was thrown out from the inner world. The old man''s face looked haggard, he slowly walked to his hammock and collapsed. Outside the inner world, Teo collapsed and finally was able to pass out ..... When Teo woke up, his memory of last night disappeared After the contract entering his body, he could not remember anything after. But he noticed something strange. When he concentrated his vision even by a little bit, he could see tiny specks floating in the air. It was like him seeing aura of elemental energies, but it was slightly different He took out an elemental stone and that it was no longer an aura but rather tiny specks of elemental energy. His vision improved, he could even see up close to the tiny particles with his naked eye ''What happened?'' he thought "Good morning disciple" old man Cien''s voice resounded in his mind "Mr Cien, what happened last night?" "''Mr Cien''? This is how you call your master?" "Master" Teo quickly corrected himself. ''That''s right, he is my master now'' "Last night, I gave your consciousness'' eyes a little upgrade, its so that you can read the other half of the book" "An upgrade?" "Yes. You see the second half of the book is written in world Qi, you won''t be able to read it if you can''t see world Qi. So I implanted the ''Revealing heavens'' array into your consciousness'' eyes. This is one of the benefits I talked about" Teo was surprised. Although this "upgrade''s" only purpose was to let him continue reading the array book, he can actually see world Qi! ''Who else could see world Qi in the world? Besides Master Cien, probably no one else can'' He thought With these eyes, he didn''t need to master his Sensing stage at all. It was as if he was given a free pass. Except when he thought about it he was slightly dissatisfied ''What happened to all my effort!? Was it all meaningless?!'' but such thoughts quickly passed "Thank you master" Teo sincerely said He grew excited and started looking at all the different elemental stones he had, but before he could start the old man Cien''s voice sounded once more. "Disciple, I will be going into the pagoda for a while" Although the old man Cien sounded as if he was the same as before. He was greatly exhausted but he did not show his weakness to Teo The array book suddenly appeared in front of Teo. "I''ll be away for a while. You''re gonna be late if you don''t hurry" the old man said Within the inner world, the old man pressed open the doors to the pagoda and slowly entered. The heavy looking doors closed shut. Teo didn''t think much of it and quickly got ready for class. It took a short time for him to control his vision. If he did not control it properly, his vision would be clouded by mist of world Qi, but luckily it was fairly simple to use. He hid the array book under his bed and ran to meet Windle and Lia and his whole perspective changed. .... Teo pace was initially very fast but seeing the whole world differently, his paced slowed into a walk. He could see the world Qi everywhere. Teo could even see aura of a person with thick Qi inside his body. When he arrived at the meeting place, he saw both Windle and Lia. Lia had an enormous amount of Qi compared to Windle. Windle''s Qi was fiery red. Teo could see the tiny flame elemental energy that was floating around Windle. It was different from his vision before. He can see a great detail of the elemental energy''s movements, size and shape. The tiny fire elemental energy was like a small flame that glowed bright red then dimmed repeatedly. It was the oscillation of the energy. Stolen content alert: this content belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences. He could see the elemental energy slowly moving upwards but was sucked into Windle''s body. Even while just standing there, Windle was gathering these energies. It was as if Windle was never idle. "Hey guys" Teo greeted "Yo Teo" Teo saw both of them were talking about something so he decided to ask "What were you guys talking about" "We were talking about next year''s classes. The school year is almost ending and when we reach second year we''ll need to attend an extra elective class" "Teo, do you want to pick classes with me and Lia?" "What classes were you thinking of?" During the first year of study, every student had a mandatory class, which taught them several different subjects. Students who were elementalists had to attend an elementalist class in addition to the mandatory class, while non-elementalists were free to choose an elective class that they wanted. When their second year begins, the mandatory classes were not as long as before, so elementalists were free to pick an elective class they want, while non-elementalists can pick 2. Although they were deciding on which elective to take during their second year, after the fourth year, they could take any classes they wanted so it didn''t matter which choice they picked. "I was thinking of a crafting class" Lia responded Both Windle and Teo knew that Lia had been taking a class in smithing as her elective this year. A few months ago, Lia showed both of them the sword she had crafted. Although Teo did not have much knowledge in weapons, he found it amazing that Lia could make such a weapon. "I don''t think crafting is a bad idea either" Windle proposed as he handed a list of crafting classes available for next year to Teo Teo took the list and browsed through it ''Smithing'' ''Carpentry'' ''Alchemy'' ''Apothecary'' ''Tailoring'' ''Cooking'' ''Woodworking'' ''Inscriptions'' ''Artisan'' ''Pottery'' Teo''s eyes flashed, he when he saw ''Inscriptions'' in the list. He was curious about it but wasn''t sure if Lia and Windle was interested in inscriptions. When Teo looked towards Lia and Windle, he had the feeling that both of them have already agreed upon which class to take. It didn''t really matter which class Teo was going to take. Although he was slightly curious of the inscription class, he wanted to attend the same classes that Windle and Lia took. Hanging out with his friends was more important to him right now, but he knew he could take the inscription class after his 4th year. "So which one have you guys decided on?" Teo didn''t play dumb, he knew the two of them well enough. Lia must''ve strong armed Windle into making the decision, but for some reason they were hesitant to reveal it to Teo. "Well..." Lia hesitated as Windle interrupted "We were thinking of inscriptions but Teo.. you don''t need to come if you don''t want to" Unknown to Teo, Lia really wanted to learn inscriptions to enchant her swords. It was most common for people who had learned smithing to learn inscriptions as well. As for Windle, he was lured by Lia''s promise of a fire enchanted sword by the end of the second year if he attends the class as well. Lia wanted Windle to come as well was because it would help her produce a better sword if she had help from a fire elementalists. The flames of a fire elementalists were pure fire elemental energy. Compared to a regular furnace''s fire, it produced a better result. But the main reason was because learning inscriptions was very complex. Even now, she was only managing to stay afloat within Dina''s class because of the help of both Windle and Teo. Besides, with a fire elementalist''s help, she would understand fire based inscriptions easier. As for Teo, although she knew that Teo had very low growth rate from his elemental attributes, she also knew that Teo had entered Sensing stage for some of his elements. Lia wasn''t sure which elements Teo mastered but it would still be helpful in inscriptions. But most importantly, she knew that among the 3 of them, Teo was the smartest in terms of book smarts. Lia carefully planned this all out. First lure Windle with a weapon. Since third year was the start of their combat training, having a weapon would be very useful. Once Windle was lured, Teo would automatically come with them. But when Lia heard Windle say that she immediately stopped Windle "Teo want to come with us? It''ll be more fun together" Lia didn''t have much to bribe Teo with. Teo was only moved by books, family and friends. Books were free from the library, and the books sold from the Free Market was expensive as they were all rare books. Teo had a job and was not very extravagant at spending any it. If Lia had to estimate how much money Teo had, he was probably richer than her. So bribing him with money was not an option either, and she didn''t want to spend any money. The only option she has was to use peer pressure! If she knew that Teo was also interested in inscriptions her face would fall. She had spent so much effort thinking about this plan and if she found out that it was all for nothing, how frustrated would she be? But fortunately neither she nor Windle did She didn''t want to beg, but if worst comes to worst, she was going to. "Okay" Teo agreed Lia felt as if she was the smartest villain of all. She gave a sweet smile but underneath she was laughing ''HA HA HA, I got the best help for my inscription class!'' Chapter 31: Contradictions Chapter 31: Contradictions "Okay, all of you start your exercises" Dina was looking at everyone in class. The progress of her students was rapidly going along. Most of the specialists have moved on to the Manipulation Stage. The dualists in class were all in the Movement Stage. The triad, Zachery, was also in the Movement Stage. He was already in the Gathering Stage before most specialist were only in the Sensing Stage, so it was not that surprising that he was also in the movement stage. As for the other two students, she estimated that Grifford had entered the Sensing Stage, but as for Teo she had no hope. Every class, they would take their meditation pose but Dina could not sense any changes in them. At the beginning of the year, Teo would often meditate earnestly during class. When his Sensing Stage progressed to being able to see elemental auras he completely stopped his meditation and moved into the inner world to meditate instead. From his point of view, meditating within the inner world was more beneficial because of the thick world Qi. ¡°Master Cien, can you bring me in?¡± Teo tried to mentally message the old man but after some time, there was no response. Teo then remembered what his master told him earlier this morning. ''He was going into the pagoda? He can''t hear me when he is inside?'' Teo was troubled. Besides when he was kicked out by inciting the old man''s anger before, he had always been able to contact the old man. He recalled that his master once said that if he could control his Qi, he should be able to go into the world by himself, but he looked at himself. His arms and chest didn''t exude any aura. With his new upgraded vision, he could see that most people had an aura. The thickness of their aura indicated the amount of Qi the person had. Elementalists absorbed specific auras that usually had a specific color but non-elementalists who had aura had a gray aura around them, but Teo did not find any aura on him at all. Since he had gained his upgraded vision through the power of the ''Revealing Heavens'' array, he decided to start practicing the breathing techniques that Dina taught before. He closed his eyes and started breathing. -Inhale- -Exhale- A rhythmic pattern was formed as he practiced. He could absorb world Qi through his breathe, but the amount of Qi was the lowest since the breathing technique was the most basic. Other more advance techniques required one to use his own Qi to easily absorb world Qi, but these techniques were not taught in class. Dina who was overseeing everyone''s practice was attracted by Teo''s actions. ''Breathing techniques? Why has he moved on to breathing techniques already?'' She quietly approached Teo so that others would not be disturbed and gently tapped Teo''s shoulder. Teo who felt this tap stopped his unique breathing and opened his eyes. He was surprised that Dina was in front of him gesturing to follow him. Teo followed Dina to the front of the class, far away from other students. If they spoke quietly, other students shouldn''t be disturbed at all. ¡°Teo how come you''ve started breathing techniques?¡± ¡°Ms Dina, I thought I might need some Qi too¡± ¡°What about your sensing stage?¡± Sensing stage for pures were very important, non-combatants usually don''t practice breathing techniques so when she saw Teo practicing breathing techniques she had a feeling that Teo might have chosen to become a cultivator instead. But since this was an elementalist class, she didn''t approve of students practicing other things besides what was related to class. Although breathing techniques were required by elementalists, they were only for non-combatants. She assumed that Teo was skipping out on his Sensing stage meditation exercises because he was bored of it. ¡°I have completed it¡± Teo replied ¡°Completed it?¡± Teo''s response to her question did not register that quickly because she was expecting a different answer, but when she finally realized his response, she was very skeptical Stolen from its rightful author, this tale is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings. ''This child was always like this?'' she thought ¡°Teo, lying to your seniors and elders is not good¡± She thought that Teo was lying. How could someone with such a low growth potential complete the Sensing stage already? Although Teo''s sensing stage became complete through the help of his master, he felt that he was being wronged by Dina''s scolding. ¡°Even if you want to become a cultivator, in this class you must practice elementalist exercises. I won''t allow you to skip ahead¡± ¡°But I did complete it¡± Teo insisted that he completed it, and Dina didn''t believe it but she decided to humor Teo. She gathered Wind elemental Qi into the air and wrote a question behind her and waited Teo who sensed the Wind elemental energy forming quickly activated his eyes. Although he was only at the stage of being able to sense the aura of the elemental energy, with his activated eyes he could clearly see the energies. ''Can you really see this?'' The words were written with wind elemental energy Teo replied ¡°Yes¡± ¡°?¡± Dina was surprised, but was not convinced ''Is it coincidence? Did he guess my question? Is it too easy to guess?'' she thought and quickly changed the question ''Where are you from?'' ¡°Char Village¡± With Teo''s response Dina was dumbstruck. It confirmed that Teo could really read her questions, but she still was a little skeptical and changed the question again ''Can you really see this?'' ¡°I can really see it¡± ¡°!!¡± Dina was shocked! Thoughts ran through her head. Did they perform the divination rite correctly? How is it possible that a child with such low growth potential master it completely within a year?! This was completely unheard of. Even specialist, if they would want to completely master the sensing stage it would take around 6 months. Most of the specialist in class moved onto the next stages without completely mastering it, but a pure generalist who could master it at the same pace as a specialist? Dina was stunned for a long while. Teo just stood there and waited. After coming back to her senses, Dina quickly checked Teo again and found something strange. Dina could easily tell if a person mastered a sensing stage because they would produce a unique rhythm in their Qi, but Teo clearly had weaker Qi the other students. Teo''s Qi was so weak that it was hardly detectable, like a new born baby. ''Could it be that it is so weak that she could not detect it?'' She thought but quickly dismissed it. Impossible! Sensing stage required a person to use his senses to sense the elemental pulses. Upon mastering the stage, the person''s Qi would act as another organ to sense the elemental energies. The person''s Qi would emit a unique rhythm but this rhythm was not within Teo. Teo could answer 3 questions correctly, but she could clearly see that Teo''s minuscule Qi did not have the rhythm at all. She was confused! She reorganized her thoughts and listed the possibilities. First, the divination rite was done incorrectly, this would explain Teo''s progress but not the lack of rhythm on his Qi. Second, Teo was completely guessing what the questions were. Although it was highly unlikely, it was still very possible. Third, Teo was unique. But after some thought she thought that Teo was indeed unique. A pure generalist with only a growth rate of 1s was unique on its own. Perhaps he didn''t follow the normal conventions, but this was very unlikely. She trusted the divination rite completely. It was a never changing fact that the results from the divination rite was always true. After pondering for such a long time she said to Teo ¡°Okay, you can practice your breathing technique, but stay after class¡± [Author''s Note: Sorry for the slow chapter, some RL stuff happened, I''ll try to bring out a chapter daily but there might be a few bumps for a while] Chapter 32: Hard Worker Chapter 32: Hard Worker After class, Teo stayed behind and waited for Dina ¡°Follow me¡± Teo quietly followed Dina. He was not sure why he was asked to stay behind. All he did was practice breathing techniques and told her of his progress. Even though he did not master the sensing stage on his own, he did not see anything wrong with saying that he did. Even without the upgrade his master gave him, he was pretty close at its mastery on his own. Dina led Teo towards the central office. The central office was where most of the teachers'' office was located. It was a gray stone building that was fairly large. It had a total of 3 floors and had plenty of rooms for each teacher with extra rooms to spare. As they walked in, Teo noticed all the purple and black robed teachers. Although Teo was only in contact with a few teachers, there were many elective classes available to them after the first 4 years. Teo also noticed few students who were called into the central office. They were being scolded by teachers and Teo became nervous ''What did I do wrong?'' Teo thought he had done something to offend Dina but couldn''t figure out what Dina led Teo down into the basement. The halls were lit up several light stones but Teo noticed that there were very little people in the basement compared to the floors above. Upon reaching a closed room, Dina took out an identification stone and opened it. Both of them entered the room and Teo discovered that in the center of the room, a device similar to the one that Senior Sister Riss used within the Emerald Pavilion. Dina took Teo''s hand and pricked it. Taking a small drop of blood and placing it on the device. Once the blood touched the surface of the device, the lines among it glowed, but only a very small portion of the lines glowed. Seeing the result Dina sighed. She eliminated one possibility. The initial result was correct and Teo''s growth potential was only at 1s. ''Can''t it be that he is reading my mind?'' she thought and started trying to mentally sending out messages. Although mind reading was very unlikely, it was not unheard of. There were rumors of individuals being able to read people''s mind but she had never encountered such a thing. From her point of view, they were silly rumors, but she could not completely deny the possibility. ''Teo can you hear me? TEO! TEO!'' she stood there as she frowned her brow Teo was looking at Dina''s changing face, as if she was constipated or something. He tried hard not to laugh at the funny faces that Dina was making because he knew how strict Dina was. After a while, Dina gave up. Carefully thinking about it, if Teo were able to read minds, why would he reveal it. She tried changing her thoughts into something a 10 year old could not resist. Her face blushed a bit as she sent out these messages but after a while she couldn''t see any change on Teo''s face. ''Maybe he really can''t read minds'' she concluded She gathered wind elemental energies again. She manipulated them and wrote another question ¡°4+2¡± ¡°6¡± This response made it clear that Teo was not guessing at all. He really mastered his Sensing stage! Then she finally realized that she forgot one other possibility. It could be that Teo had worked inhumanly hard! She imagined Teo spending his days outside of the class sweating in his cave working hard sensing wind energies. She could imagine the amount of effort Teo had to put in to master it at such a level. Thinking about these, she asked her self ''Why did he pick wind element?'' Teo had 9 other different elements, so why pick wind? ''Perhaps...perhaps because I.. I am a wind elementalist?'' Her thoughts continued to trail She thought that if Teo invested so much effort into mastering the Sensing stage for wind element, Teo would not be able to progress in other stages at all. She felt a bit flattered because Teo chose an element that she coincidentally chose. Dina knew Teo also tried to save the other students from the incident 7 months ago. ''Teo is a good student!'' She initially thought that Teo was a student who would lie but her attitude towards him changed. Her eyes became watery as she tried to imagine the kind of hellish practice he must have endured to get to this level. She was also touched at his choice of element. ¡°I''m sorry I did not believe you right away Teo¡± she apologized Teo who still did not know what was going on didn''t know what to say. He remained silent throughout the whole thing and Dina led him out of the central office ¡°Teo, if you maintain this effort, you can rewrite your fate! But you must not over work yourself¡± She tried to encourage him but also warned him of the dangers of working too hard Once Teo had left, Dina was too convinced that her new theory was correct but she felt that she had forgotten something crucial. After trying to recall it for a while she quickly remembered that Teo''s Qi did not produce a unique rhythm at all! ''Perhaps that kid really is strange'' If you come across this story on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen from Royal Road. Please report it. She looked into the distance to where Teo had left. She had complete confidence on the results of the divination rite and she was also convinced that Teo could see her wind elemental energies so with or without that unique Qi rhythm to her it didn''t matter at all. All she knew that Teo was a hard working student. ¡­. Within the northern part of the academy, was the academy''s training grounds. The training grounds include many different practice stages, a large arena that was often used for the yearly ranking tournament, a large building for isolated training, as well as a large mountain. Students were free to use the training ground''s facilities as they wished, the only restriction was that you must be a third year to enter into the mountain area. This was because the mountain area was not completely supervised and accidents could happen. Students were allowed to spar with each other or train in the isolated rooms to practice their techniques, away from other people''s prying eyes. Students often get injured and would go to the medical room nearby. Although it was not as large as the medical center, the staff was highly skilled in healing. Within an isolated training room, a figure was releasing flames in the air. This elementalist was manipulating the red flames with such complexity. The flames spread around him and a wall of fire surrounded him. After a while, the flames vanished -pant- -pant- -pant- Windle''s face dripped with bead size sweat. He was practicing his manipulation of the fire element for a few hours but his personal Qi ran out. He collapses to the ground as he tries to regain his breath. ''Heh I did it'' a wide smile appeared on his tired face. His usual carefree and friendly look was replaced with eagerness and excitement As his breath recovered, Windle sat in lotus position and started his breathing technique and began to gather Qi. As his breathing absorbed world Qi, he circulated his Qi to gather Fire elemental Qi as well. His sweat drenched clothes quickly dried as fire elemental Qi heated the area around his body. Once his clothes dried he walked out of the isolated training room and headed towards the hot springs near the residential area. Students who wished to use the hot springs had to pay a certain price. If students couldn''t afford it they would have to go by the lodge near the river and bath there instead. To use the hot springs were somewhat expensive, but gave great benefits. The hot springs help students relax and helps heal wounds or sores, but the main benefits were that it was easy for fire and water elementalists to quickly gather elemental Qi Windle would often train in secret and head to the springs without Teo nor Lia knowing. Although Windle was friendly and carefree on the outside, he was hard working and cunning inside. Because he was always well informed, he knew that he had to work himself hard to have a bright future. He spent his countless earnings within the hot springs. The hot springs helped him increased the quantity of his Qi, which in turn allowed him to train his flame manipulation longer than before. There were a total of 2 student rankings. The first tournament was a free for all. Any students of fourth year to eight year can choose to participate and the second tournament was among students of the same year. The first tournament was a free for all match. It did not matter which year you were from, the only thing that matter was strength and skill. The rewards were astounding; third place gave 50 gold coins, second place gave 70 gold coins and first place was given a low ranked Qi stone and an item from the Treasure Pavilion''s second floor. Although the rewards were great, the free for all ranking tournament required participants to pay 1 gold coin and if there was less than 200 participants the tournament would not be held. The second tournament also had many rewards but it smaller compared to the first tournament. Third place was 10 gold coins, second place was 20 gold coins and first place was 30 gold coins and an item from the first floor of the academy''s Treasure Pavilion. Every able student was forced to participate in this ranking, but unlike the first tournament, there was no fee to participate. Aside from the rewards student could gain prestige and experience. The higher the rank, the easier they would be offered a position within a faction outside the academy after they graduate. There were also many benefits within the academy depending on one''s rank. Windle had one goal. he wanted to be placed in the upper rankings. There was still a lot of time until his first ranking tournament, but he had to work hard to gain some advantage among his peers. Not only that his future would be determined if he showcased his skills and dominance throughout the years, but would have fame and prestige. Windle was like a swan moving gracefully through the water, but underneath the surface was crazily paddling his webbed feet. He wanted people to notice him and to praise him, but did not want to show how much effort he put in to be at a higher level. Chapter 33: Martial Faction Chapter 33: Martial Faction Upon returning to his cave, Teo was slightly worried. On his way back, he tried countless of times to mentally contact with his old man Cien but all his efforts were in vain, he didn''t get a single reply. Normally, old man Cien would reply right away but ever since this morning, he could no longer communicate with the old man. Teo found it very troublesome. He remembered that the old man said before that once he could control of his Qi, he could easily enter the inner world by himself but the problem was his Qi was too little and he did not know how to control his Qi. The inner world''s dense world Qi accelerated his progress with his Sensing stage. Now that he needed to increase his Qi, but could not take advantage of the inner world. It was obviously the best place for him to practice his breathing exercises. Teo could only wait for the old man to come out of the pagoda. ''How long does a ¡°while¡± take?'' he thought ¡­ After a few days, the old man still hadn''t come out of the pagoda. He waited patiently but also tried to increase his Qi. During his class, he practiced his breathing technique hoping to increase his Qi. From his body, he could feel his Qi slowly increasing, but for some reason his eyes could not see any increase at all. It was as if he was a new born baby who had yet to absorb any world Qi before. After class, accompanied by Lia, Teo decided to visit the Martial faction. Gina and Lia had always tried to invite Teo to the faction but Teo never seemed interested. Then out of the blue, Teo suddenly wanted to visit the faction, Lia became surprise and was curious as to why Teo suddenly changed his mind ¡°Its so strange, why did you suddenly decide to come visit? Are you going to join?¡± ¡°No, I just want to watch¡± Teo wanted to learn more about controlling his Qi as he doesn''t even know how it feels to control it. He knew about the stances that was suppose to help you control your Qi, but as a complete beginner he was clueless. ''Do you flex your muscles to control them?'' he initially thought but gave up. Besides, those set of stances for him was extremely difficult to maintain. He decided that the best place to learn more about Qi was the Martial factions They arrived in a place north east side of the academy. The Martial faction had an extremely large courtyard that encompassed 2 large dueling platforms and a large building. The wooden building looked old but was properly maintained. A sign board written in black ink right above the entrance spelling out ¡°Martial Faction¡±. Upon arriving, new students were usually impressed by the sight of the Martial faction''s headquarters, but Teo didn''t react to it that much. Compared to the inner world or even the Emerald Pavilion, it could really not compare. Teo also noticed several trees and large stones within the courtyard. He saw several students carrying the stones, punching the tree trunks, running around the courtyard. His eyes swept to one of the dueling platforms. There were students who were meditating or maintaining a certain stance as an instructor guided them. On the other platform, there were several people who were lightly sparring with each other. Teo instantly noticed two familiar figures within the second platform. It was his sister Rowen and senior Gina. Their spar did not look anything like a light spar, it was a high level spar. Rowen''s right foot gave a high kick towards Gina''s head. Gina blocked with her left arm but suddenly Rowen jumped with her left foot, using her right foot that had contact with Gina''s hand as a pivot point, unleashed another head. Gina ducked down and dodged second kick and quickly moved to Rowen''s blind spot. An intense exchange of punches and kicks flew towards each other. During the spar, at the corner of Rowen''s eyes she saw Teo. Seeing that Rowen was distracted, Gina immediately stopped her assault and looked at a similar direction. It was Teo with excited eyes as he watched both of them. He saw their movements as if they were gracefully dancing as they anticipate each others'' moves. Stolen content warning: this tale belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences elsewhere. ¡°Wow senior sisters, your spar is too intense! It was all a blur to me¡± Lia said excitedly She often see these fights before but would always praise her seniors. Lia was well liked by everyone in the faction because of this, and her seniors would often treat her to a meal. One could say she would suck up to them, but she was truly impressed as well. ¡°Thanks Lia, you finally got Teo to come, that is more impressive¡± Gina said ¡°Little Teo, you came¡± Rowen quickly switched off her fighting spirit and produced a presence of a kind and gentle sister ¡°I just wanted to watch a bit¡± Teo said The gates to the Martial faction was open to everyone. Visitors can freely observe and maybe even participate as long as they do not distract others or cause trouble. As for the inner facilities, those were strictly for members only. Within the buildings contained isolated meditation rooms, a library which contains combat arts, exercise manuals and many more. ¡°He came all on his own, I didn''t do anything¡± Lia said to Gina Teo''s briefly gazed towards the other platform where people were meditating Rowen and Gina caught his gaze and smiled ¡°You want to learn about Qi?¡± Gina inquired ¡°Just how to control Qi¡± Teo honestly said Rowen glanced at Teo''s Qi and sensed that the amount of Qi that Teo had was too small. Gina also noticed this. To control Qi, you must have enough Qi to control. Usually people would naturally increase their Qi as they grow older and would have sufficient enough Qi by the time they enroll to the academy to have enough Qi to control but Teo''s Qi showed very little. It was not normal but was not too out of the ordinary either. People grew differently, some had more Qi than others. ¡°We''ll help¡± Rowen said "Leave it to us!" Teo began to follow their instructions and followed different breathing techniques that was taught within the Martial faction During the first week, they noticed that no matter how much Teo practiced his breathing techniques there was no increase in his Qi at all Rowen decided to approach it differently. She decided to give Teo an exercise menu which includes running laps and lifting weights. The two most basic exercises. When a cultivator could not absorb Qi, it usually meant that their bodies did not allow them to absorb them. To counter act this, they must have a body that is physically fit and healthy. This does not only allow one person to absorb Qi easier but also helps them maintain the difficult stances required for Qi control. ¡­. A few months passed Although Teo did not official join the Martial faction, he would spend some of his time training within their grounds. His master Cien, still hasn''t return from the pagoda and he quickly trained his body from being childish which had several flabby flesh into a lean body of a young man. He trained his breathing techniques and stances as well. Although Rowen and Gina still did not see any progress on his Qi, the training now allowed Teo to control his Qi. Within his cave, Teo sat down in lotus position, rotating his Qi. His Qi rotated throughout his channels and he poured it into the tattoo on his chest. His consciousness vanished like mist. He opened his eyes and found himself within the inner world. But when he looked at the surrounding it was slightly different from what it looked like before. Chapter 34: Hidden Compartment Chapter 34: Hidden Compartment The unchanging inner world mysteriously changed from what it was before. The sun disappeared, replaced by a large moon. Soft moon light illuminated the world and distant stars twinkled in the night. The pond reflecting the moon upon its surface and the cool breeze from before turned cold. Teo headed for the pagoda door, he tried to push it open but the doors were tightly sealed. He banged on the door but as expected, nothing came from it. Alone within the inner world, the atmosphere was beautiful and yet a little eerie. Teo sat down on the floor, his back against the doors. His memories of the old man flashes before his eyes. Just as when he accepted the old man as his master, the old man disappears on him. After a long time waiting for the old man to come out, he felt a little lonely. Sure the old man was petty, an addict to gambling, but Teo enjoyed his company and appreciated all the things he had obtained because of the old man. He considered the old man as his grandfather. Teo didn''t know any of this grandparents. They all died before he was even born. The closest thing he had for a grandfather before the old man Cien was Wirn, but Teo spend almost 2 years with the old man Cien so it could not be compared. He quietly practiced his breathing technique until morning, while hoping that the old man would come out soon. A few weeks passed Teo could freely enter the inner world by himself. Although his Qi control improved, he had a slight problem. He did not know how to transfer items into the inner world. He would pour his Qi into the tattoo but all that did was send his consciousness in, as for the items, they would be left outside. He could only practice making arrays within the inner world with what he remembered since the array book was sent outside before his master went inside the pagoda. He stopped going back to the Martial faction. He told his sister that it wasn''t working as they could not see any improvement on the quantity of his Qi. Although he would sometimes visit, he went back to his old route with a minor adjustment. When he slept, he would go into the inner world to practice gathering elemental energies, but like world Qi, the amount of elemental energies he absorbed was not detected by his eyes. Elementalists could gather and absorb either world Qi or elemental Qi. When they gathered world Qi it would fill up their container slowly stretching it and increasing the amount the elementalist could hold, but when an elementalist gather elemental energy, they had 2 options. First was to use their personal Qi to meld with the elemental energy that they gather. This allows them to control the element their Qi melded with. This was also the main reason why elementalists with multiple element experience a delay when switching between elements. As for the second option, the elemental energy also goes into the elementalist''s container and acts as personal Qi. By mixing elemental energy with their personal Qi, the melding process of their personal Qi with the elemental Qi''s time reduces. During class he would practice his breathing techniques and stances. As for the rest of the time, he studied the array book in his room. He did not want to slack and get lectured by his master. The second half of the book spoke about vague concepts about arrays. It was not an instruction for how to build them, but rather how to understand each arrays. Teo studied it quite slowly as the concepts were very advanced. ¡­. Teo arrived at Emerald Road He browsed one store after the other, looking at the various items being sold. There were people haggling for the prices, employees attracting attention to their stores. It was quite a busy place. A store that showed many different leather products caught Teo''s eye. They sold leather clothes, shoes, canteens and even bags. They also sold several wooden items. Teo was browsing for a bag. His current bag was only a small sack. He wanted to bring the array book with him so that he could read in the library as well, but he remembered his promise to keep arrays a secret. He had to bring it with him without being easily noticed. Stolen from its original source, this story is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings. He looked through the several leather bags for sale, he wanted a large backpack made of wood and leather. If it was possible, it could be made with metal and leather so that it would not break too easily but those were too expensive. After some time searching he found a suitable backpack. The leather used to make the backpack was stained dark brown. It was large enough to fit the book and more. He could easily add a hidden compartment in the backpack to conceal the book as well. Teo bought the ordinary looking backpack from the shop. Although his business in the Emerald Road was finished he decided to look around some more. As he was walking around, he felt a light tap on his right shoulder. He turned his head right to look but saw no one. As he turned his head left he felt something poking his left cheek, preventing him from completely turning. -Giggle- -Giggle- The owner of the finger giggled loudly as Teo''s gaze saw the person who was giggling. The owner was a short orange haired styled in twin tails with sweet smile on her face. It was Riss. ¡°Little brother Teo, you finally came to visit me¡± Riss acted all lonely but it was clearly fake. Whenever she saw Teo she would always lovingly tease him Teo was already used to Riss'' antics. Riss would often visit him at work but often accompanied by his sister Rowen. ¡°Sister-in-law, of course I would visit¡± He often played along, but clearly knew that he should keep calling her ''sister-in-law''. Seeing Teo playing along, she gave a grin ¡°Oh you bought something?¡± Riss saw the bag that Teo bought ¡°Yes, I bought a new bag to replace my old sack¡± ¡°Aw, if you bought from our Emerald Pavilion, I would''ve given you a much better price¡± No matter where, Riss would advertise the shop where she worked. It was not only because she could give Teo a discount, but she also had a cut that accumulated for her total sold items. As both of them talked on the street, the a commotion slowly approached towards them. Six fully armored guards escorting an old man. The armor shinned with white steel, their helmets, covered their head and neck, everything but the face. These guards looked battle harden from the aura they produced. A thick intimidating aura that forced other people on the street to give way. An insignia of a golden winged dragon carved within their armor. The old man being escorted by the guards was refined but stern. He was clearly an important person. The group of men entered the Emerald Pavilion Riss and Teo looked towards them, and both became curious Riss seeing Teo gave a mischievous grin and pulled Teo''s arm and ran after the group As they entered the building, they saw the group being escorted into the upper levels. Riss dragged Teo and approached one of the attendants. ¡°Who are they?¡± Riss asked ¡°No idea, but they are heading to the third floor¡± an attendant said ¡°Judging from the insignia on their armor, the guards should be guards from the Imperial City¡± another said ¡°Imperial City?¡± When Teo heard their conversation, he was shocked. The Imperial city was too far from Mirth city. ''Why would they come all the way here?'' Teo thought but at the same time Riss also asked the same question aloud ¡°It must be something to do with the up coming tournament¡± another deduced It has almost been 1 year since Teo enrolled into the academy. The yearly ranking tournaments would be held in a little over a month. As Riss and other attendants chatted, Teo slowly realized that his first year was almost over. Chapter 35: Invitation Chapter 35: Invitation As the year was coming to a close, the Martial faction closed their gates to the public. The members were in full training mode. Classes also ended a month before the year ended. It was for students to get ready for the yearly rankings. This gave Teo a lot of time on his hands. He spend some of his time creating a small compartment in his newly purchased bag. The array book snugly fit inside it and no one could tell there was a hidden compartment unless they broke the entire bag. Lia, although was still a new student, had to participate in the Martial faction''s one month boot camp. So most of the time she could not hang out. As for Windle, Teo could not find him most of the time. It was as if he disappeared from the whole academy. The trio submitted their newly selected courses for the next year at the start of the last month. Lia found out that Windle knew beforehand things about Dina but still guided both her and Teo to Dina''s class. She was furious, but convinced Windle and Teo to change their general class to someone else. Windle did not oppose because Dina gave no special treatment to elementalists within her regular class. He wanted some benefits if it was possible but since there was none, the workload from her class was enough to make him switch. At the start of the second year, every year, Dina''s class would have 0 students. Unless some poor unfortunate student accidentally enroll in her class, no one else would. The elementalist class also became less strict with the students. Once a student has reached the Manipulation stage, they can choose to attend class or skip it. The manipulation stage was the final stage for elementalists, and students could only improve their manipulation on their own. If they get stuck, they can attend class and ask Dina questions but other than that, Dina could no longer help them. Teo used his alone time to practice drawing the basic arrays that he had learned. He had only learned a few of them, like his first array, the ''smoke generating array'', ''fire producing array'', ''water seal array'', and the ''light producing array''. These were the four arrays he had mastered. He created them with the help from the old man from previous bets. As for medium ranked arrays, although Teo could make one, he would not know what the array would do. It was like an experiment, although he knew the function of each pieces, the result would be unknown. To clearly understand making a medium ranked array, he would have to completely understand the rest of the array book. Teo could experiment basic arrays to figure the results in a brute force manner, but the main reason why he did not was because he could not bring elemental powder within the inner world. Arrays must be kept secret, so he decided that he would not experiment until his master came back or figured out how to bring elemental powder inside. Although he could not experiment, he practiced drawing the arrays he knew until he could draw them perfectly at any time. He also practiced drawing each and every symbol and pattern with regular ink and burned papers after to leave no evidence. ¡­. The year finally ended. Seniors who became were in their ninth year left the academy to complete their expedition years. Many new students enrolled into the academy and the yearly speech was given to the new students. Teo who was bored went to the library and read a few books. The ranking tournament would be held today but Teo like last year was not interested. As Teo''s attention was all in the book he was reading, both his arms were grabbed from behind. He was lifted off his chair and when he finally noticed it, he saw both Windle and Lia. ¡°What''s going on?¡± Teo asked ¡°Lets go watch the tournament¡± Lia said Teo who wasn''t interest should have resisted but he could tell they had a purpose for forcing him to watch it. In fact Lia was asked by Gina and Windle was asked by Riss. It was the last ranking tournament that Rowen was going to participated in, so they wanted him to see Rowen''s fight. ¡­. Northern part of the academy was filled with people. Students, teachers and even visitors from the outside all gathered towards the academy''s arena. The commercial district set up temporary stores around the area during the yearly ranking tournaments. The arena was inside the very large Colosseum that easily hold 10,000 people. The seats were packed with excitement, everyone was awaiting for the tournament to begin. Teo, Windle and Lia sat together surrounded by other students. The arena was divided into 5 sections, one for each year. The tournament ranking students of the same year was held during the first two weeks of the start of the school year. Each five section of the arena could hold 10 1-on-1 fights simultaneously. One section for each year, starting at the fourth year all the way up to the eighth years. The first week was to weed out the top 128 of the students. The amount of students varied each year, it could go from between 400 students to 800 students a year. The second week was to rank these top 128 students. The top 16 students gained benefits in the academy while the rest could only be listed down in the academy rankings. As for the rest of the students who were not part of the 128, they would not be ranked. A case of theft: this story is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation. The academy''s purpose for these rankings were to encourage students to strengthen themselves and compete. Rewards were great motivation for them, but of course there were many students who did not wish to be combatants. The matches could be as long as an hour to be as short as a minute. When a student wanted to forfeit, they would be forced to stay within the arena for at least a minute before they could resign. Students who wanted to participate in the ranking were encourage to knockout the students who did not want to participate by giving them points. The points gave a minor benefit that if you gained more, you might get a bye or when there is a tie breaker, the student with the higher points became ranked higher. The points were tallied depending on the speed and strength that was used to defeat the other opponent. If an opponent concede the match before they were tired it would yield 0 points. If they were forced out of the ring they would gain 1 point. If they made it so that the other opponent could no longer fight they would be given 2 points. If they knock out their opponents, they were given 3 points. As for the speed part, 3 points were given if you could defeat the opponent within a minute. 2 points if under 5, and 1 point under 10. Anything longer than 10 minutes did not give extra points. But in any case, the points only mattered in certain circumstances. If you had enough strength, you would not need to rely on points and just win through the tournament. The rules of winning were simple. Knock out, exhaust, push them out of the ring or make them concede. Students kept their strengths in check so that they would not accidentally maim or kill their opponents. The judge presiding over the match could also call the match to end if he sensed that there was no hope for the other to turn the tide. Hot blooded students would sometimes forget to restrict the strength of their blows so the judges were there to prevent them from overstepping their bounds. ¡­. Within a private room an old man was looking down towards the arena. If Teo saw this person, he would recognize him. This old man was the same old man who visited the Emerald Pavilion''s third floor. The guards stood at the back of the room, also waiting for the tournament to begin. Seated at the old man''s left side was a brown haired young man who was about 17 to 18 years old. He looked respectful towards the old man. At this youth''s side was someone Teo could also recognize, it was Zachery. On old man''s right were 2 people that Teo also knew, they were William and Emily. ¡°When is your match Daniel?¡± the old man asked the brown haired youth ¡°Uncle, my first match will be held tomorrow¡± Daniel replied ¡°Good¡± Then he turned towards William and Emily and pulled swiftly pulled something out from thin air The old man held a necklace with a dark violet gem ¡°Your grand uncle sends this to you, when you graduate you will be sent to our Imperial city, if not sooner¡± the old man gave the necklace towards Emily Seeing the necklace, William''s eyes widen, a hint of greed came to his eyes but quickly vanished ''A void jewelry!'' the thought ¡°Thank you uncle¡± ¡°Thank you uncle¡± Both siblings thanked the old man. ¡°Ha ha ha it is nothing, a precious elementalist born with Imperial blood is a treasure within the empire¡± William knew that if Emily was not an elementalist they would get no attention from the main Imperial family. When he first found out of Emily''s divination result he quickly traveled to Mirth academy and guarded her. He sent a letter to the main family to send news of it because he knew that Emily was his ticket to the Imperial City. The Imperial family was a very large family, since their rule of the Empire was unshakable in the history of time. Thus many branch families emerged, they were sent off to different corners of the empire, and only the main blood line of the family was allowed within the Imperial City. But of course there were exceptions. These exceptions were for the talented and geniuses of branch families of Imperial family. Emily, who was gifted from birth as being an elementalist, was naturally invited. Her close family would also be invited in the future and because of this, William treated her sister as an extremely precious treasure, even more important than the void jewelry that he just saw The old man was of the Rizon main family sent by the Imperial family. The Rizon family also followed the Imperial family with inviting youths with talent to their main family. In fact, many families across the empire did this in order to strengthen their main family''s position. Zachery and Daniel were both elementalist with Rizon blood which is why they were called by the old man. Normally he would not come if it was just a few elementalist for his family. He would just send lower ranked members to invite Daniel and Zachery, but since he was personally asked by the Imperial family to go, he might as well meet Daniel and Zachery The old man gave a warm smile to Emily as he knew that Emily''s position could be above his in the future. Then he suddenly remembered something. ¡°Oh, I heard that there was a pure generalist in this school¡± Chapter 36: Cultivator vs Elementalist Chapter 36: Cultivator vs Elementalist ¡°Oh that kid.. there is indeed a pure generalist in the academy but..¡± Daniel hesitated ¡°But what?¡± ¡°Uncle, we heard that the results from his divination was very strange. His growth potential for all his elements were graded 1¡± When the old man heard this, he became suspicious. A pure generalists having a growth rate of 1? That would be very strange indeed ¡°You three bring a guard with you later. Find him and take some of his blood, if he doesn''t cooperate, just take it by force¡± His eyes turned serious when he ordered the William, Daniel and Zachery In the old man''s mind, such a thing should be impossible. The only reasonable explanation would be that some powerful sect altered the results in order to monopolize the pure generalist. If he could bring in a pure generalist with him and nurtured him, not only his clan, but even the Imperial family would reward him. The 3 who heard the order could only accept it. The information of Teo''s result had already spread throughout the academy for a whole year and no other news about it changed. To them, it was already as true as the sun rising from the east. ¡­. Teo who was getting bored waiting for the tournament to start, took out a blank book from his bag and started reading Lia and Windle could only sigh at the sight of Teo. After a while academy judges took to the side of each 5 stages. The Red Guard members surrounded the entire arena and medical teams were on standby near the stages. The headmaster Elon Rizon entered the arena and spoke ¡°Welcome guests and students to our annual student ranking tournament. As per tradition, these first two weeks we will hold the inter-year competition. I hope you guests enjoy yourself, and participants work hard and achieve great strength!. Let the tournament begin!¡± The headmaster''s voice sounded loud and strong, and right after he spoke, participants flowed out of the waiting room and took to the stage. Although it was called a tournament, with so many students, each match must be done simultaneously. 20 students of the same year took took to the designated stage. 10 matches per stage meant 50 matches simultaneously. 3 judges per match, it was very organize but still very confusing for someone like Teo. Teo''s attention moved from one match to the next. He could tell that some of the matches were not as good as his sister Rowen''s spar against Gina before. The quality of fights were easily noticeable. The fourth year was the sloppiest while the eighth years were the cleanest. Most people ignored the younger fighters and focused on the eighth years'' matches instead. They were more exciting and awe-inspiring. The matches were held from 8 am to the afternoon, then a short break was held. After 1 hour, the tournament resumed until 10pm. Teo casually watched today''s fights and only recognized one of the fighters today. It was his sister who fought during the later half of the day. Rowen''s fight was very quick, she easily over powered her opponent with overwhelming speed. The match lasted less than a few seconds as she easily knocked out the opponent with a kick to the head. The following day, Teo, Windle and Lia was accompanied by Rowen. Since her fight on the first day was finished, she didn''t have to fight until the third day. "Senior Gina''s match should be coming up soon" Lia said to everyone "She should be the next match" Rowen who was besides Teo confirmed Once a match within the fifth stage finished. Gina and her opponent left the waiting area and headed towards the open stage Teo noticed that Gina had two blades sheathed at her lower back "This should be an easy win right?" Teo asked "No, her opponent is a little tougher than normal" Windle said "Tougher?" "That''s right, you didn''t watch last year''s match, that guy was one of the top 16th of their year" Lia explained "Her opponent is Diego is strong, but Gina should still win. After all Gina was top 8 last year, 7th rank to be exact" Rowen explained ''Top 8! 7th rank!'' Teo was shocked, he didn''t realize how strong Gina was but then he recalled his sister''s spar with Gina... He guessed it but he could help but ask "Sister what was your rank last year?" "Me? I was ranked 5th last year" Rowen answered as if it was not a big deal "If I wasn''t an elementalist my rank would probably be lower than Gina" she explained The match started and Diego spun his metal staff and sparks started forming around him. Teo could see the lightning elemental energies being gathered by Diego. Teo was slightly worried for Gina. Although her sister said she was 7th last year it was still very dangerous for her. "Don''t worry, all elementalists have the same weakness. Although their power is strong and they don''t use much Qi, once they run out of Qi, the match would be over" "Run out of Qi?" "You see those blades Gina is holding? The blades are covered in a special gel. This gel is used for bladed weapons during the tournament. They are Qi absorbing gel, specifically produced for the tournament. The gel prevents her from stabbing and cutting through her opponents, but in turn every time she strikes him, his Qi will be drained out of his body" Find this and other great novels on the author''s preferred platform. Support original creators! "But how can she even get close?" "Aside from running out of Qi, elementalists'' weakness is also their speed. Most elementalists rely too much on their elemental manipulation that their movements becomes too slow. Cultivators have an advantage of speed, stamina and accuracy. As for power, cultivators can rival elementalists'' power except they would have to use too much Qi" Rowen was explaining to the trio the basic advantages and disadvantages of an elementalist and cultivator. Windle and Lia were taking notes, while Teo was focused on the fight. An experienced fighter would minimize their weaknesses and maximize their strengths. Like Rowen, although she was an elementalist, she practiced cultivation as well to get used to fighting other cultivators. The fight did not end quickly, Gina focused on her hit-and-run tactic. She would dash in, hit and run away. Diego proved useless as his speed was not enough to catch Gina. Although he could maintain a wall of lightning around himself, it uses up a large quantity of his Qi to maintain. Gina''s plan was simple, exhaust Diego and attack when his guard was down. Diego''s initial plan was to use his staff to prevent Gina from getting close, but Gina''s speed was too fast as she disappeared into his blind spots and was forced to use a wall of lightning to guard against attacks coming from his blind spot. Gina did not use any attacks that involved large amount of Qi and only relied on her blade, stamina and speed to win the match. The tournament allowed use of many different items except for items that were too strong that it could cause permanent harm or death, as well as items with unethical means of winning, but all items had to be approved before hand. Students could use enchanted swords and armor, or any special device that was not too unfair. The first half of the tournament ended, the second half would start in 1 hour. Rowen, Gina, Teo, Lia and Windle went around the Colosseum and looked towards many different shops. They went into a nearby stall and bought some food. "Elder sister Gina sure is strong, I didn''t expect you were top 7th rank last year" Teo praised "Ha, I''m nothing compared to your sister. Did you know that Nathan from before was 6th rank last year? Hopefully I place higher than him this year" "Riss'' match should be later today, she''ll probably just forfeit" Rowen said "I want her to get bruised a bit before she can forfeit" Gina grinned "Impossible, among the 3 of us, she is the best at running away" "Ha ha ha" While they were eating underneath a tree, a group of people approached them There were 6 people within the group, 2 of which Teo recognized. It was Zachery and William. There was also a brown haired youth with them, as well as 3 armored guards. Teo remembered these guards were Imperial guards. Aside from Teo, Windle also knew who these guards were. Gina''s eyes twitched a bit. Rowen''s smile turned into a small frown. Both of them recognized Daniel. "Daniel, do you have any business with us?" Gina asked "Gina your match today is truly unsightly" Daniel said with a pompous demeanor "Who is he?" Teo whispered "He is the current president of the Rizon faction, Daniel Rizon" Rowen whispered "Is he strong?" Teo asked "He was top 4 last year, but 2 matches before his opponents were all from the Rizon faction and forfeited without a fight" Windle explained silently "What? Are you just here to criticize my match? I''m sorry I am not ''lucky'' enough to have weak opponents" Gina answered Almost everyone knew that every year, the headmaster would pull strings to give the Rizon faction members easier match ups. Daniel faced twitched a bit, he knew what Gina was implying but did not dig any further. His eyes gazed towards Teo who was behind Rowen "I have no business with you or Rowen, my business is with that pure generalist" When they heard this Rowen''s face became solemn "What do you want with my brother?" Her kind and cheerful aura quickly vanished [Authors Note: Hello readers, Cienz here just wanted to thank you for continually reading up to now. As you guys may know I have applied for a "donate button" and was approved yesterday. Not pressuring any of you to donate, its just for people who wish to donate would be able to. I won''t be doing sponsored chapters because right now I can hardly finish a chapter a day. Its good to have an outline of whats going to happen in the story, it makes writing it much faster, but also makes it so that there are some confusing parts, grammatical errors and what not. If you want to support the series, you can donate, give a thank you (which motivates me in writing), help me proof read (and leaving them in the comments) and/or recommend them to others. Anyways thanks] Chapter 37: The Price of a Drop of Blood Chapter 37: The Price of a Drop of Blood "Your brother?" Daniel was surprised Although he knew that they were from the save village, he didn''t think they were related by blood. "So this is Aran''s little brother as well, I see. Your family seems to love attracting attention" Gina who could sense Rowen''s change in attitude also became serious, her hands moved closer to the blades on her back. The three Imperial guards also became wary of the two''s actions Although they were protected by the academy, within the academy, there was a clear biased for the Rizon faction. If Daniel intend to cause trouble, there is a large possibility that the academy would turn a blind eye. ''Why would they need 3 guards with them?'' Rowen pondered and assumed that this ''business'' was not a friendly one Seeing the tense atmosphere Daniel let out a cough and spoke -Cough- "We were ordered to take some of your brother''s blood, a drop will do" "You want to spill my brother''s blood? Lets see if you can try" Rowen''s hand grabbed her sword''s handle and quickly gathered elemental energy. She was ready to go all out. Gina also grabbed her blades'' handles, Windle and Lia were behind and watched as well. Lia prepared her sword as well and Windle started gather elemental energy. Only Teo was standing there at the back, looking at the fight that was about to explode. "Rowen, Gina, calm down. We just want a bit of blood, we''ll even pay you. How much do you want?" Daniel was not scared of the two women because he had 3 Imperial guards with him but if word got out that the Rizon faction attacked other students because they wanted a drop blood, not only him, but also the academy might lose face. Besides, if his uncle still insisted on inviting this failure of a pure generalist, it was best to handle it peacefully. "How about I cut your face up, we''ll pay you too" Rowen retorted Daniel''s face twitched -Sigh- '' this damned woman.. I give her face but is too stupid to take it'' "Since you are not going to cooperate, we can only do this by force" Daniel said pridefully. He signaled the 3 Imperial guards with his gaze and they slowly moved forward Seeing the guards move, Rowen and Gina started unsheathing their weapons. Mist started forming around Rowen. With the fighters'' speed, the fight could break out any moment. They stared at each other and blocked out all the surrounding sounds to focus on the opponents in front of them Like a kettle slowly reaching its boiling point, the tense atmosphere rose Suddenly... A hand grabbed onto Rowen and Gina''s arms They flinched but their eyes could see that their opponents haven''t moved yet. Rowen and Gina quickly moved their gaze at the owner of the hands It was Teo. "Sister Rowen, Senior Sister Gina, its okay" Teo let out a smile and Rowen and Gina slowly returned their weapons to their sheath Daniel who saw this was slightly disappointed but he signaled the guards to stop with his hand "Finally someone who is not so hot blooded" He gave a fake smile William from the back gave a look of disdain, he did not bother to hide it as well. Zachery was aloof, as if he was not involved at all The guards took a step back but did not drop their guard Teo walked in front and said "You are going to pay for my blood?" He knew that these guards were from the Imperial city. He didn''t know how strong they were but it was easy to assume that their strength was much stronger than 2 student''s strength Teo didn''t want trouble for him, his sister or his friends. Plus there was a possibility for a profit. He recently bought a bag that seemed ordinary, but was expensive. "Yes, we just need a tiny bit" Daniel kept his smile "20 gold coins" Teo said When they heard the number Daniel''s face fell. William looked at Teo as if he was looking at an idiot. The Zachery''s aloof face cracked and couldn''t help but break out in laughter "HA HA HA HA" Teo saw their reaction and felt puzzled ''Aren''t the Rizon family rich? they should be able to afford this much'' Teo thought The Rizon family with Imperial guards? They should be rich right? Rowen and Gina who stood behind Teo both gave a grin Windle and Lia was amazed. If Teo''s blood was worth 20 gold, they would setup a store in Emerald Road and sell them until he was dry Daniel felt as if he was slapped in the face "Little brother seems to be a little greedy, 20 gold for a drop of blood? Who would sell that much for it?" He maintained a respectful tone, but inside his heart he wanted to teach this kid a lesson Support the creativity of authors by visiting Royal Road for this novel and more. "Oh, is it too high? I thought the Rizon family was rich" Teo replied The Rizon family was indeed rich, but it was the main family that was rich. Daniel and even Zachery, was from the branch family, so 20 gold was not a small sum for them. When Daniel graduates, he would be invited to the main family then maybe he could afford to throw away 20 gold, but as of now? No way he could part with 20 gold! But Teo''s question was referring to the Rizon family as a whole. If word got out that the Rizon family could not pay 20 gold for something they offered to buy then his invitation might be revoked even if he was an elementalist. He was stuck between a rock and a hard place. He could easily flip the table and drop all formalities but he could not predict what his distant uncle would do. Teo didn''t intend to force Daniel into this situation. He was clearly asking if the price was too high. If it was, he would naturally lowered it. But that was from his point of view. To others, it was as if he held Daniel in hostage. ''My little brother is quite clever'' Rowen thought. Although Gina and her sheathed their weapons, they did not drop their guard, especially when Teo asked this. They knew that Daniel could forcefully attack and take Teo''s blood, but for some reason Daniel did not. A crooked smile was on Daniel''s face "Of course my Rizon family can afford it" He looked towards Zachery and William and approached them and whispered "Lend me some money. I will pay you back later" Zachery''s laughter instantly stalled. William was aghast. They would have to pay the 20 gold? They could not understand Daniel''s decision. Although William was older than Daniel, right now his position was much lower. ''When will you pay us back?'' both Zachery and William asked in their hearts This "later" could mean any length of time. It could be until they entered the Imperial city which would be a very long time. Although splitting the cost of 20 gold among themselves was doable, it was still a large chunk of money for them. An average student can earn a little over 3 and a half gold per year if they worked part time. This was fairly high and could only be done within the academy. As for the same jobs outside, it might around 2 gold coins a year. 20 gold is around 6 years of work for a student inside the academy! 