Adan laid on his bed and stared at the ceiling. Questions were still swirling in his head. He just couldn't understand why he couldn't cultivate. Why was he so different from his brother?
Let me try again, maybe this time it'll be different. Adan thought as he sat crossed legged in a meditative position, in the middle of his bed.
He closed his eyes and put his hands together, he felt like he was able to control the liquid elements in the air. His body started glowing with blue hues, his blue hair was fluttering and glowing too. Then the liquids joined together and were circling.
Soon, a total of three rings made out of the liquid turned blue and we're circling round Adan. Suddenly, a crack appeared on one of the rings, the crack then multiplied and was affecting the other rings but still Adan was focused, he tried to repair the cracks but they got bigger and then the rings broke and dispersed.
Adan tried again the second time and the same thing happened. He tried the third time but this time as the rings cracked his chest tightened and as they dispersed he coughed black blood!
He coughed blood mainly because of what happened in the dining room but this was usually what happened when he cultivated. He stood up from his bed and walked to the bathroom to wash his mouth and then he changed his clothes.
Adan felt extreme pain in his chest as he walked back to his bed. He laid on his bed and stared at the ceiling feeling confused and weak. He still doesn't understand what he did wrong.
*************
~Ding-Dong~
The bell rang across Euphrasia (Water Empire) indicating that it was noon. Adan was already on his way to his father's chamber. He looked nervous, not knowing what to expect this time but he knew it wouldn't be good.
Soon, he was in front of a huge duplex that looked like an ice castle. The guards at the entrance wore a deep blue attire.
"Good day, My Prince" the guard on the left greeted with a friendly smile.
Adan nodded his head and said "Is my father inside?"
"Yes... " the guard on the left replied but was cut off by the one on the right "Do you wish to see him, I would have to inform him first"
"There's no need for that." Adan said with a bored tone and walked through the entrance door.
"Can you believe how arrogant he is? He's still in the low level of the lesser realm and yet he still has pride! His younger brother is way better than him!" The guard on the right said to his colleague as Adan had already gone inside.
"Well, he's still a prince and might be the future Emperor, so he still has the right to have pride. You are just from a knight's family, you are nothing in his eyes" the one on the left laughed while the other glared and didn't say anything else.
When it comes to social ranking, the royal family is obviously above all. Then the Noble families, the knight families and the commoners.
Adan soon passed through some chilly hallways and arrived in front of his father's office. The door had flakes of ice in some places. He took a deep breath pushing away all the memories that tried to resurface.
As he was about to knock on the door, a deep cold voice came from inside the room "You are free to come in, there's no need to knock"
Adan then grabbed the door knob which was covered in ice. He felt a sharp pain on his hand because of the ice but he ignored the pain and turned the knob. The cold he felt in the hallway couldn't compare to the one he was feeling at the moment. Snow was literally falling from the ceiling.
"Good day, Father" Adan bowed, he was close to the point of shivering. His father who was on the other side of the room was seated behind a table and had the most casually cold look ever as if he was unaffected by the temperature.
"No need for pleasantries, let's talk in my domain" Emperor Mykel said then the snow in the room stopped. Adan was shocked, has his father finally had a breakthrough?! "Ice domain: Crystal Throne Room"
The room Adan was standing in changed! He was now in a throne room made out to light blue ice. There were rows of stairs made of ice to climb to reach Emperor Mykel's ice throne. In his domain, he had absolute control.
Adan was standing below those stairs while a pair of cold blue eyes were staring down on him.
A plain chuckle was heard from the throne "Ha ha ha, After more than twenty five years I have finally broken through to another level. It feels so good"
"Congratulations, Father"
"Who asked you to speak?" A glare fell on Adan "Besides, that is not why you are here. I want to give you an opportunity to cultivate properly and of course you don't have a choice. There's a fruit that can solve all cultivation trouble, some say it could even give a normal person the ability to cultivate. It is called The fruit of potential. But it cannot be obtained easily."
There was a brief pause, Adan knew his father was toying with him so he asked "How can I find it, Father?"
"Exactly what I wanted to hear. Its tree only grows in the Land of Redemption. There is only one known tree."
Adan's eyes widened, he had heard a little about that place but from the little he had heard, he only knew that there was no civilization there and time there flows differently and is not controlled by anyone.
"You will set out in one week, prepare yourself. You are dismissed" The ice domain dispersed and Adan was back in his father's office.
"Thank you for this opportunity, father" Adan bowed towards his father and exited the office .
He walked back to the main entrance and then walked out. He felt some warmth which reminded him of his father's domain.
"Brother! I was worried about you. You aren't bruised, are you?" Aziel asked in a hurry. He has been waiting for Adan for almost half an hour now. Adan shook his head and walked towards his brother. "Oh, that's good. I'll just make you warm then" Aziel smiled widely, all his worries were relieved.
He then covered Adan with a water made bubble which emitted warm air. Adan pale complexion caused by the cold turned back to normal then the bubble dispersed.
"Thank you"
"So what happened? I want all the details" Aziel gave his usual smile.