Chapter 102: Dinner at the Hilltop Villa
"Your strength is formidable. To be honest, you are completely different from the other students in this batch."
"You have your own ideas and your own cultivation methods." Huo Jia revealed a faint smile. "For a genius of your type, our policy is 'intervention without interference.'"
"So, just be an Assistant Instructor." Huo Jia paused, then introduced the two men behind him.
"This is Instructor Hou, the main person in charge of the Training Camp's Combat Department. You will follow him, participate in the Combat Department's training and practical exercises, and accumulate relevant experience," Huo Jia said, pointing at Hou Baizhan.
Then he introduced Wang Zhijun. "And this is Professor Wang, the Chief Professor of our Training Camp. That kid Ling Wenshu is his disciple."
"We hope you will participate in the Academic Department's research and cooperate with him to analyze your power."
"This way, you can utilize your combat advantages while contributing to academic research. What do you think?"
The two men behind Huo Jia wore ingratiating smiles, eagerly awaiting Chen Yu's answer.
Chen Yu processed this.
Ever since Chu He gave him that wake-up call, he had begun to realize that his knowledge of One Piece was, ultimately, just knowledge from an anime.
Copying it blindly into this world would lead to disadvantages.
He knew the peak form of every ability he possessed, but precisely because he knew too well, he didn't want to leave a single one behind.
This led to exactly what Chu He had said: he wasn't "pure" enough.
Rocks, Roger, Rayleigh, Shanks, Garp...
These monsters all shared a common trait—Purity.
Upgrading his Electro was simple; he just needed to grind proficiency. But if he wanted to become truly strong...
He had to slow down and think carefully about the path ahead.
Back to the topic at hand.
Serving as an Assistant Instructor for both departments would allow him to learn practical combat skills while deepening his understanding of this world. It was indeed an excellent choice.
There was nothing to hesitate about. Chen Yu nodded. "I have no problem with that, Teachers..."
Seeing Chen Yu agree, Hou Baizhan stopped worrying. He patted Chen Yu on the shoulder. "Good kid! Since you agreed, follow me from now on and train hard!"
"I promise to teach you all my combat techniques!"
Professor Wang also breathed a sigh of relief and pushed up his glasses. "Chen Yu, come to the laboratory tomorrow. I'll take you to slowly understand this world."
Watching the scene unfold, a smile appeared on Huo Jia's face.
Chen Yu's placement issue was resolved. Now, it was time for other matters.
Huo Jia kicked the group out of his office.
Chen Yu was then dragged by the two teachers to tour the practical combat training rooms and the underground research labs.
By the time they finished, it was already evening.
Chen Yu returned to the villa.
He discovered that a wooden shack had been built in the villa's open clearing. In front of the shack, Shen Lie was shirtless, chopping wood with his bare hands.
His eyes were closed tight, and he was muttering, "Internal Destruction... Internal Destruction..."
"Hah!" He shouted explosively, throwing a punch. The log shattered with a loud boom.
Chen Yu shook his head. Shen Lie hadn't succeeded.
Smack!!
Zhuge Jing popped out of nowhere and slapped the back of Shen Lie's head.
"Are you sick?! We worked so hard to chop that wood!"
Chen Yu walked up and asked, "What are you two up to?"
Hearing the voice, Shen Lie saw Chen Yu had returned. He scratched his head, an honest and simple smile on his face.
"Brother Yu, the dorms collapsed. It'll take two or three days to rebuild them."
He pointed to the wooden frame behind him. "I thought I'd live next to you. That way, if I get stuck practicing... Armament Haki, I can ask you immediately."
"I can't get the hang of the 'Internal Destruction' (Ryuo) you talked about last time. I tried to use force just now, but I only managed to smash the wood to pieces."
Zhuge Jing rolled his eyes nearby and stuck his axe into a stump. "Don't just goof around because I have good luck!"
He pushed up his silver-rimmed glasses, his tone full of complaint. "I spent the whole afternoon building that wall, and you knocked it down! I'll fight you!"
"Also, stop wasting wood!"
Shen Lie blushed and scratched the back of his head sheepishly. "I'll control my strength next time, I promise."
Chen Yu couldn't help but laugh, patting both of them on the shoulder. "Why didn't you just ask that 'Fatty' (referring to a student with a creation/factory ability) to swallow the wood and spit a house out for you?"
With that, he turned and walked toward the villa, leaving the two of them standing there in confusion.
