In the small garden behind the school building, Zhang Yu was practicing the "Back Dragon Overturning Mountain Hand" with vigorous movements.
Just then, a teacher suddenly appeared and asked, "Which grade and class are you in? What's your name? Why are you here during class time? Skipping class?"
Zhang Yu calmly replied, "I'm Zhang Yu from Class 1, Grade 1. I came out during math class to practice my martial arts."
Upon hearing Zhang Yu's name, the teacher's stern demeanor softened.
When he learned that Zhang Yu was skipping math class, he didn't even bother to look serious anymore.
Skipping math class? That's not even considered skipping class in Songyang High School.
If you haven't skipped math class to cultivate your immortal path, can you even call yourself a top student?
After checking that Class 1, Grade 1 was indeed having math class at this time, the teacher nodded and said, "There are 27 minutes left before class ends. Make sure to go back after the bell rings, and don't miss the next class."
After the teacher left, Zhang Yu quietly resumed his practice of the Back Dragon Overturning Mountain Hand.
Back Dragon Overturning Mountain Hand: Level 9 (89/90)
The reason he didn't practice this technique in the classroom was that his progress was too fast, and he didn't want to draw attention.
As he finished the last move, the Back Dragon Overturning Mountain Hand suddenly leveled up to Level 10.
In an instant, countless martial arts experiences and memories flooded Zhang Yu's mind, bringing his understanding of the Back Dragon Overturning Mountain Hand, grappling, and throwing techniques to a peak.
At the same time, he also felt the effects of reaching Level 10 in this technique.
When he used the technique again, he could accurately sense his own center of gravity.
Zhang Yu realized that if he wanted, he could also sense his opponent's center of gravity and, with a single move, disrupt it and throw them to the ground.
"I get it now. Whoever I trip will fall. This is truly a pure combat technique. And it feels like it pairs well with my Limitless Cloud Hand and Immortal Seal Technique..."
As white energy surged from his palms, Zhang Yu, with his Level 10 Limitless Cloud Hand and Level 10 Back Dragon Overturning Mountain Hand, felt that he could combine these two techniques.
"By using the Limitless Cloud Energy to replace the explosive force of my hands, I can perform grappling and throwing techniques from a distance."
A sudden realization struck Zhang Yu: "Although the Back Dragon Overturning Mountain Hand is driven purely by physical strength, that's not a weakness—it's actually an advantage. This means that in the future, I can integrate various powerful forces, whether it's energy, palm strikes, or fist strikes, into this technique. It's like a big framework that can incorporate many different combat techniques..."
At this moment, Zhang Yu understood the foresight behind Song Hailong's cultivation of this technique.
Not only was it suitable for Song Hailong now, allowing him to use it immediately, but it also laid the groundwork for future power growth.
"I wonder if he came up with this himself or if it was designed by his family or tutors..."
Dinner time.
In the cafeteria.
Every student was eagerly eating.
Whether it was one of the top three prestigious schools, a key high school, or an ordinary high school, no high school student was ever not enthusiastic about food.
However, there was a faint sense of resentment in the air today—a collective grumbling about the cafeteria's food.
Bai Zhenzhen walked through the cafeteria with her tray.
Despite her striking appearance, her icy demeanor made her seem unapproachable to many students.
As soon as she sat down, she complained, "Half the stalls are selling synthetic food now, and the rest have raised their prices. These bastards!"
It seemed that with the rise of the Oasis Group, synthetic food was being promoted more and more in Songyang City, and it had quietly made its way into the high school cafeteria.
Bai Zhenzhen looked at Zhao Tianxing and Qian Shen and said, "We absolutely cannot buy synthetic food. We have to resist it fiercely and make them lose money!"
"Synthetic food? That's not even fit for humans! Who knows what they put in it..."
As Bai Zhenzhen was speaking, she saw Zhang Yu carrying a large plate of mushy-looking food and sitting down under the surprised gazes of the three.
Bai Zhenzhen exclaimed, "Yu! Why are you eating that? I thought you were against synthetic food!"
Zhang Yu replied matter-of-factly, "The cafeteria is running a promotion today. Synthetic food is free to try."
Bai Zhenzhen immediately stood up.
"I want to see how bad this synthetic food tastes."
She went to the synthetic food stall, where the cafeteria lady was explaining, "This is meat paste, this is vegetable paste, this is rice paste. After you choose, you can pick a flavor: Mapo Tofu, Kung Pao Chicken, Seafood Delight..."
After a while, Bai Zhenzhen returned with her free synthetic food.
She took a bite and was shocked.
"This is synthetic food?"
Whatever immortal techniques they used, the taste, aroma, and even the texture were almost indistinguishable from real pre-made dishes.
