ASER - Chapter 75
Chapter 75: Combat
The airship landed within the old Chen family residence in Jinling. Everyone disembarked. Tasks like organizing luggage were naturally handled by the servants; the masters simply needed to rest upon arrival. Chen Yang had been cooped up in his small courtyard all day. Finally, with the help of his tutor, he managed to tackle a small portion of the problems and the little notebook A'Diao had casually tossed him. He strode with proud little steps to her courtyard, only to learn she wasn't there.
The day she arrived in Jinling, she hadn't stayed at all and had returned directly to the academy.
At Jinling Academy, A'Diao, who was in Qu Jiangnan's class, suddenly received +1 psychic power from her "cheap" younger brother. Her brow twitched slightly, but she ignored it, focusing intently on Qu Jiangnan.
The course taught by Qu Jiangnan was a bit different from other classes.
One class per week. For other classes, the first session was about mastering Spirit Power, the second session was about applying Spirit Power, and the third session was Daoist techniques + Talismans.
But Qu Jiangnan's curriculum jumped directly to the third session's content; she didn't teach the application of Spirit Power.
In class, Cheng Zhang, the "little doctor," asked when he had doubts. Qu Jiangnan replied, "If you, like others, need guidance on even how to effectively use Spirit Power, then I wouldn't have come to Jinling to take on the role of Class 1's head teacher."
"I don't teach the mediocre."
Gentle, intellectual, and elegant, yet her words and actions were exceptionally sharp and decisive.
But everyone quickly understood her thinking—the application of Spirit Power had to be combined with each individual's talent, aptitude, and even extend to innate skills developed early on. To teach it effectively was too difficult, and the efficiency was generally low.
She felt it was a waste of time. Since they possessed such aptitude, self-development was better. If they couldn't develop, they were useless, and there was even less need for instruction.
But Daoist techniques and Talisman studies were different. They were very complex, requiring time to understand, with numerous techniques and experiences. But once learned, anyone could use them; mastering one method opens the door to ten thousand techniques.
And for her teaching today, the morning was dedicated to Daoist arts. She first explained their foundations and principles, allowing everyone to grasp their core. As for what Daoist arts they would use in the future, that would depend on their individual talent inclinations.
The afternoon was for Talismans. A'Diao had initially thought Qu Jiangnan would directly teach how to make talismans, but that wasn't the case.
The focus of her teaching was—buying talismans.
"How to effectively identify the value of a talisman and buy it at the lowest price—this is the main point I'm teaching you today. Don't ask me why—the talent required for making talismans is too high. Among thousands of geniuses, those who walk this path are few and far between. It also requires a vast amount of money and time. Unless your talent truly leans this way, I don't support you spending your early resources and time on this. It's more cost-effective to just buy them."
"But this field is also very tricky. The difference between talismans and forbidden items is that the latter have specific uses. You might need a certain aid for one instance, and another for a different instance. But you can never collect all forbidden items because they are too expensive and rare. Talismans, however, are more common and have stable suppliers. From the perspective of investing funds for a single instance, buying talismans with specific relevant effects is more economical than forbidden items—unless you are extremely wealthy with a powerful background and can afford many forbidden items, then that's a different matter."
"Talismans can repel insects, immobilize, create illusions, launch elemental attacks, grant invisibility, and allow passage through walls. There are even those that directly replenish Spirit Power and heal injuries. There are thousands of types, and their effectiveness depends on the talisman's level. If you find the wrong seller, financial loss is a small matter. Buying an inferior talisman that affects your performance at a critical moment and costs you your life, that's what's truly terrible."
So it was said, and everyone took it to heart. Especially Tian Zhongxiang, Tian Zhongye, and Rao Xueya, who subconsciously glanced at A'Diao.
Does A'Diao count as talented in this?
The teacher hadn't even taught her, yet she already knew how. And on the day of the entrance exam's talent test, she could draw talismans out of thin air...
Back when they were tackling the catacomb, they hadn't understood. Now, after hearing the head teacher's explanation, they suddenly thought more deeply about it.
Rao Xueya's heart fluttered. She suddenly felt that the "thigh" she was hugging might not only be thick but also gold-plated.
So how did Qu Jiangnan teach?
She was still very direct. After explaining how to identify the authenticity and level of talismans, she directly gave them some channels and contact methods.
