Chapter 22
Intense training
Sai gave Albert another five days to return to train him. In that time, Sai was going to train himself in a way that he was certain would raise his strength up to the sixth level of the elementary realm.
Sai first had to create more steel, not only to repair what he had taken from his house, but to also create an extremely heavy yolk, not for an oxen, but for himself. What Sai casted about learning from Albert was technique, but he could raise his strength by himself.
The next thing Sai did was built a pool of mud near his house. This pill would take one hundred steps to cross it from the outside, but without magic, Sai would need close to one thousand steps to cross. This pool of mud could cover all the way up to Sai’s chest, at the right angle, his arms wouldn't be under the mud.
Sai grabbed his steel yolk that writhed many times more than his shield, stepped into the mud and allowed himself to sink into its depths. Sai merely stood there in the mud holding the weight on his back. He couldn't even walk.
Sai knew that this would be hard, almost torture even, but he had still expected to be able to move Sai pushed himself to lift up a single foot, after a moment of imbalance, he could set the foot back down. He had only moves a small portion of what he had thought he could. As a matter of fact, he had only moved the distance of a fingernail.
Sai took a second grueling step. His body already burned, but he would not give up after just one tiny step. Sai was determined that when Albert finally arrived, he would be in the sixth level of the elementary realm.
“Sai, I understand why you are doing this, but why be so hard on yourself, your strength will grow no matter what with your age,” Grandma Black spoke.
“I have to be stronger. No matter what.” Sai was determined, he pushed himself to take a third step. His entire body burned intensely. He knew that he couldn't finish the entire thing, but he would get to ten steps before he took a break.
Sai pushed himself again to take a fourth step, then a fifth. He used healing magic on his body as he went, hoping to alleviate the tears in his muscles, but, he could only heal external wounds quickly, healing internal wounds would take time.
When Sai finally reached the seventh step he was nearly ready to pass out. “Sai, you're going to hurt yourself.” Grandma Black was warning him, she truly cared about his wellbeing.
“Just three more steps,” Silent grunted through clenched teeth as he took another step. “Just two more,” Sai was motivating himself. “just a single step more!” Sai didn't know where he got the energy from, but he was determined to finish.
“I'm done!” Sai exclaimed, raising himself out of the mud pit. He set down his yolk and laid down. He looked back and realized that he had only moved a fraction of the size of the step he had expected to move.
Sai laid there for nearly half an hour before having his yolk and starting again. After traveling eight steps, he had wanted a second break, but was determined to take two more. Sai finished his tenth step and tried to take an eleventh after which he fell over exhausted. Luckily the sludge was so thick he didn't sink.
When Sai woke up he ate then returned to his pit. After his long rest and refuel, Sai could walk ten more steps, but they were far larger than before. After another short break, Sai went back to it. He continued like this, restarting at the beginning every time for the rest of the day.
By the end of the second day, Silent could trudge through nearly half of it with just two hundred steps. It was at this time that Sai felt a surge in power. He broke through to the sixth level of the elementary realm.
Sai was elated, he could move through the mud as easily as he could move on the ground, the weight of the yolk seemed to be substantially lighter, but he still had to take extra steps to finish his pit.
Sai spent the next hour devising a way to make it harder. “Boy, are you a masochist? You got what you wanted, you should pace yourself.” Grandma Black was concerned.
“There are people on this planet that are above the basic realm, even above the advanced realm I'm sure, why should I pace myself if they are out there and could possibly be hostile.” Sai knew that his training would be grueling, but his grandmother was correct, he could take some time to really design a tough course that would allow him to reach the seventh level of the elementary realm more quickly.
Sai decided that he would make a massive obstacle course. He used mud as a pit instead of water, and he even made platforms out of solid earth. He made a set of weights out of steel that wrapped around his shoulders and could even snap together on the sides, it looked like armor, but it only covered areas that he didn't feel like would hinder his flexibility.
In the end, Silent had an obstacle course that would impress the USFK. Sai had spent the rest of his five day leeway period that he had given Albert.
The morning of the fifth day, so could sense a familiar presence enter his property. “Ah, you are punctual. Come in, have breakfast and we will spar for the rest of the day, of course taking short breaks in between.” Sai sent all of this through his spirit directly into the mind of Albert.
Albert had never even heard of spirit power let alone experienced it first hand. “All you need to do is think what you need to say to me. I will avoid listening in on your thoughts unless you call for me in your mind,” Sai had no intention to alienate a potential ally, but he maintained a constant awareness over his home, the only time he didn't do so personally was when asleep, in which case, his grandmother did so in his stead.
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After Albert recovered from his shock he continued the seventy or so steps till he got to Sai’s house. The door clicked then opened. It had to be said that Sai spent quite a bit of time designing a locking doorknob, he wished that he could see one from his past life so he could learn how to make a good one.
The door swung open to reveal the first room Sai made, it was obviously enhanced. The walls were much thinner, Sai put a layer of stone, then made fiberglass with the same combination of magic he used to make windows. The distance was that he had to agitate and aerate the glass while stretching it. The house was a constant temperature even through the cold times.
Sai had even mastered making a functioning flue for a fireplace that prevented the weather from entering, but they could have a fire in the house for cooking or pleasure.
Albert was in awe of the technology that Sai had in the house. “Did you do all of this?” Albert asked through thought but he did not get an answer back. “Silent?” Albert questioned in his mind.
“Yes?” Sai asked out loud, letting him know which direction the kitchen was in.
