Darlick woke up disoriented about the time but it was morning
day nine
he sensed his body and found it his qi core although it was the size of a fingertip, it was enough to store qi at three times Darlick's capacity
Darlick's qi storage capacity became four times his peers, granting him greater endurance better health and freedom of choice
in battle, one of the most important factors is endurance some battles even target it directly under the name war of attrition, whoever loses endurance first loses so one cannot unleash all their abilities all the time they must use strategy and calculation
Darlick is exempt from this entirely in human battles and partially in other battles
but now he has to fill it then his mission is to train swordsmanship and body he still hasn't used [jade body technique]
he sat on his bed and began meditating he doesn't really need to go to the forest since obtaining [qi breathing] but there were some circumstances since then
but now there's a problem
'[basic cultivation technique] is not suitable for my body now my body has changed a bit from normal humans but it's not a sensitive matter now since things are simple and clear but cultivation classes have become dangerous now'
cultivation classes give you a technique to train and build your path upon but since his body is slightly different, ordinary techniques don't work with him
'I feel like I ruin my potential every time, but this time I got a satisfying reward'
he began drawing in qi and pushing it directly to his core
'the qi core is a weakness as much as it is a strength, if someone hits it it'll be worse than slicing the neck or stabbing the heart'
slowly and steadily he gathered qi inside until the core was full he got up washed and headed to the sword arena
'I've missed the swordsmanship course a lot and even lagged behind all thanks to coach Mark for covering for me'
"stats"
[stats]
[health : 12]
[endurance : 48]
[strength : 8]
[agility : 4]
[perception : 4]
'did my endurance really become four times the normal others cap at 12 and I'm nearing fifty'
'this means there are ways to exceed human limits besides grade G I can now fight for very long periods beyond human limits'
he quickly arrived and found Leo and Ray
they were both sparring but their movements almost slipped past Darlick's eyes
''hey guys where did you reach?" Ray and Leo turned to him cutting off their training
they looked at him noticing his slightly different aura and elevated health he had grown stronger too
"I mastered [basic sword technique] and I'm working on my own technique" he said standing tall
"I passed the course and I'm waiting for the instructors' response about my next one"
'damn I'm already behind but not for long'
"I'm just short on some training not insight to master the technique so I'll be back after perfecting it"
"alright"
"okay"
he bid them farewell and returned to the training dummy
[focused sword strike] executed by a lunge followed by a precise thrust
[wide sword slash] executed by a wide horizontal sweep
[downward sword cut] executed by dropping or raising then bringing down the sword
[sword form] is dodging maneuvering using momentum switching stances and techniques
'I place [sword form] as the framework and the rest of the moves as content switch and choose among them'
if there's a situation requiring a specific move it will be summoned if not it's replaced by another
[sword form] itself includes many stances and swings there's fast heavy stable slow deceptive dazzling soft smooth precise and proper
[sword form] is the hardest to learn but most important it's the framework for sword techniques merging other skills into it and even merging the skills themselves into other movements
this is the simplest sword technique
Darlick trained intensely with no limits to his endurance he continued tirelessly \[rhythm] helped greatly
students watched his training in awe no one could last half an hour at that pace but he had trained like this for two continuous days
since when did someone not need food or water?
