"As I was saying, spiritual essence is the foundation on all that we do. Thus it is paramount for anything and everything you will do for the rest of your lives. Pay attention to the diagram of the board.

The human body has many energy channels within. These can only be accessed by spiritual essence and are intangible to anything else. Thousands upon thousands of complex essence channels link and cross in ways you cant imagine. But the blue print for almost every human is the same. Only those with incredibly unique innate physiques subvert this rule.

Moving spiritual essence along a certain route will produce effects unique to that route. Eg a route that went down the path highlighted above would result in the user being much stronger physically over a period of time. But if you were to change the route by so much as one channel, like here for example, you will have a completely different result. Instead of cultivating strength, the user will cultivate strong nails that can rip through steel.

Just one change and the cultivation path was changed, and no doubt not in a path that was not suitable for the user. This is why spiritual theorists are so respected. Their knowledge allows them to do research that comes up with new cultivation paths everyday!"

The lecturer continued for a few more minutes until Ro took Darius away. Darius had known this information but the explanation made more details easier to understand. Just 5 minutes had already given him benefits, then what about whole days?

Darius had virtually no understanding on spiritual essence. He could use it thanks to the help of the old man but that path was not proper and would result in future inconveniences.

Ro took Darius to various lecture halls that dwelled on various lessons. From cultivating spiritual essence in one's body to application of spiritual essence in spirit arts. Darius absorbed all he could understand and stored what he could not. The boy's memory was nothing to scoff at. Especially when it came to things he deemed important. It wasn't just his body that he could control well.

Darius was also shown other places such as the cafeteria in his section, the training centers close by and the girl's dormitory. The last one was appreciated, but not neccessary. Darius could tell from the sleazy look Ro gave female students everywhere they went and he had to admit, they had similar tastes. It was silly, but something that seemed so insignificant subconsciously brought the two closer, on Ro's end as well.

Ro liked how Darius cared little for public opinion. It was almost as if the boy had no sense of shame. Ro appreciated minds similar to his own and started appreciating having met this young boy. By sundown the duo were talking about many things with the mood in the car light and smooth.

It was at that point that Darius got an email on his communicator. High end communicators had contact lenses that only allowed the wearer to see what was being shown unless the wearer chose to have it shown via hologram or by linking to other lenses.

Darius had gotten a new one so few people had his contact details. He recongnized the sender and frowned a bit. It was his Master!

Darius put on his earphones and said, "Excuse me." to Ro, who understood and nodded.

A pre recorded image of the old man sitting cross legged on the floor appeared and he looked up at Darius.

"This is a recording. I have multiple recordings places in your com. They are all designed to appear only if you make specific decisions. This recording requires the following events to occur. Event one is if Ja Mun Ro gives you the tour as I had requested from an old friend. The second event is that Ro personally introduces you to Martialists. Now that these requirements have been met listen closely, because your life depends on it. It is up to you to decide whether or not you will listen to my suggestion."

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Ro saw Darius stare at the ground. It was no doubt a hologram or video of some sort. He saw Darius take off his earphones and place them back in his com. The latter then ruffled his hair in what seemed to be agonizing thought. But he eventually acquieced to whatever inner demons he was fighting and said, "Senior, can you please do me a favour?"

Ro was a bit puzzled and said, "What ya need young blood."

With a serious face he said, "take to a place where we can speak…privately. This is of the utmost importance."

Ro's eyes shined for a moment as he puffed a few times. He then shouted, "Oy, take us to the car port, to my personal transport."

"Understood." The shuttle then pulled a u-turn and changed directions. They were supposed to have been taking Darius to his room but now it seems that there was something going on. Ro was sure something would come up. It took a lot of power to get someone of his station to be a guide, it similarly took a lot of power for Hope to be a mere receptionist. Although he had recomended that Darius be a Martialist, that was purely because of the threat he sensed from the boy. Indeed, he, Ja Mun Ro, was feeling threatened by a rookie. These circumstances and other observations Ro had made took his fancy. Who was this boy?

The car port was a large garage with shuttles of multiple sizes going in and out. There were in school shuttles for short distance travel within the academy and long distance shuttles for travelling to the city. High level students or students with unique identities could own their own long distance shuttles. This was where Darius and Ro were taken.

Ro's shuttle looked more like a large jet. It was orange and looked rather rusty. But it was still advanced to Darius. The inside was also decorated in a simple manner. The only odd thing in the shuttle was one thing. Pipes. Lots and lots of pipes, randomly strewn all over. Ro picked a chair and gestured for Darius to sit, who acted in kind. Darius took a deep breathe and said, "I want you to recommend me to the Rangers."

Ro was an easy going guy, but like any human being he would react when surprised. His eyes opened up like he was sober. He laid back and looked at Darius straight in the eye.

"Now you listen here young blood, why the fock would I do that."

Darius was doing his best to be calm as he starred back and said, "You should look at my files again. You now have full access to know everything about me."

Ro raised a brow and opened his com. Over time his eyes opened wider and wider. He even lost control of his pipe and allowed it to fall to the ground.

'This explains everything.'

Ro had many things to ask, but they had a journey to make. Ro raised his hand and banged the wall of his shuttle. "Bomboklat, take us to the Rangers base."

The shuttle switched on and lifted off. It left the car port and left for Sahid.

"Boy, me and you have a lot of talkin to do."

Darius merely nodded and handed Ro his dropped pipe, "Irie."

The dean of the school was able to see any and all places outside buidlings owned by occupations. She saw Ro's interaction with Darius, up until they entered Ro's ship.

"What do you thing they are doing?"

Lady Katya stood beside Dean Orion. Lady was a title she had won for being the most outstanding 3rd form student last year. She was now a fourth form 1st year student. One of the most valued students within the school and a talent that the Orion Family was cultivating with all their might. She was even engaged with the current succesor to the Orion Family, so there not much to say about her standing.

"It seems the Ro is taking the boy somewhere."

Katya said these words with a hint of uncertainty within her voice. Ro was her senior by a year and he was a legend. He was one of the most talented students in the history of the school. Katya's current goal was to surpass him in rankings for fourth form. As she saw it her chances were 50/50.

Since Ro was her target it would not be an exaggeration to say that no other student knew him best. Ro's most conspicuous trait was his lone wolf movements. He hated crowds, didn't have any real friends and countless enemies. As far as she knew, he had never given anyone a ride in his own shuttle. Short meetings perhaps but this…

Lady Katya was rarely at a loss for words. But she quickly composed herself and said, "Ro usually leaves school to head to one place and one place only."

"And if Ro is taking that boy personally, it means…"