Chapter 204 - A Brass-Necked Diplomatic Personnel!
By the time Qi Long shouted, the others had also noticed that the one who had silently snuck up behind them was none other than Ling Lan whom they had been waiting for. They all became restless with excitement.
The small smile on Ling Lan's lips had disappeared without a trace at the moment Qi Long had turned around. Hearing Qi Long's question, Ling Lan huffed coldly and said with a stern expression, "I had been sitting behind you all this whole time. You all were just so careless that you forgot to check your backs. If I were an assassin, none of you would have escaped."
She had thought that after going on an interplanetary adventure, they would have become more vigilant — but they were unexpectedly still rather careless, actually neglecting a spot which they should never neglect.
Facing Ling Lan's stony visage, Qi Long and Luo Lang did not dare to put up any form of protest. They immediately bowed their heads and accepted the lecture, faces filled with embarrassment and remorse.
Only Han Jijyun tried to explain, "Boss, you intentionally suppressed your aura. Even if we had been more careful, we still wouldn't have been able to guard against you!"
Qi Long and Luo Lang nodded emphatically at Han Jijyun's words. In fact, when they had first arrived, they had carefully observed their surroundings as well as the few travellers seated on those seats behind them. Finding that their auras were all exceedingly normal, nothing at all out of the ordinary, only then had they let down their guard.
"Even if you don't sense any danger, you should not let down your guard completely," advised Ling Lan.
"Understood, Boss!" The five boys nodded respectfully. They knew that Ling Lan was only saying this for their sakes, otherwise he would not have personally set up this situation to teach them this lesson.
Ling Lan cast a satisfied glance over them and then said, "Since everyone's here, let's go to the registration point of the First Men's Military Academy." That said, she began to move, but she had only taken a few steps when Xie Yi spoke up from behind her, "Boss Lan, please wait a moment!"
Ling Lan turned with a quirked brow, "You have something to say?"
Xie Yi let out a deep breath, trying to ease his nerves, before saying, "Yes, I want to tell you, Boss Lan, the answer to that question you asked me three months ago."
Ling Lan folded her arms across her chest, lips tilted up slightly, tone interested as she said, "Oh?"
Ling Lan's gaze caused Xie Yi's heart to spasm, and the courage he had built up almost deflated. He clenched his fists tightly, silently cheering himself on. Don't be nervous, you must spit it out. Whether you live or die all depends on today's attempt!
He breathed in deeply once more and then said, "In the team, in terms of combat power, I am indeed no match for the leader or Luo Lang; in terms of strategy, I cannot compare against our strategist 1 ; in terms of attention to detail, I cannot beat Lin Zhong-qing ... but, I have a strength that no one else has. That is, my skin is thick enough, able to do things they might not be able to do ..."
That statement of 'my skin is thick enough' caused the others to reveal expressions of shock. Was Xie Yi planning to use a ' sticky-candy 1 strategy' to cling to Boss Lan until he could not take it anymore and chose to acknowledge him? They surreptitiously wiped off the cold sweat pouring from their foreheads at the thought. Had they forgotten to tell Xie Yi that Boss Lan's tolerance was beyond horrifying? This move was doomed to fail!
"Three years since joining the team, I have gotten to know the personalities of my other teammates. The leader and Luo Lang are focused on combat, and have no patience to interact much with others. The strategist is intelligent and good at planning, but this gives pressure to others, who won't dare to approach the strategist easily, afraid they would be carelessly manipulated by the strategist ..." Xie Yi listed out his teammates' strengths one by one, and his gaze finally fell on Lin Zhong-qing, "Lin Zhong-qing is good with people, and he's careful and observant — a lot of our intel was obtained by him from others, so this role would actually be really suitable for him as well. But, the support logistics for our team is a heavy duty, so he is also one of the busiest in the team ..."
Everything Xie Yi said was on point; Ling Lan nodded in acknowledgement of his logic. Seeing this, Xie Yi initially unsteady heart received a boost of encouragement, just as if he had been given a shot of heart tonic 1 .
With renewed courage, he raised his head abruptly, meeting Ling Lan's gaze head on, and said confidently, "So, I am prepared to take on the role of external communications. The team needs a diplomatic personnel to moderate when cooperating with other teams. With my thick skin, letting me go and communicate with the other party would undoubtedly be the most appropriate option. No matter what kind of attitude the other party has, I will be able to take it."
