There were still several hours until Xing Kai had to be at the forest wall, and the schedule showed that the 8th barrack he was in, had no sessions scheduled for the rest of the day. Given that he had several hours Xing Kai made up his mind.

He grabbed his sword and left the barrack, ignoring the looks of apprehension and intrigue on the other recruit's faces. Having stepped out of the circular prism shaped barrack, Xing Kai looked around.

There were different groups training at the grounds now. There were still exhausted recruits running around sand tracks, while there were other recruits lifting, throwing and squatting stones of different sizes. The stones were grey, and ranged from the size of small dogs, up to boulders the size of horses. Most of the recruits were lifting stones of the small dog size and straining tremendously to do so.

A run to warm up...and then perhaps some stone lifting to get an idea of how strong I am now...and sword practise is vital

Xing Kai walked to the training ground, and with no further prompting, he began running on the wide elliptical track. He ran on the outer most edge so that he couldn't be kicked off for getting in other people's way.

Naturally given his small frame, his handsome appearance, and sword, he drew the attention of most of the earlier batch of recruits and some of the training instructors. Xing Kai was running fully clothed and with a sword bouncing off his hips, on the outside lane of the track, yet he was quickly catching up to the other recruits. They quickly brushed it off as a boy's eager energy and that he would tire out soon and go back to whatever rich home he lived in.

However Xing Kai didn't slow down or stop. Within a few minutes Xing Kai had made a complete lap of the 1 kilometre track and was running alongside the other recruits.

The other recruits running on the track, looked over at him and were quite surprised by the new addition to their running, but not overly so. These recruits were all in their prime, ranging from 20-40, and were challenging each other to a race. They were covered in sweat and had long since thrown their clothes off, and ran in shorts.

They're fast...

Xing Kai felt a spark of pride and competitive spirit flare up as he looked over at the men running free and unrestrained. It was almost like a passive fight, the way the men were glaring and grinning at each other.

But I'm faster...

With sand flicking up into the air behind his every step, Xing Kai leaned forward towards the ground and began powering forward. With each explosive burst and contraction of his refined muscles, his unrefined flesh exerted greatly to keep up and not shake itself to shreds. Xing Kai gritted his teeth and ignored the scorching pain in his thighs and stamped into the ground harder and faster.

In just a few unhurried heart beats, Xing Kai had powered ahead of the gallant, red faced men, and was kicking clouds of sand into the air behind him. His powerful kicks and lunges propelled Xing Kai rapidly around the remainder of the thousand meter track, in a little over a minute.

A bit more...

Xing Kai tightly shut his eyes and bit his lips. He pitched forward even closer to the ground and pumped his arms furiously. His sword clattered against his leg wildly, but he ignored it. The pain from the tissues and sinews in his body he had not refined with Heart's blood were struggling greatly to keep up with the power output from the tempered flesh.

The long stretch of the track allowed Xing Kai to close his eyes from the sun, for a little over 10 seconds before he already reached the curve of the track. Through his half-lidded eyes Xing Kai could just make out the scene of the bare chested men in the distance.

I can catch them...if my life depended on catching them, would I let them go? Not a chance

Xing Kai unconsciously turned the training he was doing now, into a situation in real life where he had to chase the men to live. As soon as he did this he felt like his life truly did hang entirely on just catching up to the men. If he failed now, it would mean that he had just discovered a situation that might occur in the future where he would fail and die...or worse; lose something or someone he cared about.

Xing Kai couldn't concentrate well enough to analyse the condition of his muscles and sinews, but he felt that they were actually improving and getting stronger every second. As the pain increased, the refined flesh was seemingly strengthening the unrefined flesh.

Nothing to worry about now...only my Will can cause me to lose now

Xing Kai could feel that this race was turning slightly too wild in the back of his mind, and that he might do serious damage to himself just before he went on the forest wall night watch. Yet he had already imagined a scenario where running would save his life, and so now he wouldn't back down. It was just a bonus to Xing Kai, that he was actually not going to be injured in the process and instead benefit from it.

