Sung-min then took Xander into the city to a blacksmith and bought him two identical G-rank katanas, two identical sets of G-rank flexible armor, and 30 very high-quality G-rank throwing knives.
The katanas and armors were predominantly black, accented with touches of silver, while the throwing knives were all solid black.
The katana was an inch or two shorter than the average katana to fit Xander's small frame, with it being 37 inches total with a blade length of 29 inches.
Xander at first was against the idea, but now that he had a set of comfortable flexible armor on with his katana strapped to his hip, he felt really good.
He felt safe, like he could take on the world and come out okay on the other side.
"Thanks, Sung-min, I really appreciate it," Xander said, now genuinely happy and proud to have him as a mentor. He had wanted to buy armor and a new spear the day before, but he didn't have nearly enough money. Now, thanks to Sung-min, he had not only a pair of both but a backup set in case something happened.
"No problem, kid. I do this for all my students. You're just lucky I don't have any other students anymore. That means I can spend all my time on you," Sung-min said with a smirk as if Xander would come to regret this.
Xander saw the smirk, but he didn't care. All he wanted was to get strong fast and get strong now, so this was right up his alley.
"Alright, kid, let's go. It's time to start training," Sung-min said.
Sung-min led Xander back up to the mountain, but instead of entering the academy grounds, they went east where they came across a small little house next to a large clearing that was carved out of the mountain.
"This here is where you will start to train when you're with me. Anytime you have free time, I expect you to be here," Sung-min said as he stared at Xander, waiting for a response.
Xander was quick to catch on and nodded his head, "Yes, sir."
"First, we need to get your second core created. This is your biggest trump card. I know your first core is death-aligned, so I think your second core should have some attack speed, which is exactly what you're lacking right now, and the great thing is I have just the thing," Sung-min said with a huge creepy smile.
"And what is that?" Xander asked.
"Lightning," Sung-min said.
"Lightning?" Xander repeated.
"Yes, lightning. Lightning is perfect for you. It will give you what you are missing—speed and healing. Death has a great attack, decent defense, and terrible healing and speed, while lightning has great attack, great speed, decent healing, and not the best, but not the worst, defense. So they make a pretty good pairing.
"Plus, like with the katana, I'm a lightning user. Both my trait and core have to do with lightning, so you will have a perfect teacher to teach you everything you need to know, as well as pass down an excellent selection of manuals from cultivation to attack and so on," Sung-min said as he summoned from his spatial ring five different jade slips.
"Cultivation, attack, defense, movement, and lastly, healing. Each of these jade slips are among the best manuals this universe has to offer. I'm sure the 2nd universe has better, but this is what we're working with," Sung-min said as he tossed them over.
"First thing you need to do is memorize these."
"I was actually thinking about picking a life core as my second core," Xander said. He had wanted to wait until he got a mentor to help him pick, but this was all moving too fast. This was his second core, something he would be stuck with forever, and it was being decided just like that, with no input from him.
"Yea, yea, yea, I'm sure you were. The life/death core thing would be neat, but the real question is, is it strong? And the answer to that is not enough. So go on, get to it," Sung-Min said as he waved him off.
Xander hesitantly nodded his head and went over to the middle of the clearing and found a spot to sit down. Then he sent his mind into the cultivation manual.
It was called 'The Heart of the Storm.' It showed him how to create his core, and after an hour, he finally had his second core created.
[Name: Alexander Stone]
[Rank: G-rank - Entry] - [Saturation: 0%]
[Death Core] - [Attunements: Death 100% - Life 10% - Other 50%]
[First trait: Reaper's Revival] - [Death Charge: 7.5%]
[First trait Rank: Divine]
-
[Rank: G-rank - Entry] - [Saturation: 0%]
[Lightning Core] - [Attunements: Lightning 100% - Other 45%]
[Second Trait: Mirage Realm]
[Second trait Current Rank: G-rank]
"Good job, kid, that was pretty fast. Looks like you're not too bad," Sung-min said. He had been sitting five meters in front of Xander, creating a field of lightning for Xander to pull into his core to help in its creation.
Now that the core was created, Xander looked into the attack manual.
There were seven different attacks as part of the 'Thunderous Strikes: The Art of Lightning Assault':
Attack 1: Lightning Bolt - Channel lightning qi into your palm or weapon. Release a concentrated bolt of lightning that pierces through your foes with electrifying force.
Attack 2: Storm Surge - Create a surge of lightning qi around your body, then release it in a powerful wave, shocking and paralyzing multiple opponents.
Attack 3: Electro Blade - Charge your weapon with lightning qi. Each swing releases arcs of electricity, chaining to nearby foes and dealing extra damage.
Attack 4: Chain Lightning - Cast a bolt of lightning that chains between enemies, losing power with each jump but hitting multiple targets.
Attack 5: Lightning Strike - Summon a bolt of lightning from the sky to strike a specific target, causing massive damage in a concentrated area.
Attack 6: Electric Net - Weave a net of lightning qi to trap and electrocute enemies, immobilizing them and causing continuous electrical damage.
Attack 7: Volt Burst - Accumulate a large amount of lightning qi within yourself, then release it explosively, sending electric shards flying in all directions.
Next was the defense manual called the 'Storm Sentinel: The Shield of Lightning'…
Then was the movement manual called the 'Thunderstride: The Dance of Lightning'…
Lastly was the one Xander was most surprised to see, the healing manual 'Storm's Embrace: The Healing Power of Lightning'…
After learning each technique, Xander stood up and began to practice.
He went through each technique until he could consistently get them right, with Sung-min there every step of the way, offering words of guidance and wisdom. His little tips and tricks made learning lightning qi much easier than when he first learned how to use death qi.