Chapter 36

That morning, Madara was training in the rectangular flat area he had created, practicing his basic sword-cutting techniques. He swung his wooden sword, infused with sword qi, in various directions—upward, downward, diagonal slashes to the left and right, and horizontal strikes—all while incorporating steps such as side steps, forward steps, and circular movements. He also experimented with different combinations of attacks that he had devised.

After several hours of intense training, Madara finally paused, wiping the sweat from his forehead with his left hand. Fatigue was setting in, so he sat down under a nearby tree to rest. As he settled against the trunk, he murmured to himself, "I still have six more basic sword skills to learn. To achieve basic sword intent, I need to master and perfect all of them within the next four and a half years. On top of that, I need to reach the middle stage of Qi condensation to be accepted as a disciple in one of the sects."

He took a deep breath, feeling the weight of his goals. "Can I really accomplish all of this in the time I have?" He wondered aloud.

He said this because he knew deep down that his low-grade spiritual root and bone marrow would be significant obstacles to his cultivation progress. The thought weighed heavily on him. But his frustration began to lift as he recalled something his sister Xiaoyun had once told him: "Success in cultivation isn't solely determined by the rarity of your spirit root and bone marrow. What truly matters is your dedication, perseverance, and inner strength."

With those words in mind, Madara couldn't help but smile. Feeling a renewed sense of determination, he adjusted his posture into a meditative position, preparing to study and practice the techniques of Thrust, Parry, and Riposte.

---Thrust: A direct, quick, and precise stabbing motion aimed at the opponent's vital areas.---

---Parry and Riposte: A fundamental technique where the fighter deflects an opponent's attack with their sword (parry) and immediately follows up with a counterattack (riposte).---

In this meditative state, Madara could clearly visualize the techniques and understand how to execute them. After several hours of deep concentration, he stood up and decided to gather some fallen trees to create improvised training dummies. He knew it wasn't safe to use his wood clones as targets, in case someone happened to see them—especially since he was alone and needed to be cautious.

As Madara approached the fallen trees, he drew his wooden sword once again, swiftly infusing it with sword qi. With precise cuts, he trimmed the long logs down to the perfect height for training dummies. He then hoisted one of the logs onto his left shoulder, surprised by its weight. "I didn't expect it to be this heavy," he muttered to himself.

Carrying the log, he made his way to the center of his training ground. Once there, he forcefully drove the log into the ground, securing it in place. After completing this task, Madara took a break to have lunch. He ate some fruit and rested before resuming his training with renewed energy.

Madara stood firmly in front of the log he had set up earlier. With a swift motion, he retrieved his wooden sword from his storage ring. As he did so, he infused it with sword qi, preparing for his next move. Taking a solid sword stance, he bent his posture slightly, with his right foot forward, and began executing rapid thrusts at the dummy.

Each thrust was precise and deliberate, as he envisioned the log as a real opponent, targeting its vital areas. The rhythm of his attacks was consistent—stabbing in and out, in and out—aiming at those critical points. After completing 100 thrusts with his right hand, he switched to his left hand, advancing with his left foot as he continued the attack. 

After another 100 thrusts with both hands, the log, which had been untouched before, was now riddled with holes, as if a woodpecker had repeatedly pecked at it.

In his sword stance position, Madara had been breathing heavily from his practice, so he decided to take a break. Afterward, he meditated to restore the qi he had expended during his training. After several hours of meditation, he noticed it was getting late, so he decided to end his practice for the day.

After eating some fruit, Madara slept once more on the branch of the tree he had used as a bed the previous night. The next morning, he ate more fruit and checked his injuries. He was relieved to see that they were starting to heal, so he no longer needed to cover them with leaves.

Following this, he began his warm-up exercises and continued training his basic sword skills. He maintained this routine for the next five days.

...

After five days of training, Madara lay on the ground, exhausted and sweating from his intense practice. As he gazed up at the orange sky, he sighed in relief and said, "Finally, I've achieved the initial stage of thrust." Once he had rested, he set about preparing a fire for grilling meat, as his fruit supply from the storage ring had run out. He gathered the necessary materials and took out the meat. Although he couldn't identify its origin by its color and shape, it had no smell, which was a good sign.

