Location: Lil. Red Storm, Seed World, Devil Merchant Code, Inter-Realm City, Sector WS9909, Infinity Library, Study Room
When they resumed training, the primordial spirit eyed Wyatt and smirked before taking off ahead of him. Wyatt managed to keep up at first, but he soon fell behind. The primordial spirit seemed different-more focused and stronger. As a result, the gap between them steadily grew until it completed the lap and was right behind Wyatt again.
Hearing the footsteps of the primordial spirit approaching from behind, Wyatt ran with all his might, throwing every other thought aside. The only thing on his mind now was ensuring that his primordial spirit didn't pass him. He would rather die than live to see that happen. Summoning a sudden burst of energy, he ran and ran-until, at one point, a shadow darted past him.
"Damn it!" Wyatt swore, seeing his primordial spirit overtake him. What infuriated him even more was the way it turned to sneer at him as it sped ahead. Wyatt was sure it was exacting revenge on him this way, as it couldn't employ other methods. However, he couldn't prove it without accessing its memories, which he couldn't do as a mere mortal.
"Dear Disciple, stop getting distracted and keep going. Though it is shameful that you cannot outperform your own clone, for now, just focus on running at your pace," the card intent chided. Its words were like oil on a fire, reigniting Wyatt's competitive spirit.
With a single-minded focus on beating his clone, Wyatt pushed himself harder. He ran, ran, and ran some more until the card intent finally called for a break.
"Let us take a break," it instructed.
However, the primordial spirit, having learned its lesson, didn't stop. It kept running, waiting for Wyatt to give up. Wyatt, being its master, refused to concede and kept running as well. Ignoring the card intent's order, the two raced on, determined to see the other falter first.
Their unexpected rivalry fueled their resolve, allowing them to push beyond their limits. The card intent, recognizing the value of their competition, integrated it into the training. It watched Wyatt's progress with satisfaction, noting how the rivalry had turned a simple exercise into a test of willpower.
Had they been in their physical bodies instead of their spiritual ones, the card intent would have forced them to stop, fearing they might injure themselves. But spiritual bodies were different-they could continue to run as long as their will supported them. This simple act of running had transformed into a way to cultivate their will. This was precisely why demon and devil merchants were willing to pay sky-high prices to train their martial and fine arts in Sector W$9909. Here, one was guaranteed to achieve sage-level proficiency in an art of their choice as long as they practiced diligently, with full commitment, and in the correct way. Talent might offer a head start on the path, but the rest of the journey depended on their effort. In Sector WS9909, the words "Practice makes perfect" held absolute truth.
Except for the Card Intent, neither Wyatt nor his primordial spirit had any idea how long they had been running. One thing, however, was certain: neither was willing to stop before the other did. Both being primordial spirits, the exercise didn't strain their will but instead helped them tap into its boundless nature, capable of encompassing the entire myriad realms within it.
At a certain point in the race, Wyatt finally managed to keep up with the primordial spirit. No matter how hard it tried, it couldn't shake him off. Seeing his progress, Wyatt felt motivated to teach his rebellious primordial spirit a lesson. Meanwhile, the primordial spirit's will to prove itself reignited as it saw its "useless" master catching up. Neither was willing to fall short, and each step they took was with firm resolve. It was no longer just a training session or even a race-it had become a do-or-die situation for them.
As their rivalry escalated, both Wyatt and the primordial spirit made significant progress. Not only had they met the Card Intent's expectations, but they had also exceeded them by a considerable margin. The Card Intent, noticing this, intended to foster the rivalry further.
However, it couldn't help but find Wyatt's mental state both peculiar and potentially alarming, considering he was fostering such rivalry toward a mere clone, that too his own clone. It made a note to bring it up to the Field Marshal when she would access the training card to check on Wyatt's efforts and progress.
By the time Wyatt matched the primordial spirit's pace, he had gained a clear understanding of the limits of his current mortal strength and body, as well as the boundless nature of will. He quickly realized that he and his primordial spirit had reached the limits of their mortal-level spiritual bodies.
This meant that, no matter how long they ran, it was impossible for either of them to overtake the other unless one's will faltered. Given their primordial spirit status and the infinite nature of their will, this was unlikely to happen unless one of them chose to give up entirely.
Wyatt understood that unless he or his primordial spirit found a way to use their mortal-level spiritual body and boundless will more efficiently, neither would gain the upper hand. They could very well end up running in the study room for eternity- unless his physical body on the physical plane gave out first.
While contemplating this, Wyatt lost focus and began to fall behind the primordial spirit, which maintained a consistent pace. However, this time, Wyatt wasn't bothered. Having grasped the limits of their current mortal-level spiritual bodies and the boundless nature of will, he started planning ways to apply this understanding for optimal results. His goal was not only to match his primordial spirit's pace again but to surpass it entirely.
He also decided that, while he was at it, he would make up for all the extra laps his primordial spirit had run while he was struggling to catch up. Wyatt even made a mental note to sneer at his primordial spirit every time he overtook it-just as it had
Coming to this conclusion, Wyatt felt motivated and continued running while contemplating how to better apply his current limits to achieve more optimal results. Meanwhile, seeing its foolish master fall behind once again, the primordial spirit felt satisfied and maintained its consistent pace, waiting for the moment when its master would finally give up.
As for Martial Sage Lorn's intent, it observed the progress Wyatt had made and noticed his efforts to apply the understanding he had gained. This led it to question whether it had been wrong to think that Wyatt's mindset-always trying to fix or improve things-would be the greatest hurdle he faced on his journey along the martial path.