Refining the Heavens (炼天)

Chapter 70: Behind the scenes

Aisa's tiny head pop out from under his robes, and she observed Kairos curiously. He had been in seclusion for a while now, and she had noticed that his unique cultivation method has reached a bottleneck. Since there is no progress, she quickly got bored.

Kairos, Aisa wants to go feed her pet. Can I?

"Okay, Aisa. Just don't let anyone catch you," Kairos said with a smile. After Aisa has appeared, the only person who can hear her voice is him. Sometimes, she will converse with him secretly, but it is apparent that she does not want to talk to anyone else.

With a blink of an eye, the playful white dragon has already disappeared from the room. With her speed, there's no doubt she is already at the training ground with the land wyrm.

The creature had previously been 'playing'... or more accurately, smacked around by Aisa during hiding and seek. Its large teary eyes were trembling with self-pity when it met a real dragon. After being caught three times, Aisa had claimed it as her pet, making this land wyrm somewhat of a pet of a pet to Kairos.

After she left, Kairos continued hammering out a few refined weapons. Even with his Origin Energy creating the inscriptions, the speed that he used to make refined weapons are still extremely slow and requires copious amounts of his energy.

Comparing to actual inscriptionists, without needing to carve onto the equipment the runic symbols, his speed is definitely much faster. However, this technique requires him to fully concentrate while creating each weapon, draining his mental focus rapidly in exchange for accuracy.

Each sword took him a good half an hour to finish, but the end products are all more or less identical.

Outside of the dorm, several men are scouting out the area. After the last time they have broken through, the security has been increased by tenfold at least.

The upgraded alarm network that is cast in this area has become extremely complicated, making it seem like an intrusion mission into the palace instead.

They tried several times and even set up anti-trigger talismans to find a way in, but a fearsome aura swept through the area and forced them to withdraw.

This dominative presence was indeed from the dorm matron. She had been extremely vigilant ever since Kairos' room had been broken into twice in a single day. It felt as though she had been slapped on the face after her security had failed. Staking on her reputation as the dorm matron, there is no way she will allow it to happen a third time.

She was thoroughly prepared while waiting for the intruders to try again. Having borrowed an artefact from the school principal, she placed a deep blue crystal on top of her work desk, and every now and then she will use it to send her aura outwards to detect any hostile intentions.

This crystal artefact is, in fact, a rare and expensive item that did not belong to the academy but from the principal instead. When she went to request for it, she had prepared with several reasons to convince him, but surprisingly when she mentioned Kairos' name the principal loan it to her at once.

With this artefact, the chances of the men intruding into the compound will be minimalised.

There were actually several techniques that could be used for scanning but having a magic artefact will help boost the range and precision.

Granted, when comparing to Soul Perception the artefact was only about a tenth as perceptive and not to mention the amount of concentration needed to activate it was much more.

But, thanks to such limitations, many traps remained undetectable, and surveillance artefacts were impossible to use during combat.

It was fortunate that during the final examinations, none of the instructors thought there was anything strange from the Snowdrifts' uncanny ability to resolve ambushes and avoid traps, and instead judged them to be exceptionally resourceful.

.....

The Snowdrifts group, not just their five leaders but all who had sworn loyalty to the group is now under heavy scrutiny because of the attention that the emperor had placed on their captain. But just checking through the individual information of their members shocked the authorities speechless.

They have immediately identified that the bulk of their group is made up of commoners, with most of them from the poorest caste. The few nobles within their group are all from the Ten Thousand Aristocrats' hierarchy, and not a single of them have any backing from great families nor powerful clans.

This discovery caught the attention of numerous powerful factions that wish to absorb a potent force that could be groomed into future martial might. Even the Three Great Nobles were roused.

In the halls of the Dark God family, a gaunt-looking man, seemingly in his seventies, sat sprawl on a large beautifully embellished chair. His sharp features and thin lips gave him a fierce, hawk-like, appearance.

In front of him are the heads of the Devilheart family, the Dark Sword Clan and the Hidden Blades assassin group.

The reports about Calculus' actions were placed neatly in front of him and the head of the Devilheart family, Calculate, is standing close by with a grim expression on his face.

"Lord Yue, my son, has been humiliated by this Peasant boy, and he challenges your authority! Your subordinate requests to remove this stain on our honour!" Calculate said with a nasty tone on his voice when he spoke the word 'Peasant' as if that word would dirty his tongue.

He had tactfully switched his words around and made what Kairos did to his son as a stain on his Lord's honour, but the only response he receives is a simple smile.

"Is that so?" Lord Yue, the head of the Dark God family said in a voice that rasped and grated, sounding like evil spirits crying out from the depths of hell. All that heard his voice could not control their bodies from trembling involuntarily from fear.

"The boy is interesting indeed. To have come from a peasant's background yet able to gather the attention of even us Great Nobles.

Have you found out the source of his secret arts like I told you?" Lord Yue looked at Calculate Devilheart with a lazy gaze, but just that caused him to break out in cold sweat. The degree of martial strength of Lord Yue cannot be measured.

"Lord Yue, your subordinate is useless. Until now my men have not been able to discover the source of his martial arts. However, there is a report of this leather tome that we had been able to retrieve."

"Oh? What is so special about that leather tome you retrieved?"

"The tome itself is nothing special. It is simply an old tome made of stinky unused leather pages. The only thing that caught your subordinate's eyes is the fact that it disappeared after it was thrown into a furnace."

Lord Yue's eyes grew wide when he heard the news. For an item to disappear from a burning furnace means that either a practitioner of incredible abilities had a way to pull it out without fearing the flames and under their noses, or the tome itself is sealed with a teleportation rune which activates when threatened.

In either case, this means that the tome is much more than they first expected.

"Hahaha... how interesting. That boy had something like that with him?

I expect you have already sent men down to retrieve the tome again."

"Yes my Lord. My instructions have been sent down. Even if we cannot find the tome, we will extract the information from one of the boys."

"Alright, you are all dismissed. Remember, do not take their lives. I am interested in them after all. Ha ha ha ha!" Lord Yue said in a tone that shown no amusement nor cheer. Instead, his laughter made roomy hall rung out like death itself is about to gleefully claim a life.

.....

Late in the evening, Aisa had returned looking extremely happy. Her day has been spent playing hide and seek again, and she was heartfelt joyous that Old Ye had taught her such a fun game. The old immortal back in his sect shuddered involuntarily as Aisa promised herself the next time she finds Old Ye again, she will have him play this with her no matter what.

It'd be a reward for the old man! Hehe