29 Training: Part 1

Adam followed James to a two-story building on the outskirts of Manhattan near the beach.

The building was modern, spacious, and big, but looked deserted because the lights were all turned off and no one seemed to approach it.

"This is the place. " James said with a proud smile. "Here, we can train as much as we want without worrying about anyone bothering us. " He walked up to the building's entrance while holding a key.

"Is it okay if we go on in like that? " Adam asked while following James with a curious expression.

"Don't worry about it. " James replied as he opened the locked door. "No one is here this late at night, so we don't have to worry about any interferences. " He continued before walking in and turning on the lights.

In the now illuminated interior was a chaotic place full of various tools lying around on the floor. At the center, there was a variety of gym equipment for muscle training, and there were targets on both sides for archery training.

'They must have all kinds of High Humans who use different weapons on the task force. ' Adam thought as he scrutinized the space.

"Let's go to the second floor. " James called out to Adam while walking towards the stairs in the back, "and be careful if you touch anything they might kill me... " He said in a grave tone.

"O-okay... " Adam replied before carefully following James to the second floor, which was much tidier, with an empty open space in the middle and all kinds of weapons hanging on the walls.

James walked up to the wall, grabbed a couple of silver gauntlets, put them on his hands.

*Clang! *

He clashed his fists, causing a loud sound to echo throughout the empty building before turning to Adam with a smile.

"You can pick any weapon you want. " He said.

"No need... " Adam replied in an icy tone before pulling his pitch-black sword out of his inventory. "I'm ready. "

"That ability is cool, as always. " James praised Adam with an impressed expression.

*BOOM! *

Before dashing towards him at an incredible speed while streaks of yellow lightning shrouded his muscular body.

'Fast! ' Adam's eyes widened at James's incredible dash as he raised his sword to block.

*CLANG! *

He stopped James's wild rush, but had to jump a couple of meters back to absorb the shock.

'He's going all-out from the start. ' Adam thought while gritting his teeth. 'I need to step up my game. ' He held his sword with both hands and ran towards James at full speed.

James, however, didn't move. He quickly took off his gauntlets and only stood there with a confident expression.

Adam looked at James with a surprised expression, but proceeded with his attack.

*Swish! *

His sharp sword viciously cut through the air.

*BOOM! *

But to his surprise, James stopped it using only one bare hand.

*BAM! *

And delivered a devastating blow to Adam's abdomen with the other, sending him several meters to the back

'How?! ' Adam questioned as he struggled to regain his posture.

"You're probably wondering how I blocked your sword so easily. " James spoke in a calm tone. "It's because I'm using my mana. "

"Using your mana? " Adam asked with a confused expression.

"Well, we're going to train you from scratch anyway, so let's just stop the spar here. " James said while placing the gauntlets back in their original place. "Let me explain. "

Adam's ears perked up as James started explaining. It was important information that would help him with getting stronger.

James started explaining the most basic use of mana among High Humans, which was different for Physical and Magical High Humans.

With Magical High Humans, mana is first converted to Magical Power, which is used to activate magical spells that are compatible with the caster's awakened Magic Element.

For example, the High Human fire magicians use their Magical Power to cast fire spells, but can't cast water spells.

Meanwhile, with Physical High Humans, mana is first converted into Aura, which is used to coat their bodies and enhance their physical capabilities.

The only difference, however, is that Physical High Humans don't need elements to harness the power of mana, because when mana turns into Aura, they can immediately use it as raw Aura or infuse it with a Magic Element if they have awakened one.

"That makes it seem like Physical High Humans are stronger than Magical ones, though. " Adam said with a complicated expression.

"Don't get the wrong idea. " James refuted Adam's suspicions with a smile before diving back into his lengthy explanation.

Although Physical High Humans can harness the power of mana more easily, the amount of mana they use is too meager compared to the amount of mana Magical users do.

That's because the spells that Magical High Humans use pack much more power compared to the simple use of Aura. That's why Magical High Humans often awaken with higher ranks than Physical ones. It's also the main reason guilds always seek to recruit Magical High Humans first.

"I see... " Adam's hand supported his chin as he started thinking about James's explanation, 'does that make me a Magical High Human? Gravity Manipulation and Ayin require a large amount of MP, too. Besides, my MP also signifies Magic Power. Is it different from Magical Power? ' Many questions flooded his mind.

"This explanation brings us to our main point. " James spoke after confirming that Adam was still listening. "If you're a Physical High Human, I need to teach you how to use Aura in the next three weeks. "

"I have a question. " Adam spoke in a curious tone. "Can a Magical High Human use Aura, too? "

"Of course not. " James replied matter-of-factly, "Only Physical High Human can do so. "

"How do I know which type I am? " Adam asked another question.

"Well, that's a simple matter. " James spoke with a smile, "there's a small test for that. "

"A test? " Adam looked at James with a curious expression.

"I'm 90 percent sure you're a Physical High Human, but if you want to check, we can do it right now. " James said before walking towards the first floor. "Follow me. "

Adam walked after James with an expectant expression.