Mr. Stark's Second Apprentice-Brother's Romantic Luck

Peter Parker became famous after a single battle, practically turning into a living advertisement. Not only did the existing disciples train even harder, but a new wave of people also came seeking apprenticeships.

This was the student apprenticeship craze that followed the model-apprenticeship craze Tony had started last time.

There should originally have been another wave of warriors seeking apprenticeships, but most of the Chinese speakers in the military were Chinese Americans, which did not meet the military commanders' expectations.

So they specifically found trusted confidants of their own, put them through intensive Chinese training, and only then sent people over.

After Peter was discharged from the hospital, he brought over nearly half the school's students that very day. There were so many people packed together that even the martial arts school could not contain them.

However, after Chinese filtered them out, only a pitiful few remained.

Many classmates who felt they had a good relationship with Peter crowded around him and refused to leave, hoping to gain a chance to join the martial arts school through "donating to support education."

But Peter was powerless in this matter as well. In the end, he still had to bring out the all-powerful Senior Apprentice-Brother.

"Mr. Stark only succeeded in becoming a disciple after learning Chinese. You can't possibly have more money than him."

Sure enough, the moment Stark was mentioned, all the students wilted. Left with no choice, they departed dejectedly.

Indeed, although Senior Apprentice-Brother wasn't a monkey, he worked everywhere.

Fat Ned pitifully grabbed Peter's hand and continued pleading.

"Hey, bro, we're best friends, aren't we? Can't you really put in a good word for me with your master?"

"Uh, Ned, I'm actually curious too. You're clearly Chinese American, so why can't you speak Chinese?"

"That's a good question. I'm clearly Chinese American, so why can't I speak Chinese?" Ned blinked and said, "Learning Chinese wasn't useful to me before. Everyone around me only spoke English."

"Chinese is useful now, but you can't speak it. This teaches us a lesson: if you don't prepare properly in your daily life, even if an opportunity lands right in front of you, you still won't be able to seize it."

Peter poured his friend a bowl of thick chicken soup, then sent him away.

Of course, not everyone turned pale at the mention of Chinese. The top female student Gwen Stacy, for example, did not.

"When did you learn Chinese?" Peter asked curiously as he watched Gwen chat animatedly with Sharon in Chinese.

"Um..." Gwen tilted her head and thought carefully for a moment before saying, "A few months ago, I saw some perennial second-place student diligently studying with a Chinese textbook, so I thought I'd challenge myself too. And you can see the result."

"I was curious back then about why you wanted to learn Chinese, but now I know, Your Highness Thor," Gwen teased.

Peter's face reddened. He shyly scratched his head, embarrassed to tell his former goddess that he had actually done it for the ten-thousand-dollar stipend.

Gwen certainly lived up to her wealthy upbringing. She was much more forthright than he was and extended her hand to him openly.

"From now on, we'll both be studying here. According to Eastern customs, I should call you Second Apprentice-Brother, right?"

"Uh, yes... junior apprentice-sister." Peter's face flushed as he reached out and shook his junior apprentice-sister's soft hand.

Although they separated after only a brief touch, Peter could still clearly feel the warmth of Gwen's hand and the smooth, tender texture of her skin on his fingertips.

He could not help rubbing his fingertips together.

Gwen did not notice, but the highly trained Sharon standing beside them saw it clearly.

"Actually, you could hold it a little longer. I'm sure Gwen wouldn't mind, right?"

Sharon teased Peter while winking at Gwen with her right eye.

Gwen immediately understood. She glanced at Peter, whose face was beet red, and the two beauties covered their mouths and laughed. Their voices were as crisp as silver bells.

Gwen naturally did not dislike Peter. Otherwise, she would not have noticed him teaching himself Chinese, much less taken the initiative to learn a foreign language that might have been completely useless.

As an agent, Sharon had received training from a young age that included indoctrination about putting missions first, pledging loyalty to the Federation, and saving civilians.

That was also why she was filled with goodwill toward righteous superheroes. Otherwise, in the future, she would not have fallen in love with Captain America, a man old enough to be her grandfather.

And in the earlier battle, Peter had already proven through his actions that he was a righteous and fearless superhero.

Indeed, although Second Apprentice-Brother wasn't a pig, his romantic luck had always been pretty good.

Peter was nearly socially annihilated by their laughter. His face and neck flushed as he stood there stiffly, wanting to explain and apologize but not knowing what to say.

Zhan Liu came to his rescue at the right moment.

"All right, all the newcomers who are staying, follow me to the main hall to pay respects to the founding patriarch. After that, you may become nominal disciples for three months. Three months later, we'll decide whether you formally enter the sect or are demoted to students."

Peter felt as if he had been granted an amnesty. He hurried after Zhan Liu and jogged into the main hall.

Gwen also reined in her laughter, waved goodbye to Sharon, and followed them inside.

As usual, they explained the sect's origins, introduced the rules, admonished the disciples, and so on. Then everyone bowed together to pay their respects to the founding patriarch, completing the ceremony.

When it came to explaining the cultivation method, Zhan Liu handed the task directly to Peter.

Originally, this should have been Senior Apprentice-Brother's duty and responsibility. However, the Senior Apprentice-Brother of the Ultimate Limit Sect was an unreliable fellow, so Second Apprentice-Brother had to fill in.

After the initial nervousness and confusion, Peter slowly got into the rhythm and gradually began handling the task of teaching on his master's behalf quite convincingly.

So, when it came to many jobs, work experience really was not all that important. As long as you did them a few more times and put in a little effort, you could certainly get better and better at them.

It was just that most people never had the opportunity.

It wasn't just one or two companies that demanded work experience from fresh graduates. They were everywhere.

Watching Peter answer the newcomers' questions with ease, Zhan Liu felt extraordinarily gratified, as if he were enjoying the sense of achievement from playing a character-development game.

This was only the beginning. Over the next few days, more and more people came to seek apprenticeship.

Moreover, this batch of people had come prepared. They all understood Chinese.

As for whom they represented or which factions' spies they were, Zhan Liu did not care in the slightest.

Once they entered the sect, they were disciples of the sect and had to obey its rules.

If they failed to enter, they were just useless weaklings with no threat at all. They could do whatever they wanted.

He had imagined things rather beautifully, but how could worldly affairs ever go entirely as one wished?

One day, the disciples were once again practicing Qigong together on the training ground.

Because of the effects of the magnetic field, practicing together was more effective than practicing alone.

Zhan Liu sat among them, occasionally pointing out minor problems, such as a disciple's breathing becoming disordered or his rhythm being wrong.

But suddenly, one disciple's breathing grew labored. Then his bones cracked wildly throughout his body, after which large amounts of gray feathers burst from every part of him. A whirlwind rose around him, spinning faster and faster, its edges growing sharper and sharper.

"Hey, calm down. Focus your mind and settle your breath. Regulate your breathing!" Zhan Liu shouted in a deep voice as he circulated his power, jolting the disciple, who was about to lose control, back to awareness.

He hurriedly gathered his thoughts and regulated his breathing.

As he calmed down, the whirlwind gradually slowed as well. A moment later, the wind stopped.

The disciple opened his eyes and asked hopefully, "Master, does this mean I've entered the sect too?"

Zhan Liu looked at the feathers covering his entire body and said with a wry smile, "No. You haven't entered the sect. Your mutant genes have awakened."