Barrier

Li Fei walked out of the office building with the prescription Hao Yi had given him.

He "looked" at the Myriad Blood Bead inside his body:

Level: Level 1, 71%
Blood Soul: 9 +23%

The two currents of heat inside him just now had reduced his Blood Souls somewhat, but his level progress had shot up by 20%!

"Looks like that heat contained a great deal of energy."

Li Fei fell into thought.

It was the height of summer. Cicadas shrieked without pause, while the blinding sunlight made it hard to keep one's eyes open.

"Junior Li!"

A voice suddenly called out.

Li Fei turned to look and saw someone standing beneath the shade of a tree not far away.

The other person looked young as well, broad and powerfully built. He wore a black short-sleeved Military Academy shirt and beckoned at Li Fei with a smile.

Li Fei recognized him. The man also lived in the family compound of the Overseeing Bureau, and they had crossed paths several times before.

He walked toward him.

"Junior Li, my name is Lu Changwu. I'm also a Rank A Student at the Military Academy, and I enrolled two years before you."

Lu Changwu clasped his fists toward Li Fei of his own accord.

Li Fei returned the gesture. "Hello, Senior Lu."

"Junior Li, my father is Lu Sheng, Brigade Leader of the Overseeing Bureau's First Brigade. He's also very familiar with your father. We're all children of the Overseeing Bureau, so we ought to stick close together here at the Military Academy."

Lu Changwu said with a smile.

The Overseeing Bureau had three brigades in total. Li Lei was a squadron leader in the Second Brigade, while this man's father was a brigade leader, one rank above Li Lei. Moreover, according to the Overseeing Bureau's tradition, its Chief Inspectors were promoted from the First Brigade's Brigade Leaders. Thus, Lu Sheng's status in the Overseeing Bureau stood below only a handful of people.

"So that's how it is. Brother Lu is right—we should be closer."

Li Fei said with a smile as well, naturally changing the form of address.

"Hahaha, then I'll take the liberty of calling you Xiao Fei."

Lu Changwu patted Li Fei's shoulder. "Come on, Xiao Fei. I'll introduce you to some friends."

Li Fei accepted Lu Changwu's invitation.

Both of them had bicycles, and before long they rode out of the Military Academy together. Lu Changwu led Li Fei to a nearby restaurant.

After entering, Li Fei saw a banquet made up of several tables pushed together, with more than a dozen people seated around them, both men and women.

When they saw the two enter, they all rose to their feet.

"Brother Lu."

"Boss Lu."

The crowd greeted him.

Li Fei could tell that Lu Changwu carried considerable prestige among this group.

"Come, let me introduce everyone."

With an arm around Li Fei's shoulders, Lu Changwu spoke loudly:

"This junior is Li Fei, son of Squadron Leader Li Lei from the Fourth Squadron of the Overseeing Bureau's Second Brigade. The moment he enrolled, he was taken on as a student by Special Grade Instructor Mr. Hao Yi. He's already a Rank A Student now."

Since Li Lei had always publicly claimed that Li Fei was his son, outsiders all believed the same.

Perhaps the original owner of this body would have corrected them in public, but Li Fei would not enjoy the benefits the other man brought him while acting so awkward about it. So, he tacitly accepted Lu Changwu's introduction.

Next, Lu Changwu introduced everyone present to Li Fei.

They were all children of the Overseeing Bureau. Four of them were sons of squadron leaders, while some were children of team leaders, and the rest were children of ordinary employees.

"We are all martial artists, so it would not do to drink too much. Today, in welcome of Junior Li Fei, we'll drink this one cup. Come!"

Lu Changwu said as he raised the wine cup on the table.

"Welcome, Junior Li!"

"Welcome!"

"Thank you, everyone."

"..."

Everyone drained their cups together, then sat down to eat and chat as they ate.

In terms of family background, Li Fei ranked second only to Lu Changwu among this group. The other four children of squadron leaders stood on equal footing with him, but he had a Special Grade Instructor as his teacher. That was an enormous advantage.

Among this group, only Lu Changwu had been taken on as a student by a Special Grade Instructor. Li Fei was the second.

That was why everyone treated Li Fei with such warmth.

One male student, clearly older than Li Fei, called him "Brother Xiao Fei" at every turn and repeatedly toasted him with tea in place of wine. It was only because the man's father happened to be a team leader in Li Lei's squadron, and Li Lei was his father's immediate superior.

Li Fei had attended plenty of business dinners in his previous life. He handled such situations with effortless ease.

Seeing how properly Li Fei conducted himself, Lu Changwu was instead somewhat surprised. Was this person really only seventeen? Anyone whom Hao Yi took as a student truly was no ordinary person.

