Chapter 17: Squat Rack Surprise
Garion trained throughout the night. Sweat dripped down his body and muscles as he finished another set.
By the time the morning came, Garion was still at it.
Dahlia rubbed her eyes as she stepped out of her room, yawning.
She stopped mid-step, staring in shock at the courtyard.
"Master... what are you doing out here so early?"
Garion racked the barbell and turned with a wide smirk.
"What else? Training. I’m testing the new equipment."
Dahlia blinked, looking around. There was a lot of equipment she didn’t recognize, making her jaw drop.
"What the hell? When did all of this appear? And what even are these things? I’ve never seen anything like this before!"
Garion crossed his arms proudly.
"Of course you haven’t. That’s because I designed them, after all. And also, they just arrived last night."
Garion pointed at the equipment.
"But Dahlia, this is the future. The God Gym is finally alive."
Dahlia approached one of the dumbbells, bending down to touch it. She pulled it with both hands and instantly staggered.
"Ugh! This is so heavy... How can something so small weigh this much?"
Garion laughed and slapped his thigh.
"That’s Titan Ore for you! Smaller, denser, and heavier. It’s perfect equipment for the gods."
She gave him a blank look.
"I don’t understand half of what you’re saying, Master."
Garion only shrugged.
"Don’t worry, you’ll understand when your arms start crying."
Dahlia frowned, crossing her arms.
"Wait. Are you saying today’s training involves... these things?"
Garion smirked, clapping his hands together.
"Exactly. Yesterday was the real training too, but that was just the warm-up. Push-ups were just to check your form. Today, you get the taste of the real thing."
Dahlia groaned.
"Master... I already thought yesterday was brutal. You kept yelling about my forms and breathing."
Garion smirked.
"You’ll thank me later. Now, no more complaints. Come on, we’ll start with stretching. Warm up the muscles first before we destroy them."
He guided her to the center of the courtyard and began a series of stretches. Arms overhead, side bends, shoulder rolls, and long lunges.
Dahlia tried to follow but winced every time she lowered herself.
Garion walked to her, pushing down gently on her shoulder.
"Lower, don’t half-ass when stretching."
She hissed as she held the lunge.
"But Master, I feel like my legs are tearing apart."
Garion nodded, smiling.
"Good. That means it’s working."
After a full warm-up, Garion pointed at the squat rack.
"Alright. For your first exercise, let’s do some squats. Your legs will hate you, but your body will love you."
Dahlia’s eyes widened.
"Wait, you want me to put that bar on my back? With those heavy plates?!"
Garion only chuckled.
"Relax, I won’t give you heavy weights yet. Start light. Form is more important than weight."
He stripped off the heavy plates and slid smaller ones onto the bar, ducked under it to show her.
"See? Back straight, chest out, core tight. Inhale as you go down, exhale as you come up. Now you try."
Dahlia nervously stepped under the bar. It rested on her shoulders, and it was heavier than she expected.
She bent her knees, lowered herself shakily, and nearly tipped forward.
Garion quickly shouted at her, hands hovering behind her in case she fell.
"Stop! Tighten your core more! Straighten your back and keep your eyes forward! Tried not to collapse."
She grit her teeth, adjusted, and pushed herself up. Her legs trembled, but she managed it.
"Good! That’s one rep. Eleven more for one set."
Her face twisted.
"Twelve?! Master, this thing feels like it’s crushing me!"
Garion grinned.
"That’s because it’s making you stronger. Come on, one more rep. Just do it."
She groaned and lowered herself again, sweat already forming on her brow.
By the fifth rep, her arms shook. By the twelfth, she collapsed forward, gasping.
Garion quickly grabbed the bar and racked it for her. He crouched down with a wide smile.
"See? You survived. That’s one set down. Two more to go."
Dahlia’s eyes widened.
"Two more? I’ll die!"
Garion quickly waved her off.
"Don’t be too dramatic. Let’s keep going."
Dahlua could only glare at him.
"You’re really a demon, Master."
Garion chuckled,
"Wrong. I’m a trainer. Big difference."
He then tapped her shoulder.
"Come on, up. Rest a minute, then two more sets. After that, sit-ups, lunges, curls, presses."
"And while you do all of that, keep circulating mana through your body. Train your body and mana together."
Dahlia groaned, rolling onto her back.
"Circulate mana while training? That’s... impossible."
Garion folded his arms, smiling.
"Nothing’s impossible with practice. Cultivation isn’t just sitting still and glowing."
"It’s fighting your limit while mana fills you. You’ll get used to it. Practice makes perfect, after all."
Dahlia covered her face with both hands.
"I regret becoming your disciple."
Garion laughed out loud, throwing his head back.
"Too late now! Welcome to the true God Gym, Dahlia."
---
The bandits gathered again at the edge of the forest. From their hiding spot, they had been watching the strange courtyard for a few days.
The big guy scratched his chin and frowned.
"I don’t get it. Those two don’t look powerful at all. They just... pick things up and put them back down, over and over."
"Just what the hell are they doing?"
The youngest snorted.
"Yeah, I saw it too. They keep lifting those shiny bars and doing weird postures all day long, and it looks so stupid."
"They don’t even cultivate like other cultivators."
Another man nodded in agreement.
"I didn’t even feel any pressure from them either."
The leader leaned against a tree, folding his arms. He listened to them and smirked.
"So. Not cultivators or weak ones, huh?"
The big guy nodded.
"Doesn’t seem like it, especially that girl. She looked like she was going to collapse just holding the bar."
The youngest chuckled.
"And the man? He might be older and bigger, but he’s not much better."
"He just kept yelling at her to keep her back straight, kept her breathing, bla, bla, bla..."
The group laughed quietly.
The leader smirked wider.
"Good. Very good. If all they do is sweat and play with toys, then this will be easier than I thought."
He pushed himself off the tree and looked at his men one by one.
"We move tonight. Quiet and quick. We strip that place bare before anyone knows what happened."
All of them quickly smirked, hearing that.