There were contacts from all over the Tang-Song region, some well-known, others obscure.
All the students were smart. They quickly realized this was Qu Jiangnan's network.
As a teacher, one could teach not only knowledge but also provide connections.
The class was packed with content and needed proper digestion. Before class ended, Qu Jiangnan gave everyone a compressed file package.
"Inside are the basics of talisman creation. You can try it when you have free time. But be careful of explosions and backlash."
Everyone: "..."
Qu Jiangnan continued while packing her things, "If by some stroke of incredible luck one of you actually has this talent, then you won't have to worry about money in the future."
A'Diao returned to Shanzhu Ju. She opened the compressed package to check. She found that the process was similar to how she made talismans, perhaps even more complex.
Strange. What the Old Daoist Priest had taught her, and what was recorded in those tattered books... it seemed to be from the earliest generation, yet how could these rudimentary teachings be more suitable for her than what Qu Jiangnan taught?
It was as if they were tailor-made for her.
A'Diao's eyes deepened slightly, and her fingers unconsciously rubbed together. But she didn't like to delve into things that seemed meaningless at the moment.
She was more pragmatic.
Fortunately, the latter half of this compressed package contained content she hadn't learned, belonging to the transition phase from low-grade to mid-grade talismans.
Good stuff, yet given so casually. But it perfectly matched her current state of Talisman Proficiency.
Moreover, the second batch of materials for making talismans had already arrived.
A'Diao memorized all this knowledge directly. Then she hid in the training room and got busy.
Spirit Power cultivation, Talismans, "Muscle-Splitting and Bone-Dislocating" techniques, and the gravity room—her days passed quietly, but her progress increased daily.
Another week passed just like that. But she heard that Zhongchuan Mingxiu and others had gone to the catacombs over the weekend.
Tian Zhongxiang, Tian Zhongye, and Rao Xueya had all digested their gains from last time. After making some preparations, they weren't content to remain idle and asked A'Diao when they would go on their second catacomb expedition.
"Next week."
There was an exam next Wednesday; it would be time for her to earn another batch of psychic power. Recently, A'Diao hadn't been fighting. "Fleecing sheep" plus study guides, minus daily cultivation consumption, equaled an accumulation of thirty thousand psychic power daily. A'Diao estimated she could save up five hundred thousand psychic power by next week. It would be perfect to go to the catacombs next weekend, see if she could earn some money to get the next formula.
Her plans were complete, and she proceeded steadily, unfazed by Zhongchuan Mingxiu. She only occasionally paid attention to the Cui Clan's movements.
It had become quiet again.
It seemed the power of the imperial court's official ranking law was effective.
"Only when they themselves are endangered do they know to retract their claws?"
A'Diao sneered, even her snow-white teeth exuding a hint of cold indifference.
This matter wasn't over.
Two days later, Tuesday morning.
Autumn arrived, and the weather grew cooler. A'Diao, wearing a jacket, had a bag of snowflake crisps in her left pocket and a box of pork jerky in her right. Holding breakfast and milk tea, she walked towards school, treading on the golden-yellow ground, but was stopped halfway.
"Chen A'Diao, you're still eating breakfast? Something big has happened!"
"Huh? Isn't the exam tomorrow?" A'Diao unhurriedly swallowed a mouthful of pan-fried bun.
"Zhongchuan Mingxiu and his group went to challenge the tower!"
A'Diao was no longer calm.
It seemed she had made some harsh remarks before, about surpassing him?
Classmate Zhongchuan was counterattacking.
On the way, she was also reminded by Tian Zhongxiang and others. It seemed they had also gone to challenge the tower.
Everyone has a heart that doesn't want to be left behind.
If Zhongchuan Mingxiu could pass the second floor, and they hadn't even passed the first, how could they face continuing their studies?
Similarly, people from other classes were thinking: "We're from the same school, yet the gap is so large. Do we still have the face to say we're from Jinling Academy?"
When A'Diao returned to the classroom, no one was there. However, Qu Jiangnan was in the office handling documents. The latter was a bit surprised to see her.
"Not going to check out the Clearance Points Tower?"
"No way. There must be a lot of people challenging the tower now. Plus, the teachers have probably started challenging it too. The queue will be very long; it's not worth it."
"I think you're just eager to eat your breakfast."
"..."
