Earth's Core Book 4 – Conflict, Chapter 4 – This Is My Demand

Thanks to e94allen for the editorial notes, as usual!

Book 4 – Conflict

Chapter 4 – This Is My Demand

“BINJO DERNELDAR, SHOW YOUR FUCKING FACE!”

The words exploded in the air. If someone had ears he or she would hear the words kilometer away from Zax. If someone was deaf than the vibration caused by the sound wave would pique his or her attention from a fairly long distance as well.

CREAK!

Innumerable high pitch sounds reverberated as glass windows shattered to tiny pieces by the sound wave.

Zax’s roar was clear and tremendous and in no time everyone in the school became aware of his presence.

“Brother, you made too much of a mess! The Disciplinary Class will definitely arrive. Arr… the six of us are going back now. Good luck, brother”.

Barnard and the five other youths were supposed to keep guard and accept those who had the authorization to enter the school in current hours. They followed Zax because they said that they will guide him and were afraid to anger him by taking their words back.

It was not simply because him being stronger than them that they complied. As students of Eden Formation they could show some superiority even to students from different Martial schools who were above their level.

But there was one exception, one type of people their age that even if they knew nothing about, they dared not act highly in front of. Experts that broke all reason!

As someone younger than them, Zax’s feat at the school’s gate was part of this exception and the six youths even believed him to be the top student of another first rate Martial school.

Zax waited silently without showing interest in Barnard and the others. Was it bold of him to behave so imperiously? Maybe. Did he think what his actions might cause by barging in and provoking the number one Martial school in EL-Eden? A little. Was he not afraid of rousing experts that he could not deal with? Not even slightly.

Zax was bold because of his restrained rage. If the number one Martial school would want to inflict punishment on him, then he will accept it after his business will conclude. If strong experts would show up, with his new insight, he already had an idea of a temporary rough method to summon the Kinetic Force similarly to when performed the bodily maneuvers.

What would happen if others will find his identity and involve his family?  They will do it on the expense of their own, and no high class family will act rashly in a case with indeterminate variables like Zax’s age, cultivation technique and Mor – only a handful will ever consider a Master.

Zax stood confidently at the plaza of the Intermediate grade building and as his roar waned, other calls of bewilderment emerge from the populated school’s buildings.

“Who dare to intrude?!”

Twenty gold and black uniforms wearing early and mid twenties men and women jumped from the sixth floor of the Advanced grade building and encircled Zax.

The twenty were even in gender and all had golden ribbon strapped to their left arm with the words “Disciplinary Class” knitted to them.

“Identify yourself, boy”. A bald unshaved man turned to Zax.

The Disciplinary Class members have assessed Zax with their Soul Senses the instant their mist energy could not detect his mist level of cultivation. However, these twenty were between Peak phase Mist Master level and Beginner phase Mist lord level. Zax repealed their Soul Sense like the repulsive formation he destroyed at the gate, only, since he could not execute a long range soul attacks, he merely surpassed them.

Seeing his young age and knowing the school entry rules, the twenty estimated Zax level of cultivation generously and also suspected that he was a member of a great family. Otherwise, how could he have the legendary soul concealment jewel and why would he want to mess with a member of the Derneldar family?

“I’m not here to cause troubles. My sole business is with Binjo Derneldar”. Zax said solemnly.

The twenty frowned. The boy they surrounded was quite impudent but seemed to have the skill to back up his imposing manner. Furthermore, a hint of a killing intent of which they never sensed before oozed from this younger youth.

“This is Eden Formation, the number one Martial school in all of El-Eden. If you were able to open the gate with your own strength, you have the right to enter the school’s grounds. That much is allowed”. The bald unshaved man gave Zax the benefit of the doubt, considering him an Intermediate Mist Lord with possibly high grade Martial techniques, a super genius. “But to come to our school, interrupt the school day and expect us to let you harm a fellow student under school supervision... that’s already count as causing troubles!” The bald unshaved man said as the others continued to firmly block Zax from all side. Nonetheless, they also were reserved with how they dealt with him.

An Intermediate phase Mist Lord was not someone they could deal with one on one, but all twenty together? These men and women received the proper training of brain before brawn. If it comes to that, even a Core Master would not have easy time breaking their formation.

“I will not leave before dealing with Binjo Derneldar”. Zax answered back. “If you want to stop me, try!” Zax said, pissed off. He encompassed the entire Intermediate grade building with his Soul Sense, to find out how many students were inside and which one reacted to his threat, but a bizarre formation activated and made him feel like everything inside the building was shrouded by impenetrable fug.

“BINJO DERNELDAR, I COME FOR YOU!” Zax bellowed and shot toward the building.

“Not good!” His speed astonished the bald and unshaved man. “Together!” He commanded the others and as if they read his mind they immediately purred their mist energy to the Disciplinary Class ribbon.

BOOM!

Zax was hit by a protective formation that covered the entire building and was thrown back. “This again!” The formation was not the same as the canines’, but it did bring back memories.

“Jalal, the impact right now!” One of the ten females said to the bald and unshaved man, Jalal. “What kind of speed and power that boy has?!”

