The challenge opponent seemed to be Rock Lee

"Clearing a challenge earns you some pretty generous rewards. We've already confirmed that in the earlier stages."

Seeing Luo Yu hesitate, Bai Mengyao immediately offered an incentive.

The first person to clear a challenge like this would receive a substantial reward from the Secret Realm.

For ninjas, taking part in a Secret Realm challenge was therefore a rare opportunity that could only come by chance.

Otherwise, so many prominent ninja families wouldn't have volunteered to send their children over to help as soon as they heard the news.

They claimed they were helping advance the development work, but in reality, they had come for a share of the first-clear rewards.

It was just that this Genin-level challenge was unusually difficult. Otherwise, Luo Yu would never have gotten a turn.

"So this Secret Realm challenge is my last chance to make a major improvement before the Exchange Meet."

Luo Yu's eyes lit up when he heard there were benefits to be had.

Cultivation resources were much more appealing than doing Mengyao a favor.

It was her own fault for not wearing black stockings.

Just look at how sensible his own sister had become under his patient guidance.

Every day, she wore either a maid outfit with black stockings or one with white stockings.

Living with a sister like that was what really got a hot-blooded young man like him fired up.

That was youth!

"All right. Since it's to help you out, Mengyao, I'll put everything else on hold, no matter how important it is."

"That's just how close we are, after all."

"But let me give you a little advice. Next time you ask someone for a favor, remember to wear black stockings. It shows sincerity."

Luo Yu offered this valuable advice with an earnest expression.

Bai Mengyao wanted to open the Eight Gates on the spot and hit him with a Night Guy kick.

The little brat was getting a bargain and still acting like he was doing her a favor.

"Then let's get moving."

"The Secret Realm development team is still inviting other elite Genin."

"If someone clears the challenge while we're standing here chatting, the first-clear reward will be gone."

Bai Mengyao stood up and urged him along.

Half an hour later.

The two were sprinting down the main road.

Luo Yu panted. "How much farther is it?"

His stamina was only 196, barely approaching the level of a third-tier Genin.

After running at his absolute top speed for half an hour, he really was struggling to keep going.

It wasn't because he was weak!

For one thing, he hadn't done any targeted training, so his endurance was lacking.

For another, he had to push his speed to the limit just to keep up with Bai Mengyao.

"The Secret Realm is on the outskirts of Jiang Li. Development has only just begun, so it hasn't been connected to any teleportation equipment yet."

"At your pace, it'll probably take another half hour."

Bai Mengyao ran beside him, looking completely at ease.

"It's that far? Then why didn't we drive here?" Luo Yu asked in surprise.

Bai Mengyao rolled her eyes. "Drive? What respectable ninja drives?"

"Don't we all just run?"

"Besides, this isn't even half my daily training."

Then she said earnestly, "Yu, you're already panting like this after so little exercise."

"Looks like you've been wasting plenty of your youthful energy."

"I'll make some time to put you through your paces later and let you experience what real youth is."

"Otherwise, you'll never find a girlfriend with that lack of stamina."

Luo Yu looked utterly baffled.

Hadn't she just said respectable ninjas didn't take things for a dirty ride?

Another half hour passed.

Following Bai Mengyao, Luo Yu finally stopped at a camp on the outskirts of Jiang Li.

Outside the camp, a composed-looking middle-aged man leaned against a tree, quietly smoking.

When he saw Bai Mengyao, he couldn't help complaining, "You're too slow!"

"Don't tell me you ran all the way back with that Genin!"

"While you were gone, several more geniuses who claimed to be invincible among Genin failed the challenge."

Hearing that, Luo Yu couldn't help chuckling.

Invincible?

Wasn't that a defeat flag?

At least in manga, plenty of powerful characters their authors called invincible eventually suffered a crushing defeat.

It was practically a merciless betrayal by their creators.

Bai Mengyao complained, "Young people these days are too weak. They can't even outrun a race car."

The man shrugged helplessly. "Then you should've carried him here. For you, an adult man doesn't weigh much more than an ant anyway."

At those words, Bai Mengyao instinctively pictured the scene, and her face flushed slightly.

She might usually seem carefree, but she was still a girl!

Deep down, she was actually quite reserved.

"You must be Luo Yu, the friend Bai brought along." The man turned his attention to Luo Yu.

"I'm Bai's classmate, Xiao Ke."

"Uh, well..." Luo Yu couldn't keep his composure after hearing Xiao Ke's introduction.

Her classmate?

Did this middle-aged man moonlight as a programmer when he wasn't being a ninja?

Reading Luo Yu's confusion, Bai Mengyao explained, "Here's the thing. World-class ninja academies like Imperial Capital University recruit from a very broad pool."

"Any outstanding ninja under forty has a chance to become a student at Imperial Capital University by passing its admissions assessment."

Feeling as though he had been underestimated, Xiao Ke quickly puffed out his chest. "Don't judge me by my looks. I'm an inheritor of Asuma Sarutobi, after all."

"Bai and I cleared this Secret Realm's Jonin-level challenge together."

Luo Yu immediately understood.

Asuma Sarutobi was a high-quality blue inheritance, capable of wielding sharp Chakra Blades infused with Wind Release at close range.

At a distance, he had the distinctive Fire Release technique, Ash Pile Burning.

On top of that, wind and fire complemented each other extremely well.

Seen that way, it was hardly surprising that Imperial Capital University had selected Xiao Ke in his thirties.

Bai Mengyao sighed softly. "Unfortunately, the Genin-level challenge doesn't allow teams. Otherwise, those genius Genin should have no trouble clearing it as long as they worked well together."

The three walked into the camp as they chatted.

"Hurry up and take me to the challenge. If I'm out too long, my sister will interrogate me again."

Luo Yu urged them on.

"You can't go in yet. Someone's already taking the challenge. You'll have to wait for him to come out before you can enter."

Xiao Ke lit another cigarette and spoke calmly.

Then he glanced toward a spacious, temporary hall nearby.

"That's the waiting area. You'd better go in and rest for a bit."

"You can recover some stamina after running so far."

Bai Mengyao nodded in agreement. "And quite a few challengers refused to accept their failures."

"They're hanging around there to recover while they wait to try again."

"You can ask them about the specifics of the challenge."

"We installed surveillance equipment in the challenge space, so you can watch what's happening inside the Secret Realm even from the rest area."

"Take a look beforehand."

"All right, then."

Since he had nothing else to do anyway, Luo Yu could only head toward the rest area.

Inside, he saw quite a few young men and women sitting in the rest area's chairs.

They all had injuries of varying degrees.

Some were even wrapped in bandages, their injuries looking quite serious.

Clearly, they wouldn't be able to attempt the challenge again anytime soon.

Yet they were still staring at the large screen in the rest area.

It showed a Genin fighting a purple humanoid illusion.

From the outline alone, Luo Yu recognized that purple humanoid illusion at a glance.

That's fucking Rock Lee!