Axton opened his eyes as he noticed a figure flying toward him in the distance. With a squint, he focused his vision on a Water-Attributed Falcon and, upon recognizing the rider, hurriedly landed on his mat and walked to the balcony.
As the falcon touched down, Axton smiled. "You came back so soon. Did you find anything useful?"
Apollo jumped down from his mount. Seeing the Great Serpent Headmaster standing in front of him rather than floating on his mat as usual, he couldn’t help but look at Axton curiously. "What did you eat?"
"Huh?" Axton was confused. "What do you mean?"
"You usually stay cultivating, even when I’m right in front of you. It’s strange to see you here personally welcoming me," Apollo said, his eyes glinting with curiosity.
"I finished my session and happened to see you coming from a distance," Axton replied. "Shall we go inside?"
Axton knew that Yoma had accessed the Technique from the fifth-floor library—a technique long sought after for centuries. The one who held this power would likely become the next Great Headmaster of the Great Serpent Cultivation School. Yoma was clearly hiding his mastery of it, and Axton respected his choice.
"Nah, here’s good. The ambiance here is nice—unlike your place," Apollo said, nodding toward the dim room behind Axton. "It’s dark and heavy in there."
"If you say so."
There was a table and chairs on the balcony, so they took their seats while Bluetooth lay down nearby and began dozing off.
"So, what did you find out?" Axton asked.
Apollo recounted the recent events—his abduction by the Callum family, killing them, extracting information, and his subsequent conversation with the Kleinford and Helflick families.
Axton was shocked upon hearing that Yoma had killed the Callum family head.
"You really killed him?" he asked, a hint of worry in his voice.
"Yes, don’t worry. I erased all evidence that could lead back to me," Apollo replied. "So, what’s your take on the ghosts and demons?"
The headmaster regarded the young man for a moment, then sighed. "Ghosts are real."
"I knew it," Apollo muttered. Cultivation? Powers? Legendary beasts? But no ghosts? That’s absurd!
"But not many believe in them, especially in this region," Axton explained. "As for demons, we’ve also suspected that might be the case."
"Demons are real?" Apollo asked, noticing Axton hadn’t answered directly.
"I’m not certain," Axton admitted, shaking his head. "But I believe they are. I’ve only read about them, though; their last recorded appearance was five thousand years ago. Only those ’old fogies’ may have seen them."
"I suggest making another request. I’m convinced demons are real. They’ll have to take this matter seriously," Apollo suggested.
"It won’t be easy," Axton replied, turning serious. "We’ll need proof—only then will they take action."
"Proof? How?" Apollo asked, raising an eyebrow.
"If there’s really a demon involved…" Axton trailed off, and with a snap of his fingers, an object materialized on the table. "Take this. Bringing it out would usually break the Treaty, but for you, it’s different."
Apollo stared at the small, dark, and rusty lamp on the table. It was a simple oil lamp with a wick in the center—no fire, no glass, no burner.
"A lamp?" Apollo muttered. "How am I supposed to use this?"
"It’s no ordinary lamp," Axton replied, smiling. "This is called the Red Energy Burner. Its purpose is to detect demonic energy. If a red flame lights up, there’s demon energy in the area. That alone would serve as evidence."
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"I see," Apollo nodded, then voiced a doubt. "Then why didn’t you use this before?"
"It’s an artifact that requires approval from all the Elders," the headmaster sighed. "We had suspicions, but none of us truly believed. Besides, it’s been five thousand years, and the method for summoning demons was thought to be lost."
"So because the method was lost, you all assumed demons wouldn’t return?" Apollo raised an eyebrow. It sounded like the typical setup for ancient threats in the anime and shows he watched in his previous life.
"Yes," Axton replied honestly.
"If there’s really demonic energy back in the city, you’ll regret not acting sooner," Apollo chuckled.
"Haha, likely so." Axton laughed.
"I should get going," Apollo said, standing with the Red Energy Burner in hand.
"Alright." Axton stood as well and, noticing that Apollo was merely holding the lamp, asked, "You don’t have a Space Ring?"
"No," Apollo shook his head, understanding what the headmaster meant, as he’d read about such items on the first floor of the library.
