Writer's Note: surprise second chapter release. Thanks for reading.

Chapter 8: Sticks and Stones

"Stop fussing. Tuxedos make you look good," Catherine said as Vincent scowled as she straightened his tie. He wore a black tuxedo with a crimson tie with the image of a white dragon on it. It was the formal uniform of White Dragon City male students. Girls were allowed to dress as they liked so long as they had a white dragon sewn on the dress. This would allow the staff and guards to separate them from the other seventeen academies when the situation called for it.

"My heart burns. It feels weird, strangely comfortable," Vincent sighed as they had left the Testing Center and arrived before a black palace. It was called Warlord Palace and was where the banquet would be. The first, second, and third year students were crowded in last night's gathering while the fourth and fifth year students would have their own gathering. It was because they were more powerful, normally, and fights would escalate too quickly to stop major damage to the building.

"What was that pill Dr. Gavin told you to eat?" Catherine asked.

"Ah, that was the Eclipse Moonlight Pill. As I cultivate, strands of moonlight will gather around my body. Moonlight is caused by the moon reflecting light from the sun. The rays of the sun are hot, but moonlight is not. Empty space is cold and the moon has no core of its own as it is a giant rock. Thus, cold nullifies heat and they exist in unison. So long as I meditate under the moonlight, it does not matter if the area I am in has less yang or yin energy," Vincent answered.

"Ah, it must be hard to cultivate at different times of the day," Catherine realized as she just cultivated yang energy.

"Where is my dragon anyway?" Vincent asked as he had left it at Bu Kong's house.

"Um, Dr. Gavin said the dragon is currently being taken care by Bu Kong," Catherine said as they arrived in front of two oak doors. "You have a temper so please don't go berserk if someone insults your mom."

He pat his black satchel and took out the gourd. He drank qilin blood, strangely enjoying the taste now. It calmed him down and he drank water to cleanse his mouth. He left his phoenix medallion in there and he felt empty without a medallion around his neck. He and Catherine broke through to the sixth layer.

He felt a strong urge to test his power but had to come to the gathering. It would take a lot of self-control to reign his emotions in. He stared at the ring he found along with Silver Thorn and wondered if he would ever unlock its secret. Still, it served as a way to calm him down as he had found it and Silver Thorn while with his mother.

"I won't kill the guy. I'll promise that much," Vincent said as he entered the banquet room.

"That's not the problem," Catherine sighed as they searched for Edward and the others.

"What? They seem more powerful than before? What did Dr. Gavin do during their checkup? Why not ask for me too?" Edward thought as Vincent and Catherine arrived. Catherine was more beautiful than before and her body also matured, causing many eyes to stare at her with lust and envy as she joined the others. As for Vincent, the moonlight from the window cascaded on him, making him seem like a man who descended from heaven.

"Eh? Who are they? I didn't see them during the introductions," one student commented.

"So beautiful," a girl sighed as she stared at Catherine.

"White Dragon Academy?" a student guessed as he saw the white dragons on the tie and dress.

"The Silver Exile and the Exile Goddess," one said as he pulled out a book from his storage belt.

"How do you know, Robert?" a girl asked as she wore a red dress with a black sword on it.

"They are affiliated with the Testing Center. Our academy is rivals with White Dragon Academy as they ranked two and are affiliated with it. Those two are frequently seen there along with someone named Edward Turner. Vincent Turner is reputed to be the best swordsman while Catherine Turner is called the Exile Goddess as she is the first Exile to have mastery over light magic enough to use healing properties," Robert said.

"And the third?" the girl asked.

"Meh. He's just powerful and talented like all other Exiles," Robert scoffed.

"That jerk," Edward growled as he walked to him. "HEY! Who are you to judge me like that?"

"The facts speak for themselves. I just stated them," Robert said as Edward walked to him.

"You're right. MY temper is the problem," Vincent laughed.

"Shut up," Catherine said as she walked to Edward.

"I bet one hundred gold they're gonna fight," Xin whispered. Gold was the universal currency and gold coins were mostly silver mixed with a little gold. It was because silver became abundant ever since the Mazoku appeared. No one knew why. Still, silver seemed to weaken the Mazoku. People made a pun saying Mazoku were freak accidents of a werewolf and an actual wolf.

