“Stop this!” Edgar howled in pain as stones kept smashing him all over his body.  Even though he tried to block the stones with his self-made wooden sword, the stones were too fast, and there were too many of them coming from every direction. What’s more, the banana peels were spread out everywhere in the chamber. He had already slipped many times on them and hurt his nose and chin. “How can I fight like this? Forget about fighting, ugh, I might hit my head and die if this goes on!”

“Then become a cockroach!” the old man indifferently said.

“What?”

“A cockroach may fall on its back and stay that way for hours on end, but it doesn’t give up the idea of getting back to its feet. Not that it doesn't know what it means to give up on its life, but it just doesn’t!”

“That makes no sense,” Edgar barked. “I’m a man, not a cockroach.”

“Hmph, don’t try to act smart,” the old man spanked Edgar’s butt with his hair. Because Edgar’s clothes were half torn, the lashing made his butt turn red, and tears kept flowing out of his eyes. “My words overflow with wisdom and logic. You shouldn't question but just blindly follow me! And I’ll make you a Sigma soon.”

Whenever Edgar stopped fighting, he got spanked till he resumed his practice.

After every harsh training session that lasted hours, Edgar was allowed to eat, sleep, bathe, take a dump, sculpt wood and stone, or do everything he wanted to in the span of four hours. Then the training resumed again.

Though in the beginning days, Edgar was totally overwhelmed by the stones, he now was able to see them better, and his body was also starting to react to them in time. However, it wasn't easy. Some stones were slow, but some were fast. Some stones held not much power behind them, but some did through spinning and twisting in midair. Some came directly at him, but some bounced off the walls and pillars. Some came from hidden places and blind spots. Deciphering each stone for its uniqueness itself took a lot of effort. Most times when the stones hit certain spots, he lost consciousness.

About a month later, Edgar finally managed to stop ten stones, but the rest of the twenty odd stones hit his body in different places; however, he managed to cling on to his senses and didn’t lose consciousness.

The old man looked mildly pleased, though he still portrayed a scary, cold face for viewing. (Mm…. he barely managed to stay on his feet this time, huh. Though his mental toughness is not bad, his physical toughness is just average. Even though the food he gets here is increasing his strength greatly every time, it still won’t be enough to get out of this valley. And what’s more, he’s not that bright in the head. Looks like I will have to start teaching him the real things right away, so he’ll be comfortable in using the skills by the time he goes out.)

“So…” Edgar was panting heavily as he asked, “I didn’t lose consciousness. Am I good enough to leave now?”

“Haha,” his voice echoed in the chamber, thunderous enough to make Edgar clamp his ears shut. “I don’t remember ever telling you that you’ll be good enough to abandon this old man if you manage to fight off fifty stones at once.”

Edgar frowned deeply. “Then how much longer will it take? I want to meet my sister. She has no one else but me. If I don’t go back soon…”

“Frustration only makes you a fool,” he slapped Edgar with his hair. “You want to meet your sister, and I want to make sure you’ll meet your sister for sure. Get that into your thick brain.”

Edgar gritted his teeth and looked at the wooden sword in his hand. It was just a shabby sword. He remembered the time when the snake grew scales after eating the woman who had saved him even though she was in her last moments. He clenched the sword tightly. He had always wondered if he could face such beasts with just a wooden sword after all the training he did, but something was better than nothing he thought. “To be honest, I don’t think I can ever defeat the vipers with a cheap weapon like this. So, how are you going to make sure that I’ll meet my sister?”

Seeing the resolve in his eyes, the old man’s lips curled up a little. “Kid, have you ever heard about Drive?”

“Of course, I did. My father once showed it to me. It’s the energy of one’s spirit that gives you great strength and helps you live longer. The powerful people in the world, who call themselves Yodha, all use it. I also want to learn it one day.”

“So you know something about it. That makes things easier,” the old man grinned. “Now listen to me carefully. I will help you obtain ‘drive’ in less than a year; however, that little experience still won’t be anywhere enough to defeat every foe you come across in this valley, which is why I will make you strong enough to escape through a safe route.”

“What?” Edgar’s eyes enlarged. “Is that really possible?”

“I don’t lie,” the old man casually said. “It’s not a set route, but if you follow my instructions, it’ll work.”

Though Edgar felt happy, he also felt sad. “But I don’t want to stay here an entire year.” The training might have kept him busy, but he was longing for his sister.

The old man was utterly displeased with what Edgar said, so much so he was gnashing his teeth, which honestly sent chills down the boy’s spine. “Do you want to build a solid foundation or not?” his voice cracked the walls of the chamber and shook the trees.

“I’m sorry, Master,” Edgar cried out, clamping his ears tightly, and he got blown off his feet. “Control yourself!”

“Hmph,” the old man calmed down as Edgar got back to his feet. “Without proper foundation, your skills will constantly burden you in many ways. I, too, want you to leave this place and get some help soon, but I’ll do everything I can to make sure that you’ll succeed in reaching the surface. So think carefully. Do you still want to keep thinking you don’t want to stay here for a year?”

Edgar found it hard to swallow the bitter truth. Staying here for a year while sister was outside and struggling to live alone, which she had never done before, Edgar’s stomach twisted.

The old man just silently waited for the answer. (A focused heart is crucial in learning martial arts. Since I don’t have the luxury to teach him slowly, I can only make sure that he gets what he wants. This way, his blade won’t hesitate when the time comes to strike.)

“This may sound unreasonable, but…” Edgar hesitantly asked. “How about six months?”

“Done!”

“Huh? So easily?” Edgar couldn’t believe that the old man agreed without making things harder.

“However…” the old man’s voice sent waves of danger to Edgar.

“Ah, I knew it. Something’s coming…” Edgar murmured to himself, shutting up his ears beforehand.

“If you want to abandon this kind old saint in six months, then your training will get ten times harsher. You think you can bear it?”

“What?” Edgar removed his hands off his hears. “Can you repeat what you just said? I closed my ears, so I couldn’t hear.”

A vein on the old man’s cheek bulged. “You fool!” a bunch of hair flew in and punched Edgar’s face, widening his eyes and making him spit saliva. “You think you can bear punches that are ten times stronger than the one you just tasted?”

“I don’t go back on my words,” though Edgar said that the cringing expression on his face caused by the physical pain told another story.

“Then why wait? Let’s begin!”

“Huh? But it’s time for my break.”

“From here on, there’s no such thing as a break,” the old man evilly smiled. “You’ll only get to rest or eat or even take a shit only while you’re hiding from my attacks!”

Edgar’s heart pounded like anything. “T-This is tyrannical!” As he watched, the hair that acted like vines till now, suddenly shapeshifted into a dozen silhouettes of armored human beings and attacked him together and mercilessly thrashed him.

“The weak never get to choose,” the old man laughed like a sadist at work. “If you want to get out of here in six months, then fight for it, you stupid little fucking prick!”