CLICK. The lights in the room ca on. Chen Chuan walked in, closing the door behind him. He went to the window, where a bright moon hung high in the night sky.
He reached out, drew the curtains, and returned to his bedside. After glancing at the alarm clock on the nightstand, he closed his eyes. The Second Self behind him instantly rged with his body.
After a mont, he opened his eyes and glanced at the alarm clock again. In order to defeat Zhongwu today, he had used Shocking God Fist Power with every single move, consuming a significant amount of his rging ti. And yet, his available ti had just increased by a full two hundred and seventy-so seconds. His total rging limit now exceeded six minutes.
This was the biggest leap forward his Second Self had made since its birth.
Zhongwu was likely the most dangerous opponent he had faced to date. And in that mont, he had never felt such a powerful urge to take soone down.
It was by insisting on and succeeding at a task when his conviction was at its absolute peak that he had triggered this unprecedented, powerful resonance with his Second Self.
He reached out and placed the alarm clock face down.
’From here on, it’s a new beginning.’
The next day, Chen Chuan woke up right on ti.
With the new sester starting in two days, he still had so preparations to make. He knew he wouldn’t have any free ti once classes began, so he needed to contact a few close friends. The first person he called was Ding Jiao.
The call had barely connected when a voice erupted from the other end. "Hello, is that Chen Chuan? Brother Chuan, you finally called! I’ve been bursting to tell everyone! I told them I have a classmate at Wuda—my deskmate, no less—but those bastards wouldn’t believe ! They said I was bragging! Bragging? Do I look like the type of guy who brags? Well, do I?"
Chen Chuan held the receiver a little farther from his ear before asking, "And then what?"
"What ’and then what’?"
Chen Chuan said with a smile, "About the bragging?"
"The bragging! Right, let tell you... Hey! You’re pulling my leg again, aren’t you? Oh! Right, why’d you call , anyway?"
Chen Chuan said, "I passed the Wuyi re-examination. I’m letting you know so you can’t complain that I don’t tell you when sothing happens."
"You passed the re-examination?" Ding Jiao’s voice shot up an octave. "Aweso! So damn aweso... Damn it, I’m gonna... Holy shit! Brother Chuan, you’re the man!"
His booming voice blasted through the phone again, loud enough to be heard from several ters away. Chen Chuan had already calmly pulled the receiver away from his ear in anticipation.
"Oh, right! Brother Chuan, you have to treat us! You gotta treat us, you hear ? How could you not treat us for sothing this huge? I’d have to jump out of my window! You wouldn’t have the heart for that, would you?"
Chen Chuan considered this. ’That does sound serious,’ he thought. Even though Ding Jiao lived on the ground floor, there was a ditch right outside his window. "I was already planning on it," he said. "No need for a big crowd. We’ll just get the usual group together, find a ti, and et at Wangxiang Hall."
"You got it! I’ll start making the calls right now! Talk to you later!"
Ding Jiao excitedly hung up. Chen Chuan thought for a mont before dialing another number. "Is this Mi’s Office? I’m looking for Gao Ming."
After a short wait, a voice ca on the line. "Cousin. I’ve been keeping an eye on the Wuyi re-examinations. Since you’re calling now, I take it you passed?"
Chen Chuan replied, "Yeah, just last night."
The voice on the other end chuckled. "Congratulations, Cousin. By the way, I won’t be free to co back for about two months. The timing isn’t certain yet, but I’ll contact you when it is."
Chen Chuan knew his cousin was busy, so after a brief chat, they hung up.
Just then, he heard the ring of a bicycle bell outside, followed by a knock on the gate. "Does Chen Chuan live here?" a voice called out. "Chen Chuan from Wuda? You’ve got a package."
The voice was loud, easily heard by any neighbors who were ho.
Chen Chuan went out to the front yard and opened the gate. A young man in a gray uniform with a satchel on his back was standing there. Behind him was a bicycle laden with parcels. Seeing Chen Chuan, the man handed him a form and a pen. "Chen Chuan, right? A package from the express post has arrived. Please sign for it."
Chen Chuan took the form and signed it. The young man accepted it, retrieved a large package from his bicycle, and handed it over. "So you got into Wuda, huh?" he said with envy. "That’s amazing. My younger brother is going to try next year. I wonder if he’ll make it. Anyway, I’m off." He swung himself onto the bike, rang the bell, pushed hard on the pedals a few tis, and rode away.
Chen Chuan waited for him to leave before going back inside. He opened the package and found two sets of retro-style training uniforms inside. Both were open-fronted with right-sided lapels—one set was cyan, the other white. They also ca with two matching forehead ribbons.
In addition to the training uniforms, there were two formal student uniforms—including hats, shoes, gloves, and socks. One was for regular wear, and the other was a winter version. The style was similar to what he already wore, but the material was of higher quality, the color was more vibrant, and the chest bore the Wuyi school crest.
There was also an exquisite envelope imprinted with the Wuyi school na. It felt quite rigid. He tore it open and took out sothing that resembled a Na Card.
He picked it up for a closer look and realized it was a new student ID. Having passed the re-examination, he was now officially an elite student marked for special cultivation by Wuyi. This new card superseded his old one.