10 years if they worked the same job and hours outside the academy! Although they come from their respective branch families, the allowance they get from the family was not much. They were reluctant to give the money. They argued among themselves in whispered voices. Daniel explained why they didn''t just forcefully take the blood and the two understood as well. William had mixed feelings. He was regretful that he did not befriend this young kid. If he did, maybe he could get a drop of blood for free and if the rumors were indeed false, he would have some relationship with him but thinking about how this kid was after his sister. He also felt disdain towards the kid. If the rumors were true and he was a failure of a pure generalist, there was no need to befriend him at all. After Daniel gathered the money he placed them in a small bag and threw it towards Teo. Teo caught the bag and opened it. He dropped the coins on the ground and started counting. When Daniel and the other 2 saw this, their faces twitched. ''This kid...'' The act itself showed that Teo didn''t completely trusted them Rowen and Gina could hardly keep their laughter at bay Windle and Lia were jealous and astounded! Teo just made 20 gold! They have never seen so much money in their life before! After counting all the gold coins, Teo pierces his thumb and took a piece of cloth. He placed the drop of blood in the cloth and threw it towards Daniel. Daniel and the other 2 could no longer stand the humiliation and quickly left along with the 3 Imperial guards Rowen, Gina, Lia and Windle approached Teo who was carrying a bag full of gold coins and was smiling with glee. Teo looked at everyone. It was the first time he had made so much money before and was feeling generous "Lets eat at somewhere expensive tonight, my treat!" [Author''s Note: This is for tomorrow, I don''t think I''ll be releasing one tomorrow but we''ll see if I get enough time to write the next chapter. I hope you enjoyed!] Chapter 38: Top 4 Chapter 38: Top 4 In a brightly lit restaurant a group of people were sitting around a large table. The group had a total of 6 people. "Ha ha ha my brother-in-law is quite quick to make money" Riss laughed Teo was on her left and Windle on her right "Who''s your brother-in-law?!" Rowen retorted but smiled "Ha ha ha, maybe you can donate some blood to your sister-in-law little Teo. This big sister will give you a cut, I need the money for my medical bills!" Riss whispered loudly Teo didn''t know how to respond and only gave her a laugh After selling a drop of his blood earlier today, they continued to watched the rest of the matches during the second half of the tournament. During Riss'' match, she constantly dodged each incoming blow like an expert. Pretending to be hurt, and even started pleading to her opponent not to hit her. Her opponent became more infuriated from her actions because he felt that was being treated like a joke. In the end, Riss'' opponent couldn''t even touched her. Although the match only lasted for a minute, her opponent became so exhausted that the judge almost decided to halt the match and announce Riss as the winner, but Riss quickly threw in the towel before that happened. After that, they invited Riss to their feast as well, and told her what had happened "I wonder why they wanted your blood so much?" Gina said aloud Teo was clueless as well as he raised both his shoulders gesturing that he had no clue A great windfall fell on his lap! Windle and Lia were a little jealous, but was sincerely very happy for Teo. Besides, they usually ate together. With a rich friend by their side, they would obviously reap some benefits. Unlike the old man Cien, Teo was generous especially when he had money to spare, but when he is just buying for himself, he becomes very thrifty unless its something important. Everyone around the table enjoyed themselves. There were so many delicacies on the table, each costing 5 times the amount they usually spend on their regular meals. Although the price was extremely expensive, it was food they have never tasted before. Each and every plate was mouth watering and extremely delicious. The whole group enjoyed the feast as they talked and laughed. .... The Rizon headquarters was large and very luxurious building. It was located near the academy''s central area and only they were allowed to station their faction within the central district. It was one of the better places within the whole academy. Within one of the guest rooms of the Rizon headquarters, an old man was sitting on a hand carved wooden chair. Deep red velvet cloth covered the seat and backrest as a cushion, and inside the seat cushion was high quality wool. The old man sat in the room alone, sipping a cup of tea from a porcelain white cup. The cup had exquisite design of golden patterns. A large expensive looking carpet laid on the floor covering the whole room. The drapes were made from fine silky cloth with several embroidery of complex designs. As he was peacefully drinking tea and reading a few documents a sudden knock came from the door -knock- -knock- -knock- The old man placed the tea cup on the table and put away the documents. "Come in" The door slowly opened. Daniel, Zachery, William and the 3 other guards entered the room. "Uncle we have done as you ordered" Daniel said he produced the cloth that Teo gave them "Good" He looked towards the guards "Bring the divination table" The 3 guards left and quickly fetched a table similar to that of the Emerald Pavilion''s table and placed the table in the middle of the room. The old man nodded and looked at Daniel. Daniel, who was holding the cloth, understood his uncle''s intentions. He placed the cloth in the center of the table and small dim lights lit up. The result was the same as the rumors. Daniel and the other 2 seeing the result confirmed the rumors felt relieved. If it did not produce the same result, and Teo was an ordinary pure elementalist, then he would clearly be an important person in the future. Seeing it with his own eyes, the old man''s eyes wrinkled. It was the first time he had seen a result like this. He thought deeply about this matter. A pure generalist normally was someone very important, but with a growth potential being only a measly 1? How should he evaluate a child like that? "Are you sure this is from his blood?" The old man asked the group of 6 Daniel and the other 2 nodded "It is from his blood indeed, we saw it with our own eyes" The 3 guards also nodded as well. Normally when a generalist gets an evaluation of 1 growth potential on a certain element, the generalist would give up on that element and treat it as it didn''t exist. It is because it was unfeasible to attempt to make progress with that element. -SIIGHHH- The old man gave a long sigh, he decided to give up on this unique pure generalist. Although there was a chance he could be praised and rewarded by the family head if he delivered this pure generalist, there was a larger chance that he would be ridiculed instead after they find out the pathetic growth potential of the person he brought. Not only that he would not rise up within the family''s ranks but he might even fall down a bit because of this. "I see... leave me" The 6 quietly left the room and closed the door The old man gazed outside the window. He really hoped to find a diamond within a pile of rocks. This diamond would''ve been his ticket to climb up higher within the family, but alas, this diamond turned out to be just glass. .... A few days passed and the tournament proceeded as scheduled The narrative has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the infringement. Rumors of Teo''s windfall spread throughout the academy. Almost everyone knew who he was and even the visitors who came to watch the tournament learned of him. "His blood was bought for 20 gold?! How lucky is this kid?" "Maybe we should take some of his blood and sell it?" "Nah, someone already tried to do it!" "Someone already did? Who?" "Its that Riss from the Emerald Pavilion, she went to the Rizon headquarters and tried to sell more blood. She even had that kid''s signed letter confirming that it was his blood but in the end, she was rejected. Apparently they don''t need his blood any more" "I wonder why his blood was bought with such a high price" "No clue, but the blood became worthless soon after" "Other people bought some blood from Riss to examine whats so special but no one found out anything and the price quickly dropped to being worthless" "Damn, that kid is so lucky, getting 20 gold for free.. I don''t even have that much" Rumors spread quickly and many people became jealous. William and Zachery on the other hand became very angry. Daniel had yet to pay they back for the money. They did not dare ask for it and could only wait patiently, after all their positions were much lower than Daniel''s. Since they could not take their anger out of Daniel, it was completely redirected towards Teo. As for Daniel, he embezzled funds of the Rizon faction to recover his loss. Even if people knew about it, no one could say anything. .... As the 6th day ended, the top 128 students from each year was set to compete. Only one day was given to the participants so they can rest and prepare. Majority of the participant''s goal was 3 wins. With 3 wins, they would be placed top 16 and would get some benefits from the academy. But for others, their goal was top 3. The first 3 days of the second week were used to cut down the number to top 64 participants for year. Quickly following, on the fourth day, the participants were cut down to 32 participants for each year On the fifth day, the matches became more intense. The participants became more desperate. It was because the top 16 spot was important. The academy gave extra benefits for people who were on the top 16. These benefits include access to certain facilities normal students could not. Discount on purchases or fees throughout the whole academy; exclusive opportunities and special treatments. After the fifth day, only 16 people remained. On the sixth day, a new rule was introduced. Each match would last only for 20 minutes, if they could not win within 20 minutes, who ever had the most points would win. In an event that they have exactly the same number of points, the 3 judges who watched over each match would take a vote. Also, participants can forfeit even before the match started. The tournament on the 6th day was held for 15 hours, but only 1 match per 20 minutes. Unlike before, some participants readily forfeited. Their goal of being the top 16 was already fulfilled and thus they could see no point in participating any longer. On the 7th day, only 8 participants for each year remained. On the first half of the day, a total of 40 participants was reduced to 20, only having 4 participants for each year. The top 4 for each year! Teo, Windle and Lia watched intently throughout the week. On the 7th day, Gina lost and could only reach the best of 8, but she didn''t lose focus, because she still had a match outside the Colosseum to determine exactly which rank she was in later today. As for Rowen, she made it to top 4 along with Daniel. She barely won her match against last year''s third place and entered the top 4. Of the top 4 among the eighth year, Daniel was probably weakest, then Rowen, then the other two who was placed first and second place last year. She might have a chance fighting against the last year''s second place but had no chance of winning against the last year''s first place. On the second half of the day, the top 4 would be reduced to the top 2. Rowen expected that Daniel would be matched against her, and as she predicted it, the situation manifested itself. Within the academy, the Rizon faction being favored was like an open secret. They all knew about it but no one dared to question it aloud. Although Teo was happy with his large profit of gold, Rowen was not as pleased. She still bears a grudge against Daniel, but although Daniel have gotten to top 4 through "lucky" matches, he was still a strong contender. Rowen did not take Daniel lightly and prepared a battle plan against him. Both of them were elementalists, Rowen was an elementalist of the metal and Daniel was an elementalist of earth. She pulled out a small bag and tied it on her waist and meditated. Her match would start within a few minutes [Author''s note: I wasn''t planning on writing up this chapter yet, but I was motivated to do so. This is not a sponsored chapter, but I would like to thank my first donator ever. Thank you Mr. Cody L. Secondly, I have posted my work on reddit yesterday and I found that there is a real problem with my "synopsis", something I just wrote because I don''t know what else to write without spoiling the story. I plan on changing and upgrading soon. Third, I am also slowly revising the earlier chapters. If you have not noticed yet, I have revised Chapter 1 and 2 a few days ago. The story is still the same, but I have added some foreshadowing and "polished" it a bit (at least I think its fancier now]. But it will be a slow thing as I want to consistently release at least a chapter a day, since my chapters are shorter than other novel''s chapters, while I edit/proof read my earlier chapters I hope you enjoyed the chapter!] Chapter 39: Rowen vs Daniel Chapter 39: Rowen vs Daniel The judge called both participants to come towards the stage Rowen stood at one side of the stage, Daniel stood at the other side. Rowen wore light armor covering only the most important parts of her body. It was clear that she wanted to rely on her speed for this match. On her left arm was a small circular shield, on her right hand a thin single edge sword. The sword curved quite a bit as similar to that of a scimitar. Daniel on the other hand was quite opposite. His body was fully covered in heavy dark armor. He looked like a miniature fortress. Only a few small slits for the eyes and mouth could be seen. The armor seemed very expensive as there were several inscriptions written on it. He carried a large heavy sword and no shield. It looked very heavy, as if he was prepared to take any brunt of damage that Rowen could deal. He knew that in terms of speed, he really could not compete against Rowen, but if he had this enchanted armor, he should not use too much Qi. In a battle of exhaustion, he would not lose. ''I really have to thank the headmaster for lending me this armor'' He thought to himself. The armor was a treasure of the academy. Without the public knowing, the headmaster allowed Daniel borrow it so that the Rizon family could enter into the top 3, possibly second place. This was because of that very important visitor who came to spectate the yearly ranking. This visitor was the old man who came from the Imperial city. As for the first place, the head master did not have much hope. That person was a monster, no one could compete with him, not even the second place from last year. Many academy elders who knew about the armor did not say anything about it. This was because the academy has always been controlled by a member of the Rizon family. The armor had several inscriptions in both sides. The inscriptions inside increased the durability of the armor and allowed the armor to absorb earth elemental energy around it to increase its density. The inscriptions outside were used to lighten the armor. Both inscriptions were carved into the armor so that these inscriptions could not easily be damaged. The armor looked heavy, but in fact it was very light. It didn''t impede Daniel''s speed at all. He was planning on using this to surprise Rowen. His sword was also covered in inscriptions. The metal was also made with earth elemental powder so the inscriptions were carved straight on the sword. It also had a weight lightening inscriptions around it but did not needed any durability increasing inscriptions as the metal was made of black iron. A very expensive material that is 10 times denser and heavier than regular iron. The audience who were chatting about before the start of the match quickly became quiet. Teo, Lia and Windle watched very closely, afraid to miss out anything. Teo of course wanted his sister to win but most importantly, he didn''t want his sister to get injured. Although she won her first few matches with just speed, the matches became harder and harder as it went on. "Let the first match of the semi-finals commence!" The judge shouted Unlike her previous matches, Rowen did not quickly rush down her opponent. She started circling around him like wolf circling its prey. Daniel did not move from his spot at all. He slowly rotated to prevent her to get to his back side He started gathering earth energy which instantly fused with the armor. Rowen also condensed some metallic energy. Although it did not fuse with her sword or armor, it rotated around her metallic sword and armor, slightly enhancing it. After a few more moments of circling, Rowen stomped her foot and quickly vanished from Daniel''s line of sight. Although he tried to rotate to prevent Rowen to get to his backside, his armor itself minimized what he could see. He used earth energy to strengthen his defense as much as he could and also sent a few earth energy onto the stage floor. He did not need to see where Rowen was to know where she was! The earth energy on the stage transmitted any vibrations on the ground, telling him the exact location where she would be. He could tell that she was quickly approaching him and prepared a sword slash when she got close enough. As he detected that she was nearing closer, he slashed his large heavy sword to where he predicted she would be. The slash was extremely fast for a heavy sword The audience was shocked by how fast he swung it. "!!" But when Daniel looked, his sword hit nothing but air. If you stumble upon this tale on Amazon, it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it. He could only see Rowen standing from afar watching his movement. Rowen initially wanted to rush towards Daniel, but with the strange inscriptions on his armor, she became wary. She did not know much about inscriptions, but she knew what most common types of inscriptions can do. She set a trap to see if her hunch was correct Daniel dumbfounded by how fast Rowen retreated. It should be physically impossible for Rowen to be this fast and cover such a great distance in a few seconds. He quickly looked at the ground and saw small shiny particles. He understood that they were metallic shavings, a small piece of metal thinly shaved as thin as a leaf. Daniel quickly figured out how Rowen "move" so fast. The metallic shavings was controlled by her metallic energy to act as if it was Rowen who was moving. It was a feint for someone who can use the technique he just used The small bag around Rowen''s waist became empty. As she moved around the stage, she spread the metallic shavings across the stage so she could use this to lure out what Daniel was hiding. The common techniques for elementalists were widely known, but to execute them were very difficult for students. It is because some techniques needed precise control and creativity to accomplish. Like Daniel''s ''Earth Sense'' technique, it combined both the extreme sensing stage and manipulation stage. Rowen''s control of the metallic shavings was a combination of the movement stage and manipulation stage. By combing some of her Qi to the manipulated metallic shavings, she gave an impression to Daniel that she was actually the one moving. For students in the academy, they were considered 2 high level techniques. Of course there were other more powerful techniques, even some that could kill but they did not use it. Not only that killing was not allowed but also some of the other techniques used more Qi than normal. Both sides used their Qi to the minimum so they would not ran out of it too quickly. When Rowen saw Daniel''s sword swing, she knew that it was an inscription that made its weight to be negligible. She also assumed that the armor itself was of similar nature. Rowen charged towards Daniel, she immediately assume that Daniel''s speed was as fast as if he was not wearing armor. Although it was fast, Rowen who specialized in speed was still very much faster. She threw a barrage of attacks, hitting certain points of the armor. Rowen was testing the waters. She wanted to see if there was any weakness to the armor. She also tried to destroy the inscription on the outside of the armor, but the defensive capabilities of the armor was too strong. Even with her sword which had metallic energy surrounding it, it could not put a dent on it. She would require to constantly hit it on the same specific place, but why would Daniel let her do so? Daniel swung his sword but could not hit anything. Although he kept missing, he did not panic, he hardly used any Qi at all. He was just using his brute strength at the moment and a very small amount to gather the earth energy. The armor itself would automatically used the gathered energy so there was no need for him to meld any more of his Qi into it. He did not need to strike her at all, he just needed to buy time. The exchange of strikes lasted for 10 minutes. Suddenly, for some reason, Rowen''s movement slowed and Daniel quickly took advantage and swung at her. Daniel originally only wanted to buy time, but when he saw this opening, he was sure to take advantage of it. Rowen blocked the heavy blow with her sword, but Rowen still flew a few meters from the hit. She laid on the floor, unmoving for a moment. "SISTER!" Teo shouted as he worried. It was the first time Rowen had been struck so strongly throughout the tournament It was the perfect chance for Daniel to strike her down. The end of a match would usually be determined in a single moment of carelessness. "Its over" "I can''t believe she is gonna lose" The audience started talking about what had happened The audience expected Daniel to rush over and finish the match but for some unknown reason, Daniel stood still. Rowen also laid there unmoving. Even if she was hit so heavily, she would have moved by now. The crowd became confused ''What happened?'' a majority of them thought The judges who were overseeing the match knew exactly what happened Under everyone''s gaze, an unseen smile emerged "I finally got you" Chapter 40: Victory and Defeat Chapter 40: Victory and Defeat The audience became confused at the two figures on the stage. After a while, they finally saw some movement on the stage. The first one to move was Rowen. She stood up slowly staring at Daniel''s figure A smile was on her face as she walked slowly towards him The scene dumbfounded all the audience who were watching. Even Teo thought that his sister was crazy, because she walked slowly with no guard at all! When Rowen arrived in front of Daniel, her smile really wide. Daniel who was in front of Rowen as panicked "What.. What did you do!?" Daniel shouted The audience could hear Daniel''s shout. It became clear to them that it wasn''t that Daniel didn''t move, it was because he couldn''t move! "Nothing much, I just added something on your armor" Rowen replied Daniel could not see it, but the tiny metallic shavings filled up the tiny joints of his armor. It made it so that Daniel could not move his armor at all. As Rowen barraged him with attacks earlier, the metallic shavings slowly moved without being noticed, as if being carried by the wind. The metallic shavings slowly approached each joints outside of Daniel''s line of sight, but there was still one area that Rowen needed to become accessible to her metallic shavings. She baited Daniel by giving him an opening to attack. His own attack allowed Rowen''s shaving to completely fill up the important joints and prevent him from moving! The reason why Rowen did not initially move from the hit was because she was concentrating her control of the metal shavings! Daniel tried to struggle but with the joints blocked, it was as if he was struggling against his extremely dense armor. Rowen looked at the judges. The judges still did not call the match. They hoped that Daniel would somehow find a way to turn the tables on Rowen. Rowen took her sword and hit the inscription on Daniel''s armor. When Daniel did not move, it was quite easy to destroy the inscription with 30 or so quick and accurate strikes at the same point on the armor. After the inscription was destroyed Daniel could no longer lift the armor with his strength. The only ting that kept him up was the metallic shavings interlocking the joints. Rowen gave a light push and immediately dropped on the ground. The ground shook from the denseness of the armor. He was like a rat trapped in a metal can but he still did not surrendered. As long as he stayed in the armor, how could he get hurt? At worst this match would be called a tie and the time would eventually run out. There was around 4 minutes left before the match could be called unfinished. He just needed to stall for time! The judges also hoped for this. These judges were specifically chosen to oversee all of Daniel''s matches. They were planted there by the headmaster to judge biasedly in favor of Daniel Rowen brought her thin sword up to Daniel''s face and using her metallic energy the sword''s form changed. The sword became animated as if it was a snake. The size turned thin and quickly entered one of the slits in Daniel''s helmet, leaving the special Qi absorbing gel outside. A thin sword swiftly entered inside the helmet and cut a thin slice across Daniel''s cheek. Blood flowed down his cheek as he felt the thin blade cut him. The thin sword quickly wrapped around his neck. It happened so fast that by the time the he felt the blood running down his cheek, the blade was already around his neck. This was all done in one quick motion, the audience could not react, not even the judges could react. By the time they noticed the piece of sword was already inside the helmet The whole Colosseum turned silent... Suddenly a voice shouted "I concede!" It was Daniel''s voice. The judges did not know what to do and did not stopped the match because it was only a few minutes before the time limit was over. But little did they know that the sword wrapped around Daniel''s neck started moving back and forth like a saw, slowly digging into Daniel''s skin. Although he knew that Rowen would not kill or maim him, shave his head, and even carve up his face. Even if somehow Daniel was crowned winner of the match due to points, everyone would know who really won. Thus, he could only concede before Rowen had a change of heart. "Winner, Rowen Char" The majority of the audience erupted into cheers, although they did not know exactly how Rowen paralyzed Daniel''s movements, they knew the unfair advantages Daniel had throughout the tournament. A good portion of them were rooting for Rowen to win. Hearing the result, Teo sat down and finally relaxed. It was as if all his energy was drained from his body. Although he was only watching, he could feel the intense match and worried about Rowen throughout the whole thing. The 8th day, the finals was held. The rules of the final match changed, no time limit. Everyone expected another exciting match like yesterday, but Rowen decided to forfeit the number 1 spot. Her opponent, Tordin, was the first place from last year, she knew her own strength and knew his. He was even more powerful this year, so she conceded without a fight. It was a disappointing result, but even the bookie who took people''s bet did not dare bare against Tordin. No one did. He was on a different level than the rest. On the 8th day, the first tournament finished. 2 days were given so that students could rest and recuperate. .... Teo and the others celebrated Rowen''s second place win Teo insisted on paying as well since he was not lacking on funds. "Sister is too amazing!" Teo praised Rowen liked being praised by her brother, but she looked humble from her win "Senior, how did you know to bring those metallic shavings into the match?" Windle asked The story has been taken without consent; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident. He wanted to learn more about battling against cultivators and elementalists so he unhesitatingly asked "Oh that was just luck, you see I can use those shavings as a defensive barrier as well" A string of metallic shavings flowed out of her bag. The shavings rotated very quickly Rowen slowly took a wooden stick and pushed it through the rotating cloud of metallic shavings. The wooden stick became wooden dust as it came in contact with the rotating shavings. Windle, Lia and Teo became even more surprised. They didn''t know that those shavings can be used like that. "These shavings are quite strong. If I put enough Qi, I can even chip through swords, but I would quickly run out of Qi" "You have to learn the ins and outs of your element, you also need to be creative during battle. Be confident but not reckless. Be cautious but not scared." She looked towards Lia and said "Even if you are not an elementalist, knowledge is power. If you know what your opponents can do, you can easily plan a counter for it. Battles are not just about strength, stamina, speed and Qi, its also about your head" The 3 of them nodded earnestly. I was a wise lesson given to them by the number 2 senior within the academy. Riss on one side yawned from Rowen''s lecture and then stuffed her face with the many dishes on the table. .... The sign up for the second tournament commenced. A 1 gold sign up fee was needed from students who wanted to participate. The second tournament would only start if there were at least 200 people who signed up, but there was also a maximum limit to the amount that can sign up. They would only allow a maximum of 512 students to participate. Students who did well on the first tournament had higher priority. For guests and outsiders, the second tournament was more important to them. These guests were usually all scouts from the nearby sects and factions, looking for any talented youths. A large majority of students who became top 16 of their respective years did not choose to participate in the second tournament, especially most of the top 16 of the eighth years. The rewards of being a top 16 did not stack, and considering the earlier competition they had no hopes in getting into the top 3, so it was not very appealing to them to participate again. They have already proven themselves as being the top 16 of their year. For others though, they still participated. It was another chance to get to the top 16. There were also scouts that could invite them if they perform well. The younger participants were there to show their abilities to defeat their seniors. Of course there were still many senior students who signed up to participate. For Rowen and Gina, they would also sign up. There were less competition from the same year as them, so getting to top 8 or higher should be easier for them. They headed to the Arena''s office to sign up as well as receive Rowen''s reward. Upon entering the office, Rowen gave her identification stone to the staff member. The staff member went to the back of the office. After a while, the elder came out and Rowen became surprised. It was because the headmaster also came out, with a small bag. The headmaster smiled at Rowen, but there was a hint of anger in his eyes. Rowen could only vaguely sense this anger and became a little uncomfortable. "Congratulations for placing second place. Are you also signing up for the free for all tournament?" "Yes, we are" "I see" The headmaster took 1 gold form the bag and gave the bag to Rowen When she received her reward she took out another gold and placed it on the table. "I''m paying for her too" She said Gina took out her identification stone as well. They were so close that she didn''t mind being casually given 1 gold. The staff member wrote down both of their names to the list of participants. When the 2 students left, the headmaster had sneered. His plan was for Daniel to get second place was ruined by Rowen. Although he was annoyed by this, he was more angry about the damaged enchanted armor. Once the carved inscription on the armor was damaged, repairing it was difficult and very expensive. .... When the list of participants were finalized, the headmaster announced the rules for the second tournament. Unlike before, participants were not allowed to surrender. The only way to win was to knock out your opponent, knock them out of the ring, or by judge''s decision after time was up. Voluntarily stepping out of the ring was also prohibited, similar to the first tournament that ruled that if a participant stepped out of the ring before the 1 minute was up, they would be sent back to the ring for the remaining time. In this case, they can only be knocked out of the ring by the opponent or they would have to continue the fight. Of course there was many ways around this rule, like pretending to be knocked out, or placing yourself upon the edge of the ring, but in this tournament all participants were invested. They had to pay 1 gold, so giving up before any benefits was not an option. After participants'' opponents were decided randomly, they would be posted on a large bulletin board so everyone could see who they were up against before hand. Teo and the group went to check out the board. Rowen and Gina who were leading the group were first to see their opponents. Seeing such a thing, both of them became speechless "Is this really random?" [Author''s Note: As I have said before, I am currently revising (editing/proof reading) the previous chapters before.I have revised chapters 1 to 5 now, and plan to revise other chapters as well. So expect a minor slow down to releases (and because I am still planning the up coming plot''s details). Thanks for reading] Chapter 41: Power Gap Chapter 41: Power Gap The crowds cheered, anticipating for the next match. It was only the first round of matches but the crowd could not wait to see the up coming match. The loud roars of the crowd shook the whole Colosseum. Compared to the first tournament, this second tournament had more spectators. This was because only a little over 300 students signed up to participate in this tournament and the students who did not, went to watch the event. Rowen walked out of the waiting room, her face was calm but inside she was slightly nervous. She looked at her opponent and sighed. Although everyone knew how biased the Rizon faction was, she did not believe that they would stoop so low. She recalled the bulletin board of the announced rankings and gritted her teeth. Anyone that had half a brain would know what was going on. The majority of the eighth year students were also angered by the match ups. It was clear that the match ups were not ordered randomly, if so, how could there be such a coincidence? Despite the unfair match ups, Rowen could only fight head on. .... Within the special room, the old man from the Imperial city sat in a chair and watched over the tournament. The headmaster Elon was by his side, smiling and giving superficial flattery to the old man. The old man ignored Elon, he was ordered by the Imperial family to confirm Emily''s existence and delivery the void jewelry as a gift. Since he had already finished his duties to the Imperial family, he wanted to return to the Imperial city as soon as possible, but the head of the Rizon family ordered him to watch the tournament until the end. ''Hmm.. this must be the kid that the head was curious about. Indeed, this kid has some talent, it would be great if we can invite this kid to our side'', the old man thought to himself He grabbed a stack of papers and looked through the pages. It was a copy of the match ups for the second tournament. As he looked through it his eyebrows raised ''This trash... you think I wouldn''t notice such a cheap trick?'', he thought as his gaze swiftly fell on the academy''s headmaster beside him. A hint of disdain could be seen in his eyes. .... A tall well built young figure stood across of Rowen. This person was no stranger to Rowen. They both joined the Martial faction at the same year. "Ha ha, it looks like our meeting today is fate" "Fate? Do you really think so?", Rowen asked The tall figure gave a friendly smile, he knew what Rowen meant "At least now you can''t run away like last time" -SIGH- Rowen couldn''t help but let out a big sigh again. Her opponent, Tordin, was the same opponent she surrendered to during the previous tournament. When the tournament among the same year occurred, Tordin would always place first every year. Rowen did not have much hope winning the this match. A year ago, he even placed top 4; by then he could already compete with seniors 1 year ahead of him and now that those seniors are gone, it was obvious that he was the strongest among all the current students. ''This fighting maniac..'', Rowen cursed inside Before his enrollment to the academy, an elder who was returning back from their yearly exploration found the young Tordin alone in the wilderness. Tordin survived within the northern wilderness alone for a year. As for his parents, they both died trying to save Tordin. With his experience with one of the more dangerous parts of the empire, he naturally developed his prowess ahead of other students. Although it was all self taught, his instincts was honed and allowed him to luckily survive in the wilderness alone. "Rowen, don''t worry, I won''t be too rough. I''ll be as gentle as senior Aran was gentle with me" Rowen didn''t know whether to laugh or cry. Her older brother, Aran, trained both Tordin and her. With Tordin''s aptitude for combat, Aran had always been rough with him during training. ''What gentle is he talking about?'' she asked herself She knew the gap of strength between them. Her speed was the only thing that could match up, but even in pure speed, anticipating each others'' attacks, showing feints to bait each other, Tordin was much better. These advantages made it seem as if Tordin was much faster than her even though they practically had the same physical speed. Reading your opponent''s move decreases the time that you have to react, while creating feints slows down the opponent''s reaction time. Strength wise, she could not compare at all. "8th match, Tordin vs Rowen. Fight commence!", the judge announced the start of the fight Rowen stood motionlessly but kept her guard up. Her only hope was for him to make a crucial mistake. If she could capitalize on his mistake, perhaps somehow she could turn the tables. Tordin, on the other hand, smiled and started to slowly approach. Despite being a fighting maniac, he was not stupid at all. Letting your guard down was one of the biggest mistake you could make that could cost you your life. This philosophy was engraved in Tordin''s soul so he did not underestimate any of his opponents. He watched his opponents carefully and could instinctively tell how strong they are. Unauthorized usage: this tale is on Amazon without the author''s consent. Report any sightings. When he reached a certain distance from Rowen, Tordin dashed cautiously and threw a punch towards Rowen. Although he did not dash full speed, his speed was still very fast. Rowen too her sword and slashed back as she dodged the punch. Tordin''s steel bracers blocked the sword completely. Although Tordin had a sword equipped on his back, throughout the tournaments, he was never been forced to use it. The only time he used it was the previous years before this one; all of them against senior students. This year, he fought every match barehanded, not even Rowen could force him to unsheathe his sword. Although it looked like he was underestimating Rowen, Tordin knew his opponent''s limits as well as his own strength. Even with the handicap he gave to Rowen, there was still a huge gap in power between them. The battle was long. Rowen was on the defensive most of the time. From time to time, she would counter attack at the slightest opening but Tordin would easily parry or dodge them. Rowen was eventually forced towards the edge of the stage. It was clear that Tordin was only toying with her as he was smiling during the whole exchange. Rowen became irritated from Tordin''s smug smile and did not notice her own position on the stage. Tordin let out a punch and Rowen barely dodges it as she suddenly realize where she was but during this moment of realization, a swift kick caught her off guard. She blocked with her sword but the force was so strong that she was kicked out of stage. The crowd cheered for the spectacular fight. To amateurs, this fight was exciting, but for those experts who knew how to fight, it was quite boring. Tordin who was on stage laughed and lend a hand to Rowen who was on the ground; helping her get up. Rowen did not hide how annoyed she was. She basically lost 1 gold coin for nothing! But after thinking about the rest of the matches, she did not feel to bad. "Good luck in your next matches, I hope you lose" She said with a smile "Ha ha ha, I''m quite lucky to have strong opponents one after the other. Perhaps I''m too blessed?", Tordin replied The match ups were so skewed that the majority of the strong contenders would be matched up against each other, while the rest of the Rizon faction would be on the other side of the brackets; against much weaker juniors. It was basically to ensure that one of the Rizon faction members would take the top positions and show their "glory" to the important visitor. The crowd did not mind as they only wanted to see high level battles. As for the younger participants, they were ecstatic. With the brackets arranged like this, they had a larger chance to reach top 16. Today was the day that the whole academy saw how shameless and dirty the Rizon faction really was, but in spite of the fact that the were aware of such things, they could not do anything but complain is secret. During the next round, Gina also lost to Tordin. The tournament went through the remaining week. Tordin defeated every opponent who was up against him. In the final match, it was Tordin versus Daniel. With the help of the headmaster, even without using his previous armor, Daniel easily sailed his way to the finals. Although Tordin was thankful for monopolizing all the strong opponents, it left a very bad taste in his mouth to have such a despicable opponent in his final fight. For the final match, Tordin was not merciful at all. He fractured a few of Daniel''s bones before finishing the fight. The majority of students watched until the very end of the tournament. Although Teo was also sitting with his friends and sister, he did not pay attention too much about the fight. The whole tournament was like a spark that ignited his blood. When Teo witnessed Rowen and Gina fighting, he could not help admire their strength. Every time they would win their match, it felt like he won as well. Every time they were in a risky situation, his heart would tighten as if he was in their situation. A small spark of interest had been ignited inside him. ''What would it feel like to win like he did?'', Teo pondered as he looked at Tordin''s figure standing alone on stage with the crowd cheering for his win. After thinking about it, he held some anticipation for his third year to come. He even started considering on joining the Martial faction. His sister right now is considered to be the second strongest. Next year she would be gone and by that time, he wouldn''t be able to ask for advice about things kinds of things. He also wanted to spend more time with her before she left for her expedition years. After much deliberation, he finally made a decision. Teo tapped on Rowen''s shoulder grabbing her attention. "What is it Teo?" "Big sister, teach me how to fight" Chapter 42: Coincidence Chapter 42: Coincidence The sun slowly rose from the east horizon, the surrounding cold atmosphere was slowly being warmed by the merging rays of the sun. As Teo arrived at the usual meeting spot 10 minutes earlier than the appointed time, he was felt that he found something a little more interesting than books and couldn''t help but be a little excited. He waited patiently for Windle and Lia to arrive. Teo saw many of the students who passed by. Unlike last year, there seemed to be more first years to have enrolled. After waiting for 10 minutes, Lia arrived first. She had a big smile on her face and was showing off to many of the new students who passed her the number on her sleeves. "You seem happy today", Teo asked "because we are now second year students! I also don''t have to take Dina''s classes this year", Lia responded with a humming tune "I still have to", Teo responded Teo still was in the gathering stage and still had to attend Dina''s elementalist classes. While Teo and Lia chatted for a bit, Windle arrived. The trio headed to a building next to the building where they held their general class last year. This was the building where the second year classes were held. Although it was a different building, it looked very similar to the old one. This year Lia led them to a specific auditorium. She had done much research on the instructors that was available so that she would not repeat the same mistake from last year. Lia picked an instructor that was laid back, did not give tests often and even if tests were given, it would be easy to solve. They even arrived early to make sure that they could register for the class. Teo did not mind as he always studied the material on his own without problems. Windle, who studied hard secretly, clearly did not mind as well. .... After the first class was over, Lia separated from Windle and Teo "I''ll see you guys after your elementalist class" Lia skipped along and headed to her smithing class. Although she already took a smithing class last year, it was the basic class. The class she was taking this year was the intermediate class. Teo and Windle arrived at the designated location for their elementalist class. The room was very similar to last year''s room, but had large stage similar to that to the arena was placed within it. Not many students bothered showing up. Although there were some elementalists like Windle, who had already reached the manipulation stage still attended, only Teo and Grifford were the ones required to attend class. Windle and the others attended the class to ask for guidance on their manipulation control Desipite most manipulation control were kept secret, there were many that were commonly known to other elementalists. The stage within the room would be used to practice their techniques in class, but the problem was; everyone in class could see their techniques and may attempt to understand and copy them. This was not a major problem for younger students but if they practiced a special technique that was passed down to them in secret, showcasing it while not fully mastering it yet could leak the process of manipulation. The location of the class changed, but the teacher did not. The instructors assigned to a group of elementalist students did not change even in the second year. This was so that the instructors would not need to familiarize themselves again to the students. They would already know the needs and concerns for specific students as they have already taught them for a year previously. The class went on without any lectures but concentrated on more practice. Dina personally coached and advised students who were at the manipulation stage with their control. As for Teo and Grifford, they meditated throughout the whole class. .... After their elementalist class, Teo and Windle waited for Lia to arrive at a different designated meeting spot. "Sorry for the wait", Lia arrived panting "You know, we should just meet you there. It would''ve been faster", Windle said "Leave the guiding to me", Lia ignored Windle''s reasoning and pulled out a map and led the way. The location of their next class was in between the central district and the south eastern side of the academy. The area as filled with different production facilities. Several small farmlands and herb gardens, animal ranches, and even a deep mine within the nearby mountain. The deeper they went, the more wooden buildings appeared. Most of them were only one floor high; at the most, two floors. Lia started guiding the two to the area. Although she had spent a year going to the area, she didn''t really know what the other buildings were for, hence she got a map to help her. As for Windle and Teo, they knew this area but was not familiar with it that closely. Whenever they had to go to a different district, they would choose a different and more familiar path to get there. "This is where my smithing class is", Lia said as she pointed at a building Stolen content warning: this content belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences. The building was a single floor building and there were several chimneys on top of the building. As they passed the building, Lia explained the different areas of the building to both Teo and Windle. They walked through the area and finally arrived at a single floor building. It was quite small compared to other buildings and were not as noisy. The small building was separated from the other buildings, and had a large courtyard relative to the building. There were two people guarding at the nearby entrance, one of which was William. When William saw Teo arriving, his face turned ugly. He held a grudge against him and whats worst is that they coincidentally met in front of the same building. ''This stalker kid'' William thought as he ignored Teo Emily finally did not require to attend the elementalist class but for some reason that annoying brat picked the same electives as her. William was annoyed. Teo on the other hand did not think too much about it. He felt no ill will towards William as he never interacted that much with him. Although he could sense that William did not like him, he did not bother to care of such things. When they trio arrived, there were ten other students already there. Teo and Windle recognized the two among them. One was Grifford, sitting by himself in one of the front desks in class, the other was Emily. She also sat alone, but on the second row of desks. This time Emily no longer wore her hood and hid her face. She freely showed her beautiful appearance. Her blonde golden hair curled like large bouncy springs. Her complexion was fair, and her eyes were dazzling blue. Several other boys in the class tried to talk to her, but she ignored them all like she ignored Teo before. She looked like she matured quite a bit. Before when Teo attempted to talk to her, she would look troubled as if wanting to reply back but now she did not react at all and just plainly ignored everyone who approached her. The change in was due to the special visitor from the Imperial city. She was told to show herself proudly but do not interact with such commoners. The visitor also left a few Imperial guards to protect her in secret. "You two! what are you doing here?!" After waiting a while a loud voice sounded outside "We are here to guard the area" one guard spoke Some students who were waiting inside could not help but peek outside. A lean, black haired man with a scruffy beard was arguing with the two guards. The man wore a purple and black robe which indicated that he was an instructor of the academy. "You can''t be here, leave!" "But sir, the headmaster had given us permission to guard the area", William retorted "Hmph! the headmaster?! He is not allowed to interfere with my work!", the black haired man spoke "But.." the other guard tried to speak but before he could he was interrupted by the man again. "Look, if you want to guard the area, you can do so 10 meters away from the building. I will not permit you get any close. Only people who I authorized are allowed near this building" Before they could reply the black haired man already headed into the building. William and another guard had no choice but to follow the black haired man''s orders. He knew the position of this black haired man in the academy was as important and possibly more important in the future than the headmaster. The black haired man closed the door behind him and the room was completely isolated from the outside. He looked at the 13 students in the room as he walked in the front of the class. "I am Deacon, your instructor for this inscription class" Decon''s eyes widen. As he was looking at each student, something caught his eyes. His gaze did not move for a long time and he also stopped speaking. Teo noticed the strangeness with their instructor''s behavior and tried to find out what he was looking at. Many students also followed suit as it was very strange. Their attention all stopped towards Emily. Emily''s indifferent attitude broke. She looked behind her to see if it was something from behind but everyone was looking back at her. She found out that the everyone was looking towards her. The instructor''s gaze was piercing. Adding the other students'' gazes, it was too much for her to handle and she became like a scared rabbit. Other students thought that the instructor was also charmed by Emily''s beauty but Teo thought differently. His eyes descended down from Emily''s face and saw something more attractive. He knew that the instructor Deacon was staring at the same thing. It was a jewel that hang from Emily''s neck. With Teo''s eyes, he could see the strings of invisible inscriptions that laid into the necklace. Deacon also noticed the necklace. He instantly knew what this necklace was. ''A void necklace!'', He gasped inside Chapter 43: Void Necklace Chapter 43: Void Necklace The jewel that was hanging from Emily''s neck was very beautiful. It was a translucent rock, finely cut and was accentuated by a well crafted golden pendant. The necklace was clearly created by a highly skilled craftsman. After regaining his calm, Deacon cleared his throat and drew everyone''s attention back to himself. "I am sorry. It was just unexpected to see someone wearing a void necklace in class" The majority of students became curious of this "void necklace" that their instructor spoke of. Most of them had no idea what a void necklace was so all their gazes returned towards Emily''s necklace. Teo on the other hand was surprised. He had heard of stories of many void jewelry, formed into necklaces, rings, bracelets, pins, badges, and several other forms, but this was the very first time he had seen one. Teo continued to look at the void necklace. Emily on the other hand saw other people''s gazes on her necklace. She wanted to hide it but before she could, Deacon stopped her. "You. Do you mind if I can see your necklace a bit?", He asked It was inappropriate to ask such things from a student but he couldn''t resist. He also knew that people who wore void jewelry out in the open must have some status within the empire. Seeing Emily hesitating, Deacon assured her with his next sentence "Don''t worry, I don''t need to touch it. You can just hold up for a while for me." Emily knew that her necklace was valuable, but did not fully understand its value. So she grabbed the edge of the pendant and clearly showed the gem in class. Deacon quickly brought out several pieces of paper and drew some inscriptions as if he was trying to copy it. The majority of students saw Deacon writing down several things on many pieces of paper. They were confused to what their instructor was writing down, but Teo knew what they were. They were the inscriptions engraved on the gem. He also recognized that Deacon only wrote down some parts of the inscriptions. ''Perhaps that''s all the inscriptions he could see?'' Teo thought With his eyes, he could see through the void necklace''s inscriptions clearly. He also realized how important these inscriptions were. An instructor wouldn''t do something stop the whole class if it did not have some value. So Teo returned his gaze towards the gem and attempted to memorize it. With his memory, it only took him a bit of time to memorize the arrangement of symbols and lines. He was already well experienced at this with his study of arrays, so it was quite a simple matter to him. After a while, Deacon could no longer write down anything else. He also knew that there were still many parts of the gem he could not see, but was satisfied of what he could record. Although he had a void element that could see some of the inscriptions, he knew it was not an easy thing to recreate. It was not everyday that an inscriber such as himself could study a void necklace up close, so he took advantage of this fortunate opportunity. After writing them all down, he nodded to Emily in satisfaction. He kept all the notes into a folder and placed them away. Emily quickly placed the pendant within her shirt, hiding it from other people''s sight. -AHEM- Deacon drew everyone''s attention back and finally started the class. "Inscriptions. They are another way of using elemental energy. It is an art that draws elemental energy to perform a certain function. Like what I mentioned before, a void necklace is a necklace that uses inscriptions to use the power of the void. It is quite a high level inscriptions that not many know how to create." Although he did not reveal what the void necklace did, he still used it as an example for his lecture. Deacon then walked towards a closet and removed a few items within it. There was a sword, an armor, a stack of small papers and a pair of boots. "These items are objects that uses inscriptions" Deacon took the sword and held it in front of everyone "This sword uses an inscription that absorbs fire energy. The effect increases the penetrating power of the sword. Although this sword''s inscription is simple, it will should help dent any regular armor. A sword enchanted with an advance inscription would easily slice through normal armor like a hot knife through butter" He then placed the sword on the side and took the armor. "This armor has two separate inscriptions on each side. One side uses an earth energy to increase the durability of the armor, while the other side uses the wind energy to help carry the heavy armor and lighten it''s weight. An object can have more than one inscription, but you have to be careful. Controlling the energy within an item must be done precisely or the item could explode. This armor is fairly thick and was precisely designed so that no collision of energies would occur." He placed the armor back to the side and took the pair of boots. "This pair of boots are inscriptions are used to lighten the weight of the user. If you wear it, your speed should increase depending on the level of the inscription" Then he took the small stack of papers. "This are charms. There are two ways of using inscriptions. One is enchanting an object and the other one is to create a talisman. This charms are a type of talisman. These two methods are similar, yet different. Through enchanting, an object can gain a special function or property, similar to the sword, armor, boots and even the necklace; they are all using enchantment method. Using the inscriptions through talismans creates a medium to store a certain effect. These effects are divided into two different categories. The first category are ''wards''. They talismans with defensive effects. They can temporarily increase the defense of an object, or perhaps even block a single attack. The other category are ''charms'', these are talismans with offensive effects. They can temporarily increase the attack power of an object. The key word here is ''temporarily''. All talismans can only be used once before their effects wear off. Most talismans are considered useless because of their one-time use, but because of the flexibility of their usage, they are not completely useless." As Deacon spoke, he returned the objects back into the closet. Reading on Amazon or a pirate site? This novel is from Royal Road. Support the author by reading it there. "Talismans are similar to elementalists techniques but they are much weaker. The unpopularity of talismans prevented many people from researching this field. This is one of the reason why our knowledge of talismans have not improved compared to our knowledge in enchantments, but it is a very interesting subject. If you are interested in the subject of talismans I can tell you more in private, but our class will mostly cover enchantments as well as the two methods of inscribing. There is also a class I teach that focuses on talismans if you want to take it next year." Deacon opened another cabinet next to the previous one. All 13 students looked into cabinet and saw a few stacks of books. ''Books!'', Teo''s eyes wided "Everyone grab a book, this will be your text book for the whole year", Deacon announced The books were identical to each other. They were fairly thick and seemed like they were newly printed. "The first chapter is a thorough introduction to inscriptions as well as its history, since I have talked about it briefly, you can all read it on your own time. I am here to teach you inscriptions, not history. We''ll start our class with chapter 2. Its mainly memorizing and understanding each symbols." All the other students, including Teo, flipped the pages of their books to chapter 2. Teo recognized the many symbols listed within the chapter. He noticed the 47 known symbols that were known within the empire, but the number of understood symbols was not the same as what he had read from the library. The number of understood symbols went up by 2, totaling 25. The book noted that the two "new" symbols were apparently deciphered and analyzed by Deacon himself. Such an achievement resounded throughout the whole empire and thus gave him an important place within the empire. But of course Teo had already knew the meaning of these symbols from the array book, as well as over a thousand of other symbols. Several symbols could act similar to one another with a faint difference. Teo who had already memorized these symbols thought that the class would be easy because there were no symbols among these 25 that acted similarly, but the line formation of the inscriptions were somewhat different from the patterns of the array. The arrays did not rely on the material''s quality and shape, but inscriptions did. It heavily relied on even the density, the weight, and many other factors included into creating such inscriptions. It was definitely an art, but an art with a manual. Although creating a new inscription was difficult, there were several recorded inscriptions available to inscribers. This is the main reason why even non-elementalists could become an inscriber, while elementalists, specifically generalists and pures, would be the ones expected to craft new inscriptions or high level inscriptions. Even the inscriptions for the void necklace was several times harder than most inscriptions. There were many ways to create a void necklace with different effects. Specifically the void necklace that Emily owned could only hold a meter cubed of space. Despite the space being considered small, it''s value was still very high. The more advance inscriptions for void jewelry was, the better. There were even rumors of some void jewelry that were able to hold mountains, and living creatures. As such, the inscriptions for void jewelries are often obscured by another inscription overlaying it to prevent others from easily copying it. The class continued on, focusing on one symbol at a time. After discussing the symbol, Deacon asked all of the students to practice drawing the symbols. This exercise was for the students to gain a steady hand. Many several other students proved to have skills in drawing the symbols, but more than half had difficulty in drawing them. Windle was focused on writing on a piece of paper but his hands shook uncontrollably. ''Another failure!'', He sighed He looked over at Lia who had surprisingly steady hands, but she would often make mistakes drawing the symbol''s correct proportion. Some curves would become too wide, while other too thin. But each time she slowly improved. Windle was filled with envy. People who had trained their bodies regularly had much better control of their arms and fingers. Since he had only trained using his control of his element, he could not compare. He looked towards Teo and nearly dropped his jaw in shock! Teo accurately drew one symbol after another. Although the students were only required to draw one symbol at a time until they have mastered it. Teo drew the symbols as if they were nothing. Windle was depressed. He thought that Teo''s drawings would be as worst as his but he did not expect Teo to have such hidden talent. Deacon who was looking at each of his students also noticed Teo''s skills in drawing. He nodded in praise. ''Either he is a natural talent, or worked really hard. This is one above the rest.'', He thought Then he looked at Grifford ''Although he is no where near that other kid, this one is pretty good as well'' Deacon evaluated each and every student in class. "Teo, you are pretty good at this", Lia said She noticed how easily Teo could draw the several symbols within the book. "Thanks", Teo replied He did not explain how he became so good at drawing these symbols because it was directly related to arrays. .... As time passed, the class finally ended. After Deacon dismissed the class, he went into one of the rooms adjacent to the classroom. Inside he took the pile of paper containing the fragments of inscriptions that he copied from Emily''s void necklace and started trying to reconstruct what was visible to him. As many students cleaned up the several pieces of paper they had used. They chatted among each other. They also saw Deacon through the doorway working busily even though the class had just ended. Deacon knew that he was being watched by his students, but didn''t care too much about it. The inscription he was working on was too advanced for these students to understand. Perhaps if they took the advance course of inscription they would be able to tell what he was doing. "Let''s go", Lia said Chapter 44: Physical Assessment Chapter 44: Physical Assessment The three of them headed towards the Martial faction headquarters. Not only was today the start of classes for the year, it was also the day that Teo would officially join the Martial faction. Windle also decided to come along. Although he was not formally joining the faction, many outsiders like him were allowed to participate as well. "I''m glad that both of you finally see how great my decision is", Lia proudly said. She was the first person among them who joined the Martial faction and was feeling a little superior for her foresight "I can only join you guys three times a week or else my cousin will complain about me skipping work", Windle said During the ranking tournament, Rowen gave them really great advice. Windle was convinced that if he wanted to become strong, besides practicing his elemental control, he should also learn how to use his body to fight. "Come to think of it, Teo, aren''t you suppose to work today?", Lia asked "No, I''ve already told my boss that I wouldn''t be able to come anymore", Teo responded With Teo''s sudden interest in learning how to fight, he decided to take time off from work in order to pursue his new interest. With his sudden windfall from selling a drop of his blood, he didn''t need to work at least for a few years even if he spent quite extravagantly. He also did not want to reduce his precious library time so the only choice for him was to quit his job. When they arrived, they saw Rowen and Gina standing by the entrance waiting for them. A gentle wind blew from the courtyard. A faint smell of sweat and blood wafted through the air. "Little Teo, Junior Lia, Junior Windle, you''ve all arrived", Rowen greeted amiably Teo smiled in reply "Let''s go get you assessed", Gina gestured everyone to follow her "Assessed?", Windle asked Windle who was not too familiar with the Martial faction did not know what this assessment was all about. Teo on the other hand knew slightly about the assessments but never took one himself. It was because Teo started training in the Martial faction later in the year, and did not officially join the faction, but now, it was start of the school year and the Martial faction did assessments for new recruits as well as people who wanted to participate. "The assessments will figure out where you excel at and where you are weakest", Gina explained The assessment was split in multiple stages. The first stage, Teo and Windle was to do 15 meter dashes while Gina and Rowen timed them. This was to test their sprint''s speed. Windle''s result was surprisingly average, while Teo on the other hand was slower than average. Lia who was watching the whole thing felt smug. From her results last year, her speed was above average. Next was a stamina test. At the back of the Martial faction was a circular track. There were other people using the track but it was wide enough for many people to use it without obstructions. Rowen, Gina and Lia sat down near the area and counted how many laps the two could do before tiring themselves out. When Windle started, his speed was considerably faster than Teo but as time passed, his speed slowed down. It was not easy to keep running at top speed for too long. Teo on the other hand maintained a relatively normal pace all throughout. A figure approached the ladies who were sitting down. "Yo! What are you guys doing here?", a loud and boisterous voice sounded "Tordin", Gina said as she recognize the approaching figure "Nothing much, my brother is joining the faction" "Doing his assessment personally?" "Yeah" A smile appeared on his face ''Senior Aran''s brother, hmm... could be fun'', Tordin thought "I could also help train him if you don''t want. As the champion of this year''s 2 tournaments won''t it be more beneficial for him?", Tordin graciously offered, but Rowen could easily tell what Tordin was thinking. "No thanks. If I let you handle it, he might come to hate me", Rowen refused without the slightest hesitation "Okay, but if you change your mind, you know where you can find me" With that, Tordin headed towards the academy''s gates. Tordin would often head to the city and participate in the city''s dueling arenas. Since the duels within the academy was restricted, Tordin felt the he would lose his edge if he did not have a serious fight from time to time and the city''s dueling arena had no restrictions what so ever. Sometimes participants would be maimed, some even killed. The academy did not prevent students in participating in these kinds of duels, but they did warned them of it. The academy was responsible for were the safety of their students within the academy, as for what was outside, it was out of their jurisdiction. The expedition years of the students forced them into dangerous situations. Although each group was escorted by an academy elder, this was only to prevent them dying too easily, but death would sometimes occur. This was to hone both students and teachers and as such, the students could not be protected 100% of the time. They had to use their own judgment to protect themselves. If a student used his judgment outside the academy and ended up being maimed or killed, it was their own fault. Windle finally collapsed after over an hour of constant running, Teo on the other hand stopped after lasting over 2 hours. "Okay go rest for a bit, and we''ll continue with the assessment after you''ve recovered" The assessment covered their speed, stamina, strength, flexibility, then following that, Teo and Windle was given a strange test. "Okay, lets play rock-paper-scissors", Gina said Gina stood in front of Teo while Rowen stood in front of Windle. Although Rowen wanted to be partnered up with Teo, Gina prevented it because it could cause biased with the results. Windle and Teo was clueless on how rock-paper-scissors was related to learning how to fight. The first few rounds, Windle and Teo played; So far, they have won each and every round. Gina and Rowen''s hands were quite slow but each and every round their hand speed would sped up a bit. As each hand sped up, Windle started to react too slowly and started to lose. On the other hand, Teo could still react to the last moment changes to Gina''s hands. "Oh?", Gina became surprised and sped up even more. Soon her hands became so fast that Teo could not physically react even though he could see what Gina was going to use. Love this story? Find the genuine version on the author''s preferred platform and support their work! After the rock-paper-scissors, both Rowen and Gina was amazed how Teo could last so long before starting to lose some of the rounds. "Not bad at all, Teo you have a pretty good reaction", Gina praised "Yeah, its pretty amazing to have that reaction for someone who hasn''t done any training before", Rowen also praised "Heh, Thanks. I could''ve done better but my body can''t keep up at all", Teo said Hearing Teo''s statement, Gina took it as if he was bragging and took a bronze coin and flipped it in the air. As the coin fell her hands moved swiftly and grabbed it. "Where is the coin?", Gina said as she held out both closed hands. This was not part of the assessment but Gina was decided to humor Teo''s statement. With Teo''s statement, he implied that he could tell which hand Gina would use but could not counter it in time. Windle took a look and participated too. "The left hand", Windle guessed "Right hand", Lia said Rowen gave a small smile. Gina was teasing the three with a simple trick. Everyone waited for Teo''s response. "Right one", Teo answered Gina gave a smile and revealed the coin was indeed in her right hand. She flipped it again, but this time her hands became faster. "Where is it?", she grinned Lia this time stayed quiet, waiting for Teo to answer first. "Right", Teo answered Windle and Lia didn''t answer. This time, Windle couldn''t see where the coin was, so he didn''t want to guess randomly. Lia on the other hand knew the answer was correct so she also didn''t answer. Gina revealed the coin again. She flipped the coin once more in the air and this time, she moved so fast that Windle could not perceived Gina move at all. "Left", Teo answered "Right", Lia answered as well. ''Finally! Teo got it wrong'', Lia thought. She wanted to prove that her current ability is far above Teo''s so she said her answer But she noticed Rowen and Lia''s faces. They were even more surprised than before. Gina slowly open her right hand and when Lia saw this, she was also dumbfounded. The coin was not there! Then the left hand opened and a small bronze coin was laying there. Gina''s speed was so fast that she created a small feint in hopes to trick Teo, but in the end, only Lia was tricked. ''Is it coincidence?'', Rowen and Gina both thought Rowen took the coin from Gina''s hand and she tossed it up in the air. As the coin fell, it suddenly disappeared. Windle couldn''t tell how the coin suddenly disappeared; Even Lia could not see it as well. Rowen had two of her hands closed in front of her, and asked "Teo, Where is the coin?" Teo gave a bright smile. "Big sister, its in your left pocket" "!!" Gina''s mouth dropped to the floor! Comparing her speed to Rowen, she was slightly slower. She could track Rowen''s movements but this was because she was used to it through 7 years of training. For some reason, Teo could also see it! Rowen tried tricking Teo as well. If he answered "left" or "right" both answers would be wrong. For Teo to answer correctly, he had to clearly see where the coin was. By passing the test, it proved that Teo could tell Rowen''s high speed movements without training at all. This could only be called as talent! But what they didn''t know was that Teo''s eyes were given an upgrade by the old man Cien "Wow..", Gina was speechless "Teo you have pretty good eyes" Because his eyes were being praised, he somewhat understood that because of the upgrade that his master gave him, he was able to see some things that he shouldn''t be able to. Even Lia and Windle were in awe by Teo''s ability. .... When the assessments were finished Windle''s results showed that his speed and strength were fairy good, but he lacked stamina and had an average hand speed and senses. As for Teo, his stamina was a little above average but his strength and speed was below average. The surprising thing was his reaction speed. Specifically because of his eyes, his reaction speed and senses were deemed exceptional. Rowen and Gina soon devised a training menu for both of them. Windle''s training menu was focused on increasing his stamina. As for his reaction speed, it would naturally improve the faster and more experienced he becomes. The majority of the time, he was assigned to run at extended periods of time to increase his stamina. Teo''s on the other hand was focused on increasing his instantaneous speed on both of his legs and arms. If his body could not keep up with his eyes, it would be a waste of inborn talent. The majority of Teo''s menu involved sprinting on heavy, sandy and uneven terrain with weights on his arms and legs. The weights would slowly increase as time went by to strengthen his muscles. He was also required to sprint through the shallow lake and throw punches to improve his overall speed. Aside for their training menus, Teo and Windle was also scheduled to spar once every week. After each spar, they would be given a lecture on what they can improve on. This was the basic level of training required for new recruits. Lia who has already passed this stage is allowed to make her own training menu depending on what she wants to improve. She can also strengthen her body by meditation but for Teo and Windle, they needed a strong base for their body first before they could train in such a way. Of course, Lia could also ask her seniors if she needed help in creating her own training menu. .... Arrive back to his cave, Teo laid down on his bed. He rested for a while to recover some of his fatigue. A bronze fist badge was placed on his sleeves. Thinking about he requirements of being a member, they had to regularly visit the faction headquarters and improve themselves. Teo did not expect that the whole idea of wanting to learn how to fight was so time consuming. As he stared towards his ceiling, he recalled the inscriptions that was on Emily''s necklace. He took out a piece of paper and drew the inscriptions as he remembered it. Although Teo was confident with his memorization, he was not 100% sure he had completely remembered it in all of its entirety. From his memory, he knew what the main function of a void jewelry was. ''I wonder if I can make an array similar to this inscriptions'', he pondered Chapter 45: Required Materials [Author''s Note: Sorry it''s kinda late, losing a little motivation lately. Although the major plot has already been decided, writing it''s details is taking a lot of time and I''ve been trying to lengthen each chapter to around 2k words per chapter instead of 1.3k per chapter Also, if you can remember chapter 1, the following 2 people were the same ones in the intro of chapter 1. (I have revised chapter 1 a while ago to mention some of their brief characteristics, in case you started reading before the revision) Hope you enjoy -Cienz] Chapter 45: Required Materials A figure rushed into a room in haste The room was a simple study, filled with several bookshelves full of book. At the far end of the room was a large wooden desk. The figure approached a man sitting behind the desk "Second brother, is it true that eldest brother has arrived? where is he?" The figure with the short azure blue hair asked a middle-aged man who was sitting down as he was reading a book. "Third brother, why are you in such a hurry? Eldest brother is in the recuperating room, but right now he forbids anyone from seeing him", the middle-aged man with crimson flowing hair and golden streaks. -SIGH- "Eldest brother finally comes back and he is in the recuperating room.. Second brother, I have been searching for our little sister. I''m sure that eldest brother would know where she is." "Oh? Eldest brother told me that little sister had reincarnated herself recently, perhaps only a hundred years ago. Don''t worry, she is just playing in the mortal realm" "Reincarnated? Why now?! The tournament between the realms will soon arrive. Although I have already found a suitable candidate, we''ll need to find another candidate to represent us", the azure blue haired man declared. "Although I am not sure what had happened, eldest brother assured me that he has already found a possible candidate. Besides, I have 1 or 2 potential candidates as well. We still have enough time to gather them, don''t worry too much", the carefree second brother assured "I just hope what happened last time doesn''t happen again" The azure blue haired third brother was slightly