Chapter 4 Training Starts~Stamina

Alex woke up confused on what was going on. He was currently sweating and panting like someone who had just ran a marathon. He sat up and looked towards the east where the sun showed signs of rising.

"What kind of dream was that? I... I can't even understand anything. And that woman, why can't I remember her face? I guess all these questions are useless to think about all the time and I'll never get answers. It's hopeless to think of it." Alex thought as he stood up from where he was. He began doing a few stretches to make sure that his numb muscles could finally move freely.

Just then, he heard the sound of footsteps coming from outside. "Well, here comes trouble. I guess I better stop thinking about mundane things and get back to my way of life." Alex muttered to himself as he already knew who was coming even before the other party arrived. He knew who the owner of the footsteps was.

Just as he finished his thinking, he saw someone coming into the stables. "Oh, so here is the family's goat, horse or pig? Which one suits you better?" Mathew who had just entered the stables asked as he looked at Jack. When Alex didn't respond, he continued, "How was your night here with the rest of your family? Mmh?"

Alex ignored him and continued standing where he was. He wasn't ready to bicker with someone at this point.

"Ooh, so you've become deaf, huh? Or are you dumb you scoundrel?! Look here, you see this? This is an essence pill and I'm quite sure you've never seen one because you're just ignorant and can't even cultivate when you are already twelve years old. Well worry not, at least now your ignorance has been reduced thanks to me showing you this pill. Well see you around, idiot." Mathew said as he turned around to leave.

Alex saw him leaving and breathed a sigh of relief. "Well, that went well at least," thought Alex as he headed out of the stables to begin his daily routine.

True to his words, this was a better treatment as compared to any other day. Originally, if he were to ignore Mathew, he would be beaten to a pulp. There was no way for him to fight back as he was weaker as compared to Mathew, even though he was older than him.

At ten in the morning, after a lot of work, he left and headed towards the edge of Maza forest. He went there to meet with Simon according to the agreement they had. Maza forest was about two kilometers away from their residence and it was devoid of any martial monsters. It was one of the places that would encourage one to relax if he was outside.

But in real sense, that forest had some unique traits. When one was inside, he or she would begin feeling tired, as if someone or something was supping away the strength in them, thus one cannot spend much time inside. Instead of resting in there, one would only get worn out when hen stayed in there for a long time.

Though, this only applied to the low-level cultivators or those that had yet to begin cultivating at all. As for the higher-level cultivators, they could easily stay in there for years without experiencing any side-effects.

Alex arrived after half an hour and stood at the edge of the forest. He stared at the forest for a while before stepping forward to enter. Just as he took a few steps inside, he heard a voice telling him to move towards a clearing at the east of the forest.

But, although he had just entered the forest, he still felt that his strength had began diminishing at a slow speed. But thanks to the meat of the martial monster that Simon brought to him the previous night, he felt that he could stay inside the forest for a good while.

When he arrived, he found Simon waiting for him.

"It has been a while since we last talked Alex," Simon said as he turned around to look at Alex.

"Yes, it has been a while elder Simon," Alex replied with a smile etched on his face. "Thank you for all you've been doing for me ever since I can remember," he said as he bowed his head. He was grateful to Simon because he was of great help to him all this while ever since his father began ignoring him.

"Worry not, that's something that I felt that I should do. You are of the linage of the family head after all. Although you are currently in a tough situation in the family, I believe that things will get better as long as you are strong enough." Simon stated as he looked at Alex.

"I understand elder, you don't need to worry too much. I'll be trying my very best to make sure that I can awaken. And if I can't awaken, then I'll train my physical body instead." Alex said with calmly. He knew that Simon was trying to make sure that he hadn't given up in life yet.

Alex wasn't going to give up that easily though. The dream that he had gotten during the previous night was something that had made him know that there was hope. He would train even without awakening. Although the journey would be tough, he was sure that he could handle it.

Simon was surprised by Alex's conviction to train although he had not awakened. But, this was a good sign to him. "Okay, I guess we have to let that aside and deal with why I called you here. Actually, the main reason I asked you to come here is to start giving you training so that as time goes by, you'll be able to defend yourself," Simon said as he moved towards Alex.

