In the classroom, Lin Qiao stood at the podium.
"You all saw what happened on the athletic field just now. It wasn't really a big deal. It was just a joint exercise."
"To prepare for emergencies that might occur in the future, the City Protection Bureau has joined forces with our school's fourth-year students to conduct an exercise across the city. There's no need to worry."
Lin Qiao's expression was unusually calm.
"So it was an exercise. Scared me to death."
"I was wondering why they'd mobilize so many people. I even saw several City Protection Bureau vehicles parked outside just now."
Duan Ming watched Lin Qiao quietly.
Was it an exercise?
He didn't think it was as simple as that.
"To keep our students from interfering with the exercise, the principal has said that, starting today and until the exercise ends, students are not to leave school without permission."
Duan Ming grew increasingly certain this wasn't an exercise.
"Teacher Lin, what about those of us who live at home?"
It was Zhao Jie, who usually didn't talk much.
"You can go home as usual after school, but it's best not to run around. Once you get home, stay there."
"All right, that's all. I know you're tired today. We were going to cancel your foreign language class so you could rest early."
"All of you can go back and rest now."
Once Lin Qiao left, the classroom came alive.
"So it was an exercise. I was on edge for ages!"
"How come there wasn't any advance notice about such a big joint exercise?"
"I'm exhausted. I need to go back and sleep."
Duan Ming put on his backpack and stood up. When he reached the door, he happened to run into Zhao Jie, and they headed downstairs together.
The two of them came out through the school gates.
Zhao Jie was silent the whole way.
It was as though something was on his mind.
Just then, Duan Ming's phone rang.
He took it out and saw that the caller was saved as "King of Living Off Women"!
Duan Ming breathed a sigh of relief and answered.
"Hello, Third Uncle."
"Are you out of school? Want me to come pick you up?"
"No need. A classmate of mine is going the same way, so we're walking back together."
"Mm-hmm, good."
"Why didn't you answer when I called you earlier?"
"Don't even ask. A damn dog ran off with my phone!"
"Uh... is that your latest lame joke?"
"Anyway, that damn dog had better hope I don't catch it, or I'll pound it to death. We'll talk when you get back. Be careful on the way, and don't let some pervert follow you."
Uh...
"Your third uncle's pretty funny."
Zhao Jie had heard Duan Ming's third uncle on the phone.
"Yeah, he's always like that."
After learning that his third uncle was all right, Duan Ming slowed his pace.
"By the way, where do you live?"
Duan Ming still didn't know where Zhao Jie lived.
He had only known him for a week.
But every day on his way home from school, he saw Zhao Jie walking ahead of him.
"The Neon District."
"The Neon District? Did I hear that right? It's so far away. Wouldn't it be better to live at school?"
Zhao Jie said timidly, "I prefer living at home."
"Then why don't you take the bus? It takes at least forty minutes to walk to the Neon District from here."
"Mm, I get motion sickness."
Duan Ming glanced at the old backpack on Zhao Jie's back, which looked as though he had been carrying it for who knew how many years, and seemed to understand something.
He deliberately asked, "Um, have you applied for the enrollment grant?"
Zhao Jie paused. "Enrollment grant? There's a grant for enrolling?"
"Yeah, what did you think? This is a Divine Power school. Ordinary schools can't compare with the benefits here."
"Besides free tuition, meals, and accommodation, they give students grants four times a year."
"There's also an enrollment grant when you first start."
"But you have to apply for it yourself. I figure Teacher Lin will tell us about it in a couple of days."
A faint light shone in Zhao Jie's eyes as he asked, "How much is it?"
Duan Ming said, "I'm not sure. The enrollment grant is different everywhere, but it should be at least twenty thousand. It's a Divine Power school, after all."
"Then how do I apply? How about we apply together?"
After hesitating for a second, Duan Ming said, "Sure, I'll go with you when the time comes."
In fact, the enrollment grant depended on a student's family circumstances.
Students from well-off families couldn't get it.
Duan Ming hadn't planned on applying for the enrollment grant in the first place, either.