“Forget about it. Execute Nineteen Heads One Body Hydra formation!” Jalal responded.

The ribbons on the twenty, which were a quick activation signal to all the restriction formations on the school’s grounds, last half their shine after Zax’s assault. The force Zax exhibited was on a level only Core Masters could endure, a level beyond the protective formation, and Jalal’s keen observation noticed it right away. Thus, he commanded the nineteen other to execute their strongest formation from the start.

Zax turned around. He did not want to use violent on anyone other than his prey, but behind him the twenty Disciplinary Class members were not willing to be pushed around.

BOOM!

Zax concentrated his strength in his fist and the blow formed a breach in the protective formation. At the same time a nineteen heads transparent gold and silver hydra appeared with Jalal at its base.

The hydra was huge, its nineteen necks reaching seven meters height from the base which was three meters tall and four or five meter wide.

WHOOSH!

The hydra tailed flickered and struck as Zax was about to enter the breach in the formation.

“Fast!” Zax gasped. If he wanted he could kill the twenty men and women with ease before proceeding to find Binjo. With that in mind, he took the twenty for granted.

Receiving the power of the tail strike, Zax was way more amazed at the gap between humans’ formations and beasts’.

The tail swiped Zax off the ground, but was unable to throw him off. Zax finger latched to the mist energy that formed the tail without letting go.

“Ouroboros!” Jalal sent mentally to the heads through the connection they had during the formation.

“In this form, class president?!” One of the Mist Lord level Disciplinary Class member asked.

“Fi Han, take him, the others, don’t let him escape!”

“RIGHT!”

It has been barely a second since the tail struck Zax and the nineteen head were coming at him.

‘It’s like a real body…’ Zax felt through his hands that the hydra, although made from mist energy and was transparent, had the same texture and bulginess as a lizard type beast. “Have it your way!” He told the twenty with an annoyed expression. If this was a spar or a spontaneous fight, Zax might have smiled and enjoyed it, but with Binjo and what he and his brother did to Anet, he only felt anger.

The golden maws of the hydra’s head of the Disciplinary Class member Fi Han, was nearing Zax at an outstanding speed. In Zax’s sea of consciousness a tidal wave of soul energy swirled and charged from Zax’s head to his hands to the hydra’s tail.

The soul energy was an ordinary soul attack, but with capabilities equal to those of a Core Master’s soul.

The soul energy was invisible, but perceptible and to take out the hydra completely it divided to twenty streams. The first to be affected by the soul attack was Jalal. The soul attack penetrated his sea of consciousness and hit his soul. Jalal expression turned blank and unresponsive and following him the same expression appeared on the other nineteen.

The Hydra formation was similar to the canines’ formation in its capacity to stay activated even if one of the bodies forming it lost connection. In general, it would only mean that this specific part of the hydra is incapacitated. But when all the bodies forming the hydra losing their connection and the passage of the mist energy that sustained the formation is disturbed…

The Nineteen Heads One Body Hydra formation dispersed and twenty bodies fell to the ground.

“Urg…” As they hit the ground the twenty slowly regained their senses. The strongest they were, the faster they recovered. But a strike to the soul is a strike to the most important aspect of a living being. The twenty, along with their formation, lost the capability to stop Zax.

Zax turned to the Intermediate grade building. This fight, short as it was, made him lose patient.

“BINJO DERNELDAR, OUT OR HAVE IT WORSE WHEN I COME GET YOU MYSELF!” Zax roared.

…

Inside the Intermediate grade building, fourth floor, a large dojo, a white skin orange hair youth around a meter and eighty centimeters tall was shaking nervously. This youth was Binjo Derneldar.

When the windows suddenly shattered and his name was mentioned with visible hostility, Binjo and the seven students beside him jumped on their feet and their teacher stopped lecturing.

“BINJO DERNELDAR, SHOW YOUR FUCKING FACE!”

The voice resonated and Binjo reacted accordingly. He was not worried, only surprised. Who will dare mess with him?

Since he was on school’s grounds Binjo thought that the guy outside is an idiot and did not even care what his grudge with him was. He sent a message with his Caller to his five elder brothers and father about what happened as a habit, but counted on the Disciplinary Class to take care of things.

As the Disciplinary Class members arrived before Zax, Binjo’s teacher asked two students to clean the shattered glass while he resumed the lesson. No one said anything to Binjo. Even the teacher, being familiar with his background, kept quiet.

BOOM!

When Zax’s fist struck the protective formation, Binjo stopped being smug and from the force of the impact even the teachers all over the building lost their calm.

It should be noted that the teachers of each grade are only a grade higher than their students. The teachers of the Intermediate grade building, in terms of cultivation, were no better than the students of the Advanced grade building, some were even students themselves. Naturally, by getting teaching certification they learned a bit more of the school special formations. More to the point, they knew that only a Core Master can break the defensive formations and that not even the Disciplinary Class, which had greater jurisdiction than most teachers, can handle a Core Master for long.

Following a second “BOOM” a golden silvery light radiated, the creation of the Hydra formation, the “Nineteen Heads One Body” Disciplinary Class’s specialty, attracted all the students and teachers to the windows, all apart from one.

