’Output control. Input control, and flow stability... I guess it’s not a bad idea separating energy control into those three topics.’ Simon thought while resting his head on his fist.
He now had a little bit of interest in the class.
Meanwhile, Instructor Valdin paused for a few seconds as he stood before the class with his hands clasped behind his back.
His eyes moved slowly across the initiates gathered in the classroom.
"Before we begin the class on Output Control," he said calmly, "I want to ask you a simple question."
He paused, allowing the silence to stretch for a little while.
"What determines the strength of a demonic attack?"
Several students eager to get in the good books of Instructor Valdin, raised their hands immediately.
"Power," one of them said confidently.
"Demonic energy," another answered.
"A stronger Demon Heart. A higher heart rank," someone else added.
Instructor Valdin gave a small, unimpressed nod.
"Those answers are not wrong. But they’re answers weaklings like you believe."
The Initiates who gave the answers had embarrassed expressions on their faces.
Fortunately for them, they were wearing masks, so none could see their embarrassed expressions.
But unfortunately for them, they could hear the faint murmurs and snickers of their classmates.
Instructor Valdin placed his leg to the right, and a dark brown formation appeared around his foot.
A second later, a large stone pillar slowly rose from the ground near the center of the chamber.
Instructor Valdin walked toward it.
"From your family, backers, and whoever taught you, you have learned how to release your demonic energy. Some of you have even learned cultivation techniques, but we’ll talk about that later."
"Releasing your demonic energy allows you to reinforce your bodies, empower your strikes, and it would also allow you to execute certain techniques in the future."
He stopped beside the pillar and placed his hand against its rough surface.
"But most of you do it poorly."
Some of the Initiates frowned.
Instructor Valdin pulled his hand back and turned toward them again.
"Tell me," he said. "When you attack with demonic energy, what do you do?"
A student answered.
"We release as much energy as we can."
Instructor Valdin nodded once.
"Exactly."
Then he pointed to the pillar.
"And that is the problem."
He stepped back slightly and lifted his fist. A faint dark glow gathered around his knuckles as demonic energy flowed from his Demon Heart.
The dark glow was twice the size of his fist, and it looked imposing with just a glance.
The pressure in the air grew heavier.
Without warning, he struck the pillar.
Bang!
The impact echoed through the chamber like a hammer striking iron.
A deep crack spread across the stone, and after three seconds, the stone began to heal itself.
Dust fell to the ground, and several students had their mouths or eyes wide open.
They were in awe and were impressed.
Instructor Valdin shook his hand slightly, then he looked back at them.
"Watch carefully."
He raised his fist again.
This time, the demonic energy around his hand was much weaker. The glow was faint.
Some students looked confused.
Then he struck the pillar again.
Bang
The second impact was quieter, but when the dust settled, the crack in the pillar was just as large as before.
A few seconds later, the stone pillar began to heal itself.
The class fell silent.
Instructor Valdin lowered his hand and looked at his students.
"Same damage," he said. "Less than half the energy."
A few students leaned forward slightly in excitement. This was what they wanted to learn.
They could now see why Simon was so strong and why his punches were so powerful.
With such level of control, why would he not defeat them?
The eyes of some students gleamed with a cold and vicious light.
Meanwhile, Instructor Valdin continued his lecture.
"That," he gestured at the healing crack on the stone pillar, "is what output control is."
He turned fully toward them.
"The ignorant and weak believe that power comes from releasing more demonic energy."
He tapped his left chest.
"But your Demon Heart is not an endless furnace. Every drop of demonic energy you waste is energy you will not have later in battle."
He began walking slowly up the steps and rows of the Initiates.
"Imagine two demons of equal strength."
He held up two fingers.
"The first releases massive bursts of demonic energy with every strike."
He lowered one finger.
"The second releases only the exact amount needed."
He lowered the other.
"Which one will still be standing after ten minutes of combat?"
No one answered this time around.
"The second," Instructor Valdin said simply while turning and walking down the steps.
"Because the first demon will exhaust himself long before his opponent does."
Instructor Valdin folded his arms as he stood at the center of his teaching platform with his arms folded.
"As assassins, it is crucial that you learn how to control the output of your demonic energy for two reasons."
Instructor Valdin raised a finger again.
"The first is because it would make it a lot more difficult for your enemies to sense you. Emitting a lot of unnecessary demonic energy can lead to you being discovered and you dying."
He raised another finger.
"Number two. You need to always have spare demonic energy because of instances where you’re caught by your enemies either because of a successful assassination or an assassination that ended in failure."
"Having spare demonic energy would allow you be able to escape using whatever movement techniques you have."
He lowered his fingers and hand.
"Many elite assassins have died because they didn’t have enough demonic energy to escape from their enemies."
The class was now extremely solemn due to Instructor Valdin’s words, and everybody began to see the importance of this class.
Regardless of their background or their history, they all came here for one major reason.
To become the best of the best assassins.
And to become one, they had to learn how to control the output of their demonic energy.