by <unknown>
Sun Biao was silent for a moment. He shook his head as he said, “Kid, just give up. I’ve already said that these clothes weren’t meant for ordinary people to use. You can’t possibly wear it and complete 10 sets of squats… There’s still 90 reps to go! Come on then, say ‘I give up’ and have the clothes removed.”
Li Yao swept his gaze across Sun Biao, and he stared once more at the dazzling lights on the ceiling.
Under the refraction of his tears and sweat, those lights turned incomparably bright.
He suddenly realized why the name of this artifact was ‘Give Up’.
It’s because its greatest ability was not the ability to produce a gravitational field of several hundred kilograms, nor its intense electric current assault, nor the blazing heat or freezing cold mental illusions.
Actually, it was pretty simple, ordinary, and easy, stemming from the three words “I Give Up”.
All it would take is for Li Yao’s lips to touch and use the lightest of lightest sounds to say the three words, “I. Give. Up.” to be able to remove this set of training clothes. He would escape from the weight, from the electric current, and from the illusionary mental inhuman persecution. And...
He would lose the courage to wear this set of clothes — for all eternity.
Will… he give up?
The first set of squats had already depleted all the strength in his body. Every strand of muscle, every sliver of vein, every cell in his body was squeezed dry. He felt that he lacked the strength to even go take a piss.
He still had nine sets to go. A whole entire 90 reps of squats. He would have to endure through an onslaught of bearing 200kgs, electric assaults, and illusionary mental attacks. He would have to raise the 300 kg barbell and continuously squat down, get up, and straighten his back.
For a whole 90 reps.
This ought to be fundamentally impossible, right? Even if he grits his teeth and use all of his strength to complete the two sets with all his might, three sets, four sets, five sets, sixth sets, seven sets, eight sets. Any moment during those sets, he could completely collapse, forcing him to say the three words “I give up”.
And so since this is the case, why doesn’t he just give up now?
It’s so easy. All he would need to do is touch his lips together, with a light vibration of his vocal cords, and with a slight opening of his mouth. I. Give. Up. And half a second later, he would be free and relaxed.
“I… Give...” looking at the dazzling lights on the ceiling, Li Yao spoke each word softly.
But within the dazzling lights emerged forth a string of dazzling memories.
“These clothes... weren’t meant for ordinary people.” Sun Biao had said in this manner.
But am I... an ordinary person?”
“An ordinary person... would not carry memories from a previous life upon birth. They wouldn’t remember any sort of messy ‘earth’ affairs, right?”
“An ordinary person... wouldn’t possibly be able to wrest control from and survive against the tyrannical cultivator, Ou Yezi, of 40,000 years ago, and instead, engulf Ou Yezi’s memories, right?”
“These two events, whichever bastard would have one of these things happen to them would not be considered an ordinary person. As for me, I’ve experienced both phenomenon!”
“Then… am I going to… in the face of these training clothes that weren’t meant for the ordinary person…. Give up?”
Li Yao suddenly withdrew his line of sight from the ceiling lights, shrinking into the depths of his pupils, and transforming into a needle-sharp stellar glow.
“Teacher Sun... am I allowed to listen to music?” he suddenly spoke lightly.
“Listen to music?” Sun Biao never expected that Li Yao would ask this sort of question. He was distracted for a great amount of time before saying, “Sure, if you want.”
“Okay, give me 30 more seconds.”
Li Yao laughed lightly, closed his eyes, and stuffed the “Tone Bell” artifact crafted by the Sounds of Wonder Guild into his ears.
Lu Yinxi resounded greatly with a voice in his ears that seemed to be able to pierce through the entire galaxy. Her voice immediately vibrated within the depths of his soul:
“After the raging waves and stormy seas, I stagger onward with all my might!”
“My heart fears not the striking of thunder for the lightning shall illuminate the path ahead!”
“I am completely different from you!”
Li Yao abruptly opened his eyes.
The size of the needle-sharp stellar glow in his eyes had already disappeared. In other words… His pair of eyes were filled completely with the stellar glow!
