Guidance Instructors

Chen Chuan thought about it. He believed that Examination Hall No. 4 would have been affected, but the other halls might not have been. Someone among the school's upper ranks had likely pushed this deliberately.

Thinking back to what had happened that morning, he could infer a few things as well.

Shen Shao said, "If you ask me, the later examinees should all be grateful to you."

Chen Chuan shook his head. "I only did what I wanted to do. Whether they could stand there was their own choice, and passing the retest came from their own persistence."

Hearing this, Shen Shao studied him with interest. For a moment, he found himself rather admiring this junior apprentice.

Honestly, if Shen Shao had done something like that, he would have been floating on cloud nine already. Yet Chen Chuan remained so calm. Though Shen Shao felt he was being overly low-key, that did not stop him from admiring him inwardly.

After thinking for a moment, Shu Han said seriously, "Chen Chuan, if you want to go far on the path of fighting, you should start paying attention to choosing a good guidance instructor."

Chen Chuan nodded to show he understood. He had already learned from the booklet that Wu Yi Academy's classes were broadly divided into three types: Open Classes, Guidance Classes, and Invitation Classes.

Both Class A Students and Class B Students could attend Open Classes. Invitation Classes only sent invitations to students with outstanding academic performance and some renown outside the school, though the circumstances varied. Sometimes there were restrictions; sometimes there were none.

But Guidance Classes were the most different.

The school assigned every Class A Student a guidance instructor, who would take specific responsibility for instructing that student. How far a student could progress had much to do with their guidance instructor. This was also one of the main differences between Class A Students and Class B Students.

Of course, guidance instructors sometimes taught more than one student. They could choose students, and students could choose guidance instructors. It was not a fixed relationship; it was not unusual to switch guidance instructors every so often. After all, modern fighting had long ceased to follow the old model of master passing skills down to disciple. One had to draw on others' strengths to make up for one's weaknesses and absorb the best of every school.

He said, "Senior Apprentice Shu, I don't know much about guidance instructors. Do you have any recommendations?"

Shu Han was an upper-year student and the senior apprentice assigned to receive him, so he was surely more familiar with this matter than Chen Chuan was.

Shu Han spoke slowly. "Of course. I know one instructor who is exceptionally good. You should look for him. He is currently—"

Shen Shao interrupted him then. "Shu Han!"

Shu Han looked over and saw that Shen Shao's expression had turned somewhat stern. Shen Shao said, "How Junior Chen chooses is his own business. We don't need to point fingers and tell him what to do. We only need to tell him about guidance instructors."

Shu Han drew a breath. "You're right." He thought for a moment. "As for guidance instructors, I personally think three of them are good choices.

The first is Teacher Qiao, Qiao Linhu, who is currently employed by the Weaponry Department.

He is the granddisciple of Cheng Yunbai, the first headmaster, and a fellow disciple of our current Headmaster Yan. However, what he learned leans toward Old Martial, and he does not think much of New Martial. It is extremely difficult to receive his personal instruction. Even if you take his classes, they are generally taught by his disciples in his stead. Only if you earn his appreciation might you be allowed through the door and into the inner hall. Recently, I heard that he found a good student. Although the chances of receiving his guidance are slim, they are not nonexistent. If you are interested, Junior Apprentice, you can give it a try.

The second instructor is Sun Yunchun, a lecturer in the Freehand Department. This instructor is personally very strong and ranks near the top within the department. He is proficient in all kinds of fighting techniques, with almost no weak points, and he is very skilled at cultivating students. Over the past ten years, many outstanding Class A Students have come from his tutelage. Moreover, this instructor is especially good at building connections with people, so even if his classes are not suitable for you, you can still weave a broad network through him.

The third instructor is Yan Xiaojing, our Headmaster Yan's grandson and the prized student of Chief Gao from the Recruitment Office. He is an expert of the Weaponry Department, particularly skilled with the great spear, while also highly proficient in Freehand Combat and Grappling. He is not much older than us, and his thinking is not old-fashioned either. He may be the easiest instructor to get along with."

