"You're too ruthless, Master!"
"Huh? Are you complaining about your exercise? Do you want me to increase the amount of reps you have to do?"
"Urk...I didn't say anything, Master!"
...
After telling Shi Li that his training session still isn't over, Shi Zhang gave Shi Li an ordinary-looking pill and forced him to swallow it.
A few seconds later, Shi Li felt as if his body was filled with energy that would last him for days. With his curiosity getting the better of him, he asked, "Master, what kind of heavenly pill is this?"
"Oh that?" Shi Zhang swung his forging hammer a few times as he answered, "That's a Spirit Inedia Pill. It gives you the energy needed to continuously exercise for about a week or so. It's still recommended to eat rather than use this pill though."
"Spirit Inedia Pill...Energy needed for 7 days..." Shi Li felt as if something was wrong. "Y-you're telling me Master that...I-I have to continuously work out for 7 days?"
Shi Zhang placed his forging hammer on the anvil as he gave out a smile. "Yep!"
Shi Li couldn't help but feel immense terror from his master. Even in his previous life, he would rarely go to the gym and workout, but this time, he was tasked to continuously exercise for 7 days.
Shi Zhang stood up and hovered once more using his qi.
"Let's not waste any more time. Start with 10 sets of push-ups!"
A set of push-ups was equivalent to 10 individual push-ups. That meant that Shi Li had to do 100 push-ups before he was finished.
Letting out a sigh, Shi Li went into the position needed for doing push-ups and exercised throughout the night as he circulated his strength and conserved his energy.
...
"Since you're now done with the push-ups, let's move on to 10 sets of sit-ups! I'm sure you can handle that, right?"
"Okay. Let's now move on to 100 squats. What? You're telling me you want to give up? It would be a waste of the effects of the Spirit Inedia Pill. Stop complaining and start squatting!"
"Are you tired already? Yes? Well there's one more exercise left, and that's to do 100 pull-ups! Good thing my smithy has an iron bar conveniently hanging from the ceiling. Well, what are you waiting for? Start!"
This exercise routine lasted for 7 days, which would eventually give Shi Li a trauma that he wouldn't be able to remove. Nonetheless, Shi Li showed improvements everyday in his strength and endurance, which made Shi Zhang satisfied with his work.
To everyone else in the clan though, they thought of Shi Li and Shi Zhang as madmen who were obsessed with exercise, calling them the "Fit Demons".
...
One week has passed with nothing major happening.
Shi Li was currently doing his final set of pull-ups for the week at a speed that was incomparable to his speed in doing pull-ups on the first day of his training.
"98...99...100!"
After making sure that he did his 100th pull-up, Shi Li dropped down on the floor and looked at his master.
"Master, I have finally done the set you told me," Shi Li bowed respectfully as he eventually realized the changes that happened in his body.
Through this rigorous workout, Shi Li was able to obtain a level of endurance that could be compared to the level of endurance of Olympic athletes! He was also able to find his own method of conserving energy while still allowing his body to exert the highest strength it could release.
'If I compare the amount of energy I use for action now to the amount of energy I use for every action last week, I would say I used 10% less energy compared to before.'
"Oh?" Shi Zhang, who was currently hammering a piece of metal, stopped working and looked at his disciple with slight surprise. 'It seems that he has finished quite faster than before. I'm surprised that his rate of improvement during this week is high compared to the other disciples I've taught back then!'
"Since you're done, you can take the next week as your time for rest. I don't have much Spirit Inedia Pills here to spare since I have to use them in my forging, plus the effects of the Spirit Inedia Pill for you will wear off soon enough so you should take this time to rest your body," Shi Zhang said after careful consideration. After saying what he has to say, he continued on hammering.
Shi Li was flabbergasted. After one week of torture, the next week would be paradise for him? That meant that he could pursue his cultvation! Ah wait...he still hasn't learned how to forge yet but he could use this time to gradually temper his body.
Even though Shi Li wanted to go home already, Shi Li went towards the window sill and removed his robe, revealing his well-toned body. Although his body is still skinny, the streamlined muscles on it seemed to emphasize his masculinity, bringing his handsomeness to another level.
Afterwards, he grabbed the book that Shi Zhang gave him and skimmed through the content.
'[Energy Condensation Art]. An auxiliary technique that allows the cultivator to reduce the amount of energy needed to do an action and enhances the cultivator's ability to regenerate lost energy.'
'Once cultivated to the first level, the amount of energy used is reduced by 20% and the rate of energy regeneration is boosted by 10%.'
'Once cultivated to the second level, the amount of energy used is reduced by 40% and the rate of energy regeneration is boosted by 25%.'
'Once cultivated to the third level, the amount of energy used is reduced by 50% and the rate of energy regeneration is boosted by 50%! At this level, the cultivator can also create an Energy Vessel, allowing the cultivator to store twice as much energy!'
The first word that came out of Shi Li's mouth was "Woah."
"This is definitely a heaven-defying art. If I were to guess, it would probably be at the Spirit grade or even the legendary World grade. What kind of technique would allow me to quadruple the amount of stamina I have?"
Without hesitation, Shi Li went close to his master who was forging and asked, "Master, might I ask what grade this technique is at?"
"Ah that?" Shi Zhang continued to hammer away. "It's at the Low Mortal grade."
"L...Low Mortal grade?!" Shi Li couldn't believe it. "A technique like this at the Low Mortal grade has such heaven-defying effects? How is this possible?"
"Hehe... don't underestimate that technique for it is an auxiliary technique!" Shi Zhang grinned as he focused his sights of the flattened metal on his anvil. Afterwards, he placed the metal within the furnace using tongs.
"An auxiliary technique?" Shi Li recalled that the [Energy Gathering Art] was called an auxiliary technique.
"Since you're at the first stage of the Martial Novice stage, it's pretty much a given that you don't know the three types of techniques that make cultivators what they are," Shi Zhang looked at Shi Li as the metal was currently being heated up.
"That's why I'll tell you each and every one of them."