The world of Agabod was bleak; the skies once filled with the yellowish hue of their sun, alien but majestic creatures roaming the air now looked like a charcoal painting slowly being washed away in oil. Even as Moyo took his first step into the world, he could feel the slow toxic, and decaying of the world, a feeling he remembered from his fight with the category 2 blight, only this time it was on a larger scale and more potent. Casting his realm around himself, he felt Ajax and Killian pass through the stone portal that stood on what looked like an ancient ziggurat, Killian glancing at him,

“Good, first lesson on a blighted world, protect yourself, the decay will take days before it can infect you as an expert, but with your realm out it eats away at your it instead of your body,” he said,

Moyo noticed Ajax nor Killian had their realms out, Killian noticed him observing them,

“Masters are immune to this level of blight, it would take more than a world fighting its blight to infect us,” Killian said,

Moyo nodded, withdrawing his katana from his spatial rift that found it hard to open, like something was interfering with his willpower,

“Another lesson about blighted worlds, or, semi-blighted worlds such as these” Killian said,

“Every archailect system notification is restricted or outright unavailable, if you the aether was stronger then you could use it, but only rulers have such aether to power theirs and you should be thankful this world is still fighting for its existence, aether while sparse still exists in this world” Killian continued,

“What causes a world to become blighted?” Moyo asked,

“Blights are...beings from the abyss, just think of them as creatures of chaos, anti-aether so to speak, their sole aim as far as we know is the eradication of all aether infused life in existence,” Killian said,

Moyo noticed Ajax kept staring into the distance, face scrunched up in thought, and with one step vanished from their vicinity, master Killian sighed, Moyo was beginning to notice he did that a lot. Master Killian opened up his spatial vault with ease, dipping his hand in as he produced a construct, throwing it in the air as it released a pulse, and a force field covered with runes enclosed their vicinity at large, the air steaming as Moyo could visibly see the dark wisps of blight burning away,

“What do you really understand about aether?” Killian asked,

“from the introductory message to the archailect?, it’s the energy source of the system, powers all things within the archailect” Moyo said,

Killian nodded, gesturing to the vault as more and more items flew out, swords, a series of large tents, training equipment, some collar-looking devices,

“That is the general view, however, aether is more than that, aether is in simple terms reality as a whole. There is aether in all living things, granted most beings live and die without even knowing of its existence” he said,

“Even in worlds, universes, and galaxies without the archailect?” Moyo asked,

“Indeed, however, the aether is so thin, it takes the archailect coming to jumpstart the process, mostly by wiping off the majority of the universes’ inhabitants and using the accumulated aether to connect with a nexus point, the same as the nexus point one we just left to steadily pump aether into the said universe” Killian explained,

Moyo stood rigid, trying to carefully frame his words,

“So, my people, my family died as resources to bring a fight to our galaxy we didn’t even ask for?” he said,

He saw master Killian pause, sigh, again, and with a finely controlled burst of power draw two chairs to them, sitting on one and gesturing for Moyo to sit on the other, he did. Staring at Moyo he spoke,

“Usually, I don’t take to experts speaking to me that way, they’d be nothing but ashes right now,” he said, Moyo hastily dipping his head in apology,

“I apolo-“

“Oh, shut it, you sound more and more like your master these days, let me speak,” Killian said with a clipped voice, Moyo zipped his mouth immediately,

“When I said everything, in reality, is made of aether, I meant it, both galaxies with the archailect and without” he started,

“The legend goes, that there was just one being in the beginning, the abyss, chaos, the darkness, the blight. It has gone by many names through countless eons. It existed as the only thing in the vast expanse till, for some reason, reality burst forth out of it, reality proceeded to divide itself into six divine aspects, we know them today as the six divine beings” he explained,

Moyo realized to himself that it sounded a bit like the big bang theory or every creation story back home but kept mute,

“However, remember the abyss came first, it was all that existed in the beginning at it viewed these six divine beings as interlopers of its authority and space, therefore it decided to eradicate them. We have no idea how long this battle lasted, only that the abyss then decided to create the putrid creatures known as blights to start infecting the new creations of the divine or supreme beings, whatever name you decide to call them. Then one of the supreme beings, Lotes known as the original dragon decided to give aether to a specie that had been born in the body of Draulr, the original planet, another supreme being” he said,

“Granting them aether took the collective will and authority of the supreme beings forged into an actual sentient system known as the archailect. However, to the surprise of the supreme beings, these mortal creatures began adapting to the aether in different forms, the aether began to transform into different aspects, intent, aura, mantles, and mana, each laying devastating effects on the abyss. As such the supreme beings decided to take one aspect of this new forms of aether, except Lotes, the true dragon came first out of order and maintained its dominion over it, and the last sentient being become the originator of technology in the archailect, another story for another day” Killian said,

“During the course of the war, many galaxies were lost, neither taken by the archailect or the abyss, simply floating on its own, these galaxies are like yours young titan blade, cut off from its source, aether, and destined to gradually die throughout millions if not billions of years, but surely dying off. The archailect coming back is to take what belonged to it, either that or the abyss found you first and everyone on your planet becomes a blight-infested horde in the never-ending battle with the abyss” Killian finished,