worried .... "Oh, brother-in-law, what can I help you with?", Riss greeted Teo as he approached the counter Teo arrived at the Emerald Pavilion after completing his training at the Martial faction. Last night, he couldn''t wait to try out the inscription that he memorized from Emily''s necklace but didn''t have the necessary materials for the inscription to work. There were two different ways the whole inscription was written in, one was carved into the gem while the other was written in elemental energy. It was similar to how old man Cien created an array midair as he upgraded Teo''s eyes. Teo slightly remembered the scene before passing out and knew that it was an advance technique of writing. Luckily for Teo, the advance writing technique was described with the second half of the array book. The array book''s second half did not focus much on arrays, but rather several ways of writing them. There were sections of the book that talked about creating arrays that were not directly linked to each other. The book also mentioned that arrays could be created using items in place of symbols. Other sections talked about a multi-layered arrays that was not written solely in a 2-dimensional piece of paper but rather a 3-dimensional space. This method of writing arrays used the advance writing technique of using world Qi as its ink. There was also a section of overlapping arrays. Different from multi-layared arrays, the overlapping arrays are solely 2-dimensional arrays that overlapped each other. Teo had briefly looked at the various topics within the book. Although he did not fully understand it, he had grasped the idea behind them. Although there was instructions on how to learn the writing method, it required Teo to be able to manipulate world Qi. There were many ways of manipulating world Qi written in the book but there was one method that Teo was slightly familiar of. It was similar to the manipulating stage of an elementalist, but instead of manipulating elemental energy, it would manipulate world Qi. Looking at all the other methods of manipulating world Qi, Teo was overwhelmed by their difficulty. With his ability right now, he, who was not even in the movement stage, did not have much hope for these techniques. Luck for him that arrays were not restricted to a singular path but many diverging and converging paths. Teo had to be creative. If he could not write using world Qi or elemental energy as ink, then he would have to find another way. What Teo needed right now was materials. He required materials to experiment on possible methods and so he decided to visit the Emerald Pavilion''s materials section. "How are you, sister-in-law?", Teo greeted. "Came to see little ol'' me?" "Of course. I am looking for some materials as well. I wonder if sister-in-law can help me." "Sure thing. Do you know what you are looking for?" "Not all of them", Teo replied as he looked around the room. There were several materials enclosed in glass casings. Some within the glass counters. "Do you have any large void stones?", Teo inquired Void stones were usually cut into small marble size stones and large void stones are quite rare because it''s uses were limited. Void stones are transparent stones which could be cut to look similar to diamonds and some would even show minor inscriptions as to imitate void jewelry. "We have a few, but they are expensive. Each one is 1 gold. They aren''t covered with the academy''s discounts because they are not materials students should be using. Although I can reduce the price to 94 silvers, it''s still going to be very expensive" Despite the 6% family and friends discount, the price was still enormous. "I''ll take one" Although it was expensive, with Teo''s current finances, he could still afford it. Riss was slightly shocked, but she also knew that Teo could afford it. "Are there any carving tools for sale here as well?" The academy provided standard carving tools to students who took a class that needed it. For an inscription class, Teo would of course have access to these tools, but these tools were ordinary and would easily break. Teo needed a tool that was extremely sharp and durable. A case of literary theft: this tale is not rightfully on Amazon; if you see it, report the violation. "Of course we do, come follow me" They walked to the other end of the room, it was littered with several tools and contraptions used to process materials. Within a glass case were several carving tools. There were small knives at a tip of a wooden pen. Some knives were shaped similarly but others were shaped in an odd manner. "These are the carving knives we have, you can see that the prices are quite high. No academy discounts for these as well" The knives were priced around 50 silver, some even going up to 1 gold. As Teo looked at the various knives, he picked a knife that was worth 80 silver. This small knife was designed for delicate and precise carvings. It was extremely sharp and very durable. Although it was the not most expensive knife, Teo was sure it was the best knife of them all. With his eyes, he could see that there were invisible inscriptions written on this knife that enhanced it''s durability and maintained it sharpness. The most expensive knife was 1 gold, it was a good knife but the only thing that made it expensive was the detailed design on its handle. Teo did not care much about what his knife looked like; as long as it was useful, the aesthetics was not important. A he was looking at the other tools, a strange wire caught Teo''s attention. "Sister-in-law, do you know what this is for?", Teo pointed at the strange looking wire of varying widths. "Oh this item? This one is called a drill wires. It is use to make small holes through tough materials. At the very ends of them are very sharp knives" Teo decided to buy some drill wires as well as some regular wires. After that, he ordered some void powder as well as ink mixtures as well as other various items. He thought of several methods to write the inscriptions and arrays that he was planning, and picked out many materials that could possibly help him. After buying so many items, Teo had spent almost 4 gold total, leaving him with a little over 15 gold. "My, brother-in-law sure is a big spender, maybe you should treat me sometime too?", Riss teased From the items that Teo bought, she deduced that Teo was learning inscription, but she couldn''t figure out what the large void stone was for. ''Perhaps Teo wants to be a jeweler'', she thought .... When Teo came back to his cave. He laid all the materials he bought onto the floor. Teo was tired from his training, but his piqued interest gave him the drive continue on his experiments The time he allocated for reading books had almost vanished. Although he wanted to read books, experimenting and learning more about the inscription took over his desire to read books. This decision was not only fueled by his curiosity, but was also fueled by something important as well. After the year ended or when he had successfully finished with his experiments, he could go back to reading books as much as he wanted, but this was more important right now. .... The week continued on in a similar fashion. He would gather Qi during his elementalist class, then head to the Martial faction headquarters for training, and then come back home and study recreating the inscription and forming an array from it. As he slept, he would go into the inner world either continue planning for his array or meditate and gather thick world Qi into his body. On the last day of the week, Teo, Windle and Lia arrived at the Martial faction headquarters. This was a special day for both Teo and Windle. It was the day that they would both have their first lesson in combat. "Are you guys ready?", Lia asked Windle nodded, his face was solemn. He had mentally prepared himself for his first spar. He had also secretly practiced within an isolated training room at the academy''s training grounds. Teo on the other hand yawned. He was slightly mentally fatigued. Although meditation helped recover from his mental fatigue, he had been working his brains out non-stop with his project. Like a mad scientist eager to progress on their research, Teo worked his mind to its limits that even meditation did not help as much. His time limit was a year, it was not short but it was definitely not long. He wanted to create a gift for his sister before she left the academy and he knew how precious a void jewelry was. He was like an engineer without having all the required parts. Although he understood the inscriptions of the void jewelry, he had no means of writing with elemental energy and thus had to find a way around that problem. "Teo did you not get enough sleep?", Windle asked "Yeah", Teo answered It was not that he did not get enough sleep but his mind was clearly tired. ''Maybe I should slow down a bit'', Teo thought. Although he felt rushed because of the limited time he had, after these few days, he felt that he should be able to complete his little project before the year was over even if he slowed down. Even without the old man Cien''s guidance, he was confident with his abilities. The three saw Rowen, Gina and another person sitting nearby the entrance and they approached them. "Kali why are you here?", Lia asked the third person "Senior Gina asked me to come for something today", Kali responded Kali had long black hair that was braided to the sides. She was as tall as Windle and her skin was slightly tanned, eyes were hazel brown. "You guys finally arrived, Let''s go I reserved a private arena for us to use", Rowen said They arrived at the Martial faction building but did not enter. At the side of the entrance was a staircase that led them to an underground hallway. The dark hallway was long and Rowen and Gina led everyone towards a specific room. As they entered the room, a bright light coming from within temporarily blinded them for a bit. Compared to the dark hallway, the inside the room was illuminated by several light stones that made the room as bright as outside. Windle and Teo looked around the room and noticed at the side of the arena was a rack of wooden weapons. -Gulp- Teo was slightly nervous and excited as well. Although his mind was fatigued all his attention focused on the upcoming spar. "Okay first lets have Teo spar with Lia", Gina suggested Rowen nodded in approval Chapter 46: Combat Lessons [Author''s Note: Images of the weapons mentioned in this chapter can be seen here ] Chapter 46: Combat Lessons Lia had a huge grin on her face. "Don''t worry, I''ll go easy on you", Lia said proudly as if she was a puppy seeing her new toy "Teo do you want to pick a weapon?", Rowen asked Teo looked at the rack full of wooden weapon. A bo staff, wooden club, a pair of bastons, a pair of tonfas, wooden shields and swords. There was large number of weapons available for Teo to use, but none of them were bladed weapons. These weapons were clearly used for practice. There were many swords available varying in different sizes. Teo considered picking a sword, but so many people use the sword. He wanted to use something different and saw the wooden club. It was looked easy to handle but a little bulky and there was only one of them. If possible, he wanted to use a weapon on each hand. Then he saw too pairs of short sticks. These were the bastons. An easy to handle weapon, light and not bulky. It was the length of Gina''s daggers so Teo picked these as his weapons. After seeing Teo''s choice of weapon, Lia picked the tonfa. It was similar to Teo''s weapon except that the handle protruded out perpendicularly to the stick Teo considered picking the tonfas as well but he did not know why it was shaped like that so he did not bother with it. Lia on the other hand was familiar in using it "Okay go up the stage, and begin. Lia, go easy on him" Hearing Gina, both of them got up the stage and faced each other with some distance apart. "Okay, Teo try to defend against Lia''s attack", Rowen ordered Teo took a defensive stance. Although it was his defensive stance it was just an imitation of Rowen''s stance during the tournament. It was not as refined as Rowen''s actual stance. Seeing Teo''s stance, Rowen felt a little proud. Gina and Lia also had a grin. They both were familiar with Rowen''s stance. "Okay, here I go", Lia announced She suddenly dashed forward, pulled back her weapon as she prepared to swing it at Teo. Teo was surprised at Lia''s movements, and although he saw her movements he stood motionlessly. ''Heh, this won''t hurt a bit'', Teo said as he stood preparing to block Lia''s weapon with his weapon. He didn''t care too much about being hit, after all, Cien''s tattoo was still on him. He was sure that it would protect him. Teo moved his weapon to the path of Lia''s weapons, but in an instant, Lia''s weapons changed paths. Instead of heading for his shoulders it moved to hit his abdomen. Teo tried to move his weapon but his current speed could not keep up. He did not brace for impact and trusted the tattoo. -BAM!- Teo was knocked back into the ground. Surging pain came from Teo''s abdomen. He was dumbfounded. ''Why didn''t the tattoo protect me?'', he wondered as he laid on the floor in pain He realized that the protection from the tattoo was no longer effective. ''Is it because the old man is gone?'', he wondered Although he was not sure if it was the case, it was likely the reason why. Lia stopped her assault and helped Teo up. Rowen and Gina shook both their heads. "Teo why did you not try to dodge it?", Gina asked Teo heard the question and understood. From start to finish, Teo had his feet planted on the ground. Although he tried to intercept Lia''s attack, his feet did not move at all. "I forgot", Teo answered Although the attack was painful, Lia reduced her power enough that it was not too painful After Teo recovered the roles switched. "Okay, this time it''s your turn to attack" Lia went into a defensive posture as she waited for Teo''s assault. Her knees bent, her weapons raised. Teo charged towards Lia. Although he charged with his top speed, it was still quite slow. In Lia''s point of view, Teo''s speed was as slow as a turtle. Teo swung his weapons. His left diagonally downwards, his right slashed horizontally. With a minor adjustment to her footing and her upper body swaying lightly, she easily dodge both slashes. Seeing his attack miss, Teo continued on. Each slash did not contain any power behind it. It was as if a 5 year old decided to fight another kid with his open palms for the first time; A kid''s slap fight. After dodging over 15 slashes, Lia finally blocked Teo''s bastons with her tonfas. Lia''s swing was much stronger than Teo''s. It was a simple yet refined swing, at least compared to Teo''s swing. In a simple clash of weapons, Teo''s weapon flew out of his hand and onto the floor. It was clear that Teo did not even held his weapon firmly enough for Lia to easily disarm him. Lia''s attack did not stop there, it continued on towards Teo''s shoulder but this time Teo braced himself for the impact. -BAM- Teo backwards 8 steps but for some reason Teo''s face did not show any pained expression ''Weird, this time the tattoo protected me'' Although his body was blown backwards, he did not feel the pain he expected to feel. The only difference from the blow before was that he braced himself. ''Maybe it only works if I brace myself'', he thought He also noticed that a small chunk of his Qi vanished. Before when he could not even sense his own Qi, Teo could not even observe his own Qi but now he could. Teo concluded that the effects of the tattoo only worked when he braced himself before the impact and the force negated by the impact reduces the amount of Qi he had. After slowly figuring out how the tattoo worked, a smile appeared on his face. Seeing this smile, Lia''s body shivered "....." Lia stared awkwardly at Teo as he smiled after getting hit but after a while, Teo regained his composure. The round concluded and soon it became Windle''s turn. Gina got a junior to be Windle''s opponent. "Windle, do you want to use a weapon?", Rowen asked Windle took a wooden sword and a shield and asked "Seniors, I wonder if I can use my elemental powers?" "Oh?", Gina was surprised then looked towards Kali "Kali, what about it?", Gina asked It was up to Kali on whether or not she wanted to spar against an elemental power. "Sure", Kali replied She was confident with her skills. She walked up to the rack and took a shield and a sword as well. "Okay you guys can begin, Windle focus on receiving her attack first", Rowen announced "Here I come", Kali warned Windle She rushed towards Windle. Although her speed was slower than Lia, it was still pretty fast for Windle. Windle used his shield to block the attack as he attempted to dodge as well. He saw Teo''s spar earlier and learned a few things before hand. As Kali''s sword clashed into Windle''s shield, the force was strong enough to push Windle back 5 steps. Unauthorized usage: this tale is on Amazon without the author''s consent. Report any sightings. He tried to regain his balance but another strike was directed at his shield. He could no longer see his opponent as he was focused on blocking the strike. He got pushed another 6 steps backwards. He gathered elemental energy and using his reserves and fire emerged on the floor. The flames rose up forming a wall around himself biding time so that he could recover his balance. Kali''s sword slashed into the air with such a force that the wall of fire became unstable. Although Windle had practiced this move so he could easily execute it, his control was still lacking. Seeing the flames becoming unstable with only her sword, Kali used her shield as a fan and pushed away the flames. A slight opening appeared onto the wall of fire and Kali capitalized the small opening and struck down with her sword, hitting Windle''s chest Windle could not react fast enough. Although his wall of flames blocked outside attack, it also blocked his vision. He failed to notice the small opening in time and was hit. Windle was slammed into the floor and the round was over. The match only lasted 20 seconds longer than Teo''s. Although Windle lasted a little longer, all he could do was defend. Mid battle he even lost track of Kali because his shield was raised so high that it blocked his line of sight. After recovering for a while it was Windle''s turn to attack. Windle did not move, but instead several balls of fire appeared in front of him. "Be careful", Windle warned as his several fireballs came crashing one by one targeting Kali. Kali was dodge the fireballs that she could and used her shield to block the ones she couldn''t. After a short barrage, Windle''s Qi quickly ran out. The rounds concluded as expected, but Gina, Rowen, Lia and Kali gave both Windle and Teo advice. "Teo, when you are holding your weapon, be sure to hold it tightly. If your opponent''s strength is much weaker than yours, do not try to clash weapons head on", Rowen said "Same for you Windle. You tried blocking Kali''s attack with your shield. With just the difference in strength, your balance was easily disturbed. Try to feel your opponents strength, if its too great, dodging would be your top priority" "You also rely too much on your elemental power. At such an early stage, your Qi will quickly run out if you use it too wantonly" After a few minutes of lecturing what they did wrong. Rowen and Gina performed a light spar. "When you are attacking, make use of your body''s rotation. By rotating your body, you can easily strengthen your attacks." "From the foot, to your ankles, to your hips, shoulders, arms, wrist and into your fists. No matter which weapon, this is the basis of your strikes" "When up in the air, you can use gravity, your momentum or your opponent''s own force to increase your strikes" The spar was slow so Windle and Teo could easily see them. "Try to predict your opponent''s movements, with their stances you should be able to tell what possibly movements they can use" Teo who was watching remembered the book he had read before. Within the Char village''s dojo spoke of stances carrying a flow of energy. With relation to array and this lecture, he finally connected some of the pieces together. "By carefully looking at the opponent''s posture, you can easily deduce what they can do, but of course this is a little too advance for you. They could also use feints to try to fool you or elemental power to surprise you. You have to learn how to feel your opponents. Once you have enough experience, you will be able to generally tell when they are about to attack just by looking into their eyes" The lecture was long, but was very educational. Teo and Windle both saw their own weakness. In just 1 year, they could no longer compare to Lia''s strength. Windle slightly regretted not joining the Martial faction right away. After the session, they all went together and ate at a restaurant. It was the same restaurant that Teo used to work at. Rowen decided to pay for it as to celebrate Teo and Windle''s first spar. "Sister Gina, Little Brother Teo", a man carrying food for the table approached. He was a young student with dark brown hair and a plain looking face. "Tony, did you cook these?", Gina asked. Since Gina worked in the restaurant, she knew that Tony''s cooking was awful. "No its senior brother that cooked it", he looked towards the kitchen and a male student looked towards Gina''s table "Good", Gina said "Ha ha, I know I can''t cook. If only little brother Teo would come back, it would be much easier", Tony said as he laid each dish on the table "Right, Teo is surprisingly a good cook. He would make a good wife someday", Gina teased "Ha ha", Teo gave a small laugh towards Gina''s teasing During his one year of working in the restaurant, Teo easily learned how to cook and would often cook dishes for the customers with the restaurant''s recipes. .... The following day, after the inscription class ended, Teo asked Deacon if he could see the enchanted items he showed during the first class. Deacon did not mind too much and allowed Teo, Windle and Lia to look at it. Students should be learning through example. It would be beneficial for his students to study inscriptions created by others. Lia and Windle looked at the sword''s engraved inscriptions, while Teo was looking towards the pair of boots. Using his eyes, Teo saw no invisible inscription on the books so he studied the drawn inscription onto the boot. It was a basic wind element inscription. He studied the function of the inscription. With his textbook, he easily understood what each symbol did and how the energy flowed throughout the boots. .... A few months had passed Teo, Lia and Windle''s accomplishments within the inscription class had improved by leaps and bounds. Especially Teo, he was the most advanced student within the class. They learned how to draw as well as particular carving methods for the inscriptions. Lia had already forged a sword for Windle, and with the three of them working together, had engraved an inscription on the sword. It was a medium ranked inscription that allowed Windle to be able to channel flame elemental energy into it, increasing its strength. Lia had also forged a simple bracer and had Teo to help carve inscriptions on it. Teo was well versed in inscriptions. He had already memorized all the basic inscriptions as well as some medium ranked inscription. The only thing that gave him a slight problem was the placement of each inscription into a different quality material as well as its varying shapes. "Senior sister Rowen told us to hurry to the headquarters today", Lia informed the two "Hm? How come?", Windle became curious Since their time at the Martial faction, they had always arrived at their usual time, but today, Rowen wanted them to hurry. "No idea, she said we are going somewhere today but wouldn''t tell me", Lia replied Chapter 47: Mirth City Chapter 47: Mirth City After almost 3 months of training, Teo and Windle¡¯s physique had drastically changed. Muscles started forming all throughout their body. Their bodies were not massive and bulky but rather slightly athletic and lean. By looking at their bodies over their clothes, one would not find much difference from their previous silhouettes, but underneath, the change in physical appearance was noticeable. The three arrived at the gate of the headquarters. Rowen, Gina and surprisingly Tordin was there waiting for them. ¡°Good, they are all here. Let¡¯s go¡±, Tordin said in a loud voice ¡°Big sister, what is going on?¡±, Teo asked ¡°We¡¯re going for a field trip¡±, Rowen responded. ¡°A field trip?¡±, Lia wondered ¡°We are heading to Mirth city¡¯s dueling arenas¡±, Gina smiled as she clarified Rowen was wearing her light armor for this trip, her weapon was equipped as well as the small bag on her waist. She also had a bag she carried on her back. Gina carried her two daggers on her back and wore the leather armor she used during the tournament. Only Tordin was wearing plain clothes with only a sword on his back. The group headed for the south east gate. This gate was where Teo and the others first entered the academy. It was also the gate closest to Mirth city. Without using a carriage, the group walked towards the city. As the group got closer, the 3 younger students became more and more excited. It was their first time visiting the city nearby. Normally they weren¡¯t allowed to leave the academy grounds until they were third years but by being escorted by older students, the guards let them pass through. The city was enclosed within connecting thick walls of stones. The only opening on the south side was a 15 meters tall and 5 meters wide gate. A metallic portcullis hanged above the gate and thick wooden doors that were held together by thick metal bindings stood at the side. The group passed through the gates and saw the inside of the city. Several armed men guarded the entrance. ¡°Wow so this is the city!¡±, Lia was in awe The roads were paved with flat stones. The majority of each building had at least 2 floors. The streets were filled with people and the main road was wide enough to allow 6 carriage side by side to pass through. The many people were dressed in various types of clothes, some in armor, some in plain clothes, others in beautiful and exquisite clothes. They walked along the main road. There were many stables, inns and restaurants placed near the gates and as they walk along, shops suddenly started appearing. Shops selling clothes, tools, materials, food, medicine and many others. There were also buildings that look grand and intimidating. ¡°Look over there, who are those people?¡±, Windle pointed out a group of armored people wearing a purple and white insignia on their various armors. ¡°Those guys are member of the Estoc guild, the largest guild within the city¡±, Tordin responded ¡°Let¡¯s hurry and find some lodging¡± ¡°We are going to spend the night here?¡±, Lia asked ¡°Yeah, tomorrow will be a special event that we can¡¯t miss. Besides, it¡¯s the weekend tomorrow and there won¡¯t be any classes for the next few days. We¡¯ll stay here for 2 days¡±, Gina explained The found an inn within the western part of the city. It was apparently where Tordin often stayed in when he went to the city. It was not a problem for the academy for their students to leave the academy from time to time. The younger students were given more restrictions than the older ones. During the first two years, class attendance was mandatory so students who were in their first and second years would normally be restricted from leaving the academy grounds. During the third year, students were free to choose to attend or not attend combat lessons. The only requirement for them was to pass the test at the end of the year. A similar test was also given at the end of their fourth year. Two tests must be completed to finish 2 years of combat training; if not, they would be required to attend 2 more years in combat training where their attendance would be mandatory. After that, students were free to come and go with the restriction of coming back within a few months. The students would usually use this time to either improve their understanding of things academically, hunt wild beasts within the western forest of the academy or train in isolation. There were very few incidents of students running away from the academy, but this was frowned upon within the empire. Once a student graduates, they are given a badge with their identity stone. The badge absolves them from paying exorbitant tax that the village or city sets, thus most students would rather not run away from the academy. Unless they flee outside the empire, they would have to pay a large amount of taxes yearly. Once a student was deemed to have ran away, the only way they could get an exemption from the tax was to enlist within the empire¡¯s army for 6 years. The group rented out two rooms. Each of the room had 4 beds in total; two double decked beds, one bed on top of the other. One room for the boys, the other for the ladies. After having rented out their rooms for 2 days, they explored the city as they headed towards the dueling arenas. They finally arrived at the gates of the arena. It was quite late in the day but the area was still well lit up by torches and light stones. ¡°How many people?¡±, the guard asked if the group was entering together. Tordin who was leading the group answered: ¡°6 total¡± ¡°6 silver coins¡±, the guard said as he opened his palm towards Tordin Tordin paid 6 silver for the whole group and led them towards the seats closer to the arena. This story has been unlawfully obtained without the author''s consent. Report any appearances on Amazon. There was a moderate amount of people who came to watch the fights, some even took bets on who will win. As they found their seats, a fight had just recently ended. Teo, Windle and Lia saw the stage of the fight. There were many stains of blood covering the stage, small bits of flesh could also be seen. It was a horrific sight. The scene made the three sick. It was the first time they¡¯ve seen such a thing. Although there were matches within the academy, it was not as brutal as this. Their faces became pale. Lia became nauseous. The stench of blood was heavy within the atmosphere. ¡°Don¡¯t look away, this is why people learn how to fight¡±, Tordin said He noticed the three¡¯s expression and could not help but to give them advice. ¡°NEXT FIGHT!!¡±, the one hosting the fights loudly said. Two men approached the stage. One of them was a gigantic man carrying a large broad sword and a towering shield. The other was a small man with a very thin sword. ¡°START!¡± Without much introduction, the two battled it out. The giant rushed towards his opponent swinging his broad sword without hesitation. Teo could feel the killing intents of both fighters. It was the first time he felt killing intent this strongly that his senses was drowned by in. Sweat started to gather on the his back and he found it harder and harder to breath. It was as if he was drowning by both fighters killing intent. Windle and Lia were no better than Teo. They also suffered from the killing intents. Seeing this, Tordin spread out his Qi and blocked the spreading killing intent. The three was finally released from such oppressive pressure but they were still frightened by the scene that was in front of them. The battle was bloody and brutal. The giant was struck multiple times as his opponent was using speed to his advantage, but a slight misstep and a single swing from the giant¡¯s sword was enough to end the fight. Although the losing side was not killed, he was heavily injured. A large gash opened up his armor exposing a deep wound on his chest. He was barely breathing before the judge to call the end of the match. The winner was full of cuts but they were not very deep. His body and armor were tough enough to stop the blade from getting any deeper. The winner stepped off stage and the loser was carried out. Two new fighters arrived and another match started. Teo turned towards Rowen who sat beside him and asked: ¡°Big sister, why are we here watching this?¡± He wanted to leave and avoid seeing these very bloody fights. ¡°You three have to get used to this.The strong rules while the weak are bullied. If you don¡¯t want to suffer in the future, you have to learn how to fight; to kill. You mustn''t be shy to shed the blood of your opponents¡±, Rowen responded She also became of aware of this fact during her early years within the academy. During her third year, Aran brought her here as well to watch people getting maimed and killed. She gradually got used to these kinds of fights and eventually participated in them. The fights were not fights to the death, but blades and fists has no eyes, and one could be accidentally maimed or killed. Through battles of life and death, one would become strong. Lia could no longer hold it in and puked to the side. Teo and Windle who were also holding it in was influenced by Lia¡¯s action and also threw up. The three seniors could only bitterly smile. They have brought many juniors to watch these fights and almost everyone of them threw up. Even Gina and Rowen threw up when they first saw these kinds of fights. Only Tordin who was used to these scene did not. After the three recovered, Rowen brought out 3 towels and gave them to the three. ¡°This isn¡¯t only for you three to get used to these kinds of fights, but you can also learn many things by watching these fights. Pay attention to them and watch¡± The three followed obediently and watched one fight after the other. They noticed various tactics the fighters employed. They also saw that a brief carelessness could end the fighter¡¯s lives. Tordin acted like a commentator to the three who could not understand too much of what had happen in the fights. Some of the movements were too fast for Windle and Lia to follow so Tordin¡¯s commentary was very helpful. Teo on the other hand could see the fighter¡¯s movements no matter how fast it was. He was seeing it as if time slowed down and could carefully observe their slightest movements to such a fine degree. After several fights the arena finally came to a close for the day. The group of 6 went to a restaurant to eat dinner. Teo, Windle and Lia had no appetite from watching all those ruthless fights. ¡°Seniors, why what special event is happening tomorrow?¡±, Windle asked He remembered that their purpose of their visit had something to do with tomorrow. ¡°There is going to be a rare fights being held in the arena tomorrow. The two large guilds of the city, the Estoc guild and the Flame guild are having a friendly match tomorrow¡±, Gina explained Rowen also followed up: ¡°There will be elementalists fighting tomorrow, you can see how grand their techniques are¡± As they spoke, the three seniors¡¯ eyes lit up. Even for them, these fights were rare. Compared to the academy¡¯s elementalist matches, these ones were of higher level. ¡°There will be many class 4 fighters participating in tomorrow¡¯s matches, and there¡¯s even a rumor of a class 5 fighter participating as well¡±, Tordin announced ¡°What¡¯s a class 4 fighter?¡±, Windle asked Chapter 48: Guild Wars 1 Chapter 48: Guild Wars 1 The three senior students explained the classes of various fighters. Fighters both elementalist and cultivator can be classified in certain classes. This was to distinguish their level of combat. Once an elementalist gets to the manipulation stage, it is hard for them to be classified so their strength is measured by how strong they are compared to a cultivator of a certain stage. ¡°So far, we only know 5 stages. The initial stage, the Qi gathering stage, the body tempering stage, the elementary stage, and the foundation building stage.¡± ¡°You three are at the initial stage. It¡¯s the stage where cultivators need to start training their bodies to become strong. Through training, controlling your body will become easier, which in turn will help you control your Qi¡±, Tordin explained ¡°Teo, Windle, you should already know about Qi through your classes right? Cultivators also need to use Qi to strengthen themselves.¡±, Rowen said ¡°The second stage is similar to the gathering stage, except this time you will be gathering world Qi with just your personal Qi. Absorbing Qi is very important to cultivators, and having a strong body is just as important. The stronger the body, the wider your Qi reserves can be, the more Qi you have, the more you can temper your body. These are the main 2 points of the second and third stages. By infusing Qi into your body, you can slowly temper it to become stronger even without your usual exercise. Of course this doesn¡¯t mean you should skip your training all together. The more you have control over your body the better, so you have to train to control every inch of your body¡±, She further explained ¡°What¡¯s the elementary stage?¡±, Teo asked ¡°It similar to the movement and manipulation stages. It is basically the stage where you learn how to use your Qi to infuse it into your fists, legs or any part of the body including your weapons and armor¡±, Rowen answered Although cultivators can use their Qi like elementalist, they could only use it to strengthen whatever they were in contact with. ¡°Lastly, the foundation building stage. We are not too sure on what the foundation building stage is, but a senior mentioned it once to us as the next step.¡±, Tordin said As they continued to talk about the aspects of cultivators, the day ended and they all went to bed. Next morning they all woke up early and headed for the dueling arena to get good seats to watch the upcoming matches. Rowen bought some packed food and drinks as they would spend most of the day in the dueling arena. They arrived at the arena and got good seats but within 1 hour, all the seats became packed. The event was so large that many spectators went to see it. After waiting for over an hour, the main participants finally arrived. Two groups gathered near the arena floor. On one side the purple and white clad group, the Estoc guild. On the opposite side was the red clad group the Flame guild. Three layers of city guards stood around the arena, surrounding the main stage. With such a big event, the lord of the city, Cardis Mirth, became host of the event. The crowd roared with anticipation awaiting for the fights to begin. Teo looked at the other side of the arena and a few special seats were built closer to the stage for a better view. Many people took their seats and Teo noticed a familiar insignia among the seated the special area. It was the insignia of the Rizon clan. With Teo¡¯s eyes he clearly recognized a few familiar figures, it was Zachery and his group, as well as Daniel and even the headmaster, Elon. ¡°Welcome everyone to the annual spar between the two strongest guilds in our beloved city of Mirth!¡±, the master of ceremonies from the Mirth family welcomed and announced the start of the event. ¡°Fighters, be sure to know your limits! Fists and Swords has no eyes, so if anyone dies from this competition, ensure that there is no bad blood between both your guilds!¡± ¡°We of the Flame guild swear on our honor that we will abide by the rules!¡±, the head of the Flame guild announced ¡°We of the Estoc guild will also follow the Lord¡¯s rules! HA HA HA HA¡±, the leader of the Estoc guild also agreed They looked like well tempered sportsmen but underneath there was indeed deep hatred among them. But although they hated each other, within the city borders, they did not dare fight. The two were the top two guilds within the city, but they could not compare to the might of the Mirth family. The annual battle between the top two guilds would always occur as a rule within the city. The Mirth family used it to give rewards and glory to the winner on the outside but underneath the surface they used this event to gauge the strength of the two guilds as well as weaken them by forcing them to fight each other. Of course the two leaders of the guilds were not idiots and could guess this as well, but the rewards and honor was too tempting and it was a chance for them to fight against their hated rivals.They yearly rewards was always astounding and they became more loyal to the rewards each and every year. ¡°The reward of this year! A sword crafted by the Grandmaster Yula! This sword is forged from blue mithril and is capable of enhancing any elemental power!¡±, the master of ceremonies announced The name of Grandmaster Yula had spread across the entire empire and even flowed through the surrounding empires. He was an expert craftsman who had no peers within the empire. A sword forged by him was no doubt a treasure, and having it as a prize meant that a huge amount of money was used to purchase this sword. Of course to participate in this fight, guilds from the whole city bidded for the spot of top guild. The price for being called the ¡°top guild¡± was used to purchase the sword. The winner¡¯s faction will be strengthened and the loser will be weaken. When the crowd heard the name of Grandmaster Yula, they erupted in an uproar! The sword for them was indeed a treasure, even blue mithril by itself was something a normal person could afford. The narrative has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the infringement. Zachery saw the crowd¡¯s reaction and his face showed a hint of disdain. Many of the people who were seated in the special area also had similar looks on their faces, but the general public did not notice their faces as they were seated too far for them to distinguish the former¡¯s facial expressions. Teo on the other hand saw their faces. He could tell that to these people, this reward was hardly to fuss over. Blue mithril, compared to the Black Iron sword that Daniel used, was nothing. The sword that they were putting up as a prize was a one of the failed swords created by Grandmaster Yula before he became a Grandmaster. It was a sword that the Mirth family acquired very cheaply and was eventually stored to accumulate dust because they had better swords that they could use. The crowd continued to be mesmerized by the rewards and the two guild¡¯s fighters also lit up. The highest quality of swords these two guilds had were steel and the majority of them used iron swords. A mithril sword no matter what quality was valuable to them. ¡°The first match will be a contest of speed! Bring out your fastest competitors!¡± The two guilds were very familiar with the proceedings of match. The first round focused on speed, the second round focused on strength, the third round focused on stamina, the fourth round focused on strategy and cooperation and the final round was a match between the two strongest fighter within each respective guilds. The first side to win 3 rounds will win everything. A representative from both side walked up the stage. The member from the Flame guild who stepped up was fairly tall and thin while the Estoc guild¡¯s representative was a short fellow. One had a sword and a small shield, the other had twin daggers. The atmosphere became tense, and the noise of the crowd dimmed down. The speed round that everyone was familiar of, could sometimes end in a blink of an eye. Everyone concentrated on the two figures, trying hard not to blink, afraid of missing a critical moment of the fight. ¡°Same rules as last year, incapacitate or force your opponent to surrender. Let the first round begin!¡± The two stood 20 meters away from each other. The crowd held their breaths and became so silent that one could hear a pin drop. Suddenly a strong gust of wind blew over the arena -BOOM!- Two loud explosions occurred almost at the exact same time. The spot where the two stood left a large cloud of dust. The audience who could not track the fighter¡¯s movements could only see them disappear within the dust cloud. -BANG- -BANG- -BANG- Metal onto metal clashed at each other multiple time. Within the center of the stage, sparks flew as the two battle each other in a test of speed. Their movements were so fast that an ordinary person could only see a blur of a shadow. One of the blur was tall and red while the other was short and purple. Those who could see their movements were filled with awe and excitement. Even Teo could not resist seeing the close battle. The two continued to battle each other, barely dodging the other¡¯s attack by a hair¡¯s width. Soon, first blood was spilled. The reach of the Flame guild¡¯s fighter was too great and eventually cut through the shoulder of his opponent. The short purple clad fighter retaliated and swiftly threw several concealed projectiles. -Sqwrelp!- The sound of flesh being pierced reverberated across the surrounding area. The tall fighter had his legs pierced by one of the several projectiles thrown. They were too close to each other to dodge and his injury was detrimental to his speed. ¡°I surrender¡±, the tall fighter from the Flame guild announced. The injury was light, but if it was critical. Such an injury had a large effect on his speed. If he delayed his surrender even for a minute, his wounds would not be as light. A fighter of his caliber would only need a few seconds to kill the other. ¡°WINNER OF THE FIRST ROUND! THE ESTOC GUILD!¡± The crowd erupted in cheers. The fight had only lasted barely 3 minutes but it was enough to satisfy the crowd. ¡°Those fighters are very fast. Before I noticed them move, they were already swinging their weapons at each other¡±, Lia said ¡°Me too, they are too fast more my eyes¡±, Windle agreed ¡°Big sister, what class of fighters are these?¡±, Teo asked ¡°Judging by their speed alone, their speed should be well above mine. They are probably at the elementary stage, so they should be class 5 fighters¡±, Rowen answered ¡°Ha ha Rowen, you are wrong on your assessment. These two are only at the body tempering stages. Aside from their natural abilities in speed, you should look at what they are wearing. The majority of their clothes have all been enchanted. If i were to take a guess, it¡¯s most likely that they are all enchantments that enhanced their speeds. If you strip all of them off, they should be far slower than you¡±, Tordin interrupted ¡°Senior how can you be so sure?¡±, Windle asked. ¡°That is because I can sense their Qi, although they are close to being class 5 fighters, their speed would be much faster if they were. A senior once said that class 5 fighters can repress the Qi they gave off, but during the whole fight their Qi did not fluctuate at all¡±, Tordin gave a grin as he answered. ¡°Senior sister Gina, what fighter class are you?¡±, Lia whispered ¡°Oh, I am at the border of a class 4 fighter, but compared to me, Rowen and Tordin are both full fledge class 4 fighters¡±, Gina answered without hiding anything ¡°It must be nice to be an elementalist, Qi control is learned at the very first year¡±, she sighed. As an elementalist, Rowen learned of Qi control at the early parts of her school year and although Gina also learned how to control her Qi, it was not precise enough to be considered as a class 4 fighter. ¡°The next match is a contest of strength! Bring out your respective fighters in a contest of strength!¡± Chapter 49: Guild Wars 2 Chapter 49: Guild Wars 2 A man from the Flame guild stood up, his clothes were simple and wore no metallic armor. He carried a long sword that was slightly curved on his hand. As he stepped onto the stage he slowly unsheathed his weapon and threw away the sheath on the floor. His sword was a single edge sword that had a width of 2-3 fingers and a length of 1.5 meters. A large portion of that length was due to the long handle of the sword. The man had long black hair and a scruffy beard. He was of average height but the pressure from his eyes gave the audience a feeling that they were staring at a giant. On the other side, a very large man stood up. He wore a full set of armor and carried a large bastard sword on his hand. The man¡¯s face was filled with scars and the pressure from his gaze was not inferior to his opponent¡¯s. Two experts were about to collide as they waited for the master of ceremonies to signal the start of the match. The fighters gathered up Qi as they waited, maintaining peak conditions. Teo and Windle noticed that others audience could not. The fighter from Flame guild was gathering flame elemental essence! He was a fire elementalist! Soon, the surrounding atmosphere around that fighter heated up. The layers of air in his surrounding cause his figure to blur. The intense heat haze caused the light to bend, muddling his figure to the audience. ¡°Second round begin!¡± The two fighters casually walked towards each other. This round was not a test of speed nor fighting ability, but was a test of raw strength and power. Their pride would not allow them to use any other tactics in front of the public. As they stood 2 meters apart, the armored fighter felt the heat invade through his armor. He quickly produced a layer of protective Qi to surround his body. Both fighters lifted their swords, pulling them back, preparing a large swing for their attack. The armored fighter wrapped his bastard sword around a thick layer of Qi and slashed forward. -BOOM!- The attacks clashed against each other. Both were swings with all their strength behind it. The clash of power unleashed an explosive aftershock. The multiple layers of city guards that surrounded the arena created a wall of Qi to protect the audience, trapping the force of the exchange inside the arena. Dust swirled around the arena and the audience could see nothing after the first exchange. A wind elementalist among the guards commanded the wind to quickly blow away the large dust cloud to reveal the aftermath. The scene revealed shocked everyone. In just a single blow, the fight was already over. The armored fighter laid on the ground barely breathing a 10 meters away from his original position. His armor destroyed mixing metal with flesh, A smell of cooked meat emerged from his chest. The flesh that covered his chest was charred black. On his hand was his bastard sword, cut in half, but even as he lost, he did not let go of his broken sword one bit. ¡°Quickly! Get him healed!¡±, The leader of the Estoc guild commanded and several people rushed the stage towards their fallen comrade. ¡°WINNER OF THE SECOND ROUND! THE FLAME GUILD!¡± ¡°Drew, drink this¡±, a member of the medical team of the Estoc guild gave a bottled potion to the wounded fighter. ¡°Oh? They have something so precious?¡±, A member of the Mirth family noticed the potion being held ¡°What is it?¡±, Elon asked the member ¡°That is a Life Essence potion. It is very rare for a guild like them to have it. A single potion is akin to having an extra life. I wonder how they obtained such a potion¡± When the wounded fighter drank the potion, Qi energy flowed into his body and the charred flesh quickly fell off and the wound slowly closed. The fighter then lost consciousness and was carried off the stage. The third round quickly began, it was a round of endurance, and was rather barbaric. The fighters¡¯ arms were chained to their opponent¡¯s arms. No weapon involved and it became a brutal battle where one could only use their fists as weapons. The fighters were also not allowed to wear any armor. The fight was long and hard, they fought for almost an hour until one ran out of energy to fight. In the end the Flame guild won, the fight was bloody and the winner and loser looked disfigured after the fight. Although both did not die, several of their bones were fractured some were completely shattered, no matter who won or lost, both participants would always be heavily injured. Now that the Flame guild had won two rounds in a row, they only needed one more win to secure the overall victory. The following battle was a team battle. Each side brought out 3 members to battle as one. As the rule of this event, a participant who had already fought cannot participate in the later stages. The members of the flame guild had two melee warriors with a spear and a sword, while the last member carried a bow and a short sword on her waist. As for the Estoc guild, they all had melee fighters. Two members having a long sword and a scutum shield on each. The last member held two short daggers and a mantle that covered half his body. Compared to the previous rounds, this team fight proved to be most lethal. This was because a team fight does not stop until all the members are either incapacitated or surrender. As for the first condition, the easiest way to incapacitate someone was to kill them, knocking them out might prove fatal to them if they awoken later on. For the second condition, surrendering was difficult to do. It was not because of their pride, but because with 2 other members they would always had hope to turn the tables. Unless one is killed or injured so badly that they could not recover, surrendering was not an option. In this stage, at least one would always die. Love this novel? Read it on Royal Road to ensure the author gets credit. Each side fought each other with great coordination. The flame guild team aimed to hold off their opponents while their archer snipes them when they become unguarded. The piercing power of the arrows were so strong that the shields could barely block them. The mantle-wearing fighter from the Estoc guild was very tricky to deal with as his speed was fast and was barely held off by the opposing archer. As the fight went on, the archer was able to shoot one of the opposing fighters in the shoulder and legs but at the same time, the mantled fighter was able to cut through the sword wielding fighter¡¯s throat and quickly dropped to the floor. He bled out profusely as he gripped his throat, trying hard put pressure on his throat. The spear wielding ally came to his side and kicked him off the stage towards the flame guild¡¯s side. The swordsman was clearly out of the fight and it was better to try to save his life. As he kicked his ally, he swung his spear to the injured opponent. -BAM- Due to the arrow that struck him on his leg, he could not move fast enough and tried to block with his shield. The spear knocked away and an arrow swiftly slipped through the opening hitting the person¡¯s belly. The two able members of the Estoc guild took advantage of the Flame guild¡¯s concentrated attack to their injured allies and closed the gap into the archer. The spearman blocked one of them but the dagger wielder passed swiftly passed through. Without the advantage of her range. The archer switched to her sword. Although her main weapon was a bow, her swordsmanship also good. Two daggers versus a short sword, she could barely keep her opponent at bay. The spearman tried to finish off his opponent quickly but could not find an opening. Two daggers slashed towards the arm and torso of the archer. She barely managed to block the dagger aimed for her life but her arm was deeply wounded. White bone could be seen on the wound and she would clearly not last too long. Seeing this the spearman slammed his spear and shouted ¡°We concede!¡± The fight ended with two people dying, one in each side and one heavily wounded. ¡°Sister I am sorry, but I can¡¯t lose you too¡±, The spearman approached the wounded archer. ¡°Brother.. How is brother doing?¡±, she asked in a weaken voice The spearman looked to the edge of the ring, and then closed his eye and shook his head. The three of them were the best team within the Flame guild. They¡¯ve spent years training together, fighting and hunting, but now one of them died. The other side was not much better. Although they ignored their dying comrade for a chance to win, they were still very close to each other. The dagger wielding man was especially frustrated. A little longer and he could¡¯ve killed one more person but was stopped. ¡°WINNER OF THE FOURTH ROUND! THE ESTOC GUILD!¡± Cheers followed as the masses went crazy with the carnage shown in the last fight. Although they were cheering for the previous round, they also cheered for the upcoming round. The final round, was a round of their strongest warriors. The rumor of having a class 5 fighter aroused the expectations of the crowd. They were unsure how strong a class 5 fighter was, some even thought that the previous fighters were of that level, but there were some who knew that those fighters from before were only class 4 at the most. After a brief intermission, the final stage soon began. ¡°FINAL AROUND, FIGHTERS APPROACH THE STAGE!¡± From the Estoc a large burly man appeared. A man with wild black hair and a scar on his left cheek. He carried a large sword that was as thick as his arm and was two thirds of his height. Although the sword was huge, he carried it as if it weighed nothing. Looking at the person, many people among the crowd involuntarily shivered. They could not tell what his cultivation was but a thick aura surrounded the man. This aura had a smell of death as if he was someone who had killed thousands of people before. His eyes was fearless and attitude proud. On the other side, the person who approached shocked many of the spectators. It was a frail looking old man with his eyes barely opened. Several wrinkles could be seen on the surface of his face and his hair was slightly balding and unkempt. He exuded no Qi and no fearsome aura. He was like a regular old man that some would think he had gone senile, but the members of Flame guild looked at the man with admiration. Eventually they figured out from the Flame guild members¡¯ expressions that this man was not a simple old man. Within the VIP seats, the Branch head of the Rizon family spoke as to inform his members ¡°If I recall correctly, that is the previous head of the Flame guild. I thought he was dead? But who is that other fellow over there?¡± ¡°I heard from a reliable source that that man was a soldier from the last war¡± ¡°Hmph! Just a soldier?¡± ¡°Don¡¯t underestimate him, from what my source told me, he killed a few generals during the war and after the war ended, he set out to the surrounding empires and slaughtered many of their skilled fighters. Only recently he had arrived and joined the Estoc guild. He is apparently close to the current leader of the Estoc guild¡± The head of the Rizon branch family looked to his side towards the 40 year old man who was sitting beside him. ¡°Briar, what cultivation do those two have?¡±, the head asked ¡°Head, they should be both class 5 fighters. Although they can conceal their cultivation, they cannot hide them from myself¡± Briar was a hired fighter of the Rizon branch family and was a personal bodyguard of the head. Since his cultivation was at peak class 5, he could easily sense the cultivation of those who are lower than his. Chapter 50: Windles Goal [Author''s note: Just gonna give up on editing/PRing for now and concentrate on writing the rough chapters as editing demotivates me too easily, and I want to reach a certain point of the story quickly] Chapter 50: Windle¡¯s Goal ¡°Final round begin!¡± As the start of the match, the old man stood there motionlessly as his eyes were partly closed. Akin to a statue, he waited for his opponent to make the first move. The fighter from the Estoc guild did not care much about the old man¡¯s decision and lifted his sword. They were very far from each other but as he swung his sword, thick Qi surrounded the edges of his blade. A beam of Qi slashed through the air directly piercing towards the old man. The attack was fast and it traveled with great speed, but when it reached 1 meter from the old man, a strange line of light flashed along the beam¡¯s path and blocked it. The flash of light was quick and not many individuals caught sight of it. Most of the commoners who watched this exchange could only tell that an small collision occurred 1 meter from where the old man was. Some of the more experienced fighters clearly saw that a thin and concentrated flame emerged almost instantly within the range of 1 meter. ¡°What happened?¡±, Windle asked Rowen and Gina could not answer as they could not see what the old man did, but Tordin briefly saw it. ¡°It seems that this old man is an elementalist. I saw something block the wave of Qi the other guy sent¡±, he answered. Teo on the other hand saw it as clear as day. His eyes were truly a god-sent gift. ¡°This old man is not simple!¡±, Gina announced The sword wielder smiled as he saw his attack was easily blocked. His initial attack was to test the waters, from this single exchange, he learned many things about the old man. The old man was probably no weaker than he was and was an elementalist at that. The old man carried no weapons which made it seem as if he was a pure bred elementalist that did not relied on cultivating for his strength. An elementalist¡¯s weakness was the amount of stamina they had, and so his plan was quickly formed. He dashed forward and unleashed an unrelenting chains of blows. His huge sword easily danced in the air akin to a light feather, but the power it brought was exceedingly terrifying that the guards whose role was to contain any aftershocks barely managed to contain it. Starting from 3 layers of guards, they increased it to 5 layers. The old man moved a little bit, but he would parry the attacks with accurate and concentrated elemental flames. He used just the bare minimum amount which showcased his precise control of the elements, but as time passed his face was no longer calm, but rather irritated. The barrage of attacks were non-stop and was giving him no time to breathe. He lifted his hand flames gathered forming a fire serpent. The fire serpent as similar to a live snake but the pressure it gave was enough to easily cause a heat haze. Hot air blew across the spectators as the serpent crawled on the floor. The enchanted floor tiles were easily melted by the red hot serpent. The serpent looked at the sword wielder and attacked ferociously. As the snake approached the sword wielding expert unleashed several blows towards it. The snake dodged the several blows and ram into its target. The expert created a wall of Qi around his body, thick enough to easily block it. After attacking, the snake became an easy target and with a slash of the Qi endowed sword, the snake easily dissipated. The sword wielder had a grin on his face. This technique must have used a considerable amount of elemental energy to form. Perhaps even a large amount of Qi to control. He looked at the old man who created a large distance between themselves while he was being attacked by the serpent, but this distance was nothing too big that he couldn¡¯t cover within a few seconds. The old man¡¯s eyes filled with killing intent. His previous uncaring attitude disappeared and he finally took his opponent seriously. Thin layer of red flames surrounded his body. It was so thin that it did not resemble flames at all but rather a red layer of aura visible to the naked eye. The old man concentrated and was gathering more elemental Qi in the air. The sword wielding did not want to give the old man time and quickly rushed towards him, continuing his series of attacks. -BOOM!- His sword finally reached a few centimeters towards the old man but the thin layer of flames was rigid and was powerful as a rock. His Qi could not penetrate it and if his sword were to continue without his Qi, it would only melt from the heat. ¡°Boy, your attacks are indeed powerful, but I warn you. Concede defeat or taste the full force of my attack¡±, The old man said. ¡°Ha ha ha, Who is this boy you speak of? Do you think that just because you look a little older than me that you are actually my senior? I have lived far longer than you, a mere elementalist have!¡±, as he retorted, his Qi formed layers upon layers onto each other thickening his Qi to the extreme. He was no longer taking this match playfully and instead going for the kill. His thick layer of Qi became sharper and sharper. This precise control of his Qi took him a while to create and he could only maintain it for a brief moment. Although he could win this match if he played smartly and had a battle of endurance, he was confident that he could pierce through the old man¡¯s layer of defense. Even if he couldn¡¯t it will still sap the old man¡¯s strength even more quickly. It was a decision with several benefits. He could also win magnificently and teach the old fool who he was dealing with. He lowered his blade and pulled it back, preparing to unleash an upward slash. He dashed forward using his body to increase the power of his strike. If you come across this story on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen from Royal Road. Please report it. As his sword hit thin red aura of protection, the thin layer of protection changed color from red to white. -FIZZ FIZZ- The crowd expected a large explosion from the impact of the fighters but it was replaced by a sound of fizzling liquid. The thick sword easily melted along with the layers of Qi surrounded it. The thin white layer emitted such an extreme heat that the layer of Qi around the sword wielder was being burned. This scene shocked the sword wielder and for a brief moment the thin layer or white flames expanded out like an explosion. Barely reacting, the sword wielder jumped back and ran with all of his speed towards the other direction. His body reacted faster than his voice as he screamed ¡°SENIOR I CONCEDE!¡± He became fully aware of the difference in power between the both of them. This move could probably match up with class 6 fighter so he conceded respectfully and recognized the other as his better, but the white flame did not pause and struck him on his back before stopping. -SHHHSSH- The sound of melted flesh could be heard, and a black char appeared on the man¡¯s back. Although he thicken the layer of Qi that protected his back, it was quickly melted as if it was butter. Thankfully he his body tempering and layer of Qi was enough to minimize the damage to his body. It was a heavy wound, but a wound he could recover from, his life was more important than this event. ¡°Ha Ha, I am sorry that my control is quite terrible that I could not stop in time¡±, The old man smiled and apologized, but within his eyes a fierce killing intent still lingered. ¡°WINNER THE FLAME GUILD!¡± The crowd who were suppose to cheer was stunned. This was the power of an elementalist! Although they were in the same category, with advance control of elemental properties he easily overwhelmed his opponent. The old man stepped down from the stage and sat down. On the outside he was only slightly tired but his reserves of energy were almost empty. This move required almost all of his elemental energy and Qi. After a while, the crowd finally gave a cheer for the battle. ¡°FLAME GUILD! FLAME GUILD! FLAME GUILD! ¡°What was that?!¡±, Windle who was a flame elementalist saw this battle and became fully excited. ¡°Why was his flames white?! This¡­ this is awesome!¡±, he continued The others could not answer his question as they did not know what happened. The only thing they knew was that the old man was stronger. On the VIP seats, Briar was stunned as was the head of the Rizon branch family. ¡°This¡­ this old man¡¯s control is astounding, he might be able to contend with class 6 fighters¡±, the head of the branch family said. Several members of the Mirth family had dread on their faces. A class 6 fighter was a threat to their rule. They only had 3 class 6 fighters so having an organization having a single class 6 fighter would be troublesome. Briar shook his head and said ¡°This old man is extremely weak after using this move, I doubt that he can continuously use this move. At most he can still be considered as peak class 5¡± The award ceremony was held afterwards and the whole city celebrated the event. All the taverns and restaurants were packed, cheers and talks of the fights spread through the city. In a corner of a tavern, Teo and the rest were enjoying a feast as they talked about the fights today. ¡°That was awesome, the Flame guild is just too powerful!¡±, Windle was still affected by the strength shown by the old man. ¡°Windle, thinking of joining the Flame guild after you graduate? I hear they take special care to flame elementalists. I¡¯m sure their recruiters will invite you once you guys participate in the academy¡¯s tournaments at the end of your 3rd years¡±, Gina said. Windle thought about it a little bit but then said ¡°No, this Flame guild is great and all but my goal is much higher than this little city. If one has to aim for greatness they should aim for the capital and maybe the imperial city!¡±, Windle declared. Normally Windle would not wantonly announce his goals but he was affected by earlier fights. Tordin, Rowen and Gina gave a smile to Windle¡¯s goals because in fact, they too planned on doing the same. ¡°Then we¡¯ll meet at the capital!¡±, Tordin said with a laugh ¡°Sister are you going to the capital too?¡±, Teo could not help but asked ¡°We are, even brother Aran is aiming to go there once he comes back. What about you little Teo, what do you want to do?¡±, Rowen said Teo thought for a moment but still did not give out an answer. He was undecided on what he should do in the future. He loved books, but was interested in arrays and inscriptions. He was also interested in fighting but was a little dissuaded from the blood he had seen in the arena. ¡°I¡¯m not sure yet¡±, Teo said. ¡°That¡¯s okay, take your time and decide your future little Teo¡±, Rowen replied ¡°What about you Lia?¡±, Gina looked over at the quiet Lia ¡°Um¡­ I like fighting but¡­ I don¡¯t like blood¡±, she said ¡°Lia, if you become strong enough to decide the outcome of a battle you can avoid bloodshed, but you must remember that if you are weak, you can only follow what the strong decide¡±, Gina said. ¡°I understand senior. By the way, why are we staying here for 2 days? Isn¡¯t the event already over?¡±, Lia asked ¡°Oh that, we¡¯ll be participating in the arena tomorrow. Do you guys want to watch?¡±, Gina answered Chapter 51: Take That Back! Chapter 51: Take That Back! The very next day, the group went to visit the arena. Unlike yesterday, there were considerably less people watching the arena. The VIP seats were also removed and only the regular viewing seats were available. Teo, Windle and Lia sat at the front row and waited for Tordin, Gina and Rowen¡¯s turn to fight. They were slightly worried since they knew that there was a chance of their seniors to be maimed or killed. ¡°Look over there, it¡¯s that twerp!¡± A familiar voice sounded off very loudly, Teo and Windle recognized this voice. It was Kristofer from the elementalist class. Zachery and his group was there as well as other members of the Rizon faction from the academy. ¡°Hmph! If they are here that kid¡¯s sister might be here as well¡±, Erin said. ¡°Hmm the second ranked among the 8th year student, it might be interesting to watch¡±, Ash declared ¡°Although that woman is strong, outside the academy she is as common as the cloud. She¡¯ll probably lose pitifully¡±, Zachery said. He held a grudge against Teo so his voice was very loud, enough for Teo and the others to hear. Ridiculing Teo¡¯s sister was a way for him to vent his anger. When Teo heard this, his face harden and his hands formed two fists tightly held as if it was about to explode. Ridiculing him, he did not care much about, but when others insulted people he cared about his fuse was surprisingly short. Seeing Teo, Windle and Lia grabbed both Teo¡¯s arms. ¡°Teo, calm down, there are a lot of them here and they out number us. Don¡¯t do anything reckless¡±, Windle whispered ¡°That¡¯s right, forget about them Teo¡±, Lia urged ¡°Look, it¡¯s senior Rowen!¡±, Lia said as she looked at the next fighter to come on stage. Rowen¡¯s light armor was equipped, and her opponent was standing 10 meters away from her. The stage was large but only two fighters were allowed at the time. These many fighters in the arena to gain experience and fame, but the majority of them would place bets on their fights. The bets would be pooled together and the winner would take the total amount. Rowen had place a bet on her match and was matched up with an opponent of similar level of strength. Her opponent was also a class 4 fighter who looked to be around 40 years old. Experienced fighters would often come to the arena to make money and in this fight, they each placed 1 gold coin as a bet for the match. Seeing the fight about to start, Teo calmed his anger and concentrated on the fight. Rowen¡¯s opponent held a spear on his hands and a sword at his waist. His left arm was protected by a shoulder armor while his right shoulder was exposed. He wore a chainmail and bracers which indicated that he was mostly one who was well balanced in fights. His armor was not light but it was not heavy. ¡°Ready! Fight!¡± When the match begun Rowen quickly closed the gap between them, Rowen¡¯s range was mid to close range while her opponent would have an advantage in mid to long range fights. She used her speed to try to close in, but her opponent was tough and would not easily let her get close. Her only advantage was her speed over her opponents, unfortunately her opponent with his vast experience and technique was able to cope with his slower speed. She was slowly being overwhelmed, so she quickly open the small pouch on her waist and released the metal shavings. The metal shavings formed a chain that encircled her forming a barrier. They quickly rotated at high speed similar to a drill. The expenditure of this technique was great so she did not have much time. She controlled this chain to enclosed her opponent but her opponent used his Qi to disrupt her control. The spear clashed on the chain and the control was cut off. Rowen concentrated her control and thicken her chains entrapping the spear but as soon as she was concentrating on the spear, her opponent unsheathed the sword on his waist and slashed at her. She blocked with her bracers but it ran through the edge and injured her left upper arm. She quickly shouted ¡°I concede!¡± With that the fight was over. Her wound was light as she practiced body tempering as well. Healing it was not a problem, but losing meant she lost her one gold. Although she lost, a smile was on her face. This fight was very useful for her and she learned many techniques of her veteran opponent. Although she could learn them by watching the fights, she would better understand it by experiencing it first hand. Within the stands, a group of people laughed at the sight of the battle. ¡°HA HA HA, That bitch lost too hard¡± ¡°How pathetic, if it was me I would have wiped the floor with that old man¡± Teo¡¯s ears twitched. Each ridicule to his sister stabbed the pride for his sister. His fury rose and stood up and walked towards the Rizon faction members who were making fun of his sister. Seeing Teo walking towards them, their laughs paused but a smirk on their faces revealed disdain and ridicule. ¡°What does this trash¡¯s brother want?¡±, Kristofer stood forward blocking Teo¡¯s way ¡°YOU BASTARDS TAKE IT BACK! MY SISTER IS NO TRASH!