Steel Himself

Stars were illuminating the dark sky, surrounding the bright crescent moon. The cool moonlight went through the tree leaves and scattered around, illuminating the quiet and dark forest.

Di Yalan and Hu Long were patrolling around, while Zhao Xin was resting with his eyes closed, leaning against the tree with stable breaths.

Luo Hao was standing next to another ancient tree on alert, his eyes squinted, never relaxing his vigilance.

Among the dense leaves of that tree, Mu Yu Die was sleeping quietly. After a long day's journey, she was exhausted, for she couldn't operate her Profound Qi at will.

Luo Hao looked up at the resting Mu Yu Die and showed a rare tenderness in his eyes.

"Daa! Daa!"

Luo Hao's thick eyebrows frowned, as he saw Shi Yan approaching nearby. He asked in surprise, "Still awake?"

"Yeah." Shi Yan nodded and answered quietly. He stood still beside Luo Hao, and asked under his breath, "Is it harder for them to spot us here?"

"Indeed." Luo Hao smiled, "There is no settled route through the forest, and demon beasts and warriors always show up now and then, so those from the Dark World will find it hard to distinguish our tracks. In this area, those demon beasts and warriors are whom we need to pay more attention to."

"That is to say, they won't find us easily." After pondering a bit, Shi Yan asked again, "Uncle Luo, do you need to consume too much Profound Qi to release your gravitational field?"

"Why do you want to know this?" Luo Hao was puzzled.

"I want to train myself with the help of your gravitational field. Under the gravitational field, I will have to bear a huge pressure, which will strengthen my body. I want to see where my limits are at." Shi Yan replied seriously. He didn't go with the conventional path. Usual training didn't excite him, so he sought out passion desperately.

"To train by using my gravitational field... " Luo Hao's eyes lit up, and he nodded, "Not a bad idea, but are you sure you want to try it? If those emissaries found us while you were exhausted, you wouldn't even be able to fight back."

"I don't plan to use my Profound Qi." Shi Yan smiled.

"You're purely just training your body?" Luo Hao was shocked.

"Yes."

Luo Hao fell in a deep thought for a long time, and said, "You have just reached the Nascent Realm, so it is indeed beneficial to refine your body in a proper way and get used to it first. But you haven't strengthened your body before. It is crazy that you want to train in my gravitational field from the start, without even operating your Profound Qi. You're sure you can endure that?"

"I want to try it." Shi Yan replied calmly.

"Good! Follow me." Luo Hao nodded and quietly walked away. Shi Yan also quietly followed him.

After they left in silence, Mu Yu Die, who was sleeping on the leaves, slowly opened her eyes.

Gazing quietly at the two people beside the river from afar, Mu Yu Die was taken by surprise and puzzlement. She murmured to herself, "Just reached the Nascent Realm and he already dares to cultivate under the gravitational field. Is this guy insane?"

Mu Yu Die became more and more confused as she thought about it, so much that she couldn't fall asleep anymore. Out of curiosity, she slipped down the ancient tree dexterously, and sneaked over to Shi Yan and Luo Hao, in order to secretly see what would happen next.

---

"Let's start with the gravitational field at five times normal gravity first. Generally, a Nascent Realm warrior's body can only endure this after undergoing specialized training. You have to go with what you are capable of. When you feel like your body is going to give up, stop the high-difficulty procedure at once."

Standing still, Luo Hao added, "Since it's your first training, run few laps around me first. If you can run ten laps without using your Profound Qi, it will mean that you have gotten used to it. Remember, do it within your limits!"

After his speech, a violent wave broke out from Luo Hao's body all at once.

In an instant, centering about Luo Hao, the gravity surged by five times! The space around him seemed to have collapsed. The air had become so heavy that one could hardly breathe.

An invisible pressure suddenly surrounded him all over!

Shi Yan felt as if sand had filled all his cells, and his body was carrying hundreds of pounds of weight. The tendons and bones of his knees tightened, and his heart rate was speeding rapidly. Under the effects of the increased gravity, all his muscles had suddenly contracted.

The invisible pressure from the increased gravity forced his body to adapt on its own. However, he found it hard to breathe, even while standing still.

Holy crap!

Shi Yan was too astonished when he felt that overwhelming pressure. He thought to himself that, anyone who went into Luo Hao's gravitational field during battle would definitely be severely effected by it. They wouldn't be able to use 100% of their abilities at their best and would be suppressed by Luo Hao in every single way.

If this was only fivefold gravity, how terrifying would tenfold gravity be?

Realizing the horrifying part of this Martial Spirit, Shi Yan took a deep breath and drove all the distracting thoughts out of his mind. He roared in a low voice and then began to run around Luo Hao.

His body shook as the pressure increased. His feet felt heavier than a thousand pounds as if bound with countless lead balls. Just normal running felt like the most terrible torment.

In the gravitational field, his body couldn't leap up from the ground at all. He felt as if he was being pressed down by a giant, hardly able to breathe.

After one lap, his speed had slowed down by half.

After three laps, he slowed down by half again.

After five laps, Shi Yan was not running, instead, he was walking...

On the sixth lap, Shi Yan's face was as red as an apple, while the blue veins on his arms were trembling like small snakes, about to jump out of the skin.

On the seventh lap, Shi Yan looked like a beast, as his eyes were almost on fire from the lack of oxygen.

On the eighth lap, Shi Yan staggered. Every step exhausted him, and his body quivered after every step.

At that time, Luo Hao couldn't stand it anymore. He shouted, "It is your first time training in the gravitational field. Don't try too hard! You have reached your limit! Enough! Stop! If you continue you might die from exhaustion."

Shi Yan raised his head, while his eyes looked as if they were bleeding. He said in a grave tone, "Hehe. This is just starting to get interesting, let's go on!"

Luo Hao stood aghast, and could only come up with one conclusion: 'This kid is insane!'

In the bushes not far from them, Mu Yu Die was speechless, she covered her mouth with her hand. She felt as if she just met Shi Yan for the first time.

Shi Yan didn't continue trading words with Luo Hao. After another beast-like haul, he continued to firmly step forward. With veins pulsing on his entire face, he finished another lap.

By the last lap, his body was swaying. He had a quiver after each step, looking as if he could fall anytime, and die at any moment.

With his body in that state, he finished another lap, step by step. Afterward, a weird satisfied smile appeared on his face.

Waking from his astonishment, Luo Hao was relieved when he saw Shi Yan was okay. He was about to withdraw the gravitational field before going to talk with Shi Yan.

Mu Yu Die pressed her mouth firmly with her hand and had a look of disbelief in her attractive eyes. She had never thought that Shi Yan would achieve this extreme challenge, even as he was only in the Nascent Realm.

"Another lap." Shi Yan suddenly yelled.

"What?" Luo Hao's body shook greatly, and the look in his eye was as sharp as knives. He shouted, "Enough! Don't fool around!"

Before Luo Hao withdrew the gravitational field, Shi Yan unexpectedly continued to walk again. He was staggering and finally dropped to the ground halfway.

Luo Hao was just about to shout out when he found Shi Yan was using both his hands and feet to crawl forward like a demon beast. He seemed to be seeking death with all his will.

Using half an hour of time, Shi Yan finally made it to the end, with his speed as slow as a snail's.

Mu Yu Die, staring at him from the bushes, was completely blanked out.