“So, you see young titan blade, the archailect is necessary for the continuation of life in general” Killian finished,

Ajax came out in the distance dragging a half-decayed creature, dropping the already decaying corpse his master spoke,

“Scouted the whole continent, the wildlife isn’t fit for consumption, however, it’s teeming with enough challenges for him over here,” he said,

“Good, now sit and let us discuss,” Killian said,

“Your issue isn’t ascension, but rather a consolidation of all your levels of growth. In simpler terms you blazed past ascension levels faster than you should, I’m guessing the inhabitants of your world did the same, but with time, as they hit advocate and expert and see the dangers of the archailect towards ascension, they’d learn to savor each stage of ascension, plus the fact that expert rank is a stage to assimilate all your previous growth and begin training for the stages of core manifestation ” Killian said,

"Core manifestation?" Moyo asked,

"A topic for later" killian said

“I admit, it’s my mistake, I trained you towards survival, not growth, a mistake I intend to remedy here,” Ajax said as he tapped his blade Krial on the dead creature as it became dust,

“Indeed, and your master has decided to hand over your training to me, to be honest, I have not the time nor the patience to personally do so, but seeing as you represent my house I will take it as an investment,” Killian said,

Moyo nodded,

“I am grateful,” he said,

“I would be more pleased if you don’t waste my time, for the duration of this training, at least till the latter stages, your blade will be confiscated,” Killian said,

Moyo just stared on,

“here’s the point where you ask why,” Ajax said,

“I figured you must have a valid reason, you know better,” Moyo said as Killian nodded,

“a smooth talker you are, however, I would suffer no simple-minded disciple,” Killian said,

“Now think and tell me why,” he said,

Moyo produced dominion and placed it in front of him thinking hard, grabbing the blade he murmured, loud enough for the sword masters to hear,

“Master Killian once told me that all I had were sword skills and no proper combat style, it was why you made me dissolve the legendary skill,” he said,

“Go on,” Killian said,

“But that isn’t enough to take my blade, except, well, you think I’m not utilizing my sword skills well, plus my deficit with actual hand-to-hand fighting,” Moyo said as he flicked his eyes up to the masters who kept a stoic look on their face, Killian speaking next,

“Well, you aren’t just a sword-swinging maniac like your master here,” he said

“Sword swinging maniac?” Ajax asked with a raised eyebrow,

Killian glanced at his master,

“The first idea that came to your mind when we went for a peace meeting with another master was a duel to decide the winner, you then proceeded to slay a sacred creature that turned out to be the pet of the said master and then when told, decided the best way to solve the issue was to duel with the master to decide who was right,” Killian said,

Ajax nodded and looked away, satisfied with the reaction, Killian turned back to Moyo,

“I’m taking your blade to brush off your over-reliance on the katana, your skill isn’t the issue, your wielding it the wrong way is the issue that could become a problem for you in the later stages,” Killian said,

With a flick that was too fast for Moyo to see, Killian produced a silver blade, adorned with a gold hilt the blade gleamed in the hands of Killian, it was more along the lines of a two-edged blade, only leaner. Killian stood and took a stance, then Moyo felt it. The subtle authority of Killian and his willpower flowed in the blade, it didn’t feel like a blade but an extension of Killian, like the blade had become a part of him. Then Killian swung the blade and a straight line of power that made reality scream around Moyo went out into the distance. Entire landscapes changed in that instance, a narrow canyon was created as the destructive power that looked like moonlight tore through the area, blazing past as entire forests were eradicated, cleansing the entire landscape of any life, living or infected.

Moyo stared, eyes wide and mouth wide open at the display,

“Well, that’s one way to clear the area,” Ajax said,

Killian made his blade disappear again, turning to Moyo who pushed dominion towards the feet of the master,

“Please, teach me,” he said,

“I can only do my best, the rest is left to you, for this training you would use a restricted rod,” Killian said as he produced a black rod that felt cold to Moyo’s touch,

“Try pushing intent through it,” Killian said,

Moyo obeyed and found out that little to no intent passed through it, like it physically rejected his intent,

“The rod is used to train willpower and intent manipulation in advocates, and in your case, authority as well. I’ve observed your blade skills, rather than let your blade channel your intent, willpower, and authority, you rather coat it with it, wasting those valuable resources” Killian said,

“For the first three days, we would train in hand-to-hand combat, see if we can incorporate your dance of Ijakadi into your fighting style, after that we go on to using the restricted rod, it would only allow any energy to pass through it when it’s combined from two to three sources, and in your case your willpower, authority, and intent,” Killian said,

Moyo stood up and handed his katana to Ajax, turning to Killian,

“I am ready,” he said as Killian nodded,

**********************

The first day was used to set up their base of operation, the tents that Killian produced were living quarters that were bigger on the inside than outside, acting more like dimensional storages, they housed entire living quarters on the inside and each of them had one. Then Killian had taken him into the forests that had somehow grown back overnight, standing in the middle of the forests, Killian told him,

