Shadows in the Moonlight

Dongqi University had two campuses, east and west. The main campus, where Zhao Rui studied, was relatively remote, located in a suburban development zone.

However, the suburbs of the provincial capital were hardly any worse than the center of Lin City. At most, there were fewer big shopping complexes and fewer high-rises.

Zhao Rui strolled along the broad road outside campus, wandering at ease as he observed his surroundings.

Many of the residential compounds here were made up of old buildings without elevators, only five or six stories tall and built quite a long time ago.

Those closest to the university, in particular, were mostly former faculty dormitories or family housing.

There were modern residential compounds, too, but they were much farther from the university.

After circling the area around campus, Zhao Rui settled on a compound not far from the school gate, with convenient access.

The buildings were just a little old.

He went straight to a real estate agent along the street by the compound. After looking over the place, he rented an apartment on the spot.

Zhao Rui wasn't short of money these days. Between what he'd earned working over the summer and Brother Hu's "tribute," he had a full sixty thousand yuan in his account.

The apartment rented for 1,500 yuan a month, or 1,450 a month with an annual lease. That wasn't much of a burden for Zhao Rui.

The apartment was on the fourth floor, with three bedrooms and an old-fashioned layout that put the balcony off a bedroom. The bedrooms were fairly spacious; if he lived alone, he'd have more than enough room to practice his punches.

Most importantly, the apartment already came furnished and equipped with appliances. He wouldn't have to buy anything new; all he needed was a fresh set of bedding, and it would be ready to move into.

Still, Zhao Rui didn't plan to move in right away. School had only just started, and he wasn't sure what the arrangements would be like, so he decided to wait a couple of days.

After renting the apartment, Zhao Rui opened WeChat's services and checked the locations of nearby martial arts schools. Then he hailed a cab and headed straight over.

The martial arts schools here weren't much different from those in Lin City. Since they weren't in the busy part of the provincial capital, they had something of the feel of taekwondo studios from his previous life.

They mainly served martial arts students in the surrounding area, providing training space and extracurricular instruction.

They weren't involved in discussions of high-level martial arts or the passing down and cultivation of different schools.

Zhao Rui asked around at two or three places. They did need sparring partners, but had no shortage of part-timers. If he wanted a full-time position, he could apply for an interview.

Zhao Rui figured as much. This was the provincial capital, right beside a university; the one thing they'd never lack was college students looking for part-time work.

After getting a general idea of things, he took a cab back to the dorm.

Everything was new to the incoming freshmen, and the campus was full of groups of first-years wandering around.

It was easy to tell the new students from the older ones. Their curiosity and youthful awkwardness couldn't be hidden.

Zhao Rui's dorm was no exception. The eldest and third-oldest were the most enthusiastic. After a quick rest in the dorm, they suggested going out to explore campus.

Since they had just arrived, Zhao Rui didn't want to spoil the mood, so he went along with them.

As they wandered, they took in the campus scenery and admired the pretty girls passing by. They chatted happily along the way.

Only the fourth roommate, Chu Yunlei, was quiet. He trailed behind Zhao Rui and the other two like a tagalong, as if he were barely even there.

They hadn't been walking long before Zhao Rui's phone started ringing one call after another.

Some calls came from Yang Fan, and one came from Sun Tiantian, who had started school earlier. They both wanted to know how he felt about starting university.

Then the senior students from the martial arts school started a group video call. They were gathered at a barbecue joint, eating skewers.

They told him to work on his drinking now that he was in college. He was an adult, after all, so they could all drink together the next time they met.

Zhao Rui chatted with them for a while. Using the call as an excuse, he slipped away from the "campus tour" early and headed back to the dorm.

After a quick wash, he climbed into bed.

He sat cross-legged, hands forming the energy-circulating seal, and quietly guided his inner force through its cycle as he began to cultivate.

He didn't practice for long—only thirty or forty minutes—before Le Bin and the others finished their walk and returned to the dorm.

"Second brother, do you have a girlfriend?"

Back in the dorm, Le Bin teased him with a grin. His features were rather delicate and handsome, and when he smiled, he had quite a bit of "charm."

"No. What about you guys?"

Aside from Le Bin, the other two all shook their heads.

"I've got a girlfriend, but she doesn't go to our school. I'll introduce everyone when she visits."

Le Bin said with a smile.

"You're so handsome, of course you've got a girlfriend. My goal is to stop being single by the time college ends!"

The eldest, Jian Conglin, declared with fighting spirit.

Their major was accounting, and women made up a high proportion of the students, roughly three to one.

They certainly wouldn't be short on girls.

"I wonder what the girls in our class are like?"

Jian Conglin gazed into the distance, as if he could see through space and time to the girls' dorms.

"We'll find out tomorrow!"

Zhao Rui said with a smile.

"I checked the sign-in sheet earlier, but there weren't any photos!"

"Knowing their names already puts you a step ahead of everyone else, eldest brother!"

Le Bin joked.

"Haha!"

The night sky over Jizhou seemed even hazier than Lin City's. Ringed by mountains, the summer heat felt all the more intense.

A rattling fan swung back and forth in the dorm, and the lively late-night chatter brought a faint, almost imperceptible coolness to the brand-new room.

The next morning, Zhao Rui got up early as usual. This time, though, he didn't practice his martial arts. Instead, he jogged once around campus.

He stretched his limbs as he went, admiring the campus in the morning light.

