It Feels Just Okay

Jingwu University’s track field was absurdly massive.

It was big enough to fit over a dozen standard soccer pitches combined.

Encircling it were stands cast from pitch-black alloy, exuding an icy, deadly aura.

Right now, the place was packed wall to wall.

The first hurdle for incoming freshmen wasn’t dorm assignments, nor was it collecting supplies.

It was the two-way selection.

In the center of the field, dozens of enormous sections had been marked out.

Each section represented one of Jingwu’s academic departments or a top-tier mentor.

“Seniors and juniors, keep your cool!”

A sophomore in a second-year uniform shouted through a megaphone from a raised platform.

“The mentors are picking you, but you’re also picking them!”

“If you don’t get chosen by a top-tier mentor, that’s perfectly normal! Don’t sweat it!”

“On the martial path, what fits you best is what matters most!”

Chaos.

Excitement.

Countless new students darted between sections, eyes shining with a mix of thrill and nervousness.

Su Yu carried the black-cloth-wrapped Yuānlóng Spear on his back, hands shoved into his pockets, strolling through the crowd at an unhurried pace.

He wasn’t in any rush, actually.

As the school’s only “Special Freshman,” Nie Changkong had told him to report to the principal’s office at nine in the morning.

It was only eight now.

He had plenty of time to kill.

He came to the track mainly to keep Lin Xiaoxiao company.

And, while he was at it, he wanted to see what actual skills Jingwu’s mentors really had.

After all, his attacking options were too narrow right now.

Aside from his manifested spear intent, he only knew a basic Five Elements Fist technique.

He needed to figure out which training path would best leverage the system’s advantages.

“Su Yu, look over there!”

Lin Xiaoxiao pointed a fair, slender finger at the core section of the field—the most crowded one.

There, a massive banner flapped in the wind.

On it, a single bold character was scrawled in flying cursive: Spear!

Weapons Academy, Long Spear Department!

As one of Jingwu’s most popular and most lethal departments, the spear division held an untouchable status.

And standing at the very center of the spear section was none other than the department head who had almost started a fight by Weiming Lake yesterday:

Chu Kuang.

The burly old man had changed into a crisp black training suit today.

Both hands rested on a silver-white alloy spear.

He stood as steady as a mountain.

The bearing of a grandmaster radiated from him.

Around him, freshmen piled up in ring after ring, their eyes feverish, as if they were ready to kneel and beg to become his disciple on the spot.

Then—

Chu Kuang’s gaze cut through the crowd and landed precisely on Su Yu.

When he spotted the long, strip-shaped weight on Su Yu’s back, Chu Kuang’s eyes lit up instantly.

Good kid. So he really did pick the spear.

Chu Kuang chuckled inwardly.

The corner of his mouth curled up in a smug arc, as if everything was going according to plan.

Yesterday by Weiming Lake, that finger-spear intent of Su Yu’s had indeed been dazzling.

But Chu Kuang was convinced the kid had just gotten lucky—a fluke moment of enlightenment, barely scratching the surface.

Today, this old man will show you something.

Let you see what the true peak of the spear path really looks like!

Chu Kuang deliberately cleared his throat.

His blood-qi surged.

His voice boomed like a great bell, instantly drowning out every bit of noise on the field.

“My spear department does not take trash!”

“If you want to enter my gates, first understand—what a spear truly is!”

The moment his words landed, Chu Kuang moved!

Shwoosh!

He lifted that silver-white alloy spear with one hand.

No flashy opening stance.

He simply thrust the spear straight at the sky!

Humm—!!!

An ear-splitting sonic boom erupted in the air!

But bizarrely, the sound didn’t spread outward. It was forcibly compressed into a half-meter radius around the spear tip!

Then, Chu Kuang twisted his wrist.

Shwoosh, shwoosh, shwoosh, shwoosh, shwoosh!

A storm of spear shadows poured out like a silver rain.

Every thrust left a visible white ripple in the air.

Yet none of those ripples damaged even a single inch of the ground around him!

Every ounce of power.

Every trace of killing intent.

Every fluctuation of blood-qi.

All of it was perfectly sealed within the spear tip!

Not a shred leaked out!

“Micro-control!”

Someone in the crowd—a seasoned upperclassman—couldn’t help but shout.

“Holy crap! Director Chu is publicly demonstrating spear intent at the micro-control level!”

“One hundred percent compression, zero waste!”

“That’s insane!”

“This is the real killing technique!”

The freshmen were completely stunned.

That torrent of silver spear shadows carried an almost suffocating, brutal beauty, burned permanently into their retinas.

“Real men train with the spear!”