With a low growl in his scarred throat, Xing Kai forced his ankles to help him push off the ground faster. He cupped his hands and pushed the air behind him, using every bit of advantage he could to reduce the burden and resistance, from the air, against his body. He forced his steps into the ground and pitched even further towards the ground, until he was practically running to stop himself from falling face fist into the ground.

This was all he knew about how to run fast. On instinct and strength alone, Xing Kai managed to accelerate even further.

"Oi, check the kid out"

"No way..."

Xing Kai blistered across the track and was quickly gaining on the men. His hammering steps and the plumes of sand attracted plenty of attention in the process. The old recruits looked on with astonishment, while the younger recruits were full of jealousy and anger. What Xing Kai did not know was that the people he was racing against were actually early Blood condensing elite recruits, who were being personally trained by middle Blood condensing Stage militiamen.

To match them was one thing...but to be exceeding them was a very different story. These men had been chosen for their talent, and had taken a little over a year to break through the first layer of blood condensing. How could a random child recruit, already be beating them?

For every ten seconds it takes me to catch up to them, I lose a friend...

Xing Kai upped the imaginary pressure on himself. This method of training, was pure insanity, and Xing Kai was fortunate that he was not injuring himself. It is common practise to make your training as close as possible to real life situations, but there is also a fine line between extreme training and self-harm. Xing Kai didn't understand these concepts so he merely pushed himself, applying pressure on himself that his personality couldn't allow him to kneel to.

As the seconds ticked by, Xing Kai pushed himself increasingly harder, and his refined flesh and sinews provided him with the speed he desired. He gritted his teeth even harder and his nostrils flared as he endured the pain.

"What the hell do you think's got him so riled up?"

Some of the younger recruits thought that Xing Kai was trying to disrespect his seniors by lapping them, so they hoped greatly that Xing Kai would fail and fall horribly. The older recruits had similar thoughts, as did some of the instructors, as most of the ground paused their training and watched Xing Kai.

Just a few more seconds before I would lose somebody

Xing Kai shot a quick look up and saw that the men were only a few meters away, yet Xing Kai continued to run on the outside track. The track began to curve and the gap between the men began to stretch wider. Even the men were aware that a kid was about to lap them, so they all put on a burst of speed around the wide bend.

This is weakness

Xing Kai growled deep in his chest and with a monumental push, forced himself to accelerate even further. The gap between him and the men stayed the same.

Am I going to fail again? If this was real, would I really have lost another person close to me?

Xing Kai's eyes flashed, and his cupped hands curled into tightly clenched fists. His temple bulged with veins. His simple run to warm up his body, had become a serious question of his ability.

The gap between the men and Xing Kai narrowed. The track was reaching it's point of maximum curvature, but Xing Kai continued to narrow the distance between them, to the watching men's astonishment.

...2...1...

Xing Kai turned his head to the side and his eyes shrunk as he saw that he was level with the men. His legs continued pounding into the ground, and in relief he slowed down, but the decreasing curvature of the track allowed him to stay level with the men.

Success

Xing Kai grinned and felt a rush of pleasure. He raised himself out of his precarious running pose, and straightened himself. Xing Kai's smile froze.

There was one, lone man who was running ahead of the men by a few meters.

...Sss....

Xing Kai felt all his pleasure immediately be replaced by a crushing blow of defeat. He had fallen short of one man, by just a few meters.

Xing Kai stared at the back of the young man. The man was slightly sun burnt, and very red. His toned back and chest was covered in sweat and his feet were baking on the hot sand. His black hair fell wildly around him as he ran.

"The brat's slowed down...you reckon he's given up?"

Xing Kai, even though the curvature of the track was decreasing, was beginning to slow down. Xing Kai stared at the man, and his fists loosened.

I really need more Heart's blood. I wouldn't have lost if I wasn't held back by my unrefined muscles so much

Xing Kai did not admit his defeat. He was too proud to quite believe he was the loser, but the imaginary situation he created presented him with only one answer. He was still to weak. If this was real, he would have lost someone, or his own life.

