Chapter 9: One Month
In the pirate world, after reaching a certain level, training is almost always done alone, or with others, improving through combat.
A mentor generally serves only as a guide, laying a solid foundation for the student and occasionally answering questions.
Therefore, becoming a reserve soldier offers a great deal of freedom. There's no set location for training, and one can plan their own schedule each day.
Of course, this doesn't mean laziness is tolerated.
Not to mention the year-end assessments, even the occasional combat missions spur the reserves on to diligently train and practice.
Of course, in a pirate world that values strength, anyone with a purpose rarely wastes time. Besides, Baltigo isn't much fun; it's incredibly boring.
Inside the Revolutionary Army headquarters, on the second floor, in a separate training room.
Rhodes preferred to train alone, rather than in the hallway, where everyone was watching.
"One thousand nine hundred and ninety-five, one thousand nine hundred and ninety-six..."
Inside, shirtless, Rhodes was doing push-ups to strengthen his arms, waist, and abdomen.
Sweat drenched the ground beneath him. Rhodes panted heavily, maintaining a unique breathing pattern.
Clearly, over the past few days of training, he had woven this breathing pattern into instinct, maintaining it even during this near-maximum physical effort.
"One thousand nine hundred and ninety-eight, one thousand nine hundred and ninety-nine, two thousand!"
After a full two thousand push-ups, Rhodes showed no sign of stopping, pushing himself to the limit.
Finally.
"Two thousand two hundred and thirty-two... two thousand three hundred and thirty-three..."
Finally.
He tried to push himself up again, but fell to the ground halfway, unable to rise again, only gasping for air.
"Is the limit two thousand three hundred and thirty-three?"
His body was exhausted, motionless like a beached fish, but Rhodes's eyes shone with brilliance. The feeling of his growing strength was truly intoxicating.
Level Two: Book of Knowledge
Attributes: Intelligence +2, Perception +1
Talent:
Sword Mastery - Unity of man and sword, a vastly improved understanding of swordsmanship!
Thunder Control—The Thunder God descends, freely controlling the power of thunder!
Energy: 3/1000.
Glancing at the status window and seeing the slight increase in energy, Rhodes contentedly closed his eyes and rested for a moment.
…
Meanwhile,
in the reserve training hall,
Rez was doing weight training. After mastering a special breathing technique, his physique was gradually growing.
He was confident that if he took another Doriki test, it would definitely exceed 400, or even more.
"Rez, Rhodes isn't here again today?" a tall, short-haired woman asked Rez.
"Captain Nia, Rhodes probably prefers to train alone,"
Rez said respectfully. "He seems to be training in the studio, leaving early and returning late, so we rarely see each other."
The headquarters had over a hundred reserve troops, divided into ten squads.
Rhodes and Rez both served under Nia, holding no command authority. They were only led by Nia during actual combat missions.
For a woman to be the squad captain, Nia's strength was undeniable. She could easily crush Rez.
Therefore, Rez was very respectful.
"Hmph, a lone wolf,"
Nia snorted, turning away with a hint of disapproval, somewhat displeased with this antisocial new member.
"Uh."
Rez observed a three-second moment of silence for Rhodes before immediately returning to training.
A month passed quickly.
Rhodes's life was incredibly fulfilling, every minute packed with activities.
At night, he used electrical currents to strengthen his body, replacing sleep.
In the morning, he ate like a monster to replenish his energy, thanks to the plentiful food supply provided to the reserves, saving him from having to buy it.
In the morning, he trained to control his surging strength and speed.
In the afternoon, he practiced swordsmanship and developed his lightning abilities.
Day after day, almost every day, Rhodes could feel his physique growing and his strength improving.
This feeling of growing stronger, step by step, never felt tedious; he was deeply immersed in it.
Over the course of a month, Rhodes's physique had transformed considerably. While not reaching the muscular build of Rez's, it was much more refined than his previous, slightly frail frame, with a streamlined physique.
This was a condition that Rhodes was extremely satisfied with.
Of course.
This was just an external change, but the real improvement in physical fitness was far greater than the change in appearance.
He couldn't even begin to fathom the strength of his physical body at this point. He only knew that if he were to test his Doriki again, he'd easily achieve an off-the-charts result.
One afternoon, having just finished a mountain of lunch, Rhodes immediately returned to the training room to begin his swordsmanship and lightning training.
"Bzzzzt..."
Bathed in a dazzling blue light, Rhodes resembled a thunder god from ancient mythology, immeasurably majestic.
"The lightning's intensity has increased again."
"Sure enough, as the Book of Knowledge accumulates its energy, the lightning's intensity will continue to increase!"
Amidst the blue light, Rhodes opened his eyes, glittering like stars.
After a month of practice, his energy had leaped to sixty-six points.
The lightning's intensity had increased significantly, and Rhodes could clearly feel the change.
Initially, the lightning power Rhodes could control only caused a mild paralysis, and it could only be attached to his body's surface, unable to be released externally.
Now, Rhodes could cause ordinary people to lose control of their bodies with just a single discharge of electricity, with the released lightning potentially flying five or six meters.
Closing his eyes, he controlled the lightning to spread across the blade in his hand, until the entire blade glowed a pale blue.
But Rhodes didn't stop.
He continued to increase the output of lightning. Slowly, a crackling sound filled the training room.
By then, the blade was completely bathed in a dazzling blue light.
Holding the hilt, Rhodes gently slashed across the sword-testing stone before him. With barely any resistance, a corner of the stone was severed and slid to the ground.
Watching this scene, Rhodes smiled softly, a touch of satisfaction crossing his features.
Currently, his lightning wasn't strong enough to unleash dazzling moves like hundreds of millions of volts, but with his well-honed swordsmanship, he could still unleash considerable power.
Lightning's most powerful attribute was, of course, its penetrating power. When combined with a straight thrust from the blade, Rhodes could even pierce steel with ease.
However, when attached to a blade, it also enhanced its sharpness.
This katana was merely an ordinary fine steel sword, but enhanced by the power of lightning, it possessed a sharpness nearly comparable to that of a meito!
"My strength has increased so much, I'm itching for some action."
Feeling the surging power in his body, Rhodes chuckled.
(End of Chapter 9)
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