Chapter Sixteen: Working at the Docks

As the sun sank in the west, the day's classes came to an end, and a rare holiday began. Luo Chen was in excellent spirits, thanks to his remarkable progress in the strength test. Moreover, several tutors in his class had grown noticeably warmer toward him, even taking the initiative to converse with him and inviting him to drop by during his free time for guidance in their respective fields.

Students were free to arrange their schedules and choose which courses to focus on for intensive cultivation. However, if a tutor favored a particular student, they would often personally select them, providing better and more patient instruction. Luo Chen's performance had clearly impressed several tutors from Class Six; they were all quite intrigued by this student who might well be an "awakened one."

Previously, such special treatment was reserved only for the best students in the class, but Luo Chen had now joined their ranks and was receiving due attention.

The gloom of being slandered was largely dispelled by his good mood. Luo Chen left the gates of Winston Academy humming a tune, and even the sharp sarcasm he encountered along the way seemed far less biting.

Like all academies, Winston Academy granted one day off per week. During this break, the academy did not restrict students' activities, yet most seized the opportunity to continue their cultivation. In the present age, unlike the era of ancient civilizations, learning was a precious chance; if one failed to make the most of it, one could only expect a lifetime of mediocrity.

It was not that Luo Chen did not wish to devote his precious time to cultivation, but he needed to survive and earn money. Unlike other students who were materially supported by their parents, Luo Chen's parents had perished when their hometown village was ravaged by monsters. The Eternal Alliance granted him, as a special recruit, free education, but living expenses were not included, so Luo Chen had to earn them himself.

Winston Academy was built atop a mountain not far from the outskirts of Slo City, and naturally, Slo City was the ideal place to earn money.

Luo Chen quickened his pace, and as soon as he exited the academy gates, he activated his lightness technique, jogging all the way. To his delight, he found himself moving as lightly as a swallow, his strides longer and his landings quicker, with less time spent recovering—his mastery of the lightness technique had evidently improved. This, he surmised, was a side effect of his greatly increased spiritual energy.

Instead of heading for the center of Slo City, Luo Chen made straight for the port in the east.

Slo City was a coastal metropolis, its eastern flank bordering the vast and boundless Boro Sea. The ocean provided both fisheries and convenient transportation. It was now dusk, with the setting sun casting golden rays across the shimmering surface of the Boro Sea, draping it in a robe of gold.

There were monsters in the sea as well, but sea fiends were far less active during daylight than at night—only about a tenth as likely to appear, and most were minor creatures. The terrifying giants only surfaced at night. Thus, fishing boats, under the protection of mercenaries, were relatively safe during the day, but returning to land before darkness was always wise.

Fishing vessels of various sizes were returning, and many merchant ships were anchored at the docks, unloading their cargo.

A massive three-story ship was moored at the pier, its hull forged of steel—exceptionally sturdy, equipped with powerful crystal thrusters and potent magitek cannons designed to fend off sea fiends. Clearly, it was a merchant vessel; ordinary fishing boats could never afford such extravagant gear.

Many laborers were carrying cargo down from the ship, while a middle-aged manager stood nearby, tallying the goods. Upon seeing Luo Chen, he smiled, "Well, the star student from Winston Academy is here again?"

Luo Chen replied sheepishly, "Uncle Grelle, please, don't tease me."

One of the laborers chimed in, "Luo Chen, you look lively today, full of sunshine. Did you get yourself a girlfriend at the academy?"

Everyone burst into laughter, familiar with Luo Chen, for he had known them for some time.

To earn his living expenses, Luo Chen had begun working from his first year. Every evening after classes, he would run to the port to carry goods for a bit of pay. Over time, he became well acquainted with the dock manager and the laborers.

The dock owner was glad to hire part-timers like Luo Chen, since their wages were lower than those of regular employees.

"Of course not, studies are the priority!" Luo Chen chuckled. After greeting the manager and the familiar laborers, he went into the ship's cargo hold.

The ship's scale was no exaggeration—the hold was as large as three basketball courts, filled with rows of sealed wooden crates.

On the far side of the Boro Sea lay the Olay Continent, outside the bounds of the Canglan Continent where Slo City was located—a new region of Earth. The Forest of Terror covered much of Canglan, while Olay's terrain was dominated by rocky mountains and hills. The fusion of alternate spaces had greatly enriched Earth's mineral resources. Olay was famous for its refined iron ore, and weapons and armor forged from it were tougher than those made from ordinary iron, highly sought after and exported far and wide.

The crates contained refined iron ore shipped from Sal City on Olay's coast. They were certainly not light—over two hundred pounds each. Yet, with the physical prowess of modern humans, adults could still manage the weight.

As a spirit-powered warrior, Luo Chen was much stronger than ordinary people. He grabbed a crate with his right hand, exerted himself with a grunt, and swung it onto his shoulder.

He then took another crate, hoisting it onto his left shoulder. With an extra two hundred pounds, the load was suddenly heavier, but it felt easier than usual.

It seemed his strength had indeed improved considerably, and Luo Chen felt another surge of joy.

The laborers who entered to help were not surprised; after all, Luo Chen was a spirit warrior. But carrying two crates at once, Luo Chen could probably manage only twenty trips or so before downgrading to one at a time.

With two crates on his shoulders, Luo Chen strode briskly down from the ship to the dock warehouse.

Grelle spotted him and laughed, "Hey there, let's see how many double loads you can manage today!"

With that, he marked two strokes beside Luo Chen's name in the ledger—keeping tally.

A "double load" here meant carrying two crates at once. Manager Grelle was well aware of Luo Chen's routine.

The pay at the dock was calculated by the number of crates carried—more work, more pay. Each crate earned one copper coin, but as a part-timer, Luo Chen received slightly less: nine copper coins for every ten crates.

Luo Chen hauled the refined iron crates to the warehouse, two at a time, and the strokes beside his name in Grelle's ledger steadily multiplied. When Grelle wrote the sixth such mark, he was surprised—Luo Chen usually managed about twenty double loads, but now he had already exceeded thirty and showed no sign of stopping.