Chapter 73

"Uh, they also live there? What a coincidence." Sun Yan felt incredulous, but then realized, "That's right, No. 4444 Liuli Street used to be where problem students were confined. It would be strange if these two didn't live there."

"Old Brother Mu, what happened to those two later?" Sun Yan asked curiously.

Old Man Mu's gaze shifted, and he shook his head, "Later? I don't quite remember. After all, I'm old, and my memory isn't what it used to be."

"Turns out there are people even worse off than me. Not bad, very good!"

After listening to Old Man Mu's story, Sun Yan revealed a bright smile, his mood suddenly lifting, "The saying that one's happiness is built on others' suffering is spot on. I feel much better now, thank you, Old Brother Mu."

Old Man Mu gave the young man a deep look and said, "In my life, I've seen many people and many geniuses. But in adversity, it's rare to see someone like Little Brother Sun laugh so openly."

Hearing this, Sun Yan clapped his hands and laughed, "My father told me this when I was a child: in this life, whether you are mediocre or a genius, you will inevitably encounter all kinds of difficulties. If you are in a difficult situation, instead of crying and wailing, it's better to face it with a smile. As a man, even in the face of death, one should smile and face it calmly."

Each word came from the heart, and the corners of the young man's mouth curled up, revealing a mouthful of white teeth. His smile seemed to be flying.

Old Man Mu's eyebrows twitched, and after a moment of silence, he also laughed, "Good! Good for a man to smile and face death calmly. That's what a true man is. Little Brother Sun has a good father, and your father has a good son."

Hearing Old Man Mu praise his father, Sun Yan couldn't help but smile broadly, saying, "Old Brother Mu, you have keen eyes, thank you, thank you!"

After chatting for a while, Sun Yan prepared to get up and leave, but then he heard Old Man Mu suddenly ask, "Little Brother Sun, your biggest problem now is probably the lack of a stronger combat technique, right?"

"Exactly."

Sun Yan's face fell. The lack of an offensive combat technique was indeed his biggest problem now. If he couldn't obtain a stronger combat technique within three months, it would be a fantasy to defeat Mu Shan in the freshmen comprehensive assessment and beat Qiu Shanlin and Xu Xuyao into pig heads.

After all, those who could enter the Imperial Wind Academy were all martial arts geniuses, and each student was making rapid progress. With more resources, relying solely on the combat techniques Sun Yan currently mastered to defeat his opponents was unrealistic.

"If I had 200 credits, I could enter the library and learn a fourth-rank upper combat technique, and everything would be fine." Sun Yan sighed helplessly.

Old Man Mu stroked his mustache, lowered his voice, and said mysteriously, "Little Brother Sun, I know a secret in the academy. You don't need to enter the library to learn a powerful combat technique."

Sun Yan was taken aback and said suspiciously, "You don't need to enter the library to learn a powerful combat technique? Old Brother Mu, don't joke. Would the school let a combat technique flow outside the library? This is the Imperial Wind Academy, with many martial arts masters. How could such a thing happen? Impossible!"

Seeing the young man shake his head in disbelief, Old Man Mu smiled, "Since it's a secret, it's naturally not something ordinary people can discover."

"Really?" Sun Yan was still skeptical.

"Of course it's real." Old Man Mu's voice became even lower, whispering, "This secret is only known to someone like me, who has lived in the Imperial Wind Academy for hundreds of years. No one else would know."

Hearing Old Man Mu speak with such seriousness, Sun Yan couldn't help but be intrigued and leaned in to ask, "What is the secret, Old Brother Mu? Don't keep me in suspense."

Old Man Mu nodded and said, "Have you heard of the ordinary department's 38th training ground?"

Sun Yan shook his head, "Of course not, I've only been in school for less than 10 days!"

"Every school has its oddities, and the Imperial Wind Academy is no exception. One of the oddities is the ghostly events at the 38th training ground. No one knows when it started, but at midnight, strange sounds can be heard from the 38th training ground."

As Old Man Mu spoke, his face took on a sinister look, and he said, "For martial artists, there's nothing to fear, but the strange thing is that many martial arts students who practice there at night will show signs of coma the next day, babbling as if they've encountered something terrifying. However, after they wake up, they don't remember anything that happened that night. Over time, the ghostly events at the 38th training ground have become well-known, and almost no students go there at night."

After listening quietly, Sun Yan frowned, "Ghostly events, what does this have to do with combat techniques?"

Old Man Mu's eyes flashed, and he said, "No one would normally connect this to combat techniques, but as you know, there are always brave people and those who like to explore secrets. Four hundred years ago, a powerful martial artist came to the Imperial Wind Academy, and this event caught his interest. That night, the martial artist stayed at the 38th training ground. The next day, he underwent a significant change."

Sun Yan couldn't help but become interested and asked, "Oh, what happened to that person?"

"That person's martial arts cultivation had been stuck at the ninth level for many years, but after staying at the 38th training ground for one night, he broke through to the tenth level. And not long after leaving the Imperial Wind Academy, it was rumored that he created a powerful combat technique."

