"Since when did we have such a formidable bloodline hidden in our class..." she mumbled, but with all this, she didn't even realise that almost 3 hours had already passed by.
[Beeeep!]
With a loud sound, the hall suddenly lit up with lights on the ceilings.
"Oh..." The teacher snapped out of her daze, and only now did she realise the state of all the other students who had been lying there on the floor in a state of complete exhaustion, some with bright grins on their faces but at the same time many with blank or sad faces.
"... My body seems to have adapted well." Jun Soryu mumbled as his eyes also opened up lightly; his pupils seemed to glow like lava shining beneath the iron wall.
"C-congratulations!" the teacher remarked. "It seems like there were no accidents this time; our new batch is excellent!"
"Thank you! Teacher Zhao!"
"Hehehe!"
"I got a profound grade technique!"
"Heh! Is it comparable to my 3 Spirit Revolution Sutra?"
The excited murmurs of children filled the room, and along with a big steam, the gates of the hall's exit also opened up.
"By the way, Jun Soryu! What did you get?" A classmate besides Jun Soryu excitedly questioned, drawing some nearby attention.
"Me?" Jun Soryu questioned. Teacher Zhao also couldn't help but lean her ears in their direction. Jun Soryu chuckled, and while standing, he replied, "A good technique."
"Huh?" The classmates and teacher alike all seemed puzzled by such a blank reply, but Jun Soryu didn't give opportunities either, as he grabbed his bag lying in the corner and left the hall with a big grin, "I will see you after summer vacations!"
With that, he ran away, chasing the light outside the hall; none had the opportunity to get to know more.
"Hmm~ hmm~"
Leaving his school building, Jun Soryu was seen walking through a crowded market district while on his way home.
"It's as loud as ever." He chuckled while unwrapping a candy in his hand. He noticed the market full of people; most people here seemed ordinary. Now with some internal energy in his body, he could somewhat trace the aura of people around him.
Most in the crowd were ordinary people with close to no internal energy and occasionally a few with some traceable aura oozing out from the corners, but even that was not much different from some kids he had observed in his own school.
This bright marketplace full of people, in the eyes of a Qi practitioner, was a gathering of those who failed to achieve mastery in the path of cultivation, their fates forever chained to limits and with no potential to climb the social or economic ladder – harsh but true.
'... Am I acting arrogant?' Jun Soryu frowned, eventually releasing a sigh. 'Maybe I'm not. The cultivation techniques are divided into several grades, with the lowest to highest being Mortal Grade, Profound Grade, Earth Grade, Heaven Grade, Saint Grade and Divine Grade.
If you include the 'originless grade', then it will be a total of 7 grades. Just about 8-12 children in my class managed to get Profound Grade Techniques and just 2 who got Earth Grade Techniques; their potential is bound to be extraordinary.
But from a glance I can tell there isn't even one person who got an Earth Grade Cultivation Technique in this entire marketplace of almost 1000 people; that's just how rare it is...'
Jun Soryu's eyes felt cold when he observed people around him; it was not in his personality, just instinct to observe things detached with emotions and empathy.
'But while the cultivation technique is important, that is just the start of everything. To cultivate properly, a person needs an ample amount of resources; ordinary people can't afford it, so even if a person has some little potential, most of them can't bloom it because of a lack of financial background.
"And of all people, who am I to judge?" The cold stare shattered, replaced with a scoffing smile, "... an orphan?" Jun Soryu scoffed and quietly increased his pace.
"Still, I need to resolve my financial issues. There is a limit to how much support I can get from school. I will be graduating to middle school after summer vacations. By then, students with good backgrounds will surpass me with the help of resources. If I'm too lacking, even the scholarship I'm aiming for will be an impossible goal.' Jun Soryu sighed, crunching hard candy under his teeth, like some already aged man, and he sighed briefly.
"Life is so unfair."
[Host's predicament has been accepted!]
[Processing the Quest!]
[As the Heavenly Monarch System aims to make you omnipotent, it has a duty to guide you towards success!]
[Quest: Gain the favour and backing of a young miss from a Bai family in Tianhai City.
Reward: Hidden Technique Scroll (Earth Grade).
Time Limit: 7 Days.]
"O-oh..." Jun Soryu suddenly paused looking at the system panel in front of his eyes, and replacing the surprised face, a crafty smile took over his face.
