Making a Name

"Over a hundred thousand likes, several thousand shares, total views should have passed ten million..."

Song Mingyue watched several lines of lyrics appear at the end of the video. She felt the words were far too blunt and embarrassingly edgy, but plenty of people probably liked them, or the likes would not have been so high.

Seeing his daughter staring blankly without a word, Song Yunhe asked, "Do you want Dad to make a call and have the video taken down?"

He found what had happened to his daughter deeply embarrassing. But his daughter got along poorly with his second wife, and being caught between them left him in a difficult position.

And that boy had even edited the incident into a video and spread it far and wide. It was truly bad for Mingyue, and even worse for him.

Kuaiyin was The Alliance's largest short-video platform, with a massive user base in the billions and immense influence.

If the video was not restricted, even the Song Family's reputation would be affected.

The main reason he had given Gao Wu an eighty-thousand-yuan red packet was that family shame should not be aired in public. The eighty thousand also represented his desire to keep things low-key.

The leaders of Jiu Middle School understood this as well and had not made a big fuss. Even the few reports that appeared had concealed Mingyue's identity.

"No need."

Song Mingyue shook her head lightly. She remembered the boy who had saved her, his brilliant smile like sunlight, and his words: "Swimming isn't allowed in Bailin Lake."

For some reason, it was the first time she had felt so comfortable being around someone.

Song Yunhe looked utterly surprised. He asked again in disbelief, "Are you sure?"

Song Mingyue nodded faintly.

"All right." Song Yunhe had rarely seen his daughter over the past few years, and he carried some guilt toward her. Since she was willing to help that boy, it would not be appropriate for him to force his way in.

Fortunately, not many people knew Mingyue's identity, and those who did would not dare speak carelessly.

Song Yunhe said, "I investigated him. Gao Wu was born in Linhe Town. Four years ago, Demon God Believers performed an evil ritual and lured two Steel-Tailed Giant Lizards into Linhe Town, causing devastating destruction.

"Gao Wu was the only underage survivor. His entire family perished. After that, he was taken in by the Shang Family..."

"This person usually likes doing good deeds. Saving you was indeed just a chance encounter. There was no deliberate arrangement behind it."

At this point, Song Yunhe snorted coldly. "If that were not the case, how could I have tolerated his impudence?"

Song Mingyue listened in silence. Her delicate, radiant face was calm as water, while her bright eyes gazed ahead, empty and unfocused. No one knew what she was thinking. It was as if she had not heard Song Yunhe at all.

Seeing his daughter like this, Song Yunhe could not help sighing. He sat beside her and said softly, "Mingyue, if anything is troubling you, tell me. Never do anything foolish again!"

Watching Song Mingyue look as if her soul had drifted beyond the clouds, Song Yunhe sighed again and again. He prided himself on being capable and decisive, yet when it came to his own daughter, he truly had no good solution.

After thinking it over, he said seriously, "You should still come home with me and recuperate for a while."

The emptiness in Song Mingyue's eyes abruptly sharpened. After a moment of silence, she said, "I'm not going back."

Her voice was low, yet exceptionally firm. Song Yunhe looked helpless. "What exactly do you want?"

"I wasn't trying to kill myself," Song Mingyue explained. She knew the explanation was weak, so she added, "I promise you, I will never try to kill myself again."

Song Yunhe immediately breathed a sigh of relief. His daughter had a detached temperament and disliked talking, but she always kept her word. Since she had said it, she would definitely do it.

As long as his daughter was all right, it would be better for everyone if she lived on her own outside...

"Big Brother, a hundred thousand likes!"

Gao Wu received a Feixin message from Shen Yue. He hurriedly summoned the Boundless Merit Book and saw that it had already accumulated more than thirty thousand Merit.

He was both shocked and delighted. In just one night, he had accumulated so much Merit. He had spent four years doing several good deeds every day, yet had only accumulated less than twenty thousand Merit.

At this rate, he might even have a chance to accumulate one hundred thousand Merit this time. By then, perhaps he could awaken other Divine Mantras.

At the very least, he could raise the Azure Dragon Divine Qi Incantation by one realm!

The Azure Dragon Divine Qi Incantation did not specify detailed upgrade requirements, but he had a clear feeling that practicing it one hundred thousand times should bring it to the next realm.

At one hundred practices a day, it would take nearly two and a half years to upgrade the Divine Mantra.