Qu Jiangnan, holding a file bag, was about to leave. Seeing A'Diao had finished her breakfast and was about to enter the gravity room, she casually asked, "Your words were quite arrogant before. Aren't you afraid of being mocked by them?"
Before entering, A'Diao replied obediently to Qu Jiangnan, "Teacher, my life is hard. I was born to suffer. A moment of humiliation is nothing."
Hearing this, did she plan to endure it this time?
At this moment, Qu Jiangnan felt this child had an impressive state of mind. Forbearance was the most difficult quality to maintain in the world.
But less than an hour later, she overturned this thought.
At the Clearance Point Tower, some had already gone in, some were coming out, and others were waiting.
Even after two weeks, getting on the leaderboard wasn't that easy. But the frequency of people getting on it was clearly much higher than before.
Tang Zhou, Guang Xiucheng, and others had all made it onto the leaderboard. But they were all defeated on the second floor. The second floor was too terrifying; they were instantly defeated. But this time, they had achieved their goal.
They had finally passed the first floor. They just didn't know about the others...
"Bai He passed! He's out!"
"Bai He? So fast! As expected of the person ranked after Chen A'Diao."
Bai He was originally in a decent mood, but upon hearing this, his expression darkened somewhat. However, at least he was now on the same level as Chen A'Diao. Just like when she had declared war on Zhongchuan Mingxiu, he now felt he would surpass her soon.
But, had she come?
Bai He looked at Dai Qiang and his group. These few had already gone in and failed the second floor again. They were currently feeling vexed. Seeing Bai He come out, they told him A'Diao hadn't come.
"The second floor is too difficult. She's been in herself and probably knows she can't pass it, so she simply didn't come."
"I wonder if the captain can pass. If he passes, the shame Chen A'Diao brought before will be completely wiped away."
"Let's hope he passes."
Bai He lowered his eyes and thought to himself: Do they really hope Zhongchuan Mingxiu passes? Not necessarily. They were all prodigies. When tackling catacombs together, they hoped for more strong members who could carry them. But when it truly came to rankings and strength, they hoped others wouldn't be too far ahead of themselves... Just human nature.
However, the last catacomb expedition had indeed brought him many benefits: five hundred thousand star coins plus fifteen spirit cores. Mainly, it also honed his practical combat skills. Compared to those who only knew how to cultivate and take exams, in actual combat, he might not necessarily be weaker than that Chen A'Diao.
Bai He had just thought this, when events (figuratively) slapped him across the face several times.
The names on the leaderboard changed.
Song Ling and Cheng Zhang were both on it.
Bai He frowned. Dai Qiang and the others also changed their expressions.
However, Yuan Shu was also on it.
This guy, he could get on by piling up resources. Ironically, his progress was even faster than when he was following Zhongchuan Mingxiu. Isn't that infuriating?
Yuan Shu was quite pleased with himself. After coming out, his first reaction wasn't to look at Bai He and the others, but to look for A'Diao's name.
Still on the first floor.
Great! Let's see how she bullies me in the future.
Yuan Shu heaved a big sigh of relief internally, but suddenly, his expression froze.
The screen changed.
Zhongchuan Mingxiu, Second Floor.
He jumped directly behind Tuoba.
Zhongchuan Mingxiu was instantly kicked out of the third floor. But he saw Zhou Xiuhe, who had failed the challenge; the latter looked grave.
The corner of Zhongchuan Mingxiu's mouth twitched slightly. He asked, "Classmate Ming hasn't come out yet?"
Zhou Xiuhe replied politely, "The outcome isn't clear yet, why be anxious?"
If both of them failed the challenge, and Zhongchuan Mingxiu got 200 points, after a wave of development, the gap would naturally widen, and it would be even harder for them to compete with him.
Zhou Xiuhe felt considerable pressure. Suddenly, the names on the leaderboard changed.
Ming Zeye, Second Floor, Passed!
He was the third person to pass the second floor. And his clearance time was one second longer than Zhongchuan Mingxiu's, ranking him behind Zhongchuan Mingxiu.
Zhongchuan Mingxiu's heart had initially lurched. Now, he breathed a slight sigh of relief.
He was second, very good. Now only Tuoba remained...
Tuoba?
Ding! The leaderboard changed again.
Tuoba, Third Floor, Passed!
"Beast," Ming Zeye gritted his teeth.
Zhongchuan Mingxiu's expression was also very ugly.
