Mini World Game Console

When Ren Xingmei followed the instructions to the subway's G exit at Park Front Station, she immediately saw the sign for the gathering—

It was impossible to miss: a large placard with "Heavenly Lotus" written on it, surrounded by a big crowd. Ren Xingmei walked over and saw that the people were gathered around a kind middle-aged man and a girl holding the sign.

"Sorry, I'm not really familiar with the admissions office, so I'm not too clear about the admission requirements..."

"Haven't heard about any independent recruitment yet."

"Mm-hmm, you don't need to shave your head or become a vegetarian to join our school; our canteen serves good food..."

"Little Star!"

Ren Xingmei was taken aback. Only then did she notice the girl holding the sign was Lin Xianyu, whom she had met a month before. Lin Xianyu tugged at the middle-aged man's sleeve and said, "Teacher Tian, a new student has arrived!"

"Is this someone you know?" Teacher Tian asked Lin Xianyu and then waved to Ren Xingmei. "Please take out your ID for me to check, thank you."

Lin Xianyu whispered something to Teacher Tian, who couldn't help but glance at Ren Xingmei. He took her ID, swiped it on a machine in his hand, nodded, and handed it back to her. "Hengshan High School graduate? I graduated from there too... Please stick this on, and then get on the bus."

Ren Xingmei took her ID and the sticker without any doubt.

Her ID didn't state where she had graduated from. This device, which resembled a POS machine, revealed her high school as soon as he swiped it. Could this gadget wirelessly connect to the citizenship database?

The sticker had strange characters on it and was about a finger joint in width. Lin Xianyu explained, "This is a motion sickness patch, supposedly a product of Spiritual Energy. Once you stick it on, you definitely won't get motion sickness. It will disintegrate and fall off by itself after half a day. You should stick it on now."

Ren Xingmei naturally trusted Lin Xianyu, someone she knew. Convinced that this was indeed the gathering point for Heavenly Lotus Academy, she applied the sticker.

As she was about to board the bus, a woman grabbed her. "Young man, my daughter's starting university this year too. How about leaving your WeChat contact so we can get acquainted?"

"Young man, my daughter has just graduated from college—she's beautiful and has a good job. Why don't you leave your WeChat so we can chat?"

"Young man..."

Ren Xingmei, still not reverting to her usual habits, preferred to wear men's clothing when out and about. Coupled with her short hair and flat chest, she did, at a glance, look quite like a handsome young chap. Without waiting for Teacher Tian to come to her aid, Ren Xingmei pressed down her hat and said in a high-pitched voice, "I like men."

Instantly, the parent who was pulling at her let go and took a step back, but then another voice piped up, "My son..."

Wow, lady, is your son really your own?

By the time she was in Baiyun, Ren Xingmei had already understood the significant weight her admission notice carried. Although the country was now expanding the Cultivator community, Cultivators were still a rare breed among ordinary people, perhaps one in a thousand. In her neighborhood, there were, at most, four preparatory (student) or official Cultivators!

And her family's front door had long been worn down by all kinds of relatives and busybodies—she was only 18, not even at the legal age for marriage, and a whole host of people were already lining up with their sons, hoping to arrange an engagement with her! If not an engagement, then at least to exchange WeChat contacts and get to know each other. Those without sons at home were pushing their daughters to come over and have a chat with her! It was as if she were the Tang Monk.

Of course, the real Tang Monk was her brother; half of the busybodies were indeed looking to matchmake for Ren Suo. In this regard, Ren's mother exhibited astonishing dominance: "My son isn't in need of matchmaking at the moment. If I were to introduce him to someone for marriage, wouldn't that be negating his life of over twenty years, making him feel as if he's not capable of finding a girl he likes in all this time?"

But as Ren Xingmei recalled her mother's advice before she came to Lianjiang, she thought Ren's mother might also regret saying those words. However, a promise was a promise, and she could only refuse the job of picking out a daughter-in-law through tears.

No sooner had Ren Xingmei boarded the bus than she heard a familiar female voice, "Welcome, welcome, just pick a seat. Those older folks outside are really hard to deal with... Huh? Ren Xingmei?"

When she saw Lin Xianyu, Ren Xingmei had already anticipated it, and as expected, she found Gu Yueyan in the first row of the bus.

Compared to a month ago, Gu Yueyan seemed even prettier. Her skin was whiter, and she was as eye-catching as moonlight sitting in the bus. Ren Xingmei greeted her, then her eyes swept around the bus—only to see a few freshmen she didn't recognize.

