Bewitchment (Requesting Monthly Votes)

After joking around in the group chat for a while, Su Tu practiced his morning exercises. The qi within him flowed like a river, constantly battering against the next acupoint. He could feel that acupoint beginning to loosen; it would be opened before long.

When he finished his morning practice and stepped out of his room, Zhang Meng was still asleep. After all, not everyone could keep up with the godlike schedule of a senior-year student.

Su Tu quietly washed up, then left home for school.

Starting today, he would be taking a long leave to begin cultivating Martial Dao. He should have discussed it with his parents first, but when he called them yesterday, neither had answered. In the end, he could only send them a message explaining the matter.

Honestly, Su Tu's parents had been far too busy lately. If his aunt hadn't secretly sent him a few photos of them frazzled by work, he would have been unable to sit still long ago.

The morning sun was lovely. Its gentle rays fell across Su Tu's face, warm and comfortable.

He had just stepped out of the residential complex.

"Morning, Su big brother!" A little girl in a floral shirt had half a bun stuffed in her mouth, looking like an adorable little hamster.

"Morning, Ya Ya." Su Tu smiled in reply.

"Off to school, Xiao Su? Ya Ya, get your Su big brother a bun." The little girl's mother smiled as well.

Hearing that, Ya Ya hurriedly offered Su Tu a large meat bun. Su Tu didn't stand on ceremony. He took it and finished it in a few bites.

"Sister Hua's cooking is the best!"

"Of course it is!" the girl's mother said proudly.

Sister Hua and Ya Ya lived in the same building as Su Tu, and their family ran a breakfast shop. Back when his family had been busy, Su Tu had helped look after Ya Ya a few times. They had become familiar with one another, and their relationship had always been good.

Most relationships between people were like that.

"The college entrance exam is coming up soon, right? Work hard. If you get into New Star University, Sister Hua will treat you to a big meal!" Sister Hua said grandly.

Su Tu agreed with a smile, then broke into a jog toward school.

"You should learn more from your Su big brother. He's handsome and a good student. You need to be like him in the future, understand? If you don't behave, the big bad wolf will come take you away!" Sister Hua scared Ya Ya.

Ya Ya kept her mouth shut as she chewed her bun. She knew better than to respond to her mother at a time like this—if she did, it would never end.

Her dark eyes darted about. Later, I'll go with Brother Zhuang Zhuang to play at that newly opened amusement park. They all say it's been there since they were little, but I've never seen it. Mama must just not want to take me there. Hmph, I'm definitely going today!

Children's thoughts always wandered far away.

During morning study, students trickled into the classroom in groups of two and three.

Some swayed as they recited classical texts, while others went over mathematical formulas again and again.

Chen Xi's loud voice suddenly rang out in the classroom, shattering the calm.

"What? You're taking a leave of absence?!"

"What the hell are you doing?!"

"You're the top student in the whole school, and you're taking leave? What, did another school pay to poach you? Take me with you!"

Su Tu quickly covered Chen Xi's mouth and gave the surrounding students an apologetic look.

He lowered his voice. "Keep it down."

"No, are you messing with me? Or are you serious?"

Chen Xi stared at Su Tu in confusion. His childhood friend had never pulled this sort of bizarre stunt before. Why was he suddenly making a joke like this?

Su Tu sighed inwardly. This really wasn't easy to explain.

Just as Su Tu was considering how to tell Chen Xi about it—

The class teacher entered the classroom with a document in hand, her expression solemn.

She knocked on the blackboard, immediately drawing the students' attention.

"Put down your pens!"

The students looked at one another in confusion. Everyone knew what the Elite Class's class teacher was like.

Ever since their senior year had begun, she had practically wanted them to solve problems even while using the bathroom.

Yet now, she was telling them to put down their pens.

Could the world be ending?!

One student thought wildly.

Liu Yingjiao's gaze swept over her students. She looked slightly dazed, as though even she had yet to fully process it.

"Next, I have an extremely important announcement to make. It concerns all of your futures."

"Beginning with this year's college entrance examination, an additional independent exam will be introduced."

The words landed like a bomb in a calm lake, and the entire class immediately erupted into chaos.

"Huh?! They're adding another exam now?"