“Did you do all of this?” Albert asked again, out loud this time woke walking through the door to a dining room. Albert was in shock again, there were fruits and berries that were out of season, there were vegetables that looked enhanced by magic. There was even meat in large quantities as if the Black family had an entire herd of animals that would never cease providing for their family.
“Oh, yeah. It took quite some time, but I did do all of this with a bit of help from my family. It took nearly five months to make this home sustainable for year round living.” Sai was truly grateful that he learned magic to such a degree. Even at the elementary realm, he could already master much of the technology that earth had in the nineteenth century.
Sai also didn't know how poor the conditions were in other tribes or small villages that didn't have the ability to use magic. Thus he didn't know that Albert had to spend nearly two years building small huts for himself and his people. His people also struggled in the winter and were in constant fear of a larger village coming in to destroy or pillage them.
“Only five months!” Albert was hit with shock after shock in the past several minutes. Albert explained the situation in his tribe with Sai while they ate breakfast.
Lilith and Lavits were already outside training. Sai had built a very progressive course that was hard enough to help strengthen even his father near the end of the course. After eating their full, Sai showed Albert around and explained everything in his home before taking him outside and showing him the greenhouses, then finally his massive obstacle course.
Sai mentioned how it had taken him only three days to build, so he felt that he was close to the ninth level of the elementary realm with magic, in truth his body was about eighty nine percent filled with overflow magic, so he was merely days away from being in the ninth level.
Sai was more than happy to brag about his accomplishments, but he also knew that he needed something from Albert. So at the end of the tour, Sai told Albert, “If you wish to, at the end of my training toy can move your village close by and I will compensate you by helping your village to have these things too, but they must work to farm and herd so that my family can still thrive as well. You will obviously still rule, think of it as renting land from my family.”
“You would help build houses and everything?” Albert was shocked once more by Sai’s generosity.
“I will build seven houses for your tribe that can fit all of them into it, then teach them how to use earth magic as well so they can continue building houses after I start adventuring.” Sai felt as if this was a good enough trade.
“You would do all that? I feel this is too much to ask.” Albert was secretly excited because he knew Sai was an honest person but couldn't help feeling that he was getting a better deal than he deserved. Since Sai already have him his life.
Sai had felt that if you give more than you receive however you will earn favors. “No, it is fine. Maybe I can reach the ninth level of the elementary realm, currently I have nothing to work on,so doing this will ensure I get stronger and it will help in the long run because people will always fight to protect their homes. This is also why I will teach your people to be able to build their house, they will fight harder if my family is attacked. On that same note, my family had enemies that are at your level and my father's level respectively, but they use both magic and combat, so they are stronger than their level as well.” Sai was being honest as to the reason that he would do so much, hoping to gain more of Albert’s trust.
“I see. I will talk over the situation with my people, as a matter of fact, in ten days I would like to go back for a short time, maybe three or four days, there is something important that must be done, I will talk to my people then.” When Sai intruded on Albert’s thoughts, they were the same as he said, whether it was out of fear or good will, Sai didn't know nor did he care to know.
It was still early when Sai and Albert had finished the tour. Sai then brought Albert to an area that had no obstacles, he had already set his shield and rope dart down there and willed then to be buried. When they emerged Sai put them on and he faced Albert.
“No fatal blows, but my healing magic can deal with most anything else,” Sai set the conditions. Sai wanted to learn, not die.
“I will first test your abilities, then will give you pointers we will continue like so until we are evenly matched.” In truth, Albert had never trained anyone before, he was merely eighteen years old so his experience was lacking, he did learn some powerful techniques and footwork that allowed him to fight at a stronger level than he was.
“Go!” Both Sai and Albert said before rising at each other. Albert swung a sword the size of himself around which collided with Sai’s shield, even at an angle the shield did not do much. Sai was bashed several steps away.
“Albert! Lower your strength, I am trying to train, not die.” Sai was nearly pleading after healing his fractured arm.
“I told you to show me what you've got, is it only this?” Albert mocked while Bringing his sword overhead to strike again.
“Sai, I think this boy was trained like this, he had to become strong or die. He is training you the only way he knows how.” Grandma black chimed in quickly while Sai brought his shield up again to take his blow at an angle again. This time, when Sai felt the sword first hit he bashed his shield sideways as hard as he could.
Albert swing the large sword around over his head and around his back leaving his entire body open. Sai went to strike at the same time, but Albert turned around entirely and blocked the sharp shield. Using the momentum of spinning, Albert continued to wrap his sword around his body, so when Sai struck again he merely had to face Sai and he could block him again.
Sai was rather inexperienced, so he couldn't see any flaws in the man's swordsmanship. Sai knew he had a lot to learn. Just at that time, Albert brought his sword around to strike Sai in the ribs. Sai at that moment learned the flaw with his shields. He could not deflect every attack, sometimes he would have to take them full force. At these times, Sai would need magic. Sai put both sides of his shield together at opposing angles making his shields look like a pair of open scissors.
Since Sai was determined to use just martial cultivation, he took the blow head on. He was knocked away as if he were a bug being swatted. Sai used magic to heal his broken bones, got up and saw Albert caring toward him again. Sai once again was swatted away.
Every time Sai went to the ground Albert allowed him time to get up, then he would strike again. This lasted several hours with short breaks and even lunch. It took up most of the two’s day. Sai would learn sin how to deal with unrelenting attacks.