"Your brother isn't here," Gu Yueyan instantly saw through Ren Xingmei's intention. "Take a seat first."

Ren Xingmei didn't bother to be courteous and directly sat beside her, asking, "Why are you and Xiaoyu here?"

"The academy asked the two of us to give you an introduction," Gu Yueyan explained. "And to help you get your keys, register your Wristbands, and find the cafeteria... Of course, there's a reward for doing these tasks. Plus, I want to meet my future classmates."

"Future classmates?" Ren Xingmei was puzzled for a moment. "Aren't you in your third year of high school now?"

"I skipped a grade; Xiaoyu and I both did," Gu Yueyan said with a hint of pride. "Both Xiaoyu and I are Awakeners. We passed the academy's academic entrance exams over the summer and went straight to freshman year to start the official cultivation curriculum."

Skipped grades! And they were both Awakeners!

Ren Xingmei felt overshadowed. She glanced down at Gu Yueyan's figure, noticing her chest wasn't as full and imposing as Teacher Dong's. Alas, Ren Xingmei's chest was just like her brother's; she was once again utterly defeated!

Ren Xingmei could only change the subject. "Oh, by the way, why did they tell us to gather here before 3 PM today and take the bus to the academy together?"

"The academy is in the suburbs," Gu Yueyan said. "Although there is a direct subway, you could easily get lost if you try to go from the airport or train station by subway. Even after getting off at the subway station, you'd still have to walk a bit. It's better to come to Park Front Station first, where the airport and train station lines meet, and take the bus from there.

"This must be the school's way of helping out the new first-year students, afraid you'll be lost in an unfamiliar place. We all had to take public transport there ourselves in the past. There will probably be buses to transport new students in the next few days too. It's also easier for the school to allocate vehicles if the new students arrive at staggered, scheduled times."

Ren Xingmei agreed with this reasoning and asked, "How's my brother been doing lately? All I know is that he advanced to the second turn..."

"Teacher Dong has been really busy recently," Gu Yueyan said with a shrug. "I haven't been to the teachers' dormitory in a long time. I also only know about his promotion to the second turn."

"Oh, he notified you too, huh? He really loves to show off," Ren Xingmei said, narrowing her eyes at Gu Yueyan.

"Yeah, he sent a message in the middle of the night, arrogantly asking if I had advanced yet. He really has a lot of free time," Gu Yueyan said, taking out her phone and flicking to that message. It made Ren Xingmei's eyebrow raise—

The message Ren Suo sent her had no other words, just a breezy, "I've advanced to the second turn, la la la." Ren Xingmei had thought Ren Suo would have sent a group message, but it turned out not to be the case!

Ren Suo was actually playing favorites, and I wasn't the favored one! This grudge, I'll remember it!

***

Zhao Huo looked at the surveillance footage on his laptop. "Is that your sister?" he said. "That tomboy is quite to my liking..."

Ren Suo mercilessly reached out and flicked Zhao Huo's earring, making him yelp in pain. "You better take care of your wife and the housekeeper first."

"What housekeeper? I clearly only have a fiancée! Don't falsely accuse me and tarnish my reputation; I'm not that kind of jerk!" Zhao Huo argued vehemently.

The righteous and villainous Cultivators in the mountain forest had already put on their makeup and were making final preparations. The actors who had nothing else to do gathered around the computer, which was directly connected to a mobile signal and linked to the bus's cameras. This allowed them to clearly see the new students on the bus and identify their respective targets.

"Ten males and ten females—such perfect balance?"

"Four of them are registered Awakeners. Don't let things go south, and always maintain 'Clothing.' The students have Protection Spells, but you don't."

"Remember, you can only use the blunt weapons we provide. Don't exert too much force when dealing with ordinary students. They aren't even first turn; it's very easy for injuries to accumulate to a critical point."

"Speaking of which," Ren Suo brought up another matter, "what if the students think our test is too harsh afterward and complain about us?"

"Admit the mistake, but don't change our ways," Liao Yonghai said. "Combat training is already part of the freshman syllabus. The Heaven's Secret Ritual this time is actually quite mild. If a student can't even accept the Heaven's Secret Ritual, they can transfer to any other university in the country as compensation.

"The Heaven's Secret Ritual isn't just the academy's decision; it's also a major national test, merely executed by us, the Top Ten Academies. The military has already tried a similar 'Assault Type' Heaven's Secret. But… trained soldiers are different. Their physical and psychological conditions are strong, so to force them into an extreme state, we have to practically beat them half to death. Although a small number of them successfully performed a Heaven's Secret, most needed dozens of days of recuperation to recover.

