In an unknown place, a man who looked to be in his late thirties was sitting on a couch in a large office space. He had black hair and eyes, but his very being exuded power beyond comprehension. This man was of transcendent rank. It felt as though the very world around him bent to his will.
He held what was supposedly the strongest rank currently known to humanity, but the expression on his face was unbefitting of a being of his stature.
"Interesting… kukuku," he chuckled with a weird expression and glazed eyes.
Then, as if sensing something, he quickly turned expressionless and sat elegantly.
A fraction of a moment later, Aurora appeared in the room. She blinked before saying, "You're acting strange," looking at the man.
"Of course not—what could I be doing?" he shot back. "But say, little one, I heard some rumors that you got yourself a young Padawan—a boy, no less."
"Were you spying on us?" she asked, tilting her head.
"W-w-w-what are you saying?" he asked, flustered. "Of course not. Do I look like that type of person?" he protested.
"Yes," she said without hesitation.
"Kheum—Ahem," he coughed embarrassedly.
"Might I know what spurred that decision? The one that made you take a student?" He rubbed his palms like a greedy merchant.
"You might not."
"Oh well, I tried," he nodded to himself. "You rebellious child. As the principal of this academy, I demand an answer," he stated solemnly.
Silence. She stared at him, unimpressed.
"Fine. As your grandfather and master, I demand you tell me why," he said.
Still silence.
"All right, I give up," he muttered and slumped onto the couch.
"How's it going with the Asuras?" she asked, taking a seat opposite him.
"There have been little skirmishes here and there, but nothing big… yet," he replied.
"All right—since I've answered your question, why don't you answer mine? Have you perhaps taken a liking to that boy? Trust me, I completely understand if you…" He stopped upon seeing the uninterested look in her eyes.
"You're no fun," he mumbled with a pout. If others saw him acting like this, they would question their sanity. Yet here he was, acting like a child.
"You already know, don't you?" Aurora asked as she resumed her seat.
He was silent for a while before his entire demeanor changed completely. If before he looked outgoing, now he seemed someone people would want to avoid at all costs. "If I didn't, I wouldn't be the principal now, would I?" he answered coolly.
"Are you leaving again?" she asked after a moment of silence.
"Hehehehe," he chuckled sheepishly.
"I'll get going," Aurora said, standing up.
"All right—I'll tell your grandma you said…" she disappeared before he could finish. "…hi," he sighed.
"What a troublesome child. Now's one of those times I realize I could relate to a grandson better," he sighed once again.
"Now let me take a look at my little grand-student, hehehe," he chuckled. His eyes glazed once more.
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Meanwhile, back at the dorms, Adam had no idea that he had entered the eye of the mysterious principal of Nebula Academy or that he was being spied on. He had just come back to his room after the brutal exchange with Aurora. His entire body ached with a dull pain, and Aurora had forbidden him from using healing potions. Apparently, he had to allow his natural regeneration to soothe the pains. It'll make his body adapt better that way.
"It's about time I start condensing my eighth star," Adam mumbled as he sat down cross-legged. With a thought, he felt his consciousness transported to his bloodline plane. It was still as mesmerizing as ever: one side a starry sky, the other a pulsing silver. Above were seven shining stars gleaming brightly in the stark expanse.
After admiring the plane, he closed his eyes and focused on drawing energy from it.
"Whuuuummm!" The boundless energy of the bloodline plane surged toward Adam.
"The fuck?!" he exclaimed. The sudden surge was unexpected—before, he could only draw small quantities. The more energy one could draw, the faster they could condense their stars.
"The energy I can draw at a time has almost tripled. With this, my condensation will be about twice as fast as before. And that's plus the loss of energy during transport and condensation," Adam mumbled.
He decided to reason it later. For now, he would start setting the star's foundation. After drawing as much energy as he could, he channeled it above him, right beside the seventh star, which was alone—unlike the others, grouped in threes.
He then began condensing the energy into a single point. The star doesn't have to be a star per se; it can be any shape the user desires. It was only called a star because the first person who discovered the method named it so.
Adam's stars were abstract; he himself couldn't describe them. Hours into his cultivation, a little crystal appeared at the point where he was concentrating the energy.
"Damn, this is insane!" he exclaimed upon seeing the tiny crystal. "Before, it could take me at least a week to reach this point," he marvelled. "I think, at this rate, I should finish condensing this star in at most two months, given that the energy I can draw doesn't increase further."
With a thought, he returned to the material world. "So it's already ten PM," he mumbled as he stretched. "Better eat and go to sleep." He wasn't ready to risk not arriving early for tomorrow's morning session.
After the meal he made for himself, he surrendered to Morpheus's embrace. Today had been a long, hectic day: first morning training, then combat class, and last but not least, Aurora beating the hell out of him in the name of training. I just have to hope tomorrow will be better.
/////////
The next day, as soon as the shrill alarm rang at five, Adam bolted out onto his balcony just like the day before. He reached the portal even earlier than yesterday, among the other cadets. But when they appeared on the other side, except for the instructors, there were no cadets standing there. They had already begun the morning run.
Guess it makes sense—we were briefed yesterday, he mused. One of the instructors slapped a bloodline suppressor on Adam's wrist before he could react.
Adam wasted no time and began running. Just like yesterday, he kept a moderate pace, but the problem started when he reached the Red Forest. It had completely changed—from its dynamics to the position of some thorns. Many cadets, including Adam, had intended to use the same route they used yesterday—or rather the exact same spots, since there was no set path.
The Red Forest had regrown completely—no, this wasn't regrowth; it was an entirely different layout. Perhaps with a bloodline ability, Adam thought. Guess I'm still getting bruises today. He shook his head and braced himself.
"How the hell did this forest change?" a cadet cursed.
"I could have sworn I cleared the thorns here yesterday," another muttered.
"God, this is absurd. Don't tell me this forest changes every single day," the first cadet shuddered.
As he passed through the thorns, numerous cadets cursed the compromised terrain. By the time he escaped the Red Forest, he had as many scratches as yesterday, if not more.
He reached the mountain and began climbing, but even the traps on the slope had been restructured. Protruding rocks that were safe yesterday were traps today, and some traps that triggered yesterday were duds.
What the cadets didn't know, was that the course was made to be unpredictable, it would continue to change every single day, especially the red forest and the mountain.
After reaching the top, he rested for a bit before descending. The descent was just as eventful: cadets sometimes tumbled, and if they fell too far, they'd be teleported away just before hitting the ground.
Adam also triggered a trap when he stepped on a protruding rock that dislodged itself, almost sending him down. Thankfully, he still had one hand in a crevice. His heart pounded, but he quickly calmed down. "Fuck, that was too close—way too close," he cursed.
I've got to be more careful, he thought. So he began to follow the paths others did just like yesterday.
Soon he got off the mountain and made his way toward the frigid river. The only thing that didn't change today was the frigid river, Adam thought as he submerged himself. Apart from the current being a little stronger than yesterday, that is.
In the end, he made it back to the barren land a few minutes later than the day before.
"At least… haa… I'm not… haa… on the floor today," Adam panted, hands on his knees.
"Yes, you're not," a voice echoed.
"Take this," Owen said, handing Adam a bottle of water.
"Thanks, I really needed this," Adam replied.
"Hey, where's mine?!" Tokito appeared.
"You're still standing, are you not?" Owen replied.
Soon time was up, and Instructor Blake cleared them to go.
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PLEASE DROP SOME POWERSTONES 🙏🙏🙏🙏🙏🙏🙏.