But now that he thought about it, his third uncle had raised him. Although his uncle was fairly well-off, he should qualify.
After all, free money was free money. If he brought it home, it would ease his third uncle's financial burden a little.
"Duan Ming, I've noticed you always keep to yourself at school. Don't you like making friends?"
The question stumped Duan Ming.
"Aren't we friends?"
Duan Ming replied jokingly.
That question, in turn, stumped Zhao Jie.
He stared blankly for a few seconds, then his eyes lit up. "You're willing to be friends with me?"
For some reason, hearing him say that made Duan Ming's heart ache.
He went along with it.
"Yeah. Who would ever complain about having too many friends?"
Zhao Jie looked a little happy.
Was this his first friend at the Divine Power school?
Duan Ming was a little surprised.
He had thought he wouldn't find a friend he could talk to at the Divine Power school anytime soon.
But unexpectedly, he had found one in just a week.
Although this friend was the most introverted boy in the class,
overall, his impression of him was pretty good.
So what if he was introverted? It wasn't as if he were a pervert.
"Duan Ming, I have to say, you're really impressive. During training today, you were the only one who could keep going that long."
Perhaps because he had finally managed to make a friend, Zhao Jie became less reserved than before and started talking to Duan Ming nonstop.
"Mm... perseverance is victory! For now, there's nothing wrong with Teacher Du's teaching methods. It's a little tough, but it's all for our own good."
"Haha, to tell you the truth, I think so too. I heard the girls in our class want to nominate you as class monitor. I'll definitely vote for you when the time comes."
"As for being class monitor, we can talk about it later. If you ask me, Zhou Yao would be the best person for the job."
"What, you don't want to be class monitor?"
"Yeah, I'm not interested. Make me principal, though, and I might consider it."
Duan Ming's words made Zhao Jie laugh, and a good-natured smile spread across his face.
The two chatted as they walked.
Zhao Jie said he wanted to become a top Divine Power master and then earn lots and lots of money.
It seemed his goal was as simple as making money.
"All right, I'm here."
He stood downstairs from the residential building.
The two exchanged phone numbers.
"Then I'll call you when I get here tomorrow morning, and we can go to school together."
"Yeah, sounds good."
Zhao Jie was about to leave when he seemed to remember something. "Oh, right, Duan Ming, does it still hurt where your Divine Mark awakened?"
Duan Ming nodded. "Yeah, a little. Apparently, it'll hurt for several days."
"Wait here." He rummaged through his backpack and took out a plastic bottle. "Take this home with you. Put it on the spot where your Divine Mark awakened, and it won't hurt as much."
"Is it that amazing?" Duan Ming examined the clear liquid in the bottle. "This stuff doesn't have a manufacturer, a production date, or a quality certificate, does it?"
"Haha, I didn't buy it. My brother made it. It works really well. If you don't believe me, take it home and try it."
"Your brother made it? Is he a Divine Power master?"
"Um... I'll tell you about that when there's time. Anyway, I wouldn't hurt you, so don't worry about using it."
"All right, I'll keep it." Duan Ming thought for a moment. "By the way, if you're going to the Neon District, you can cut through the residential neighborhood over here to reach the other side. It'll save you at least ten minutes."
"There's a shortcut?"
Duan Ming nodded and pointed toward the residential neighborhood beside them. "Just go that way and keep walking down the alley in the middle. You'll reach the traffic lights on the other side, though the alley might be a little dark at night."
"That's no problem. I have a flashlight. I'll get going, then. See you tomorrow."
Duan Ming watched Zhao Jie enter the residential neighborhood and head off toward the Neon District, then turned and went home.
When he got home, his third uncle was sitting on the couch, cursing up a storm.
He kept muttering that once he caught that dog, he would kill it.
Duan Ming put down his backpack, went back to his room, took off his jacket, and pulled out his computer chair to sit down in front of the computer.
He wanted to continue looking into double Divine Marks.
Just as he opened the browser, a bloodcurdling scream shattered the quiet of the night.
"Run! Run!"
"Huh? That's Zhao Jie's voice!"
Duan Ming pricked up his ears.