On the high-speed train.

Lu Yuan glanced to his side. Seeing Lu Jing, wrapped in a small blanket and sleeping soundly, he peacefully turned his gaze back and focused on the small box in front of him.

The box was filled with many items.

Most of them were cards. All sorts of bank cards. The money in them ranged from hundreds of thousands to millions.

All were gifts from his "juniors."

At Lu Yuan's apprenticeship ceremony, even Master Liudao Yuan had given him a gift. Consequently, the various direct disciples of the Crane Sect had naturally also presented their "little Senior Brother" with congratulatory gifts.

Perhaps it was due to the rush of time, or perhaps because they hadn't taken this so-called "little Senior Brother" too seriously. The majority of the direct disciples had gifted him money. Only a few showed real thoughtfulness.

For instance, the fourth direct disciple, Zhuang Xiujie, had gifted him a martial arts school... Yes, a proper martial arts school.

However, it wasn't one from the Crane Sect, as all Crane Sect properties theoretically belonged to Sect Master Liudao Yuan. The direct disciples could only help manage them and enjoy some of the profits; they didn't have the authority to transfer ownership.

This martial arts school had been personally established by Zhuang Xiujie and was named "Chenghe." It is located in Lanping City, a two-hour high-speed train journey from Burnt Rock City. Lu Yuan hadn't visited it, and in reality, he didn't need to manage it. Every year-end, a dividend would naturally be deposited into his personal account.

This was a proper money tree, a goose that lays golden eggs.

Another notable gift was from Qin Feng. Qin Feng had given him a house and two shops, all located in Burnt Rock City. Presumably, the gifts were chosen based on his family situation, which pleased Lu Yuan greatly. He planned on visiting them with Lu Jing when they returned to Burnt Rock City.

Lastly... there was the gift from Zhao Qiancheng, the second most senior disciple of the Crane Sect.

It was a pair of boxing gloves. They were completely black with streaks of deep blue. He wasn't sure what material they were made of; they were layered in scale-like patterns.

Lu Yuan put them on. They were not light, probably weighing several tens of pounds. Surprisingly, they fit perfectly and felt quite comfortable on the inside—dry and not prone to sweat. Lu Yuan tried moving his hands; the gloves didn't restrict his finger joints at all. Although called boxing gloves, they also functioned as gauntlets with finger coverings. The fully encased fingertips had small, sharp points, stained with spots of crimson, gleaming coldly.

When Zhao Qiancheng gave them to him, he had specifically emphasized that these gloves possessed excellent flexibility and... could be coated with poison.

"..."

Lu Yuan tried to make a fist. The sharp tips on the fingers instantly retracted, while sharp protrusions appeared on the knuckles. When he opened his palm, he could clearly see two small characters, "Moon Snatching," etched on the palm of the glove.

The ingenious design, with its various enhancements for the hand, was simply astonishing.

I wonder if, wearing these gloves, I could try to catch Zhou Ling's energy bullets... Lu Yuan thought to himself.

There was no doubt they could stop bullets. If they couldn't even handle bullets, he would rather not have taken them, and Zhao Qiancheng wouldn't have offered them.

Since Lu Jing was sleeping next to him and they were on a high-speed train, Lu Yuan didn't dare test them further. He just wore them briefly to get a feel for them and then carefully put them away.

Aside from these, the remaining items in the box were some odds and ends he'd managed to scrounge off Old Liu, such as Bone Refining Pills and secret medicines specifically for the Viscera Training Realm. Lu Yuan didn't need to worry about these; Master Liudao Yuan had arranged for him to visit Weishan monthly, where the secret medicines he required would be prepared.

There were also several sets of special attire, similar to the one he had worn for his apprenticeship ceremony. They were extremely flexible and wouldn't tear even if he activated his Level 3 Special Burst and his physique expanded.

Finally, there was a notebook and some USB drives containing the Ten Thousand Refining Breaking Domain Skill. One of the USB drives stored the content of the Steel Bone Sect's Body Forging Method. Lu Yuan hadn't looked at them yet and planned to study them slowly when he got back home.

"Sir..."

A gentle voice reached his ear. Lu Yuan looked up and saw a beautiful train attendant pushing a small cart, asking him what he would like to drink.

Lu Jing, who was sleeping beside him, stirred. Lu Yuan made a "hush" gesture to the attendant, took two bottles of water, and then allowed the attendant to leave. He pulled the blanket, which had slipped off Lu Jing, further up, then unscrewed a bottle cap and slowly drank.

His gaze turned towards the scene outside the window. The high-speed train blurred the passing scenery into streaks of light. Lu Yuan focused his vision slightly, and under the influence of his 18-point agility, the rapidly passing external scenery gradually slowed down, becoming clearer. Outside the train, the utility poles along the railway tracks passed by one after another. He stared blankly at the large expanses of green farmland in the distance.

A myriad of strange feelings arose in his heart.

Just a little over three months ago, he had been just an ordinary high school student. Although he possessed a unique occupation panel, his everyday concerns had been about how to get good grades and get into a good university.

But now, he had transformed into a True Disciple of an ancient martial arts school, engaging in fights and life-or-death struggles. An even broader world awaited him in the future.

Three months ago, he had been racking his brains, worrying about his family's heavy financial pressures. Now, the items in the box at his feet alone represented goals that ordinary people could never achieve, even after a lifetime of hard work.