And then, he said a sentence that caused Sun Biao to be at a loss for words: “I… am no salted fish…”
“What did you say?” Sun Biao thought he had misheard. What salted fish?
Li Yao didn’t hear the old geezer’s question under the bombardment of the wild music; he was completely immersed in his own world. He spoke in whispers, “Perhaps I was a salted fish in my dream since I had given up in various situations. I dried up. I withered. And gradually, I turned into a salted fish. Turning into an ordinary person.”
“But me. I am no salted fish. I... absolutely will not give up!”
Li Yao stood up. 300 kg of weight was on his shoulders. An electric current ran all over his body. A screaming freezing chill and a devastating magma ran through the depths of his mind.
Yet still, he griped onto the barbell. His strength was very great, for even the hard steel creaked under his palm.
“The second set of squats starts now!”
The cultivation field, covered with the dust of several years, resounded once more with roars like the raging waves and stormy seas. A boiling fervor surged in waves of heat!
Chapter 32: He's a Monster! |
Sun Biao had a somewhat dazed expression as he saw Li Yao act in this wild and crazed manner. The muscles in Li Yao’s entire body were torn with one rep after another. Sun Biao’s thoughts flew back to a time a dozen years ago; he sunk into old memories.
The reflection of Li Yao’s figure in the depths Sun Biao’s pupils seemed to gradually be overlapped by a tall, lofty figure, becoming a different person.
Only when a chirping sound came from the lower right corner of the hologram, accompanied by a faint vibration on his wrist, did the old fogey awaken from his thoughts. He swallowed some spittle, moistening his somewhat dried throat. He withdrew himself to a corner so that Li Yao couldn’t see him and he opened up the e-crane instant messenger function.
The image of a clear and elegant figure appeared, mixed with a chilling air, in the center of the hologram.
“Old Sun. Sir, I see that you have already taken that child away. I truly thank you sir for your actions this time!” Si Jiaxue expressed her gratitude with utmost sincerity.
Sun Biao chuckled saying, “My dear little Xue. You even went through your father to come seeking for this old geezer. What more can I say? However, in the end, what is the relationship between you and this kid? Why do you want to help him?”
Si Jiaxue frowned slightly. It seemed that she was very unwilling to be associated with Li Yao. She explained seriously, “Old Sun, there’s not even a trace of a relationship between me and this little scoundrel. There’s only the matter of me entrusting him, a few days ago, with the repair of an old model crystal processor left behind by my grandma. It was because of this that Helian Lie, the mad dog that he is, created a disturbance with this scoundrel. In the end, this matter came forth because of me. So of course, I should not allow him to be bitten by mad dog Helian Lie; otherwise, wouldn’t people have misgivings dealing with me?”
With the raising of his eyebrows, Sun Biao adopted a mischievous expression, “So it’s that simple eh? It’s not that dear little Xue has fallen for this kid right?”
“Him? Preposterous!” Si Jiaxue couldn’t help laughing.
Sun Biao did not expect this response. He said speechle
ssly, “Even this outrageous kid is not enough for you. My dear little Xue, your standards are uncommonly high!”
Si Jiaxue lightly laughed and changed the subject. The elderly and the youth chatted idly for a few sentences. Sun Biao cut off communications and raised his head once again, hearing Li Yao roaring himself hoarse:
“THE SEVENTH SET. STARTS NOW!”
“This monster! It can’t be! Can he truly wear ‘Give Up’ and complete 10 whole sets of squats?” Sun Biao’s astonishment was enough to cause tingling in his scalp, scratching his head as he pondered. After a short moment later, he found a name from his address book and sent out an e-crane message.
Soon, a virtual crane flew out from the lower right corner of the hologram. Its wings extended and it transformed into a projection of a clear 3D figure of a person. To be exact, it was Fiend Blade Peng Hai.
Peng Hai was lying down in a relaxed comfortable manner in a bathtub. A large plate of fruit floated in front of him. Peng Hai was in utter pleasure as he soaked in his bath.
