Early the next morning, a whistle pierced the silence.
The students gathered in formation amidst the urging, beginning their ten-day reserve army experience—military training.
Morning runs, formation drills, equipment practice... in just half a day, most of the children who had studied literature over martial arts since childhood were physically exhausted.
Jingliu could barely keep up at first; even as her breathing grew ragged and her vision blurred, she gritted her teeth and persisted.
But during the afternoon weighted march, they had to carry marching packs back and forth through simulated rugged terrain.
Before she had even covered a kilometer, her knees buckled, and the weight on her shoulders pressed her back down.
In her sight, dust swirled and figures shifted, becoming increasingly blurred.
Just as she was about to collapse, she fell into a pair of strong arms.
"Don't push yourself too hard."
Qi Zhimu saw that Jingliu had reached her limit and turned his head to command the other students: "Continue, no stopping. If you can't hold on, shout 'Report'."
Jingliu wanted to say something, but she didn't even have the strength to open her mouth.
In the medical room, the army physician confirmed she was merely suffering from physical exhaustion and mild heatstroke.
Just as Qi Zhimu was about to speak, an emergency communication cut in.
A projection appeared; the intelligence officer's expression was tense.
"Guard Qi, urgent report! Signs of a large-scale Borisin Abominations gathering have been detected eight light-years west of the route. The General orders all Vanguards and Strategists to convene immediately."
"All units, look after the students according to Contingency Plan No. 2."
Qi Zhimu switched frequencies to give orders and turned toward the door, but paused halfway to instruct the army physician.
"Send her back to the camp once she recovers. If she still feels unwell, she may extend her rest for half a day."
"Understood."
Silence returned to the medical room.
Jingliu stared at the plain white ceiling as blurred phrases echoed in her mind.
Borisin Abominations... gathering... the blurred, hideous shadows of Abominations from textbooks flashed through her mind.
Is this the duty of the Cloud Knights? Enemy intelligence always comes first.
At this moment, she could only pray silently, wishing for the safety of all Cloud Knights.
From the distant training grounds, the shouts of the youths still drifted faintly on the wind... Inside the council chamber, the Cloud Knight Vanguards and Strategists gathered, the atmosphere solemn.
The intelligence summary showed that once the Borisin finished gathering, their scale would pose a significant threat to the Star Skiff.
Before the General could speak, more urgent news arrived.
This time, it wasn't just the Sky-Faring Commission, but also the Divination Commission.
"According to the calculations of the Divination Commission's Star-Pivot Deterministic Barrier, traces suspected to be the Emanator of Abundance, Shuhu, have been discovered!"
The hall fell silent; Teng Xiao's expression changed abruptly.
Every Xianzhou person understood the weight of the name Shuhu; almost all the most tragic wars in the Alliance's history bore its shadow.
"Haunting us still." A murderous aura flashed in Teng Xiao's eyes.
In just over twenty years, Shuhu had died at his hands three times, yet it always managed to stage a comeback, each time more difficult to deal with than the last.
A rare look of gloom flashed across Qi Zhimu's face.
Shuhu was also the culprit behind the second Abundance Plague War that broke out on the Jade Dwelling Xianzhou years ago.
"Shan Gang, Hai Yi, Lu Qu."
"Present!"
"The three of you will split into three routes and set out for Purta-II to exterminate the Abominations and prevent the The Abundant Alliance from gathering." Teng Xiao issued the military orders methodically.
"Orders received!"
The Abominations of Abundance had to be fought, and Shuhu's traces had to be pursued.
Soon, only Teng Xiao and Qi Zhimu remained in the hall.
"If I had known, I wouldn't have taken this burden. I really want to go and hack at the Abominations myself." Teng Xiao dropped his majesty and sighed helplessly.
"Even if you weren't the General, you couldn't just charge and kill as you pleased," Qi Zhimu said.
"But you want to kill the Abominations and Shuhu more than anyone, don't you?"
"Which Xianzhou person doesn't?"
"But that perverted thing has a personal grudge with you, whereas my grudge with Shuhu is a life-and-death antagonistic stance."
Qi Zhimu fell silent; he was indeed the person who wanted Shuhu dead the most.
But on the Xianzhou, there were far too many such people.
