Chapter 50: A Glimpse Behind the Curtain (1)
The academy entrance examination season was drawing nearer and nearer. On the second day after Su Yu went shopping, he went to school. There, he could feel the nervous atmosphere pervading the students. Those in the final year seemed to always be in a rush. The fighting trend in the school had also ended. None of the students were in any mood to pick fights any longer. Su Yu was on his way to meet Liu Wenyan when he stumbled upon someone unexpected.
Xia Bing. A squad leader in the Martial Dragon Guards, leader of the Martial Dragon Guards stationed in Nanyuan. During the Myriad Race Cult's attack, the Martial Dragon Guards had been temporarily stationed in Nanyuan Secondary School. However, their actual Nanyuan base was somewhere else. Few people knew the actual location of the base.
Xia Bing was a second-stage Skysoar expert. That was the same cultivation level the mayor had. Su Yu was naturally aware of how powerful the Martial Dragon Guards were. He had wanted to join them previously. Even after learning about the prowess of cultural researchers, he still had a tiny urge to join the Martial Dragon Guards deep within his heart. But that wasn't an easy army to join. His father had been wanting to join them for many years but never succeeded.
Xia Bing naturally saw Su Yu as well. He was rushing away, but when he walked near Su Yu, he stopped.
When Su Yu felt Xia Bing's gaze on him, he hurriedly stopped and bowed. "Sir Xia."
Xia Bing nodded. He studied Su Yu for a bit before an odd look covered his face. "You reached the eighth-stage?"
Su Yu was surprised that Xia Bing was paying him that much attention. He replied, "Yeah. I broke through yesterday."
"You're improving very fast." After a short pause, Xia Bing continued, "I had thought that you would reach the seventh-stage rapidly and slow down after that. It's quite surprising that you can reach the eighth-stage."
Su Yu did not know what to say. Was Xia Bing actually paying attention to his progress? There was no connection whatsoever between the two of them.
With the same serious expression that seemed eternally imprinted on his face, Xia Bing said, "Bai Feng's Source Opening Codex was merely an incomplete product. Since you can reach the eighth-stage with it, it is clear that you have a decent talent in physical cultivation. I know your father. He has visited us multiple times to join us, but he is not good enough to join."
Su Yu felt somewhat awkward. He didn't know what to say to that as well.
Xia Bing did not care about Su Yu's reaction. He continued, "I am also a veteran of the Devil Subduing Army. However, I joined the army much later than your father. He was already retired when I joined. Six years ago, I was transferred to the Martial Dragon Guards and appointed the squad leader of the Nanyuan branch."
Su Yu remained silent. He did not know why Xia Bing was telling him all that.
"The cultural research academy isn't as good as you think. They spend their time scheming against each other and can never amount to anything before achieving willpower materialization. I don't like the people there. I prefer war academies and the Martial Dragon Guards. Of course, my preference has nothing to do with you."
His face turned solemn, "Your father once said that since he couldn't join the Martial Dragon Guards, he hoped that his son could one day do so and continue serving under the prefect. You can consider joining the Martial Dragon War Academy instead. That place…is not as dirty as the cultural research academy."
"Sir..." Su Yu was astonished. Was Xia Bing trying to recruit him?
Xia Longwu calmly said, "The Martial Dragon Guards are stationed in the various cities. They are also in charge of selecting the preparatory soldiers of the prefecture. You were unqualified to join before. But that has changed. Of course, this is only a suggestion."
"I shouldn't be telling you all this, but your father is a fellow veteran of the Devil Subduing Army so I don't mind telling you more. The cultural research academy is a much more complicated place nowadays. It is unpeaceful inside with numerous factions. Some fellows who used to focus on research are starting to stir as well. Because of that, things are getting messier and messier there.
"Your current teacher Liu Wenyan, Bai Feng who is trying to accept you as his personal student, and Bai Feng's teacher, Researcher Hong, are from the same faction. The situation there is much more complicated than what I can tell you. In short, it won't do you good to get involved in that mess."