¡± Teo¡¯s eyes burned with anger and fury. He drew everyone¡¯s attention by shouting. Even Rowen who was stepping out of the stage with her hand on her wound heard Teo¡¯s shout. A smirk was on Zachery¡¯s face. He was enjoying the sight of Teo being enraged. ¡°We¡¯ll take back shit. What trash is trash, are we wrong? Didn¡¯t she lose miserably? HA HA HA¡±, Kristofer laughed ¡°Brother you are too much, you should not care too much about trash¡±, Erin said ¡°Ignore this trash, since his sister is trash, he must be trash as well¡±, Ash continued They all laughed and continued to mock and taunted Teo. Teo¡¯s anger swelled well past his limits. His fingernails dug into his flesh as his fist was tightly clenched. Instead of shouting at the top of his lungs, he calmly roared in a loud voice. ¡°If you really think I¡¯m trash, then come fight me in the arena!¡± Zachery smiled, laughed and said ¡°Why do we have to fight you? What¡¯s trash is trash, even without a fight this cannot be changed!¡± ¡°What are you guys scared?!¡±, Teo taunted, he had never wanted to beat someone so badly before. Teo had some history against this group before, but he ignored it. Now that his sister was being insulted by the same group of people, the buried enmity quickly resurfaced. If you find this story on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the infringement. They all laughed and looked at Teo as if they were looking at an idiot. ¡°Do you think your taunts would get us to humor your futile request?¡±, Zachery laughed Lia and Windle from behind were apprehensive because of the size of the opposite group, but were also a little angry. They a great relationship with Rowen and Teo was their friend, but this place was not their place to fight. Outside the academy was a place where they could get killed if they offended someone who had power. They slowly approached Teo from behind, hoping to pull him away and stop him from his foolish vendetta. ¡°Teo, let¡¯s go. We shouldn¡¯t piss them off outside the academy, we can challenge them in the academy instead¡±, Windle whispered as he grabbed Teo¡¯s arm but before he could get a tight grip Teo moved forward and escaped his grasp. ¡°Fine, you think I don¡¯t have anything to offer? I bet 10 gold coins to fight anyone of you! We¡¯ll see who the real trash is or are you gonna make up another excuse!?¡±, Teo announced He had placed the bet of 10 gold coins as a public challenge. Teo had a little over 13 gold and was ready to place 10 gold in a bet to teach these vile people a lesson. He was confident with combat abilities because of his intense training and sparring from the past few months. Several people who were watching became shocked at the large sum of money being betted. The bets within the arena would usually peak at 2 gold coins the most, but this time a kid who was no older than 11 years old was betting 10 gold coins. A hint of greed flashed across their eyes but they did not believe that this ordinary kid would have that much money on him. The faces of the Rizon faction first grew ugly. This village kid dared to disrespect them, but after realizing it, it was the perfect chance to get some money. Zachery who was acting leader¡¯s eyes flashed with a hint of greed. It was the perfect opportunity to get some of his money back and of course, since they were being challenged in public with a large reward, they could not decline. ¡°Fine, since you are want to throw your money away, we will oblige¡±, Zachery said with a sinister smile. It was acting as if he had already won 10 gold. ¡°Hmph! I¡¯m not giving them away, you have to bet 10 gold as well. Can you even afford it?¡±, Teo mocked as he gained momentum. Zachery¡¯s face stiffened. He realized what Teo was trying to do. 10 gold was a lot of money and if they, the Rizon faction, could not even bring out enough money, then in the eyes of everyone watching, they would be the real trash. Zachery was in a dilemma. He did not know how much money his members had. If they pooled in all the money they had right now, would they have 10 gold? He was unsure, but he had already accepted Teo¡¯s challenge ¡°Ha ha ha, these young ones want to try out the arena¡± A voice below the arena sounded in a loud and clear voice. It was the judge who controlled who was to fight next and stopped the match once one side surrendered. ¡°Since the stakes are high, we can let you squeeze in the next match. What do you say?¡±, the man grinned as he asked them Teo looked at the man and said ¡°I¡¯m fine with that¡±, then looked over at Zachery. Zachery stalled his answer and whispered to his posse ¡°How much money do you guys have? Let¡¯s pool our money together and double them in this fight¡± Zachery gathered money from everyone but could only come up with a little over 8 gold. His face darkened as he realized that they did not have enough. ¡°What are you stalling for? What can¡¯t even afford it? Now we can really see who is trash!¡±, Teo taunted. A smile was on his face, seeing the troubled look on the group¡¯s face. He learned a lot from Gina¡¯s taunting techniques as they spent time together. His tongue was sharp but was still incomparable to Gina¡¯s. Some of the members¡¯ faces turned red. One part from embarrassment, the other from anger, but none of them said anything back. Only Zachery spoke. ¡°Hmph! Just because we did not bring enough money today, doesn¡¯t mean we cannot afford it!¡±, Zachery retorted as he took a silver ring off his finger. ¡°This ring cost 5 gold, we¡¯ll use it as collateral! We¡¯ll agree to fight right away!¡±, Zachery announced The judge smiled and quickly arranged it, but as he did Teo laughed in a loud voice. ¡°HA HA HA! I am no expert at jewelry but you expect me to believe that this is worth 5 gold?¡± Teo then picked up a rock on the ground and held it high ¡°Then this stone is worth 10 gold, I guarantee it!¡±, he taunted. Teo knew that this ring was somewhat valuable but he could not ascertain its price. So Teo had a clever idea as he saw another ring on Zachery¡¯s finger. ¡°You dare doubt our Rizon faction?!¡±, Kristofer yelled. ¡°Yes, I¡¯ve never heard of this faction before!¡±, Teo announced loudly Everyone knew he was full of shit. Who could go to the nearby academy and not know about this faction¡¯s fame? Teo then continued ¡°At most, I¡¯ll give that an evaluation of 1 gold¡±, Teo smiled a sinister smile. Erin then interjected ¡°But then we won¡¯t have enough¡± ¡°That¡¯s right, you are just doing this to avoid fighting with us!¡±, Ash declared Teo was unfazed by their reasoning, and replied as he pointed at Zachery ¡°You have two rings don¡¯t you? If you bet both rings with your remaining gold I¡¯ll consider it all to be worth 10 gold¡± Zachery¡¯s face turned ugly. His other ring alone was worth 10 gold coins that was given to him by his grandfather. He was going to speak out and reject Teo¡¯s proposal but Teo quickly interrupted and said ¡°Or are you not confident with your abilities at all?¡±, Teo smiled and mocked the group. A little bit of his anger quelled a bit as he insulted them. ¡°Fine! We¡¯ll accept this terms!¡±, He took off the second ring and held 8 gold coins and two rings. The faces of the Rizon faction members gave a smile. They were enraged by this kid¡¯s taunting and was almost embarrassed in front of the public. If they ever meet Teo alone in a dark alley, they would surely attack him without care, but out in the open they had to care for their face. If they ganged up on Teo then they would shame their branch family and perhaps heads might roll. Teo smiled. Although he taunted them with his act, he was still enraged from their insults to his sister. He had to prove them wrong! ¡°We¡¯ll then, who will fight me?¡±, Teo asked Chapter 52: Without A Weapon Chapter 52: Without A Weapon Teo stood on the stage facing his opponent. He was confident with his ability. His training was hard and painful, but due to his sparring sessions his confidence was off the roof. Perhaps it was his youth, that he believed that he was invincible or perhaps his fighting ability had improved in the recent months, but no matter what the case was, he only wished to shut those bastards up. Kristofer stood opposite to Teo. A huge grin was on his face. He was luckily chosen to fight Teo. Initially, Zachery wanted to do the deed himself, but thinking of his position, he decided to let Kristofer handle this. Based on fighting ability among the members of the same year, Kristofer was only second to him. Kristofer was also much more crueler than Zachery. He announced his plan to the group to break Teo¡¯s mouth or throat to prevent him him from conceding midway. Then he would slowly torture Teo and leave him scarred and crippled. The older members also wanted to do fight Teo, but because most of them valued face too much. Zachery did not allow them to fight someone much younger than they were. The judge stepped in the middle of them and looked at both of them. ¡°Since this is your first time here, I will tell you the rules. One, the fight is not over until one is either dead, incapacitated or has given up, remember this as we, the judges of the arena, are required to be impartial. We will prevent anyone from interfering. Two, No use of poison, or potions allowed other than your weapons, armor or your fists. Third, the winner must pay 5% of the betting pool to the arena. Since this is worth a total of 20 gold, 1 gold must be paid to use our facilities as well as our guards¡± The judge explained the rules and smiled. 1 gold for a single fight was a nice harvest. He took the pool of money and 2 rings and stored it in a pouch. They were extreme strict and although there was a hint of greed in their eyes, they valued their reputation as the guardians of the arena more. Rowen and the others were on the side of the arena. Rowen decided that no matter what, if Teo¡¯s life was in danger, he would break into the arena and forcefully stop the match. Gina and Tordin also agreed, and waited patiently at the side. ¡°Don¡¯t worry, that kid should be able to take care of himself. Can a Rizon faction member really compare to our Martial faction member? I¡¯ve seen his growth and they were far better than most new comers¡±, Gina reassured Rowen Rowen nodded in agreement. She knew Teo¡¯s personality. He was easily obsessed with something he found an interest in. He was not like the others and would always work hard and invest his time and effort into his interests, but the thing that worried Rowen was that Teo had only been learning how to fight for a few months. Although his improvement was astonishing, she could guess that Teo¡¯s opponent might have been training how to fight since the start of the first year. There was a year gap between them that made her feel uneasy. Just as the judge was about to start the match Teo swiftly interrupted while he started gathering world Qi. ¡°Judge, do you have a stick I can borrow?¡±, Teo asked For the past few months, he had been training with using a stick. Although he was preparing to beat down his opponent, he did not want to kill or maim the other. ¡°I¡¯m sorry, we are not allowed to provide weapons for participants¡± The judge denied his request. The judge could also tell that Teo might be stalling for time as to gather more world Qi. But before he could announced the start of the he was interrupted by the loud noise behind him He looked towards his back and saw Rowen asking people to lend her brother a stick for a weapon, but no one helped. ¡°AHEM. Ready! Fight!¡± Without waiting for Rowen, the judge swiftly started the match. Only a fool would go up a stage without any weapons. From the judge¡¯s point of view, Teo only had himself to blame. Now that the match had started, the guards would not allow Rowen to help Teo at all, even if she found a suitable weapon. Kristofer laughed and he unsheathed his sword. Wind elemental energy surrounded his body and concentrated on his legs. Teo recalled Kristofer¡¯s elements, but was unsure what they were. He knew that Kristofer was a dualist, but it had been such a long time since he heard Kristofer brag about it. Luckily he can see the elemental energies that were being gathered. So far only wind elemental energy was being gathered. Once Kristofer tried a different element, Teo would instantly know. Teo stood idly mentally preparing himself. He inhaled deeply and slowly exhaled. ¡®This is just like sparring¡¯ The things that Teo learned from the past few months as astounding. During fights, he knew that he had to be calm and collected. He must always be wary of his opponents and must be always be vigilant. Kristofer dashed towards Teo, his speed was fairly fast as the wind helped him travel across the stage. Kristofer slashed aiming for the throat, and followed up with his left fist aiming for Teo¡¯s mouth. Teo stood motionlessly as he looked at Kristofer¡¯s attack. With his mind calmed, he quickly moved his foot with the smallest motion and easily dodged the two consecutive blows. He was slightly afraid of the sword the Kristofer was using but forced himself to calm down. This was the first actual blade he had to fight against, and knew that one misstep could cause him his life. The danger of an actual blade could cause a person¡¯s mind to do one of two things. One was to fall into fear have one¡¯s mind become blank, or to be nurtured by the danger and perform more extraordinary than before. Teo was the latter. Instead of succumbing to fear, his sense heightened and his mind became even more focused. He motioned his fist and rotated his body and gave a forceful punch. -POW- Kristofer was taken aback by the blow to his face. He slashed towards Teo but Teo quickly retreated away. Stolen from its original source, this story is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings. Within the side of the stage, Gina was surprised at Teo¡¯s agility. ¡°Was Teo this fast?¡±, she asked ¡°Teo has good eyes, so he should have some advantage but this is far beyond what he showed us last week¡±, Rowen replied ¡°Good eyes huh, too bad his attack power is weak¡±, Tordin said Kristofer felt a stinging pain on his face but this was not enough to hinder his assault. He slashed continuously at Teo but Teo was like a leaf, within the wind and dodged his attacks. Kristofer became irritated and gathered fire elemental energy. His sword glowed red and the air became hot. Although Teo could dodge his sword, with a hot steel close to Teo¡¯s face, he would be burnt just by being close to it. Teo quickly retreated as he saw the fire elemental energy gathered. Teo was just wearing his plain clothes. One hit from a sword endowed with fire elemental energy would enough to cleave through his body cleanly. The pressure on Teo multiplied. He just didn¡¯t have to worry about the edge of the blade, he had to worry about the aura around the blade. Kristofer¡¯s attack range grew wider, giving Teo less time and area to dodge. Seeing Teo¡¯s speed of retreat, Lia¡¯s jaw dropped ¡°That¡­ That Teo is faster than me!¡± She was shocked. Teo¡¯s sprint speed was always slower than hers, she had a year advantage over him but it seems now Teo¡¯s speed improved by leaps and bounds. Teo gained a lot of space between him and Kristof ¡®Luckily, the array within my boots was finished a few days ago¡¯, Teo thought to himself. His knowledge of arrays improved quite a bit in the past few months. He had successfully created an array version of the wind inscription of the boots within Deacon¡¯s classroom. By gathering world Qi to his body, the array within his boots would automatically break it apart and absorb the wind elemental energy. It also did not rely on the form and material of the shoe and the effect was much greater. The only thing he did not do was put a concealment array over it. Without a concealment array, anyone could see the array, so he hid it in the inner part of his shoes. He also had other experiments ideas he needed to try out but with his current wealth, even if he spent all 13 gold coins he would still be lacking. Thus, this battle was not just for her sister¡¯s pride but for his experiments as well. With no weapons available to him, he could only use his fist and legs to win this match. Kristofer dashed towards Teo but this time his speed was very slow. Because of using the flame element, the wind element that increased speed vanished. Teo dodge back and retreated. With Kristofer¡¯s speed slowing down, Teo decided to waste Kristofer¡¯s stamina and only retaliate when Kristofer was tired. Kristofer¡¯s irritation rose quickly. Teo talked big about wanting to have a fight but now that they were fighting he was only dodging. With Kristofer¡¯s speed he could not catch up. But a faint smile appeared on his face. The corner of his lips slowly rose and his speed suddenly increased. He attempted to take Teo by surprise by suddenly increasing his speed but Teo¡¯s eyes could see which element Kristofer was going to use. Teo quickly dodged the sword, barely dodging it. The intense heat from before lowered as the blade swiftly traveled through the air. Kristofer had to alternate from two elements and thus, although his speed increased, the heat of his blade diminished. Although it was still hot, it was less troublesome for Teo than before. Kristofer gave up on the fire element and slashed his blade towards Teo. Although Teo dodge the blade he noticed that there was a blade of wind energy approaching him. -RIP- The front area of Teo¡¯s clothes had a small slice. Sweat appeared on Teo¡¯s back. He barely managed to dodge the fast moving wind blade. Luckily he could see it coming or else he would¡¯ve been heavily injured. ¡°This kid is too lucky!¡±, Zachery who watched from the stands slammed his fist against the chair. He knew that Kristofer¡¯s wind blade was very hard to detect. It sliced through the air so fast that the disturbed air was delayed. Unless one had multiple battle experience or could sense air elemental energy, it was very hard to detect. ¡°HA! He dodged it!¡±, Gina was excited from Teo¡¯s quick reflexes ¡°Could it be he can see it?¡±, Tordin asked The three of them could sense a low level wind blade but seeing Teo barely dodging it, they thought it might have been luck. ¡°Isn¡¯t Teo a pure with rank 1 growth potential? How can he see such a thing, it¡¯s only been over a year!¡±, Gina replied Rowen shooked her head and smiled. ¡°I talked with Ms. Dina about Teo a few months ago, she told me that Teo was focusing all his efforts into seeing wind elemental attributes. Apparently he could already see it before the school year even started!¡±, Rowen announced with such excitement. It was truly lucky that Teo mastered the wind elemental attribute first! ¡°This.. this is too lucky, HA HA HA¡±, Gina laughed uncontrollably Teo continued to dodge one wind blade after another and Kristofer¡¯s face grew uglier and uglier ¡®This kid, can he see it? Impossible! This no talent kid should not be able to see it! It must be all luck!¡¯, Kristofer convinced himself that it was all luck but with his several attacks his stamina was depleting quite rapidly. Although the amount of elemental energy to use this move was fairly low because it was one of the most basic moves for a wind elementalist, there was still a limit on how often he could use it. Seeing Kristofer¡¯s aura dimming down, his breathing getting heavy and sweat covered his face, Teo could tell that Kristofer had probably used 60% of his elemental energy and stamina. ¡®I guess this time it¡¯s my turn to attack¡¯, Teo thought to himself Chapter 53: Beat Down Chapter 53: Beat Down ¡°FUCK! What the hell are you doing Kristofer!¡±, Zachery screamed from the stands as his anger rose. From the start of the match till now, Kristofer had not landed a decent blow against Teo. All that Kristofer had accomplished was a few cuts to Teo¡¯s clothes. Teo was more slippery than an eel. ¡°Brother calm down and kick his ass!¡±, Erin shouted Kristofer was being pressured by everyone from the Rizon faction. He represented them and if he failed to teach Teo a lesson, he would surely be punished. He thought it would be an easy match since he had heard that last year, when Teo was attacked by the Silver Sword association, he just took it like a wimp without fighting back, but the battle did not go as planned. Kristofer paused his assault and took a deep breath, trying to calm himself. His heart was pounding so heavily and his breath was ragged. ¡®This punk, how do I catch him. I only need one hit to slow him down. After that, he should be easy pickings¡¯ Kristofer calculated his remaining elemental energy and stamina. He also had a bit of Qi as he trained in the arts of cultivation within the Rizon faction. Then a thought flashed in his head. ¡®Maybe if I put away my weapon I can lure this bastard into not running away¡¯ He had already felt Teo¡¯s punches and although they stung, it was not strong enough for him to worry about. Perhaps if he got hit 20 or 30 times consecutively then it would hurt, but with his ability, such a situation was unlikely to happen. ¡°Trash will always be trash! You are a cowardly trash always running around! You are a fucking monkey just like your sister!¡±, Kristofer taunted Teo became enraged and retorted ¡°And you¡¯re the idiot can¡¯t hit anything but air. If I am trash what does that make you?!¡± Kristofer¡¯s face twisted from what Teo had said. The people who watched could only shake their heads at the sight of two kids fighting with words instead of their fists. Some even mocked and jeered. The Rizon faction looked towards those who opening mocked them and let out a killing intent to silence them. ¡°Then keep running you pathetic weasel! Let¡¯s see how long you run!¡±, Kristofer continued his insults as he was buying some time to recover some of his energy. Teo¡¯s eyes twitched as he saw Kristofer concentrated on gathering Qi and elemental energy together. He figured out Kristofer¡¯s plan and decided to end this conversation ¡°I¡¯m not here to have a conversation, I¡¯m here to kick your ass¡± Then Teo rushed forward, changing his strategy from sapping Kristofer¡¯s stamina by dodging to attacking him and prevent him from recovering his strength. Seeing Teo rush forward, Kristofer gave a grin ¡®Finally this bitch wants to fight!¡¯ He raised his sword and quickly slashed the air twice. Two long wind blades flew towards Teo. As the wind blade traveled through the air, the longer it became. Teo did not stop but carefully dodged them as he continued. When he was 1 meter from Kristofer, light flashed in front of him. He twisted his body and dodged the blade and used this momentum to unleash a kick towards Kristofer¡¯s hand that held his sword. Kristofer was caught off guard. Teo¡¯s previous attacks were all from his fists. Kristofer did not expect Teo was also able to use his legs to attack, but he did not back down. This was an opportunity! Kristofer twisted his sword grip and aimed the blade towards Teo¡¯s incoming kick! ¡®I¡¯m gonna slice up this bastard¡¯s foot real good and then crush his mouth!¡¯ Once Teo¡¯s leg was injured he could easily strike down Teo! Teo¡¯s face saw the incoming blade and his face twitched. He braced for impacting and instead of trying to dodge the blade he placed all of his weight into his kick. -BAM- ¡°TEO!¡±, Rowen was prepared to rush the stage but Tordin grabbed her arms preventing her from doing so ¡°Let go of me!¡±, she turned and shouted ¡°Calm down Rowen and look¡±, Tordin replied The sword was knocked out of Kristofer¡¯s hand and everyone saw that the blade had hit Teo¡¯s shin, but surprisingly there was no blood gushing out from Teo¡¯s leg! A following kick from Teo¡¯s other leg struck towards Kristofer¡¯s leg as he was kicked back, making him lose his balance. Teo quickly retreated and picked up the sword that laid on the ground. He recovered his breath while sweat poured out from his forehead. ¡®Shit.. that was close. I did not expect this tattoo¡¯s defense to be this strong¡¯, Teo thought to himself Teo had tested the effects of the tattoo before but they were all with blunt weapons. He recognized that the tattoo had the power to reduce the damage done to him by sacrificing some of his Qi, but he had never tried to take an attack from a real blade before. He was unsure if it had the power to protect him from the edge of a blade so his nerves were all shaking after the exchange. He looked towards his and only a thin layer of skin was cut; The muscles were perfectly untouched. ¡®Shit this brat had shin guards underneath his pants?!¡¯, Kristofer¡¯s face became ugly. He was disarmed by Teo and now his weapon advantage had gone in the other side. He was sure that his sword directly impacted Teo¡¯s legs but his sword unexpectedly could not slice through Teo¡¯s legs, nor did it leave any large wounds. ¡°TRASH!¡±, from the stands Zachery cursed Kristofer. He did not expect that Kristofer, who was almost as skilled as him would be so useless against Teo. Kristofer heard Zachery and cursed inside. ¡®Fuck! This kid is not as simple as you think! Why don¡¯t you try him yourself!¡¯ He was angry at Zachery but did not explicitly showed it. Their positions were too different and he can only swallow his words. Kristofer¡¯s face became full of worry. He knew Teo¡¯s agility was far better than his, even if he used his wind walk technique, he could barely compete with Teo in terms of speed but not agility. With a weapon in hand, Teo finally gave off a huge smile. He walked slowly towards Kristofer who had no other weapon. Their positions were quickly reversed and the hunter became the hunted! Although Kristofer lost his weapon, he did not give up. He switched from using his wind element to his fire element. He did not immediately ignite flames to his surroundings, but gathered flame elemental energy. He took advantage of the slowly approaching Teo. Unauthorized use: this story is on Amazon without permission from the author. Report any sightings. Teo was enjoying the scene of Kristofer¡¯s worried face so he walked leisuredly towards Kristofer. With a sword in hand, the power had shifted to his side. After being satisfied by Kristofer¡¯s reaction, Teo swiftly rushed towards him. He appeared in front of him and then suddenly a huge flame emerged around Kristofer. The flames were insanely hot and he could not get too close without being burned. It was the walls of flame that Windle had often used to defend himself. Teo glanced the the wall and with his special eyesight and saw how the elemental energy was distributed along the wall. He looked for the most weakest area of the wall and stabbed straight through -SKAC!- Flesh was pierced through and Kristofer¡¯s concentration wavered. His biceps was pierced by the sword that had passed through his wall. Although the heat was enough to make ordinary opponents rethink their attack, Teo unexpectedly found a weak area of the wall and sliced through it. The sword¡¯s blade was also heated by the surrounding flames and thus when it pierced through Kristofer¡¯s biceps, it lightly burned the surrounding wound as well. Kristofer was injured but while the wall of flame slowly dispersed, a wind blade flew through the wall and directly shot Teo on the shoulder! Teo was unaware of the wind blade and could not brace himself in time. A gash sliced through his flesh and a large wound appeared on his shoulder! Kristofer who was behind the flame wall used his finger as a sword to unleash a wind blade. Although this was indeed a wind blade attack, it was several times weaker than having to use a sword. The wind blade technique required a sword to improve its sharpness and speed and thus increasing his damage, but with only his fingers and arms, the attack was not as dangerous. Teo¡¯s wounds were large but was very shallow. Teo continued and swung his sword towards Kristofer¡¯s head! Seeing the incoming sword, fear emerged from Kristofer¡¯s mind ¡®Am I gonna die here!?¡¯, he thought as he panicked ¡°BROTHER!!¡±, Erin shouted as she saw this scene ¡°YOU DARE!?¡±, Zachery in the stands stood up and shouted Killing him in the arena was fair game to the public, but if a Rizon faction member was killed, the Rizon branch family would not stay put. A children¡¯s fight was something they would not normally interfere with, but if life was taken, then a debt of another life was owed The sword was fast and Kristofer could only close his eyes as he quickly tried to surrender but before he could -BAM- Kristofer was knocked back by the sword strike. Unexpectedly, Kristofer had not died. At the last moments, Teo rotated his blade and used flat side of the blade to strike Kristofer! After being knocked back, a wave of pain surfaced on Kristofer¡¯s head. He held his head as he cried in pain. Seeing this, Teo smiled and threw the sword in his hand off the stage and jumped on top of Kristofer who laid on the ground holding his head. Teo mounted over Kristofer¡¯s body preventing him from retaliating. His eyes flashed as he raised his fists and unleashed his unbridled fury. One hit after another, his weak fists struck Kristofer¡¯s face unrelentlessly. ¡°STOP!!¡±, Erin shouted from the stands but Teo turn a deaf ear. Each blow to Kristofer¡¯s face quenched his thirst for revenge. Each blow prevented Kristofer from surrendering and thus the scene could only continue. Zachery¡¯s face turned exceedingly ugly. The fight was clearly over and Teo was beating down on Kristofer. His anger rose to the heavens and shouted as well ¡°STOP HIM!¡± After the 23rd blow, the judge who resided at the side of the stage quickly moved next to Teo and stopped his 24th blow. ¡°The fight is over, he is already unconscious.¡±, the judge calmly said Then he looked at the audience and said ¡°WINNER!¡±, as he raised Teo¡¯s hand, confirming his victory. Although Teo punched Kristofer¡¯s face multiple times, his strikes were quite weak as he did not know how to effectively strike an opponent from that position. Kristofer¡¯s face was mangled but there was no threat to his life. Even his teeth was luckily spared. The judge took out a gold coin from the bag and gave the rest of the bag to Teo ¡°Here kid, your reward¡± Teo took the bag and opened it as he counted it in front of the judge. Seeing this scene, the judge was somewhat irked. It was like Teo did not trust their reputation at all, but he did not know that it was just Teo¡¯s usual personality. Rowen and the others rushed to the stage and hurried to see Teo. Rowen grabbed Teo, hugged him and then looked at his body if there was any other wounds. She saw Teo¡¯s shin and surprisingly the cut was not too deep and was much better than Teo¡¯s shoulder. ¡°Rowen, Teo, we need to get out of here now. We have to rush back to the academy quickly¡±, Gina said in a soft voice. Rowen looked at the surrounding area and nodded. They gathered everyone else and rushed out of the arena. Zachery who had already foreseen Kristofer¡¯s defeat had already sent some of his lackeys to gather members of the Rizon branch family to come. They quickly rushed towards the gate. Tordin, Rowen and Gina each carried a junior on their back. Tordin carried windle, Rowen carried Teo and Gina carried Lia. They used their top speed to travel across the road and did not hold back on their speed. Although they were carrying another person on their backs, it was still much faster than a horse and although there was some distance from Mirth city back to the academy, they had enough energy to reach the academy at full speed. The older member of the Rizon factions could not block them at all. It was because they were mostly 5th or 6th years and no 8th year students were among them. Within 10 minutes, they finally reached the academy. They let out a sigh of relief and relaxed and headed towards the dorms, after walking a while a powerful gust of wind appeared behind them. ¡°YOU 6 STOP!¡±, a loud commanding voice could be heard The 6 of them turned around and saw Zackery being carried by the headmaster Elon. Chapter 54: Witnesses Chapter 54: Witnesses Under the morning light, the Rizon branch family and the Mirth family, along with other influential families, gathered within the Mirth house manor. A party for the wealthy and the powerful, hosted by the Mirth family. These people controlled the prefecture with their vast wealth and fame, as well as their strength. ¡°Ha ha ha, yesterday¡¯s match was sure entertaining. It seems that the Flame guild is truly quite powerful¡±, a youth of age 30 said to the crowd ¡°You think that¡¯s powerful? You should visit the capital once, that kind of strength is normal¡± ¡°Ha ha ha, this youth is too ignorant of the world. Within the empire, these kind of strength isn''t much¡± The various influential people talked and laughed as the feasted on rare delicacies and drank wine. Suddenly, a large commotion was heard not too far away. Elon Rizon, who was sitting on a chair and conversing with another, recognize the loud and disturbing voices. The head of the Rizon branch family looked at Elon as if he looked at a subordinate and ordered him to check with his gaze alone. Elon¡¯s eyebrows raised and then stood up and walked towards the angry voices. ¡®What are those idiots doing!?¡¯ Causing a disturbance during the time would cause an embarrassment to the Rizon branch family which might even affect the main family. He saw several youths of the Rizon faction and some of the Rizon family members conversing in a hesteric fashion. ¡°Quickly! We need help to catch a despicable bandit!¡± ¡°Sir Zachery has been robbed and Kristofer assaulted! You must help us!¡± Elon swiftly stepped forward, grabbed the collar of the two who were making such a ruckus and dragged them into a room and closed the door. ¡®Getting robbed and assaulted? Do you have to announce it here of all things?!¡¯, Elon gnashed his teeth in anger but controlled himself. ¡°You two, tell me what happened?¡± After learning of what had happened, Elon¡¯s face twitched as he rushed out of the room, but as soon as he was about to leave a haunty figure appeared before him ¡°What¡¯s this? Headmaster Elon, is what the rumors your students brought in true? That your Rizon members were robbed and assaulted by a kid? Ha ha ha¡± The figure was an outstanding rival of Elon that was from the Mirth faction. Although the two families were always in friendly terms in the outside, they often competed and ridiculed each other underneath their words and actions. This rival had heard the misfortune of the Rizon family and came to mock him. He found it so amusing that he could no longer hold his laughter. Elon¡¯s face turned red. He had hoped to keep this incident hidden before the other families could learn of it but he was too late. He could only glare at the two behind him. ¡®When we get back, I¡¯ll severely punish these two¡¯, he thought The two who saw Elon¡¯s gaze shivered and cold sweat condensed on their backs. Elon regained his composure and smiled. ¡°Ha ha, it is nothing, just a few of our children playing around. You do not need to concern yourself with these kinds of matter¡± Before the other could reply, Elon rushed outside of the manor and headed towards the arena, meeting up with Zachery. Zachery told him that they were tricked and had Kristofer beaten up and their stuff stolen. Even the ring was also stolen! Anger swelled inside him and he grabbed Zachery and chased with all his might. Elon was a 4th class warrior so his speed was very fast, although his cultivation was low for his age, it was high enough to be respected within the surrounding area. From the distance he saw three figures who was swiftly moving towards the academy. He grinded his teeth together as his speed could not block them in time. He continued to follow and reached the academy and found the six students leisurely walking towards the inner part of the academy. ¡°YOU SIX STOP!¡± Elon commanded the six with a strong and loud voice. His Qi rose up to the surrounding and covered the area. The group of six turned around and saw headmaster Elon who had a serious and infuriated expression. ¡°You thieves! Return what you stole!¡±, Elon shouted He slowly approached them but he did not let up the aura that he released. Although there was no killing intent mixed with this aura, it still had a malicious intent Teo, Windle and Lia were frightened and panicked at the sight of the angry headmaster. They knew who this person was and Teo had a tinge of regret surfacing within his stomach, but unlike them, the three seniors were calm as peaceful summer breeze. The three stood up in front of the frighten bunch and protected them with a layer of Qi. ¡°Headmaster what seems to be the matter?¡±, Gina spoke with respect but not a hunt of fear was in her voice. ¡°Don¡¯t play dumb! Hand it over! Then you can kneel and apologize!¡±, He was furious from being embarrassed by his rival and these kids are even playing innocent. ¡°You are mistaken headmaster we have stolen nothing. We-¡± ¡°Quiet! I don¡¯t want to hear any excuses! Now do as I command or get punished!¡±, He shouted, interrupting Gina¡¯s explanation Although he did not fully understand the situation, he believed the statements of his Rizon faction member as well as Zachery¡¯s. All he knew was that they stole ¡®that¡¯ ring and he had to get it back. Normally he would let the younger generation handle their own matters but this ring was something that cannot be easily lost. ¡°But headmaster-¡±, Rowen tried to reason with him but seeing this, the headmaster rushed up and grabbed towards Teo Seeing this, Rowen¡¯s face became solemn as she blocked his hand with her Qi. ¡°You dare!¡± The cultivation of the headmaster was a little more advanced than Rowen¡¯s but it was enough to deter him from his actions. ¡°Guards!¡±, Elon shouted. Although he could not match up with the three of them, he was the headmaster of this academy. He quickly called the guards who protected the gates with a loud voice that was empowered by his Qi. The guards rushed to their location and was confused at what happened. ¡°Arrest them!¡±, Elon commanded as he gestured towards the six The guards were confused but since it was the orders of the headmaster they could only comply. Their cultivation were peak of class 4 fighters and could easily subdue Rowen and Gina. As for Tordin, he was would pose more of a problem, but as they walked forward a voice appeared to the side. ¡°Headmaster, what is going on here?¡± The voice came from 2 older men, who wore plain clothes and a cloak, but as one of them asked this question to the headmaster, they both revealed that underneath their cloaks were red armbands on their left arms. This story is posted elsewhere by the author. Help them out by reading the authentic version. Everyone at the scene saw this armband and instantly knew who these two were. ¡°Red guards!¡± The red guards were the law enforcers within the academy, they were there to punish anyone who broke the rules and were there to secretly protect the academy. Unlike the academy guards, they were an elite force. The faces of Teo and the others were relieved as they saw one of these two red guards. One was often visited the Martial faction and acted as an instructor, so they had some hope for help. ¡°Elders, these six students had stolen something from my grandson, and assaulted another student in an extreme manner, please help out dealing punishment to them¡±, Elon explained ¡°This is wrong elders! We have done nothing wrong! We are being falsely accused by the headmaster¡±, Gina argued The calm looking Gina was always very fearless. Even against the headmaster she would not back down. ¡°Preposterous!¡±, Elon shouted as his Qi became even fiercer than before Seeing the furious headmaster, the two red guards stepped between them and halted Elon ¡°Calm down headmaster, we¡¯ll investigate this matter before anything else¡± Elon¡¯s face twitched but he said nothing. Although Elon was the headmaster of the academy, he had no control of these red guards. The red guards were a faction created by the Royal family to protect and oversee the many academies across the empire. They were veteran royal guards that retired from their old roles to make way for the younger generation, and only answered to the Imperial family. Despite being old, their strength in a distant prefecture such as this was more than enough to overpower anyone. The two red guards looked at each other and then to the others. Although one of them was an instructor to the Martial faction and had close ties to it, he was still a red guard, he was loyal to the crown. ¡°Explain to us what happened?¡±, they calmly said. They were just, and would listen to both sides of the story and investigate before making any deliberation. Gina, Rowen and Tordin explain the situation in a precise and clear manner. They left out very little detail of the incident. Elon who also listened to the explanation knew that the things that was said to him by Zachery and the other were not aligned with each other. ¡®Fucking hell? He used that ring as collateral for 1 gold?!¡¯, Elon silently thought. A vein popped out of his forehead as he glanced that Zachery. Zachery was his grandchild from his fourth daughter. Elon doted on him quite well because Zachery was an elementalist that was directly link to him. He had hopes for the future of Zachery, and hoped that after Zachery became successful within the Imperial city, he would be invited to live there in the future, so he gifted Zachery this ring to protect his life.However, he would¡¯ve never thought that his grandchild was so stupid to place something so valuable in a bet. Zachery saw his grandfather¡¯s gaze and tilted his head down. He knew he made a huge mistake, but he was still hoping that his grandfather could fix it for him From Zachery¡¯s reaction, Elon could tell that there were truths to these explanation. ¡°Don¡¯t tell me that you elders believe these thieves rather than the headmaster? They have even injured a second year student. I demand justice be served!¡±, he argued Elon tried to use his position to defame their statements and have the red guards side with him, even though he knew that what they said was probably what really happened. Inside, Elon sighed. If he had caught them before they entered the academy everything could have been resolved by force, but now that the red guards were involved, he could not predict how this was going to end. ¡°Well, if this is what really happened we can easily verify this from the witnesses in the city¡±, one of the red guard said as he looked to the other one. The other one swiftly ran towards academy¡¯s gates and headed to Mirth city. Elon¡¯s face grew dark. He had no hopes of success anymore. With many witnesses from the arena, the truth could easily be revealed. Having injured a student outside the academy? Why would that have any punishment? If it was inside and a student was killed or maimed then there would be serious consequences, but Kristofer was neither maimed or killed and was outside the academy grounds. Stealing from someone? The same logic applied! If one was dumb or weak enough to have their belongings stolen in the outside world, they could only blame themselves. If it was really the case then it would¡¯ve been the city guards¡¯ problem since it happened within the city. If only the duel was within the academy, Elon could¡¯ve twisted the truth and intimidated the witnesses into falsifying the truth but since it was within the city and it happened all too fast, he had no way of controlling the situation. The arena judges and staff members also had a reputation to uphold and would not be easily bought. Elon had never felt so powerless within the academy before. He had control of the staff and students, but as for punishing any rule breakers, he was helpless. After sometime, the red guard from before came back and said ¡°What these kids were saying was true, nothing they did deserves any punishment. The arena judge and several witnesses had similar testimonies¡±, as he gestured towards Teo and the others. Inside he was glad that these Martial faction member were not in the wrong, because of his ties to the Martial faction. ¡°Well then, Elders, headmaster, we will go on our way¡±, Gina said respectfully even though inside she wanted to grind down the headmaster with her very sharp tongue. Her smile was more than enough to irritate Elon. His gaze was full of hatred for the two siblings. He remembered that Rowen disrupted his plans to impress the visitor from the Imperial city during the ranking tournaments. He even heard that Rowen¡¯s brother made money off the faction members¡¯ money and now this! But as the group turned around to leave Elon shouted ¡°Wait!¡± ¡®How can I let this go?¡¯, he thought inwardly. Even though they were protected within the academy, with his resources as the headmaster and a member of the Rizon family, he could easily make them regret this day. [Author''s note: (Minor spoiler) I know our MC has not yet been exposed to much danger yet, and I do plan him to be exposed to it in the future. It is just that he is still in his growing phase (title of the second arc is Growth), so I plan to only expose him to only minor danger for now. As for when any life threatening danger will occur, I plan it to be at the third arc. Also the second arc will end after Rowen leaves for her exploration years] Chapter 55: Bargaining for Time Chapter 55: Bargaining for Time ¡°Headmaster, is there anything else?¡±, Gina asked. Before they could leave, they were stopped again by the headmaster. From his facial expression, they could tell that he bore a grudge against them. Rowen didn¡¯t mind, it was her last year here, but she was concerned about Teo and the others. ¡°The ring, if you return the ring that you got from Zachery I am willing to forget this incident¡±, Elon said but inside how can he really forget about this incident? Teo took out a silver ring from the bag and showed it, ¡°This one?¡± When Elon saw Teo taking something out his eyes lit up, but as soon as he saw this ring, his patience snapped ¡®This kid!!¡¯ ¡°Not that one! The other one!¡±, he shouted The eyebrows of the red guards raised as they looked over the headmaster. ¡®Robbing kids in front of us?¡¯, they thought to themselves, but they quietly watched. As long as the children did not ask for help or were not attacked they would stay silent. Teo knew that the golden ring was more precious than the other. In fact, ever since he laid his eyes on it he knew that it was something special. Though it looked expensive, it was not the reason why Teo targeted this ring. He saw several invisible lines within the ring. It was an enchanted ring, but was quite different from the other inscriptions he had seen before. From the symbols he could tell that it was intricately designed. Inscriptions such as these were a few ranks lower than void ring inscriptions, but was not far from it. Teo wanted to study it but it seems that this ring alone will be causing him trouble for the future. Teo took out the golden ring, it was looked expensive as it was made of gold and was carved with several designs but it did not have any precious jewels on it. Teo carefully studied the inside and outside of the ring as he took it out, but was interrupted by Elon ¡°Yes, that¡¯s it, hand it over and we¡¯ll forget about this incident!¡± Teo hesitated. Such a precious inscription should be worth a lot, but its value to Teo was different. His value of it was out of curiosity and a need. He needed it as a precursor to his development of the void array; a step required to fully understand how an inscription as complex as a void inscription can be turned into a void array. ¡®I need to buy some time¡¯, Teo thought He understood that if the headmaster was willing to involve himself to interfere with the younger generation, then it could cause Teo and the others future problems. He knew he had to give it up, but was not planning on giving it up before he memorized the inscription After a brief moment of thought, Teo looked the Elon and said ¡°How much are you buying it for?¡± Surprisingly, all five of his companions¡¯ faces twisted as they shockingly stared at Teo who had the balls big enough to cover the sun. Elon who thought he could not get any angrier broke the lid from his top. His fist tightly held together and bones loudly cracked. ¡®This motherfucking kid¡­.wants to fucking play with me..¡¯ Even the two red guards and gate guards who stood nearby became shocked and a hint of awe emerged from their eyes. They thought that Teo was either really stupid or really fearless. After some contemplation, Elon calmed down. Realizing his position, if he really took something from a student, then he would lose a lot of face. Although he and the Rizon faction was already slapped by this kid several times, in front of the two seniors, he had to maintain his face. Besides, he could control the spread of rumors about this incident. For the noblemen and influential families of the prefect, he could easily sweep this under the rug as this incident was over. The red guards themselves would not have loose lips, and the only ones who he had to worried about were these six students, and the other two guards. The two guards he can control as they worked for him and as for the six students before him, if they knew better, they would know not to spread any rumors. If the red guards were not here, then he would forcefully take it but now that they were, purchasing it was a good option to keep his face in front of these elders. He took out 1 gold coin and tossed it to Teo ¡°Here¡± While Elon contemplated, Teo was quickly moving his eyes and studied the inscription with haste. He was so distracted that the gold coin that was thrown towards him was not caught. He looked at the gold coin and picked it up. He still required more time, it hadn¡¯t even been a minute so he had to buy more time. ¡°Hmm..¡±, Teo said with an unsure voice He was multitasking incredibly, acting and studying, and because of this, he was not fazed by the piercing gaze of Elon. ¡°Didn¡¯t Zachery say this was worth 10 gold?¡±, he asked Rowen¡¯s jaw dropped, her mind became blank for a brief moment. The others were shocked beyond belief as well. At first, they didn''t think that Teo would ask money for the ring, and now that Elon toss out 1 gold coin, how could Teo was asking for more?! After throwing the coin, Elon was still angry but swallowed his anger as the red guards was still around, but soon after Teo¡¯s remark that swallowed anger became stuck in his throat. He almost choked to death from hearing Teo¡¯s outlandish statement. His eyes bulged, his stomach convulsed, his teeth clenched so hard the his molars cracked. ¡°You!!!..¡±, he was so angry that he could not form words except for a single one If no one else was here, he would¡¯ve ripped Teo into tiny shreds. His fingers shook as he pointed at Teo, he was like a tea kettle ready to explode Teo did not pay attention to anything else and continued on to look at the ring; studying the inscriptions carefully. Thankfully, shocking everyone gave him enough time to study the inscription. After recovering from their shock, Rowen approached Teo and placed her hand on his shoulder ¡°Little Teo, don¡¯t antagonize the headmaster any longer, just give him the ring and be done with it. If you antagonize even more, I am worried that after I leave the academy, you might find yourself in great danger¡± Teo who finished memorizing the inscription, nodded to Rowen¡¯s request, but he did not immediately hand over the ring just yet. He looked towards the angry headmaster who was barely able to contain his fury. ¡°Okay, I will give this ring to you for 1 gold, for one condition...¡±, Teo said this is a very slow manner. Although he had memorize the inscriptions he was not too confident with it so he decided to buy more time. Stolen story; please report. Elon did not dare let his guard down anymore. Once bitten, twice shy. If Teo said anymore things outrageous while having his guard down, he would probably attack without warning and without caring about the consequences. ¡°You have to swear an oath to the name of the Imperial family and holy emperor, that you will let this go and none of my family, friends or I will be harmed in the future by you or your family, directly or indirectly¡± After Teo stated his condition, the headmaster was livid. An oath to the emperor was not a light oath to make. He glanced at the two red guards and then swallowed his saliva. He calmed himself as if he made such a decision with an enraged mind, he might make a mistake that could cost him his life. Although Teo¡¯s request seemed simple, but it had layers and layers of meaning. The most obvious one was, because he announced to forget about this incident, if he backed off and denied Teo¡¯s request it would mean that he was not sincere. In front of these two red guards, he would be in trouble if he had hidden plots against the six students. The most likely punishment for this would him being fired and replaced by another. Having control of the Mirth academy for so long and suddenly losing it would bring shame to their branch family, his punishment would not be light, being sentenced to death would not be impossible. The second issue was if he accepted this proposal, he could not break it. If it was found out that he had broken his oath to the emperor, the consequences would be dire. In the best case scenario, only his head will roll, the worst case scenario, he could drag down the entire branch family; it could even affect the main family¡¯s reputation as well. Even if he had a thousand lives, it would not be enough to quell the anger of his ancestors. The third is if Teo, his family or his friends were injured indirectly by some unknown situation, it could lead back to him. He could be blame for it even without having knowledge of it! What kind of oath is this?! And lastly, the most absurd one of all is that this oath would last until eternity. ¡®The future¡¯, meant that as long as he is alive, or these witnesses were still alive, he would still be bound by this oath. Although the two red guards seemed older than he is, their cultivation was far superior. Cultivators¡¯ life span increases the higher it goes, so Elon, being an old man already, was not sure if he could outlive them at all. This would mean that he would have to get the branch family protect Teo and his friends until he died?! He did not hold such power within the branch family! How can he speak for them?! Compared to the price of this oath, the ring¡¯s cost was too cheap. Despite the ring being a treasure of the family, it was nothing compared to this oath! Elon stared at Teo and his impression of this audacious kid changed. Fear emerged from his eyes, as he looked at Teo. ¡®Could it be that he planned all of this scheme?¡¯, he thought to himself He looked carefully at Teo, he was no older than an 11 year old, but this normal looking 11 year old had place him between a rock and a hard place but luckily, it was not inescapable. Teo waited for the headmaster¡¯s response as he continued to memorize these inscriptions to reinforce his memory of it. From the books that he had read, these conditions he set was air tight, preventing any future trouble for him, his sister and his friends, but he did not thought that these conditions he had give had any deeper meaning. After regaining his thoughts, Elon spoke with calm. His anger seemed to be dissipating, but was actually just being buried deep inside. ¡°I promise you and the holy emperor that no harm will come to you or your friends from the Rizon faction or myself during your stay here at the academy and even within Mirth city¡± He tossed aside the idea of Teo being a schemer because of his age, but he knew that this kid was not a simple youth. The main points of these conditions are for his and his friends protection within the future and also guarded against hired help, it proved that his understanding of the whole situation was not too immature. Teo heard this and analyzed each word. The main difference to the previous oath is that, he can indirectly cause him harm, but that was only if he left the academy. Being the main target of the headmaster¡¯s hatred, the others should be safe. Hiring assassins to kill or harass a bunch of kids? Who would be so low, if Rowen or the others were ever attacked, Teo, who would stay within the academy, would immediately spread what had happened here. Not only the headmaster¡¯s reputation would be put into question but the whole branch family¡¯s as well. As for himself, he only planned to return to the city once he is strong enough, or with a perfect disguise. As long as he had his identification stone, he can prove he is a student of the academy without exposing himself and could come and go as he pleased. Perhaps if they performed a divination rite then his identity would be exposed as he was outside but this was highly unlikely. Within the academy, no one can harm his life. As long as he stayed within the academy, no one can harm his life, unless he breaks some academy rule. He had a little over 6 years within the academy left until he had to go out to explore the wild lands and had enough confidence to be able to protect himself by then. With the success of his wind boots, in the future, he can create array enchanted clothes that had much better effects than the inscription enchanted items. Although it was quite different from what he wanted, it was acceptable. Teo tossed the ring to the headmaster and the six left afterwards Watching the six leave, the red guards as well as the academy guards left the area. Only Elon stood there with Zachery behind him. Zachery was elated to have the ring back, he knew it was precious and was worth a lot of money but what he did not know that the price of the ring was far more than 10 gold coins. It was a highly secret talisman, able to create a barrier for life threatening attacks from class 5 fighters or weaker. The ring had 25 charges in total, and through the years, only 10 charges were left. Elon tossed the ring to Zachery and then revealed an angry face. He wanted to hit the idiot grandchild, but if he did, his ticket to the Imperial city might vanish. With a grim voice he said ¡°Let¡¯s go back¡± ¡®I¡¯ll teach these brats a lesson¡¯ One could not tell if he was talking about the six previous students or the Rizon family youths, but once thing was certain, there was hell to pay for this incident. Chapter 56: A Dire Mistake Chapter 56: A Dire Mistake After walking away from the headmaster, the group finally let out a sigh of relief and relaxed. Windle and Lia¡¯s clothes were soaked from the sweat they produced. As for the others, there were also covered with sweat. ¡°Teo, you are one crazy bastard¡±, Windle said with a weakened smile. ¡°Indeed, Teo you are truly fearless. If you don¡¯t control yourself in the future, you might end up dying early¡±, Gina warned ¡°Little Teo, promise me in the future, you must pick your battles wisely. Without strength you can¡¯t protect others or yourself. Antagonizing a giant will only lead you to be stepped on¡±, Rowen warned. ¡°I will remember what big sister and senior sister says¡±, Teo replied It was true that things got out of hand. He never expected that even the headmaster would get involved. Teo was confident of dealing with anyone of Zachery¡¯s group, but with some reflection, he also realized that he pulled them into harm¡¯s way. ¡°Everyone, I am sorry for dragging you into this¡±, Teo sincerely said as he bowed to everyone asking for forgiveness. ¡°Ha ha, this little problem is nothing for me. Instead of worrying for others, you should worry about yourself!¡±, Tordin laughed it off as he replied Gina and Rowen smiled and laughed a bit to lighten the mood of everyone but everyone noticed Lia and Windle¡¯s quietness. They both had mixed feelings about this incident. They admired Teo for standing up for his sister, and was impressed to how unfazed he was when dealing with the headmaster, but they were also concerned for their own safety. Because of Teo they were dragged into this mess. The seniors notice of this as well and the mood turned gloomy. Teo approached his two friends and softly said, ¡°Lia, Windle, I am sorry about this¡± ¡°Teo¡­ I..¡±, Windle wanted to speak but could not find any other words. He wanted to convinced Teo that he was alright, but it was clear that he was troubled. Lia was also silent. Her day was too eventful, and she did not have time to digest all of the implications of these events. All she knew was that she might face future troubles because of Teo. A conflicting emotion emerged from the two, their friendship was currently being tested. In the past few days, they had seen some people brutally wounded in the city¡¯s arena. Some even die, the thoughts of having this events that Teo caused might lead them to their deaths scared them. Fear, sadness, frustration and anger all mixed together! They could only silently turn their heads and leave. Rowen looked at Gina with a hint of message in her eyes. Gina nodded and followed the two who silently left. There was regret within his face, he knew that this incident had caused a rift between his friends and himself. ¡°Don¡¯t worry Teo, just give them time¡±, Rowen said ¡®Next time, I really do need to pick my battles and I can¡¯t drag anyone else into my problems either. I need to fix this somehow!¡¯, he thought to himself. Through this incident, he realized that he had many flaws and weaknesses. His actions today, although admirable to some, was actually very stupid. His overconfidence in himself clouded his judgement; risking his friends and sister¡¯s wellbeing, just for his pride. He might even lose his friends because of this.. After the group parted ways. Rowen and Teo headed to the medical center to get healed up. Both of them were slightly wounded, but it was not life threatening at all. In any case, Rowen wanted to have a medical expert to check Teo¡¯s wounds. ¡­. After they had left the medical center, the two siblings walked alongside each other. Their steps were slow and leisurely. Suddenly, Rowen stops and then look far beyond the scenery. The sun was still up in the air, but was slowly setting down. Rowen sighed as he looked at her depressed little brother. Today¡¯s events worried her deeply. Within less than a year, she would no longer be able to protect her little brother and now, this little brother of hers had provoked a sleeping tiger. He even might lose his friends over this, what Teo needed were strong allies to help him in the future. ¡°Hm? Big sister what¡¯s wrong?¡±, Teo asked as he noticed his sister unmoving. She was in deep thought, and her face was full of worry. Although Teo had asked her this question, he could guess what she was worried about. ¡°Little Teo, you have to become strong quickly as so you won¡¯t get bullied. Strong enough to protect yourself, and to protect what you want to protect¡± Teo gave a reassuring smile and spoke ¡°Big sister, don¡¯t worry. I will be so strong that no one can bully me or my big sister¡±, Teo tried to lighten the mood and reassured his big sister. Rowen gave a smirked and thought to herself, ¡®when did this brother of mine become so confident¡¯, she couldn¡¯t help but smile. ¡°What about Mom, Dad, Uncle and Big brother?What about your friends, Gina and Riss?¡±, Rowen asked ¡°Of course they are also on the list of people I have to protect, but why did sister forget about Tordin?¡± ¡°That asshole can protect himself just fine!¡±, She wrinkled her nose as she recalled Tordin¡¯s face. Although she was always so brutal with him with her words, he was one of her closest friend. The mood turned light, but after a while, Rowen¡¯s face turned solemn and full of concern and faced Teo directly. ¡°Teo, you must never be overconfident! You must be wary at all times. One mistake can even cause the greatest men fall. I once heard from elder brother that he once had a senior before I arrived at the academy. This senior was so fierce that he was very proud and arrogant, but he was very kind to his juniors. He became the King of the Arena within Mirth city!¡±, Rowen carefully said. A case of literary theft: this tale is not rightfully on Amazon; if you see it, report the violation. ¡°Sister, what is a King of the Arena?¡± ¡°It¡¯s the title given to a person who has been undefeated in over a hundred consecutive matches! This senior was very strong, and was undefeated. He then started slaughtering opponents to show off his power, despite having the ability to easily defeat them without taking their lives. He became so arrogant that he insulted many of the wealthy families and top guilds around the city. He also rejected all their invitations and even insulted them in their faces. He became like an untameable beast and because of his overconfidence, he believed himself to be invincible! He was the youngest rank 6 warrior that this academy has ever produced but before he graduated, he was mysteriously killed!¡±, Rowen spoke as she remembered her elder brother¡¯s words. ¡°This senior died young because of his arrogance and overconfidence. He was very talented and would have had a bright future, but he wronged too many people and offended powers he should not have offended¡± She spoke the words exactly as she heard them from Aran. ¡°Little Teo, remember this. Confidence is good and being a coward is bad, but overconfidence is poison! Even if you are strong, you have to learn to fear the weak, because all strong men were once weak, and from weakness there is strength!¡±, She paused and took a deep breath. ¡°Even if you have strength, there will always be someone stronger, this is why we should always tread carefully in life. There is always a man beyond a man, and there is a sky above the sky¡± Teo listened intently to his sister¡¯s words. He knew that these words were profound, and he carved these words into his heart. She gave Teo a hug, and then gave Teo a smile ¡°Teo, we are a family and we must look out for each other, but soon I will be leaving this place, So before I go, you have to train hard to become strong enough that I don¡¯t have to worry about you.¡± Teo felt very warm in his heart. He was very comfortable in his sister¡¯s arms, but then her words echoed into Teo¡¯s ear and Teo felt that he had forgotten something; something important! All the warmth and comfort he felt was instantly shattered by this forgotten thing. He felt like he had forgotten such a dire mistake! He repeated Rowen¡¯s words in his head over and over again.. ¡°We are¡­ We are¡­ We are family¡­ Family¡­ family...¡± Then it hit him like a thunderbolt in the sky! ¡°I promise you and the holy emperor that no harm will come to you or your friends¡±... Headmaster Elon¡¯s promise echoed in his ear and he realized the dire mistake that he had made! This mistake stabbed directly into his heart and he was instantly filled with regret. He had overlooked such a crucial mistake, and left his sister exposed! ¡®No.. how could I miss this...This can¡¯t.. This can¡¯t be! My sister is my friend so she should also count as a friend! THAT SNEAKY BASTARD!!¡± His emotions flowed like water, moving from one stage to the next ¡°Please¡­ please don¡¯t harm my sister¡­. Ai why am I so stupid...¡¯ After a while, he took a deep breath. ¡®Since I can¡¯t be sure that my sister will be fine, I have to assume to worst! Elon!¡¯ ¡°Little Teo, what¡¯s wrong?¡± Rowen instantly discovered something odd about Teo and quickly brought him back to his senses. ¡°Umm it¡¯s nothing big sister..¡±, Teo quickly masked his thoughts as to not worry his beloved sister. ¡°Are you sure? You look a little pale, perhaps we should go back and have the doctor look at you again¡± ¡°No, it¡¯s nothing really. Big sister, I have a few requests to ask of you¡± ¡°Hm? Sure, you know anything that I, your big sister Rowen, can do, I will help!¡±, she smiled and looked proud. She loved it when Teo depended on her ¡°First, you must never leave the academy before the year is over! Can you promise me this?¡± Teo looked worried, but Rowen felt relieved. She assumed that this is why Teo was so strange a moment ago. ¡°Sure, It¡¯s not like I am that maniac Tordin. I don¡¯t need to go to the city at all. So what¡¯s the other request?¡± ¡°Can I borrow the necklace I gave you?¡± ¡°Oh this?¡± Rowen took out a necklace she wore. This was Teo¡¯s first present to her, she was a bit reluctant to give it back. Teo saw the necklace and it looked quite differently. The cord of the necklace was replaced with an iron chain, and the pendant was also covered within a metallic container. ¡°Big sister, what did you do to the necklace?¡±, Teo was curious as it looked nothing like the necklace he gave her ¡°I had to put some protection around it. It is my very precious treasure, but during sparring, it is quite dangerous, so I had to strengthen it a bit¡± The necklace was so well protected that it looked like a chained weapon around her neck. Teo was flabbergasted! Although Rowen could¡¯ve put this precious necklace away while sparring, she did not do so precisely because it was precious. ¡°Don¡¯t worry big sister, I¡¯ve been studying inscriptions and I can strengthen in quite a bit. I was planning on upgrading it before you graduated¡± ¡°Oh? Okay then¡±, Rowen slowly removed the necklace from her neck and handed it to Teo. She was reluctant to give it back to Teo, but after hearing his reason, her reluctance disappeared. Chapter 57: Motivation Chapter 57: Motivation After Teo parted with his sister, he immediately headed back to his cave. He had many things he had to do. Despite eventful day he experienced earlier, he didn¡¯t allow himself to relax, and pushed himself harder as he had plenty of motivation to do so. He needed to figure out a way to fix the mess that he had made. Although he had profited quite a bit in terms of money, the risks were too great. He felt anxious and worried, but he temporarily buried his emotions and calmed himself. He needed to stay clear headed for what''s to come. Though he was being pressured by the worst case scenarios he could think of, he had to focus. He turned his attention back to his research. ¡®My sister needs some sort of protection as well. I should ask mister Deacon about protection wards¡¯ There were too many things for Teo to accomplish. Although his progress with the wind enchanted boots were a success, he still had to create the void array, the concealment array and now some sort of protection array. Time is of the essence! He could kill two birds with one stone, if he can translate the void necklace inscription into an array form he could gain two things at once. It had both concealment inscriptions as well as the ability to create a pocket of space to store items. The only problem was the array equivalent to these was not basic ranked array, but from his estimates it should be a top tier medium ranked array, or perhaps even an advance ranked array. Furthermore, the techniques required to complete these arrays could not be accomplished by simple drawing techniques, but through a more advance technique that Teo isn¡¯t able to make use of. ¡®Writing world Qi as ink..¡¯, the main reason why he had to resort to such experiments As for the protection array, his inscription instructor might be able to help. Due to his current predicament,he was not lacking in motivation, but rather lacking in time. Initially he thought he had enough time and more to finish his projects, especially with the help of his newly found inscription from Zachery¡¯s ring, but now he had to worry about his sister¡¯s protection as well as fixing the mess he had made. He looked at the boots again and pondered With the help of the many symbols he had at his disposal, he gave these experimental boots a unique property. The amount of increase speed was set to increase in proportion of the user¡¯s strength. The stronger the person is, the better the results would be¡­ or at least in theory. Teo could only use himself to test it out, so he wasn¡¯t sure if the boots could even handle the increased power of the array. If it could, then it would be a great item to help his sister and his friends, allowing them to easily escape an enemy they can¡¯t defeat. On the other hand, if the boots were to suddenly break down during a critical moment, it would only ensure their capture or in the worst case, their deaths. Teo sighed quietly; alone in his room. ¡®If I had a guinea pig I could experiment more freely. Once the concealment array is finished then I would be able to test it on some unsuspecting victim! HA HA HA HA¡¯ He laughed at his diabolical ideas for the future. After a while he mumbled to himself silently as he hit his own head. ¡®Don¡¯t be too overconfident idiot!¡¯, as he scolded himself for today¡¯s mistakes ¡­. Gina took the two juniors into a tavern, and sat at the corner of the tavern. Lia and Windle quietly sat with mixed emotions reflected on their faces. ¡°Lia, what are you thinking of?¡±, Gina asked, although she already knew, she wanted them to talk it out instead of burying their feelings inside. They had been quiet the whole time and were thinking deeply about their situation. ¡°Senior sister¡­ I¡­ Teo¡­ Teo is so STUPID!¡±, as she took her fist and hit the table. -BAM- she slammed all her frustration onto the table. Tears started forming at the corners of her eyes, and gritted her teeth ¡°I thought Teo would be smarter than this, but now I know, out of the three of us, he is the most impulsive!¡± There was anger in her words, she was angry at Teo who brought them all into this mess. She was also angry at herself for not stopping Teo in time; moreover, she was angry that she was considering breaking ties with Teo. Windle, on the other hand, stayed quiet. He briefly admired Teo during the incident, but in hindsight, Teo¡¯s actions was truly foolish. He felt the same emotions as Lia but did not reveal them out in the open. ¡°Do you want to stop being friends with him?¡±, Gina asked solemnly This was the most important question of all, but after hearing Gina¡¯s question they became silent and thought deeply Their heads were spinning with different kinds emotions. In the past year, they had become best of friends. Parting from each other was too cruel, similar to someone having their hands cut off. They wouldn¡¯t have been so troubled if they were not attached to Teo! Their heads spoke with reason, but their hearts spoke with compassion. Lia gritted her teeth and slammed the table once more. ¡°Of course I don¡¯t want to stop being friends with him!¡±, she shouted as tears started flowing from her eyes She tried to wipe them before anyone noticed, but it flooded down her face; like a broken dam that could not be fixed. ¡°But he.. He..¡± Lia could not complete her sentence.. She felt like if she did, then the idea cutting ties with Teo would completely solidify and by then, she would¡¯ve already made a choice. Gina lend her shoulder to Lia as she wailed and cried. They¡¯ve drew the attention of several people in the tavern, but they didn¡¯t mind. Windle was also affected by Lia¡¯s tears. He had resolved himself to not cry, but it was like a contagious disease and tears slowly formed. His face twisted as he tried hard to hold his tears back but it was no use. ¡°If you still want to be friends with Teo, then you should stay as his friends. Right now, he needs the both of you more than ever¡±, Gina softly spoke. ¡°Although it is easy to make friends, it is hard to find friends who would share both joy and pain with you. You can tell by Teo¡¯s actions today that although they were rash, he protected someone who was important to him without holding regards to anything else. I believed Teo would also do the same for both of you.