Arrangements

In the Recruitment Office, more than a dozen instructors were seated. One of them shook his head and bluntly said, "Gao Shi, to be honest, I don't want to teach him."

The other instructors all looked over, secretly admiring his nerve.

Gao Shi sat behind the desk, his face expressionless. He only asked, "Why?"

The instructor tossed Chen Chuan's file onto the desk and said, "Judging from his record, he started practicing the Breathing Method too early. And based on Zhong Wu's injuries, he has likely also practiced the Limit Breaking Strike. A student like this, who doesn't know how to value his own body and only knows how to drain his potential, has a limited future ceiling.

"However, if Gao Shi allows me to give him a comprehensive physical examination, and it proves that there's nothing wrong with him and that he meets my requirements, I can take him on."

Gao Shi ignored him and looked directly at another instructor. "What about you? Do you feel the same way?"

That instructor hesitated. "Gao Shi, I... well, I..."

"Enough. Don't say any more." Gao Shi looked toward the others. "It seems you all share that view?"

The instructors remained seated in silence.

In truth, whether a student was physically fit and how far they could progress had little to do with them. They would only be at the school for two or three years, and the students were not their own sons or daughters. There was no need to take it so seriously.

The main reason was that they truly did not want to get caught up in the school's internal power struggle. Wasn't it better to quietly teach their own classes? They all still remembered what had happened two years ago, so none of them wanted to take on this hot potato.

Gao Shi then looked at a young instructor. "Why aren't you saying anything?"

The young instructor said awkwardly, "Master, I can teach him, but you know that I'll be going abroad for an exchange in a month. I don't know when I'll be back. Even if I take him on, he won't be able to study under me for long."

Gao Shi said, "I wasn't counting on you anyway. Fine. Since none of you are willing, you may all leave."

The instructors breathed a collective sigh of relief. They stood, gave him slight bows, and left.

Once the office was empty, Gao Shi picked up the telephone on his desk and dialed a number. When the call connected, he said, "None of them are willing. I told you this was unnecessary. It would have been better to directly appoint someone and have them take on the responsibility first."

"So you have someone in mind?"

Gao Shi said, "I think Cheng Zitong should go first."

"Little Cheng? Can he handle it?"

Gao Shi said firmly, "They're still trying to persuade He Xiaoxing. Until they convince him to come back, Cheng Zitong can fill the position." Then he raised his voice and said, "Besides, do you have a better candidate right now?"

The other end of the line fell silent for a moment before saying, "Then you'd better keep a close eye on that promising seedling."

"You've put up a sunshade, and now you expect me to fertilize and water him too?" Gao Shi turned around. "I don't think that boy is so delicate. Whether he can reach the level you and I hope for depends on whether he can hold back that drive of his."

"You had this planned long ago, didn't you? Since it was your idea, make sure you handle it properly. Don't abandon it halfway." With that, the call was disconnected, leaving him no chance to speak again.

Gao Shi stared blankly at the receiver. "That old bastard, dumping the burden on me again." After thinking for a moment, he dialed another number. It took a long while before someone answered. "Little Cheng, it's me, Gao Ping. Yes, I'm calling because I want you to take on a student. What's so troublesome about that? Can you do it? Give me a straight answer. Calling me Brother Gao won't help either... Good, then it's settled!"

After submitting his form, Chen Chuan did not wait around. He first went to take a look at the Martial Arts Arena Wei Changan had mentioned.

He had seen the venue from afar before. Its exterior resembled a massive white shell and was quite beautiful. Once inside, the space was broad and open, giving a very comfortable impression.

This was the main training venue for Class B Students. Quite a few students were sparring with one another, both male and female. Many were upperclassmen, and most were focused solely on training. A few livelier ones were likely newcomers who had just enrolled.

When he arrived, people could not help but glance at him a few times. The uniforms of Class A Students and Class B Students were identical, except that one bore the school emblem on the chest while the other did not.

Though it was strange for a Class A Student like him to come here, nobody said much. They simply continued with what they were doing.

Since he did not speak, nobody took the initiative to talk to him. Wherever he went, the Class B Students would voluntarily step aside or let him pass first.

