When Noah woke up the next morning he clearly felt the increase of strength of his body.
He had taken a bath before going to sleep to wash away the filth his body secreted during the advancement of rank and now he was standing in his room sensing attentively any change he could feel.
The most immediate thing was that his muscles increased in size and were more defined, not an inch of fat was present on them, giving to Noah's figure a slender and sturdy appearance even though he was still quite short.
Yet, the biggest changes happened inside his body.
The seven acupoints on his back were absorbing "Breath" at a speed at least two times higher than they did in the previous cycle.
The quantity that his body was holding had already increased threefold and its quality seemed higher!
'With this amount, I can launch full strength attacks at least six times before running out of "Breath"! I'm not even factoring the new speed at which I'm recovering it, I might as well have the energy for another attack when the other six are used, and this while the fourth cycle is not even complete!'
The newly found power was making Noah eager to spar with his Master so he hurriedly donned a white kimono and got ready to exit the room before a thought stopped his tracks.
'Right, first I have to clean the torture room.'
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CLANG!
The sound of swords clashing resounded in a room of the guards building.
Noah was fighting against William with decision and resolution while getting used to his body.
It was some time since William had to drop the wooden stick an use a real sword to block Noah's attacks.
Nevertheless, Noah was never able to surpass his Master's defense, William would just block any attack coming at him while commenting on its execution.
Yet, the happiness for his body's improvement wasn't present on Noah's expression, which exuded only coldness and concentration.
He had met with his mother before going to the sparring session and was crestfallen to see a big bruise on her face right under the left eye.
Some sort of pressure had formed in his mind, hurrying him to improve faster before something irreversible happened.
William noted his disciple state of mind and raised the stakes of the training as a form of respect for his determination.
It was only when Noah was breathing heavily and sweating profusely that his Master decided to stop the sparring and sit on the floor to discuss things with him.
Noah sat on his knees on the spot in front of him and sorted the questions he wanted to ask.
"So, how is a rank 2 body?"
William started the conversation.
"It's really amazing! My strength and speed rose to an absurd level, I believe that now I completely crossed the boundaries of a rank 3 magical beast."
William nodded. He knew that every advancement in rank comported a sudden increase in strength and that the higher the level of the rank, the bigger would be the difference with the previous level.
Noah chose his first question.
"Master, are cultivators all idiots?"
William was surprised by the question and could not help but to ask for the meaning of it.
"What do you mean?"
"Well, in the mission against Orson I realized that cultivators have... well... peculiar traits in their personality."
William was at first confused but then realized something looking at his disciple complex expression and became irritated.
"You, the kid that at the age of 8 scammed guards for techniques, the kid that in 4 years did nothing but train and fight, the kid that can't think of anything than cultivation all day, are saying that cultivators are peculiar?"
Noah seemed to be taken aback by these words but just put a slight smile on his face as an answer.
William shook his head and continued.
"It's not the cultivation process that causes these peculiarities, rather a person needs those to keep pursuing power. Only a strong personality can continue on this long road unmoved by the many difficulties that it will encounter."
Noah was enlighted.
The body-nourishing methods required constant meditation and great patience to be trained, and those were the easiest techniques to practice in.
Most of the people would just grow bored or tired of such methods, no wonder they could not pursue higher powers.
Who would be willing to practice every day in a martial art till his body was exhausted? Who could spend hours looking at rune that would cause him pain and exhaustion?
Only strong-willed people! And they generally had some particularity in them that were unwilling to abandon, like Noah's stubbornness in his search for power or Sandy's uncaring attitude.
"I think I understand now. There is another thing though."
Noah was about to ask about the academy in the Royal city but then a doubt crossed his mind. He held back from speaking the last part of the sentence and changed its subject at the last moment.
"Can-can I take a look at the information about cultivators in this country? You know, the knowledge about this topic is quite hidden and I wouldn't even know where to look for it."
William was astonished but then nodded for a few times with a radiant smile on his face.
"You finally want to know more about this country's history! Don't worry, I'll bring a book from the inner circle on our next appointment. To think that I would live till you asked me something not concerning training!"
Noah had a guilty smile on his face, it was only after he left the room that he could finally relax.
'I almost made a mistake. I know that Master cares about me but what would happen if he understood that I want to leave the family? Will he help me or will he punish me? Just to be sure it's better not to disclose anything with him until the Forging of Seven Hells is completed. Plus, I don't really know how to get to the Royal city anyway.'
Noah went back to his room while deep in thought.
He didn't really like hiding things from William since he helped him so much, yet his future came first.
He could not accept to be a simple guard in his life, he wanted to be free to soar the sky without anyone having the power to obstruct him and to do that he needed a power that he could not find staying in the mansion.
'It seems that it's really my nature to disappoint those that love me. I'm sorry Master, but there is no chance that I'll simply accept my status as my fate. I hope that you can understand.'
Out of habit, he picked his sabers and practiced.
The "Breath" in his body was replenished by a quarter since the sparring had ended.