A Half-Day's Leisure in a Floating Life

A Half-Day's Leisure in a Floating Life

In Class A Institute, after half a month together, the fifty of them had already grown familiar with one another.

At the very least, they could call each other by name.

"Yuanzhao, the people from your Divine General Residence really are amazing. You're clearly new students, yet you nearly swept the whole top ten."

Sitting on the grass, the slender Du Yueqiu sighed to Li Yuanzhao.

She was an old student, eighteen this year, in the most beautiful years of life, but inside Class A Institute, she already counted as an "old-timer."

Before school began, she had still been in the top ten of the Martial Dao Ranking, but now she had fallen outside fifteenth place.

It could only be blamed on this batch of new students being too fierce. From the Divine General Residence alone, there were seven of them, and there were also two Princes of the imperial clan, which made them even more impossible to compare with.

In addition, there was the child of a certain grandmaster, the commandery princess from a certain city; all of them had terrifying backgrounds. Altogether, there were thirteen of them.

They old students had trained bitterly for many years before reaching perfect Circulation Realm, while these new students had just arrived and were already at perfect Circulation Realm, or else close to perfection, entering school with deep family foundations of their own.

Moreover, although their realms were the same, there was a gap in the level of the circulation methods and Meridian Opening Methods they cultivated, causing their strength to differ by nearly double. They were no match at all, and had been viciously awed by these heirs beneath Great Yu's supreme authority.

"It's all right, I guess. I'm only sixth. Still a little short," Li Yuanzhao said, scratching his head.

"..."

Du Qiuyue was struck speechless.

Beside them, Zheng Bai, another noble family young master from Liangzhou, smiled bitterly.

They were both new students, yet he was only ranked thirty-eighth.

The ones who could bully the old students were only these fellows whose backgrounds reached the heavens. Noble family children like them still had to behave properly and accept the old students' guidance.

In the field, people were currently sparring in techniques.

Du Qiuyue looked toward the Martial Dao Ranking, her gaze complicated.

Among the top five now, only one old student was still bitterly holding on, as if representing the last dignity of old students like them.

The two Princes were ranked first and second respectively. The imperial family's meridian-opening art and circulation method stood alone beneath the heavens, and as Princes, they naturally cultivated them too.

Ranked third was Wang Han of the Heavenly Illumination Divine General Residence. Seeing this name, Du Qiuyue's eyes changed slightly. Aside from the Princes, the most dreaded person in Class A Institute at present was this Wang Han.

Although he was only fifteen, his attacks were ruthless and decisive, his moves fierce. He was completely unlike the others, looking as if he had been tempered by blood and fire.

Someone had found out that this Wang Han seemed to have served in the Mo River Division for a year.

Ranked fourth was that grandmaster's daughter. It was said she had already comprehended Sword Heart, and her swordsmanship had reached a miraculous realm, making her extremely terrifying.

Ranked fifth was that old student, the former number one on the Martial Dao Ranking. His spear arts had already reached the high-grade perfect level. Yesterday, when he fought Li Yuanzhao, he won by half a move.

Li Yuanzhao beside her was ranked sixth, and behind him were his two clan siblings, Li Yun and Li Zhining.

"Strange. That Hao Ge of yours—why isn't he here?"

Du Qiuyue shifted her gaze and swept it around the institute, asking with some curiosity.

She was even more interested in that Li Hao. After all, hearing Li Yuanzhao beside her call him Hao Ge again and again, whenever the two were together, anyone with eyes could see that Li Yuanzhao respected that boy, who was around the same age as him, very much.

This inevitably made people feel amazed and astonished.

Only, every time class ended, that person would vanish like a wisp of smoke, as if he were in a hurry to go to the latrine.

In this kind of spontaneous sparring and exchange, Martial Dao Ranking challenges and the like, they had never seen his shadow, as if he were someone drifting outside Class A Institute.

Even during lessons, whenever she glanced over, the other party was either sprawled out sleeping or holding something like a book and constantly making records in it.

