The rest of the dinner went on silently, with Orion chatting with Lyra and his mothers a little.
Lyra, who was listening to her twin, looked over to William and informed him, "Little brother, you should come to the main training hall at dawn tomorrow; I will train you in 'Glacier'."
William knitted his eyebrows while listening to his sister. He looked over to his mother, Aquila, and asked, "But I am training in 'heat' with Mother Aquila?"
Aquila, who listened in on their conversation, shook her head and said, "Yes, although you are training in 'heat' and could only see the fire mana, you have to train in other elements too."
Carina nodded her head at her big sister's response and added, "That's right, William. I theorize that in order for you to advance to beginner, you need to at least be able to see all types of major elemental mana."
Ara then asked, "Does that mean he has to see 'earth' and 'wind' mana too?"
Carina nodded her head and replied, "Yes, he has to be able to view the four different kinds of mana."
"But why can't William view the mana around him like we do?" Achlys asked, she was silently staring at her new rival but was intrigued by the family's discussion.
"That's because he is human." Ara answered.
"Because he is human?"
Ara nodded her head and replied, "Yes, humans don't have the ability to awaken their attributes from birth, but when they do awaken their attributes at the age of 10, they will not have the ability to view their respective elemental mana."
"That's why the first stage of humans' cultivation is always to develop the ability to sense mana. The next stage is to interact with it, manipulate it, and so on." Ophiscus added while placing the fork in his hand on the table.
"Then won't it slow down their cultivation progress?" Seraphina asked this time; her golden eyes were shining with curiosity as she learned more about William.
"That is why we are weak and the only reason my brother is the strongest is because he is special." Vela answered.
"Other races have the ability to see their respective mana at the time of their birth or almost a year after their birth. But we have to gain the right to see mana through their own hard work."
She clenched her fists and her eyes were shining with killing intent as she muttered that this was unfair for the humans.
Seraphina and Achlys nodded their heads, ignoring Vela's grumbling. They turned to William and said, "Then he should also learn wind and earth attributes, right?"
"According to my theory, yes." Carina answered.
"William, do you want to train and learn 'Glacier'?" Orion asked.
William nodded in response and muttered, "Yes."
"Good." Lyra smiled, eager to spend time with William.
The dinner went on with the family chatting with each other.
.......
The next day,
William opened the door to the training hall. He was wearing light training clothes and his gleaming determination.
CREAK
The doors opened with a creak, and William's gaze fell upon his sister. She was wearing a light blue robe with her silver hair tied into a ponytail.
Next to her, Ophiscus was standing with his arms crossed, his expression serious.
William looked at Ophiscus with his brows furrowed. 'Why is father here?' he thought.
"William, you are here." Lyra muttered, her voice flat as usual.
William nodded, looking at her, clenching his fists and said, "Yes, big sister, I am ready,"
Lyra, looking at her brother's determination, nodded in approval and informed him, "We are not training here."
"Then?"
"I thought about it all night; for you to be able to see ice mana, the best way I could think of is to experience it yourself."
"That's why I am here." Ophiscus added, "We will be going to the largest ice mountain ranges in this world."
He stretched his hand immediately upon informing William. Ophiscus' golden eyes shone brightly as mana gathered around his stretched hand.
The mana then shot towards the space in front of him.
FWOOSH
The space affected by his mana, began to twist and turn, cracks began to appear like a spider web.
CRACK
Suddenly, the space in front of him teared; producing a sound like that of shattering glass.
Ophiscus then sent in more mana, expanding the crack further. He provided it with mana until it reached Ophiscus' height.
He then turned towards his son, who had stars shining in his eyes.
'Father is so cool' William exclaimed, his mouth agape and eyes shining in excitement. He looked like a kid who had met his superhero.
Ophiscus smiled proudly as he looked at his son's reaction. He raised his chin a little and said, "Let's go."
They entered the space tear with Ophiscus in the front and Lyra at the back.
The moment William stepped foot in the mountain ranges, he began shivering heavily due to the cold.
'W-What is this? This is too cold!' William exclaimed, he looked over to his sister, who had a small smile on her face. She looked like someone who had been away from home and finally returned years later.
Ophiscus remained indifferent to the cold. He was unaffected by the surrounding weather.
