“A one-year-old Blue-Veined Carp can at most help someone who is just a dozen or so catties away from Four Stones of Strength make a breakthrough...”
“Right, so from now on, I am only a dozen or so catties away from Four Stones of Strength. As for why it was so difficult for me to lift a three-stone stone lock this morning... I didn't sleep well last night and was a bit tired today. I'm usually not like this.”
Having thought of a plausible excuse, Zhuang Xun pulled the Blue-Veined Carp, wrapped in a rag, from his robes.
“I can't let this precious fish go to waste since I bought it. I might as well eat it to replenish the system points I spent.”
The reason precious meat was called “precious” was because of its ability to stimulate the growth of flesh and blood. The longer it had grown, the better the effect.
Zhuang Xun went downstairs and paid the innkeeper fifty copper coins to borrow the kitchen. After stewing the Blue-Veined Carp into a fish soup, he carried it back to his room. He scooped up a spoonful, blew on it, and took a small sip. As the soup entered his stomach, he found that even though no seasonings had been added, the natural flavor of the precious fish made the broth incredibly fresh, without any fishy odor.
After finishing the entire pot of fish soup, Zhuang Xun felt Yan Pingsheng's body swell slightly, and his brain sent signals of extreme fullness.
He opened the Character Creation Panel and converted the newly generated flesh and blood into points.
Six hours later.
【Current Points: 1 → 1.5】
Zhuang Xun closed the Character Creation Panel and lay down on the bed, looking exhausted.
The rapid growth and absorption of flesh and blood, along with the consumption of his vital energy, left him feeling waves of weakness and fatigue.
However, with the timely nourishment from the precious meat, this weakness was only temporary. A night of rest would allow him to fully recover without causing any fundamental harm.
Zhuang Xun had done this many times before and was highly experienced.
He shifted his soul, entering Bai Yujing's body, leaving Yan Pingsheng to idle and rest.
...
The next day, to avoid waiting in line for too long, Zhuang Xun controlled Yan Pingsheng to head to the Wanxing Martial Academy before dawn.
As it turned out, some people had arrived even earlier. Before the entrance exam could even begin, the queue already stretched all the way outside the martial arts field.
Zhuang Xun paid the five-hundred-copper exam fee and stood in line, passing the time by playing with the character customization feature on the Character Creation Panel. After waiting for nearly an hour, it was finally his turn.
“Four Stones of Strength, pass!”
Hearing the announcement, Zhuang Xun put down the stone lock with some effort and exhaled a long breath.
He walked up to Huang Wei and handed over his ten taels of tuition fee and token. Just as Instructor Huang was about to stamp it, he let out a soft gasp, looked up, and recognized Yan Pingsheng.
“Hey, it's you, kid. You actually passed.”
Zhuang Xun cupped his fists and said, “Thank you for your guidance yesterday, Instructor.”
“That could hardly be called guidance,” Instructor Huang said, shaking his head and refusing to take credit. He stamped Yan Pingsheng's token and handed it back.
“Report to the Seventh Courtyard before the Hour of the Dragon tomorrow.”
“Now that you have entered the academy, you must practice diligently from now on. Do not disappoint your family's expectations.”
“This disciple understands.”
After exchanging a few more pleasantries, Zhuang Xun left the martial arts field and headed to the Outer Court's Administrative Hall to complete his lodging registration.
Without any academy disciples to lead him through the back door this time, he had to queue for nearly half an hour before receiving the key to a four-person room from the Outer Court's administrative deacon. He also had to pay five taels of silver for the lodging fee.
“Dormitory life... it's been a while. I hope my roommates this time are all normal people. Please don't match me with any more weirdos...” Zhuang Xun toyed with the key, recalling his roommates from his previous life who would always shout and scream while playing video games.
He returned to the inn, packed his bags, and checked out. Following the signs within the Wanxing Martial Academy, he found the residential area for Outer Court disciples.
This place had an elegant name—the Sparse Bamboo Residence, personally named by the principal of the Wanxing Martial Academy.
Supposedly, one day the principal was meditating on the mountaintop when he suddenly felt that the towering buildings below resembled a sparse bamboo forest, so he gave it this name.
Whether the story was true or not was anyone's guess, but that was how the signpost introduced it. Zhuang Xun had even made a special trip to the mountaintop to take a look; he didn't think it looked like a bamboo forest at all. Instead, he felt that this principal was rather eccentric, letting his mind wander even while meditating on the Dao.
