Returning to the Mysterious Era

"Instructor, I want to learn Explosive Techniques."

Lisa looked at Li Wei. She raised an eyebrow.

It was around two in the afternoon, and Lisa had just instructed the Group Four trainees to do some self-practice under the teaching assistant’s supervision. She seemed to be using some kind of technique to train her body as she was standing in a rather unusual stance underneath the shade.

"Explosive Techniques? What's the rush? You should get the basics like Martial Stance and Combat Techniques down first. I've told you before, young people like you shouldn't aim too high too soon."

Lisa shook her head and stood up. However, she reconsidered when she remembered that Li Wei wasn't a conceited person, and that he had, in the past month and a half, shown remarkable steadfastness and diligence.

"Alright, how about this? I'll give you a chance to punch me."

Lisa’s tone shifted and she moved to stand about three meters in front of Li Wei, giving him just enough room to generate power.

"Go on, come at me with your full strength." Lisa beckoned him.

"Excuse me." Li Wei clasped his fists in respect.

He spread his feet until they were shoulder-width apart. Using one foot to push off, he hurtled forward, arms raised, intending to deliver a standard straight punch.

Smack!

A palm shot out from the side and smacked the left side of his fist, instantly deflecting his punch. His fist veered off, far from its intended target.

Whoosh!

At the same time, a blurred shadow struck like a viper from his left. Fortunately, Li Wei managed to dodge in time, blocking Lisa's fist with his arm.

"Oh?" Lisa quickly withdrew her palm.

Li Wei stumbled back three steps. His footwork was light and he quickly lunged once more. He first punched Lisa's side and when that was blocked, he spun around and delivered another sweeping strike. His arm drew a blurred arc in the air, the knuckles on his fist aimed straight at Lisa's forehead.

Smack!

A palm stopped his fist midair.

Lisa pushed, forcing Li Wei to stumble back several steps once again.

"Let's call it here. It looks like I’ve underestimated your progress. You've achieved remarkable progress in the Wind Elephant Sect’s Basic Combat Arts in just a month and a half. I've told you this before, but steadfastness and diligence are the most important and fundamental aspects of martial arts training. Hard work doesn’t deceive people. Keep it up." Lisa nodded and walked up to pat Li Wei on the shoulder.

It was only then that Cassius realized Instructor Lisa hadn't moved her feet at all during their entire exchange. All she had done was defend.

"Let's go over to the corner to chat."

Cassius followed Lisa to the designated spot.

Half an hour later, he had a rough understanding of what Explosive Techniques in combat were. Simply put, it involved a special way of generating force that made the next attack faster, stronger, and much more cunning.

For example, in the Wind Elephant Sect's Basic Combat Arts, there were two Explosive Techniques. One increased the speed of the attack, and the other increased its power.

Mastering the speed-based Explosive Technique could boost the attack speed by almost one and a half times. The power-based Explosive Technique could also increase strength by 150% and this alone was extremely effective in close combat.

However, practitioners needed to remember that they shouldn't use Explosive Techniques too often, otherwise, they could easily wear out their joints and overstrain their muscles. Explosive Techniques should be used instantaneously and with caution.

"Alright, starting from today, I want you to come find me after dinner. I’ll be waiting at the small training field next to the hospital," Lisa said after a moment's consideration.

"Thank you, Instructor."

And so now, in addition to his double training, Cassius now had extra training in the abandoned small training field. Lisa went through the Explosive Techniques of the Wind Elephant Sect’s Basic Combat Arts with Cassius, step by step, and even weaved in the insights she had gained from many years of practice. In the evening, she would spar with Cassius, identifying and correcting Cassius's flaws as she did so. Not only did this help him get rid of any bad habits he might have had in close combat, it also helped him train for real combat.

Lisa didn’t hold back during their sparring sessions which allowed Cassius to get a taste of real fighting. The wide variety of training also helped to quickly improve his combat experience. The only downside was that he needed copious amounts of the camp-issued medicine, often using up a month's supply in half a month. When that ran out, he had to rely on his roommates' leftover medicine to get through the remainder of the month.

The days passed by until one late September day.

Dusk arrived, turning the horizon a dazzling red. The mountains blurred in the twilight, and rays of sunlight reflected from the mountains to the training camp. The rooftops glowed brilliantly in the red light. The tree on the training field and the small house beside it painted a beautiful picture, almost like it was frozen in time.

Two figures stood opposite each other on the orange training field.

Cassius took a deep breath, stepped back slightly with his right foot, and clenched his fists at his side. His expression was dead serious and he seemed like a tightly coiled spring, ready to release at any moment.

"Excuse me..." He had barely finished speaking before charging forward.

Power surged from his waist, and his right fist aimed straight. His fist was much faster than it was a month and a half ago.

However, Lisa simply sidestepped to the left, her shoulder tilting slightly to dodge the blow. She even countered with a backhand, smacking Li Wei squarely on the chest.

Li Wei grunted, his body folding inward. Half of his body careened forward and was seconds away from crashing into Lisa. Lisa spun around with her knee thrusting upward, waiting for Li Wei to collide with it.

Smack!

Li Wei had had dozens of real combat bouts by now. He immediately changed tactics, kicking to deflect Lisa’s knee while sweeping with his left fist. Lisa's hand moved like a shadow, swiftly intercepting and countering.

To her surprise, Cassius had another trick up his sleeve. Out of nowhere, his right fist, using an Explosive Technique, came in and swung fiercely.

Although Lisa managed to quickly block it, she was forced to take a tiny step back. In the dozen or so sparring matches against Li Wei, this was the first time she had been pushed back.

"Not bad, your Explosive Technique is taking shape. It’s a pity it lacks some impact. If you had executed that a little better, I would've had to retreat a few more steps." Lisa released Li Wei's fist, nodding slightly in approval.

Cassius glanced at his right hand. There were five red fingerprint marks on it.

"Oh right, there's a combat ranking match tomorrow. Remember, you need to hold back in your matches; just focus on putting on a show. You'll have more combat experience than the others since I've given you some special training. Participating in the ranking match won't be really meaningful for your training so it's best if you pull your punches a bit. If you rank somewhere between twentieth and thirtieth place, that's good enough. Don’t get too excited and get carried away like last time; that person had to stay in the hospital for a day. Think about it."

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