The Challenge

"Damn it! Why is this so difficult!" Liam muttered in frustration, exhausted after failing repeatedly. His body was drenched. Clinging to the rope ladder, he looked down at the sea and tried to muster his strength. This time, energy spread throughout his body faster than before, but it was just a thin red layer enveloping him. Still, it was progress compared to earlier.

He let go of the ladder. As his feet touched the water, small ripples spread out. He managed to stand for a moment, but as soon as he tried to move, his feet sank into the water as if it were mud. And once again, he sank into the sea like all the other times. Feeling the cool seawater envelop his body, he slowly descended beneath the waves. He looked up at the surface, where the blurry image of the boat and the blue sky lingered, his mind filled with many thoughts.

"How do I control the Force energy? Just getting it to activate is already a challenge." Suddenly, he thought back to the moment when he had used the Force energy before, and the knowledge the old man had explained to him. A bold idea formed in his mind.

"This is no time to hesitate..."

Following his thoughts, he stopped swimming towards the surface and instead allowed himself to drift deeper into the ocean. He felt the struggle to breathe intensify and the water pressure weighing down on him. The boat's silhouette grew smaller and smaller in his view. Blood began to trickle from his nose, mixing with the seawater and creating a red stain. But he still refused to swim back to the surface.

"It's still not enough."

Time passed like this for several minutes.

On the boat, James noticed the absence of splashing sounds and grew suspicious. Looking around, he couldn't see any sign of Liam.

"Where did that guy go..."

He moved closer to the rope ladder where Liam had been training, but still, no one was there.

"Don't tell me he sank to the bottom of the sea... That would be convenient." Despite saying that, beads of sweat began to trickle down James' forehead.

"Dammit..." He immediately dived into the sea, a hint of panic in his movements. The sound of water splashing echoed once again. The sea returned to a calm, empty state, with no one in sight.

"Damn... I can't see him anywhere." James frowned as he looked down into the depths. He tried to dive deeper and swim around the boat, but the result was the same. After a few minutes, he finally gave up. He swam back to the surface, climbed the rope ladder, and his face showed a hint of bitterness.

"Damn it... How am I supposed to explain this to the grandfather?"

But just as he finished speaking, bubbles began to rise from the surface of the water. He turned his head, his expression a mix of suspicion and caution. More and more bubbles appeared, and then, with a powerful burst from the water, a familiar figure leaped up.

"Thank goodness... He's still alive." James sighed in relief as he saw Liam. Now, Liam was standing on the water, his entire body radiating red energy. The energy had become dense and stable, no longer weak and likely to disappear at any moment like before.

"I need to remember this feeling," Liam thought to himself, having successfully used the method he had come up with. That method was to put himself in a dangerous situation. Deep underwater, where he couldn't breathe and the water pressure was crushing him, the feeling of death knocking at the door triggered a burst of energy. Then he quickly swam up with the last bit of oxygen left in his body. It was risky, but the result wasn't bad at all. He smiled as he looked at the energy radiating from him.

"What were you doing down there... Do you know I was looking all over for you?" James said angrily, his voice showing a hint of worry.

Liam was startled that such words could come out of James' mouth. He looked at James, who was clinging to the rope ladder, soaked to the bone. Understanding something, Liam smiled and said, "Thanks for caring."

Noticing Liam's gaze, James blushed slightly. Instantly, small flames rose from his body, drying his clothes, and the remaining droplets of water evaporated into smoke.

"Get on the boat. Now that you can walk on water, more training is pointless," James said with a grumpy expression.

***

"What the hell... Are you crazy?" James added angrily. "Do you know there are plenty of high-level monsters deep in the ocean? If they spot you, they could follow you all the way to the surface and devour us."

"Really... I didn't know that," Liam said, surprised, hearing this information for the first time. He hadn't realized he'd caused such a troublesome situation.

Rubbing his head, James leaned back against the side of the boat, trying to calm his anger.

"Sigh... Anyway, you didn't dive too deep, so it's probably just some F-level monsters or a few regular fish... I can still handle them."

But as soon as he finished speaking, the boat started to shake violently. Sensing danger, both of them turned towards the sea. Now, around the boat, blackish-blue fins were rising from the water. They formed a circle as if a shredder was about to tear the boat apart.

"Fuck..." James growled. He quickly moved to the cabin and grabbed two shiny black swords.

"Take this... You handle the other side, and I'll take care of this side... They're just regular sharks, nothing to worry about," James said, looking at Liam with a slight frown.

"Can you handle it?"

Startled, Liam took the sword. He didn't know how to respond. Part of him wanted to fight because of the trouble he'd caused, but honestly, he was also a little scared. He nodded to show his readiness to fight.

"Let's hope so," James sighed. Then, red flames began to appear all over his body. The flames enveloped his sword, turning it into a red-hot blade. A breath of fire escaped his mouth. Then, his figure disappeared, leaving only blackened footprints on the deck where the flames had touched.

"Sigh... There's no retreat. If I don't... I won't survive in this world," Liam thought as he looked at the sharks below.

"Remember that feeling." The memories of facing danger, close to death, flooded his mind. With that, red energy burst forth from his body.

***

"The meat from this beast will fetch a good price," the old man smiled as he looked at the massive creature with large tentacles rising from the sea. It glared at him with hostility, then lashed out with its tentacles. The force of the blow created huge waves. It seemed like a victory for the beast, but the scene that followed revealed its tentacles had been severed. Electric sparks still crackled around the severed parts.

Before the creature could react, it felt a sudden stiffness. Electricity radiated from the old man's position and spread throughout its body. It convulsed and thrashed, trying to escape the sensation. The electricity intensified, a blinding white light flickering all over its body. After about five minutes, the beast was left blackened and motionless.

The old man stroked his beard, satisfied as he looked at the dead creature. After a moment of contemplation, his gaze shifted towards the children's location.

"Hopefully, those kids have learned to get along."