Chapter Nineteen: Class Eight

“Although our first meeting wasn’t the most pleasant, I still warmly welcome you all to the Yingzhou Army Military Academy. Standing behind me are the instructors for each division. Over the coming year, we’ll be guiding your training together.”

“I hope you’ll study diligently. Remember, work hard now, and when you find yourselves on the battlefield, you’ll thank me for these words.”

“That’s enough from me. No need for more speeches. Go to the logistics office to collect your bedding, get your quarters in order, and fill your bellies before lunch ends. At two o’clock sharp this afternoon, assemble here for the official start of your recruit training!”

No one had expected Lai Yanlong to finish his speech in just a few words.

The new recruits’ imagined ceremonies never materialized; even the senior officers sitting at the back said nothing, merely showing their faces before leaving.

“Let’s go, Huai Shan. I’m starving—haven’t eaten since this morning!” As soon as the meeting ended, Tan Hai slapped the dazed Du Huaishan on the shoulder.

“Yeah,” Du Huaishan nodded.

He’d been distracted because he noticed that on the podium, besides Chang Sui’an, Chief Instructor Lai Yanlong also had heterochromatic eyes. Among the senior officers at the back, there was even a general with the rank of major general—who had three pupils!

If every pupil represented a completed spirit fusion, did that mean this major general had three guardian spirits?

Du Huaishan suddenly recalled the blood-red vision he saw during his first spirit fusion; after merging with the four-horned demon, one of the nine misty tails on the mountain of blood’s shadow was set alight.

Was there a connection between these things?

If I could have nine guardian spirits…

Du Huaishan startled himself with the thought! For now, he needed to thoroughly understand the matter of demon ghosts and soul marrow.

Up on the podium, the instructors were also leaving one after another.

One of them, his hair slicked back and silver-rimmed glasses perched on his nose, approached Zhou Zhong’ai with a chuckle. “Ha, the new recruits get worse every year, don’t they…”

Zhou Zhong’ai brushed a strand of hair from her brow, lips curved in a gentle smile. “I think these kids are full of energy. We weren’t much better when we enlisted, right, Sui’an?”

“Ah, yes.” Chang Sui’an answered, but his eyes remained fixed on the dispersing recruits.

Zhou Zhong’ai seemed to know what he was thinking. “Are you looking for that boy?”

The fiery red pupils of Chang Sui’an shifted swiftly, finally settling on a well-featured youth—he found him at last, and nodded.

Outside the logistics warehouse, a throng had gathered.

Thankfully, the academy’s leaders were prepared, organizing the lines by recruitment region, which made the process efficient and less prone to error.

In addition to bedding, toiletries, uniforms, and the recruit handbook, each person also received ten silver yuan as a settling-in allowance.

It wasn’t a fortune, but it wasn’t a pittance either. According to the refugee resettlement policies, a regular worker earned three or four silver yuan a month; if you were frugal, one silver yuan could last a whole month.

When Tan Hai received his money, his eyes lit up. He planted a big kiss on the coins, counted out seven, and handed them to Du Huaishan.

“What’s this for?”

“Apprenticeship fee!”

“Get lost! Take them back! Quick, they’re covered in your spit…” Du Huaishan teased, pushing the coins away.

Tan Hai grinned. “Well, if you insist, I won’t say no!”

After collecting their supplies, they stood beneath the academy bulletin.

The recruit dormitories followed the Yingzhou military structure—eight to a room. Since they’d spoken with the company commander in advance, the two were assigned to the same room, Class 8 of the 173rd intake.

According to the map, it was in a single-story building on the west side of the grounds, in the penultimate room.

Inside, a long brick kang bed stretched by the window. Opposite sat a battered, flaking bookshelf and desk, while the side wall was lined with luggage and wardrobes.

Du Huaishan and Tan Hai were among the last to arrive.

Of the six already there, three had made up their beds, while two were quietly organizing their clothes.

A buzz-cut young man, about twenty, tall and sturdy with tanned skin and callused hands, carried a kettle as he greeted them. “Looks like Class Eight’s all here!”

“Let me introduce myself: Wu Ming. Just call me Old Wu. I’m from Jiwu Qiantun. My family are hunters!”

“Yang Anfu! From Ruoshui. I used to be a cook—maybe I’ll let you all try my food sometime!” As Wu Ming finished, a big, plump man scrambled down from the bed, wiped his hands on his shirt, and offered a handshake with a smile.

“This dorm’s a real mix—we’ve got all three provinces of Yingzhou covered!” Tan Hai shook hands, laughing. “I’m Tan Hai, used to work as head teapot at Qingyuan Restaurant in Xintun.”

“Du Huaishan, from Xintun, martial arts apprentice.”

“Look at that—two experts, one with brains, one with brawn!”

Wu Ming clapped Tan Hai on the shoulder. “When are you taking us to that Qingyuan Restaurant for a good time?”

“Old Wu, you forget what the papers said…?” Yang Anfu reminded him.

“Ah, sorry, I just speak without thinking…”

“It’s fine, it’s all in the past,” Tan Hai replied lightly. An orphan with no friends in Xintun, he didn’t mind.

“Hello, everyone!” Just then, a youth who’d just donned his uniform approached, holding two waxed paper packets. With a gentle smile, he said, “I brought some jerky from home—a little treat. My name’s Guo Tingyu, from Fenghou City. My family runs a textile business!”

“Guo, you’re too generous, this is too much—” In these troubled times, meat was precious. Tan Hai was about to refuse, but then stared. “Wait, you’re the one from the train car…”

“What train…? Oh! We were in the same car?” Guo Tingyu realized halfway through his sentence.

