Su Yu and Chen Hao were dividing the spoils.
Inside the Instructor Affairs Office.
Bai Feng looked rather bored. Sitting on a small chair in the Instructor Affairs Office, he watched several people argue without end. Once they had said nearly enough, he cut in, "Senior Uncle, are we still taking away the prospective students from Nanyuan Academy?"
"Taking them where? Does living in Great Xia Prefecture not cost money?"
Liu Wenyan shot back with a single sentence. Bai Feng looked helpless. You were the ones who said earlier that you wanted to take them away. I was only asking.
"Then, Senior Uncle, has there been any progress on tempering your body? Does Nanyuan have any powerful essence blood or vitality pills for you to use?"
The moment those words came out, the old Academy Head froze. He gave an awkward laugh. "Well... Researcher Bai, look... on the Civilization Academy's side..."
"No need to beg them!"
Liu Wenyan said indifferently, "I'll temper it slowly. My Willpower has manifested anyway, so there's no rush."
Bai Feng hurriedly said, "Senior Uncle, you can't put it that way. Without powerful essence blood to assist in body tempering, your body may not reach the level of an ordinary Soaring Realm body cultivator. That will have a major impact in the future."
"The stronger the essence blood, the greater the help it gives you. If you had Soaring Realm God-Demon Essence Blood to temper your body and forge your foundation, with your powerful Willpower, you might even have hope of instantly forging the foundation of the Soaring Third Level."
In the early stages of cultivating the path of Willpower, the physical body was not important.
But upon reaching Soaring, it absolutely had to be valued. That was the beginning of building one's foundation with the body.
The stronger the God-Demon Blood used at this point, the more solid the foundation forged.
Liu Wenyan acted as though he had not heard him. God-Demon Blood?
Soaring Realm God-Demon Blood!
Where was he supposed to find that?
Killing a God or Devil on the Battlefields of the Heavens was difficult. Besides, most Gods and Devils on the Battlefields of the Heavens were above the Soaring Realm. Those that were too powerful were unsuitable, while the weaker ones would not do either. The best choice was precisely the Soaring Realm.
Liu Wenyan had never even considered using God-Demon Blood to build his foundation. Even at the Civilization Academy, only a handful of people each year could use God-Demon Blood for that purpose.
It was far too rare!
Seeing that Liu Wenyan was ignoring him, Bai Feng thought for a moment and said, "Teacher seems to still have a few drops of Flying Tiger essence blood at the Soaring Realm. Flying Tigers are very strong too, with formidable bodies. Why don't you speak to Teacher, Senior Uncle..."
"Get lost!"
Just as Liu Wenyan finished cursing, the old Academy Head asked excitedly, "Flying Tiger? Flying Tiger essence blood from the thirty-second-ranked race among the Myriad Races?"
"Mm."
"Old Liu!"
The Academy Head said excitedly, "Stop being so stubbornly proud! Relying on yourself and relying on Nanyuan, where could you possibly get essence blood from a race ranked among the top hundred of the Myriad Races? Even if Flying Tigers are inferior to Gods and Devils, the gap is not large. Using it to build your body's foundation could directly bring you to the Soaring Second Level, or even the third. At your age, do you still intend to waste years in the early Soaring Realm?"
Without powerful essence blood to build his foundation, if Liu Wenyan forged a Soaring First Level body, then despite his powerful Willpower, it would take him at least five years, perhaps ten, to cultivate to the third level.
He was already over seventy. How much time did he have left to waste?
Beside them, Xia Bing, the squad leader of the Dragon Martial Guard, opened his mouth slightly, seeming to hesitate. After considering it, he still said in a muffled voice, "Instructor Liu, Flying Tiger essence blood truly is powerful. I think it would be best to ask the Civilization Academy for a few drops to build your foundation. The Ten Thousand Races Cult has entered Great Xia Prefecture now, and Nanyuan's strength is limited... We still need Instructor Liu to look after us."
With Flying Tiger essence blood as a foundation, bad luck would mean the Soaring Second Level, while good luck meant the third. Moreover, the foundation would be robust, and breaking through to the middle stage might take only a few years.
A few years from now, with one more mid-stage Soaring expert in Nanyuan, they would not have such difficulty even defending themselves.