"I'll take that bet," Jing said as Fang nodded. They were nobles and didn't care. Bets were fun and a nice distraction from training all the time.

"Calm down. There are people watching," Catherine said.

"I see they came late. What about you? Guess you didn't interest the Testing Center as much as them. Don't blame you. One has healing magic while the other is better skilled," James said.

"You want to keep talking?!" Edward roared as he took out Frost Bite, the other students backing away as they made room for the fight. No one said anything but they hoped to see a fight. They were used to training and not formal gatherings. Also, they could see future competition fight and learn their skills to prepare.

"I do. My dad says not to mess with you as you are talented and noticed by the Testing Center. As I see it, you must be at the fifth layer. Most fourth years are at the third or fourth. You got talent, but you're not the only one at the fifth layer. You're just noticed as you're a member of an Exile family who all are all compatible. You're just a novelty to the scientists," Robert sneered as he also took out a spear and held an arm to the girl he spoke earlier. "Stay back, Carly. I'll handle this arrogant guy shortly."

"Sticks and stones. Sticks and stones," Catherine said but her arms were brushed away with Edward's shoulder.

"Listen to your twin. She is the most sensible. You don't really need to fight here," a student advised but was admonished by the crowd. "Fine. Fine. Just don't go too far."

"You can insult me, but you can't insult my family!" Edward said.

"Was his family insulted?" Bing asked.

"Maybe the Exile family part?" Xin shrugged and grinned at Jing and Fang.

"I heard you caused your mom's death. Smooth move," one of the students said and Catherine paled.

"You shouldn't have said that. Oh god. Vincent," Catherine said and all eyes turned to Vincent as a snarl appeared on his face.

"Hey, idiot! Don't go spouting nonsense. You insulted the wrong guy and who made you involved?" Robert snapped as he stared at the guy. "Sorry Vincent Turner. You're first trial must have been more painful than all of us."

"Temper. Happy thoughts. Happy thoughts," Catherine said as she gave up on Edward.

"What happened?" someone gasped as a girl shrieked. Everyone turned and saw the guy on the ground, his mouth foaming.

"Huh?" Catherine frowned and looked at the guy in surprise. His pants was bleeding between the legs. A guard walked over and took him away.

"Telekinesis to crush his balls?" Xin whispered and bumped fists as Vincent nodded. "Remind me not to piss you off."

"Uh, I didn't do that," Edward said and looked back at Robert. "Apologize and I'll let things slide."

"Why? Facts are what move this world. I aim to join the Testing Center. Naturally, one must be smart and move according to the facts," Robert said as he adjusted his square-rimmed glasses. "I have a title of my own: The Glasses Devil. You know why? I cruelly beat anyone who denied the facts and attempted to take advantage as they judged by appearance. You look like a jock, but this is not the Ancient Era. This is the Mazoku Era. Even a guy with glasses can beat a jock."

"I think he called you stupid," Fang called, Catherine glaring at him. "What? Jocks are termed as people more athletic than they are intelligent. That's why idiots created the terms nerd, geek, jock, and brawn-for-brains."

"Don't forget airhead," Jing nodded and the crowd laughed.

"Fighting is not good. If you fight, I'm not healing your wounds," Catherine snapped and stomped her feet as she sat on an empty table near the clearing.

"She will," Bing said. "He's her twin."

"Two hundred gold coins. Awesome," Xin said as he rubbed his hands. "Vincent, can you stop them if they go too far?"

"I reached the sixth layer. I mastered the Golden Monkey Force, Savage Elephant Tusk, and Iron Sand Skin techniques. The Ice Devil Strike technique takes a while as I am fusing yin and yang into a yin technique. As for the Thunder Clap Qilin technique, I'm still at the second stage," Vincent said, shocking everyone at White Dragon Academy.

"Holy....that means you can move on to martial arts techniques, moves that don't rely on just the body. People usually start at the fifth year or after they chose their combat occupation," Xin whispered in awe. "It's really that hard to master cultivation methods but you.....damn. Well, I'm still the Eldest Brother. HAHAHAHA!"