¡± The two became silent, but agreed in their hearts. They knew Teo¡¯s character of putting his friends and family first before himself. Lia was greatly disappointed that the booksmart Teo was actually just an idiot in disguised. At the risk of protecting someone dear to him, he dragged more people into a greater mess. Instead of protecting all of them, he stupidly made the situation worst. What a true idiot, but unexpectedly, her heart warmed at the thought of Teo¡¯s stupid actions. This tale has been pilfered from Royal Road. If found on Amazon, kindly file a report. Windle and Lia both asked themselves a similar question. ¡®Would I be able to do the same for Teo?¡¯ But before they could ask their hearts, Gina interrupted their thoughts and said ¡°As for the danger that might come in the future, if you plan on being a cultivator or a fighter within this world, you cannot avoid them entirely. What you need is strength and a little bit of danger will naturally help you grow much faster!¡± Lia and Windle was also aware of this fact. Why would Lia train so hard to improve her fighting ability? Why did Windle secretly practice to improve on his battling capability? After some reflection, the dangers that they feared were not as terrifying as they had thought.Their worst fear was being maimed or killed but if they stayed within the limits of the academy, at worst they would have to endure some bullies. But who were they? They were members of the top 4 factions within the the academy, who would dare harass them? Only people within these top 4 factions would be able to do so, and with the headmaster¡¯s promise, the Rizon faction should not be able to openly harass them. After thinking about the situation in a different light, the two wiped their tears and made a decision. They looked at each other¡¯s eyes and had a sense of unity and knew what they both had decided. ¡°Tomorrow, let¡¯s teach Teo not to be so impulsive!¡±, Lia said The both of them knew that if Teo could not mend his ways, he would bring both of them more trouble in the future. ¡­. Within the Rizon faction headquarters, the headmaster within a room watched the many youths of the Rizon faction currently tortured through intense training. Only two youths were spared, one was the already injured Kristofer, and the other Zachery. The headmaster had just came back from Mirth city. After he retrieved the ring, he came back to the party and dismissed any rumors that might have flown out. After the party, the Rizon branch family returned to their territory and the headmaster and the Rizon faction returned to the academy. Instead of heading to his quarters he decided to relieve some of his frustrations onto the youths. He sat down onto the couch and sipped some warm tea to help him relax. -Knock Knock Knock- Suddenly, the head master heard a knock on the door. ¡°Headmaster, an elder wishes to see you¡±, a member of the faction politely announced his reason for disturbing the headmaster ¡®An elder? It must be him¡¯, he thought. ¡°Show him in¡±, he placed his teacup down and stood to welcome the elder The headmaster was well acquainted with this elder as he was the leader of the Red guards, and he was not surprised of his visit. ¡°Elder Shard, what brings you here?¡± The elder smiled and said ¡°Headmaster Elon, just a small matter¡±, then looked at the faction member who was still nearby. Elon knew that the elder wanted to speak in private and sent the faction member away. ¡°Please sit¡±, Elon said as he gestured towards to one of the chairs ¡°-Cough-, I had heard about the incident today¡±, Shard said as he sat down; directly to the business he had. Elon did not show too much of a reaction as he had already guessed Shard¡¯s purpose for coming. ¡°I am embarrassed by my actions¡±, Elon humbly said ¡°Elon, we¡¯ve known each other a long time now. It isn¡¯t like you to be acting like this.¡±, Shard spoke informally These two worked with each other often for a long time and eventually started treating each other as friends. Despite being friends, Shard placed the order of the Imperial family before himself, so there was still a layer of professionalism in between them. ¡°-Sigh- Shard, I don¡¯t know what to tell you. My desperation had momentarily blinded me¡± Elon was the headmaster for the academy for many years, although this position had some level of power, it was a minor role within the Rizon family. ¡°Still hoping to reach to reach the Imperial city? You know, if you just accepted my offer I could¡¯ve helped you join the royal guards¡±, Shard said in concern Shard knew about Elon¡¯s desperation for the Imperial city, but Elon had always rejected his offer. ¡°Bah! At my age? At my talent? Besides, a Royal guard has no status within the Imperial city¡± ¡°Old fool! at least you might be able to see her. She has probably forgotten about you long ago!¡± A tinge of loneliness could be seen in Elon¡¯s posture. His plans to impress that visitor from the main family failed, and now the only chance he had to be invited to live in the Imperial city was in his grandchild¡¯s hand. He even brought Zachery during today¡¯s chase to impress him; to create a sense of gratitude toward him, but his plans were ruined. Due to his impatience he could not control his emotion that he even leaked it out towards his ticket out of this place. All he could do now was try to continually promote Zachery¡¯s good feelings towards him. He even gave his father¡¯s precious ring to this grandchild of his. Although it was not as precious as a void jewelry, it was should¡¯ve sufficed. ¡®Ella, have you really forgotten me?¡¯, he said softly within his mind. Ella was Elon¡¯s love interest that was invited to the Imperial city after they graduated. She was talented and beautiful and Elon tried to chase after her but with his mediocre abilities, he was unable to do so. Elon sat there quietly, and stared at the cup of tea on the table, reminiscing about his youth. ¡°-Cough-, In any case, I am here to remind you of your promise¡± Shard interrupted Elon¡¯s thoughts, as he pledged absolute loyalty to the Imperial family, Elon¡¯s oath was not light. He came to confirm of Elon¡¯s motives. ¡°Bah, those kids. They probably think of me as ruthless and shameless. Shard, I intend to keep my word, but that is only the promise to not harm them. There are still many things I can do to make them miserable without harming them¡±, Elon replied. ¡®But for that, I need to wait another year for it¡¯s full effect¡¯ Since Teo was still a second year student, he was still within the protection of the academy so he could not do much against him. As for the others, once he learned the exact details of incident, he did not hold the others responsible. As far as he was concerned, only by making Teo miserable could he make his grandchild satisfied. ¡®Even if everyone thinks badly of me, as long as I can reach my goal, I don¡¯t care¡¯, he inwardly thought. He did not hide his plans for the kids from Shard, because it was a small matter. As long as he did not break his oath then Shard would not care what he does. Shard nodded as he confirmed Elon¡¯s general plans Chapter 58: Unexpected Annoyances Chapter 58: Unexpected Annoyances The next morning, Teo waited anxiously at the location where the usually meet before classes. He was mentally fatigued from yesterday, and could not even take a break even within the inner world. Teo¡¯s stress grew abnormally large for someone so young, he had too much to protect and had little power to do so. His friendship was also on the verge of collapsing.This was the main reason why he was so anxious this morning. He waited an hour early, hoping to see his two friends just like before. He resolved himself for the worst and planned to stop at nothing to regain their trust. His knees felt weak, so he sat down as he waited. Compared to the whole crisis yesterday, this was worst by several folds. Negative thoughts flooded through his mind as the time drew closer and closer to the appointed meeting time. He frantically looked around, searching for his two friends, but no sight of them could be seen. His head dropped in disappointment and sadness. Tears started forming in the corner of his eyes. He could feel moisture through his nose and his lips slightly shook. ¡­¡­ Behind a large tree, two figures stood as they sometimes peeked to look at the black haired youth sitting around by himself. ¡°Hmph let¡¯s make him wait¡±, Lia said to Windle. She was wanted Teo to suffer a bit for the trouble he caused yesterday. In fact, the two had been waiting there before Teo and even wore hooded cloaks to hide their faces. ¡°Are you sure we should do this? Isn¡¯t it enough yet?¡±, Windle questioned Lia¡¯s decision ¡°Just wait a little bit more¡­¡± But then suddenly they noticed a change in Teo¡­ ¡®!!!¡¯ The two dashed out and came from behind. -SMACK- Lia smacked Teo¡¯s head from behind ¡°What do you think you¡¯re doing! Don¡¯t tell me you¡¯re going to cry¡± Teo turned his head to look, and his miserable face revealed a snot covered nose and watery eyes. A smile slowly emerged as he recognized the two cloaked figures. ¡°LIA! WINDLE!¡± He hugged both of them without restraint, but Windle and Lia pushed him away as they were hugged. ¡°EWW Teo don¡¯t hug us with all that snot coming out of your nose!¡± ¡°That¡¯s right! Why are you crying so hard! You¡¯re gonna make us feel bad for this prank..er I mean making you wait¡± They acted tough, but their eyes were still red from crying so much yesterday -Sniff sniff- ¡°I¡¯m sorry you guys¡±, Teo once again apologized as he wiped his eyes and nose. Lia revealed a smirk, but quickly turned around and quickly said ¡°Let¡¯s go, we¡¯re going to be late¡± She was glad with the choice that she made, but did not show it to the others. Windle could only smile as he understood both of his friends ¡­.. Teo finally relaxed after finding his two best friends were still there. A large portion of his stress disappeared but he still knew that he wasn¡¯t out of the fire yet. Windle and Teo headed for Dina¡¯s class but as they approached the entrance, two guards who stood watch of it blocked their paths. ¡°You stop!¡±, He looked at the description on the scroll and it perfectly described Teo. ¡®Black hair, short, plain looking face¡¯ ¡°What¡¯s your name?¡±, one of the guard asked ¡°My name is Teo, Teo Char¡± ¡°From today onwards, you have been officially expelled from this special class¡± ¡°What¡¯s going on?¡±, Teo asked but the guard gave no further response and just prevented him from entering. A figure from behind approached the entrance of the room. ¡°Hmm? What¡¯s going on?¡± The figure who just arrived asked the same question. Dina had just arrived and saw that some of her students were being blocked at the door. The guard immediately recognized Dina and took a parchment and handed it to her, then looked intently at Teo. Dina opened the parchment and read the contents of it. As she read her face, changed into shock and took a quick glance at Teo. She could not believe it. It was an order by the headmaster expelling Teo from the elementalist class! The main reason of the expulsion was because Teo¡¯s very low growth potential as well as his yesterday¡¯s performance, showcasing his cultivation and combat skills. ¡®Since this student has obviously given up on the path of being an elementalist, the education council deemed that ¡°Teo Char¡± be removed from the elementalist class from this day forth. This is so that he can completely focus on his cultivation and not be distracted by other things¡¯ ¡°Teo, what did you do?¡±, Dina asked as this was not normal for someone who has been going to the same class be prevent from entering it. The two of them were confused about the situation, and Dina who saw their expression handed them the parchment. As Teo and Windle read it, they became shocked at the contents, but the soon realized the reason why this was. ¡®This must be the headmaster¡¯s work! It seems like things are going to be annoying¡¯, Teo initially thought Although he found it annoying, he was a bit glad that the target of the headmaster¡¯s actions so far was him and him alone. After a reading the contents, Dina repeated her question ¡°Do you have any idea why this order came to be?¡±, Dina was curious. Normally the academy wouldn¡¯t interfere with her class unless there was some special reason. As Teo was about to answer, Windle hurried and covered Teo¡¯s mouth with his hand and said ¡°We have no idea as well miss Dina¡± Dina was curious with Windle¡¯s action but after a while, Teo also nodded Windle didn¡¯t want to Teo to carelessly answer. If he talked about the incident from yesterday, he might anger the headmaster even more. It was best to play innocent and let things take it¡¯s course on it¡¯s own. ¡°I see, hmm..I¡¯ll ask them about this in the central office after class and inform you if there is any change or news about this order. For now, just skip today¡¯s class and practice on your own.¡±, Dina said She had to inquire about this order to find out what really happened. Teo and Grifford were the only students who required to class during the second year since they have yet to reach the manipulation stage, and now one of them was expelled from the class! But Teo quickly shook his head and said ¡°It¡¯s okay miss Dina, in fact, this might be actually really good for me¡± From Teo¡¯s classes last year, he had the basic idea about advancing through the four stages of controlling the elements. In fact, with the amount of Qi he has, he would be successful enough to advance to the next stage, but Teo did not choose to do so so far. This text was taken from Royal Road. Help the author by reading the original version there. Initially, he only wanted to be able to use his Qi in order to access the inner world on his own. After that, he continued gathering Qi as he practiced his cultivation. Like everyone else, he also believed that his progress as an elementalist would not be feasible. Although he almost mastered his Sensing stages with the help of the inner world quite fast, he knew that sensing and controlling elemental energies were two different things, and the inner world could not help him in that area. Thus, he did not bother to start his Gathering stage for elemental energy but instead focused on world Qi gathering instead. He chose a different path! The path of arrays and cultivation, where inborn talent was not required! Without the elementalist class, he would have more time in his hands. After realizing this, he was quite grateful for this expulsion. With Teo¡¯s response, Dina could only let the matter go, but her head approached closer until it reached Teo¡¯s ears. ¡°If you have any questions regarding the class, you can look for me at the central office. Despite the academy preventing you from entering the classroom, they can¡¯t stop me from teach a student during my own time¡±, she whispered and then winked at Teo and headed inside Teo felt warmth in his heart from Dina¡¯s words. It was always a comforting feeling to have people to rely on. But as he looked at Dina¡¯s figure entering the room, he glimpsed at a familiar face which had a grin and stood deep within the room. Zachery watched him with a mocking expression. Behind him were, Ash and Erin. These people had always skipped the elementalist class as they were already in the manipulation stage, but for this special event today, they came to watch Teo as he was banned from entering. Although they were ordered not to harm Teo and his friends, they were not restricted from antagonizing Teo. They enjoyed Teo¡¯s dumb and confused expressions before, and now that they revealed themselves to Teo, they expected his face to turn ugly with contempt, but instead Teo¡¯s face was calm and smiling. Teo and Windle turned around and left the area. Although Windle was in the manipulation stage, he still intended to attend Dina¡¯s class religiously, but as for today, he decided to keep Teo company. ¡°Those people are really contemptuous. What should we do now?¡±, Windle asked in concern But Teo was rather unfazed and seemed rather happy compared to Windle. ¡°Like I said before Windle, this isn¡¯t a problem but rather a benefit. Without that class I have some more time to enjoy myself¡±, Teo said cheerfully ¡°Hmm.. if that¡¯s what you really feel then I guess this is a good thing¡±, Windle said In Windle¡¯s point of view, there wasn¡¯t really much benefit for Teo to attend that class because of his growth potential. Even after Teo graduated, Windle felt that he would still need to train on his own for years to improve by himself. If both of them knew that Teo¡¯s rate of improvement as an elementalist was actually only slightly slower than a normal specialist, then they would be both shocked! In fact, the whole empire would be shocked at this development! But unfortunately Teo choose to focus his attention to other things, and stopped his growth with his own decision. Whether this shocking rate of improvement was caused by the inner world and his master Cien, or caused by something else, his rate of improvement was slowly picking up speed, but was unknowingly halted by Teo himself. ¡°So what now? Lia still has her classes, and there is still a lot of time before we meet up with her. Should we just hang out around and wait for her?¡± ¡°Hmm, let¡¯s go to the Emerald Pavilion, I need to buy some more supplies¡±, Teo suggested He needed more materials for his experiments, and with his unexpected free time, he might as well strike while the iron is hot. ¡­. When the two arrived at the materials section of the pavilion, Teo took out a pen and paper and wrote down a few list of materials he needed to restock on. These were mostly elemental ink, elemental powder, a certain tree sap and liquid extracted from various animals. Because he could not use Qi or elemental energy as ink to write within the empty space like old man Cien¡¯s technique, he was improvising with thin wires and sap to hold onto elemental ink. He also tried several multilayered arrays to create the same function but it was very complex and with so many trials, his elemental ink stock was running low. After handing the sheet to the clerk, both of them continued to look around. Teo searched for other materials he could use while the clerk prepared the materials within the list. ¡°Teo, you are buying so much stuff. What are you doing with all that material?¡±, Windle asked He recognized some of the materials, which could be used for their inscription class but as for the other materials, he didn¡¯t know what Teo would use them for But Teo kept their use a secret and said ¡°I am experimenting on a new dish and thought that these materials might give it a different taste as for the other stuff, they are for a new cooking method that I am currently developing¡±, Teo smiled innocently ¡°Is that so..¡± Windle knew that Teo knows how to cook, but using these materials for a dish? He could only reply with a weird smile on his face. He didn¡¯t know how to cook, but he found it really odd for Teo to be experimenting with these materials. When the clerk returned, Windle showed his Emerald Pavilion badge and got Teo a friends and family discount, but when the price for the materials was revealed as he was showed his identification stone. It was shockingly more expensive than anticipated. The expected 60% elementalist discount that Teo expected was removed from the elemental inks and powders. As he was about to open his mouth to inquire why the price was so high, he noticed a familiar parchment on the clerk¡¯s side. Elemental ink was worth 60 silvers and elemental powder were 50 silver coins. He was buying two sets of both, so the total price was 2 gold and 20 silvers. Even with the 31% discount from the student discount and the friends and family discount that was still close to 1 gold and 56 silvers for those materials alone! ¡®Goddammit headmaster!¡¯, he cursed inside He didn¡¯t realize the implications of being kicked out of the elementalist class. Despite being fortunate enough to earn lots of money, he wanted to save as much as he can, so he quickly pulled Windle to the side. ¡°Windle, buy these for materials for me. I¡¯ll provide the money, and you will provide the discount!¡± Although there was now some inconvenience with purchasing materials, there was still a way around it. Chapter 59: The Calm Chapter 59: The Calm -BAM- The door was opened with such a strong force! Zachery and two others walked entered one of the rooms within the Rizon faction. They just came back from the elementalist class, hoping to incite Teo¡¯s anger but was clearly disappointed. ¡°GAH!! These small things can¡¯t be called revenge at all!!¡±, Zachery shouted with burning anger in his voice His lofty countenance and coolheadedness slowly vanished ever since he was forced to buy Teo¡¯s blood. He was spoiled by his grandfather and created a few annoyances for Teo, but still wanted for Teo to suffer. Unfortunately, they were forbidden from taking action directly. They could not opening take their revenge. Erin, who was behind him, was also mad as she thought of her brother who was currently recovering. ¡°We can¡¯t do much about it Zach, if we had money we can hire a few guys to beat him up, but..¡±, Ash did not finish his words because he saw Zachery¡¯s eyes becoming more inflamed than before That¡¯s right! Not only Teo humiliated them, he also took a large chunk of their money. ¡°Although we can¡¯t act now, during the third year we can! There is also the yearly tournament at the end of next year!¡±, Ash added These tournaments were originally proposed by the Imperial family to grow the children¡¯s competitiveness and combat skills. It shouldn¡¯t be a problem if they beat up Teo during the tournament. The burning desire for revenge grew them which motivated them to train harder, hoping for an opportunity for revenge! ¡°Hmph! Waiting for next year?! There is another way we can go about this but¡­¡±, Erin slowly said ¡­.. After their inscription class, Teo, Windle and Lia walked towards the Martial faction as usual and talked about the events that happened earlier. ¡°Teo, you were really kicked out? Are you going to enroll for a different class as a replacement?¡±, Lia asked ¡°Is that even possible? Don¡¯t enrollments only occur within at the beginning or end of the school year?¡± ¡°That¡¯s true, but what are you gonna be doing now? There¡¯s still more than half a year until then¡± Teo didn¡¯t give a specific answer and only lifted his shoulders, gesturing that he didn¡¯t know, but in fact he already have a plan on unexpected free time he had obtained. They arrived but surprisingly, Rowen was not here. Only Gina was there to guide them today. ¡°Where¡¯s big sister?¡± ¡°Oh, she had some stuff to take care of today, it¡¯s just us today. She told me to tell you to relax for today Teo, your body must be still tired from yesterday¡¯s battle. Go over there and play a bit with the other members¡± Teo looked towards that direction and saw several people sitting across from each other playing a board game. Teo had previously asked about this game before. Apparently, this game of chess were used to train people¡¯s decision making. Even such a simple board had a use for combat. There were mainly two different ways of playing the game. One was timed, and the other was not. The untimed chess games were used for beginners to learn about the game, for for experts who played them, it allowed them to deeply think many moves ahead, while the timed chess games simulated a battle where one was given very little time to think. The timed games were quick and exciting. Each player held an hourglass that lasted 3 minutes, after making a move they would tilt the hour glass sideways preventing the sand to slide down. Teo sat down against an old gentleman who was waiting for an opponent. Not only faction members played this game, so there were sometimes visitors who came here just to play. ¡°Timed or not?¡±, the old man asked ¡°Not timed¡±, Teo answered since he still considered himself fairly new at this game. The old man did not care who his opponent was and respected them all equally. Teo, like the other players, practiced his breathing technique as he played. The game was fun but had an air of seriousness. The game of chess was one without mercy. If a player intentionally made a mistake, it would be frowned upon and be thought of disrespecting their opponents, so players were forced to play the game at the full extent of their abilities. Teo¡¯s games were long, and against the experienced old man, he could not win a single game, but surprisingly, Teo did not lose as easily as most people would expect. The game was complicated, forcing players to think several steps ahead to try and outwit their opponents. ¡°Young man, you shouldn¡¯t be distracted while playing, it¡¯s quite rude¡±, the old man grumbled ¡°I apologize¡±, Teo responded as he continued to play Teo¡¯s thoughts only briefly wandered towards his experiments but the old man quickly took notice of this through Teo¡¯s moves and expression. The old man was did not only looked at the board when playing but also observed the opponent in front of him. By observing his opponent¡¯s eyes, one could easily see where their opponent¡¯s attention was focusing on. Even a brief glance was enough to discover his opponent¡¯s intent. ¡°It seems that you are mentally fatigued. For a child as yourself to have a tired mind, you must be in a quite of a predicament. You should learn to relax. Haste makes waste, and the harder you push yourself, the slower your progress will be¡± ¡°Thank you for the advice senior¡± ¡­.. A few months had passed and it seems as if the trouble Teo brought upon himself, Rowen and his friends had vanished. Rowen learned that Teo was kicked out of a class and was initially enraged and was going to complain but Teo eventually calmed her down. Due to the inscription Teo obtained from Zachery¡¯s ring, his understanding of arrays and inscriptions improved by an enormous amount. It was as if a barrier was broken into and the sense of achievement that Teo experienced was overwhelming. He engraved the inscription he obtained from Zachery¡¯s ring into the silver ring he managed to keep. Not only that, but he had successfully also created an array that mimicked its function as well as improved its performance! When he discovered the defensive capabilities of the inscription he became elated. By reverse engineering the inscription, instead of killing two birds with one stone, he killed three! The inscription¡¯s main property was of a defensive nature, but a part of the inscription also had a concealing effect. By understanding this lower grade concealing inscription, Teo¡¯s understanding of the more advanced concealment inscription of the void necklace would become easier. But the main problems still existed, which was the formation of this array. Although he had created an array of the inscriptions simply drawn a piece of paper, Teo knew that a multilayered array was not enough for the void inscription. He tried many different ways to solving this problem and after failure after failure he had managed to have some progress. The genuine version of this novel can be found on another site. Support the author by reading it there. He used a much more simpler array design for testing different methods. He tried wires and sap, creating an array using a ball of wire, coated in sap and elemental ink. In theory this could work but having such a extremely large ball of wire, it could not fit into a necklace. He tried hollowing a stone prototype using the wire drill and creating a 3 dimensional array within the stone but it weakened the stone¡¯s structure and would become too weak if more drills were made. Many materials were used; he tried strings, hair, fur but all of them caused one or more problems as he progressed. He attempted to create an array formation that did not rely on on direct lines for their connection, but this was currently too far advanced for Teo. Teo was even forced to start attempting to control his Qi because of his desperation but even if he could control his Qi perfectly, how would he make it permanently stay in place to hold up the lines of the array? The fundamental problem bred more problems as he thought of different experiments, so he decided to put it off for now. His goal right now is translating the void inscription into an array. Designing such an array would be challenging, but with his new profound knowledge it should be easier than before. Unfortunately, even if he does create a successful design, testing it would be difficult until he created his own method of forming the array. There was less than a year left before the school year would end. At this rate, after he cleared that tiny road block, he should be able to finish it with 1 or 2 months to spare. His improvement speed was not only due to the defensive inscription he obtained from the ring, nor was it solely from his unexpected extra time, but because he took the advice of the old man he played chess with. Instead of focusing on the problem non-stop, he took time to take a breather. He would meditate and relax, gathering Qi within the inner world, or improving his control of his Qi using a set of poses. Sometimes he would even experiment on unrelated arrays, to keep his mind flexible. Aside from discovering more basic arrays, he also learned of a medium ranked array that enabled him to link two different arrays. By combining each array property, he can create an array with a specific function, so this linking array was quite useful. The first array he built had a built in trigger type that activated when pressure was applied towards it. Teo became well versed in adding a trigger effect into a different array because of this. As for the linking effect of an array, it had many uses that Teo could think of. Like instead of the trigger type from his first array, he could instead activate it remotely using two arrays. This would allow him to control an array¡¯s activation without the risk of harming anyone who was not his target. ¡­. Teo walked around the academy as he was currently taking a break from his experiments. He was looking for inspiration from other things, and even browsed through many shop¡¯s enchanted items but most of them were inscriptions he had already seen; they were nothing special, and the higher quality ones required one to show that he could afford them to be able to even look at them. Despite winning 9 gold coins off of Zachery and his goons, with his recent expenses he did not have enough to view these items. Windle was currently attending the elementalist class, while Lia was taking in her smithing class, so Teo was alone wandering about. A delicious smell wafted through the air and attracted Teo¡¯s attention. His mouth watered as the strong smell of cooked meat invaded through his nostrils. He involuntarily swallowed his overflowing saliva and approached the nearby stall. ¡°Mister, give me a stick¡±, Teo ordered His eyes were glued to the many rows of perfectly charred meat and the fatty juices that dripped from them was enough to whet Teo¡¯s appetite. Recently, Teo¡¯s appetite grew larger and larger. With his recent activities, it was no surprise at all. His hard training was almost done for 4 to 5 days a week; sometimes even more depending if Gina or Rowen had any scheduled plans for them. Combining his training exercises and activities regarding inscriptions and arrays, which taxed his grey matter heavily, he required a lot of food to sustain both of these intense activities. ¡®Good thing food from the stalls are cheap¡¯, Teo thought as he bit down and munched on a chunk of perfectly cooked meat. The marinade seeped into the meat for a long time, and gave the meat a rich flavor. ¡®Delicious!¡¯ We walked carelessly as he enjoyed his snack, he thoroughly chewed the meat enjoying it to the fullest. As he was eating, two figures stepped forward and blocked his path. Teo¡¯s face instantly froze and he was forced to swallow the meat he currently had in his mouth as he forgot to chew it. ¡®!!!¡¯ The piece of meat was briefly stuck on in his throat until he forcefully swallowed it. -Cough cough- ¡°And here I was hoping that he¡¯ll choke to death on his own, that would be hilarious!¡±, Ash said with a sinister look on his face Zachery stood besides Ash with a solemn expression. Teo looked at Zachery and noticed that his aura changed. He became more masculine and seemed to give off a more dangerous feeling compared to before! He also heard a few sounds coming from behind him, he quickly took a glance and saw Kristofer and Erin blocking his path of retreat. He realized that it wasn¡¯t just Zachery who felt different, all of them released a different feeling as before. ¡®It seems that they¡¯ve been training hard as well¡¯ Despite briefly panicking from their appearance and almost choking from his meal, Teo was confident that although he was surrounded, they shouldn¡¯t be able to attack him in public. ¡°What do you guys want?¡±, Teo asked [Author''s note: Birthday wishes to my brother yesterday, although he probably doesn''t read this at all. 3 releases wooo~! lol Issues regarding Teo''s progress, let me remind you that he just started learning how to make arrays in a little over a year. Just because he becomes stronger in in fights compared to his progress in arrays doesn''t mean its a plot hole. Although I have "demonized", Elon''s character in previous chapters, Ch 57 should humanize him a bit. It isn''t always black and white, but he has his own motivations for his actions. He was pissed because of how his branch head treated him + his rival guy mocking him, and when he thought he could easily resolve the matter through intimidation, Teo actions pissed him of more. Not sure if I wrote it as such, but that was the intent. Anyways, I do appreciate all your concerns to the plot and stuff as I keep them all in mind with the future chapters ahead. Hoped you enjoyed. Maybe a fourth chapter will come out later today, depends if i can finish it.] Chapter 60: Temporary Solution Chapter 60: Temporary Solution Teo was surrounded by the four at all sides Despite Elon¡¯s promise, Teo did not let his guard down. Ever since the tournament when the headmaster clearly rigged the match ups, Teo had thought that the Rizon faction was truly shameless, and would could resort to anything. ¡°Teo you cheeky bastard, today is the last day you are allowed to be arrogant around us!¡±, Kristofer shouted from behind. He was thoroughly humiliated from their previous encounter, if he did not get his revenge after his hellish training, how could he ever sleep at night!? ¡°Zachery, have you forgotten ¡®his¡¯ oath?¡± Teo asked the person who would surely know about this incident. He did not name the headmaster because he was unsure if the three others knew about it or not Zachery¡¯s eyebrow raised as he heard Teo¡¯s question. ¡­.. The Rizon branch family performed divination rites to youths at a very young age. After Zachery had taken his at the age of 5, Zachery had always been respected within the Rizon branch family. Although his parents were not too high up within the social hierarchy within the family, he alone was held with in high regard. His parents spoiled him rotten, and many of the other kids respected him. The family head even went as far as recruit other youths to become his followers in such an early age. Loyalty was grown with time, and many tried to gain his favor. Zachery was the second elementalist that had appeared in their branch family within a 10 year gap. The first one was Daniel, but Zachery was different from Daniel and many relatives gave him gifts and spoiled him rotten before he enrolled at Mirth academy. Once enrolled, the ones that attempted to curry his favor was his grandfather and the rest of the Rizon faction that lived in the academy. His standing as an elementalist was far greater than Daniels as he was a Triad. Everything he wanted was given to him, everyone he hated was punished to his heart¡¯s content, he became cold and lofty to others, uncaring and apathetic. Many family members praised his regal personality as if he was royalty, and his ego inflated to its limits. It was not until his encounter with Teo that his brilliant and lofty countenance was slowly shattered away. ¡­. ¡°That oath? What does that have to do with me?¡±, Zachery smirked as he subtly revealed his sleeves to Teo. Teo noticed Zachery¡¯s gesture and saw an empty spot where the guild badge was suppose to go to. He looked at other three¡¯s sleeves as they were missing as well. The Rizon badge was missing! When Teo thought that his airtight analysis was perfect, it had more holes than his stone prototype. Teo immediately knew that these four had left the guild, and was not bound to the promise. Normally, a prideful individuals like them would never resort to lowering their status just for revenge, but with Zachery¡¯s special position, temporarily leaving the faction was of no consequence to him. If it weren¡¯t for the fact the Erin pointed this loophole, none of them would¡¯ve noticed it at all, but Erin was probably the smartest of the group, so she quickly noticed it soon after. As for why they waited this long to exact their revenge? It was because they knew that Teo was surprisingly tougher than the previously predicted. They used this time to train themselves so that they could overpower Teo and humiliate him. This was their ultimate goal; to humiliate Teo in front of the whole academy! They wanted to make Teo feel what they have felt a hundred times over! Despite being intimidated by this shocking revelation, Teo quickly finished the last piece of meat on that tiny skewer. This time he did not have enough time to savor it and quickly wolfed it down. The four who saw this action became slightly displeased. Even now with the four of them, Teo did not seem to be taking it seriously at all. Instantly, all four of them drew their weapons! They pulled out wooden wooden swords instead of the actual swords on their waists. This was because that although they wish for revenge, it was not to the point of risking their lives. If they accidentally maimed or killed Teo within the academy grounds, no matter who they were, they would be severely punished. Without warning, they simultaneously attacked Teo! Their strikes were coordinated and left very little space for Teo to maneuver. Although Teo¡¯s agility improved in the past few months, he did not have eyes at the back of his head, and could not dodge all of it. Erin and Kristofer swung their weapons towards Teo¡¯s shoulders and legs. Teo, who was distracted with Zachery and Ash¡¯s attacks, did not notice it in time and could not brace himself and was struck heavily by their blunt weapons. ¡°AHH!¡± Teo cried in pain but did not fall. Although it was painful, he had already reinforced his clothes with basic strengthening inscriptions. This basic inscription somewhat helped mitigate the blows on his body, but the longer he stayed enclosed by these four attackers, the more damage he would have to succumb to. Within a slight opening, Teo quickly grabbed an incoming blow from Ash¡¯s wooden sword with his his open palms! -BAM- The strike was hard and should¡¯ve injured Teo quite a bit, but by taking advantage of the tattoo on his chest, he easily blocked the power of the blow. With his left handing holding the wooden sword, he quickly tugged on it and the surprised Ash was caught off balanced. Teo stabbed Ash with the skewer he had. ¡°ARGH!¡±, Ash felt pain from being stabbed. ¡°Watch out! He¡¯s gonna escape!¡±, Erin shouted immediately recognizing Teo¡¯s intent Blood flowed from the puncture wound and he was temporarily disabled due to the pain it brought. Teo took advantage of this, and quickly ran through the opening that Ash had left! ¡°Don¡¯t think you can get away!¡±, Zachery shouted They quickly chased after Teo like wild dogs. Ash also followed as he quickly regain himself, he took a paper packet within his pouch and crushed it above his wounded hand. Medicinal powder dropped down from the paper packet and stopped his wound from bleeding. The author''s content has been appropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon. He felt slightly relieved from the pain as the medicine also had a numbing effect once applied to a wounded area. Teo dashed through the street as he briefly glimpsed at his pursuers. Some people were alerted by them but this was not an uncommon sight within the academy. Fights can break out, and lynching lone students were often seen. Teo¡¯s speed was quite fast, but surprisingly, he could not easily lose his pursuers. Zachery and the rest were filled with blood thirst, but they were enjoying the chase. They enjoyed seeing their prey panic. ¡®Hmph, even if you are quite faster than before, these new boots we recently obtained should be more than enough to deal with you¡¯, Zachery said in his mind as he chased. The boots that Zachery had was something he specifically purchased after seeing Teo¡¯s speed during his battle with Kristofer. They initially planned to keep Teo trapped in their four man formation, but if they failed, they knew that they had to somehow be able to chase Teo down. These boots were expensive and only Zachery was able to afford it for the moment, as for others, they were merely borrowing similar but lower ranked boots from members of the Rizon faction. Although they ¡°quitted¡± the faction in order to attack Teo, it didn¡¯t mean that they couldn¡¯t rejoin the faction later on. It was the loophole that Erin found. Although they might get criticized by this action, they thirst for revenge was more important right now! With the enchanted boots they had and the wind elemental attribute that Zachery, Kristofer and Ash had, they were able to maintain good speed to chase down Teo, but to their surprise, Teo it was still not enough for them to be able to close in! Teo was running at full speed, but maintained the technique that Rowen had taught him. It was a movement technique that utilized one¡¯s full speed and momentum while carefully controlling one¡¯s steps. This allowed him to sustain his speed a little longer than normal by reducing the stress that his legs would¡¯ve endured. He ran deeper into the southern district. There were many stalls and shops within this district and often many visitors. By using such a crowded place, Teo was able to slowly increase the gap between them. ¡®I have to find a place where I can deal with them, but if I kick their asses, it might bring more trouble¡¯, Teo contemplated. Teo wanted to pacify them without making too many waves. Although he might be able to take them on one by one, he could not predict what troubles such actions might bring. The only choice was to lose them! ¡®Gah! This is so annoying!¡¯ He quickly changed direction multiple times and with his small size and agility, he easily moved through the crowd of people. ¡°Where did he go?¡±, Kristofer who followed behind Zachery asked. The others soon arrived but they had no clue the direction Teo escaped. There were many people, and someone running at a very fast pace would be easily be noticed, but for some reason Teo disappeared. Zachery briefly lost track of Teo and quickly jumped up on top of one of the wooden stalls to get a better view of the area. ¡®Goddammit that bastard is too fast! Even with these boots I couldn¡¯t catch up to him¡¯, Zachery inwardly cursed ¡°Find him, he must be hiding around the area!¡±, Zachery concluded The team of four slowly scoured the area, looking for their prey. ¡­. Teo took a quick glimpse outside the shop, to see if he was found out. Luckily he was not caught entering the shop and was able to buy some time. After running for a while, Teo decided to best way to lose them was to hide in one of shops. Although fighting might be allowed on the streets, if it interfered with other people¡¯s businesses, the academy guards should take action. But Teo did not rely on the academy guards too much, and went deeper into the store. He didn¡¯t go just to any store, he chose a specific store to hide in. The clothing store sold many different clothes. Several clothes could be seen hanging on the walls and a large number of clothes out on display tables and racks. Teo grabbed a straw hat, and a black hooded robe that was for sale. ¡°Can I try it on?¡±, Teo quickly asked the clerk to use the change room. The robe¡¯s size was a little large for the short Teo. He looked at himself on the mirror but he was quite satisfied with the disguise. He tied the excess robe onto his thigh but it still look quite long. After a while he stepped out of the change room ¡°I¡¯ll take them, oh and do you sell masks here?¡± ¡­.. Erin and Zachery positioned themselves at the two ends of the street. They guarded Teo¡¯s path of escape hoping to find Teo sneaking out, and as for Ash and Kristofer, they looked at one shop after another, looking for Teo. Kristofer bumped suddenly bumped in an old man with a hunch on his back. ¡°Excuse me¡±, he quickly apologized. The old man whose face was masked and wore a straw hat. As he walked his legs would shake ever so slightly as if he was about to fall, but he held himself up with a small walking stick. ¡°No problem young master¡±, they old man said with a hoarse voice and bowed as he left the shop This old man was exactly Teo in disguise! He placed his crumpled up shirt into his back and bought a cane from the store. He hunched back down to lower his height even more and with his tired legs and dry throat, his disguise became somewhat believable. The only problem was that his hands exposed his youthfulness and thus he specifically hid them under the long black sleeves of the cloak. He looked over the street and noticed Erin and Zachery¡¯s positions. Even if his disguise fooled Kristofer, it wasn¡¯t guaranteed he could fool the others. As he noticed the direction in which Kristofer investigated each shop, Teo simply entered a shop that he had already investigated before. Teo waited there for them to leave and looked around the shop as if he was shopping. ¡®I spent so much money on this disguise, hopefully they don¡¯t find me¡¯ Chapter 61: A Smithing Technique Chapter 61: A Smithing Technique Kristofer shook his head, as did Ash ¡°Dammit!¡±, Zachery shouted With the many people in the area, it was hard to thoroughly search for Teo. There were also many people here who hid their faces, so checking all their identities were impossible; Perhaps they might offend a hidden expert. After a while, the group gave up the search and dispersed. Teo watched patiently from a distance and breathed a sigh of relief as he saw them leave, but he knew that this was a temporary solution to his problem. His hand gripped the cane tightly. With today¡¯s incident he knew it wasn¡¯t over with just this. It was best to bring a weapon to protect himself. ¡­. After some time, Teo arrived at a small building with several chimneys on top. There was still sometime before their inscription class and Teo did not want to linger near the area, so he decided to get out of the shopping district and wait for Lia outside of her smithing class. The building had their double doors wide open and from the outside, one could see the many students working. Some hammering pieces of metals placed on several anvils, others managing the heat of the forge, and and a few discussing topics related to smithing. Teo stood there peeking inside the class as he waited, he noticed many available materials laying around and some completed works that were displayed on the walls. Sparks flew as the hammer struck down into the heated metal. One hit after another, and the shape of the piece of metal was slowly being formed. Eventually, some of the students started to notice Teo outside and soon, everyone noticed him as well. Lia eventually noticed Teo and as she did, she approached him. ¡°Teo what are you doing here? Look at the armor I am currently making¡±, she smiled as she held up a piece of armor she made with large metal tongs. She loved to brag so as she asked Teo she showed him her current project. ¡°I decided to visit, I was getting bored by myself.¡±, Teo said. He kept the earlier incident a secret from Lia, so she wouldn¡¯t be worried. After that, he said ¡°Your class seems interesting¡± ¡°Want to come in and watch closer?¡±, but before Teo could answer she immediately left her to ask the instructor. Unlike Deacon, the smithing class¡¯ instructor was not too secretive and Lia was very good at flattering people, and easily got the instructor to allow Teo to observe the class with Lia¡¯s supervision. Teo¡¯s eyes sparkled as this piqued his interest, he knew very well the joys of creating something with your own two hands. He could feel the intense heat that emanated from the many furnaces. Many of the students sweated and toiled, but they had satisfied look on their faces. Almost every student enjoyed the elective classes they took. If they didn¡¯t want to do the work, why would they choose to take them? ¡®Maybe I should learn smithing next year¡¯, he thought to himself. Although the third year was the start of his combat classes, they weren¡¯t restricted from learning other classes. The only requirement was to pass the test at the end of the year, so even if they took elective classes, the academy didn¡¯t care. As he moved his eyes inspecting each person working one by one, he saw something that shocked him for a long time. His eyes grew wide and his hands shivered in excitement. Eventually, his whole body shook, the excitement overflowed through every corner of his body! Lia who was responsible for watching Teo during his visit noticed his strange reaction as he stared at a classmate who was working with metal. This classmate was holding a large ceramic cup which held a mixture of liquified metals, and was pouring this hot mixture of metals into a small hole of a ceramic block. ¡°This method is called ¡®casting¡¯, it uses a ceramic mold to shape the general shape of the weapon or armor and when it cools down, the liquid metal will harden.¡±, Lia explained ¡®CASTING!¡¯ As Teo heard Lia¡¯s explanation, he saw the possibilities of this technique! ¡°This is¡­ this is it!!¡±, Teo could not contain his excitement and shouted loudly in class ¡°Teo..¡±, Lia grabbed him and covered his mouth, but everyone¡¯s attention fell on Teo ¡°Ah.. I am sorry everyone¡±, Teo quickly apologized and bowed The disturbance wasn¡¯t a big deal so everyone easily went back to their own business ¡°What¡¯s up Teo, why are you acting so strange¡±, Lia inquired but Teo did not explain his joy ¡°It¡¯s nothing¡±, he smiled so pleasantly as he found the last key to open the path that blocked him for such a long time. ¡°Lia, do you think you can teach me how to do this ¡®casting¡¯?¡±, he immediately asked There were many things that Teo did not know, and he didn¡¯t have access to these kinds of equipment. If Lia could teach him it would be a big help; if Lia could get the instructor to be able to use their furnace, it would be even better. ¡°What? Interested in smithing?¡± Lia was suddenly feeling superior. Teo was very good at inscriptions and studying and was even slowly catching up to her within at fighting ability. Being good at something over Teo was an uplifting feeling for her. She learned that Teo had a secret inscription that he wouldn¡¯t even share no matter how she tried to persuade him, but right now she finally has a leverage! ¡°Well mister Teo Char, I will certainly help you but.. You have to do something for me¡±, she revealed a sweet and innocent looking smile ¡­.. Teo couldn¡¯t contain his excitement since his agreement with Lia. Throughout the day, he was distracted and could not concentrate in his inscription class or his training exercises, all he could think about was Lia¡¯s promise to teach him casting. She would teach him about casting and assured Teo that she could get the instructor¡¯s permission so that he could used their equipment during the weekends, but Lia needed for a few items from Teo. Although Teo would not reveal his ¡°secret inscriptions¡±, he promised to inscribe the things that Lia asked for. It didn¡¯t stop with just the boots, but also her armor, and sword. Despite Lia promising to get the instructor to allow Teo the use of the smithing class¡¯ equipment, Teo knew it would require some time for Lia to accomplish, but knowing her, Teo was confident in her ability to persuade others. Teo had already finished a basic prototype array design of the void inscription. If the simple array he designed worked without problems, then the complete version of the design should also work! If you find this story on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the infringement. In fact, he had already created two different array designs of the equivalent void inscription. The only thing he needed was to test the prototype and add a few properties to these designs and choose between them. If one failed, the other was the back up, but since it wouldn''t take him too long to do, he temporarily put that on hold. Lia¡¯s current demands leaped to the top of the list of what he had to do. With his understanding of the concealing properties of the ring, he decided to use that into the arrays that he was going to place on Lia¡¯s equipment. Although the concealment properties of the ring was not as great as the concealment properties of the void necklace, Teo deemed it good enough. Within his cave, he started to design an array that had the same effect of his boots but with a concealment property. He used the design that he was currently using and modified it. ¡®Hmm should I put a limiter on it?¡¯, Teo wondered He was worried that if Lia kept using the boots when she grew stronger, it might suddenly break down on her causing her to hurt herself. But after a while, a mischievous smile appeared on his face. He stopped all his work and took out the disguise he had earlier. ¡®I think i should experiment for a bit¡¯ ¡­.. The following weekend, a short hunch figure carrying a large sack suddenly entered into the large doors of the Emerald Pavilion. The figure had held the large sack of his hunch and covered his whole body. Not a single skin or hair was visible, even the large straw hat covered his eyes, preventing people to have the slightest clue who he was. From the way he walked, he looked like he had a very stable body, but for some reason he held a walking cane in his other hand. The lady in the counter was not surprised from what this figure was wearing. Several customers and clients preferred to hide their identity when buying or selling. From the looks of the dirty bag he brought in, it looked like this person was here to sell some items. She did not judge the guest by their appearance alone. There were a few incidents of eccentrics who often wore crude and dirty clothes but surprisingly sold extremely valuable items, so this could be one of them. She was also trained to welcome any and all guests that visited their establishment. ¡°Greeting esteemed customers, how could we help you today?¡± The woman behind the counter was always beautiful and alluring, but with Teo¡¯s age, he could not appreciate such beautiful fairy. ¡°I would like to sell some of my wares¡±, Teo replied with a masked voice. Even if his voice was muffled by the mask he wore, he also altered it to seem like he was old. In contrast to his first visit, he had subtly learn a few precautions in further hiding his identity. ¡°Of course, dear guest¡± she looked towards to one of the attendants and said ¡°Please escort our esteemed guest to the seller¡¯s chamber¡± There were two paths that guests of the establishment could take. On the right was a hallway the led to their different stores. This path was for buyers of common merchandises. On the left was a door that led to a few small rooms. These were the seller¡¯s chambers. These chambers were used to appraise the products being sold and negotiate for the price that the pavilion would be willing to buy it for. Teo was led into one of these small rooms, it was quite a simple room. Only two chairs and a large table was inside the room but the walls was extremely thick similar to it¡¯s doors. ¡°Please wait until a representative arrives to help you¡±, the attendant politely said as she left Teo inside to wait. He sat down on one of the chairs and placed his sack on the table. After waiting for 5 minutes, the representative arrived. It was a middle aged man, that was slightly fat with a fake smile on his face. ¡°Sorry for the wait¡± The man looked at Teo¡¯s clothes and bag and sighed inside. He knew about the eccentrics who sold valuable items while dressing up as a beggar, but they were quite rare. Also, most of these known eccentrics were given a personal medallion that they could immediately show at the counter. These medallions proved that person¡¯s importance. All medallions were made of pure gold, although they were small, they were well crafted and extremely detailed and had a beautiful azure green emerald adorned in the middle. The chance of an unknown eccentric suddenly appearing was quite low, so while he treated Teo was an important guest, inside he sneered at the dirty figure before him. ¡°So, what does our guest have for sale?¡± Teo did not speak and took out one pair of shoes after another. A total of 10 pairs of shoes. The fat representative sneered even more and this time he did not bother hide it at all. From his years of appraising goods, he could tell that the materials of the shoes were very low. In fact, one could probably buy these pairs of shoes for only a few silvers coins, and what¡¯s more is that on each side of each shoe, was a mark denoting a number. Each pair of shoes were numbered from 1 to 10 and made the ugly looking shoes even more undesirable. He took a pair and carefully looked at all sides of the shoes. Inside, outside and even the bottom, there were no indications of these shoes being engraved with any inscription. He had thought that the markings were some sort of inscription, but after further examination, these numbers were just simple numbers and was written using a special ink that was very difficult to remove. ¡®He dares sell these kinds of junk here?¡¯, he inwardly sneered ¡°Sir, with all due respect, our Emerald Pavilion do not purchases these kinds of merchandise here. They are far too low quality for us to make any profit¡±, the fat representative said with an annoyed face Wasting his time with such junk items was simply irritating. ¡°How about trying them on before you make that judgement? Are you new here?¡± [Author''s Note: Welp, I decided not to post anything on April 1st for obvious reasons, so I am posting 2 today. Since it''s the a new month, I will be asking if there are people who wish to support this series to consider on donating or helping with finding grammar errors, typos, etc. thanks again!] Chapter 62: Twenty Percent Chapter 62: Twenty Percent When the fat representative heard Teo¡¯s words, his vein popped out from his forehead. He had been working for this establishment for 20 years! How could this dirty stranger even question him at all? His reputation was being questioned buy this beggar in front of him and his fake pleasantries quickly vanished and was replaced by anger. ¡°You cheap beggar dare question my eyes? I have an extensive 20 years experience in these matter! What? You want me to get you a different representative?!¡± This fat belly jiggled as his voice gradually became louder as he scorned Teo. He quickly opened the door and with a loud voice, said ¡°Esteemed guest wants a different representative to appraise his treasures, can someone come to the sixth chamber¡± He did not hide his sarcastic tone and waited for any available appraisers to arrive.Soon, two other representatives arrived at the scene. One was much older, while the other was very young. From a glance, one could not tell that they were master and apprentices; trainer and trainee. Most people could regard them as a grandfather and a grandchild, but from their words and actions, one could tell that the youth was an apprentice learning the ways of appraising items. After closing the door, they looked at the other shoes they felt that the appraisal of the fat veteran was correct. They examined it thoroughly and found nothing special about it. ¡®This guest must be here to make trouble¡¯, the old man thought The fat representative stood behind them as he sneered towards Teo. He was confident on his appraisal and from the old representative¡¯s expression, he could tell that he also found nothing out of the ordinary. ¡°What is your evaluation of this item?¡±, the old man asked his apprentice. He was testing his knowledge and perception. ¡°The materials are quite cheap, and this number design makes it very ugly. I can¡¯t detect any inscriptions being used on this at all which pose two possibilities. One, there aren¡¯t any or two it is so well hidden that I can¡¯t see it at all. I guess I have to test it out.¡±, the youth responded as he held a pair in his hands The youth was very thorough as he was being tested by his instructor. He started taking off his shoes and took a pair off the table. The old man looked at the youth and sighed. Although his evaluation of the item is correct, he missed one crucial thing. It was the fact that the item was made of cheap materials! An inscription with concealment properties that they could not detect on a cheap item like this? That would be unheard of! It was like cover a treasure with shit that could not be washed off! Besides, with their abilities, only a high ranked concealment inscription were the only ones that they could not detect. They could barely detect a medium ranked, although they could not see it because of its concealment, they could discern that it was there. As the youth wore the pair, he took note of how uncomfortable these cheap pair of shoes felt. He also noticed the slight smell that emanated from the shoes, and found them to be used. The youth was quite thorough and took note of everything he could think of. Then he suddenly circulated his Qi into the shoes and his whole body froze. He felt his weight becoming lighter and lighter, which proved that these pair of shoes really did have a concealed inscription on it. ¡®High level concealment inscription on these shoes, one can say that they are already treasures, but the choice of materials is quite questionable¡¯ Then he prepared to test of the amount of speed the shoes can give him. The fat and older representative watched the new apprentice thinking of lecturing him for missing something so crucial that could¡¯ve saved his time. ¡®A few steps should do it¡¯, the apprentice thought and within just only one step -BAM- Despite using only half his speed for a single step, he ended up slamming into the thick walls without him being able to react. He was slightly injured by the impact but laid motionlessly on the floor as if paralyzed. He was deeply assessing the speed boost he had obtained, and calculated that it was above slightly above a mid rank enchanted boots. The other two representative widen their eyes and the fat representative¡¯s jaw dropped to the floor! Their brains froze as it became blank for a long moment. They could not process the situation at all! From the apprentice¡¯s figure on the ground, they could tell that the shoes indeed have some inscription within it, and what¡¯s more is that it seems to be a high ranked concealment! But such a thought was contradictory to their beliefs! Such a high level technique of inscription and concealment was used on trash items like this?! What a waste!! The three representatives were motionless as if they were inanimate objects, and Teo gave them a bit of time but eventually he became impatient. They were standing there for almost 5 minutes! -Ahem- Teo cleared his throat very loudly that he dragged the three back to reality. ¡°Well? How much are you buying¡±, Teo asked He sounded confident, but in reality he did not know how much these shoes would sell for. He had hoped to sell these at a decent price, enough to cover the expenses for creating them. The more experienced and older representative was the first two regain his wits and spoke ¡°Esteemed guest, on behalf of the Emerald Pavilion, I apologize for our representative¡¯s rudeness¡±, he quickly apologized as he immediately recognized Teo as one of those famed eccentrics ¡°I am very sorry for my rude conduct today, please forgive this foolish one for not having eyes to see¡±, the fat representative immediately threw himself onto the floor. His intestines were green with regret due to disrespecting such an esteemed client As they were apologizing the young apprentice stood behind his master and bowed as well. With his status, and Teo¡¯s projected status, he should not have the right to speak at all! ¡°How large is the boost in speed did you get?¡±, the older representative quietly whispered to his apprentice ¡°Master, It¡¯s well above mid rank, but not too quite high rank. With the quality of materials, I don¡¯t know how this speed is possible. I don¡¯t know how to appraise this item¡±, he whispered in reply ¡°Esteemed guest, how about let us move to a different room as we thoroughly appraise these treasures¡±, the old representative sincerely said ¡­. Teo found himself within a large room within the third floor. There were many food and drinks offered to him and two beautiful attendants with very revealing clothes were left to wait on him. ¡®So this is what the third floor looks like¡¯, Teo thought If Teo was a little older, he would appreciate these kinds of attendants but alas his focus was more on the room and the food rather than the ladies that were awaiting orders. The room was extravagant and designed with very expensive looking items. Every inch of the floor was covered by a carpet of soft looking fur. The tables used were dark with a thick layer of gloss, even shinier than polished gold. The green chairs were embroidered with golden design and were extremely soft. The narrative has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the infringement. Teo¡¯s stomach grumbled as he smelled the fragrant smell of the dishes prepared for him as he waited, but with the 4 attendants with him in the room, he did not dare to take off his mask to eat or drink. The attendants heard Teo¡¯s stomach and quickly understood the situation. They were not only beautiful but also had a very sharp mind. ¡°Esteemed guest, we shall wait right outside the door. If you have anything to ask of us please don¡¯t hesitate to ask¡±, the four promptly left and Teo was finally alone He looked at his dirty sack and became guilty that it was spreading dirt on the carpet. Inside the sack were only 9 pairs of boots, the 10th pair was currently being fully appraised. Teo was afraid that someone might burst inside the room, so he quickly locked the door from the inside. He immediately pulled down his mask and started to eat the various delicacies prepared for him. ¡®These are more delicious than that expensive restaurant we ate from before!¡¯, he thought Since the appraisal process seemed to be taking a while, Teo ate until he was satisfied and after that he wore his mask and unlocked the door. -Knock knock knock- After a long while a knock appeared on the door ¡°Esteemed master, may we come in?¡± A familiar voice from behind the door asked permission to enter the room. They treated the room if it was owned by Teo, but this was of course to respect their disguised guest¡¯s privacy. ¡°You may enter¡± The figures who entered was the older representative from before and another old man who wore dazzling and extravagant clothes. The old representative carried on his hands one of the pairs of boots that Teo brought to sell. ¡°Most esteemed guest, I am called Cody the branch chief of this establishment, please allow me to warmly welcome your visit¡±, the old man wearing such luxurious clothes introduced himself with a friendly smile. ¡°We have assessed the product you have brought us today, and we wish to ask how much one wishes to sell them?¡±, he continued as he briefly glanced that the dirty sack ¡®These are indeed treasures, but the materials used are too horrible. He is clearly the maker of these items, I must form a good relationship with him¡¯, the branch chief thought The branch chief did not wish to overbid on the price, but if he offered a lower price from what the seller wanted, he might offend the mysterious figure. ¡°Ha ha ha, branch chief, I sadly don¡¯t know how much they would sell for, but I wish to put some conditions for them¡±, Teo replied with a disguised voice ¡®Don¡¯t know the price? Conditions?¡® The branch chief was wary because many eccentrics were hard to deal with. Some pretended ignorance and played him before, and this mysterious seller should be one of those. ¡°Oh? What conditions did sir have in mind?¡±, Cody replied ¡°Hmm, you see these products are still in their experimental stages, so I do not want to sell too high. I also want them to be only sold within the confines of the academy for a few months as well as some other conditions. How about 20%? As long as these conditions are met and you provide me the complete information of the buyers as well as a portrait of them, 20% of the value you estimate it as will suffice¡±, Teo explained ¡®The average price for a basic enchanted shoes is around 1 or 2 gold¡¯ From his perspective, even if it¡¯s price was evaluated as 1 gold, he would still make a lot of profit. Compared the boots that Zachery wore, which was worth around 5 gold coins, With Teo¡¯s cultivation, it gave him a comparable speed. Enchanted items were priced depending on how powerful the effects of the inscriptions were. A student who had studied inscriptions for a few years could create a basic enchanted shoe, but not all shoes were the same, with the subtle difference of each shoes, it was a lot of work calculating these changes and adjusting their inscription lines. Although they were relatively cheap, for many they were valuable treasures. Not even Zachery¡¯s henchmen could afford such basic enchanted shoes. The branch chief was stumped. These boots that this mysterious seller brought were indeed treasures, even regarding the poor materials and the terrible looks, when appraising the power of the boots, they discovered that the boost it gave scaled depending on the user¡¯s strength! With each stage of cultivation after Qi gathering stage, the Qi grew thicker as one progresses. The thicker the Qi the greater the speed! These could be considered high tier treasures, perhaps more! An expert would pay a large sum for these kinds of shoes! A high tier enchanted boots was worth around 60 gold coins, but with their potential, these boots should be far above that! The only problem was the materials! Most inscriptions relied on the quality of the materials used. He knew that no normal inscription could produce this level of speed using such items, which meant that the real treasure was these eccentric¡¯s skills ¡°Most esteemed guest, could you please elaborate on the other conditions you spoke of in greater detail¡± ¡­¡­ After Teo explained the conditions he wanted, branch chief Cody became even more apprehensive. There were many odd conditions that this mysterious eccentric wanted to set, but with such strict requirements, he should be able to lower the price quite a bit, but it wouldn¡¯t be good if he took advantage of this eccentric guest. He wanted to build a close relationship with Teo for future transactions. ¡°Sir, instead of selling it to us, how about we auctioned it off? In a few months we are holding our yearly auction and we can obtain the buyer¡¯s information with the conditions you¡¯ve set, and as for the rest, we can handle it as well. I think you would find it more profitable this way¡±, Cody suggested ¡°No, I would rather you sell these shoes as soon as possible¡±, Teo replied Although he still had lots of time, waiting for two months would be cutting it close! What he needed were quick guinea pigs! ¡°Is that so...then 20% it is, with the following conditions as promised but we will require sir to please not exclude us from future sales of your wares¡±, Cody replied with a pleasing smile [Author''s Note: A few things I have to talk about there is a distinction between the Rizon Family and the Rizon Faction. The faction is a student organization within the academy, while the family is spread throughout the empire. Also, there is a difference between seeing elemental energy, and seeing world Qi. Since the later half of the array book is all written in world Qi, the old man Cien had to upgrade Teo''s eyes. Even if he had mastered the sensing stage, there was currently no way for Teo to see world Qi (unless it was very dense, the Cien''s technique) ] Chapter 63: Filthy Rich [Author''s Note: I am happy to announce that I finally got a capable editor for this series! Please welcome thisisnate for editing this chapter! and hopefully future chapters And of course once again, thanks for reading!] ----------------------------- Chapter 63: Filthy Rich In Teo¡¯s cave, Teo sat down on the floor staring at a large bag in his hands. The bag was made of expensive looking leather, thick, yet soft to the touch and of a beautiful tan. Held within was the true treasure, a pile of gold coins that made him doubt whether or not he was dreaming. He looked at the gold coins again motionlessly as he unconsciously clenched and unclenched his hand around a golden medallion. ¡°I¡­ I¡¯M¡­. I¡¯M RICH!!!¡±, he shouted. Teo did not expect that he could make this much profit! When he was given the leather bag, the branch manager only said that it was the amount agreed upon. Teo took the bag and said that he would return in two weeks to collect information on the people who bought his wares. In addition, the branch manager gave him two more items. The first item was a golden medallion that allowed him to directly access the third floor upon showing. The second item was an identification card to prove his identity. Teo could feel that the bag had a lot of coins and was quite happy, but he had only assumed that they were all silver coins! He didn¡¯t expect them to be all gold coins! On his return trip home, Teo was extremely cautious and took a long path back and continuously changing his disguise along the way. As a result, he did not have the time to check the contents of the leather bag until he got home. Teo slowly counted one gold coin at a time... He carefully counted them as he enjoyed the feeling of success. After counting them, Teo took a deep breath. ¡®96 gold coins!¡¯ He calmly thought of what had just happened before ecstatically jumping in the air. Those crappy shoes turned into such a large sum of money! ¡°I don¡¯t think I¡¯ll ever have to work ever again.