A burly freshman shouted at the top of his lungs, his face flushed with excitement.

His words sparked a wave of cheers from the crowd.

To the side, Lei Jue from the Blade Department and Liu Ruyan from the Fist Department had also been planning to show off a few moves to attract students.

After seeing Chu Kuang’s display, the two exchanged glances and let out helpless sighs.

Martial will at the micro-control level.

That old ghost really went all-out.

Under a showcase like this, any move they pulled now would pale in comparison.

They’d just been completely outshone.

Chu Kuang withdrew his spear and stood tall.

The silver-white shaft gleamed coldly in the sunlight.

He raised his chin slightly.

His gaze pierced through the crowd, carrying a hint of provocation and pride, aimed directly at Su Yu.

That look said it all:

Kid, stunned speechless now, huh?

This micro-control display has to have you hooked, right?

Hurry up and come kneel to your master!

And yet—

Facing Chu Kuang’s expectant stare, waiting for shock and awe—

Su Yu just stood there.

Silent.

What Chu Kuang had just done, others saw as heaven-defying and flawless.

But in Su Yu’s eyes, it was full of holes.

The power compression was too deliberate.

The spear intent was still locked onto the weapon’s surface. It couldn’t even leave the spear to harm anything at a distance, let alone condense into physical form.

…Feels pretty average, honestly.

Su Yu evaluated silently.

Still, he didn’t show it on his face.

After all, the guy was a department head, an elder.

In public, he had to at least save the man some face.

Eh, I’ll just not crush his spirit. He’s still a teacher, after all.

Su Yu gave a polite, slight nod—just enough to acknowledge Chu Kuang’s performance.

But—

Su Yu could hold it in.

Lin Xiaoxiao beside him, on the other hand, absolutely could not.

As the only person in the whole field who had witnessed Su Yu casually condense a “materialized” solid spear out of thin air, Lin Xiaoxiao looked at the proud, glory-basking Chu Kuang on the stage, then at the expressionless Su Yu beside her.

The crushing contrast hit her funny bone instantly.

“Pfft…”

Lin Xiaoxiao slapped both hands over her mouth, trying desperately to muffle her laugh.

But she simply could not suppress it.

Her shoulders began shaking violently.

Her pretty, innocent face went red from holding it in.

“You—stop trying to make me laugh…”

Lin Xiaoxiao giggled so hard tears almost came out.

She couldn’t keep her balance anymore and, without a second thought, leaned her weight against Su Yu’s shoulder.

Her whole body was wracked by silent laughter.

She lowered her voice, her words coming out in gasps between chuckles, right into Su Yu’s ear:

“If he found out you’ve already reached materialization…”

“Wonder if Director Chu would be so embarrassed he’d crawl right into a crack in the ground to hide…”

Su Yu felt the soft touch on his shoulder and the warm breath in his ear.

He sighed helplessly.

"Keep a low profile," Su Yu whispered.

"It's not easy to make a living."

Hearing this, Lin Xiaoxiao laughed even harder.

She simply buried her head in Su Yu's neck, her shoulders twitching.

The freshmen around them watched the intimate interaction between this handsome young man and beautiful girl.

They were so envious that their eyes turned red.

But they only dared to watch.

After all, she was Miss Lin of the Lin family, and he was the legendary Special Freshman.

However,

just when the atmosphere was extremely relaxed and even a bit ambiguous,

BOOM!

An extremely violent aura of blood qi filled with intense jealousy and killing intent suddenly erupted from the entrance of the playground without warning!

The gale, as if it were tangible, instantly tore through the surrounding crowd.

"Get out of the way!!!"

An extremely cold and suppressed roar filled with endless anger exploded like a thunderclap.

The crowd was forcefully pushed aside by a huge force, and several freshmen were even knocked to the ground.

Tap.

Tap.

Tap.

The heavy footsteps echoed on the alloy ground, sending shivers down one's spine.

A young man wearing the school uniform of the sophomore Combat Academy, with a sinister face, strode over.

His eyes were fixed firmly on the front.

On the girl who was leaning on Su Yu's shoulder, laughing uncontrollably.

When he saw Miss Lin, whom he had been pursuing desperately for two years without even touching her hand, was now so intimately nestled in a man's arms in front of all the freshmen in the school.

His reason was instantly incinerated by the raging anger!

"Su Yu!!!"

The young man's eyes were bloodshot, like a crazy beast.

Three thousand points of blood qi soared into the sky without reservation, directly forming a visible blood-red column of qi above his head!

He stared fixedly at Su Yu.

Gritting his teeth.

Every word was like a stab in the heart.

"Take your dirty hands off her!"