Just the Right Force: Dazed, Not Brain-Damaged

After lunch, Qin Chao was back at full health.

The cafeteria had finally served normal food for lunch. It not only filled his stomach but also rescued his ravaged taste buds.

After a brief rest, Qin Chao returned to the training ground, where a dark figure was already waiting for him in the center.

"Good afternoon, Teacher Gui..." Qin Chao bowed respectfully.

Ghost Douluo had always been sparing with words. He merely nodded slightly. "I'll be handling your Taijutsu training this afternoon. Warm up first..."

Qin Chao began some simple stretches as instructed. Although he had already known Ghost Douluo would be teaching him Taijutsu, he still couldn't help wondering what the training would involve.

Ever since becoming their disciple, he had spent little time with Ghost Douluo. Compared with Ghost Douluo, who kept a wall between himself and others, Qin Chao still relied more on Yue Guan...

After that brief exchange, both fell silent, and the atmosphere grew somewhat awkward. After hesitating for a moment, Qin Chao finally worked up the courage to ask, "Teacher Gui, what are we training this afternoon...?"

Ghost Douluo raised his head slightly. Shrouded in black mist, his face was impossible for Qin Chao to make out, but Qin Chao could clearly feel his sharp, icy gaze.

Feeling the chill in that gaze, Qin Chao's eyelids involuntarily twitched twice, and an ominous premonition rose in his heart...

"The training? Taking a beating..."

Ghost Douluo's voice was cold and hoarse, as though it came from another world.

Qin Chao's first reaction was that his teacher had to be joking. Practicing taking a beating? Grandmaster never seemed to put the Shrek Seven Devils through anything like that...

Looking at the dubious little fellow, Ghost Douluo wasted no words. Surging soul power circulated rapidly, and he darted forward like a bolt of black lightning.

The dull thud of a bodily impact echoed across the training ground. Even though Ghost Douluo held back, Qin Chao's small frame was still sent flying by his palm.

"Holy crap, Teacher, you're serious?!"

Sitting where he had fallen, Qin Chao complained indignantly. His collar had fallen open, revealing a particularly conspicuous palm-shaped bruise on his chest.

"I never joke..." Ghost Douluo's voice remained cold and hoarse, without the slightest trace of sympathy. "All Taijutsu, whether offensive or defensive, tests your reflexes. If you want to improve them quickly, actual combat is the best method..."

Ghost Douluo rarely spoke much. The fact that he had now deigned to explain his reasoning to Qin Chao was enough to show how much he valued this disciple.

The expression on Qin Chao's handsome little face instantly froze.

All right, so we're keeping it that simple and direct?!

"I'll only use a tenth of my soul power, and I'll control the force of my attacks..." Ghost Douluo spoke again, seemingly worried Qin Chao might feel wronged. "Concentrate. Once you can evade my attacks, your Taijutsu will have passed muster..."

After hearing Ghost Douluo's explanation, Qin Chao promptly climbed to his feet. The injury on his chest looked rather nasty, but it was only superficial. Aside from hurting a little, it didn't hinder his movements. Looking at Ghost Douluo, who had fallen silent again, Qin Chao spread his hands helplessly.

"Of all martial arts under heaven, only speed cannot be defeated. I get it..." Qin Chao rolled up his sleeves. "Come on, Teacher! It's just a beating. I can take it!"

The afternoon passed quickly, but for Qin Chao, every day felt like a year as he trained.

Ghost Douluo was an Agility Attack Soul Master to begin with, his movements elusive and uncanny. Even when Qin Chao concentrated with all his might, he still couldn't make out the path he took.

The black figure flickered constantly across the training ground, each appearance bringing another series of dull thuds as blows struck flesh.

Throughout the entire afternoon, Qin Chao failed to dodge a single attack. Ghost Douluo's strikes were steady and precise, leaving blue and purple bruises evenly distributed across Qin Chao's body. Even his handsome little face hadn't been spared; it had swollen into a veritable pig's head.

Pain kept assailing his body. The corners of Qin Chao's mouth twitched involuntarily, and his clothes had long since become soaked in cold sweat. Every movement intensified the pain.

