Superhumans of the Dome City-Chapter 1395 - 12: Arrogant and Overbearing (Part 1)

"Everyone, stand up straight! Hands by your sides! Don’t you remember anything? Do you even understand what organization and discipline mean?"

The winter wind howled across the training ground of the Imperial Academy Supervisor. A hundred or so young men and women in short-sleeved clothes stood pale-faced, their sweat soaking their garments, with the occasional uneven gasp breaking the silence. They had just completed a full hour of physical training and were on the brink of exhaustion.

Instructor Fang Qin of the Left and Right Guards stood crookedly under the shade, pointing his finger at the noses of these young people. Feeling the indignant glares of these impoverished scholars, he was filled with a kind of boastful satisfaction.

The times have changed, indeed, the times have changed. One of the benefits of a covert war is that when students are called to prepare for battle, the previously arrogant scholars also fall victim. The authorities demand rigorous training in military style; no matter how unwilling you are, you must comply obediently. If you disobey, you are not following orders, which is insubordination. Many people want to get into the Imperial University; if you dare to cause trouble, then pack up and leave!

From a distance, three students who’d taken leave to use the bathroom came running back, reluctantly shouting "Report." Fang Qin didn’t even glance their way, but instead checked his watch and, as if discovering a new continent, exclaimed with delight: "Two seconds late! How many times have I told you to return to formation immediately when called? Day after day, I talk about discipline and style, but there’s no effect. I really don’t like to trouble everyone, so why don’t you respect me?"

He suddenly roared, "You three, stand there! Everyone else, squat down!"

Already fatigued, the students squatted in silence, leaving the three latecomers standing at the front, facing the gaze of all their fellow students. The scholar who had been secretly cursing clenched his fists, his lips turning pale as paper. The silent glances of his classmates carried varying degrees of blame—blame for being late and causing others to suffer, blame for his "mistakes" causing others to suffer... At this point, it was no longer the instructor’s fault for being unreasonable; it was the students’ own "fault." Being ostracized and resented was all their own doing—how deservedly so!

Fang Qin wore an angry expression on his face, but he understood the reactions of these people thoroughly. Having spent a decade in the military, doing similar instructor duties countless times, he well understood the psychology of these students. Whenever there is resentment, it needs a target for release. If you give them corporal punishment or swear at them, it becomes a reason for them to report you. So, at a time like this, pulling a few scapegoats from among the students will direct their emotions inward and any commotion would be their own doing, having nothing to do with the instructor.

No matter how much you hate or resent, what can you do? After leaving the Imperial Academy, ninety percent will be assigned all over the Empire, and the remaining ten percent will start from the lowest positions. Once in the court, you must comply. Trying to seek revenge across organizations would mean ruining your own prospects. Fang Qin understood these stakes very well and was therefore so confident, especially given that superiors had specifically "instructed" him...

They want you to resent, they want you to rage!

Fang Qin eyed the pale-lipped students sideways, estimating their patience. Ten days into the military training, the proud individuals should be nearing their breaking point, so he decided to fan the flames further and firmly discipline them today.

"Morning physical training is over. Now, let’s talk about your housekeeping issues," Fang Qin sneered. "Filthy and chaotic! Each dormitory is like a pigsty, yet you, scholars, have the nerve to live in them. Xu, bring out those examples for me!"

Instructor Xu, with a face full of flesh, dragged over a small cart bearing a few neatly folded quilts. Fang Qin, taking out a piece of paper, crowingly announced: "Room 112! Room 235! Room 404! Folded like pig intestines, get them out!"

With each dorm number announced, Xu lifted a quilt and hurled it to the other end of the field. Dirt immediately stained the white sheets. The buzz-cut scholar’s eyes turned red; one of the quilts was from his dorm. He growled lowly, "Stop pushing us too far!"

Fang Qin raised an eyebrow, "Do you have an opinion?"

Suddenly his face flushed as he shouted with a devil’s ferocity, "If you have an opinion, endure it!"

Fang Qin had mastered the Lion Roar technique, and the sound waves from his bellow forced the student to retreat. Sneering, he continued, "You are all scholars, understand the world better than I do, and look down on us rough folks. But why has the top assigned us rough men as instructors? Precisely because we understand better than you one thing: obedience and regulation!"

Each of the indignant students, each of the young hot-blooded individuals stopped in their tracks upon hearing the word "regulation," as if suffocated, motionless like they were about to die. Fang Qin, satisfied with the looks on their faces, kept yelling:

"In Divine Capital City, under the emperor’s nose, regulation is the greatest thing in the world. No matter what great skills you have, joining the court means taking orders and smiling even when rebuked. Here, my word is regulation. If you don’t understand regulation, pack up and leave! Do you understand!"

"——No."

A cold, dismissive voice floated in from the side, like talking to a fly. The voice came from above, making both the instructors and students look up in shock, only to find a black-clad youth lying atop the big cypress tree, idly flipping through a booklet.