The school was quiet as usual.
It was a norm that some of the instructors were away on leave. Usually, instructors had a lot of their plates and some even carried out missions.
Even though Fang Ping thought it was odd, he did not ask about it.
Even so, the students were more interested in talking about Fang Ping that day.
...
Discussions were heard early in the morning coming from the School of Weaponry Class (1).
“Are you saying that Zhao Lei’s no match for him? Is Fang Ping really as good as you say?
“Has he reached Peak Rank-1 already?”
“That’s impossible. How did he do it in such a short period of time? Didn’t he just start school? He’s not even a martial artist yet!”
“...”
The topic amongst the students was initially about how strong Fang Ping was. However, it started to sound much more different when the female students chimed in.
“He’s so cruel. Zhao Lei was beaten up so badly by him. It’s a shame I’ve been admiring him all this time. Let’s just say he won’t be getting any of my support anymore.”
“Exactly. Doesn’t Fang Ping feel any guilt? Because of what he had said, Fu Changding was battered by the enemies he made. I can’t believe it happened to the two strongest and hottest guys in the class.
“Sure, Fang Ping has got the brawns but definitely not the looks. Don’t you guys agree...”
“Wait, are you saying that Fu Changding wasn’t beaten up by him?”
“Don’t be crazy. Have you forgotten already? The two of them had made a pact before this. However, in the end, Fu Changding was the one who got beaten up, and Fang Ping was left without a bruise on his body.”
“Fang Ping definitely had the strength to save Fu Changding but he chose not to. What do you have to say about that?”
“I guess what you’re saying is true...”
“I didn’t expect the story to unfold this way.”
“I think Fang Ping’s pretty cute. Just a little, don’t you think?”
“You’re too naive! He can’t compare with Zhao Lei and the rest. Sure, he might have the strength, but I think he’s insecure around them.
“...”
There were not many girls in Fang Ping’s class. However, after their discussion about him, all of them saw him in a different light.
Yang Xiaoman could not help but eavesdrop on the conversation. She was about to interject when she thought twice and lowered her voice. She whispered, “He really is the cruelest of all!”
“His insecurity isn’t limited to just men. Even if you’re a woman, he won’t let you go if he feels the same way!”
“I only say this because he’s known to beat even women!”
“You all saw it with your own eyes. He had attacked a girl just when school had begun. Yesterday, I could tell that he was thinking about hitting me. So, I suggest everyone to be wary of that violent and hateful man. Don’t even think about dating him.
“Of course he’s strong, but there’s a sea of guys from all the martial arts universities to choose from. Just try and stay as far away as you can from him.
“You guys understand?
“But you didn’t hear it from me. Just be careful everyone. If he suddenly feels inferior around you, don’t say I didn’t warn you when he acts up again.”
“That’s scary!”
“Xiaoman, was he really going to hit you?”
“I swear to God. Just keep your voice down, he’s known to have an acute sense of hearing. As long as nobody dates him for these four years, all of you are safe. When the new intake of girls come next year, remember to warn all of them so that they won’t fall into his evil grasp.”
“...”
With that, the discussion about Fang Ping finally came to a close. In the end, the girls had reached a unanimous agreement to never chase after Fang Ping as well as fall for him!
There was a sea of good guys for them to choose from. Moreover, the seniors in MCMAU were on par as well.
Since Fang Ping had the image of a domestic abuser, the stronger he became, the higher the of danger for being his girlfriend. If you so much as looked better than him, you would receive a black eye from his insecurity!
...
Naturally, Fang Ping was out of the loop as the gossip about him was spread around.
Contrary to the rumors, he did not possess great hearing, unlike how everyone had described. Furthermore, he was not interested in the tittle-tattles of his classmates.
However, he could tell that everyone somehow saw him in a different light.
At first, Fang Ping thought that the news of him killing someone had spread.
It was not until after dinner when they were on their way to special training class together that Fang Ping found out the real reason everyone had been treating him differently.
After they had finished their meal, Fang Ping and Fu Changding made their way to the special training class. However, Fu Changding suddenly made a grimace.
He asked, ” Fang Ping, why didn’t you try and save me on the first day of school?”
Fang Ping was caught off guard by his question. ‘It’s been over a month. Why’d that guy bring it up?’
Throughout the past few days, he had been riling up Fu Changding. Fang Ping thought for a while and then answered, “I wasn’t a martial artist at that time yet. Even if I did wanted to save you, I wouldn’t have been able to.”