Liu Wenyan ignored them and looked at Bai Feng, frowning. "There's no need for you to worry about these matters. Bai Feng, how many students is the Civilization Academy planning to recruit from Nanyuan this time?"
"About ten."
Bai Feng smiled. "Senior Uncle, are you planning to squeeze a few more in?"
Liu Wenyan did not answer. Instead, he asked, "How many are being recruited in total?"
"Around two thousand. But five hundred slots are reserved for other prefectures, while the rest belong to Great Xia Prefecture. Great Xia Prefecture recruits around fifteen hundred people in total. Based on the proportions, the prefectural capital takes about a thousand every year, and the remaining places go to the twenty-eight cities."
Among the twenty-eight cities, Nanyuan was the smallest and weakest, so it received the fewest admissions slots.
About ten—that was the number of students Daxia Civilization Academy recruited from Nanyuan each year.
"Add a few more this year!"
Liu Wenyan said, "At least two more!"
"Senior Uncle, I can't make that decision..."
"Assistant researchers have at least two slots. Since you conveniently slaughtered a Soaring Fourth Level cultivator, use those slots as payment."
"Senior Uncle, aren't you being unreasonable? I killed him. If I hadn't come, you wouldn't have been able to kill him either..."
"That's right, I'm being unreasonable!"
Liu Wenyan was prepared to be unreasonable. "Nanyuan lost more than ten students this time. The students are depressed now. That is Nanyuan's responsibility, and it is also Great Xia Prefecture's responsibility. Great Xia Prefecture did not send aid in time. That was wrong!"
"Adding a few slots so the students can quickly pull themselves out of their slump—isn't that what should be done?"
Bai Feng opened his mouth, looking somewhat helpless.
Though he did not have much use for his two slots, if he used them to grant a favor, it would still be no small favor.
Forget it. Bai Feng said helplessly, "Fine, Senior Uncle. Nanyuan will get two additional slots, but the prerequisite is that they meet the basic requirements. Otherwise, it won't work. Even if they enter, they'll be kicked out."
Liu Wenyan finally smiled. "Of course! One of these two extra slots goes to Su Yu, and the other to Liu Yue!"
"..."
Everyone looked at him. What an old fox!
Those two were practically guaranteed to get in. Giving them the slots meant it was ten birds in the hand.
After they were admitted, they would not take up Nanyuan's original slots. That way, Nanyuan could send two additional people to Daxia Civilization Academy this year.
Bai Feng clearly knew about this as well. The academy had those people's lists too. Hearing this, he did not know whether to laugh or cry. "As you wish. That works too. Once those two enter the academy and produce results, it will count as my achievement as well."
This was rather good too. At least he would not lose face. Otherwise, if their grades were truly poor and they got kicked out later, that would be embarrassing.
Liu Wenyan smiled, then added, "Good. Also, since these two are entering using your slots, to ensure they get in, go give them some guidance. Don't let anything go wrong and cause them to fail the assessment. If that happens, I won't let you off!"
"Senior Uncle, this..."
Bai Feng looked miserable. "I'm a researcher, and they're students of a middle academy..."
The difference was enormous!
Did they really need him to guide them?
"Assistant researcher!"
Liu Wenyan stressed the words. Assistant came first; researcher came second. Did he understand?
"Fine, fine. Since Senior Uncle has said so, no problem. Have them come find me later. I'll stay here another two or three days before leaving. Traveling here has left me a little tired anyway."
Liu Wenyan was delighted now. He impatiently waved his hand and dismissed Bai Feng.
"Burning the bridge after crossing the river!"
Bai Feng muttered helplessly and had no choice but to leave.
After he was gone, the old Academy Head could not help laughing. "Old Liu really has influence. Now the academy will gain two more talented students!"
Beside them, Xia Bing seemed rather straightforward as he said in a muffled voice, "It's Senior Researcher Hong's influence."
"What did you say?"
Liu Wenyan's gaze turned unfriendly, and Xia Bing instantly shut his mouth.
That was simply the truth. Was he not allowed to say it?
If not for that, Bai Feng would never have given Liu Wenyan face. Even if Liu Wenyan had reached the manifestation stage, Bai Feng would not have cared.