Teng Xiao: "It has died at my hands several times, yet it keeps coming back. The power it possesses is certainly not that simple; there must be something."
Qi Zhimu frowned. "Perhaps... it's similar in nature to the Ambrosial Arbor."
The Ambrosial Arbor, the abundance scourge that granted the Xianzhou people longevity.
"Are you saying that an abundance scourge exists within Shuhu, or that it is the blessed scourge itself?" Teng Xiao was surprised.
"It's just a guess. You said Shuhu manifested as a tree in this world; perhaps only by removing the roots can its rebirth be suppressed."
"Even if it's true, it would be difficult to achieve."
Teng Xiao shook his head.
"The Ambrosial Arbor is located in a fixed delve and has no self-awareness. If Shuhu is a scourge with thoughts... it would be equivalent to a mobile Ambrosial Arbor. Who knows where its roots are buried?"
Qi Zhimu remained silent.
If he were Shuhu and really had roots... where would the safest place to hide the detached roots be?
Perhaps, right under their noses?
"Let the Divination Commission worry about it first." He cut off his train of thought.
Teng Xiao nodded: "I will send a letter to the Divination Commission and have them perform a deduction."
Afterward, the two discussed the current state of elite training.
Qi Zhimu admitted that not everyone could persist, but the sisters Sleeping Snow and Clear Cold still had energy to spare.
Teng Xiao revealed a proud smile, as if saying his judgment was sharp.
Qi Zhimu was in no mood for idle talk; he left after finishing his report.
The students who had come to the camp for the pilgrimage recently must not be lost; perhaps the person who would change the status quo of The Hunt and Abundance in the future would be born among these youths... The ten-day pilgrimage was nearing its end.
The morning sun was high in the sky, and a gentle breeze blew across the square.
Qi Zhimu stepped onto the high platform and looked around at the students filling the spectator seats, his voice resonant.
"Today and tomorrow, we will hold the final traditional challenge competition. Use the sword techniques you've learned these past few days or your own skills to challenge the Cloud Knight Vanguards."
"The Vanguards will not use their full strength. As long as you break through their offense or defense and strike their helmet within the three-minute time limit, you will be considered victorious."
"The challenge competition is not mandatory for everyone to participate in, after all..."
At this point, Qi Zhimu paused.
"Even if a Vanguard only uses a fraction of their strength, they can beat most of you with one hand without even dodging. Most of the hundreds of Cloud Knight Vanguards sitting here went through the same thing when they were children."
"There is no limit to the number of challenges per person, but the prerequisite is: you must defeat your current opponent within three minutes."
"The challenge competition will begin in thirty minutes. Those who wish to participate, sign up via your jade message now."
The crowd was in a stir.
Most Cloud Knight Vanguards had challenged their seniors when they were children?
Indeed, those who could become the elite of the army had no lack of courage to challenge high mountains since their youth.
Challenging a Cloud Knight Vanguard!
In Xianzhou news reports, Vanguards were all powerhouses who could act as a one-man army, charging into the Abominations' ranks and coming out unscathed.
Aside from the General and the Sword Master, Vanguards were essentially the people with the highest prestige.
The murderous aura cultivated by Vanguards through years of bloody battle, even if not intentionally released, was enough to make most people hesitate. For teenagers, most could not overcome that mental hurdle.
Half an hour later, fewer than a thousand students dared to sign up.
For the Cloud Knights, this number was better than last year.
"The overall number of applicants is about the same as in previous years."
Qi Zhimu browsed the registration information.
"Most challengers have a martial arts background or have relatives who are Cloud Knights."
A certain name caused a faint look of surprise to flash across his face. He looked toward the Zhenshan Academy section and locked onto the young girl with a high ponytail.
Jingliu.
Her performance these past few days had only reached the average line, and she had no foundation.
Their eyes happened to meet.
Jingliu hadn't expected Qi Zhimu to look at her, and her gaze instinctively darted away.
Even more unexpected was that Guard Qi, who had been so stern and majestic these past few days, actually gave her a slight nod.
She was familiar with that expression: it was the same one an Academy teacher had when approving of a student's performance.
Jingliu felt a bit embarrassed.
She had signed up only because she didn't want to lose face for her family.
After all, Guard Qi... was an acquaintance of her father.