Training Begins

After several days, classes began for the new Squires.

All the Squires were looking forward to them.

Yang Tian also wore a Squire Badge that Ye Hua had prepared for him.

He left the dormitory with Li Xin.

Yang Tian noticed the ninth-level Squire Badge on Li Xin's chest.

Li Xin was looking at him as well.

"Aren't you already a Knight? You can change your badge!"

Li Xin reminded him, since only then would he receive the instructor's attention.

"No need. My teacher said I still have to complete all the Squire courses. Otherwise, I can only stay with the Squires!"

"If I don't pass, I'll have to start over again!"

Yang Tian shook his head and spoke helplessly.

Strict teachers produced outstanding students. Being a little stricter was not necessarily a bad thing.

"Oh? Who's your teacher?" Li Xin responded, then asked.

Yang Tian answered directly, "My teacher's name is Ye Hua!"

Although Li Xin was rather rough around the edges, she was a decent person.

So, despite normally being a man of few words, Yang Tian answered a few of her questions.

"What? Ye Hua?"

"Haha, you really lucked out, daring to take that guy as your teacher. Well, good luck looking after yourself from now on!"

When she heard that Yang Tian's teacher was Ye Hua, Li Xin was shocked at first, then laughed at his misfortune.

Afterward, the two arrived at the Squire classroom together.

The room was packed with hundreds of people.

These were only some of the students; another group was receiving more advanced instruction.

Li Xin and Yang Tian each found a seat and sat down.

Although they had chosen their seats separately...

They somehow ended up sitting next to each other again.

"Absorbing the light element requires sensing, drawing it in, absorbing it, filtering it, assimilating it..."

At the lectern, a Knight-level instructor earnestly explained the Squires' cultivation methods.

Most of the morning consisted of theory classes.

They covered a broad range of subjects, sometimes including the history of the Holy Demon Continent, such as the dark period when the Seventy-Two Demon Gods descended.

Every Knight was made to remember this history, filling them with righteous indignation and the determination to drive out the Demon Race!

Yang Tian listened calmly. Beside him, even Li Xin seemed swept up in the emotion, showing just how experienced this instructor was.

"Don't you hate the Demon Race?" Li Xin asked indignantly as she looked at Yang Tian's calm face.

"No comment," Yang Tian replied flatly.

As the Goddess of Light's representative in the mortal world, Yang Tian did not want to lie. Yet if he suddenly said he did not particularly hate the Demon Race among people who had suffered under their oppression, they might consider him an outsider.

"Hmph, there isn't a human who doesn't despise the Demon Race!"

Still feeling emotional, Li Xin spoke to Yang Tian with a trace of contempt.

But she had not even reached the Knight rank yet. She had the will, but not the strength!

Yang Tian said nothing, even though he saw things differently.

The sword that was the Demon Race had united humanity, forcing humans to keep growing over the past thousand years without daring to slack off.

There were both benefits and drawbacks!

When the morning theory classes ended, Yang Tian rose and left.

He ate a simple lunch.

Then he sat in the square to meditate!

After cultivating for half an hour, Yang Tian opened his eyes, a hint of disappointment settling between his brows.

"Goddess of Light, why can't I see you during meditation anymore after my awakening? Yet I can feel you everywhere!"

Yang Tian extended his fair, delicate hand, letting a few rays of sunlight fall across it as he murmured.

Gods could be said to exist, yet also to not exist.

The weapon of Light Sword God Ye Wushang had once brought about the Goddess of Light's descent.

Now, Yang Tian seemed to have sensed something, yet also lost something.

The Goddess of Light no longer appeared while he meditated, but Yang Tian could feel her presence in every ray of light, along with her tender care for him.

Or perhaps it was her benevolence toward nature!

Having become a goddess, the Goddess of Light no longer possessed humanity's tangled emotions, only a boundless love.

Yet on the day of his awakening, that sacred face had made Yang Tian feel cherished, and he wanted to hold on to that feeling forever.

Had he known what he would lose, Yang Tian would never have wanted to undergo his awakening. He wished the goddess could always remain by his side.

Feeling a little dejected, Yang Tian stopped cultivating and quietly felt the warmth of the light instead.

He sensed the Goddess of Light's presence...

That afternoon, at the Knight training camp!

"Who's that kid? He's wearing a Squire Badge, but this is the Knights' training ground!"

"Heh, did he come to the wrong place? He doesn't look like an idiot. Surely he can tell Knights and Squires apart!"

Yang Tian's arrival soon drew the attention of a group of Knights.

The Knights all wore miserable expressions as they muttered.

After all, their instructor was Night Asura. None of them could feel cheerful.

Yang Tian found a corner rather than joining the others.

First, he did not know them. Second, he did not like talking.

He could only wait there for his teacher to arrive.

Seeing how much he preferred being alone, the others said nothing.

They could almost picture the poor little fellow getting a dressing-down from Night Asura.

Soon, Ye Hua arrived, his face as stiff and stern as ever.

"Scattered all over the place-what do you think you're doing? Form up and begin training!"

Upon arriving, Night Asura surveyed the Knights as they rose one after another, then spoke sternly.

They had not even known to assemble in advance.

After looking around, his gaze settled on Yang Tian, who stood first in the line on his right.

"Yang Tian, step forward!"

Ye Hua called out.

"Yes, instructor!"

Yang Tian answered loudly, then stepped forward, holding himself to strict standards.

"This student has reached Knight-level strength, but he has not yet completed his Squire theory courses. Therefore, he will remain a Squire, while undergoing proper Knight training!"

"All right, fall in. Begin training!"

Looking at Yang Tian, Ye Hua briefly explained his situation before beginning the Knights' grueling training.

Yang Tian was taken aback, though it seemed every new class required introductions.

Yet rather than introducing him, his teacher seemed to have made him into a cautionary example.

Soon, the Knights went to put on their training equipment.

Yang Tian followed them.

"Heh, you look pretty young. Now that you've run into Night Asura, you're in for it!"

"By the way, how did you fail the Squire theory test? It's not that hard, is it?"

While they put on their equipment, one of the nosier Knights questioned Yang Tian.

Mostly, he was curious!

If someone had reached Knight-level strength, surely they would have passed the Squire theory test.

"I'm still studying!"

Yang Tian gave a vague answer. After all, he could hardly say that he had only just taken the Squire assessment and was already training alongside them.

He put on the heavy iron armor and took up a heavy iron shield and a greatsword!

The weight of this equipment was set according to a Knight's strength.

Although Yang Tian was short, he already looked like a young adolescent. Besides, he was a third-level Knight, so it naturally was not too difficult for him.

Once they were equipped, they assembled and began physical training.

As soon as training began, Yang Tian's body seemed to come alive.

He felt as though his bones would have rusted if he had waited any longer to start training.

At the Squire camp!

Li Xin looked around, then muttered:

"That idiot! This is a training class, and he actually dares to skip it?"

Thank you to the readers for your tips, and thank you all for your monthly votes and recommendation votes.

I've been working hard on updates. They used to be a thousand words, but now I'm posting over four thousand a day, haha.