...

Night had fallen, and the hour was late.

Sounds occasionally drifted down from upstairs, like someone rolling back and forth, turning the place upside down, a commotion of movement...

In short, Gao Neng was certain that Fang Tangtang was not yet asleep.

He couldn’t sleep either. Fang Tangtang had told him so much more after their initial conversation—about the significance of forming a team, the format of the annual new student orientation, and so on.

His first day of school.

Gao Neng had insomnia.

The Eastern Capital Military Academy was far more brutal than he had imagined. It wasn’t just a military academy anymore; calling it the Eastern Capital Military District’s boot camp wouldn’t be an exaggeration.

’First, I have to become a Tier One Energy Warrior!’

Since he couldn’t sleep, Gao Neng started to sing while continuing to magnetize his muscles.

During the two hours on the plane, Gao Neng had nearly finished magnetizing the muscles in his right palm. Now he had two choices: continue magnetizing his right arm, or magnetize his left palm.

The expert chose the latter.

’You have to be strong with both hands. How can you beat someone up with just one?’

"In a happy pond lived a little frog. It danced as if possessed by a Prince. With its cool gaze, no other frog could compare. One day, it would be awakened by a Princess..."

Having made his decision, Gao Neng began to sing at the top of his lungs.

At that moment, the once-silent night of the Eastern Capital Military Academy was shattered by the infectious tune of "Little Jumping Frog."

Gao Neng sang with great concentration, the energy from his magnetic core continuously nourishing the muscles of his left palm. Strangely, the sound of Fang Tangtang rolling around on the second floor gradually faded.

Eventually, it was replaced by the sound of soft breathing.

Against all odds, Fang Tangtang had drifted off to dreamland amidst the catchy "Little Jumping Frog." She was really asleep!

But unlike Fang Tangtang, the other new students who had already been asleep... were now awake.

They began to toss and turn in their beds. Every now and then, a student would throw open a window to peer outside. They endured it with great difficulty, periodically blurting out a furious curse.

"Who the hell is caterwauling in the middle of the night?!"

...

「The next morning, the sun was bright.」

Time: 8:00 AM sharp.

After breakfast, Gao Neng and Fang Tangtang headed to the Eastern Capital Military Academy’s training grounds, walking with a spring in their step.

Today, Fang Tangtang had changed into a fiery red "Battle Garment." It had a small cape in the back, a golden bow in the front, and was paired with a black miniskirt and white stockings.

As for the Scythe of Death, she still had it slung over her shoulder.

Gao Neng, on the other hand, was dressed ordinarily.

But despite not sleeping a wink, he was still full of vigor.

However, compared to Gao Neng and Fang Tangtang, the other new students were filled with resentment.

The 1,200 new students of the Eastern Capital Military Academy were lined up neatly on the training grounds. But all of them had bloodshot eyes and dark circles, their gazes constantly scanning their surroundings.

"I can’t believe it. That bastard actually sang all night long!"

"Yeah, if I find out who it was, I’ll beat him to death! You have no idea, that voice is still echoing in my head..."

"Tell me about it."

The new students cursed under their breath.

Gao Neng could clearly feel the thick killing intent swirling around him, but he wasn’t the least bit flustered. After all, he had successfully magnetized both of his palms.

According to what Chen Bai had described,

he had officially entered Tier One.

With his strength increased, his confidence naturally grew as well.

Besides, even in the worst-case scenario, there were 1,200 new students standing on the training grounds. Who could possibly guess that he was the one singing last night?

’Beat me to death? Naive!’ Gao Neng thought with a disdainful expression.

"DING! Host’s confidence has reached explosive levels. Ultimate Mission 5/5, ’A Red Star Shines Bright,’ now officially active!" a mechanical voice rang out at that moment.

’It’s active?!’ Gao Neng subconsciously pulled up the mission panel.

"Ultimate Mission 5/5: A Red Star Shines Bright (Complete ’A Red Star Shines Bright’ to receive one Advanced Treasure Chest, 100% guaranteed)."

"Mission Description: You are the brightest red star in the sky. No one can dim your light. New students? Teachers? The principal? No! None of them can outshine your brilliance! A passionate youth must soar. Sing, Red Star!"

"Completion Conditions: During the new student orientation, sing any song from ’Three Hundred Nursery Rhymes’ for a duration of one hour and successfully survive."

"Countdown: 30 seconds."

"Countdown: 29 seconds."

"Countdown: ..."

"..." Gao Neng’s face was now bright red.

Mencius said: "When Heaven is about to confer a great responsibility on a person, it will first fill their heart with suffering, toil their sinews and bones, subject their body to hunger, expose them to poverty, and frustrate their undertakings. In this way, it stimulates their mind, toughens their nature, and improves their incompetence."

’But it doesn’t have to be *this* much suffering, does it?’

’This isn’t suffering anymore...’

’I’m really going to get beaten to death!’

Gao Neng had actually been mentally prepared for something like this. In fact, after hearing Fang Tangtang talk about "shining brightly" last night, he had already steeled himself to show off his brilliance at the new student orientation.

For example, by challenging this year’s top new student.

Or perhaps by claiming the title of Rookie King?

He had even considered grinding Fang Tangtang into the dirt.

But the one thing he never expected was...

...that this stupid system would make him sing.

And most importantly, he could already see the high platform on the training grounds, which was filled with the academy’s leaders and rows upon rows of instructors.