"S-S-Sister, this is too cold." William muttered; he could feel the cold seeping into his bones as he breathed ruggedly.
Ophiscus, who was about to use his aura to cover William, stopped when he heard his daughter.
"Father, stop. If you do that, then William will never be able to sense ice mana." Lyra said with a frown on her face, she clenched her pale white hands, holding herself back.
Ophiscus stopped midway, his face scrunched up in pain, and he couldn't see his son in that state.
"You should leave, father." Lyra stated. Her expressionless face turned even colder as she gazed at Ophiscus.
Ophiscus stared at his daughter before nodding. He turned to William and muttered, "Good luck, son," and stepped into the portal.
After Ophiscus left, Lyra turned to William and said, "Endure the cold, William. It will help you connect with Ice Mana easily."
She then began walking and motioned for William to walk along with her.
William slowly lifted his leg, but screamed in pain as his bones had become too rigid and his muscles had become tense due to the cold.
Lyra turned around and looked at William, who was writhing in pain. She clenched her fists, stopping herself, and muttered, "Endure it, William, and walk just like I do." It took all her willpower to stop herself from rushing to his aid.
'I am sorry, William.' She muttered under her breath, 'This is for your own good.' She then began walking in a way that would produce more heat from one's body.
William watched Lyra walk and imitated her. 'Aargh!' William screamed internally as he took his first step.
Gasp
He gasped for breath as he looked at his sister, who had a smile on her face. "Good," she complimented.
William smiled weakly as he took his second step, then the third and the fourth. It took his entire strength to move a single step forward, but William continued. He persisted and walked and walked until it became a little easier to walk.
William's eyes widened as he noticed he could walk a little faster now. He was still having a difficult time taking a step, but it was undeniable that he could walk a little faster than before.
William looked at Lyra's back, she was a few steps in front of him, in determination. 'Wait for me, sister.' he mumbled.
The duo walked for a few hours in the snow, and William by now could walk normally without any exertion of his strength.
'It's frightening!' Lyra exclaimed inwardly. 'His body adapted to this type of cold in a few hours.' She muttered inwardly, astonished by William's adaptability.
'It took me 2 days to get used to this cold.' She shivered as she recalled the past.
After another few minutes of walking, they reached a cave. The entire cave was covered in crystal ice, with a little stream of water flowing in the center. Lyra walked into the cave avoiding the ice spears hanging from the wall.
William followed her, and the duo reached the end of the cave before Lyra turned to him and started explaining, "William, sit here and meditate."
William nodded at his sister and sat in front of an ice pillar. The pillar was transparent and covered the entire end of the cave. It was emitting a cold so frightening that it seeped into William's skin and started freezing the muscles.
William shivered vigorously. He shakily turned to his sister with a gaze questioning about the ice pillar.
Lyra, noticing William's gaze, muttered, "The ice pillar here emits ice mana; although it is in low quantity, it should be enough."
William nodded in understanding.
"Now begin." Lyra ordered.
William immediately closed his eyes and focused on his surroundings. He could feel it; the cold piercing his skin and freezing his muscles.
He focused on the sensation he felt when he was able to see the fire mana. But the moment he did so, the ice mana began ravaging his entire body. It fiercely attacked his muscles, shredding them.
"Aaaaargh!" William screamed in pain as blood spurted out of his mouth.
"William, focus on what you've felt when you were walking before." Lyra said it hurriedly. She bit her lips as she looked at her brother groaning in pain.
William listened to his sister and focused on the cold he had felt while walking. He recalled the pain he felt. The way the cold tried to freeze his muscles, the way the bones screamed in protest when he walked.
He recalled it all, and he concentrated on the pain he was experiencing now as a muffled groan escaped his lips. He remembered how smooth the ice felt to the touch, but also how sturdy it was.
Suddenly, the figure of him walking through the snow flashed in his mind, showing how he struggled at first and how eventually he was able to walk normally. It all flashed in front of his eyes.
CLICK
Something clicked in William's mind when he saw the way he walked. 'What was different about it?' A question appeared in his mind, as if someone had put it there.
His mind raced as he recalled the walk and how it was different from the way he normally walks.
WROONG