"It's unexpected that you would actually find such a role for yourself. Don't you think it's a waste of your talent?" said Ling Lan coldly, eyes trained on Xie Yi, her gaze almost boring a hole right through him, "Qi Long has told me before that you are a fighter no weaker than Luo Lang. Don't you want to be a main attacker of the team?"
Xie Yi chuckled dryly and said, "If there were only five of us in the team, without you, Boss Lan, around, perhaps I might be ambitious enough to try and fight for a primary attacker position, but ..." He shook his head, "the leader and Luo Lang will definitely not relinquish the two main attacker positions. And besides, for you, Boss Lan, your right and left arms should be the leader and Luo Lang whom you are most familiar with and have the best rapport with. This will undoubtedly be more acceptable for you. I am well aware that three years is not enough time for me to challenge them for their positions."
At this point of his explanation, Xie Yi's gaze turned sharp. "Of course, in another three to five years, once I've become confident that my rapport with Boss Lan won't lose to the two of them, I will fight for a change of role."
Back when Xie Yi had been contemplating the issue, he had considered a formation without Ling Lan, with Qi Long as the leader. In that formation, he indeed had a high chance of becoming a main attacker, but Xie Yi believed that, with Ling Lan's capabilities, as long as the other's injuries were fully recovered, getting into the First Men's Military Academy was a sure thing. A year later, Ling Lan would definitely make a successful comeback and re-enrol into the First Men's Military Academy. Thus, he needed to consider the situation a year later.
Xie Yi's words touched Ling Lan. She had not expected that Xie Yi would include her in his considerations when coming up with his role in the team. If her father had not bungled up and caused her to be sent into the First Men's Military Academy, she would have really felt guilty for Xie Yi's struggles in coming up with this answer ...
Ling Lan peered intently at Xie Yi and then said, "I understand!" That said, she turned around and left, being the first to walk out of the great hall of platform number 9.
Xie Yi stood stunned, unsure what Ling Lan meant by that reply. Right then, Luo Lang nudged Xie Yi excitedly, scolding him teasingly, "Idiot! This means Boss has acknowledged you."
Luo Lang's words caused Xie Yi to be overwhelmed with pleasant surprise. He really had Boss Lan's acknowledgement now? That's awesome! His suspended heart finally settled down after three months of worrying, and he actually felt his eyes grow damp. He couldn't believe he was on the verge of crying — this was really too embarrassing, really not what a grown man should be doing ...
Qi Long trailed Ling Lan closely; as he passed by Xie Yi's side, he patted his shoulder heavily in congratulation. Three years' time was enough for them to consider Xie Yi like a brother, so they had sincerely hoped that he would be able to get Boss Lan's acknowledgement. Otherwise, it would have been a terrible shame even for them.
Following right behind Qi Long, Han Jijyun nodded at Xie Yi. Although his expression was just as austere as ever, his eyes could not hide his happiness and well wishes for Xie Yi.
When Lin Zhong-qing passed by Xie Yi's side, he laughed softly and said, "Xie Yi, congratulations." Lin Zhong-qing had also gone through Ling Lan's evaluation, so he really understood Xie Yi's feelings at this moment. That year, when he had earned his acknowledgement, he had been equally moved beyond composure — because this meant that he had truly become a member of the team, no longer at risk of being a passing guest ...
Right at the end was Luo Lang. He smiled gently at Xie Yi, lovely as peach blossoms, his eyes glimmering with emotion, leading others to become mesmerized against their will. However, Luo Lang's following words instantly shattered this spell, "Idiot Xie Yi, why are you standing there stupidly? Not coming?"
Seeing Luo Lang's diminishing figure, Xie Yi chuckled dryly as he hurried to keep up.
Xie Yi could not help but sigh internally. Their entrance into the First Men's Military Academy definitely would not be calm and peaceful. Luo Lang was very likely to become their team's own Helen of Troy 1 ... he could almost imagine it — in the military academy, him having to constantly run around handling all kinds of 'diplomatic incidents' caused by Luo Lang ...
