Mysterious Presence

Tao Xue had had enough of his family, as he went inside his room to practice his ability. He wasn't sure if he would be able to accomplish anything, but he still went inside, and started. He sensed the energy all around himself. The energy extremely close to him would get attracted to him, and stick to his body. He deformed, and then quickly reformed the energy again and again, changing its shapes very rapidly. It was as if there was a rotating ball of a jelly around him, constantly changing its shape. After a while, even more of the surrounding energy was in his control. He had now changed the shape multiple times, and had decided to turn it into something meaningful, this time. He wrapped the whole energy around him, in a neat layer, acting as his armor. Other than than, he made the areas of his feet, and hands, very densely covered in energy, and shaped them into blades for the hands, and an extra layer for protection, on top of his feet. He thought that this would prove to be a useful armor. After playing around (smashing things) with the armor, he then concentrated on removing the barrier of energy around him, but it wasn't possible. It was as if the energy was a parasite, stuck to another life form. As he continued to sharpen his skills with this ability, he started to understand that he was actually getting stronger every day, due to this. It was something that was helping him tremendously. He thought that even without Cultivation, he would still be pretty much strong, compared to others.

He didn't want to practice anymore, so he just rested for the day. It was actually a pretty tiring day, and he was not in a mood of facing any more trouble for the rest of the day, so he shut himslef in his room, until dinner, after which, he slept.

This was the routine that Tao Xue had been following for the next few days, as well. At the 4 Seasons Academy, he practiced his ability in a separate room, which was totally and completely secluded from the other places, giving him a better place to strengthen this ability of his. The Principal had himself prepared this area, and he visited him once in a while, just to check on his progress. The other students were told that Tao Xue had currently gone out of the city, and that's why he wasn't coming to the academy, because, to them, he wasn't there. It would be a nuisance if the students figured out about his ability, so, for the time being, his special status was kept a secret, even from his close friends.

He stayed in his room, for the whole day, after coming back from school, and practiced his ability. This was his everyday routine. The Patriarch announced that Tao Xue was no longer in the extra-training group, which was a relief. He practiced from the time he reached his house, till the time when dinner was prepared, and after dinner, he would talk with his family, and then go to sleep, or also practice his ability, if he wanted to.

Every day, there were notable improvements in his ability, and he was able to control a larger amount of the energy, and the skill of controlling the energy had also significantly increased, as he could control it even better than before. This speed of training was totally unbelievable! If this kept going on, he would be practically invincible! By a week of training like this, he could already become so strong, that he could control energy within the range of 1 meter near himself. That meant that he could have a 1 meter long extension of his hands, and a 1 meter long extension of his feet, and not only of hands and feet, of every part of his body. He could make blades, protruding from each of his fingers, and use the energy to cover his whole body, in the coat of the shape of an extremely muscular body builder. This was completely unbelievable, as he had progressed by such an extremely fast rate, in just one week. During this whole week, neither was he able to absorb the energy he could control, nor could he dissipate it, allowing the other energy to enter him. Due to this, there had been absolutely no changes in his Cultivation, while some of the students in his class, were progressing towards becoming a 1st level Cultivator. Even if those students were geniuses, they weren't even dust, compared to Tao Xue's ability of controlling the energy of the Heaven and Earth.

He kept up his attitude, and believed that he would get successful, either on the path of Cultivation, or on the path of leading a decent lifestyle, both were within the grasp of his will power. Due to his special ability, Tao Xue was respected by all the powerful existences of the Academy. He had been given an extremely important piece of information, and that was that, by the end of this season, they would start converting the Academy to a Sect. This was a very complicated matter. As an Academy, they could only train students, not make an army. A Sect was able to make an army of various geniuses from the Sect. There could be various tournaments in Academies, but there would not be any serious fights, but that could be done in Sects. There could be accommodation facilities in Sects, but not Academies. Academies couldn't fight over territory, but Sects could. There could be hunting, and also mercenary missions in Sects, but not in Academies. Turning an Academy into a Sect will be a great surge in power, but also in responsibilities. There have been various unfriendly relationships of the 4 Seasons Academy, but they couldn't resolve them, because they were an Academy. It was also a way of gaining protection, as Academies couldn't be attacked. This whole time, the 4 Seasons Academy was preparing for this. They increased their strength as an Academy, and will directly turn towards the offensive side, just as they turn into a Sect.

During all this, there sat Tao Xue, peacefully practicing his ability. He was in a peaceful, tranquil, and calm state of mind. He practiced his ability, gaining new insights, every second. It was what he usually did, and was following his usual routine, as he suddenly sensed a foreign aura, or rather, a presence. Just as he had sensed it, it was gone. Just as it was gone, it popped up again. It was a if it were a being traveling in a loop through dimensions, at an unimaginable speed, with a God-like, powerful presence, which was emanating from him.

Tao Xue was quite a bit startled, but he maintained his composure, and remained completely calm, as he said, "Who's it? Come out if you have the guts!"