Seeing that the atmosphere had been built up nicely, Lu Changwu spoke:

"Xiao Fei, now that you've become Mr. Hao's student, you are bound to accomplish something. What plans do you have for the future?"

At those words, everyone present fell quiet and looked at Li Fei.

Li Fei knew the key point of this banquet had arrived. Smiling, he said, "I came to the Military Academy to learn some skills. I never expected to be lucky enough for Mr. Hao to take me as his student. As for the future, I'll take things one step at a time."

"Oh?"

Lu Changwu gave Li Fei a deep look, then nodded. "Xiao Fei, you've only just arrived and don't understand the situation here. Let me give you a brief explanation."

"Please enlighten me, Brother Lu."

"Do you know what sort of people make up the majority of those who come to this Military Academy, aside from children from ordinary families?"

At this point, Lu Changwu gave a self-mocking smile. "For those who want to go farther down the path of martial arts, the Conflict Mitigation Departments of the Twelve Universities are the first choice. But those who can get in are either exceptionally talented or the top nobles and elites from various places, able to obtain admission quotas exempt from the entrance examination directly. Only people like us—whose talent is not quite good enough and whose families lack the means to obtain an exempt admission quota—come to the Military Academy to gamble on a chance."

Li Fei merely watched him without speaking. Lu Changwu continued, "Xing City Military Academy only has two or three quotas each year for entering the universities' Conflict Mitigation Departments, along with some cultivation resources. Yet whether it's those quotas or the cultivation resources, they are almost entirely monopolized by the Tiger Sabre Gang!"

Li Fei froze, recalling once more the gruesome sight of that noodle shop owner's death.

"Since you're a child of the Overseeing Bureau, Xiao Fei, you should know something about the Tiger Sabre Gang, right?"

Lu Changwu asked.

Li Fei nodded. "I only know that it's the largest local gang. I hear it has three thousand members."

"Hmph. Three thousand members is merely a slogan they shout to the outside world. But the Tiger Sabre Gang has dozens of official martial artists, along with several formidable martial masters. Add to that their connections and influence in every aspect of Xingcheng, and a force like that is more than enough to run rampant through Xing City Military Academy."

Lu Changwu said coldly.

Li Fei understood what he meant.

As the largest local gang, the Tiger Sabre Gang was already immensely powerful. Whether in martial strength or social connections, they stood at the very top. Meanwhile, the children of Xingcheng's top nobles and elites were not at the Military Academy. As for the children of the Overseeing Bureau present here, the Tiger Sabre Gang was not afraid of offending them.

Li Fei did not find it strange that a local gang could be so domineering. If the imperial court's control over local regions had been strong, it would not have been driven all the way back to the Imperial Capital seventeen years ago.

In an age like this, where imperial power did not extend below the county level, local tyrants were everywhere—that was the norm.

Great clans, powerful local families, martial sects, and court intrigues—the problems accumulated by a feudal empire founded more than five hundred years ago could not all be solved by a single Mingxin Reform.

"The Military Academy holds a Monthly Exam every month. Students of the A, B, and C ranks take their exams separately, and the top ten in each rank's Monthly Exam receive rewards, including resources needed for martial cultivation. Beyond that, the yearly quotas for entering the universities' Conflict Mitigation Departments have assessment criteria, one important criterion being the rankings in each Monthly Exam.

"The Tiger Sabre Gang's people have almost completely taken control of the Monthly Exams, using every sort of method to ensure that the top ten of every rank's Monthly Exam are their people. In this way, they have effectively controlled the cultivation resources of Xing City Military Academy and its quotas for entering the universities' Conflict Mitigation Departments."

Lu Changwu looked at Li Fei. "Xiao Fei, if you want to accomplish anything at this Military Academy in the future, it is only a matter of time before you come up against the Tiger Sabre Gang."

Li Fei met his gaze. "Brother Lu, did you invite me here today because you want to recruit me to fight the Tiger Sabre Gang together?"

"That's right!"

Lu Changwu admitted it readily. "You are Mr. Hao's student, so your strength will surely be extraordinary in the future. With you joining us, we will have a better chance of breaking the barrier the Tiger Sabre Gang has built and snatching food from the tiger's jaws together."

"Brother Lu, everyone, I've only just arrived and don't wish to stir up trouble. Still, we are all children of the Overseeing Bureau. If there is ever a place where you need me in the future, I will certainly do my utmost."

Li Fei raised his teacup toward everyone.

He had always been cautious. He did not agree outright, but neither did he clearly refuse, leaving himself room to maneuver.

Though this was not the attitude Lu Changwu had wanted, he still raised his teacup with a smile:

"Hahaha, good! Everyone, let's have another cup!"