So diligent? At first, she had secretly admired him a little, but later, when she accidentally saw it once, she discovered that there was not even half a word in the book. It was all sketch drawings.

What he drew were all ferocious demon creatures, and they even seemed to all be aquatic race...

Apart from that, there were also drawings of Teacher Su Yehua, many of them interspersed within. Some drawings even had cat ears, tails, and the like, drawing Teacher Su Yehua as if she were a demon not yet fully transformed.

That was just scribbling nonsense.

But even so, Du Qiuyue could still see that his painting skill was exquisite and lifelike. It definitely could not be done casually and must have taken bitter effort.

Only, they were all martial artists. Who had such idle time to spend elsewhere?

"Hao Ge probably went off to play," Li Yuanzhao said unconcernedly.

He had long since grown used to Li Hao's style. Train together with them? What a joke. First Madam had bitterly urged and begged him, yet even in the Martial Arts Arena, no one had ever seen Hao Ge's shadow.

From childhood to adulthood, Hao Ge had never mingled together with those of the same age as them, unless they took the initiative to go find him.

"Play..." Hearing Li Yuanzhao say it so lightly, Du Qiuyue and Zheng Bai were both dumbfounded.

Since childhood, the whip on their buttocks and the cane across their backs had long carved the two words "work hard" into their bodies.

Play?

They wanted to as well, but they did not dare.

In their fathers' words:

"What you're playing with now is time; what you'll be playing with in the future is your life!"

"If you don't eat bitterness within bitterness, how can you become a person above people?"

"The rise and fall of the family all rests on you. With you being so lazy, how can you face your ancestors?!"

"Play" was such a frivolous word, yet it was so distant from them, like a taboo that could not be spoken.

"Doesn't he participate in the Martial Dao Ranking? If this goes on, he'll be challenged by disciples from Class B Institute. When the time comes, he'll be demoted to Class B Institute," Du Qiuyue said hesitantly.

Li Yuanzhao's small eyes widened slightly in anger. "Who dares! When the time comes, whoever challenges Hao Ge, I'll demote myself to Class B Institute and challenge him back down!"

Du Qiuyue: "..."

Zheng Bai: "..."

Good fellow, this was far too domineering.

"With the Divine General Residence behind you, there probably won't be anyone willing to challenge him, but for the Mo River Battle Realm test one year from now, he'll only be able to rely on himself."

Du Qiuyue said ruefully, "For demon-slaying missions outside, you can still rely on the adults in your family secretly sending experts to protect you, but in the Mo River Battle Realm, you can only depend on yourself. You also can't form groups. That Mo River Battle Realm used for the test only allows one person to enter at a time."

"That's true."

Li Yuanzhao frowned slightly and thought for a moment. "I'll tell Hao Ge about this later."

Du Qiuyue had nothing to say. That young master of the Divine General Residence—so he had never taken this matter to heart at all?...

On a waterfall at the rear mountain of Class A Institute.

Two figures sat at the cliff edge atop the waterfall, drinking wine, playing chess, chatting idly and laughing.

Suddenly, from the bottom of the waterfall, a figure leapt up, directly vaulting over the several-dozen-zhang-high waterfall without a drop of water touching him, and landed before the two of them, carrying two skewered roasted wild rabbits in his hand.

"You brat..." Seeing who had come, the two old men playing chess both laughed, then sniffed. "So fragrant!"

Li Hao handed the two roasted wild rabbits to the two old men and smiled. "Come have a taste."

The two old men playing chess were precisely Zhao Zongyuan and Shen Yunqing, both instructors of Class A Institute. Over the past half month, they had been thoroughly conquered by Li Hao's delicacies.

"Tsk, you brat, your craftsmanship really is amazing." Shen Yunqing tore off a bite and could not help praising him.

He and Zhao Zongyuan were both smiling and relaxed at this moment, but on ordinary days, when teaching inside the institute, they put on the stern dignity of teachers. Even those two Princes had to stand straight and proper before them.