The point reward for the third floor was 800 points. The resources would only be more.
Shocking!
Class 1 had given the other classes too great a shock.
Because people from other classes... basically, still no one had passed the first floor.
Was the gap really that big?
Class 1 successfully dominated the leaderboard. And even someone who passed the third floor had appeared. That was the difference between heaven and earth compared to them.
Those who had ranked between 11th and 20th in the entrance exam now felt dejected and lost.
If they had also entered Class 1, would things be different?
The entire place was silent. And the administrator, holding a coffee cup, was quiet for a long time. Not until Tuoba came out and strode away with his long legs did he snap back to reality and incidentally remind everyone.
"Kids, class is about to start. Today seems to be your combat skills class. If you're late, I'm afraid you'll be beaten badly by the mechanical soldiers."
Holy shit!
Only then did everyone scatter and run off in a rush.
Only Song Ling remained.
"Little girl, aren't you going to class?"
"Waiting for friends."
Eh? There were still people who hadn't come out? The administrator became interested and waited with her for a while. Then... beep, people came out from two doors one after another.
"Truly terrifying."
"No wonder A'Diao always curses that scarecrow. It's a heart-stabbing maniac."
"Did it stab you from the front or the back?"
"Front."
"Pervert!"
The four of them left together. The administrator subconsciously glanced at the leaderboard.
Three new names had been added.
Rao Xueya, Tian Zhongxiang, Tian Zhongye.
Eh?
He knew the lists of all students in the ten classes. Naturally, he knew these three had entered Class 1 by ranking in the top ten of the entrance exam. But in Class 1, their aptitude and talent were only ranked mid-to-low. Yet they had suddenly counterattacked their way to the middle of the leaderboard. Because currently, only Class 1 students were on the board, so they were basically ranked in the top 20.
"They definitely went to the catacombs, and their gains weren't small. This little girl from the Song family even waited specifically for them. It seems they're a group. Not bad, really not bad."
Aptitude and talent were one thing. Daring to go to the catacombs when conditions were average and still successfully obtaining resources—that was true skill.
On the way back to the classroom, Tian Zhongxiang actually had a question she wanted to ask.
"Did you know all along that the three of us could pass the first floor?"
Song Ling nodded. "I almost succeeded in the last assessment, so I know where its highest difficulty lies. Naturally, I could determine if you could pass."
Anyway, she passed the first floor easily this time. She was just a little short on the second floor again.
"Why? We haven't shown our strength. How did you know we made great progress this week?"
She estimated that many people with aptitudes ranked ahead of them probably hadn't passed the first floor yet either.
Song Ling glanced at them and smiled. "On the day of the entrance exam's illusionary realm assessment, the illusion scores of you two shouldn't be weaker than Cheng Zhang's. Especially you, Rao Xueya."
"As for choosing Tian Zhongye, his illusion score was very poor, but his combat talent is the highest in the class. As long as his Spirit Power keeps up, he can definitely pass."
Rao Xueya suddenly had an epiphany: Chen A'Diao hadn't chosen her because she wanted to "eat pork." It was because those who ranked high in the illusion exam had greater malleability.
And Song Ling had seen through it long ago.
"Alright, then what about A'Diao? Zhongchuan Mingxiu is on the second floor now; he definitely won't let her off."
"She can definitely pass the second floor. I don't know why she didn't take the test."
Of course, Zhongchuan Mingxiu wouldn't let A'Diao off. Just as he entered the classroom, A'Diao, who had already come out of the gravity room, was with Shi Dagang... cracking melon seeds.
The two were chatting.
They were really into their conversation.
Zhongchuan Mingxiu: "..."
He sneered inwardly. This Chen A'Diao, he didn't know if her mentality was genuinely good or if she was just feigning composure, but that too was a skill.
Tang Zhou and his group were feeling triumphant and planned to mock A'Diao, but Zhongchuan Mingxiu stopped them. "Don't forget, last week Teacher Shi said this week's combat skills class would have live combat."
Right! Tang Zhou and the others suddenly remembered and became excited.
If even passing the second floor of the Clearance Point Tower wasn't enough to make this shameless Chen A'Diao face retribution, then they would use actual slaps to teach her a lesson.
The few of them exchanged glances. Finally, they all looked at A'Diao.
Chen A'Diao, don't even think about walking home today!
You'll be leaving on a stretcher.
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