The Elite Chunin's Shock! (Part Two; More Tonight)

"He's a ninja. I heard Su Bai even hunted an Iron-Horned Sheep! You know how powerful those things are!"

"Iron-Horned Sheep? No way! Those are powerful Magic Beasts! Old Su's son can do that?"

A gray-haired old man who had lived in Happiness Residential Complex for decades was stunned. He stared at Su Jianhong, who was greeting everyone.

His son? Su Bai? An Iron-Horned Sheep?

A ninja who could hunt Magic Beasts had come from the slums?

The old man stood there in a daze, staring at Su Jianhong as he moved things from his home, unable to believe it.

"Dad, we don't need to bring this. Everything's already in the house Brother bought, and it's even nicer!" Su Xiaoxiao snatched an old stool from Su Jianhong's hands, trying to leave it behind in their "old home."

Su Jianhong glared at her, displeased. "What do you mean, we don't need it? You and your brother have used this since you were little. What a waste to throw it away!"

"Your father's right. It'd be a shame to throw these things away. Xiaoxiao, just because your brother has money now doesn't mean you can look down on something this nice!" Lin Xiu'e scolded her.

Su Xiaoxiao immediately grew unhappy and argued, "Mom, Dad, Brother spent three hundred million Federal Coins on the house, and all the furniture is valuable pre-apocalypse redwood. Why would he need a broken stool that's been used for decades?"

Su Bai, who was loading the truck, saw that his parents were about to scold his sister and spoke up first. "Xiaoxiao, it's not about the money. Mom and Dad have used these things for so many years that they've grown attached to them. Let's listen to them and bring it along."

"Oh, I'll listen to you, Brother. Hee-hee!" As soon as Su Xiaoxiao heard Su Bai speak, her expression changed. She obediently agreed, making Lin Xiu'e laugh and scold her in exasperation.

"You little brat!"

"Hee-hee."

Hope Residential Complex was in the heart of Yangcheng City. It had been built by the Yangcheng authorities, and the houses there were outrageously expensive—over a million Federal Coins per square meter.

The price didn't bother Su Bai. This was where Yangcheng's upper class lived, and any threat was strictly forbidden!

It was a matter of pride for the Yangcheng authorities. If anything happened there... it would be a slap in their face!

"Beep! Hello, Mr. Su Bai. Welcome to Training Ground No. 3." An electronic voice sounded. After scanning his iris, Su Bai walked straight into an open-air training ground.

The Yangcheng authorities had built it for the ninjas living in Hope Residential Complex. It covered a vast area and had all the facilities they could need, spanning about a hundred thousand square meters!

There weren't many people there at the moment—only eighty or a hundred, by the look of it. The enormous training ground seemed almost empty. Su Bai headed over to a Ninjutsu Testing Machine.

According to Xia Xueqing, there weren't many of these in all of Yangcheng... but there was one here.

"Three hundred million wasn't a waste. At least now I can clearly see my progress as I train my Ninjutsu!"

The brand-new training ground was a great convenience for Su Bai, who had always had to figure things out on his own. He couldn't resist testing himself.

"I'll try Lightning Release first." Su Bai formed Hand Seals. Three seconds later, a Lightning Snake slammed into the Ninjutsu Testing Machine!

Beep-beep—4!

The screen immediately displayed his Ninjutsu's power multiplier. Su Bai shook his head and continued testing.

"Fire Release: Great Fireball Technique!"

Beep-beep—3!

"Three or four times? That's too low. I need to train my Ninjutsu proficiency." Su Bai shook his head, thinking of Xia Xueqing and Yang Liu.

One had a multiplier of thirteen, the other twelve. They were far ahead of him.

Taking a deep breath, Su Bai formed the "Ram" seal with both hands and shouted:

"Shadow Clone Technique!"

Poof! Poof! Poof!

Three "Su Bais" appeared on the training ground. They glanced at one another, then looked at Su Bai with grins.

"Original, what do you want us to do?"

"Yeah, I'm not doing anything too troublesome."

"Right. Don't tell me to train Taijutsu or something. Clones don't care about that."

