Viewed from high above, the center of Eighth Middle School was like a source of radiation. Building complexes on all sides stood guard around it, enclosing the large, ring-shaped, multi-layered structure.
The outermost layer of the Elite Training Hall was a continuous, ring-shaped complex of buildings, like a high wall guarding the core towers. A camera above the three-meter-high gate looked down upon the passing group, its glass lens reflecting a cold glint of light.
Following Wu Shan inside was like stepping into a warm sea. The pores on Jiang Qiu's bare forearms immediately opened, and with a twitch of his nose, he caught the faint scent of a fresh fragrance.
The figures of the five-person group were reflected on the tiled floor. A burly security guard sat in an inner booth, and high windows echoed the white light of the dome.
Reinforced concrete pillars supported the massive dome, and cameras installed in the corners monitored every person and object within sight.
'Compared to the ordinary training halls, which look like temporary structures, this place is like the grounds of an imperial palace I've never set foot in. It has an air of unattainable distance, the kind you feel when you're from the Shantytown.'
BEEP—
"Verification successful."
After passing through the first glass security gate, all the overhead cameras swiveled like owls to watch them, following the group until they reached a large steel door.
CHUNK—
[Name: Wu Shan]
[Position: Head of Site 8, Elite Training Hall]
Text appeared on the wall-mounted display. With a click, the massive door slid slowly open, revealing row after row of weapon racks stretching as far as the eye could see. All manner of spear shafts lay horizontally on the racks, their menacingly sharp heads embedded in black foam.
"One spearhead to one shaft. You can pick any weapon here," Wu Shan said, strolling between the wooden racks. He casually picked up a shaft nearly three meters long and weighed it in his hand. "These are all synthetic materials. Some have a flexibility similar to white wax wood, while others are as hard as iron. Choose your own length and weight. The most important thing is that it feels right in your hands.
"There are mainly two types of spearheads: sword-shaped and cone-shaped. The former allows for fluid and nimble moves, while the latter specializes in piercing armor."
WHUMMM—
The sound of shafts being swung rose and fell throughout the armory. After testing nearly a hundred of them, Jiang Qiu finally selected a 2.5-meter black shaft and a double-edged, curved, sword-shaped spearhead.
The moment he inserted the black shaft into the spearhead's socket, internal teeth within the head twisted and, with a CLICK, bit down hard on the shaft. A cold light flashed across its tip, making the weapon seem as if it were forged as a single piece.
'So this is a super-ancient spearhead?' Jiang Qiu's bright eyes sparkled. Holding the long spear, he looked like a reincarnated Zhao Yun. "I feel like I could poke a hole straight through the ceiling with this..."
"Alright, you've all chosen your spearheads, so stop dawdling. I've already registered your selections," Wu Shan said, standing at the door and holding a newly assembled long spear. A threatening aura naturally emanated from his single right eye. "Get out. Go take a look at the training ground where you'll be taught the Ancient Martial Spear Technique. I'm going for a drink."
"Understood."
Following their unified response, the great steel door slid slowly shut. The brilliant white light vanished in the instant the door sealed, and darkness and silence once again consumed the armory.
...
BEEP—
"Verification successful."
A wide glass door labeled "Eight" stood open down the long corridor. A wave of contained heat rushed out, accompanied by the PING and CLANG of clashing steel.
The four of them turned their heads to look. A dozen or so youths in uniform black short-sleeved shirts had formed a circle, their shouts directed at two people fighting in the center. "Brother Xie is badass! He's beaten two in a row!"
"Whoa, that's the third one!"
"Brother Xie, I surrender!"
As the cry of surrender fell, a cone-shaped spearhead spun past the opponent's shaft and stopped exactly three inches from his brow. The breeze from the motion ruffled his hair. The disarmed student shivered and backed away, a shocked yet sheepish smile on his face. "Brother Xie, with your current strength, I bet you're not that far off from Li Juefeng of Site One."
The one called Brother Xie, who had brought his spear upright with a single hand, remained silent. He suddenly turned to look at them, his gaze as sharp and cold as a thrown dart. "The 'excellent students' from the regular classes have arrived.
"And an old acquaintance, I see."
Hm?
