Training Together

Lin Yun had no idea how long he had slept, but he finally woke up fully rested.

He stretched hard, and his bones crackled softly from head to toe. The exhaustion brought by days of intense cultivation and the martial arts exam vanished without a trace after that deeply satisfying sleep.

The qi-blood within him flowed steadily. Tempered by the practical combat assessment, it seemed several degrees more condensed than before.

Lin Yun casually picked up the phone on his bedside table. The instant its screen lit up, his brows rose.

He had actually slept for a day and two nights.

There were over a hundred missed calls, more than five hundred unread messages, and WeChat had been flooded with friend requests and group messages.

He casually opened several messages. Their contents were all much the same—polite congratulations on his acceptance into Imperial Capital First Martial Academy.

The senders included teachers who had usually mocked him, classmates he had barely spoken to, and even several alumni who were about as related to him as a distant eighth cousin.

A faintly mocking curve touched Lin Yun's lips.

Before the martial arts exam, only two people in the entire Qingcheng First Advanced Academy had sincerely considered him a friend.

One was Su Nianhe. The other was Zhang Tie, his childhood best friend. However, Zhang Tie's entire family had moved to River City half a year ago, and the two had been in touch far less often.

Yet now, overnight, he seemed to have become everyone's old friend.

Such was the warmth and chill of human relationships in this world.

He could not be bothered to reply to each of them. Skipping past those pleasantries, he first opened Zhang Tie's message.

It contained only a few simple lines, carrying the teasing tone unique to the two of them.

"Son, your dad got into Jiangnan Martial Academy. When you come to River City, remember to come mooch off your dad. Food, lodging, and high-end karaoke are all covered—I'll make you look awesome and take you flying!"

Lin Yun shook his head with a smile, his fingers quickly typing out a reply. "Your dad didn't do too badly either. Imperial Capital First Martial Academy."

"Cut it out. Your dad's serious. Shame I have special training this summer and won't have time to go back to Azure City to see you, so don't blame your dad, alright?"

"Busy is good. The busier, the better."

That was how it was between brothers. They could go months without contacting each other, but whenever something important happened, they would always be the first to let each other know.

After exiting his chat with Zhang Tie, Lin Yun immediately spotted Su Nianhe's message.

"Lin Yun, contact me once you've slept enough."

Lin Yun called her.

Ten seconds after the phone began ringing, Su Nianhe's clear voice came through, carrying a hint of delighted excitement.

"Lin Yun! You're finally awake! I thought you were going to sleep for three days and three nights. Did you sleep well?"

"I haven't slept this soundly in a long time." Lin Yun leaned against the headboard, his voice still lazy from sleep. "Nianhe, shall we meet on Martial Arts Street?"

"Sure!" Su Nianhe immediately agreed. "I happen to be training at a martial arts gym around here."

After hanging up, Lin Yun felt somewhat moved.

Only two days had passed since the martial arts exam ended. Most people were still immersed in the relief and celebration of having finished it, but Su Nianhe had already thrown herself into a new round of training.

No wonder she had become Azure City's number one prodigy. Her diligence and self-discipline truly surpassed what ordinary people could match.

But he had rested enough as well. It was time to enter the next stage of training.

He quickly washed up, changed into a clean set of casual clothes, slipped his phone and bank card into his pocket, and headed out.

The June sunshine in Azure City was just right. The streets bustled with crowds, and high school seniors in uniforms could be seen everywhere, gathering in twos and threes to discuss their martial arts exam scores and future martial academies.

This time, as Lin Yun walked through the crowd, he no longer felt so utterly out of place as before.

Before long, Lin Yun arrived at the entrance of the martial arts gym. An elderly man with graying hair stood there, dressed in an old-fashioned Tang suit and holding a broom as he slowly swept away the fallen leaves.

He looked like an ordinary old gatekeeper, but Lin Yun instinctively gave him a few extra looks.

There was not the slightest trace of qi-blood fluctuation around the old man, yet he carried an indescribable rhythm about him.

His eyes in particular concealed a faint, hard-to-detect sharpness beneath their cloudiness, as though they could see straight through people's hearts.

He was definitely a master who had hidden his true abilities.

When he saw Lin Yun approach, the old man stopped sweeping and revealed a kindly smile.

"You must be young friend Lin Yun?"

