Chapter Eighty-Nine: The Training Room

“Captain Sama, what is it?”

The group arrived in the command room’s hall. Seeing the report in Sama’s hand, Qin Fei still felt a trace of unease.

He did not know what had gone wrong, but as someone who had never originally belonged to this world, Qin Fei had long since prepared himself for any outcome.

A pity, perhaps...

“Qin Fei, just the right time. The results of your spirit test are in, but...”

Seeing the same puzzled look on Sama’s face, Qin Fei’s heart slowly tightened.

The results had come back faster than he expected.

“Go on, Captain Sama. Whatever it is, I can accept it.”

After glancing at Qin Fei, and then at Lurita Beast, who still wore the appearance of a girl behind him, Sama said slowly, “One piece of good news, one piece of bad news. Which do you want first?”

Qin Fei hesitated briefly. “Tell me the bad one first. At least I’ve already prepared for the worst.”

Sama nodded. “The spirit within you is scarcely different from that of a newborn infant. That is very strange. At your age, even if it were low, it should not be this low.”

Hearing this result, Qin Fei seemed to understand something. “Does that mean I haven’t reached the standard to partner with a digital beast?”

“Not exactly...”

Sama set down the report and looked Qin Fei in the eye. “The good news is that you do possess a spirit. That is what matters most.”

Seeing Qin Fei’s baffled expression, Sama continued, “This thing called spirit is not something everyone has. To say one in a hundred would not be an exaggeration. But even if it is only one in a hundred, with the world’s enormous population, the number of people who possess it is still far from small...”

“Then...”

Qin Fei’s eyes lit up with a glimmer of hope.

“Take this.”

Sama gave no explanation, only handed Qin Fei a sealed document pouch.

It was plump, as though it contained some square-shaped object, something like a mobile phone.

Qin Fei accepted it reflexively. It felt slightly heavy in his hand. Glancing at Sama and seeing no sign that he meant to stop him, Qin Fei slowly opened the sealed pouch.

“Eh? Th-this is!”

A light gray fifth-generation digital beast device gradually came into view.

“This is a digital beast device. It can use the spirit within you to allow your partner digital beast to evolve. It is one of DATS’s research achievements regarding the digital world.”

Holding the rather plain-looking device in his hand, Qin Fei still could not hide his excitement. With this, he now had hope of letting Tailmon continue evolving.

Lurita Beast also leaned in curiously, studying the gray device, whose looks were far inferior to her own, and at last a hint of relief appeared in her eyes.

Since this was for Tailmon, this drab appearance suited her just fine. At least in terms of looks, her own device had already beaten hers by a narrow margin.

“You mean...” Qin Fei looked at Captain Sama’s encouraging expression, still somewhat unable to grasp it.

Captain Sama’s stern face finally softened with the faintest smile. “I just said it: what matters most is possessing spirit. Although the spirit within you is rather thin, you have already crossed the threshold.”

“And...” Sama suddenly glanced again at the two digital beasts behind Qin Fei, Tailmon and Black Growlmon, and said, “Haven’t you already succeeded in using your spirit to make your digital beast evolve? I believe you have the ability to handle this device...”

“I didn’t... I don’t...” Qin Fei sighed inwardly, wanting to complain. The reason he had been able to make Black Growlmon evolve had nothing to do with spirit, but with the link between the power of the heart and the sacred plan... Wait.

As if he had suddenly realized something, Qin Fei took the gray fifth-generation device in hand and slowly closed his eyes.

If it was the power of the heart, then the spirit that could make a digital beast evolve should also be a force of the will. What if he used the intent he felt when making a digital beast evolve to stir his spirit?

Watching Qin Fei settle into stillness, Sama did not disturb him, only revealing a thoughtful look.

“This child has excellent talent...”

Renamon looked at the spirit on Qin Fei’s body, which was gradually becoming clearer, and wore an admiring expression. But then she sighed and said, “And yet, strangely enough, his spirit is still too thin to create the conditions for a partner digital beast’s evolution...”

Sama nodded as well. After a moment of hesitation, as though some idea had come to him, he suddenly said, “We can help him train and see...”

...

Am I going to be trained?

Watching Sama and Renamon lead him into a training room filled with equipment, Qin Fei felt a faint anticipation.

But they did not stop there. They passed straight through the training room and entered a deeper chamber.

With a click, the switch by the door was turned on, and light drove away the darkness within.

“This is...?”

It was no wonder Qin Fei was surprised. There was nothing in the room at all—no, there was something. A small cushion mat lay alone in the very center of the room.

It was easy to overlook.

“This is the place for training.”

Seeing the confusion on Qin Fei’s face, Sama smiled.

“How do we do it?”

Qin Fei quickly gathered himself. Perhaps this was their secret method. Perhaps it would be worth trusting them.

“Do you know what spirit is?” Sama suddenly asked.

“...”

Hearing the question, Qin Fei gave him a strange look. Was this not the very question Leopardmon had asked Taiga and the others?

“So, this training is to let you truly understand spirit from the bottom of your heart, and obtain the indispensable thing you will need to fight alongside your partner in the days ahead.”

Seeing Qin Fei’s “puzzled” gaze, Sama nodded. Even among DATS members, very few could truly understand this question, so he began explaining on his own.

As he spoke, Sama walked over to the cushion mat and gestured for Qin Fei to sit down first.

Then he told Lurita Beast and the others to wait outside the door.

“And then?”

Following Sama’s instructions, Qin Fei sat upright on the cushion mat and waited for his orders.

He couldn’t be planning to have him fight a few dummies like the protagonist in the anime, could he?

With his thin arms and legs, he might not even be able to endure it like a protagonist could.

Clap!

Sama suddenly clapped his hands. The entire floor began to rotate slowly, and even the walls around them started emitting bursts of noise—now high, now low, now slow, now fast—making Qin Fei feel utterly miserable.

“Ugh...”

Qin Fei instinctively braced himself against the floor. Even while seated, he felt the world spin wildly around him, his whole body revolting with discomfort, as if he might collapse right there.

Yet seeing Sama before him, still calm and utterly unaffected, Qin Fei could not help but admire him a little.

The spinning world, the piercing noise, and the flashing lights made Qin Fei feel as though he were trapped in a swamp, unable to move of his own accord, much less stand there unshaken like Sama.

“When you can stand up the way I do, you should be able to grasp the power of spirit. One reminder: do not try to endure it with your body alone. Make good use of spirit to strengthen your whole body and adjust your five senses. That is how you overcome this discomfort.”

With that, Sama walked out as if strolling across level ground, leaving Qin Fei alone in the room.

“...”

“Phew. It’s fine. With his talent, he should master spirit very quickly. Just leave him alone for now, and it’s best not to go in.”

Seeing the three digital beasts waiting outside and studying him, Sama offered an explanation before leaving, leaving behind only the still-silent Lurita Beast and the others.