At this point, he said to Chen Chuan, "The school has four major departments: the Freehand Department, Wrestling Department, Grappling Department, and Weaponry Department. We need not mention the smaller departments for now. The one with the strongest momentum is the Wrestling Department. For certain reasons, it has abundant resources, recruits many outstanding students every year, and is very strong. Zhong Wu, for example, is a famous student from the Wrestling Department, so I suspect you may not choose that one.

As for the Grappling Department, it mainly focuses on Joint-Twisting Techniques. Like the Weaponry Department, it is one of the places most often chosen by female students. The instructors there are actually quite good, but most specialize in one particular area and are not comprehensive enough. Still, what suits you is best. If you ask the Dormitory Teacher for information on all the instructors, they will give it to you."

Shen Shao said, "The two of us currently study under Teacher Chi, Chi Youfu, of the Freehand Department. He is a very decent man. If you need it, we can recommend you. And although the Freehand Department is relatively loose internally, it has the most people in Wuyi Academy. Even the supervisor of the Affairs Office is a teacher who came out of our Freehand Department."

Chen Chuan thought about it and said, "Thank you, Senior Apprentices."

Just then, the cafeteria dishes were brought over. Every serving was enormous, and each person was given two sticks of Nutrient Paste. The three of them said nothing more and concentrated on eating.

After the meal, Chen Chuan asked, "By the way, Senior Apprentices, do you know where the school's Medicine Repository is? I want to buy some Kai Lian Powder for a friend."

Shu Han said, "At the school's Medicine Repository now, you need a note of approval from a guidance instructor to obtain any medicine. So, Junior Apprentice, you still need to find a suitable guidance instructor first."

Shen Shao said with a smile, "Isn't that why guidance instructors are so important? When you take on commissioned assignments, if your guidance instructor has connections, he can find plenty for you. If you choose poorly, then either he may hand the commissions to someone else on a whim, or he simply has no resources and cannot help you."

Chen Chuan nodded. "I understand." He pondered inwardly. It seemed his next step was to settle this matter as soon as possible.

After leaving the cafeteria, the two of them took him around the academy once more, helping him familiarize himself with the campus and its various locations, before they parted ways.

On the way back to the training grounds, Shu Han suddenly said, "Don't you think he resembles Senior Apprentice?"

"How does he resemble him?" Shen Shao said. "I think you've become obsessed."

"I haven't." Shu Han denied it, then added, "Actually, when I first heard about this junior apprentice, people compared him to Senior Apprentice, and I did not take it seriously. But after meeting him today, I feel waiting for him the whole morning was quite worthwhile."

Shen Shao shook his head. "He has his own road. Why should we worry so much? He is himself, and Senior Apprentice is Senior Apprentice. They are not the same person at all, so stop getting carried away."

Shu Han sighed. "We still need to watch a little longer. We have only just met him, after all. We still do not know what he truly thinks."

Shen Shao teased, "Rather than spending your spare time on this, you might as well find another girlfriend. Or you could go win back the one who rejected you. Oh, right—it was you who rejected her."

Shu Han suddenly gritted his teeth and began rolling up his sleeves. "Looks like we can't avoid going through the process today."

Since there were no classes that afternoon, and the time was meant for students to familiarize themselves with the campus, Chen Chuan returned to the dormitory building after making a round of the academy.

He found the Dormitory Teacher and obtained a list of all the guidance instructors. Then he took the elevator back to his dormitory, sorted and put away the things he had brought with him, and, once he was done, stood before the floor-to-ceiling window and slowly read through the list.

Shu Han and Shen Shao had already explained things in considerable detail. After thinking it over, he decided to try applying to a few instructors first. If they were unsuitable, he could always switch later.

So he returned to the desk, filled out several forms with a pen, then went to the internal delivery box outside his door and placed the forms inside. The dormitory staff would collect them shortly and send them to the various guidance instructors, who would then make their decisions.