49 Flames of Neutrality (2/2)
Arnin had the fire and darkness components move onto one side of the orb, which wasn't too difficult. He also began to absorb the light essence, and placed the marks on the same side. At the moment, the three different components would not conflict. Only when he progressed in power and realm, and when he had an abundance of the components would they conflict.
A few hours passed and Arnin had collected a good amount of the three components. He made sure that the light and darkness components were equally abundant, while the fire component was double in quantity.
Arnin wasn't able to bring out the three components from his body since he had yet to enter the Elemental Formation realm, however he was still able to combine them inside his body, but there was still a problem with this route. If a problem occurred, then his orb threads, and maybe even his orb could be damaged. Not only that, but his blood vessels, pores and organs could even be seriously hurt, which would cause major concerns in the future.
Arnin took a deep breath. Although there was a chance of injury, he still wanted to risk it and create the Flames of Neutrality.
Arnin delved into the orb and began to combine the components. The first components he would need to combine were those of light and darkness. After they reached an equilibrium,he would add them into the fire component.
He calmed his mind and began to combine the two components. It was extremely risky, but it would be worth it in the end. Arnin slowly pushed the two marks made from the darkness and light components towards each. They were the same size since he had absorbed the same amount of energy for each.
The second the two marks touched one another, sweat poured down his back as he heard his body made noises that resembled crashing waves. His heart pumped faster, and his orb began to shake. Arnin stayed calm, however his body was still going into chaos.
'You goddamned components, mix for me!' He couldn't help but scream inside his head. He slowly began to push the marks deeper into each other. They were overlapping by approximately half now.
If someone walked into the room, they would find that his body was releasing two different gaseous substances. One was black, while the other was white. It looked peculiar and they each gave off completely different auras.
Arnin's nose, eyes, ears and mouth were oozing blood. His body was already taking significant damage from the combination, however he was still extremely lucky. After his body created the octogonal symbols, it was much stronger than the average Orb Birth cultivator's, and probably even stronger than many Essence Manifest cultivators. If it wasn't for that, his body would have long been broken by now.
The two components were already overlapping completely, however they didn't combine yet. They were still two different entities that were in conflict with one another. Arnin had to think of a way to completely combine them, but was unsure as to how he should go about it. Plus, he had very little time to think.
'Wait, isn't this similar to mark making? I can just use the saber to redraw the marks and create a mixed mark.' Arnin suddenly thought of an idea. He remembered that when he first made marks with the saber, the life and fire component combined together to create one single mark. He was sure he could do the same with the darkness and light components.
Determining that this route was possible, he began to control the saber within his body. This time, it was much more difficult than before. Not only was his control over the saber less than amazing, he even had to control it within his body. The risk factor was extremely high, however the rewards would also be much higher.
'I should have tested this out beforehand! Such a dumb mistake!' Arnin cursed his own lack of preparation. He didn't think that there would be so many problems, however he couldn't stop it anymore and had to continue with the whole procedure. If he did stop, then the two components would repel like two opposing magnets, and that would severely damage his orb, possibly crippling it.
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Lilise and Elidia were in the same class, under the same teacher. Lilise had to work extremely hard since she had yet to break through into Orb Birth - Earth, however she could feel that the day was near.
Elidia was not the brightest in the class, however she was still considered very talented. Lilise, on the other hand, was not treated as well as her sister since her cultivation was lacking.
”How do you think she got accepted into the academy? She is not even in Orb Birth - Earth.” One of the kids spoke with her friends. The class was only composed of females. ”I heard that a Moth student helped her get in.” Another child said.
”Wow, if only I could get a Moth student's help. I bet you she isn't even talented.” Many of the kids were envious and jealous. Lilise heard what they were all saying and couldn't help but feel disheartened.
'It isn't my fault that I couldn't gather essence like all of you.' She pouted before sitting quietly in the corner. She paid attention to the classes with great interest, however nowhere near being considered popular like her sister. Elidia was very popular, but she was hard to speak to.
After the classes ended three hours later, Lilise walked out with a sullen face. This was the first class, and she was already disliked by so many people. Elidia was one of the most popular people in class, which made her excommunication even more unbearable.
