NOVEL NEXT
Chapter 73: Senior Brothers & Senior Sisters
"We're all family here; just call me senior brother,'" Du Bai said with a grin.
"Alright, senior brother," Tang San responded amicably.
"Let's go, time for breakfast." Du Bai led Tang San into the cafeteria. The breakfast was plentiful; though it lacked delicacies like demonic beast meat, there was an ample supply of meat, eggs, and staple foods. The meals were much better than what he had in Wind Wolf Town.
Apart from them, some other students were already having breakfast. Du Bai introduced Tang San to them, helping him get acquainted. With Tang San's memory, he had already remembered the names of these dozen senior brothers and sisters, with Du Bai and Cheng Zicheng being the most familiar.
"I'll take you to class later. This morning, we have physical training with Teacher Yu. You better be mentally prepared. Teacher Yu is—" Du Bai was interrupted by a voice coming from the cafeteria entrance.
"Wow, Du Bai! Talking behind Teacher Yu's back, you're done for. Hehe."
Tang San looked toward the source of the voice and saw that it was Cheng Zicheng speaking, her face full of smiles.
"Ah? I didn't say anything! You must have heard wrong. I was just saying Teacher Yu is the most beautiful woman in our academy town," Du Bai quickly corrected himself.
Cheng Zicheng looked at Du Bai, sat beside them, and said to Tang San, "Don't listen to his nonsense. Although Teacher Yu is strict in teaching, it's all for our own good. However, you'll need to eat more for the physical training class this morning, or else you might be unable to keep up. I'll go get some food."
With that, she stood up to get some food.
"What about the afternoon?" Tang San inquired.
"In the afternoon, we have a practical combat class with Teacher Mu," Du Bai replied.
Tang San vaguely understood that when Du Bai referred to Teacher Yu, he meant Mu Yunyu, and Teacher Mu was Mu Enqing. He noted these names.
"Is it like this every day?" Tang San asked.
"Most of the time, yes. Sometimes, Teacher Guan gives us lectures. Those days are generally for rest, without physical training. Then there's Teacher Si Ru, who has a class once a week, or rather, a session to help us enhance our cultivation. You'll understand when you attend. The mayor checks on us about once a month. Those who do well get praised, those who don’t get scolded. The one who improves the most each time gets a reward, but I've never received it," Du Bai explained, a bit disheartened by the end.
By this point, Cheng Zicheng had returned with breakfast. "You're doing alright. At least you've never been punished. The teachers are lenient with you. They all say your Demonic God Transformation is difficult to cultivate and moves on slowly, so even if you're last, you won't be punished. Hmph, it's unfair."
Du Bai's Celestial Fox Transformation seemed indeed difficult to improve. Tang San could discern the cultivation levels of some students from the bloodline aura emanating from their bodies. For instance, Du Bai was at the third order, and Cheng Zicheng around the fourth. Both were young, around eleven or twelve years old. The strength of the other senior brothers and sisters varied, but some were at a level even Tang San couldn't precisely determine, definitely above the sixth order.
As she ate, Cheng Zicheng turned to Tang San and said, "You should be careful in this afternoon's practical combat class. Since you're new here, Teacher Mu will definitely want you to showcase your abilities. Maybe I'll end up being your opponent."
"Thank you for the heads-up, senior sister," Tang San responded earnestly.
With a hand on Tang San's shoulder, Du Bai said to Cheng Zicheng, "Little Orange, if you're going to spar with our junior brother today, be careful not to hurt him."
Cheng Zicheng raised an eyebrow. "Since when can you call me Little Orange? Maybe I’ll let you call me that when you can get through a round with me and still look like a human being."
Du Bai's mouth twitched slightly. He couldn't beat anyone here when it came to combat strength.
"It's like you dare to hit me," he said. "Aren't you afraid of bad luck?"
His rebuttal didn't anger Cheng Zicheng, and she instead looked curiously at Tang San, "Tang San, did anything happen to you after that backlash you caused him yesterday? No changes?"
"Ah? Should there be any change?" Tang San asked curiously.
Du Bai also looked at him with curiosity. "I am a child of fortune. If my Celestial Fox Vision is cultivated to a high enough level, it can even see the future. Anyone who is my enemy or hurts me will be hit by bad luck. Haven't you felt it?"
Tang San silently shook his head, thinking, I am a God King with Divine Consciousness. It would be strange if your little bit of fortune backlash could affect me.
Du Bai scratched his head, "It didn't work? That's strange! I need to break through, and I need to work harder. Teacher Guan said that my Celestial Fox Vision will have some practical abilities once I reach the fourth order. Hmph, I'll be powerful then."
Cheng Zicheng rolled her eyes and continued eating her breakfast.
After breakfast, they assembled in the courtyard.
Including Tang San, there were sixteen students at the Redemption Society. Tang San, similar in stature to Du Bai, was among the shortest in the academy. The two of them stood at the edge of the group.
Mu Yunyu, whom they hadn't seen in the cafeteria, slowly approached and stood before everyone.
Tang San noticed that with her arrival, all the students instinctively straightened up.
Mu Yunyu smiled and said, “Today, we continue with physical training. We have a new member joining us today, Tang San. You're nine years old, right?"
"Yes, Teacher Yu," Tang San immediately responded.
"Your training intensity will be the same as Du Bai's. The goal is Tianpeng. Get your weighted gear, and let's set off," Mu Yunyu stated calmly.
Upon hearing the word “Tianpeng,” the faces of all the students turned sour, but no one dared to complain. They immediately headed toward a building on the side.
Entering the room, Tang San understood what “weighted gear” meant.
On the walls hung items resembling leather vests, each with dozens of pockets.
Each person chose a vest according to their size and then walked over to a table nearby, inserting the metal bars from the table into the pockets of their vests.
When Du Bai helped Tang San select a fitted vest, they approached the metal bars. Du Bai whispered to Tang San, "Each bar weighs ten kilograms. You and I have the same standard, so that's four bars."
Tang San noticed that a senior disciple had at least twenty metal bars inserted in his vest! Wouldn't that mean carrying a weight of two hundred kilograms? That's terrifying.
"Where is Tianpeng?" Tang San picked up four metal bars, inserting them in the front and back of his vest to maintain balance.
With forty kilograms on him, he felt his body slightly heavy, but with his current cultivation level, it was certainly not a big deal.
Du Bai smiled wryly. "Tianpeng is in the mountains, about a hundred kilometers from here. It’s a really difficult trek, there are peaks, cliffs, valleys, and all that. Also, no special powers allowed. Our bloodline abilities will be sealed and we can only go there using our normal human bodies. We cannot use the Demonic God Transformation."
"Wow, that harsh?" Tang San was immediately startled. After all, the physical strength of humans couldn't compare with that of the demons. It was not an easy task for mere children to carry so much weight while climbing mountains with the power of the Demonic God Transformation sealed.
"That's how harsh it is. Teacher Yu will follow the entire way. The worst part is the last three to return won't get any food. Let's go quickly! Everyone is in a fair competition. Since we’re younger and smaller, we get less weight to carry, but that’s all."
The two left the room to find Mu Yunyu waiting outside. She approached them and put her hands on them, and Tang San immediately felt a strange force entering his body.
The next moment, the energy in his dantian seemed to have solidified. A cool sensation lingered in his chest and abdomen, yet he could not mobilize any energy.