Leonel was fairly certain he had broken at least three ribs. Maybe four.
He groaned, sprawled out on the ground, staring up at the sky. "I think I just died."
Xun, standing over him, stroked his beard thoughtfully. "Hmm. No, you're still breathing. Maybe next time."
Leonel twitched. "Did… did you just say next time?!"
Xun grinned. "Of course. Training has only just begun!"
Leonel let out a low, suffering groan. "I hate this place. I hate my life. I hate—"
Aina crouched down beside him, a smirk playing on her lips. "You hate that I'm watching you get your butt kicked?"
Leonel glared. "That too."
She patted his shoulder. "Stay strong, champ."
Xun clapped his hands together. "Alright! Back on your feet, boy!"
Leonel groaned louder. "Give me a moment to suffer in peace!"
Xun stomped on his stomach.
Leonel gasped like a dying fish.
"There! That should wake you up," Xun said cheerfully.
Leonel wheezed. "You are the worst teacher in existence."
Xun smirked. "Oh? Would you prefer someone gentler?"
Leonel nodded furiously. "YES. PLEASE. ANYTHING BUT THIS."
Xun cracked his knuckles. "Too bad."
And just like that, the torture continued.
Lesson One: Dodge or Die (Mostly Die)
The first exercise was simple.
Leonel just had to dodge.
Sounds easy, right?
Wrong.
Because Xun wasn't throwing punches or simple attacks.
No.
The old man was hurling dimensional shockwaves strong enough to crack the earth.
Leonel screamed as he barely teleported out of the way of a shockwave that obliterated an entire tree.
"ARE YOU TRYING TO KILL ME?" he yelled.
Xun grinned. "That's how you learn best, isn't it?"
Leonel gaped. "NO!"
Xun sent another shockwave.
Leonel teleported again—this time a little smoother.
Xun nodded. "Good! Now again!"
Leonel was already regretting his life choices.
Lesson Two: Stop Being Useless
After three hours of dodging death, Leonel collapsed again, gasping for breath.
"Okay… okay… I think I get it," he panted. "Dodge or die. Cool. Lesson learned. Let's go home."
Xun shook his head. "Not so fast. That was just the warm-up."
Leonel froze.
Aina snorted. "Oh, this is fun."
Leonel shot her a glare. "TRAITOR."
Xun walked up to him. "Now, onto the next step."
Leonel raised a hand. "Is this the part where you teach me cool superpowers?"
Xun smiled. "No."
Leonel's face fell. "Oh. Great."
Xun gestured toward a massive boulder nearby. "Move that."
Leonel blinked. "Excuse me?"
Xun crossed his arms. "Move it."
Leonel frowned. "I'm not a weightlifter, old man. I teleport. That's my thing."
Xun smirked. "Is it?"
Leonel hesitated. "Uh… yeah?"
Xun waved his hand. The boulder glowed faintly… and suddenly disappeared.
Then, reappeared behind Leonel.
Leonel yelled and jumped away. "WHAT THE HELL?!"
Xun smirked. "That's your true ability."
Leonel froze. "Wait. You're saying I can—"
"Break space," Xun confirmed. "You don't teleport. You force reality to move around you."
Leonel's brain short-circuited.
"So… I'm not moving."
"No."
"I'm moving the world."
"Correct."
Leonel sat down. "I need a moment."
Aina chuckled. "This is the first time I've seen you speechless."
Leonel groaned. "Give me a break, I just found out I'm a walking reality glitch."
Xun nodded. "Now, move the boulder."
Leonel stared at him. "…With my mind?"
Xun shrugged. "You do it instinctively when you teleport. Now, learn to do it consciously."
Leonel sighed. "This is going to be painful, isn't it?"
Xun grinned. "Of course."
Reality Bending 101
For the next several hours, Leonel attempted to manipulate space.
And failed. Miserably.
He waved his hands dramatically. Nothing happened.
He stared at the boulder really hard. Still nothing.
He even tried to threaten the boulder.
"Boulder, listen. If you don't move, I swear to God, I will pee on you."
Aina gagged. "That's disgusting."
Xun shook his head. "Terrible technique."
Leonel threw his arms up. "IT'S NOT WORKING!"
Xun sighed. "Because you're trying to control space the way a human thinks. You need to feel it."
Leonel blinked. "Oh. Right. Because that totally makes sense."
Xun slapped the back of his head.
"OW!" Leonel yelped. "WHAT WAS THAT FOR?"
Xun smirked. "To help you focus."
Leonel grumbled. "I think I preferred the panther-monsters."
Xun ignored him. "Close your eyes."
Leonel sighed but did as he was told.
"Now," Xun said. "Imagine the boulder is not a boulder. Imagine it is part of you. An extension of your existence."
Leonel frowned. "That's dumb."
Xun slapped him again.
"STOP THAT!"
"Focus."
Leonel gritted his teeth but tried again.
He reached out—not with his hands, but with his mind.
He imagined the space around the boulder. The air. The energy. The vibrations of reality.
For a moment… he felt something.
A thread.
A connection between himself and the world.
Leonel's eyes snapped open.
The boulder vanished.
And then reappeared above Xun's head.
Xun barely dodged in time.
The boulder crashed into the ground.
Leonel's jaw dropped. "…Did I just do that?"
Xun nodded approvingly. "Indeed."
Leonel grinned. "I'M A GOD."
Aina smirked. "Relax, reality glitch."
Leonel ignored her. He pumped his fists in the air. "FINALLY! I HAVE A SUPERPOWER THAT DOESN'T SUCK!"
Xun nodded. "Good. Now, do it again. A thousand more times."
Leonel's smile froze.
"A… A thousand?"
Xun smirked. "Yes."
Leonel fell to his knees. "I regret everything."
Aina patted his head. "Good luck, reality glitch."
Leonel groaned.
Training from hell had officially begun.