Chapter 23: Chapter 23

An hour later, Morris slapped Ron and the others a few times in various places. Their bodies went limp and they immediately collapsed to the ground. At that point, Morris left behind a single instruction, “Rest for a while,” and departed directly.

Ron and the others exchanged glances, then looked at the situations of the other squads. The instructors had likely long since agreed upon the training plans, especially for the early stages of training. Nearly a century of development had produced a well-established curriculum that left little room for individual improvisation.

While Ron and his companions lay sprawled on the ground, the other squads weren’t faring any better. Seeing this, Ron couldn’t help but ask Justin:

“Is the entire afternoon going to be trained like this?”

“Definitely not. The instructor should be going to help us collect our Ignition Potion right now. Without practicing the Breathing Technique, no matter how proficient you become at the Sword Stance, it’s useless.”

“Alright.”

Upon learning this, Ron didn’t press the matter further. In truth, he didn’t have much mental bandwidth to spare for concerns beyond his own body right now.

Because he had already used Ignition Potion to practice the Breathing Technique once last night, the continuous hour of Sword Stance state had caused the Life Energy brimming within Ron’s body to deplete at a rate far exceeding that of normal daily activity.

The result of this was that the several body parts involved in the First Sword Stance underwent extraordinarily dramatic changes!

Anyone who had experienced an injury knew that the healing wound would itch. So what happened when body parts were strengthened in an extremely short period of time?

The answer was obvious. Beyond the persistent burning sensation in the relevant body parts while maintaining the Sword Stance, after exiting the Sword Stance state, Ron felt an even more intense scorching heat radiating from those areas, unlike anything he had ever experienced before.

It was as though his right arm, lower back, and right leg had been submerged in magma, searing into his very marrow, agonizing to his core!

On top of that was the strangeness brought about by the stark difference between the strengthened areas and the rest of his body. All of it, everything combined, left no room in Ron’s mind for any other thoughts at this moment.

“Ron, what’s wrong?”

Justin suddenly noticed that Ron was clenching his teeth, seemingly enduring something with all his might. Everyone had been drenched in sweat after completing the hour of Sword Stance training, but Ron’s condition was clearly somewhat abnormal.

“I took a vial of Ignition Potion last night.” Ron replied briefly, and the moment he let that breath go, he nearly cried out from the pain.

But he knew that this experience would very likely run through the entire path of transcendence ahead of him. If he couldn’t even endure the pain of initiation, how could he hope for true transcendence later on?

The so-called “transcendence,” was it really just about being stronger than others and being able to fight?

It surely also required a willpower far surpassing that of ordinary people, along with a genuine process of rebirth and transformation!

Hearing Ron’s explanation, Justin’s expression changed dramatically. He immediately struggled to his feet from the ground and called on the others to help pull Ron up as well:

“Ron, get up and move around! You just completed a full training cycle from Breathing Technique to Sword Stance. Move your body as much as possible. That will maximize the strengthening effect of the Life Energy and also reduce the time your body needs to adjust.”

“Really!”

Hearing that moving around would produce better results, Ron squeezed out another sliver of spirit from his limits. Supported by Justin and the others, he began pacing back and forth in their corner of the training ground.

After walking for about three to five minutes, Ron felt his body recover somewhat. He broke free from Justin and the others, then began walking at an unhurried pace, gradually accelerating.

Although the body parts strengthened by the First Sword Stance were not evenly distributed, they still belonged to the same bodily system. At first, Ron did find it somewhat unfamiliar and even jarring, but his body’s adaptability far exceeded his expectations.

Before long, he could control them as proficiently as before.

The only concern was that the strengthened areas now exceeded the unstrengthened parts in their limits across all aspects. If used improperly, they could cause damage to other parts during the body’s overall coordinated movements.

It was similar to a heart patient lifting weights. The rest of his body might be able to support him in performing such “extreme exercise,” but the heart was his greatest weak point. The slightest misstep could lead to tragedy.

Fortunately, Ron currently had no need to perform activities that exceeded the limits of an ordinary person. As long as he referenced the movement limits of a normal person, there was no need to worry about damaging the unstrengthened parts.

Furthermore, he had now initially mastered the First Sword Stance. Learning the other Sword Stances was merely a matter of time. Comprehensive strengthening was not an overly difficult goal to achieve.

Even transcendence itself was highly promising!

…

“Ron, how are you feeling now?” Justin asked with concern.

“Much better. The path of the Knight is truly miraculous!”

Ron sighed with genuine emotion. On Earth, he had never imagined that obtaining transcendent power could be so straightforward. The transcendent power imagined by mortals typically required overcoming countless tribulations.

The Knight’s path certainly demanded extraordinary perseverance as well, but beyond that, what else was needed?

It seemed like nothing else was required at all.

This far surpassed any transcendent power that Ron had fantasized about while still on the Blue Planet.

“Ron,”

Justin wanted to say something but hesitated, unsure whether he should speak. Seeing this, Ron patted his arm and took the initiative:

“If you have something to say, just say it directly. We’re teammates now, and we’ll be fighting side by side in the future. What can’t be said to each other’s faces?”

“Alright, then I’ll speak plainly.”

Justin looked Ron directly in the eyes and said with complete candor:

“I know your talent is exceptional. I saw what you looked like after receiving the inheritance yesterday, and I only understood after going home and asking my father that it was because you performed an additional round of Ice Breathing in the inheritance chamber. That’s what talent is!

“But when it comes to transcendent power, talent doesn’t represent everything. I think at least in the early stages, it would be best to follow the training plan arranged by the instructor!”

“Thank you for your honesty. I also feel that my previous decision was somewhat rash. I’ll make my decisions more carefully from now on. Until I have sufficient confidence, I’ll strictly follow the instructor’s plan and won’t practice on my own in secret.”

Ron was genuinely grateful for Justin’s frankness, and he did feel that performing the Ice Breathing alone last night had been somewhat impulsive. But he didn’t regret it. As a transmigrator, he was simply too desperate to experience genuine transcendent power.

Moreover, what was done was done. Regret would serve no purpose whatsoever, and would only drag a person into endless self-recrimination. So Ron didn’t regret it, but going forward, he would make his training decisions as carefully as he had just promised Justin.

After all, he was no longer just one person now. He also had a small team.

…

Just as the apprentices on the training ground had mostly recovered from their rest, the instructors returned. The Blood and Fire Squad was met by Morris, who came back carrying Ignition Potions.

He distributed five potion vials to Ron and the others, but his gaze ultimately settled on Ron, his tone somewhat reproachful:

“You certainly are bold, daring to perform the Ice Breathing on your own in secret right after receiving the inheritance. And that elder of yours is remarkably laissez-faire, letting you run wild like that!”

Due to territory regulations, Morris didn’t believe that Ron’s elder would dare disregard territorial rules to secretly teach a junior the Ice Breathing Technique. And no normal person would have a junior who had just received the inheritance perform another round of Ice Breathing so soon.

So he concluded that Ron had made the decision on his own.