The Training Hall – A Lesson in Pain

The air inside the training hall was thick with history. The stone walls bore the scars of battles long past—deep gashes where steel had met stone, where warriors had bled and broken. The torches lining the walls burned weakly, their flickering flames barely holding back the dark. Smoke curled toward the ceiling, mingling with the scent of sweat, old blood, and something else—something heavier. The weight of the past.

At the center of it all stood Rudra.

Arms crossed. Posture relaxed but absolute in its authority. A cigarette hung from his lips, its embers flaring briefly as he took a slow drag. His sharp, unyielding gaze settled on Raj, pressing down on him like an invisible hand.

Raj sat on the cold stone floor, legs folded, breath ragged. Every muscle in his body trembled from his first true encounter with Chi energy. His nerves were raw, his mind still reeling from the sheer force that had torn through him moments ago.

A mistake.

A painful one.

Rudra's voice cut through the thick silence. "Close your eyes."

Raj obeyed without question.

For a moment—nothing.

Then, deep inside—something stirred. Slow. Rhythmic. A pulse. Like the heartbeat of a slumbering beast, coiled in the depths of his being.

It had always been there. He had just never noticed.

His own energy.

Raj reached for it, trying to pull it toward him—

PAIN.

A violent surge shot through his body like molten steel. His muscles locked. His nerves screamed. Fire raced through his veins—not in a way that strengthened him, but in a way that consumed him.

His fingers dug into his thighs as he gasped, struggling to breathe, to hold on to something—anything—against the crushing force inside him.

Across the room—Rudra laughed.

Not kindly.

Taking another slow drag from his cigarette, he exhaled a cloud of smoke, watching Raj's struggle with unreadable amusement. "Boy, you've got some potential."

Raj barely heard him over the pounding in his skull.

But let me tell you something right now…" Rudra's voice was low, but there was a weight to it. The kind that made Raj's chest tighten before the words even landed.

"You might never learn an Exorcism Art."

Raj's breath hitched.

Never?

Rudra continued. "Exorcism Arts aren't like sword techniques. You don't just pick them up. It takes years. Decades. Maybe even your whole damn life." His tone was even, but there was something beneath it. Something Raj couldn't quite name. "All my disciples? They were born into this. They started before they could even walk."

Raj clenched his fists. He had expected this. Expected to be told he wasn't good enough. But hearing it still cut deeper than he wanted to admit.

"You?" Rudra's gaze sharpened. "You're just a wild dog with some talent. No technique. No lineage. No bloodline."

Truth, delivered without mercy.

"But—" Rudra crushed the cigarette beneath his boot, exhaling the last wisps of smoke. "The fact that you even felt the energy means you're not hopeless."

Raj swallowed, his throat dry.

Rudra turned fully toward him, the dim torchlight casting deep shadows over his face. "But power without control?" His voice was calm. "It will tear you apart before a demon ever gets the chance."

The pain still burned fresh in Raj's body, but now—so did the lesson.

"Your training begins at dawn." Rudra's voice left no room for argument.

As he turned away, the torches flickered, stretching his shadow across the hall.

"You'll either break your limits…" A pause.

"Or you'll break for good."

The First Test – The Forest of Lost Souls

The sun had barely risen, but the training grounds were already alive with the sounds of battle. The clash of steel. The bark of commands. The strained breaths of students pushing past the edge of exhaustion.

Raj stood in the courtyard, every muscle aching, his mind weighed down by fatigue. He had barely survived Rudra's relentless drills. Every inch of his body protested with each breath.

No time to recover.

Rudra, as always, leaned against a stone pillar, cigarette in hand, watching him like a predator studying wounded prey.

"Lesson One: Chi Flow."

He exhaled a slow trail of smoke before continuing.

"Chi energy comes in two forms—Yin and Yang. Positive and Negative. Light and Dark."

His sharp gaze pinned Raj in place. "If you can't balance them, you'll either rip yourself apart… or you'll never wield an Exorcism Art at all."

Raj listened. Every word was a thread in a noose—tying him to an impossible fate.

"The first step isn't about fighting. It's about learning to let Chi move through you. Most warriors try to control it by force." Rudra scoffed. "That's why they fail."

He took another drag before flicking the ashes away.

"Chi isn't something you grab."

He tapped two fingers against his temple.

"It's something you channel."

Raj nodded, committing every word to memory.

"Sit."

Raj dropped into a cross-legged stance. The position felt familiar now.

"Breathe. Slowly. Feel it. Let it move through you."

He closed his eyes.

At first—nothing.

Then… a tremor. Faint. Deep inside.

A pulse. A current.

"Good. Now, guide it. Move it to your palm."

Raj focused.

The energy shifted. Moved like water being drawn toward his fingertips—

PAIN.

White-hot fire seared through his nerves. His body convulsed.

"STOP."

Raj gasped, breaking the flow.

Rudra sighed. "Too forceful. You're trying to command it. That's not how this works."

Raj gritted his teeth.

"You don't control Chi. You guide it. Like a river."

Raj inhaled deeply and tried again.

This time—slower.

He didn't force it. He let it move. Naturally.

And this time—

A flicker of light danced in his palm.

Weak. Unstable. But there.

Raj's heart pounded with excitement—

WHAM!

A sharp fist to the stomach knocked him flat on his back.

Raj coughed, gasping for air. "What the hell was that for?!"

Rudra smirked, rolling another cigarette between his fingers.

"Because in battle, if you get distracted for even a second—"

He flicked the unlit cigarette at Raj's forehead.

