Chapter 3 - The Challenge of Progress

Andric spent the rest of the day working through the Standing Tortoise Manual. In just under three days of nonstop meditation, he’d hit the second stage of the Human realm. For a small town like Einburg, that kind of progress was unheard of. Normally, this would be cause for celebration, but for Andric, it wasn’t something to brag about. His grandparents might’ve been thrilled if things had been different, but in their eyes, Andric’s talent was just a minor redeeming quality. At least it would help the family make some extra money through his martial prowess.

The next day, Andric headed to Instructor Hubert’s class. As soon as he walked in, Hubert stopped him dead in his tracks.

“Second stage already! No wonder you were gone so long!” Hubert said with a grin. His Spirit Sight easily picked up the spirit energy in Andric’s body, making his advancement obvious.

“Thank you,” Andric said, bowing slightly. He glanced around the room, hoping his talent would stay under the radar. But it was too late—several town youths had overheard Hubert and were sure to spread the word.

“Don’t get complacent,” Hubert warned with a chuckle. “Just because you’ve got some talent now doesn’t mean you can skip out on class!”

“I won’t!” Andric promised, taking his usual seat in the back.

For the past fifteen years, Andric had kept most of his abilities under wraps. As a kid, he skipped crawling and babbling and went straight to walking and talking. It earned him a reputation as a prodigy but also made him the target of envy. Now that he’d advanced to the second stage so quickly, the local youths would definitely try to one-up him to boost their own egos.

A few minutes later, a group of six boys—four fourteen-year-olds and two fifteen-year-olds—filed in and sat near Andric. One of the fifteen-year-olds, who had also reached the second stage but had been training for months, whispered something to the group. The six boys then turned their hostile glares toward Andric.

Andric read their thoughts like a book. Even though he was a reincarnated magician with far more power, he knew better than to reveal his magical abilities. Doing so could make him an enemy of Hochland, and he wasn’t ready to face the backlash from potentially thousands of soldiers.

He also couldn’t use violence. He was stronger than five of the six boys but weaker than the sixth. Plus, he had no backup. While the six boys had older siblings, Andric was an only child with no one to defend him.

As class went on, Andric wondered what the boys would do after school. If he was lucky, they’d just walk away. If not, they’d probably try to prove their superiority.

When class ended, the six boys started to approach Andric. But just in time, Instructor Hubert stepped in.

“Andric, to celebrate your stage advancement, I’ll open your lung-diaphragm meridian,” Hubert announced. Before the six boys could react, he added, “If anyone else here advances to the second stage in under a month, I’ll open a second meridian for them too.”

Hubert’s comment shut down any complaints. Although he could open meridians with ease, he only did it for a fee. No one in town had the talent to warrant free meridian openings, but Hubert made an exception for Andric because of his unique circumstances.

Andric stood and bowed. “Thank you.”

The six boys glared at him, but with Hubert staying in the room, they couldn’t do anything. Andric walked to the front of the classroom, and Hubert didn’t start immediately.

“Let’s wait until the room clears,” Hubert said.

They waited for the younger students to leave. Andric was eager for the procedure to be over, but he knew it would delay his confrontation with the six boys. Hubert was aware of this too, so he took his time.

“To reach the second stage in less than a week is impressive for a town like Einburg, but it’s nothing compared to the top talents in Mahtzig. Three years ago, a Blanchard Clan kid hit the second stage in less than a day!” Hubert said.

Andric was stunned. Even with his previous life’s knowledge, it had taken him almost a week to reach the second stage. Hearing about someone who did it in less time showed just how critical natural talent could be.

What Hubert didn’t mention was that the Blanchard Clan was known for its legendary generals and that the kid in question was a once-in-a-century genius. But Hubert wasn’t going to share that with Andric.

“I’ll keep working hard,” Andric said.

“Good. Now, let’s get your lung-diaphragm meridian opened,” Hubert said, turning to face Andric. He examined Andric’s abdomen with Spirit Sight and then carefully performed the procedure. It only took ten seconds, but Andric winced in pain.

He tried to focus on the process, hoping to learn something about clearing meridians, but it didn’t help. Maybe if he got better at controlling spirit energy, he could figure it out later.

Once the procedure was done, Hubert returned to his desk. “Don’t slack off.”

“I won’t,” Andric replied and left the classroom.

As expected, the six boys were waiting outside, casually munching on sweetgrass. They might have looked like ordinary town kids, but Andric knew they were waiting for him. Other students from class were hanging around, eager to see what would happen.

Andric wasn’t afraid but was annoyed that a few jealous kids were causing trouble. He wanted to get back to his practice.

The leader of the group, Audovacar, approached first. Dressed in farmer’s clothes and built strong from years of field work, he was physically superior to Andric, even if Andric were at the third stage.

Andric decided to handle the confrontation with words rather than fists. The key to a verbal fight is to speak second, twisting the other person’s words to make them look foolish. He didn’t want to start a fistfight.

Audovacar started with a classic jab. “Last night, my dad said he’d teach me the Ground Plowing Stomp—a Human realm second stage technique. Not everyone gets to learn it. Does your dad teach you any martial techniques?” He then added, louder, “Oh right, you don’t have a dad.”

It was a cheap shot, poking at the fact that Andric didn’t have a father. The insult was old news to everyone in town, and it wasn’t particularly clever.

Andric shot back, “Is that a sparring technique? Well, you two have fun plowing each other,” and walked away.

Audovacar and his cronies were stunned. The insult had gone over their heads, and the clever comeback left Audovacar embarrassed. He’d have to deal with the awkwardness of taking a hit without firing back.

Audovacar’s pride and ego clashed with his embarrassment, and he let Andric walk away without further dispute.