Chapter 17 An Unexpected Arrival (1/2)

A leaf floated in mid-air in front of Arran's face He used a sliver of Wind Essence, and it slowly floated a pace away froain he used so it apart and sending the shreds flying in the distance

”Why do you keep doing that?!” Jiang Fei scowled at hi a leaf, not trying to blon a house!”

Arran sighed While he tried to restrain himself, he still found it hard to control the Essence he used

”Youexasperated ”Your strength is useless if you can't coetically He tried his best, but although he had improved a lot these past fewthe level he needed to reach

Over the past months, as the three initiates spent rown closer To Arran, Initiate Jiang and Initiate Guha had beco Fei and Amar

Arran and A their daily sparring

Arran and Jiang Fei, meanwhile, weren't exactly friends, but by now much of her initial coldness toward Arran had disappeared

Moreover, he now better understood her character She was fanatical in herexcellence to the point of obsession Occasionally that lead to clashes when Arran failed to uidance proved invaluable in his studies, and he knew he had her to thank for ress

Still, there was only so much of her help he could take in a day However skilled a teacher she ht be, her lessons were rarely pleasant

”Sister Fei, I think I have wasted too much of your time already,” Arran said ”Maybe we should continue to?” she asked, a look of suspicion appearing on her face

That was, of course, exactly what Arran was trying to do

He shook his head ”I value your help, Sister Fei,” he said, doing his best to look sincere ”But surely you must want to practice Windblade?”

A co Fei's face It was no secret that her slow progress in learning the Windblade spell frustrated her to no end, and she spent every available ood use of this whenever he wanted to get out of the lessons she gave him, which happened more often than he cared to adht now,” she said after a ht You can practice by yourself”

Arran was unable to fully contain his s Fei's scowl returned

”Don't think that you can go slack off with Brother Aress by to”

Arran waited patiently until she had left When she had disappeared into the cabin, he hurried to A his swordplay a bit further down the valley

”Brother Wei An!” Amar called out when Arran approached ”Up for a bit of sparring?”

Arran grinned That was exactly why he had coled with the slow and precise control of Essence that Jiang Fei taught hi ht, there was no spending hours trying toleaf Instead, he could use his Essence ild abandon, acting and reacting in an instant, weaving his swordsht

And if he occasionally blew Around when he drew too much Wind Essence, that only helped hiress with Jiang Fei had been slow, he had advanced rapidly in the use of Essence during fights that Aht him

At first, Amar had barely need to use any Essence at all when they sparred, instead relying on his sword skills toall the Essence he could in their fights

As Arran's skills greever, Amar had been forced to use more and more Essence to match him By now, Arran was confident that he could force Aht

Of course, it ithout saying that if Amar did not restrain his use of Essence, he could still easily beat Arran in a single exchange

With a grin, Arran lifted his training sword, and Aet you this tirin

”We'll see about that,” Amar replied, then attacked immediately

They sparred for several hours, and Arran was pleased to find that his skills were still i rapidly Perhaps he could notleaf, but he had little trouble in using Essence to enhance his sword strikes and deflect his opponent's blows

When they finished, both of the in the stream they headed to the cabin, where they scoured the cupboards for food