Forbidden Martial School
For the first time in a long time, the courtyard was occupied. A young man dressed in strange attire from another world sat peaceful.
His eyes were closed as if he were asleep. Anyone who passed by wouldn't think for a second that they were witnessing a man being burnt to death.
"AAAhhh! Oh God! Why is this so painful!?" Finn screamed in his mind.
He couldn't move, couldn't open his eyes, and couldn't breathe.
He couldn't even move the Yang Qi according to the diagrams. He was completely helpless.
He could only watch and feel himself burning death. His organs, flesh, muscles, and even spirit meridians were being burned to ash.
As Finn was losing hope, he began to hear something. It was faint at first but gradually grew louder and louder.
Badum...badum...badum!
It was the sound of a heart beating. This wasn't his heartbeat. No, it was far stronger.
"Purple heart save me! You got me into a mess. You have to get me out!" Finn screamed in between his cries of pain.
Although he wasn't sure the purple heart heard him, Finn realized that as the purple heart's heartbeats grew stronger, the less pain he felt.
Badum!
By the time the sound of the purple heart thumps began shaking his body, the burning sensation from the Yang Qi faded. There was still a sense of heat and a bit of pain, but it was manageable.
What was more important was that Finn realized that he could now control the Yang Qi. This meant he could start following the diagrams of the Yin and Yang Rising Martial art.
Not knowing how long the purple heart could suppress the Yang Qi, Finn quickly began cultivating using the Yin and Yang Rising method.
To complete a single cycle required him to move the Yang Qi through his spirit meridians in a specific order. Each step is shown in the diagrams.
Completing the first cycle took Finn nearly an hour. The second cycle only took him fifty minutes. The third cycle shortened even further to only thirty minutes.
Unfortunately, Finn struggled to cut down the time for each cycle further, so thirty minutes was his best.
The path was simply too long and complicated. He couldn't do it any faster without risking accidentally sending Yang Qi down the wrong path.
For most people, three cycles were the most they could do since they would run out of Yang Qi by then. But with the peak strength Yang Qi Finn took in, even after wasting most of it on burning himself, he was able to get a whole five cycles!
The difference was stark.
So, although he was sloppy, Finn made massive progress. By the time the last trace of Yang Qi dissipated, he was a third of the way into his sixth cycle.
"Amazing." Finn muttered as he opened his eyes.
A faint golden light appeared in his eyes before it quickly disappeared.
"I feel like a new man. I even smell better."
Finn couldn't help but marvel at his changes. Everything felt brighter, more colorful, and vibrant. His sense of smell got sharper. He felt as if he had unlimited energy, and he felt stronger.
It was no wonder people loved to cultivate. The progress that could be made from a little bit of pain was addictive.
As for why Finn smelled better, Yang Qi burned away all the impurities on and inside his skin, flesh, and muscles. The things that normally caused order were simply burned away.
Even his clothes went through a bit of burning since his body temperature went extraordinarily high for a short amount of time before the purple heart suppressed the Yang Qi.
Finn stood up and couldn't help but throw his head in the air and roar.
"Yeah!!!"
His roar was filled with raw power, startling the pink pigeons that were sleeping on the wall of the courtyard.
"Sorry for waking you up." Finn apologized before bursting out laughing.
He clenched his hands and was glad he made the right decision to come here. Although Xanda was weird and gave a bad first impression, his lessons were legitimate.
"How long have I been cultivating for?"
The sun was no longer above Finn's head. It was long last noon. The sun was about to set past the horizon.
"Where is Xanda? He should have been here by now?" Finn was puzzled.
He had clearly been cultivating for a long time, yet Xanda hadn't come back yet.
Did something happen to him? Finn wondered and couldn't help but be worried about Xanda's safety.
Luckily, he was worrying for nothing.
From outside the courtyard of the Forbidden Martial School, a fat and sitting in a wheel chair slammed the two rotting doors open.
"What the hell are you screaming about!? Are you trying to attract the debt collectors!?" Xanda grumbled before tossing a broken bag to Finn.
"What is it?" Finn asked with curiosity. He didn't wait before Xanda said anything and looked into the bag.
"It's a meal. You're probably starving." Xanda said as he silently wiped the grease off his lips.
"Thanks. I haven't eaten anything since I got here." Finn didn't realize how hungry he was until now.
His stomach growled like a starving beast. The triangle shaped food couldn't be fully appreciated before it entered his stomach.
"So good. What was it?" Finn asked as he rubbed his stomach. He wasn't full, but he wasn't hungry.
"It's chicken filled Tski. They are pretty cheap and filling so I expect you to buy them next time." Xanda paused before snapping his fingers.
"Speaking of which, your job. I found a job that is even illiterate like you can do."
Finn wiped his lips and asked, "What's it? Am I a bodyguard? A painter? Oh, am I a training partner for a noble?"
Xanda shook his head trice.
"Nope, nope, and definitely not. You're going to be babysitting."
Finn's face fell. What did he mean babysitting?
"I'm a grown man. What do you mean babysitting? Isn't there anything else?"
Xanda chuckled with a smirk.
"You should be thankful you can babysit. It's an easy job and pays well. I had to use a favor to get you this job, so be grateful."
Finn helplessly sighed and accepted his fate. He wasn't in the position to say no anyway.
"So who am I babysitting?"
"You are going to be babysitting a twenty year old--,"
Finn interjected Xanda before he could finish. He had a deadpan expression on his face as he asked.
"You can't seriously be asking a grown man to babysit another grown man. Please be joking."
Xanda tried to keep a serious expression on his face as he said, "The job pays really well."
He couldn't help but crack a smile before even finishing his sentence.
"Hahaha! No, but seriously, if you mess this up, I'm going to beat the shit out of you before kicking you out. This is important, so listen up."
"Okay, fine, but can you stop smiling."
"I'm not smiling."
"Yeah, you are."