Classes and Praise

Early the next morning, rain poured down in torrents.

The sound of rain pattering filled heaven and earth, like curtain after curtain being drawn shut.

Wenren Sheng stood in the hall, looking at the downpour outside, and immediately began to worry.

"With rain this heavy, I'll have to take leave..." he said as he took out his phone.

"No. You have class today, Wenren, and you also need to make up the class we missed last Thursday. You took more than half a month off in a row last month, and our study progress has already fallen back quite a bit."

Wu Shanshan's voice came from the kitchen. Just like yesterday, she and Zhao Han were helping Wenren De prepare breakfast.

"Uh, forget it. As a teacher, taking more leave than the students really doesn't look very good." Wenren Sheng regretfully gave up on the idea.

It had been such a perfect excuse.

Not long afterward, the group finished breakfast and set out by car.

Li Shuangyue drove the car to the villa entrance, and the three of them got into the same vehicle.

Wu Shanshan naturally and unceremoniously drove Zhao Han into the front passenger seat, while she herself sat in the back with Wenren Sheng.

The car started up and pushed forward through the rain.

Though the rain was torrential, thanks to the excellent drainage system, there was barely any standing water on the roads. Driving was therefore not difficult, though they had to go much slower than usual.

It was said that Dongshui City's sewers had been designed by engineers who had immigrated from Oude. They could withstand rainfall that occurred only once in a thousand years. The sewers were broad and tall, extending in every direction, with clean water separated from wastewater. They were clean and orderly, rivaling the Imperial Capital's subway system.

Li Shuangyue drove steadily, soon entering the northbound Elevated Bridge and heading all the way toward the Club.

More than half an hour later, when it was fifteen minutes to nine, the car reached the street where Meilong Building stood.

"Eh, doesn't that student carrying a bicycle up ahead look a lot like Liu Jian?" Zhao Han, seated in front, looked up.

Through the windshield wipers, they saw a young man on the sidewalk to the right. His thin body was carrying a bicycle through the rain as he sprinted wildly toward the Club.

All of them had excellent eyesight. Even in the pounding rain, they could tell that it was indeed Liu Jian. After all, what had happened to him had only been a few days ago.

"Not bad. Looks like he's already passed the Patrol Division's inspection. That wasn't easy." Wenren Sheng nodded.

"Look at him, carrying a bicycle and running for dear life. He's obviously worried about being late for class," Wu Shanshan said as she leaned against his shoulder, taking the chance to criticize him. "Meanwhile, you're sitting in a car and still thinking about taking leave."

"Seems that way. I guess I'll have to praise Student Liu Jian in class later." Wenren Sheng spoke seriously.

Zhao Han was a little sick of this display of affection. At a time like this, shouldn't they stop the car and help their fellow student?

But before she could say it, the car had already passed Liu Jian and turned into the underground parking entrance.

Soon afterward, the car stopped, and the three of them got out and went upstairs.

Wenren Sheng returned to his office, where a breakfast had been placed on his desk as usual.

He sighed. Monday breakfasts always seemed especially unappetizing...

Fried eggs, sandwich bread, and a glass of milk. They should all have been perfectly ordinary food.

Yet the bread tasted strange, and he could somehow taste soy sauce in the milk.

Compared with Brother De's cooking, it was the difference between an abyss and heaven.

Still, for that little bit of resistance, he quickly swallowed the food without changing expression.

Not long after he finished eating, Wei Yiqing entered. Not a single drop of rain had touched the two braids hanging in front of her chest.

"You always eat so quickly. Looks like I'll need to make more next time." She cleared the desk, looking thoughtful.

"I have a habit. Good things should be eaten as quickly as possible." Wenren Sheng leaned back in his chair and rubbed his stomach.

Wei Yiqing turned to leave, then suddenly stopped. "You're participating in Friday's judge selection?"

"Yes. You aren't?" Wenren Sheng asked in return.

"Not interested." Wei Yiqing tossed out those words and started toward the office door.

"Wait, Xiao Qing. There's something I've wanted to ask you for a long time." Wenren Sheng suddenly spoke from behind her.

Wei Yiqing was slightly taken aback. "What is it?"

"Just how old are you?"

She did not answer and walked straight out the door.

Bang!

It was not the door being slammed. Wenren Sheng himself had somehow fallen out of his chair onto the floor...

Eleven o'clock came quickly, and he got up to teach.

When he reached the entrance to the teaching hall and had barely approached, a young man hurried out from inside.

"Good day, Manager Wenren." The young man promptly nodded in greeting.

"Thank you for your hard work, Engineer Zheng." Wenren Sheng nodded.

