When they reached the northern Glass Hills, the Abiodun Clan was their first destination. To reach the area they slipped through the southeastern point of the Sunfields, crossing just to the northeast of the Green Sands. That route avoided the most difficult terrain, and excessive heat. Though the Sunfields did have fire elemental spiritual energy, the area was not generally hot like the mono-element country to the south.

Though the Glass Hills were also mainly sandy, it was a thinner layer rather than deep dunes like the Rolling Dunes or the Green Sands. And despite having a high concentration of air element, it wasn’t windy. Instead, the area was prone to random lightning strikes even in skies that appeared clear.

Evidence of said lightning appeared in the form of the fulgurite visible around the area- also known as lightning sand. John had mostly just heard of the phenomenon back on Earth, where lightning heated and instantly melted a section of sand, pulling it into a sculpture. But not one of clear glass, but the crudest form imaginable, simply sand fused together- though in interesting shapes, branching off at odd angles as it exploded out of the ground due to the lightning strike.

There was certainly some of that visible, but either because of repeated strikes or the peculiarities of spiritual energy, the Glass Hills were much more than that. Some areas became purified, turning into translucent glass of different colors, blues and greens being the most prominent. This was the case both for branching fulgurites as well as large stretches of ground simply covered in glass, revealing just a hint of what lay deeper beneath.

As interesting as it was, it was a harsh place to live with little plant or animal life. Though according to what John knew, away from the border there were exceptions. Just like the Phoenix Forest with its fire adapted trees, certain forms of life still thrived in the area. They still tended to be scraggly looking trees, but John had quite a bit of respect for anything willing to directly absorb a lightning bolt. Alternatively, some trees had special bark that diverted the electricity around their cores.

The actual chances of an individual being struck by lightning were rather low, but even so John and the disciples with him marched in a formation, ceding control over some of their spiritual energy to him with which he formed a deflective barrier. Any lightning that would be heading towards them would instead catch onto the barrier and flow through it into the ground on either side of the road they traversed. That was much easier than maintaining a barrier that would actually block a lightning strike. Though John could do that, it was only worthwhile in an active combat scenario where the lightning came with intent behind it.

-----

The Abiodun clan stood out from the surroundings, rising tall and proud over everything. Yet the tallest features were the lightning rods, meant both to draw lightning away from their tallest buildings but also to draw it into their training grounds where disciples could either directly absorb some, or at least bask in the spiritual energy it left behind. Which option they took would depend on their training and their confidence.

Their arrival was greeted by the sect head himself, a dark skinned man with just a hint of white hair among his black. Kehinde Abiodun was an imposing figure even without the lightning crackling through his hair at all moments. John wondered if that was for show, or was a practical part of his cultivation somehow. He could come up with reasons one would want a constant flow of electricity, in theory.

“Welcome, Six Elements Crossroads,” his voice boomed over them. “Though there is no grand event happening here like the tournament you organized, we will certainly learn much from each other.”

-----

Some time later, John was sitting with Kehinde in his private lounge, discussing cultivation of course. “I notice your Abiodun clan focuses only on the local air element, without considering the earth element. What led you down that path?” Obviously most cultivators were single element, but there were still choices involved.

“It was quite simple,” he said. “We saw the power that lightning has here, even over the dominant element of earth.”

John nodded. The whole time, he hadn’t been able to ignore the shocks of electricity flowing around the man- especially between sections of his hair. If he was actively controlling that, it certainly was subtle. “I understand,” John nodded. “Lightning is indeed powerful. But even though it reshapes earth, the earth itself might become something more.”

“That may be the case,” Kehinde admitted. “Either way, the control we have is sufficient. And of course, before the most recent generation… there was little hope of having a balance of totems. At the Soul Expansion Phase, two totems and one is rather awkward.” John nodded, though three totems of different elements could be even more awkward.

“What of the lightning around you? Would it be too intrusive to ask what purpose it serves?”

“Not at all,” he said. “It aids my control, and my defense against related assaults. My body is my domain. As for you…” Kehinde looked over John. “You have made a different choice. A much riskier one, with the lightning coursing inside of you.”

John would barely call it lightning, with its minimal power, but he had indeed continued the process of augmenting his nerves. “I take it that you wouldn’t recommend this, then.”

“No, I would not. Unlike my fool of a brother.”

“Oh?” John raised an eyebrow and grinned. “I might wish to talk to him, if I could.”

“He’s no longer here,” Kehinde replied. For a moment, John thought he’d stumbled into an unpleasant topic- but though Kehinde seemed consternated, he didn’t have the same tone of loss John might expect. “His style didn’t mesh with ours and he went to form his own sect.”

This tale has been pilfered from Royal Road. If found on Amazon, kindly file a report.

“Which sect is this?” John asked.

“The Flowing Sand Sect,” Kehinde said. “Perhaps it would be valuable if you spoke to him. At least you could warn each other about pitfalls.”

“I’ve heard of the sect,” John admitted. “But I hadn’t heard the connection. They did not participate in the tournament. The sect head’s name was… Musa. He is your brother, then?”

“Indeed,” Kehinde nodded. “Our disagreements pushed us apart… but I still understand the value in his insights, even if I believe his path is too dangerous to allow within the clan.”

