394 Being Agile
"I feel... trapped here," Rianna said to Shay-Hade as she gazed listlessly into the starlit sky. The duo were currently sleeping at their camp deep in the woodlands; they'd refused the accommodations offered by the True World Sect, mainly because Rianna was miffed and was feeling petty. Though she now regretted her decision borne of anger as the ground was extremely uncomfortable to lay on.
"You know that it's true," Shay-Hade responded. "They've been guiding you by your nose and you know it. And yet, you let them."
Rianna let out a dry chuckle and said, "I feel out-maneuvred at every turn. The Sect Leader seems to have a grasp of something, a knob in my brain, and knows exactly how to turn it to get me to do what he wants."
"I've known you for quite a long time," Shay-Hade redirected. "And during this time, I've come to learn of a key detail about you: you aren't someone who takes shit from anyone."
"Thank you...?" Rianna inflected. She was uncertain where Shay-Hade was going with this.
"You don't take shit from anyone because you are a perfectionist and you know just how capable you are. It is that confidence in you that I find attractive. But this perfectionist habit is also your downfall. The Sect Leader was quick to determine that your failure was a shadow that looms in your heart, and took advantage of it," Shay-Hade explained.
"I should be annoyed, infuriated even, but I can't find myself to be," Rianna admitted. "All this external abrasiveness is just for show, deep down I am feeling quite fulfilled. That irksome girl has been very forthcoming with her knowledge and I finally feel like I know why my strategy in following our Sect Leader's cultivation method failed."
"Really?"
"Our Sect Leader was correct in one thing, his method builds a will unlike any other. But the problem is that it takes a heavy toll on the practitioner. It is all a matter of psychology. Remember when you first went through the training regiment? We stuck with it for an entire year and saw no difference in our physique or strength. We always felt sore, pain, and tiredness. Our psyche and physique were both in the dumps. People that stuck for longer felt worse with every passing day, week, month and year. The only thing that could keep us going was the promise of enhancement... eventually," Rianna expounded.
"However, I feel that if we had slowed down and taken a break in between, and really allowed the fruits of our labours to bear fruit. We could at least gauge some sort of progress. Just knowing that we are going somewhere does so much to improve the mindset."
Shay-Hade hummed affirmatively before pointing out, "It also seems that not only was the intensity and volume excessive in our Sect Leader's method, it was also sub-optimal. More than half the time, we are doing workouts that result in little to no gains."
"Another fact! The muscles should sing as they are worked and brought to fatigue, not cry in agony," Rianna exclaimed.
The duo looked at each other and shared a tender smile. The night sky decorated with stars brought with it a rather romantic mood that was further accentuated by the aromatic and dewy smell of the grass around them and the periodic harping of crickets. They snuggled closer and shared a kiss, which grew more intense with each passing minute. Right as Rianna's hand ventured into Shay-Hade's trousers, the man caught her wrist and asked, "What do you intend to do about the boy?"
"Who? Revian?" Rianna called out with an irate frown, having been rudely extricated from a bout of pleasure. "I'll train him, of course. We can't deny a willing guinea pig. Though after inspecting his style and cultivation, I feel you are far better suited to train him in combat."
"I didn't sign up for this," Shay-Hade argued.
"Do you have anything better to do?" Rianna challenged.
____
"Combat arts are divided into various styles and schools, or even weapon categories. But we can simplify all of them into two main categories: offensive and defensive. This isn't to say that one combat art focuses only on jabs and kicks, without learning any defensive manoeuvres. It is about their philosophy and approach to combat itself," Shay-Hade explained.
"So, before we begin we need to establish our approach to combat," Shay-Hade stated. "Why do you fight?"
"To protect myself," Revian answered immediately.
"This automatically places you closer to the defensive category," Shay-Hade pointed out. "In fact, most people who learn combat are attuned to the defensive side as well. It is the base animalistic nature, after all. No animal willingly enters a fight, they only do so when threatened. Don't get me wrong, just because you are defensive doesn't mean you are sub-human. Furthermore, being offensive doesn't make you special."
Shay-Hade sniggered and said, "In fact, someone who is offensive by nature is one who lacks the instinct that warns them of danger. They are the kind of people who jump into a fight without thinking twice."
At this point, Rianna coughed from behind and gave him a deathly glare. Shay-Hade cleared his throat and looked away quickly.