"Is that true, Vincent?" Catherine asked.

"Yeah. I don't know why, but that experiment gave me great benefits. Still, my heart is burning," Vincent whispered.

"Things are getting out of hand," Carly whispered to her friend. "Think Robert will come out okay?"

"Trust your boyfriend. He rattled the other boy and that Edward will make many mistakes as his mind is not calm," Bing smiled. "If things do get too far, I'll help you stop them. We can't let our two academies lose the top two ranks for our year."

"How many people at the sixth layer are here, Bing?" Carly whispered.

"Five," Bing answered. "I can't pinpoint their location as they are too powerful for someone at the fifth layer to sense. How is the Black Sword Academy after I transferred?"

"The snobs only became bigger jerks," Carly said. "Robert got his title as he beat up guys who got too close to me. What about Edward?"

"I don't have class with him or his twin, just Vincent. He is....strong. He might even be a match for Keili," Bing said.

"Keili Mu? You think he can match her?" Carly whispered. Ruo Mu was the top female student among third years last year at Black Sword Academy. She also participated in last year's Fall Gate Competition and won first place among the third years. Like her last name, Mu, Ruo was an expert in using wood energy. Thus, she was known as Keili the Wood Nymph. She was also capable of healing and only used wood magic and wood essence. In the Black Sword District, students cultivated elemental essence separately. It paled in comparison to yin and yang energy, but made cultivation much easier.

"Hello Bing," a beautiful girl with blonde hair and a great chest smiled. "Do you know those two latecomers? They come from the same academy as you."

"Keili? Yes. They are Vincent and Catherine Turner," Bing said as the blonde haired girl and Bing stared at Vincent and the others. "Huh? Blonde hair? Wasn't it black?"

Robert stared around as he heard what the other students said, saying to Edward, "I don't want to deal with your inferiority complex. Let's not fight."

"That's it! You're dead," Edward roared, fed up with Robert's attitude. Edward's body permeated cold yin energy as he sprung forward. Robert laughed as fire, metal, and wind essence permeated from his body and gathered at his spear. Edward wasn't afraid as he cultivated yin and yang energy, the most effective cultivation method discovered by the Testing Center. Yin and yang energy encompassed all the elements. Why? Yin and yang represented opposites, not necessarily water and fire. Those two elements, besides light and darkness, were easier to envision yin and yang with.

However, people who envision light and darkness were far too rare, one of them being Catherine. That was why her talent over light magic was so high that she was able to use it with healing properties. Catherine watched as Edward made the first move. His spear thrust forward, freezing the air as Robert's spearhead deflected Edward's. Steam could be seen from the impact, but Edward was stronger.

"You are the one who is nothing!" Edward roared as he covered his fist in yin energy, darkness appearing as if draining the light around it. As Robert blocked Edward's fist of darkness with a palm of fire, Robert spat blood as his fire essence was drained. Edward had combined six other combat techniques into his main combat technique. He was a prodigy in his own right! Naturally, Robert had a disadvantage.

Robert slashed as Edward stabbed. Edward would block a low slash and spin his spear to Robert's neck. Robert cried out and fused metal and fire essence into his fist. A loud clang was heard and Robert managed to block the spear as he cut Edward's leg. Robert condensed wind energy into his legs and he blurred, appearing behind Edward as he stabbed toward the ribs.

Edward hastily blocked, his tuxedo torn and burnt by the attack. Edward roared, shattering his tuxedo and long sleeve shirt to reveal his upper body, a white tiger with two tails glowing on his back. Keili, Bing, and the guards stared at the back in shock as they saw four wings on the back of the tiger. Edward stomped his foot on the ground, cracking it as he used earth magic to throw dozens of shards of earth made from his yin energy.

Robert covered his spear in flames, his own hands protected by metal essence, and spun his spear. Using wind essence to increase the power of the spin, Robert was able to block most of the shards while three broke through and stabbed him. Edward howled at the ceiling, the crowd gasping as he broke to the sixth layer. He actually used his anger and blood lust to forcibly increase his soul force and breakthrough!

