Discussion

When Chen Chuan walked back toward the crowd alone, an empty street stretched behind him all the way into the distance, with only the defeated Douma lying on the ground. The students fell into a daze for a moment. Chen Chuan glanced around. All the Maka students, including those who had taken part in the attack, had now been subdued by the students of Wuyi Academy. As Upper Hall students of Wuyi, they were already reserve law enforcers, so stepping in at this moment posed no issue at all. The students were all looking at him now, their eyes filled with shock, curiosity, and above all, admiration. Even if Douma was a Maka, he was still an instructor after all. For Chen Chuan to bring him down in one-on-one combat was a level of prowess they knew was far beyond their own. When he reached the front of the group, a student with an admiring expression handed him his jacket. He said his thanks and took it. During the fight, his shirt had been torn in quite a few places, so he draped the jacket over himself and buttoned it up. At that moment, he checked his Second Self in passing. Large areas had blurred into translucence, clearly showing that it had absorbed a considerable amount of damage during the fight. Yet during the clash, he hadn't recklessly disregarded everything just because his Second Self could absorb damage. Throughout the combat, he had used blocking, dodging, and other maneuvers as much as possible to minimize damage, only letting the Second Self shoulder what he truly could neither parry nor evade. Because he understood that the defense of his Second Self had its upper limit and had to be used with caution. Once the Second Self was shattered, not only would he be unable to protect himself, but his combat capability would also drastically plummet. Therefore, even when holding the upper hand, he remained very cautious in deploying the Second Self. After fastening his last button, he saw Guan Xinyin walk over, holding the cap he had dropped earlier during the pursuit. Handing it to him, she said, "Student Chen, here." Chen Chuan took it and put it on, straightening the brim. "Student Guan, thank you." Guan Xinyin looked at Chen Chuan and said with frank admiration, "Looks like there's no need for our match anymore. Even though I've developed jin, I'm still far behind you." She actually really wanted to ask whether Chen Chuan had also trained in external conditioning, but she held back. Knowing that personal techniques were private matters, she knew better than to pry into what shouldn't be asked. Chen Chuan said, "Student Guan, since we had an agreement beforehand, I can wait. Whenever you feel the time is right, just let me know in advance." "All right!" Guan Xinyin was straightforward as well. Being unable to beat him now didn't mean she never could; and even if she could never beat him, he would make an excellent target to chase after. Chen Chuan looked back then and saw Luo Kaiyuan walk over to Teacher Douma alone, gazing at him silently before walking away after a while. Just then, armored vehicles came driving in from the other end of the street. The constabulary's vehicles had arrived. From the start of the gunfire to the end, barely ten minutes had passed, so their response time wasn't slow. The security details at the plaza, however, had never shown up. Their primary mission was to protect the officials of the Municipal Administration. As for pursuing fugitives, that was the constabulary's responsibility and had nothing to do with them; no matter how chaotic things became outside, they wouldn't venture out to intervene. Teacher Han walked over now. It was rather frustrating—as an instructor of the Enforcement Office, he also held a nominal post in the Disposal Bureau, so he had been obligated to participate in guarding the Municipal Administration officials. Only after they had all been safely evacuated did he have the time to check the situation outside. He glanced at the defeated Douma. Seeing the mutated appearance, his eyes narrowed slightly, and finally his gaze settled on Chen Chuan. He seemed to have wanted to say something, but right before speaking, it turned into: "Are you all right?" Chen Chuan said, "Teacher, I'm fine." "You really are bold enough—and you actually won." Teacher Han sighed with emotion. In the past, he had seen only one student with this kind of strength, and now he was seeing another. He looked around at the students and said sternly, "I can't say you were wrong to step in, but the other side had guns. If you lost your lives over this, it wouldn't be worth it at all. Since no one was hurt this time, I won't say much more, but think it through before making a decision in the future." The students offered scattered responses. Teacher Han said, "The constabulary will handle things here, and the academy will deal with the aftermath. Now, everyone follow me back to school." On the way back to the academy, Luo Kaiyuan sat beside Chen Chuan. He suddenly spoke up, "I don't understand why they had to do that. It was already a gift to the government. Even if they wanted it back, did they have to do it this way?" Chen Chuan knew he was referring to the oak leaf. After thinking for a moment, he said, "Perhaps it has some special purpose, and they feared we wouldn't return it, leaving them no choice but to do this?" In his mind, he was also pondering Douma's dying words: the deepening of the world's resonance... What did that mean? Was it just a Maka expression? From what he knew, Maka customs were attuned to nature, and they did often speak of mystical concepts, but this time he felt it wasn't that simple. When the vehicle arrived at the academy, it was just about mealtime, so the two decided to head to the cafeteria to eat first. Luo Kaiyuan called Feng Xiaoqi, who hurried out and immediately asked when they met, "I heard you got attacked today? And the Maka students and teacher stole the sacred relic used in the ceremony?" Luo Kaiyuan said, "You found out already?" "Someone called the academy. I heard people from the Municipal Administration got shot too? Did you see it?" Chen Chuan nodded. "A resistance organization might be involved in this. But it wasn't just officials from the Municipal Administration who got shot; quite a few civilians were hit too. The specifics aren't clear yet, so we'll have to wait for follow-up news." "Oh, I see." Seeing that the two didn't seem keen on dwelling on the matter, Feng Xiaoqi tactfully held his tongue