Jiang Qiu raised an eyebrow. He glanced over at Wang Guanjia, who stood beside him with clenched fists, and let out a quiet sigh of relief. 'Looks like this has nothing to do with me...'
"Oh? Brother Xie knows someone in the regular classes? Who could be so important?"
"Didn't Brother Xie just bring him up? It's Wang Guanjia! He got thrashed during the placement test by some kid from the Shantytown. Couldn't even hold on to his own spear!"
"Haha, Brother Xie's 'old acquaintance' is a real piece of work, huh? He tried to act tough and got thrashed by Li Juefeng, then spent two years as a regular student, and now he gets beaten so badly by a kid from the Shantytown that he loses his spear..."
Someone had lit a spark, and the gale fanned it into a roaring flame. The one they called Brother Xie strode toward them, spear in hand, the dozen or so students behind him forming an intimidating presence.
They carried themselves like officials making a routine inspection of a new street vendor.
"Wang, I heard you let your spear get knocked right out of your hands," Brother Xie said, lips curling into a smile. He glanced past the two girls, his eyes landing squarely on Jiang Qiu's face. "Was that your doing?"
"Xie Kuang, do you really have to pick a fight with me!?"
With Wang Guanjia's roar, his spear tip shot through the air with a SWOOSH. A flash of cold light, a sharp crack, and Xie Kuang casually batted the thrusting spear aside. "What do you amount to now? I bet you haven't even grasped the Spearpoint Armor-Piercing from the Ancient Martial Spear Technique. You haven't trained your body to the level of Copper Skin, either. Now you can't even beat a student from the regular classes. Heh. And you think I'm here to 'pick a fight' with you?"
Xie Kuang scoffed, his falcon-like gaze seizing Jiang Qiu once more. His face, silhouetted against the light, was cast in sharp, blade-like shadows, and his eyes were those of a vicious wolf in the night. "Kid. That 'this has nothing to do with me' look on your face... you must be the one who beat Wang Guanjia. Let's fight. Right now. I want to see just how far he's regressed."
"..."
Jiang Qiu's gaze turned icy. Before he could speak, a startled-sounding voice piped up beside him. "We haven't even learned the complete Ancient Martial Spear Technique yet. You're just being a bully!"
"Oh? So he hasn't even finished learning the Ancient Martial Spear Technique?" Xie Kuang's gaze slid past Liu Zili's blazing, cold eyes to grin at Wang Guanjia. "In that case, Wang, you really are becoming more and more useless." At this, the crowd of students exploded with laughter. "You're supposed to have better resources in every respect than a kid born in the Shantytown, and you still lost? Isn't that a riot?"
"You people..." Liu Zili clenched her fists. She pursed her lips, glanced at her class president trembling beside her with clenched fists, and fell grimly silent.
'So much for the good mood from earlier.'
The sight of Jiang Qiu's tall, straight profile as he stood silently holding his spear upright helped her calm down a little.
TAP, TAP, TAP...
The sound of unhurried footsteps grew closer, and the crowd's clamor gradually subsided. They looked toward the sound and saw Wu Shan strolling over, cradling a black water bottle in his right hand. Steam rose from it, making his half-lidded single eye appear hazy. "Looks like you've all gotten acquainted. Seems like a lively bunch. The four of you, introduce yourselves to them."
"Wang Guanjia!"
"Hu Ye'ye."
"Liu Zili."
"Jiang Qiu."
"Mm. We're short on time today, and there's nothing else on the agenda. This introduction is good enough," Wu Shan said, taking a gulp of scalding water. His single eye rolled, shifting pointedly between Wang Guanjia and Jiang Qiu. "Let me emphasize one point. While you are under my instruction, you have only one training objective: to secure the largest possible allocation of Wusu Fragrance for yourselves.
"If you don't have enough Wusu Fragrance to temper your bodies, it'll be perfectly normal for you to lose an arm or a leg by the time the college entrance exams come around. This is especially true for those of you who only just became 'excellent students.' If you don't fight for as much Wusu Fragrance as you can get, your mortal flesh won't even be enough to get stuck in the teeth of a Demon Beast.
"The amount of Wusu Fragrance you are allocated is determined by your strength. Some of you have never even used it before, but someone like Xie Kuang here receives two portions every single month!"