Running with Weights

"All seven of you, come at me. I won't use Soul Skills. Once you can beat me, your training is complete."

The seven stared at Yang Dongsheng in disbelief.

How shameless could he get? The strongest among them was only a level twenty-three Soul Grandmaster. Even without Soul Skills, there was no way they could beat him.

Seeing their expressions, Yang Dongsheng said, "If you won't make the first move, I will."

With that, he charged at the seven of them.

His spear shot straight toward Ning Zi.

"I'll block it!" Cowboy rushed in front of Ning Zi and caught the blow for her.

But the force of the strike sent both Cowboy and Ning Zi out of the arena.

"Two down."

Yang Dongsheng's arrogance fired Tang Chen up.

"Watch this! First Soul Skill: Clear Sky Power!" Strengthened by the skill, Tang Chen charged at Yang Dongsheng.

"Take this!" He brought his hammer crashing down.

Yang Dongsheng neither dodged nor retreated. He intended to meet the Clear Sky Hammer head-on with his Soul Breaking Spear.

To his surprise, the blow was far more powerful than he had expected.

The hammer drove him back several steps.

"As expected of the young sect master," Yang Dongsheng exclaimed. "What strength!"

Yang Dongsheng stopped holding back and sped toward Tang Chen.

With a Soul Saint's speed, he left Tang Chen unable to land a single hit.

Moments later, he knocked Tang Chen off the platform.

"I hate speed-type Soul Masters," Tang Chen grumbled.

Of the remaining four, only Tang Xiao could trade a hammer blow with Yang Dongsheng. The others were each swept off the platform with a single spear strike.

Seeing all seven knocked out of the arena, Yang Dongsheng laughed from the platform. "Well? I'm strong, aren't I?"

Ning Zi rolled her eyes. "And you call yourself a Soul Saint. All you do is bully children. Have you no shame?"

The other six saw Yang Dongsheng choke on her words. His smile vanished, only to reappear on all seven of their faces.

As the old saying went, a smile never disappeared; it only moved elsewhere.

The sparring had done little for their combat skills, but it had unexpectedly brought the seven closer together. They felt more like a team.

As the seven began chattering, Tang Xing cut them off. "All right, enough talk. Time to train."

"Zhou Yuan hasn't finished designing your individual training plans," Tang Xing continued, "so follow mine for today."

"Tang Chen, Tang Xiao, Tai Kang—you three will practice the Disorder Splitting Wind Hammer. Yang Wu, practice the Soul Breaking Spear Technique on your own. Bai Kai, Cowboy, work on your Meditation Method for now. Ning Zi, how is your Heart Separation Control coming along?"

Ning Zi shook her head. "I haven't reached the Three-Aperture Control Heart yet, but I'm close."

Tang Xing nodded. "Then keep practicing Heart Separation Control."

Tang Xing led their training for half a day.

They continued until six that evening.

"All right," Tang Xing told them. "You're dismissed."

Everyone breathed a sigh of relief.

They were exhausted.

Training under Tang Xing was nothing like training on their own.

He never let them relax for a moment.

After just one day, Tang Chen felt as though an age had passed.

When he got home, he skipped dinner, fell onto his bed, and went straight to sleep.

That night, Tang Chen had a wonderful dream.

In it, he had become the Asura God. The first thing he did as a god was sleep until he woke naturally.

Why was sleeping the first thing he did after becoming a god?

Nonsense. Before crossing over, he had been a corporate wage slave. He had to get up at seven every morning, with no time even to cook. He ate instant noodles three meals a day until the thought of them made him sick.

He had kept it up for two and a half years. If he hadn't had to wake at seven every morning, sleep at midnight, and sometimes answer messages in the small hours, would he have died from overwork and crossed over so young?

Wasn't the point of becoming a god to live freely, without anyone telling him what to do?

If he still had to work overtime every day after becoming a god, then what had been the point?

Tang Chen couldn't help himself. The thought made him laugh himself awake.

He looked at the time. It wasn't even six in the morning.

With no desire to go back to sleep, he resumed practicing his Meditation Method.

He didn't stop until ten that morning.

After finishing his cultivation, Tang Chen headed to the training ground as usual.

Zhou Yuan had also finished drawing up everyone's training plans.

He took out seven sheets and handed one to each of them.

Tang Chen: Morning—fifty-kilometer run carrying five hundred jin, followed by a Medicinal Bath.

Afternoon—basic theory, specialized Disorder Splitting Wind Hammer training.

Tang Xiao: Morning—fifty-kilometer run carrying three hundred jin, followed by a Medicinal Bath.

Afternoon—basic theory, specialized Disorder Splitting Wind Hammer training.

Ning Zi: Morning—forty-kilometer run, followed by a Medicinal Bath.

Afternoon—basic theory, specialized Heart Separation Control training.

Yang Wu: Morning—fifty-kilometer run, followed by a Medicinal Bath.

Afternoon—basic theory, specialized Soul Breaking Spear Technique training, Soul Power cultivation.

Tai Kang: Morning—fifty-kilometer run carrying twenty jin, followed by a Medicinal Bath.

Afternoon—basic theory, Disorder Splitting Wind Hammer practice, Soul Power cultivation.

Bai Kai: Morning—fifty-kilometer run, followed by a Medicinal Bath.

Afternoon—advanced theory, agility drills, dodging drills.

Cowboy: Morning—fifty-kilometer run, followed by a Medicinal Bath.

Afternoon—basic theory, endurance training, Soul Power cultivation.

Once he had handed out all seven plans, Tang Xing clapped his hands.

Several Clear Sky Sect disciples appeared behind him, each carrying prepared weights.

They distributed them to the seven trainees.

"These are yours: one chest plate, two leg weights, and two arm weights."

After watching the disciples demonstrate, Tang Chen and the others learned how to put on their weights.

Once they were all wearing them, Tang Xing urged them on.

"All right, enough talk. One lap around this training ground is five kilometers. Get running!"

At Tang Xing's command, Bai Kai shot off like a horse breaking from the gate. Tang Chen and the others set off at a steady, unhurried pace.

Before long, Bai Kai was a full lap ahead.

As he passed them, Bai Kai teased Tang Chen. "Young sect master, you're all so slow! I've lapped you already."

Tang Chen rolled his eyes. "First, the point of this training is to strengthen our bodies. A steady pace works better. Second, try running that fast with five hundred jin on your back."

Bai Kai had the sense to shut his mouth.

He didn't slow to a steady pace as Tang Chen had suggested, though. He stayed out in front and kept charging ahead.