The three solid Shadow Clones joked around as if they had independent personalities. Su Bai wasn't surprised; he knew that was how the technique worked.

[Shadow Clone: A clone with a physical form, created using chakra. It has a consciousness independent of the user and can withstand a certain amount of damage. When it disappears, its memories and experience return to the original.

Unlike the ordinary Clone Technique, the Shadow Clone has a physical form, shares the original's consciousness, and can attack enemies.]

"Come on, you all know how hard it is to train Ninjutsu. So... please, put in a little more effort!" Su Bai gave the three "selves" a polite smile.

He could control his clones, but it was better to ask nicely than force them. After all, the Shadow Clones were part of his consciousness, too!

"PS: Sorry this chapter's a little late. Xiao Wang's dog brain has been doing its best to come up with the plot, but it's still too slow. Woof!"

Chapter 77: The Elite Chunin's Shock! (Part Two; More Tonight)

Training Ground No. 3 in Hope Residential Complex was where people came specifically to train Ninjutsu. Four "Su Bais" stood in front of a dark brown metal wall about a hundred meters tall and nearly a kilometer long.

The wall was only ten centimeters thick, but it was exceptionally hard. It was made with chakra-conductive metal mixed in and could absorb Ninjutsu attacks of up to five hundred chakra units.

All four Su Bais were wearing black vests and sky-blue track pants. They formed Hand Seals and fired their attacks at the wall!

"Lightning Release: Lightning Snake!"

"Lightning Release: Lightning Beast Tracking Fang!"

"Fire Release: Phoenix Flower Fire!"

"Fire Release: Great Fireball Technique!"

Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom!

Four loud impacts rang out. The metal wall, a dozen meters in front of the Su Bais, shuddered slightly, then quickly went still.

The commotion caught the attention of the other ninjas training nearby. Two Chunins seated on a bench in the distance looked over.

"Oh? Got a new neighbor in the complex?" asked a burly man in a black tracksuit with a scruffy beard.

His name was Ma Ping. He was an Elite Chunin and had lived in Hope Residential Complex for over twenty years. He had seen nearly everyone there.

"Probably. The young man looks unfamiliar," said the elegant middle-aged woman beside Ma Ping, glancing at Su Bai.

She was Ma Ping's wife, Tian Xuan. She was a little weaker than him, but she was also an Elite Chunin.

Ma Ping watched Su Bai release Ninjutsu again and again, nodding repeatedly.

"The kid looks diligent, but he's rushing things. He'll regret it soon enough."

"Why don't you go warn him? He shouldn't use Shadow Clones like that." Tian Xuan picked up the tea on the table and took a sip before continuing. "The kid looks like he has only about fifty chakra units. His body won't be able to handle training with three Shadow Clones."

Every ninja on Blue Star knew how Shadow Clones worked. They could transmit all their memories and sensations back to the original, making them useful not only for scouting but also for training—a ridiculously powerful technique.

Training with a Shadow Clone was no different from training with the original. Each additional clone used to assist with training effectively doubled the speed.

But despite all their advantages, Shadow Clones had a serious drawback!

When they disappeared, the overwhelming exhaustion and the large amount of training memories they sent back to the original could be too much for a ninja to handle!

At best, it could cause physical problems. At worst, the ninja could drop dead on the spot!

As Elite Chunins, Ma Ping and Tian Xuan had seen plenty. They knew exactly how many Shadow Clones someone at each level of strength could use safely for training.

"Let's watch a little longer. Young people these days are all so arrogant. They won't learn their lesson until they suffer a little. If we go over and warn him now, he might take it the wrong way." Ma Ping smiled and kept watching Su Bai.

Advice from a stranger could do more than go unappreciated; it could make the other person resent you. Not everyone liked being told what to do.

Tian Xuan nodded. "That's true. Weren't we the same when we were young? The kid's only just started training, anyway. If he hasn't stopped after half an hour, we'll go warn him."

"Mm."

Su Bai had no idea what Ma Ping and Tian Xuan were thinking. He was studying the notifications in front of him.

"Your Lightning Release: Lightning Snake Ninjutsu experience +1..."

"Your Lightning Attribute experience +1..."

