Mark slapped his face twice with both hands. "Fine, let's sort through the memories first and act accordingly," he muttered to himself. By memories, he meant anything that could aid his survival in the dungeon. Everything related to nobility was useless; information on monsters was good in general, but pointless for the first floor, where only goblins roamed.
Weapons, martial arts, and magic—most of these were damn near useless too! Fine, the fundamentals were strong, and those would definitely benefit Mark. But the vast majority of what was learned after that was impractical. For instance, most of the weapon and martial arts techniques had been performed by mimicking them through his eyes; without them, that knowledge was dead weight. Magic was slightly better, but there were very few spells related to Earth and Air, the elements he had a natural affinity for. It was mostly Ice and Lightning. Moreover, the mana consumption of most spells was far beyond Mark's current capacity.
Regarding his mana capacity, Mark evaluated himself through the System:
Mana: D
Ki: E
Prolonged meditation, absorbing Thaddeus's essence, and entering the Inner World—all of these had pushed Mark's mana capacity from E+, past D-, to a solid D rank. As for Ki, after extensive physical training, he could finally sense it within his body. However, it was mostly suppressed. Mark could release that suppression and utilize Ki at any moment, but it was still a gamble. He didn't want both Mana and Ki circulating in his body yet; the consequences of losing control would be severe.
For now, he needed to return to what he considered the fundamentals. His physical condition had improved significantly; he just needed to integrate more effective and targeted exercises from his own memories. His martial arts training would follow three distinct paths:
Full-Contact Striking: Similar to Muay Thai from Mark's world. Utilizing every part of the body as a weapon. Simply put: hit harder.
Defense and Grappling: Neutralizing the opponent's strikes and immobilizing them through various means—such as takedowns and submissions. This can be likened to Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu.
Footwork and Agility: Evading strikes, navigating diverse terrains, and mastering silent, high-speed movements.
These were the fundamentals Mark knew from his memories as Thaddeus. He believed that with proper training, he could recover them quickly. Some specialized techniques existed, but they were mostly for show—designed for duels and exhibitions rather than real danger. They were useless. Strengthening himself with Mana and Ki was currently off the table.
As for weaponry, he still had to rely on his Blind Staff; he had no other specialized weapons in the dungeon. While the starter kit included short swords and daggers, they were merely basic tools and couldn't replace his staff. He didn't need to overcomplicate the staff techniques; he could simply master the basic strikes and parries, integrating them with his martial arts fundamentals.
There are two ways to perform magic:
Incantation: Reciting specific spells. This requires mental maturity and mana from the mage.
Circulation: Channeling mana through the Mana Veins. This requires a precise sensitivity to mana and its flow.
Mark had always used the second path, a foundation laid back when he was Thaddeus. He decided to learn every practical Earth and Air element spell he could, one by one. But he wouldn't rush. He had to ensure total mastery over each one.
Most importantly, he didn't forget his primary focus: Senses. He needed to train his Mana Sense, Blind Sense, and Air Sense, while also striving to learn Earth Sense.
With that, the plan was ready. It was clear he would be busy enough to keep absurd thoughts, like taking his own life, out of his head. Mark felt a wave of hunger wash over him. He checked the goblin meat in his inventory—there was still a bit left. It would be enough to sustain him through several days of training before he needed to descend to the first floor. With those thoughts, he washed up and ate. Once his hunger was satisfied, he drifted into a deep sleep.
The next day, Mark woke up and immediately activated both Mana Sense and Blind Sense simultaneously. From then on, a steady cycle of training, sleeping, eating, and washing followed. After about a week, the goblin meat finally ran out. It was time to prepare for his descent to the first floor.
As for his progress, his physical condition had improved slightly more. He had mastered one offensive Earth element spell and gained Earth Sense; his movements with the staff had also become significantly more fluid. However, all of this still needed to be tested against a real enemy. Mark's sensory radius now extended to 35 meters. His martial arts prowess grew explosively, though the primary reason wasn't new learning—it was simply the act of remembering. He knew that from this point forward, if he wanted to learn anything truly new, progress would inevitably slow down.