“Really?”
“Of course!”
“Well, then... Do you think that I’m... better looking than you?”
Fang Ping rolled his eyes, ignoring him.
Fu Changding asked dryly, “What about Zhao Lei... Do you think he’s better looking than you?”
“Are you trying to get beaten up or are you just showing off?”
“Are you really gonna hit me?”
Fu Changding looked frightened as if he had confirmed something. He fumbled around his words, saying, “Fang Ping, you don’t have to be this way. We can’t help but be good looking since we were born this way.”
“Plus, the bruises on my face have just started to fade...”
It seemed like Fu Changding had bought Fang Ping’s stories.
He genuinely thought that Fang Ping would attack anyone that looked better than him.
Especially when Fu Changding obviously checked the boxes for being particularly good looking as well as being strong.
“Are you kidding me?”
Fang Ping was mad at him but after some hesitation, he decided to ask what they had been talking about. It was then when he found out the rumors about him among the girls.
“All the girls are saying that you’re insecure around handsome guys and may also be jealous of pretty girls. Not to mention, when you’re around hot people of any gender, you have the urge to hit them in the face.
“Someone even warned me to... stay away from you unless I want a black eye.
“Actually... Actually, I’ve even started to believe them...”
Fu Changding asked dryly, “Fang Ping, do you think you actually have such a tendency but haven’t realized it yet?
“I mean look at you. Everyone can see that you’ve made enemies with Zhao Lei. I don’t blame people for saying such things about you.”
“All of us saw how horrible you treated Yang Xiaoman and her gang while you were friendly toward Zhao Xuemei. Is it true that you treat people based on their looks?
“I... I heard you on the phone the other day. You were encouraging your sister to eat more so that she wouldn’t get thinner...
“Do you really have a problem with people being good looking?”
Fang Ping’s face darkened right away!
Without uttering a word, he walked away. Under his breath, he muttered with rage, “Yang Xiaoman!”
Fu Changding had a sudden realization as he spoke softly to himself, “Maybe it isn’t jealousy but more so the way he perceives beauty.”
‘Maybe the reason Fang Ping dislikes beautiful women and handsome guys is perhaps that in his eyes, such people are ugly.
‘So that was the reason why he didn’t attack me but got closer to me instead... Maybe it’s because Fang Ping thinks that he’s ugly and feels like he needs me, the most good looking guy in class, to serve as a foil to his perceived beauty instead.’
When Fu Changding thought of it that way, everything finally made sense to him.
...
Fang Ping sulked at Fu Changding’s words that repeatedly rang in his mind. The more he tried to forget about it, the faster he got over the incident.
‘It’s not a big deal. I’ll have my chance next time, and I’ll teach both of them a lesson. Fu Changding and Yang Xiaoman won’t see it coming.’
Classroom Block No. 6.
When the special training classes had first started, the school allocated the entire Classroom Block No. 6 specifically for it.
Although there were only 50 students in the class, the school did not care at all. In one swift moment, all of the classes that were originally taught in Classroom Block No. 6 were instantly changed to other classroom blocks.
For the following few months, Classroom Block No. 6 was the official building for special training classes.
The biggest classroom in Classroom Block No. 6.
By the time Fang Ping and his classmates had arrived, an instructor was already waiting in the classroom.
It was not Tang Feng nor was it any of the Rank-6 instructors. Instead, it was Bai Ruoxi. He had made an impression on Fang Ping previously.
She was the Peak Rank-5 iron lady, who compared to Lu Fengrou, was much younger.
When school had first begun, most of the male students wanted to be trained by her. However, it was too bad that Bai RuoXi only trained female students. Among her students, Chen Yunxi was one of them.
Earlier that day, Tang Feng mentioned that a Rank-6 instructor would be mentoring them. Nobody had expected the first class to be taught by Bai Ruoxi.
Bai Ruoxi looked around thirty-something years old, but her actual age might have been a few years older.
The combination of her immortal look and the fact that she specialized in sword-wielding led to her possessing an ethereal aura around her. A celestial feeling emanated from her, and with looks of softness and delicateness, it was no wonder she was popular with the students.
Fu Changding was filled with excitement when he saw Bai Ruoxi. He acclaimed, “A goddess amidst our presence! I never thought I’d have the chance to be in her class. I wonder what’s the probability of me having a few private sword classes with her...”