“Come at me”

And thus began the training slash beatdown at the hand of master Killian, while brutalizing Moyo through the forest he taught him, ensuring Moyo was within striking distance to hear the lecture,

“Authority, willpower, intent, they all come from you and must flow through you before you look outwards,” he said as he used a palm to strike Moyo through the stomach, blasting him into the air where Moyo flipped, spitting out blood to stabilize himself,

Moyo’s perception screamed at him as Killian appeared beside him in a blink and with an elbow slammed into Moyo’s skull before he could even defend, sending him careening back into the forest below. Even as his skill wrath of the titan healed the broken skull, he could hear Killian who slowly descended to the ground, arms folded,

“Aether is the container that holds our power, its raw form, aura, and authority are the physical manifestation of that power, they are the commands with which you seize that power, pushing your body and willpower in turn to the limit over and over and over, coming close to those limits increase the strength of the aura and authority,” Killian said,

“Observe, kneel” Killian commanded,

Immediately an unseen force slammed Moyo to his knees, his body restricted like a divine hand had seized him and held him in place, he couldn’t utter a word, he couldn’t even squeak as he fought desperately,

“No, channel the power of your authority into your willpower, channel your authority to bleed into your willpower and fight against it” Killian commanded,

Moyo did, he honestly tried his best, but against a master, an ant had more hope against a tsunami than he did, but still, he tried. Rather than gather his authority to speak the command, he channeled the feeling of the command he wanted to utter into his willpower, groaning as the effort made him dizzy. He was a titan, titans weren’t constricted, titans were literal forces of the universe, so he channeled the feeling into his willpower,

And a finger twitched,

Moyo wasn’t sure who was more surprised, he or Killian who narrowed his eyes and with a flick of his hand slammed Moyo into the ground, this time back first, spread out crucifixion style,

“Good, you’re learning, as you ascend in the archailect, you begin to see the disparities between the different refined forms of aether close up, mana, intent, and aura suddenly become concepts you can grasp, expert is the stage where they become possible” Killian explained,

“Realms are auras being projected unto your surroundings, auras are used to enhance the body from attacks both physical and aether related. The best way to fight under the realm of an opponent is to use a strong aura” Killian said,

“Channel your realm inwardly, coat your body with it and use it to free yourself from the rules of the realm surrounding you” Killian commanded,

Immediately Moyo felt the realm of the master cover him and it felt transcendent, like he was in the vicinity of a temple of a god, for one fleeting moment he wondered if this was what his realm would had felt to acolytes and advocates. The realm felt like judgment and power all in one and he was helpless before it, sight dizzy, he struggled, his willpower barely holding on as he channeled it from inside. With a brutal roar from within, he unleashed his realm inwards, channeling the same concepts of his realm over his body, carving out his own existence under the overwhelming realm of the master.

Even that move drove the wind out of him, but his endurance showed its true might, hanging on as he fought, even as he felt himself pass out, he could dimly feel his willpower and aura holding on.

********************

Killian stood, arms crossed as he watched the young expert suffer under his mere presence, eyes not believing what he witnessed. The Child's very body accepted whatever punishment he gave out, absorbing it and trying its best to build a resistance to it. Of course, being the master that he was, there was so much that the body of an expert could do to withstand his attacks, but the fact that it managed to stand against even a whisper of his attack proved to him that the kid was a gem. He felt Ajax pass through his realm like it was nothing, standing next to him,

“You were right, he is indeed something else,” Killian said,

“I know, but that’s not why I’m here, you felt it didn’t you?” Ajax asked,

“The presence north of us, expert tier, probably mid-ranked, strong, stronger than young Moyo here,” Killian said,

“Indeed, I’m about to go say hello to whoever it is, see if they have a master with them,” Ajax said,

“You do know we are not the only faction in this blighted world, right?” Killian told him,

“I’m hoping other opposing factions are here, those serpents in particular” Ajax said,

Killian turned to him,

“You were expressly told not to antagonize house Dracon or any of their allies Ajax,” Killian said,

“And I won’t however you and I know that should they find out that I’m on this world with an expert who they think may represent my school and house thousand blades at the tournament, they would strike here first,” Ajax said,

Killian sighed and tapped on finger on his arm, thinking,

“Go survey, see if any of those houses are around, however, do not engage, the odds of them even knowing we’re here are slim,” Killian said as Ajax nodded,

“Be back soon, also, you might want to put an eye on our disciple here, seems he’s coming back to life” Ajax said,

Killian whirled to Moyo who had somehow found the willpower to wake up, the master snapped his realm away, releasing his authority as Moyo groaned,

“How long was I out?’ Moyo asked,

“a few minutes, rest and recuperate, we continue tomorrow,” Killian said,

“let’s continue,” Moyo said,

Killian stopped in his tracks, eyeing him,

“Are you sure?’ he asked the ragged-looking expert,

Moyo’s eyes blazed bright purple,

“yes” he simply said,

“Good, now prepare yourself” master Killian commanded,