Princes were certainly noble, but a Prince who could come to Tan Palace Academy to study was not necessarily all that favored. Perhaps in the future, he might not even live as long as they did. The two of them had no need to bow too low or fawn over that golden token at his waist.

"I've already lost two games to you today. Shouldn't you go back and practice martial arts now?"

As Zhao Zongyuan ate the wild rabbit, he saw Li Hao looking eager to try and could not help saying.

Although he loved playing chess... he did not love losing all the time.

It was still more comfortable playing chess with Fatty Shen. He did not have to spend too much effort, and he could still win.

"What's the point of practicing martial arts? It's not Black White Hall's martial arts," Li Hao said.

"You want a supreme art right after arriving. You do dream beautifully."

The two of them both shook their heads helplessly at Li Hao. Previously, when Li Hao came to them to play chess, they had tested Li Hao's skills. He was not a wayward silkpants scion, and was even stronger than most people in Class A Institute.

Yet this brat just so happened to have no interest in martial cultivation at all. When they played chess, they occasionally wanted to give Li Hao some private coaching and help give him pointers, but the result was just wonderful: they were instead lectured by him. "You're about to lose, and you still have time to talk nonsense with me about other things?"

"Can you be a little serious? Pick up the chess piece. Pick up the chess piece!"

"How about I give you a five-stone handicap?"

The two old men were somewhat unable to hold it together; toward Li Hao, they both hated and loved him.

"Elder Shen, wine."

Li Hao jerked his chin toward Shen Yunqing's waist. "You lost me two mouthfuls today. You still haven't given them."

The corner of Shen Yunqing's mouth twitched. Originally, he had only shared with Zhao Zongyuan, but now there was another little mouth. His Drunken Wind Brew was almost not enough for himself to drink.

But a bet was a bet, and a loss had to be accepted. He gave a light snort and tossed the wine gourd to Li Hao. "Take it easy. You're still young."

Li Hao chuckled, opened the stopper, and tilted his head back to pour down two mouthfuls. Then he wiped his mouth and said comfortably, "The taste really is good."

The six arts of cooking covered an extremely wide range. He himself could also ferment fine wine, but this thing took too much time, and he was too lazy to do it.

Seeing Li Hao's casual and free-spirited manner, the two could do nothing about him and simply gnawed on the wild rabbit on their own.

Li Hao returned the wine gourd to Shen Yunqing, patted his backside, and said, "Then I'll come again tomorrow."

As he spoke, he leapt, his figure like the wind, and landed on the white stone outside the waterfall.

Then he strolled away, humming a tune, leisurely and carefree.

He had just come up the waterfall only for two mouthfuls of wine and to send the two old men wild rabbits as a reward.

"This brat..." Looking at his back, the two of them both smiled bitterly. They had never seen such a strange youth.

"Speaking of which, that movement art he just used—wasn't it that high-grade White Phoenix Skill you teach?" Zhao Zongyuan asked.

Shen Yunqing chewed the wild rabbit and said vaguely, "That's right, and that brat seems to have already trained it to the perfect level. I really suspect that, back then, he genuinely comprehended that Wind Severing Fist on the same day..."

"Mastered it to the perfect level in half a month..."

Zhao Zongyuan looked thoughtful and said in a low voice, "Could the news the Li Family released back then have been to hide the truth from people's eyes and ears? That Xingwu Marquis spends years at the border, and neither husband nor wife was by his side..."

Before the words were finished, there was already no need to say more.

Shen Yunqing swallowed the wild rabbit meat and took a swig of wine, so comfortable his eyebrows nearly fell off. He sighed and said, "A marquis's household is deep as the sea. Who knows? In any case, this brat is definitely a rare prodigy. When the Mo River comes one year from now, he should startle the world with one cry."

Zhao Zongyuan nodded slightly and did not deny it. It would depend on whether Li Hao was willing when the time came.

Suddenly, he noticed Li Hao's back disappearing around a corner and could not help raising his brows. "That brat, did he go the wrong way?"

"Hm? You didn't tell him? That way leads to the Mo River."