The purpose of the Lu siblings' visit this time was simple: to confirm Cheng Jinyang's capabilities.
In fact, the supernaturals approved to join this mission were mostly over thirty years old and above the sixth grade, all composed of middle-aged people. Suddenly, an eighteen-year-old joined the group, naturally drawing various skeptical looks.
In this whole plan, the Fanyang Lu family contributed the most: not only did the third-grade clan leader have to join, but they also had to send an additional three fourth-grade family members. Therefore, they were most concerned about Cheng Jinyang's inclusion and sent the Lu siblings, Zhongyou and Qingyun, to investigate.
Lu Zhongyou was currently at the upper eighth grade, strong and capable. Lu Qingyun, although only at the lower eighth grade, was meticulous, perfectly complementing her brother.
One was skilled in strategy and the other in tactics. If they confirmed Cheng Jinyang's capability, it would just be a friendly spar between peers.
If his capability was too poor, the Fanyang Lu family would negotiate with the court to re-evaluate the team composition.
The Cheng and Xing families had not been settled here for long, so they hadn't established a proper training ground. They simply cleared an open space within Shishou Mountain for the family members to practice.
At this sight, Lu Zhongyou's disdain grew stronger, thinking that the Cheng family couldn't even afford a proper training ground.
Lu Qingyun, however, remained indifferent.
She knew the Shendu Cheng family had temporarily relocated from the fallen Pukou District, so she paid no mind to the surroundings' simplicity and disrepair. She just smiled while chatting with Cui Jinqi, carefully discerning whether her words were idle chatter or lies.
Everyone praised Lu Qingyun for her gentle nature, but she knew she was not truly so.
Anyone would develop a good temperament after spending enough time with the mischievous and deceitful Miss Cui without going mad.
"Jinqi," she asked softly, "why are you here? What's your relationship with the Cheng family patriarch?"
"We're in a relationship," Cui Jinqi said with a sweet smile.
"Really?" Lu Qingyun covered her mouth in mock surprise.
A fifth-grade family member dating a girl from the Five Great Families? If anyone else said this, Lu Qingyun wouldn't even bother to respond.
But since Cui Jinqi said it, it was likely just another of her usual fibs. Even if it was a lie, the fact that she would joke about it indicated a decent relationship with Cheng Jinyang.
"By the way," Cui Jinqi added mysteriously, her eyes gleaming with mischievous delight, "Wang Wanrou is also quite fond of him. She doesn't know I like Jinyang too, so don't tell her."
Lu Qingyun: ???
Wait, is it okay to talk about Miss Wang like that?
"Cheng Jinyang, you should know why we're here," Lu Zhongyou said arrogantly, with his arms crossed. "This mission is of great importance. It's not a place for you to use connections to pad your resume. As an eighth-grade supernatural, you should be practicing diligently, not dreaming of making a name for yourself on the battlefield with a single stroke."
Cheng Jinyang was speechless.
Brother Lu, did you get something wrong? I also want to practice diligently, but it's the emperor who insists on sending me to the battlefield, alright?
"I understand," Cui Jinqi whispered. "Is it because your brother also wants to join the battlefield, but your family won't let him, so he's jealous and resentful that Jinyang can go despite being only an eighth grade?"
Lu Qingyun smiled without speaking.
Lu Zhongyou's face turned dark upon hearing this. However, given Cui Jinqi's notorious bluntness and her status as a member of the Five Great Families, he had to suppress his anger and said to Cheng Jinyang:
"I've brought our Lu family's special training program. If you can pass the tests, our Lu family will acknowledge your qualifications and capabilities for this mission. If not, you should withdraw voluntarily. Even if His Majesty decrees it, our Lu family won't risk the lives of our soldiers!"
Cheng Jinyang remained silent, thinking to himself:
Is there such a good thing?
Who would want to enter the battlefield as a eighth grade supernatural? If the emperor hadn't forced me and threatened to conscript the Shendu Cheng family, anyone else can have this mission!
If Lu Zhongyou is willing to stand up against the decree, wouldn't it be great to let him cause trouble? If the emperor retracts the order, that's perfect. If not... the emperor would be the bad guy, and the Fanyang Lu family wouldn't blame me, right?
With this in mind, he decided to "pretend to lose" later. Even if Lu Zhongyou mocked him, it wouldn't matter.
People are fighting on your behalf against the emperor; let them say a few things, what's the harm?
"Brother Lu's teaching is correct," he said with a smile, cupping his hands. "Please follow me."
Lu Zhongyou: ???
Cheng Jinyang's reaction was quite unexpected for him—after all, their brief exchange during their initial meeting had proven that this head of the Cheng family was not someone who would swallow his pride in the presence of the Five Great Families.
So, what was the trap in that sentence? "Brother Lu's teaching is correct," was it sarcasm? Mockery? Was there something in it that he could counterattack?
As he followed Cheng Jinyang deeper into the training ground, he began to rack his brains, lest he be mocked without even understanding it.
After thinking for a long time without any clue, Lu Zhongyou turned to his sister, Lu Qingyun, with an inquiring look.
Lu Qingyun: ?
She returned a perfectly bewildered smile to her brother.
Currently, the place where the Cheng family conducted brain domain development was situated in a house deep within the training ground. Several pieces of equipment were lined up, and a simple air conditioner was humming, maintaining a constant indoor temperature.
The aesthetic of aristocratic families in these times still valued subtlety. For example, air conditioning should maintain a constant indoor temperature 24 hours a day, yet its presence should not be obvious for it to be considered elegant.
Looking at the casually whitewashed walls and a few wall-mounted air conditioners, Lu Zhongyou felt an urge to leave in displeasure but managed to suppress it.
However, Lu Qingyun knew that as an old fifth-grade aristocratic family, the Shendu Cheng family's foundation was not so meager. It must have been the hasty evacuation from Pukou District, leaving most of their family property in Jiankang, that led to their current impoverished state.
Thinking further, the hurried southern migration of the entire aristocracy meant that humanity's finest and most valuable assets had all been left in northern Central Plains. Reflecting on this brought a sense of melancholy.
After the program was loaded into the equipment, Cheng Yuexian and several technicians checked the environmental parameters and informed Cheng Jinyang that there were no issues.
This was to be expected; the Fanyang Lu family was here to make him retreat in face of difficulties, not to create enmity or trouble. They would not design a program with obvious flaws.
However, the difficulty level... Cheng Yuexian was secretly amazed. It seemed to be no less challenging than Tianluo's usual training.
If the family guards of the Fanyang Lu family trained daily with this program, then their individual quality would likely be on par with Tianluo's.
After all, these were the private guards of one of the Five Great Families; having such strength was normal. But the clan leader had only become a Tianluo recently (not even six months yet), would he really be able to face these challenges without issue?
She looked at Cheng Jinyang with some concern, but seeing that he showed no signs of nervousness, she felt somewhat reassured.