Though he thought that, Xia Bing did not continue. Changing the subject, he said, "Someone just reported that two Ten Thousand Races Cult members were killed near the cafeteria. One died under an academy combat blade, while the other had his heart shattered by claw techniques. There were no instructors, City Guards, or people from Jifeng Hall nearby at the time."
Liu Wenyan looked at him and frowned. "So what if there weren't? Do you need an identity to kill Ten Thousand Races Cult members?"
"Please don't misunderstand, Instructor Liu. I'm worried that someone may be lying in wait within the academy."
He continued, "But their strength should not have been too great. There was probably an element of surprise attack, so the Qianjun Realm is more likely."
"Has anyone come forward to claim the reward?"
"Not yet. We're still compiling the statistics."
The old Academy Head thought for a moment. "If it was someone in the Qianjun Realm, they will be difficult to find. Even if a Qianjun Realm cultivator is hiding among us, it is no great matter. The academy is not so helpless that it cannot deal with even Qianjun Realm cultivators. Old Liu has broken through, so even the Wanshi Realm is not much to worry about."
"Don't investigate for now, and don't take it too seriously. Perhaps one of the students' parents came in and killed them. That cannot be ruled out."
The Academy Head did not pay much attention to it. Perhaps some parent had been worried that their child would encounter trouble, rushed over at the time, and killed the enemy.
Now that everything was over, trespassing into the academy was hardly something to boast about. It would not be strange for them to slip away in secret.
"That's true."
Xia Bing answered, then smiled. "We'll take another look later and see whether anyone claims the reward. I'm worried that students might claim it. Falsely claiming credit would be troublesome, especially since it is currently the assessment period for higher academies. If it is discovered, the students will be badly affected."
"What student would be foolish enough to falsely claim credit?"
The old Academy Head did not think much of it. If some parent had come and killed the enemies, then having their own child falsely claim the credit involved slots at the War Academy. If exposed, they would have to bear responsibility.
Liu Wenyan said impatiently, "Don't speak so absolutely. It isn't impossible for someone to get lucky and kill one. Of course, if someone truly comes to report it, just investigate. There's no need to make such a fuss."
The group did not discuss it further. The old Academy Head felt that no student would come to claim the reward, but in truth, a certain student was currently wandering around outside, waiting for the corpses to be burned before reporting his achievement.
Once the matter had been dealt with, night had fallen.
This time, Su Yu did not return home with Liu Wenyan. Liu Wenyan was busy now, and Su Yu did not want to disturb him. Once the alert was lifted, Su Yu returned home.
When he got home, he found that after several days away, a thin layer of dust had settled inside.
Only after returning home did Su Yu finally let out a long breath.
Today, he had killed two people.
He had not shown anything unusual in front of Chen Hao, but his emotions were actually churning fiercely. He was not a soldier, merely an ordinary student at a middle academy. How could his first time killing someone leave him without any reaction?
"I was lucky. If my luck had been even slightly worse, I would have been killed today."
Especially the first man. At the time, even Su Yu had nearly believed that he was a teacher looking for someone. If he had truly believed it, Chen Hao and he would be corpses now.
"Although I can unleash attack power at the Qianjun Seventh Level, the gap between me and the Qianjun Realm is still too great. As long as the other side reacts, I'm dead."
"My strength is still insufficient. Only the strong can decide the outcome of battle."
"If Instructor Liu hadn't broken through, Nanyuan Academy would have been finished this time. No—Bai Feng arrived too. But all of this proves that only the strong can determine the direction of war..."
He had felt many things today. The people who had truly determined the battle's course had been those Soaring Realm experts.
Once City Lord Wu Wenhai and Xia Bing, the Dragon Martial Guard squad leader, were killed, Nanyuan would have had no way to fight on.
Just like those Soaring cultivators from the Ten Thousand Races Cult. Once one was killed, their forces instantly collapsed like a mountain avalanche. One person decided the entire battle's direction, causing the Ten Thousand Races Cult to be utterly wiped out.
"So... Dad really is cannon fodder on the battlefield."
Su Yu was worried. Today had only been a small local war in Nanyuan, while his father was involved in a colossal battlefield concerning the Myriad Races of the Heavens.
That was not some petty skirmish like this!
