Chapter 120: Chapter 119: 9-Stage Jade Sinews: Heaven’s Favor

"He’s coming. Be sure to greet him politely. And remember, you must show respect to an instructor’s personal disciple..." Xue Zhang whispered, motioning for Jiang Qiu to rise with him. He then flashed a broad smile at the approaching An Ling. "Hello, Captain An Ling."

"Oh, hello."

An Ling nodded, bypassed him, and handed over a dark gold key. "Martial Uncle, this is the key to your studio apartment. I’ll take you to your room."

"???"

Xue Zhang’s pupils trembled. Seeing the dark gold key placed in the freshman’s palm, he suddenly felt a lump in his throat that he could neither swallow nor cough up.

’Martial Uncle?!’

’What... This... Him?’

’Captain An Ling, a personal disciple of a Grandmaster, is calling this freshman Martial Uncle?’

One of Xue Zhang’s eyebrows drooped low while the other shot up. A heavy, nasal sound escaped him. "Hnngh?"

"Thank you," Jiang Qiu said with a smile, putting the key away. He glanced back at him. "Senior, if there’s nothing else, I’ll be on my way."

"No... nothing at all..."

Xue Zhang gave an awkward smile and a little wave. His mature, well-defined face twisted and contorted as if the stars themselves were shifting, his mouth twitching uncontrollably.

Even after their figures had disappeared from the hall, his heart was still pounding. ’Captain An Ling’s revered master is the Dean’s personal disciple. Could that freshman be the Dean’s personal disciple too?’

’Holy shit, is this for real? I was just about to scam the Dean’s personal disciple?!’

He turned pale with shock. He began pacing back and forth across the hall, running his hands through his curly hair and scratching his scalp, muttering, "I’m so screwed, I’m so screwed." His panic was so palpable that the other freshmen gave him a wide berth.

When the freshmen he was in charge of returned, they looked confused. "Senior, what’s wrong?"

"I just met a big shot who might have used a special, Advanced Su Fragrance for his Transformation. He looks really young, and he’s our Dean’s new personal disciple..."

The freshmen’s eyes went wide, their imaginations hooked by the mature senior’s story. "Senior, how young is the Dean’s personal disciple? What does he look like? Is he a new instructor in our department?"

"Don’t ask so many questions. It was my first time seeing him too. A person of his, an instructor-level figure, isn’t someone you or I can approach right now. You’ll understand more when you reach the Spirit Body Realm."

Xue Zhang took a deep breath, his expression profound and his gaze deep. But behind his back, his clasped hands were secretly trembling.

’Dammit, I mistook the Dean’s personal disciple for a freshman. If word gets out, won’t it prove I have no judgment? How am I supposed to conveniently "guide" new students in the future?’

’I’m so screwed.’

...

The personal disciples’ apartments were situated amidst a green belt, resembling a series of large villas. Each academy had its own detached apartment building to house its personal disciples.

"Our Soldier Cultivation Academy is the largest academy at Northwest Martial University. Our student population is often equal to several other academies combined, and we have the most instructors. As a result, we don’t have enough apartment buildings, so we had to assign you a room here in the Refining Academy."

An Ling led Jiang Qiu to Room 18 in the Refining Academy. He turned the key, and with a CLICK, pushed the door open. A large living room appeared before them, fully furnished with a sofa and other pieces.

CLICK—

He slid open the glass bathroom door, revealing a large bathtub resting serenely inside.

After touring the rest of the apartment with An Ling for a while, Jiang Qiu nodded. "It’s nice."

Even though it was located in the Inner City of Yongjiang City, where every inch of land was gold, Northwest Martial University’s campus was as large as half the Outer City. The apartment’s amenities were quite complete.

Sleeping, medicinal baths, internet, free food delivery—everything was convenient.

"Oh, right. Martial Uncle, besides telling me to pick you up, my revered master also asked me to give you this." An Ling casually took a letter from his Storage Ring. "It’s about the Spirit Fusion Test."

TAP...

Jiang Qiu broke the seal and pulled out a sheet of paper. His gaze focused on the very first word, then slowly scanned down the page.

[Junior Martial Brother Jiang Qiu, my revered master, Dean Wu Hong, has received Elder Luo’s letter of recommendation. He has already entered your personal information into the archives, and you are entitled to all the privileges of a personal disciple. However, he is currently in secluded cultivation, researching the profound Dao of soldier cultivation, and cannot get away. For now, I will be instructing you in his stead...] 𝒇𝒓𝒆𝒆𝙬𝒆𝒃𝓷𝒐𝓿𝙚𝙡.𝒄𝓸𝒎

[Given that you have already broken through to the Spirit Body Realm, you do not need to attend the basic public Martial Arts courses. You may register for elective courses as you see fit...]

After several long paragraphs of introduction, like a guide to life at Northwest Martial University, Jiang Qiu’s eyes began to scan the page more slowly.