Sun Yan frowned and muttered, "Perhaps it was just a coincidence. Being stuck at the ninth level for many years, one could break through to the tenth level at any time."

Old Man Mu smiled, "Do you know who that person is?"

"Who?"

"Zhou Bufan."

Sun Yan's eyes widened in surprise, "The second group army commander of the military, Blood-Cloaked General Zhou Bufan?"

For every young person in the Odin star domain, Blood-Cloaked General Zhou Bufan was a dream.

The Panlong Army, besieging the city, the general killing enemies, blood staining his armor, the military god not appearing, the world being extraordinary. Such unparalleled style, throughout the hundreds of years of Odin's history, only a few could match.

Old Man Mu continued, "I noticed this because Zhou Bufan was so famous. But another person's story made me start to pay attention to this secret."

"That person was a seventh-level martial artist at the time. That night, like Zhou Bufan, he stayed at the 38th training ground. The next day, he, at the seventh level, displayed the Flame Sun Fist Intent, shocking the entire Imperial Wind Academy."

Sun Yan's breath caught, and he murmured, "Flame Sun Fist Intent, that person couldn't be..."

In the history of the Domyr star, there was a person who, in three years, traversed the four domains, experiencing tens of thousands of battles, never losing. It was said that this person's weapon was his fists, with a momentum as fierce as the sun, invincible. The world revered him as the Ten Thousand Victories Fist King.

"Exactly, that person is the Ten Thousand Victories Fist King Bai Po Ri." Old Man Mu said slowly.

Sun Yan's heart was stirred, and he couldn't say another word.

"Such events have happened several times..."

Old Man Mu then mentioned over a dozen people. To Sun Yan, these names were like thunder in his ears. Some were revered martial arts masters in society, and some were powerful martial artists who were almost legendary.

Finally, Old Man Mu said in a low voice, "It was through these people's stories that I noticed this secret. The reason the school hasn't noticed is that each person came to the academy decades apart. How many people would notice such a long time apart?"

"Old Brother Mu, I must go and try. The 38th training ground, at midnight?"

Sun Yan stood up excitedly. He was already half-convinced that the opportunity was right in front of him, and he didn't want to miss it.

"Exactly, the ghostly events at the training ground usually happen at midnight." Old Man Mu nodded.

Sun Yan looked at the time; it was already midnight. He didn't want to stay and asked for the address of the 38th training ground, then turned to head there. But he was suddenly stopped by Old Man Mu.

Old Man Mu smiled and handed him a cup of Enlightenment Tea, the color of which was green and hazy, like green bamboo, "Don't rush, Little Brother Sun, have another cup of Enlightenment Tea, there's still some time."

At that moment, Sun Yan had no heart for tea. He took the cup, drank it in one gulp, and said, "Old Brother Mu, wait for my good news." In a flash, he had darted out the door and disappeared into the night.

Watching the young man's back, Old Man Mu squinted his eyes and nodded slightly, "Three cups of Enlightenment Tea can increase one's insight by 50% in a day. The rest depends on your luck, my young friend."

Immediately, a sly smile appeared on Old Man Mu's face, and he muttered, "I seem to have forgotten to mention one thing. Even if there is such an opportunity, one must first endure the pain of ten thousand needles piercing the heart. Did I say that? No, I didn't. Ah, I'm old, and my memory isn't what it used to be."

"The highest level of mischief is to make someone jump into a fire pit even when they know it's there, and after enduring the pain of being burned, they can only be grateful to the one who started it. Hahaha..."

Amidst a burst of satisfied laughter, the lewd moans in the small room rose again, drowning out Old Man Mu's laughter.

...

The night was deep, the sky dotted with stars, and the two moons illuminated the earth.

Although it was mid-summer, the altitude of the Imperial Wind Academy was very high, and the night was cool.

At 11:15 PM, Sun Yan arrived outside the ordinary department's 38th training ground.

This was an old building, with fine cracks on the walls, and the heavy wooden door was mottled with age, indicating that it had not been repaired for a long time. Perhaps because of the ghostly events in the training ground, many students were deterred, and the school gradually abandoned the place.

Pushing open the wooden door, a musty smell of old wood greeted him. Sun Yan's eyebrows raised, but he didn't find it unpleasant; instead, it gave him a sense of familiarity.

Growing up in the outskirts of Luoshan City, which was in the southern part of the Nanfeng Domain, the climate was often rainy, and the ancestral home often had this smell.

The 38th training ground was quite large, about 1500 square meters. The ground was uneven, with footprints of varying depths, and the walls had deep and shallow fist marks and palm prints, all left by previous martial artists.

There was a skylight on the roof, and the starlight filtered in, illuminating a corner of the training ground. The surroundings were silent, with a suffocating atmosphere.

Looking around, Sun Yan's eyes showed no sadness or joy, his mind unprecedentedly calm, like a deep pool, undisturbed by ripples.

Regarding the ghostly events at the training ground that Old Man Mu mentioned, Sun Yan had his own thoughts.

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