“Are you serious?”
Fang Ping was at a lost for words. ‘Is that really necessary? She’s a woman in her thirties. She’s probably a happily married wife with a kid already. I’d like to see the look on his face when he finds out that her kid is older than him!’
Naturally, Fu Changding ignored his comment as all his attention was on the lady. It was the same for all the other boys.
From the moment they stepped in, until the moment she finally spoke when everyone had settled down, she bore a warm smile on her face. Her voice was comforting as she said, “Today marks the very first day of special training classes for all of you. I’ll be your instructor for today.
“The special training classes comprise of both martial sciences and general knowledge classes.
Mentor Tang, along with the other instructors, will be much busier throughout the next few days. Therefore, I’ll be taking over the general knowledge classes for the time being.”
“Both martial sciences and general knowledge classes?”
In an instant, a wave of plaintiff sighs swept across the whole class.
Their days were packed as they had them filled with cultural studies and general studies that occupied time in the morning.
They thought, ‘Aren’t our nights supposed to be focused on improving our martial arts?’
Now that they knew they had to learn about general studies as well, it was going to be the death of them!
Bai Ruoxi chuckled. “Don’t worry, general studies in the special training class will be slightly different. There won’t be any note-taking nor written exams, so just relax.
“However, there’s an important thing that everyone is required to do before the class starts.”
Bai Ruoxi held up a few documents from the podium and said, “This is the confidentiality agreement and the letter of indemnity.
“Everything that you learn in the special training class and everything that you hear is to be kept confidential. They cannot leave this classroom!
“The letter of indemnity is a contractual document regarding life and death. When one agrees to enter the special training class, they agree to accept all the risks stemming from a few life-threatening training syllabi.
“There is the possibility of serious injuries or even death. Everyone will be held accountable for their own actions.
“Of course, you can choose to opt-out it if you do not agree with the terms.”
“Life and death situations?”
Most of them were fine with the confidentiality agreement, but the letter of indemnity left some of them looking pale.
With the same ethereal and gentle tone, Bai Ruoxi said, “MCMAU will not make the decision for you. Since all of you are new students, we’re giving you the opportunity to choose whether you want to go through with it.
“On the other hand, there’s no need to remind you at all if you’re a senior.
“I’m guessing some of you already know that there are cases of casualties among MCMAU students each year, be it in training courses or exercises.
“For them, the letter of indemnity is already an unspoken basic requirement.
“However, everyone here gets to choose their own fate. If anyone wants to opt-out, you can leave immediately.”
Among the crowd, some were hesitant while some were thinking about it. In the end, however, nobody quit.
10 credits had been awarded to each of them just for enrolling in the class. The thought of having to return the credits was enough to deter them from quitting.
Before they could think about standing out, they would first have to gain the advantage of a low-hanging fruit that was within their grasps.
...
After the confidentiality agreements and letters of indemnity had been passed out, the students proceeded to sign their names on the dotted lines of the form.
Fang Ping observed the whole thing in detail. After making sure that the terms were exactly as Bai Ruoxi had described, he certified his name on the papers as well.
When all the students had finished signing the form, a smile worked its way across Bai Ruoxi’s face as she said, “Well done. I expected all the students of MCMAU to be of such caliber.
“I will now officially start the very first class of the special training class!”
After having finished her sentence, Bai Ruoxi went back up to the podium and said, “I believe everyone has had history classes before. So who can tell me what year it was when martial artists began to exist formally to the public?”
“The year 1921!”
Immediately, someone replied, “Up till 1921, the idea of martial artists spread only by word of mouth, and the public typically thought of it as a load of nonsense.
“That January, the government of Sino Nation at that time issued a telegram to the outside world and formally acknowledged the existence of martial artists by publishing it in the newspapers.
“They then started to assemble initiates in order to recruit the strongest martial artists.
“In the same year, the government at that time decided to formally establish the Capital Martial Arts Society... which is the predecessor of Capital City Martial Arts University that we all know of.
“Capital Martial Arts Society was the first public martial arts university that was officially recognized by Sino Nation. After it had been officiated, admissions were opened nationwide for recruitment.
“In that very year, Capital Martial Arts Society recruited a total of 181 students for their first admission... ”
The student who had answered her question knew their history very well to the extent of presenting the statistics fluently.
Bai Ruoxi was extremely pleased with the answer and nodded her head while saying, “A very precise answer from the student over here! The year martial artists officially became recognized by the public was indeed 1921!