Lilise didn't hang around, and decided to go home first. She felt as though she would get in the way of her older sister, so she walked home alone.
”Haha! My dad sent me here and I passed the exam very easily. I may not be a Moth student, but my talent isn't bad.” Kids spoke to each other in the hallways, ignoring the existence of Lilise.
”My talent isn't too bad either. I didn't need to use the quotas since I am not untalented.” Kids would usually make fun of others that used quotas, since they believed that having to use one was as sign of weakness. When Lilise heard people bad mouthing quotas, it hurt her even more. She had used a quota to get into the academy. Those remarks were like blades, and made her almost tear up.
Lilise silently walked home. She felt reluctant to go to the Moth residential area, since it felt as though she was leeching off of Arnin, however at the thought of him, she couldn't help but smile slightly. He treated her just like her grandpa did, making her feel safe. She didn't have romantic feelings for him since she didn't understand those kinds of emotions, however she still treated Arnin like a brother.
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Arnin had been in the cultivation room for over three hours now. The light and dark marks were finally completely incorporated. Arnin couldn't help but release a deep sigh of relief. The whole procedure was extremely dangerous, but he finally completed the most difficult part. Now the last thing left to do was to combine the fire essence with the fused component.
Arnin used the same procedure as last time, deciding to utilize his mark making skills. He still couldn't practice beforehand, as he didn't have any excess of light and dark mixture to experiment with. He had no choice but to directly mix them without any preparation.
This time, the level of difficulty was significantly lower, since the two marks being mixed together weren't completely contradictory to one another, however that didn't mean that there was no danger. If he failed to properly mix all three or if he made a mistake, his body could burst into flames and explode from the inside.
Arnin quickly calmed himself down and began the same process once more. This time he had to create a mark that incorporated the three components. Darkness and light were already at an equilibrium, however if he made a mistake, the equilibrium could easily be broken.
A few hours passed by and the situation became much more relaxed. Arnin was able to combine the fire component with the darkness and light component at last, albeit with some difficulty.
Although the three were finally combined, Arnin felt as though there was something missing. He assumed that he would be able to complete the process if he used the mark making method, however the new Flames of Neutrality didn't seem to be complete. It was as though there was still something left to add.
Arnin began to think. He knew everything he did was correct, and that it should be complete, but what was he missing? Suddenly, a thought hit him.
'I used the saber to make the Flames of Neutrality, which means that there are some bits of the saber flames inside of the mark as well. Do I have to add more of the saber flames to prevent the deficiency in the mark?' Arnin didn't think that such a situation would occur, however it wasn't entirely impossible. All three of the main components were integrated inside the mark, however because of the saber flames that were secretly inserted into it, the mark was now considered incomplete. The only possibly solution was to create an equilibrium with the saber flames as well.
Arnin couldn't help but shake his head, however he continued to add in the saber flames, making the mark brighter, and more vibrant. Gradually, it also began to change shape. Flames began to appear, taking the shape of a small oval ball, almost like a… seed!
Arnin was shocked. This new object that the mark transformed into was most likely what Xillar described as a Elemental Seed.
Right when the 'seed' was completed, Arnin felt his whole body heat up. He felt as though he was in a lava pool, however that wasn't everything. A sharp stabbing pain began to spread across his whole body. It was an extremely uncomfortable feeling, however Arnin gritted his teeth and tried to wait it out. This was most likely the last step.
Two colors of gas rushed out of his body, black and white. White and orange flames also began to slowly appear on his skin. Suddenly, all four of the different substances began to merge. The two gasses combined together, then the two flames, and then finally, the new grey gas combined with the cantaloupe orange flames.
*SRRSSHH BOOM*
The sound of an explosion reverberated across the room, however no one other than Arnin heard it.
Arnin had his eyes closed the whole time as he tried to fight against the pain, however after the explosive sound, the pain suddenly turned into a feeling of comfort. He felt as though he had just jumped into a cool lake.
Arnin opened his eyes and saw a flame in front of him. In the past, when he first saw the Flames of Neutrality, they simply looked like a grey fire, however this flame was different. Passed the grey exterior, there were also two small flames rotating around the core. One of the flames was a pure white, just like snow, while the other was an orange like sun.
”I-is this my Flames of Neutrality?”