Chapter 43: The Second Invitation

After some deliberation, Chen Chuan opened his room door. “Please, come in.”

“If you need help, call me,” Luo Kaiyuan suddenly said.

Surprised, Chen Chuan looked at him. Then, he nodded and expressed his gratitude sincerely, “Thanks, Luo Kaiyuan.”

The upperclassman acted as if he had not heard their conversation. He just smiled and followed Chen Chuan into the room.

Chen Chuan offered him a seat before pouring him a glass of water. Then, he sat down across from him. “How may I address you?”

“Allow me to introduce myself first, then. I’m Yu Ruizhi, a sophomore from the Takedown Department.”

“You’re from the Takedown Department?”

Chen Chuan observed him. He could not tell just by Yu Ruizhi’s size alone. Someone of Zhong Wu’s stature, though, was obvious.

But there were a lot of different types of takedowns, so it made sense that their practitioners came in various builds. Some petite people also practiced takedowns, so it was not strange for Yu Ruizhi to be part of the Takedown Department.

“Why are you here?” Chen Chuan asked.

Yu Ruizhi remained smiling as he shook his head. “Are you wondering whether I’m here to criticize you for what you’ve done to Zhong Wu?

“That’s not it. Everything you did during the test was, without a doubt, within the rules. That’s why no one will hold you accountable for it. I am here today to invite you to the Mutual Aid Group.”

Chen Chuan looked straight into his eyes. “Perhaps I didn’t make myself clear last time, so please let me formally give you my answer: I have no interest in getting any help from the Mutual Aid Group.”

“I’m not here to offer you any aid. I’m just inviting you to join the Mutual Aid Group.” He raised a hand to stop Chen Chuan from declining again. “Don’t be in a hurry to say no. Let me tell you what you can get from joining the Mutual Aid Group. You can give me an answer once I’m done.

“You must understand that you can’t become a true martial artist just by training blindly. That’s for martial artists from martial arts schools. A person who truly wants to achieve success needs to go through systematic training with a clear goal in mind.

“This sort of training is really important. Even if you think you understand just how important, you don’t,” he stressed, and there was an underlying meaning in his voice. “You might say that lecturers will train you and that you’ll get a mentor too, but your mentor and lecturers won’t really understand you. They will teach you based on their own experiences and with themselves as the blueprint while creating your training plan.

“Even if you have all sorts of ways to grow right now, your training will fall short in some aspects. That slight imperfection will cause you to be unable to unleash your full potential, and you won’t be able to reach your true heights.

“But the Mutual Aid Group can help with that.”

“Oh? The Mutual Aid Group is that great?”

“Of course,” Yu Ruizhi said confidently. “The Mutual Aid Group is far more powerful than you can imagine. If you join us, we can give you a comprehensive physical examination and provide you with a customized training plan. We can also help you build your own fighting style and give you all sorts of supplementary drugs for training.

“And that’s just a small bit of what we can do for you while you’re studying here. After you graduate and achieve great things, we can recommend you to Black Orchid. Cui Hong, the current vice security supervisor at Black Orchid, got his position thanks to our support. We’re talking about a company that earned its place in Central City. I’m sure I don’t need to tell you what it would mean for your future to get a position there.”

Chen Chuan thought about his words. “I have a question: Why me?”

“Honestly, we didn’t approach you alone. Both during the introduction to the potential upperclassmen for the follow-up exam and today, we’ve sent invitations to all students with potential to join us.

“During your exam, we could tell that you had learned a breathing technique, but were not someone who has practiced martial arts since childhood. This is rare. The average person would have a hard time withstanding that sort of pain without having gone through any training before, but you did, and that’s why you had the strength to fight Zhong Wu.

“That makes you valuable.

“Forgive me for using that word, but it’s true that a person can be measured by their worth, but that value is not fixed. You can be valuable now, but lose your worth in the future.”

He looked into Chen Chuan’s eyes, as if to give him pressure. “You’ve gained strength by draining your potential, and you will need to pay that debt sooner or later. What awaits you is pain and a decline in strength in just a few years, or perhaps worse.

“You might end up in that situation far earlier than you imagine. Many of the first-class students haven’t begun practicing a breathing technique yet, but once they do, they will catch up to you, and your advantage over them will be gone.”

Chen Chuan found his words intriguing. “Is that so? Judging by your words, there’s a way to make up for the draining of my potential, no?”

“Of course!” Yu Ruizhi stated with certainty.

He could tell that Chen Chuan was interested and earnestly explained, “The pharmaceutical companies in Central City have medicine that can restore your potential and compensate for your shortcomings, but they’re really expensive. Those medicines are also considered forbidden drugs outside Central City. The Mutual Aid Group is the only group that has a way to get those medicines, and we can promise you that if you join, you will immediately have access to them.”

Chen Chuan said nothing, so Yu Ruizhi added, “Of course, if you think the medicine isn’t right for you and you don’t want to use them, you can choose other ways, such as... implants.”

Chen Chuan gave him a guarded look and repeated, “Implants?”

“Perhaps you’ve heard about them before, but perhaps you haven’t. We’re talking about bioengineered implants. A military-grade one can help you instantly gain superhuman abilities,” Yu Ruizhi said.

“If that’s the case, if a normal person got an implant, could they immediately achieve superior combat abilities?” Chen Chuan asked.

Yu Ruizhi shook his head. “That’s not how it works. The implantee’s tolerance determines whether they can bring out the full power of the implant. The higher a person’s tolerance is, the more power they can bring out. That’s why having a good body is a must.”

Chen Chuan pondered over his words.

Yu Ruizhi waited for a while before saying, “Now that I’ve told you so many things, what are your thoughts about joining us?”

Chen Chuan looked at him. “I’m grateful for your kindness, but I’d rather walk my own path.”

“Is that your answer? I understand.”

Yu Ruizhi remained as polite and mild-mannered as ever. He did not seem to be angry because of Chen Chuan’s rejection.

He brought out a name card and placed it on his table before standing up with a smile. “If you ever change your mind, you can come to us. By the way, martial arts aren’t just about fighting techniques. The world isn’t as simple as you think it is. Well then, I look forward to our next meeting. You don’t have to see me off.”

After he stepped into the corridor, he gave Chen Chuan a nod and a meaningful smile before shutting the door.

Yu Ruizhi is certain that I’ll go to them based on his last words. Are they planning something? Or is there something I don’t know about?

Chen Chuan wondered.

He went to the floor-to-ceiling window and looked down. The campus was bright with lights, and it was especially bright at the administrative office building and the lake.

Yu Ruizhi had promised many things, but Chen Chuan had no doubt that he would have to pay a hefty price for each and every one of them. Yet he had come to learn martial arts so that he could be free and unrestrained. He wanted to reach great heights with his current identity.

He looked at the stars among the clouds. No matter how bright the lights were on the ground, they simply could not compare to the vastness of the starry sky.