Chapter 165: Surface Rim
The passengers had questions but Sky Marshal Kaelor did not entertain them anymore.
He said, "I will explain this now. I will entertain no questions afterward. Time is of the essence."
The passengers immediately nodded.
Sky Marshal Kaelor said, "Most Beast Tamers absorb energy the same way beginners catch rain with their hands. They pull at the surrounding energy directly into their energy core. It works, but much of the energy escapes before it can be refined.
I believe most of you noticed it and are simply trying your best to lessen the energy that escapes.
However, Aura changes that. Aura is an extension of the energy core beyond the body—a stable field that acts as an anchor between yourself and the world’s energy.
Once the anchor is established, surrounding energy naturally converges toward it. Instead of chasing energy, the energy comes to you.
A weak Aura still consumes your own energy to exist. A mature Aura, however, feeds upon the surrounding energy faster than it spends it. At that point, maintaining Aura becomes almost effortless.
Doctor Eleanor’s Aura was still weak, while Master Shen’s Aura was matured due to his constant practice to improve it.
Like his Aura, the stronger your Aura, the greater your control.
It shields you from corrupt energy, increases absorption, hastens refinement, and even strengthens techniques aligned with your affinity."
The last sentence was the crucial part, as it answered most of the questions that the passengers wanted to raise.
Now that Aura was clear, for the next three hours, Master Shen and Sky Marshal Kaelor joined to guide every passengers to develop their aura...
...
While Sky Marshal Kaelor and Master Shen explained Aura, Felix was also receiving explanation by Guide.
[Intent and Aura are fundamentally different aspects based on their explanations.
However, they both can be utilized simultaneously.
Intent can modify Aura.
To better understand, remember how Master Shen released the full extent of his Sword Intent that was mixed with Killing Intent earlier.
He probably doesn’t know, but his Aura played a crucial role.
When he used his Sword Intent, his Aura became unnaturally sharp and when it was overlaid with Killing Intent, the sharpened Aura attacks the opponent’s mind, making Nicholas perceive himself being beheaded.]
Felix was asking about the difference between Intent and Aura to Guide, and the latter elucidated it for him.
Felix asked, "Does that mean forming an Aura makes it easier to develop an Intent?"
[I actually think yes, but not because Aura magically creates Intent. Instead, Aura creates the conditions necessary to perceive and shape Intent.
Think of it like this: Energy is the fuel. Aura is the medium. Intent is the imprint of your will and understanding. Without a medium, your will has nothing to produce.
Likewise, when your will develops, your Aura is strengthened and modified.]
Felix thought for a while and asked, "You mentioned about Killing Intent... Is it only produced when Master Shen killed a lot of people?
Isn’t Killing Intent how grows?"
[That is one of the most misunderstood concepts about Killing Intent, Host.
Intent cannot be taught.
Sword manuals can teach you how to wield a sword, but not Sword Intent.
Battlefields can teach you how to kill, but not Killing Intent.
Intent is born when one’s will becomes inseparable from a conviction.
Master Shen’s will carries the certainty of the sword and the certainty of death. Those convictions have imprinted themselves upon his Aura, giving birth to Sword Intent and Killing Intent.
That is why, before he even draws his blade, a Commander Beast Tamer’s instincts already believe they have been killed.]
Felix was astonished. He gazed at Master Shen in a new light.
He also glanced at Sky Marshal Kaelor and wondered if he too developed a Sword Intent or Killing Intent.
Unfortunately, he didn’t see him wearing any weapons.
For the next three hours, Felix closed his eyes and guided by Master Shen and Guide herself, he began developing his Aura.
At first, he found it easy to develop his Aura. But the more he tried to stabilize his Aura, the more it became unstable and difficult to consciously maintain.
He believed he could only last his Aura for half a day straight—given that he was consciously maintaining it.
When three hours was almost up, Sky Marshal Kaelor clapped his hands, forcing those who were practicing to open their eyes.
Sky Marshal Kaelor gazed at them and smiled.
He said, "You don’t have to actively participate in the battle. As long as you remain in the backline while consciously maintaining your Aura, your beast pets would develop their Aura from your control.
In other words, only your beast pets are needed for this battle.
Of course, you could have not forgot the idea of your beast pets being corrupted by the energy outside, right?"