The man was an employee of the Club's External Relations Center. He had a Skilled Level evaluation and was responsible for teaching the trainees basic knowledge of the Mysterious Realm. He was a very conscientious person.

After they parted, Wenren Sheng entered the hall.

"Hello, Teacher." The trainees behind their desks all stood when they saw him enter.

"Hello, students. Please sit. We missed a class last week, so today we'll use a little of everyone's lunchtime to make it up." Wenren Sheng began.

The trainees sat down one after another.

"Before we officially begin class, I'd like to praise one student." He looked toward Liu Jian in the back row, who was diligently reading.

Everyone immediately became attentive. Teacher Wenren rarely praised anyone.

"I saw it from the car—Student Liu Jian, despite the heavy rain today, still rode his bicycle to class in order to train his Extraordinary Physique. When his bicycle broke down, he carried it and charged forward, determined not to be late. This plain and earnest spirit of learning is worthy of every trainee's emulation. To truly enter the Mysterious Realm, one needs this kind of attitude toward learning."

Liu Jian's expression shifted repeatedly as he listened. He seemed on the verge of exploding, but in the end, he merely stood and forced himself to say, "Thank you for your praise, Teacher. I will continue working hard."

Wenren Sheng gave him a serious look. The stream of information that appeared before his eyes was now different from last time.

"Liu Jian, Mystery Points: 2/42."

"Mystery Composition: Seed of Wrath, Extraordinary Power, Mystic Cognition, Seed of Hatred (latent), ???"

The changes in the data should have been caused by changes to the man's identity and social connections.

The upper limit of Mystery Points could not precisely describe a person's strength, but someone with high Mystery Points was inevitably more dangerous. Perhaps they were personally weak, but a powerful background and deep connections were also a kind of strength.

Seeing this, Wenren Sheng showed no reaction. "Mm, sit down first. We'll continue learning the skill of Extraordinary Memory..."

He began teaching the class.

Teaching skills was a very difficult matter. Fortunately, there were not many trainees, only around twenty, so he could still give them guidance one by one.

Xu Yunshuang had already learned it. While Wenren Sheng gave individual instruction, many female trainees went to ask her for advice.

Everyone understood that most people could not possibly master it in a year or even half a year, but that did not mean learning it was useless. As long as they first grasped the methods and key points, they could continue researching it afterward.

After all, this was not one-time knowledge for dealing with an exam. It was meant to become a lifelong skill.

The three classes ended quickly. Wenren Sheng dismissed them, but most of the trainees did not leave the hall to eat outside. Instead, they took out boxed lunches, made do with a simple meal, and made use of every minute.

The Otherworldly Species Host Qualification Examination taking place the following week was quite stressful, especially for the older trainees.

Wenren Sheng swept his gaze over everyone and walked out of the hall. After adding an extra class, it was exactly two o'clock.

However, he did not plan to go straight home. Instead, he headed toward the External Relations Center.

He still needed to follow up on the mysterious event, "Death of the Expert." It was a major event worth 91 Mystery Points, even though he did not yet know when it could truly be completed.

As he neared the External Relations Center, he ran into Teacher Wu. The man's dark face seemed filled with dissatisfaction and anger.

"Old Wu, is something wrong? You look awfully unhappy." Wenren Sheng asked with concern.

"Of course something's wrong. I came looking for you!" Teacher Wu looked around, then grabbed Wenren Sheng and pulled him toward a window. "Why is Shan Shan staying at your house?"

"Uh, the Qualification Exam is coming up. She said it was for safety, and besides, Zhao Han is staying at my place too. I'm really just the landlord. You don't need to worry about anything." Wenren Sheng replied calmly.

"Damn it." Teacher Wu stared into his eyes and lowered his voice. "Because of certain things in the past, she no longer acknowledges me and won't let me look for her openly. But she's still my only daughter. If you dare act like those frivolous young men these days, I definitely won't let you off!"

"Don't worry. I'm always telling you all that I've always been an honest man. It's just a pity none of you believe me." Wenren Sheng sighed.

Teacher Wu naturally did not believe him, but he released his grip anyway. Several female trainees were passing around the corner, secretly watching these two important figures of the Club.

He gave a cough and put on an act. "Oh, last month's project summary was quite ugly. Our Project Center's revenue fell considerably compared with the previous months."

Wenren Sheng likewise responded with a straight face. "Is that so? Then we'll have to work harder this month and wrap up some projects. Otherwise, we'll only be able to vacation at Dongshui Bay at the end of August."

"Some people really should work harder." Teacher Wu took the opportunity to lecture him.

Wenren Sheng remained unmoved, and the two went their separate ways.