“Now, let us see if you have learned anything!”

The words that Adriel had spoken rung out over the training field.

Sett could not help but feel nervous. He knew that neither himself nor Adriel and Ivis held any grand expectations for his performance, but he still could not help but feel his anxiety rising. Many years of barely met expectations from the time that he had spent in school had ensured that he would feel that way. Education was everything on Gliese Prime. Even to orphans. Manual labour had long since been phased out in favour of the robotic workforce, leaving nothing to do for those that had neglected their intellectual education.

It was a grim thought but failing your education would often lead down a path that led to poverty.

Having lived a life as an orphan without much money and barely any amenities, Sett had desperately wanted to escape through the grapevines that were education but had found himself wanting. Though his intelligence was considered average among his peers, he had been absolutely horrible at exams. Never mind how much he prepared for the tests, he would always stumble and fall at the final moment, leaving him with a below-average grade. Such grades would never allow him to advance in society and had caused him no small amount of grief.

Although Sett had since left that life behind, he could still feel the fear from his former life welling up in him once again.

“There is no need to worry, young Sett.” Seeing Sett’s anxious and pale face, Adriel was quick to jump to the rescue. “I have seen many young people, all of whom came from the Celestia lineage, and none of them succeeded on their first attempt. Trial and error is a natural part of progression, especially when the art of ascendants is included.”

Adriel’s reassuring words finally brought Sett’s surging emotions back under control. With a deep breath, Sett thought of another perspective. This was not the same rough school system, filled with uncaring teachers that only taught there for the next paycheck. No, this was Adriel’s training field. A place where he would be taught the arts of ascendants. It was completely different. At least he hoped it was.

“Thank you, Adriel. I will keep your words in mind.”

“Good. Now then, let us begin.” Adriel nodded with a faint smile on his lips. “Close your eyes and concentrate. When cultivating your power as an ascendant, it is of utmost importance that you concentrate as much as possible. Any disturbance to your concentration can easily disrupt your method and render your efforts useless, making you start over from scratch. This is also why many ascendants prefer to hide away in a quiet place to cultivate if they have the opportunity.”

Sett did as he was told and closed his eyes firmly. Soon, all thoughts left him, leaving nothing behind. Only the occasional voice of Adriel was left in Sett’s mind.

“Hmmm…” Sett could hear Adriel walking around him and gazing upon him. “Your concentration can be considered to be adequate, but it can certainly be improved upon. Remember, concentration and meditation are among the topmost important things for ascendants. Not only will it increase the efficiency in gathering strength, but it will also allow you to recuperate your strength during and after a battle, allowing you a critical advantage.”

Sett could faintly understand what Adriel meant. He had seen how greatly the former grandmaster had been forced to concentrate when he had been under the effect of the Celestia divine method. If he had been able to hold his concentration for a longer time, would he not be able to enhance his strength to a greater degree?

“The Celestia divine method is rather unique in its nature. The angels that are my lineage’s forefathers were known to be able to wield both the light and darkness element. In religions, these are often known as angels and fallen angels, though that is not truly the case. Just as the angels embrace both light and dark, so too does the methods that we have derived from them.”

Angels had long since been the target of admiration from many religious organizations. To think that which they worshipped actually existed. Not only that, even the fallen angels, which stood for evil in many religions, also existed.

“Gaze within yourself. Find the essence of darkness and bring it under your command. The method is very particular in which way your essence should be circulated. Should it take the wrong path, you can only begin from scratch once again.” Adriel paused in his steps directly behind Sett and placed one of his hands between Sett’s shoulder plates. “I will be observing the paths of your body, but I will not be able to interfere. Only you can succeed in this matter. Understood? Good, now listen to my instructions. We will start out focusing on absorbing essence through your hands. Guide your essence from the depths of your heart into the…”

A long string of instructions arrived from Adriel. Sett almost felt himself faltering at the starting point. It was advanced to the degree that it was almost ridiculous. The instructions numbered in the hundreds and every instruction was specific to the extreme.

From the heart, where Sett had gathered his essence, he would have to force the essence through a very specific set of veins. First, the essence would be brought to the shoulder plates and then they would depart for a long journey, with many twists and turns, until they reached the fingertips. At that point, they would circulate a total of twenty times before returning to the heart. Naturally, it was not as simple as that. There were far more intricate details left out, but that was the gist of it.

“Gah…!”

Sett felt himself collapse forward towards the ground with a heaving breath. During the time when he had been concentrating on the circulation and absorption, he had not noticed how big of a toll it had taken on him, but now he could clearly see how hard it was to cultivate. His entire head was bathed in sweat and his hair was slick and sticking to his forehead.

“Though the method might seem simple on the surface, it makes use of the angels' biology as their blueprint. Although humans and angels share many of the same traits, they are nonetheless vastly different in their biology. Only those who share the divine blood of the angels will be able to make use of the method to the utmost of its potential.” Adriel spoke while Sett regained his breath. “Again.”