and didn't bring it up again. After dinner, Chen Chuan returned to his dormitory and called Cheng Zitong. Once connected, he recounted what had happened today. Cheng Zitong said, "I know about the incident. Good to hear you're all right. I'll drop by your place tonight, mainly to discuss testing for the unlimited defense license." Chen Chuan's expression turned earnest. "All right, Teacher." After hanging up, he glanced at his wristwatch, then aligned his Second Self with his own body before heading to the training room for his daily routine. When the alignment ended, he checked the time against his watch. Defeating Douma had added roughly twenty-odd minutes, bringing his total alignment duration to around two hours. Two hours seemed long, but during today's battle, every heavy blow he suffered had shaved off a bit of alignment time, leaving little remaining by the end. Considering that he still had to contend with urban legends from time to time—and those things defied all reason—he needed to keep pushing, increasing the alignment duration as much as possible to secure greater self-preservation. At seven in the evening, Cheng Zitong arrived as promised. Walking in the door, he said, "You kid really are something. Even Douma was beaten by you. While the Makas have never been known for high standards, anyone who makes instructor sits beyond a certain threshold. It seems you've progressed even faster than I thought." Chen Chuan invited him to sit and poured him a glass of water, saying, "Teacher, I just don't understand why they did it." Cheng Zitong said, "Hard to say. Small nations have their own hardships. But it has little to do with us; that's for the higher-ups to worry about. When our strength is small, we just need to take care of our own business." Once Chen Chuan sat down, he continued, "I went through all that material you brought. That cousin of yours is quite capable, and his analysis makes a lot of sense. Looking at the surface, it's true: testing for the defense license in your first year gives you the best chance of passing higher-level vetting. "The crux of the matter doesn't lie there, however. Once you get the defense license, you're likely to run into the same resistance Shen Zheng faced back then. If you were to get it in your third year, you would possess a certain level of martial power to protect yourself." Chen Chuan thought it over and said, "I originally thought so too. But then I considered it further, Teacher. Was Senior Shen really lacking in martial prowess? "Senior Shen's injuries were all self-inflicted; none came from others. I suspect that precisely because of the defense license, he wasn't attacked directly, but manipulated through other means instead. That proves causing trouble for someone doesn't necessarily take raw force. "What I'm thinking is, after what happened to Senior Shen, certain people might be even more wary of capable students. "Looking at it from the other perspective, dealing with a student without a defense license is likely far easier than dealing with one who holds one. From that angle, obtaining the defense license early might actually be better." Cheng Zitong hummed in acknowledgment and nodded. "That's one way to look at it." Chen Chuan continued, "Teacher, when I defeated Douma today, the last thing I heard him say was that the world's resonance is deepening. It seemed that was why they risked everything for that oak leaf. Do you know what that means?" "The world's resonance?" Cheng Zitong pondered for a moment, then shook his head. "Never heard of it." Chen Chuan said, "The Makas risked their lives to take back what they had gifted to Great Shun. Regardless of its purpose, given such urgency, I infer from the clues that there's a strong likelihood the world is about to undergo some change—something exceptionally important that might impact the entire world, and very likely ties into us fighters. "If there's no way to know in Yangzhi, the answers can probably only be found in Center City. If I can go there sooner, and it turns out to be beneficial, I might be able to catch the wave. If I go too late, it'll be hard to say." Cheng Zitong mulled it over and said cautiously, "This still requires prudence. Your cousin's dossier also mentioned that a branch academy student once earned a recommendation to enter Center City, which might be replicable, but the specific follow-up details are still being tracked down?" Chen Chuan said, "Yes." Cheng Zitong said, "That's important too and well worth studying. Once you obtain it, I'll go over it with you." Pausing briefly, he looked at Chen Chuan. "Xiao Chuan, if you make up your mind, as your teacher, I will support you with everything I've got. "If there's a chance to reach Center City, you must try no matter what. Otherwise, staying trapped in a single circle forever without ever seeing the wider world holds little meaning. When I was young, I lacked the courage and resolve to do it. You might be able to, and I hope you will. But remember: before making your choice, ensure every preparation is complete." Chen Chuan listened intently and said, "Understood. I will keep your reminder in mind." Cheng Zitong nodded, then tapped the desk with his finger. "Right. On the list your cousin gave you, he emphasized departmental evaluations. That's spot on. Whether you test early or not, departmental evaluations are vital. Relying on the Disposal Bureau alone is far too flimsy, and even with a recommendation from the constabulary now, it might not be entirely secure. "Director Lei's case does offer a viable possibility to handle, but with clues missing right now, it's hard for me to make a judgment. Although I don't know Director Lei personally, there's someone who has a good relationship with him. Go pay her a visit first to get a grasp of the situation." With that, he pulled a name card from his briefcase and handed it to Chen Chuan. "She's my martial niece—one of our own, essentially. If you have questions, just ask her directly." After briefing Chen Chuan on everything, Cheng Zitong didn't linger and stood up to leave. Just as he stepped out the door, a thought suddenly crossed his mind: *The world's resonance... could it be what the old man talked about...?* He shook his head, tucked the briefcase under his arm, and walked out, musing inwardly: *Still, this student has a point. If it really is an impact on a global scale, waiting around isn't an option. We have to seize the lead as early as possible.*