A Lesson Before Star Dou

News that Oscar had reached Level 30 came on the third morning.

He stood stunned for a long while, then grabbed Ma Hongjun and spun around twice, nearly earning himself a kick into the ditch.

"I'm Level 30!"

"I know, I know! Let go of me first!"

Ma Hongjun struggled until his face turned bright red.

Oscar grinned as if he'd found a pile of money.

Cultivation was difficult for a Food System Soul Master. Reaching Level 30 at his age showed considerable talent. When Flender heard the news, he could barely keep the corners of his mouth down, though he still tried to look as composed as a headmaster should.

"Not bad."

He cleared his throat.

"In that case, prepare to go to the Star Dou Great Forest and hunt a third Soul Ring for Oscar."

Everyone perked up.

The Star Dou Great Forest.

It was one of the most famous gathering places for Soul Beasts on the Douluo Continent, and a place no Soul Master could avoid forever.

Zhao Wuji stood nearby with his arms folded.

"I'll lead the team this time."

After speaking, he looked at Bai Jin.

"What about you?"

Bai Jin was sitting on the steps eating breakfast. He looked up.

"I'm going too."

Zhao Wuji raised an eyebrow. "If you're coming along, what training will the rest of us get?"

"Don't worry." Bai Jin took a bite of his steamed bun. "I'm just there to watch the show."

"You'd better do exactly that."

"Teacher Zhao, people need to trust each other."

Zhao Wuji gave a cold laugh.

What he trusted least about Bai Jin was that every time the man said he wouldn't lift a finger, he ended up causing the biggest commotion.

Before they left, Bai Jin gave everyone a lesson.

The lesson took place on the training ground, as usual.

The subject was simple.

Running for their lives.

Everyone's expression turned a little strange when they heard those words.

Dai Mubai frowned. "We're practicing running for our lives before entering the forest?"

"What else?" Bai Jin looked at him. "Are you planning to reason with every Soul Beast you meet?"

"Soul Masters know they'll face danger when they enter a forest."

"Which makes it all the more important to know when not to fight."

Bai Jin stood and drew a circle on the ground with his toe.

"Soul Beasts aren't like Soul Masters. People hesitate. They get greedy. They fear death. Soul Beasts often act on instinct alone. If you meet one you can't beat, don't try to be a hero. Run."

Ma Hongjun muttered, "That's pretty cowardly."

Bai Jin looked at him.

"Fatty, do you know what courage is?"

Ma Hongjun puffed out his chest. "Not being afraid to die!"

"Wrong."

Bai Jin raised a hand and rapped him on the head.

"Knowing you could die and still judging whether you should step forward—that's courage. Charging in without knowing anything is just delivering dinner."

Oscar nodded at once. "Makes sense. I'm a Food System Soul Master. I'll support everyone's escape."

Bai Jin gave him an approving look.

"Little Oscar has a bright future."

"Really?"

"Mm. A long one."

Oscar: "..."

Once training began, Zhao Wuji handled the pursuit while Bai Jin set the obstacles.

The combination was torture.

Zhao Wuji's strength was like a moving mountain, bearing down on them. Bai Jin's obstacles, meanwhile, appeared without a sound: a stone underfoot, a branch at their side, a bucket suddenly dropping from above. Any one of them could leave someone scrambling.

Xiao Wu adapted first.

She was agile and bold, slipping narrowly past Zhao Wuji's hands several times.

Tang San made a habit of studying the routes. He spread his Blue Silver Grass ahead of time, leaving footholds for his companions.

Dai Mubai covered the rear.

Zhu Zhuqing scouted the way ahead.

Ning Rongrong and Oscar were protected in the middle, but they weren't allowed to simply wait for protection. Bai Jin required them to report on their surroundings every ten breaths. Whoever got something wrong had to train longer.

At first, Ning Rongrong was so angry she wanted to curse.

Later, she didn't even have the strength for that.

Bai Jin stood in a tree, happily watching Zhao Wuji chase everyone all over the training ground.

Flender watched beside him for a while, then said quietly, "You're well suited to playing the villain."

"Thank you for the praise, Headmaster."

"I wasn't praising you."

"That's fine. I'll take it as praise."

That evening, everyone packed their bags.

Ning Rongrong divided the medicine sent by the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect into several portions and handed one to each person. She wasn't quite practiced at it yet, but she was meticulous.

"This one stops bleeding, this one treats poison, and this one restores Soul Power."

Ma Hongjun took the packet in surprise. "Young lady, you know how to do this?"

Ning Rongrong glared at him. "I can learn."

Bai Jin passed by and said casually, "Not bad. You're starting to look like a Support System Soul Master."

Ning Rongrong lifted her chin.

"I always was one."

"You used to look like a walking jewel display."

"Bai Jin!"

Bai Jin was already far away.

Tang San stood beneath a tree, sorting his hidden weapons.

He checked every Sleeve Arrow and every Bone-Piercing Nail, then packed several small cases separately.

It wasn't that he distrusted Zhao Wuji, nor that he distrusted Bai Jin.

A Tang Sect disciple simply never left his life to luck when away from home.

Bai Jin saw him from a distance and said nothing.

Tang San's caution was no bad thing. As long as it didn't turn into fear, it would be his sharpest layer of armor.

Xiao Wu crouched beside Tang San and watched him check each item. Suddenly, she asked, "Little San, is something bothering you?"

Tang San's hands paused.

"No."

Xiao Wu didn't believe him.

She had known Tang San too long. The calmer he seemed, the more he was holding inside.

"Is it about what happened last night?"

Tang San nodded faintly, then shook his head.

"Not just that."

He remembered the secret order Bai Jin had burned.

Bai Jin hadn't spoken of it, so he hadn't asked.

But not asking didn't mean he hadn't seen it.

Xiao Wu looked at him, then suddenly reached out and caught his sleeve.

"Little San, no matter what happens, I'll stay with you."

Tang San looked at her.

After a moment, he smiled.

"Mm."

In the distance, Bai Jin leaned behind a tree. Hearing those words, he raised an eyebrow slightly.

He knew much of how the first part of Douluo Continent would unfold.

He knew Tang San would go to Star Dou, knew Xiao Wu hid an enormous secret, and knew some things would come sooner or later.

But knowing didn't mean he had to break the road apart and lay it anew.

People weren't chess pieces.

Especially children.

Bai Jin popped a piece of candy into his mouth and looked toward the distant forest.

"Star Dou, huh."

He smiled.

"Hope the food over there isn't too bad."

Early the next morning, the group set out.

Sunlight fell across the village road. The carriage wheels rolled over the earth, stirring the damp scent of grass.

The Shrek students chattered noisily.

The Spirit Hall squad stayed in Suotuo City to continue investigating the Ghost Face Society. Luo Wenshan looked worried before they parted, but Bai Jin's "Just don't die" left him speechless.

Zhao Wuji walked at the very front like a moving wall.

Bai Jin brought up the rear, hands in his pockets, following at an easy pace.

No one knew that his eyes, hidden beneath the blindfold, had already seen deep into the forest, far, far away.

There was wind there.

And a pair of eyes that did not belong to a human.

Bai Jin told no one.

It wouldn't have helped.

He merely crunched the last piece of candy between his teeth. The sound was faint.

The forest was too vast. No one could walk another person's path for them.

Gripping what they held a little tighter beforehand was enough.

Before they entered the forest, fear would only drain their strength. When whatever was coming finally came, they could look up and face it then.