Shen Yin Wang Zuo

Chapter 10: A Teacher who comes from Hell? (II)

Just like that, seven days passed. Long Hao Chen, who could only stay in the owl-ants’ lair for half an hour in the beginning, could now stay inside for a quarter of an hour longer.

After soaking in the hot spring, he would eat his dinner. Long Hao Chen, well behaved, would wait for Xing Yu’s guidance. After a week of practice, he was not only respectful towards Xing Yu, but was also sincerely afraid of him.

“No need to go on for tonight, go home. But the seated meditation mustn’t be broke off. Come back here tomorrow early in the morning.” Xing Yu threw a bottle of Training Elemental Liquid towards Long Hao Chen’s hands, hinting for him to leave.

Long Hao Chen felt relieved after seeing Xing Yu’s salute and flew out of the log cabin. I can finally go home.

Looking at his figure leaving, Xing Yu revealed a smile that Long Hao Chen didn’t see, “Stupid boy, did you forget what kind of place you are in? Three years, I can only stay for a mere three years; during this time, I will teach you everything I can.”

The light feeling in his body was truly excellent, Long Hao Chen ran down the mountain as he could feel the change in his body.

After a mere week, he realized that his senses were way sharper than before. Although he had really been tormented in the owl-ants’ lair, he had different sensations every time he went there. He could finally, after a week, feel each of the owl-ants’ attacks coming from each direction. His reaction speed had also evolved incredibly compared to the level at the moment he just arrived.

Although he hadn’t tested it yet, Long Hao Chen was sure that the biggest changes in his body was his spiritual energy which undoubtedly rose. It was at least two levels, and in a mere week!

Although he had to go through painful training everyday, going as far as depriving himself from sleep, his originally thin and weak body clearly became somewhat stronger after a week, his face also looked way ruddier (TL: healthy red color). It was because, in addition to having healthy meals, he soaked every day in the hot spring.

Long Hao Chen didn’t know that the combination of the hot spring and the medicinal material affected his body quite a bit: the whole was called “bath forging the bone marrow” (Xǐ suǐ duàn gǔ).

As he excitedly went down from the mountain, suddenly, a fishy smell caught his attention.

The week he spent taking on crowds of owl-ants’ attacks wasn’t wasted: instantly, Long Hao Chen stopped his steps and jumped to the side, at the same time taking out the bamboo swords from his back.

With a wizz sound, a jet black shadow happened to pass over from the path he was about to cross. At this time, although it was almost dusk, Long Hao Chen easily saw the surprise attack coming.

It was 1.33 meters (4 Chi) high and had a pitch-black body supported by four little sturdy limbs and on its back grew scales that were trembling unceasingly.

“A magical beast?” Long Hao Chen couldn’t help letting out a cry, his heart was at this moment extremely nervous.

Xing Yu taught him everyday every kind of subjects, and amongst them included the presentation of the different kinds of magical beasts. Luckily, he studied the kind of magical beasts like the one that was currently before his eyes a few days ago.

It was a Scorpion-tailed lizard, an elementary level magical beast. Its power was the same as a human with a vocation that uses spiritual energy at a rank between the thirtieth and the fiftieth.

Magical beasts are all divided into four ranks: elementary level, intermediate level, high level, and peak level. The biggest difference between magical beasts and wild beasts is their ability to use spiritual energy power to enhance themselves and attack the enemy.

Magical beasts of the first rank are rather weak, they cannot use abilities using spiritual energy to attack their enemies and can only use them to strengthen themselves. This scorpion-tailed lizard is of this kind, a carnivorous magical beast. The scales and the shell at its back have great defensive abilities, its tail has a poisonous hook, and its weak point is on its stomach. However, because this beast attacks while crawling on the ground, its belly will rarely be exposed.

The scorpion-tailed lizard looked fiercely at Long Hao Chen, its big mouth exposing its thick white teeth. It looked as if it was wondering how long it had been since it had eaten a human.

Facing a magical beast for the first time, Long Hao Chen felt chills on his back, his hands were both gripping tightly the bamboo swords but he didn’t act rashly, much less did he turn around to run away. To keep calm in such a situation was already quite hard for a nine year old child, but he was behaving like this because he still remembered that Xing Yu told him that scorpion-tailed lizards’ sprint speed was quite fast. At the same time, he taught him never to show his back to the enemy.

Wizz — –, the scorpion-tailed lizard didn’t give too much thought and its four sturdy and strong limbs rushed straight towards Long Hao Chen, his teeth directed towards Long Hao Chen’s thighs.

At this moment, the hellish training of the last seven days revealed its effects. Almost instinctively reacting, Long Hao Chen took a step to the left and, at the same time, used the pair of bamboo swords to hit and cut towards the scorpion-tailed lizard’s head.

The reason behind this side-step dodge was not to draw back, because Xing Yu taught him that he couldn’t easily draw back unless he was sure to die if he didn’t do so, or he could easily be attacked from the back and lose without possibilities of fighting back. Dodging to the side was different, because he could dodge, and at the same time keep his enemy on watch.

Two Pu sounds rang. Although the bamboo sword is tough, it is also very light and its destructive power isn’t up to much, and so it fell down on the scorpion-tailed lizard like some decayed leather. However, the current Long Hao Chen wasn’t a newly assessed Knight Squire: his spiritual energy level, close to thirty, was enough to knock the scorpion-tailed lizard back on the ground.

But, the scorpion-tailed lizard’s attack didn’t stop at that: as its body fell on the ground, the poisonous-hook on its tail swept towards him.

Relying almost completely on his reaction speed, Long Hao Chen leapt vertically, his foot rising off 1 meter (3 Chi) and the sword on his right hand blocked the attack coming from below him with a swing.

After this simple exchange of blows which resulted in Long Hao Chen stopping two attacks of the scorpion-tailed lizard, he discovered that this magical beast was surprisingly not so scary. At this time, the oppressed feelings of resentment coming from the depths of his heart for those seven atrocious days were mostly dispelled. Compared to seven days earlier, his current strength and reaction speed were higher. Without a doubt, he owed this to Teacher Xing Yu, he had never made such fast improvements before he met him. Although the experiences in the owl-ants’ crypt were a nightmare to him, he had no choice but to admit that they had a truly great effect.

The scorpion-tailed lizard didn’t give up so easily though. After its failed attack, it rushed at Long Hao Chen once more and this time, it looked as if its body had somewhat expanded.

Because Long Hao Chen was a bit distracted by this sudden attack right after the first round, his reaction became slightly slower, but he still managed to use the bamboo sword to chop towards its body to block it. However, the scorpion-tail lizard didn’t fall down on the ground this time.

Not good, this is his body-strengthening skill. Long Hao Chen was startled, his bamboo sword had been repelled and at the same time his body lost some of its balance and was falling backwards.

The scorpion-tailed lizard’s big mouth was right before his eyes. Long Hao Chen felt the danger he was in and his pupils quickly shrank. It seemed as if something exploded inside of his head.

At this moment, he suddenly felt as if the scorpion-tailed lizards’ motions became slower: as he was falling on the back, he could see very clearly each of its movements.

If someone could see Long Hao Chen’s current pupils, he would discover that these blue eyed pupils’ central parts contracted to the size of a needle and that he was, surprisingly, in an extremely calm state; the callosity[1] that appeared in ordinary people’s eyes didn’t appear in his.

1. (callous radiance) the callosity is a phenomenon that causes the (indurated and keratinized) thickening of the epidermis, in the human eye.