"Even Soaring cultivators are actually nothing over there. Nanyuan alone had seven Soaring cultivators fighting today. On the Battlefields of the Heavens, any random battle might involve dozens or even hundreds of Soaring cultivators."
"I had thought too simply before. Even if I get the chance to intern after entering the War Academy, I probably won't be able to do much. What can a Qianjun or Wanshi cultivator do?"
"At minimum, I need to reach Soaring. Only Soaring cultivators have mobility, and they can be considered the backbone of the Battlefields of the Heavens."
Su Yu thought about many things. In the end, it all came down to strength—and the sooner and stronger, the better.
"I need to keep using essence blood to cultivate!"
At this moment, he had five drops of essence blood in total. Three had been seized, while two had been exchanged for before the battle.
"Two hundred and sixty thousand Anping Coins, ten gold coins, five drops of essence blood, five Body Tempering Pills, seven Merit Points, one secret manual, one martial technique..."
That was all of Su Yu's current wealth.
He could not use the Body Tempering Pills yet. They were meant for the Qianjun Realm, and were not cheap. Xia Family Merchant Guild sold them for around thirty thousand each.
"Two drops of Iron Winged Bird Essence Blood. I'll use them both for cultivation, then exchange for a few more later... No, I'll buy a few drops. I can't use up all my Merit Points. I need some for self-defense."
He would keep a few drops for self-defense, just in case. After all, he did not know whether anyone from the Ten Thousand Races Cult remained in hiding.
"Continue cultivating!"
Su Yu keenly felt his own weakness. He was not even worthy of being cannon fodder, so he no longer hesitated.
During the past few days at Liu Wenyan's place, he had not dared use essence blood to cultivate. Now that he was back home, he had no such concerns.
He swallowed a drop of essence blood. Just as before, the surrounding vitality quickly gathered around him.
The nine apertures gave off a faint glow. The aperture in his right ear trembled and pulsed, showing signs of opening.
The hour of cultivation time had taken Su Yu less than half that long last time.
This time, it lasted a little longer.
The Essence Gathering Art was the foundation-building method used by the Iron Winged Bird race. Its absorption speed was not particularly fast, and that was precisely why it suited Su Yu at this stage.
About forty minutes later, Su Yu stopped cultivating.
The aperture in his right ear had not opened this time, but Su Yu could feel that if he did it once more, he would have a chance to open it and reach the Kaiyuan Fifth Stage.
However, his body was somewhat overloaded. It was probably no longer suitable to cultivate today.
"I'll come back tomorrow and continue taking essence blood. Tomorrow, I'll have hope of reaching the Kaiyuan Fifth Stage!"
Su Yu was delighted. Kaiyuan Fifth Stage!
The Kaiyuan stages were not obvious, and ordinary people found them difficult to detect. Nanyuan Academy had students at the Kaiyuan Fourth Stage, but no one knew whether there were any at the Kaiyuan Fifth Stage. Some people liked to hide their strength, then make a startling splash during the assessment.
At any rate, at this stage, Su Yu had not heard of anyone at Nanyuan Academy reaching the Kaiyuan Fifth Stage.
After finishing his cultivation, Su Yu finally had time to study the three drops of seized essence blood and the cultivation manual.
Just as Su Yu was studying those things.
At Nanyuan Academy, night had fallen.
Inside the Instructor Affairs Office.
Chen Hao had been brought in!
That fellow had never left. He had kept waiting, and the instant the corpses were burned, he had immediately run off to claim the reward. Thus... he had been escorted to the Instructor Affairs Office.
The old Academy Head and Liu Wenyan personally interrogated him!
The old Academy Head was so angry that his nose nearly went crooked. He asked sternly, "You killed them?"
"Mm!"
"Falsely claiming credit is severely punished. Do you understand?"
"I understand!"
Chen Hao nodded. He knew that, but since Ah Yu had killed them... that meant he had killed them. It was not falsely claiming credit, and he felt no pressure about it.
Besides, Ah Yu had taken his private savings. He had exchanged them for it.
Ah Yu did not want this credit, and letting it go to waste would be a pity. He had traded more than ten years' worth of private savings for it. Did that not make it his achievement?
Therefore, at this moment, Chen Hao was completely forthright.