"In half an hour, I used Lightning Release: Lightning Snake fifty times, but my experience only increased by one?"

"At that rate, I'll get two points an hour. Even if I train for ten hours a day, that's only twenty experience points. It'll take five days to equal the improvement from adding one Attribute Point."

"It's a little slow, but fortunately, training Lightning Release Ninjutsu also increases my Lightning Attribute experience. So in five days, it's like adding one point each to my Lightning Attribute and Lightning Release Ninjutsu."

"That's not bad. I can use Shadow Clones to help me train, after all. Each additional Shadow Clone doubles my training speed!"

Thinking of this, Su Bai looked at the other clones and asked, "How much chakra do you have left?"

"I've still got plenty. Fire Release Ninjutsu doesn't use much chakra."

"Same here."

The two Shadow Clones practicing Fire Release replied.

The other one, who was practicing Lightning Release: Lightning Beast Tracking Fang, shrugged and looked at Su Bai. "I'm about the same as you. Lightning Release Ninjutsu uses a lot of chakra. I've only got half left, so I can train for another half hour."

"Got it. Let's keep going, then, until we run out of chakra." Su Bai gave the order. The three Shadow Clones nodded and prepared to continue.

Just then, Su Bai felt a strong hand pat his shoulder. The other three Shadow Clones all turned to look at the scruffy-bearded man behind him.

"Kid, Ninjutsu isn't trained like this. You can't rush it." Ma Ping's rough voice came from behind Su Bai. Su Bai immediately turned around.

"And you are?"

"I'm Ma Ping, and this is my wife, Tian Xuan." Ma Ping introduced her.

"Hello. I'm Su Bai."

"Brother Ma, what do you mean? Am I training the wrong way?"

Su Bai asked sincerely. The chakra of these two was immense, several times greater than Li Lei's!

Ma Ping shook his head, but before he could speak, Tian Xuan said coldly, "Su Bai, there's nothing wrong with how you're training. You're just in too much of a hurry."

"Don't you know the drawback of Shadow Clones? If you make them use up too much chakra, then the instant they disappear, all their exhaustion will hit your original body."

"You're only a Genin. Your mental strength and physical condition aren't enough to support training with three Shadow Clones."

"So put those Shadow Clones away."

"My wife's right, Su Bai. Remember these four words: 'too much is as bad as too little.' You'd be better off using only one Shadow Clone to help you train. Three is too many. I'm only telling you this because I'm your neighbor and senior. You'd better do as I say."

Ma Ping nodded.

That was all he had to say. He'd offered his advice; whether Su Bai listened was up to him.

Su Bai furrowed his brow. "Three Shadow Clones aren't that many. Are the side effects really that serious?"

To be honest, this was his first time using Shadow Clones to help with training. That was why he had only made three. He'd been worried about exactly the side effects Ma Ping and Tian Xuan had mentioned.

But according to them... a Genin of his strength should only use one Shadow Clone to help him train?

He had no experience with this, so Su Bai decided to follow their advice.

"Thanks for the warning, Brother Ma and Sister Tian. I'll dispel them now."

It was always good to take advice. Su Bai wasn't arrogant, especially when two powerful Chunins were offering him guidance.

"You heard them. Disperse," Su Bai told the clones. The three Shadow Clones complained that they hadn't had enough fun, then released their chakra and disappeared.

Poof! Poof! Poof!

Three clouds of white smoke appeared. The instant the Shadow Clones vanished, a huge rush of training experience and exhaustion hit Su Bai's original body. He swayed slightly but was otherwise fine.

Several notifications appeared before his eyes.

"Your Lightning Release: Lightning Beast Tracking Fang experience +1..."

"Your Lightning Attribute experience +1..."

"Your Fire Release: Great Fireball experience +1..."

"Your Fire Release: Phoenix Flower Fire experience +1..."

"Your Fire Attribute experience +2..."

"What? This kid...!"

Ma Ping and Tian Xuan stared at Su Bai, who looked completely fine. Their pupils suddenly contracted!

This wasn't what they'd expected. They had thought he'd clutch his head and scream on the ground!