“The legacy and establishment of martial artists were lengthy. In the past, its education was passed down in the form of apprentices, sects, other factions, and martial arts schools...
“All of which were through small-scale groups. For example, a teacher and three to five students were deemed as a martial arts sect.
“However, such kinds of class models were gradually eliminated after the establishment of the Capital Martial Arts Society.
“And now, it has evolved into a martial arts university.
“Currently, there are a total of 18 specialized martial arts universities in Sino Nation and 81 universities with established martial sciences departments. So all in all, there are a total of 99 martial arts universities!”
Bai Ruoxi continued, “Capital City Martial Arts University is regarded as one of the forefathers among the martial arts universities in the country with a history of 87 years.
“On the other hand, MCMAU’s history is shorter in comparison. We were established in 1949 and this year is our 59th anniversary.
“But in fact, there was a popular precursor event in 1920 that led to the appearance of martial artists, it was way before 1921 when the Capital Martial Arts Society had been established.
“I suppose most of you won’t know what the incident is about. Anyone of you would like to take a guess?”
Everyone had a blank look on their face. Most of them knew the history of the year 1921 but they wondered, ‘What major event took place in 1920?’
They were all at a loss but Fang Ping pondered about it for a while. Then, after a brief moment of thinking, he tried making a guess, “In 1920, natural disasters had been rampant in various places. They had brought droughts, floods, and earthquakes.
“In December that year, the worst earthquake ever recorded in Sino Nation caused hundreds of thousands of casualties.”
Bai Ruoxi glanced at him and nodded slightly. “That’s right, it was because of that!”
“When the earthquake in the northwestern region ended in December, the interim government at that time started to disclose information about martial artists to the outside world. They began to plan out martial arts training on a large scale the following January. Thus, Capital Martial Arts Society was born.”
Fang Ping’s pupils constricted as if he had reached a deeper level of truth!
Bai Ruoxi continued, “Therefore, the establishment and expansion of all the other martial arts universities were all in fact due to some kind of natural disaster.
“The number of students who enroll at martial arts universities has increased exponentially ever since then. In the beginning, there were 181 students. Then, it was 1800, and now, twenty to thirty thousand new students apply to martial arts universities each year.
“Currently, the total number of active students in the whole of Sino Nation is close to 100 thousand!
“On the other hand, the number of graduated martial sciences students is even more. Although the numbers haven’t always been this high, the average recruits per year reached at least ten thousand within the past 50 years; that is if we factor in our numbers nowadays that reach up to twenty to thirty thousand annually.
“After all these years, the martial arts universities have trained more than 60 thousand students to become martial artists; omitting the ones that have passed away!
“And all these numbers are just within the martial arts universities. What more if we counted the ones trained in the Military Department or the Department of Investigation Services or the martial arts training courses...
“If we counted all of them, the total number of martial artists in Sino Nation should be at least 2 million.
“But in fact, the realistic number of martial artists is far less than this.
“Of course, even if the numbers are meager, martial artists who are worth millions aren’t few and far between either. If the number of martial artists was to increase, then being one wouldn’t pay as much. Hence the question, why is the number of martial artists still the same as before?
“Has anyone thought about this?
“Is it because only stronger martial artists prevail?
“Of course, there are a few factors in this regard, but the answer isn’t as simple as that. Has anyone ever thought deeply about this?
“Also, has anyone wondered why the news regarding martial artists was published by the officials in 1921? Why did they want to encourage people to be martial artists?”
“For as long as time, martial artists were the ones who used violence to bring down officials of the past that had laws they didn’t agree with!”
“So realistically, the presence of martial artist was at its brink before 1921 came about. Theoretically, if those in power wanted to stay in power, they would have wanted to eliminate martial artists instead.
“At that time, the number of martial artists in the entire nation was less than ten thousand people.
“If the situation continued for another ten more years in which the government took no measures, martial artists would cease to exist. The trend clearly showed that the nation’s progress was inversely proportional to the presence of martial artists.
“If martial arts education was as before, its current numbers may not have reached a thousand. Not to forget, the worst outcome, extinction.
“So why did they publicize it and promote it? Furthermore, why was the status of being a martial artist ranked highly?”
Bai Ruoxi’s questions came one after another and it started to boil up feelings of anxiousness among the students. They were curious and wanted to ask questions, but they did not know where to start.