Felix’s eyes widened. So, that’s why Sky Marshal Kaelor’s beast pets are able to fight against other creatures outside without being bothered by the corrupted energy density.
Sky Marshal Kaelor turned around and said, "Alright. Be prepared to leave through the door. Don’t worry about the corrupted energy entering. I will be expanding my Aura until everyone leave."
Master Shen was the first to stand up, followed by Felix and Krisha.
Most of the passengers were unwilling, but seeing a young Felix and the daughter of the mayor willing to risk their life, they gritted their teeth and stood up as well.
Master Shen guarded the door in the east, releasing his Aura carrying the property of mist, reducing the visibility outside, while Sky Marshal Kaelor proceeded to the door in the west, releasing his Aura that actually cackled with lightning.
Sky Marshal Kaelor had to assure them that passing through the open door under his Aura was safe, as some would rather pass through Master Shen’s door.
Felix and Krisha didn’t say anything to each other, but one look at each other’s eyes seemed to tell "you better stay alive" after they parted ways.
Mia and her parents watched Felix’s figure departing to Sky Marshal Kaelor’s door with mix reactions.
Even Mia understood the severity of the situation and the possibility of losing her brother, but she did not want to tell him that.
She could only hug her parents’ arm tightly, while closing his eyes, praying for his brother’s safety.
As soon as Felix stepped through the door, a powerful updraft surged from below, carrying fine ash, bone dust, and an oppressive aura of corruption. The ambient energy was already closer to an abyss—dark, violent, and incomparably denser than the natural energy of their world.
At the same time, he was surprised that controlling his Aura became noticeably easier. The dense Abyssal Energy constantly pressed against his Aura, forcing it to stabilize while simultaneously supplying it with an endless source of energy.
I can use Ashen while maintaining my Aura... This is good.
Delighted, Felix swept his gaze across his surroundings, ignoring the astonished looks from the other Beast Tamers.
It was inevitable. Felix’s Aura was unlike anything they had seen.
It carried the properties of different elements—fire, ice, lunar, and water.
Different elements that should have opposed one another.
They looked at Felix as though he were a monster.
He had already become the youngest Commander Beast Tamer in recorded history, yet he possessed multiple opposing elemental affinities.
Felix, however, paid them no attention.
Historic achievements meant little if everyone died here.
He slowly turned toward the landscape before him.
They had emerged upon the Surface Rim, overlooking the Black Cliffs.
Before them, the land simply ended.
A colossal wall of black obsidian plunged into an abyss so vast that its depths vanished beneath layers of crimson mist and drifting ash. The opposite cliff face stood so far away that it appeared like another mountain range standing upright, its jagged silhouette barely visible through the haze.
Countless ledges, fractured terraces, and enormous cave mouths scarred the vertical walls. Some caverns were no larger than houses, while others were vast enough to swallow entire cities. Crimson crystal veins coursed through the obsidian like glowing arteries, bathing the endless cliffs in an eerie blood-red radiance.
Ancient skeletons had long since become part of the landscape. Colossal ribs protruded from the cliff face like the arches of ruined cathedrals, while gigantic skulls remained permanently fused into the black stone, silent remnants of creatures that once rivaled mountains.
Powerful abyssal winds continuously climbed the cliff walls, carrying ash, corrupted spores, and fragments of bone upward from the unseen depths below. The air howled as it rushed through countless cracks and caverns, producing deep, mournful echoes that rolled across the canyon without end.
Looking into the abyss, Felix could scarcely determine where the cliffs ended. Hundreds of overlapping ledges disappeared into darkness beneath the crimson fog, giving the illusion that the world itself had been split open.
Even more unsettling was the life hidden within it.
High above the thermal currents, enormous Carrion Vultures circled silently, their skeletal wings casting fleeting shadows across the obsidian walls. Along distant cliff faces, packs of Shadow Howlers bounded effortlessly across near-vertical stone, disappearing into narrow ledges before emerging elsewhere moments later. From countless caverns came the shrill cries of Abyss Bats, while massive silhouettes occasionally shifted within deeper cave systems before vanishing back into darkness.
Every section of the Black Cliffs appeared inhabited.
Every shadow suggested another predator.
Every cavern concealed an unknown danger.
Felix lowered his gaze toward the ground beneath his feet.
It was no ordinary earth...
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