¡± He softly whispered. He felt like the goose that could just shit out golden eggs! ¡°ha ha ha ha ha ha HA HA HA HA HA HA Ha¡±, an unceasing laughter emerged from him. He was ecstatic! But after remembering his original plan, Teo quickly sobered up. ¡®Maybe I should sell some more before this is over¡¯, he thought. ¡­¡­ After a few days, the Mirth academy branch of the Emerald Pavilion as well as the surrounded branch within the prefecture, simultaneously coordinated the spread news of their high tier enchanted shoes.They announced that it was high tier, but the descriptions of the effects of the shoes implied that these shoes were beyond high tier. And the selling price was quite low for such an item, only 60 gold! Although high tier boots were sold at around this price, many knew that it should have been a lot more. The Emerald Pavilion chose this price as a sign of sincerity to the mysterious eccentric. A lower price would simply be an insult to his work, but a higher price would cause people to hesitate and wait before buying. Their true estimated price for the boot was well over 100 gold coins, and if the materials used were improved it could even reach close to 200 gold coins, but due to the materials used, the aesthetics of these boots as well as other conditions set on the buyer''s and the pavilion lowered their price to around 80 gold coins. The Emerald Pavilion was completely truthful in its description of the shoes as well as the conditions attached. It was clear to any prospective buyers that these shoes were made of low quality and that they could only guarantee what they had assessed. ¡­. ¡°Is this news true?¡±, a dark haired middle aged man asked. Within the Mirth city manor, the a man sat behind a desk surrounded by several stacks of paperwork while looking at another older gentleman who was excitedly describing some wares. That man was precisely the lord of Mirth city. ¡°Yes, it¡¯s true! I have confirmed it with an Emerald Pavilion¡¯s branch elder of this news! Outside of those odd restrictions, we can easily afford this treasure!¡± The bald old man said, his wrinkles bouncing merrily on his oily face. They were the largest power closest to the Emerald Pavilion branch that was selling it. It was truly an opportunity of a lifetime! ¡°A pair of shoes that increases your speed based on your cultivation level...¡± The city lord gasped in shock. If the effects were really true, then this was not a high tier item but saint tier! Many hidden experts within the Empire would come flocking towards Mirth academy to get a pair. Even if it was made of poor quality, it¡¯s allure was still very attractive. Blood would be spilled! ¡°What of the conditions of purchase?¡± ¡°My lord, according to my sources, they are just a few. To acquire just one pair, many had already attempted to buy it before the date that the Emerald Pavilion had set for its sale. Thus, the Emerald Pavilion will be holding an emergency auction within a few weeks. The buyer must also have a specific cultivation and must also stay and live in the academy for a few months.¡± The bald old man paused as he took a deep breath before continuing ¡°One pair would be given to a class 3 fighter, the next pair to a class 4 and so on. There is a total of 6 pairs for sale. If buyers of higher classes could not be found after two weeks, they would sell it to the highest class fighter that is offering. There is also something odd about this my lord, every buyer is required to showcase the speed of the shoes within the academy to the public.¡± ¡°Did you find out who enchanted these shoes?¡± The lord asked as he tried to analyze the seller¡¯s intentions. ¡°We do not know yet my lord, but my sources told it was brought in by an unknown eccentric. Perhaps it¡¯s Grandmaster Yula?¡± ¡°Impossible, why would someone like him do something like this?¡±, the lord instantly rejected the idea ¡°This must be a new inscription master that has emerged from the academy...Wasn¡¯t there a genius scholar within Mirth academy? What was his name, what was his name...¡±, the lord thought out loud. The narrative has been taken without permission. Report any sightings. ¡°My lord, I believe that was Mister Quin. Mister Deacon Quin is currently an instructor for the academy.¡± The lord nodded and paused for a brief moment. He pondered on the conditions, the reasons behind them, the identity of this mysterious eccentric. ¡®From these conditions, it is obvious that the creator of these boots is currently living within the academy and wants to test the performance of his inscriptions. With these saint tier shoes...perhaps his cultivation level is too low to test them out himself.¡¯ ¡°Do you know this Deacon¡¯s cultivation level?¡±, the lord asked ¡°My lord, this Mister Deacon does not practice cultivation at all¡± ¡®Is it really him? But then why go through all the trouble of hiding his identity when he is already famous?¡¯ After some thought, the lord stood up from his chair. ¡°Send the fastest falcon we have to the Imperial city. If this news is from the Emerald Pavilion then it¡¯s credibility is without question. We can¡¯t defend the academy alone from being attacked by rogue experts. Also, send someone to reserve a few seats for us for this auction. Finally, send a gift to this mister Deacon and quickly invite him to join our Mirth family, remember to be extremely humble, even if he does not join us, we must form a friendly relationship with him!¡± The news spread like wildfire, reaching the surrounding prefectures and even the Imperial city, which was distant, distant place from the city of Mirth. The Rizon branch family and several other branch families had also sent word to their main families. Many of them had begun to move despite knowing the quality of the shoes. Normally, equipment of inferior quality would not be able to handle high tier inscriptions, much less a saint tier inscription but the effects of the shoes were already miraculous! Besides, they all had an ulterior motive. Find the eccentric creator and draw him into their camp! ¡­. The events that had caused several ancient, and powerful groups of the empire to move out quickly was unknown to Teo. Since he was waiting for his guinea pigs to arrive, he was either focused on perfecting the void array¡¯s design or studiously learning from Lia¡¯s personal instructions on casting. ¡°So if you make your mold, you have to make sure that it¡¯s melting point is much higher than the metal you are working with.¡± Lia sat on the opposite side of the table as she discussed the basics of casting. ¡°Teo, are you planning on taking smithing next year? I think we should be focusing on training instead¡±, Windle who sat to the other side said. ¡°I¡¯m not sure yet, but this metal casting is really interesting.¡± ¡°I see... Hey did you guys hear about the recent news released by the Emerald Pavilion? People say it¡¯s saint tier shoes, the tier above than high tier.¡±, Windle said. ¡°Really?¡±, Teo tried to keep a straight face but it ended up making him look weirder. ¡°Saint Tier¡­ -sigh- I wish I could get one, how much does it even cost?¡±, Lia asked ¡°The original selling price was 60 gold coins, but because of the amount of people fighting over it, the pavilion had no choice but to hold an emergency auction within in two weeks.¡± ¡°60 gold!? Wait.. Is that why classes will be canceled next week?¡± ¡°Yeah, I heard a lot of dangerous experts will be entering the academy grounds and that the academy said students should avoid going to the southern district next week.¡± Teo continued eating as he listened to the two talk. ¡°Sigh, Saint tier boots are too expensive, I guess I have to settle with Teo¡¯s inscription instead.¡± While Lia was yearning for such expensive treasure, Teo started coughing wildly after hearing Lia. ¡°Are you alright Teo? You should really chew your food properly.¡± Windle asked in a worried voice. ¡°Teo, since you are inscribing stuff for Lia¡­ could you possibly¡­make some for me too?¡± Windle was somewhat jealous as he knew that Teo¡¯s inscriptions were really outstanding. He really wanted to act cool and as if he didn¡¯t care but he just couldn¡¯t hold it in any longer. ¡°Hmmm okay, but help me buy some things for the three of us,¡± Teo said. ¡°No fair, I am here working hard teaching you and Windle is getting it for almost nothing!¡±, Lia complained. ¡°...wait a second, are you buying US free stuff?¡±, Lia slowly realized what Teo had said. Teo nodded as he chewed his food ¡°You¡­ don¡¯t tell me you made more money again?!¡±, Windle was shocked He knew that Teo would always become generous after each time he found himself some money. ¡°Teo.. teach me how to be rich.¡± Windle said seriously. But Teo could only laugh in response. ¡­.. After returning from Emerald road, Windle and Lia were shocked by the amount that Teo had bought. Not only that Teo bought them new pairs of shoes, he bought a few more extras pairs, 5 extra pairs to be exact. They were high quality made boots but were not enchanted so although they were high quality, each pair only cost 1 gold. In one shopping spree, Teo had spent 8 gold coins without blinking. ¡®This rascal is filthy rich, I just know it,¡¯ Windle and Lia both thought to themselves. Although they were slightly jealous, having a generous friend was enough to satisfy them. ¡°Teo must¡¯ve been a saint in his past life¡±, Lia joked ¡°Heh, that might be true but Teo, I hope you are not doing anything illegal to get this much money. You know there is a saying, One courts misfortune by flaunting wealth.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t worry, it¡¯s nothing illegal, it¡¯s just I can¡¯t tell you about it. Anyways, do you guys want to do anything next week? Since there are no classes we should do something.¡± Teo said. He needed a break, and enjoyed the company of his friends and sister. Also with his friends around, those four hunting him would not dare to make a move. ¡°We can ask the seniors, perhaps they have something in mind.¡± Windle said. Chapter 64: The Hunt Chapter 64: The Hunt ¡°Okay guys, let¡¯s go,¡± Gina said as she led the way. The group¡¯s destination this time was to the western district of the academy. Teo and the others had never been to the western district before since it was forbidden for any student that was not a fourth year or above to venture into that area without supervision. This area was called a district, but to be precise, it was actually a thick forest within the academy grounds. Here, several animals and beasts were bred by the academy to simulate ¡°wilderness¡± for students to train themselves in foraging and hunting in a controlled environment. Although they were in a controlled environment, there were still some risks involved when entering the area. This was because the beasts living inside were not merely weak animals waiting to be slaughtered, they were bred to test the limits of the students. In order to enter the forest, you needed to pass the physical test at the end of the third year. That way, if you did not know how to fight, you would at least be able to run away. Since the southern district became filled with many foreign guests, students were instructed not to enter randomly, and if they were to enter, they were to be mindful of their actions if they were to enter the district. Rowen and Gina began lecturing as they brought the Teo and the group inside the forest to experience hunting. Aside from bringing their usual weapons, Rowen carried a bow on her back and a quiver on the waist. She also carried a sack while Gina had carried a backpack with many different materials. Teo and the rest carried some supplies and several empty bags. When they arrived at the forest¡¯s entrance, a group of guards briefly stopped and checked their equipment before allowing them to enter the forest. ¡°Supervising the young ones? Be sure to keep an eye out for them. Does each person have a repellent on them?¡± The guard asked Gina and Rowen. ¡°Yes, we have two bottles of repellents per person,¡± Rowen replied. The repellent they were referring to was made from the Ash Horned Skunk that Teo and Windle were very familiar with when Teo had Windle acquire it for him when he made the mini stink bomb array. Although when used on academy grounds, the potency of the repellent was weakened as the beasts of the forest were very weak to it. ¡°Hehe, you rascals need to be careful in this forest. Even though we¡¯ll just be hunting at the edge of the forest, these will animals are not that weak and will injure you if you let down your guard¡±, Gina said ¡°We¡¯ll be in charge of initiating and weakening the animals while you guys will be in charge of dealing the final blow,¡± Rowen smiled as she said it. Lia¡¯s face turned a little pale. ¡®Blood...¡¯ she was still a little squeamish of the thought. ¡°Teo, Windle, help me set up a few traps along the way. On our way back we might get lucky and catch something¡±, Gina ordered. ¡­. While many students took advantage of the cancelled classes to enjoy themselves out in the city, the northern district had many students going to the training grounds and the arena. A large gust of wind appeared out of nowhere startling many students who were currently training. The area darkened suddenly, as a large quick moving shadow appeared on the ground. People instinctively looked up towards the sky and saw an extremely large bird flying up in the air, heading towards the central district of the academy. Many people gasped at the sight, as soon another bird appeared ¡­.. Within the central district, there were many students and other visitors that were quite worried, but Elon and the rest of the elders were quite calm. The city lord, Elon, and many other important people stood side by side waiting outside the central office near the flower garden nearby. Several powerful gusts of wind blew by, uprooting many flowers within the garden. The large birds flapped their wings in preparation to land and as the mighty birds landed, the earth quaked from their heavy weight. Only the flower garden was large enough to both accommodate such large creatures and was close enough to the central office. Some of the elders quickly fixed their messy appearance, while Elon and the rest used their Qi to shield themselves from the intense winds. In the distance students were seen flocking around the garden, attempting to look at the giant birds. The birds were as large as two-story buildings, one was a gray feathered beast while the other was white. The first sight of these gigantic birds caused one to become frightened but surprisingly, these birds seemed to be very docile. Suddenly figures jumped down from the top of the birds, the figures flowed like water from the back of the bird and soon there were about thirty or so men that had landed. ¡°Everyone kneel.¡± Shard¡¯s voice whispered through the crowd and everyone kneeled onto the floor. ¡°Honorable guest, welcome to our humble city.¡± The city lord took this opportunity to act as the host for the arriving guests as he bowed down. There were twenty armed guards covered in scaled armor. Their armor was glossy and tinted in a shade of dark green. Their shoulder plates were engraved with a majestic spiral symbol. Their aura powerful and intimidating as they stood in straight columns. They were led by three men who wore full plated armor. In front of them were eight figures, dressed in majestic clothing. The clothes of the branch chief Cody of the Emerald Pavilion were like rags compared to theirs. Behind these eight were a few servants, carrying several luggages and boxes. The eight figures looked down at the people that welcomed them but did not show much sign of respect. The eight exuded an air of importance around them. The person who stood in the middle of the eight waved his hand, and the kneeling group rose as one. ¡°Ah Shard, is that you?¡± One visitor¡¯s face became friendly as he recognized Shard. Shard stood forward and saluted before smiling ¡°Your grace.¡± ¡­.. News of the Imperial family quickly spread throughout the city. After receiving the falcon from the Mirth city lord, the Imperial family had sent a few envoys to check the validity of this news and to provide support and order within the academy. Four envoys were sent by the Imperial family. One of which was specifically chosen as he was familiar with the head of the red guards within the academy. The others were from other influential families that were on very close terms with the Imperial family. Two was from the Rizon main family while the remaining two were from the Luth main family. The author''s content has been appropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon. In case the news was real, they all had brought several gifts to invite this eccentric to join the Imperial family¡¯s faction. This was because such a talented inscriptionist could rival the previously peerless grandmaster Yula. They did not bother to compete for the shoes, but rather wished to meet the creator of such inscriptions. They even brought several high level royal guards to test these shoes to gain the favor of the mysterious eccentric, as well as to keep the order around the academy. ¡°Your grace.¡± The branch chief Cody kneeled. ¡°Have you identified this eccentric inscriptionist?¡± The young envoy asked the kneeling branch chief as took a bite out of an apple. ¡°We dare not, your grace.¡± Cody shook his head as he faced the floor. Cody respectfully explained the details of their encounter with the mysterious eccentric. ¡°A few days ago, the eccentric brought another batch of shoes. They were made of higher quality this time and the maker of the shoes was easily identified. It was a craftsman within the academy, but unfortunately, he did not keep track of who bought the shoes¡± ¡°Uncle what do you think?¡± The youth asked the middle-aged envoy who was sipping tea as if he had no cares in the world. ¡°Brother¡¯s orders were clear. Since he is hiding his identity, let¡¯s wait for him to appear for now. If we can peacefully invite him, then that would be best. But if he does not wish to join, we can just take his loved ones as hostages and force him to join.¡± The middle-aged envoy took another sip and looked to the royal guards who stood near the door. ¡°Find this craftsman, and investigate him. If he doesn¡¯t match the description of this eccentric, then ¡®help him¡¯ remember who he sold these shoes to, but make sure you keep him alive until we find out the identity of this inscriptionist. In addition, investigate this Deacon Quin that I¡¯ve heard about. Make sure you keep an eye on him¡± The branch chief felt a cold shiver down his spine as he listened. He knew what the middle-aged envoy meant when he said ¡°help him remember¡±. ¡­. After the guests left, the branch chief headed to the fourth floor to discuss what happened with top executives of the branch. ¡°Chief what are we going to do?¡± ¡°We have two options, one is to warn that person before the Imperial family can get to him, or the other is to assist the Imperial family. One choice is profitable, while the other one is safe¡± The chief¡¯s eyes lit up as it was clear what he wanted to do. If they could warn the person, then even if he join the Imperial family or not, that person will still have a good impression of the Emerald Pavilion. ¡°The president will surely make the same decision as me, dealing with money always leads to danger so why should we be afraid?¡± The others nodded in agreement. The Emerald Pavilion dealt with information and money, two powerful things that could topple great powers. Although they were afraid of the Imperial family, the reward was much greater than the risk. ¡°Have our members spread this news discretely, we want it to look like a rumor.¡± ¡­. On the ground, a small immobilized boar laid out as it let out painful squeals. Two arrows were lodge into its legs. ¡°Go ahead, Teo,¡± Rowen said. Teo stood before the wounded animal with a knife in his hand. Windle and Lia had pale expressions and blood smeared on their hands and clothes. ¡°Put it out of its misery already. The longer you hesitate, the more pain it¡¯ll feel.¡± Gina stated remorselessly. Teo took the dagger and drew it close to the boar¡¯s throat. He took a deep breath and then pierced through the flesh as he struggled to cut open the throat. The flesh was thick and sometimes it would hit a bone but Teo slowly finished the job. His first kill... Although it was an animal, it was the first time he had ever taken a life. ¡°Good job!¡±, Gina happily praised ¡°Don¡¯t worry Teo, you¡¯ll get used to it,¡± Rowen said as she remembered her first kill as well. They were mentally preparing the group to kill, so that in the future, the shock of killing a person would not be so harsh. This was one of the tests required to pass the fourth year combat test. Not only were they to have the ability to fight, the students also needed the resolve to take a life. ¡°Come on, let¡¯s keep going.¡± Gina happily led the way as the three youths still felt uneasy with killing. ¡­. After a long day of hunting, the group decided to return. On the way back, they checked the traps that they had laid. In some of them were a few smaller animals, of one of them was a cute squirrel that Lia was ordered to kill. ¡°Can.. can I not kill him? He¡¯s so cute!¡± Lia pleaded with Gina. ¡°Okay. Windle, kill it.¡± ¡°NO!¡± Lia shouted as she quickly grabbed the little squirrel and protected it with her arms. ¡°Gina, let¡¯s skip this one instead.¡± Rowen persuaded. So far today, everything that Lia had killed was snakes, rodents, and bats. She had refused to kill anything that looked ¡°cute¡±. Gina could only helplessly shake her head and move on. [Edited by thisisnate] [Author''s note: Perhaps a little clarification on the number of people who arrived on the two large birds. 20 Royal guards, 3 commanders, 4 imperial family members, 2 rizon family members, 2 luth family members + 4 servants, So 35 people. I used "around 30" because there were too many for people to count them all, and to be vague XD. I will be posting the cultivation levels soon in my website''s glossary, unfortunately elementalists are only classified by the cultivators they can beat/kill so no chart for them. Be warned there may be things that could spoil future chapters in this cultivation chart Thanks for reading!] Chapter 65: Warning Chapter 65: Warning The group carried the heavy bags of meat from the animals they hunted down. Not only were Teo and the others forced to kill, they also had to watch as Gina taught them how to skin and butcher the animals for meat. With her knife skills and years of working in a kitchen, she was the perfect instructor. As they headed back, they dropped the meat off at the restaurant Teo used to work at. Many restaurants would buy meat directly from hunters but since Gina worked there, she decided to store it there while they got cleaned up. ¡°Get washed up then meet up back here. Me and Teo are gonna cook us some dinner.¡± The three nodded but clearly had no appetite at the moment. Although they had seen the gore from the city¡¯s arena, today they would eat the carcass of an animal that they had killed. Eating something they had recently killed was not too appetizing ¡­. As Teo, Lia and Windle arrived. Rowen had already sat down and reserved a table. When Rowen saw them enter the restaurant, she waved her hand to draw their attention. ¡°Teo you¡¯re late! Gina is already waiting for you,¡± Rowen said with a smile. Gina was usually pretty kind and friendly but had a very sharp tongue and unrestrained personality. In the kitchen, she was a fiery demon, especially with a knife and pot behind a stove. ¡°Finally, you¡¯re here! Quickly cut these up, Teo. Then peel that and that, and wash those extra pans, we¡¯ll need them.¡± There were two boiling pots and two frying pans being used at the same time! Gina was creating the sauce and preparing the meat, all at the same time! ¡°Okay, but...isn¡¯t this a little too much?¡± ¡°Nah it¡¯s fine, a few more people will be joining us later. Keep moving Teo!¡± Gina said as her swift and fluid motions moved from one pot to the next. Gina was a master of multitasking, her speed was no joke! ¡°Right! But aren¡¯t we using too many ingredients?¡± ¡°Oh these? I traded some of today¡¯s spoils with the boss so we can use some of his stuff,¡± Teo was quite familiar with the boss. Although he was strict during working hours, he was pretty chill with his workers afterward. Within 20 minutes, the first batch of food was already finished cooking. Teo quickly grabbed the finished dishes and brought it out to the table. He recognized the new people that Gina invited. It was Kali from the Martial faction and Riss. ¡°Little brother-in-law! Since when did you start working here again? Hehe, I guess I¡¯ll have to visit this place more often,¡± Riss said in a loud and cheerful voice. ¡°Hah, sister-in-law, I¡¯m just helping out for a bit,¡± ¡°Teo, don¡¯t encourage her,¡± Rowen said with a helpless expression. She didn¡¯t know whether to laugh or cry whenever Teo played along with Riss¡¯ teasing. Soon one entree after another filled the table and finally Gina left the kitchen. ¡°Let¡¯s eat!¡± she said as she proudly sat down ¡°Arm ammum murm!¡± Riss spoke while her mouth was full ¡°Don¡¯t talk with your mouth full,¡± Gina scolded. Riss paused and swallowed everything she was chewing and said, ¡°Gina, your food is exceptionally good today!¡± The fragrant smell of the cooked food also made Lia, Windle, and Teo¡¯s mouth water despite their gruesome hunt today. ¡°Of course it¡¯ll taste good! What do you think I¡¯ve been doing in my 7 years working here?¡± The group laughed and chatted, but when they got to the topic of today¡¯s hunt. Teo and the others became queasy. Eventually, the topic of conversation flowed towards the recent news of the ¡°high¡± tier shoes. ¡°If I had those shoes, maybe I can buy senior Aran¡¯s affection,¡± Riss said. -cough cough- Rowen who was currently eating was suddenly caught off guard. ¡°Riss! Don¡¯t make jokes while I¡¯m eating! Also, my brother isn¡¯t some cheap whore that can be bought!¡± ¡°Haha haha.¡± ¡°Those shoes alone are bringing so many people to this academy. All the inns inside the academy¡¯s grounds are already so full that the visitors started taking over the inns in the city as well,¡± Gina said Riss suddenly had a mischievous look on her face and she looked around the restaurant to see if anyone outside the table could be listening. With a whispered voice she said, ¡°But you know, everyone is more interested in the one who created these inscriptions. In fact, some of these people are hunting for him!¡± Everyone sudden became quieter as they felt that Riss¡¯ whispers were something of a secret. ¡°What do you mean?¡± ¡°Well, many different groups want to invite this crafter into their group. Even the Imperial family is looking for them!¡± Riss continued. ¡°That¡¯s amazing isn¡¯t it?¡± ¡°It is amazing, BUT it is also very dangerous for this person. Some of them will probably kidnap that person and force him to join! They would even take his person¡¯s family and friends hostage!¡± Teo who was listening broke into cold sweat. He might have brought trouble to his friends and family again because he did realize the full repercussions of his actions! He suddenly had the urge to punch himself in the face. ¡°But if he joins the Imperial family he should be okay right?¡± ¡°He could be, but his family might not be. If I wanted something, After finding out who they were, I would find their weakness,¡± Gina said. ¡°Actually, even the imperial family was willing to use this method as well. So no matter what he chooses, it will bring disaster upon himself,¡± Riss said ¡°That¡¯s only if he has family! These kinds of people usually spend their whole life in research and isolation. Besides, how do you know that the imperial family would do something so shady?¡± Rowen questioned Riss. Unauthorized reproduction: this story has been taken without approval. Report sightings. Her goal was to become a respected figure in the Imperial city, and thus regarded the imperial family like the gods. ¡°The branch chief heard it directly from their own mouths! The elders even told us to spread rumors to warn this mysterious figure, but it¡¯s quite hard finding him,¡± she sighed Then Lia suddenly thought of something! ¡°I think I might know who it is!¡± she said with a smile. ¡°Who?¡± everyone suddenly paid attention. Teo suddenly became nervous. Although he should not have revealed any indication that it was him, he could not help sweat a bit. Lia let the suspense build up before she answered. ¡°It might be instructor Deacon! He is the best inscriptionist in the whole academy!¡± The others nodded at Lia¡¯s logic, Teo sighed a relief but Riss shook her head in disagreement. ¡°No, it¡¯s very unlikely for instructor Deacon to be him¡± ¡°How can you be so sure senior?¡± ¡°The Emerald Pavilion is very good with information and since this person sold his wares to our place, we know more details about him that other people don¡¯t know!¡± ¡°Details like what?¡± Windle asked Everyone was becoming more interested in finding out this person¡¯s identity but no one knew that that person was already sitting at the same table as them! Riss smiled as he loved knowing what others didn¡¯t. The information of the eccentric had already leaked out to the major powers that were in the academy. One of the Emerald Pavilion¡¯s trade was information and only common students like themselves were kept unawares of the many secrets of the world. ¡°Well from this person¡¯s height, we can tell that it surely isn¡¯t instructor Deacon since he is too tall. If my guess is correct he should be a short old man!¡± ¡°Short? How short is this person?¡± ¡°Hmm, this person is probably as tall as Lia, maybe shorter. You can bend your knees under a robe to make yourself seem shorter, but if try to make your height taller, your arms will look very awkward and even the branch chief took special attention to this¡± ¡°I see..¡± most of them became convinced but Riss quickly interrupted. ¡°But of course, there are other possibilities as well. It could¡¯ve been his apprentice or servant that delivered these shoes, but if it really was instructor Deacon, why would he need to use this method?¡± The conversation continued and Teo was deep in thought in his own world. Teo who listened to the previous conversation became grateful to the Emerald Pavilion¡¯s warning. If he suddenly contacted the Emerald Pavilion, he could¡¯ve gotten caught without being aware of the whole situation. It hasn¡¯t been that long since he had caused that crisis from before, but now he might¡¯ve caused another one. Initially, Teo felt tempted to accept an invitation of such powerful groups. The benefits would¡¯ve been massive, but he would have to risk the safety of his friends and family. Not only that, but there was also the matter of the soul binding contract he had. He could not reveal that these ¡°inscriptions¡± were actually arrays! ¡­. Within a large secluded house, Deacon was sitting on his couch with a face full of exhaustion. ¡®These people keep bothering me about some inscription I didn¡¯t make!¡¯ He was exhausted by the sheer amount of people coming and asking him questions about the recent emergence of several saint tier shoes. Many of them tried to give him gifts and formally invite Deacon to their faction, and some even tried to blackmail him! If not for the royal guards placed to watch over him, he might have already been kidnapped. He was the most likely person who could create such an item that lived in the academy. Deacon was also known by others as a very secretive person, which added more fuel for others to suspect him. Even if he did not match the description provided by the Emerald Pavilion, he could have had someone deliver it for him. But luckily for Deacon, he had no family. His parents were long dead, and he was a lone child. As far as his uncles and aunts, he no longer had any relationship with them even after he joined the academy. The only thing he cared about was his research and teaching. Although he had a few close colleagues, they were not close enough to force to make a decision he did not want to make. ¡®If it was really me, I wouldn¡¯t hide my identity at all! I would travel straight to the capital and reveal it there. Hmph, these idiots!¡¯ He really would have loved to take credit for this work, but he had his own moral code and pride as an inscriptionist and as a researcher. Besides, if he took credit for it and could not deliver, he would never see the light of day again. The emergency auction was going to be held in just a few more days. He had also heard of these saint tier inscriptions and wanted to see them, but the Emerald Pavilion refused to let him study it. He was lucky enough to take a look at one when he was invited by the Imperial envoys to be thoroughly questioned. Although he was annoyed for being suspected for someone else, they gave him a chance to inspect a pair as to observe his reaction. He tried observing it as best as he could, but the level of concealment techniques used was far too advanced for him. Until this ordeal was over, he decided to stay home and wait it out. [edited by: thisisnate] [Author¡¯s note: Yes, Lia is currently taller than Teo atm. From childhood, it seems that girls grew taller much earlier than boys did, or Teo is just inherently a shorty.] Chapter 66: Auction Chapter 66: Auction Headmaster Elon¡¯s manor was quite large. It could easily accommodate hundreds of guests comfortably and was the largest manors on the academy¡¯s grounds. The manor had been built a long time ago and had housed many of the headmasters before him, and was surprisingly well maintained. Compared to the many new academies being built by the current emperor, Mirth academy was a reputed, prestigious establishment built by the emperor''s predecessor over a hundred years ago. Within the main hall of the manor, Elon stood in front of the Rizon main family envoy. ¡°Elon, what are your plans for these shoes?¡± One of the envoys asked. The envoy was much younger than Elon but was much higher in the hierarchy as he was the son of the current family head. ¡°Young master, the Emerald Pavilion sent this pair to the academy per the mysterious inscriptionist¡¯s wishes for the younger generation to try them out. I initially planned to follow this person¡¯s wishes,¡± Elon explained A hint of greed appeared on the youth¡¯s face, as he looked at the four pairs of shoes. They looked like shoes found in the trash but because of the saint tier inscription, they were shoes that almost everyone wished to try on. ¡°What were the conditions?¡± ¡°The conditions were that class 2 fighters or lower were allowed to try them out for two months, but would have to publicly display its strength. There were no further instructions other than that.¡± ¡°So after two months, we can keep them!¡± The young envoy laughed and replied. The older envoy suddenly spoke. ¡°Pick out four candidates as soon as possible!¡± Elon nodded and left. When Elon received these shoes he was ecstatic! He did not have any hope to influence such a great figure even with the help of the whole branch family so they sent out a raven to the main family for help. As the headmaster of the academy, he had the right to decide what to do with these shoes. If he offered them to the main family, there was a chance that he could be promoted to the Imperial city! ¡®Ella, the gods look upon us!¡¯ The academy had many students who were class 2 fighters or lower. In fact, there was too many to pick from, but this did not impede Elon at all. He had already chosen who the ones who would have the honor to wear and test these saint tier inscriptions. ¡­.. The search for the mysterious eccentric was proving to be futile, but many did not give up. Upon the day of the auction, the auction house a few distance away from their main building was packed full of people. There were many influential people, but a majority were not here to buy but to observe. Many seats had been reserved and the price of a regular seat was 2 gold coins. There were also private rooms for more important guests but the price per seat was 10 gold coins. The stronger factions quickly reserved these private rooms while the slower ones had to settle with sitting in the regular seat. Space was limited and only about 500 regular seats were available. When the auction house opened, the doors were already crowded with several people. It took over an hour to get everyone inside and seated. Not many commoners dared to attend and watch the auction as their status was far too low. They were also afraid of a fight breaking out between hidden experts or being caught up in an orchestrated attack to steal these saint tier boots by several factions, so only the strong and powerful chose to go. Many people gathered in groups to chatter among themselves while some lone individuals sat quietly as they waited. Several men proudly displayed large emblems of their respective factions on their fashionable attire, while others were in complete disguise, their emblems as hidden as the forces they belonged to. With such a gathering of powerful and influential factions as well as hidden experts of the empire, if one were to cause trouble, they would feel the wrath of the many who sat next to them. The risk of offending such characters was grave if one was offended someone enough, the three generations of their families could be killed. Aside from that, there were also several royal guards placed between the stage and the audience. Their aura was concealed and only a few could detect their strength. It was an unimaginable deterrence for the strong, but peak experts knew that the real threat were the royal guards who stood behind them. A man dressed in expensive clothes stepped out onto the stage and drew the attentions of the audience. It was Cody, the branch chief in charge of the purchase. Normally, an alluring maiden would usually host the auction but with the status of these men before them, only the branch chief could fill this role appropriately. Although the Emerald Pavilion had the means for the President to attend, the President of the Emerald Pavilion would seldom appear in such functions, and thus, Cody was left in charge of this auction. ¡°Greetings, most honorable guests. I am the branch chief of this Emerald Pavilion, Cody Darkwood. Everyone probably knows the reason for this emergency auction, but I will explain the full details of today¡¯s auction.¡± The branch chief Cody explained all the conditions that applied in purchasing a pair. The news of the two additional pairs surprised some of the audience but most had already been informed by their intelligence network that had been spread out to catch the enigmatic master. ¡°So, in addition to the previous six pairs announced before, two new pairs are to be included in this auction. While, the quality of these boots are somewhat better than the previous six pairs, the materials are still quite ordinary.¡± These ordinary materials were considered to be high quality to most commoners, but to this group of powerful people, only materials obtained from rare or powerful beasts or precious metals could be considered high quality. ¡°The bidding will start at 60 gold and will increase by at least 5 gold per bid. Once you have won the bid, you must produce a person of the specified cultivation¡± Then suddenly from behind Cody, a fully armored man stepped forward. This was one of the leaders of the royal guards who came with the envoys. This story has been stolen from Royal Road. If you read it on Amazon, please report it ¡°An esteemed commander from the Imperial family will assess whether or not the person you produce have the required cultivation.¡± Then after gesturing to the fearsome commander who stepped forward, he continued. ¡°Since there is no guarantee of this product durability, we will refund 75% of the offer amount if it breaks during the testing phase.¡± Everyone knew about this experiment and still chose to come participate. This was a way to get on the good side of this eccentric, others who simply want to obtain a pair but there were others who had other goals. Their goal was to kidnap or blackmail this eccentric, and so their full attention was on inspecting and observing the crowds. There was a chance that this famed eccentric was already in the audience so many of them looked carefully at each other. ¡°We¡¯ll start with the bidding of the first item..¡± More than half of the audience began to participate in the auction while the rest stayed silent and watched. The bids quickly grew to astronomical prices. The first pair was sold for 105 gold. The next pair sold for 125 gold. As each pair was sold, the price of the next pair grew higher. By the time the sixth pair was sold, it reached 165 gold. Once the seventh pair was revealed, the price skyrocketed to 240 gold and the last pair was sold for 300 gold and was bought by the Imperial family. Although the 300 gold coins was excessive, they intentionally inflated the price to show the difference in financial strength. By the time all the pairs were sold, the total price for all eight pairs was a little under 1500 gold coins. Even if the Emerald Pavilion refunded all 8 shoes with 75%, they still would¡¯ve made about 3 times the price they bought them for, not to mention the profits they gained from the entrance fee for the auction. Each buyer, as well as their respective factions, were required to identify themselves and swear an oath to the emperor''s name before confirming their purchase. The public demonstration was to be held in two days. Of course, the Emerald Pavilion and the Imperial Family would still be in possession of the shoes. Only once had the testing period finished would the buyers receive their purchases. At that time, a guard will be assigned to watch over the shoes until the two month period was over. For factions with lower cultivation, one guard was enough, but for the other ones, two or three elites were used to keep them in check. This was a joint effort between the Emerald Pavilion¡¯s hired elites and the royal guards. ¡­ The following day, the academy and the Emerald Pavilion invited many guests to spectate the testing phase as per the conditions of the mysterious eccentric. Everyone knew that it was during these tests would the eccentric would surely verify the results with his own eyes. This was the main reason why everyone was playing along, especially the Imperial family! This was the sure way of identifying this eccentric! The tests were held at the academy¡¯s Colosseum. Although there were a few that chose not to come, there were many commoners and students that flocked to the Colosseum. Several teams of experts had spread themselves around the Colosseum to carefully observe the crowd. Only around 5000 out of the 10,000 seats were filled. From what the group of experts had deduced, the cultivation of who they were trying to find was low. Because if it was high, why would he need to ask fighters of class 3 or higher to test them out for him? The other clue they had was that he or his apprentice was very short, but they believed that this master was at least as old as Deacon, perhaps even older. A master with such skill must have taken decades to develop, even a genius would take a couple of years to just master all the different inscriptions. The next clue was the two months time that the person required for his research. This led many to believe that the person lived within the academy, possibly a teacher or a student or even a wanderer who happened to stay at the academy for a few months. Many of them investigated the inns record to find anyone who had stayed for a month or two before the sale of these shoes, but with only less than a week, their investigations were all a dead end. The next clue was this person should be very poor. The first set of shoes was made with very poor quality materials even by a commoner¡¯s standard. The second batch was made soon after the Pavilion bought his wares and had noticeably increased in quality. This implied that the person they were trying to find initially had no means of creating equipment by himself nor buy higher quality equipment! And the last clue that they had absolutely had confidence in was, that this person was an elementalist. Specifically, one who had a wind attribute and dark attribute, but they could not discount the fact that it could be more than one person. Even a specialist could learn inscriptions; If two or more worked together, there was a very small possibility that they could create this special inscription. This clue was the crux of their investigation. The concealment attribute within arrays was specialized by dark elemental attribute, while the increase in the user¡¯s speed would rely on wind elemental attribute. The image of this master slowly formed; An old hermit cut off from society to further his research. Once he arrived the academy he could only afford to buy some cheap shoes to continue his research. But very few also thought of the other possibility. A genius student, or perhaps a crafty teacher! Plenty of them had already looked into the academy¡¯s records for the teachers and students who had, at least, has one of the two attributes. Even specialists were also listed down. Teo, of course, was listed in this list. They did not have to monitor everyone within the colosseum, they only had to monitor the few suspects that was on this list as well as other visitors that were discovered to be elementalists! {Thank you, Merci Ludovic C. for your support of this series!} [edited by thisisnate] [Author''s note: Thanks for everyone who helped me yesterday (April 7th) and as always, I hoped you enjoyed!] Chapter 67: Guinea Pigs Chapter 67: Guinea Pigs Early in the morning, Teo was sitting on a bench enjoying the refreshing morning air. ¡®Haha, today is the day that my guinea pigs will test out my work!¡¯ He had been waiting there for a while, as if he was waiting for someone to arrive. He gazed off far into the distance. He was quite a distance away from the road, but since today was special, he decided to be extra careful and woke up quite early to scout out the people who were passing by. From this distance, his eyes could clearly see anyone who passed by this road, while an ordinary person would only be able to see his silhouette from afar. These revealing eyes of the heavens that the old man gave him were very convenient. He suddenly saw a group of people walking towards the arena, a hint of eagerness could be seen in Teo¡¯s eyes. The figure he saw the headmaster Elon, two unknown people, and Zachery and his goons. Teo looked into his bag and pulled out a book to hide his face and the smile he wore in case Elon could recognize him from the distance. ¡­ The audience was excited to see these rumored saint tier boots. The royal guards and members of the Emerald Pavilion seen busily milling around in preparation. With the vast resources of the Emerald Pavilion, they had temporarily transformed the arena into an obstacle course. The test was set up in a way to showcase two things, speed and jumping strength. One part of the area of the arena was flat, while the other part had several elevated platforms with a varied distance between each platform. Many were surprised by the number of testers that were standing off in a marked area. Only eight were sold at the auction, but a total of twelve testers were involved! This meant that four pairs were somehow secretly held onto by the Emerald Pavilion! Those who were not able to win a pair during the auction started to complain. ¡°Branch chief! What is the meaning of this?! Why were these extra four pairs not sold during the auction? We demand an explanation!¡± ¡°That¡¯s right! This is not fair to use your position to monopolize these shoes!¡± Even among the crowds, their voices could be heard. Their level of cultivation was not weak, and by amplifying their voices with their Qi, they could easily be heard from a distance. ¡°Honorable guests, these were four pairs were given specific instructions by the eccentric who brought these shoes. We were told to deliver these four pairs to the academy and have students of low cultivation to test them,¡± branch chief Cody explained ¡°Bullshit! How do we know you are speaking the truth?!¡± Many people could not accept the ¡®injustice¡¯ and were riled up. The commoners and students who attended the show began to worry safety as the loud shouting of many different strong warriors began to noisily fill the air. But suddenly, a loud voice blasted over everyone¡¯s complaint. ¡°Who is questioning the arrangement?! Who dares to question the Rizon family?!¡± The old envoy from the Rizon main family stood up and shouted out. This man, as well as the other envoys, were subordinates to the Imperial family and many people knew they were not people to offend. After the old man¡¯s question, many of the dissatisfied voices died down. They could only grit their teeth in frustration as they could not compete with such a large family; especially a family that was very close to the Imperial family. The envoys from the Imperial city, the city lord, Cody, Shard, Elon and the Rizon branch head made their way into the arena to observe these tests up close. Several royal guards, Emerald Pavilion guards, academy guards and red guards surrounded the arena in preparation of the event. ¡­ The preparations were finally finished and the testers all lined up from weakest to strongest. Except for the last two pairs of shoes, the testers wore extremely ugly pairs of shoes but didn¡¯t seem to mind. In fact, the lower classed fighters were extremely happy. The highest classed fighter in the line was a commander within the royal guards. ¡°It is truly impressive that the Imperial family¡¯s youngest commander is already a class 7 fighter. Mind Awakening Stage at that age, perhaps he can reach the Dao Seeking (Earth) Stage,¡± The envoy from the Luth family praised. The cultivation of the four at the end were only class two, and when Windle saw the four his face turned dark. ¡®This headmaster truly is too biased. To actually give his grandson and his friends this opportunity instead of those who are deserving¡¯ Windle and Lia were slightly jealous as their face soured. They could still remember the incident from before and truly did not have a good impression of these four. As for Teo, he was quietly sitting down on the floor. In his hand, he held several thin wooden cards. Each card had an array on one side and a number from one to twelve on the other side. ¡®It should start soon.¡¯ Teo thought to himself. ¡­.. ¡°We will now begin the testing, starting from the strongest!¡± Many were anticipating the power of these saint tier shoes and held their breaths As the commander gradually inserted some of his Qi into the shoes, a loud tearing sound could be heard! -CRACK- The shoes instantly tore into several pieces! Many were surprised, and some were disappointed. ¡°Were those really saint tier shoes?!¡± people started asking because of the result of the first test. In fact, this could not be even called a test! But those who knew better had expected this result. If these inscription¡¯s effect really increased based on the cultivator¡¯s strength, then the higher the cultivation, the higher the output and the strain on the shoes would be much greater. Such shoddy materials would obviously not be able to handle such a strain, but there were many who had hoped for a miracle. In Teo¡¯s hand, the array on the wooden card numbered twelve instantly lit up with an extremely bright light before completely shattering. He sighed as he brushed off the pieces and then focus his attention on number 11. Number eleven, fail. Number ten, fail. Number nine, fail. The wooden cards shattered one by one as their array lit up before breaking apart. A case of theft: this story is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation. After the eighth failure, Teo observed as the seventh array as it lit up. ¡­. The disappointed crowd lit up when they finally saw a pair of shoes that did not instantly shatter. It was the pair that was marked as number seven. The cultivator was only a class 5 fighter, but with the saint tier shoes, he could match up with a class 6 fighter¡¯s speed and strength in the arena. Many commoners could only see a blur as he ran through the course, only the experts could tell the difference. The only problem was that he had yet to familiarize himself with traveling at such speeds, but this result proved that the Emerald Pavilion¡¯s assessment was indeed correct. During the time they assessed it, they only had class 4 fighters to test it so although they could¡¯ve tested it for the eccentric privately, the eccentric for some reason refused. Many people who saw the result were quite jealous. Especially the factions whose shoes broke during the testing, but as for this tester, he was quite elated. ¡°It seems that the shoes can only handle the strength of fighters class 5 and below,¡± the young envoy from the Rizon main family said with a calm face. But in reality, the young envoy was even more eager than before as he was currently a class 5 fighter. More than ever, he wanted to have a pair of those shoes. Although he could not use it once he had advanced to class 6, he would still have an extremely rare saint tier item as a trophy. After the test with the class 5 warrior¡¯s shoes, the shoes of both class 4 and class 3 fighters were tested and unsurprisingly held up. Although their speed was not enough to compare with warriors in a higher class ranking, they were still much faster than fighters of the same class who wore high tier boots. Soon came Zachery and his friend¡¯s turn. As they were last to take this test, these four excitedly jumped up to try as they knew these shoes should not break with their cultivation level. They ran around and jumped, showing off to the audience. They began quite cautiously because if the shoes were to break while they were moving at a very fast speed, it would result in an injury. As time went on, they raced from one end of the obstacle course to the next, showing off their figure. They slowly began to speed up and took the time to fully enjoy the speed that they were experiencing. As they were convinced the shoes would hold up, they began to holler and yell as they ran throughout the track, fully intending to make full use of the course as they knew that after two months, these shoes would be taken away by the main family. As the testing about to end, the several experts and faction member who were hunting down the mysterious eccentric continued their careful observation of all possible targets within the Colosseum. With the strength of various groups, these expert carefully watch certain people who were on the list and took note of the change in their expression. Some sort of reaction should¡¯ve been noticed by at least one of these groups, and would result in narrowing down the list of suspects. ¡®He must be one of these people!¡¯ They all thought. When Windle and Lia saw Zachery and the others proudly showing off their speed, they could not bear it anymore. ¡°If Teo saw this, his stomachache would worsen even more,¡± Windle said ¡°Teo is truly lucky to have a stomachache, I would rather have a stomachache than watch these buffoons showoff,¡± Lia snorted ¡­.. Within his cave, Teo watched as the arrays of the last four cards numbered 1 to 4 light up. A smile slowly appeared on his face and as he thought of his plan ¡®Haha finally my plan has come to fruition!¡¯ He grasped the four cards that glowed with a bright light within his hand and slowly studied the four cards. Teo laughed darkly as he suddenly clenched his hand! -SCARP- The four cards instantly broke! ¡­¡­ Zachery and the other three were freely running with all their strength through the obstacle course, enjoying the saint tier shoes when suddenly their speed instantly doubled! With such a sudden increase of speed mid-stride, they lost control of their bodies and instantly crashed at various parts of the obstacle course! The shoes on their feet instantly broke apart causing all four of them to be injured in various crashes! While some of them had only minor injuries when falling, Zachery had fallen quite hard. Everyone was caught off guard as they noticed the sudden change of this testers¡¯ speed and the subsequent crashes! Elon quickly rushed to see Zachery¡¯s injuries as a medical team quickly rushed to attend to the injured youths. ¡°Ah! It hurts!¡± Kristofer screamed in pain until he passed out. ¡°Ah! My feet! They are burning!¡± Ash also screamed as he grabbed his legs. Although their crash had only resulted in some minor scrapes on their arms and shoulders, they were screams were quite intense. The other testers who saw this quickly removed the shoes that they were wearing! Erin was on the ground, already passed out from the pain, while Zachery was still screaming and still quite conscious. His feet were also injured like the others and his left arm was fractured due to the heavy crash! ¡°Grandfather! My feet! My feet feel like they are burning!¡± he shouted The screams drew the attention of the many individuals who were hunting for the hidden inscriptionist. The crowd¡¯s atmosphere was dense with fear and worry as they saw the four testers on the ground, screaming in pain. The doctors quickly examined their feet but could not diagnose the issue. They were puzzled at the sight of four youths¡¯ feet swelling like a balloon for seemingly no reason. The muscles were inflamed, but they could only provide some medicinal herbs to relieve the pain! Suddenly the remaining pairs of shoes that managed to not break suddenly collapsed into several pieces. The testing phase of today left many of the several people shocked. ¡®These saint tier inscriptions are too unstable!¡¯ most of them thought. [Edited by thisisnate] Chapter 68: Poison Chapter 68: Poison Pieces fell from Teo¡¯s grip as each card was destroyed. The glowing lines of the array slowly dimmed as the pieces disintegrated into powder. He finally let out a sigh of relief as his plan finally was completed. He slowly sat and waited for Lia and Windle to return. From the tests, Teo had gained some understanding of the limits of the arrays from his test, but it was still not enough. The Emerald Pavilion knew that it would be difficult for Teo to retrieve the information of the individuals that were assigned to test the shoes, so they devised a way to get the information to him. They had sent out fliers and posted it throughout the academy. Their decision had annoyed the Imperial family but the Pavilion had insisted that this was part of the eccentric¡¯s conditions. Teo waited for his friend¡¯s return to hear the full details of the event. While devising his plan, he felt pity for the four that went last, but it quickly passed especially when he considered the whole situation. His hand was forced, and this was one of the best solutions he could come up with. The arrangement he had made beforehand was quite useful. His original plan was to have people test his arrays and destroy the arrays after collecting enough data. He had discovered an incredibly useful linking array earlier when he was experimenting. By linking up three different arrays, he could easily trigger the array to self-destruct when destroying any one of the other linked arrays. Three arrays for one pair, one in each shoe and the other in the wooden cards that Teo made. If any one array was destroyed, the other two would self-destruct. But then he was forced to change his plans after saw the Emerald Pavilion¡¯s warning. The situation forced him to be extremely cautious and his original plan to watch his guinea pigs in action changed, but luckily with the wooden card, he could remotely observe a few simple things. He could learn at which level of cultivation the boots could handle. If it lit up without breaking, then with the information from the fliers, he could easily deduce to what cultivation level could the materials handle. The only thing piece he was missing was if the cultivator¡¯s body could handle such speeds. Moving at high speeds would be useless if you could not control your own movements. He needed to know if they could safely change direction, stop, and jump without risk of injuries. This was the purpose of the obstacle course. As for his four targets, he relied on the headmaster¡¯s bias to deliver the four pairs. By instructing the Emerald Pavilion to deliver this pair to the academy, he would avoid their suspicion. His initial plan was to sell six pairs to the Emerald Pavilion then anonymously deliver the other four pairs to Zachery¡¯s group. He was hoping that they would test the shoes after he leaves a description of the boost it gave. Since it was far better than the shoes they used to chase Teo down, they would undoubtedly use them to chase him down in the future and he could simply break the linked array to taunt them. But after he found out how big of an impact these shoes had made, he quickly changed his plans. After delivering the second batch, he altered his instructions while avoiding suspicion. The boots were to be sent to the academy to test, but he did not indicate which individuals would test them. Teo knew that the headmaster would be the one to decide which students would test these pair of shoes and relying on the fact that the headmaster was extremely biased towards Zachery and by setting the testing restrictions to class two fighters and below, Teo was almost sure who the headmaster would choose for his candidates. From some other perspective, the headmaster would freely choose the candidates, but in fact, Teo knew that at least one of these pair would fall into Zachery¡¯s hands! By doing this, he had removed any possible evidence linking between him and his targets. Putting a mild poison into the four pairs of shoes, he planned to hamper Zachery from doing anything to him for at least half a year. With the help of his array, the poison would be absorbed through the skin and muscle, and irritate them as if tiny ants biting them. While the poison was very painful, it did not cause any permanent damage or death and only lasted for about 6 months. The pain could be numbed by using medical herbs and even allow them to walk without pain, but it would prevent them from running. Even a light sprint would aggravate the poison and cause the symptoms to relapse. He had purchased this poison while in disguise so that there was no way for others to track it back to him. From his past incident with the stink bomb, Teo learned about the different types of investigation methods used to track someone; specifically when Windle was tracked down for purchasing his bomb¡¯s ingredient. Upon breaking these wooden cards, the array would activate and evaporate, destroying the shoes while injecting the poison. But there was still a possibility for error. So on the day of the lab rats came to test his work, Teo sat down from a distance and watched the only road that led towards the Colosseum from the central district. He had to make sure that none of his targets were innocent parties. He did not want to repeat his past mistake when he had accidentally involved Emily in his trap. Luckily, all four of his targets were there carrying each pair! ¡­. ¡°God dammit!¡± The young envoy of the Rizon main family cursed the heavens, his tightly clenched fist and grinding teeth unable to vent his frustrations. The item he had longed for had broken! His gaze was fiercely swept over the four injured people on the ground before it landed on Elon who stood by his unconscious grandson. Elon broke into a cold sweat as he felt an intense gaze. He was dimly aware that chance to go to the capital was slowly vanishing like mist in the morning sun. Seeing this scene, the elder envoy spoke to mediate the situation. He knew that the youth blamed Elon and the four, but in reality, nobody could be blamed. ¡°Nephew, calm down. You cannot falsely push the blame onto these people. These things were clearly defective and despite the effects being ¡®saint tier¡¯, they were far too unstable.¡± The old man let out a deep sigh of relief, as he thought of what could have happened. ¡°Luckily, other people had tested them first. If we had bought them and you tried them on, the one who would be lying in bed would most likely be you!¡± The destruction of these saint tier items caused various emotions to emerge within the people involved. The ones who purchased the shoes were depressed, while the others relished the moment of another¡¯s misfortune. The youth took a deep breath and calmed his rage. The old envoy signal one of his guards to approach. ¡°Has the Imperial family found a lead?¡± He questioned. The guard shook his head and said, ¡°According to our agents, due to the arrival of many foreign visitors, the shoemaker could not remember who he sold it to. Even when tortured his old mind was too dull to remember and eventually died¡± The old envoy frowned and started to walk. Elon sensed the old envoy slowly approach from behind. ¡°How are the young ones?¡± Despite his worried countenance and words, the envoy was more concerned with finding clues about the mysterious eccentric. Perhaps the only one that he was actually concerned for was Zachery because of his potential. Elon bowed to the envoy and spoke. ¡°Elder, aside from some minor scrapes and my grandson¡¯s fractured arm, the doctor said that their feet seemed to be suffering from the venom of a Dulldrum Scorpion¡± As he listened to Elon¡¯s statements, a thought immediately popped into his mind. ¡®Does this inscription require such an ingredient to active its power? If so, then this is a huge discovery! Perhaps this is the key ingredient for these inscriptions!¡¯ As he formed these conclusions, he immediately ordered Elon. ¡°Keep this information from spreading. Detain the ones that know, this must not be leaked! Silence them if you have to.¡± Elon acknowledged the elder¡¯s commands and acted as quickly as he could, but the information had already spread to some factions¡¯ spies who were lurking around the area. Since the saint tier books were no longer obtainable, they focused their search for the mysterious eccentric. The venom of the Dulldrum Scorpion was the only clue they had to work with to find this eccentric. A few groups had already discovered from before a description of a masked individual who bought a type of poison before the emergence of the saint tier boots at the Emerald Pavilion. The descriptions matched the mysterious eccentric, but after that, all the clues hit a dead end. Their only choice was to comb through everyone who was a possible suspect. With the limited amount of elementalists who had either wind or darkness attributes, they were easily monitored; Some even questioned. There were quite a few individuals on the list, the main suspects were ones who attended the event within the Colosseum. They were sure that the eccentric in question would most likely attend to watch the events unfold, but what they didn¡¯t know was this eccentric had the ability to remotely monitor these experiments in the comfort and privacy of his cave. After they ruled out these suspects one by one, they moved their investigation to other elementalists that were within the academy. Even Teo had encountered someone who had swiftly stabbed him with a small needle and disappeared before he could even react. Reading on this site? This novel is published elsewhere. Support the author by seeking out the original. They had forcefully taken some of his blood, which had cleared him from the suspect list, but the stabbing incident was repeated multiple times by multiple different factions. Once they had confirmed his divination result, they quickly moved on to the next suspect. This was because the talent required to produce a saint tier inscription was very high! It heavily depended on one¡¯s growth potential and age. Teo was very young and his growth potential was very low. Designing and creating new inscriptions could not be done by someone with such a low potential! One by one, the suspect list grew smaller and smaller. Drifters who were discovered to be wind or darkness elementalist would sometimes vanish, and mysteriously turn up dead; showing many wounds that indicated signs of torture. Thankfully, the students were protected by the royal guards and the red guards or perhaps Teo and other students would be subjected to the same fate. Eventually, the suspect list became as empty as the desert sands. Only one person remained on the list, but this person was a student of the academy. He had had both wind and darkness attributes and had been present during the event. Unfortunately, this person had already been taken by Rizon family for questioning and could not move against them. Even the injured dualist, Ash Moran, was questioned by the Rizon family. ¡­. Teo eventually relaxed as time passed by. At first, Teo would freak out whenever some stranger approached him. This was because of his experience of getting randomly stabbed with a small needle by someone whenever he walked outside. Despite being quick and painless, the psychological fear of getting stabbed was enough for him to keep his guard up at all times. After some time, classes resumed as before. Teo¡¯s schedule was back on track, aside from his new habit of mimicking a deer. Whenever he walked the street, his eyes opened as wide as a deer¡¯s and his head swiveled nonstop in his paranoia of strangers. Eventually, he lowered his guard and continued his life. While all this fiasco was happening, he began to focus on learning the casting method from Lia and was finally allowed the use of the furnace during the weekends. However, Teo needed Lia¡¯s supervision to work the furnace, but thankfully, she did not mind as she was still teaching Teo many things about casting. In the corner that Lia gave him, Teo had finally finished creating his own small ceramic mold. It had five holes on the cover and within it was a hole big enough to hold his stone prototype. The shape of the mold intrigued Lia¡¯s interest. ¡°What is that mold for?¡± The size of the mold was far too small to hold any armor or weapon that Lia could think of and couldn¡¯t help but try to satisfy her curiosity. ¡°I am trying to reinforce the durability of the stone of my sister¡¯s pendant. I want to give it to her before she leaves at the end of the year.¡± Teo held out a stone in his hand. The dark colored void stone had several tiny holes within it and the holes created an interconnecting pathway of array lines. Teo did reveal that the stone in his hand was actually a void stone similar to the stone within her sister¡¯ pendant. This was the prototype for the void inscription! Teo did not care if Lia saw the stone, as visual inspection would only reveal the stone having many tiny holes. For what was inside, Lia had no clue due to a thin layer of dark material, coating the whole outer layer. He took the stone and snugly placed it into the finished ceramic mold. Then, he took a cup full of molten metal from the furnace. This mixture also contained void elemental powder that Teo had secretly mixed in. Despite the high melting point of elemental stones, once it was ground into powder and left in intense heat of a furnace, it would eventually melt. Teo then poured the mixture into one of the small holes of the mold and the mixture slowly flowed inside. The molten mixture slowly filled up the tiny tunnel that was drilled into the stone one by one. Teo intentionally slowed the pace as he wished to minimize the risk of air pockets building up within one of the holes. As the temperature increased within the mold, any remaining moisture in the air would build up like steam within a boiling kettle before bursting out. As the molten mixture slowly filled a hole, the steam should have exited through the other holes, but Teo still decided to slowly pour the mixture in small amounts to minimize the chance of air pockets. If the array lines were not connected by the hardened mixture due to air pockets, then it would not work as it was designed or possibly, it might not even work at all. Sweat quickly amassed on Teo¡¯s forehead as he carefully poured the mixture in slowly to ensure perfection. Not far away, Lia quietly sat on a chair as she observed Teo. She knew that this part of casting required concentration and just a single moment of distraction could cause the material to weaken due to air bubbles. Even when forging weapons or armors, air bubbles were their worst nightmare. She looked at the mold and thought about how important this was to him and Rowen. ¡®I can¡¯t wait to get my new equipment after this. Hopefully after this, he can take care my request.¡¯ Lia recalled that Teo said that her inscribed equipment would be finished by the end of the year. ¡®I guess I can wait for 5 more months¡¯, she said to herself. ¡­. The mold was completely filled up, and the only thing Teo needed to do was to wait for it to cool down. ¡°Lia what¡¯s wrong?¡± Teo asked as he sensed that Lia was not her usual self. She looked a little troubled as she sat beside Teo. ¡°Teo, what are your plans for next year?¡± Teo was surprised at the seemingly random question. He was stumped and couldn¡¯t immediately answer. His time and focus were spent on finishing his sister¡¯s gift. He had yet to plan for the future since his thoughts were dominated by his current situation. He had postponed thinking about the future because he thought there was still enough time before the year ended to make a decision. ¡°I¡¯m not sure yet...¡± ¡°Windle told me that he plans to invest all his time into combat training,¡± Lia frowned. ¡°Hmm... What about you Lia? What are you planning on doing?¡± Up until now, Teo had always chosen his classes based on his friends choices. Nothing had changed for him and he wanted a clear grasp of their intentions before making any decision. They had been together for more than a year and a half now and Teo considered Windle and Lia to be no different from his siblings. Windle chose to think of his future and both Lia and Teo understood this as well. The more he stood out during the tournament at the end of the third year the better it would be for his future. He could even use this as a platform to spring off to get ever so closer to his goal of going to the capital! ¡°I¡­ I want us to be like senior Gina and Rowen and head for the capital together.¡± Teo knew that his sister also planned to go to the capital. It was a place where people could make a name for themselves if they had enough strength. The capital not only the largest city in the empire but also the strongest. It was so massive that within the capital was the Imperial city. This was where the strong struggled against each other; fighting for fame, money and honor. Lia did not wish for a peaceful life, but rather a glorious one. To live her life in a brilliant blaze rather than being stifled down by a mediocre life. Windle, on the other hand, wanted to be rich and famous. With their goals intertwined, only Teo was left out. Lia was unsure of what Teo wanted to do. He was obsessive with his interests and would probably prefer a peaceful life, but his impulsive nature would probably drag him into trouble. Teo realized the meaning of Lia¡¯s statement. It was an invitation! An invitation to pursue the same goals together. This would mean that they had to work hard during their time at the academy to reach a certain level of strength. ¡®I don¡¯t know what I plan to do yet, but strength is required to live a peaceful life.