"Is it a way for awakening or is it for training my physical body?" Alex tilted his head as he asked.

"Alex, I know that you hope to awaken but, you have to know that there is no need to be impatient. There are always those that awaken late in their lives. So, for now, we will be dealing with your physical training." stated Simon with a smile.

Although he was somehow disappointed, he managed to gain hope that he might be amongst those late awakeners.

"I know that you are having a problem with knowledge. So, I'll impart you some. In terms of ranking, we have ten cultivation levels, and one of which stands at the very top. Each rank has four stages, namely; initial, middle, late and peak stages. The ranks are simple to understand. There are three parts on ranking, the first stage is rank 1-3, called the mortal stage."

"The second stage is rank 4-6, the high mortal stage, and the final stage is rank 7-9, The Supreme mortal stage." Simon paused and looked at Alex.

"According to history, there should be rank 10. But there has never been anyone who managed to reach it. It's from the legends. According to history, it's called the Master Realm. The power of a master is said to be so great that even a hundred rank 9s cannot compete." He finished his explanation, his eyes shining with both longing and hope.

"Thank you elder for the knowledge. I really appreciate it. By the way elder, what rank are you?"

"You are welcome. As for my rank, I am a rank 7 initial stage. Actually, our family is not the strongest in the continent because we have nobody who has entered rank 9. Your father and the grand elder are the strongest with both being in the late stage of rank 8."

"Ooh, I see. So that's how it is. So, about my training, how can I be ranked if that's the ranking for the awakened?"

"You don't have to think too much about it now. We'll cross that bridge when we get there. For now, we'll have to start your training in full force."

"Yes elder."

"Okay, first, two laps along the inside edges of the forest. No stopping, if you do, you'll have to start over again."

"E... excuse me elder, the forest's circumference is over ten kilometers. And if I go two rounds, doesn't that mean I'll be running over twenty kilometers? And the forest drains my stamina and as I speak now, I am not at my peak condition." Alex began giving some excuses.

"Better start working if you need food and time to rest. Time is ticking you know?" replied Simon with a cheeky Smile.

Alex decided to listen to what Simon said and began running. Since the forest lacked monsters, he would be safe even if he fainted due to fatigue. He began with a casual jog with a constant pace. He had only gone the first lap but he was at the verge of collapsing.

His malnourished body couldn't handle the energy consumption. He felt that he might faint at any moment. Had it not been for the fact that he had consumed the meat of a martial monster the previous night, he might have already collapsed.

Simon watched him go round with a proud smile. "He's just like you. He's just like you. He has a willpower that drives him forth. Don't worry, I'll make him strong," he muttered under his breath as continued observing Alex who was now walking.

Alex's sheer willpower sustained him during the rest of the lap. He was just thinking about what he could do as long as he was strong. As such, although he ended up running at a walking speed, he still managed to finish the final lap. And the moment that he did that, he collapsed onto the ground as he lost his consciousness.

Simon came and picked him up before he took him to a cave that he had prepared before. He laid him down and took out a potion out of his space ring and opened Alex's mouth, pouring it in. The potion was meant for recovery, which included stamina recovery. It was mainly used by warriors.

He decided to leave a note and a bag pack with food for him before he left. He looked behind with sadness visible in his eyes before taking a step further and returning to the mansion.

When Alex woke up, he found himself in a cave. He was confused at first. But when he saw a note on the floor, he calmed down before picking it up. 'That is how your training starts, that is the training for stamina. You'll be doing it until you can run at a pace that I consider fit. After that I'll tell you what to do. Till then Make sure that you don't miss out on your training. Good luck.'

After reading the note, Alex took the backpack and took out the food. He munched on it before drinking water. Feeling relaxed, he decided to stay for about thirty minutes before leaving. And that's how his training began, stamina training.

******

Author's note;

Thanks for finishing the chapter, I hope it was okay and if not, please write in the comments so I can correct it. Thanks again.

NOTE: Editing in progress.