Realms And Energies

The Masters Residence stood in-between the Royal Palace, and The Divine Academy.

Although Valtor would've loved seeing the interior parts of the Residence, Gap's perspective was quite different; He took a 'short cut' through an alley, just straight to the left, avoiding the opposite direction which was the Resident.

This alley had quite a funny smell. A mix of alcohol and ash, the same you would receive from pouring a beer on a wet blanket, in a room where a fire incident had occurred.

The life here mainly belonged to the rats of the streets, and some other low beggars who decided to take a nap from the cold.

Then again, there was the Snow. Yellowish, but white. Moist, at the same time, dry underneath.

The only person spotted who wasn't a begger, was a man throwing a rinsed out water, from the barrel of wine on the Snow.

'That's the reason for the stink!' Valtor mumbled to his understanding. 'I wonder what's for the ash?.'

Master Gap however continued with his head high, as soon as the man closed the door shut, making Valtor close-up the space.

Now, he stood beside the old man, asking, "Why didn't you pass through the Master's Resident? Then move through the bridge, behind the Palace to your location?"

Gap's downturned eyes moved to Valtor's direction, "I no longer stay behind the Palace, I stay behind the entire Resident," He said.

Valtor didn't get it all too clear, until Gap reformed his words; "I requested a more quiet place, for an old soul like myself..."

'I am definitely sure your soul doesn't have the meaning of weakness!' Valtor mouthed some thoughts, before Gap again said,

"Now! What do you want me to tell you about?"

A question which he had waited for minutes to be asked.

Gap added, "Ni and Gi, the energy of light and darkness? The beginning of it all? Which would suit your knowledge? I can't just dump an entire info on you, better still it be said, one bit at a time."

Valtor did understand the importance of knowing about the entire secrets which holds the world. He needed to understand the whole concepts of the energies, What or better still, who killed his grandfather, the whole meaning of the Monarchs, and why he fell in such a dark category.

He decided to ask the first question which came to mind, "Ni and Gi? What exactly are those energies?.."

A pause.

"... I knew you would ask that first, considering the fact of the Blob's transformation," Gap replied, going through a rotten wooden walkway, which passed through the old alley, straight to the end part of the Master Resident.

The walkway initially had been built for a quicker route to the Resident's end, but its construction became forgotten, when the need no longer arised, also, with how it followed through a quiet alley. No one wanted to take such route.

The alley was original in a curve like structured path, and it ended just before the Academy's open garden, a free zone for academic and nonacademic staffs, students, or individuals.

Just immediately, the walkway would be seen, and with how broken the structure was, nobody takes a Chance of climbing on such rotten wood, with the roofing bent and tinted, creeping ivy had grown on the pillars still keeping their function. With one glance, even a newborn child would know going to the walkway felt like crawling into a collapsed cave.

A step on the floorboard layers, felt weak, and relaxing an entire weight would make it crack. Valtor knew this well.

"Why didn't we just pass through the normal path?" He asked, staring at the calm garden, with a glimpse of the Divine Academy's structure just to his right.

"Well," Gap replied, with a carefree walk, "What would it be said, The Fifth High GrandMaster, is having a stroll with a tattered looking boy, taking him straight to his resident? I'm sure it would make the news."

Valtor didn't need to reply again to those words, he already understood the point. He asked again, "About the energies?... And also, I have to ask, could you tell me more, about the world we live in?"

Gap nodded, eyes straight ahead, with Blobby jiggling on his shoulder.

He began, "Our world is divided into various realms. The first realm, is the Heavenly realm, governed by the Supreme god, Mian—"

The mention of the name tensed up Valtor. His grandfather had said he should seek Mian, does it really mean he would meet with the heavenly realm supreme god?. He left that for later, listening to Gap's words,

".... Home to the gods and goddesses, Divine being, and supreme powers beyond understanding. The supreme gods reside in this realm, as well as other heavenly entities.