"Why didn't I think of it before?" Jun Soryu remarked with a grin and, turning back immediately, rushed towards a mask-selling shop nearby.
"Boss! What about this one!?" Jun Soryu questioned while grabbing a playful fox-child's mask with red and gold markings.
"5 Credits"
"Here!" Jun Soryu smashed the coins on the desk and grabbed the mask, running away from the crowd, cheerful all the way; he eventually reached a home in the outer region of the city.
It was a plain and lifeless residence, made of concrete, but paint and layers had already started to fall, showing the brick wall underneath. The roof was barely settled with tin sheets, and many glass windows were broken. Jun Soryu was simply using curtains bound with bricks to stop the unwelcomed wind from outside.
"Hmm..." Jun Soryu opened the doors; to live in such a place all alone was a tragedy in itself, though he could go to the orphanage, being reminded that he was an orphan every day in this manner never suited him.
"I'm home, Mother, Father!" He greeted the framed picture of his family on the desk while removing the bag, as he jumped over the little table to reach the kitchen platform to cook something up for the night today.
'With government funding and school scholarships, I have gained enough savings to last one more month, but I won't be having that worry for long now...' Jun Soryu sniggered, and grabbing the vegetables cleaned in running water, his hands finally started to shine their magic on the chopping board.
"This is my last vegetable porridge! From tomorrow! Jun Soryu will eat nothing less than pork and expensive duck meat!!!" He promised to himself, and with a snigger, sat down excitedly, devouring all he had on the plate before the sun completely set and there was no more light for him to eat anything.
...
It was early morning. They say breathing clean air and experiencing nature in the morning can increase your lifespan for several years. In cities where even skies aren't spared by skyscrapers, parks and gardens are the only places to enjoy nature.
One such example is a public park, where an elderly person was seen taking an easy stroll, guarded by two men dressed in black suits behind him.
"Elder, shall we remove the civilians?"
"There might be some people with wrong intentions mixed in with the crowd and—"
The elderly suddenly raised his hand, signalling the two behind him to stop. "Just because I'm old doesn't mean I'm weak," he remarked with a sigh and removed transparent glasses from his eyes. He glared at the two behind him. "I employ you so I can enjoy life, not isolate myself from people. If you are getting paid, do your jobs instead of finding an easy way out of everything!"
"W-we apologise!"
"We were just showing concern! It wasn't our slightest intention to offend you!"
The two who seemed high in the air of authority were instantly washed away by a flood of sweat dripping from their foreheads from a mere glance. The elderly sighed, and waving his hand, commanded, "Guard from a distance from now on."
The two dared not refute, and with a bow, both left as Elderly continued his stroll, but to his surprise, an interesting companion awaited him today.
"Impressive charisma, Elder Bai," a boy not even the height of his waist made a compliment to the elderly while addressing him.
"Ho..." The old man's eyes shifted to the child walking beside him; his tiny stature and face covered in a playful fox-child's mask caught the attention.
'There are no significant traces of internal energy... Just a kid playing around, huh!' Elder Bai chuckled and, without even glancing, signalled his two guards.
"You know me, child?" Elder Bai questioned; the child didn't respond directly; instead, he remarked, "Not really. I just searched you up last night; I heard news you were visiting this park, so I thought I would try my luck. Who would have expected I would meet you right away this morning? I expected to make rounds over this park for at least a week."
"Hahaha... There really is no privacy in this era of the internet, huh?" Elder Bai chuckled, and signalling towards the bench on the sidelines, he questioned, "But still, you seem so mysterious. May I dare ask for your name, hidden expert?" he chuckled, amused.
"Just call me 'White Fox Child...'" the child replied, while taking the seat over the bench along with Elder Bai. The guard returned with two cone ice creams; Elder Bai offered one to the child and one for himself.
"Th-thank you." For a moment, Jun Soryu behind the mask almost let his childish nature slip in the face of dessert. Elder Bai giggled, 'He even reacts like Doudou.'
"So, expert, what can I help you with?" Elder Bai questioned playing along, but he was never prepared for such mature words out of a child's mouth.
"Had I been evil and shameless, I would demand you hand over your whole clan, but since I'm generous, I will call it a trade." Jun Soryu remarked as he unwrapped the paper cover of cold ice cream and finally revealed his true intent.
"I will help you restore your clan's technique, but in exchange, you will ...".