¡¯ He knew the importance of strength. If he wanted to protect something, he needed enough power to do so. Afterwards, Teo looked into Lia¡¯s eyes and said as he smiled ¡°Okay! Let¡¯s do it.¡± ¡®...Hopefully the capital will have a bigger library there,¡¯ he thought to himself. [Edited by thisisnate] [Author¡¯s note: I have changed a few things from the past chapters. Some typos, some logic/explanation errors. Ch 6, reduced the amount of days Teo spent to save for his sister¡¯s necklace (from 3 weeks to less than a week). Ch 37, changed ¡°worked daily¡± to ¡°work part time¡± Reason: Reduce the amount of money a student can make so it is more in line with how much they can earn yearly. Ch 61, confusing explanation error about the arrays and inscriptions is more clarified (i hope) Ch 19, mixed up Gathering stage for Sensing Stage Also will be renaming ¡°heaven revealing eyes¡± into some other name for future chapters Thanks to thisisnate for editing this long chapter ~3000 words] Chapter 69: Gift Chapter 69: Gift After the metal cooled down, Teo opened the mold up and saw that the metal had hardened exactly where the holes used to be. Teo¡¯s eyes sparkled as he took a file and filed the excess metal that protruded out. He was careful not to damage the stone itself as even though its melting point was very high, it was quite brittle and liable to chip and break into powder. He switched from filing to polishing the surface of the stone. The more he polished the more beautiful it became. The black coating infused itself onto the surface of the stone creating a deep jet black color as several tiny metallic spots shone brilliantly like the stars in the night sky. When Lia saw the stone completely polished, she gasped and marvelled at how beautiful it was. As Teo scraped and filed the last piece of excess material he could find, Teo could feel the array within the stone activated. ¡®This is a good sign!¡¯ He happily rejoiced By filling up the small hollow tunnels with metal within the stone, it reinforced the overall structure of the stone. Furthermore, its sturdiness was enhanced because the array that was inlaid was also reinforced the stone¡¯s durability. Teo grasped the stone into his hand and applied the greatest amount of force he could unto the stone. He nodded with a smile on his face as the stone clearly was not as fragile as before. He took the file that he used earlier and tried to whittle it down the stone into powder but found that he could no longer do so. He then walked towards a hammer that was placed on a nearby anvil. After locking the stone in place, he lifted up the hammer and sent it slamming down towards the stone. -BANG- A loud intense sound briefly shocked Lia as she saw Teo hammering the stone one swing after another. After seeing that there was no crack or dent onto the stone after taking so many hits, Teo became extremely happy. This meant that the array did not have any air bubbles and that its durability had dramatically increased! As he held the stone up into his hand, he disabled his God¡¯s eyes and found that he could not sense a thing. Even with his void and darkness senses almost mastered, he could not sense a single thing! He quietly inserted some of his Qi into the stone and felt his consciousness sink into the stone into a separate space that he could control! The space could fill up two floors of a medium sized building! ¡®SUCCESS!!¡¯ He happily rejoiced inside but the sense of accomplishment grew too great and showed on his face! As he could no longer control himself, he jumped and shouted ¡°YES YES YES! I DID IT!¡± Lia who was watching him felt amused. She thought that Teo was easily pleased with his nicely decorated piece of rock, but she did not know how valuable this simple looking rock was! As his excitement mellowed out for a little bit, he grabbed Lia¡¯s hand and said, ¡°Let¡¯s do this again next week!¡± Then, once again, jumped in joy. As this was only the prototype, he needed to actually needed to drill a much smaller stone for her sister¡¯s necklace but despite it being much smaller, Teo felt like he had practiced enough. He was confident that he could create the perfect necklace within two days. It was unfortunate that he had to wait until the next weekend to use the forge again, but he was not too worried. ----- Only four months left until the end of the school year but during his spare time, Teo would sometimes be seen enjoying himself within the library. With all his projects finished, his hardships within these past 8 months was not in vain. The gifts he planned to give Rowen was all completed. The pendant inlaid with the void array was simple yet elegant piece of work, it was like a dark pearl with hundreds of tiny sparkling metallic facets. Inside the pendant¡¯s pocket of space was the protection ring that Teo created. As for Lia¡¯s equipment and the boots that he bought for everyone, they were already complete. He had placed a limiter array in each of them to limit the Qi intake to only class 4 fighters and below. Although the results from the grand auction before showed that an ordinary shoe could handle Qi up to class 5 fighters, he did not want to risk it breaking or attracting unwanted attention. With the shoe¡¯s boost, their speed should be far greater than anyone of similar cultivation. Teo had also inlaid some camouflage to surround the outside of the shoe. The camouflage were inscriptions that gathered wind elemental energy. Their designs were seemingly extremely complicated looking but actually only had a basic effect. This was because the energy flow from the array could disrupt the flow of any inscription that was laid too close to the array, making it impossible for him to lay any inscription beyond those of the simplest functions. It was simply used to fool people¡¯s eyes, including the wearer¡¯s. Despite all his gifts being completed, Teo did not yet give them out to everyone because although the majority of foreign visitors who hunted for the mysterious eccentric had left the academy, there were still some that lingered around. He hid all these items within the initial prototype array that he created. Although the size was quite big for it to be a pendant, it could fit inside his pockets without problems. For three months the remnants of these foreign visitors had investigated thoroughly but could not find a single clue. Many had guessed that perhaps this eccentric had already left the academy or another group had already kidnapped this person so many of them gave up. ¡®I guess it¡¯s this shelf today¡¯, he thought to himself Teo quickly pulled out blank book be bought from the southern district from his bag and copied the contents of a book and quickly returning it inside. Then he pulled out a similar looking book and copied the next book after it. He repeated these actions discretely, making sure no one was watching. As he copied one book after another, he would store them inside his prototype array within the hidden compartment in his bag. Teo would buy one or two blank books across many different shops, sometimes changing from one disguise to another. By spreading out these purchases across many shops, the merchants would not take notice of how many blank books Teo had bought. With his astronomic wealth, he would slowly copy each and every book as his personal collection! ¡®I can¡¯t wait till I can go up the second floor next year,¡¯ he smiled Teo spent his days going to classes, training, spending time with his family and friends and if he had extra time, he would be in the library copying every book he can. When he returned to his private cave, he would organize the books he had copy. Despite copying so much, he had yet to actually read any of them, but within his heart there was a fanatic desire to collect each and every book he could get his hands on. These days were peaceful for Teo. He had soon forgotten about the incident with the headmaster as even Tordin who frequently stepped out of the academy was never attacked by the Rizon family. As for Rowen and the others, they never left the confines of the academy. Since there were still foreign visitors around, Teo had thought that this prevented the headmaster from doing anything stupid. As for Zachery and his group, they would take until next year to fully recover. This story has been unlawfully obtained without the author''s consent. Report any appearances on Amazon. Time slowly passed peacefully but no matter how slow it seemed, from a different perspective it was only a blink of an eye. ----- A black haired old man finally stepped out of a sealed room and walked towards a small cottage as he grabbed an orange colored fruit with a mysterious glow from the nearby tree. He took a bite out of the fruit and casually entered the cottage. Sensing someone enter the cottage a middle aged man with crimson flowing hair quickly exitted his study and greeted the black haired old man with respect ¡°Elder brother you are finally out!¡± ¡°Ah Lark, I¡¯m just checking up on things. I¡¯ll be heading back soon¡±, the black haired old man said as the light from the outside shined on his face. This old man is Teo¡¯s master, Cien! ¡°I wonder what Elder Brother Cien did to make him lose a great amount of strength?¡±, Lark asked ¡°Oh it¡¯s nothing, I just gave my candidate a very special gift!¡± ¡°A gift?¡± ¡°The God¡¯s eye!¡±, Cien smiled then he continued ¡°Let me see what he¡¯s been up to lately¡± Cien¡¯s hands started to move and an array quickly formed in the air in front of him. This array formed into a large screen where images quickly flowed one by one showing a blur on the screen. As he watched the quick moving images, he smiled but then frowned. ¡°This kid¡¯s improvement is quite good, he managed to create an advance rank array all on his own. His creativity is also very good..¡± His eyes was cheerful as he praised but then a hint of disappointment could also be seen. ¡°Except he is relying too much on my protection array, he won¡¯t be able to grow like this,¡± Cien complained and continued, ¡°Not only that, this empire is too peaceful for him!¡± Lark looked at the images as well and saw a young boy with dark black hair. He looked ordinary but as Lark¡¯s eyes flashed his pupils widen in surprise ¡°His potential is quite good but Elder brother, your array is too restricting¡± ¡°If he can¡¯t handle this much, he¡¯ll never be strong enough when we need him to be¡± Then Cien¡¯s hands moved and without Teo noticing, the array embedded on his chest slightly changed. ¡°There! This should make him less reliant¡±, Cien said as he headed back to the recuperating room. ----- As time passed by within a blink of an eye, the school year was almost over. By this time, all foreign powers had given up on their pursuit of the mysterious eccentric, or at least they no longer thought that this eccentric was still within the academy and thus moved on to other nearby towns and villages. There was only a month left before the year ended and the eighth year seniors started to prepare themselves. They were set to depart within three weeks, a week before the school year would officially end. They took this time to form groups of 4 to 6 and prepare themselves for the trip. Rowen¡¯s group had a total of six people. Including Gina, Riss and Tordin, another person from the Martial faction, Alex, and one from a smaller faction, Gale. The students were given freedom to form their own teams and although they were acquaintances, their focus was to have a well balanced team. Each individual had different set of skills. A team did not only need strength to survive, but they needed to be able to support each other¡¯s weakness. They were placing their lives in each other¡¯s hands for two years, and despite being supervised by an elder, there was no guarantee that they would be safe. There has always been a very small percentage of students dying during these last two years, so they made sure to prepare themselves. For their fighting strength, four from the Martial faction was enough. Despite Riss¡¯ not showing her prowess in combat, she was capable of identifying materials as well as other miscellaneous information that could come in handy. She was basically the brains of the team, despite having such a personality. Gale¡¯s expertise were within treating injuries as well as knowledge in poisons and herbs. Gina was the cook of the team, although she could also hunt, she was more proficient at setting traps and alarms and other device. As for Rowen, she was the one who gathered these people. Despite being annoyed with Tordin, she allowed the loner Tordin to join as well. His experience of the wildlands was very valuable to the team and he was just as good at hunting and tracking as Rowen, if not better. Their last member Alex was the Martial faction¡¯s strongest water elementalist. Aside from being able to conjure up water from the atmosphere, he had a tremendous amount of defensive capabilities. As the day of departure grew near, Teo tried to spend as much time as he could with Rowen. Despite being busy preparing for the trip, she let Teo accompany her during the first two weeks. After completing most of their preparation, Rowen decided to relax with Teo and the two siblings played chess against each other as they chatted. A surge of loneliness erupted from his heart that he had been holding back for weeks as he remembered the day when Rowen left home to enroll to the academy. ¡°Teo, when are you planning on giving back my necklace?¡± Rowen asked She could not leave before getting it back from Teo, because it was the only gift she had received from Teo. ¡°Sister, I will give it to you on the day of your departure,¡± he replied in a less energetic tone ¡°I wonder when we¡¯ll meet again?¡± Teo asked Tears started to swell from his eyes and he looked away as to hide it from Rowen, but she caught it right away. Teo¡¯s his nose moisten as he breathed deeply. Rowen stood up and walked besides Teo. She suddenly embraced him from the side as her eyes also became teary. She softly whispered ¡°Once you graduate, I¡¯ll be sure to visit on that day. Then we¡¯ll return home spend some time with mom and dad, and maybe brother Aran¡± Teo could not respond as he kept his eyes closed and his mouth barely holding back his loud cries. He just nodded fiercely and felt the warm embrace of his beloved sister. There was not much time left and during this last week before her departure, they just relaxed and spent their time together. They ate together and played together. Riss, Gina, Windle and Lia also came and joined in. It was the happiest days of Teo¡¯s life and he deeply engraved these days into his heart. After a few days, Rowen was going to leave and he would not see her for a very long time. So he fully enjoyed the last few moments that he had with her. [Edited by thisisnate, unsure if completed or not but it looks good to me] [Author¡¯s Note: Arc 2 - Growth will end at Chapter 70 Moving my website to a different one, updated in ¡°website¡± button at the bottom of this post. I will be updating the ¡°daily notice¡± there to inform you if a chapter will be out or not. ¡®Heaven revealing eyes¡¯ will be renamed to ¡®God¡¯s eyes¡¯ ¡®Red Guards¡¯ will be renamed ¡®Red Guardians¡¯ or is ¡®Crimson Guardians¡¯ better? ¡®Spirit Severing Stage¡¯ will be renamed as ¡®Mind Awakening Stage¡¯] Chapter 70: Farewell Chapter 70: Farewell Dawn broke and morning dew dripped off the tip of a blade of grass. A foot suddenly crushed the blade. Figures began to appear like a large army . Hundreds of students gathered around the area near the northern gates as they prepared themselves for their departure. Not too far away, Teo hurried and sprinted towards the northern gates while carrying his backpack and a large sack. His eyes fatigued eyes were still focused as he was afraid of missing Rowen¡¯s departure. Many gathered around the area but like a swift blade, Teo directly cut through them and ran towards the largest tree close to the northern gates. As Rowen finished packing her stuff into the nearby wagon, she apprehensively looked to the distance, moving her gaze back and forth through the thick crowd of people. Suddenly, her eyes lit up as it focused on a short figure carrying a large sack approaching her team. She quickly starting moving to greet this person and when she finally came close, a warm smile appeared on her face and tightly embraced Teo. ¡°Teo! You finally came!¡± The sack he carried dropped to the floor, as he gave Rowen a hug as well. ¡°Hey hey Teo, what about your sister-in-law? Where is my hug?¡± Riss asked as she interrupted this precious moment Gina suddenly appeared besides Riss and pulled her left ear up, pulling her away from the siblings and gave them this precious time together. The siblings smiled at Gina and Riss as they appreciated Gina¡¯s thoughtfulness. Then from his backpack, Teo took out the necklace that he made for Rowen. Seeing the necklace, Rowen as slightly surprised as although the pendant looked the same, the stone within it changed too much. The small black pearl that sparkled like the night sky! It looked very beautiful. ¡°Sister, this is for you¡±, Teo smiled as he took the necklace and handed it over to Rowen. Rowen examined the necklace closely as she realized that it was not only the stone that changed but also it¡¯s chain. The chain was not made of ordinary metal and knew that this what Teo had promised to do. Teo then took out a letter and gave it to Rowen. ¡°Sister, take this. Read it when you¡¯re alone after you leave. After you finish reading it, please destroy this letter, don¡¯t let anyone else know about it¡± Teo spoke in a whisper and Rowen knew that it was something serious. She smiled and nodded as she quickly slipped the letter into her pocket. Teo did not waste anymore time as he grabbed the sack and shouted. ¡°Sister-in-law! Elder sister Gina!¡± Teo waved his hand gesturing them to come. The two approached the siblings as Gina asked, ¡°What¡¯s the matter Teo?¡± From the large sack, Teo took three pairs of boots out. As they saw these pairs, Rowen, Riss and Gina¡¯s eyes widen as they realized Teo¡¯s intention. The boots were of high quality materials, and complicated looking inscriptions could be seen on them. ¡°Everyone, this is Lia, Windle and my farewell presents to you guys, I hope they will be of use.¡± Teo said as he gave each a pair. Realizing what Teo and the others had done, their hearts felt warm. They knew that the three juniors were taking inscription classes together and also knew that Teo had quite a fortune for a second year student. ¡°Thanks brother-in-law, your sister-in-law will cherish them!¡± Riss said as she suddenly gave Teo a kiss on the left cheeks while hugging her new pair of shoes. Teo was stunned as his hand touched his left cheeks. ¡°Teo, I can¡¯t believe you got me a gift too¡­ I..¡± Gina was embarrassed after receiving such an expensive looking gift. She looked around the area and checked if anyone else besides the four of them was looking, then after ensuring no one else was paying attention, she gave Teo a kiss on the right cheek as well. Soon after Gina¡¯s face became quite red as she had never kissed anyone before. She left like an older sister to Teo but they were still after all not siblings. Teo was caught off guard and was kissed by two lovely seniors ¡°Heh, Teo you are so lucky getting kisses from these lovely sisters,¡± Rowen teased as she gave Teo a kiss on the forehead and then quickly taking something out of her bag. In her hands as a chainmail that was crimson in color, she then handed it to Teo and said, ¡°Teo, this is from me. This chainmail is made out of blood iron. It is quite durable and very light¡± As she spoke, her eyes slowly trembled as tears started forming. ¡°Hopefully this will protect you while I am gone,¡± she softly said Rowen had spent a large amount of her savings to buy this for Teo, and while blood iron was cheaper than dark iron, it¡¯s defensive ability was quite good. ¡°Teo, you must train harder than ever before. You have to be so strong that I won¡¯t have to worry about you,¡± Rowen smiled as she said this. ¡°Don¡¯t worry sister, I will train hard¡± Despite having the perfect defensive ability due to the protection array on his chest, he still felt warm knowing that Rowen deeply worried about his safety -HOOOOOMMMMM!- Suddenly a loud sound of a horn being blown could be heard by everyone in the area. Many of them knew what this sound meant; It was the signal for the student¡¯s departure. ¡°Teo, I¡¯ll come see you when you graduate!¡± Teo nodded and hugged Rowen very tightly ¡°Sister, I love you! Stay safe!¡± ¡°I love you too Teo!¡± Teo stood there as he watched Rowen¡¯s group enter the wagon one by one. Rowen sat down at the very back, looking at Teo¡¯s figure as he watched them leave. ¡°Sister! Everyone! Please stay safe!!¡±, Teo shouted as the wagon was passed through the academy gates Teo waved his hands at them and Rowen also waved back ¡°Don¡¯t worry Teo, I¡¯ll be watching your sister¡¯s back!!¡±, Gina shouted ¡°Don¡¯t worry Teo!! They¡¯ll both be watching my back!!¡±, Riss shouted Even during such an emotional moment, Riss still managed to crack a joke. Teo could only smile as their voices slowly vanished off to the distance. Tears flowed from his eyes as once again, he had been left behind. ¡®Sister, please stay safe! Please keep your promise! We¡¯ll meet again soon!¡¯ Teo tightly clenched his hands on the blood red chainmail that he received from his sister. ----- A large caravan headed towards the north west carrying many students and Mirth academy elders. Within the wagon, Riss was opening carrying her new boots for everyone to see, while Rowen and Gina were already wearing theirs. ¡°Look at what my brother-in-law gave to me,¡± Riss bragged at Tordin and the others Tordin looked at the matching pairs of boots of the three ladies, and despite looking similar from each other, they were designed a little differently. ¡°Miss Tofen, please quiet down, we still have a long trip ahead of us,¡± the elder who was responsible for watching them said. The Mirth academy was in within Atef prefecture. From the academy, they had to cross 4 other prefectures to get to the edge of the wildlands. It would take them around two months by horse to get to their destination. This tale has been unlawfully obtained from Royal Road. If you discover it on Amazon, kindly report it. The wildlands were lands that was intentionally left unoccupied by the empire. Several beasts and bandits roamed around these lawless jungle, as this land was used to temper both young and old. The deeper they went, the more dangerous it was. Beast of all kinds lurked within these lands, from ordinary wild beast to variant beasts. Variant beasts were beast that could naturally absorbs world Qi as they grow. The older a variant beast was, the stronger their strength would be. Despite their potential, they were not the strongest among beasts. Variant beasts are subspecies of much larger beasts known as War beasts. War beasts were ancient beasts that had gigantic bodies, many were taller than buildings while very few were larger than mountains. The large birds that the Imperial family used were a type of War beast that the empire tamed and grew. They lived for thousands of years, similar to the peak cultivators of the world. Fortunately, the barrier that protected the empire also weakened any beasts that was born outside the empire and thus most of the known beasts within the wildlands were either variant beasts or lower. ¡°Where¡¯s my pair?¡± Tordin teased Rowen ¡°Huh? Why would you get one?¡± She snorted ----- ¡°I can¡¯t believe I overslept!¡± Lia grumbled as her face sank down onto the table Windle was on the other side while having his head down as he slowly ate. ¡°I feel ashamed as well¡­ I was too worried about waking up in the morning that I couldn¡¯t sleep early¡±, Windle confessed ¡°Why didn¡¯t you wake us up??¡±, Lia complained Teo showed a defeated smile and explained ¡°If I went to get both of you, I would¡¯ve missed them too!¡± Their plans were to see off their seniors who took care of them during these two years, but like excited kids on a field trip, Windle and Lia could not sleep early and when they eventually fell asleep, they could no longer wake up in time. On the other hand, Teo didn¡¯t sleep at all. He didn¡¯t want to risk missing their departure so he stayed within the inner world the whole time. As his body rested, his mind was awake. Lia and Windle felt regretful not being able to say farewell to their respected seniors. They also could not argue with Teo as they knew the importance of this day was to him. ¡°Oh right, these are your items I made for you,¡± Teo said as he pulled out a few items from his sack and placed them on the table. For Lia, a pair of boots, chestguard, bracers, and shin guards and her sword. For Windle, a pair of boots, a full plate of armor, a helmet and the sword that Lia crafted. All the armor except for the boots were done with inscriptions because Teo believed that currently this was enough for them. This would also minimize the risk of others knowing of his arrays. Lia¡¯s set of armor was very light and only protected specific parts of the body. Windle on the other hand focused a little more on the defensive capabilities, but despite having a full plate of armor, it was not thick and gave him a balance between protection and speed. ¡°Finally!¡± Lia¡¯s spirit instantly livened up ¡°Thanks Teo¡± ¡°Thanks¡± Aside from the boots, Windle had bought his set of armor with a year¡¯s worth of salary, While Lia crafted most of her armor herself. Although they weren¡¯t the best, they were quite decent. She even offered Teo to make a weapon for him but he declined and chose to carry two short sticks with him instead. This was his weapon of choice. It was not because he was afraid to kill, but it was what he was most familiar with. ----- As the days passed by, the trio finally moved on as the academy¡¯s third year students. After returning from spectating the first day of the ranking tournament, the group decided to hang out at newly restored flower garden within the central district. ¡°The seniors this year seem to be a lot weaker compared to senior sister Rowen and Gina,¡± Lia stated Windle shook his head and said ¡°It¡¯s too early to tell, but it¡¯ll be good for us if they are weaker¡± They were preparing for next year¡¯s free-for-all tournament, where students of different years can compete against each other. They were scouting the strength of the seventh years and below since they were their competition next year. ¡®Isn¡¯t winning the inter-year competition good enough?¡¯ Teo thought to himself He didn¡¯t see the point of defeating their seniors who clearly was stronger than them. There were many students who chose peaceful careers in the future, but like the them, there were also some who chose the path of a combatant. These people who took the path of cultivation or elementalism were resolved and put in effort into training. A difference in years would be a big disadvantage for them, and thus winning amongst peers of the same year was a better chance of coming up on top. ¡°We should plan our schedules to train together. Teo you have talisman classes in the morning right?¡± Windle inquired Lia had already informed him that she had already roped Teo into their plans. ¡°Yeah, it¡¯s quite a short class, it only lasts for an hour and a half¡± ¡°Good! Since Lia¡¯s class is also in the morning, we can train together but do you guys want to attend the combat classes or just train in the martial faction on our own?¡± Since the combat classes were not mandatory, they could choose to ignore it and train by themselves. With Gina and Rowen¡¯s teaching, they already knew the basics of creating their own training menu, and the importance of self discipline during their training. ¡°Let¡¯s check out the combat classes for a while, if it isn¡¯t too helpful we can just train on our own¡±, Teo suggested {Thank You! Merci! Sylvain R. for supporting this series} [Author''s note: This chapter marks the end of the second arc. Also a notice, I am thinking of slowing down updates on RRL, as the only chapters I currently have are unedited, like this chapter. I wanted to finish the second arc so I posted this chapter even if it was mostly (95%) in rough form. I take a few days off to form the general outlines of the upcoming arc as well trying to improve quality of these rough drafts as well. If I am happy with the rough draft, I am thinking of posting it on my website then once it''s edited, I will post it on RRL. Let me know what you think, the decision is not yet final as I want to hear the opinions of anyone he is reading my work. Feedback on the story/storytelling so far would also be nice! As most of you should probably notice, I hate putting announcement chapters, and often only use the end of an actual chapter to announce things on RRL, more announcements on my website if you wish to know the decision I will be making after I read your suggestions. Thanks!] Chapter 71: Daggers Peak Chapter 71: Dagger¡¯s Peak Teo¡¯s anticipation could not be hidden. Like a predator, readying to pounce on his prey, he looked straight at the elder as he moved forward. His gaze was similar to someone looking towards his eternal rival; his steps rushed as his body showed his excitement. Standing besides the steps, the elder gave a smile to the approaching student. ¡°Well little one, you¡¯re finally here I see. I thought you would arrive early in the morning, but it seems I guessed wrong¡± Teo returned a smile as he heard the elder. As the one in charge of guarding the steps towards the second floor, he was quite familiar with Teo. He would often see Teo ask to go upstairs as the year has ending but he constantly refused him as he strictly followed rules of the academy. He took his first step and looked towards the elder. The elder gave an amused smile and did not hinder him at all. A few months back, Teo could not even take this single step and today, he could freely do so. As he ascended to the second floor, he looked around, admiring the layout of the floor. The number of books was far less than the floor below. The majority of the books here contained martial art scriptures, techniques, exercising tips for both cultivators and elementalists. There were even some theory of combat, survival, and medicine, but the focus of Teo¡¯s interest did not lay within these books. Despite wanting to read them later, he recalled that the second floor had a section about the ancient arrays the kingdom have found. As he discovered this section, Teo noticed that the shelves were not regular library shelves. The books and documents on these shelves were physical ones that he could remove. As he tried to copy the books¡¯ contents with a blank book, he found that he was unable to do so. Picking up one of the books, he discovered some passages explaining the process of how the scholars from the past have extracted information from arrays. An example of an array was shown; A drawn picture depicted an array with much of it missing. He studied the symbols and the lines of the array and found the copy quite lacking. The line¡¯s direction, thickness and symbols were drawn in a lackluster manner. An excerpt below the hand drawn picture told that this array was found carved into gigantic stone structures of ancient ruins. The footnote also indicated the location where this ruins were discovered and Teo felt that he had seen this location before. ¡®North of dagger¡¯s peak, along the winding river¡¯ Try as he might, he could not recall where he had seen this location. It was on the tip of his tongue but if he could not remember where he had seen it before. At the time he saw it, it must¡¯ve been something not too important, but after this feeling he burned the words within his memories. He quietly moved on and flipped through the pages. The books were not simply on arrays, but rather the method of how they became inscriptions as well. He continued studying both arrays and inscription together, alone in this small section of the second floor. ----- A large caravan was closely parked at the outskirts of a small but lively town. Many townsfolk had annually welcomed the students who were passing by as they headed northwest towards the wild lands. Travelling for eight days, many of the students and elders were weary and stiff, so they would stop over certain towns for a half a day during their journey. A silhouette of a woman moving through the dense forest startled many of the small animals dwelling nearby. Rowen headed deep into an area with overgrown grass and shrubs, where only a few rays of sunlight could pass through the leaves of many large trees. Looking around, she made sure no one followed her as she finally decided on a small area devoid of people. She sat down against a large oak tree and finally breathe a sigh of relief. Up until now, Rowen did have any time alone, so she seized this opportunity to read Teo¡¯s letter. Recalling Teo¡¯s instructions and serious expression, she followed them to a T. As she read the contents of the letter, her eyebrows curled in confusion. The letter was short but cryptic. Nevertheless, she believed in Teo and circulated her Qi, pouring it into the pendant of her necklace. ¡®!!!¡¯ She abruptly stopped pouring her Qi and her mouth slowly dropped after experiencing a strange phenomenon in her consciousness. Rowen then took the letter and carefully read it once more. ¡®Dear sister, If you are reading this, I hope you are alone. The things I am about to tell you should not be told to anyone else. The necklace I gave you isn¡¯t any ordinary necklace, if you pour your Qi into it, you should understand what I mean. Inside it, should be a ring, please wear this ring as it can save your life. Unfortunately I can¡¯t tell you any more than this as I¡¯ve promised a certain someone to not tell anyone. Please use these items in secret. I love you. Let¡¯s meet again. Your little brother, Teo¡¯ Once more, she poured her Qi into the pendant and the same phenomenon occurred. She felt that she was in front of an extremely large room. She quickly discovered a ring, a letter and several items within this mysterious space. Despite the spacious room, her senses could easily detect any of its contents. The strange experience caused her consciousness to be aware of two different spaces. She could feel that she was within the forest while at the same time, being in front of a mysterious room. Support the author by searching for the original publication of this novel.Her consciousness reached out towards both ring and letter within this room and before she knew it, the ring and letter was both appeared in her hands! ¡°This is..!!¡± Quickly stopping the flow of her Qi, she took the new letter in her hand and started reading it. Her eyes traverse through the page line by line and on the last line, she quickly dropped to the floor. All of her strength seemed to disappear as she found what was written unbelievable! She reread the letter once more, to confirm that her eyes did not deceive her. ¡®Dear sister, If you are reading this, then you have already seen what this pendant can do.This is a void jewelry, you can keep many things inside it, as for how much, I think you can guess yourself. The ring is like a protective charm. As long as you activate it with your Qi, it will form a barrier around your body blocking attacks from any angle. As for how strong it can block, I am not sure. It should be able to block the class 4 attacks, but anything higher, I am not sure. There are only 10 charges you can use consecutively, but you can fill it up with your Qi and charge them back up. Sister, don¡¯t let anyone else use this ring, aside from anyone from our family, the ring will explode if you do so. As for the necklace, it won¡¯t explode, but only family members can use it. PS. I also added some medicine and other stuff within the ring, so use them when you need. - Teo¡¯ When Rowen read the words ¡°Void Jewelry¡±, her knees became weak. She had heard of this legendary item before, and after using her necklace, she knew that the descriptions from the rumors were exactly the same. Void jewelry, a treasure that no commoner would be able to buy. Only after a while did it register in her mind; the fact that a treasure was hanging off her neck. As she took several deep breaths, she quickly placed both letters inside the space and wore the ring on her index finger. It was a simple looking ring, made of a dull silver color. She could not imagine this to be some sort of defensive treasure, but after seeing the void jewelry at work, she could only believe it to be true. ¡®Teo, how did you get these things?¡¯ For a normal boy like Teo, it was almost impossible to get these treasures! Rowen¡¯s mind tried to reason why Teo came to obtain such items, and a phrase within the letters grabbed her attention. ¡®Unfortunately I can¡¯t tell you any more than this as I¡¯ve promised a certain someone to not tell anyone.¡¯ This sentence implied that Teo might have known a mysterious figure that could have helped Teo arrange all of this! ¡®Someone? Who could it be?...¡¯ As she questioned herself further a sudden insight burst in her mind! She was mystified as she realized who it could be! ¡®That eccentric!¡¯ She recalled the mysterious eccentric that many were looking for. The one who shook the academy, forcing several powers to do his bidding! The eccentric that was skilled enough to create a saint tier inscription so he must be skilled enough to create these treasures! ¡®Teo must have known this eccentric! These were probably created by that eccentric, but why would he give Teo such things?¡¯ After a moment¡¯s paused she let out an uncontrollable sound ¡°Ah!¡± ¡®He must have been that eccentric¡¯s helper! Or perhaps even an apprentice!!¡¯ Rowen¡¯s thoughts riled up her emotions and she became excited as she thought of this possibility. This was one of the more believable explanations in her mind. The thought of Teo creating such things was not even considered. She felt very happy for Teo, to find a master or gain favor of such a person would make him an important figure within the empire! She took her pendant and hid it inside her shirt. Initially she wanted to show it off to others like any ordinary girl but once she realized its value, she was worried that it might fall off or get stolen. -Rustle Rustle- Rowen¡¯s ear¡¯s perked as she detected movement nearby. Upon travelling into this deserted forest, she slowly scattered some of the metallic shavings around the area. She focused all her senses and using a similar technique as Danie¡¯s [Earth Sense], she discovered two pairs of footsteps. She quickly moved into the cover of thick shrubs and looked to the direction of these footsteps. Her sense felt a faint killing intent! Rowen drew her sword, preparing for an engagement. She was too far out into the forest, and the path back was blocked by these two strangers. She quickly ran further into the forest trying to circle around activating her new boots, but as she did, she noticed that they also started running. Her mind initially tried to guess who these two were, but now she had confirmed that they are after her. ¡®This shoes!¡¯ Rowen realizes that her speed increased by many folds. She had only worn boots with low tier speed enchantments, but judging from her current speed, she knew that these were high tier speed enchantment! Despite moving swiftly, her pursuers movements were not slow as one circled around aiming to block her path! ¡®Wind elementalist!¡¯ [Author''s Note: I have decided to update on RRL a few (1-2) chapters behind to my releases on my website (releasing 71 here as I released 72 there). These are all rough drafts until my editor gets some free time from his busy schedule. Transition chapters are hard >_<. Thanks for reading and support! ] Chapter 72: Assassins Chapter 72: Assassins A cloaked figure blocked Rowen¡¯s path of retreat while another man appeared from behind. Their faces covered and their weapons drawn. ¡°This is her right?¡± The man in front asked ¡°Looks like it. Little miss, we¡¯ve been waiting for a chance to meet you. Thank you for coming all the way out here in the woods, it truly makes our jobs much easier¡± ¡°You are surprisingly fast, but unfortunately, with my high tier speed enchanted boots and wind attribute, you can¡¯t really outrun me,¡± the man in front said. Both men exuded a terrible killing intent, as they slowly approached the cornered target. ¡°Let me guess, you are from Rizon family?¡± Rowen asked as she moved to the side. She tried to positioned herself to face both of them in front. Having someone from behind would easily get herself killed, but the two men would not let her do so; They moved appropriately to maintain their advantage. The two men did not answer, but she felt that her intuition was correct. She had never left the academy since that incident and never offended anyone at school. From what they said earlier, she deduced that they were indeed from the Rizon family. Without warning, both men dashed towards her! She quickly dash towards the wind elementalist in front aiming to kill him first. Rowen knew that Wind elementalist has a tracking method known as [Wind Tracer]. If she could not deal with him first, then she had no hope for escape! The wind elementalist gave a smirk as he was confident with his speed. While distracting the target, his partner can swiftly finish her off from behind. He moved to dodge, side stepping Rowen¡¯s attack, then threw out a rising diagonal slash. ¡®!!!¡¯ His slash flew wide as Rowen barely dodge his attack. Not even his [Wind Blade] could not touch her. He moved to jump back out of her range but something caught his foot and prevented him in doing so. Rowen¡¯s follow up pierced through the man¡¯s thigh, then proceeded to aim her blade towards the man¡¯s head. -BANG- From behind, the man swung his blade at Rowen¡¯s back. A smile emerged from his face, but it quickly disappeared as Rowen¡¯s sword did not stop, and pierced through his partner¡¯s skull. ¡°Ahh!-¡± *Slice* Blood splattered everywhere, covering Rowen and the dead wind elementalist. Rowen quickly rotated and faced the last attacker. She was unfazed by her kill as this was not the first time she had killed anyone. When competing in the Mirth city arena, she had already experienced killing her opponent during such closes fights. The attacker from behind was curious to what happened to his partner. With his speed, he should have more than enough time to dodge the girl¡¯s attack, but somehow he didn¡¯t. ¡®!!¡¯ The man noticed a silver snake-like movement underneath the plants. He quickly remembered her target being a Metal elementalist and instantly covered his body in Qi. -BANG BANG BANG- Several needle that flew towards him from the ground was quickly deterred by his Qi. Rowen dashed forward, using her speed to her advantage. After taking care of the wind elementalist, her worries were mostly gone. If she could not kill his assailant, then she could always run. A flurry of attacks rained down on the assailant, but he dodge them perfectly. He was clearly the better fighter, but was still surprised that his initial attack did not have any effect on his opponent. He paid attention to his surroundings while fighting Rowen at the same time. He jumped back and made some space. ¡°I don¡¯t know how you didn¡¯t die from my attack, but if you think you can beat me, you are sorely mistaken¡± He dashed forward, and initiated his attack, his sword skill was a level above Rowen and she could barely dodge and block his attacks. Despite controlling the metallic shavings to assault the man from behind, they could not break through the opponents Qi! ¡°DIE!¡± The man unleashed a vertical slash heading towards Rowen¡¯s head! In a split second, light shone straight into his eyes, briefly blinding him. While the remaining metal shavings started rotating and started drilling into the man¡¯s Qi barrier from behind, Rowen took advantage and dodge the man¡¯s slash while throwing her own sword into his neck! Blinded and attacked from both sides, the man¡¯s blood spilled across the forest. Despite having such a dense Qi shield, the drilling metallic shavings forced him to thicken some areas than others. It was not enough to defend himself as Rowen¡¯s Qi pierced through his defense, taking a pound of flesh with each attack. Try as he might, a few injuries caused his battle potential to drop and Rowen continued to whittle down the opponent¡¯s the injured assailant eventually ending his life. -pant pant- Rowen breathed heavily as she killed the last assailant. A mirror-like metallic surface reflecting off several rays of light into the man¡¯s eyes was enough to ensure her victory. She quickly spread her shavings around the area ensuring that no one else was coming. ¡®This ring is really useful,¡¯ she thought Being sandwiched by two assailants, Rowen disregarded the one from behind and used her surprise attack to quickly kill the one was more dangerous. By trusting her brother, her life and death bet turned out to be victorious. ¡ª¨C Water dripped from the clothes of Rowen. Upon returning to camp, her soaked clothes grabbed people¡¯s attention as she walked by. Without a change of clothes, she washed all the blood of herself at a nearby river before coming back. ¡°Rowen? What happened to you?¡± Gina asked as she saw Rowen¡¯s soaked figure. ¡°Nothing just accidentally fell into the river,¡± she said ¡°Ah! You must¡¯ve tried on these wonderful shoes!¡± Riss promptly said While Rowen was away, Riss and Gina both tested the pair of boots they both received. Upon inspection, the amount of speed they gained was astonishing! ¡°Yeah I did,¡± Rowen confirmed ¡°Heh, these high tier speed enchantment is great! I tried it earlier and almost crashed,¡± Riss bragged ¡°I wonder how your brother got these, they must cost a fortune.¡± Gina said aloud ¡°Maybe he sold more blood? ¡± Riss said ¡°No, he asked someone to make them,¡± Rowen answered ¡°Someone?¡± Gina inquired, but Rowen only replied with a smile ¡°Oh, I see,¡± Riss replied as a mysterious smile appeared on her face They somewhat understood that Rowen did not want to say who it was, so Gina gave up but Riss¡¯ interest became intrigued. ¡°You should go change Rowen, we¡¯ll have a meeting in an hour¡± ¡°Okay, give me a few minutes¡± As Rowen was leaving to change, Riss and Gina¡¯s expression changed after noticing Rowen¡¯s back exposed by a large cut in her clothes. ¡ª¨C After she changed her clothes, Rowen approached her group that was huddled together around a large flat tree stump, using it as a table. As she sat down, she noticed familiar map on the table as she owned a similar map. ¡°Good! Since Rowen is finally here, I¡¯ll announce what Aaron¡¯s group as well as two other groups¡¯ proposal,¡± Riss announced Support the author by searching for the original publication of this novel. ¡°They want us to explore this place together,¡± Riss pointed to a place on the map ¡°Dagger¡¯s peak?¡± Tordin asked ¡°Isn¡¯t that a little too dangerous? Not even bandits would go around that area¡± Rowen said in response. Dagger¡¯s peak was a mountain deep within the wild lands. Most teams would choose to spend their remaining years at the edge of these lands where the danger level was relatively safe. ¡°Didn¡¯t we decide that we¡¯ll be going around Foxtrail lake first?¡± Gale asked ¡°Hold on, there must be a reason why they are taking such risks right?¡± Alex asked Riss ¡°Correct, there is a rumor going around that there is an ancient ruin there filled with treasure. A few of Aaron¡¯s members are gathering up powerful teams to check the place out.¡± Riss explained Everyone¡¯s eyes lit up as they heard the word ¡°treasure¡±. Many of them were commoners who often wished to strike rich, but Tordin and Rowen stood unfazed by the word. ¡°How many people are coming?¡± Tordin asked ¡°Twenty four, if we include our numbers, perhaps more later on¡± ¡°What happens if we encounter a variant beast? If we go that deep, there should be some.¡± ¡°We shouldn¡¯t encounter any old ones, maybe only younglings. With twenty four strong, we should be able to kill it¡± ¡ª¨C Upon arriving near the Colosseum, Teo and the others noticed a group of elders huddled together in a wide open space. Several Red Guardians as well as academy guards stood there as if awaiting for something. Many moved to find out what was going on, but only a few knew about this mysterious event. Soon, eight bird-like mounts, the size of a horse, appeared in the sky. After circling the air twice, they finally landed in front of the several elders who stood watch, among them, headmaster Elon stood in the middle. ¡°A variant beast!¡± a person from the crowd shouted as he identified these winged beasts. Many of them watched from afar; too afraid to go closer. Among them, Teo and the others looked over. ¡°Look! Their armor looked very similar to the royal guards from half a year ago!¡± ¡°It isn¡¯t just similar! Look at that crest! It¡¯s from the Imperial family¡± One person from the crowd suddenly discovered two individuals who were neither academy elders nor royal guards. ¡°Those two, who are they?¡± the man pointed towards two blonde figures. One young lady with golden curls on her head, the other and older youth with the same blonde hair as well. He looked proud and excited, as he looked towards the eight escorts. ¡°Hey, isn¡¯t that Emily?¡± Windle said Teo nodded as she confirmed the two individuals; The siblings Emily and William. ¡°I wonder what they are up to?¡± Lia asked but not before long, the two youths was led onto the back of two variant beasts. Emily sat in front of one guard while William sat behind another on a different beast. A third guard attached their luggage onto the back of his sky mount. After a few exchange of words with the leader of these eight-man team and the headmaster, they all climbed on top of a beast and quickly flew into the air. Teo looked towards the group of flying birds as they drifted north, disappearing into the horizon. Seeing her leave, Teo was reminded of the buried feelings of guilt he had towards her. After their departure, many inquired about the event, but the elders kept their mouths sealed. ¡ª¨C After the second day of the competition was over, Lia and Windle both felt their blood boiling. Compared to yesterday¡¯s fighters, today¡¯s were clearly much stronger. They realized that their judgement was too hasty, and both of them felt the pressure building up. They had no time to idle around as they are right now. They all arrived at one of the Martial faction¡¯s smaller stages. ¡°We can¡¯t waste any time at all, since there is a large gap between us and the seniors we have to train more than them. So, who should spar first?¡± Windle said ¡°Teo, you and me spar first, the winner takes on the other,¡± Lia suggested ¡°Alright,¡± Teo agreed as he pulled out two sticks from his back that he had often carried with him. Lia on the other hand took a wooden sword from one of the racks as her weapon. ¡°Teo, why do you insist on using dual weapons?¡± Windle asked before the match begun. ¡°Isn¡¯t it cooler?¡± Teo responded Windle could only gave a wiley smile, as he shook his head ¡®Although it is cool to have two weapons, It is cooler to win,¡¯ Windle thought to himself Despite his constant losing streak against Lia and Windle, Teo liked the idea of using two weapons. His influence was clearly Gina. As a master of two knives, her attacks were swift and fluid. Teo tried to copy her style but it was quite difficult. ¡°Here I come!¡± Lia quickly dash towards Teo Teo instantly activated his God¡¯s eye, his main advantage was this heavenly sight. He could see every corner of Lia¡¯s movements and could predict what she was going to do. -Bang- The first exchange, Teo gritted his teeth as he required both weapons to blocked Lia¡¯s initial attack. Lia moved to the side, instantly disappearing from Teo¡¯s line of sight. Teo jumped back, and found Lia moving from the left. -Bang!- Another attack blocked. Teo can block and dodge but with Lia¡¯s speed he could find very little opening. She was fast like a breeze in a storm. -Bang- The third strike caught him off balance, Lia approached seeing Teo¡¯s position. She unleashed a horizontal strike to keep Teo off balance, but Teo smiled as Lia took the bait. Jumping on one foot, she took Lia¡¯s side and sliced his weapons vertically towards Lia. ¡®!!¡¯ Lie dodge and threw her sword up in the air. Teo instinctively looked up, but quickly regained himself. He looked around but as he found Lia, a kick was already a few inches away from his back! -BAM- A sharp pain emerged from his backside ¡°OUCH!¡± Teo screamed in pain as his body jerked on the ground. ¡°You alright Teo? I don¡¯t think I¡¯ve hit you that hard¡± Lia asked as she stopped her assault. After recovering, Teo sat up as his backside was sore from the strike. ¡®What¡¯s going on?¡¯ Teo asked himself as he stood ¡°It¡¯s..no.. nothing.. I¡¯m just feeling a little under the weather¡± ¡®Was I too late?¡¯ Teo questioned himself. Before the kick landed, Teo braced himself, attempting to activate the defensive array on his chest, but surprisingly, the pain was not weakened. [Author¡¯s note: Altered a few Chapter 35: Invitation, as the envoy from the was talking to Emily where he says ¡°Your grand uncle sends this to you, when you graduate you will be sent to our Imperial city, if not sooner¡± the old man gave the necklace towards Emily Before it said graduate only (as well as a missing word or so), now I added ¡°if not sooner¡± Also, this chapter is currently unedited. If you wish to read ahead, you can visit my website] Chapter 73: Unreliable Chapter 73: Unreliable Teo sat down by the stage watching Windle and Lia spar. They both had improved quite a bit. Lia was agile with a decent power behind her hits, while Windle had a strong guard and great power despite his lack of speed. He was less reliant on his elementalist powers, but would use it quite often to control people¡¯s movements using [Firewall]. Teo eventually could not concentrate on spectating the match. His arms throbbed in pain as his thoughts wandered. ¡®Did it¡¯s power suddenly ran out?¡¯ He peeked under his shirt but did not notice anything different with the array. Even with his [God¡¯s Eyes], Teo could never really unravel the secrets of this array but he still looked to see if there were any changes. His sore arm and backside were evidence that its defensive abilities had changed, or more likely vanished. He slammed his stick into his arm while bracing for impact as an experiment. Unfortunately, his guess was right on the money. Cold sweat coated his back as fear gripped his heart. Teo had always relied on this defensive ability during spars. Even his first win in a real duel against Kristofer was won partly because of this array. Teo was unsure when the change had happened since it had been a long time since he had last sparred. With the sudden disappearance of one of his main tools in combat, he felt extremely vulnerable. ¡®Maybe it¡¯ll come back after a while,¡¯ He hoped futilely. ¡°Teo, are you feeling better?¡± Lia asked as she approached. Windle could still be seen on the stage panting heavily. ¡°No, I think I¡¯m done sparring for the day¡± ¡°Okay, well let¡¯s start the reviewing session then. Windle come over here!¡± Lia suggested. After a three way sparring session, they would often give each other feedback on things they noticed. Strengths, possible weakness, habits or any other things that might help them improve. ¡°I¡¯ll start, Teo, you really should switch to a single sword. Your dual wielding is cool and all but...you really suck at it. Windle, you are getting lazy on your speed. If you aren¡¯t relying on your fire attribute, then you need to increase your speed more,¡± Lia critiqued ¡°I know, but I don¡¯t know any other move. Instructor Diana never taught me anything concrete and you are too fast for me to handle,¡± Windle complained He tried to learn as many fire techniques he could. He tried imitating that skills of that flame guild elementalist he saw, but it was too difficult to work out on his own. ¡°There¡¯s some books on the second floor with elementalist skills. There are also some combat related for cultivators,¡± Teo chimed in ¡°Really?!¡± both of them asked Teo with expectant gazes Teo nodded and said ¡°Yeah, but it¡¯s all in books, I don¡¯t think they have too many drawn pictures in them¡± ¡°Wanna go?¡± Lia invited ¡°Let¡¯s go!¡± Windle accepted, but Teo suddenly shook his head and replied ¡°I¡¯m good for now, I think I¡¯ll rest a bit in my room¡± Windle¡¯s jaw dropped and Lia thought hell had finally frozen over. ¡°Teo? You¡¯re Teo right?¡± She asked as if her friend for 2 years suddenly changed into another person. Teo gave a smile and said, ¡°I¡¯m just not feeling too well today, let¡¯s meet again tomorrow¡± After Teo had left, the two looked at each other ¡°I guess he really is not feeling well today,¡± Windle concluded ¡°Maybe some impostor is disguising as him!¡± Lia declared and smiled ----- A blank book laid in front of Windle as he read. He flipped the pages one after the other before briefly glancing at Lia beside him. Lia was intently reading a martial art book, but her eyes started to crisscross. ¡°Gah!! I don¡¯t know how you and Teo can do this!¡± She screamed as the martial art text was not as simple as she had thought. After a tirade of ¡®shhh¡¯ and ¡®be quiet¡¯, Lia quickly gave an apologetic gesture to the elders and other students. ¡°You just need to get used to it,¡± Windle said calmly as he flipped another page. ¡°This is more like a medical book than a martial art book! Look at this, what¡¯s this ¡®solar plexus¡¯ thingy,¡± Lia complained. The book spoke of the natural weaknesses of the human body, and Lia had no clue which part was called what. ¡°Well, the book I found is quite intriguing. A fire elementalist¡¯s basic guide! I didn¡¯t realize fire could be used in several different ways!¡± Windle declared as he continued to read Windle only had skills using his fire element. [Fire Ball], [Fire Wall], and [Flame Enchantment] Even though it was considered one of the most basic guides, a plethora of different skills and their properties were listed down in great detail. ¡®Fire element have several ways of being used, one of which is its heat, while the other is using its explosive force,¡¯ Windle mentally read This text was taken from Royal Road. Help the author by reading the original version there. Lia slumped down on the desk as she slowly read. ¡°Hey Windle¡­¡± ¡°Hm?..¡± ¡°It¡¯s nothing..¡± Lia sighed as her thoughts drifted to think of other things. She wanted to ask why Windle was so motivated to go to the Capital, but she knew every time she asked that question, Windle had always dodged the question. Her thoughts drifted back to her memories of the past... ----- Five years ago... ¡°Big brother! Wait! Don¡¯t go!¡± A young girl dashes out of her home grabbing hold of her brother¡¯s arms. ¡°You can¡¯t go *sniff* you j-just got back..¡± The young man knelt down and hugged his little sister. Lia could feel his warmth as tears dropped from her cheeks onto his shirt. ¡°Little Lia, once you grow up, you¡¯ll see that the world is much a bigger place than this village. I am going to find my place within the world.¡± ¡°But.. but.. *sniff* ¡± ¡°Don¡¯t cry now, you¡¯re a big girl already. Although big brother will miss you, there is a place I want to see with my own eyes.¡± ¡°Fine go! I hate Vin!¡± Little Lia ran inside, running past both her parents who stood near the entrance. ¡°Lia! Li- *sigh*,¡± Vin tried to explain it but Lia was already inside. ¡°Don¡¯t worry about her, I¡¯ll try to explain it to her¡± ¡°Mother.. I..thanks¡± Vin¡¯s parents already knew it a year before since he came back from the academy. Many children would come back from, no longer kids but youths with many aspirations and dreams. ¡°Vincent, take care of yourself out there. It might become a dangerous trip, make sure your friends watch each others¡¯ backs¡± ¡°Yes father, we have quite a few. I am guessing it might take more than a year to reach the Capital. I¡¯ll send letters back home once I get there.¡± After her brother had left, she cried herself to sleep. As a child growing up, Lia had never met her brother before. He had already left for the academy before she was even born, but as she grew up she heard of her brother from the letters he sent. Eventually, Lia sent her first letter to Vincent and since then, they exchanged letters as often as they could. They would only talk through letters, but a bond between siblings still grew after a few years. Once his beloved brother had come back, he stayed with the family for a year. He would often tell her stories, buy her many gifts, teach her many new things and even gave the nickname ¡®Lia¡¯ to her. A year after Vincent left, letters from him started coming in. He finally reached the capital and expressed the wonders of the city and told stories of his adventure. Lia who was still upset with her brother, refused to reply despite being amazed by her brother¡¯s experiences. It wasn¡¯t until a year later that the letters suddenly stopped coming. ----- Lia looked towards Windle and could feel that he was the same. She never talked about her brother with the others, and Windle had always refused to talk about his parents. She continued to flip through the pages, as to hide the worry in her heart. ¡®Big brother, where are you? I wanted to say that I¡¯m sorry..¡¯ ----- Laying on his bed, Teo felt his left arm pulsating in pain. The next day, Teo tested the array again but the power of the defensive array failed to activate. The situation was quite troubling as his defensive capabilities were clearly reduced. ¡®I have always thought that the old man¡¯s these things were reliable...¡¯ He felt a sudden helplessness as he wanted questions answered but the old man had yet to return even after so much time had passed. With time running out, he knew that trouble would be right around the corner once again. Zachery and his goons were going to recover soon and Teo expected that after the tournament ended, his protection from the older students was going to vanish. An urgent feeling emerged in his mind, and he quickly poured his Qi into the array on his chest. Soon, his consciousness entered into the dark night of the inner world. Sitting down in front of the pond, the glow of his eyes disappeared. After deactivating [God¡¯s eyes], he took a bag that had never left this inner world. The bag had ten different colored stone; one representing a different element. ¡®If I can¡¯t rely on his protective array, then I can¡¯t rely on these eyes either.¡¯ Teo closed his eyes and started sensing the elemental energies. With the abilities given to him by the old man becoming unreliable, Teo¡¯s urgency to get stronger was ignited once more! [Edited by thisisnate] [Proofread by Soeir] [Author''s Note: If you wish to read ahead, check out byCienz. Thanks for reading and have a nice day!] Chapter 74: A Blade Within Chapter 74: A Blade Within ¡°The winner, Edwin Fenwar!¡± The cheers of the crowd poured over the Colosseum as the tournament finally ended. The winner, as expected was the strongest eighth year student. With the absence of the strongest batch of students last year, many attempted to test their mettle and thus, the tournament days reached the final days of the month. Windle and Lia sat within the stands as they watched the final match. ¡°That senior is skilled! Good thing he¡¯ll be gone next year,¡± Windle said. ¡°I agree. If I remember correctly, last year he reached top 32 despite being short as well,¡± Lia added ¡°Speaking of which, I hope Teo doesn¡¯t forget that combat classes start tomorrow.¡± ¡°Is he even serious about this? *sigh* He¡¯s been locked up in his room for almost a month now..¡± Since the third day of the tournament, Teo rarely left his cave. Aside from eating with Lia and Windle, he mysteriously avoided going outside. ¡ª¨C With the cover of the moonlight, Teo circulated his Qi with the attributes within his blood. Elemental energy swirled into his body like an inescapable vortex. As it enter his body, like a phantom, they disappear without a trace. Much like his Qi, it was undetectable underneath his skin. His breath returned to normal as his eyes slowly opened. His eyes unhindered, without the light of his [God¡¯s Eyes], he looked at the elemental energy that were slowly dissipating. ¡®I still need to gather more elemental energy, but this amount should be still useful enough.¡¯ During the past 27 days, Teo had focused on mastering his Sensing stage. During the 13th day, with the help of the inner world, he completely mastered them. Before the old man had endowed his eyes with the [God¡¯s Eyes] array, Teo¡¯s mastery of these stages were almost complete, but because of the convenience of the [God¡¯s Eyes], he completely stopped mastering them. The only reason he returned mastering them once again was the fear of his [God¡¯s Eyes] failing in the future. Since his defensive array suddenly stopped working, he prepared for the worst and mastered his Sensing stages. After the 13th stage, he moved onto the Gathering stage. The thick world Qi within the inner world helped him greatly in accumulating elemental energy. During the last 14 days, he had absorbed enough elemental energy to be of some use. Teo knew his weakness, his speed was not that great, nor was his strength. His only way of winning before was by relying on the old man Cien¡¯s arrays, but now, he decided to only rely on his own power. Without much hesitation, Teo quickly jumped into the pond and headed for the Emerald Road. ¡ª¨C The streets were empty like a ghost town. The many patrons and visitors that usually flooded them were watching the final matches of the tournament. Thus, only the shopkeepers and a few others were in the vicinity. One store after another Teo hunted for a new weapon. His attack power was lacking, and despite taking a liking to his short dual sticks, he knew that the fastest way to increase his power was to get a new weapon. He did not consider any other weapons that required two hands to handle. The best choice he had were daggers or short swords. As for long swords, he did not bother with them. Although he was in his growth period, a long sword would be too long for him to wield properly. ¡®This one doesn¡¯t feel right,¡¯ he thought as he swung a short sword. He tried about 14 stores, even the Emerald Pavilion¡¯s wares did not satisfy him. He considered some that had potential, but he refused to make a decision until after checking all possible stores. After looking through most of the shops, Teo found an old looking store. If not for the sign in front, Teo would not consider this small shop as one to sell weapons. -Ring Ring Ring- A bell rang as he entered the shop. The place was dark as only a single window illuminated it from the outside. Teo looked around but found no one at the counter. There were only a few armor and weapons up for display. He walked up into a rack of swords and found the quality to be quite exceptional. Despite the accumulation of dust on top of the tables, he found that the weapons were well maintained. After trying every sword within these racks, Teo was still not satisfied. *Sigh* As he was about to walk outside, he noticed a few swords behind the counter. One of them was visibly noticeable as it was something that would not normally be within these kinds of shops. Within a store full of metallic made wares, a wooden sword with no hilt caught Teo¡¯s eye. He walked around the counter and took the wooden sword in his hand. The sword¡¯s weight surprised Teo as it was clearly heavier than it looked. *Swing* The wooden sword sliced through the air and a familiar feeling told Teo that this sword was the one! A heavy wood, enough to rival a real sword¡¯s weight. Using the sword¡¯s weight, his attack power was tripled! *Swing Swing Swing* As Teo took several practice swings, the door behind the counter opened as an old burly man stepped out. ¡°Hmm? Oi Kid, what are you doing with that sword?¡± Teo turned around and saw and old burly man with a thick white beard. His arms were thicker than Teo¡¯s head and his height was twice as tall. ¡°Mister, I would like to buy this practice sword,¡± Teo replied as he showed the sword in his hand. ¡°Buy it? Not just anyone can buy those swords behind the counter. These are my masterpieces!¡± the old man replied as he took the sword from Teo. ¡°If you want them, you have to pay hmm.. Let¡¯s see¡­ for you.. Only 15 gold!¡± ¡®Hmm is it made of some special wood?¡¯ ¡°Isn¡¯t 15 gold for a practice sword too much? Even if it is made from a heavy wood i don¡¯t think-¡± This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere. ¡°Hahaha, heavy wood? You got it wrong kid. This sword is no practice sword.¡± As the old man poured a little bit of Qi into the sword handle, *click*. A soft click sounded off as the old man pulled the sword apart revealing a blade within the wooden sword. Teo¡¯s eyes brightened and he realized that this was the reason why wooden sword seemed so heavy! A single edge blade with a slight curve. The blade¡¯s width of 1.3 inches and the length of 23 inches. Despite being called a masterpiece, the blade looked ordinary. The edge was similar to the other swords within the shop and the metal did not look anything special. ¡°See this? This one of the few trick scabbards I¡¯ve made. On the outside it looks like a practice sword, but hidden inside is actually a real sword!¡± The old man showed off the scabbard and the sword to Teo. ¡°See this, I had this handle inscribed to move this little latch whenever Qi is specifically placed in this point. It is both a sword and a heavy practice sword; Two in one!¡± Teo was surprised that the sword¡¯s worth was not actually on the quality of the blade but rather it¡¯s scabbard! A hiltless sword would usually be seen as a disadvantage by most people, but Teo thought otherwise. All he could think of is how cool it looked! Even the mechanism of the concealed blade made Teo want this sword even more! He liked the feel of the wooden handle in his hands and that he could use this sword in two different ways, but the price was very high; For an ordinary sword, it was too much. ¡°One of a few trick scabbard? Do you have any more?¡± Teo inquired. If there was another sword like this, then he could continue his dual wielding without problems! If the price was cheaper, then he would most likely buy it. ¡°Sure I do, but its price isn¡¯t low!¡± Despite knowing that most students couldn¡¯t afford his masterpieces, he did not mind showing them off to Teo. He opened a drawer behind the counter and pulled out a small wooden dagger, similar to the concealed blade before, but its length was much shorter. ¡°This is it, ¡®Ya¡¯, a dagger version of ¡®Sai¡¯.¡± ¡°Sai? Ya?¡± ¡°Haha those are the names of these two, they come in a pair. Sai is 15 gold, and Ya is 7 gold¡± ¡°Isn¡¯t the price too expensive just for a trick scabbard?¡± Teo wanted it, but was reluctant to pay that much. ¡°Fool! This is why you kids don¡¯t have eyes for quality. The price is not merely for the scabbard but the swords as well!¡± He took out both blades and showed it closer to Teo. ¡°Look at this bevel, do you know how hard it is to get it to this form? This blade is both hard and resilient!¡± Teo looked at the distinct bevel on the blade¡¯s edge. It had two different bevels. One was sharp for the edge while the other was not as steep. He was surprised at this as most swords he had seen were simple edged blades, but he was not too convinced that this was worth it¡¯s price. Seeing Teo¡¯s reaction, the old man smirked, pitying Teo who had no eyes for weapons. ¡°Hmph, a brat like you probably can¡¯t even afford my wares. Go ahead and get out!¡± Teo became slightly annoyed and brought out 22 gold coins from his pouch and looked at the old man. ¡°I just don¡¯t know if your swords are actually worth this much,¡± Teo said in a mocking tone as he disproved the old man¡¯s statement. *Gulp* Seeing the pile of gold coins on the counter, the old man swallowed his saliva. His demeanor instantly changed and he looked towards Teo in a respectable manner. ¡°Young master, my swords are indeed worth it. Just for you I shall demonstrate why it is priced this way.¡± The old man took a two inch thick steel rod and then held it horizontally. With the other hand holding Sai, he sliced through the steel rod like a hot knife through butter. ¡°This is the sharpness of my wares! Even with Ya, I can easily carve into this steel rod without much effort.¡± Teo¡¯s eyes widened as he saw the old man¡¯s demonstration. Being able to cut a steel rod was indeed impressive, but what Teo did not know was that this rod was actually very soft. It was neither hardened nor tempered. With enough speed and power, any sharp blade could cut this steel rod. The old man knew that the boy in front of him had no clue about weapons. He used this rod to impress the young master, but was also confident of the sharpness of his blade. The only thing lacking about this blades were inscriptions. He could forge extremely sharp weapons but he lacked knowledge in inscribing his wares which is why his shop had become so unpopular. ¡°How about it young master? Interested in buying? If you buy now, I¡¯ll even include a custom strap so you can carry them with you at all times!¡± Teo became even more tempted with the offer and quickly replied, ¡°Okay, I¡¯ll take it.¡± Teo left 15 gold coins in the counter and reached for the sword, Sai, but before he could the old man interrupted and said, ¡°Like I said before, they both come in a pair. If you wish to buy one, you have to purchase the other.¡± Teo¡¯s eyebrows frowned as he did not want to take this dagger with him as well. He wanted to dual wield with two swords, but a sword and a dagger? It seemed weird to him. ¡°Young master, don¡¯t be fooled. This dagger may not look much, but if used correctly, you can surprise any opponent!¡± After much deliberation, Teo caved in. He really liked the sword and just thought about the price of it being 22 gold, with a free useless knife. [Proofread by Soeir] [Author''s Note: If you wish to read ahead, check out byCienz. Thanks for reading and have a nice day!] Chapter 75: Talismans Chapter 75: Talismans In a remote forest, Teo stood in front of a tiny shack not far from a river. This place was within the south west side of the academy. The distance was quite far from his residence and on the way, he noticed that this place was more like a desolate forest compared to the other districts. Upon arrival, he checked to see if he could let himself in but he discovered that the shack was locked, so he was forced to wait outside. Teo carried a wooden practice sword on his waist while a short wooden dagger was hidden underneath his left sleeve. Underneath his uniform, he wore the chainmail that Rowen gave him before she left. Not long after, he noticed a rustling sound coming from behind. He turned around and found a familiar face. ¡®Grifford!