Inside the envelope were also a small booklet and a key.
The booklet was a folded pamphlet. The front contained a congratulatory ssage, followed by Wuyi’s school regulations and important notices. When completely unfolded, the reverse side revealed an ink-wash painting of a map of Wuyi University Hall. Though a print, the artwork was exquisite and captivating, clearly the work of a master.
The key was for his assigned dormitory room, which he wouldn’t be able to use until the sester officially began.
Once he had put everything away, he went into the courtyard to practice his forms. Noon arrived before he knew it.
After lunch, he changed his clothes and left the house, jogging toward Quan’s House. Along the way, however, he decided to make a detour to Weidong’s place to see how the kid was doing and find out if he’d passed the re-examination.
This ti, he didn’t take the shortcut by climbing up through the long alleyway; that wasn’t a proper path. Instead, he took the long way around, entering through the main entrance of the residential complex. He located Weidong’s building and went up the stairs. On the door was a poster of a boxer with a clenched fist; judging by the style, it was quite old.
He stepped forward and knocked. "Brother Wei, are you ho?"
The sound of thumping footsteps echoed from within before the door was flung open. Weidong stood there with a dicinal patch on his face. He waved a hand. "Hey, Brother Chen! I didn’t see you yesterday. Soone told you were in a different testing area. That guy almost picked a fight with , but he chickened out, so nothing happened."
Chen Chuan chuckled. "But that was inside the examination hall. If he had been willing, would you really have fought him?"
Weidong puffed out his chest. "Of course not. I was just trying to scare him. I always keep the promises I make to the old man."
Chen Chuan said, "Judging by your expression, I take it you passed the re-examination?"
Weidong scratched his head. "That guy was pretty tough. He took down in just a few moves right at the start. But I refused to give in, so I got up and fought him again... and again. How many tis was it? Three? Four? Eventually, the proctor told us to stop, saying there was no point in continuing and not to waste any more ti. Then he just said I passed and could go."
Chen Chuan extended his hand. "Well, congratulations, Brother Wei."
Weidong slapped his hand against Chen Chuan’s. "Heh, congratulations to you too, Brother Chen. Now we can keep sparring." His expression suddenly grew serious. "I’ll find a way to beat you."
Chen Chuan returned the sentint with a smile. "You’ll have to work hard, then."
After catching up, Chen Chuan stayed at Weidong’s place for a short while before departing. He continued on his way to Quan’s House, arriving a little after two in the afternoon.
Lu Ke was sweeping the hall when Chen Chuan walked in. He stopped, his face lighting up with pleasant surprise. "Brother Chen..." He looked at Chen Chuan expectantly; he knew Chen Chuan had taken the Wuyi University re-examination the day before, but he didn’t know the outco.
Chen Chuan smiled at him and gave a small pump of his clenched fist.
A wide grin spread across Lu Ke’s face. He gave Chen Chuan a thumbs-up and said with genuine admiration, "Brother Chen, that’s incredible!" Then, as if rembering sothing, he added, "Oh, right, Master is upstairs. He’s been waiting for news from you, too."
Chen Chuan nodded. "We’ll chat later." He headed for the stairs. On the second floor, he found Yu Gang standing on the balcony corridor, arms crossed, gazing into the distance.
He walked over and bowed deeply to Yu Gang. "Mr. Yu, I passed the Wuyi re-examination. I’ll be heading to the university hall in a few days. Thank you for all your instruction over this period."
Yu Gang turned, lowering his arms. "Since you’ve passed the re-examination, my training for you is officially over."
Chen Chuan said, "Regardless, I must thank you for your instruction, Mr. Yu."
Yu Gang said, "You have innate talent; you were always going to make a na for yourself. This repays my debt to Captain Nian. If you co asking about fighting in the future, it won’t be at the sa price."
Chen Chuan laughed. "That’s fair."
Yu Gang grunted. "There’s competition everywhere, and Wuda is no exception. Sotis, it will be more intense than you can imagine. Be careful."
Chen Chuan replied earnestly, "Thank you for the warning, Mr. Yu. I will do my best to adapt."
He stayed for a while longer before bidding Mr. Yu farewell. As he was leaving, Lu Ke handed him a plastic bag. "Master told to give this to you," he said.
Chen Chuan looked inside and asked in surprise, "Black at?"
Lu Ke nodded. "That’s right. Four pounds of black rat at. It was bought with the money you had left over. Master says you should be sure to eat it all. It’s just enough to last until the sester starts."
Chen Chuan smiled. "Please thank Mr. Yu for ." He raised a hand in farewell. "I’m off."
Lu Ke grunted in acknowledgnt.
Chen Chuan waved and walked away. Just as he reached the mouth of the alley, Lu Ke’s voice called out from behind: "Brother Chen, co visit whenever you have ti!"
Chen Chuan turned his head and shouted back with a smile, "I will!" With that, he waved to Lu Ke and to Yu Gang, who was watching from the balcony above. Then he turned and strode away.
The master and his apprentice, Yu Gang and Lu Ke, watched Chen Chuan’s figure recede down the long, narrow alley. Both knew in their hearts that a much wider world awaited him.
...
...
User Comments
0 comments from readers