This was a hard to ignore truth, when he already set his resolve to overtake the men in ten seconds. It again highlighted that he is not ready for getting his revenge.

Xing Kai kept his speed steady, running fast enough so that he placed 2nd among all the runners. Sensing that Xing Kai was no longer pursuing to overtake him, the lead runner also slowed down and re-joined the others.

The men were not happy having been lapped, and even the lead man, who managed to pull ahead of Xing Kai, was not happy, as he knew he couldn't keep up that pace for very long. Now as he looked across the track he could still see Xing Kai running alongside him. It angered him greatly that he could be overtaken and lapped by a boy, if the boy wanted to, but the boy merely chose not to do so.

If Xing Kai had not run on the outside track lane, he would be far ahead of even him.

All the men felt a strong burning sensation in their heart. It was disappointment in themselves and a desire to defeat Xing Kai. Although the men did not know Xing Kai they had already set him as a target to defeat.

As for Xing Kai he was indifferent to the men. The fact that he lost bothered him, not who he lost to. He would race these men again in similar conditions if he could, otherwise he would set himself a different challenge and situation.

"Who do you think the kid is?"

"Why's he wearing recruit clothes, when he's obvious completed the second layer of Blood condensing...he can't be a recruit right?"

"As if...who could possible get to the third layer of Blood condensing Stage in under a month?"

The watching recruits speculated amongst themselves, while the instructing militiamen gathered together. People steadily returned to their training as they noticed that Xing Kai and the men were stopping their race.

The instructor for the elite recruits was stunned also. He doubted even his own ability to match the boy's acceleration. Although Xing Kai wasn't blindingly fast in his eyes, he was astonished with his speed. He was so young yet already so fast? While his acceleration was rivalling a middle Blood condensing Stage militiaman's...

"This...he is not normal..."

The instructor let the men continue running. It was rare that they received such a challenge and it would encourage them to keep becoming stronger. These elite recruits, had already undergone normal basic training, and were already actual militiamen. They were being put through this recruit style training in the hope they wouldn't become like the other early Blood condensing Stage militiamen, becoming lazy and arrogant.

The recruits had already been running for about an hour at that pace and forced themselves through another 2 hours before they collapsed. Xing Kai did not stop and continued running in the outside track for almost 2 more hours.

His dark hair was dripping sweat onto is face, down his soft features and off his chin. His green recruit clothing had already turned completely dark with sweat and he ever clattering sword remained by his side.

Xing Kai felt a strange coolness permeate his flesh and run through his Jingmai. It travelled throughout his body, but concentrated on the parts of his body that the refined Heart's blood hadn't affected. His overstrained tissues and overstretched sinews rejoiced greatly on the arrival of this coolness.

Xing Kai was too tired to be able to concentrate his inner sense, and investigate this bizarre feeling himself, and chose to continue running until it stopped. He felt running at the pace he was going at was optimal for the strained flesh and he was right.

For the 4 hours he ran under the scorching sun, he exhausted himself in a few minutes and spent the remaining 4 hours recovering. By the time he too stepped out of the track he was utterly tired, yet his body was better then when he started.

I made progress...this was a worth while run...

Xing Kai sat down onto the sandy ground and leaned his head back on his shoulders. He gazed up at the clear sky, sighting a lonesome bird flying high in the sky. It was completely unrestrained, not like the men who ran gallantly and fought each other through a race, but truly free. It traced smooth, carefree circles in the sky high above.

Xing Kai felt his mind clear as he watched the mighty bird, flying alone in the sky. Thoughts of home and his grieving in the infirmary seemed insignificant when compared to the freedom and unrestrained pleasure Xing Kai felt the bird must be experiencing.

If I could live like that...could I live like that?

Xing Kai felt like he was getting at something, at a thought that seemed far and unclear. He felt curious about this strange thought, and pulled a curious expression as he pondered.

What kind of life is this bird living for it to be enjoying such supremacy in the skies?

Xing Kai gazed at the bird, no trace of jealousy or happiness in his eyes. He casually thought about the bird, not rushing for an answer in the slightest. After a while Xing Kai drifted away from those thoughts.

