The next day came quickly. There wasn't much for anyone to prepare, so after breakfast, when Tang San and the others gathered on the academy's training field, they found Yun Chuan already waiting for them.
Seeing all seven students assembled, Yun Chuan didn't waste words. With a wave of his hand, he said simply, "Let's move."
The Star Dou Forest wasn't a place to be taken lightly. It teemed with spirit beasts, most of them highly aggressive, and almost all of them bore no love for humans.
Once they stepped out of the academy gates, the group set off at a steady run.
It didn't take long for the students to understand just how important yesterday's second "lesson" from Headmaster Flender had been. With Oscar's spirit sausages as a constant source of replenishment, the exertion from long-distance running hardly made a dent in their stamina.
As a fellow support-type, Ning Rongrong didn't laze about either — she frequently activated her Seven Treasures Glazed Tile Pagoda to buff her teammates, boosting strength and speed. Gradually, the seven of them began moving in sync, showing the beginnings of real teamwork.
With Oscar's restorative sausages and Ning Rongrong's attribute boosts, they covered over four hundred kilometers in just one day. By nightfall, they were already close to the Star Dou Forest.
Seeing that they wouldn't reach it before dark, Yun Chuan gave the order to stop and rest. The timing was ideal — they had reached a small town, and pressing on ahead would mean uncertain supplies.
Entering the town, Yun Chuan found it even livelier than he expected. Bustling as a small city, it had streets lined with shops of every sort.
A glance told him all he needed to know. Ah, so this is what they call "living by the mountain and eating from the mountain, living by the water and eating from the water." This settlement clearly survived off the Star Dou Forest — and it was likely not the only one of its kind around the forest's edges.
Pointing toward a modest-looking inn ahead, Yun Chuan said, "We'll stay here. Rest for the night, and we head out at dawn. You'll cover your own lodging and meals."
The inn was a two-story building; the first floor was a simple dining hall, the second floor for rooms. Yun Chuan booked himself a single room and went straight upstairs.
After a quick discussion, Dai Mubai and the others arranged one four-person room for the boys and one three-person room for the girls.
With accommodations settled, everyone gathered again at a table in the corner. The mood was fairly relaxed, helped along by Fatty's ceaseless joking, which kept the atmosphere from turning stiff.
The dining hall was already about two-thirds full when the door opened and another group entered — eight people in all. What struck Tang San was that their formation resembled his own group's: one older man followed by a team of younger spirit masters.
At their head was a man in his forties, handsome enough, dressed in an elegant moon-white spirit master's robe tailored to perfection. Behind him came six young men and one young woman, all around twenty years of age, wearing matching moon-white robes.
On the left shoulder of each robe was an emerald-green circular emblem, inside which were embroidered two characters in the same green: 苍晖 — Canghui.
From their appearance alone, it was clear they were spirit masters.
The innkeeper immediately hurried over to greet them, bowing and scraping with all the obsequiousness due to wealthy patrons. In a town whose lifeblood came from Star Dou Forest, that meant relying on visiting spirit masters — a noble and lucrative profession that no merchant would dare offend.
"That girl's not bad-looking. Boss Dai, those guys… they should be from Canghui Academy, right?" Fatty muttered, both small eyes locked unashamedly on the only young woman in the newcomers' group. With his constant "evil fire" simmering, his gaze was practically glowing.
Dai Mubai gave a dismissive snort. "Just Canghui Academy. Nothing to brag about."
Spirit masters' hearing was sharper than ordinary people's, and the middle-aged man at the head of the newcomers glanced over. A frown creased his brow — and when his eyes settled on Shrek's table and found it occupied by what seemed to be a bunch of kids, his expression darkened further.
Seated beside Tang San, Oscar leaned over and chuckled quietly. "Looks like we've got a show coming."
Tang San glanced at him, puzzled. "What show?"
Oscar smirked. "Part of our training. Headmaster Flender says a spirit master who doesn't dare make trouble isn't worth much. Playing it safe is for mediocrities. And the safest people to provoke? Students from another spirit master academy — at worst, it turns into a fight."
Tang San couldn't help a laugh. "Our headmaster's sayings could fill a textbook — The Monster's Quotations. Judging by their age, Canghui must be an advanced spirit master academy."
(End of Chapter)