By the time Mech General Knowledge Class ended, it was already noon.
Luo Beichen went to the cafeteria.
He got some food, found an empty table, and ate his lunch.
He ate very slowly.
It was a habit he had developed from living on the surface.
During those three years, when supplies had been desperately scarce, eating one meal every three days was perfectly normal.
Because he had often been unbearably hungry, he couldn't eat quickly.
Over time,
even though the Academy cafeteria now served delicious food, he still didn't eat fast.
"Can I sit here?"
A voice sounded.
Luo Beichen looked up. It was the student called Li Bohang.
The tall, lean, clean-looking young man sat across from Luo Beichen without waiting for his permission.
The young man extended his hand.
"Can we be friends?"
Luo Beichen glanced at him and continued eating.
Li Bohang wasn't offended. He smiled and said, "I admire your courage, whether it was facing the Wolf Tick alone or fighting a Death Match."
"But I admire your experience living on the surface for three years even more. It must have been incredibly difficult, right?"
"If it were me, I probably couldn't have lasted even a year. You're impressive."
Luo Beichen paused his chopsticks, then continued eating.
Li Bohang continued talking to himself. "I know you don't want to make friends."
"When I first saw you, I thought you were the type who liked to walk alone."
"You trust yourself more."
"But if you want to become a pilot, if you want to become a Mech Master,"
"you'll need friends."
"Whenever there's a mission, Mech Masters basically have to operate in teams."
"There will be three or four mechs carrying out the mission at the same time, so if you want to complete it smoothly, you'll need to integrate into the group."
"You need to learn to trust others."
Luo Beichen heard him but gave no outward response.
He wasn't going to decide to be friends with Li Bohang just because of a few words.
Friends.
To him, friends were too much of a luxury.
There was a wound on his chest, and it had been given to him by someone he had called a friend.
Li Bohang smiled and began eating.
As he ate, he said, "Let me give you some advice."
"When you exchange for cultivation resources, don't exchange for the 'Cloud Water Agent.' First, it's an agent used alongside intermediate and advanced cultivation methods."
"Second, each vial costs five Credit Points."
"Third, in fact, its effects are only about twenty percent better than the 'Calming Agent.'"
"The 'Calming Agent' can still be used when cultivating an intermediate cultivation method. You can wait until you cultivate an advanced method before switching to the 'Cloud Water Agent.'"
"Most importantly, the 'Calming Agent' only costs one Credit Point to exchange for. It's cheap and effective."
After saying that, Li Bohang quietly finished his meal, gathered his things, and stood up. "I'm leaving first. We have combat class this afternoon, so I need to go back and prepare."
He turned around, then suddenly heard Luo Beichen say softly, "Thank you."
Li Bohang looked back and smiled. "Don't mention it."
Luo Beichen hadn't thanked him to curry favor.
The other man had kindly offered advice. Whether Luo Beichen accepted it or not, thanking him was only proper.
That was his principle.
After Li Bohang left, Luo Beichen finished the last bite of food and was about to leave.
Suddenly, someone walked over, glanced at Luo Beichen, and said with a light laugh, "You're the new student recommended by Di Zheng?"
Luo Beichen looked up and said coldly, "In two months, we'll have a Death Match. If I'm still alive."
With that, he walked away.
The man froze for a long while before shouting, "Wait! Do you have to be like this?"
"I only asked one question."
"I wasn't planning to cause you any trouble."
"Stop challenging people to Death Matches at the drop of a hat!"
"I won't fight!"
"I'd rather die than fight!"
Luo Beichen heard him but didn't stop. He left the cafeteria.
Only then did the man shake his head. "What a lunatic."
In the blink of an eye, Luo Beichen had been in the Undercity and at the Academy for two weeks.
Over the past few days,
under his instructor's guidance, he had cultivated the Visualization Technique for the first time.
He had encountered Combat Skills and Mystic Arts for the first time.
He had participated in co-sensory training for the first time...
So many firsts.
They made these two weeks more exciting than the first eighteen years of his life combined.
He had also gained a deeper understanding of his mutated Pupil Technique.
For example, he now knew what the circle of Bright Yellow Light and the numbers representing it on himself and others meant.
They represented Primal Energy and its corresponding value.
In addition, Luo Beichen could use his mutated Pupil Technique to observe the Primal Energy in the world around him.
He could discover its range of distribution and density.
Finally,
regarding his cultivation of the Visualization Technique,
he felt that he was about to break through.
After two weeks of cultivation, he had already allowed Primal Energy to permeate his limbs and torso.
Only the area around his head and heart remained.
