Chapter 245 - 242: A Small Promise

Chapter 245: Chapter 242: A Small Promise

Some of these people were impossibly tall and strong, while others looked ordinary yet radiated waves of scorching heat. There were even some who, despite being completely covered, exuded an unearthly, captivating beauty that made it impossible to look directly at them.

No one could see any of their faces clearly, but it was obvious the group included both men and women, apparently from every race and ethnicity.

Qin Xiaoxia sat beside Elder Mo in the innermost part of the room, studying the five newcomers intently. His gaze lingered a moment longer on Ding Yi and Guo Wei.

"Are these two the ones who first discovered the Soul-possessing Spirit?"

"Yes, Master Sage. The younger one is Guo Wei, and the older one is Ding Yi. They are considered two of the more outstanding students from the first batch at the Celestial Traveler’s Hall."

’Soul-possessing Spirit?’

Ding Yi and Guo Wei were confused for a moment, but it clicked in the very next instant.

’It was that "Lustful Ghost" from the subway!’

They exchanged a look, and each saw the same guess reflected in the other’s eyes.

’And Instructor Mo Qingxue actually called this person Master Sage?’

"Not bad. One is an Evolver, and the other’s level of Physical Awakening isn’t low either."

By now, the Association had begun to establish a clearer system for measuring the strength of its combat personnel.

The Otherworld creatures’ classifications of strength were rather abstract, mostly because their conflicts were clashes between beings on fundamentally different biological levels.

With the exception of their own kind, the physical boundaries between most creatures were ill-defined. Furthermore, from what was currently understood, every individual creature in the Otherworld typically reached a similar level of physical strength upon adulthood. They weren’t like humans, who had both ordinary people and Evolvers.

Magic Creatures, on the other hand, were a completely new concept. Beyond the simple perception of Magic Power, each Magic Creature, and even its entire species, had its own unique understanding of it.

Perhaps far in the future, the number of Evolvers on Earth would grow so large that it would gradually alter the genetics of the entire human race. But given the current scarcity of Evolvers, that day was still a long way off.

Humanity’s vast social systems were accustomed to classifying and categorizing everything, which led to the creation of the concept of "Physical Awakening."

Humans whose physical strength, for some reason, had transcended its normal state and entered a new realm of growth were classified into this category.

True Silent Knights were different. To put it one way, their physical strength was already "activated." And while they might not have Magic Power, they could mobilize their own Soul Power to fight in concert with their physical attacks. Qin Xiaoxia defined this state as the "Activated Soul Burning Realm." Of course, with the addition of the Magic Power that Qin Xiaoxia commonly imbued into their arms, their power would only be greater.

As for those who had awakened Magic Power, they were impossible to define with any real precision. The characteristics of Magic Power were endlessly strange and varied, heavily influenced by its quality, its nature, and even the user’s personality and emotional state. One could only rely on a feeling, a sense of Perception.

If forced to categorize, one could only broadly classify them based on the Magic Controller’s own state as "Initially Awakened" or "Skillfully Controlled." A further subdivision would be between ordinary Magic Creatures and beings who had undergone "Special Spiritualization" or "Elfification." But beyond sensing their Magic Power, determining their true strength sometimes required an actual fight.

Overall, Qin Xiaoxia felt this framework would still be usable even ages from now, when all of humanity might have evolved. After all, the definition of "transcending one’s normal state" could always be adapted to fit new circumstances.

Dawn was now gradually rebuilding its frameworks. To the old-timers in the Association, this system of power classification was Master Sage’s masterpiece. They believed he had taken ancient, vague systems of power, combined them with modern understanding, and created something new and far more comprehensible.

Only because they had begun to take on roles as Mentors or handle more profound tasks were they entrusted with this deeper knowledge.

Of course, Ding Yi, Guo Wei, and the others knew nothing of this.

’They repeatedly wondered about the meaning of "Evolver" and "Physical Awakening." The latter wasn’t hard to grasp, but as for the former... perhaps that was the exact reason Ding Yi had been specially recruited.’

Qin Xiaoxia wasn’t bothered by their silence. It would have been stranger if they had suddenly acted lively in a situation like this.

"Your accidental discovery saved thousands upon thousands of lives. Therefore, I will make an exception and promise you one thing."

The others had assumed Master Sage was simply going to praise the two. After all, even for official Dawn Members, receiving a personal commendation from Master Sage was a great honor. No one had expected him to make such a promise.

A rumor had long circulated within the Association: that the Dawn Association possessed the power to grant wishes. They might not be outrageous wishes, but it could make certain miraculous things happen.

For example, helping someone awaken their Magic Power! Even if awakening it was difficult, this could at least increase their chances of success.

It was hard to describe just why Su Su was making the same expression.

The moment Qin Xiaoxia said this, everyone present, except for the Red Demoness and the oblivious Elder Mo, turned their gazes to Ding Yi and Guo Wei.

The pressure! The pressure instantly skyrocketed!

More than a dozen gazes felt tangible, as if they had instantly solidified the air around them.

Guo Wei’s leg muscles spasmed, and they began to tremble uncontrollably, but he gritted his teeth and refused to sway. Ding Yi was handling it better, but he was also finding it hard to breathe.

