48: Breathing

The next day, Caleb woke up feeling sore all over his body. Instead of feeling rejuvenated, he never felt as shittier than before. The ache and pain in his hand didn't diminish.

Three days have already passed since he left the house to train with the hunting party. And yesterday was just the first day, and he already felt tired. Fortunately, looking at the progress of his taboo energy was a gratifying thing.

"Status."

***

Name: Caleb

Race: Human

Age: ???

Rank: Taboo Energy (Grade 1) 638/1000

Physique: 10 [Strength, Stamina, Endurance, Agility, Flexibility, Power, Etc...]

Spirit: 6 [Mental Strength, Mental Resistance, Reaction Speed, Perception, Five Senses, Dynamic Vision, Mental Energy, Intelligence, Energy Recovery Rate, Soul Def, Soul Strength, Etc...]

Abilities:

-Passive Skill-

-Active Skill-

Taboo Energy Sensitivity.

Tip: The basic attribute of a normal human is 5.

***

Another thirty units of taboo energy were added. Every day, it just kept accumulating. It won't be far before he becomes a Grade 2! If that happens, he might be able to convince Fushigiro to teach him the Five Powers. After all, with the improvement of his physique, once he becomes a Grade 2 Taboo Fighter might allow him to learn them!

A rush of excitement flowed through his whole being and he forgot all the negative states on his body. A grin emerged on his face.

"Bastard, what are you grinning for? Let's start the damn training!"

Caleb heard Miles' voice and when he looked up he saw Miles giving him a look. Which prompted him to speak:

"Wait! Let me wash my face first!"

...

Just like that, Miles and Rina watched him slash one thousand five hundred times while Miles was supervising his posture. Then he sparred with Rina again, whilst enduring the pain from his beaten, battered hand. This time, he still lost. But now due to pain. They fought back and forth and he was out-skilled.

Rina could attack at tricky angles and she attacks relentlessly. It was her fighting style. Continuous flowing, connected sword moves, not giving his opponent even a breather. She liked to put pressure on him until he started to commit mistakes that she would exploit just as soon as she saw them. Caleb has to admit that Rina was a veteran when it comes to fighting.

In those sparring, Caleb didn't use his taboo energy even once. And attentively listened to Rina's tips while they were fighting. Yes, every time he made a mistake, she would point it out to him, allowing him to reflect on his shortcomings and flaws after the fight.

Caleb listed all those weaknesses in his mind. Once alone, he would go by them one by one to think how he could improve them. The first problem that Rina pointed out was his impatience. Every the battle starts, Rina would deliberately not make the first move which would have to make him attack. Of course, such a thing was easy to resolve that on the third day, he didn't bother to attack Rina. It took an hour before Rina finally attacked him.

Second, breathing. After a few minutes of intense fight. He would have labored breaths. Rina told him that he doesn't breathe efficiently enough to conserve his stamina. So, he has to figure out how to do that himself. For now, he decided to think about how to resolve the breathing issue. After all, in a fight, one needs to conserve stamina to last and perform optimally throughout the fight.

To do that, he needs to create his very own breathing technique. And no, not the breathing technique that you know... Just a normal one.

Lastly, he moves too much when fighting. Well, moving too much when fighting should be normal, right? Yeah. However, experienced fighters and true martial artists strive to lessen unnecessary wasteful movements. That difference is what sets them apart from others. Just as Bruce Lee once said, 'Absorb, what is useful. Remove what is useless. Add what is essentially your own.

Of course, only experience and years of practice could fix this. He wasn't in a rush. As long as he practices consistently, he'll eventually get there.

Just like that, the seven-day period passed. Miles didn't play much role during those training days. He was just there to correct the mistakes in his posture and form. Then he also taught him what he calls the three-four combination. A basic combo of connective sword attacks, two horizontal slashes, one vertical, ending with a thrust.

Although not flashy and advanced enough. At least it would help him further familiarize himself with the sword and it was still a decent combo that when used right. Could be just as effective as other sword moves.

On the fourth day of the fight, he managed to last thirty minutes more against Rina as he gradually figured out her fighting style and became more familiar with it. Thanks to his skilled anticipation. Not only that, his hands have developed calluses due to the constant swinging of the sword and it wasn't as painful as the first and second day. Although it was still aching, it wasn't unbearable. It enabled him to fight in his optimal state.

Then on the last day, he lasted an hour more. He felt that his slashes became sharper and sharper and his form was not as unsightly as before, according to Rina. He can maintain his form while moving as long he is paying attention to it. The improvement was gratifying.

The feeling of getting stronger and stronger every day filled him with indescribable exhilaration! It was as if he was a sponge, absorbing all the knowledge, lessons, and experience greedily. Even Miles had praised his rapid improvement.

Miles told him that his next task should be laying a foundation for his fighting style, or at least determine the direction. He couldn't really understand what that meant. When he asked Miles, he just said that he needed to figure it out on his own.

'Fighting style? What fighting style should I develop? And how should I develop it? Hmmm...'

Caleb mused. Since the seven-day period ended, the next ones that will teach him would be Jin and Athena. They would bring him to the Forest of Death to hunt various monsters and familiarize himself with their characteristics. They would teach him different types of hunting approaches and methods. It was a practical training and he would have to apply all he learned from Rina and Miles. It was the second of the three aspects after repetition... Experience!