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Chapter 3 – My First Night Of Torture And Realization

I woke up around midnight. I had slept the entire day! I felt like I had wasted my time sleeping and I could have been doing something more productive like going to the balls of energy I had seen around the forest. I was on the bed with my sister and she was using my body as a pillow. I noticed I was clean and had another pair of simple clothes on my body. My sister had cleaned and dressed me. The care that my sister provided me made my heart warm with love.

[Wake up up sleepy head. It's good you went to sleep because the changes in your body have normalized. I must say, this world in very interesting. In terms of biology and evolution, it's miles ahead of earth. While you were sleeping, I took advantage of your changing body. I had limited energy, so I improved your heart a bit. But I'm feeling a bit low on energy, so get out of bed and go outside, my walking, talking battery. Also, go train your body. You need to get used to the new strength and speed.] Jasmine cheekily said.

[Str: 1.4 Agi: 1.5 Vit: 1.6 Body is Healthy. Intense exercise is recommended. Reserve Battery = 1.3%]

I got out of bed in spite of my sisters protests and cuddling. I was about to walk outside until a wonderful smell pricked my nose. I followed the smell and I found a large pan in the kitchen. I knew there was some delightful food in there, the smell wouldn't lie. Inside the pan was stew! I knew the meat was the wolf meat we got yesterday but didn't recognize the other ingredients. I quickly took a bowl and scooped a bowlful. The stew was the best food I had eaten since I came into this world. It filled me with vigorous energy and it was absolutely delightful. The meat was tender and it seemed to melt and slide down my throat. I had several more bowls of the delicious wolf stew before I went outside.

As I entered the dangerous forest from the hut, the moonlight hit my chest. I once again felt heaven filling each part of me. I had mapped out a small portion of the forest yesterday when I was coming down from the tree, and since I didn't feel any danger, I started with a light jog. With the first step I immediately fell on my face when I started using my strength. I could already hear Jasmine giggling at me. Damn, I bet she recorded that and made a new file in her memory bank.

[I did!] Jasmine exclaimed

I got up and did what I wanted to do yesterday. I stretched and did some yoga to get a better feel of my body. I felt my arms, back, and legs relax and get ready for the workout. While I did some yoga, I noticed how much my body had changed. I could easily support my body weight on my fingers. I was doing handstands and contorting my body in various ways, and it was easy and comfortable.

I also noticed my skin. It was silky smooth with a light brown colour. My skin resembled a Smoky Quartz because of how perfect it looked. My nails were silver smooth and looked almost like claws. They didn't get in the way and I didn't feel uncomfortable with them, quite the opposite, they felt like a part of me.

I got up and did a few jumps. I flew a few meters off the grass to my surprise. After a couple of minutes of getting used to my body, I started running. Even on earth my body didn't feel this comfortable. My goal was to emulate what I saw yesterday in the massive battle. My blood burned every time I remember the protectors decimating countless Ferocious Beasts.

[Monkey see, monkey do.] Jasmine cheekily said. I had to admit she was accurate in her statement.

With the pendant giving me energy, I felt more and more confident in my body. I started picking up my speed, slowly getting faster and faster. I went over the tree that I climbed on yesterday.

When I got the enormous tree, I focused my mind on the tree and felt time slow down a sliver. Without dropping my speed, I pounced on the tree! With wolf like speed, I maneuvered and danced on the tree with my nimble body.

I would sometimes climb the tree using my fingers and claws while trying to support my entire weight on them. Since absorbing the wolfs essence, my fingers had become insanely strong. Then I would swing from branch to branch using my hands and arms like a monkey. I would sometimes ascend and descend the tree with my strong feet jumping and kicking off branches while twirling and contorting my body in the air like a gymnast. I did this all while using my body as the protectors did, without any wasted movement and not following any linear path.

