After Father Chu and Mrs. Chu took over the kitchen, Chu Chen went to the sofa and contemplated the path ahead.
Currently, he desperately needs to acquire Slaughter Value. With enough Slaughter Value, his strength would improve, allowing him to enter the Elite Class. This would provide him with cultivation resources from the Elite Class and financial aid from the school.
However, acquiring Slaughter Value is not easy. With his current strength, venturing into the wild is akin to courting death, and buying Star Beasts like Water Spirit Fish for self-slaughter is unrealistic, given their hefty price.
Working at fish stalls or slaughterhouses is also unrealistic, as their working hours clash with school, and he has no work experience, likely failing the first step of applying.
As each idea was dismissed, Chu Chen began to feel anxious.
Just then, his phone suddenly rang.
Chu Chen quickly took out his phone from his pocket, discovering it was a call from Wang Lu.
Seemingly realizing something, Chu Chen let out a slight chuckle.
He quickly answered the call.
After some conversation, Chu Chen learned Wang Lu was calling to show off.
This guy spent a massive two million to purchase an Angry Wind Elf, which is Elite Level Upper Grade. The Angry Wind Elf is a Fire-Wind dual-attribute Guardian Beast, with terrifying attack power, and decent self-preservation abilities due to the Wind attribute's speed.
In terms of quality alone, this Angry Wind Elf surpasses Lei Yao.
However, this is normal, as the price indicates, and the Angry Wind Elf is extremely rare; not something money alone can buy. Aside from luck, Father Wang surely put in a lot of effort.
"Just talking about myself, how about you? What Guardian Beast are you preparing to contract?" asked Wang Lu.
Chu Chen, hearing this, didn't hide anything and mentioned contracting Lei Yao.
"Are you sure you can heal Lei Yao? You know how important the first Guardian Beast is, right?" Wang Lu said with some concern.
"Of course, I understand that well. Healing Lei Yao requires your help."
"My help? Don't joke around, I don't know psychology."
Immediately, Chu Chen shared his speculation with Wang Lu.
After a moment of thought, Wang Lu, somewhat puzzled, asked, "How do you want me to help you?"
Chu Chen smiled and said, "Lei Yao needs some battles to heal his mental issues. Slaughter and blood are the best remedies."
Wang Lu, hearing this, was stunned, taking several seconds to react.
"I said, if you have something to say, say it straight; don't beat around the bush."
Chu Chen laughed as he said, "I want to work in your family's hotel kitchen, specializing in slaughtering Star Beasts. I can forego the salary."
Wang Lu paused for a few moments and then said solemnly, "I can't make that decision. I need to discuss it with my dad and give you an answer tomorrow. How does that sound?"
Chu Chen, hearing this, smiled and said, "No problem, whether it works out or not, thanks in advance."
"Tch, what's this talk about thanks? We're brothers; it's not about gratitude."
The two chatted a few more lines before hanging up the phone.
At this time, Father Chu and Mrs. Chu also arrived in the living room with sumptuous dishes.
The taste of Water Spirit Fish indeed was rich and delicious, even Lei Yao complimented it repeatedly.
After fulfilling their appetite, Chu Chen took Lei Yao back to his bedroom for cultivation.
The Star Power within the Water Spirit Fish was quite rich, and it would be a shame not to refine it immediately.
Chu Chen sat cross-legged on the bed, using the Seven-Branch Meditation Technique taught at the academy, which is also known as Padmasana.
This meditation method allows a Beast Master to quickly enter a meditative state.
The Seven-Branch Meditation Technique has seven key elements: The first: Padma the legs, place the left foot on the right thigh, then the right foot on the left thigh, this is the Diamond Pose suitable for men, while for women it's opposite, known as the Auspicious Pose.
The second: Keep the spine straight, each vertebra stacked like mathematical beads, naturally straight.
The third: Spread the shoulders, shoulders relaxed without puffing the chest, upper body in a natural relaxed state.
The fourth: Form the Mudra below the navel, right palm over the left, suitable for men, while for women it's opposite.
The fifth: Keep the head straight, slightly tilt the back of the head backward, retract the chin, just slightly compress the neck arteries.
The sixth: Keep the eyes slightly open, nearly closed but still open, like half-open, half-closed unseen.
The seventh: Press the tip of the tongue against the upper palate, like a toothless baby's sleeping state.
Starting from the first year of high school, a meditation class was added once a week, and in the second year, it increased to twice.
After two years of learning, most students have mastered the Seven-Branch Meditation Technique; for those who haven't, it's understandable, as without Soul Power awakening, one cannot cultivate, and meditation is extremely tedious, making students who can persist through a session exceedingly rare.
After entering meditation, Chu Chen started channeling Soul Power to cultivate the "Wave Observation Technique," a Yellow Rank Middle Grade Technique learned at school.
The Observation Technique is divided into Celestial, Earth, Profound, and Yellow Ranks, Celestial being the highest and Yellow the lowest.
Although the cultivation speed of the "Wave Observation Technique" is not fast, its soul power is extremely gentle, making it very suitable for newcomers.
After cultivating for a while, Chu Chen suddenly opened his eyes; at the current cultivation speed, it would take him at least a week to reach the Fifth Rank Soul Pupil level, assuming four hours of cultivation a day. If cultivation time is extended, this duration could be shorter.
Chu Chen took out a porcelain bottle from his pocket, poured out a dragon eye-sized pill that was smooth, star-blue in color, with a ring-like pattern around it called the Pill Pattern; one Pill Pattern indicates a First-Grade Elixir, whose price varies despite being of the same grade due to different effects.
Without a moment's hesitation, Chu Chen swallowed the Star Power Pill and gave another one to Lei Yao.
Lei Yao smacked his lips in satisfaction.
Seeing this, Chu Chen explained helplessly, "This is a Star Power Pill; only one can be taken at a time. Remember to cultivate when the medicinal power kicks in," and then re-entered his meditative state.
Lei Yao watched his master and had no choice but to start cultivating at the side.
Dozens of breaths later, he felt a wave of pure Star Power appearing within him, and quickly began to refine the Star Power.
An hour later, Chu Chen slowly opened his eyes, his eyes sparkling with excitement.
The effect of the First-Grade Star Power Pill was quite good; he can shorten the time to reach the Fifth Rank Soul Pupil level to about one day.
Of course, this is with taking only one Star Power Pill a day; if more could be taken, this time could be cut by more than half.
Thinking of this made Chu Chen a bit agitated; he urgently needs cultivation resources, and acquiring Slaughter Value aside, earning money is imperative.
Chu Chen took out another pill and swallowed it, despite the heartache.
He doesn't want a shortage of cultivation resources to slow down his progress—that would be foolish.
Time is tight, and he cannot afford to wait. He believes the 50,000 in financial aid can support him for a while.
The Early Awakening Stage is the fastest period for improving strength, and resource allocation begins from this stage—being a commoner, he must seize every opportunity to gain resources.
For most students, this stage determines their future fate; one slow step leads to falling behind step by step.