Binjo picked up his Caller franticly. Anyone who could bring the Disciplinary Class to use one of their twenty person formations was not someone he could take the risk of being frivolous about.

Binjo messaged his elder brothers and father again and told them that a Core Master burst to school looking for him.

BEEP!

BEEP!

BEEP!

BEEP!

BEEP!

BEEP!

He received six instantaneous messages of the same content.

“HIDE!”

Though for a Core Breaker to hide from a Core Master was kind of pointless, Binjo’s elder brothers and father knew that the school has special formations embedded to school’s buildings that can hinder even a Core Master.

Binjo was a mere Core Breaker and other than hiding there was nothing for him to do against a Core Master. Their intentions were for him to hide and for them to act.

…

Outside, on the plaza of the Intermediate grade building.

“Formidable, very formidable!” An aged voice stated behind Zax.

Zax turned and saw. Standing beside the fallen Disciplinary Class members was an old man with combed white hair.

Zax used his Soul Sense to detect the cultivation of the old man and puckered his brows when he discovered that the old man was a Mist Master in the Core Master realm.

“Ahm… tell me, are you a beast or a human?” The old man probed. He too checked out Zax cultivation level with his Soul Sense, but could not perceive anything. Only from his assessment of Zax’s fight with the Disciplinary Class he assumed that the young follow might belong to some rare breed of beast and is not, or not much, below his level of cultivation if he cannot detect it.

‘Am I a beast?’ Zax thought about the question and to his surprise found that he did not care which he is.

“Senior, if you came here you probably heard me. I’m here only for-“

“Binjo Derneldar… yes. I heard. If it wasn’t for the soundless formation that surrounding the school than the whole cave would have known by now…” The old man said. “Alas, you cannot have him regardless of your rancor. Do you not know where you are? This is Eden Formation. This school’s founder is none other than Supreme Ruler Ariel Dauch! You made a lot of disarray, whoever, whatever you are, but you did not kill or seriously harmed any of the students. Not yet, anyway. If you have a feud with a student, then take care of it outside of school. If your problems is with a member of the Derneldar family seek retribution on their property. If it’s all clear, leave!” The old man rebuked Zax.

“Vice principal”, Jalal stood, holding his head and said to the old man.

“Jalal, help the others to the infirmary”. The vice principal said with his gaze still fixated on Zax.

“Take it outside of the school?!” Zax clenched his fists and gritted his teeth.

‘That’s why Aney is at home and no one punished Binjo for what he did to her?! Because it wasn’t on school’s grounds?!’

“Is that how you take care of your students?!” Zax stopped restraining his killing intent. Listening to what the vice principal said, every fiber of his body itched and his rage expanded toward this vice principal.

The vice principal was hit by Zax’s killing intent as if he was a coreless child and ice water poured on him.

He gasped and took an involuntarily step back. “That killing intent!” The vice principal never experienced the Savage Caves, thus his soul was not proficient in dealing with this much desire to kill. What few words Zax said while releasing his killing intent reached deaf ears due to the vice principal’s numbness.

“You…” By now the vice principal could not imagine Zax as anything but a beast. He was aware of Zax’s presence when he roared the first time and headed to watch how his Disciplinary Class handle him at the same time of receiving a message from Binjo’s father. However, not in his wildest dreamed did he expect that this one, seemingly human youth, is a wolf in sheep’s clothing.

Still, a Core Master is a Core Master and the vice principal of the number one Martial school in El-Eden was not just another Core Master at the first level of the realm. The vice principal steadied himself with all his might. “You… your business is with a student, but I tell you, no one in this building would dare venture into Valgarel. If it is revenge against someone else in the Derneldar family, than bear in mind that by taking it here you’ll become an enemy of the strongest man in all of New Earth! Are you willing?!” The vice principal managed to keep his composure, but the killing intent that Zax released was too huge of a mental blow.

“Not that it will come to it, you harming our student, but you should pay attention to the vice principal, still”. A mature feminine voice said calmly and a red head middle age woman wearing a golden white suit and white high heels appeared next to the vice principal.

“Principal Ram!” The vice principal said in relief.

The Eden Formation’s principal stepped in front of the vice principal. Zax’s killing intent was still free and loose, but it did not seem to bother her.

“Kid, as a human you should not be insolent toward your Supreme Rulers. Did no one teach you this?” The school principal asked.

If her soul was stronger than Zax’s, capable to tell if he was human or a beast, Zax did not care. In his opinion, what the vice principal said was akin to saying that it is not the school’s business if Anet was assaulted by another student outside of school and that infuriated him.

“Kid, why won’t you come to my office?” The school principal nicely invited.

“You first ignored, than threaten and now making demands…!” In his rage Zax misinterpreted the tone in the school principal’s voice.

“Ignored?” The school principal was confused, yet did not show it. Actually from what Zax said before to the vice principal she already sensed that the boy’s matter perhaps really involves her school and not just the Derneldar student.

Zax turned to the Intermediate grade building. “Fine, this is my demand, if Binjo Derneldar wouldn’t be brought to me within sixty seconds, I’ll topple this whole building!”

Chapter end