Seeing me return, the man in black, A Zhan, showed no expression. He pointed to another sandbag and said, "Follow their movements when you hit. Ask them if you don't understand."
I walked towards the sandbag and watched them for a while. The Daoist brothers explained to me as they hit. After watching a few times, I understood. I told one of them to continue his own practice, and I would follow the method they described.
In essence, it was about treating the sandbag as an opponent, finding opportunities to deliver a killing blow.
The vulnerable parts of the body were the head, neck, abdomen, and the backs of the knees. Of course, there were also more insidious striking points, such as the groin. A single kick there, regardless of gender, could inflict pain reaching level ten, causing immediate collapse.
Today, we were primarily practicing strikes to the head and neck.
Naturally, in actual combat, unlike in training, situations are ever-changing. Opponents won't always follow textbook moves. Coupled with differences in height, physique, and personal style, one needs to adapt to circumstances. This tests one's reaction speed and adaptability.
However, the most crucial elements are robust physical fitness and punching speed.
Therefore, while hitting the sandbag may seem monotonous, it is very beneficial for increasing strength.
After half an hour of practice, we were called to stop and instructed to go outside for continued weighted running.
A Bei was no longer as struggling as at the beginning, generally able to keep pace with the vehicle. Although he was still panting, he was much better than before.
I thought that if this mission indeed unfolded as he said, and he truly followed me, keeping him by my side might enable him to handle things independently.
After all, he was familiar with this area, and having him along when dealing with local matters would avoid many complications.
The Daoist brothers looked at me several times, still appearing uneasy about me being summoned by Brother Hui. They even showed apologetic expressions, as it was their sparring that revealed a flaw, prompting Brother Hui to call me away. We didn't have a chance to communicate, and they were quite worried.
I didn't show any unusual expression, which somewhat put their minds at ease.
After completing five laps, the vehicle didn't stop this time but continued to drive forward rapidly.
I figured this meant they were increasing the difficulty.
We each had 2.5 kilograms of sandbags tied to our legs, making them feel as if they were filled with lead and incredibly heavy.
Let alone A Bei, even the Daoist brothers, whose stamina originally surpassed mine, visibly slowed down.
I spoke beside them, urging them to push harder and not to give up.
A Bei nodded forcefully and charged forward with great effort.
The Daoist brothers also rallied, striving to catch up to the vehicle.
At least for now, we had no choice. For the mission, we had to persevere.
Moreover, this kind of extreme training was entirely beneficial and not detrimental to us.
The vehicle drove for another lap before turning right and leaving the training ground. We still couldn't stop, only slowing our pace and jogging a few hundred meters.
Then, the four of us collapsed onto the ground.
This was damn perverse; they treated us like livestock.
After about ten minutes of recovery, A Zhan on the vehicle blew his whistle. We struggled to get up, unstrapped the sandbags, slung them over our shoulders, and started walking back.
I heard A Zhan's grumbling as he approached: "Look at you guys, like your fathers just died. Can't you hurry up!"
We wanted to hurry, but our legs were already sore to the point of numbness, making it impossible to walk faster.
We finally reached the training ground and were met with the aroma of food. This time, it was different from before; there was a pot of fragrant braised beef, with no vegetables, only chunks of beef the size of a child's fist.
There was also a bit of salt added. Although it was still bland, it was the most delicious meal imaginable compared to the plain boiled meat of the previous days.
This pot was far more than just a pound per person; it likely contained nearly twenty pounds.
Two pounds of raw beef only yielded one pound when cooked. How large a piece of raw meat must have been to produce this.
It seemed Brother Hui had put considerable thought into our training.
He was also willing to spend money to buy various precious ingredients to fuel us.
Over the past few days, I had gained at least five to six pounds, my arms and legs becoming thicker.
If Brother Hui weren't our mortal enemy, I would have genuinely wanted to thank him in person.
But all of this was for the purpose of dealing with me.
As I swallowed the delicious beef, I found it quite comical.
He trained me and then beat me.
If Brother Hui knew this, he would probably have a stroke of apoplexy right on the spot.
Fortunately, we had adapted to this cramming style of eating over the past few days. Before long, our bowls were empty, and we even drank the soup.
After eating our fill, A Bei told us to go back and rest.
We were still supervised by guards while resting in bed.
At eight o'clock in the evening, we returned to the training room and lined up, awaiting A Bei to assign us our lessons.
A Bei came over, briefly summarized our training progress over the past few days, then issued each of us a dagger, instructing us to use cold weapons for close combat.
Daggers were short and easy to conceal, making them ideal weapons for assassination and close-quarters combat. They could compensate for the disadvantage of being weaker, delivering a fatal blow to the opponent.
He first demonstrated the proper grip and handling of a dagger, then, holding a dagger himself, performed several moves that showcased formidable skill.
It had to be said that A Zhan's skill was not to be underestimated. His movements were fluid and graceful, with perfect control and balance. His strikes were clean and precise, each one capable of leaving an opponent bleeding profusely.
We all watched with admiration.
I didn't know about the Daoist brothers, as they came from a martial arts background. As for myself, I certainly didn't possess such prowess.
After the demonstration, he began having us practice each skill individually.
He taught very diligently, requiring us to hold each pose for five minutes. He meticulously corrected our stances and the way we held the daggers until they were correct.
After an hour of practice, A Zhan signaled us to conclude. He then provided a summary of the training we had undergone. He announced that from today onwards, we would no longer have centralized training. Instead, we were to arrange our own practice, reinforcing what we had learned previously, and await further orders.
Leaving the training room, the few of us walked back together. As we passed Brother Hui's room, we saw it was brightly lit, with voices coming from inside.
At this time of night, Brother Hui's room lights were usually off. Tonight, not only were they on, but there were also many people inside.
When things are out of the ordinary, there's usually a reason. I had a premonition that their actions tonight were definitely related to me.
Despite the premonition, we couldn't rashly barge into his room.
Suddenly, the sound of something being smashed came from inside, followed by a torrent of curses: "What use are you useless people to me? You can't even track down one person? If he's not in the hospital, did he sprout wings and fly away?"
"Boss, we bribed the hospital doctors. They said that person left the hospital that night and also took one of our brothers with him."
"Nonsense, he had a severe concussion. If he left, he would have gone to another hospital. Have you checked?"
"We have checked. We've searched every hospital in Ruili, big and small, but we haven't seen any trace of him. However, his driver and henchmen are still staying at the original hotel."
"Since his subordinates and henchmen are still at the hospital, why didn't you bring them back?"
"We wanted to catch them too, but they are incredibly cunning. We only saw two figures at the entrance. By the time we went inside, we searched the entire hotel and couldn't find them. We even went to their rooms, but nobody was there."