Nobody was around to see the tap as they all evacuated. Some of them tried to get Akata but were astonished to see that they couldn’t get near him because a barrier blocked their way. While some tried to break through the barrier and save him others immediately left. It wasn’t until Sect Leader Fu came that the one’s who stayed left. Sect Leader Fu looked at Akata deeply and then turned to leave. It wasn’t because she was scared of the meteor but because her Uncle Master told her to evacuate everyone, including herself.

She had been come to take notice of the barriers surrounding the areas but didn’t question her Uncle Master. If he didn’t bother telling her about it then it was something she couldn’t handle. She also took notice of Second and Third Elder’s absence and also didn’t inquire about this.

Akata lifted up his finger toward the meteor and tapped it. It looked as if he was insane for trying to stand up to a meteor, and especially with only a tap. It was as if he thought himself to be a celestial being of some sorts.

When his finger made contact with the meteor it actually wasn’t crushed into oblivion. That was because the meteor stopped moving and just hovered there in front of Akata. Then a crack appeared on it and spread out from the point of contact. The cracks spread out far and wide and soon pieces of the meteor crumbled.

Although they crumbled and fell they still floated there. Soon the whole meteor crumbled into rubble, then into chunks, then pieces, and finally dust. A big cloud of dust now floated in front of Akata.

The cloud of dust slowly started turning until it looked like a whirlpool. All of a sudden it started to shrink. All the dust was collecting into a small pebble in the center of the whirlpool. It kept shrinking until there was no dust left and only the small pebble.

It was only a small pebble but it held the immense power of the meteor compacted into it. The pressure it radiated was truly dense and overbearing. The pebble then showed with a bright light that was blinding to the eyes. Even First Elder who was still sitting in the same place watching had to look away. Only Akata could keep on looking at the pebble which was transforming. It radiated a bright golden light and changed the small pebble into… A golden rune.

The rune floated there as bright as ever looking as if it was the only thing allowed to exist in heaven. Akata could feel a strong connection to the rune. His finger was still stretched out and the rune suddenly shot towards it. It then fused into his body and settled in his soul region along with the red rune.

The golden rune seemed to sense the presence of the red rune and flew straight at it in an attempt to attack it. Akata could sense all this happening inside of his body. Outside his body glowed with a red and gold light. The red rune saw the gold rune speeding towards it and as if the will to fight burst forth within it, it glowed bright as ever with a red light. The glow outshone the golden rune and the rune trembled and stopped in place. The light that was shining off of it dimmed as if it didn’t want to even compete with the red rune. The red rune’s light showed brightly asserting its dominance. It didn’t even have to move.

Akata’s eyes were wide with shock at what he was witnessing. He didn’t know what runes were or why they fought each other, but he could tell that the red run ehe had was extremely powerful and he shouldn’t take it lightly.

“I have to figure out what runes are. Maybe I’ll learn how to control them better, or even how to make more!” At the thought of this Akata’s eyes showed brightly. He made the choice to learn magic also, and become stronger that way too.

The golden and red light shining off of him dimmed down until it went away completely. Akata didn’t do anything extra just sat back down and studied the golden rune. After a while he smiled.

“My skill shall be called Astral Obliteration. I may not have the strength to fully use it as I want but in the future it shall crush worlds, shatter the heavens, and annihilate universes. This shall be my ultimate skill that will spread my name everywhere!”

The whole enlightenment period took five days to complete. It didn’t enhance his cultivation base or make his body stronger, it was enlightenment that he could use to trample upon his future foes though.

Akata stood up and didn’t head to his room but toward Misty Forest where he would continue his training.

First Elder seeing that the enlightenment was done let out a sigh of relief and released the barrier. Second and Third Elder seeing that the barrier was released also let out sighs of relief. Nobody came to interfere with Akata’s enlightenment and they didn’t have to risk their lives.

People that were evacuating were surprised to see that everything was alright. The surrounding cities seeing that the barrier was down immediately sent some of its stronger cultivators to assess what was going on. They wanted to find out about this meteor coming and yet it didn’t destroy anything, it just vanished.

Mystic Imperial City, Shenmi Royal Palace, Throne Room

This grand place had an air of royalty about it. It had blue and gold ribbons hanging from the ceiling. A giant chandelier hung from the ceiling also. The walls were a creamy white and the floor was made of fine stone. The stone was extremely tough and was harder than steel. Inside the throne room there were five people. A royal couple and their daughter stood on one side and on the other side there was a boy and his father.

The children were around the same age of 12-13 years. They looked at each other but didn’t say anything. The only ones talking were the two males.

