We landed in a desolate location where it was just flat ground and barely any plants.
Of course, I knew this area.
Xue Plains.
Zeng Meng outbreaks here were normal, but a previous group of Li-Liang users sent by the academy purged the place.
Now, it's just a desolate land that was once filled with bloodshed.
No one wants to claim this land or reform it.
It's just known as a tragedy.
Honestly, I always thought this place was added to the game just to add more lore; gameplay-wise, it didn't serve much of a purpose.
Zeng Meng outbreaks still happen here, but not as frequently, and the monsters that appear aren't nearly as dangerous as they were before.
If I recall correctly, it was a low-level zone, and newbies could come here to kill some monsters for experience, and the loot was lower than mid.
It made a lot of sense for Grandma Guanhuai to bring me here.
"Alright, kiddo, we're starting with the basics today, and we ain't leaving till you master it!"
Basics? Shouldn't be too hard.
I doubt it'll take me more than two hours to control my Li-Liang output efficiently.
"Dozing off ain't allowed! Quitting ain't allowed! Resting ain't allowed! And NO COMPLAINING!"
"I know, I know, let's just get started."
"... If ya say so..."
She plopped her black bag by some rocks and walked over.
"I bet ya already know 'bout all em book stuff on Li-Liang, comin' from yer background, so we're starting with hands-on practice!"
I guess it was good to get the easy stuff out of the way... one of the rare wins for Hanzhi's noble background.
"Ya probably caught a bit of this while using Li-Liang, but it ain't just thinking 'bout doing it; you gotta feel it."
Of course, through the game's lore, I had already known this.
Many characters would talk about how they controlled their Li-Liang and how it felt.
Surprisingly, some characters felt different things, but most Li-Liang users feel it like water rushing throughout your body.
It actually isn't hard to control at all, but when you use too much Li-Liang, the water turns into an uncontrollable waterfall, gushing out... that's where needing training comes in.
The same goes for the opposite; if you try to overexert your Li-Liang despite having no more left in your system, your body will be like a drought, and you won't be able to cast anything.
Grandma Guanhuai explained all this to me in her own words.
Surprisingly, she wasn't half bad as a teacher... or maybe it was because I already knew the information.
"Look here, kiddo, I know you're damn powerful, but ya ain't there yet."
Her eyes glinted with a sense of familiarity.
"So, throw everything I said out the window, cuz we're doing REAL training!"
"... Real training?"
"Physically, yer weak; in fact, yer below average."
... Ouch...
"And I ain't gonna have MY student be some weak-ass wussy who can only attack with Li-Liang!"
"... Wait, you're not going to-"
"So I prepared some military-"
"Wait-! I didn't sign up for this?! You said we were training my Li-Liang?!"
"Ay, training comes from the outside first here, not within or some bullshit."
Ugh! This was why she didn't ask about my skill tree... I should've known...!
"Ah, I'm feeling woozy... I don't know, maybe that ride up to the clouds really took a lot out of me... not a lot of oxygen, y'know?"
"..."
A dark shadow seemed to cross over her face.
"...Um... Grandma Guanhuai-"
"ONE HUNDRED PUSHUPS, GO."
"What?"
"I SAID GO."
Suddenly, I was grabbed by the back of my neck and thrown onto the ground.
"START!"
Her voice echoed throughout the area, piercing my ears.
For some reason, my body actually started doing push-ups.
It's not like I was scared of what she'd do to me if I didn't listen, though.
"ONE, TWO, THREE,"
Before she even got to four, I embarrassingly collapsed.
"YA AIN'T GONNA GET NO WHERE LIKE THAT, GET UP!"
I raised my hands once again, propping myself up, hands shaking.
"AGAIN! ONE, TWO... THREE..."
My knees gave in, and my legs dragged onto the ground.
"Ahhhh! I really... hah... can't... do this! Hahhh..."
Was it just me, or was the warm sun from before suddenly scorching now?
Sweat ran down my face, yet Grandma Guanhuai continued.
"YA CAN'T EVEN GET TO FOUR, HOW ARE YA GONNA BE A LI-LIANG USER, EH?"
"... Most... don't... do... hahhh... this kind of... training...!"
"ARE YA TALKING BACK TO ME? START AGAIN FROM ONE!"
This isn't fair! I just did six, though!
Unfortunately, I pulled myself back up again, both arms and legs feeling like twigs against the strong winds.
Every time I pushed down, my limbs shook more and more violently.
Sweat was now pouring down my face.
"ARE YA SERIOUS, YA CAN'T EVEN GET TO FOUR?!"
"Well, making... fun of me... hah... isn't helping!"
I tried to go for one more, but my entire body just failed me.
Oh god, was Hanzhi really this weak...?
I know he's skinny and my slum diet isn't helping, but...
... But I really feel like I'm gonna die!
"I THOUGHT YE WAS GONNA MASTER THIS? BUT YA AIN'T NOTHING, AY?"
"I am going to... hahh... hah..."
For a moment, the words wouldn't even come out of my mouth.
"C'MON, A FOUR-YEAR-OLD COULD DO BETTER!"
My hands found the ground, and I once again pushed myself back up.
"ONE... TWO... THREE..."
C'mon...!
My vision started to blur as my head spun, yet somehow, I was able to find my last remaining strength somewhere.
With a sharp exhale, I shot up, fighting the urge to lie back on the ground.
"FOUR!"
***
"Ay, wake yer ass up."
"... Huh... w-what?... what happened...?"
"Ya passed out, that's what happened!"
"... Right... and h-how long have I been out for...?"
I'm not quite sure why I even asked that question; the yellow sky above us told me everything.
"Y'know, kiddo... maybe I overestimated you."
"... Ouch... if you don't have good things to say, then don't say it..."
She rolled her eyes at me before taking a box of strawberries out of her bag and shoving it into my hands.
"Where did you get this? Strawberries? You've never bought Wei and me anything like this before!"
I opened the plastic box and grabbed a strawberry by its leaves.
They were bright red, perfectly ripe.
And just as expected, biting into the strawberry gave me the sweetest taste since I first came here.
"The juice is dripping out yer mouth, ya idiot!"
"Oops...!"
"This stuff ain't cheap enough for just an 'oops'!"
Almost too quickly, I finished gobbling up all the strawberries.
The exhaustion I'd felt before was lifted off my shoulders.
Instinctively, I lay back down on the ground, sprawling my entire body out as if I was making a snow angel.
"Ya sure seem a hell of a lot more energetic, yeah?"
"Hmf, I guess so."
"Then we'll start at the same time tomorrow."
"... what...?"