Their attitudes seemed polite enough, but he could sense a profound distance and awareness of boundaries. It reminded him of what Wei Changan had said. It seemed that everyone was observing their own limits, moving only within circles drawn by themselves or by others. It was not just like this at school; outside, it was the same.

After watching for a while, he realized that among the students training here, only a small number had mastered the Breathing Method. As for whether they had grasped force, that was impossible to tell without fighting them. But from what he knew, without the Breathing Method, it was definitely impossible to develop force.

As for technical skills, their fundamentals were all solid, and everyone worked very hard. Watching them also gave him some inspiration. Yet he himself did not notice that wherever his gaze landed, the people there would grow tense.

After observing for a long time, he saw that he would learn nothing more by staying, so he left.

The moment he departed, some of the people in the arena immediately let out breaths of relief.

"That was an Upper Dorm Student, right? Why did he come here?"

"Was he some upperclassman? His gaze felt incredibly oppressive."

"But that guy was pretty handsome."

Several upperclassmen from Class B looked at one another, their expressions solemn. None of them said much, because while Chen Chuan had been standing there, they had all sensed an intense feeling of threat.

That feeling was not vague or intangible. It came from his movements, posture, gaze, and subtle unconscious adjustments. Moreover, it always fell upon the openings and flaws in their techniques and movements, making them deeply uncomfortable.

At the same time, they felt defeated. They had never seen Chen Chuan before, so he was very likely a freshman.

They had originally believed that through their own hard work, they had already caught up to the Upper Dorm Students of their year. But now they had suddenly discovered that even a freshman could make them feel as though thorns were pressed against their backs. It was undoubtedly a heavy blow.

They had nothing to say. They could only lower their heads and silently train even harder.

After leaving the arena, Chen Chuan went to Spring Autumn Lake. He ran several laps along the lakeside track, then went to one of the school's individual training rooms and trained until evening. After eating dinner at the cafeteria, he saw that it had grown dark and returned to the dormitory.

But just as he reached the dorm entrance and was about to take out his key, a voice called from the distance, "Student, wait a moment." He turned and saw a small-framed student jogging toward him with a sheet of paper in hand. Chen Chuan paused and asked, "What is it?"

The small student held out his hand. "Hello, are you the student in Dorm Four? I'm from Dorm Three. My name is Feng Xiaoqi."

Chen Chuan shook his hand as well. "Hello, Student Feng. I'm Chen Chuan."

Feng Xiaoqi said excitedly, "Student Chen, it's like this." He waved the sheet in his hand. "Our row of dormitories needs to choose a group leader. This is to prevent poor communication through the internal message boxes. Any notices from the school or dormitory will be communicated and passed along by the group leader. If students need help with anything, they can also inform the group leader first. I've nominated myself for the position. Do you have any objections?"

Chen Chuan understood. This was essentially an errand-running job, perhaps with a bit of minor authority, but he had no interest in it. "Sure. I have no objections."

"Great, thank you, Student Chen." Feng Xiaoqi grinned happily, then went to knock on Dorm Two next door. Someone happened to be inside, and a rather handsome young man came out.

Chen Chuan also went over to introduce himself. However, the young man seemed not to like talking much. When asked his name, he merely answered, "Luo Kaiyuan." When asked whether he agreed to Feng Xiaoqi becoming group leader, he simply said, "Fine."

As for Dorm One, it seemed no one was there. Feng Xiaoqi said he had arrived five days early, yet he had not seen anyone move into the room next door even by today. However, the dormitory room layout indicated that it was occupied.

While the three were talking, they suddenly heard the elevator, followed by unhurried footsteps. An upperclassman wearing imported formal attire, with a gentle face and glasses, approached from beyond the corridor. He smiled at Chen Chuan. "Student Chen, we meet again."

Chen Chuan recognized him at once. This was the upperclassman who had received him during the second examination and introduced the Mutual Aid Society to him. He asked, "Why have you come here, Senior?"

The upperclassman slipped one hand into his pocket, adjusted his glasses, and said with a smile, "Nothing much. Someone asked me to come. There are a few things I'd like to discuss privately with Student Chen."