31 Training: Part 3

"The first step to train your mana vessels is to feel them. " James said before closing his eyes. "Close your eyes and focus on sensing the mana flowing inside your body. "

"Focus on the mana... " Adam also closed his eyes and concentrated on feeling his mana.

After 5 minutes of deep concentration, Adam could finally feel a small strand of energy moving through his body.

'This must be mana... ' He thought as he tried to follow its trajectory.

It started from his lower abdomen, followed by his head, where it wrapped around his brain, eyes, inner ears, and throat on its way down to his chest where it wrapped around his heart and lungs before moving towards his left arm, reaching his fingertips, then to his right arm across his chest.

It finally moved down towards his legs, reaching down to his toes, before moving back to his abdomen and repeating the same cycle.

Adam could feel a tingling sensation in his body as the strand of energy passed through it. It was as if an ant was walking inside his body, which felt quite unpleasant.

'I feel like I want to scratch it off! ' Adam thought with an annoyed expression. "What's next? " He asked James with his eyes still closed.

"The next step is to feel the mana surrounding you while continuously circulating your inner mana. " James replied in a calm tone. "Mana exists everywhere around us. Think of it as a thread carried by the wind and try to feel it brushing against your skin. "

'Feel the mana brushing against my skin... ' Adam thought with a complicated expression. 'I can already see the mana, but I never touched it. '

Adam focused on feeling the mana surrounding him, which was easy for him to do because he could already see it with his skills, feeling it was just a matter of focus.

'It feels like the mana is sticking to me... ' Adam thought as he felt a thick layer of mana latch onto him, the same way that liquid latched onto his finger earlier. 'Is this happening because I'm circulating my mana? '

"You will feel the surrounding mana gradually sticking to your skin as you circulate your mana. " James spoke at the perfect timing as if he read Adam's thoughts. "That's because when you circulate your inner mana, it creates a force, which gravitates the surrounding mana towards you. "

"Yeah, I can feel it. " Adam said in a slightly strained tone. Circulating his inner mana was taking its toll on him.

"Try to absorb it. " James spoke in the same calm tone. He was already used to this kind of training, unlike Adam.

"Absorb it? How? " Adam's tone turned frustrated as he asked.

"By increasing your circulation speed. " James replied.

"You're talking like it's a simple thing! " Adam said with sweat on his face.

"It is to me. " James spoke in a sarcastic tone.

'I want to punch him, but let's stay focused... ' Adam calmed his mind and took a deep breath. 'I'll escalate the speed at a comfortable pace. '

He kept increasing his circulation speed while taking deep breaths, which was much harder than it sounded. Sweat trickled down his back and drenched his clothes while his veins bulged on his forearms.

Suddenly, after a long and arduous effort, he could feel the outer mana sap into his vessels. It was like a sip of cold water in the middle of a scorching desert.

"Woah! This feels amazing! " He rejoiced with a relieved expression.

"I know, right? " James said while looking at Adam with a proud expression. "Now, keep circulating the mana you're absorbing to adjust it to your body and make it useable. "

Adam silently did what James told him and kept circulating the mana he was absorbing while maintaining the same speed, which was much harder.

'I need to focus! ' Adam's vessels were approaching their limit as he kept circulating.

[MP is recharging.]

A system notification flashed in front of his eyes.

[MP: 110/350]

'Huh?! ' Adam's eyes widened with surprise. 'This is great! I was just looking for a way to replenish my MP! ' He rejoiced.

[MP: 120/350]

'I'll fully replenish it! ' He gritted his teeth and increased his circulation speed even more.

[MP: 130/350]

[MP: 140/350]

[MP: 150/350]

.....

[MP: 330/350]

[MP: 340/350]

'Almost there! ' Adam's exhaustion reached an all-time high.

[MP: 350/350]

*Thud! *

*Pant! *

*Pant! *

He finally reached his goal, stopped circulating, and plopped on the ground while struggling to catch his breath.

'I did it... ' Adam celebrated in his head. He did not even have enough energy to talk out loud anymore.

"Adam! Are you okay? " James approached Adam with a worried expression. "Why'd you keep doing it for that long, you idiot?! "

Adam, however, could only look at James's worried eyes before passing out from exhaustion.

_______________

When he woke up, Adam found out that he was back in his apartment.

"How did I get here? " He asked as he got up while scratching his head. "The last thing I remember was training my mana vessels. Did I pass out? " He turned to the bedside cabinet and saw a folded piece of paper next to his clock, which showed that it was 1 pm already.

The paper was a letter from James telling Adam that he had passed out and that James had carried him back home. James also told him to meet up at the same spot at 10 pm tonight to complete the training.

"Thank god I had the keys in my pocket... " Adam spoke before folding the paper and getting up from the bed.

He washed his face, brushed his teeth, and had a small breakfast before opening the television to watch the local news, which was reporting a very intriguing event.

"Huh?! " Adam's mouth gaped in surprise when he saw the topic.

The news was reporting the third raid attempt on the monster in the middle of The Bronx. After the last two miserably unsuccessful attempts.

However, what shocked Adam the most was that Darius was the person who was taking charge of the new attempt.

"Our company's task force will take part in the raid, along with our allies, to bring the accursed monster to its eternal rest. " Darius spoke while holding up his fist.

"You heard it! The heir of the Bladeworks conglomerate said it here first! " The news reporter said with an excited expression. "In 2 months, The Bronx will come back to the people. "

'This is insane... ' Adam thought as he looked at the television with a shocked expression.