Cultivator Confidentiality

The next day, there was school.

Lu Yuan woke early, opening his eyes as the sky was just beginning to brighten.

He glanced at the system. It had risen by 2 points since he went to bed, bringing it to 110 ling.

Looks like not getting enough sleep affects the natural recovery of True Essence too, Lu Yuan thought. He remembered what Jia Xuanxuan had told him: everyone's True Essence values fluctuated constantly.

So those fluctuations seem to be a dynamic balance between natural recovery and consumption. I'll look over the material Jia Xuanxuan gave me when I have time. It would be nice if there were a way to speed up True Essence recovery.

Merit Value was hard to come by, so using it for a one-time recovery was too extravagant. Raising his True Essence limit, of course, was still well worth it.

After staring at the ceiling for a few seconds, Lu Yuan got up. Xiao Bing was still fast asleep, her hair stuck in her mouth. She had been utterly exhausted yesterday.

Lu Yuan slipped out quietly, got dressed, and started making breakfast. But when he opened the fridge to look for ingredients, he was a little disappointed.

He hadn't been to the market in several days, and the fridge was bare except for a few eggs.

It was a little late to go to the market now. Lu Yuan regretted not checking the fridge before bed last night. For a chef, that was a serious mistake.

After some thought, he decided they would have to make do today. He would make egg drop soup.

Lu Yuan put some water on to boil, beat the remaining eggs and poured them into the boiling water, then sprinkled in some chopped scallions. He tasted it. The eggs weren't very fresh, and the soup lacked savor, so he added a little dark soy sauce.

That turned the egg soup a light brown.

While cooking, Lu Yuan also found time to wash up. Xiao Bing only got up when he brought the steaming egg soup to the table.

"The fridge is empty, so you'll have to make do with breakfast. I'll buy some groceries on the way back and make you something delicious."

Lu Yuan still felt a little guilty.

Xiao Bing started eating after brushing her teeth. She took just one bite before speaking.

"Bro, you're way too modest. You call this making do?"

"When did you learn to cook?" Xiao Bing was quite puzzled by this. "You clearly only knew how to make noodles before."

"I comprehended the Dao in a dream," Lu Yuan explained seriously.

Brother and sister ate and chatted, enjoying their breakfast. When they finished, Xiao Bing went to get her schoolbag, but Lu Yuan stopped her.

"Don't bring your schoolbag today. We'll go to school to ask for leave, then set off."

"What's going on?"

Lu Yuan showed Xiao Bing his mobile banking app. The astronomical figure of 1.57 million dazzled her.

"Jia Xuanxuan's dad really gave you that much money?" Xiao Bing still found it a little too dreamlike.

"Does he want you to become a live-in son-in-law and cook them breakfast every morning?

"Bro, I'm telling you, you mustn't become a live-in son-in-law. They'll bully you.

"When they hold a birthday banquet, there'll be one table for people who gave a million in gift money and another for people who gave ten million. You won't have anywhere to sit!"

Lu Yuan burst out laughing. Once he was done, he told Xiao Bing about their plans for the day.

Now that they had the money, they needed to take the high-speed train to Jiangzhou City First Hospital and bring their mother this life-saving money. The train ride took less than an hour. A coach would wind around the outskirts for ages and take more than two hours.

Lu Yuan hadn't called their parents beforehand because he wanted to surprise them.

Besides, he missed his mother terribly. Counting his previous life, he hadn't seen her in more than twenty years, and he wished he could fly to her right now.

Brother and sister left together and walked toward school.

The closer they got to school, the more students they saw walking along the road, along with some on bicycles. Everyone traveled in groups of twos and threes.

Lu Yuan noticed that many students were looking at Xiao Bing and whispering to one another.

"Look, that's Dragon Boat Festival Little Sister."

"She really does go to our school."

"Is that guy beside her, her boyfriend? Dating at such a young age!"

"That's her brother, from senior year, class two."

It seemed his little sister really had become an internet celebrity.

Lu Yuan looked back at his sister. Xiao Bing walked with her head lowered, her face red. It seemed the girl still wasn't used to being famous; everyone's gazes only made her feel awkward.

The two parted at the stairs. The first-year and senior-year teachers' offices were in different places.

Lu Yuan walked to his homeroom teacher's office and knocked on the door.

"Come in."

