Arran looked at Jiang Fei. Her eyes were closed, and she sat on the grass with a look of utter concentration on her face.
It had been nearly a week since Lord Jiang had given her the scroll containing the circulation technique, but so far, she had not yet succeeded in mastering it.
At first, Arran had been somewhat relieved that she had trouble learning the technique. He had feared that with her skill in magic, she would surpass him in a matter of days. He knew it was petty, but still, it felt nice to be better at something than her for a change.
Now, however, he was beginning to feel bad for her. She worked day and night, but somehow, the technique still eluded her. Apparently, magical talent alone was not enough to learn Body Refinement.
Arran, on the other hand, had made great strides in mastering the circulation technique. Using it while running had been difficult at first, but with the instruction of Lord Jiang, it had taken him less than a week to be able to do it at least somewhat reliably.
The effects still astonished him. As long as he used the technique, he did not tire, no matter how much he exerted himself. If he wanted to, he would be able to run at full speed for hours — just as long as he kept using the circulation technique.
The downside was that if his focus slipped for even a moment, the technique's effects would collapse, and the built-up exhaustion would hit him all at once. Worse, when that happened the fatigue made it almost impossible to regain his focus without stopping to catch his breath.
"Pay attention!" Lord Jiang's voice shook Arran from his thoughts.
"I'm sorry," Arran said. "I was just thinking about…" He didn't finish the sentence, instead glancing at Jiang Fei.
"Don't worry about her," Lord Jiang said. "It may not seem like it, but she's advancing faster than usual. Even if it's not as fast as you, it's not bad at all."
Arran nodded, feeling both relief for Jiang Fei as well as some pride for his own rapid progress.
"Now pay attention," Lord Jiang said. "I'm going to teach you about a new use for the technique, but before I do, I must warn you about the dangers."
"Dangers?" Until now, the things Lord Jiang had taught him seemed completely harmless. The only risk was letting the technique collapse while he was running, in which case he would spend some minutes out of breath. And even then, using the technique he could recover rapidly.
"What I will teach you next is how to increase your strength," Lord Jiang said. "It's a variation of the same technique you've been using already, except this time, you will direct your energy to specific parts of your body."
"But why is it dangerous?" Arran asked. He wasn't exactly worried, but he still wanted to know what risks he faced.
"You know what happens when you lose your focus while running," Lord Jiang said.
Arran nodded.
"Now, consider what would happen if you were lifting a thousand-pound boulder above your head, and your strength suddenly failed."
It didn't take Arran much imagination to envision what the results of such an accident would be. And when he thought about how often he lost focus while using the technique when running, relying on the circulation technique for anything that involved risk seemed wildly dangerous at best.
"Then how do I train it?" Arran asked.
"For a start, you won't be lifting any thousand-pound boulders," Lord Jiang said. "Nor anything else, for that matter — not until you are completely confident at staying focused, no matter what happens."
"Understood," Arran said. After what Lord Jiang just told him, he would have to be a complete idiot to ignore the man's words.
"Now then, let me explain what to do…" Lord Jiang began.
The next few hours, Arran listened attentively as Lord Jiang explained how to use the technique to increase one's strength.
The basic idea was very simple. All he had to do was manipulate the circulation technique to redirect his Essence into those parts of his body which he wanted to strengthen. Yet the details were as complex as the idea itself was simple, and several times, Arran found himself lost in Lord Jiang's explanations.
Finally, though, he thought he understood enough to give it a try.
"How do I practice it safely?" he asked, recalling Lord Jiang's earlier warnings.
"Jump," Lord Jiang said. "Stand in place, squat down, then send the Essence into your legs right as you move to jump. Like this."
In an instant, Lord Jiang pushed his massive body off the ground, flying up in the air a good fifteen feet. When he landed it was with a loud thud, and his feet left two deep prints in the soft ground.
Arran stared in amazement. With the man's bulky physique, it would be a small miracle for him to jump even a single foot off the ground. This, however, was nothing short of astonishing — even if Lord Jiang had not been the size of a small mountain.
"When I land… how do I avoid injuring myself?" Arran asked with a thought.
"If you're able to jump this high, you'll need to strengthen your legs with Essence," Lord Jiang said. Then, with a loud laugh, he added, "But you won't have to worry about that for a few weeks yet."
The hours that followed saw Arran jumping up and down like a frog, over and over again. It didn't take long before he understood that this would be even harder than learning to use the circulation technique while running, and he knew that for now, all he had to worry about was looking like a fool.
It was nearing sunset when suddenly, Jiang Fei's voice sounded across the field.
"I've done it!" she cried out. "I can use the circulation technique!"
Immediately, Arran ran over to congratulate her, thankful for the opportunity to take a much-needed break.
"It's so simple," she said, looking confused. "It took me a week to learn, but now… it's as simple as raising my hand."
"It is," Arran said with a nod, "but only once you know how."
Jiang Fei had immediately understood what Arran had also learned over the past weeks, which was that the Body Refinement techniques were difficult to learn, but much easier to use than controlling Essence the normal way.
"Well done, Little Fei!" Lord Jiang said as he joined them, a broad smile on his face.
"How can I start using it?" Jiang Fei asked at once. She was clearly impatient to begin training.
"You can't," Lord Jiang replied. "Not right now, at least."
"But Uncle Bear—" Jiang Fei began, frustration evident on her face.
"But nothing," Lord Jiang interrupted her. "You will begin your training in the morning. First, we feast!"
"Feast?" Jiang Fei looked as confused as Arran felt.
"Techniques only form half the path of Body Refinement," Lord Jiang said.
"What's the other half?" As he asked the question, Arran already suspected what the answer would be.
"The other half is to eat, and eat well!" Lord Jiang beamed brightly. "Now follow me. There's a feast waiting for the three of us!"