The Canyon was outside the academy area, a few kilometers into the forest on the outskirts of the capital, as soon as they arrived they came across a large expanse of orange stone with burn marks on all sides.
Even at the entrance it was possible to feel the latent energy in the air and observe the high level storms a few kilometers ahead, according to the information Kayden consulted, the Canyon had 4 level storms.
Each of them was controlled by an electric spirit, something difficult to birth and rarely documented. They had no bodies, just basic instincts to keep the storm constant. This was an ideal place as it had an underground mana vein that increased the density of the region.
"Why did you come here?" Heimer asked while paying the entrance fee that cost merit points for both of them.
"I need to see the first level storm." Kayden would not reveal the real reason and would wait for Heimer to leave before acting. The two walked a few kilometers until they reached a giant cliff. In this place, they could not fly, as the storm saw this as a challenge to its authority. When looking down, there were only compact clouds and lightning passing through them.
The storm extended for nearly two miles, becoming a freak of nature. Anyone looking would be scared to get close to something that big. The abyss looked ominous, with dark clouds and lightning.
Kayden sat and just waited, running the plan through his head. Heimer accompanied him to try to learn something about lightning but slowly became discouraged when he saw that it was much more complex than he imagined.
"Kayden, call me outside when you need a ride." The moment Kayden had been waiting for had finally arrived. It took about an hour for Heimer to get tired and leave. Kayden spent a few more minutes looking at the cliff, wondering if what he was about to do was worth it. Some people around him recognized him and were looking at the boy who was so close to the cliff.
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"Today I take another step towards history or my last living step", the boy whispered and... threw himself into the storm. Those around it took a while to realize what had happened, but as soon as they realized, some ran out to see Kayden falling. Others went looking for help, but as cell phones didnât work in that area, they had to walk. The walk, even running, would take about 30 minutes, and finding help and bringing her here would take at least another 15 minutes.
Falling, Kayden felt the wind howl in his ear and pass through his entire body. His mind was calm as he waited to enter the storm. He had learned a technique based on creating mana bricks to float. The lightning became more threatening the closer he got. In just a few seconds, he pierced the cloud. His body was doused with cold water, and yet he continued a few more meters.
The boy stopped in what he considered to be the center of the storm. Lightning from all sides started attacking him. Kayden had to use his path to the fullest, combined with all the knowledge of energy and electricity he had, to reduce the damage from the lightning. Even so, his body began to suffer the consequences. Hundreds were falling on him at any given moment. Most were deflected or completely nullified with his mana, but some he could just take out their full strength.
His path extended outside his body, taking the form of dominance. This was what he had used in the admissions test. Everything was within your reach and control. Kayden began to deactivate beam by beam. Some even grabbed his body. His left hand was raw, and you could see some bones. Each ray burned a little more and weakened his movements even more.
A few minutes later, Kayden encountered a different variation of energy. It was similar to a human torso but did not have any defined shape other than a breastplate. It didnât even have a head. His body was already injured with several cuts and burns. His shirt was already gone, and his pants were in tatters, but he hadnât lost 90% of his combat ability.
His body was already injured with several cuts and burns. His clothes, and shirt, were already gone and his pants were in tatters, but he hadnât lost 90% of his combat ability.
Using all the mana around him, he approached the energy form and tried to subdue it, putting pressure on mana that no apprentice or even a mage should be able to exert. The response was an intensification of the lightning that was coming at him.
If before there were hundreds, now there were thousands, and even so, when they reached a certain distance from Kaydenâs body, they became weak. Every second he got better at neutralizing the lightning. Before, he needed to counterattack one by one, but now he had a dome around him filtering the mana for him.
The scene was unbelievable. If anyone on the outside looked inside, they would see a tiny human-like being facing a multitude of lightning bolts coming from a colossal storm. Only the white flashes of lightning were visible, which with each second intensified in quantity and strength.
"Holy shit," Kayden began to think, "I might not have made the best decision." But soon his mind hardened and he got rid of these weak thoughts. His left arm... was completely gone, consumed by the momentum of the lightning.
The boy broke the barrier and used his path one level deeper. At this moment, if he couldnât break through, he would die from the exhaustion of using his strength to its full capacity.
The rays could no longer find Kayden. Whenever they passed through the dome, they were simply shattered into tiny particles of energy. The strength and quantity grew to an absurd level, reaching the point where even people watching from above could see the flashes.
Practically all of the stormâs rays were concentrated in just one point, causing a huge ball of white light to fly in the middle of the storm. Only 10 minutes had passed since Kayden jumped.
"Bend or die," Kayden put even greater pressure on the spirit. The being had never experienced this before, mainly because few could feel it and he was always able to throw a few thousand lightning bolts and make his opponent give up.
The mana pressure got closer and closer, squeezing the spirit and slowly suffocating it. For the first time in his life, he felt like he could die. He could not speak, this was only given to spirits of the second realm.
His arrogance in thinking he was at the top of the food chain prevented him from bowing down. Kaydenâs eyes were cold and blinking with excess mana pouring out of his entire body.