Wu Jishan was sitting in his chair grading homework. He was a Chinese teacher and taught several classes.

When he saw Lu Yuan enter, Wu Jishan took off his glasses. He said nothing, only looked at Lu Yuan.

"Mr. Wu, here's my application form." Lu Yuan handed him the completed form. "I've decided to apply to Cultivator University."

"Good! That's the spirit!"

As soon as Old Wu heard that Lu Yuan wanted to apply to Cultivation University, he perked up. The quality of teaching at Ningcheng First Middle School really was average; those with the means wouldn't come here to study.

So far, only five students in Wu Jishan's class had handed in application forms, which disappointed him. Whether they got in was another matter, but young people couldn't lack even the boldness to apply and give it a try. Of course, the application fee being too expensive was another important reason.

"Lu Yuan, your grades are good. I believe passing the written exam shouldn't be hard for you."

Wu Jishan had Lu Yuan sit down, intending to give him some thorough advice.

"The question for you now is whether your True Essence test can reach the cutoff for registration. Have you ever had your True Essence tested?"

"Mine fluctuates around 112 ling."

Lu Yuan didn't dare say too much. After all, he really hadn't been tested at a hospital. What if the hospital didn't recognize the system's True Essence values? That was entirely possible, right?

"At 112 ling, you have a very good chance!"

Old Wu's weathered face bloomed into a smile.

Last year, only one student in the entire graduating class at First Middle School had gotten into Cultivation University, setting the school's worst record ever. The principal had berated people almost every day.

This year, Jia Xuanxuan was certain to get into Cultivation University. If Lu Yuan got in too, Old Wu's class two would have produced two cultivators.

Then Old Wu could close his eyes in peace... retire in peace.

"Last year's registration cutoff was only 112. It'll probably drop a point or two this year. Keep it up, and you're sure to get into Cultivation University!"

"By the way, have you considered which Cultivation University you want? You won't submit your choices until after the results come out, but you should have a goal in mind by now, right?"

"I want to get into one of the Four Greats."

"The Four Greats..."

Old Wu's hand trembled.

Young people ought to be bold, but being too rash wasn't good either.

Lu Yuan might not know, but how could Wu Jishan, who had worked in education for years, not know?

Candidates who got into the Four Greats all began preparing very early. Jia Xuanxuan, for example, had actually started preparing with the Four Greats as his goal in middle school.

Moreover, candidates for the Four Greats generally had powerful family backgrounds. Either their parents were cultivators themselves, or they were merchants wealthy enough to dominate a region. Only such people could access vast amounts of information unavailable to ordinary people and obtain resources others couldn't. The Cultivators' Federation expressly forbade students from coming into contact with cultivation methods before the test, but it couldn't stop people from skirting the rules. Some students, for instance, had cultivators for parents and picked things up from constant exposure from childhood. Who could say anything about that?

Although Wu Jishan didn't know the details of Lu Yuan's family circumstances, judging by what he usually ate, wore, and spent, he came from an ordinary family.

Where did he get that confidence?

Old Wu didn't say it aloud, though. He wouldn't undermine a young person's confidence. Besides, university choices were submitted after the results came out. If Lu Yuan's results were average, he wouldn't apply to the Four Greats anyway.

So Wu Jishan merely offered a tactful reminder.

"Getting into the Four Greats is very difficult. Besides the written exam and the True Essence test, there's an additional exam."

"An additional exam? What does it test?"

This was the second time Lu Yuan had heard about it. Jia Xuanxuan had also mentioned an additional exam last time.

"The contents of the additional exam fall under the Cultivator Confidentiality Principle. I don't know either," Wu Jishan said regretfully.

"All candidates qualified to take the Four Greats' additional exam are cultivator trainees whose admission to Cultivator University has already been confirmed.

"There are confidentiality rules for taking the additional exam, so outsiders have no way of knowing.

"It's a secret within the cultivator community, and there are many more secrets like it."

Lu Yuan nodded. During this period, he had already discovered that much information couldn't be found online and fell under the so-called Cultivator Confidentiality Principle.

Perhaps they also had a network for their own internal use.

"One more thing, Mr. Wu. I need to take today off," Lu Yuan said, asking for leave.

Cultivation University candidates had many other preparations to make before the exam, such as making frequent trips to the hospital for preliminary tests. Wu Jishan didn't think much of it and readily granted him leave.