Su Yu was lost. He softly said, "I don't understand what you're saying, sir. I'm only a secondary school student that has yet to get through the entrance examination."
"You'll come to understand." Xia Bing said, "Remember. Great Xia is still Great Xia."
He then walked away. Su Yu sank into thought. After a short while, he smiled helplessly before walking away as well. He really didn't understand what Xia Bing was trying to say. Clearly, Xia Bing was trying to warn him of something, suggesting that the cultural research might not be that good and the Martial Dragon War Academy might be a better place with more focus on cultivation.
In the past, Su Yu would definitely be overjoyed to hear that. But he had already decided to enter the Great Xia Cultural Research Academy. In terms of willpower cultivation, there was no comparing a war academy with a cultural research academy.
Furthermore, he had learned from Liu Wenyan for so long. His initial goal had been to join a cultural research academy. He had only changed his mind because he was worried that a cultural research academy wouldn't help with his combat strength, a concern that was no longer present.
.
...
Inside the office.
This time, Liu Wenyan wasn't reading. Instead, he was writing. From Su Yu's perspective, the characters Liu Wenyan wrote were nice and much better looking than his.
"Something in your mind?" Liu Wenyan did not have to look up to sense that something was troubling Su Yu.
"Nothing. I stumbled on Squad Leader Xia just now..."
"He told you to join the Martial Dragon War Academy?"
"Yes."
"Ignore him." Surprisingly, Liu Wenyan wasn't furious. He sighed and said, "Did he say that the cultural research academy does not suit you? Or did he say that the cultural research academy has degenerated?"
"Erm..."
"Don't worry about it. This isn't the first time he said something like that. In fact, a lot of people in the Martial Dragon Guards are saying the same thing.
"He's right. The cultural research academy is no longer the same. After the fifth principal passed and the sixth principal took office, the academy entered a phase of rapid development. The rapid growth has inevitably brought about some negative influences.
"Fifty years ago, the academy wasn't as strong as it is now. But it is also not as messy. There is no avoiding that. Ambition grows alongside strength. Schemes, lies, and competitions are things you need to experience. It is also a form of training. The ones capable of rising in such a chaotic situation will be the truly strong ones."
Su Yu frowned, "Instructor, are things really that messy in the cultural research academy."
"It's not that bad. The overall situation is still under control. Naturally, there are things happening in the dark."
Liu Wenyan looked up at this favorite student of his and said, "The Martial Dragon Guards are very unhappy with the academy, but that's mainly because of the prefect."
"What?" Su Yu was astonished. "Is Prefect Xia unhappy with the academy?"
"I guess so." Liu Wenyan sighed. "This has nothing to do with you, so you don't really need to care about it too much. But since Xia Bing has touched on the topic, I'll tell you a bit about it.
"Prefect Xia...I won't be commenting on how he is as a person. But the various factions have different views on him. Some see him as a strict person, some see him as a strong person, and some see him as a stubborn person. Those were the three terms most commonly used to describe Prefect Xia."
"Stubborn?" Su Yu caught onto the main point. He asked, "What do you mean by stubborn?"
"The literal meaning of the word." Liu Wenyan put his pen down and said, "It's not derogatory, but some of his political views are unpopular among a lot of people. Back then at the Allheaven Battlefield, he encountered a lot of resistance due to his political views."
"Why?"
"He's too stubborn. On the Allheaven Battlefield, numerous races fight against each other. Some races are our sworn enemies that can't be spared. But there are also races that can actually be roped in as allies. At the very least, we can turn them into neutral parties."
Liu Wenyan shook his head and sighed, "But during the period of time when Prefect Xia was in command of the Devil Subduing Army, he had slaughtered the armies of many different races, including several neutral races that turned antagonistic toward the human race as a result. That was why he was removed from his position."