After his workout, he returned to the dorm. The others were already awake. He washed up quickly, then joined them on their way to the school cafeteria.

There was a large cafeteria right beside the men's dormitory. It had three floors and was quite spacious.

Compared with high school, the university cafeteria was not only bigger but offered a wider selection of food. Breakfast alone came in dozens of varieties, featuring dishes from all across the country, from north to south and east to west.

After enjoying a hearty meal, everyone in the dorm followed the stream of students to the lecture hall they'd been told to go to.

Today was their meeting with the counselor. It was mainly a chance for students and teachers to get acquainted, appoint a temporary class monitor, and prepare for the upcoming military training.

There was nothing unusual about the process.

Their counselor was a woman surnamed Liu, named Liu Jie. She was a thin, short young woman with a bob that reached her ears.

Word was, she was a new teacher who had stayed on after graduating as a senior.

The meeting was relaxed. Liu Jie didn't waste time on empty talk; she gave practical advice on things to keep in mind at university and explained the arrangements for military training.

Zhao Rui went through the motions as a first-year student, listening to the counselor. There was no chance for him to stand out, and nothing out of the ordinary happened.

The class monitor was a tall young woman chosen by the counselor. Her name was Cai Xinyue. She was a six- or seven-out-of-ten in looks, but had an impressive presence and seemed outgoing and capable.

She looked like someone who had often served as a class officer.

As expected, girls made up about two-thirds of the class. That ratio left the eldest, Jian Conglin, thrilled. All morning, his gaze roved back and forth among his female classmates, sizing them up.

He was laying a solid foundation for his preliminary screening, so he could find a suitable girlfriend more precisely.

After their first class, everyone gathered downstairs in the teaching building and received their military uniforms and shoes.

Military training started tomorrow and would last two weeks. They wouldn't just train on campus; they'd also travel to a military camp for live-fire practice!

There would be plenty of different activities, and the training would be taken quite seriously.

Zhao Rui didn't care about military training. With the physique of a Level Five Martial Artist, no kind of military training would pose a challenge.

But just because he didn't care didn't mean the others felt the same. Before training had even begun, several girls had already asked the counselor for exemptions.

None of them were granted. According to school rules, even those unable to train because of special circumstances had to stay with their class and rest on the sidelines.

After picking up his uniform, Zhao Rui returned to the dorm with his roommates.

By then, the new students were no longer just getting to know the people in their own dorm. They were mingling across dorms as well.

The place was bustling, with people coming and going.

Jian Conglin was tall and sturdy, and he had a smoking habit. It didn't take long for him to strike up a friendship with a few fellow smokers from other dorms.

Zhao Rui also made some new friends: two fellow townsmen who had come from Lin City.

There weren't many boys to begin with. Even counting the other class in their department, there were only about twenty of them. He hadn't expected three to be from Lin City.

It just went to show how hard people from Lin City worked at their studies.

Both of the other boys from Lin City had attended schools in the county towns below the city. They'd always been in regular classes, unlike Zhao Rui, who had studied martial arts.

Their grades were the result of genuine hard work.

After chatting with his new classmates for a while, Zhao Rui made an excuse, picked up his backpack, and left the dorm.

Though the air outside was muggy, the bright moon hung high, and white clouds drifted past in the blink of an eye, leaving a cool jade glow in their wake.

The sight stirred something in Zhao Rui. His inner breath stirred, and his spirits lifted.

Perhaps because he'd recently experienced one of the greatest joys of his life, he felt a little moved. The inner energy in his body seemed to stir as well.

He hurried to a secluded grove and leaped onto the top of a tree, where he sat cross-legged.

Beneath the moonlight and drifting clouds, he began cultivating the Ethereal Divine Skill taught to him by Li Da Naodai.

The Ethereal Divine Skill wasn't a supreme martial art, but Zhao Rui had no better foundational technique for now. He could only take things slowly and first increase the capacity of his Dantian.

Before the semester began, he'd accumulated five more advancement points while working as a sparring partner. Now, he poured them all into increasing his inner energy.

This brought his inner energy cultivation to the level of an ordinary martial artist with fifteen years of practice.

That counted as a modest level of skill.

Zhao Rui meditated for a full hour. Only when the moon was bright, the stars were sparse, and a cool breeze brushed his face did he finish, jump down from the tree, and end his practice.

But the moment his feet touched the ground, a slightly panicked voice came from nearby.

"Who's there?"

Not far from the tree, a young man and woman were holding each other. They stared at him in shock.

"Ahem, I'm just passing by! Carry on!"

Zhao Rui smiled, pushed off the ground, and sped away.

"He's a martial artist! Let's get out of here!"

Seeing Zhao Rui vanish after just a few strides, the young couple were badly frightened. They forgot all about kissing and hurried away.

Running into a martial artist in the woods in the middle of the night was no joke.

Who knew whether he might suddenly get the urge to do something perverted?

There had been cases in the news before. The culprits were usually caught, but those were only the cases reported in the news.

How many more had never been caught—or never reported?

When all was said and done, the government had no way to keep every martial artist in check.

When the couple got back to their dorm, they told their roommates or friends about what had happened that night, their faces still pale with fright.

That grove wasn't part of the Martial Arts Academy grounds. Martial arts students generally didn't come wandering around there.

Martial arts students had their own "turf." The school provided them with a better living environment.

"Could it have been a freshman? Or someone from outside the school?"

"Maybe. You should still tell the counselor tomorrow!"

"Okay!"