I didn't claim credit I didn't earn!
I even helped Ah Yu draw the enemy's attention. That counted as merit too. I drew two people's attention; put together, that meant I'd killed one person. Nothing wrong with that.
The old Academy Head looked at Liu Wenyan. Liu Wenyan tugged at his beard so hard he was nearly pulling it out.
It felt... like he wasn't lying!
The old Academy Head understood, yet he was also somewhat dumbfounded. He hadn't seen through it?
Was Chen Hao, this kid, actually deep and calculating?
He didn't look like it!
How could a kid barely in his teens have such deep cunning?
"Tell me, how did you kill him?"
"Ah Yu and I were hiding in the cafeteria. Someone suddenly came in pretending to be a teacher. Then Ah Yu saw through him and tricked him by saying there were other people hiding. That guy stupidly followed Ah Yu out, and I killed him with one slash from behind..."
Chen Hao kept it simple, because Su Yu had told him to keep it simple. Anything too complicated might be beyond this guy's ability to remember and expose loopholes.
"Su Yu?"
Liu Wenyan asked.
"Mm."
"You two were together?"
"Mm."
"Why were you carrying a saber? The practical combat instructors said you'd borrowed a practice saber long ago..."
"Ah Yu said he'd broken through to Kaiyuan Fourth Stage. I didn't believe him, so I went with him to the practical combat room to spar. He said he wanted to keep a low profile, so we came out to find somewhere else to fight..."
"Kaiyuan Fourth Stage?"
The old Academy Head said in surprise, "He's at Kaiyuan Fourth Stage already?"
"Mm. He's been cultivating really hard lately. It probably has something to do with Uncle Su going to the Battlefields of the Heavens."
The old Academy Head nodded. He somewhat understood now, and it wasn't too surprising. With decent luck, breaking through from the third stage to the fourth by now was normal.
Su Yu was quick-witted. He probably hadn't put much effort into cultivation before; reaching the third stage already wasn't slow.
After thinking for a moment, Liu Wenyan asked, "How did you slash him at the time?"
"Like this, of course!"
Chen Hao gestured. He had seen how Su Yu had struck at the time. As a witness, naturally he knew what had happened.
Xia Bing, who had remained silent at the side, nodded slightly at the sight. As a Dragon Martial Guard at the Soaring Realm, he could judge it. The saber technique that had killed that man was more or less like this.
Liu Wenyan continued, "Then there was another person killed outside the cafeteria. Was that you two as well?"
"Huh?"
Chen Hao pretended not to understand. He couldn't admit to this one. Ah Yu had said so: killing one was a coincidence; killing two would get him hauled off for research.
Liu Wenyan smiled. "You only killed one?"
"Mm."
"You killed that guy with one slash. Do you know how strong he was?"
"I don't know. There wasn't time to ask while I was slashing him."
"..."
The old Academy Head nearly laughed in exasperation. "Then why did you come claim credit now? Why didn't you come earlier?"
"I was scared."
Chen Hao looked honest and simple as he answered candidly, "It was my first time killing someone, so I was a little scared. I almost wet my pants, and I still hadn't gotten over it... But I didn't wet my pants, really!"
The old Academy Head ignored him and swept his gaze over him. He spotted faint bloodstains on Chen Hao's body and frowned slightly. Had this kid really killed him?
"Where is Su Yu?"
"He went home. Ah Yu said it was fine if the Merit Points were split with him. The credit for killing the man was mine, but he contributed his brains too, so he wanted a share of the Merit Points."
"This kid!" Even Liu Wenyan laughed. "So you claim the credit, while he takes the Merit Points? You get extra points for the War Academy, and he gets the tangible benefits?"
"Mm."
Liu Wenyan looked at the old Academy Head, then at Xia Bing. At this moment, even the old Academy Head didn't know what to say.
After considering it, Xia Bing asked, "Have you practiced claw techniques?"
"No."
"When your saber came down, what did it feel like?"
"Didn't feel like much. I was too scared then. It got stuck a little. His neck was really hard!"
"Where's the saber?"
"I just returned it to the practical combat department."
"Has your father come to the academy?"
"Not yet. I just called him. My dad said he was working overtime at the department. He's the deputy director of the Traffic Supervision Department."