John could sense there was more to that, but also didn’t think it was wise to ask at the moment. “Perhaps we shall find the time to visit, then.” According to what he remembered, they were further south. That would prolong the intended trip somewhat, and he’d need to let the sect know they were coming ahead of time, but it should be worth the effort.

-----

The best training tended to be in battle. It was practical, and it involved pushing to the limits and seeing others do so as well. Two cultivators who were cognizant of their offensive power could spar with little risk, if they had proper formations in place. The Abiodun clan certainly did, and John was glad to see frequent sparring… and of course to participate himself.

He did engage with several elders, but most of them were below him in cultivation which meant he didn’t have as much to learn from them. But Kehinde himself was in the late Consolidated Soul Phase, so he should prove to be a decent challenge.

From the man’s musculature, John hadn’t expected him to use a bow- but perhaps that was his own mistake. Bows took quite a lot of strength to be effective, after all, and as a cultivator the man would need to train his whole body to stay on the move.

John continued with his normal style- a blade in one hand, and the other free for whatever he needed. When the signal came, he immediately flicked throwing daggers towards his opponent. Lightning lashed out, deflecting them away from Kehinde.

In turn, John had to twist his body to avoid crackling arrows that stuck firmly into the ground. One after another, the arrows were shot towards him as Kehinde circled around the arena. John kept a defensive shield of earth and air elements in case he got hit, intending to guide the electricity around himself as much as possible.

John had to admit he nearly missed the trick. Kehinde’s energy blended in well to the background air element, so it was only because he was particularly sensitive that he reacted when Kehinde reached out- but not towards him.

A line of lightning was drawn between two arrows- metal cored, now that John chose to pay more attention to them. His leg was jolted as he pulled away, and he stomped the ground to push the electricity out of his body. That stopped his progress, and now he had to focus on the myriad possible combinations of lines between the various arrows. Unless they could only be used once, but he wasn’t going to immediately bet on that.

Even when he got up close, Kehinde wasn’t helpless. His legs were covered in particularly sturdy armor, and he used one leg to parry John’s attacks while keeping him at bay. He left a few openings, and John could have overpowered him if he was only interested in winning… but learning was supreme.

Any time John’s blade struck the man’s legs, lightning coursed up his weapon. John dispersed most of the spiritual energy, but when it was weaker and less controlled he did his best to absorb it. He’d trained with lightning many times, from Kusuma’s crazy training to the more reasonable folk of the Blustering Peaks just recently. He knew how to counter his enemy. In turn, he could make use of his diverse elements to launch unexpected attacks.

John left behind him a concealed trail of water and darkness element, something to complement the arrows Kehinde was launching everywhere. The man obviously didn’t care whether or not he actually hit John- though his attacks would obviously still be effective if he did. No, if John was actually struck he had little doubt that he would suffer greatly.

Even arrows flying overhead could connect to two or three others, forming numerous connections. John augmented his movements by shifting not only his own body but some of the terrain.

Finally, when Kehinde was passing through the center of the arena, John activated his own plan. A burst of air and water element together drew air element into the stored ‘pool’ under their feet, including stored elements in the various arrows. Kehinde quite gracefully redirected the lightning around him, spiraling into the ground, but the moment of distraction was enough for John’s sword to touch his throat, brimming with fire element that he hadn’t been using much elsewhere.

“It seems the first round goes to you,” Kehinde admitted, while at the same time challenging John to more. A challenge John was happy to accept, wondering what other tricks the man had up his sleeve.

-----

Ayhan found himself with a somewhat unfortunate weapon for facing off against the Abiodun clan’s cultivators. A metal chain was flexible and had great reach, but that second property also meant it could stretch into an enemy’s domain of control. There, they could overpower his own spiritual energy and attempt to attack him through his own weapon.

And even when his weapon wrapped around them, they responded the same way. If he didn’t have the earth element augmenting his defenses, he would likely have gotten knocked out of the battles swiftly. As it was, with his earth dominant and his water on the weak end against air, it was a matter of skill. Some opponents he could defeat, others he couldn’t. Which was exactly what he wanted.

He had the air element as well, but using lightning against them was foolish. What they did not specialize in, however, was wind- so his experience in the Blustering Peaks found some value. Making use of air and earth, he could force them into a compromising position- and he could lock them in place with water. His connection to water could be exploited to attack him, but only if he kept one. If he instead infused spiritual energy into a certain form and tossed it, he could easily cover them with water- weakening their automatic defenses.

Ayhan finally felt strong. But he knew there was at least one more major step in his future. The Consolidated Soul Phase would be where he reached a cycle of the core elements, and there he would see at least some of the strength of the sect head. Though actually matching John if they were at the same level of cultivation seemed impossible. Ayhan had decent totems, but he’d chosen them more for initial strength than growth, so they were slow to improve to higher tiers. Then again, he might have neglected that aspect of training entirely without the sect head’s guidance.

He only barely remembered the Molten Sea in Lunson, as he was so far below them there was basically no interaction. But one thing he did know is that he wanted the strength to make his own choices in the future- or at least to be part of a group who could stand up for themselves. For that, he’d been extremely lucky to be chosen as a part of the Six Elements Crossroads. And he wasn’t going to forget what had been done for him. He would strive to live up to expectations.