...
Time flies.
At 8:40 am the next day, Pei Jinye, in senior year class 17, was absent-mindedly attending class.
Last night he especially looked up Psychic Class techniques, which all started from three hundred thousand, with some higher-priced ones reaching millions, which was simply outrageous.
"Lacking money... sigh."
Not long after, as soon as the bell rang for the end of class, he immediately rushed to Ice Sister's office, hoping to learn some information about Transcendents.
"Ice Sister,"
Pei Jinye called out.
Ice Sister turned her head and, the next second, raised her eyebrows slightly.
"This kid..."
Behind the Second Middle School Cultural History Museum was a rockery, and in front of the rockery stood a cool pavilion.
Pei Jinye stretched out his hand, and Ice Sister carefully felt it, clicking her tongue in wonder: "Your Vitality is well-concealed, and your body has also become much stronger; I almost didn't recognize you."
Pei Jinye smiled sincerely, "It's all thanks to Ice Sister for giving me this opportunity."
Ice Sister shook her head.
Just as she was about to say something, a middle-aged teacher hurried over from outside the pavilion: "Teacher Xiao, it's a big problem. We just received news that Fang Hai was the target of an assassination attempt this morning..."
He hadn't finished speaking when he suddenly saw Pei Jinye and realized he had said too much.
However, Ice Sister calmly asked, "Where is he now?"
"In the hospital, still undergoing emergency treatment... The principal is already on his way, and he told me to inform you to go there together," the middle-aged teacher hurriedly said, not bothering with Pei Jinye anymore.
Ice Sister nodded, then turned to Pei Jinye: "We'll talk about your matter later. Keep a low profile recently; Da Peng City is not very peaceful."
Pei Jinye nodded and watched the two leave.
"Fang Hai... an assassination attempt?"
Was it because he was too high-profile? Or was it a vendetta?
Pei Jinye's face grew unsightly; Ice Sister's last words clearly had a deeper meaning.
When he returned to class 17, everyone was still chattering; the topic about Fang Hai hadn't ended, but the news of his assassination attempt had not yet gotten out.
Until close to the end of the school day, Pei Jinye had not seen Ice Sister again.
It seemed that Fang Hai's incident was probably very serious.
...
At 4:40 pm, instead of heading straight to the Bronze Association, Pei Jinye tidied up and went to the Education Department to complete his Awakener registration.
He only had to fill out a registration form with his name, school, home address, contact information, Awakened system...
Pei Jinye frowned as he finished reading.
This information was too detailed; an antagonist would be able to find him in a matter of minutes.
The front desk lady seemed to notice Pei Jinye's concern and patiently explained, "This is all strictly confidential. Once you fill it out, the information will be immediately reported to the smart data bank. You can rest assured about the security defenses of the smart data bank. After the data bank verifies it, they will notify you to undergo an ability test... "
Pei Jinye was only concerned about one thing: "When can I receive the awakening reward?"
"As a principle, you have to wait until after the ability test is settled."
"As a principle?"
The receptionist smiled but did not explain, some things are understood without saying.
Pei Jinye frowned and pressed on: "How soon is the test?"
The young lady replied with a smile: "At the earliest three days; at the latest fifteen days. If you want to expedite it, you can pay extra and have it in three days for just a thousand yuan. The reason for such a long wait is to consolidate the roster of everyone nearby, not just students, but also some newly awakened individuals from the public. At that time, a unified test schedule will be arranged."
Pei Jinye: "..."
It's clearly possible to just ask for money directly, yet you have to set up rules.
He suddenly asked somewhat uncertainly, "So it's a 100 square-meter apartment plus one hundred thousand in cash?"
"That's correct for the apartment, but the cash depends on the potential level. Only A level or above Awakeners can get this one hundred thousand in cash."
As expected! So shady!
Pei Jinye silently cursed in his heart; if you don't want to give, just say it!
Although the cash was hard to get, at least the apartment was more or less assured.
Watching as his information was sealed away, he then left.
At 5:21 pm, Pei Jinye arrived at the Bronze Association.
While changing clothes, he had already heard the elite students inside the association discussing the big event in Da Peng City today.
"That kid from the Fang Family is said to have been crippled."
"Whether he can make it is still up in the air..."
"It's his own fault too. He should have quietly focused on his training, but he had to act as if he had become some big figure and caught someone's eye. He won't die from this, but he'll be skinned."
"I heard his main family was originally going to assess his potential, but now they have already returned... If no miracle occurs, he will have to live as a disabled person for the rest of his life."
...
The voices discussing did not deliberately hide, suggesting that this news had already spread in these small circles.
Pei Jinye felt a pang of emotion in his heart... So this is what background means.
Those in the school had no idea of the truth of what was happening outside, while these people mentioned it lightly as a topic of conversation.
Gathering his focus, he turned his head and went to the martial arts training ground, continuing his Power Practice.
...
In the blink of an eye, two days had passed.
Ice Sister still hadn't come to school.
Pei Jinye was the same as always, heading to the Bronze Association to cultivate after school, and the Education Department still had not given a confirmation message.
