“Huff… Huff… huff… Alright… Let’s learn how to do it,”

Master took me to the top of the mountain again, where we breathed in the fresh air and then stood in front of each other.

I was ready to receive his teachings, but he just looked like a sloppy mess wanting to sleep some more.

“You got this faster than I expected, but nothing compared to my other students. They were able to connect to their tongue within a few hours or a day… you really do suck at everything,” Master smirked, and I just rolled my eyes.

“I didn’t come here to be dissed… come on, tell me what I’m supposed to do,”

“Alright, well, obviously, activate the skill, and then we’ll be able to work from there,”

I followed my Master’s directions and activated Ancient Torterras Tongue, but before I could ask what to do next, Master quickly shut my mouth with his own hand.

“Hold on, remember whatever you speak with the skill activated will be like a skill itself. Also, depending on what you use it on or who you use it on, it will either be weak or very strong… Just like that Blood Sampler skill you have,”

I just nodded before turning towards a tree and saying,

“Break,”

My voice was commanding and ripped through the air, tearing the tree in half and fluttering the green leaves all over the mountain.

It was a nasty and unclean cut, but it did the job… though I, on the other hand, was suffering greatly.

Upon activating the skill and ordering the tree to break, my throat felt like thousands of fire ants were nipping, and then I coughed up an entire pool of blood.

I tried to cough, but the pain was too bad that I just kneeled there, my head down, deciding not to breathe in order to save me from any more pain.

“Breathe, boy. You’ll have to get used to the pain… Also, grit your teeth now,” Master ordered, but I was already in a state of so much pain that I couldn’t comprehend his words.

Suddenly, a jolt of electricity ran through my spine, seemingly melting my back and causing steam to erupt from my muscles.

Slight tears welled up in my eyes from the miserable state I was in, but the pain didn’t stop there.

The electricity then proceeded to run through the rest of my body, searing my muscles and causing steam to erupt from deep within them.

It was as if I was being cooked or steamed from the inside alive.

After only a few more minutes of suffering, I finally managed to get a grip on myself and coughed up all the blood, and tensed all my muscles.

I had reasonable control over the muscles in my body, but in some places, I was still inexperienced… not that it really mattered much, but seeing Cy teaching me something was a fun yet demeaning experience.

“Do I have to do that again?” I asked, my voice so raspy the words were barely audible.

“Yes, now get back to work, but do an easier command. Here, let me give you a target,” Master muttered before snapping his hand, creating a golem of grass and mud in front of me.

It loomed over me with its rocky body, and as it took a step towards me, I felt the earth under me shake.

“*cough*… Ssssssss… Kneel,” I ordered, and the golem got on one knee, trying to resist the command but was completely unable to.

Though, once I coughed up another pool of blood, he was released from the constraint and charged toward me.

“Kneel,” Master ordered, and this time, the golem fell to both knees and was forced to lower his head before me.

“That was… much better,” I muttered as I wasn’t in absolute searing pain.

The electricity that ran through my body was strong and hot, but it didn’t hurt anywhere near as much as when I ordered the tree to break.

“Huff…. Huff… Ack… Ack,”

“Ah, it seems you’ve lost your voice… Okay, now, we’ll proceed with a few sparring sessions. I can’t create things that give XP, but I’ll let you fight some of my top dogs who are obviously suppressing their power… don’t die on me, boy,”

The mud golem slowly formed into a humanoid woman with a full black suit of armor, spikes going everywhere, and a helmet that hid just the top of her face.

She wielded a black spear that radiated the power of the earth, and her almost unbreakable stance sent chills down my spine.

Slowly, I wielded my spear and wiped the blood from the side of my mouth.

“Just cause your his Majesty’s student, I won’t be letting you have an easy win. If you want a victory, then earn it,”

She suddenly appeared behind me, and I had no time to react… and her spear traveled straight through my gut, tearing every organ apart besides my heart and lungs.

I coughed up another mouthful of blood, but suddenly, as I fell forwards, off of the spear’s blade, the whole in my gut closed.

“*gasp*… Huff… huff… huff….”

“I told you to not heal him or hurt him severely… do you dare to go against my orders?”

“Forgive me, your Majesty, but I believe the best way to teach him is through pain. If he can’t push through this suffering, he doesn’t deserve to inherit your tongue,”

The woman’s words were confident as she spoke towards my Master.

“Fine… Orion, your throat should be healed now, so this is a good chance to test out your skill again,”

“Why didn’t you just give me a nature pill if my throat could’ve been healed?”

“Cause I don’t want you to get used to using this power. With a mortal body, you can only do so much, and by continuously healing you, your body will subconsciously think you’ll be getting healed again… and that is the opposite of what I want,”

“But since she’s kicking my ass, I’ll always be wary?”

“Indeed,” Master muttered with a large smile, and before I could even stand up, a spear came running down my back and piercing through my lungs.