Iron, Silver, and Gold; each Grade was a depiction of existential strength on Sumatra. The sheer difference between the Grades symbolised how far up the food chain a higher Grade Pranic Beast was when compared to the lower Grades. And Gold Grade Pranic Beasts stood at the apex.
It was a turtle, if stated plainly. The shell on its back spanned an area of sixteen square kilometres, and carried on this shell was a mountain, where Cooter Clansmen lived, trained, and gained strength.
The neck stretched for a ridiculous length of ten kilometres, allowing the creature whip its poor prey from the height of the skies and absolutely vaporise it upon impact. The sheer size and grandeur of its form, not to mention its unmatched strength granted it the status of Deity.
After all, it was an existence that symbolised the natural limit of birth for the strongest possible existence on the Continent of Sumatra.
Expert Gold Grade Pranic Beast–Empyrean Snapper!
With a Prana capacity of 8400 and a lifespan of 2000 years, the Empyrean Snapper represented the ceiling strength that could be attained naturally. Typically, an Empyrean Snapper remained submerged underwater. Only the mountain portion on its back was exposed, making it look no different from natural terrain.
Now, it had revealed itself, taking to the sky through a series of clouds that had twisted around its neck. And from its high altitude, it stared in the direction of the Academy of Accumulation, focusing on Torq.
It hadn’t sensed what had transpired seconds ago. However, its extraordinary senses had picked up on Runthral’s disturbed presence, which was why it intended to investigate the cause.
Its neck poised high up in the sky, assuming a form similar to a cobra, before its strike. And then, like a flash of lightning, the head moved, now hovering right above Torq. No sound had been produced during the motion.
There wasn’t a stirrup in the sky in the slightest, no shockwaves, not even a mild gust of air. The Empyrean Snapper’s head had moved stealthily, without causing a disturbance in the region, and now hovered above Torq to observe the latter.
’W-Wow!’ Was all Torq could cheer mentally, gawking at the majestic beast before him. He wasn’t in the slightest bit worried about being found out, for his trump card was perfect, ’I wouldn’t have used it otherwise.’
Huff!
There arrived a mild exhale from the Empyrean Snapper. And rampaging around in the Academy of Accumulation, were fierce winds, almost akin to a cyclone. But despite how fierce the winds got, not a single student was harmed, including Torq, who was caught in the centre of it all.
’Now,’ Torq chuckled in excitement, watching the stormy winds glide past him, perfectly moving right above his skin so as to not harm him, ’This is a Deity!’
A few seconds later, the storm subsided as sunlight cast upon Torq. The Empyrean Snapper had vanished, disappearing as stealthily as it had appeared. There was no change in the surroundings, but Torq knew otherwise, ’It must have fully inspected the region but failed to find anything worth concerning about.’
’It couldn’t have seen my ability in effect, as that barrier is meant to separate us from the rest of the world beyond.’ Torq thought, ’However, it must have felt the fluctuations in Runthral’s presence. That’s what agitated it into taking action.’
’Now, seeing as there’s nothing here that can threaten Runthral, it left confused.’ Torq grinned upon seeing his cuffs had come loose, "Well, that saves me some time and effort."
"Thank you for the assist," He cheerfully waved his hand at the sky, even though the Empyrean Snapper had already returned to its dwelling spot underwater.
Now free from his bindings, Torq could move around as he pleased. First things first, he patted his chest and closed his eyes, sensing the state of his Spirit Container, ’It has mostly shattered, causing me to lose a majority of my cultivation.’
On Sumatra, cultivation began from the Spirit Stage, developed through the Body Stage, and then progressed through the Life Stage. Upon reaching the peak of the Life Stage, a cultivator had a chance at entering the Transcendence Stage.
Prana naturally accumulated as packets of energy, with each packet being expressed as a unit of Prana. Every living being on Sumatra had Prana, and the quantity they were born with varied based on talent and other factors.
Boiboi had 52 units of Prana at the time of birth, making him exceptionally talented. Even Runthral, at birth, only had 8 units of Prana. This stark difference, wherein Boiboi was superior to their Clan Deity, painted him a target for bullying.
As the energy formed through the fusion of the energies of the body, mind, and soul, Prana was extremely sensitive to accumulation, especially at the Spirit Stage. Mental and physical shocks had the capability to destabilise one’s Spirit Container and destroy a portion of it.
A cultivator lost their Prana capacity in proportion to the damage sustained by their Spirit Container. "Well, this sucks."
At present, Torq’s Spirit Container only had a capacity of 18 units of Prana. Had he reached a Prana capacity of 100 units, it meant he had attained the peak of the Spirit Stage. That meant he could attempt entering the Body Stage, which will allow him to graduate from the Academy.
At the age of eleven, Boiboi had already developed his Spirit Container to have a Prana capacity of 99 units. But then, the first incident happened, where he peeled off a student’s facial skin.
He was whipped nonstop, torturously so, until his Spirit Container started to shatter. Piece by piece, it collapsed, until his Prana capacity fell under 50 units. It meant half his Spirit Container had been destroyed.
’And before this whipping session, I had 87 units of Prana.’ Torq thought with a mild groan as he stared at his hands, "This will become an issue."
"I have less than a month to reach the Body Stage." He grumbled, "Otherwise, I’ll be killed."
"It’s too short a time."
"Well, that’s what makes life so interesting." Letting out a grin, Torq began to walk through the Academy while his facial skin began to regenerate. His left eye wasn’t usable yet, while only the skin on his forehead had regenerated.
A thin layer of muscle strand covered his vertebrae, while his jaws looked partly misaligned. ’I think around 60 units of Prana should be enough to make a complete recovery.’
’It will take some time, but as long as I eat plenty, I will generate enough Prana in my body.’ Thinking as such, Torq filtered through his memories and focused on the location of the Academy Canteen, ’It’s...far!’
"Well, large places do have their charm." Slowly, he walked towards his destination, only to notice a crowd had gathered at the Canteen’s entrance. At a glance, it was obvious they intended to block his entry.
’Seriously? They intend to waste their valuable time just to block my path?’ Torq was exasperated for a moment, as the Clan rules dictated anyone who, at the time of graduation by the age of 15, hadn’t reached the Body Stage, they would be disposed–by being fed to a Pranic Beast.
So, petty actions such as blocking the canteen was self-harming too, which puzzled Torq, ’These students shouldn’t be idiots. Then, why...’
He slowly eyed the floor, considering if he should seriously use his trump card–the one unleashed upon Runthral–on this crowd and vaporise them. But then, he observed the crowd further and burst into laughter, "What the...they were rotating in shifts?"
Students that had classes walked away from the crowd while those who had free time joined in next. They were only blocking Torq’s path when they were free, ’Oh, this is fine. I love childish games.’
He raised his arms and announced as his palms made grabbing motions, "I think I’m getting another urge to peel..."
And then, he charged at the crowd.