“You do not have any prior combat training,” Master Ying Nan said and I nodded in agreement.

Although I had once tried to learn some combat skills because of how much I used to be bullied, I actually never had any time to learn it because I was busy learning science where my talent actually was. I thought that once I was out of school, I would never see the face of them as our lives would be much apart. As such, I never learnt any combat skills despite wanting to learn them at one time.

As someone who was an Oscorp intern and whose best friend was the heir of Oscorp, my future could already be said to be secure. And this was something which could not be said about those idiotic bullies.

“So, whenever you fight, you use your innate instincts to fight. This is your actual problem.” She pointed out my problem to me.

“The more you use your instincts to fight, the more you lean on them, the harder it is to control them. As long as you lean on your instincts, you will never be able to conquer them.” Master Ying Nan explained that the reason I could not control my instincts was because in the end, I was being controlled by them.

“So, what is the solution?” I asked Master Ying Nan anxiously.

“It is simple. You just need to learn how to fight without being controlled by your instincts.” She answered calmly.

“Fortunately, Ancient One realised what was your problem and sent you to Ta Lo. Otherwise with your condition, it would have been very difficult for you to progress into mystic arts. No matter how much you would have tried, your body would never have been your own.”

“Your instincts prevent you from unleashing your true potential. However, as you learn the ancient martial arts of Ta Lo, you would slowly be able to conquer your instincts and unleash your potential.” According to Master Ying Nan, I must learn the martial arts so that I can continue my study into the mystic arts.

“Come, it’s about time I start teaching you the ancient martial arts of Ta Lo.”

Then, Master Ying Nan began teaching me the fundamental forms of the Ta Lo martial arts. According to her, the Ta Lo style of martial arts could be said to be a mixture of various martial arts which had been continued to be improved from ever since Ta Lo was created.

Perhaps, it was because of my increased intelligence or my earlier experience in fighting, I could easily grasp the fundamental forms.

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“I had thought that it would take a few days for you to have a proper grasp on the fundamental forms but you did it in only a few hours.” Master Ying Nan was quite pleasantly surprised by my natural talent in martial arts.

“That is enough for today. We shall continue tomorrow.” She stopped teaching me after I had a proper grasp on fundamental forms. This was surprising as it was only late noon.

“Today, I will show you around the village.” So, this was Master’s plan.

As we roamed around the village, I saw how much the villagers were dedicated towards their work.

Some people are working in the field while many other villagers were training with their weapons. There were also some middle aged and elder villagers who are crafting weapons and armours.

Some villages greeted Master Ying Nan but others were just engrossed in their work. It seemed that the villagers were cold towards me for some reason.

After finishing our tour around the village, Master Ying Nan took me towards the lake behind the village.

As I stood at the shore of the lake, I saw a large sealed door on a mountain at the other side of the lake. The door was engraved with various runes and I could feel strong magic on the door even from such a distance.

I could feel a sense of danger through my dragon sense from the sealed door even though it was tightly sealed.

“That door seals the Dweller in Darkness. It was the leader of the interdimensional beasts who destroyed our original dimension.” Master Ying Nan explained what was behind the door.

“It was quite a ruthless beast. It pursued us even after we came to this dimension. It was so powerful that we could only seal it with the help of sorcerers of Kamar Taj.”

I wonder how powerful it was. After all my own powers came from a dragon from a different dimension.

“Now, let me tell you why I took you here.” So, there was also a purpose for bringing me here.

“In order to gain control over your instincts, it is not enough for you to master only the physical aspect. You need to also master the mental aspect.”

Well, it was true. My mind needed to resonate with my body so that I could control my rampant instincts.

“This task will require meditation. And the serene lakeside is an ideal place for you to start meditation.”

So, this was what it was all about.

As per Master’s orders, I sat down underneath a tranquil tree beside the serene lakeside and attempted to empty my mind.

Yet, it proved fruitless. Although, it didn’t like this from the outside, my mind had to constantly fight for control over my body so that I did not do anything under my out of control instincts.

And now that I tried to calm myself, my instincts grew even more restless. And the instincts of a dragon were quite hard to ignore.

Already, scales had started growing on several parts of my body and red lightning started crackling around my body. Instead of being calm, I grew rather frustrated.

As I contemplated how to calm myself, I saw an unexpected phenomenon before my eyes.

The previously still surface of the lake came alive before my eyes, its waters swirling and churning.

Splash!!

The tranquil nature of the lake was destroyed completely as a large serpentine figure appeared from its churning waters.

I watched speechlessly as before me stood a shining white Chinese dragon.