"Your birthday present is ready," Gu Qingshan said, changing the subject.
"Ah! I want my present! When are you giving it to me? I want to see it as soon as possible!" Su Xue'er had been regretting her slip of the tongue, but the moment she heard this, she cheered again.
"Are you free tonight?"
"Yeah. The early-admission students are just here to get familiar with the campus and meet the teachers ahead of time. We're actually free most of the day."
"Good. I'll come find you tonight."
"Then I'll wait for you."
As she spoke, Su Xue'er realized that her last words had sounded a little too forward. Blushing, she quickly shut off the communicator.
Gu Qingshan smiled silently and continued fiddling with his communicator.
"Goddess of Justice?"
"I'm here. I noticed your conversation. The first form, Seraph, has completed testing; testing of the second form is in progress."
"Could you stop eavesdropping on my private conversations?"
"Please rest assured. The Goddess of Justice will not interfere with anyone's right to fall in love."
"That's not what I meant. I'm saying don't eavesdrop."
"According to citizen Gu Qingshan's personal wishes, Su Xue'er has been added to the list of secret contacts. Security monitoring has been disabled."
"...What were we talking about just now? Right, I want Seraph."
"Testing is not complete. Are you certain you want to give Seraph to Su Xue'er as a present?"
"Yeah. Don't worry, I've tested all the forms."
He'd tested them all in his previous life, Gu Qingshan added silently.
"Preparing Seraph."
"Su Xue'er has been added to the Federation's list of key protected persons."
"Seraph will be ready in three hours."
"Excellent. Thanks."
Gu Qingshan ended the connection.
For some reason, lately Gu Qingshan hadn't needed to submit a request at all. He could connect to the Goddess of Justice whenever he wanted.
Maybe it was because he'd become someone close to the President, so the Goddess was paying him special attention, Gu Qingshan thought silently.
In his previous life, he had left the Federation for the Fuxi Empire very early on and had never dealt much with the Goddess of Justice. As a result, he wasn't familiar with how she handled things.
He took a quick shower, changed into clean clothes, and left his room.
He had the rest of the morning free, so he might as well use the time to hone his skills.
Gu Qingshan asked around at the hotel front desk and soon learned that a sports club had an archery range.
Archery was a noble's sport—in this day and age, nearly all cold weapons had become elegant pastimes.
In other words, it was bound to be expensive.
Gu Qingshan suddenly remembered that he should check how many Credit Points he had left.
The President had offered to pay for his education, but he wasn't the sort to get greedy and ask people for anything and everything.
Gu Qingshan picked up his personal Light Brain and opened his profile.
"Hmm, I've still got 19,200 Credit Points. If I'm careful, that should last a while."
He'd saved it all up from working part-time in high school, originally intending to pay his first year of university tuition.
Gu Qingshan's gaze swept across the Light Brain's screen, then abruptly stopped on one spot.
"Personal Merit Points: 799873957281439 points."
Gu Qingshan froze, then instinctively tapped his Light Brain.
The number on the screen didn't change in the slightest.
"This Light Brain's been in use for seven or eight years. It finally broke today."
He sighed silently.
He'd spent 2,000 Merit Points to get the Goddess of Justice's help while making Su Xue'er's battle armor. There shouldn't have been much left.
So a ridiculous number like this might mean the Light Brain had malfunctioned.
Or maybe it was a reward from the Goddess for his skills?
He wasn't sure yet. He'd ask the Goddess of Justice later.
Gu Qingshan left the hotel and boarded an aerial bus.
Half an hour later.
Gu Qingshan squeezed out of the packed aerial bus and staggered a few steps before regaining his footing on the street.
"The capital really is different. There are so many people."
Gu Qingshan wiped the sweat from his forehead and turned his head. The sign for a sports club came into view.
Starry Sky Club.
Gu Qingshan stepped inside, and several hostesses immediately came over to greet him.
"Good morning, sir. Do you have a membership card?" one of the hostesses asked politely.
"No. It's my first time here," Gu Qingshan answered honestly.
The hostess stepped away, and a woman who looked like a manager came over.
The woman gave him a quick once-over, and her attitude immediately turned cold.
Gu Qingshan was wearing a white short-sleeved shirt and black casual pants. He looked clean enough, but the edges of his clothes were worn, making him look extremely plain.
To conceal the Night Rain Bow and Storage Bag, he was also carrying a long archery case.
The female manager greeted customers every day and had a keen eye. One look was all it took to tell that he was a poor student.
"The free trial area is on your right, on the second basement level."
She looked away, dropped her smile, and tossed out the directions.
"Could you tell me where the archery range is?" Gu Qingshan asked.
"The archery range?"
The female manager suddenly smiled.
Archery had always been popular among the nobility.
A decent set of archery equipment cost at least tens of thousands of Credit Points. If you wanted a good, custom-made bow, you'd need at least 500,000 Credit Points.
Ordinary people simply couldn't afford their own specialized equipment.
Even renting the public equipment at an archery range was based on a three-month term, and it wasn't cheap either.
"May I ask if you have your own bow, sir? If not, we sell them here."
She was sure this one sentence would put an end to his wishful thinking.
"Yeah, I have a bow. I just need a place to practice my technique," Gu Qingshan said with a nod.
The capital was practically a jungle of steel. Finding somewhere to practice his skills was no easy task.
"The archery range is at the back of the club. You'll need to pass through two other areas. Would you like me to take you there?"
"Sorry for the trouble," Gu Qingshan said.
"Please come this way."
She led Gu Qingshan through the fitness area and the swimming pool, until they finally reached an automatic door.
She quietly took two steps back and smiled. "We're here, sir. Please go on in."
"Ah, all right." Gu Qingshan walked up to the door.
It was still closed.
Gu Qingshan tried pushing it, but it was locked.
He turned to look at the female manager.
The female manager said coolly, "To enter the archery range, you need to verify your personal information with your Light Brain. You'll only be allowed in if you meet certain requirements."
Gu Qingshan said with a troubled expression, "My Light Brain seems to be having a problem. Maybe I should just forget it for today."
The female manager smiled without a word, then said, "Why not give it a try? Maybe the verification will work."
She beckoned, and several nearby security guards immediately gathered around.
Gu Qingshan misunderstood what was going on.
Normally, if someone didn't verify their personal information, they were either a fugitive or a drifter. Either way, they were bound to have something to hide.
He shook his head, then took out his personal Light Brain and opened the wireless verification connection.
Beep!
"Verification successful."
"Welcome, honored sir. Your arrival is an honor for the entire Starry Sky Club."
An electronic voice sounded, tinged with humility and reverence.
These were all pre-recorded greetings. Visitors of different status received different welcomes.
The archery range's doors opened, sliding apart to either side.
"Please come in, sir."
The female manager's attitude changed in an instant, and she greeted him with a warm smile.
She was a professional, after all.
The security guards were all sharp-eyed. Seeing this, they bowed in unison and quietly withdrew.
Inside the archery range, two staff members hurried over and bowed to Gu Qingshan at a ninety-degree angle.
"Welcome. Please come this way."
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