Lin Yun was somewhat surprised and quickly nodded. "That's me. Hello, sir."

"My young lady gave instructions long ago. You may go straight in." The old man smiled and stepped aside.

"Thank you, sir." Lin Yun politely thanked him and walked into the martial arts gym.

The interior was spacious, with thick solid-wood flooring and all kinds of training equipment neatly arranged along the walls.

Lin Yun spotted Su Nianhe at once.

She had changed into a crisp white training outfit, her long black hair tied high into a ponytail. A longsword gleaming with cold light rested in her hand.

At that moment, she was calm and focused. With a turn of her wrist, the longsword seemed to come alive in her grip. Sword light flickered, winding like a swimming dragon.

Her movements were light and agile, sometimes like a startled swan skimming past, sometimes like a towering pine standing firm. Every stance and strike was precise and graceful, carrying a sharp sword intent.

Lin Yun stood quietly to the side without making a sound to disturb her.

Beneath the sunlight, the young girl wore white whiter than snow, her figure graceful enough to make any young man's heart race.

Lin Yun was no exception.

Only after she finished the sword routine and sheathed her sword did Su Nianhe stop. Fine beads of sweat covered her forehead, and her chest rose and fell faintly.

She turned around and met Lin Yun's gaze. A brilliant smile immediately bloomed across her face.

"When did you get here? Why didn't you call out to me?"

"I just got here. You were practicing so seriously that I didn't want to interrupt." Lin Yun smiled and clapped. "I really didn't expect that not only are you great with leg techniques, you're this skilled with the sword too."

"I just practice a little."

Su Nianhe smiled shyly, then quickly walked over. Very naturally, she took the energy drink Lin Yun handed her, unscrewed it, and took a large gulp.

She wiped the moisture from the corner of her mouth with the back of her hand, then looked up at Lin Yun with sparkling eyes.

"Why did you ask to meet at a martial arts gym? I thought you'd ask me to go to a park or the movies."

Lin Yun scratched his head, somewhat embarrassed. "So you wouldn't have to change clothes. It'd be a hassle."

"Pfft!" Su Nianhe could not help laughing. She rolled her eyes at him. "You really are as unromantic as ever. Let's talk business."

Lin Yun put away his smile, his expression turning serious. "I want to train here with you for a while."

"Sure! I was just worrying about not having a sparring partner!" Su Nianhe agreed readily without even thinking, her eyes curving into crescents. "I'll have Uncle Fu make an extra key later."

"Come on! I'll show you around!"

Lin Yun followed Su Nianhe through the training area, and the more he saw, the more shocked he became.

The last time he had come to move equipment, he had not examined any of it closely at all.

Now, as Su Nianhe introduced each piece one by one, he finally understood what true money power meant.

"This is the military's latest Type-99 Qi-Blood Detector. It's ten times more accurate than the one at our school. It can monitor even the slightest fluctuations in qi-blood circulation in real time, so when you practice martial techniques, it can precisely identify flaws in how you exert force." Su Nianhe patted a silver-gray machine. "And this beside it is a Titan-4 Gravity Chamber. It can be adjusted up to a hundred times gravity. Whether you're training strength or movement techniques, its effects are more than three times better than in an ordinary environment."

She walked to another sealed chamber, where faint blue light glowed beyond the glass door.

"This is the Dragon Roar No. 9 Virtual Beast Combat Chamber. It's much more advanced than the virtual combat chamber used for the martial arts exam. It can simulate thousands of first- and second-order beasts, and it can even recreate dangerous environments like urban disaster zones and primeval forests. It can simulate the roars of beasts and even the smell of blood. Other than not being able to die, it's practically no different from real training."

"And over there is an X-type Qi-Blood Cultivation Chamber. One session inside is worth three days of seated cultivation, helping you rapidly condense your qi-blood. That hibernation chamber is even better—the neural soothing mist inside can put you into deep sleep in three seconds, and four hours is enough to restore an entire day's worth of stamina."

Su Nianhe spoke as though it were nothing, but Lin Yun's heart pounded wildly as he listened.

He made a rough calculation. The total value of the equipment in this martial arts gym exceeded two hundred million Dragon Nation credits.

He had always thought Su Nianhe was merely a rich young lady from a well-off family. Only now did he realize that the Su family's foundation ran far deeper than that.