Once the Divine Mantra reached the Minor Accomplishment realm, its greatest benefit would be simplifying the incantation and drastically reducing the time needed to chant it.

Borrowing Merit could save a great deal of time. That was extremely, extremely important to him.

At half past noon, Gao Wu arrived at school and headed straight to the cafeteria for a huge meal.

As a member of the Martial Arts Team, he enjoyed quite a few benefits. Meals and lodging were free, and he was issued clothing and training equipment. The Martial Arts Team also provided transportation, training, and medical subsidies, which added up to two thousand yuan per month.

If he could take the stage to fight, victories came with prize money as well.

What Gao Wu liked most was that meals were free.

Adolescence was the golden age of physical development, when young people naturally had big appetites. Martial Artists ate even more.

After being injected with the Blood Dragon Agent, he needed to eat at least seven or eight adult portions every meal. Food alone cost two or three hundred yuan a day.

He had not dared eat too much at home just now, afraid the old man would notice something. At school, he could finally let his stomach loose without restraint.

The only problem was that the cafeteria food did not have much oil or substance. He ate until he was stuffed, but digested it quickly.

Back in the dorm, Gao Wu practiced the Azure Dragon Divine Qi Incantation thirty-six times, trained the Nine Dragon Forms for half an hour, and was hungry again.

Opening the Boundless Merit Book, Gao Wu saw that his strength had risen by 0.1 points. He was delighted.

Since receiving the Blood Dragon Agent injection, only two days had passed, yet his strength had risen by five percent. That was an astonishing increase.

By this calculation, a full course of ten Blood Dragon injections could increase his strength by fifty percent.

If that really happened, he should be able to become an Advanced Martial Artist, and gain the qualifications to contend with Dongjiang's top middle school students.

At two in the afternoon, Gao Wu arrived at the Martial Arts Arena on time.

There was a Martial Arts League match against Sixth Middle School at three. The venue had already been arranged yesterday, with a ten-by-ten-meter space enclosed by tempered glass at the center serving as the arena.

Several fixed cameras had been set up around the outside of the arena, while two mobile cameras ran along overhead tracks.

The Middle School Martial Arts League had high viewership throughout The Alliance and generally ranked at the top of local program ratings. Dongjiang Middle School's Martial Arts League broadcasting rights had long been sold to a local platform, and the filming process was already highly polished.

It was precisely because today was match day that they had taken Saturday off yesterday.

Sixth Middle School's Martial Arts Team had arrived long ago and was warming up on the arena floor to get used to the environment.

The surrounding stands were packed with students, a dark sea of heads numbering at least two thousand.

Students of the home school did not have to pay to watch matches. Out of collective pride, teachers generally required students to attend as well. Every home match had high attendance.

Still, it was rare for so many people to arrive a full hour early.

When Gao Wu entered, he sparked a wave of cheers and commotion. Quite a few people loudly shouted, "Gao Sheng! Gao Sheng!"

The title actually carried a hint of mockery, but when shouted by a crowd of middle school students, it somehow took on a fervent, stirring energy.

It was the first time Gao Wu had received such an enthusiastic welcome. Happily, he waved to the people in the stands, drawing another burst of cheers.

He knew perfectly well that this buzz had all been drawn in by Kuaiyin. Most people were merely joining in the excitement. If he could not seize the opportunity, this popularity would come fast and vanish even faster.

Houzi, a Martial Arts Team member beside him, curled his lips and snorted disdainfully. "That show-off can't even get on the arena. What's he strutting around for?"

Several teenagers nearby nodded in agreement. Huang Long merely stared at Gao Wu coldly without saying a word.

In the changing room, the Martial Arts Team members were chewing chocolate energy bars and drinking Feipeng Special Drink.

These chocolate bars produced by Taiji Group supposedly used cacao trees grown in the Otherworld. They were high in calories, easy to digest, and even possessed a trace of source-force properties, making them excellent for replenishing physical strength.

Feipeng Special Drink contained caffeine, taurine, and abundant vitamins. It could not only meet the body's hydration needs, but also keep the brain's central nervous system in an excited state.

Gao Wu crunched through more than ten chocolate energy bars, eating twice as much as Huang Long, who had the largest build among them.

Coach Huang Hai saw it all clearly. His face remained expressionless, but inwardly he sneered. This kid had tasted the benefits of the Blood Dragon Agent injection. There was no way he could turn back now...