Chapter 16: Interrupted

Among the millions of humans alive, only a small percentage of people could use energy. In those, a smaller group could utilize an element, and then rarer, could a person have access to two elements. One in 100,000 would have access to three elements, and so, looking through history, there had been very few people that could use seven elements.

With seven attributes, and his energy level at the advanced rank, while being the same age as Fang, it was simply monstrous.

If not just for the amount of energy alone, the possible uses of the elements were myriad and unfair. Able to switch between the water’s healing ability, to the power of the screeching wind, to the support of the light systems, it was quite frightening. No wonder that Blue looked down on this training camp – he was beyond the level of teaching.

An intangible amount of power quietly sneaked through the air, passing through the room’s walls into the other room. Although it couldn’t be used to see, hear or feel, the energy could detect energy and slowly suffocate the space of the user’s element of energy.

In that sparse environment with my energy interfering with the available energy in the air, Fang would find himself unable to effectively absorb energy, and then his precious hour inside this tower would be completely wasted…

This was Blue’s new idea; to see a genius play such a prank, people would think that he was insane, but inside, Blue was extremely bored and just wished to get out of this life as soon as possible. Even though his roommate was from a poor city and was completely unknown in the country, he had no reservations about what he was doing.

However, Blue almost cried out in surprise as he checked the state of energy in that room.

The absorption rate of energy was tremendously fast, and this wasn’t a high class tower either. Even in the north, where he had gathered energy in the best of conditions, he couldn’t absorb as fast as Fang was doing right now!

This kid, who is he?

Ah… I see, that old man said he would arrange for me to get in contact with ordinary people and experience the hardships that normal people felt while they trained, but he actually found a hidden talent to arouse my interest!

Well, I’ll fulfill that wish for him!

Blue felt rage building up through his body, feeling cheated.

Fang, Fang, Fang, you’re helping the old man deceive me, so you should naturally pay a heavy price. So let’s take a moment as we watch how Scarlett makes your life a torturing hell!

Blue began to increase the pressure by adding more and more power, to choke out all remnants of energy left in that room.

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Fang was freely enjoying the tower filled with intense amounts of energy.

Damn, money was great, if someone built a private tower it’d definitely enhance the practice speeds – no wonder the people from the richer families had shot up past the novice level so fast.

Suddenly, a strange resistance came out of nowhere, slowing down his energy absorption to a crawl.

Fang was surprised; he couldn’t think of anything that would interfere with the energy absorption from outside, except… one thing.

Those crazy elders once said that in some places with high energy density, such as deep underground next to flowing magma, there would be unstable changes due to the volatile environment, and without a proper method, the rate of absorption would be reduced.

Although the energy tower had quite a great deal of energy, it should be nice and stable. Wonder what’s wrong with the energy control system?

Well, no matter what the problem is, it should be solved first before anything.

In that spirit world of void, the elders had developed a technique to adapt and absorb energy from almost all the environments in the world, stemming from the endless method called “Lattice”. It was designed to exploit the small patches of freedom within the weaves of resistance to navigate a clear, unobstructed connection to the source of energy.

As he sought out the gaps and connected through them with the “Lattice” operation, the energy absorption returned back to its original rate.

Meanwhile, next to the room Fang was in, Blue noticed that the levels of energy started to concentrate and deplete rapidly around Fang.

What’s happening here?

Fang shouldn’t be able to absorb any energy, but it felt like the pressure lessened in the room. Perhaps, Blue thought, it wasn’t enough energy. So continuously, he increased the pressure as much as he could, and the only energy filling the room was his own.

Then, how could he still absorb energy?

Not willing to admit defeat, Blue tried different variations on suppressing energy, but nothing seemed to work.

--- --- ---

Finally, Fang’s energy disappeared; it wasn’t because of Blue though.

Ding!

A bell rang out through the building – an hour had passed.

Refreshed, Fang walked out of his room as Blue came out of his, sweating and exhausted to the point of collapse.

Concern ran through Fang’s face as he saw Blue. “What happened to you, you look so tired?”

Blue tried to smile, but his eyes teared up. “Entering the energy tower for the first time, I was a too excited and nervous that I couldn’t concentrate at all.”

Fang replied, “Come on, did you waste an hour? It’s a pity, the amount of energy was really good inside the tower, so comfortable!”

Seeing him at ease, Blue ground his teeth. He took a deep breath to calm his emotions, then asked, “Hey Fang, where do you come from, it should be from a big city right?”

Fang answered, “I come from Victoria City, just a small city without that much wealth; I can’t compare at all to the people in the large cities!”

Blue refused to believe him, inside, he knew that Fang had already collaborated with that old man. To learn a method that allows him to gather energy fast inside a small city? He must be joking. No wonder when I gave him that cup of milk, he must have pretended to drink it all and looked completely fine during the speech.

Since you don’t want to reveal who you are, I’ll reveal it for you!