"Are they trying to kill us? The college entrance exam is only a few months away. Why suddenly do this now?"

"You're kidding, right? Is this for real?"

Adding a new subject to the college entrance examination was an enormously significant decision, one that affected the futures of countless children. Even announcing it years in advance would not have been excessive.

Yet now, without any warning whatsoever, another exam had appeared. It was hard to imagine how great an impact this would have on future college entrance examinations.

Every student began discussing it heatedly, and the classroom instantly became a noisy mess.

Only Su Tu sat quietly at his desk.

So they've finally announced it. He felt a faint stir of emotion.

Liu Yingjiao could understand how her students felt. They had worked hard for so many years and were just one last step away, only for another exam to suddenly be added. Who could accept that?

But the newly added examination was different from ordinary subjects. It would not actually affect most students' regular college entrance examinations very much. It was only the suddenness of the news that had caught everyone off guard, leaving the class teacher momentarily shaken.

Now that she had collected herself, she knocked on the blackboard again. "Quiet, quiet. Listen to me!"

"You may choose for yourselves whether or not to take this exam!"

The classroom immediately fell silent. This was the first time they had ever heard of a college entrance examination subject that students could choose whether to take.

"Next, I'll let this person explain it to you." Seeing that the students had quieted down, Teacher Liu looked toward the door.

Then, a tall man strode onto the podium. He moved with the bearing of a tiger and a dragon. His face was dark, but his eyes were exceptionally bright.

"Students, beginning with this year's college entrance examination, there will be an additional independent exam: Martial Dao!"

"From now on, the college entrance examination will be divided into the academic examination and the Martial Examination!"

"Students taking the academic examination will continue to take the same six major subjects as before, while Martial Examination students must take the martial competition as well as mathematics, language, and Interstellar Language."

The man's voice was loud and clear, but his words seemed to possess a power that soothed the mind. The students, whose hearts had been thrown into turmoil by the bombshell announcement, calmed down somewhat upon hearing him.

Mind Power. Su Tu sensed fluctuations of mental energy in the man's voice. He had likely used Mind Power.

"May I ask, what exactly are the Martial Examination and Martial Dao?" a student raised his hand and asked.

The man was delighted inwardly. Someone had taken the bait, so he could continue.

"Martial Dao is a form of cultivation that elevates one's level of life. On New Star, Martial Dao has been widespread for a long time. Only after it stabilized did it begin spreading to the Ancestral Star."

"You must have seen videos over the past few days, right? Those people displaying unbelievable strength are martial artists."

"And the future path of Martial Examination students is to cultivate Martial Dao. The Federation has now gained a foothold in the galaxy, but all manner of dangers still remain. Martial artists are the foundation for facing all of them!"

The man spoke with conviction. His voice carried traces of Mind Power, making the students who heard him feel their blood boil.

"Martial Dao... it sounds pretty cool. I think I was born to be a genius at cultivating Martial Dao!"

Chen Xi whispered excitedly beside him.

But Su Tu's brows furrowed slightly.

Something was wrong. This man's behavior was wrong. His words were mixed with a mysterious power that provoked emotion. If ordinary students listened to him for much longer, they would likely sign up without even understanding what Martial Dao was.

Take Chen Xi, for example. He was short and skinny. During running drills, he always stayed far away, and he avoided the commotion whenever there was a fight, terrified of getting caught in the crossfire.

Under normal circumstances, Chen Xi would stay far away from something as dangerous-sounding as Martial Dao.

He would not think it was cool like he did now.

With that thought, Su Tu's mind stirred, and an invisible wave of Mind Power rippled outward. He nudged Chen Xi and said casually, "Forget cultivation, Your Majesty. With your physique, you might end up dead before you even get started."

Chen Xi shuddered from the push, then said, "Damn, I can't even think about it?"

Though he spoke stubbornly, he had snapped out of that earlier state.

Seeing Chen Xi regain his senses, Su Tu said nothing more. Instead, he looked up at the man still talking endlessly on the podium, and their gazes met by chance.

The man flashed a seemingly friendly grin.

But a voice that only Su Tu could hear sounded beside his ear.

"No matter which family's disciple you are, don't ruin my plans. Otherwise, I'll tear you apart!"