From when he had killed the dinosaurs to now, Thorne estimated at least a month had passed. He had counted each day, from when the sun rose in the early morning until the return of darkness when the fiery star set.
During this time, Thorne had participated in an abundance of activities primarily related to training.
His daily routine was varied; it started with him waking up to the dawn light and training his internal and some of his external energy control.
He still possessed the Academy’s literature on cultivation, and through those books, he realized that his situation was quite unique. He had essentially skipped over an entire sub-stage.
To reach the late stage of grade one cultivation, one must, in essence, activate their spectrum crystal. Thorne had done precisely that when he had broken his back, and after a month of training, his spectrum crystal pumped new energy into his body passively.
Through reaching the late stage, however, Thorne had entirely neglected one of the most important aspects of cultivation, using energy externally.
Compared to internal manipulation, it was a whole different beast. Thorne thought that because he had already technically reached the late stage, learning how to manipulate energy externally would be easier for him. This was far from the truth.
In the initial instance when Thorne enticed a modicum of amber energy from within his being, he faced imminent death, as the detonation threatened his very existence. Moreover, burdened by an abundance of energy and a ceaseless torrent of its influx, the task of controlling this relentless force became progressively more arduous.
Staying in the remote forest was strenuous on Thorne’s mind. He had never been social, but people had always been a constant in his life, and living away from anyone for so long was not easy. The daytime forest bereft of even ants was strange; if nothing else, Thorne could only occupy the daytime hours with the grueling training of energy control.
After the first week, he had made some minor breakthroughs. At that point, Thorne could dance little strings of amber energy across his fingertips for minutes before he either had to withdraw them back into his body or they exploded.
The second week was far more successful. He had already built up the foundations of energy control; thus, the rest was far more straightforward.
In the nights, Thorne would hunt for beasts, and by the second week, he had begun to confidently implement his external energy control into his arsenal.
Grasping control and using it were very different things, and it took Thorne quite some time to acclimate to his new powers. Furthermore, he began to sense the innate energy in his surroundings, the green spectrum energy of nature in the forest, or the blue spectrum energy in the water. It permeated all and was seemingly the only constant in the deadly ecosystem of the great forest.
Thorne used his sense of energy in the environment to better control his own. He would sit for hours and simply sense and try to interact with the vast, seemingly endless amount of energy.
It was challenging but very effective in its purpose.
Also, with a new, more accustomed sense of energy, Thorne would sense when beasts used spectrum energies in their attacks.
He used these references to form his first combination of both external and internal energy control in actual combat.
Thorne would reinforce his protection with a small shield of durable amber energy, blocking an attack. Then, coating his sabers with pure red destruction, he would attack and smoothly eviscerate any beast in his path.
Well, until one momentous night.
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The skull-sized red and amber balls of energy dissipated in Thorne’s hand.
He opened his eyes, which were greeted by the dancing fog of the ghostly night.
‘I should go more toward the center of the forest.’ Thorne thought while climbing down from the tree he was previously situated on.
‘Ever since I started moving deeper into the forest, the energy has gotten denser.’
Scratching his head, Thorne continued his nighttime journey.
Stepping carefully, Thorne climbed over a small hill before suddenly coming to a halting stop.
Creasing his brows worriedly, Thorne glanced around quickly, ‘What happened? How did nature’s energy decrease so massively?’
Thorne closed his eyes and swiftly attempted to confirm his sense. He reached out with his meager energy control and interacted with his surroundings.
Sure enough, the total natural energy in the forest was drastically lower than the rest of the forest.
‘Wait, it seems darker as well.’ Squinting his eyes, Thorne tried to locate the area before him. He couldn’t; the darkness obscured it.
Over the past month, Thorne’s eyes had grown used to the darkness and could easily pierce that particular veil. This was something else entirely.
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‘Sparseness of energy. Lack of any light.’ Thorne shook his head in worry, ‘Something isn’t right here.’
He treaded cautiously through the shadowy forest. Every tree or plant seemed to loom menacingly over Thorne as if threatening him.
As Thorne continued walking, some measure of light returned. When squinting, he could once again see the outlines of the trees.
Goosebumps ran up Thorne’s cold skin as he continued walking, and he even felt the almost primal desire to sprint away as fast as he could.
‘No, I have to keep going. Something important is definitely here.’
Prick. Thorne almost toppled over in fear as a sharp pain coursed throughout his leg!
Looking down in the almost total darkness, he sighed in relief. ‘Good, it’s only a thorn.’
‘Still, I need to be careful.’
Thorne creased his brows and effortlessly journeyed through the previously tricky terrain.
Then he saw it. ‘In the tree, what is that?’
He couldn’t see a thing but knew that something was there due to his other senses. The amount of pure green spectrum energy concentrated in one place was astounding. It was as if the sun had secretly descended to the planet below.
‘It’s beautiful.’
The cascading ethereal energy hidden in the trees was just that, beautiful. But it was more than just pleasing to the senses. The energy shifted and moved, inching closer to Thorne. Too caught up in its wonderous nature, Thorne did not perceive the slight twists of the massive snake-like line of dense green energy. Until it was too late.
‘Is it moving?’ Thorne questioned as he tried to break his trance with energy.
