Stepping on the Demoness to become the strongest

Furthermore, trainees were required to wear full-body armor before entering, which meant that even without invoking the Earth-Element Sturdiness Curse, there would be no casualties if hit.

But it would hurt a lot.

Some tried enduring a hit without activating the Barrier Charm, and even though it struck the armor without breaking the skin, there were still signs of bruising and contusions underneath. Thus, there was a sign outside the training ground that clearly reminded the students:

[Please activate the Earth-Element Sturdiness Curse before entering]

Of course, even with such clear signage, there would still be those who ignored it.

When Lin Ning found Su Yunjin in the practice field, she witnessed the young lady moving around like lightning, which momentarily gave her the illusion that she was watching Yan Yu dodge aggressive tree demons with his swift Swallow\'s Flight Technique.

However, upon closer inspection, it was indeed an illusion.

It was a short sprint, and Su Yunjin\'s Cutting Spell was indeed fast. With each step, she would immediately change direction using the Cloud Ascension Technique, and her speed would increase once more with the Shifting Technique, making her movements as dizzying as Yan Yu\'s before.

But the sound of bullets hitting the armor, \'thump, thump,\' was incessant.

The reason was simple: Su Yunjin\'s eyesight and reaction speed couldn\'t keep up.

After the bullet was fired, it was hard to track with the naked eye; even if she could track it, her response was too slow to dodge; and by the time she decided which direction to dodge using the swift Shifting and Cloud Ascension Techniques, there was hardly any time left.

In light of this, Miss Su resorted to a very clumsy solution.

If she couldn\'t dodge, she\'d just endure the hit.

The result, of course, was quite ghastly. Though there were no visible injuries, the skin beneath the armor was probably already a mottled landscape of blues and purples.

"Yun Jin!" Lin Ning called out anxiously, dashing in front of her with the Shifting Technique, braking quickly with Cloud Ascension, and immediately activating the Barrier Charm to shield her from the surrounding bullets.

"Little Lin Ning?" Su Yunjin said in surprise.

Her voice was so weak that Lin Ning didn\'t even fuss about the "little" part, instead speaking with urgent concern:

"Don\'t push yourself too hard!"n/ô/vel/b//jn dot c//om

"I\'m not," Su Yunjin said softly, smiling while lifting her arm. "Look, I\'m wearing armor."

But Lin Ning quickly noticed that, although her body was tightly encased in armor, her brows still slightly furrowed for a moment when she raised her arm.

It probably hurt.

"Stop training," Lin Ning said. "Yan Yu is treating us to dinner tonight. He\'s taking us out for dinner."

"Okay," Su Yunjin nodded calmly. "I\'ll go back and change clothes."

She left the training ground and walked towards the dormitory.

Lin Ning carefully followed behind her, wanting to offer support but afraid of touching her wounds, suddenly at a loss for what to do.

——————————

At the school gate, Chen Lingyun pressed her phone and asked suddenly:

"What are we eating tonight?"

"Beef hotpot," Zhao Yuanzhen answered quickly.

"I don\'t know," said Yan Yu. "Let\'s wait for everyone to gather and then ask for everyone\'s preference."

"Why don\'t we just go for beef hotpot?" Zhao Yuanzhen said again.

"You\'d better decide quickly which restaurant to go to," Chen Lingyun said, glancing at her phone with a faint smile. "I need to make a reservation in advance."

"How about we go to Niú Mǎn Lāo?" Zhao Yuanzhen suggested thoughtfully. "Do you have VIP status there?"

"No," Chen Lingyun replied, looking up and smiling at Zhao Yuanzhen before looking back down, "but I can get someone to get a number for us."

"Then let\'s get a number from them," Zhao Yuanzhen urged.

"You know, I\'ve been kind of craving barbecue lately," Yan Yu commented offhandedly.

"But I want to eat beef hotpot," Zhao Yuanzhen said disappointedly, attempting to pressure her partner with her gaze.

"Japanese barbecue or Goryeo barbecue?" Chen Lingyun asked with a smile, still looking at her phone.

"Neither, just beef hotpot," Zhao Yuanzhen started to repeat.

"It doesn\'t matter," Yan Yu shook his head. "Don\'t worry about me, let\'s discuss it when everyone\'s here."

"But I want to eat—" Zhao Yuanzhen kept nagging, only to be suddenly silenced by Yan Yu stretching out a finger to press her pouting lips, saying coldly:

"Before the group discussion, if you say one more word, beef hotpot will be ruled out immediately."

Zhao Yuanzhen immediately kept quiet.

Chen Lingyun eyed Yan Yu\'s fingers, her eyebrows slightly raised.

Finally, when Lin Ning and Su Yunjin arrived fashionably late, they were both already in different clothes.

