Baltsar stared at the second cup of blood and sniffed it, the metallic smell made him shiver as he remembered the awful taste of the previous cup.
He took a deep breath and nodded to Thorin as he finally was ready to drink the cup once more.
Like the time before, they all watched with interest as Baltsar drank the cup, and waited for his response.
Baltsar concentrated on his body once again, the taste, viscosity and even the small pain in his stomach were identical to the last cup. He let out a sigh as a few seconds passed and he felt no reaction.
-" Maybe this is a joke or something?" Baltsar was let down, he had expectations of acquiring some sort of miraculous power, but, the only thing he got was a bad stomach ache.
-" Or something special with the Emperor's blood?" Thorin couldn't help the disappointment on his face as the experiment had all failed, however, as soon as he finished speaking he noticed Baltsar face contorting in pain.
-" Are you alright?" THorin held Baltsar's shoulder as he grabbed his stomach in pain.
Baltsar clenched his teeth as he felt his stomach groan, the pain he felt was so great that he couldn't even scream.
Thorin's eyes widened as he looked at Baltsar, if Vysard's blood had the same capabilities as the Eastern Emperor, the consequences would be unimaginable.
-" Can you describe what are you feeling?" THorin held Baltsar by the shoulder and shook him, trying to get an answer.
-" M-M-My stomach is burning" Baltsar could barely speak, his voice faltering at every word.
Thorin smiled widely as he heard Baltsar's words, he immediately remembered what Shiy had told him. -" Don't fight it! This is it!" Thorin's body trembled with excitement as he looked toward Vysard.
Thorin was in disbelief, he didn't if Vysard's blood had a special effect thanks to his unimaginable power, or due to his mysterious lineage.
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Baltsar's felt like someone had poured hot oil into his stomach, the burning sensation almost made him pass out, but, strange waves of energy kept rushing into his body, giving him the strength to fight the sensation.
He tried his best to follow Thorin's advice and let the energy flow his course through all of his body, and each time that a burst of mysterious energy passed through his veins, his body grew stronger.
This state lasted for about half an hour, and in the end, left Baltsar completely exhausted.
-" Did it end?" Vysard was still shaken, the idea of having the same ability to turn others in Sun Blessed like the Emperor caused him to be wary.
-" It looks like it." Thorin held the exhausted man and placed him down to rest. " Baltsar, do you feel any different?"
Baltsar's breathing was rough, and his voice was almost faint. " I-I-I-I don't know..." He was feeling very tired and weary, but, with the reaming strength, he had left he clenched a small stone that he found on the ground.
To his surprise, the stone shattered almost instantly, he knew that this was just a small part of his found strength. " I feel stronger." Baltsar gulped as he realized that even in this exhausted state, his body looked to be in better condition than before. " IT almost as if I was reborn."
Thorin closed his eyes as he fell into deep thought, he knew that one of the effects of cultivating Aether was cleaning the body of impurities. He wondered if people like Vysard and Sun Emperor had Aether so much Aether that even their blood was infused with it.
-" Can you manipulate light or some sort of divine fire?" Thorin threw all his hypotheses to the back of his mind and decided to finish checking the changes in Baltsar.
-" Like the one you guys used?" Baltsar was a bit lost as he looked at his hands. " How can I control it?" He didn't have any ideas on how to use the power, so even if he had the capabilities he wouldn't be able to weld it.
-" Just think about it!" Vysard answered honestly, to him manipulating Sun Energy was something natural, so he didn't understand why the man even asked.
-" Tsk! Don't listen to him, someone like him can't teach you this.' Dillia was somewhat uncomfortable with the thought of Baltsar gaining the powers of a Sun Blessed, she was proud of her powers, and the idea that anyone could now turn into a Sun Blessed made her jealous. " Just like mastering Aura or Mana, there are three steps in the manipulation of Sun Energy."
Baltsar was overwhelmed, especially as Dillia mentioned Aura and Mana, he never managed to master any of the two, even with years of training. -" It won't be too hard, right?" Even with his new body, his confidence wasn't great.
-" Well... It's way harder to control than the others two combined." Dillia scratched her head as she began to think about how would she teach the man. " First you need to visualize your energy, this step can be the tricker as no one can help you with it."
-" Visualize?" Baltsar closed his eyes as he focused on his body. " So what this Sun Energy is supposed to be like?"
-" Just like Mana and Aura, Sun Energy was characteristics that are unique to you, mine, for example, is wilder and more aggressive compared with Oppius's which got a more chilling and calm feel to it." Dillia wasn't a good teacher, and teaching a subject so esoteric only made her task even more daunting. " That's why no one can help you in this step, your Sun Energy is entirely molded by your inner desires, thoughts, and personality."
Baltsar listened to Dillia attentively, he first tried to use one of the ways that his old teacher taught him to feel mana, but, after hours of meditation, he still had no success.
After this failure, he decided to use the technique used to cultivate Aura, however, just like before he didn't even feel an ounce of energy after hours of waiting.
It was almost morning when he finally gave up, he was the only one left in the courtyard as everyone had already gone to sleep.
-" Sigh..." Baltsar was let down, he didn't know if he was the one without an ounce of talent or if this task was that difficult. " Maybe I'm just that much of a loser?" He couldn't believe that even after getting such an opportunity, he would in the end still amount to nothing.
Baltsar clenched his teeth as he decided to try it one more time, he didn't want to make Thorin and the rest think that they had wasted this opportunity in a good for nothing.