The next morning, Ren Suo and the others changed into their uniforms at the dorm— not the camouflage type used for military training, but a combination of gray trousers and a gray vest, which looked like a downgraded version of the Black Body Armor— then they went to the cafeteria for a meal, and after eating, they assembled in front of the dorm building to call roll.
"1!" "2!" "3!" ...
After thirty people had called the roll once, Zhao Jingzhong, with a strong voice, said, "Too soft, still asleep? Again!"
"1!" "2!" "3!" ...
"Louder, I can't hear you!"
"1!" "2!" "3!" ...
After the third roll call, Zhao Jingzhong was finally satisfied and led them to a large parade ground within the training base.
There were already many teams dispersed across the field; some were civil servant teams, others were soldiers training on their own. Ren Suo estimated the track was about one kilometer long, and their first training exercise was indeed to run one kilometer!
Ren Suo and the others were not afraid of this since physical fitness tests were a basic requirement for civil servant entry, and although they varied in fitness, running one kilometer was not much of a problem.
However, Zhao Jingzhong explained that they were not just going to run normally but were to cultivate while running!
"This sports field is not an ordinary one. Although it has a track, a football field, grass, and even goals, and people are playing football inside... it's not ordinary," Zhao Jingzhong said. "This place has been laid out by professionals, and it's particularly rich in Spiritual Energy—it's a cultivation area!"
"I can't reveal the specific technology, but the Spiritual Energy here is three times that of the normal environment. Cultivating here can yield twice the results in half the time, helping you to enter the state more quickly. There are six such sports fields in the training base specifically for cultivation."
Someone asked, "Instructor, isn't the sports field open? Won't the Spiritual Energy escape?"
"It won't escape." Zhao Jingzhong, seemingly well-prepared for such questions from training, answered almost instantly: "Spiritual Energy is just our term for it; it is not a gas. It is an invisible energy that permeates the entire universe, and it doesn't disperse or gather due to physical structures."
"Instructor, where is the Spiritual Energy strongest?"
"Instructor, exactly where does the Spiritual Energy start to surge? At the edge of the track? One meter outside the edge of the track? Two meters?"
"Instructor..."
Zhao Jingzhong, annoyed, finally lost his temper, "Stop asking! I'm about to explain the method of cultivation, and I won't repeat it if you can't hear it!"
The scene quickly quieted down, and Zhao Jingzhong, very pleased, said, "This is the most basic method of cultivation, first, you must be in this kind of..."
"Louder, I can't hear you!"
Zhao Jingzhong was instantly silenced, furiously roaring, "Who said that!? Come out!"
No one spoke, and Zhao Jingzhong scanned them, also shocked beyond belief— he hadn't seen anyone speaking. Moreover, the voice did not come from among the students but from above them.
Yet, without a doubt, the person who had spoken was among them; the fact that Zhao Jingzhong hadn't noticed was what infuriated him the most. He was one of the first internal test warriors reassigned from the military to the National Security Bureau, having served as a squad leader, and he still carried the military habits with him, finding such defiance and intentional insubordination particularly distasteful.
"I'll say it once more, come out now!"
Zhao Jingzhong waited three seconds; seeing that no one came forward, his expression became stern as he yelled, "Everyone, get ready for push-ups!"
The students looked at each other, some obediently getting ready to go down, while others were unwilling to comply, like the prideful Xie Qiansi: "Why?"
"Why? Because someone among you is causing trouble and not coming forward to admit their mistake, so everyone must be punished!"
"Why should we all be punished?" Xie Qiansi retorted sharply, not the sheltered university student one might expect due to his family background which made him worldly, "Just because you're incapable of finding the troublemaker, you're taking it out on all of us? Who do you think you are?"
Zhao Jingzhong coldly looked at Xie Qiansi and said, "Because you are a collective!"
"A collective? Don't bring your military nonsense here." Xie Qiansi scoffed. "We just met yesterday. I don't even know their names or can't recognize all their faces. And you call that a collective? Aren't you part of our collective then, why don't you do it?"
"In five days, we will each go our separate ways to contribute to Mysterious Country's well-off society. We came here to learn, not to watch you lose face and vent your frustration!"
"Besides, Mysterious Country has been open to reform for decades. Do you still want to revert to a feudal society with collective punishment? Either find the person who offended you yourself, or just proceed with the course normally! We are not your soldiers; we don't need to follow your rules. Suppose someone here committed murder, should we all be executed by firing squad?"
