When Yi Tan opened his eyes again, he laid there trying to take everything in. Everything that was said was still vivid in his mind. He looked down and lifted his shirt, wondering what was real and what was not. "I am not sure what to believe..." Yi Tan held his head with his hand as he slowly got up. "I need to head to the academy for now. I will look more into this if I awaken because if I fail, I am dead anyway. Anyway, I should buy a few sets of cheap clothes before going."
After deciding what he was going to do, Yi Tan left the inn and headed to a second hand store. There he bought a used duffle bag and three sets of clothes and a few packages of new socks, underwear, and a cheap pair of shoes. After changing into a new set of clothes, Yi Tan went to the lift that led to the second level.
The lift itself was nothing fancy to look at. It was made of steel and could fit a few hundred people on it at a time. Yi Tan had never personally used this lift before, but he has been to this part of the slums many times. The line going to the business district was always long. Yi Tan got in line and looked ahead. In his mind, many things were wandering about, such as his strange, vivid dream, the things that happened to him, and wondering where his father went. The last thing was the main thing on his mind. He was worried about his father and grandfather.
The people in line in front of Yi Tan were all from the lower class. You could tell just by the clothes they were wearing. Most of these people were going to their jobs. Those without abilities were tasked with filling in the roles of the jobs no one wanted to do. But those with jobs who lived in the slums, working in the business district, were lucky since they would get a higher rate of pay.
After about an hour of waiting in line, Yi Tan finally got his turn on the lift. He was slightly excited since this was his first time going to the second level. He wondered how different things were. He wondered if it looked anything like the damp iron smelling slums or if it actually had signs of life besides people and stray animals.
The lift was rather cramped with all the people they shoved onto it. The sounds of gears could be heard as the lift shook slightly when the metal shutters closed. With a strong jerk that almost knocked Yi Tan over, the lift began to rise. Yi Tan could not see much of what was going on since he was more towards the center of the lift, but he could see up and watched as the light from above got brighter and brighter.
The time from when the lift first started moving until the time it arrived on the second floor took a total of fifteen minutes. But what awaited Yi Tan was a shock to his system. The second level was completely different from the slums. As soon as he walked out of the building that housed the lift and went through security, he was met with a vast open field of open plains. The fake blue skies over ahead that stayed solid with no flickering, the smell of fresh air that was foreign to Yi Tan, along with the lush greenery every which way he looked, was a shock to his system. These were things he had never seen before and only saw pictures of. Only a fifteen minute ride in a lift had brought him to what seemed like a completely different world.
While the second level was called the business district, it also was the place where farms were as well. All of Valant cities crops were grown here. Farm animals from cows, chickens, sheep, and pigs were also raised here. There was even a large man made ocean with many fish and other ocean bound marine life. Each one of these areas was heavily regulated on how much can be farmed or sold at a time. Which makes old world meats and fish a delicacy and very expensive.
But there were also different kinds of monster meats that the ability users would bring in to subside such food shortages. Some of which were very tasty, but the old world food was still highly sought after by nobles.
Valant City Royal Academy was also on this second level. It was located on the western side of the city. And had its own area that spanned tens of kilometers. At any given time, it could house tens of thousands of students. Between the high rise dorms and the training facilities, it was one of the most expensive places in all of Valant City. This was a given since the youths trained here from a young age were the future of the city.
Yi Tan walked over to where a group of people were standing and waiting. There was a bus terminal here that would take people from the lift to the different parts of the city. The bus Yi Tan was waiting for was heading towards the academy. There were many other youths here too, none of which he knew.
One young man wearing a t-shirt and jeans walked over to Yi Tan. "You going to the academy too?" The young man asked with a smile.
"That I am. Although, I am a little nervous about the awakening." Yi Tan replied in a friendly manner. Those who were kind to him, he would return the same kindness back.
"Tell me about it. I do not think there is a single person here who would not be nervous. If our bodies can't take it..." The young man gave an exaggerated shiver as he continued: "Let's not talk about that. My names Tim Beekal, fifteen years old. You can make fun of my last name if you want, everyone does."
Tim reached out his hand to Yi Tan. Yi Tan smiled and shook it. "Yi Tan. Everyone calls me Tan, fourteen, fifteen in a few months."
"It's good to meet you. From this day on, we are brothers!" Tim declared happily.
Yi Tan liked people like Tim. He was friendly and straightforward. He got a good vibe from the young man. Tim was about his height and build with fiery red hair. Although he seemed to have a mean look in his eyes, he was a very friendly person. "Haha! Then brothers, we will be."
"Brother, what ability are you looking to get? An elemental or physical?" Tim asked.
"Hmm… I never really thought about it. I figured I would just go with what I get. But if I had to make a choice, it would be either lightning or earth magic. Lightning because it is very destructive and can kill many monsters and earth because not only can it be used to enhance you physically, and it can do some pretty insane things from what I have seen on TV." Tan never thought about it, but he would like to have one of these elements. As for physical abilities, he wasn't too keen on those since they were not all that good unless you were blessed to get enhanced strength or speed. The other physical abilities would be brought about by mutations of the extremities. Although some of them would be completely useless, the government would still give these ability users jobs. Mainly as foot soldiers to act as cannon fodder for those with real abilities.
"Yeah, I saw a video of the Earth God, Ben Freeman, yesterday. He was fighting a bunch of monsters near an ore mine and caused the damn earth to split up into a huge canyon! It swallowed up a massive horde of monsters. My blood was boiling just seeing such a sight! Although he still has a ways to go before matching up to Tang Shen." Tim said excitedly. His eyes were filled with fire as he spoke. These kinds of things were all kids his, and Yi Tan's age loved.
"Sigh, you're lucky you got to watch such things. I would be lucky to catch a glimpse of it on the TVs in the shops in the slums." Yi Tan could tell that Tim was from one of the more well off people of the slums. Otherwise he would not be here.
"Tan, if we both awaken and don't get killed on the spot, we need to stick together. My brother goes to the academy and he told me it is like survival of the fittest there. We have to do our best to not stick out too much." Tim warned. His brother told him many things about the academy and none of it was good. Only those with the strength to not be looked down upon would be able to walk around the halls without worry.