Xia Bing said gravely, "Someone, go check his father's whereabouts!"
"Yes!"
A Dragon Martial Guard outside the door answered. Roughly three or four minutes later, someone reported, "Chen Qinghe has remained at the Traffic Supervision Department and has not left. When the battle occurred, he was at the Traffic Supervision Department directing the maintenance of traffic order in Nanyuan."
"Understood."
Xia Bing glanced at Chen Hao. Chen Hao gave a simple-minded grin. After considering it, Xia Bing looked to the old Academy Head and Liu Wenyan. "The academy and the Dragon Martial Guard will jointly sign the document. Confirm that he killed the man. For killing a Qianjun Seventh Level member of the Ten Thousand Races Cult during wartime, the student receives 30 extra points and 3 Merit Points."
Then he looked at Chen Hao. "There was another dead person near the cafeteria. If you two killed him too, that would be 60 extra points and 6 Merit Points. With 60 extra points, unless you're an idiot, you'll definitely get into the War Academy."
"Ah, there was another one?"
Chen Hao said regretfully, "Can that count as mine? No one's claiming credit for it, right? How about... I don't want the Merit Points. Just give me the 60 extra points?"
Xia Bing was speechless.
The old Academy Head and Liu Wenyan were equally speechless. What was he thinking?
So Chen Hao and the others had killed the one in the cafeteria. What about the one outside the cafeteria?
Liu Wenyan shook his head slightly. Forget it, there was no need to pursue it. It wasn't anything major anyway. Still, Chen Hao killing a Qianjun Seventh Level member of the Ten Thousand Races Cult had exceeded everyone's expectations.
Tomorrow, I'll ask Su Yu about it.
With that thought, Liu Wenyan nodded. "Sign the proof. The time, location, and account all match up. The spoils were handed over, and the saber is here as well. Unless someone comes forward to claim credit later, there's no need to investigate further."
Xia Bing nodded. Killing one Qianjun cultivator was nothing much. The three of them cared only because the killer was a student.
Otherwise, it did not matter who claimed the credit.
That was the end of the matter.
After Chen Hao left happily, the old Academy Head suddenly said, "Old Liu, do you believe him?"
Liu Wenyan said indifferently, "Whether I believe him or not doesn't matter. Whether he's a genius or a mediocrity, we'll find out once he reaches the War Academy. If a mediocrity insists on going in, then if he dies in the end, he has no one to blame but himself. Besides, Su Yu was there at the time. His mind is quick; perhaps he somehow schemed that fellow to death. There's no need to dig too deeply into this."
"True. There's no need to publicize this either. Be careful of retaliation from the Ten Thousand Races Cult. And don't let the other students imitate this; that behavior is extremely dangerous."
As the old Academy Head spoke, he smiled. "Speaking of which, that student of yours really is like you—sharp as a needle when it comes to schemes. He doesn't want extra points, only Merit Points. After all, he's applying to the Civilization Academy, so he has no use for extra points."
Liu Wenyan smiled, then quickly cursed with a smile, "That's because he has the ability. Could you, at the Kaiyuan Realm, kill a Qianjun cultivator?"
"..."
The old Academy Head had nothing to say. Soon, both men smiled. There was no need to investigate further. In any case, the academy might gain another student for the War Academy this year. Xia Bing had acknowledged it, and that was enough.
The Dragon Martial Guard held tremendous influence. Trying to bribe the Dragon Martial Guard would be worse than spending that money directly to pull strings at the War Academy. In any case, it wasn't as if no one donated enormous sums to academies every year.
At the side, Xia Bing ignored the two of them. After signing the document, he turned and left directly.
When he reached the door, he paused in thought before saying, "I believe he participated, but I'm not sure whether he killed the man. If it wasn't him, then it was Su Yu. Since Su Yu hasn't come to claim credit, then let it count as his. But without that talent or that strength, forcing his way into the War Academy may not be a good thing. I hope you two can make that clear to him."
"We will."
Xia Bing said no more. There were still many doubts about this matter—for instance, who had killed the one outside—but just as the Academy Head and Liu Wenyan had said, it was not especially important.
Everyone chose their own road. Just don't regret it in the end.
Before you continue