That unrelenting agony had long exceeded what a six-year-old child could endure, yet Qin Chao still gritted his teeth and persevered.

He discovered that after every bout of intense pain, the soul power continuously circulating within him seemed to grow a little more condensed. Ghost Douluo was simply too fast, however. With Qin Chao's reflexes, even catching sight of him was difficult, let alone evading his attacks.

"That's enough for today..." Looking at the small figure barely managing to remain standing on the training ground, Ghost Douluo finally announced the end of their training.

He measured his blows carefully. Every attack inflicted just enough pain for Qin Chao to feel it without truly harming him. Put simply, it was a thorough thrashing that wouldn't leave him crippled.

Just the right force: dazed, not brain-damaged.

The human body was a wondrous thing, harboring limitless potential, and pain was the quickest way to awaken that potential...

Physical pain could sharpen Qin Chao's powers of observation, judgment, and reaction, allowing him to assess an enemy's movements as quickly as possible in combat.

The process might be long, but there was no denying that this method was simple, brutal, and effective...

With the lesson finally over, Qin Chao's legs gave out, and he collapsed weakly onto the ground. Wiping the beads of cold sweat from his forehead, he forced his lips to move.

"Thank you for your hard work, Teacher..."

Ghost Douluo nodded slightly, a barely perceptible trace of pride appearing on the face concealed beneath his black mist.

Qin Chao's injuries might not have been serious, but the pain was very real. This was his first training session, and Ghost Douluo had expected the little fellow to last an hour at most. Yet Qin Chao had held on until dusk.

That resilience pleased him immensely and filled him with a measure of pride.

This was his disciple.

With perseverance like that, he would succeed at anything he did...

Dressed in formal attire, Yue Guan had already been waiting outside the training ground for quite some time. Seeing that training was over, he hurried inside.

"Holy crap, you old ghost! Did you have to hit him so hard?!"

Scooping the collapsed Qin Chao into his arms, Yue Guan couldn't help complaining at the sight of the little fellow's face, swollen into an unrecognizable pig's head.

"He has no serious injuries..." Ghost Douluo explained quietly, though his tone held a hint of guilt.

He hadn't expected Qin Chao to endure so much either. One lapse in attention, and he had ended up with a battle-damaged version of his disciple...

Yue Guan said nothing. He only shot him a cold glare, rolling his eyes practically to the heavens.

"Little Qin Chao, it's all right. I've prepared healing medicine for you. It'll cure you as soon as it's applied!"

The moment he finished speaking, the figure in red formal attire vanished from the training ground, moving so swiftly that he left a trail of afterimages...

"Wasn't it all for the child's sake? How did I end up being the bad teacher...?" Ghost Douluo, ruthlessly abandoned, muttered under his breath, his tone carrying a faint hint of grievance...

Carrying Qin Chao, Yue Guan headed straight for the dormitory. A wooden tub about a meter across had been placed inside the room, which measured a little over ten square meters, making the once-spacious interior feel somewhat cramped.

He gently removed Qin Chao's clothes, exposing his bruise-covered body before Yue Guan's eyes.

"Damn it, that old ghost really hit hard. Any more force, and he would've caused internal injuries..." Yue Guan spoke angrily through clenched teeth, his heart aching for Qin Chao.

Removing his clothes inevitably brushed against the bruises on his body. Qin Chao had been grimacing in pain, but when he heard Yue Guan's curses, he couldn't help defending Gui Mei.

"Teacher Gui was doing it for my own good..."

"Hmph, you certainly have a forgiving temper..." Yue Guan carefully lowered Qin Chao into the wooden tub, only letting go after making sure the dark brown medicinal liquid reached his neck.

"Little Qin Chao, don't sleep tonight. Meditate in this healing medicine instead, or the blood left pooled inside your body might cause further harm..."

Only after Qin Chao nodded in agreement did Yue Guan open the door and leave.

The child had trained all afternoon and must have been hungry. He needed to hurry and fetch little Qin Chao something to eat. As for that old ghost... it seemed the two of them hadn't sparred in quite some time. It was about time they stretched their muscles...