[Although you only just reached the Spirit Body Realm a month ago, and your degree of Spirit Fusion is unlikely to increase much in a short time even with Elder Luo’s guidance, I still recommend you register for the Spirit Fusion Test three days from now...]

Reading the final lines, Jiang Qiu’s bright eyes twinkled. "The Spirit Fusion Test can measure my Jade Sinew Rank and also grant me official Martial Artist certification?"

’Isn’t getting Martial Artist certification and changing my fate as someone from the bottom rungs the whole reason I came to Northwest Martial University?’

’It seems that dream is about to become a reality.’

"Yes, and after passing the Spirit Fusion Test, a student’s potential can also be roughly estimated," An Ling said, his narrow eyes softening. "Generally speaking, those with Third and Fourth Rank Jade Sinews have decent talent and a chance to reach the Bright Soul Realm. Those with Fifth and Sixth Rank Jade Sinews are considered geniuses, with a chance to reach the Dharma Realm."

"As for Seventh Rank Jade Sinews, they can be called peerless prodigies. With a moment of epiphany, they have a chance to become a Martial Arts Grandmaster. And Eighth Rank Jade Sinews are dragons among men, so rare you can count them on one hand."

"Of course, nothing is absolute. There have been cases of those with low-rank Jade Sinews becoming Martial Arts Grandmasters. Cultivation is still about finding your Dao. With the right Dao, anything is possible."

Jiang Qiu nodded and raised an eyebrow. "Then what about Ninth Rank Jade Sinews?"

An Ling paused. "Someone like that might only appear once every ten or twenty years in the entire Northwest. They are all blessed with great fortune and are generally not part of the discussion. But since you asked, Martial Uncle..."

"All I can say is that without the favor of Heaven, one cannot attain the Ninth Rank."

Jiang Qiu blinked. The Dragon Spirit, which had been quietly listening from within his pupils, also blinked and began to swirl and swim around with a happy cry.

’So the Ninth Rank is that rare?’

The two of them talked for a long time. An Ling explained many things, from the basic Martial Arts curriculum to the different Martial Arts paths at Northwest Martial University.

"Martial Uncle, there are basically two paths once you enter the Soldier Cultivation Academy. First, you can fight for a spot as a Martial Arts Team Captain, form your own team, and freely apply to enter the various Secret Realms. This is very difficult. Second, you can try to join an existing Martial Arts Team, where you’ll be subject to the captain’s authority, but it’s much less difficult. You should choose one of these paths as soon as possible..."

These words bounced around in Jiang Qiu’s mind, echoing long after An Ling had left.

He had been a loner throughout high school. It wasn’t until he became a top student in the second semester of his senior year that he gradually started to meet and get to know more people.

Liu Zili, Wang Guanjia, Li Juefeng, and the others.

’But even after meeting them, I was still a loner, my thoughts never constrained by others.’

’If I become a member of someone else’s Martial Arts Team, I won’t have a say in what missions to take or who my teammates are. I’d rather be a captain myself and grow strong quickly.’

Jiang Qiu clenched his fist and exhaled slowly. ’But there’s still time, no need to rush. Although I have the reputation of being one of the Ten Leading Prodigies and a captain’s slot is already reserved for me, I haven’t even reached the baseline of the Bright Soul Realm yet.’

’As for team members, I hope Liu Zili and the others can reach the minimum threshold of the Spirit Body Realm by then.’

With this in mind, Jiang Qiu ordered a free Demon Beast Meat combo for dinner. While waiting, he took a bath. As he lay in the tub, his Dragon Spirit slipped out to roam, weaving between his fingers and around his legs with exceptional agility.

Moreover, the patterns on its scales had become clearer, and two small bumps on its head were faintly beginning to take on the shape of Antlers.

This was likely because it had absorbed the soul of Zhu Li, a mighty Ancestral Great Demon, and also because of his one hundred percent Spirit Fusion.

CLICK—

He retrieved the specially delivered takeout from outside his door. Just as he sat down to eat, his phone chimed. He opened it to see a message from Liu Zili, saying hello.

The corners of Jiang Qiu’s mouth lifted into a slight smile. After a brief exchange, both of his eyebrows shot up. ’Room 17? Next door?’

On second thought, it made sense. ’Liu Zili is Instructor Shangguan Yue’s personal disciple, and the Refining Academy has few personal disciples to begin with. Since I was also assigned a room here, it’s only logical that I’d be placed after her...’

"That’s great," Jiang Qiu murmured, a strange warmth, like a gust of cotton, filling his chest. "To become the personal disciple of a genius instructor, her refining Talent must be excellent. If she’s willing, I’ll pull her into my Martial Arts Team in the future."

Then he smiled again, his eyes bright. ’But I shouldn’t get ahead of myself. The long spear that Grand General Luo commissioned from a Casting Grandmaster using peerless ore is already with my Senior Martial Brother. I’ll go pick it up tomorrow and try binding it as my Lifebound Weapon to see what’s different about it...’