Days passed by as I continued with my training, with countless Coconut Things scattered around the area. Something that I know for sure was messing with the whole area around my lair. The more I used these things as my practice weapons, the more the air slowly but surely had that tint of coconut flowing in it.
I really have to stop using those Coconut Things as my practice weapons.
...after this last session, then I'll stop and proceed with using my weapons for the real training. What you thought that I'll just do this sort of safe training for how long I can, and not use the weapons that I would be using against those hyper-evolved animals?! You're insane, that's what!
Also, I need hands-on experience with how to hold my weapon properly, as I do not want my hold on it to just slip as I bash something with it. That coconut thing that I had tried on does not count, as that was just me testing it out on something.
As such, with a couple of swings with the dead coconut thing in my pincher, I stopped and simply threw it at the sea with as much strength as I could, as I did not want the coconut to linger in the air anymore. It's making me more sick of coconut, I mean, I had to survive on the stuff for a month or so now. Other sources of meat and fruits/berries do balance it out, though, so I can't really argue any more than I can.
With that done, simply put the practice shield aside. I then proceed to get my weapons out of my lair.
Speaking of my lair, I had to make an expansion on it to make more room for myself and the stuff that I would be putting there, i.e., my weapons and some food as a backup storage space for when my old one either gets spoiled or is taken away by any creature that has found my lair. I would have expanded more, but I feared that the structural integrity would fail, and then I would be buried by my own home.
Anyway, I store my weapons by the entrance, as if I might need them when I encounter something during my training, and I would need them to deal with it as quickly as possible. However, it was a hassle trying to get the shield out of the entrance, since the spikes scraped around it. It's so annoying that I have to be careful with it now. I was even forced to make the entrance a bit bigger than it used to be.
I even had to do this weird pose, or a crab's pose, as my left arm was behind me, and my right arm with the club was in front.
After a few agonizing minutes, which were me trying not to hit the walls of my home, I finally got my weapons out. Now all I have to do is train with these. Here's hoping that I won't cause any more damage than I have done. Aside from the area now smelling of coconut.
Now with that done, I tested the weight of both of my weapons, as I was now used to the weight of the practice one. These were a bit heavier than I remembered them to be, since it has been quite some time since I held them after I had made them. But I could still hold it normally.
What about swinging them, though? A test swing would allow me to see how I handle it now. But I will not be hitting it against something since I have already done that, so yeah, dexterity testing is the thing I will be doing for the moment. Once that is done, I will start testing them out with some stuff; maybe a boulder or some trees would do nicely.
Yes, I know I had just said that I wouldn't be hitting my weapons against things since I had already done that. But here's the thing, though, that strike I didn't have that skill behind that swing, so I just wanted to check what's different today. Think of it as a base on which to decide what I should do or change, depending on what I should do now.
After a few minutes of thinking it through, I then made up my mind as I approached a tree, and I reeled back my right arm for a strike. At that moment, my body made the right positions as my body recognized what I should do and release it at the tree.
My vision wasn't filled with debris of wood scraps; instead, it bore its sight on the two halves of a tree. But then dust overcame it in the end as the top part smashed into the sand. That was quite annoying in a way, as it was quite hard to take sand off my eyes, yes, my eyes are so durable that I could see underwater and above ground quite easily. But I can still feel the pain coursing through them like a sudden stinging sensation that stung really hard.
At least I could easily clean them off my eyes as they seemingly slid off them.
Aside from the searing pain that I am going through, I was quite happy to know that my testing proved to be fruitful, as my weapon's lethality is proven to be true. I mean, putting blades on a club that has its added weight acts as a push for the blade to go through stuff that is harder than it cuts. In other words, think of it like strapping an axe head into a bat; it's similar to an axe, yet not, cause its weight distribution is at the tip and not focused on the blade. That and it's easy to wield and not cumbersome.
With that out of the way, I should try the shield next.
But I couldn't use it like a normal shield since this one is like an oversized buckler shield. I should try punching with it first again to see if it's still lethal.
I did just that as I chose a target for this test. Once I found the right one, I reeled my left arm and released it at the tree. Once more, my vision was filled with wood scraps and debris, which was annoying in itself. Of course, given my track record, that wasn't the only thing that I had to find annoying, as it turns out that behind the tree, something was munching on a piece of that coconut thing.
A couple of things happened as my sight zeroed in on a rhinoceros beetle filled with spikes. I would have cursed right there and then if it weren't for that beetle seeing me as it spat out what remained of its dinner. It then let out what I can describe as a mix of a bear and a snake, with the hissing filling my ears. Once it was done, it charged straight at me like a rhino, its eyes fixed on its enemy.
At that moment, I did the only thing I could think of: I raised my shield and braced for impact. I let out a grunt as the beetle smacked itself onto my shield, seemingly not bothered by the spikes on the shield. It is covered in what I can only guess is a tough carapace, like any bug has. So my shield is still effective as a shield, with the spikes being durable enough to act as a second shield. If I weren't fighting a bug this tough, then the spikes on the shield would be effective against them.
I would have tried smacking my shield against the beetle if it weren't for the fact that the beetle is a bit bigger than I was when it was lying low. Yeah, at first I thought that this thing was the same size as I was, but when it stood up against its hind legs, it was a bit bigger than I was, hence why I couldn't use my shield to bash this thing, as it was the only thing that was keeping me out of the beetle's mandibles.
I would have used my club to bash this thing, but as I was forced to use both of my pinchers to hold the shield tight to be able to brace against the charge of this beetle. So yeah, I dropped my club a few feet away from me, and as for why it was a few distance away from me, that is because I was pushed this far, remember?
As such, it was obvious that even with my absurd strength and feats that I was able to do, I was no match against this thing. All I could do now is hope that I wouldn't hit myself against its horn. Speaking of which.
I braced once more as its horn suddenly grabbed my shield, which took me by surprise and nervousness as I remembered one key detail about this thing. It's the fact that the main weapon for a rhinoceros beetle is its impressive horn, which it uses to grapple against its foes. It's also strong enough to cause quite a lot of damage.
So with that, I quickly thought of a quick solution to my problem as I released my hold on my shield. Once I'm done that, I quickly scuttle towards my club as fast as I can once the beetle is surprised...I think? Anyway, I then picked it up and, reeling my right arm, I swung at the beetle. It wasn't that strong, so I expected as much once I hit it, but it caused next to little damage...shite...