At that moment,
inside the Training Hall,
Luo Beichen picked up a vial of Inhalant with a pale-green casing.
The Calming Agent!
These days, Luo Beichen used the Calming Agent every time he cultivated.
This agent could calm the mind, strengthen communication and sensitivity toward Primal Energy, and improve cultivation efficiency.
Each vial of the Calming Agent only cost one Credit Point.
Luo Beichen had spent more than ten Credit Points on it over the past few days.
Adding the three Credit Points he had spent on his first day of enrollment,
and the twenty Credit Points deducted over the matter involving Chen Yongsong,
of the ninety-eight Credit Points Luo Beichen had received upon enrollment,
only forty-eight remained.
Among the students who had enrolled at the same time,
only a handful could afford to use the Calming Agent every time they cultivated.
Most people couldn't be as extravagant as Luo Beichen.
Some even thought Luo Beichen was wasting his Credit Points.
Luo Beichen didn't think so.
In two weeks, he would have to fight a Death Match.
He would be facing Luo Beichen's opponent, Luo Beichen, whose resources were no fewer than his own.
If he still had to save these Credit Points now,
that would be ridiculous.
He gathered his thoughts.
Luo Beichen slowly exhaled, then opened the agent and pressed it to his lips.
He took a deep breath.
He inhaled all the agent in the vial.
Luo Beichen immediately entered a state of absolute tranquility.
He keenly sensed the Primal Energy that filled the air around him.
He then adopted a specific breathing method,
inhaling that Primal Energy along with the air, circulating it through his body, retaining the Primal Energy, and exhaling the air.
Time passed.
Gradually, large beads of sweat appeared on Luo Beichen's forehead.
They dampened his hair, ran along the contours of his face, and gathered at his chin.
Drop by drop, they fell.
Luo Beichen felt the skin across his entire body becoming increasingly tough under the nourishment of Primal Energy.
At the same time, a stronger force seemed to be gradually erupting inside him.
That force soon encountered an obstacle.
It was as if an invisible barrier had blocked it.
So it boiled and erupted.
As Luo Beichen took a deep breath, he drew in more Primal Energy from the world around him.
Together, they gathered into that force.
It broke through in one burst!
Smashing through the barrier!
Suddenly,
Luo Beichen's entire body trembled. His muscles first tensed, then slowly relaxed.
An indescribable comfort spread through him.
He opened his eyes and raised both hands, watching the texture of his skin grow increasingly fine.
It resembled the texture of rock, radiating toughness.
He finally understood why Wei Fenghua had said that, when the time came to break through, he would know it himself.
So that's how it was.
That day,
Luo Beichen broke through.
Early stage, second layer.
On the way back to the dormitory,
Luo Beichen heard several classmates talking.
"What Divine Treasure did you awaken?"
"Mimicry: Violent Bear."
"What about you?"
"Me? Heh, I'm a Super Physique: Iron Clothes."
"That's really practical."
And so on.
Unlike Luo Beichen,
many new students had only begun cultivating the basic Visualization Technique after enrolling.
Most had only awakened their Divine Treasures over the past day or two.
However, people like Luo Beichen had probably already begun cultivating before enrollment.
He wondered what kind of Divine Treasure Luo Beichen would awaken.
Suddenly, Luo Beichen stopped.
Luo Beichen approached from ahead with several students.
The pink-faced young man beside him let out a mocking laugh and called loudly to Luo Beichen, "Isn't this Classmate Luo?"
"Judging by the looks of it, you just came back from the Training Hall, right?"
"Classmate Luo is really diligent. So, how many layers of the Visualization Technique have you reached?"
"Have you cultivated any Combat Skills or Mystic Arts?"
"You'll be stepping into the arena in two weeks."
"Don't let our Brother Luo scare you into wetting your pants when the time comes."
The people beside Luo Beichen laughed enthusiastically.
Luo Yan looked at them as if they were clowns.
Suddenly, his gaze grew vacant.
Luo Yan activated his Divine Treasure, the Qi Gazing Eyes!
He looked over.
Luo Beichen's vitality was 173, while his Primal Energy was 124 Jun.
Luo Yan compared it with his own.
His vitality was now 207, while his Primal Energy had far surpassed what it had been when he first entered the Academy, reaching 149 Jun.
This showed that
Luo Beichen should also have the strength of Primary Level Two.
However, Luo Yan cultivated Observing Mountains and Seas, which emphasized fundamentals.
Whether in vitality or Primal Energy, he was above the other man.
Luo Yan looked toward the pink-faced young man again.
