Chapter 1 Part 2 of 3 (Patreon)

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Rugrat let out a yell as a mana spear shot through the air. Lee Perrin dodged the attack as chains rattled out of the ground like a dropped anchor.

He jumped into the sky, walking across the sky towards Rugrat.

Lee Perrin injected power into the thin bamboo fan, in his hand, a flash of power striking the chains as they broke into shadows.

Dozens of chains, broke free of their spell circles, upon the ground and the sky.

Lee waved his fan and shot backwards and turned, his eyes closed as his fan snapped out, glowing at it diverted the chains and their spiked ends. His body flowed like water, as if he had anticipated everything that was to come and had happened.

Rugrat felt the pain across his body, he felt it in the left side of his face. A few minutes of walking left Rugrat sitting for nearly an hour to regain his stamina.

He's just showing off.

A guttural roar tore from Rugrat's throat as he pushed past the pain, his body glowed, tracing through his body, causing the fragments within his body to shift, cut and stabs.

Rugrat coughed, spitting blood to the side as he reached out his hands. Spell circles appeared by the dozen as chains formed of crystal mana flew free from their shackles.

"See if you can escape those!" Rugrat coughed. His detail moved forward but, chains appeared behind him like deadly flowers, watching them.

Rugrat felt the mana resonating through his body, the agitation causing waves of pain from the shards stabbed into his body.

He could feel his power slipping away, his mind becoming foggy in the pain. The Dungeon core fragments altering and changing his spells turning them chatotic.

No you don't

He poured more power into his spells to maintain form, his eyes following Lee's flickering form as he continued to advance.

Rugrat's back was covered in sweat as he coughed again, his power started to escape him.

"No!"

His power went wild and forming chains exploded before they completed, the backlash from the spell hit Rugrat.

He groaned and bent forward, the spells shattered in the training square as Lee's feet landed on the ground, his eyebrows raised together, his relaxed expression peeled away.

Rugrat wanted to reach out, to grab a shred of mana and attack Lee, as he reached Rugrat.

"Are you okay? Let go of the spells," Lee pulled out a concoction. “I pushed you too hard."

Rugrat set his jaw, baring his teeth in a way that wasn't brought on by the pain.

"Nothing to worry about!" Rugrat looked away and pulled out his own concoction as if he didn't notice Lee's.

He put it down, panting, having to take three more swigs before he finished off the potion.

He leaned into the chair, feeling the concoction working.

He forced himself up to sitting.

Lee seemed to recognize the light in his eyes, storing the potion and taking out his own seat and sitting.

"You are still using your power over technique. Even if your attacks are ten times stronger, they will have the same effect if they miss the enemy."

Rugrat grunted, it wasn't anything new compared to his last lessons.

"You are too reliant on your eyes and physical senses, you don't use your domain nearly enough. I wonder if this is because you are used to fighting while seeing the enemy with your eyes."

Rugrat breathed in and released it the next second, looking at the floor.

"That might be the case. So, how do I learn to use my domain more?"

"Trial and error, by closing off your other senses you might listen with your newfound ones."

Rugrat ground his teeth together.

"At the same time I need to learn new spells?"

"I think that you might have too many spells actually, instead of learning more, look at combining them together. Look at the last spell you called on, the mana chains, combining your control over mana and the chain spell structure, they are stronger than your elemental versions. Right now mana is the easiest form of power for you to use other than fire element spells. If you can develop your domain and your mana spells the results might surprise."

"What about my exploding shot and other spells I use on my rounds, are you saying I should forget them?"

"No, not at all, just look at what you have now and develop them. Techniques are simply spells that have been adapted by the user. Like how a smith makes a weapon that fits perfectly to the user." Lee said.

Rugrat's sound transmission device went off.

"Rugrat, got us onto the trip to the eighth, they need us to do a medical." As if they don't already know everything that's wrong with us. Rugrat added Erik's unsaid words.

"Get to the hospital as soon as you can."

"Alright, I'm on my way." Rugrat put the sound transmission device and waved to George who was lying down nearby.

George moved up next to him.

"Seems you will be going to the eighth realm?" Lee stood.

""That's the plan," Rugrat said, grunting as he got to his feet, glaring at the special team that moved to help him.

"The fighting isn't the important part of the trial, one can only pass into the ninth realm if they are able to answer the question of the eighth."

Rugrat grunted as he put his leg over George's back, getting onto his back, grimacing as he fel the shards shift under his skin.

"There is a reason that the trial between the seventh and ninth realm is called a realm. It is because there are few that are able to pass its trial. Those that can, it is only a matter of time until the step onto the highest stage of the ten realms."

"A single question stumps so many, what is it, a math question?" Rugrat grinned.

"If only it was that simple, it is a question that strikes at the core of every person in the ten realms but is rarely asked but always thought." Lee grabbed his arm.

“Do not follow the stream, follow your own path. One’s own will is the strongest force in and outside the realms. Will shapes and changes us a million ways, both seen and invisible.”

Lee must have seen his fading interest he tilted his head and waved his fan.

"I wish you luck on your travels. Even if you do not make it through the trial, you will take a step upon a path that few have tread."

He turned and walked away as George rose to his full height.

Rugrat frowned as George turned and padded towards the exit. They left the training grounds attached to the academy, heading for the hospital.