"Sir, there's no rush with my Stardust Magic Tool for now. I'm going to Bo City in a while. It wouldn't be good if I brought it along and lost or damaged it." Lu Wu pointed at Mu Nujiao.
"All right, it's your decision. This reward has already been issued, so you have the right to decide." Jia Wenshang didn't particularly mind.
With that, Jia Wenshang left to find Wu Xiaoxiao.
This time, he walked as though the wind were at his heels, his head high and chest out, unable to hide the smile on his face.
After watching Jia Wenshang leave, Wu Ya'er asked in confusion, "Boss Lu Wu, Boss Lu Wu, aren't Stardust Magic Tools tempting to you? If I were you, I'd take it and cultivate like my life depended on it. Why go out for field training?"
Although Boss Lu Wu surely had his reasons for that decision, Wu Ya'er still couldn't figure it out.
"Don't call me that." Hearing Wu Ya'er call him boss made Lu Wu feel like he was some gang leader.
"Boss Lu Wu, you'll always be my boss! You knocked Wu Xiaoxiao down a peg this time. As far as I'm concerned, you're my boss!!!"
"All right, all right, keep your voice down." Lu Wu hadn't expected Wu Ya'er to get so worked up.
There really was something a little odd about this kid.
Wu Ya'er promptly shut his mouth, then looked at Mu Nujiao beside Lu Wu. "You must be Sister-in-law Mu Nujiao. Don't worry, Sister-in-law..."
"Just stay put and stop interrupting our sweet talk." Wu Ya'er's mouth seemed impossible to shut. Feeling a pinch at his waist, Lu Wu spoke directly to him.
Then Mu Nujiao pinched even harder.
Although it didn't hurt, Lu Wu knew better than to push his luck.
"That's Wu Ya'er. I only met him yesterday. I don't know what got into that kid, talking nonsense like that." Although Lu Wu was secretly delighted, he still took Mu Nujiao's feelings into account.
"You don't need to explain that to me. Your little cliques have nothing to do with me." Mu Nujiao let go. "The Stardust Magic Tool... are you really letting me use it?"
"Of course. I never hid the one I have from you. Didn't we use it together before? Now you can use this one, and I'll use my own." Lu Wu sounded utterly certain. "Don't you want to prove yourself? This is perfect. Cultivate hard."
"Going to Bo City will probably be very dangerous."
"Don't worry. If I run into danger, I'll run first."
"That wasn't what you did back then. You told me to run first."
"Well, you weren't as strong as me. Once you're really powerful, you can even stay by my side and protect me."
"Can you be serious for once...?"
Since he was preparing to leave for Bo City, Lu Wu devoted the next two days to accompanying Mu Nujiao to school, attending classes, training, and cultivating.
Hei Guan brought along over a dozen students in total. Among them, Lu Wu knew Wu Xiaoxiao and Dongfang Qing.
Eleven were second- and third-year students.
The dozen or so of them took the high-speed train to Great Sparrow City, where several people were already waiting.
They found a coach, loaded everyone aboard, and set off for Bo City.
Aside from Hei Guan, three Military Mages a little younger than him sat at the front of the coach. Hei Guan also held three lists of the people aboard.
"We've contacted the Military Department in Bo City. They won't interfere with our activities." Hei Guan looked at the three young people before him. "There are fourteen students in total, three of them first-years. Whoever picks Lu Wu can only take three second- and third-years. The other two will each lead five students, including the first-years."
As he spoke, Hei Guan handed the three of them the lists, which detailed the students aboard the coach and their magic elements.
Hei Guan had already divided them up during the journey. None of the three was picky, each taking a sheet at random.
"Yes, sir!"
The three young Military Mages acknowledged the order together, their sharp gazes sweeping back and forth across the coach.
"Who's Lu Wu?" asked the young Military Mage on the far left. Apparently, he had drawn the smallest team.
"I am!" Lu Wu replied.
"Not bad. You look spirited enough. Boss Hei Guan thinks you've got talent. From now on, you're a temporary member of my team." Yu Keyan was very satisfied. "When we get off, everyone whose name I call will follow me."
Although Boss Hei Guan wanted to train his leadership skills, Yu Keyan knew things couldn't be that simple.
With that, Yu Keyan began calling his temporary teammates' names. "Lu Wu, Mu Shengqi, Yang Wan, and Zhang Jierui."
"Follow me off the coach when I call your name. Wu Xiaoxiao..."
The other two young Military Mages also began calling their teammates' names. The coach traveled quickly, but very smoothly.
Seeing that there was nothing much to do, Lu Wu began practicing magic.
Since returning from Rongcheng, he had become capable of dividing his attention between two tasks to a certain extent.
As the sky gradually darkened, the coach arrived in Bo City.
Following Yu Keyan, Lu Wu and the others headed downtown. Bo City wasn't particularly large, but there were quite a few people.
"Let's get settled first. Eat and drink your fill. Since you've come here, you already know the days ahead won't be easy," Yu Keyan told Lu Wu and the others.
He was actually only about three or four years older than everyone else.
His tone wasn't particularly stern, and he took everyone out for a meal as soon as they got off the coach.
Lu Wu followed at the rear of the group, looking at the fairly bustling streets. Bo City felt rather novel to him.
He was somewhat looking forward to this trip.
He had let Little Fire leave while they were on the outskirts. Now that it was getting dark, Little Fire, who could use Shadow Escape on his own, wouldn't be spotted out there.
After reminding Little Fire not to show himself when he came looking for him, Lu Wu wasn't worried about him getting lost.
They were a little far apart now. Although he couldn't sense which direction Little Fire was in, at least he was safe.
They picked a random skewer restaurant and began chatting as they ate.
Only then did Lu Wu learn that Captain Yu Keyan wasn't actually a Military Mage, but a first-year student at an academy for prospective Military Mages.
The three of them were all in the same year and wanted to join the Military Department in Great Sparrow City in the future. Hei Guan was currently assessing them.
"Captain, does that mean you and the other two captains are all at the Intermediate Level in two elements?" Mu Shengqi was a fair, clean-cut boy. Although he wasn't as handsome as Lu Wu, he was very fair-skinned.
There was a hint of anticipation in his voice. Intermediate Mages came in many varieties. Some could face powerful Demon Beasts, while others needed their teammates' support.
Lu Wu looked over as well.
As mages cultivated, their mental strength continually grew, allowing them to judge others' strength by sensing their auras.
But if someone deliberately reined in their aura and didn't cast magic, it was very difficult to tell.
Unless the gap was truly as vast as heaven and earth.
Zu Yanzhi, Nangong Pei, and Wang Chong were all at the Intermediate Level, and Zu Yanzhi was even a student at the Imperial Capital Academy, but all three had only one element at the Intermediate Level.
They didn't have much combat experience.
"Don't worry. Follow my commands in battle, and I won't let anything happen to you." Noticing that they were all looking at him, Yu Keyan smiled.
He was now the captain of a team, and he needed to draw out everyone's strengths to the fullest.
As for his own magic elements, it didn't really matter whether he told them. He would certainly be doing his share, after all.
"An Intermediate Mage?" A voice came from the entrance.
Hearing it, Lu Wu looked toward the entrance. There were four or five people in the group, all around his age, with a difference of one or two years at most.
"Impossible. These people are barely any older than us. How could they be Intermediate Mages, let alone Intermediate Level in two elements? They must be bragging."
"They really probably aren't at the Intermediate Level. It's not that easy to reach. Don't you think so, Xu Zhaoting?"