CHAPTER 75: CHAPTER 10.3 : THE TRAINING WAGER (2)

Uncle Acok sensed the strange energy, his brows immediately furrowed, and his gaze sharpened as if trying to pierce through the air around Al.

But he couldn’t tell where this energy came from.

Meanwhile, the soldier who had been looking down on Al this whole time was trembling far worse than the others.

To everyone else, it looked like two people engaging in simple combat moves.

But to that man... a dense shadow loomed larger from Al’s body, like a living black mist. Al’s eyes blazed like twin red embers in the darkness, his gaze stabbing like a sword aimed directly at the heart. His aura no longer felt human—it was more terrifying than anything he had ever seen, or could even imagine.

What is that?! he screamed in his mind.

The man collapsed backward. His legs lost all strength, and his hands flailed around, desperately searching for support.

Even before Al made a move to attack, he suddenly screamed,

"NOOO!!! DON’T!!!"

He sat on the ground, scrambling backward with his elbows. His face was pale, his breath ragged, and his eyes darted wildly in search of an escape. Yet that terrifying figure still loomed before him. The black shadow seemed to close in, wrapping around his mind. He could see no one else—only himself, and that black figure with the crimson eyes right in front of him.

"PLEASE!! D-Don’t kill me!! I’m sorry...!"

Everyone else who had been feeling uncomfortable moments ago now widened their eyes.

They only saw Al walking forward slowly, not attacking at all. But the bodyguard suddenly threw himself to the ground, screaming like someone possessed.

Some, upon realizing what happened, were disappointed that it wasn’t Al acting strangely—rather, it was their own comrade.

"What’s wrong with him?"

The others began to notice too, joining in to mock and laugh at their teammate.

"Hahahaha! That’s ridiculous!"

"Must’ve been mental pressure!"

The laughter and ridicule snapped the man back to reality. Now, what he saw seemed normal again. Everyone was laughing, and Al—the person he had tried to mess with—was just standing casually before him. Cold sweat still rolled down his temples, his hands trembled slightly despite his effort to hide it.

Confusion flooded his mind. He had no idea what just happened.

He simply scratched his head and chuckled awkwardly.

Everyone eventually joined in the laughter—everyone except two people.

Uncle Acok and Dedy.

Dedy was grinning, looking impressed. His eyes were full of curiosity, like someone who had just witnessed a deadly magic trick. Unlike the rest of the soldiers, he could feel that energy from Al even though he couldn’t see whatever phenomenon had terrified the soldier.

Just as I thought, he mused.

Meanwhile, Uncle Acok was wide-eyed. His level of strength allowed him to glimpse an unusual phenomenon—a wave of black energy that appeared and vanished instantly—but he couldn’t tell what it was. He looked at Al, but could no longer detect any trace of energy from him. So where did it come from?

The soldier who had faced Al slowly got back on his feet, his expression still dazed.

Was that... just my imagination? But... that...

Al stretched lazily, rolling his neck until it gave a soft ’crack,’ as if the fight had been nothing more than a morning stretch. His face looked like he had just woken up.

"Wow, I didn’t even touch you, but you’ve already fallen. Are you messing with me?"

He then looked at Uncle Acok.

"Anyway, whatever that was, you fell down. I win. Right, Uncle Asok?"

Snapped from his thoughts by Al’s question, Uncle Acok could only nod, agreeing that Al had won the bet, even if he hadn’t technically won the fight.

With that, Al nodded, waved, and jogged lightly out of the hall. His steps were light, yet left behind an odd pressure in the air, making several people continue to watch his back with an unshakable discomfort.

"Thanks, Uncle Asok! Don’t bother me again. Good luck with your training, haha! I’m going back to study. Maybe my fate will be decided more by the national exams."

Uncle Acok stood frozen. His broad shoulders felt stiff, as if held in place by an indescribable sense of wonder. His face was full of questions, brows tightly knit, eyes following Al’s every step as he left.

He heightened his detection ability, inhaling deeply to sharpen his focus—but still felt nothing. Then his eyes caught a faint glimmer—almost like a whisper of light—coming from a black ring on Al’s finger, which seemed to absorb the light around it. That faint light being drawn in made the skin of his fingers look paler. A subtle energy emanated from it—perhaps that was the source of the anomaly earlier. But he wasn’t certain, and thought to himself,

What is that boy hiding? Who is he really? Was last night not just arrogance when he defied me, but something more?

Still, he decided not to dwell on it now. There was plenty of time ahead to find out. For now, something else irritated him more this morning. He turned to his defeated soldier.