Peng Hai laughed as he said, “Old geezer, I was just about to ask if you wanted to grab dinner tonight and ask about a certain person in the meantime. Do you know if our Crimson Nimbus Second has had any sort ‘Monster-level’ student graduate within the past few years?”
“Monster-level? There weren’t any sort of special saplings in the past few years. Everyone was pretty normal and ordinary. I need to really think about this! Oh! Let’s put this matter on a hold for now. I want to tell you some explosive news... Do you still remember the clothes I specifically crafted for you a dozen years ago? ‘Give Up’?” Sun Biao rubbed his hands, wanting to give Peng Hai a scare.
The muscles on Fiend Blade Peng Hai’s face twitched as he recalled back to the unbearable memories of past events. He said with rage through gritted teeth, “Of course, I remember! You dead old geezer! You actually crafted such a vicious artifact! No wonder you were formerly known as the ‘Degenerate of the Cultivators’, you scum!”
Sun Biao laughed mischievously as he was actually quite fond of this nickname. He said impatiently, “This set of clothes has been tossed in the corner and laid there ever since you graduated. I never used it at all. But today, there has been a student who put it on!”
“What?”
Fiend Blade Peng Hai really was shocked into paralysis. With an expression that didn’t know whether to laugh or cry, he said, “Dead geezer, you have a way too mischievous heart. This type of thing isn’t something that you should give someone to wear willy-nilly. This is something that will torture someone into having a mental breakdown!
Sun Biao was somewhat embarrassed. He grumbled, “At first, I saw the kid running too wildly. I just wanted to knock him off his high horse and give him a little taste. After two minutes, he would cry for his mom and dad and remove the clothes like a good boy, right? Who would have imagined that once this kid had a taste of it, he still wanted more! Not wanting to remove it after wearing it! And he also did 7 sets in a breath of time... That’s not right, it was eight sets of 300 kilogram squats!”
Fiend Blade Peng Hai asked astonished, “Crimson Nimbus Second actually has this kind of cultivation genius? How come I didn’t know? Don’t tell me he’s not a third year, but a first or second year?”
Sun Biao extended a finger, lightly swaying it. “Nope, he’s not a cultivation genius.”
“Not a cultivation genius?” Peng Hai frowned.
Sun Biao squinted his eyes and said in complete seriousness, “Think back to those times when I crafted ‘Give Up’. You were only 14 years old, but your Actualization Quotient had already hit 100%! You were able to connect to the essence of heaven and earth and draw spiritual energy into your body. You had a strong body, and your mental strength was firm. So, you were able to cross this ordeal of ‘Give Up’!”
Sun Biao paused, breathing in and out. It seemed that even now he dared not believe the sight he’d seen. Sun Biao continued, “And this kid will already be 18 years old this year with a maximum Actualization Quotient of 60%. And his fleshly body is still completely that of a child’s. He’s using his fleshly body paired with his monstrously thick level of mental fortitude to forcefully withstand ‘Give Up’! Your kind is a cultivation genius that can hardly be seen once every hundred years. But this kind of person can only be described from head to toe as… a monster!”
Fiend Blade Peng Hai was moved. He never thought that his teacher would hold this kid in such a high regard. He was also interested. “Old geezer, send me a recording to watch?”
“No problem. Oh, that’s right. I have a recording of a fight he just had. I’ll send them both for you to watch. Although from a strength perspective, he’s still at the fighting level of a child, but in regards to his battle awareness and his usage of his surroundings... Hehe. I’ll say something that will make you mad. It seems that he’s more suited than you for inheriting my title of the ‘Degenerate of Cultivators’!”Sun Biao laughed vulgarly as he sent over a few videos.
“Why would I be mad~? I currently walk amongst the circle of cultivators, and I’ve never dared to be recognized as the succeeding disciple of the ‘Degenerate of Cultivators’. Otherwise… I fear that every minute there will be a group of justice seeking, demon beheading, devil exterminating, knights coming to cause harm to the circle of cultivators. I’m exactly looking for someone who can really inherit your legacy!”
Peng Hai giggled as he received the videos. He opened them indifferently.