"If Boss Lan is around, he should be able to hold back those deviant and insincere fellows, right?" Thinking this way, Xie Yi began to fret over how he would live through that one year at the military academy without Ling Lan there to hold down the fort.
"I hope I'm just worrying over nothing!" Xie Yi could only think this way.
The six of them walked out of the platform. A cooling breeze swept by, and all of them felt refreshed. Although the spaceport was a fully enclosed man-made space, it simulated the natural environment on the planet, making people feel very comfortable.
The hover car stop was right outside the platform; they arrived at it after just a few steps. Meanwhile, by this time, Ling Lan's backpack had already migrated onto Qi Long's shoulders. As Ling Lan's capable follower, how could he allow Boss to personally carry his own backpack?
Freed from her luggage, Ling Lan stuck both her hands into her pockets, a carefree expression on her face. Since her follower wanted to please her, she should give him a chance to perform. Besides, she also knew that Qi Long's body, which was built like a bear, could even take on another 500 to 600 catties 1 without any trouble, which was why she could just kick back and enjoy this treatment.
The hover cars of the spaceport seemed to come one after another in a never-ending stream. The six of them swiftly managed to hail two hover cars and split up into two groups, and after keying in the district they needed to go to, the hover cars zoomed off towards their destination. The whole way there, all they could see were hover cars flying at different heights. They sped and weaved among one another at an unheard tempo, the scene much as if they had entered a rhythmic world of hover cars.
The First Men's Military Academy's registration point was at landing platform 99 of District-K. Once the hover cars of Ling Lan's group entered District-K, the horde of hover cars in the sky was no longer visible, and the hover car closest to theirs had already moved to keep a kilometre away from them. It was clear to see that there were really very few people coming into District-K — this proved that the First Men's Military Academy was really not easy to get into.
The hover car very quickly arrived on landing platform 99, and Ling Lan and the others disembarked. Right in front of the landing platform was a gateway — to enter, one needed to have a gate pass, and this gate pass was an acceptance letter from the school.
Seeing this, the expressions of Qi Long and the others dimmed and they stopped walking. They knew that the time for them to part with Ling Lan was about to come; their initial excitement was now taken over by the sadness of parting.
"Why did you stop?" Seeing her five companions stop almost simultaneously, expressions dejected, Ling Lan was snickering in her heart, but her face only revealed a vague puzzlement.
"Boss ..." Qi Long was the first to speak, but he did not know what else to say.
1. i.e. Jijyun. I guess he has a nickname in the team now.
2. 牛皮糖: literally translates to 'cow-hide candy'. Remember how cows are symbols of stubbornness? Here, this term combines the stickiness of chewing gum with the toughness/stubbornness of a cow's hide to refer to sticking to someone shamelessly.
3. 强心针: literally 'strong heart needle'. Think, a shot of reassurance. I considered translating this as 'adrenaline' since that was the closest thing to something that boosts heart function that I could think of, but it just didn't seem to fit this context very well.
4. 祸水: literally 'trouble water'. Women are often described with water terms in Chinese, like they are made from tears and the waters of emotion. Now, Luo Lang might not be a girl, but the author has been describing him in a way that paints him as pretty as girl (maybe even prettier, *cough cough*). And combined with that whole bit with Xie Yi being bedazzled earlier, Helen of Troy should be a good English equivalent for this phrase which is usually used to depict women so beautiful they cause catastrophes over people fighting over them.
5. i.e. 300 to 360 kg
Chapter 205 - I Used a Backdoor!
"What time is the deadline for registration?" Qi Long felt unsettled meeting the gaze of Ling Lan, who was eyeing him coldly, so he immediately turned his head to ask Han Jijyun. Fine, he really just could not look at Boss and say goodbye.
"Before 12!" Han Jijyun replied without even having to check. The typically careless Qi Long very easily forgot little details like these; this had made Han Jijyun develop the habit of being Qi Long's walking encyclopedia.
Qi Long glanced at the communicator on his wrist and saw that it was only 10:30. There was still time to hang out with Boss. At this moment, he was somewhat regretful — why hadn't he suggested they find a restful teahouse or café to have a nice chat before Boss had said to come here and register?
If the heart moved, then action should be taken immediately; Qi Long carefully tested the waters. "Boss, why don't we find somewhere to sit and have a chat? After all, it's still quite early before the deadline of 12 o'clock."
