A few days later, Adam's routine was disrupted by another piece of news.
The school would remain closed until further notice to allow the authorities to repair the damage caused by the monsters.
So Adam simply decided to train with a very specific goal in mind: to do his best to win one of the prizes in the tournament his parents had been telling him about!
In fact, for the past few days, he had been learning all about the Newly Awakened Tournament.
It was due to take place in 3 months' time, and the rewards were just as generous!
1st place: Any C-rank combat technique, any D-rank weapon and three spirit stones.
2nd place: Any D-rank fighting technique and two spirit stones.
Third place: Any E-rank combat technique and one spirit stone.
4th to 10th place: One spiritual stone each.
Note that a C-rank technique can easily cost the Kingdom of Kerya hundreds of thousands of Kada!
The Kada being the currency of the Kingdom of Kerya, its value was very similar to the currencies of its previous life, such as the dollar and the euro.
That's how valuable a C-rank technique was!
Fighting techniques could considerably increase a person's fighting power and even enable them to surpass the ranks of martial arts if the difference between fighting techniques was significant.
And that's not all! Their value was also very high, as it was possible to train in fighting techniques without slowing down the progression of body forging!
The difference between a person practicing combat techniques and one practicing only body forging was enormous.
With this in mind, his school imposed courses to lay the foundations for future skill acquisition.
Thanks to these foundations, they could progress more rapidly in their mastery, but the degree of compatibility remained paramount.
Without compatibility, whatever the basics, certain fighting techniques could never be practiced.
In any case, these fighting techniques weren't the only precious rewards!
Spiritual stones were also very expensive!
Adam had made enquiries and the selling price was 10,000 Kada each!
And that was only the selling price if someone sold it to a specialized store! In reality, it was worth much more than that and had almost no market because of its preciousness!
For his part, when Adam saw the price, he was completely shocked, and above all, he couldn't understand how his father and mother could have bought one and given it to him!
Even if the possibility of buying one arose, his family wasn't normally rich enough to afford it without going heavily into debt.
But thinking about the secrets his parents seemed to be hiding, he didn't think too much about it.
He also felt the sense of guilt that had arisen when he had used the spirit stone disappear immediately.
A D-rank weapon, on the other hand, could be bought for a few thousand Kada, and was relatively less valuable.
But at least, with this first-place prize worth at least 150,000 Kada, nobody could say that the city was stingy with the newly awakened!
Determined not to let this opportunity slip through his fingers, Adam threw himself heart and soul into his training.
His talent was mediocre, but the simulator could remedy that to some extent.
Now all he had to do was train like crazy to reach at least a place in the top 10!
Every day, he practiced the technique of body forging, a demanding art that strengthened muscles, tendons and bones by imbuing them with spiritual power.
Yes, spiritual power!
There was something magical about this world!
All nations had different words to describe this energy, but all used it to strengthen their physique!
Otherwise, it was impossible, whatever the methods, to become as strong as a warrior!
And warriors were only the starting point for true martial artists!
Every day, Adam practiced the body-forging technique, both outdoors and in his room!
The body-forging technique is divided into 9 movements.
The first movement signified the entry stage, the third the stage of small success, the fifth the stage of great success, the seventh movement represented the climax stage and finally the 9th movement was perfection!
By now, Adam had mastered the first three movements and was performing them relentlessly.
Each movement lasts about 15 minutes, for a total of 45 minutes per session.
And they repeat them tirelessly until his body can take no more.
Usually, after 10 repetitions, he was completely exhausted - that's around 7.5 hours of training a day!
Not to mention the fact that he also had to take distance-learning courses and learn cultural content!
After all, the Kingdom preferred to have warriors who knew how to use their brains!
This enabled them not only to develop related talents, especially for the army, but also to instruct their students morally enough so that they wouldn't use their strength indiscriminately.
As he trained, Adam couldn't help thinking of his master Arval's powerful stance in battle.
That power, and above all, the power to defend himself.
He wanted to reach this level, not only to protect himself, but also to defend those he loved.
"Never again will I cower in a corner and wait to die!"
As the days passed, Adam felt his body transform. His muscles were firmer, his reflexes sharper, and spiritual energy seemed to flow more easily through his body.
Once the spiritual energy could circulate easily in 20% of the body, a click would occur in the body and it would strengthen considerably.
The same thing happened with each 10% improvement, up to a 100% improvement.
Once at 100%, it was possible to become a warrior.
This corresponded to the 9 stages of warrior apprenticeship and the breakthrough to becoming a warrior.
One evening, as he was training in the courtyard, his brother Leo came up to him, his eyes shining with admiration.
"Why do you train so hard?" asked Leo, his eyes shining with curiosity.
Adam smiled, wiping the sweat from his brow.
"To get stronger."
"What's the point of getting stronger?" continued Leo curiously.
Adam is surprised, but at the same time, he gives his younger brother a touching smile.
"To protect his family."
These were Adam's sincere thoughts.
He knew the pain of losing his family, and he never wanted to know that pain again.
At the same time, Leo's eyes shone with admiration.
"Don't worry big brother, Mom told me you had very limited talent! So when I grow up and get my talent, I'll protect you! And Mum and Dad too!"
Adam was suddenly speechless.
But his little brother's innocent words made his heart beat faster.
To him, those words alone were worth putting his life on the line and putting in so much effort every day.
"Then I'm counting on you to protect me," Adam replied softly, smiling.
"Hmm!"
At the same moment, a voice was heard from the living room window of the house.
"Leo! Time for bed!"
"Yes, I'm coming, Mom!"
At the same time, he winked at Adam before heading home.
Adam looked up at the starry sky in front of him, the scene was magnificent.
Even the spatial fissure seemed to possess a magnetic charm, though it had caused enormous disasters in the past.
"I guess just because something's dangerous doesn't mean it can't be beautiful.
At the same time, Adam knew deep down that he was aiming a little higher than simply protecting his family.
As far as possible, he wanted to protect all the families in this world.
And the upcoming tournament was the first step towards a future he had decided to forge with his own hands.
Simultaneously, the monotonous voice of the system rang out:
[The free opportunity to simulate each month is available, would you like to use it?"]