but in truth he took breaks with Ray and Leo and they ate together but no sleep
as the saying goes sleep is for the weak
and Darlick would not be one of them
he stopped training and approached Leo
"I've mastered everything already but I need a real fight" he told Leo and the latter agreed
Leo and Darlick lined up in the center of the sand training arena and some trainees gathered to witness the anticipated match between the golden sword and the training maniac both held wooden practice swords but eyes watched as if they wielded real steel
Leo didn't hesitate he dashed forward with a light step followed by a sudden thrust toward Darlick's shoulder
Darlick dodged with a side bend trying to evade the attack and countered with a low horizontal slash aimed at Leo's waist but Leo stepped back steadily as if he knew every move before it happened
Leo said calmly while regaining balance
"good attack but you're leaving your left side open"
Darlick pursed his lips and advanced cautiously this time with a slow steady thrust to mislead his opponent
but Leo didn't fall for it he twisted his body lightly to the other side then executed a quick vertical cut toward Darlick's head stopping just before contact showing full control
Darlick grew slightly angry gritted his teeth then launched into a series of feints left then right followed by a sudden thrust toward the heart
this time Leo had to block one attack after another his hands moving steadily and skillfully during one block he spun his body and slid his sword toward Darlick's leg with a quick low slash
Darlick stumbled but regained balance at the last moment and stepped back catching his breath
his heavy breathing showed that the gap between them wasn't just skill but mastery and full control on Leo's part
but they continued Darlick advanced steadily with a barrage of slashes some deceptive some fast others precise
he switched between the moves expertly ending the assault with a wide vertical slash
of course Leo blocked and stepped back slightly then leapt forward for a strong downward strike
Darlick didn't wait he adjusted his stance and defended the blow and continued the flurry of exchanges
like a slow chess match each fought for every advantage using every piece to the fullest
Darlick retreated no point fighting for advantage slowly against Leo
he advanced two quick steps then spun performing a misleading horizontal cut immediately followed by a sudden lunge to the chest
Leo didn't respond in kind instead he stayed put bent slightly to avoid the thrust then spun with Darlick's motion and struck a diagonal blow from above to the shoulder
Darlick raised his sword to block but the force pushed him back half a step
Leo then pressured with a slow steady attack testing his opponent's reaction
Darlick instead of blocking leaned sideways then twisted his sword at a sharp angle delivering a diagonal slash to Leo's leg
but Leo lightly jumped up then turned mid-air landing right behind Darlick and delivered a swift blow toward the back stopping just before contact
Darlick turned immediately took advantage of the closeness and thrust suddenly at the abdomen
Leo pulled his arm back quickly then spun his sword in a circular angle deflecting the thrust aside using the opening to counter with a low horizontal strike
Darlick jumped back then focused this time changing his style his steps quieter his sword flowing as if dancing
he made a slow cut from the left then instantly a fast one from the right then stepped back and lunged again with a focused thrust to the throat
Leo stepped back then swayed sideways and turned his sword to block the strike precisely
then with the same motion pulled his sword back and attacked with a light fast diagonal cut but Darlick blocked it at a good angle
both stepped back breathing slowly silently observing each other
[you have awakened the basic sword technique]
Darlick wins in endurance and resilience unlike Leo despite his skill he was slightly out of breath
[basic sword technique]
[grade : H]
[class : innate]
[description : your sword is your companion, with it you carve your own path]
[upgrade guide]
[H+ : practice (0/1000)]
[H+ : condense a concept (0/1)]
[G : understand intentions (0/1)]
'my sword is my companion? that's all in the description? disappointing'
there are three ways to develop swordsmanship
first of course constant practice the usual way
second condense a concept in your dueling like killing fighting or enduring obviously this is harder but there are simpler concepts like steady combat slowness speed or power and this is the common approach
the third.. not for humans to learn
'practice a thousand times? and what the hell are intentions?' he turned to Leo and asked
"I don't know about intentions but from what I've heard there are categories specialized in them" they looked at Ray but he had nothing to add
surely the easiest way to improve \[basic sword technique] is to merge it with other skills since it's innate it's natural like breathing and a course requirement
'so what do I merge it with?'
[techniques]
[basic cultivation technique] , [jade body technique] , [basic sword technique]
[skills]
[G] : [qi breathing] , [qi control]
[H+] : [rhythm] , [deep meditation] , [weak point vision] , [peripheral sense]
[H] : [+108]
'upon review I don't really have many skills' he looked at the other two they're also sources of skills but he hesitated since he really had nothing to trade except \[jade body technique]
'what do I do?'
he went to coach Mark to ask for advice and found him near the arena
"I don't have many skills to merge with the sword technique what should I do?"
the coach looked at him like he was a fool
"then just learn more, it's simple"
he could rush and merge [weak point vision] but that's stupid
no path remained except thinking of new skills
he went to the gym there were many tools to help train muscles and body from all aspects
[jade body technique] includes several exercises to harden the body making it jade-like in toughness
they would've worked if not for his insane endurance
Darlick kept training but to no avail he felt no fatigue or pain
'should I do crazy exercises?'
and he began already he started doing push-ups with weights above him using one hand and one leg while holding his breath this was the minimum threshold to make him pant and it took more than 600 reps to make him feel pain
'this will take a while..'
he kept increasing the weights and holding his breath raising intensity in each workout trying to reach maximum output but the results were very low
'I have to get rid of the qi in my body' a gamble as usual but it worked people usually can't expel qi from their bodies but he had a mobile storage he consumed qi from his body and stored it lowering the internal qi to the minimum
he can't get rid of all qi since his body depends on it and he quickly felt pain and exhaustion
'damn this is better'
and he began again