“Diligent Hall, Room Twenty-Nine.”
Following the room number provided by the Outer Court's administrative deacon, Zhuang Xun stopped in front of a wooden door.
Seeing that the wooden door was unlocked, he slid the key—which he had pulled halfway out—back into his pocket and gently pushed the door open.
Sitting on a bed in the corner was a dark, thin youth. His appearance was ordinary, but his eyes were large and clear.
Upon seeing Yan Pingsheng enter, he immediately stood up, looking very formal and nervous.
The two stared at each other for a long while before Zhuang Xun finally nodded slightly and spoke first, “I am Yan Pingsheng. It is a pleasure to meet you.”
“Li Zigeng! Um... It's my pleasure to meet you, Brother Yan. I hope you can guide me in the days ahead!”
An introverted roommate. Introverts are good; they cause less trouble... Zhuang Xun gave Li Zigeng a friendly smile, then turned to choose a bed and inspect the dormitory's layout.
Truth be told, he wasn't very good at socializing either. If he didn't find something to do right now, things would get quite awkward.
There was no private restroom or bath, which disappointed Zhuang Xun slightly. However, having an individual bed instead of a crowded communal platform bed was barely acceptable.
He wondered what Bai Yujing's room was like. He didn't even need to think about it; it was definitely much better than this.
Zhuang Xun muttered to himself, using his split mind to control Bai Yujing, who was still at the other inn, to pack his bags.
...
Just as Zhuang Xun was controlling Yan Pingsheng to make his bed, two more people arrived at the dormitory.
One was named Zhang Tie, who was tall and heavily built, with a somewhat rowdy, street-smart look about him.
The other was named An Dafu, who was quite obese with small eyes and a very amiable countenance.
Though Zhang Tie did not look like an easy person to get along with, his personality was surprisingly enthusiastic. He took the initiative to strike up a conversation, dragging everyone in the dorm into a chat to get to know one another.
For the sake of a peaceful and stable living environment in the future, Zhuang Xun did not act aloof. He put down his work and naturally joined the conversation.
Over the course of the afternoon, his relationship with his three roommates grew a bit closer.
When dinner time arrived, the four of them agreed to head to the Outer Court's dining hall for a meal and take a stroll around the Wanxing Martial Academy. Upon returning, they grabbed their towels and soap to head to the public bathhouse. Before they knew it, night had fallen.
He had to admit that bathing in an ancient environment was truly a hassle. After queuing for over half an hour, he had barely started washing before someone began rushing him.
Fortunately, Bai Yujing's single room had a private bath, saving Zhuang Xun from having to experience such an annoying ordeal twice a day.
Zhuang Xun returned to the dormitory carrying his washbasin and lay flat on his bed, staring blankly.
So tired. I feel like I've spent the entire day standing in lines.
The other three in the dorm were much the same, either lying down or sitting on their beds, chatting idly about this and that. Before long, someone came by to notify them to collect their practice robes and identification tokens.
Once that person left, Zhang Tie immediately complained, “They're only notifying us this late? I was just about to go to sleep.”
An Dafu said with annoyance, “Oh, how could I have forgotten about this? Our dorm is so far away; there's bound to be a huge crowd by the time we get there. Let's go, let's go. If we go too late, we won't be able to pick practice robes that fit.”
Zhang Tie pulled the blanket over his face. “Ah—I'm not going, I'm not going. More queuing? It's definitely going to take forever again.”
He sat up, looked at Li Zigeng who was putting on his shoes, and smiled. “Zigeng, you're going? Then do me a favor and grab mine too, alright?”
Li Zigeng was an honest and simple kid. Without thinking too much, he nodded and agreed.
Seeing this, An Dafu's eyes darted around, and he chimed in, “Hehe, Brother Zigeng, grab mine too. I'll buy you breakfast tomorrow.”
Li Zigeng agreed once more. He then looked at Yan Pingsheng and took the initiative to ask, “Pingsheng, should I grab yours as well?”
Zhuang Xun shook his head. “I'll go with you.”
He did not like to trouble others, nor did he like others to trouble him.
If you don't know how to refuse people, you'll run into plenty of trouble in the future... Zhuang Xun got out of bed, having taken in the actions of his three roommates.
He had suffered quite a bit in his previous life because of that exact trait.
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