Du Huaishan was surprised too. Because of the uniform, he hadn’t recognized him at first, but now, seeing the youth’s blue pupils, he realized it was the same blue-eyed boy who’d shown off his great bird spirit on the train!

“I knew it—‘Tingyu’ sounds like a name for someone from a wealthy family!” Tan Hai’s tongue was quick, always ready with a little flattery.

Guo Tingyu laughed, passing out the jerky without the slightest hint of arrogance. “Come on, brothers, let’s not just stand here. Let’s go to the mess hall before the food runs out. Training this afternoon will be tough!”

Yang Anfu quickly pulled out a tin lunchbox from the supplies.

“Yang, you’re always so eager for food. Huaishan and I haven’t even made our beds!” Tan Hai joked.

The others laughed, Yang Anfu awkwardly caught between sitting and standing with his lunchbox.

As they made their beds, Du Huaishan noticed that Wu Ming’s was the one closest to the door. The academy didn’t assign beds, and in the cold winter, no one wanted to sleep by the door and freeze—usually the last to arrive got stuck there.

Clearly, Wu Ming had volunteered for the edge so Du Huaishan and Tan Hai could have warmer spots.

Once everything was sorted, the entire Class Eight, dressed in their new khaki uniforms and carrying lunchboxes, followed Yang Anfu at a run to the mess hall.

“See? What did I tell you!” Yang Anfu tapped his lunchbox as they entered.

The mess hall was packed, heads everywhere.

Although the new and old recruits trained separately, there was only one dining hall, and with new arrivals today, it was bursting at the seams.

“Over there—fewer people, let’s get in line!” Tan Hai’s sharp eyes spotted an opening.

They hurried over, but as they did, a few veteran soldiers in loose collars cut in front of two female recruits.

The women’s uniforms were new as well—clearly new recruits. One tapped a veteran on the shoulder. “Excuse me, we were here first. Please queue behind us.”

“And what makes you think you were here first?”

“Yeah, by seniority, we’ve been here a year longer!”

“So many new recruits—can’t even get a meal these days!”

The veterans glared menacingly.

It was true: after half a year’s training, these summer veterans had a commanding presence and physique that far surpassed the rookies.

Guo Tingyu, raised well, couldn’t stand this kind of bullying. “These veterans just pick on the new guys. Doesn’t the mess staff care? Is this what soldiers are supposed to be?”

“Today, they’ll turn a blind eye,” Du Huaishan replied from behind.

“It’s an old army tradition: first the chief instructor yells at you, then the veterans push you down a peg, just to knock off some of that rookie edge.”

“To hell with their edge—I just can’t stand it!” Wu Ming, the blunt hunter, spoke without restraint.

“Keep it down, Old Wu,” Tan Hai cautioned, not wanting trouble.

After getting their food, they were lucky enough to snag a table as some veterans left. Compared to the refugee camps, the academy’s meals were a luxury: not just mixed grain rice, but potatoes, greens, and even some minced meat.

Yang Anfu wasted no time, scooping up half a lunchbox with a single bite.

Tan Hai, eating, asked curiously, “Guo, I’ve wondered since the train—your family’s well-off, you’ve got a guardian spirit, why come to the military academy and suffer?”

The others were curious too.

Guo Tingyu smiled. “Well, how rich can anyone really be? My father says, in these times, the military government decides your fate. If they want you rich, you’ll be rich; if they want you poor, you’ll be poor.”

“That’s why he spent a fortune to get me a guardian spirit, hired tutors, and sent me here—to give me a future in the army, so I can help the family.”

“Honestly, my goal is to become a general!”

Laughter broke out—not from Du Huaishan’s group, but from the veterans at the next table.

The mess was cramped, with long tables and benches, so everyone could hear what others said.

Wu Ming’s temper immediately flared.

Even the well-mannered Guo Tingyu flushed with anger at the mockery.

“Being a general’s a fine goal, Guo! You’ve got looks and a guardian spirit—you’ll get there!” Tan Hai’s quick words saved Guo Tingyu’s dignity.

Du Huaishan picked up a mouthful of rice, but just as he was about to eat, something jabbed his back, and the rice fell back into his box.

He turned to see a veteran on the bench behind him, leaning in deliberately.

Du Huaishan shifted forward and tried again.

Again, his back was poked.

Du Huaishan frowned and turned, his voice cold. “Could you move back a bit?”

The veteran slowly turned. With his thick neck and scarred brow, he was clearly no pushover.

“Well, look who it is—one of the future general’s classmates, is it?” the veteran sneered, prompting more laughter from his friends.

“Kid, you’re just a rookie—eat your food and don’t get cocky, got it?” As he spoke, the buzz-cut veteran reached for Du Huaishan’s collar.

“Go to hell!” Du Huaishan dodged, grabbed his lunchbox, and slammed it down on the man’s head with a loud crack.

“Screw this, I’ve had enough—let’s take these bastards!” Wu Ming leapt to his feet and charged in.

“Let’s go!” Guo Tingyu couldn’t hold back either.

Yang Anfu, swallowing his last bite, joined without hesitation.

In an instant, Class Eight was brawling with the veterans.

Suddenly, every eye in the mess, recruit and veteran alike, turned to watch.

Tan Hai saw more veterans getting up to join in. His eyes darted, and he suddenly shouted, “These bastards called us new recruits a bunch of idiots! Let’s show ’em!”

A roar erupted.