As for Zhao Ya’an and the other two, they were completely bewildered. Why had Ding Yi and Guo Wei’s faces suddenly gone pale, their faces dripping with sweat? Was it just because all these people were staring at them?

Neither Ding Yi nor Guo Wei were fools. They immediately understood that the promise from the mysterious, black-robed figure must carry immense weight.

They forced themselves to look around. Only three people in the entire room remained unmoved: the one who had made the promise, the bewitchingly beautiful woman, and, sure enough, their own Chief Instructor from the Celestial Traveler’s Hall.

Everyone else, even the two instructors Mo Shaoge and Mo Qingxue, were staring intently at them.

"You don’t need to give me your answer now. You can continue to study at the Celestial Traveler’s Hall for a while longer. My promise will remain valid until the day you leave."

The mysterious figure’s words were a sudden reminder for Guo Wei. He glanced at Ding Yi, then at the three instructors.

’He was younger and less patient, after all. As a specially recruited student, Ding Yi would probably get into the Inner Sect in the future, while he himself might get kicked out next term.’

"I want to join the Inner Sect of the Celestial Travel Association!" he blurted out, his heart pounding, THUMP-THUMP.

But before the mysterious figure who had made the promise could even speak, the others couldn’t hold it in any longer. The kid’s wastefulness was simply appalling.

But they couldn’t just tell him that simply being summoned here meant that, in the future, forgetting the Inner Sect of the Celestial Travel Association—even joining Dawn itself was no longer just a dream.

They were all practically bursting with frustration.

"Kid! You’re not going to reconsider? How about I trade you something for that promise?"

Brown snorted, the puff of air nearly blowing the napkin off the table in front of him.

"BOY! Think it through!"

Blaise was anxious too, but he couldn’t think of anything to offer in trade. He felt he owned nothing that could match the value of that promise.

"Sweetie, how about I trade you this for it?"

Su Su actually pulled open her collar and drew out a long pendant attached to a small Magic Energy Crystal, causing those nearby to cry out that she was cheating and being a spendthrift.

"Guo Wei, I can get you into the Inner Sect with just a single word. So, what do you say? Wanna trade?"

While Mo Shaoge was still hesitating, Mo Qingxue had already thrown all shame to the wind.

’This won’t do,’ Qin Xiaoxia thought. ’If this bunch really manages to trade for the promise, the ridiculous requests they’ll come up with will be far more difficult to handle.’

TAP... TAP...

His knuckles tapped lightly on the tabletop. The sound made the entire private room vibrate faintly and brought the commotion to a halt.

To be honest, another moment and Guo Wei would have collapsed onto the floor.

"The five of you, take your seats first. As for joining the Inner Sect, I believe you no longer need to waste this promise on it."

But at this moment, Ding Yi, who had been in deep thought, spoke up.

"I want to know what happened these past few days, especially last night."

The room fell silent for a moment.

Qin Xiaoxia motioned for them to take their seats with a glance. He waited until they were all settled before speaking again.

"Are you sure this is your request?"

"Yes!"

Ding Yi didn’t waste any words. This matter had been bothering him for a long time, to the point of becoming an obsession.

"Since that’s the case, I’ll tell you..."

...

The brief narrative lasted for ten minutes, but those ten minutes made the five of them break out in a cold sweat. Elder Mo also nearly lost his composure, almost dropping his teacup, but the five students were too shocked to notice.

’They had thought something big might have happened last night, but they never imagined it would be this big!’

Recalling the flood of news reports from today, a chill ran down their spines.

"So that means... you are..."

There was no need to finish the sentence. The cooperation between Dawn and the government during the previous incident was already clear enough.

’This was an ancient, secret organization that had existed since antiquity, fighting all sorts of threats from the world’s dark underbelly. The Celestial Travel Association was just one of its internal departments, and the Celestial Traveler’s Hall was nothing more than a recruitment camp for the Association.’

’No wonder this dojo was so special! Those weren’t the Martial Arts of the ordinary world at all—it was basically a preparatory school for Extraordinary Power!’

Excitement, thrill, and anxiety warred within them. The five of them were a mess of emotions.

"I must remind you that even though you now know about this, you cannot speak of it to anyone. Even if we don’t come after you, the government will not permit such ’rumors’ to spread."

’Even if he hadn’t said that, none of the five would be stupid enough to court death. What if they left a bad impression and got kicked out later?’

"Um, Instructor... Brother Ding and Guo Wei are here because they performed a service... so what about us..."

Sun Ya’an weakly raised her hand and asked. The three of them didn’t think that just eating a meal at a restaurant run by their own family would earn them special treatment.

"You?"

Qin Xiaoxia smiled and glanced at them.

"Naturally, it’s because you have good fathers! Having powerful parents is a type of strength in itself, you know~"

...

The main purpose of this meal was to meet the two who had rendered great service, as well as the very interesting Elder Mo.

’Elder Mo, old in years but still filled with fiery passion, was truly a rare talent. Even if it meant pouring resources into him, I’m determined to build the old man into a true master.’

’With the elder’s profound foundation in Martial Arts, as long as he gained enough power to unleash their terrifying potential, he could probably take on ten Mo Shaoges armed with weapons at the same level and leave them all flat on their backs.’

PS: Sunday’s second Chapter.