"This is the end!" Edward roared as his body covered in ice.Shadows, ice, and water swirled at the tip of Frost Bite as Edward prepared for a lunge. Robert paled and took out a fake magical shield, augmenting it with flame and metal essence. As Edward lunged, his body a blur of three elements; Robert also sped forward as he hoped to decrease the power by blocking the attack sooner before Edward could take advantage of the full power of a complete lunge.

"Vincent!" Catherine screamed and Vincent grinned as he appeared between the two right before they could get in range. He closed his eyes as his left hand contained cold yin energy while his right hand had hot yang energy. The ground shook and the air became heavy as his two hands touched and thrust outward. Robert was thrown back, his shield shattering as he fell after five steps. Edward's spear made a loud clang and was repelled out of Edward's hands, Edward also falling after five steps. Vincent swirled his arms and laid his palms to rest, one on top of the other. He sighed as he settled the yin and yang energy.

"He just blocked them like that," a student said, Keili and the three others at the sixth stage staring at the two Turners.

Vincent grinned at Catherine and made a thumbs up. Catherine smiled and nodded as she ran to the others. Vincent was about to talk when his body stilled and his heart bumped strongly, causing him to cough blood. He fell to one knee and people saw black energy rise from his body. No one recognized it but Vincent knew it was the black energy of the demon bones. His eyes widened as he felt the pain lessen, his body glowing as jade. He looked up and saw Keili smile at him as she healed him with her wood essence.

"Are you alright. Thank you for stopping them both. They might have ruined their chances at the competition. On behalf of the Black Sword Academy, I apologize. I know Robert started all this and goaded your cousin to fight," Keili said. "My name is Keili Mu. I look forward to seeing you tomorrow."

"Thank you," Vincent said as he rose to his feet. Surprisingly, his heart no longer burned. This girl had astonishing healing powers and he could tell she was also at the sixth layer. As she was also covered in a jade light, Vincent momentarily lost his wits as she healed him. His cheeks burned for some reason, but it was a warm feeling. He didn't know what it was but it felt nice.

"You okay Robert?" Carly asked as she and Bing helped up her boyfriend.

"I'm fine. I wasn't hurt. Long time no see, Bing," Robert smiled as he turned to Vincent. "Thank you for going easy on me. I apologize for my actions. I wanted to fight a rival but I went a little too far due to my personality."

"It's alright. Sorry about the shield," Vincent said and tried to help Edward.

"Don't touch me," Edward said as he swat Vincent's hand away. "He's not wrong. I am not as great as you two. I'm talented, but that is only in cultivation methods. I....I need to be alone."

"Edward," Catherine called as Edward stormed out the room. She paled as she saw Vincent with his hand on the crown of a student;s head.

"How dare you insult my mother. You think you could get away with that?" Vincent laughed and slowly crushed him. The student screamed as his skull cracked. Vincent threw him and he crashed through the wall.

"Vincent!" Catherine stomped her foot.

"I said I wouldn't kill those who insulted my mom," Vincent shrugged and left with a few plates and soda cans.

"Still, I said that's not the problem. Why are you two so retarded!" Catherine pouted as Vincent waved nonchalantly as he left.

"Two hundred gold. Pay up. Pay up," Xin grinned.

"It was worth it," the two best friends grinned and happily exchanged gold coins. Other students also did the same thing. Evidently, they had made wagers of their own.

"You need any healing?" Catherine asked as she walked to Robert.

"Thanks. Sorry for my boyfriend," Carly said as Catherine healed Robert. "What about the other guy?"

"He can die. He doesn't know how horrible my aunt's death was to Vincent. He's lucky Vincent did not break every finger, toe, foot, hand, both arms, both legs, and all his ribs. He did that before, a long time ago, in the wilderness. Even if an Exile lives in a city, some of the wilderness stays with you," Catherine sighed.

"That guy was strong and cute," Keili thought as she watched Catherine and the others leave. "Vincent Turner. He is kind of wild, like a wolf. I'd love to fight with him or see him again."