He had spent more than ten days as the "young master" at the Linghe Pavilion, being served by around twenty people every day. And now, returning home, he would once again resume the role of an ordinary seventeen-year-old high school student from a modest background...

In a daze, Lu Yuan felt a sensation of shifting spaces, of time itself being dislocated.

「One hour later, the train arrived at the station.」

"...An explosion accident from illegal fireworks production occurred at a pig farm in Zhu Hua Village, Banshan Town, in our city. Search and rescue at the scene have been completed. Five fatalities are confirmed, with two individuals missing; further verification is ongoing..."

"...The 13th Burnt Rock City Mass Sports Meet has officially begun. This event includes a total of one hundred and thirty competitive sports categories, and nationwide there will be..."

In his bedroom.

Lu Yuan casually flipped through the news that had happened in Burnt Rock City while he was away. Other than a few familiar "explosion case" reports and a brief mention of Mosa's "Boiling Night" Combat Championship by the city news channel, not much else of significance had occurred.

It seems like Yellow Bear is still carrying out his crackdown on the Crow God Sect. I wonder how long it's going to last... Lu Yuan thought, his Spiritual Power connecting with a few of his Crow subordinates perched on a utility pole on the street outside his house.

During the days he was absent, the Crows had "scouted out" several new hiding places of the Divine Servants of the Crow God Sect. Speaking of which, the Crow God Sect had already lost quite a few members in Burnt Rock City. Why this group was still unwilling to leave, he couldn't figure out what they were after. It made Lu Yuan feel a little restless. After all, his strength had improved considerably...

BEEP BEEP—

At this moment, a new message popped up on his computer screen. It was from "Quiet Zhu Bao."

She had sent him a new drawing—a portrait of a handsome and upright young man wearing a satin, Chinese-style cardigan, with a large "Crane" character on the back.

Lu Yuan recognized the person in the drawing as himself. He thought Xia Zhijing's art was quite good and was about to compliment her, as usual.

Suddenly, Lu Yuan blinked, a realization dawning on him.

"You were there on the day of the apprenticeship ceremony?" he quickly typed out.

After a moment, she replied with a simple, "Mm."

Only then did Lu Yuan remember that Xia Zhijing had previously sent him a photo of a dress, presumably one she had picked out to wear to the apprenticeship ceremony, as a deliberate reminder to him. Unfortunately, there had been too many people at the ceremony that day, and a series of events had unfolded. He had been preoccupied with so many things that he had completely overlooked it.

Lu Yuan couldn't help but feel a little guilty. After all, a large part of why he could become a True Disciple of the Crane Sect was due to the twenty million contributed by Xia Zhijing's father. Lin Zhiquin, being ostracized everywhere within the Crane Sect, had been of no practical help. Without that twenty million, he wouldn't even have gotten close to the core of the Crane Sect.

Speaking of Lin Zhiquin, Lu Yuan had been in constant contact with him over the past few days and had even sent him the video Lu Jing had taken at the apprenticeship ceremony. Lin Zhiquin had said he would send him a "congratulatory gift" when he returned; Lu Yuan wondered what it would be.

Sometimes, Lu Yuan felt that Lin Zhiquin's "hardships" in the Crane Sect might be related to his personality and his way of dealing with people. Coach Lin was quite an "upright" person. While the Crane Sect wasn't necessarily evil, one only had to consider Old Liu—the Poison Hand Crane Demon himself. The disciples under him all followed his example, more or less tainted with a "wicked" streak. Could Lin Zhiquin, an "upright" character, survive among a group of "wicked" individuals without being ostracized?

Lost in thought, by the time Lu Yuan came back to his senses and remembered to reply to Xia Zhijing, he found that her avatar had already grayed out.

I'll explain to her in person next time, Lu Yuan thought, then proceeded to handle a messy bunch of unread messages.

With the start of school approaching, people were messaging him every day, wanting to copy his summer vacation homework. When Lu Yuan told them he hadn't done his either, they didn't believe him, which was incredibly annoying.

With everything settled, Lu Yuan took out the USB drive Master Liudao Yuan had given him, the one containing the Steel Bone Sect's Body Forging Method. He was about to plug it into the computer to study it properly.

At that moment, his phone, which was on the table beside him, rang.

RING RING RING—

Lu Yuan glanced at it, his brows furrowing slightly. He then quickly walked out of his bedroom, calling out, "Sis, are you out of toilet paper, or is there a cockroach in the room?"

As he stepped out, he saw Lu Jing sitting on the sofa with a bag of potato chips, staring at him in astonishment.

Lu Yuan was taken aback but quickly regained his composure. He walked back into his bedroom and gently pressed the answer button on his phone, which showed the incoming call as "Sis (Lu Jing)."

A familiar, slightly aloof female voice quickly came from the phone.

"It's me, Gao Qing."

"I know," Lu Yuan replied, his face expressionless, his tone flat. "Next time, you can call me directly from your own number. I'll answer."

There was a moment of silence on the other end of the line. Soon, Gao Qing's voice came again.

"Keep an eye on your deliveries over the next couple of days. I've sent you some things—relevant details and materials concerning the upcoming New Blood trial... Read them carefully, and also, get ready. The New Blood trial will start soon. At that time, Zhou Ling will come to get you."

BEEP. BEEP. BEEP...

Lu Yuan put down the phone, his eyes glinting slightly.

Yellow Bear's New Blood trial... I had almost forgotten about it.

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