Adriel’s method of teaching quickly became clear. If you did not succeed, it only meant that you had not tried hard enough. If improvement were possible, they would continue to move forward. Sett did not mind. Though the method was mind-numbingly hard to complete, it had sparked his competitive side. He would not give up this early.

Sett allowed himself to slip into the darkness, as he began to concentrate once again.

“Hah! Hah!”

Two minutes later, Sett’s concentration was once again broken, and he was sent back to square zero. This time he had fared better, guiding his essence all the way to his hands. A clear improvement. But he had arrived at the hard part. The part where he would gather essence from the outside. A challenge, but one he would gladly take on.

Without any prompt from Adriel, Sett once again sunk into the darkness.

Adriel looked upon the young man before him with interest. Sett had truly exceeded the expectations that he had placed upon him.

Earlier, he had spoken about how difficult his Celestia lineage’s method was. He had said that almost all humans had faced great troubles when attempting the method. He had wanted to soothe the other party’s mind, thinking that he would face a setback if he were to be discouraged by the lack of progress.

That had been his thoughts at first, at least. During his first attempt, he could have been considered to be on the same level as the other initiates in the family lineage. Remarkably average, but it was nonetheless workable. This was why he had not wanted him to give up.

He had, however, been surprised when he saw the other party’s progress on the second attempt. It had to be said, that progress on a method such as this would often take weeks, if not months. Yet, Sett had managed to would spend days on in only mere minutes.

The rate of improvement had left him flabbergasted. If Sett had bothered to speak with Adriel at that moment, he would have found Adriel’s staring at him with his mouth agape.

However, neither party had time to make a comment before Sett returned to his cultivation.

‘This…’ Adriel inadvertently began to talk to Ivis through their connection. ‘Ivis did you know about his talents? Is this why you recommended him so fervently?’

‘This… This fox truly has great eyes for young talents. What else can I say?’

In truth, Adriel knew that Ivis was as incredulous as he was.

The two of them could only blankly stare at their potential student with disbelief in their eyes, afraid that they would lose sight of him if they were to be distracted for only a moment.

Time ticked… two minutes… three minutes… four minutes…

Finally, Sett emerged once again. He was covered in sweat once again, but his eyes were beaming with joy.

Adriel, on the other hand, was feeling as if the world was becoming crazier and crazier by the moment. Sett had completed the circulation in his hands and had even managed to gather some small specks of essence into the palm of his hand. He had circulated the essence nineteen times and failed in the last circulation.

It was incredible. Adriel could almost not stop himself from praising the young man before him. With such progress, it was not entirely impossible for the young man to complete an entire circulation from the heart to hand and back again. If he completed it, he could truly be considered to be a genius, even if he was placed in the Celestia Lineage.

With a confident and beaming smile, Sett once again allowed his consciousness to completely focus on the cultivation.

Adriel and Ivis found themselves bewildered for an entirely different reason. This was his fourth time cultivating in a row. Sure, Adriel and Ivis would be capable of cultivating many more times in a row, but for someone as new as Sett was, it was something entirely else. Cultivating was, after all, incredibly taxing on the mind.

‘Such perseverance…’ Ivis could not help but comment. ‘Just where did this little beast come from?’

‘I too would like to know, old friend.’

Adriel could only shake his head at the thought. He could not allow his hopes to get too high. After all, there could be many possible explanations on why he could improve at such a rate. For one, it was possible that Sett was merely experiencing an enlightenment. It was a rare state of mind that lasted for a brief time and only occurred if the stars aligned. It would often allow people to comprehend and improve at a much faster rate.

Still, even if that was the case, it was a case to be celebrated.

They continued to watch.

Slowly, they could feel the essence in the air begin to be influenced by Sett’s cultivation. It was barely noticeable. If one was to compare it to the phenomena that Adriel had induced earlier, it was like comparing a hurricane with a nice breeze. Barely noticeable.

Even so, it was still a remarkable improvement.

‘To think that he would succeed…’

Adriel could only mutter with a slight weird smile on his face.

‘Master… look.’

Ivis, on the other hand, did not seem to pay attention to the essence in the air. Rather, he was looking directly at Sett.

On the surface of Sett’s body, a strange phenomenon was happening. It was almost unnoticeable, but for those with keen eyes, it was definitely there. A thin black layer had enveloped him, making his appearance slightly ominous. It was almost like the golden body that Adriel had produced earlier, only much fainter and weaker.

‘By the ancestors.’ Adriel was filled with disbelief and his eyes almost bulged out from his eye sockets. ‘Could it be that…’

He did not have the time to finish his sentence, before Sett leaked a trail of blood from his mouth and collapsed to the ground, completely unconscious.