"The Second realm, is the Mortal realm. Home to the Mortals; Men and Animals, the emperors, Kings and Queens, also the dwelling of the gods' chosen—awakened individuals with exceptional abilities, no discrimination due to Rank.

"The Third realm is the Spirit realm. Home to lost Spirits who have no connection in the mortal realm, they are the spirit who cannot cross to the underworld. This realm is governed by a Spirit god, Khil, who keeps strong records of the activities of these.

"The Fourth Realm is the shadow realm, home to the darkness which abhors the mind and heart of the soul and body of Mortals. It's also the realm, where the darkness of the universe resides, the shadow god, Vod, holds this realm.

"The Fifth and last realm is the underworld. Home to the dead, who are parted off from the mortal realm. A home to reward of the righteous and punishment for the wicked or evil doers. Gian, god of the underworld, the twin brother of Mian holds this realm, with strict hands."

Valtor took another careful step, this time avoiding the broken parts of the floorboard. "Different realms, different god rulers—how intriguing!"

"Indeed!" Gap said, turning slightly to look at him. "Now, about the energies!"

Valtor quickly remained rooted to the spot. He noticed the exact place Gap stood was pressed in—but strangely, it didn't break . The old man had placed all his weight on the floorboard, yet at the same time… he hadn't.

It was confusing, but Valtor decided not to ask. He focused on what was being said.

"Do you know the meaning of Aura?" Gap asked.

"Yes, I do," Valtor replied. "My grandfather had once possessed it, at that time, I asked him, he told me, 'Aura is the manifestation of energy around a person, or from a person…' "

Gap thoughtfully stroked at his beards downwards. "Burnwood actually explained it all himself? Well, he's right. I needed to ask about Aura first so I could explain everything else to you."

Valtor kept his eyes on the old man. He wished there was a place to sit, but instead, he had to maintain his balance on the fragile walkway while also keeping his mind on the lecture.

Gap continued, "Ni and Gi are energy forces. Ni is life and purity, while Gi is darkness and chaos, shadow and destruction."

"In other words, Ni is a pure divine energy, while Gi is a dark chaotic energy. They are the fundamental forces—the sources of all power. These energies aren't something people 'emit' all the time. Only the gods' chosen, divine entities such as the gods, and some other high-ranked beings can harness and use them."

"Now, Aura is the visible form of one's energy—just like how the gods' chosen have flaming auras, glowing energy...."

"So, Ni and Gi can fuel auras, but they aren't Aura themselves. Another example is this—a gods' chosen might have a golden aura when using Ni, but Ni itself isn't the aura. It's the power within them, causing their aura to shine."

"Another example—a Monarch might have a dark rippling aura when using Gi, but Gi itself is raw destruction, while the aura is just a side effect of wielding that power."

"All Ni-users radiate a pure glow, no matter the aura surrounding them. That's how you can always tell a Ni-user from a Gi-user."

Gap finished his explanation, turning his head back toward the walkway, continuing forward, leaving Valtor to process everything.

'Ni… Gi… I think I understand now. But at the same time, I don't.' He spoke up. "Does everyone have Ni?"

"YES, Valtor," Gap replied. He allowed him to walk closer before speaking again. "Ni is life! It's the energy of the First Ancient god, which created our dimension and the universe itself. It exists in everything that breathes, lives..

"The awakened are gods' chosen—those whose Ni is strong enough to be emitted. That's how the ranking system started."

"E-rank is the lowest of the low—they barely can harness Ni, almost no different from an ordinary person with no awakening. The highest rank is S—they've unlocked the full potential of Ni, but they are not at god-level. Do you get it?"

Valtor nodded. "I understand."

Then, a new thought hit him. "Can someone possess both Ni and Gi?"

"Yes!"

"Really?" Valtor's eyes widened.

Then came the sentence that dropped his jaw.

Master Gap stared deep into his blue eyes, seemingly seeing something he couldn't, before replying, "The only one person… is you."