Chapter 20: Hard Training
At 8 o'clock the next morning, the students arrived at the Martial Arts Arena in small, scattered groups.
The oppressive atmosphere made it feel as if the resentment in the air alone could sustain 10 Evil Sword Immortals.
Regarding this, Su Ke and the other two could only mutter silently in their hearts.
'Sorry, classmates.'
Before long, Zhao Gang arrived as well.
Looking at the sparse and dispirited crowd, Zhao Gang said sternly, "Why does everyone look so lifeless? Didn't I also give up my own rest time to train you? This is all for your own good."
"Your future mission is to annihilate Yao Beasts and reclaim our land. With your current state, if you really encountered a Yao Beast, it would probably eat you and turn you into manure before you even realized what was happening."
"Bleed less in the future by sweating more now!"
Unfortunately, this classic teacher's speech failed to produce the desired effect.
The students remained listless and utterly unmotivated.
It had to be said that this batch of students was quite bold to display their true emotions so openly in front of a teacher.
Zhao Gang glanced at their spiritless expressions, slowly raised the box in his hand, and revealed a confident smile.
He opened it, revealing 3 potions quietly resting inside, each emitting a silvery-white glow.
"These are Elementary Spiritual Energy Potions," Zhao Gang said. "As I mentioned before, this training will last half a month."
"On the final day, I will conduct an assessment. The top 3 performers will receive these potions."
"Of course, only those with perfect attendance throughout the entire half-month will be eligible."
The moment his words fell, the students were instantly revitalized.
"Ah, my battle intent is surging!"
"That potion is mine! No one else is getting it!"
"Perfect attendance? Class starts at 2 in the afternoon, right? I'm going home and setting my alarm for 2 in the morning!"
Most of the students came from ordinary families. How could they afford such expensive potions?
At best, they might have consumed 1 or 2 before, and many had never had even a single one. Normally, they could only rely on slow, step-by-step cultivation.
Now that a free potion was within reach, how could they not go crazy?
This single potion represented their hope of breaking through to the next Realm.
Su Ke and the other two, however, felt little excitement. After all, they still had unused Yao Beast crystal cores in their possession.
Seeing that everyone's enthusiasm had been successfully stirred, Zhao Gang finally got down to business.
"This half-month of training will mainly focus on improving your actual combat ability," he said. "As your Realm increases, your physical fitness will naturally improve."
"But only through continuous training can you keep strengthening it further. Since this training lasts only half a month, you won't gain much in that aspect."
"Those basics can wait until school starts. I brought you here to teach you real skills."
"So we'll skip foundational conditioning and directly begin practicing Moves."
Hearing this, the students grew even more excited.
"Great! I thought this training would just be running and lifting weights!"
"Yeah, in movies, people always practice basics forever before learning real techniques. I thought it was such a hassle."
"It's not that we don't need the basics," someone said. "The order is just reversed."
"That's still amazing! While others are still throwing punches blindly, we'll already know proper techniques. That's a huge advantage!"
By now, the students' excitement had reached its peak.
"Alright," Zhao Gang said. "I now declare that the training officially begins!"
A girl in the crowd raised her hand.
"Do you have a question?" Zhao Gang asked.
"Teacher, I'm in the Support Class. Do I have to practice this too?"
"That's a very good question," Zhao Gang replied. "Everyone, remember this clearly."
"In battle, the enemy will not show mercy just because you're in the Support Class. On the contrary, you'll often become their primary target."
"Once you're taken out, your teammates lose their support and become much easier to deal with."
"Therefore, Support Class users, as well as those with elemental abilities, must also learn how to protect themselves."
"Even if an enemy closes in, you must at least have the ability to fight back. Do you all understand?"
"Understood!"
"Good," Zhao Gang said. "With your current strength, Yao Beasts are still far beyond you."
"The enemies you're most likely to face are other humans. No matter the era, scum will always exist."
"You've all heard of Cults. Every single one of them is a traitor to the Human Race. If you encounter them, kill them on sight."
"Even setting Cults aside, vicious criminals are unavoidable in daily life. So the first thing I'll teach you is how to fight people."
"Take this seriously. Learn well. Ask questions if you don't understand."
"Understood!"
Zhao Gang first demonstrated a full set of movements.
"This is a Close-Combat Technique," he explained. "It was developed over hundreds of years by countless predecessors."
"It's based on thousands of years of martial arts culture from before the Spiritual Qi Revival and was continuously refined through real combat."
"It includes fist techniques, leg techniques, palm techniques, and movement techniques."
"Using this in a fight will give you a significant advantage. Normally, this is only taught after entering university."
A student raised a hand. "What if both people know it?"
"Then the one with better physical fitness and higher proficiency will win," Zhao Gang replied.
He then had everyone line up and began drilling them repeatedly.
"You—your punching speed is too slow!"
"You—your body is swaying too much!"
"You—there's no need to kick that high!"
Zhao Gang instantly turned into a strict instructor, tirelessly correcting mistakes.
Among the students, Wang Zhong and Lin Ning performed the best. They had prior exposure and some personal practice.
Although Su Ke had never formally trained in close combat, his Realm was higher and his endurance stronger, so his performance was still decent.
From 2 in the afternoon until 6 in the evening, Su Ke barely rested during those 4 hours.
Whenever he recovered a bit of strength, he stood up and continued practicing. Each time, he pushed his physical limits before stopping briefly, drenched in sweat and gasping for breath.
The difficulty of the Close-Combat Technique exceeded his expectations.
At his current Realm—first order, sixth stage—he already felt exhausted after just a few moves. Completing a full set left him soaked in sweat.
Four consecutive hours of high-intensity training placed enormous strain on his body.
This routine continued for an entire week.
Every day, he trained alongside his classmates. When others rested, he continued exercising, never stopping until he had pushed his physical capacity to the absolute limit.
The reason he trained so hard was simple.
He knew that although he often defeated Wang Zhong in daily sparring, it was largely because he had multiple transformation forms, while Wang Zhong relied heavily on brute force.
If Su Ke used only Four Arms and Wang Zhong applied proper close-combat techniques, Su Ke would not be a match for him at all.
He was keenly aware that he wasn't as strong as he seemed.
There was still a gap between him and his companions.
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