A Gift from Adjutant Qian

"Gather!"

Early in the morning, Zhao Gao and the others were practicing their saber and shield technique as usual, in accordance with Chiliarch Ling's slogan.

With regards to Zhao Gao's saber and shield, Chiliarch Ling had ordered another batch of equipment to be brought in, so that those who needed to have their equipment replaced, could replace them.

Therefore, Zhao Gao also received a new set of training equipment.

After their training of the saber and shield technique, it was time for breakfast.

Naturally, breakfast was again rice with a side dish.

For Zhao Gao and the rest who were in training, if they had eaten porridge or buns for breakfast like what they did in modern society, they would not be able to withstand hunger at all.

The long hours of training, the vigorous physical activity, and their increasingly powerful physique would increase their consumption of physical energy.

Hence, Zhao Gao and the others ate rice for all three meals.

"I'd rather choke to death on rice than eat porridge and starve," Zhao Gao thought.

After the meal, they began the training of Black Stone Fist.

"Punch!"

"Roar!"

Zhao Gao had always put in a lot of effort while practicing the Black Stone Fist.

This was not only a combat technique, it was also the best technique to control one's body strength.

Moreover, he was starting to like this kind of martial arts that exhibited the masculine side of him.

When he was resting, he would often think about how long it would take for him to be powerful enough to roar like JoJo[1].

Or how long would it take for his opponent to cry out like Dio[2]

Of course, Zhao Gao was only thinking futilely. If one possessed a good weapon, why would anyone use their fists?

Only an expert could use his fists during battle. A weakling like him should just use his weapons!

After lunch, they began their afternoon practice of sparring.

After Chiliarch Ling gave the order, Adjutant Qian went to Zhao Gao automatically.

"Take this, and use this to train with me," Adjutant Qian threw a large sheathed saber to Zhao Gao, as soon as he arrived.

"Wham!" Zhao Gao caught the saber. The instant he caught it, he felt something unusual about its weight.

He gently weighed it in his hand and estimated that the weight of this large saber was probably more than 50 kilograms.

"Stop looking at it and start sparring! If you can satisfy me, I'll give you this large saber!" Adjutant Qian urged when he saw how curious Zhao Gao was.

Zhao Gao was delighted. "Don't worry! Adjutant Qian, I won't let you down."

After he said that, Zhao Gao drew out his large saber.

As soon as he unsheathed the saber, Zhao Gao was pleasantly surprised.

It was only when Zhao Gao held the black Five Tiger-Breaking Saber in his hand that he esd more certain that this large saber should weigh around 60 kilograms.

Zhao Gao casually swung it around, feeling that it was just right for him.

He held the large saber and finally felt the somatosensory of its weight. Unlike the standard saber and shield, it no longer felt like he was holding a sheet of paper.

"Bang!" All of a sudden, Zhao Gao stomped his foot, raised his large saber, and swung it at Adjutant Qian.

The moment he appeared in front of Adjutant Qian, Zhao Gao saw a cold blade flash. Adjutant Qian had already drawn his large saber and blocked Zhao Gao's attack.

"Clang!" The two blades collided violently, telling others of their advanced strength.

As soon as they came into contact, Zhao Gao immediately pulled back his saber, but slashed towards Adjutant Qian again.

"Clang! Clang!" The sound of weapons clashing was endless.

The more Zhao Gao fought, the more excited he became. The feeling of a blade brushing past his skin was dangerous. Yet it also caused an adrenaline surge in him.

Zhao Gao's heart pounded as his face flushed with excitement. The subconscious grin indicated his current happy mood.

"Clang!" When Adjutant Qian blocked the attack once again, Zhao Gao changed his tactic. He turned the saber against his own body.

Then, he slid his saber along the edge of Adjutant Qian's saber and slashed at the hand of Adjutant Qian.

Adjutant Qian was stunned. He had not expected Zhao Gao to become so proficient in his application of the saber technique.

Without any time for sighing, Adjutant Qian endured the sounding danger of his own body and took a step back, avoiding Zhao Gao's combo attack.

Zhao Gao was delighted to see Adjutant Qian's movement. He had finally managed to force him out of that one-meter range. This was Zhao Gao's happiest moment.

He finally saw some of Adjutant Qian's strength.

He did not know how different their stats were, but in terms of saber technique, he was not inferior to Adjutant Qian.

This caused Zhao Gao to be even more excited. He picked up his large saber and continued to slash at Adjutant Qian.

Every attack, every rebound, and every deflecting force allowed Zhao Gao to quickly familiarize himself with the feeling in his soul.

His saber technique became smoother; the attacks became fiercer; and the force became stronger.

"Clang! Clang! Clang!" The sounds of collision did not stop. Adjutant Qian's feeding moves allowed Zhao Gao to display what he had learned.

The high-intensity sparring lasted for two hours before Adjutant Qian forced Zhao Gao back with a single slash.

"Alright, that's all for today!" After saying that, Adjutant Qian put his saber back into its sheath. He wiped the perspiration off his forehead, and turned towards Chiliarch Ling.

"Thank you, Adjutant Qian, for your guidance!" Zhao Gao quickly cupped his fists with thanks.

"Continue to work hard! I'll leave that saber with you for now. If you slack off, I won't let you take it for free!" Adjutant Qian said without looking back at Zhao Gao.

"I might have to disappoint Adjutant Qian then. I will not take it for free." Zhao Gao smiled and said confidently.

After several days of sparring, Zhao Gao could guess what Adjutant Qian and Chiliarch Ling were thinking.

Zhao Gao was already aware of their arrogant demeanor.

Regardless of what their purpose might be, the fact that they had trained them unreservedly proved that they were not cruel people.

With regards to what happened on the first day, for time being, Zhao Gao could only guess that it was for the sake of setting an example, so that they could change their mentality. It was also to inform them about the cruelty here.

Most importantly, those who were killed, were in fact, courting death.

——————

Zhao Gao shook his head and decided not to think any further. It was not worth killing brain cells over some dead people.

He picked up the scabbard and placed his saber inside.

While walking to the wall, Zhao Gao wiped the perspiration off his face. He lifted his armor off his shoulders a few times to let the cool breeze enter his clothes.

While walking, Zhao Gao's body trembled unnaturally.

He was very familiar with this scenario.

This would always happen after he was agitated or after he fought.

According to medical theory, emotional agitation had caused the nerves to become stimulated, thus causing muscle spasms. Alternatively, it was because the agitation had caused the heart rate to increase, resulting in abnormal blood pressure.

Whatever the reason, Zhao Gao did not care. He only knew that his body had subconsciously trembled today.

It was due to his excitement, as well as his body's aching muscles after overexertion.

In such circumstances, Zhao Gao immediately opened the system interface and added a few Freedom Stats points to his Essence and Magic Sttas.

The swelling pain from upgrading would clear this tiny problem.

[1] JoJo is the main character of a Japanese comic series: JoJo's Bizarre Adventures

[2] Dio is the other character of "JoJo's Bizarre Adventures"