Chapter 48: Pressure points (1/2)

Khan inspected the collapsed dummy and the metal rope attached to its body before lying on the floor. He closed his eyes to enter the meditative state, and mana flowed from his nape to spread through the rest of his body.

The process hurt. Khan's flesh didn't want the mana to take over, but he had grown used to that pain. His mind remained steady as he pushed that energy forward and forced it to weaken the numbness that afflicted his leg, shoulder, and side.

Khan didn't remain in his meditative state for too long. The fifth level was waiting for him. He only wanted to restore his condition enough to approach the next battle.

'These training programs are so useful,' Khan couldn't help but exclaim in his mind when he exited his meditative state. 'They don't only force me to improve. They also allow me to face different battle styles. Nothing in the real world can make me gain experience so quickly.'

Khan didn't know that martial arts capable of targeting his pressure points existed before the previous battle. He was completely unaware of the existence of those spots even.

One incomplete training session with the program had been enough to expand his knowledge in ways that his usual fights against Lieutenant Dyester couldn't accomplish. Even his battle against Citlalli didn't give him that amount of experience.

Moreover, the training program's adaptive features had underlined the weaknesses of the Lightning-demon style. A martial art with seventy-eight points was clearly outstanding, but it had flaws that Khan couldn't help but notice after defeating the fourth level.

'My hands are kind of useless,' Khan thought without bothering to straighten his position. 'They help me balance and give power to my kicks, but I don't have many blows that rely on my arms. I guess only proper high-level martial arts don't have evident flaws.'

Relying mostly on his kicks wasn't an inherent weakness, but Khan understood that he could improve in some fields. His body was even quite strong compared to his peers, so limiting his fighting style to half of his limbs seemed a waste.

Memories about Martha's situation appeared in his mind during that reasoning. She also had a good martial art inherited from her family, but she had to improve it by fusing it with another style.

Khan believed that the same went for most soldiers. Lieutenant Unchai had stressed how every martial art had good and bad matchups, so the best approach was to fuse a few of them and obtain a complete set of abilities.

'Look at me,' Khan eventually thought while a helpless laugh escaped from his mouth. 'I have the chance to use a training hall freely, and my martial art is among the best for recruits, but I'm still unsatisfied. Not even six months outside of the Slums, but I've already lost my humbleness.'

Khan straightened his position and sat on the floor. He rotated his right arm to check his shoulder, and he also bent his leg for the same reason. The numbness had almost completely dispersed. He was ready to approach the fifth level.

”Resume!” Khan ordered, and the training program immediately activated.

The gears spun again and dragged the puppet back inside the workshop. The writings on the walls also moved to the fifth level, and the mechanical voice soon resounded in the hall.

”Level five,” The training program announced. ”Superior body, medium-level martial arts, superior aggression.”

Khan's eyes sharpened at those words, but he didn't need to wait long before understanding their meaning.

The puppet charged ahead as soon as the wires and tubes detached from its body. It wasn't letting Khan gain the upper hand right away anymore.

Khan didn't let that sight scare him. He shot toward the incoming puppet and prepared for the imminent clash. Part of him even preferred that approach.

The puppet's arms shot forward and performed strange movements that tried to trick Khan's eyes. However, he disregarded them and crouched to slide under his opponent.

The dummy's attacks missed as Khan kicked its legs and made it fall forward. The two of them were close, so the puppet tried to stab its fingers toward him. Yet, Khan rolled on his back and pushed with his hands once his feet aligned with his opponent.

Khan resembled a spring when he used his arms to push his whole body toward his opponent. He didn't need to see the puppet to know where it was. There wasn't much that it could do while it was falling toward the floor.

The blow pushed the puppet away and made it fly for a few meters. Khan's feet touched the floor while the dummy was still mid-air, and his ankles twisted to make him turn in an instant and give him enough power to shoot toward his opponent.

The puppet quickly stood up, but Khan's kick arrived before it could resume any battle stance. His shinbone hit the dummy's head and flung it away again.

Khan chased after his opponent. The black metal seemed able to endure his blows now, but he would press forward until that material shattered.