The Legacy of the Shadowforged

CHAPTER 3:- TRAINING BEGINS

Ten days had passed since Aizen's last encounter with Surya. Now, he found himself standing in front of a dark alley, an eerie feeling settling in the pit of his stomach. As he ventured deeper into the shadows, he couldn't shake off the sensation of being watched. Suddenly, he noticed a movement behind him, but when he turned to check, there was no one there.

Aizen's instincts kicked in. "Weird..." He turned to continue ahead, but his progress was halted by a sword pointed at his neck. A mysterious ninja stood before him, their eyes piercing white with no pupils.

Aizen adopted a surrender stance, hands raised. "Who sent you here?"

The ninja remained silent, their gaze unyielding.

Aizen smirked. "I see... you're not the talkative type."

Without warning, Aizen drew his combat knife and showcased his impressive close combat skills. He swiftly disarmed and knocked out the ninja. But before he could catch his breath, nine more ninjas emerged from the shadows, attacking him from all sides.

Aizen's battlefield experience kicked in, and he took on the ninjas with ease, his movements swift and deadly. When the dust settled, Aizen stood victorious, still reeling from the sudden attack and the ninjas' disappearance.

Just then, Surya emerged from the shadows, clapping his hands in approval. "Well done, Aizen. You've passed the first test."

Surya: "Quiet impressive close combat skills you have, Aizen! You took down 7 of my light clones without using your powers. I must say, I'm impressed."

Aizen's eyes narrowed. "You sent them, didn't you? Why?"

Surya: "To gauge your abilities, of course. And I must say, you exceeded my expectations."

Aizen: "Have you taken the measure of everyone's powers?"

Surya: "Yes, I have. And now, it's time to begin training. Come with me."

Surya led Aizen into a nearby building, where he revealed a screen displaying a collection of crystals.

Surya: "Remember when you killed those demons? They dropped these crystals. My research has concluded that they increase your mana..."

Aizen examined the crystal, intrigued. But before he could ask any questions, a sudden shout came from the next room.

"HEY, THAT'S MY RESEARCH!"

Aizen instinctively pointed his gun in the direction of the voice, his eyes locked on the doorway.
CHAPTER END

                        CHAPTER 4:- MANA

Suddenly, Nitish emerged from a dark room, his face twisted in anger. "Don't take credit for my research!" he growled.

Surya chuckled. "Sorry, I got too into character."

Aizen's eyes widened in confusion. "Who's he?"

Surya gestured towards Nitish. "Meet Nitish, my research division... well, currently the only member, but we'll find more people to work with soon. For now, let's focus on your training."

Surya handed Aizen a golden yellow crystal. "Eat this."

Aizen hesitated, but Surya's encouraging nod prompted him to swallow the crystal. At first, nothing seemed to happen. But then, a sudden jolt of wild energy coursed through his body, sending him crashing to his knees.

Surya shouted, "Control the energy inside you! Calm it down, or you'll die!"

Aizen's eyes scrunched shut as he struggled to tame the raging energy. Sweat dripped down his face, but he slowly gained composure, gradually calming the energy.

Breathless and still sweating, Aizen glared at Surya. "What the hell was that?!"

Surya's grin returned. "That, my friend, was the power of the golden yellow crystal. You're one step closer to unlocking your true potential."

Surya explained, "Your sudden increase in energy disrupted your mana balance."

Aizen's confusion deepened. "What's mana balance?"

Nitish stepped in, "There are two types of mana: external and internal. External mana is the energy in the atmosphere, while internal mana is the energy flowing inside your body. Your sudden energy surge disrupted the flow of both – absorbing external mana and circulating internal mana."

Aizen's eyes widened. "How do I fix it?"

Nitish continued, "Next time, when you eat the crystal, try to stabilize the internal flow first. The external flow will automatically balance itself."

Aizen's gaze shifted to Surya. "How do I do that?"

Surya held out his hand. "Give me your hand, Aizen." Surya marked a small point on Aizen's palm. "Can you feel the energy inside your body?"

Aizen nodded. "Yes..."

Surya instructed, "Focus that energy on the dot I made on your palm."

Aizen concentrated, and to everyone's surprise, a faint black flame began floating above his palm. Surya and Nitish exchanged shocked glances, impressed by Aizen's quick grasp of the technique.

Aizen's eyes widened in wonder. "What's this...?"

Surya's grin returned. "That, my friend, is your internal mana manifesting. You're a natural!"

Surya explained, "This black flame is a physical manifestation of your power. From now on, you'll learn mana control with me and intake the crystal to enhance your abilities."

Aizen furrowed his brow. "But I don't feel a significant increase in my mana..."

Surya chuckled. "That's because I gave you the lowest quality mana crystal. There are five types of crystals: Golden Yellow, Aurora Green, Solar Orange, Luminous Blue, and Starlight Purple. Golden Yellow is the lowest quality, obtained from the lowest-level demons, whereas Starlight Purple is the strongest, obtained from Hoard Commanders."

Aizen's eyes widened. "Hoard Commander? You mean the demon who was talking to me?"

Surya nodded. "The same one. Now that our Q&A session is over, we should start training as soon as possible. We don't have much time to waste.
CHAPTER END