The Divine Elements

“That little fu- “

Roran roared, about to charge straight at Asra.

“Wait. It is just a flesh wound and not fatal. Asra might be impetuous, but he would not try to kill a family member. This is just his way to gauge Calron’s strength and seeing if he is worthy of being a part of our clan.”

Kail placed his hand on Roran’s chest, preventing him from moving an inch further and calmly explained.

“Let big brother go! And I won’t let you hurt Master!”

Ellie growled and bit Kail’s steely arm that was holding Roran back.

“Just watch.”

Kail gently smiled at the little girl trying to bite him, and turned his head to face the two youths on the center.

“You might think that you’re strong because you have only fought against normal cultivators, but the blood of the Raizel clan is different. We are stronger, faster and have animalistic instincts. If you simply think of me as a peak Vajra stage expert, then you have already lost.”

Asra drew back his fist and stared down at Calron.

*cough*

Calron spat out the remaining globule of blood from his mouth and wiped his mouth against his shoulder.

That actually hurt quite a bit…

He mused, still feeling the pain within his gut.

It has been a while since I’ve met an opponent on par with me. Looks like I’ll have to get serious.

Calron flashed a bloody smile at Asra, and slowly stood up straight.

“Haha, you finally understand.”

Asra laughed, seeing the expression on Calron’s face and charged at his opponent once again.

*sha* *sha*

Calron rushed towards Asra and swiftly launched several strikes against him, however, the teen had nimbly dodged all of them without a scratch.

“Calron is still hesitating.”

Kail murmured from the sidelines, while Ellie remained latched onto him.

“Normal punches won’t work, brother. Why do you not use your lightning?”

Asra inquired, stopping Calron’s fist a hair’s breadth away from his face.

I did not realize until now… why am I not using my lightning?

Calron pondered. In truth, after the earlier episode with the Azure Lightning trying to push out of his core, Calron was worried about what might happen if he triggered his elemental core again.

“You better bring it out quick or you won’t be unscathed by the next attack.”

Asra advised, bolts of lightning erupting near his fist until it gradually shaped into a golden gauntlet.

BOOOOOOOM!

An earth-shattering explosion resounded in the area, as gusts of wind pushed out the rubble and dust from the ground.

As the dusty cloud settled down, two fists were glued against each other while their owners gazed intensely into each other’s eyes.

*crackle*

The golden gauntlet was stopped by a similarly golden-scaled claw, while static lightning wildly darted on top of them both.

“This… ”

Asra whispered in astonishment, seeing the scaly claw that was Calron’s hand. Even the gathered group of teens all stared in amazement at the current unfolding of the scene.

“Isn’t that the shape-shifting ability of our clan? I thought only the Elders were capable of utilizing that technique… ”

The pony-tailed girl voiced with excitement, her eyes twinkling when she observed Calron’s claw.

“Hmm… ”

Kail smiled contently.

“Mmbrinthnbenn Behonahlby!”

Ellie mumbled her words while still biting down on Kail’s arm. No matter how hard she tried, her teeth couldn’t even make a dent on his muscled flesh.

Kail raised his eyebrow down at the girl, curious as to what she was trying to say.

Sensing a stare on her, Ellie turned her head up to glare at Kail and finally let go of his arm.

“Master is the best, and he already won!” The little girl claimed proudly, putting both her hands on her waist.

“I wouldn’t be so sure of that. Asra has not revealed his true power yet.”

Kail chuckled at the little girl’s antics, and then proceeded to point at the two boys in front.

“Impressive, but that is not enough to defeat me… ”

Asra smirked, letting go of his gauntlet.

Before Calron could respond, Asra’s body had already vanished from sight. All of a sudden, Calron sensed someone’s presence behind him.

“My strong suit is not my physical strength, but my speed.”

Asra’s voice echoed behind him, but when Calron glanced back, the teen had already vanished.

“Lightning comes in a flash and before you can even see it, it has already destroyed everything in its path.”

Asra’s leg came flying towards Calron’s midsection, but it was already too late to dodge the attack.

“Kugh!”

Calron felt the air expel from his chest as his opponent’s kick knocked him down to the ground.

“You are stronger than me.”

Calron spat out, bitter at feeling so helpless against the teen.

“You are wrong, brother. I am not stronger than you… I am faster than you. The element of lightning is not meant to be used for raw physical strength. The power of it lies within its speed, and that is something which you must train for.”

Asra stated while glancing at Calron.

“Again.”

Calron suggested, his eyes burning with determination.

“Come at me.”

Asra laughed, pleased by Calron’s mental aptitude.

Even though Calron knew that he was currently no match for his opponent when it came to using the power of lightning, he still wanted to try to defeat him. Asra was someone who had grown up learning how to control and use the lightning’s power, whereas Calron had to learn all of that by himself.

Just as the two boys were about to clash again, a tall figure abruptly teleported right between them and calmly stood there in the center with his arms folded across his chest.

“I think you two punks have destroyed enough of my mansion!”

The deep voice thundered throughout the area, his grey-white beard fluttering with the breeze.

The Patriarch had finally appeared.

………………………………

“I hope I am wrong about this… ”

Balis was seated on top of a bare cliff, several kilometers away from Selior city. He had retaken his human appearance, as the place where he was going to required him to reveal his true strength.

Calron had told him that they would talk after he returned back from the clan, but Balis decided that he shouldn’t put so much responsibility onto the shoulders of an unknown youth.

Take care of yourself until I return, kid.

Balis thought about the young man that he had left back in the city. Originally, he had wanted to ask for Calron’s help in convincing the Raizel clan to stand against Zarvel’s plans, but Balis soon realized that it was unfair to put the boy in that position.

It was a matter relating to the Order of the Guardians, and hence it was their responsibility to stop this.

Balis still had time before the princess’s birthday, so he only prayed that he would be back in time to stop whatever plans that Zarvel had.

The image of Zarvel smiling before he had left still lingered within Balis’ mind.

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