Swish! Swish! Swish!
Donald demonstrated as he taught the young white-haired boy who was standing in front of him with a pair of curious eyes.
"When you swing your blade, you have to make it feel like the sword is an extension of your body. There are 12 basic sword moves; by comprehending these basic moves to a high level, you can learn to develop variants of a sword move, for instance…"
"Watch clearly, boy," Donald took a stance; his right leg was about two feet forward, while his left leg was pressed backward. Suddenly, a loud boom sounded as he rushed forward with a strike: 'Rushing waves strike!'
With a loud shout he lunged forward; Kranos's eyes widened in shock because the next instant Donald seemed to have disappeared. If not for the fact that, due to his high affinity for the space element, he was able to sense some fluctuations in space, he would have thought his teacher had vanished.
His speed is so fast! It is almost like he is teleporting. Kranos was shocked; he couldn't even see how Donald moved. He took a moment to calm his breathing; in this moment, Donald had already appeared at a distance of a few kilometers.
"This is just the combination of a few basic sword moves, the stab, slash, and stab. When all three are combined together with the knight's breathing technique, the result becomes terrifying.
Kranos looked eagerly; he couldn't wait to learn the basic sword moves.
At this moment something surfaced in Donald's hand, which he flicked to Kranos.
He turned to look at it and realized that it was something like a scroll; he slowly slid it open, and inscripted on it were different poses. From picture to picture on the scroll, the stance of each man differs.
"This is called the knight's breathing technique," Donald spoke up calmly. Kranos also realized that the words knight breathing technique were written boldly at the top of the scroll.
Kranos was curious: would I be able to practice the knight's breathing technique despite the fact that I have an aptitude with cultivation? Unable to hold in his curiosity, Kranos asked while phrasing it in a different way.
"Teacher, can someone that possesses a root bone still practice the knight's breathing technique?"
Donald was stunned for a moment before he sighed. I guess he is still feeling regretful about not awakening a root bone. With a look of sorrow, Donald comforted, "Yes, even those in possession of root bones can practice the knight's breathing technique."
"Actually, the knight's breathing technique is just a way for mortals to infuse little bits of essence into their body to make it tougher, stronger, and faster. Those with root bones have no need for the knight's breathing technique because they have better cultivation techniques," Donald continued, and with a sigh, he added, "Let's just say, compared to true cultivation techniques, the knight's breathing technique can be considered trash."
Hearing those words, Kranos was shocked. I thought that the knight's breathing technique could at least be compared to cultivation techniques, but to think they are really just trash compared to them is laughable. It seems having a cultivation bone is all that matters in this world.
"Okay, back to the practice of the basic sword techniques. You are currently not fit to practice the basic sword techniques, and the true knight's breathing; your body isn't used to that yet. We will first start with some basic exercises: sit-ups, squats, push-ups, etc."
Donald began demonstrating all the postures for the basic exercises. In the past few years, Kranos had spent his time reading and learning in the royal library; due to this, he had little to no time to train his physical body.
Now would be the best time to get some muscles on my thin, frail physique. Kranos thought inwardly.
"We will start with a gradual process, twenty of every exercise." Donald said sternly, although it might seem harsh, but everybody's body is already naturally strengthened a tad bit by the essence in the air constantly nourishing them; besides, for Kranos, the food he usually eats is out of the ordinary.
"Okay, teacher," immediately Kranos immersed himself in the exercise; although it was stressful at first, he soon got the hang of it. It's probably because I haven't exercised in a long time that exercise feels foreign to my body. Kranos muttered inwardly.
…
Time passed, and soon the sun had gone down the horizon.
Pant! Pant! Pant!
Kranos lay on the ground; he was out of breath, and he felt as though his throat was on fire. It was stressful; it truly was. Kranos wanted to give up a couple of times, but after being forced by his teacher, he held on to the end.
Kranos felt his whole body aching as he slowly walked back home. Thankfully, his home wasn't too far from his training ground. When he entered, he immediately slumped on the couch in the parlor.
Hearing a noise, a middle-aged woman came out from the room. "Mother," Kranos managed to mutter under his breath.
"Welcome back, son. How was training today?" Anna said, as soon as she stepped into the parlor, immediately seeing the state he was in, she changed her tone to that laced with concern, "What did that old man do to my poor baby?"
She immediately rushed into Kranos' bedroom, and after a few moments, she came out. "Son, go and soak in the medicinal bath in the bathroom."
Hearing his mother's urgent voice, Kranos felt warm in his heart; he stood up, dragging his body like a log of wood, and stepped inside the bedroom.
What is this? Entering the bathroom, Kranos was stunned; he saw that the tub, which he used to bathe, was bubbling with a pale green liquid; he could scent a peculiar fragrant scent, as well as see that there were a couple of leaves here and there in the bathtub.
Restraining his thoughts due to his tiredness, he undressed and dipped into the bathtub. Immediately he felt a warm feeling; it soothed the pain he felt greatly, although he still felt quite itchy; his tiredness and fatigue had subsided greatly.
This feels quite nice!