Bai Zhenzhen remembered that the cafeteria lady had scooped out various pastes, but after mixing them with flavorings, they took on different textures—some like fatty meat, some like vegetable leaves, some like fish...
This was nothing like the synthetic food she had tried before.
Bai Zhenzhen exclaimed, "Have the related immortal techniques made a breakthrough?"
Zhang Yu sighed, "These big companies don't do business at a loss. They must have some confidence to compete with pre-made food. This stuff doesn't taste bad, it's convenient, and it's cheap. In the future, places selling pre-made food in Songyang City will probably become fewer and fewer."
Zhao Tianxing sighed, "Doesn't that mean many pre-made food factories will go bankrupt? A lot of people will lose their jobs."
As they ate and talked, Zhang Yu noticed that Qian Shen and Zhao Tianxing seemed preoccupied, so he asked them about it.
Qian Shen sighed and explained that he, Zhao Tianxing, and three other first-year students had been recruited into the sports competition team.
Qian Shen said guiltily, "Sigh, even though our scores aren't as good as yours, we got into the competition team first. I feel undeserving."
Zhao Tianxing also looked nervously at Zhang Yu and Bai Zhenzhen.
Among classmates, being in or out of the competition team created another layer of hierarchy, enough to turn close friends into rivals.
If lower-scoring students took spots from higher-scoring ones, it could even lead to intense school bullying, with outcomes as severe as someone jumping off a building.
Since the sports class, Zhao Tianxing had been worried that Zhang Yu and Bai Zhenzhen would hold a grudge.
Especially as someone who cared deeply about others' opinions, Zhao Tianxing was afraid people might think he had used underhanded methods to steal the competition spot.
But Zhang Yu just smiled and said, "It's fine. We already know about this. It's just the student council causing trouble."
He then explained that there would be a competition in a month.
Zhang Yu continued, "From now on, we'll each focus on our training. In a month, we'll compete based on our sports performance to see who gets to join the competition."
Hearing this, Qian Shen and Zhao Tianxing felt much more at ease.
They thought to themselves, "As high school students, it all comes down to scores in the end."
After dinner, Zhang Yu and Bai Zhenzhen left school together to take the subway to Bailong High School.
On the way, Bai Zhenzhen said, "I talked to Song Hailong. We'll go twice a week, two hours each time. He'll pay you 5,000 per session and me 2,000."
Zhang Yu's spirits lifted.
"5,000 per session? Twice a week is 10,000. That's 40,000 a month! Damn, these rich people are really loaded."
Bai Zhenzhen added, "But he also set a condition. If during any two-hour session we can't win a single match against him, he won't need us anymore."
She then looked at Zhang Yu and asked, "Yu, can you handle it?"
Although Zhang Yu had beaten Song Hailong in the martial arts competition, that was largely due to the out-of-bounds rule.
If his physical strength didn't keep up with Song Hailong's, or if the gap widened, it would be even harder to win.
"Of course I can handle it," Zhang Yu said.
"Little Song just relies on being tough and strong. Once my physical strength catches up, he won't win a single match."
"What about you, Zhen? Can you handle it?"
Bai Zhenzhen snorted and patted her stomach.
"I borrowed some money from my foster mother to rent a spiritual root for daily cultivation. My progress might surprise you, Yu."
Hearing about the rented spiritual root, Zhang Yu became curious.
"What kind of spiritual root did you rent? Can I try it sometime?"
Bai Zhenzhen instinctively touched her stomach.
"Let you try it?"
Zhang Yu said naturally, "We're like brothers. Can't I try the spiritual root you rented?"
Bai Zhenzhen frowned.
"Let me think about it."
She thought to herself, "Can I really let Yu use my spiritual root? Is it possible? Maybe it's not entirely impossible..."
Zhang Yu added, "You're so stingy. I let you play with my 100,000-value talisman book several times."
Bai Zhenzhen retorted, "And you have the nerve to say that? You only let me touch it a few times, never letting me use it properly."
Zhang Yu sighed, "I was afraid you'd accidentally bankrupt me. Fine, I'll let you play with it on the way today."
They boarded the subway and luckily found two seats.
Zhang Yu, as usual, took every second to cultivate his mental techniques and improve his Dao heart.
Bai Zhenzhen leaned against him and curiously explored the talisman book.
About half an hour later, they arrived at Bailong High School.
After showing the monthly pass Song Hailong had arranged for them, they headed to the agreed-upon training room.
"Yu, look, so many people are kneeling in class. What are they doing?"
"Who knows? Maybe it's a Bailong tradition."
When they opened the door to the training room, they saw Song Hailong already inside, doing warm-up exercises.
Seeing Zhang Yu arrive, Song Hailong's eyes lit up, and he pointed to the ground.
"Lie down."
(End of Chapter)