"What exactly... happened? Why did you surrender?" he asked, clearly annoyed.

The soldier stood frozen, his face dripping with cold sweat, his chest heaving unevenly. He still didn’t know how to explain what he saw.

"I... I don’t know, Sir Acok. I just felt my body go weak, and I—"

"Must be he’s hungry, Sir Acok," one of the others cut in, followed by another burst of laughter.

And so, their training session ended—with a massive mystery left unsolved.

---

Outside the hall, the morning air felt fresher, though the lingering scent of sweat and dust from the earlier training still clung to the breeze. Al walked leisurely, his steps slow but sure, unwrapping bread from his pocket.

"Hah... finally escaped. Now to find a quiet place to nap again."

But behind him, hurried footsteps on stone echoed closer. Dedy had come.

"Good morning, young master," Dedy greeted, bowing slightly with a hand to his chest.

"Oh, Dedy. Morning," Al replied casually. "You should focus on healing yourself—your condition’s still bad. By the way, thanks for helping me last night."

"It’s nothing, young master," Dedy said with deep respect.

"Is there something you want to say?" Al asked.

Dedy nodded.

"I could feel your great power. I thought your strength might at least rival Sir Acok, but now I think you’re even stronger. Just... how strong are you, really?"

"Hmmm... I don’t know how people usually measure strength," Al replied, giving Dedy’s shoulder a light pat, his gaze lazy but his tone calm. "But for me, when comparing who is better, no one is inherently stronger than another. Everyone has strengths in one area and weaknesses in another. Whereas most people just aren’t smart in using the power they already have. Remember—power is just raw material, the body is the tool. How you use that tool and material determines your true potential."

Dedy stared intently, trying to understand his young master’s explanation.

"But I guess that’s not your real point. What do you want?" Al asked again.

Dedy hesitated, looking away before meeting Al’s eyes again, clearly gathering his courage.

"T-the truth is, my cultivation has been stuck for a long time. My energy hasn’t grown, young master."

"And?" Al prompted flatly.

"Can you... help train me? To become stronger?"

Al’s eyes narrowed slightly, weighing the request in silence.

Dedy straightened his posture.

"I still feel too weak to guard this family, young master. Sir Acok’s attack last night left me this injured. I... I want to become stronger. Please, young master. Someone as strong as you must be able to help me." He bowed deeply in a respectful plea.

Al looked at him, almost pitifully.

"Hmmm... Fine. But not now," he said briefly.

Dedy’s bowed head lifted, revealing a broad smile.

"Thank you, young master. Just tell me when you’re ready."

Al nodded, and Dedy straightened up again, bowing once more in gratitude.

"But, young master," Dedy continued, "I saw you release a huge aura—perhaps even Sir Acok felt it. Were you showing your power?"

Al looked up at the sky, following the clouds lazily. Apparently, Dedy still had a mountain of questions.

"I’ll explain this, then I’m leaving. Don’t ask me more. Don’t disturb me this morning—I need rest."

"Yes, young master."

"As I’ve said, I never tried to hide anything. It’s just..." Al turned to look at the trees. Their leaves swayed gently in the wind, as if listening. "Their eyes simply aren’t ready to see it."

Dedy frowned, confused by his words.

Al continued,

"Maybe my energy is simply too big for them to perceive."

"What do you mean too big to see? Wouldn’t something big be easier to notice?" Dedy asked, baffled.

Al sighed, clearly annoyed at Dedy’s lack of understanding in something so basic.

"It’s like hearing—human eyes have a visual range, just like ears have an audible range. The greater your cultivation, the sharper and broader your senses become. Your hearing improves, your smell, your skin’s sensitivity, your taste... and your vision."

Dedy nodded, slowly grasping the idea.

"And why are big things sometimes hard to see? Simple—like air. It fills the space, even the whole planet. It’s everywhere, vast and immense. But... can you see it?"

Hearing the analogy, Dedy began to understand, though not fully.

"Ah... I see. So it’s not just you holding back— even if you released it, they still wouldn’t be able to directly see or feel it?"

Al nodded.

Dedy smiled, bowing in thanks.

As Al walked away, he said,

"Your body should already be feeling better."

Dedy blinked in surprise, moving his body—and indeed, he felt improvement.

He was stunned, recalling the moment Al had patted his shoulder earlier.

Could he have healed me that quickly?

You’re the best, young master.

Dedy bowed once more to Al’s retreating figure.

And so, the morning ended... with everyone in the hall still not knowing—

who Al really was.

Meanwhile, Al had no idea that his nap plans would soon be interrupted by something he absolutely did not want to happen.