Slowly, as I started to get into a rhythm, I started throwing in punches and kicks. At first, they were directed towards the air, but slowly, as I got more and more comfortable with using my body, I started to punch and kick against the tree. Each time I would punch and kick the tree, there would an impression of a fist or feet left in the tree along with a loud thud! I also left quite a few marks using the claws on my hands and feet. But I realized that while my body didn't get damaged, my cloths did. There were rips already present in the cloths. So I took them off and set them beside the tree. I didn't want to ruin the cloths, because they were hand made by my sister.

I than found a branch similar in size to the swords that the soldiers and the old man used. I stood beside the tree but I didn't do anything. I slowly went in my mind and retrieved the memories of the Cultivators. I started playing the memories in my head. I looked at each of their body movements in my mind. Frame by frame, I watched their bodies move. I saw them swing, slash, and glide across the battlefield. I replayed those memories over and over again. I noticed that compared to the doppelgangers of the old man I saw yesterday, the 70 men and 30 women were much more simple in their movements. But that was what I needed. Something simple to start on. So that's what I did. I compiled, compared and overlapped the 70 men and 30 women and their battles.

After what felt like hours, my body started to move. I lowered my body slightly towards the ground, shifting my body equilibrium. In my mind, I was in front of a familiar enemy, the wolf. I had lived through it's life, and knew all of it's movements. But the one in my mind wasn't the King wolf, nor was it the Elite that was killed yesterday. It was just a normal Ferocious Beast wolf. This wolf was 6 feet tall, but it still towered over me, wanting to consume me alive.

Slowly, the imaginary beast started attacking me. Following the movements I had extracted in my mind, I weaved around its attacks. At the last moments on the attack, I would turn left, right, move my head, or jump side to side.

Cesar, with his eyes closed, moved side to side. Jumped high into the air or dove straight to the side. He glided and weaved through the grass like the soldiers had, unimpeded and graceful as if he was in a trance.

After 15 minutes of dodging, Cesar started retaliating against the imaginary opponent. Each movement was done with precision and perfection, the wooden blade would come alive in his hands, like a flash of light that seemed illusionary.

In his mind, he had been injured by the beast constantly for the first 10 minutes. But in the last 5, he would successfully dodge and leave his enemy striking the air instead of him. Than he started following the images of soldiers that he had complied. Slowly, his attacks became more proficient, more deadly.

But unknown to Cesar, a being was getting closer and closer to him. It didn't give off any presence or feeling of danger, and it was slowly making it's way to him. When it was a few feet away from him, it attacked!

Fuck! I was so immersed in my thoughts that I didn't even notice when something snuck up on me. Thank God my danger alarms went off when it attacked a few feet away from me. But it didn't matter, it was too quick. Within the last second, I jumped with all my might. But it still hit me square on my ass. IT HURT! IT STUNG! And it added momentum to my jump, making me fly. But I didn't care, I survived.

Not caring about my cloths, and using the momentum of my jump and the attack, to land on my feet and run, using all the strength available in my body. Whatever it was, it was stronger than me. But the feeling of danger didn't go away. It become stronger. Whatever was attacking me was faster than me! I almost cried at my bad luck. I just had to make noise in the middle of the night. Of course I was going to piss something off.

I tried to make use of the movements I learned to weave through the trees, but it didn't matter. It caught up to me and once again attacked! I tried calling Jasmine multiple times but she ignored me! I was going to die...

The attack was aimed at my waist from the back. It was too fast and the only thing I could do was turn around and take the attack with my wooden sword. Even with blocking the attack, my arm went numb and I flew back and hit a tree. Thankfully it wasn't too hard but it still stung my skin.

But I saw who attacked me. No wonder Jasmine didn't interfere, the attacker was an oriental beauty with silver hair that glowed in the moonlight. I would have been in reverence at the sight but she looked like the devil. She had a cheshire smile on her face and the wooden branch in her hand looked similar to mine. She looked down at my body and froze. A moment later, she turned red and twisted her head and I saw my cloths flying at me from her hands.

Just that sight made me smirk. The devil was still a girl. I had already forgotten my pain at that point, and the moonlight was still energizing me. When I entered the Houtian Profound Realm, I had grown taller, that included my boy parts. I no longer looked like a child, but a teenager with a strong body.