Xie Qiansi felt quite satisfied with his tirade, and importantly, he was right—why should they all be punished? Any rational person wouldn't want to suffer because of someone else's mistake. If it were colleagues or comrades, he might cover for them, but here they barely knew each other; they didn't even know who was responsible, so naturally, they were unwilling to take the blame.
Xie Qiansi had carefully considered his words before speaking, accurately pinpointing the crux of the matter and placing himself in alignment with the broad masses, thereby establishing his authority. Although the "WeChat group" was temporarily ineffective, Xie Qiansi knew that after leaving, they would be welcomed everywhere, and by forming connections with others now to oppose this unjust treatment, he essentially forged a comradely 'friendship'.
The most important thing was that Xie Qiansi was certain Zhou Jingzhong would eventually teach them how to cultivate. Otherwise, if Xie Qiansi reported this matter, Zhou Jingzhong definitely wouldn't end well.
However, Xie Qiansi still couldn't fully comprehend the thinking of these former soldiers—Zhao Jingzhong's expression turned colder, and he surprisingly lashed out at him!
"I think you are that troublemaker!"
Zhao Jingzhong moved incredibly fast, his fists slicing through the air like blades. Xie Qiansi, a young man of privilege who only occasionally worked out, was definitely not a fighter and couldn't even manage to retreat from Zhao Jingzhong's onslaught.
However, suddenly two hands reached out from beside him. Two precise punches aimed at Zhao Jingzhong's elbows followed by a twist and a push, stalling Zhao Jingzhong's attack; meanwhile, two palms pressed down on Zhao Jingzhong's shoulders, looking just like a friendly gesture.
"Instructor, there's no need to resort to violence," Ren Suo said with a chuckle, "We'll just do the push-ups."
"Yeah," Zhao Huo, holding Zhao Jingzhong's shoulders, also smiled, "We will convince him not to talk nonsense."
Zhao Jingzhong gave them a deep look, forcefully shook off their hands, and snorted coldly as he walked back.
Ren Suo wiped the sweat from his brow surreptitiously. Before coming, to prepare for any contingency—or perhaps simply not wanting to waste the opportunity—he had equipped "Combat Basics." Seeing Zhao Jingzhong moving toward Xie Qiansi, Ren Suo had taken the initiative to intervene.
For one, although Xie Qiansi was rather cocky and power-hungry, he had good people skills—last night he had bought a lot of snacks from the supermarket for his roommates to share; secondly, Ren Suo also wanted to test what "Combat Basics" could really do.
The result was quite impressive. Although Zhao Jingzhong hadn't used any "special skills," he obviously looked like an experienced soldier and was certainly well above average in terms of combat power among ordinary people. That Ren Suo could surprise and suppress him testified to Ren Suo's combat capability reaching that of an experienced soldier.
And it also earned him some fame, after all, Zhao Jingzhong was no ordinary person—being a Transcendent responsible for their training. That Ren Suo could restrain him with one move surely made others take notice.
Zhao Huo also seemed strong, likely another devoted martial artist who had consumed two evening's worth of night porridge. Ren Suo didn't know who was stronger between them, but it appeared that those selected were all capable people.
Qiao Muyi and Li Qingxuan were watching this too, so Ren Suo turned and smiled at them—their approval probably increased by +1, right?
"You make a good point," Zhao Jingzhong seemed to let go of the previous incident and said lightly, "Let's start the official training then."
"Listen carefully, the incantation for cultivation requires you to run while performing the Breathing technique, which must strictly follow the instructions, circulating it 64 times before you can stop. Even a slight disruption means all efforts will be wasted."
"Each Breathing cycle involves breathing, with long Breathing being very slow, and short Breathing within a second. The specific sequence is: three long, one short, two long, three short…"
"If the Breathing is successfully executed, then the Spiritual Energy in the air will be drawn into your bodies. Completing one Breathing Cycle Completion counts as one cultivation session. After dozens of sessions, you should be able to generate your own 'Qi Cyclone.'"
Zhao Jingzhong repeated the Breathing technique three times and pointing at the track, he said, "Okay, start practicing now."
"Remember," as if recalling something, Zhao Jingzhong added, "although you all possess some talent, if you can't form a Qi Cyclone within five days, then it means your talents are limited..."