Lin Ning was wearing a white T-shirt and denim shorts. Her hair, previously tied up in a bun, now hung down softly. Slinging a bag over her shoulder, she had transformed from a youthful, sporty girl back into the familiar sight of a college student.

In contrast, Su Yunjin was dressed much more conservatively, in a dark long-sleeve shirt with a warm-colored overall on top, looking somewhat like a kangaroo.

Other than pregnant women, who dresses like this in the summer?

Yan Yu really wanted to tease her but caught himself at the last moment.

Teasing is Lin Ning\'s characteristic, and I already have enough of my own traits. I don\'t need to steal Sister Lin\'s thunder.

However, Lin Ning, unaware of Yan Yu\'s thoughts, simply laughed it off:

"Yun Jin is worried about mosquitoes tonight. She\'s afraid of them, so I told her to wear more."

Chen Lingyun said with a smile,

"Being afraid of mosquitoes, you indeed need to wear more. Otherwise, getting bitten all over isn\'t a nice look."

Su Yunjin smiled helplessly at her.

"So, what are we eating tonight, have you guys decided?" asked Yan Yu.

"How about beef hot pot," suggested Su Yunjin with a smile.

"Hmm, beef hot pot sounds good," Lin Ning agreed.

Yan Yu immediately shot a questioning look at Zhao Yuanzhen, who quickly hid his phone behind him and pretended to be examining the cicadas chirping in the trees.

"Alright, alright," Yan Yu said with a mix of laughter and helplessness. "Ling Yun, call a cab!"

"Don\'t joke about using other people\'s names with the ride-hailing app!" Lin Ning\'s retort was quick and accurate. "If you want to call a cab, do it yourself!"

——————————

Speaking of hot pot, Yan Yu was reminded of the dinner in Shengjing that ended on a sour note.

In a past life, the duo of Liu Longtao and Ye Jun had once been the center of attention, even hailed as the "golden pair" of the Dingbei Army by outsiders.

Why? Because even though Lord Master seemed mild-mannered, he was actually quite autocratic in his actions, always insisting on having the final word in his team.

It was quite a feat for Ye Jun to silently fix flaws backstage, perfecting a 90-point tactical plan to 99 points without clashing with Lord Master. Even if someone with better support skills than Ye Jun joined, they might not do a better job than her.

Unfortunately, nobody expected that this "golden pair" would ultimately crumble.

This goes to show that even strong teams aren\'t guaranteed success. The key lies in maintaining good interpersonal relationships within the team.

As the saying goes, "The receiver of gifts is beholden to the giver," and dining together is a good way to bond.

Sitting in front of the bubbling hot pot, Yan Yu, bored, rested his chin on one hand and observed Lin Ning stealthily cooking meat for Su Yunjin, Zhao Yuanzhen discreetly gobbling down his food, and Chen Lingyun quietly watching everyone\'s expressions.

"Why is everyone so quiet?" he asked, somewhat puzzled.

"The captain\'s treating us, so we\'re busy eating," Su Yunjin explained with a smile.

"Well then, Vice-Captain Chen Lingyun, tell us a joke to lift the spirits," suggested Yan Yu, pointing at her with his chopsticks.

"Sure." Chen Lingyun clapped her hands and laughed, "Let me tell you a story called \'The Legacy of the Bridal Dress,\' about after the hero Yan Nantian retired from the martial world, he had a son named…"

"Okay, that\'s enough," Yan Yu quickly grabbed some pickles with his chopsticks and stuffed it into her mouth, while inwardly breaking out in a cold sweat.

The so-called "Legacy of the Bridal Dress" was actually a made-up Wuxia RPG story that the kids from his old neighborhood had concocted. Since his father was named "Yan Nantian," Yan Yu had been forced to become the "Successor of the Bridal Dress Technique," despite his complete unwillingness. His friends went as far as to invent all sorts of ridiculous storylines and drag him into acting them out…

How does she know about this? Who\'s been setting me up behind my back?

"What happened to the son of Yan Nantian?" Lin Ning asked out of curiosity.

"Nothing, don\'t ask too much. Oh no! Someone sent me a message on my phone, seems like an urgent mission," Yan Yu deflectively pretended to change the subject, unlocked his phone and looked at it, his expression suddenly becoming serious.

"What urgent mission?" Lin Ning continued to ask.

"You guys keep eating," Yan Yu stood up. "I need to step out and take a call."

Stepping outside the restaurant, Yan Yu dialed the number, and the other side picked up quickly:

"We\'re out eating. Do we need to leave right away?"

"No need to rush," Li Weiguo\'s voice came from the phone. "Finish your meal first, then head to the airport. The crew is waiting for you there."

"Understood. Who is our competitor this time?"

"The Annan Army, Li Zhaojiang\'s team."

Got it, this time we\'re taking on the Valkyrie.