Commissioner Lu Chuan

"It was cheap food that ordinary people ate to fill their stomachs. I don't know whether you'll find it unappetizing."

Yu Jing simply assumed that Yu Xiaoxiao had been born into extraordinary circumstances and had naturally never seen something as low-grade as instant noodles. In truth, even he felt a little embarrassed to offer them.

"That's fine. As long as it fills my stomach."

Yu Jing took out a bucket of Kang Shuaibo braised beef noodles from his suitcase. Yu Xiaoxiao shook the cup in her hands, but no matter how he looked at it, it resembled nothing like the steaming noodles usually served in a bowl.

"They need to be soaked in boiling water before they can be eaten. It doesn't look like there's any boiling water here. How about we go outside and look?"

"I'll eat this. We absolutely can't go outside! My mother is out there. If she sees you beside me, she'll kill you... I'll find a way to get boiling water. Give me your water."

Yu Xiaoxiao looked serious as she took a special white stone and a glass container from her ring. Yu Jing watched the entire process closely but decided not to ask about it for now.

She rubbed her fingers together, and the white stone immediately began to burn, heating the mineral water in the glass container. She then left the remaining preparation to Yu Jing.

Soon, a steaming bowl of instant noodles was handed to Yu Xiaoxiao.

"It smells so good!"

Yu Xiaoxiao ate the instant noodles without the slightest concern for appearances. After just two mouthfuls, she even drank the soup dry. Yu Jing paid no attention to her eating and instead tipped the large bottle of mineral water into his mouth, replenishing the water his body and plants needed.

After finishing, Yu Xiaoxiao realized that she had made a spectacle of herself and blushed. She slowly handed the empty noodle cup, along with a stack of red banknotes, to Yu Jing. "This is payment for the noodles, and for your bowl."

"This is way too much. A cup of instant noodles only costs five yuan at the convenience store downstairs from my home... And the cup can just be thrown away after you finish eating."

Yu Jing took the cup and set it aside. Naturally, he had no intention of accepting the money.

"Only five yuan? I've never eaten something so cheap and delicious. Thank you. Otherwise, I wouldn't have had the strength with an empty stomach. Mother said tonight's physical training will be somewhat difficult, so I'd better take it seriously."

Throughout Yu Xiaoxiao's speech, Yu Jing had been observing her. Judging from the details of her words and the changes in her eyes, Yu Xiaoxiao gave off a sense of purity. He had never seen such an innocent girl before. In Yu Jing's view, humans in modern society should have long since lost the qualities of "innocence and purity."

Yu Jing smiled and replied, "Don't mention it. I still have plenty of instant noodles in reserve."

Yu Xiaoxiao paused and thought for a moment before shifting the topic to physical training. "Stay with me when it starts at midnight. Otherwise, you'll probably die on your own."

"...All right."

Yu Jing, who had been dazed for most of the night, immediately nodded. Yu Xiaoxiao seemed to have no aversion to the word "die," saying it as casually as anything. Besides, Yu Jing was not simply clinging to someone powerful—he had been drawn in by Yu Xiaoxiao's personality and appearance.

"From now on, don't interact with anyone else. Everyone here has their own motives, and they're different from yours."

"Mm, I know."

Yu Jing nodded and waited with Yu Xiaoxiao in the corner. He noticed that quite a few people nearby were looking over and whispering among themselves. They were too afraid of Yu Xiaoxiao to approach, and Yu Jing could roughly guess what they were murmuring about.

Yu Jing leaned against the wall to rest while waiting for the briefing about the physical training.

"Who is that guy? How is he so familiar with a junior member of the Yu family?"

"I heard Jiang Pengyu from the Jiang family say that he's from the District 19 Research Institute. Apparently, the Yu family's main forces are all hidden inside District 19. Maybe that kid has some connection to the Yu family."

Quite a few people here knew something about the so-called "Yu family," so they discussed Yu Jing and Yu Xiaoxiao's close conversation and behavior among themselves.

Yu Jing, however, paid little attention to what was happening around him. He simply waited quietly for all the newcomers to arrive and for the physical training to begin.

"Why don't you put your suitcase into your points card? Everyone's points card should have its storage space activated, right? The space is just rather small. Next time, I'll bring you a storage ring from home."

"A storage ring?" Yu Jing immediately connected it to the ring on Yu Xiaoxiao's finger, which had released various items earlier.

"You don't know how to use something like this yet, do you? Your points card should be bound to you. Just move it close to the object you want to store and confirm on the card. To retrieve something, you only need to select it on the card."

"Okay, I'll try."

The reason Yu Jing had never asked about these seemingly common-knowledge matters was that he did not want others to think he was some country bumpkin and look down on him.

Since Yu Xiaoxiao had taken the initiative to explain, Yu Jing tried bringing the card close to his suitcase.

Sure enough, when the two came into contact, the option "Store item?" appeared above the card. After he selected confirm, the suitcase was absorbed in a particle-like form, and the points card displayed "2.25/3," meaning that 2.25 meters of space remained for storing items.

"What advanced technology. The textbooks never mentioned anything about this kind of 'built-in storage space.'"

During the remaining time, new recruits continued to arrive and report in at intervals. Some of them clearly looked extraordinary, while others, like Yu Jing, had been born in small counties and knew nothing before coming here.

With several hours remaining, Yu Jing simply sat against the wall and rested, keeping himself in a half-asleep state so that his mind would remain in the best possible condition.

"Beep! Enrollment registration has ended. Expected attendance: 820. Actual registrations: 815. Those who failed to register will be eliminated. Preparations for the newcomers' physical training will now begin. This physical training session will be organized by Commissioner Lu Chuan."

The enormous broadcast echoed through the abandoned building. All the resting newcomers, including Yu Jing, immediately woke up.

At that moment, a handsome man who looked just over thirty entered through the building's main entrance in a formal suit. Yu Jing noticed, however, that this commissioner from the Dihua Ability Institute had an unusual left arm—a mechanical prosthesis.

"Commissioner Lu Chuan from the Mechanical Academy? I heard he was a graduate from our previous class. He completed the training as the Third Seat and stayed on as a commissioner. I never expected him to be so handsome in person."

"Commissioner Lu Chuan? It's actually Commissioner Lu Chuan."

Many disciples from the Mechanical Academy, and even from other academies, had heard of this commissioner.

"He's incredibly powerful. If he wanted to kill the more than eight hundred people here, it would take him less than ten seconds. I wonder how he compares to Mother."