Since his awakening, his physical fitness had improved significantly, and now practicing with a 70-pound stone was hardly effective, so he simply switched to an 80-pound stone.
Furthermore, while cultivating the "Drawing Blood Art," its effectiveness was clearly doubled!
After each cultivation session, the fluctuation in Vitality Value was around 0.2, and the increase in the physical strength limit was around 0.03. Although the amounts were small, Pei Jinye took delight in them.
As long as he crazily focused on quantity, his Blood energy would grow quickly, and then he'd be able to use the Blood Spear more often, which meant his self-defense capability would be stronger!
Li Jun stood hesitantly to the side, lifting the stone with both arms, looking very uncertain.
After Pei Jinye finished his Power Practice, he noticed him and asked, "What's the matter?"
Li Jun came over with slight embarrassment, "Uh, Junior Brother Pei... my apologies for the interruption, but I wanted to ask for some advice on the technique of Power Practice."
These past few days he had noticed Pei Jinye's Power Practice, with progress much faster than his, which astonished him.
It was somewhat embarrassing for him, an older member who had been at the association for nearly two months, to seek advice from Pei Jinye, who had only started as a beginner a week ago.
Moreover, he was a repeat student and was older than Pei Jinye.
But Li Jun wanted to become stronger... Since those elite students at the association wouldn't bother with him, he had no choice but to ask humbly for guidance.
Pei Jinye didn't have a negative impression of him, however, there was truly no special technique to Power Practice.
"Just take it slow, perform the movements more slowly, feel the burst of your muscles... with persistent effort, you will improve quickly."
Li Jun curiously asked, "Junior, have you ever heard of Concentrate Blood Granule?"
Pei Jinye looked over at him.
Li Jun hastily added, "It's a type of drug that can quickly enhance Blood energy. I thought you must have taken it before, but it seems I was mistaken."
Pei Jinye pondered, noticing that Li Jun knew more than he did and felt a stir of curiosity.
After a brief chat, Pei Jinye steered the conversation, "By the way, Senior Li, I see some seniors here are very strong, are they Transcendents?"
Li Jun warily glanced around and nodded, "Yes, people like them, who come from a significant family background, have been taking herbs that boost Vitality since childhood, and they started Power Practice at an early age. Their bodies were stronger than ours from the beginning."
As he spoke, Li Jun couldn't help but show a sense of envy.
"Then why do they come to the Bronze Association?"
Upon hearing this, Li Jun looked at him and smiled, "You probably don't know about Teacher Chang; he used to be an instructor for the Night Patrol Department. Being able to train those Night patrollers speaks volumes about his strength."
"Does Senior Li know the fundamental difference between those who are awakened and those who are not? I've observed those seniors, and some seem robust, but others don't appear as obvious," Pei Jinye asked humbly, seeking to learn.
Li Jun paused.
It was as if he was the one seeking instruction, but now it seemed he was the one explaining.
However, after this conversation, Pei Jinye left a comfortable impression on him; he didn't have the overbearing air of others, nor did he have Zhang He's self-serving schemes.
After contemplating for a moment, he said, "How to explain this... Awakening is the revival of the Extraordinary-Human Genes. Genes support the basic structure and performance of life, while Extraordinary-Human Genes are endowed with extraordinary abilities. I've heard that after awakening, the human body undergoes substantial improvement.
For example, if someone awakens Extraordinary-Human Genes of the Fire Element, then they can manipulate flames, fireballs, or fire cannons... How strong they become depends on the potential of their genes. Additionally, further cultivation can also increase the power.
Beyond that, their physique will become aligned with fire, and they will have an easier time practicing Fire Element related Cultivation Techniques or Techniques. They'll be able to unleash power that others can't match..."
Pei Jinye reflected upon this.
In the old saying from his hometown, it was akin to an increase in one's Spiritual Root, expanding one's natural talent, having awakened some type of Elemental Spiritual Root, and now all that was missing were Techniques.
Just like his current situation, where he can use spiritual power to condense a War Lance... But if he practiced the corresponding technique, the power would be even stronger!
But where to find cultivation techniques related to spiritual power? He certainly couldn't just steal them, and who would he steal from?
"Senior, do those Transcendents at the association come to learn the 'Drawing Blood Art'?"
Li Jun shook his head, "Not entirely, at their level, they buy Technique courses from Teacher Chang. Being Transcendent is just about extraordinary abilities, but actual strength also depends on technique enhancement."
"Then where do they get their awakening Cultivation Techniques from?"
"They have to find their own way, I guess. Even though Teacher Chang is strong, he has only awakened one form of Transcendence. If it happens to match, then you can learn from him, but for other types of Transcendence... You either buy them from commercial firms or wait until you go to Wu University to study..."
Li Jun sighed, "Outsiders think that following the path of the sword and traveling 'The Horizon' is a glorious thing, but in reality, they don't know how much wealth is spent along the way. Without money or background, one can only progress step by step and then watch helplessly as others surpass you..."
Pei Jinye's heart grew cold.
He originally thought his awakening would bring him instant fame.
But now it seems... background is completely tied to resources!
With his current family situation, achieving this was simply not possible.
...