Suddenly, the energy exploded forward, and Thorne saw its proper form!
His eyes widened in unadulterated horror. The energy, the thing, the actual apex of the forest was upon him!
It was a coiling snake. From head to tail, it stretched hundreds of meters, its light green skin practically slathered in the purest, most refined energy Thorne had ever seen.
It was different from his own meager supply. Instead, it was untampered by lackluster control. It was energy made perfect, all serving the apex of the forest.
The snake's head was building-sized. Each tooth was the size of a car, with the ability to easily chew through any tree, rock, or natural formation. The most terrifying aspect of the monstrous being was its eyes. Yellow slits cut through the night with intelligent eyes.
It eyed Thorne with more than just hunger or anger like a typical beast. No, it eyed Thorne with curiosity as it slowly slithered across the forest floor to him.
Thorne stood frozen as the beast moved. His heart raced as fast as ever, but he took no action. What action could he take against that?
The only reason he had gotten through the early battles in the forest was due purely to adrenaline. Against this beast, adrenaline would do absolutely nothing. Except get him killed, of course.
With difficulty, Thorne raised his eyes to meet the snakes. The snake slithered to a stop ten meters away from Thorne’s shaking figure. He tried to stay calm, but it was impossible.
The snake’s eyes looked imperiously back into Thornes. Thorne was like a puddle, comparing itself to an ocean. He and this beast were simply incomparable in everything.
The snake lowered its head to the height of Thorne and peered at his statue-still body inquisitively.
‘Is it…curious?’ Thorne thought in confusion. His heartbeat slowed slightly as he was at least not instantly being killed.
Hissssss.
The snake’s eyes hovered inches away from Thorne. He tried to hide his fear, but a light tremble shook his bones due to the snake’s scrutiny. With one movement, it could totally eviscerate Thorne. No amount of swordsmanship, energy control, or endurance could save him. He was totally at the beast’s mercy.
‘How do I fight this.’ Thorne trembled under the beast’s imperious gaze. He tried to maintain eye contact with its deep, endless eyes, but it was impossible. As soon as their eye collided, Thorne broke the contact. He couldn’t fight that level of dominance and pure power.
The snake exuded energy more mystical and powerful than any beast. It was as if the snake was the ruler of everything it looked upon.
The snake shook its enormous head as it had become seemingly disinterested in Thorne.
His breath increased, and sweat raced down his face, but he could not force his limbs to run. Control of his limbs was no longer a given right; that former ability was utterly stripped from him in the snake's presence.
‘This is where I die.’ Thorne thought morbidly. He pictured his life as one of servitude and labor. Only for a few weeks had he been free in this endless forest. Yes, it had been dangerous. Yes, it was strenuous and painful, but it was free.
‘But now it is over.’ His eyes, still lowered, examined the leaf-encrusted floor. Some leaves were broken, and some were whole and untampered. But they all had one trait that connected them. They could all be stepped on and ruined. They had no power, no control, no dignity. Spectators in their own existence.
‘That’s what I am. A leaf. A powerless leaf.’
The snake looked at Thorne before shaking its head swiftly and turning around. As it turned, a drop of saliva fell from its slobbering mouth right above Thorne’s head! Just from the smell alone, Thorne could tell it was dangerous, likely acidic or poisonous.
‘Please let me move! Please!’ He begged internally as time seemed to slow. All that was left was him and the potential life-ending spit. The white basketball-sized drop fell slowly, and it seemed inevitable. No matter what occurred in the forest then, nothing would change fate, and Thorne’s fate was to die by spit.
He closed his eyes and attempted to circulate his energy.
‘This is my only hope!’ Closing his eyes, Thorne knew what he had to do. It would be difficult, a task so monumental in its complexity that Thorne should have no right to be able to do it. But he could try, and so he did.
His energy crystal produced more energy than it had ever done before. Controlled by Thorne, it forced out every last drop of the amber energy, and Thorne circulated it all into his hands. It flowed like a spiteful river. It was uncontrollable, powerful, and chaotic despite its supposed protective nature.
Thorne held up his hands and forced the energy to manifest into a massive shield of amber. His hands and arms burned under the pressure. This was too much. Previously, Thorne could barely control balls of energy that were walnut-sized, and now he was projecting an active shield larger than himself.
“I can’t break!” Thorne muttered. He would not die such a degrading death.
“I have so much more. I will not die without freedom!”
The spitball landed on the shield, sinking into the amber energy like a ball into a trampoline. The amber energy, while powerful, trembled under the mass of the saliva, and for a moment, Thorne thought that his life was forfeit, but no, it miraculously held up!
The spitball sprung off the amber shield and fell to the forest floor. On impact, all the surrounding sticks and leaves disintegrated due to the powerful acid in the spit. Thorne looked at one leaf in particular; it was at the fringe of the spitball’s impact, but it had been affected. It was torn and wounded; only half of its original mass remained, but it was alive.
He forced himself to remain standing despite the fatigue that the previous energy technique had caused him. With eyes devoid of human emotion, he just stared at the massive body of the departing snake, then at the wounded leaf. One the apex and one prey. He then looked at himself, at his trembling legs and dry, bleeding hands.
‘Am I prey?’