“Brother Shenmi your daughter looks to be doing quite well for herself. Her looks will be unquestioned when she grows and her talent is superb as well. In a few years time she will be of the age to marry so why don’t you give your daughter to my son here. He is by far the only one worthy enough to take her hand in marriage.” The father by the side of the boy spoke sincerely and earnestly. He was a handsome middle aged man and wore a blue robe.

“Brother Xiun don’t you think this is a bit sudden? It’s not that I don’t agree with it, it’s just that you came without notice and we weren’t prepared for you. Why don’t we have ourselves a good time and then discuss matters later on. It’s not often that you come to visit.” The man by the side of his wife and daughter was also middle aged. He wore an azure robe that stopped at his feet. His black hair hung to his neck and on top of his head was a golden crown. He was the emperor of Mystic Empire.

“Ah yes how rude of me. I thought to send word of my arrival but with the sudden crisis I didn’t want to trouble any of my servants. Yes yes let us have ourselves a good time then.” The blue robed man happily agreed as he sent his son towards the young girl.

“Li’er show Xiun Wu here around the castle and play with him. When it’s time to eat I’ll call for you both.” This time the woman spoke and her voice was meltingly soft. She wore a pink robe and her face was soft and rosy.

“Yes royal mother.” The daughter spoke respectfully towards her mother and led the boy towards her room.

The boy had blonde hair and blue eyes. He wore a blue robe and he looked proud. If you were to see him you would be shocked to see that he was Xiun Wu.

When the children left so did the woman. Now that the room was empty except for the two men their faces instantly grew dark. It was like they were holding all the grief in just to let it out at this moment.

The first one to speak was the name surnamed Shenmi. “What news have you uncovered about the Red Cloud Sect?”

“They’re as tight on information as we are. It’s extremely hard to get any secrets out of it. We still don’t know the background of the first three Elders of the sect or the identity of their Sect Leader. I’ve always come to view that sect as not the weakest but the most mysterious. Whatever secrets they are holding it is sure to be big, and if we can get ahold of it we can probably rise in power.” The man surnamed Xiun said in a cold voice.

The emperor looked at the man surnamed Xiun as if weighing his words. Then spoke his next words slowly. “We’ll attack the Red Cloud Sect in a few months time. By then we would have gathered all the information possible to get. We’ll forcefully take the rest. Keep this matter a secret from others, and build up your forces as well.”

The emperor was silent for a while contemplating something and then said, “And as for the matter of marriage it depends on how well this plan goes.” With that the conversation was over and the emperor called for a feast.

Red Cloud Sect, Misty Forest

Akata was standing on a tree branch looking out at a group of three Blood Rabbits. “Ming Lu said it wasn’t the time to test my strength so I guess I shouldn’t attack. Let’s find a place that I can rest at and meditate on my surroundings.” He then dashed off into a distant location towards a cave.

“This should be a good enough place to study my surroundings. I wonder what she meant by connecting with nature?” Akata sat down cross legged and closed his eyes so that he could become one with nature. He sat like that for hours on end.

A day passed by in the blink of an eye and by now most of the people that evacuated have now returned. They were shocked to see that no destruction was found. It was as if there hadn’t been a meteor at all and they ran from nothing. People started back with their daily routines and soon life was normal again.

The sect was also normal. Some people did wonder where Akata went like Ming Lu, Ming Xu, and other fellow disciples. Xiun Wu wasn’t back either and that caused Ming Xu and Xi Fe to be shocked. Although it was only temporary shock as they received word from him that he was going to be away for a short while. All in all life in the sect was gradually going back to the way it had been.

Akata still sat in meditation trying to become one with nature. It had now been four days and he still didn’t have a clue about how to connect to it. Akata sank into deep thought as he thought of ways to feel nature. Akata opened his eyes looking rather disappointed.

“How in the heck am I supposed to resonate with nature?!” He was truly at a loss of what to do. Akata stared out at the numerous plants that surrounded him. Everything looked normal to him; the grass blades were green, the leaves on the trees were green, the stems on plants were green. Nothing stood out to him.

“Maybe I’m focusing on the wrong things here. I’m supposed to be resonating with nature, becoming one with it. Nature doesn’t move around or talk. It just accepts where it is and takes what comes its way. It’s like a fighter, it fights for survival against countless other fighters. Only by luck and virtue can it survive. I have to be one with nature so to do that I have to fight for the opportunity to steal from the surrounding area and make what’s here mine.”

Akata’s eyes gleamed with determination and motivation. He found his new way to connect with nature. It wasn’t just sitting around and slowly feel nature out. No, he was going to be like the rest of the plants and battle for supremacy and survival. He was going to fight for the right to resonate with nature.