"—you die."

Raj groaned.

This training was going to kill him before a demon ever got the chance.

The True Test – Survive the Night

By the end of the first week, Raj had made progress.

He could now channel Chi through his body. Not for long. Not perfectly. But it was a start.

Which meant—

It was time for his first trial.

Rudra stood at the edge of the academy grounds, staring into the abyss beyond.

The Forest of Lost Souls.

A place where demons lurked. Where warriors entered and never returned.

Raj's pulse quickened.

"Time for your first Exorcist trial."

Rudra took a slow drag from his cigarette, exhaling as if this was just another day.

"Survive the night. Alone."

Raj's breath hitched.

"No weapons. No tools. Just your Chi."

He swallowed hard, staring at the forest. The trees stood gnarled and twisted, their skeletal branches reaching skyward like hands frozen in agony. The air felt heavier here, thick with an unseen presence.

"If you live—" Rudra flicked his cigarette into the dirt. "We'll talk about your next lesson."

Raj exhaled slowly, then stepped forward.

The darkness swallowed him whole.

And then—

The first attack came.

The remains of the Nameless Stalker had long since dissolved into the cursed air, leaving behind only the faint, lingering traces of its presence. The forest pulsed with quiet, unrelenting hunger. Watching. Waiting.

Raj exhaled shakily. His entire body screamed in protest, every muscle raw from exertion, trembling under the aftermath of battle. His hands were steady only in appearance—beneath the surface, they felt numb, as if plunged into ice water, the backlash of his Chi still eating away at him.

He had survived.

That much was undeniable.

But survival was not mastery.

And survival was not enough.

Raj clenched his jaw, forcing himself upright despite the weight pressing down on him. His limbs ached. His chest burned with every breath. And his shoulder—where the demon's claws had barely grazed him—throbbed with a dull, insidious pain. The wound was shallow, but the blackened veins creeping outward from the torn flesh told him that it had been laced with something worse than poison.

A curse.

He had won by instinct. By raw, desperate reaction. But in the heat of battle, his control had been flawed. His movements had been just a fraction tooslow. His awareness, dulled at the worst possible moment.

And when he had channeled Chi in the final strike—

It had nearly consumed him.

This could not happen again.

Raj turned his gaze toward the endless abyss of the forest. He could still hear the whispers. Faint. Elusive. But present.

There were more.

He could return to Rudra now. Recover. Rest.

Or—

He could refine what he had learned.

Raj dropped into a stance, his body adjusting, preparing itself to engrave the experience into his bones.

The forest was still a battlefield.

And he still had more to learn.

Breaking Down the Fight – Learning from the Past

Raj forced himself to replay every second of the battle.

Each detail dissected. Examined. Understood.

Mistake #1: Hesitation.

The demon had moved faster than expected. His first reaction had been defensive—too slow, too cautious. Against a Nameless Stalker, there was no room for caution.

Mistake #2: Reacting too late.

His instincts had kicked in after the attack had begun. He needed to see the strike before it happened. Move before the enemy even committed.

Mistake #3: Losing control of his Chi.

He had overused it. Burned through his reserves too quickly. Let it take over rather than guiding it. The backlash had nearly crippled him.

Solution: Strengthen the fundamentals. Build muscle memory. Sharpen awareness.

He closed his eyes.

The fight replayed in his mind—this time, with corrections.

If he had dodged just a fraction earlier…

If he had shifted his weight differently…

If he had read the demon's movements before it struck…

He could have ended the battle in half the time.

Step One: Understanding the Flow of Movement

Raj began to move.

Slowly at first.

Retracing every step he had taken during the fight, analyzing the exact moment his body had shifted. Where his weight had been. How his balance had adjusted.

His feet slid over the forest floor with calculated precision.

Step left—dodge.

Step back—avoid the second strike.

Counterattack—redirect force.

Again.

Again.

Until his body responded without thought.

Until it was instinct.

Step Two: Refining Chi Control

Raj sat down, folding his legs beneath him.

His breath slowed.

He had felt it before—that raw, pulsating energy deep within him. It had surged violently, wild and unchecked, burning through him like wildfire.

This time, he did not force it.

He let it move.

Slowly.

Naturally.

The energy responded differently now. The heat did not spike uncontrollably. His muscles did not seize in rebellion.

It was smoother.

More stable.

For the first time—it flowed.

His Chi had not been the problem.

He had been.

Now, he adjusted.

Less force. More precision.

Step Three: Predicting the Next Attack

Raj stood again.

His mind was sharper than before.

The battle had taught him something crucial—the weight of the air before an attack. The silence before a strike. The subtlest shift of movement in the darkness.

The forest was never truly silent.

Even in the absence of wind, of rustling leaves, of movement—there was always something.

Now, he attuned himself to it.

His breathing steadied.

His heartbeat slowed, controlled.

If another demon attacked now—

He would know.

He would feel it before it moved.

The Next Test

Raj stood motionless in the clearing, his body calm, stable.

He had refined what he had learned. Strengthened his weaknesses. Sharpened his instincts.

And just in time.

Because the air changed.

It was subtle—almost imperceptible—but he felt it now.

A shift in pressure.

The weight of something watching.

A presence lurking at the edge of his awareness.

Something was coming.

This time—

He was ready.

Raj inhaled deeply, cracking his knuckles as his muscles coiled in anticipation.

The shadows moved.

The trees whispered.

And as the next demon emerged from the abyss—

Raj smiled.

"Let's test this out."