"A… dud?" Ning asked. "Meaning?"
"A dud, you know. Someone who isn't capable of using the Aether arts," Reever explained. "Be glad that you can use it."
"Why would it be a problem if I can't use it? That doesn't mean I'm less of a human, right?" Ning asked.
"You sure are ignorant of the world for someone who wishes to roam it," Reever said. "It doesn't matter to the Aether users what you think. Since they are stronger, they make the rules and hold the authority."
"So, do the people with no awakening get treated badly here?" Ning asked.
"Oh no, not in Xandria. You will be fine in Xandria since the Emperor doesn't allow diversity as a factor of bias in the citizens. Whether you have the ability to use Aether or not, you will be treated equally here."
"That's one of the reasons why Xandria is considered safe haven amongst the duds," Reever said. "Unfortunately, the empire can only hold so many people. So the borders don't allow as much entry as it used to."
"Hmm, I guess I will see how they are treated when I leave Xandria. I should be able to stay here for a little while though," Ning said.
"Hm, how old are you by the way. You look awfully young for someone with medical knowledge," Reever asked.
"Oh, yeah. I get that a lot. I'm 25 years old right now, but I look 18. My friends always called me out for looking too young. Something much is wrong with my body, but the other doctors found nothing," Ning casually lied.
"Well, at least you can keep looking young for a lot longer than us. Sigh, I wish I could be young again. With all the energy of the youth I was, who optimistically went to the Aether Tower to take the exam."
"I might've been doing something else if I didn't failback then," Reever said as he recalled the bitter event from his past.
"Aether Tower? Is that a place where you learn the aether arts?" Ning asked.
"How do you not know what an Aether Tower is? All countries and empires have them. Brother Ning, have you been living under a rock?" Reever asked.
"Uhh… something like that. My parents were extremely conservative and didn't let me learn about the world at all. That was one of the reasons why I decided to leave my practice as a medical professional and went out to roam the world."
"Unfortunately, I simply went straight down to the very bottom of the continent to start my way, so you could think of this as my beginning in the world," Ning said.
"You're a little weird, Brother Ning," Reever said.
Ning simply smiled and said nothing. Suddenly, the scenery outside of the train changed and they were no longer in the desert, but at a place where Ning could see many trees and bushes all around. There was even a source of water, flowing like a river.
"Phew, finally," Reever said as he stopped fanning himself and opened the window. The air that entered was still hot, but it was a lot cooler by comparison.
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"Is it summer? Why is it so hot?" Ning asked.
"Yeah, it's summer, unfortunately. So we will have to suffer the sun for quite a while longer," Reever said. "I can't wait to go back to the cool air of the city."
"Oh right," Reever said as he remembered. "You're an invoker, right? Then you should be able to make some ice for us. I would really love to have some ice to play with. Just a tiny piece."
"You can make them too right? Just freeze the water you have," Ning said.
"I don't have aether to do that right now," Reever said. "I will need to go eat some Aether tablets to do that."
"Hm, I guess I can try. I can't promise I can properly make ice though. This is my first time after all," Ning said.
"Oh, then be careful. Remember, ice is just water that's frozen. Just imagine cold water that's solid," Reever said.
"Uh, I know what ice is," Ning said.
"Huh? Oh right, you came from way south. I forgot. I was just helping you with the imagination part, but I don't think you will need any help," Reever said.
Ning took a deep breath and brought forth his arm.
He then closed his eyes and remembered back to the time he first came out of the treasury in the Southern Continent. That time when he was in Freya's sword. The moment he walked out of the room, everything around him was all white.
The massive amounts of Aether in his Sea of Aether started moving, bubbling as it evaporated and started doing what Ning thought of.
Ning remembered the coolness in the air, the fog in the air, the steam when people breathed, and finally, the white snow.
"Br…. Ni…."
Ning still remembered it all.
"Brother NING!" Reever loudly called him.
Ning opened his eyes and looked in front of him. In between him and Reever, there was a pile of snow that came up to his ankles.
"I said just a small piece, why are you making this many?" Reever asked.
"Oh, sorry. I told you I don't have much talent in using the Aether arts. At least we have coolness now right?" Ning asked.
Reever held his cold feet up on the seat. "Damn, you really do have a lot of potentials. But you need a lot of practice," he said as he looked down on the snow.
"Looking at this, you must be an Aether Master, right?" Reever asked.
"Haha, I couldn't hide it from you, could I?" Ning said.
"Sigh, you really didn't. Also, you made a mess of this place. Let's quickly clear this or it will melt and cause a lot of problems," Reever said and waved his hands to bring up as much snow as he could before throwing it far out of the window.
Ning got down as well and picked up the snow with his own hands and started throwing it out.
Once he was done, there was no more snow, but the place they were at was considerably cooler.
The rest of the journey would be much simpler now with this. The train moved through massive grassland and meadows with people and animals in it. They were getting closer and closer to civilization once again.
"Ah, we're finally here," Reever said as he watched out of the window. Ning had seen houses nearby already, so he too knew he was close.
The train suddenly passed by another train and slowly came to a stop at another station. The whistles were loud and the steam released once more as it finally stopped.
"Let's go," Reever said as he stood up from his seat and started walking to the door. Ning quickly followed and they both walked out.
"Oh yeah, your ticket, take it out. We will have to show them here," Reever reminded and took out his own ticket.
Ning took his ticket out as well and stopped to look all around him. As he was finally in the city, he got to see what these modern people actually looked like.
The men and women all around him wore very similar clothes. The men mostly wore shirts and pants with a coat on top, while the woman wore long gowns that flowed all the way to the floor.
The men all had top hats and some even had monocles. Some also wore purple-colored jewels on their fingers and wrists, while others did not.
The woman on the other hand all wore jewelry on them. Some were purple in color, but most were not. The woman also wore white gloves that came up to their elbows and a hat on their head of a similar color.
They had their hairs in a bun and were also holding a parasol to stay away from the sun. Compared to the men, the women were the ones wearing the most vibrant of colors.
It seemed that the tradition of old didn't exactly go away despite the world getting modern. At least, there was less of a divide amongst people here, so that was something.
"Brother Ning?" Reever shook him a little to get him to focus.
"Oh, sorry. I was just looking at the people. It seems that I would stand out a bit If I don't change very quickly," Ning said.
"Oh yeah, you should. Your clothes aren't exactly the most usual around here. You have money, right? I can introduce you to a tailor. They can make some clothes for you," Reever said.
"Thank you, brother Reever," Ning said.
They soon walked on as Ning hid his gaze from the many people that stared at him for how weirdly he was dressed.
'I should've known this would happen. I should prepare a lot of clothes for afterward,' he thought. Looking like a cultivator in a world of mortals wasn't the smartest idea Ning had up to now.
Ning and Reever handed over their tickets and walked out of the inner section of the train station. Finally, going past many people, they appeared out in the open on a busy street full of people that walked around, doing their own thing in their own life.
Ning saw horse-drawn carriages getting people across the town. He could also see electricity poles going across the roads with light bulbs on them. This planet had truly gotten industrialized, way more than he could imagine.
"Welcome to the City of Beginnings, brother Ning."
