The group of people parted like the red sea, revealing Sofia, who was giving a lecture at the front.
She raised her head and looked over in his direction.
“I’ve heard everything, Mr. Nono, last cohort’s freshmen’s First Seat. I never thought that you would’ve improved the Crouched Eagle Talon Technique as well,” Sofia’s voice was soft and gentle and it had a mesmerizing effect.
“The reason I joined the Eagle’s Nest was that I hoped to learn more from stronger fellow practitioners. Of course, I also wanted to exchange knowledge with my fellow practitioners regarding the theories and concepts behind the Crouched Eagle Talon Technique,” Garen sincerely expressed his intents.
“That is to be expected. Everyone who joins the Eagle’s Nest has the same intentions. Only through these sorts of exchanges there would there be clashes in schools of thought, and only then can we see improvement. As compared to the mindset of those who have just enrolled in the school, having access to the combined experience and abilities of everyone here from both the present and the past will allow us to make the most out of our training methods,” Sofia articulated.
“If you don’t mind, I would like to go and view the Eagle’s Nest immediately,” Garen said. He started to feel that his foundation for this technique was not concrete enough and this Eagle’s Nest might be able to solve his concerns.
If he did not have a concrete foundation, it would make it harder for him to progress to the next level. It may even lead to him facing more trouble when up against an opponent of the same level, especially when it comes to a battle of Willpower.
“Sounds like a plan,” Sofia was also a very straight-forward person. Despite her gentle appearance, she was actually exceptionally fervent in her interests. Seeing how direct Garen was, she too loosened up.
“Peach, bring Mr. Nono to the headquarters and give him a tour of the place. There are many seniors stationed at the headquarters, feel free to direct any questions you have to them.”
When facing a genius, naturally he was allowed some form of special treatment. Furthermore, the method of choice for the Eagle’s Nest was to allow everyone to progress at their own pace and not interfere too much with the students. This did not apply only to Nono; it was also the case for the genius from last year, Klaibe, who has since been promoted into a senior of the elite Black-Clothed Generals, with the title of Demonic Shadow Duncan. This was all part of their tradition.
“Since this is your first time in the headquarters, I should tell you this. If you’re interested in challenging any seniors over here, you can select one senior to challenge daily. Take note that this refers to Close Quarters Combat and not a mech battle,” it was almost as if Sofia had already seen through Garen’s character, and not wanting to beat around the bush, she went straight to the point.
“Alright.”
Garen nodded.
The surrounding students started to mumble aloud, challenging seniors was everyone’s right after all. Once you’ve entered the Eagle’s Nest, your ranking here is determined by your actual potential and abilities. Challenging stronger opponents was key in this type of ranking system.
However, these ranks would not give you too much of an advantage, it mainly allows you to access journals and notes on the Crouched Eagle Talon Technique left behind by seniors of the past. These archives of information were all from the masters who had trained in the Crouched Eagle Talon Technique in the past and contained information from the various methods and the different aspects of mastering this technique. However, if you failed to reach a certain level with these techniques, it would have adverse side effects on your body, so it’s better not to fly too close to the sun.
The two’s conversation was short and concise with no small talk in between. Just by looking at Garen, she knew that he would be interested in these challenges and archives. Most people would have already understood that Garen was interested in the archived records of the Eagle’s Nest. For a technique to be practiced after such a long time, yet still remain unparalleled in strength, naturally, it must have had its own unique complexities and theories behind it.
The young girl known as Peach, who was also the cute girl that was in charge of the new members earlier, stood up and guided Garen towards a nearby bus station. Following closely behind them was a group of students, all curious about the developments of Garen, leaving only a handful of students in Sofia’s class.
Looking at this situation, Sofia helplessly let out a sigh. She might as well just bring everyone along at this point.
With that, a whole class of students boarded the academy’s bus, leaving the drilling grounds as they headed towards the direction of the Eagle’s Nest.
******
The Eagle’s Nest was a medium-sized den-like structure in the Blackboard Academy. It looked like a gigantic eagle’s nest on the surface, but in actuality, it was constructed from reinforced metal alloys.
The inside of the building was separated into a few different sections, one of which was the training hall.
Above the white ground of the training hall was a transparent glass ceiling. At this moment, the hall was surrounded by various students stationed at the Eagle’s Nest, most of them being second-years and third-years. A lot of them were casually chatting while spectating the two people below.
Following Sofia’s lead, Garen was brought to the side of the hall, looking down at the two below.