As soon as Chen Yu pushed open the door, he heard a burst of crisp laughter.
In the living room, Gu Yunxi was tiptoeing around, chasing a palm-sized figure.
The Tontatta dwarf, Elsa, was wearing a little pink dress, her short legs pumping as she ran. "Sister Yunxi, I don't want to change clothes anymore!"
"Aaaah! So cute!" Gu Yunxi clutched her chest and fell to her knees, struck down by Elsa's cuteness.
Bai Han was slumped on the sofa, breathing steadily with a bit of drool at the corner of his mouth. He seemed to be asleep.
Su Qingqing sat with her legs crossed, looking disgusted. "Hmph, crude."
"Who are you calling crude?!" Gu Yunxi heard this and immediately performed a 'leg-kabeodon' on Su Qingqing against the sofa. "You germaphobe princess-disease patient!"
Su Qingqing gently pushed Gu Yunxi away. "Get out of my villa."
"Hah? Since when is it your villa?" Gu Yunxi raised an eyebrow. "Did Yu-zi agree?"
In response, Su Qingqing whipped out a gold bank card. "I can make him an offer he can't refuse."
Gu Yunxi: "..."
Ling Yue watched the two bickering with a smile, her mood quite good.
"Su Qingqing, this villa isn't for sale," Chen Yu spoke up.
"Yu-zi, you're back?" Gu Yunxi waved at Chen Yu.
Then she turned to Su Qingqing, chin raised high. "Heard that? Not for sale!"
Su Qingqing really didn't want to sleep in the dorms, so she said, "Then let's compromise. I'll just buy one room."
"No, I..."
"There's one million on this card."
"By the way, Sero! Go tidy up a room for Boss Su!"
Sero, sitting on Chen Yu's shoulder, retorted, "Go do it yourself!"
"I'll give you a 100,000 cut."
"Which room?" Sero immediately opened an Air Door, filled with motivation.
Chen Yu didn't even think. "Zhuge Jing's room. He's building a wooden shack outside anyway!"
Gu Yunxi was just about to make a retort.
Then, Long Aotian's booming voice came from the kitchen. "Dinner's ready! Let's eat!"
Hearing this, everyone flocked to the dining table. Gu Yunxi ran the fastest.
Ling Yue gently woke Bai Han, and Chen Yu went out to call the two carpenters.
Elsa flew to a small plate in the center of the table, where a tiny portion of rice and diced vegetables had been prepared especially for her.
Long Aotian had thoughtfully considered her size and set aside a portion.
Long Aotian brought out the final dish, stir-fried greens, placed it on the table, and wiped his hands. "I specifically learned this from the cafeteria auntie."
Bai Han proactively picked up the ladle and served everyone a bowl of soup. When it was Ling Yue's turn, he specially scooped up an extra piece of corn for her.
Su Qingqing took a small taste and gave her evaluation: "Not bad."
Gu Yunxi said nothing, focusing solely on shoveling food into her mouth.
"Damn it!" Zhuge Jing sat down, cursing under his breath. "You sold my room? I..."
Chen Yu flashed five fingers. "Sold it for fifty thousand. I'll give you twenty thousand."
"Brother Yu... you really understand me."
Seeing this, the group tacitly agreed not to expose Chen Yu's scam. Elsa had long since had her ears covered by Sero.
"Hmm?" Chen Yu remembered something. "By the way, where did you get these ingredients?"
Long Aotian explained, "You missed the afternoon class. Sister Feng said the training camp's universal currency is points. Points can be exchanged for anything."
"You're the Rookie King, so you started with 500 points. I swiped your points to buy these ingredients from the cafeteria auntie."
"It's all Ferocious Beast meat!"
Chen Yu: "..."
Look at you, big eyes and thick brows, looking all honest... and you secretly swiped my points?!
"By the way," Shen Lie asked, "Brother Yu, which department did you end up in?"
Hearing this, everyone looked at Chen Yu with curiosity.
"I'm not in a department." Chen Yu shook his head. "I'm an Assistant Instructor."
Eh?!
The group instantly recalled Chen Yu's training mode from the previous day, and their happiness evaporated.
Days passed like cotton soaked in warm water—silent and heavy. A month went by.
It was time for the monthly exam.
Inside the Training Camp's Combat Training Hall.
Chen Yu stood before all the students and curled his finger.
"The monthly exam starts now. Everyone, come at me at once."
...
(To be Continued)
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