The more he watched, the straighter he sat, and the more astonished his expression. A wisp of cheer flashed in the depths of his eyes.
“How is he? Not bad right? I don’t have any impression on any sort of monster-level graduate you’re looking for. Anyway, in the past dozen years, the only small monster that’s been able to shock me into stupefaction is precisely this one kid! Why don’t you come over if you’re interested and chat with this little bastard?” Laughed Sun Biao.
“No need. You go and chat without me. Later, I will ‘talk’ with him all night long and chat until daybreak!“ Fiend Blade Peng Hai said, beaming with smiles. His smiling expression was extremely vicious.
Chapter 33: A Night of Unbearable Pain |
Li Yao was still struggling against the steel barbell inside the squat rack. He bursted forth with all his energy to do the final set.
He didn’t know that from the start, behind him in the dim corner of the room, an old bastard called the Degenerate of Cultivators and a fiendish bastard expert known as Fiend Blade were whispering to each other. They were discussing details on strength training for Li Yao with things escalating the more they discussed.
Finally…
“I did it! 10 sets of squats!” Li Yao roared like a wild beast. His two eyes turned white as he fell straight back to create a “bang!”. The sweat around his body formed a large human figure on the ground!
With a fuzzy mind, he felt Sun Biao head towards him and feed him a medicinal pill the size of a small baby’s fist. When the pill entered his mouth, he didn’t have the chance to chew before it transformed into an incomparable spicy, hot liquid that flowed down his throat into his belly.
Irritation. The irritation was too much. It was more irritating than eating an entire bowl of mustard. The spice caused Li Yao’s eyes to overflow with tears that splattered everywhere. Suddenly, he leapt from the ground, jumping a meter high, “Water! Water! Get me water fast!”
“Kid, how do you feel at the moment?” Sun Biao asked with a beaming smile.
“Huh?” Li Yao blinked his eyes. He felt his body from head to toe and discovered something weird. The exhaustion and spent feeling in his body had actually been swept out, although his mouth was still filled with the incomparable, irritable spiciness. Every single part of his body contained an abundance of strength. His physical ability was restored back to his maximum state!
“Today was just the opening appetizer. The true training begins tomorrow. Is there a problem~? Student Li Yao?” Sun Bia
o snapped his fingers lightly, causing the training clothes on Li Yao’s body to automatically be shed like the molting of a snake.
Li Yao was like a startled bunny, running to the entrance of the warehouse with only three steps. Only then did he look back and answer through gritted teeth, “Of course, it’s not a problem. I’ll still come back here tomorrow morning. You just wait!”
“Sure~!” Sun Biao laughed nastily. He then spoke to himself in a low voice, “The only thing is… I fear that you won’t even be able to get out of your bed tomorrow morning, you little monster!”
…...
8 PM. Li Yao arrived at the Militant Wolf Slayers Gym right on the dot. He was overflowing with confidence towards tonight’s three minute spar.
What a joke! He was able to grit through the pain and endure through that sinister, deceitful, despicable, shameless, cruel, and brutal ‘Give Up’. It can’t be that he wouldn’t to be able to endure through 3 minutes of the smiling clown’s assault, right?
Only… Looking at the strange smiling expressions that covered the smiling clown and bald gym owner’s faces caused him to feel a bit of nervousness in his heart.
These two good friends, with their smiling faces, were like two hungry wolves with rumbling stomachs. They looked at Li Yao as if he were a clean washed rabbit slathered with sauce. This look, in the eyes of Li Yao, caused Li Yao to feel that there was a gargantuan conspiracy being covered by their smiling expressions.
“Is your belly hungry? Do you want to first eat a grand buffet? Look and see! There’s so many high-calorie military MREs. Go ahead and eat to your heart’s content!” laughed the bald gym owner.
“After you finish eating, you can also use the strengthening drug bath! And you can also get a massage from a master masseur! This way, your stamina will be restored to your peak state!” said the smiling clown.
“You guys… What are you plotting?” Li Yao had cold sweat trickle down his forehead, feeling his danger senses tingling.