BOOM! BANG!! BLAOW!!!

A giant red palm descended upon the group of Withering Woodhorse's, instantly crushing the group of four into splotches. The palm didn't stop there as it dragged across the ground taking trees along with it as it moved toward another group of Withering Woodhorse's. The palm grasped them in it's clutches and squeezed.

SPLAT!

Blood, spleens, and stomachs splattered over the surrounding foliage, turning the lush green plants and flowers into a crimson horror scene.

Unfortunately, this wasn't the end of the utter annihilation of the Withering Woodhorse's as the red palm continued its massacre; bringing an end to anything living in its presence.

After finishing off the Withering Woodhorse's, Akata felt pleased with his increase in strength. Of course, that red palm was his doing. This was a combination of the Red Cloud Formation technique and a variation of his Mirror Reflection runic ability; combining the Inner Element of Illusions and the Core Element of Fire. The results were astounding to say the least.

"Okay I think we're ready to up the difficulty level of this scenario training. Let's head into the deeper parts of the forest and seek out the stronger beasts. Only when we face tougher beings will we be able to truly hone our skills."

Akata looked at the battlefield and said with a voice full of confidence and passion. His confidence came from his strength and his passion came from his team.

It's been three days since Akata upgraded his rune cores and added more to his soul region. After thoroughly organizing the rune cores into groups his soul region looked much more grand and imposing.

The crimson rune was the soul region lord of all the other runes. The gold and translucent runes, being under its direct control and also powerful, were sub leaders of the region. Outer Elements were under them, then it was the Core Elements and after that it was organized based on Akata's understanding of the elements.

During this time, besides immersing himself in the world of runes, Akata began to train with his group. Akata knew he wasn't going to be the only person fighting. It was a war after all. Thus he decided to train with his group.

With his status in the sect he could let them use special training environments, like the Spacetime Scenario Chamber they were currently in, to properly train them all. And by personally training each of them, he could point out their flaws and correct them, thus eliminating many blocks they had. Their own strength would then skyrocket.

Akata could already picture his team full of elites. Of course this training would be very difficult for them, otherwise it wouldn't allow them to surpass their limits.

Of course, with Akata implementing this tactic, others were sure to follow, thus some of the other leaders started to train their group as well.

Turning his head to look at his group, Akata's eyebrows furrowed. "Eh? Why are you all laying on the ground? You can't be that exhausted already, right?"

Looking out he could see Bur Gers stretched out over a tree branch, Ran Bow and Laim Oh were sprawled on the ground, even Sumting Wong was panting heavily on one knee.

Sumting Wong made a crazed look and then used a few seconds to gather some breath before virtually yelling out "Are you trying to kill us here?! These Withering Woodhorse's are all at least First Rank Grade 6 beasts, and the stronger ones are even at the peak 9th Grade. How could we even handle a whole race of them attacking us? You handled most of them by yourself! And you even have the balls to say let's up the difficulty?? How dare you, the audacity!"

Akata stared slack jawed at Sumting Wong flipping out. If it wasn't for the fact that he secretly noticed the others expressing their approval of Sumting Wong's feelings, Akata would've believed he had gone crazy.

Scratching the back of his head, Akata couldn't help but be a little embarrassed. Reflecting on his actions, it could be deemed that he pushed them a bit far this time.

Sumting Wong didn't say much, just that little bit before calming himself down. It seemed as if he had released a lot of tension with that rant just now.

Akata wasn't one to just give up ground however. He steadied his bearing and looked at Sumting Wong in the eyes. His face turning serious.

"Although this may seem hard on you, what of it. If a random ball hits you in the head what are you going to do? Take it as a loss? No! You find out who threw it and land it smack in the middle of their face? Maybe. Or, you can take that same ball and sell it for a huge amount. You've gotta learn to rise above whatever life throws your way. Whether you're facing something head on or finding a different solution, either way you've got to prevail over your problems. It's not like a problem is going to solve itself. Be proactive. You all have amazing talent and drive, otherwise you wouldn't have persevered through this whole training session. With your mindsets, who's to say you can't become an expert?"

Akata meant what he said wholeheartedly. He truly believed that each person in his group could become an expert if they just strived for it. The only way you can truly accomplish something is if you think failure is not an option.

Many people in the group were older than Akata but hearing him speak, it was as if an elder had possessed him to give a lecture. They all listened carefully and retained what Akata said. That's right. If they wanted to become stronger they can't complain about facing strong opponents. All of a sudden it felt as if the atmosphere had a shift in harmony.

Akata could feel the burning desires from everyone to get stronger. He smiled and turned around. "Let's go then!"

Everyone: "…"

Akata: "..."

"There's one more thing…" Sumting Wong's voice rang out again. "We've been training for 2 days straight. We need some fucking rest, man."

After setting up camp and eating some roasted Withering Woodhorse everyone became relaxed and easygoing.

Akata decided to take some time to cultivate.

"My Red Cloud Formation technique is much more condensed than ever. Learning how to properly construct runes and manipulate their energy has led my own power to naturally be more condensed. This in turn makes it much stronger." Akata nodded in self approval.

After attuning himself with the ancient records of runic knowledge and applying his own theories into what he knew, Akata's skill in guiding energy and condensing it became fearsome. It made his overall strength increase by 25 percent! This was an insane amount and Akata knew he was only scratching the very air above the surface.

'Thundercloud Brigade Technique…' Akata focused his attention on this technique. Now that he had become a Dragonknight, Akata was granted access to the core workings of this grand technique. That's because it was a cloning technique! An actual cloning technique.

This technique guided one through the cloning process from the Mortal Realm to the Immortal Realm. The only downside was that one wasn't able to actually create a clone until one reached the Third Rank. Otherwise there was a chance of crippling the body and injuring the soul.

All the potential captains were given the first level of the Thundercloud Brigade Technique during the meeting with Third Elder. Once one became a captain they gained access to the second and third levels. Only the Dragonknight's obtained the technique all the way up to the fifth level.

The first level of the technique was basically there to let the user familiarize themselves with the Inner Elements of Lightning, Thunder, and Clouds. Akata was already very familiar with two elements; he created his Stormvines using the Inner Elements of Lightning and Clouds, along with the Vine Inner Element. The Inner Element of Thunder was more of a sub element to the Lighting Inner Element. Just like how the Inner Element of Ice was a sub element of the Water Core Element. Thus, Akata still had an understanding of the Thunder Inner Element.

The second level served to build the foundation up. A strong foundation was needed to make a clone, otherwise not only would the cloning process fail, the user could also get hurt.

The third level guided one through the process of making a clone. Using "lightning bodies" one would have to condense to form the clone.

The fourth level…

Akata: "O_O"

The fifth level…

Akata: "O___O"

Thundercloud Brigade Technique

Second Level

A strong mind, body, and soul are needed to reach the pinnacle of strength

Thus all must be tempered through repeated battering and recovery

The cloud holds the lightning that quakes, letting everyone know of your all encompassing presence

Your body is the clouds, your mind is the lightning, while your soul is the thunder

Wherever you go an army sounds around you

Akata began practicing the second level earnestly. He couldn't wait to reach the Third Rank so he could make his first clone and truly showcase the wonders of this grand technique.