The Teacher’s Cafeteria. Five dishes and a soup.

Rong Taotao picked up a piece of Crispy Pork, dipped it in some salt and pepper, and popped it into his mouth.

"CRUNCH, CRUNCH..."

’Ah, this is to die for.’

Across from him, Gao Lingwei rested her chin on her palm, smiling as she watched Rong Taotao. The blissful expression on his face while he ate was enough to whet anyone’s appetite.

However, it was only 9:30 in the morning. The two had just been here for breakfast at 7:30, so Gao Lingwei wasn’t very hungry. Only Rong Taotao could eat with such gusto at any given moment.

"I think I’m about to advance," Gao Lingwei said softly.

"Hm?" Rong Taotao’s face lit up. "That’s great news! To the mid-tier Soul Captain stage?"

"Yes." Gao Lingwei nodded lightly and let out a soft sigh. "The Martial Arts Hall has accelerated our training so much. After entering the Soul Captain stage, advancement becomes increasingly difficult. I didn’t expect to be advancing again after just six short months."

Curious, Rong Taotao asked, "Is it really that hard?"

Gao Lingwei thought for a moment before explaining, "Strictly speaking, the higher your level, the faster you train. But the total amount of Soul Power required for the Soul Captain stage is immense, and the demands on your physical strength are also very high, so..."

"Mhm, I get it," Rong Taotao nodded. "Even though your training speed increases at higher levels, compared to a Soul Warrior, a Soul Captain’s experience bar is several times larger."

Gao Lingwei: "..."

Munching on his Crispy Pork, Rong Taotao mumbled, "Advancing to Soul School must be really difficult. None of the opponents we faced today, not even the seeded teams from the Senior Year, had a Soul School on their roster."

Gao Lingwei nodded. "A typical genius might advance to Soul Captain during their freshman year, and by their senior year, they’ll be at the peak Soul Captain level at most.

"To become a Soul School, you’d have to wait until after graduation, maybe even a few years after that. It’s not purely a matter of time. It’s very common for thousands, including so-called geniuses, to be stuck at the peak Soul Captain level for their entire lives."

As she spoke, Gao Lingwei smiled. "If a Soul School actually showed up in the selection tournament, it would be a total slaughter. We could just withdraw right away."

Rong Taotao wore a strange expression. "Are they that strong? I didn’t think Xia Fangran was all that powerful."

Gao Lingwei shot Rong Taotao a glare. "If he really wanted to take you down, you wouldn’t last more than a few hits. Did you honestly think he had no way to break our Iron Barrel Array?

"Coach Xia was just trying to give us some confidence. The gap between a Soul School and a Soul Captain is enormous. In terms of both Soul Skill intensity and physical strength, it’s basically an adult kicking down the door of a kindergarten.

"Be more humble, Taotao. Don’t think that we were the ones who killed that Starfield Soul School in the Snowfield. You need to remember that we had three other Soul Schools backing us up and controlling the target."

"I know, I know." Rong Taotao pouted. "Let’s head back after we eat. I’ll open a Lotus Petal for you and see if you can reach the mid-tier Soul Captain stage today. It’s a shame there are still so few Soul Skills we can learn on our own. It’d be great if advancing a minor stage unlocked some new Soul Skills to practice."

"I heard Teacher Cha has been trying to master a new Soul Skill recently," Gao Lingwei suddenly said. "I read the paper he published a while ago. Two weeks have passed, so I wonder how his research is going."

"He’s mastering a new Soul Skill?" Rong Taotao blinked. "Then why is he here as an assessment instructor? Does he have that much free time?"

Gao Lingwei shook her head. "I don’t know. Maybe his research is too exhausting, and he’s watching kids fight for entertainment."

Rong Taotao: "..."

The two quickly finished their meal, getting an order of Crispy Pork and salt-and-pepper mushrooms to go, and hurried back to the Martial Arts Hall.

The place was completely empty. Clearly, the matches over at the stadium hadn’t finished yet—after all, the 3v3s were the main event.

Gao Lingwei went into the women’s dormitory, and Rong Taotao opened the door to his own room, where he saw Si Huan Nian sitting cross-legged on the sofa, deep in her training.

Rong Taotao closed the door behind him and sighed softly. "My poor Coach Si. Everyone else went to watch the matches, but you’re stuck here guarding the Martial Arts Hall. This stupid Lotus... sigh... we might as well not have it!"

The corner of Si Huan Nian’s mouth curled up. She slowly opened her eyes, looked at Rong Taotao by the door, and spoke a chilling phrase in her lazy, intoxicating voice: "Itching for a beating?"

A chill ran down Rong Taotao’s spine. He quickly held up the bag in his hand. "I brought you snacks! Crispy Pork and salt-and-pepper mushrooms."

"Oh?" Si Huan Nian raised an eyebrow slightly, uncrossing her long legs. Slipping on her slippers, she walked toward the bathroom to wash her hands. "Get the plates ready for me."

"What did I do to deserve this?" Rong Taotao muttered under his breath. He walked over to the coffee table, opened the plastic bag, and turned to shout toward the bathroom, "How come you’re not asking if I advanced?"

"If you had lost, would you still have the nerve to walk through that door?"

"Fair enough." Rong Taotao pouted and reached for a piece of Crispy Pork.

"Put it down."

Rong Taotao froze. "But I’m the one who brought it back!"

Shaking her wet hands, Si Huan Nian walked out. "You brought it back for me."

Rong Taotao: "..."

’Are you even human?’

’I’m not going to take this!’

Rong Taotao stared defiantly at Si Huan Nian and, with a provocative look on his face, brought the piece of meat toward his mouth.

In the next moment, his vision blurred. A force struck his chest, sending him stumbling back two steps.

He had been pushed back two steps, and the piece of meat in his hand was gone...