"Then Big Sister will head back now." Qingqing smiled, then with a pa-da sound, planted a kiss on Jiang Chen's face, instantly drawing envious gazes from a crowd of young boys.
Instructor Qingqing was the dream goddess of all the male trainees. That fiery hot figure and beautiful face had made countless boys spend their money on the old pervert, just hoping to enjoy a moment of ultimate bliss with Qingqing in the illusion realm.
But the illusion realm was ultimately just an illusion, like a dream; once awakened from it, only regret remained.
Jiang Chen smiled bitterly as he watched Qingqing's departing figure, feeling an inexplicable restlessness in his heart. Qingqing's charm was truly too great; even he could barely withstand it.
Gazing at that proud, curvaceous back wrapped in the tight training outfit, Jiang Chen forced himself to look away.
"I'm only nine years old, how could this be happening?" He laughed bitterly to himself. It seemed he had matured early, too; his body had gained some extra hormones, and sometimes it would show reactions that a boy his age shouldn't have.
At nine years old now, his height had already reached around 1.6 meters, only half a head shorter than Zhao Youyue standing beside him.
Seeing the lingering look in Jiang Chen's eyes toward Qingqing, Zhao Youyue felt a small pang of jealousy in her heart. She forcefully puffed out her chest, but sadly realized she truly couldn't compare to Instructor Qingqing, and the gap was huge.
She looked at Jiang Chen's face, which had become many times more handsome than three years ago, and a flash of infatuation quickly passed through her eyes.
By now, quite a few trainees' families had arrived to pick up their own geniuses.
Some boys and girls shouldered their packs and set off together. These were orphans raised by Spirit Hall, and they got along fairly well with one another, all living inside Spirit City.
"Master, later you can ride back with me in my family's carriage," Zhao Youyue said.
"No need. Someone should come to pick me up," Jiang Chen replied. He wasn't sure if that stern-faced uncle would still come to get him. If not, he'd probably have to walk back.
Zhao Youyue suddenly looked excited. She stood on tiptoe and waved her hand, shouting, "Third Uncle, I'm over here!"
Jiang Chen looked up and saw a handsome man in his thirties driving a carriage swiftly toward them.
"Whoa~" The young man stopped the carriage in front of Zhao Youyue, jumped down, and fondly ruffled her head.
"Little Youyue, it's been a few years, and you've grown so much, you're almost taller than Third Uncle now." The young man laughed heartily.
A look of attachment that Jiang Chen had never seen on her before appeared on Zhao Youyue's face. She suddenly turned to Jiang Chen and said, "Mas… Little Chen, this is my third uncle. Since you also live in Spirit City, why don't you ride back with my third uncle's carriage?"
"No need. I'll wait a bit longer," Jiang Chen shook his head. If he rode with Zhao Youyue and the uncle arrived later, wouldn't that make the trip in vain?
Only then did the young man notice Jiang Chen standing beside Zhao Youyue, and a strange look flashed in his eyes.
Although Jiang Chen was still a little shorter than Zhao Youyue, that rather handsome face always made people look a few more times.
"Youyue, this is…?"
"He's my partner for these three years in the camp," Zhao Youyue explained.
The young man smiled and said, "Little brother, our Youyue didn't cause you any trouble, right?"
Jiang Chen shook his head and smiled kindly as well. "Not at all. Usually, it was her taking care of me."
"May I ask which family little brother belongs to?"
"I don't have a family."
"Then, how about I give you a ride? It's on the way anyway." The young man said, though his smile was no longer as bright as before, and even his tone had become somewhat polite and distant.
"Thank you, but no need. Someone should come to pick me up," Jiang Chen politely declined.
"Alright then. Youyue, let's head home." The young man looked toward Zhao Youyue.
Zhao Youyue had no choice but to follow her third uncle onto the carriage. She turned back and called out, "Little Chen, see you again at Spirit Hall Academy!"
Jiang Chen waved with a smile. "Go on. We'll meet again soon."
As the carriage left, the young man turned back and asked, "Youyue, do you like that kid?"
"Third Uncle, what are you saying?" Zhao Youyue huffed, her face turning red.
The young man sighed. How could he not understand Zhao Youyue's behavior?
"Who you like is not something Third Uncle can control. That kid looks quite handsome too, but he has no family background. Those old fogeys in our house aren't so easy to deal with."
"Third Uncle, actually, his talent is even better than mine," Zhao Youyue hurriedly said.
"Hm, then that makes things easier. Third Uncle will support you." The young man laughed.
"Whoa!" Suddenly, the carriage came to an abrupt stop.
"What's wrong, Third Uncle?" Zhao Youyue poked her head out and asked.
The young man ignored her and instead looked ahead with a face full of smiles at the approaching carriage.
"Commander Ji, hello." As soon as the carriage drew near, the young man called out loudly.
The person in the opposite carriage didn't speak, nor did his expression change in the slightest. He only gave a slight nod in acknowledgment.
"Third Uncle, who is that? Such an attitude?" Zhao Youyue asked in surprise.
"Shh! That's a big shot, the Grand Commander of the Papal Hall's Imperial Guards. I once had the honor of seeing him from afar."
Zhao Youyue's face showed shock. "Why would such a big shot come here?"
She quickly pulled back the rear curtain of the carriage and looked behind.
She saw Commander Ji slam on the brakes, stopping the carriage right in front of Jiang Chen.
Both Zhao Youyue and her third uncle wore expressions of disbelief as they stared blankly at the scene…
The carriage made a sharp turn and stopped in front of Jiang Chen. It was still that same stern-faced middle-aged man who had brought him here before.
"Get in." His words were as concise as ever.
"Uncle, you finally came. I thought I'd have to walk back," Jiang Chen grumbled as he climbed into the carriage.
"Drive!" The carriage sped up, and Jiang Chen finally set off on his return journey.
Jiang Chen didn't notice Zhao Youyue, who was stopped at the side, and simply left.
Watching the departing carriage grow distant, the young man patted Zhao Youyue's shoulder and sighed. "Youyue, it seems your partner's identity isn't simple. You should keep a good relationship with him in the future."
"Mm, I will, Third Uncle."
…
"Uncle, thank you for coming all this way to pick me up," Jiang Chen said.
"My surname is Ji. I am the Commander of the Papal Hall's Imperial Guards. You can just call me Commander Ji from now on," the middle-aged man said.
"Uncle, that's too formal. How about I call you Old Ji? We're already familiar with each other after one meeting."
Commander Ji's mouth twitched. He really wanted to grab Jiang Chen and give his butt a good beating, but after thinking about it, he suppressed the crazy impulse.
After a long while, he only said one sentence, "You're very good."
But immediately after, he shut his mouth and said nothing more.
Jiang Chen had no choice but to close his eyes and rest.
In his mind, scenes from the three years in the camp flashed by, and he couldn't help but sigh with emotion.
In three years, under the pressure of death and nonstop day-and-night cultivation, his cultivation had skyrocketed to rank 29, only one level away from breaking through to Soul Elder.
He owed this progress to Long Shan's strict demands, several times stricter on him than on the other trainees.
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