At six in the morning at Viksu Academy, the minus-twenty-degree chill wrapped around the white mist of the students' breath, forming fernlike frost on the windows.
Across the frozen snowfield, the crunch of footsteps and the panting of labored breaths dissolved into the biting wind.
Like walking corpses, they swayed as they dragged their heavy feet, their faces plainly showing their desire to give up. But whenever they saw the black-haired figure ahead, strength returned to their aching legs, urging them to take one step after another.
The bitter wind was like a snowfield sprite, murmuring mysterious whispers in their ears, yet Mu Bingge, walking at the very front, remained composed.
Wind and frost cut to the bone, but her aqua-blue eyes remained steadfast.
"If you can't hold on anymore, you can give me your weights."
Mu Bingge held out her hand, but not one person handed over their weights.
Their eyes were unfocused, but they gritted their teeth and persevered.
"Teacher Mu, we can hold on. Keep going. We can keep up."
"That's right. Either we push past our limits or we head home. We have to walk this road ourselves."
"Yes, Teacher Mu. You're already doing your duty by teaching us how to use Soul Power. We need to train with weights. We can't put them on you."
The frosty wind had chafed their young faces into dry flushes. They were tired, so very tired that merely thinking of a bed could bring them to tears, but not one of them gave up.
They would train until they passed out or collapsed from exhaustion, but they would not dump their weights on Teacher Mu.
Anania, who had rejoined the group, gritted her teeth and persevered. Even with her face swollen like a bun from training, she refused to