"Students are different. They are quite fragile, both physically and mentally. It doesn't take much to push them to the edge, and they inherently have high talent, so the success rate of an 'Assault Type' Heaven's Secret is very high.

"If this Heaven's Secret proves effective, or if the results are very good, then all participants, including the students, must keep it confidential. Perhaps the Heaven's Secret will officially become part of the teaching syllabus."

Ren Suo asked, "Doesn't that mean I'll have to be involved in every Heaven's Secret...?"

"I couldn't say before, but now it's certain. Second turn Healing Cultivators are rare," Liao Yonghai said with a smile. "Not to mention you learned 'Surgical Thread' and 'Pain-Relieving Therapy.' The academy will definitely want you present for any dangerous operations."

Ren Suo was stunned. "How did you know?"

"You updated the staff information in the educational system yourself!" Liao Yonghai said, half-laughing, half-exasperated.

Slapping his forehead, Ren Suo then remembered that in order to protect his iron rice bowl, as soon as he learned those two spells, he had rushed to update his cultivation information and mastered spells in the educational system.

However, he had forgotten that the more secure his iron rice bowl became, the more he would be relied upon!

The most frustrating part was that this whole Heaven's Secret Ritual was ultimately his fault for playing 'If You Are Strong, Climb Ten Thousand Meters'! He couldn't even blame anyone else!

Feeling depressed, Ren Suo continued to watch the surveillance footage when, suddenly, something caught his eye. He looked down at the roster and said, "Those two Awakeners are a couple?"

The others also came over and saw a couple at the back of the bus, whispering affectionately to each other. According to the roster, they were indeed two of the four Awakeners among the twenty new students!

"Ah, students these days. I really need to educate them."

"You, a mere first turn, better not mess things up. Let the second turns handle it!"

"You second turns just handle crowd control on the perimeter. Leave the breaking up... burning... chasing to me, formerly of the reconnaissance company!"

Zhao Huo, this life-winner with a fiancée, disdainfully glanced at these riffraff and then turned his head to see Ren Suo silently contemplating. He asked, "What are you thinking about, so lost in thought?"

"Looking at this student couple, I'm reminded of my high school days..." Ren Suo reminisced.

"What about your high school days?" Dong Chengling, who had appeared behind them at some point, chimed in. Zhao Huo raised an eyebrow, wanting to give Ren Suo a heads-up, but it was too late. Ren Suo continued:

"In high school, I too watched others fall in love from the sidelines."

"I see." Dong Chengling nodded calmly and turned to leave.

Zhao Huo breathed a sigh of relief, patted Ren Suo on the shoulder, and said sincerely, "Bro, you're so smooth!"

"...I don't think you're complimenting me." Ren Suo shrugged off his hand. Just then, from the corner of his eye, he caught sight of Bai Ji, who was surrounded by girls. Bai Ji noticed him too and gave them a slight smile.

"By the way, Ren Suo, what were you and Bai Ji talking about just now?" Zhao Huo inquired.

Ren Suo thought for a moment. "Simply put, he was bragging about his courage, talent, and intelligence."

"I have to admit, in all three aspects, you are... well, you have great potential for development," Zhao Huo commented.

"Don't think I can't hear the sarcasm hidden in that sort of teacher's remark."

「Wuling Mountain Grand Canyon Scenic Area Management Office.」

Xiao Huang came in to switch shifts and saw an old monk leaving. He smiled and asked, "Brother Chen, what was that monk here for?"

"Filed a loss report," Brother Chen complained. "There have been a lot of such reports these past few days. This monk said he lost a string of Hand Beads that had been blessed with Buddhist Law, a young man said he lost Noise-Canceling Headphones worth thousands, and someone even lost their boots... By the way, Xiao Huang, you don't need to change your clothes. Come with me; I have to work overtime today too."

"What? Why?"

"A Tactical Bureau captain lost his vest here! It's said to be very important. All the staff in the area have to look for it—if we can't find it, there goes our salary for the month!"

"Another deduction from the bonus? That's so unfair! Where did he lose it?" Xiao Huang complained, taking off the work clothes he had just put on.

"That's the worst part—he can't say where he lost it. We have to carefully search all the main attractions! The Buddha Beads too, and the headphones, and the vest; one by one, they lose things without an explanation. It's as if ghosts are to blame!"