He saw that within the other man's Gray-White Light, the red light representing vitality was dim, while the yellow radiance representing Primal Energy was so faint it was almost nonexistent.
That pink-faced young man made Luo Yan uncomfortable.
It was as if all his secrets had been seen through by Luo Yan.
He was just about to explode.
But then he saw that Luo Beichen had already gone ahead.
He hurried after him.
As he passed Luo Yan, he even slammed his shoulder into him.
He wanted to knock Luo Yan aside.
Luo Yan stood motionless.
Bang.
Instead, the pink-faced young man bounced away from the impact.
He landed on the ground on his butt.
Without even glancing sideways, Luo Yan strode away.
The next day was Friday.
Xiao Shi's General Knowledge Class was scheduled for that morning, but the person who entered the classroom was Wei Fenghua.
Wei Fenghua coughed twice and said, "Next Monday, the Surface Exploration Legion will be going to Forbidden Zone 3, 'Misty Canyon,' to carry out a mission. It's a rare opportunity, and the Academy has managed to get you a chance to go along."
"This is an opportunity for you to come into contact with a Forbidden Land and gain a direct understanding of a Mech Master's daily work."
"So there won't be a General Knowledge Class today. I'll be explaining some relevant information about Forbidden Lands to everyone."
Luo Yan immediately perked up.
He was unwilling to miss a single word.
After writing the words "Forbidden Land" on the blackboard,
he said,
"A Forbidden Land is a special region formed after the 'Giant Beast Calamity.'"
"No two Forbidden Lands are alike. The giant beasts and parasite species within them are also varied."
"But all Forbidden Lands have one thing in common."
"That is, every Forbidden Land contains a 'Giant Beast Ecology' that differs greatly from the outside environment."
Li Bohang raised his hand and asked, "Teacher, what is a 'Giant Beast Ecology'?"
Wei Fenghua pressed his palm downward, signaling Li Bohang to lower his hand, then continued.
"A 'Giant Beast Ecology' is a special ecosystem derived from the giant beasts within a Forbidden Land."
"As for what kind of 'Giant Beast Ecology' will develop, that is determined by the 'Overlord Level' giant beast within the Forbidden Land."
"This is only a reference, not an absolute rule."
"But for a Forbidden Land to appear, there must be an 'Overlord Level' giant beast in that region."
Luo Yan's breathing grew heavy.
In the previous Giant Beast General Knowledge Class, he had already learned that
the humans of the Undercity divided giant beast levels into lower, middle, and upper tiers.
Above the upper tier was the Overlord Level, and above the Overlord Level was the "Nightmare" Level.
Moreover, from the teacher's words, it was not difficult to tell that
apart from the "Nightmare" Level, there seemed to be even higher levels.
When he had come to the Undercity,
in the city where Luo Yan had lived for three years,
he had already seen the lower-tier Lili and the middle-tier Taotie.
The Lili was one thing.
But the Taotie had already been frightening enough.
And that was only a middle-tier creature.
Luo Yan could not imagine how terrifying those "Overlord Level" and even "Nightmare Level" giant beasts must be.
Although the others did not have experiences as rich as Luo Yan's, they usually received plenty of information.
Naturally, they knew how terrifying "Overlord Level" giant beasts were.
When they heard that there would be "Overlord Level" giant beasts in the Forbidden Land, quite a few students had already begun to back out.
Wei Fenghua glanced at the students and said, "Don't worry."
"Overlord Level giant beasts are usually in the deepest parts of a Forbidden Land. During this activity, the Exploration Corps will only operate in several relatively safe areas."
"You will not—and will not have the chance to—encounter any Overlord Level giant beasts."
"However, you still need to understand some information about 'Misty Canyon.'"
"Most important of all,"
"of course, is information about that 'Overlord Level' giant beast."
Wei Fenghua turned around and rapidly wrote some information on the blackboard.
Codename: Huan (pronounced like "hwan")
Level: Overlord Level 3.
Type: Caterpillar.
Characteristics: Mist Generation, Wind Raising, Hallucinations, Sonic Boom, Beast Taming!
Weaknesses unknown.
Wei Fenghua coughed several times and said, "This Overlord resembles a cat. It has one eye and three tails. Since it possesses the abilities 'Wind Raising' and 'Mist Generation,'"
"Forbidden Zone 3 is shrouded in mist all year round, and a unique ecology has consequently formed."
After that,
Wei Fenghua went on to explain which giant beasts had currently been discovered in Misty Canyon, as well as the kinds of parasite swarms found there.
He also explained what kinds of plants and animals existed in the Forbidden Land and which places required caution.
And just like that, the entire morning passed.
Before you continue