"Within the defensive category, you have more sub-categories. We have the active and the passive defender. You might notice that this is similar to how spells often get categorised. In combat arts, active defence is all about focusing on counters and snatching initiative while sacrificing some protection. Passive is about protecting yourself at all cost, even sacrificing the initiative."
Shay-Hade shrugged and said, "Unfortunately, you don't have any choice than to veer towards being an active defender. Your cultivation, as you've explained it, is all about snatching the initiative. So if we don't supplement it with a suitable combat art, we would simply be wasting time and resources."
"People say the best defence is a good offence," Shay-Hade said in a mocking tone. "I respectfully disagree. The best defence is just not getting hit."
Then, in a nearly imperceptible blur, he disappeared from the place and appeared behind Revian. All the boy felt was a gust of wind and the ground quaking rapidly for a short second.
"Take advantage of blind spots. Even the most observant mage with their mana sense tuned to a hundred per cent can be fooled if you are evasive enough."
He disappeared once again. Revian looked around frantically and found him nowhere, until suddenly, his mana sense captured movement above his head.
"Utilise all three dimensions. Fighting isn't always on the ground, so get used to looking above and below you as an attack can come from anywhere," Shay-Hade instructed.
"And finally-" Shay-Hade blurred and appeared in front of Revian, his fist coiled back like a snake ready to strike. Another blur followed, and Revian suddenly found his vision blocked by a fist. "-strike fast, and strike hard. Make every contact count, because the moment you attack, you become vulnerable."
He then retracted his fist and said, "Let us begin!"
"The most important skill you need to hone first is agility. Agility is not just about being light on your feet, but also flexible in your mind. A problem can have multiple solutions, going for the first and most obvious is recommended, but optimality can differ based on circumstance. You need to have the presence of mind to make these decisions on the fly while in combat. Rianna here is an offensive combatant through and through. She is willing to sacrifice herself and her body a few hits if she can retaliate multifold. I don't do that. The more I get hit, the more initiative I lose."
Shay-Hade walked into the combat arena and revealed a novel circuit to Revian. "Rianna and I sat together and devised the following circuit to help train your physical agility. The standard process, or the way I trained, was to run on quicksand with weights tied to my feet. But I've realised that taking the drastic option isn't necessary when you can get similar results with a slightly longer time frame and methodically increasing the intensity. So, we will primarily be training our explosive power in the legs in these simple circuits."
He moved to what looked like a laid-down ladder drawn in chalk and said, "These are lateral plyometric jumps. This will help build explosive power, balance and coordination."
Shay-Hade stood on one leg and started to hop sideways while moving over the chalk drawing. He moved in a pattern of two forwards and one back. He did this until he reached the end of the drawing and did the same to return to the start. He then switched legs and repeated.
"This is one. You have to repeat this five times. The goal is to decrease your time. Your target should be to achieve this-"
Shay-Hade blurred again and the ground started to vibrate erratically. Revian could barely keep up as he saw the man appear at different points across the drawing.
"That's just one. You have five more drills that will train different aspects of agility, namely coordination, explosive power, balance and speed. This will be the warm-up you will be doing before we actually start combat training. Oh! And this is apart from the additional physical conditioning training exercises you will be undertaking with Rianna over there," Shay-Hade listed.
Revian's eyes nearly popped out in shock, "That's... intensive..."
"You started late. This is necessary to bring you up to speed," Rianna interjected.
"I have some experience fighting, from before," Revian pleaded, hoping to get some leniency. But it was for nought as the woman grabbed his arm and squeezed it hard across different locations.
"OW!"
"You may have trained before, but your body seems to have forgotten all about it," Rianna pointed out. "Listen here, boy. My mission is to prove that my method is safe and effective. So I need you to be cooperative. Tell me right now whether you are willing to invest your time and attention to the regiment we have planned out!"
Revian gazed into Rianna's resolute eyes and all doubts floating in his head dissipated instantly. This was the key to his future, he could feel it. Opportunities like this were rare, he would be a fool to let it slip through his fingers.
"I'm in!" Revian declared animatedly.
"Good! Now begin!" Shay-Hade commanded from behind. "You have exactly thirty seconds to complete the first set. Every second over the limit will be recompensated in push-ups. Your time starts... NOW!"
Updated from fr𝒆ewebnov𝒆l.(c)om