¡¯ Teo recognized this person as he had always been in one of Teo¡¯s classes for two years. During the first and second years they were both in the elementalist class. Even after Teo was ejected from the class, Teo could still see him during his inscription class. The two of them had never talked to each other, but would sometimes catch each other¡¯s gaze. They were aware of each other¡¯s existence but Teo was always with Windle and Lia, while Grifford had always kept to himself. ¡°The instructor is still not inside?¡± Grifford asked as he did not seem to feel any awkwardness between him and Teo. ¡°I don¡¯t think so, the doors have been locked for sometime.¡± Teo then took this time to introduce himself properly as he held out his hand, ¡°Hi my name is Teo, I guess we¡¯ll be having this class together.¡± ¡°I know who you are.¡± Gifford ignored Teo¡¯s hand and sat on a rock nearby and waited. Teo looked back and thought that Grifford was an unfriendly person but not long after he heard him continued, ¡°I¡¯m Grifford. I didn¡¯t think someone as famous as you would take this class as well.¡± ¡°Me? Famous?¡± ¡°Hmph! Don¡¯t tell me you didn¡¯t even realize it? The only pure whose growth potential is different from the rest. This alone made you famous enough. Your existence alone proves that our understanding of elementalism is still incomplete.¡± ¡°¡­¡± Teo did not reply. He agreed with Grifford¡¯s point and understood his situation but he had never thought of it like that. ¡°Not to mention, money and trouble seem to follow you very closely,¡± Grifford laughed. *Rustle Rustle* The sound of rustling grabbed both their attention and saw Deacon approaching. As he saw the two waiting in front of his shack, he gave a grin as he recognized these two students from last year. ¡°Good! You are both here.¡± The two of his best students he had taught last year in his inscription class had come to study talismans; A path of academic research that not many were interested in. Deacon stood in front of both of them and his expression turned solemn. ¡°Before we start, I just want to understand both your reasons for taking this class. Talismans are inscriptions, but instead of having a persistent effect, they are temporary and weak. So I ask both of you why are you here?¡± He wanted to ascertain their intentions. Talismans were something he researched in depth. The knowledge of talismans were shallow so the class would only progress quite a bit before finishing. After both of them learned the basics of talismans, the majority of the time will be spent on research. The two would act as his research assistant in this path and if they did not have enough motivation, it would be useless to proceed at all. Deacon gestured for Grifford to answer first. ¡°I am here because I wish to completely master all things related to inscriptions. Even though talismans are of little use, I wish to thoroughly understand them as well.¡± Hearing Grifford¡¯s response, Deacon nodded his head and turned to Teo. Teo hesitated as he did not have a clear cut answer. The only reason why he took this course was because it piqued his interest. He was unsure of what answer Deacon wanted and thus hesitated to think for a moment. ¡®Do I just copy Grifford?¡¯ After contemplating, he finally looked at Deacon to answer. ¡°I want to make use of talismans in combat¡± Teo¡¯s answer was simple. He knew that these talismans had offensive and defensive properties, which indicated they were mainly used for combat, but despite this fact, they were hardly used. This was because the offensive and defensive properties of talismans were very weak. Most of them required one to place the talisman onto another object to activate its temporary function. Creating a talisman required too much resources that it was not feasible when comparing its usefulness. Deacon¡¯s gaze was fixated on Teo, as his research was exactly to solve the problem of feasibility! His research on the new symbols he discovered before was fueled by the goal of either increasing the effects of such talismans or allow them to be created in a cheaper manner. The same amount of elemental ink used within five talismans could be used to enchant an equipment with permanent effects as long as it was not damaged. Enjoying this book? Seek out the original to ensure the author gets credit. It was a simple answer, but it had many deep meanings. Whether or not Teo implied these hidden meanings did not concern Deacon as he was satisfied with both of their answers. ¡°Good, now let¡¯s get inside and I¡¯ll have you memorize how each known talisman is drawn, and their basic functions.¡± Deacon unlocked the door and entered. It was small but well maintained. As they followed Deacon inside, they noticed that not a spot of dust could be seen and the room only contained a few tables, cabinets and a drawing board. ¡°Let¡¯s start. Since you know about inscriptions and the basic symbols, memorizing how these talismans are drawn should not take too much time. After that, you two can either research on your own about talismans or assist me in my research.¡± ¡ª¨C Talismans were generally divided into two categories; Wards and Charms. Wards were talismans with defensive effects, while charms had offensive attributes, but more specifically there were talismans that operated in a different manner. These effects were temporary and mimicked the most common skills of elementalists. One of which was enhancements. Enhancements were in a way, similar to inscription enhancements, by embedding a certain element into an object, it gains the natural properties of the element. Fire, wind and lightning gave offensive properties while water, earth and wood gave defensive properties. The first three were considered charms, while the later three were considered wards. Metal was unique and had both offensive and defensive properties, but as for the darkness, light and void elements, they were much different. Using these three attributes to enchant into an object does not change their defensive or offensive attributes so they were not usually used as not many knew how to make them work. Darkness element focused on concealment effects, while light element focused on illumination and revealing effects. They were both irregular elements that not many knew about them, much less crafters. Of course, there were always some exceptions, but those who were proficient on using these elements kept them to themselves, keeping it a mystery to the majority of the world. The void element was even more mysterious of them al. The secrets of the void elementalists were heavily guarded by pures and other great powers across the lands, such as the Imperial family. With the exception of the legendary Void specialist and pures, no other elementalists had gotten the void attribute before. Aside from enchantment effects, there was also the reaction effects. These reaction talismans were all regarded as charms that uses the natural reactions of three specific elements. These were fire, lightning and light. The fire reaction charm produces a small explosion of flame before vanishing, the lightning reaction charm produces a small discharge of electricity, while the light reaction charm produces a brief light. The reaction for each of these charms were so weak that they could hardly be used in combat, but if they were stacked together with the exactly identical charm, the effects would be enough that it was considered to be an offensive talismans. There were also talismans that was widely used in a particular way. This was the elemental wall. The requirements for activating these wards required the specific element to be present when activating. A wall of flames required fire to be burning nearby; A wall of water required a source of water to be nearby and so no. Besides the wind, earth and wood element that were usually everywhere, the other types of wards were inconvenient to use. The darkness, light and void elements were also not often used to create such wards because even if stacked together, they could not block any form of attacks. These elemental walls were actually very weak and could only be used in a way that required one to stack the same wards into a bundle. If they were used alone, they could offer no resistance to even the simplest of attacks. ¡°A total of 16 talismans are publicly known. Six enchantments, three reactors, and seven wards. You will need your Qi to activate these talismans and elemental ink to draw them. The patterns of lines are preset as the shape and quality of paper we will be using will always be the same. Technically there are three more elemental wall wards but for now we won¡¯t be dealing with them at all.¡± After explaining the basics of Talismans to his two students, Deacon revealed each of the sixteen different talismans they must memorize. For these two who were well versed in inscriptions, memorizing these talismans should not take too long, but Teo had other thoughts in regards to these talismans. ¡®They look complex, but it¡¯s actually a very wasteful design. If I can translate the basic arrays I know into inscriptions, they should produce a much larger effect.¡¯ Teo¡¯s mind started thinking of many ways to use this new way of using inscriptions. [Proofread by Soeir] Chapter 76: A New Friend Chapter 76: A New Friend The lesson ended quickly as it only lasted for an hour and a half. Deacon left before both his students as they were still packing their new textbook and materials. ¡°Teo, are you taking the intermediate inscription class later?¡± Grifford inquired. In his eyes, Teo was the only one who could match his skill in inscriptions among his previous peers. Seeing him take the talisman class as well made Grifford think that he was a kindred spirit walking on the same path. But Teo¡¯s answer soon disappointed him. ¡°No, I¡¯m only taking this talisman class. As for my remaining time, I will be training for the end of the year physical test.¡± Teo¡¯s words quickly extinguished any competitive spark relating to inscriptions within Grifford¡¯s spirit. He did not bother hiding his disappointment. ¡°I see. Combat training is it? Are you attending classes for it?¡± ¡°Uh.. Yeah, at least my friends and I will be checking it out for a while, then later decide if we want to keep attending. Do you want to come too?¡± Grifford pondered at Teo¡¯s invitation. He had never been invited by anyone before and lacked friends because of his strange personality. Considering that he also needed to train for the physical test at the end of the year, he decided to take Teo up on his offer. ¡°Sure, I might as well check it out today.¡± ¡ª¨C The training grounds and the arena are located within the northern district. Combat classes were held there as well as it was spacious enough to accommodate thousands of fighters. Several buildings held advanced classes relating to combat and medicine. These advanced classes focusing on techniques, combat theory and medicine were offered to students who had finished their third year of study. A large medical center was placed in the middle of the district and was often used by students who were injured during training. Aside from the students, academy guards and Red Guardians roamed these place often to keep the peace, but there were other visitors who visit the arena to spectate the youths in combat. Gambling is prevalent within the arena, and spectators would sometimes join in on the action. The combat classes specific for third year students were spread out throughout the day and were held in different locations. There were multiple classes held at the same time which often lasted around three hours, instructors would always be the same within the same schedule. Attendance were not recorded and students were free to leave, switch classes or even attend multiple classes if they desired. Instructors would be in charge on how many students they were willing to teach at the same time, so the number could go from only a handful of students to hundreds. Within an opening of the forest, about thirty students started gathering. The location of a combat class was held here. Lia and Windle stood around a tree, waiting for Teo to arrive. ¡°Guys, I¡¯m here!¡± Hearing Teo¡¯s voice, both of them turned and found Teo walking along side another student. ¡°Teo, this is?¡± ¡°This is Grifford, a new friend. We had the same class together earlier and I invited him to join us.¡± Windle recognize Grifford instantly, while Lia took a closer look, glancing at Grifford from top to bottom. Grifford had a rounded face and had short black hair. His thin brown eyes and flat nose gave him the look that would be unnoticed within the crowd. ¡°Hmm..¡± Lia had a familiar feeling when she saw him but could not tell where she recognized him from. ¡°He was in our inscription class last year,¡± Windle whispered. Lia blushed and coughed and replied, ¡°I was gonna say that!¡± Windle could only give out a helpless smile, and introduced himself and Lia. ¡°Hello Grifford. I am Windle, and this is Lia. I remember you from our previous classes as well, pleased to meet you.¡± Grifford nodded and did not reply. There was a sense of awkwardness in the air but soon his and the others¡¯ attention was called by a loud voice. ¡°Everyone can sit down, class is starting!¡± The commanding voice was loud enough for all the students to hear. The man who spoke wore a purple and black sleeveless shirt. The students who had been here for two years all knew that this was the uniform of the combat instructors. The instructor was a bald man, that looked about 30 years old. His tanned muscular arms showed many lines of scars which caused the students to stare in awe. ¡°I am Valdim, the instructor for this session. I will be dividing the class into two. Those who are fit enough to spar will sit on the northern side, while the ones who have yet to be physically ready will sit on the southern side.¡± Stolen from Royal Road, this story should be reported if encountered on Amazon. The instructor took a wooden sword and drew a line, directly cutting the forest opening straight down the middle. ¡°Those who are confident to spar, step to this side, those who are not, step on the other.¡± The class was split into two. Teo, Windle and Lia were on one side, and Grifford was on the other. It became quite uneven as there were only 9 students who were ready to spar, while on the other side, about 20 students were not. ¡°Good, I¡¯ll be explaining this once so pay attention. The end of the year exam will be a physical exam. We will be testing your stamina, speed, strength, endurance, dexterity and agility. This is the first stage, if you do not pass this stage, you will automatically fail. You need to excel in two out of three areas, this should be simple enough.¡± As the students heard the conditions of passing the first stage, the majority of them breathed a sigh of relief. The first stage was quite easy! ¡°The second stage will be testing your combat ability through two different tests. One close range, the other long range. We¡¯ll be examining how proficient in combat you are. You can either use a weapon or not, this choice is freely given to you. Within your close combat, you will be sparring with an elder. If you can land 3 clean hits on him, you will surely pass, if you can¡¯t then it will be up to the decision of the judges. This elder will also be fighting back, but with a large handicap so be mindful. For long range, you need to hit a live moving target in the distance while moving your body as well. You will get a total of 20 attempts. Out of 20 attempts, you will only need to hit it twice! If you are elementalists, you can freely use your power, but if you are not, you are required to use a long range weapon such as a bow and arrow, sling, or perhaps even a throwing spear. You will only need to pass either the long range, or the close range test to pass the exam. Despite how it seems, it will be more difficult to pass the long range test so I suggest you work on your close combat skills. They will be looking for reaction speed, decision making, technique, proficiency with your weapon or style of combat as well as defense, and will make a decision if you pass or fail with these criteria in mind. If you want to focus on range combat, I believe you have the wrong class. There is a range combat class a little further in that direction. If you go now, you will probably make it as they start a little later.¡± This was the information that the instructors were required to announce during their first class as the main goal of this year was to pass the end of the year exam. Many of the students were already aware of the various stages but there were others who were not. Grifford was such a person who did not. Following after, Valdim instructed the students who were on the south side to give him 1000 pushups, sit-ups and squats and 50 ten meter sprints. ¡°I will not be forcing you to do this, but know that if you fail, the following year you will be forced to do something more terrifying than this!¡± His threat was effective but most of them were not fit enough to complete such a menu. Valdim then turned around and looked at the 9 students before him. ¡°You guys will pair up and spar. The one without a pair will spar with me, don¡¯t worry I won¡¯t retaliate.¡± ¡ª¨C At the same time, within the northern district, a group of 40 students roamed the area. They separated into pairs and scoured the district meticulously. ¡°Is that person we are looking for even going to be here?¡± the youth in uniform asked the other person who was with him. Their sleeves showed that they were fifth year students, and the badge beside it indicated that they were from the Rizon faction. ¡°Boss Zachery said there is a big possibility that he¡¯ll be in one of these classes,¡± the other replied. ¡°Hmph! Just because Daniel graduated, a third year can instantly become the boss?¡± ¡°Shh! You should know his status! A Triad in the family as well as the grandson of the headmaster, if you keep talking like that, you¡¯ll end up in trouble!¡± The academy was huge and it was not easy to find Teo¡¯s location and so, Zachery ordered his new subordinates to find him on the first day after the tournament had ended. The direction these two were heading was inching closer and closer to where Teo and his friends were taking their class. [Proofread by Soeir] [Author''s Note: Since it is the new month, I am going to ask those who wish to support the continuation of this series to consider donating! Thanks for reading!] Chapter 77: The Fool Chapter 77: The Fool Teo stood in front of an unknown opponent. With Lia and Windle facing each other, Teo was forced to spar against someone else he did not know. Despite introducing himself, the only reply he got was an aggressive glare. ¡°Alright, you two can begin,¡± Valdim said as his eyes briefly glanced at the panting and grunting students who were doing their basic exercises. Teo took his stance, pulling out his wooden sword. Even if the weight of it was considerably heavier than a regular training sword, Teo easily wielded it with only one hand. He did not take his eyes off his opponents. Choosing to fight without the help of his [God¡¯s Eyes], Teo wanted to see his current level. Without warning, the opponent moved forward! In two strides he appeared within Teo¡¯s range. Teo¡¯s reaction time was a little slower, but he still had enough time to swing his sword! -Clang!- Two swords collided with each other! The opponent was pushed back a few steps and retreated outside Teo¡¯s range. Teo did not pursue as he was also surprised at the force of his newly acquired weapon. The opponent felt his hands tremble. The weight of the force Teo¡¯s sword produced was enough to leave him shocked, but he quickly regained his composure. Teo pushed his feet off the ground and dashed with a vertical slash! The slash was stronger than before, but its speed was greatly reduced! Looking at Teo¡¯s slash, the opponent did not dare to take it head on and sidestepped, countering with a rising diagonal slash. -Clang!- Teo once again blocked, but this time, with his left forearm! The wooden dagger hidden under his sleeve took the brunt of the impact head on and Teo grabbed the sword as its force was briefly dissipated, surprising his opponent. -Swoosh- Teo¡¯s sword flew swiftly, only stopping inches away from his opponent¡¯s nose and concluded the match. The opponent glared at Teo, but could only grit his teeth and accept his lost. ¡°Next pair!¡± Valdim said. He evaluated all nine students¡¯ combat ability and found that most of them had a decent amount of combat experience, with only one having no experience at all. He took special note of Lia and Windle, the two who seemed to be on the top of the group. As for Teo, Valdim saw him as one who only won through his equipment and trickery. Although sneak attacks and feints are part of combat, from his perspective, one cannot always rely on them to win. As time passed, Valdim pointed out each of their flaws and weaknesses, guiding them in the general path of improvement. He recommended certain exercises for each of them, and spoke about techniques people often used. ¡ª¡ª Huddled together in a spot, Teo, Windle and Lia swung their swords into the air repeatedly. As Valdim oversaw the other students¡¯ exercises and training, the trio practiced nearby each other. ¡°So what do you guys think? Should we attend regularly?¡± Without losing his breath, Windle asked their opinion of the class as he was kicking and thrusting his sword in combination. ¡°Well.. I.. think.. his.. evaluation.. is.. fair..¡± Lia replied as she was jumping in the air and ducking down into the ground while wildly swinging her sword. ¡°Maybe once a week or once a month, I doubt we¡¯ll need to attend everyday¡± Teo suggested as he stood in his regular stance and rehearsed different types of sword swings. He was still familiarizing himself with his new weapon so he only did the basic exercises that Rowen and Gina had taught him. Not far off the distance, two pair of eyes watched Teo swing his sword. ¡°That¡¯s him right?¡± one of them said as he held a portrait and description of Teo¡¯s features. ¡°Yes, I recognize him! I saw him once before, so there is no doubt it¡¯s him!¡± ¡°Good! Stay here and keep watch of him while I go inform the boss!¡± The fifth year student quickly rushed out of the forest and headed to the center of the district. ¡ª¨C Zachery and the rest waited for news of Teo¡¯s location to arrive. The four of them did not wear the Rizon badge on their sleeves but it was no secret that they were part of the Rizon faction. People who knew about this oddity were curious but none of them could uncover the reason behind it. After recovering from their injuries, the four¡¯s hate for Teo had lessen, but it did not disappear. They felt embarrassed at the fact that they were showing off while they foolishly injured themselves but they had no way of venting their anger. The creator of those boots that harmed them was a mysterious and important figure so they could only swallow their frustrations. Without much to do, the four of them concentrated on improving their elemental control and hoped to unleash their frustration on their most hated enemy, Teo. They would¡¯ve made their move earlier if not for the fact that important guests visited to spectate the yearly tournament. ¡°Calm down Kris, we¡¯ll get him today. We¡¯ll slowly roast him until he squeals!¡± Seeing Kristofer pacing back and forth in anticipation, Zachery tried to calm him. ¡°Heh, I know Zach. I¡¯ll repay the humiliation I felt that day by a hundred times!¡± Ash snickered as he looked at the help they brought. Ten students of various years were hired to help capture and lynch Teo. Zachery and the rest no longer cared for such trivial things as their reputation. If they cannot be respected by their status and regal loftiness, they will be respected through power and fear! Despite this, he could not force the other Rizon members to temporarily quit, so he had them scout for Teo and hired outsiders with skills to help dealing with Teo. The narrative has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the infringement. Suddenly, the fifth year messenger came rushing back! ¡°Boss, we found him!¡± Their eyes hardened as they heard the news. Everyone stood up reading themselves. ¡°Good! Lead the way!¡± Without wasting a moment, fifteen figures swiftly traversed through the northern district. ¡ª¨C Teo and the other sparring students sat down watching instructor Valdim¡¯s demonstration. Gradually, the other pupils who could no longer continue or had finished their exercises laid down to watch as well. Grifford on the other hand collapsed beside Teo breathing heavily as his eyes could barely continue to look at the instructor. Valdim¡¯s movements were swift and to the untrained eyes, it was difficult to discern the subtle differences in his movements. He started slow and repeated certain moves, but the second time around the moves slightly sped up. After a few iteration, not many could keep track of his maneuvers. The experienced Windle and Lia could barely keep up. Despite having seen their seniors¡¯ velocity before, they could only track Valdim¡¯s movements to an extent. Teo on the other hand lasted a little longer. He was used to speeds that the [God¡¯s eyes] helped him to see, but soon he was forced to activate his [God¡¯s eyes] to keep track. The movement seemed the same, but there were subtle differences that Teo¡¯s [God¡¯s eyes] could pick up! ¡°So, how many of you could see my last moves? Can you tell the difference from each ones?¡± Valdim asked his students but Teo remained silent. Upon activating his [God¡¯s eyes] he discovered from a distance a few familiar faces he did not want to see. He acted natural and pretended to yawn as he looked around and found many hidden figures glancing towards him. Valdim who saw Teo yawn felt quite displeased, but continued on with his lecture. Teo pulled Windle and Lia together and whispered, ¡°Guys I¡¯ll need some help with something.¡± Grifford who was laying down beside Teo also listened to what Teo was suggesting. ¡ª¨C ¡°There he is!¡± ¡°This fool doesn¡¯t know what is coming to him, hehe¡± Zachery and the other 14 people watched Teo from the distance concealing themselves behind the bushes. The other two from the Rizon faction had already left since they were still restricted from attacking Teo and unlike Zachery, they did not dare to leave the faction just for revenge. They waited until the class was finished to pounce on their unsuspecting target. Despite allowing third years and olders to fight, none of them dared to in front of an instructor or during class. Students who intruded on classes or had no respect for the academy¡¯s instructors were often punished by the instructors themselves, so the group waited. After waiting some time, many of the students had started to leave and the hidden force became excited! ¡°This is it, when he leaves we¡¯ll block him right away!¡± They moved to enclose on Teo, but Teo and a few other students stayed behind and asked their instructors for some pointers. ¡°Instructor Valdim is such a great teacher. Today, I have really learned a lot!¡± Windle said with excitement Teo, Lia and Grifford nodded. Grifford had heard of Teo¡¯s situation, and despite not knowing him too well, he thought that observing nearby might be interesting so he played along with Teo¡¯s plan. ¡°Indeed, I have never seen an instructor so good even in the Martial faction! You must visit our Martial faction today!¡± Lia suggested. ¡°Yes, yes, please visit our martial faction today!¡± Teo chimed in. Valdim was quite flattered by Windle and Lia¡¯s praises. Although he disliked Teo, he knew that Windle and Lia were probably the better students he had today. ¡°Well..¡± Valdim hesitated, but Lia did not let up. ¡°I am sure that the many ladies of the Martial faction will find instructor most appealing! The majority of our members will also come today, I think it is the best time to show your greatness to our members!¡± Valdim smiled and liked the idea! His confidence was built up by the praises of these good students and was tempted to go. ¡°Alright, I guess I will make an exception today!¡± ¡°Yay! Thank you so much! I am sure that they will be pleased with your methods of teaching!¡± ¡°I am so glad that instructor will bless us with more of his time!¡± The manipulative bunch laughed inside as their eyes quickly glanced at the seemingly empty surroundings. [Proofread and slightly edited by Soeir] [Cienz: It¡¯s Sunday, 1:00 am, kinda lacking motivation at the moment. Here are the two chapters I promised. I am not sure if the chapters will keep on being released at a regular pace as my motivation fluctuates a lot. Sometimes I don''t feel like writing a chapter, sometimes I can write 3 chapters in one go.. it varies. There is also a fire a few hours from where I live, its pretty bad, since Tuesday I believe, though I am not directly affected by it, I feel obligated to ask for donations for those who needs it. If anyone wants to donate to the victims of the fire at McMurray please go to this link. The government is going to match what ever is donated, so if you want to help please donate. Thanks. You can also read ahead by going to ByCienz] Chapter 78: Head Start Chapter 78: Head Start Seeing Teo and a few other students leave with the instructor, the group grew apprehensive. ¡°What do we do now?¡± ¡°What else?! Follow him, he can¡¯t stay with the instructor forever!¡± The group stealthily followed Teo while maintaining their encirclement, but as Teo and the others exited the forest, they found themselves nowhere to hide so they followed from a distance instead. ¡ª¨C The Martial faction headquarters was not too far from the northern district. In fact, it was located north east of the academy so after some time the group reached their destination and Lia talked to the seniors and arranged a stage for their instructor to lecture on. New recruits lined up and were taught by senior members. Visitors also flowed in to either spectate or participate. Many prospective recruits would always look around to decide on whether to join the faction or not. After the arrangements were made, Teo, Lia, Windle and Grifford huddled together at the stage nearby. Windle briefly glanced at the entrance and then back to the group. ¡°How many do you think there are?¡± Windle asked. ¡°I saw maybe 9 or so¡­ I didn¡¯t see them all quite clearly but they should have sneaked in.¡± After some time, Teo noticed four cloaked figures that did not directly go to the stages but rather off to the side behind the trees within the spacious courtyard. Grifford sat beside them and found the whole ordeal entertaining and just kept quiet and observed with a grin. ¡°What are we going to do?¡± Lia inquired. If it was a fight she was not too afraid as she was the strongest in the group. She could even beat up some of the senior students who she sometimes sparred with. ¡°Let¡¯s wait it out first, I¡¯ll head to one of the underground training room for a bit. I need to prepare for something. Keep watch of those four for me.¡± Teo gestured at a particular location and Windle and Lia also gave a quick glance. ¡°Those are probably them, if they brought their companions they¡¯ll surely signal them somehow. Try to figure out which one they are, but don¡¯t get caught.¡± Soon after, Teo headed into one of the underground rooms. Locking the door behind him, Teo quickly removed several materials from his interspatial stone. ¡ª¡ª Hours passed and Teo had yet to return. Grifford had already gotten bored and left the Martial faction, while Lia and Windle pretended to train while they kept watch over the figures that Teo pointed out. ¡®So far there are 7 people who talked to them,¡¯ Windle thought as he was swinging his sword. Although there were less people now, the courtyard was still crowded by many people. Lia who was besides Windle quietly complained. ¡°These people are so persistent!¡± ¡°Don¡¯t worry, I¡¯m sure Teo will be safe as long as he stays here.¡± ¡°You know Teo can¡¯t run forever right? He needs to solve this problem soon or he won¡¯t have any peace until we graduate!¡± Windle also agreed. If Teo was in trouble, they would surely help him, but after noticing the other students that they marked, he knew that some of them were seniors. Although he did not know who they were, Windle knew that if it became a team fight, they were outnumbered and also outclassed. Considering the situation, he was tempted to get Lia to ask the seniors of the Martial faction to intervene, but the Martial faction won¡¯t move against personal vendettas. If one faction is clearly bullying the other, then they might band together, but in Teo¡¯s case it has not yet escalated to that level. There was also no guarantee that these pursuers were together with a faction so Windle decided to wait for Teo¡¯s decision. A few more hours passed and more people started leaving, but the same individuals waited patiently. ¡°Windle, Lia thanks for waiting.¡± Teo finally returned wearing a cloak. His face and hands covered in soot as if he went through a chimney. ¡°Grifford had already left a long time ago, what were you doing?¡± ¡°Preparing for my escape.¡± ¡°Teo, even if you escape today, they¡¯ll just come find you tomorrow or another day after that.. We need to deal with this sooner rather than later,¡± Windle advised. ¡°You need to deal with this properly or you won¡¯t be able to train with us at all,¡± Lia followed up. ¡°I know, I know..¡± Teo considered fighting it out and getting beat up, but without the old man¡¯s protective array, he put that idea to rest. Within his interspatial stone was an extra defensive ring he created during his free time, but it wouldn¡¯t last a whole beating. At best he could protect himself from 10 different blows, but who would stop after 10 blows? It was also his only life saving device, he did not want to expose it unless he needed to. If he wanted to make more he could have, but charging them with Qi took him a very long time. Support creative writers by reading their stories on Royal Road, not stolen versions. He didn¡¯t want Windle and Lia to suffer at his expense so he also did not want it to become a team fight. If he could only fight them one by one, perhaps he had a chance, but what could he do? ¡®I doubt they¡¯ll let me off once I leave the protection of the Martial faction and instructors¡­ If I really want to settle this.. I can apologize or¡­¡¯ Teo was only briefly optimistic but knew that those four would not let him off with just an apology. They had attacked him in broad daylight before so they will likely to do it again. ¡®Since I doubt this will be resolved peacefully, the only way out is to fight!¡¯ Windle and Lia noticed that Teo grew quiet and did not disturb him. Whatever Teo decided, they would support him either way. The light exercised they had been doing was enough for them to be battle ready, the only thing they needed was Teo¡¯s decision. After waiting for a while, Teo finally turned to Windle and Lia. ¡°Guys, I need a head start.¡± ¡ª¡ª¡ª Teo wore a deep brown cloak and his large backpack that was easily noticeable. He walked around the courtyard alone as if he was spectating the various lectures within the area. ¡°There he is, he finally came out!¡± ¡°Keep track of him, this bastard is slippery as an eel!¡± Before they discovered Teo who nonchalantly was spectating around, they thought that their cover was blown as Teo had entered into a restricted area exclusively for Martial faction members and their friends. Seeing him emerged as if nothing happened they felt relieved that their target was openly showing himself. Each of their attention focused on Teo, and they noticed him putting on his hood. The large hood was enough to cover more than half his face, and the cloak covered his entire body as well, but the eye catching backpack remained. No matter where Teo headed, they tracked him from a distance. There were instances where they lost track of him when he turned and walked around the corner of the main building but soon his figure emerged right after. ¡°Does this bastard intends to stay here forever?!¡± Kristofer impatiently asked in a low voice. His voice was muffled by the mask he wore but those beside him could feel his frustration. They also felt as if they were being toyed around, but they dismissed the idea as they felt that Teo had yet to notice them. They felt anxious when Teo wore his hood in public, but seeing Windle and Lia talking to him, their worries subsided. It was only until the hooded figure took off his backpack and handed it to Windle and bowed that they noticed something odd! Windle and Lia laughed as the hooded figure gave another bow. Windle patted the figure¡¯s shoulder as smiled. Zachery were too far to hear their conversation but they quickly notice the change in mannerism of the hooded figure. A terrible thought emerged in the back of the minds. They did not want to believe it but after the hooded figure took off his hood, the faces of Zachery and the others¡¯ froze! It took them a brief moment to process what they were seeing! The face of the one they¡¯ve been tracking was not Teo but an unfamiliar face! As he removed even his cloak they realize that it was a first year recruit that had similar build and height of their prey! *Bang!* Zachery slammed his fist into a tree! ¡°Find him!¡± All of them meticulously scanned every person in the courtyard but after finding that Teo was not among them. Though there was possibility of Teo hiding within the building or the underground chamber, they did not risk it and expanded the search outside the courtyard. ¡°There he is!¡± One of the 6th year student who was hired by Zachery discovered Teo¡¯s silhouette from the distance. Although Teo was pretty far, he did not wear his hood on but walked leisurely towards the northern part of the academy. ¡°Quick! Catch that bastard!¡± Teo used his [God¡¯s eye] glancing from a distance to see if they found him yet. Once he realizes they finally found him, he increased his speed to maintain the distance. ¡ª¨C ¡°I hope it works out well¡­¡± Lia worried. ¡°Don¡¯t worry too much, let¡¯s hurry and finish what Teo asked for,¡± Windle replied. Windle and Lia who were closely paying attention were slightly worried of Teo¡¯s plan, but were convinced that there was no easy solution to this problem. Chapter 79: Open Challenge Chapter 79: Open Challenge Jeers and cheers mixed together as the audience watched the current fighters on the stage. ¡°Yes! That¡¯s my boy!¡± ¡°No¡­how can he lose?!¡± Several groups having a feast within the stands. As the sun was still above the horizon, the rowdy guests enjoy themselves with drinks as they make bets on the current fighters. Aside from the student matches, there were also some visitors from the city who came to fight during the first day of classes. The festivities of the academy had always welcomed fighters from the outside to showcase their strength within the arena. The fighters who wished to fight were not charged any fee to use the arena, and bets between fighters were guarded by the academy guards as well as the Red Guardians. The sun was still hanging in the sky so there were still many people around enjoying themselves. But after the fight within the main stage, a strange event occurred. In the middle of the main stage, a young man wearing a grey cloak. The youth had black hair and was quite short in terms of height that he could easily be mistaken as first year student. People were slightly startled as most students fought on the arena during the earlier part of the afternoon. There was still a few hours until the sun would set and normally, during these times, only older students or visitors would still be at the arena. The host of the main stage came forward in front of the audience and with a loud voice he announced. ¡°Our very own third year student, Teo of Char, is accepting challenges from any and all other student!¡± Teo who was standing on stage took a look at the stands. He smirked as he saw Zachery and the others were there staring at him with venomous eyes. As he escaped from the Martial faction, Teo led the group to the arenas in the northern district. ¡®This place is perfect for a one-on-one fight¡¯ He did not plan to run forever, but he was well aware that he could not fight them all at the same time. His plan was simple, to beat them each one of them in public! On the stands the 13 other waited for Zachery¡¯s orders. Teo was openly challenging them to a duel, which made Zachery irritated. ¡®Hmph! You think you can beat all of us one-on-one? I didn¡¯t think you were this crazy!¡¯ ¡°Genso, go and test the waters.¡± A slim build young man nodded at Zachery¡¯s orders and rushed down to the stage. Genso was a fourth year student, who paid to help Zachery with his problems. From his perspective, Zachery hiring so many people is overkill, but he wasn¡¯t complaining. He was getting paid 20 silver coins for helping handle this small problem. He stepped up to the stage and shouted, ¡°I¡¯ll challenge him!¡± ¡°Our first challenger!¡± the host announced but quickly whispered, ¡°Hey kid, what¡¯s your name?¡± ¡°Genso of Yurd¡± ¡°Our first challenger Genso of Yurd!¡± ¡ª¡ª Looking at his opponent, Teo was calm. Genso was a foot and a half taller than him, but he did not see it as any difficulty. He had sparred with seniors of Martial faction members before and was not intimidated by a larger opponent. ¡°Both of you know the rules? No killing or maiming, wooden or blunt weapons are allowed. The fight ends when the judge calls it to end, or you either push the opponent out of bounds, make him admit defeat, knock him out or if they can no longer fight. Any questions?¡± The host briefly explains the rules of arena but before he could start the match Teo asks a question. ¡°Can we use other things besides our weapons?¡± ¡°As long as it doesn¡¯t kill or maim the opponent, it should be fine. Oh right, poisons are not allowed!¡± ¡°Can we use things like talismans?¡± Teo asked. When Teo asked this question, Genso almost laughed out loud. ¡®Talismans? Hah this kid must not know much about those useless talismans.¡± The judge also had a similar reaction. Talismans were worthless unless they were stacked into a large bundle. Even if they did have them, who would be so wasteful in using them in a non-life-or-death situation? ¡°Usage of talismans are accepted, but using a bundle of more than 10 are not permitted.¡± Teo smiled and then bent down undoing something on his ankles and forearm. *Thud* He throws two metallic braces he took from his limbs off the stage and the sound of those braces hitting the dirt made everyone who was paying attention guess that these braces were extremely heavy. Pulling out his sword, he stretched his legs in preparation for the upcoming match. Genso patiently waited as he found Teo¡¯s preparation to be amusing. He saw these actions as futile, already predicting his one sided victory. ¡°Ready yet?¡± Genso asked in a calm manner as Teo finished his stretches. ¡°Yes, but how much are we betting in this match?¡± ¡°Hahahaha¡± Genso laughed as he could no longer take it. In his eyes, the small kid before him was nothing more than a joke. Genso felt like a predator about to slaughter his prey and now this prey of his was offering to give him money! This narrative has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road. If you see it on Amazon, please report it. ¡°I really like you kid, I am sorry that I have to do this. How about 20 silver coins?¡± ¡°Only 20 silver? How about we raise it to a few gold coins?¡± Genso¡¯s eyebrow twitch as the amount Teo proposed was extremely high. Unless one had enough money to spare, they usually won¡¯t bet this much without much consideration. When he got hired for this job, he found out more about the rumors between his employer, Zachery, and the target, Teo. He learned that Teo had profited quite a bit from the Rizon faction and perhaps this was the reason why there was bad blood between them. To him, this didn¡¯t matter too much. In fact, he was extremely happy about Teo¡¯s proposition. ¡®Heh, looks like I¡¯ll make quite a bit more money from this job,¡± Gelson thought. ¡°Okay, I¡¯ll bet one gold coin!¡± ¡ª¡ª- The fight began and everyone anticipated the strange match-up. A tall senior versus a short junior. Many people started betting on the match and from people¡¯s prediction, Teo had the odds of winning 1 to 10. ¡°That shrimp sure is brave asking for any challengers. I hope he wins.¡± ¡°I¡¯m betting my money on you little guy!¡± As a joke, many place their bets on Teo but these bets were quite small. Not one of them place more than 30 bronze coins on him. ¡°Let this match begin!¡± As the match started, Genso quickly dashed towards Teo, hoping to end it quickly. He did not bother guarding against the talismans that Teo asked as he knew they were quite weak. Teo stood motionlessly, preparing to wait for his opponent. The [God¡¯s eyes] were already activated, and his body felt extremely light. The weights that he got rid of were the weights that Rowen and Gina gave to him. They instructed him to never remove them unless absolutely necessary. After getting used to its weight, he was required to increase it little by little. Teo held his sword, side stepping Genso¡¯s initial strike. Genso¡¯s speed was fast, but his aura did not contain any elemental energy. Teo guessed that Genso was not an elementalist, but despite this, his attacks were quite swift. A battle of agility had begun! ¡°That little guy can¡¯t win like this! Little guy! Try to counter attack!¡± ¡°Hahaha don¡¯t be giving tips to him! Let him learn on his own!¡± The few drunkards enjoyed themselves as they watched the match. Teo¡¯s movement was quite agile but he never raised his sword to attack. Genso on the other hand was baffled at Teo¡¯s skill. He had heard the slipperiness of Teo but he never imagined he was this slippery! He could not land a single strike! He tried using a variation of sword attacks and sometimes would try to surprise Teo with kicks but he hit nothing but air! ¡°HAH!¡± Genso pushed himself to his limits and his speed quickly flew through the roof! Teo dashed back to the edge of the stage and stopped a foot before it. They both knew the distance of the edge of the stage, and Genso sense that Teo was baiting him to come closer. ¡®This brat wants to win by a ring out? Che!¡¯ Genson¡¯s speed was indeed fast, but he could not utilize it if Teo was near the edge. On the upside, Teo cornered himself by moving to the edge on his own. Genso attacked once more! A horizontal slashed flew towards Teo¡¯s legs. Genso lowered his body and then followed it up with a vertical kick expecting Teo to jump up! ¡®Hoh.. This guy is quite smart as well,¡¯ Teo was slightly impressed. Teo blocked the sword with his left forearm using the concealed hidden dagger under his sleeve. It acted more of a bracer but with Teo¡¯s array on it, its defense was extremely hard! *Bang bang* Teo followed his movement by attacking the incoming leg! His target was Genso¡¯s knee! ¡°Ahh!¡± Genso shouted in pain, but his assault did not end. He tried to grab Teo¡¯s collar while preparing his sword for his next strike. Dodging Genso¡¯s hand by a few inches, he quickly send a strike behind the same knee and pushed him off the stage with a following kick! ¡®!!¡¯ Genso panicked! He had lost his balance but what surprised him the most was Teo¡¯s sudden acceleration of speed! He thought that Teo was extremely fast for a junior but he could not even tell when Teo¡¯s sword reached his legs! *Crash!* The rowdy drunkards¡¯ eyes widened as they could not believe what they were seeing! One of them looked at his glass of beer and pushed it away. ¡®I must be dreaming..¡¯ No one expected Teo to win over his gigantic opponent, but the silent observers saw that the person laying off the stage was in fact this giant they bet on to win! Chapter 80: Light Show Chapter 80: Light Show The crowd who was watching the main stage erupted into wild cheers of disbelief! Those who placed small bets on Teo to win unexpectedly won! Those who placed for Genso to win lost some money but they didn¡¯t feel too bad as the match was extremely exciting. ¡°Hahaha that little guy actually won!¡± ¡°Though that tall guy was not weak at all, that shorty is unexpectedly very agile and full of surprises!¡± The many drunkards did not notice the quick acceleration of Teo¡¯s speed, and Teo positioned himself to conceal his true speed. He had never released the weighted shackles since his training started. Rowen and Gina would always add the weights on his ankles incrementally but Teo would use his enchanted shoes to reduce his overall weight from time to time. The only time he stopped doing so was when Lia invited him to follow her and Windle¡¯s path to the capital. Now that he had unshackled these restrictive weights and made full use of his enchanted boots, his speed was incredibly faster! ¡ª¨C ¡°He actually defeated Genso!¡± another hired member spoke. ¡°Genso must¡¯ve been careless, what a useless guy.¡± The majority of them were seniors that were specifically hired to bind Teo¡¯s speed so although they had some combat experience, they excelled in their speed the most. Some of them were surprised seeing Genso defeated. His speed was comparable to them, but this was a speed was of chase potential. Teo positioning himself near the edge of the ring removed this advantage and instead they had to rely on their agility to fight instead. Agility wise, they were comparable with Teo¡¯s quick movements. It was as if Teo could predict Genso¡¯s move he even took action, but only some of them realized this point. His reaction speed was comparable to an eighth year student! Although his attacks were unrefined, he easily dodged Genso¡¯s moves and even blocked some of them. The force of Teo¡¯s sword did not lose in terms of strength! ¡°That kid must have some high level bracer underneath his sleeve!¡± another explained. ¡°Zachery, should I go this time?¡± Kristofer was eager for a rematch but Zachery shook his head. ¡°Despite us improving, he was improving as well.¡± Zachery noticed that Teo¡¯s ability to dodge had improved dramatically. When Kristofer fought him last year, he could barely dodge Kristofer¡¯s [Wind Blade] but now, it looked like he dodged Genso¡¯s attacks with ease. He became worried as he knew that Teo¡¯s speed was something that was very troublesome! ¡°Dast, go next!¡± Dast was the oldest and most experienced among the hired students. He was a seventh year student and was vastly more experience in combat than Teo. He could arguably the strongest among the bunch seeing as there was no elementalist among them. He carried a long wooden sword, that seemed to be thicker than normal. Dast was a little embarrassed being a seventh year student fighting a third year, but he was getting paid at a much higher price than the others which was enough for him to swallow his pride. After gracefully jumping on to the stage, he looked towards Teo and warned him. ¡°Kid, you should just really give up. It¡¯s inevitable to get beaten up, just take it like a man.¡± Dast was still hesitant to fight against such a young opponent but his job was to help Zachery get his revenge. He was fine with holding Teo down and letting his employers beat the shit out of Teo, but since he had been paid in advance, he could only follow orders. ¡°Oh? So senior thinks a man should not fight against his enemies?¡± Teo was unreserved. Normally he was respectful to someone he didn¡¯t know, especially his seniors, but after seeing them as his enemy, he did not bother with pleasantries. Instead, he mocked the senior who was giving him advice! ¡°Really cheeky! But you¡¯ll regret not taking my advice.¡± ¡°Senior should take his own advice and back down.¡± A cold glint in his eyes emerged as his ¡°kind words¡± were turned back to him. ¡°I¡¯ll bet 10 silver coins¡± ¡°Oh? Senior does not want to win more gold?¡± Seeing as Dast did not bet as much as Genso, he wanted to goad him into betting more. ¡°10 silver coins should be good enough!¡± ¡ª¨C After the host announced the start of the match, like Genso, Dast did not see Teo as any threat to him. He dash towards Teo at incredible speed, but Teo looked motionlessly, waiting for Dast to get closer. ¡®This punk is too cocky, I¡¯ll beat him slowly making him unable to surrender!¡¯ Dast raised his sword preparing to his strike. At a distance of two meters, Teo threw a single sheet of paper! Dast seeing this briefly flinched but after clearly examining it, he continued without pause. The narrative has been illicitly obtained; should you discover it on Amazon, report the violation.¡®I thought it was something but It¡¯s just a talisman!¡¯ Within only a few seconds, he was one meter away, his eyes completely ignoring the sheet of paper and preparing to tear whatever effects it might have! His attention was mainly focus on Teo who was directly on the behind the paper! Suddenly, the paper emits soft light. It was a light reactor talisman! ¡®And here I was thinking he was actually smar-¡¯ As he was mocking Teo in his head, the soft light erupted into a bright blinding light! ¡®Ah! I can¡¯t see!¡¯ Dast quickly jumped back as his eyes were blinded by the fierce light. He relied on his experience and moved away from Teo¡¯s position while listening to his surroundings. ¡®!!¡¯ He felt a presence running around him, many others who were paying attention were also blinded! Some of the other stages were even forced to look at the bright light that appeared out of nowhere! Dast swings his sword to the direction of the sound, but he nothing but air! His eyes still needed more time to recover and he heard a clicking sound behind him! Turning around and unleashing a horizontal slash Dast tries to defend himself but- *Bang!* His right knee was targeted from the side! Dast retaliates but against an enemy he could not see he suffered tremendous amounts of blows to unexpected locations. The strikes were heavy and accurate! Initial strikes robbed him of his mobility! The following strikes aimed for his head but he barely dodges them by swaying his upper body. The next strikes took his fingers, wrists and arms! He could no longer retaliate! From the start of the match he could not even get close to Teo and when his eyes recovered he was beaten bloody on the floor. As the judges and the spectator¡¯s vision also recovered they were dumbfounded by aftermath of a few minutes of blindness! The only ones who had witness Teo¡¯s performance were the ones who did not pay attention to the match initially! Only after noticing the flash of intense light were they able see Teo¡¯s swift and agile movements! Using stones from underneath his hood, he manipulated his opponent¡¯s senses and took advantage of their impaired opponent! ¡°What was that light!?¡± ¡°I thought it was just a talisman but I don¡¯t know a talisman with such a reaction!¡± ¡°Perhaps that shorty is a light elementalist! No one but a light elementalist can produce that kind of light!¡± ¡°No but he clearly threw a talisman towards that seventh year student!¡± Many were confused of the situation, even the judges blankly stared at the fight that was obviously over. No one but Teo knew what really happened! As he experimented briefly within the Martial faction¡¯s underground room, he tried to improve the effects of each reactor talismans and one ward! With the little amount of time he had, he had slightly improved the light reactor talisman but knew that it was still not enough for the amount he wanted. He made 40 light reactor talisman with the resources he had within his interspatial stone using a weighted paper he had gotten from the Talisman class. He wanted to stack each talisman in a bundle to increase its effect but the judge ruled that there would be a limit in stacking them! He considered it but if the opponent noticed a stacked bundle of talismans being thrown, they would be wary. Within the brief moment before the start of the match, Teo thought of a plan that he could use a modified talisman and surprise his opponent. With a mischievous expression Teo thought, ¡®Looks like the chain talismans works like a charm!¡¯ By activating the first soft light talisman, he everyone¡¯s attention to it and then quickly threw 3 modified talismans one after another! The chaining effect of each talisman only took a few milliseconds but one after the other one talisman would absorb the surrounding light elemental energy and release it magnified! As one talisman produced light, the other one took it and produce an even stronger light! A total of four talismans were used! The first one was a regular reactor talisman while the other three modified! ¡ª¨C After everyone returned to their senses, the judge announced Teo¡¯s victory! They had not seen a talisman like this before but they also knew that light elementalists use a similar move to blind their opponent during fights! With the stand, Zachery, Kristofer, Erin and Ash were still shocked that their strongest pawn was easily crushed without being able to fight back! ¡°Looks like he has more tricks that we thought,¡± Erin murmured. ¡°We¡¯ll flush out all his tricks then it¡¯ll be easy to beat him! Heston go!¡± [Cienz: If you wish to read ahead, you can check out my website ] Chapter 81: Self Restriction Chapter 81: Self Restriction The drunkards and all the other spectators grew quiet.. Even the other stages stopped and witness the onslaught within the main stage. A small third year student, one by one defeating 10 other students! Teo positioned himself near the edge of the ring during the fights, his first few wins were counted as luck or perhaps trickery, but one after another, by hook or by crook, each opponent fell by Teo¡¯s hand. Some were won by ring out, the other were unable to continue or were knocked unconscious! Everyone grasped cold air as they realized that this kid was actually very skilled. From Zachery¡¯s helpers, only eight challenged Teo draining his energy! There were also two masked individuals who challenged Teo. ¡°Kid, you have fought that maximum amount of fights allowed for a student. We can no longer let you continue to fight.¡± The judge told Teo to stop for the day, the sun had long set and the arena were only lit with torches. ¡°Then I will stop for today. I would like to rent a private room for the night, you can take it out from my winnings.¡± Teo then walked up to the stands and with a loud voice he announced. ¡°I¡¯ll be here again tomorrow! If any other students wishes to challenge me, then come back tomorrow!¡± His eyes landed on Zachery and the others as his mouth curled up giving them a smile. Within those 10 fights, he had only used the modified light reactor talisman three times. He even threw a fake one that forced his opponent to turn around trying to avoid the predicted flash of light that never appeared! He looked at ease but in truth, he was already breathing very hard. His stamina was barely at his limit and knew that at his state he could not go on much longer. If he did not ask Windle and Lia to disguise themselves as challengers and gave Teo a slow but choreographed fight, he would have had to seriously fight two more members from Zachery¡¯s group! He knew beforehand that the limit was 10 matches a day, so had Windle and Lia take up two slots of the 10. The room for rent within the arena was 10 silver coins a day, which was fairly high but it included an isolated room and a large training area. The only thing missing was food, but with Teo¡¯s funds and instructions, Windle and Lia bought food for him that could last him a week. Teo headed inside the building after being escorted by one of the guards. This was the only way Teo could come up with in such a small amount of time. With this plan, his enemies will focus only on him. He would allow any challenger to fight him and prevent any of them from using their numbers¡¯ advantage using the guards of the arena! Although this restricts much of his freedom around the academy, there was an added benefit of him gaining more fighting experience with real matches. Even though they were not fights to the death, they would still give him enough experience to improve himself! ¡ª¨C Zachery was devastated knowing that Teo chose to hole himself up in this arena, but these fights he witnessed made him reevaluate the situation. Aside from Kristofer, everyone was rather calm considering that their men lost to Teo. Although Erin wanted revenge for her brother, she was impressed by Teo¡¯s performance. In regards to tactics, Teo choose the best possible way to win during these fights. Most of his opponents specialized in chasing down their opponent. Despite having such terrifying speed, their agility and strength were quite average. When Teo positioned himself against the edge of the stage, his opponent¡¯s combat effectiveness was clearly cut in half. Ash one the other hand had a strange light in his eye. He was already thinking of getting his revenge for being stabbed in his hand before. Although he was not the bloodthirsty, he knew his own situation. Despite being ¡°friends¡± with Zachery, they were nothing more than servants to him now. He wanted to establish his usefulness so when Zachery moves to the Imperial city, he would have a chance to serve him in the future. ¡°Looks like he¡¯ll be hiding here for a while, since he wants challengers we¡¯ll give him challengers.¡± Zachery had a strange smile on his face. It was a chance for him to reach unprecedented heights of fame within the academy. Although he was shocked at Teo¡¯s performance, he gauged that he could still win against Teo. The only problem was that he wanted to have a clearer understanding of Teo¡¯s tricks before taking action himself. ¡ª¨C Teo sat down within a spacious room trying to calm his breathing. He had clearly pushed himself well past his limits and was trying to recover from the damage. Circulating the Qi in his body, wood elemental essence gathered around him as his body absorbed it. The main property of the wood element was revitalization and restoration. As the essences passes through his body, they would heal a little bit of damage that Teo had taken. This tale has been unlawfully obtained from Royal Road. If you discover it on Amazon, kindly report it. *knock knock knock* ¡°Teo it¡¯ us.¡± Teo opened the door and let both Windle and Lia inside. The previous masks they wore was no longer there and instead they carried a bag of dried food with them. Lia who could not wait any longer quickly took a hold of Teo. ¡°Teo! How!? How did your speed increased so much?!¡± She and Windle only caught the later part of the matches as they were running out to buy masks and food with Teo¡¯s money. When they arrived at the scene, they found out that Teo had already defeated 4 people! After they went to challenge Teo, Lia observed that in the other matches, Teo¡¯s speed would suddenly accelerate to an astonishing rate! Lia had always prided herself as being the agile and fasted among them but Teo had hidden this secret from her! Windle who was at the side also wanted to know. Their eyes filled with curiosity as they waited for Teo to talk. ¡°This¡­¡± Teo hesitated but then brought out the shackles he used. They were weighted shackles that was designed to be placed on the upper forearm and ankles. Lia and Windle took one of each shackle and found that its weight was clearly very heavy. On the side of the shackles were several black metallic links that was fastened on to them. Windle clearly recognize these black metallic links. They were black iron! A very expensive metal that was normally used to forge weapons that was heavier than their size. The density of black iron metal was ideal for people people who wanted to train their strength, but Teo was clearly using it to as weights to improve restrict his movements. The weights that Teo had used before were actually regular iron, and was much cheaper than this, but after getting used to the weight of his previous shackles he bought a more expensive version of it. Each time his body would get used to the weight he would add a small link to each shackle, and over time speed would improve. This was also another reason why the strength of his attacks were usually poor. The weight on his upper forearm did not add any momentum to his attack but rather slowed it even more. ¡°Don¡¯t tell me you¡¯ve been wearing these all this time?!¡± Windle was shocked, even Lia was speechless. To restrict his own movement while fighting at that level meant that Teo¡¯s strength was probably very close to theirs if not stronger. Rowen and Gina¡¯s plans were to increase his overall speed over a long period of time. After Teo got used to the original weights, he would have enough speed to compete with Lia and Windle, but they did not expect Teo to purchase an even better set of weights that would propel his speed even better. Teo nodded and explained. ¡°I¡¯ve been wearing them since last year, my sister gave them to me.¡± Windle was dumbfounded and Lia could not put anything into words. ¡®If I was wearing this the whole time, would I be as fast as him?¡¯ Teo had always worn long sleeved school uniforms which covered his arms to his wrist and pants that covered all the way to the ankles. The shackles were slim but extremely heavy. Only now they realized that Teo¡¯s potential in combat was actually much higher than they thought. Not even Rowen nor Gina knew of Teo¡¯s improvement, and the first ones to realize this were Lia and Windle. Fire brewed inside their hearts, igniting their competitive spirits. It was as if they could read each other¡¯s minds and nodded to themselves. ¡®I¡¯ll start making weights like these,¡¯ Lia thought ¡®I¡¯m gonna buy a set of weights like these,¡¯ Windle thought Teo could only helplessly smile, as he took a few dried goods and started eating. He was extremely tired and needed to replenish his spent energy. Although some practitioners used world Qi to recover their energy, it required one to reach the third stage of cultivation which involved tempering the body with Qi, but Teo was still far from reaching that stage. ¡ª¨C The next day, after most of the classes ended, a crowd of people gathered to watch the matches in the arena. The number of people who came to watch tripled as a rumor of a young third year student defeating 10 students in a row. Even more interesting was the fact that most of the 10 students were older students! For some reason, a rumor had started that a duelist had openly challenge any other students to fight with him and will match any amount of bet they wanted to place. Very detailed information about yesterday¡¯s fights were spread among the students. Some came to spectate, while others came to test their luck! A third year student that will accept any bet? The greed of several students slowly took root. [Cienz: read ahead at bycienz.com] Chapter 82: The Duelist Chapter 82: The Duelist Among the crowd there was a black haired, scruffy bearded person wearing a purple and black robe. He was a teacher of the campus and heard a rumor that piqued his interest. He was sitting patiently in a reserved area for academy instructors and elders within the stands. ¡®Could it be the rumors are true?¡¯ he doubted. The rumors of yesterday¡¯s matches was mysteriously spread overnight. Unfortunately, this student in question did not bother announcing when he would start doing challenges again and only announced that it would be again today. As such, many who came to watch also waited. Some went to challenge others in the arena while others betted on the current matches, but they all waited for this student from yesterday. ¡ª¡ª Teo stepped out of the rented room wearing a cloak and leaving his weighted shackles inside his interspatial stone. Last night, after his friends left, Teo immediately went inside the inner world so that his body could rest. While inside, he studied the the talisman designs and tried to come up with a way to upgrade them even further. Initially, he wanted to use arrays instead of talismans, he knew many basic arrays with similar functions but instead opted into converting these arrays into talismans. Of course he kept the base design similar to the original talismans but improved some of them with the time he had. When morning came, he spent half the day experimenting and reading. He had already copied all of the books in the library except for the ones that were handwritten in the section of the second floor that focused on ancient arrays. ¡®Luckily all my enemies yesterday had the same advantages, but today I doubt that it will be the same.¡¯ Teo took a deep breath and sighed. Exiting to the arena, the bright light of the outside shimmer through his eyes. Looking at the crowd in front of him being three times bigger than last night, he felt surprised, a little nervous but he gritted his teeth and kept calm. ¡°There he is!¡± ¡°It¡¯s him! The little guy from yesterday!¡± The spectators from last night easily identified him but despite the fact that his name was announced, most of them had long forgot it. Many of their gaze focused on Teo containing a hint of disbelief. Teo¡¯s stature was quite short and even after wearing a cloak his appearance looked slim. His finely toned arms were shielded by the long sleeves and cloak that he wore so they could only judge his strength from their first impression of him. Teo sat down waiting for a stage to finish. He looked through the crowd and already many other students made their way down from the stands. His eyes quickly found two faces from yesterday. One was Ash and the other was Erin. The other faces he did not recognize, but the guards let more than 15 people wait there. He then saw another figure and the corner of his mouth slightly curled upwards. ¡®Looks like he is here as well, just as I planned.¡¯ A stage finally opened but the guards advised Teo to wait until the main stage was open. This was because among the crowd, many talked about last night¡¯s match and the increase of spectators most likely due to this reason. Once the match on the main stage finished, Teo stepped up and the judged announced that he is open to any challenges to any other students. ¡°Who would like to challenge?¡± the host asked the 15 students directly opposite to Teo. Out of the 15 who stood there, only 10 would be allowed to challenge. The younger students did not dare challenge first, so the oldest student who was a seventh year came to challenge. Despite having the rumors spread so easily, in most of the older seniors¡¯ eyes, it was just rumors, which caused many of them to doubt it and not attend. Noticing the challenger¡¯s physique, Teo could guess that this person was not a speed type nor the strength type but more of a well rounded fighter. ¡°¡® s¡¯it true that yar bettin¡¯ against any amount?¡± the challenger asked. ¡°No. I¡¯ll only be betting what I can afford,¡± Teo answered. It could be said that Teo¡¯s wealth, even after all his purchases, still exceeded the amount an average student should have. Even after purchasing blank books to create his own personal library, all the materials for arrays and inscriptions as well as the weapons and equipment he bought to train his body, he still had enough gold to last him for a very long time. Love this novel? Read it on Royal Road to ensure the author gets credit. ¡°That¡¯s great! I am Ragnar, I¡¯ll be offerin¡¯ 5 gold coins!¡± ¡°Okay!¡± Teo stepping up to the stage, preparing his sword. ¡°Let¡¯s have a good fight!!¡± Ragnar jumps on the stage with one leap, also took out a long sword. After receiving the amount from each competitor, the judge explained the rules once more and announced the start of the fight. ¡°Take this!¡± Ragnar shouted as he dashed forward swinging down his sword. Instead of evading, Teo swung his in retaliation, an unseen elemental glow emerged suddenly surrounded Teo¡¯s sword. Their swords clashed against each other. ¡®Heavy!¡¯ Teo was pushed back a 15 steps on the first collision. Even after increasing the weight of the sheath, as he slashed downwards he was still forced back 15 steps. Ragnar on the other hand was surprised. He initially thought that he would force Teo down on the floor with his strike but Teo was only forced back while standing up. ¡®Looks like I can¡¯t compete with power, let¡¯s see how fast he is!¡¯ Teo lowered his stance and instantly jolted forward! His sword held low, preparing for a rising strike. Full speed! His hands quickly disappeared as he ran by his opponent¡¯s flank! *Bang!* Their swords collide once more, but this time Ragnar was caught off balance! Barely able to read Teo¡¯s intent, he blocked at the most vulnerable spot of his side! His battle experience was enough predict where Teo was going to strike. He was caught off guard for the second time as he noticed Teo¡¯s sudden acceleration that could rival the eighth grade seniors! ¡®He is fast indeed, but his strikes are too telegraphed,¡¯ Ragnar thought. Ragnar excelled in fights and like Tordin, he loved to fight. By experiencing under a thousand fights during the his time at the academy, he was close one of the top 64 within the overall match this year and was ranked third among the seventh year students. Teo¡¯s clear advantage was using his eyes to easily read his opponent¡¯s next move, but with Ragnar¡¯s experience, he could easily read Teo¡¯s intent as well! The speed difference was not overwhelming, which made the fight at almost equal strength. As they exchange blows and maneuvers, the spectators including Ragnar was baffled! A third year student exchanging blows evenly with a seventh year student! This was truly unbelievable! But even without the restraints of his training weights, his arrays on his weapon and shoes, as well as his [God¡¯s eyes], Teo could only compete with this senior! Each blow, Teo was getting information about his opponent. He could guess that his opponent was not an idiot, and could probably be hard to trick! But at the same time, his opponent was also doing the same. Ragnar was studying Teo¡¯s patterns of attack and habits, each strike slowly told of Teo¡¯s weaknesses. Suddenly, Teo throws a card towards Ragnar! ¡®!!¡¯ Ragnar quickly retreats and dodges the card! He quickly moved his line of sight away from the card because he knew that Teo had used a blinding inscription during yesterday¡¯s matches! ¡®Heh, So he knows it too!¡¯ As the card flew through the air, Teo dashed forward to attack Ragnar¡¯s legs! *Bang!* Ragnar blocked again! Despite his focus on the card, he did not lose sight of Teo¡¯s movements. ¡®Che!¡¯ The card landing on the ground not activating at all. It was a fake inscription that Teo had prepared to test Ragnar¡¯s reaction. He also used this tactic last night to ensure a victory for him but Ragnar was experienced enough to avoid any damage! Within the stands, the purple and black robed figure showed a slightly disappointed expression. This person was Deacon! After hearing of that light blinding talisman being used right last night, he initially thought nothing of it, but when he heard that this talisman was not used in a stack, his interest was piqued. Upon seeing the student that was absent earlier this morning, in the back of his mind, he thought that there is a possibility that the rumor is true since Teo¡¯s achievements in inscription was fairly high. ¡°Is it true? Or were they mistaken?¡± he quietly muttered as he continued to watch the match below. [Cienz: Read more on ByCienz]