“Today’s challenge is between the two below. Katja, who is ranked thirty-second, is challenging Seris, who is ranked twenty-first,” Sofia softly introduced the two to Garen.
“These two look like they’re quite strong, otherwise, the people who followed us just now wouldn’t have left their positions to observe the battle themselves,” Garen nodded.
“That’s no surprise. The Eagle’s Nest serves as a gathering place for all students practicing the Crouched Eagle Talon Technique. Just the Level Five experts would already amount to more than fifty people, with a lot of them being instructors or Black-Clothed Generals. Some even attained high ranks in the military and take up important positions throughout the Blackboard Region. Although our Crouched Eagle Talon is no match for students of the same level practicing other skills, we have the advantage of numbers!” Sofia proudly exclaimed. “We don’t have the strongest technique, but the value of mastering this technique is definitely comparable to even the best techniques, it is one of a kind.”
“That’s true,” Garen nodded once again.
“There are numerous geniuses within the Eagle’s Nest, and some of them were even in a situation like yours; people who just barely missed the opportunity to become elite students. It might be worthwhile for you guys to interact and befriend each other in the future,” Sofia suggested.
Garen agreed and continued to watch the battle happening below him. The two stopped talking and the surrounding spectators also quietened down, closely observing the bout that was about to start.
Ding!
With a loud ring, the two people below sprang into action.
Their movements were almost in sync, making wide hand motions with every step. At the same time, they were rapidly striking at each other. Although it looked like completely normal strikes, it gave off an ever-changing strong aura.
Smack! The two crossed arms. To everyone’s surprise, they were using the exact same move on equal grounds.
“I see that your training on the Eagle Wing Strike has gone well!” the ranked twenty-first Seris said loudly.
“I’ll definitely defeat you this time!” Katja loudly roared as he lunged forward. His arms were like sharp blades, slicing towards the opponent repeatedly. The action was almost on par with an actual completed Secret Technique, with very few flaws when it came to both attacking and defending.
This sent a shiver down Garen’s spine.
“Their actions are all meticulously calculated and simulated with a quantum calculator, down to every slightest movement. Every possible flaw that they find will be countered with intense training for the scenario. This is the greatest advantage of combining technology with traditional training. In the Eagle’s Nest, you also have access to a huge bonus. You can use the Martial Arts Servers passed down from the seniors to undergo countless simulations to improve your own martial arts,” Sofia explained to Garen. “These simulations will use countless variables to intricately calculate and pinpoint the biggest flaws that your techniques and errors may present within the shortest amount of time. With proper utilization of this, it would produce results equal to ten years of personal training.”
“With these forms of strict training, there shouldn’t be many people who managed to achieve it, right?” Garen asked softly.
“Of course not. There were only three people in the entire history of the Eagle’s Nest who managed to complete the Martial Arts Server’s training fully. The best possible combat style for the Crouched Eagle Talon is not something that can be easily achieved,” Sofia looked at Garen in amazement; she didn’t think he would be able to understand this much just from her brief introductions.
“The Martial Arts Simulation Servers have every noteworthy technique, experience, and information since the creation of the Eagle’s Nest up till now saved in its memory bank. It can calculate the best way to maximize one’s potential through an analysis of one’s physical and mental capabilities. Of course, this requires some authorization. We call this the ‘Flawless Martial Arts’ technique, and it requires a higher level of authorization for the members to access this technology.”
“That’s understandable,” Garen nodded.
The two stopped talking once again, closely observing the battle occurring right below them.
In the training hall below, Katja was starting to get pushed back by Seris, forcing him into a corner. The two were both using Flawless Martial Arts, but he obviously had more flaws than his opponent. In a battle with both sides having equal speed and strength, he would undoubtedly be in a disadvantageous position.
Almost as if he was dissatisfied with himself being forced into a disadvantageous position, Katja turned around, his arms suddenly turned completely red. It wasn’t the red you saw from swellings, but rather a red comparable to the color of fresh blood.
“Don’t get too cocky! Swooping Eagle Slaughter!!” a twisted form of Willpower started to boil from Katja’s body, creating vortex-like cones of wind that wrapped around his arms. It almost looked like two electric drills was attached to Katja’s arms as he lunged towards Seris.
“A Willpower secret skill? Do you think you’re the only one who can use something like that?” Seris laughed. “Extreme Pierce!”
He pointed out his index fingers, each finger pointing at one of Katja’s arms. The fingers rapidly turned black as they swelled with blood, to the point where they looked like they had become gigantic blood clots. The air surrounding him started to whirl up like a hurricane.