"Take this." A ring materialized in front of Axton, which he tossed to Apollo. "It has enough space to store a whole carriage."
"I’ve heard these are quite expensive artifacts. Are you sure you want to just give it to me?" Apollo asked, catching the ring. The Space Ring was crafted from silver with intricate, small inscriptions carved all over. Looking closely, he noticed the lines were so fine and complex that it resembled an advanced microchip, yet otherworldly, like some strange doodle.
"You’ve received more valuable things than that," Axton replied. "Like your Water-Attributed Falcon—he’s worth two Space Rings."
Hearing this, Apollo’s eyes sparkled as they landed on his mount, who shivered under his gaze. Shaking his head to dismiss the thought, he waved and said goodbye. "I should get going."
He slipped on the ring, and the lamp vanished.
But as he was about to leap onto Bluetooth, a loud shriek sounded from afar.
Turning to the noise, Axton frowned as he recognized the newcomers.
"It seems you won’t be leaving so soon," Axton noted.
"What? But I still need to eat my dinner!" Apollo complained, staring at the two falcons approaching. Inside the Great Serpent Cultivation School, it was eternally daytime, yet outside, the sky was dark.
...
Lily and her master landed on the balcony with their mount.
The moment her feet touched the ground, her eyes naturally fell on the ’kid’ standing beside Headmaster Axton.
"You must be the Personal Disciple," she said, her tone indicating she wasn’t here for a friendly visit.
"And you must be one of the Seniors here to challenge me?" Apollo raised an eyebrow, a small smile on his face.
"So you already know what’s about to happen? Let’s get to it, then—you can scram afterward," Lily replied, smiling coldly.
"Elder Yunan, this isn’t a good idea," Axton said to the old woman beside Lily. Her hair was as white as snow, wrinkles and crow’s feet visible on her face, while her thin body was cloaked in a gray robe.
"That is not for you to decide, Headmaster Axton," Elder Yunan replied, dismissing his title as head of the Great Serpent Cultivation School.
"I’m not trying to persuade you to stop the challenge. It’s a warning," Axton explained.
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"A warning?" Elder Yunan chuckled, smiling proudly. "My Lily here has already reached the intermediate stage of her Battle Technique, the Water Blade Disintegration. Her strength has long since surpassed Heru’s."
Hearing this, Axton looked at Lily with amazement, though he shook his head a moment later. It wouldn’t matter, he thought, as he took a step back. He decided to let Yoma handle things as he saw fit.
"Wow, you must be so proud of yourself," Apollo said, unimpressed.
"Of course!" Lily responded confidently. "So, do you accept my challenge?"
"You’re a Callum, right?" Apollo didn’t answer directly but asked her a question.
At this, the smile faded from Lily’s face, replaced by a cold look. "Yes. What? Are you going to mock my father’s death?"
"No," Apollo shook his head. "I’m not heartless."
"It doesn’t matter. I don’t care if he’s dead or not," Lily said.
"If that’s the case… your father’s dead because you’re such a disappointment! Just because you surpassed that coward Heru doesn’t mean you can defeat me!" Apollo snapped. He was already hungry and just wanted to return to his beggar spot, but this Senior Sister was wasting his time.
Stunned by the sudden outburst, Elder Yunan and Lily glared at him.
"You! How dare you say such things!" Lily pointed at the beggar. "Come! Defeat me and back up those words!"
Apollo just wanted to end this nonsense once and for all. He wasn’t in the mood to humor this egotistical noble, as he had more important things to do. Not only was he starving, but he also wanted to see if the lamp in his Space Ring would light up.
"If you want to be humiliated so badly, then I accept your challenge!" Apollo said, turning to Axton. "Let’s go to the open area where I defeated Heru."
"Sure," Axton replied, unbothered by Yoma’s tone. He was used to how the beggar talked and how he could be an *sshole most of the time.
"I will kill you," Lily hissed, not hiding her killing intent. Her dream was at stake—the dream she had yearned for all these years was finally within reach!
"Hmph!" Apollo scoffed at the delulu. He began to consider how is he going to make her regret her actions.