After ensuring the meat was clean, he skewered it on a tree branch and placed it over the blazing fire. When it was cooked, he ate it, even though it lacked flavor. After finishing his meal, Madara extinguished the campfire. Before going to sleep, he decided to create an improvised calendar to keep track of the days he had been training and to monitor his progress toward the sect disciple selection deadline.

The next morning, after eating the flavorless grilled meat and completing his warm-up, Madara set about creating his improvised calendar. He went to the fallen trees he had previously cut and used his wooden sword infused with sword qi to slice the wood into rectangular pieces. Once he had the basic shapes, he cut the wood into thinner strips to create plywood pieces approximately the size of a notebook. Although the craftsmanship was rough and not polished, the plywood was functional.

Next, he punched holes at the top of each plywood piece using the tip of his wooden sword, which was infused with sword qi. He managed to produce 40 rectangular pieces, each about the size of a notebook, and then arranged them into four rows of ten pieces each. In his calculations, Madara determined that he had 53 months over a period of 4 years and 5 months, which amounted to a total of 1,610 days. To effectively track this, he needed four columns in his calendar. After threading and tying them together, he collected some charcoal from the campfire he had used the previous night to use as an improvised writing tool.

With the charcoal, he carefully wrote the numbers 0–9 in Chinese characters on each piece of plywood, repeating the process four times. Once he had finished, he tied the completed calendar to one of the branches. It resembled a basketball manual scoreboard, but instead of scores, it displayed the days. Madara completed his improvised calendar, and he flipped it and set it to show 7 days (0-0-0-7). He looked at it with satisfaction and said, "Not bad for an improvised calendar."

Deciding to put his basic sword training on hold for the day, he focused on improving his physical strength, agility, and flexibility. That day, he ran around the lake, did push-ups and sit-ups, lifted weights (rocks), and stretched in various body positions. Before lunch, he took a bath in the lake. When he removed his clothes, he noticed they were torn and worn out. Realizing he needed new clothing, he decided to make something improvised.

After his bath, he had lunch and then began searching the area for materials to create his new outfit. After a few hours of exploring, he found only trees and plants. With no other options, he decided to use leaves. Returning to his camp, he began crafting his makeshift clothing. He used the remaining fabric from his old clothes to make a brief for his genitals and gathered bundles of leaves to create a skirt. Once he had finished, he put on the outfit and went to the lake to see how it looked.

When he saw his reflection, he resembled a Tarzan-like figure: he had no top, his long black hair reached down to his neck, he was barefoot, and he wore a leaf skirt as his lower garment. As he examined himself from different angles, he remarked, "Not bad," with a nod of approval. After that, Madara continued his physical training until the evening. The next day, he resumed practicing his basic sword techniques. He went to the fallen trees and selected a new log, as the previous ones were now filled with holes.

He placed the new log in the same spot where the old dummy had been. Then, he took a nearby tree branch and tied it to the log using fabric from his torn clothes. The branch was positioned to mimic a sword pointed directly at him, giving the dummy the appearance of holding a weapon aimed at him. Madara then drew his wooden sword from his storage ring. Infusing it with sword qi, he assumed a sword stance. Imagining that the dummy (enemy) was charging at him and targeting his right chest, he stepped to the side with his right foot to create a slight distance.

From this new position, he angled his wooden sword in his right hand to parry the branch (enemy sword) away from his chest. Madara practiced the technique 100 times to master it. After several hours, he switched to using his left hand, practicing from various positions and repeating the drill another 100 times. Next, he moved on to practicing Riposte. From the parry position, he stepped forward with his right foot to launch a counterattack against the dummy (enemy) using his wooden sword in his right hand. He performed this maneuver 100 times. Afterward, he took a break and had lunch.

While eating the meat, he sensed something approaching. Reacting quickly, he stood up and assumed a sword stance. He released his sword qi and pointed his wooden sword in the direction where he sensed the approaching presence.