A life of cultivating to an extreme height...to get revenge and live like a powerful person. Xing Kai was fixated on these thoughts. Only a powerful person could live well, and becoming powerful was all that mattered. He was fixated on this belief. Xing Kai stopped thinking about the carefree bird, and the hazy thought at the back of his mind.

Time to familiarise myself with the sword

Xing Kai stood up appearing far more relaxed and untired then he felt. Although he was stronger than he was before the run, he was not full of energy to take advantage of this gain in strength.

I must become comfortable with this sword first and foremost

Xing Kai stepped slowly over to the sword training area, and picked up a wooden sword of similar shape to his own. Under the unblinking eyes of the recruits, Xing Kai began hacking at the padded wooden post before him.

"Any idea which family he's from?"

"No idea...but I heard there's a kid who beat brother Fa earlier today at the entrance test"

"No way--"

"It's true...looks like there are two brats with obscene strength"

Some of the instructors were discussing amongst themselves, and were equally surprised that an early Blood condensing militiaman was defeat in the entrance test. None of them connected Xing Kai and the other mysterious youth together, as they could see that Xing Kai had awful sword handling skills.

Even though he already carried a real sword at this waist, they thought he must have been given it as a means to rope him into certain faction of the militia. Promising recruits were often given incentives to join one captain or another, using weapons or money...

With not even an iota of concern for the people watching him, Xing Kai continued his amateur attacks on the wooden post. The weight of the sword was of no concern to Xing Kai, but the shape and method to use the blade was. He had a huge lack of experience, and swung as he haphazardly for an entire hour before he felt he was satisfied with the length of the sword. He then put the wooden sword away and pulled his real sword out.

Naturally, if he was going to stake his life on a sword in a dangerous place, he would be mad not to practise with it beforehand.

The sound of steel sliding over the wooden sheath was dull and slightly rough sounding, due to the bend in the sword. He brandished the blade before him in the hot afternoon, and gazed at the sharp edge and tip. He could vividly recall the night of the attack and his revenge and although this sword felt very different to the other one, it sent a cold chill through him.

The same savagery and anger started to flare up, but Xing Kai focused on familiarising himself with the sword, rather then on the memories. He moved his arms in arcs and circles, stepping around the wooden post as he did so.

He looked incredible strange to the recruits and they retrieved their gazes and returned to training. Xing Kai continued his slow steps and slashes with the sword for almost an hour. He didn't increase the speed, but just tried to get an idea of how the sword moved best.

Gradually his form eased up and his handling of the sword became more natural and smooth. His confidence grew and he began slashing at the wooden post. He was very wary that the sword couldn't survive strong forces and clashes, so he was sure to moderate his blows.

It sticks quite a bit...and the sword pulls slightly to the side when it moves through the air...need to counter that imbalance

Xing Kai become quite familiar with the sword after 3 hours of practise. It was his first time practising with a sword, his first time to consciously feel the blade. So far he had merely used the sword like a giant knife...now he gave the weapon full attention.

With the sun nearing the west horizon, Xing Kai sheathed the sword and left the wooden post and the hot sandy training ground. He quickly found the eating hall, and managed to get a hefty serving with his child like appearance. The rumours of his strength had not spread to the cooking workers yet.

His sweaty dark clothes were surprising to many of the recruits and militiamen. Rarely did anyone train so hard as to end up in such a shape, with sweat dripping off the tips of their hair and clothes darkened to a dark green. It revealed his identity as the bizarre running kid quickly, and conversations centred around him and his possible background.

Having eaten, he unceremoniously washed at the washrooms, which was little better than a very large pool with a solidified bar of herbs and oils in hand. Having said that it was still quite good compared to his village.

Xing Kai put his clothes to the washing workers and picked up another set of clean recruit clothes, and left feeling refreshed and energetic. He was eager to join the forest wall night watch, and test whether he could use the refined Heart's blood like the first layer of Blood condensing Stage described. This night would be his first step into cultivation, and towards his revenge.

5 weeks have passed since you arrived...now I begin chasing you