“Katja has lost,” Looking at the stage, Garen exclaimed.
“Oh?” Sofia looked at him curiously. “You have really great eyesight huh?”
“Is going down for the challenges the fastest way to raise your rank and gain authorization?” Garen wanted to experience what this Flawless Martial Arts simulation room feels like. After all, it was his first time seeing such high-tech martial arts training.
“The Flawless Martial Arts system is most effectively utilized for finding your own flaws, but only the top fifty in the ranks are authorized to access this technology. Don’t look down on this ranking,” Sofia reminded, “The three geniuses I’ve trained in the past, they all started off arrogant just like you, challenging the seniors immediately after they entered. However, none of them managed to win their first two battles.”
“It’s fine,” Garen shook his head as he started walking towards the stage. “I’ll give it a shot.”
He wasn’t just interested in the Flawless Martial Arts, but also the Willpower secret skills the two had used just now. The feeling those skills gave off, it felt like they were using their Willpower in similar manners to how people use their internal energy in wuxia novels.
Moves utilizing Willpower would be much faster and stronger, and they could even enter the opponent’s body and cause pure physical damage to the body. Through his observations, he noticed that the two had the capabilities to release their Willpower from long ranges, but they did not attempt to do so. This meant that the techniques they used weren’t that high leveled.
Katja was knocked down on the floor, his face completely flushed red. Other than that, he seemed to be fine. Seris walked up to him and helped him up.
At this moment, Garen had entered the training hall from one of the entrances, closely assessing the two from a closer distance.
He didn’t feel anything from afar, but with a closer look at this distance, he realized that these two were both Level Three experts! No wonder they were in the top fifty of the Eagle’s Nest, they weren’t just some random characters.
However, after pondering for a bit, There were hundreds of Level Five professors and instructors within the whole Blackboard Academy, it wasn’t surprising that there were even more Level Three or Four reserves present. After all, this was the place with the strongest people in the Blackboard Region.
This two seemed to already be at the level of the fifth-years, having already gone through half of the eight-year education system of the Blackboard Academy. However, being able to attain Level Three at this stage was still a great feat.
No longer paying attention to the interactions between the two, Garen walked towards the white stone plaque erected at the side of the hall. The plaque displayed the rankings of the members of the Eagle’s Nest, listing everyone in the top fifty.
The first person on the list was someone called Sajeena, with Level Five Willpower. This was recorded two years ago, when she was a sixth-year, it should be nearing her graduation soon.
At this point, Sofia had finally caught up to him. Following behind her were a group of youths that seemed interested in what was happening over here. They all gave off a strong aura with their Willpower; it seemed that all of them were very skilled students.
“You want to challenge someone now?” Sofia looked at this genius who had just joined this group. Geniuses were all the same after all; he had the same mentality as the other two geniuses she brought in before. When they saw someone who was stronger than them, they were unable to resist the urge to challenge them, hoping to become stronger.
“The students of our Blackboard Academy take pride in their strengths, and wanting to take on challenges is only natural. Take your pick; if the name is glowing, it means that they are currently present in the Eagle’s Nest. Of course, those selected have the right to reject three challenges a day. Furthermore, no grudges should be held if anyone is injured in the battle,” a proper-looking bespectacled young lad next to Sofia said in a soft voice.
“My name is Anjay Terin, ranked fifteenth. I heard the freshmen’s First Seat had just joined us, so I came over to have a look.”
“Nice to meet you,” Garen shook his hand. “What’s the minimum authorization required to use the Flawless Martial Arts simulations?” Garen was no longer overly prideful. This world was not one where he could simply mess around in. These Willpower experts were quick-thinkers, had amazing battle senses, had more experience in the mysterious power form manipulating their Willpower, and could often have a terrifying explosiveness when it comes to their strengths. Seeing as his own Willpower manipulation was still very limited, he felt that it was best not to be too full of himself.
“Everyone within the top fifty will receive authorization to access it, but the amount of time allocated to you would also vary with rank. Those at the top ranks are even authorized to organize competitions and tournaments with the other clubs. So what do you think? Want to give it a shot?” this guy had a gentle and polite tone, but he seemed to be a battle-loving individual underneath the surface.
Interestingly, it seemed that everyone Garen had come across in the Eagle’s Nest seemed to have this sort of personality. They all seemed to be very passionate about battles and have a strong desire to improve themselves.