I caught the cloths and put them on. I was still annoyed she attacked me on my butt so I got her back the only way I knew.

“Like what you saw?” I teased.

Her cheeks turned scarlet and the colour came down to her neck an went up her ears. But as if remembering something, her gaze grew cold. I felt danger come back to me.

“Those attacks are for not telling me you were going out to train. I hope you learned your lesson! Cesar, this forest is dangerous. You can't make noise at night and not expect something to attack you! I know you wanted to test your strength, but if I hadn't chased you out of there, several Ferocious Beasts would have! You could have gotten yourself killed!” Her words were callous and angry, but I could see the immense amount of concern in her eyes. She was almost at the point of crying. She had already seen her brother almost die once, and I was opening wounds that had not yet healed. I also knew she was teaching me a lesson.

I once again have to admit my mistakes and correct them.

So I said in a sorry voice “Sorry sis. I was full of energy and I wanted to try out some of the movements I had seen yesterday. I'll be more careful next time.”

Even with my mistake, I had no plans on stopping my training.

She put on a pained expression. But after a few moments, she seemed to calmed down. She looked me in the eyes and saw my determination. She released a sigh and seemed like she made a decision.

“Your growing up so fast my Little Cesar. I knew this would happen, but not so quickly. Your movements at the tree were marvelous, and your attacks were precise and fierce. You always had great perception but it has increased tremendously since you've lost your memory. Even I can't compare to your learning ability anymore. Your like a sponge that absorbs whatever he sees, and you've been like that since you were small. I'm not going to hold you back anymore.

You've entered the martial world Cesar. Your transforming from a human to a cultivator. Yesterday, you entered the 1st Houtian Profound Realm. It's the beginning of the transformation. You must have gained insights from watching the battle yesterday. Cesar, I'm going to be your training partner from now on, since I'm much stronger than you. I'll also teach you about our world.” She said solemnly.

So began my night of torture. She would hit, welt, and bruise my body with the stick like an expert dominatrix. She would use my movements against me, showing me their flaws, and would attack my minor flaws until I fixed them. With each strike, she would inflict the maximum amount of pain, without injuring me. At the same time, she would explain the world of cultivators.

It was then I had realized something. She didn't need to escape from the beasts, they were never her equal. The reason that beasts didn't attack the hut was because they knew she was stronger than them, they could sense it. When we escaped to the giant tree, it wasn't for her, it was for me. When she was worried or scared, it was never for herself, it was for me. When she shed tears, it wasn't because she was injured, it was because I was.

I realized I was her chain and shackles, her one weakness. She was already strong enough to be a protector, and was a true genius, even I could tell with my limited knowledge. From the way she played around with me, I knew she was at-least the level of the old man, most likely stronger. But even with her strength, she did not serve her duty as a protector and took care of me. If she was alone, she would have many merits and would have a very high position in society. But she lived in a small hut with me. It was because I needed to be protected. It was because she knew only when I was with her that I was completely safe. If she went out to fight, I could potentially be in danger. I was holding her back.

I almost laughed when I remembered she said that she'll stop holding me back. What a joke.

Something seemed to awaken inside me. Something started to burn my soul. I used to hold her back, not anymore. I was getting stronger, and she realized it. I could never repay her for saving my life, caring for me, shedding tears and worrying about me. I had to become strong enough to live to my potential, but more importantly, I had to become strong enough to not hold her back.

So the night continued, with each lash of her stick, my body became hotter and hotter. I no longer felt pain, but a deep burning of my soul. Each strike was her way of telling me of my weakness, which meant her potential weakness. The pain was no longer my enemy, but my best friend. The pain helped me focus, and improve. But it wasn't enough. Each time I got hit, I imagined her sacrificing herself to save me. She would give up her life to save mine, I became certain of that.

4 hours later, Lily carried Cesar home. His entire body had swelled and was scarlet red. It looked like he would explode or was on the verge of dying. Even though his face looked like a red tomato, he had a smile on his face, like a happy tomato. It was because he knew he was getting stronger, and was a step closer to repaying his sisters love for him.