According to the normal procedure for a new student orientation...

...those leaders were supposed to give speeches!

A so-called orientation was, naturally, centered around "instructing" and "guiding." Wasn’t that something anyone with eyes could figure out?

If things went as expected, these leaders were about to lay down some harsh truths.

"Do you all think you’re geniuses?"

"No, you’re all trash!"

"The road ahead is long. The Eastern Capital Military Academy is just your starting point. If you want something, you must fight for it. Cowardice will only make you regress; it will not help you improve!"

"..."

Gao Neng’s mind was already playing out a variety of scenarios.

And after the "instructing" would come the "guiding."

Fang Tangtang had mentioned it yesterday. The "instructing" was about rules—nothing can be accomplished without rules. The "guiding" was about guiding them toward competition. Making the new students compete was what the military academy wanted to see.

And reality...

...was unfolding just as Gao Neng had predicted.

The four principals of the Eastern Capital Military Academy were currently giving a slight nod to Gu Yi, the dean of the Logistics Academy.

After six days of enforcing school rules and observing the students, they had all noticed the restless hearts of these young prodigies.

What should be done at a time like this?

Mindless suppression?

No.

Suppression was necessary, because pride leads to complacency.

However, mindless suppression would only crush the new students’ confidence.

Soldiers should stand tall and proud, with their heads held high.

The military academy didn’t need "soldiers" without confidence, but it also couldn’t let everyone think that just because they’d gotten into the Eastern Capital Military Academy, they were some kind of prodigy.

The Eastern Capital Military Academy was far more brutal than they imagined.

On the platform,

Gu Yi began to scan his surroundings. His gaze swept over the new students standing below. Every year at the new student orientation, they always made arrangements in advance.

This was also one of the reasons it was scheduled for September 9th. 𝗳𝚛𝗲𝕖𝚠𝚎𝚋𝗻𝗼𝕧𝗲𝐥.𝚌𝚘𝐦

First, get a feel for the situation.

Then, appropriately, introduce a "catalyst."

Gu Yi’s gaze finally settled on three new students.

Kong Kun: Male, 18 years old, 1.8 meters tall, nickname (Bone Kun), top scorer of the Eastern Capital college entrance exam, ranked second in the Eastern District’s new student comprehensive assessment. Strength: Tier Two Mid Stage.

Feng Qingqing: Female, 18 years old, 1.69 meters tall, youthful and lively, third-highest scorer of the Eastern Capital college entrance exam, former school belle of Eastern Capital High School, ranked sixth in the Eastern District’s new student comprehensive assessment. Strength: Tier Two Early Stage.

Li Qing: Male, 18 years old, 1.76 meters tall, top scorer of the Lingjiang Province college entrance exam, ranked eighth in the Eastern District’s new student comprehensive assessment. Strength: Tier Two Early Stage.

These three were the "catalysts"!

With their good family backgrounds and sufficient strength, an outburst from these three would surely stir up the fighting spirit of the other new students, making them understand that only by fighting could they obtain resources.

Soldiers have a strong sense of punctuality.

Of the 1,200 new students, not a single one was late.

Gu Yi had no intention of deliberately delaying things to let the sun beat down on the new students. It was unnecessary and, frankly, quite boring.

He stood up.

He walked to the very front of the high platform, then glanced back at the four principals behind him.

The four principals nodded again, signaling that he could begin.

"Ahem!" Gu Yi coughed heavily. At his level of strength, he naturally didn’t need a microphone. His two coughs were enough to quiet the new students on the training grounds.

And the result...

...was just as Gu Yi had expected.

In an instant, the 1,200 new students fell silent. You could hear a pin drop.

Gu Yi was very satisfied.

He had already assessed the quality of this batch of new students, and their strength was quite impressive. Among the 1,200 students, besides Kong Kun, Feng Qingqing, and Li Qing, there were actually another fifteen students who had also reached Tier Two. It was just that the talent gap between them and the top three was rather large.

Eighteen Tier Two new students.

As for the rest, the weakest among them was at Tier One Early Stage.

Among the new students of the Eastern Capital Military Academy, there wasn’t a single one who wasn’t an Energy Warrior.

"The Eastern Capital Military Academy’s new student orientation officially..."

"Pulling the radish, pulling the radish... Heave-ho, heave-ho, pulling the radish... Heave-ho, heave-ho, it won’t budge... Old lady, come quick, come help us pull the radish..."

Before Gu Yi could even shout "begins," a loud song erupted from the training grounds.

Yes, the countdown had officially ended.

Gao Neng had no choice but to sing.

Whether it was for the Advanced Treasure Chest reward or for the final, mandatory mission, he had to go all out.

But he wasn’t an idiot.

He chose not to sing "Little Jumping Frog" again.

There were two reasons. First, he wanted to struggle a little longer. ’If I sing "Pulling the Radish," maybe they won’t guess I was the one singing last night, right?’

The other reason was that "Little Jumping Frog" was a song for cultivation. Singing it now wouldn’t be very meaningful. Right now, he needed his vitality and energy to be at their peak.

"Pulling the radish, pulling the radish... Heave-ho, heave-ho, pulling the radish... Heave-ho, heave-ho, it won’t budge... Little girl, come quick, come help us pull the radish..."

The ridiculously catchy voice echoed continuously across the training grounds.

(Ah, asking for monthly tickets! Asking for subscriptions! Asking for auto-subscriptions!)