A Good Night's Sleep

Stepping out of the makeshift medical tent, Xu Lingqu found the sky had already darkened. A female instructor was waiting outside, leading her out of the woods. The two original sparring platforms had been dismantled, and instructors were now handing out training uniforms and tents to the students.

While Xu Lingqu had been unconscious, the instructors had supervised the students running back and forth along the riverbank, doing only the most basic physical conditioning. It wasn't until the sun was nearly setting that they distributed tents and formal training uniforms.

Such simple physical training left the students unsettled, one after another suspecting the instructors of ulterior motives. After all, they'd started with interstellar jumps as a warm-up and had them sparring continuously. Why had things suddenly become so... normal?

But by the time training officially ended and they had their uniforms and tents in hand, the students finally accepted that today's session was truly over.

"Who knew Moye Military Academy's trial grounds would be so rustic," Xu Xiqin said, spotting Xu Lingqu approaching from a distance and immediately jogging over. She had already changed into her formal training uniform, which, unlike the instructors' deep purple, was a light lavender. "I can't believe they're just leaving us out here. I thought they'd send a Shadestalker to take us back."

Xu Xiqin led Xu Lingqu to the tent she'd already set up and told her to change first. Her own jacket was draped over the right side of the tent, covering a tear.

"Instructor Chen said this batch of tents were all damaged goods, but they're just right for us. Is Moye Military Academy really this broke?" Xu Xiqin complained, watching her sister emerge in the fresh uniform. "Light purple suits you nicely."

"Are all of them damaged?" Xu Lingqu asked, taking down Xu Xiqin's jacket and peering at the tear.

"Yep," Xu Xiqin replied, handing her tonight's dinner—two bottles of nutrient fluid. "Instructor Kai Ang just announced training's over for today. Free time from here on. Didn't expect it to be this easy."

Several bonfires crackled on the ground. The students, still just boys and girls, gathered together, the tension of training melting away as they chatted excitedly. Green hills, clear waters, bonfire parties—it had the feel of a youth documentary.

"Are the instructors camping too?" Xu Lingqu bit open a nutrient bottle and drank. Coconut flavor; the fullness hit quickly.

Xu Xiqin pointed toward the deeper woods. "Looks like there are wooden cabins in there. They're probably staying in those."

The two found a spot to sit, and no sooner had they settled than a dozen gazes swept over them.

Since fainting and leaving the arena, Xu Lingqu had earned a new title—the Combat God of the Command Department.

According to a particularly talkative instructor, in his ten years at Moye Military Academy, he'd never seen a command student beat combat department students in hand-to-hand—seven of them, consecutively.

The command students had straightened their backs considerably. Who said they were just a bunch of tacticians with zero combat ability?

A dozen pairs of eyes shone with admiration and curiosity, but alongside them were several laced with malice and disdain.

A few combat department boys, Sun Liao in the middle, huddled together and spouted nonsense.

"She just got lucky against weaker combat students. If I'd faced her... hmph."

"Didn't you hear she's the adopted daughter General Xu brought home a while back? Her enrollment timeline doesn't even match up. It's all family connections, I bet. Probably paid off her opponents..."

A stick with sparks on the end hurtled over. The boys scrambled to their feet, and the one hit frantically patted out the embers on his clothes.

Sun Liao was about to snap, thrusting a finger forward and shouting, "You—" but then he saw who had thrown it—Wang Qihu—and his anger fizzled out.

"Having fun gossiping? Think you're so tough? Why didn't you step up today and face her on the platform? What, the platform's got extra space reserved just for you?" Wang Qihu was seriously annoyed.

He was annoyed about being taken down in two moves, but hearing people badmouth Xu Lingqu behind her back made him even more furious. If they tore her reputation to shreds, what did that make him?

Wang Qihu glanced uneasily at the girl sitting nearby. The firelight illuminated her, bringing some color to her usually pale face. Her short hair was lifted by the evening breeze, and her bright, glittering eyes were fixed on the river.

She looked like a frail, delicate girl who couldn't hurt a fly. How had she beaten him in two moves? Wang Qihu felt a pang of anguish.

A military whistle blew. Instructor Chen emerged from the woods again, and compared to Kai Ang, everyone clearly preferred the gentler-looking man.

"Lights out," he announced with a smile, reminding them to head back to their tents. Most were military academy cadets, well-versed in the rules. They extinguished the bonfires and retreated to their tents. Seeing the majority safely tucked in, he turned and walked away with a grin. "Sleep well."

Xu Xiqin yawned. After a day of this, she was exhausted. Since no instructor was watching, she was about to persuade Xu Lingqu to bunk with her—but Xu Lingqu tugged her out of the tent area instead.

"Sis... leaving the tent area during lights out is a point deduction," Xu Xiqin said, confused, but she didn't pull her hand away.

"We can't sleep here," Xu Lingqu said, pulling her deeper into the woods. Xu Xiqin's heart raced, since she'd assumed the instructors were in those log cabins—but the further they walked, the more she realized something was off.

There were no cabins. No instructors. Where had they all gone?

"The tear in the tent looks deliberate, not from wear. The grass along the inner bank of the river is much shorter than the grass in the woods, and the soil on the bank has the wrong consistency," Xu Lingqu explained quietly, once they were somewhere secluded. "If I'm not mistaken, something's going to happen by the river tonight. If my hunch is right, they're planning to flood the tent area."

Most importantly, today in that simple medical tent, Doctor Li had mentioned bringing her supplies in a box, meaning there was a proper medical station at some distance from the camp. Combined with those suspicious tents, Xu Lingqu was almost certain the real trial site wasn't here at all—it was elsewhere.

This riverside overnight camp was likely the third warning shot from Instructor Kai Ang and Instructor Chen.

"Great minds think alike," a voice suddenly said, and a figure dropped from a tree, landing about two meters from Xu Lingqu.

Even in the dim woods, that red hair was unmistakable. A branch pointed at Jin's neck, and he grimaced at Xu Lingqu, who was holding the stick steady. "Hey! You've got a terrible temper!"