Hell's Academy

The Great Slavensen Nation had thousands of plants growing in various gardens that Howard could see as he walked after Davenal. 

These plants did various things for the community in addition to being sold to the three greater Nations higher up in the Jarkales Abyss. All the plants were extremely colorful and beautiful with a few that even seemed happy when Howard looked at them. 

Though the Furnace was usually a place without plants, it seemed this really did change in the Jarkalon Abyss. One plant that was bright blue even tossed a ball back at a few children running and playing in the bright cobblestone streets. 

Davenal smiled and then walked Howard into a large black building that was different than all the other buildings around it. It had no windows and was almost hard to see from a distance. However, on the inside, there were hundreds of tall ferns growing against the side of the building growing with a fluorescent color. 

"You may find it adequate to train in here, Howard. These are called Salvation Ferns. They suck up the Ki in the dirt and then release it into the air. In a confined space, they can even rival the greatest training spaces of the Arthraku. Does this suit your needs?"

"It does, but I also wanted you to come here for another reason. It's sound proof when you close the door, is it not?"

Davenal nodded his head and closed the black latch door while Howard walked into the center of the room.

Howard walked into the center of the space and smiled before sitting down on a patch of dirt in the center of the abundant plants growing all around him. It really was quite a captivating room to be in. However, he still couldn't yet focus on training.

"Alenx… Who is he?" Howard said, kicking out his legs and looked around. "Can I ask how long he's known Lasinda? And how likely you think he is to attack her?"

Howard's ability to pick up intent, he noticed, worked really well on people that were weaker than him. Basically, he could sense the intentions of someone in the S rank rather easily. However, since Alenx was in the SS rank, he couldn't quite figure out what he intended to do with Lasinda. The only thing he could tell was that he had a bad intention, but other than that it was sort of a mystery.

"Alenx, I know he's not very likable at first," Davenal said, smiling and squeezing one of the ferns before it shot out a light that soon lit up the room. The Ki in the room almost instantly seemed to double to Howard's surprise. "However, he's really not that bad of a guy. Him and Lasinda are roughly 20 years apart. He's known her since she was a teenager, and always looked after her. Unfortunately, because Alenx is a little bit of a hot head, she's never taking a liking to him."

'He's rather cunning, and we sometimes worry if given the right opportunity, he would leave us to work for another nation. It's against the rules of the Great Slavensen Nation to give away our secrets of raising plants. However, for the most part, he's a good guy. Why are you asking?"

"I don't think he's a good guy," Howard focused on the Ki inside of his body and closed his eyes. He could feel almost 5 times the amount of Ki he felt in Jarlon Valley, which was insane since there was already 3 times more Ki there then the other places in the lowest levels of the Furnace! 

Returning his focus to the conversation, he looked at Davenal who seemed a little bit troubled by Howard's words. He almost instantly tried to reassure him. "I-I mean it's not that he's a bad guy, but he's just not a good guy hahaha! I am able to tell intents of people, and I could tell he wanted to do something to harm Lasinda. Can you think of what that was?"

"Hmmm, to harm her? He might have wanted to force her to agree to marrying him," Davenal turned around and fixed his black shirt before leaning against the door. He didn't want to get in the way of Howard's training, and knew it almost be impossible to change his mind about Alenx. After all, for years, he also felt the same way.

Alenx had done many generous things for Davenal when his daughter was sick, though, so after that point he changed his mind.

His daughter had caught a rare poison, and he needed a specific plant called a Mill Seed Plant in order to cure her. And because Mernan was sick, he had to spend most of his time in the village leading the troops and taking care of the children.

Yet… Alenx, on one of his days off, happened to find the plant he needed! Since that day, he no longer doubted him! Soon Howard might feel the same way.

Davenal looked back and nodded his head, trying to reassure Howard that everything would be alright. His grey-white hair that looked like rising blades shooting off of his head soon got mixed with his smile. "Howard… He really is a good guy. He's just upset about the way things are decided in the Great Slavensen Nation. He's upset that he didn't get to be a soldier like he wanted, but don't worry. In a few days, he'll also probably do something nice for you. That's what he does for everyone, so he can get on their good side. But really… don't worry."

"It sounds suspicious, but thank you," Howard sighed and shut his eyes before beginning to tune into the feelings of Ki in the room. He could sense the Fire Ki around him beginning to rouse his focus while Davenal opened the door and quickly shut it.

"If I didn't know any better, Alenx probably wanted to kill Lasinda." Howard sighed and gently looked up at the ceiling quickly before he started to focus. "Well, whatever. Now that I'm here, Lasinda will be spending every night with me. The only thing he'll be doing is watching me and her together from the distance."

###

Howard closed his eyes and focused on the Ki around him while he tried to remember some of the words Waxel had shared with him before he left about entering the SS rank.

To breakthrough the 6th barrier that would let him enter into the SS rank, he needed to learn how to activate what was known as the barrier of the exalted. Though it sounded rather impressive, it was actually the fifth barrier most people learned, yet for him it was the last.

It was the only barrier he couldn't sense with his Emperor's Ki. It was like a mysterious force that escaped him every time he tried to harness it around his body. 

'I learned the first barrier, and the second barrier in almost a week. The other three barriers I picked up when I was training with Harkel for those 100 days.'

'However, the barrier of the exalted is about being liberated from the world of normal Ki and getting your first insight into Domain Ki. This insight is unfortunately the most important because without this you can never enter into the SSS rank! However, what do I do? The only clues I have are the ones I got from Harkel when he said the barrier of the exalted is about knowing all types of Ki. However, how can I know all types of Ki when I can only sense Fire Ki? It doensn't make any sense!'

Howard sat there pondering for roughly 30 minutes.

The room was rather quiet, but every few minutes he heard the kids screaming and playing and kicking the ball in the street.

A few of the verdant plants also made noises and hummed every few minutes while Howard kept focusing on the energy inside of him. 

It seemed that his body had started to change, unintentionally, since he entered into the Jarkalon Abyss. His muscles started to feel more flexible and almost weightless. Was this the effect of training in the Jarkalon Abyss? Was it easier to sense his body.

Howard began to focus on his body, and the various structures inside of it that he could sense with his Ki. First, he focused on his organs, and his heart and then on every single millimeter of his meridians. He didn't leave a single area unturned before he began to notice something strange.

'Wait, don't tell me? Is what I've been missing all along inside of me?' Howard noticed a strange feeling in his blood that he never noticed before.

'There is electricity running through my spine right now that's allowing me to move my fingers. However, it's not only that. It's almost like there are different types of Ki in my spine then there are in my blood then there are in my heart."

"Could it be? The barrier of the exalted is about learning about the various types of Ki in your body? All the other types of Ki I was able to learn because they were from the Ki that those I was fighting released in the air! However, if it was inside their body, wouldn't I not be able to sense it as easily?"

Howard had a feeling he was on the right track, but wasn't quite there yet.

There were many ways of looking at various aspects of training Ki, and one of the most important realizations many people of the Horned race realized was that there was more than one way to create the Barrier of the Exalted.

However, the main, and most important was that it had to do with creating an interior barrier! It was a barrier that you made inside of your body rather then externally! And once this happened, an entire new world of senses would appear to you!

Howard closed his eyes and let the time flow by as he kept focusing on this feeling.

Ten hours later, he smiled and opened his eyes.

"Let's try it! Let's see with this if I'm finally able to enter into the SS rank! Barrier of the Exalted Activate!"