8 Training (I)

After forcing himself to do ten sets of a hundred and fifty push-ups, he stopped. Not that he actually stopped, he collapsed onto the ground as his body couldn't bear it again. He had a mortal body and so could do only that much.

"Xiao Lin, you are pushing yourself way too much. Your body might crash since it won't be able to bear the overload that you are putting on it" Master Wu said when he appeared before Xiao Lin and fed him a vital refreshment pill.

After sometime that the pill turned into energy within Xiao Lin and fully invigorated him, Xiao Lin stood to his feet and said "I know, Master. I am only trying to build my body."

He then said further with a resolute tone in his voice "Since I can't cultivate at the moment, I want to try to make my body extremely strong and powerful. I want to condition and train the muscles and bones of my body very hard to make them reach the apex that a mortal can possibly reach. Then if actually possible, far beyond that human limitation realm. I want to stand at the peak of power that a human can attain without being a cultivator. I want to possess peak human strength, speed, reflex and agility."

Then with that unshakeable resolve still in his sharply gazing eyes, Xiao Lin said further with a seemingly boundless determination in his voice "So, with that zenith human characteristics that I will possess in the nearest future, I should still be able to go against really low-level cultivators. Then I will work my way from there to become a heaven-shaking cultivator."

Master Wu smiled and nodded his head.

"You, Xiao Lin, are my favorite disciple. From the way that you speak, I know that you will surely become a fearsomely powerful cultivator in future. The seas or oceans that will be in your presence will violently roil from just your breath alone. I said so because your resoluteness is so overwhelming that I have never seen anything like it my entire life. You are surely made to reach for the stars and even far beyond them." He said.

He then spoke further by saying with a smile in his face "Carry on with your strength-training exercises. I don't want to be an obstruction on your way to apex human strength."

Once master Wu said that, he left Xiao Lin's presence and went to sit in another area of his really large yard to meditate.

Xiao Lin then changed the exercises that he was doing as he started to do squats.

***

"It has been many hours that master took Xiao Lin to his room. But that brat isn't out yet. What's he doing in there?" Someone who was by Zhang Feng's side asked with curiosity in his tone.

"He is probably using the yard that master goes to train to train too. But just imagine. So, Master quickly developed like for that brat instead of us, his main disciples." Zhang Feng said with an annoyed gaze in his eyes.

"Well, perhaps he possesses some unique attributes that master don't see in us." Another answered.

Zhang Feng turned his head to look at the person that spoke with a wrathful gaze in his eyes and said loudly in an angry tone "You are a very big moron. Mention any unintelligible thing there again and I will descend on you. Crackhead."

He then asked that person that spoke with palpable annoyance in his tone "What will Xiao Lin, someone who has an irreversibly damaged dantian, possess that we won't possess? I will advice you to think next time before you talk, or you will be doomed. Mark my words."

The person quickly nodded his head with fear evident in his eyes.

"I am sorry, brother Feng. I was only trying to state my own opinion on the matter that brother Jun brought up" The person hurriedly said.

"Mtcheew! Next time, think before you talk." Zhang Feng harshly said.

Then he looked into the distance where master Wu's room was and said with an indescribable gaze in his eyes 'That Xiao Lin brat, continue. Now is your turn. We would have our turn over you very soon. Hmph!' Zhang Feng uttered inwardly and then harrumphed.

***

"Lord Sovereign Heavens, we were only able to bring back one of the people that comprised the Murderous Blades group. But he is in an extremely miserable state since he was gruesomely injured by the explosion that suddenly took place around there. He has lost two of his arms, an entire leg and half of his other leg." A guard who knelt on a knee before a towering man that sat on a golden throne and had reality and space seemingly distort and twist around him, said with fear and reverence in his tone.

The towering man that was seated on the golden throne was the Great Emperor of the Black Lotus palace, Yang Fei, who was Xiao Lin's father.

"That's absolutely none of my concern. What I am concerned about is that trash. Has he been killed off?" Lord Sovereign Heavens asked with one of his brows deeply furrowed.

"No, my Lord. He was able to escape. That was what the person from the Murderous Blades group said." The guard said, still looking at the ground.

He couldn't allow his eyes meet with Lord Sovereign Heavens gaze, or he would be instantly slain for such disrespect.

Lord Sovereign Heavens only shook his head. And from the look that had appeared in his face, one would know that he was terribly displeased by the news that he just heard.

He then said "So useless. How can that weak, barren and unproductive brat escape from their hands? They are only a bunch of good-for-nothing idiots. Well, it's pleasing and exciting to hear that nearly all of them died. Then as for that one that you brought back and gave you that stupid news to upset my mood, kill him off and feed his body to the hungry, ravenous beasts in those cages."

Speaking further, he said "Then send the formidable assassins from the Azure Serpent Assassination House into all the regions to fish out that boy and kill him. Right now, he is my enemy, and he must be slain. I give no room for growth to my enemies. Useless or not, he must be destroyed"

The guard nodded his head and then quickly left Lord Sovereign Heavens' presence to go do what he was ordered to do.

***

It was night already but Xiao Lin was still training.

Right now, he was in the handstand position. But he had been in that position for hours, doing his best to remain in that position for at least two more hours from the three hours that he had been there, standing upside down using his hands.

As he did this, staying in that position for hours, the muscles of his shoulders and triceps burned. But he endured the agonizing burning sensation that flooded his shoulders, arms and senses and focused on that strong dislike for his father which was gradually turning into hatred.