Ling Lan threw a cold glance at him, "What's there to chat about? Besides, no one knows what other procedures you will have to go through after going in. What if there isn't enough time?"
Qi Long found himself struck dumb by Ling Lan's words. Did he really have to come out and admit that he wasn't ready to say goodbye to Boss just yet? Qi Long, who considered himself a grown man now, felt it was beneath him to do such a childish action.
The others could see that Ling Lan's heart was set, not to be changed, so even if they were in full agreement with Qi Long's suggestion to spend a little more time with Boss, they did not dare to say anything in support.
Ling Lan watched as the five youths walked away, turning back to look at her with every step, faces filled with reluctance, and she almost lost hold of her coffin-face. She could not help but furrow her brow — it looked like she had not perfected her slackface yet. She still wasn't at the point where she could be completely unfazed by anything and everything 1 . These cute expressions of her few little companions right now had almost cracked her icy facade ... it looked like she still needed to train it more.
However, from Qi Long and the others' perspective, Ling Lan's locked eyebrows were an indicator that their boss was displeased with their maudlin display of dragging their feet. And so, they could only harden their hearts and force themselves to stop looking back. They each took out their respective acceptance letters and headed for the gateway's sensors and scanned them.
"Beep! Logging information, registered First Men's Military Academy cadet, Qi Long! Please provide your proof of identity!" Following the instructions of this mechanical voice, Qi Long held out his right wrist, allowing the scanner to scan his communicator.
"Beep! Proof of identity logged. Identity verified, entrance permitted!" The doors of the gateway suddenly slid open, revealing a tunnel about a metre wide. Qi Long walked through it and the gateway closed behind him once more.
Qi Long stood inside and waited for the others to enter as well. After all five of them had entered, they were just about to say their final goodbyes to Boss when they found to their shock that Boss Ling Lan had walked up to the side of the gateway.
Could it be that Boss still had some instructions to pass on? The five of them waited with bated breath, but the subsequent scene caused their jaws to drop, and they continued to gape for a long while.
Ling Lan took out a palm-sized card from her pocket and waved it at them. They could almost see a little devil peeping out from behind Ling Lan, smirking mischievously at them.
"Beep! Logging information, registered First Men's Military Academy cadet, Ling Lan! Please provide your proof of identity!" Exactly the same as when they went through the process, the gateway recited those familiar words.
They stared dumbly at Ling Lan as she calmly lifted her wrist communicator up for the sensor to scan, and then casually walked into the tunnel ...
Qi Long rubbed his eyes forcefully to make sure he wasn't seeing things. Back when he had asked Ling Lan which school he had applied for, he had most definitely said it was the Windchase Mecha Service College on planet Aureolin, and he had also confirmed that he had been accepted for enrolment. Then, why was Ling Lan all of a sudden a cadet of the First Men's Military Academy like them? What in the world was happening? Also, coming into the First Men's Military Academy just like this, will Boss's body be fine? Mind you, during the first year, all that the cadets would be learning would be some advanced and challenging physical training. Anyone with a weaker physical constitution was very unlikely to be able to bear it, not to mention someone like Boss with unhealed injuries.
In his shock, Qi Long could not help but voice his doubts.
Ling Lan held back her humour, and explained calmly, "This acceptance letter was obtained by my dad through a backdoor. As for the first year of physical conditioning, also because of this backdoor, my dad got me exempted ..."
Han Jijyun was the first to regain his bearings. It made sense — as one of the nine great generals of the Federation, Ling Xiao definitely had enough clout to get his child into the First Men's Military Academy. As for the exemption ... Han Jijyun could not recall anyone ever managing that.
Just as Han Jijyun was puzzling over the issue, a sudden spark of realisation flashed through his mind. He gasped in shock, "Boss Lan, do you already have a military rank?" Only students who were already military officers had the right to be exempted from exams for the first year, because their physical training and evaluations would be handled fully by the military.
Anyone who understood how the military divisions worked knew that the divisions' physical training and evaluations would only be tougher than the First Men's Military Academy's. Mind you, the physical training and evaluation of the First Men's Military Academy could only be labelled as a paramilitary training and evaluation. Just the prefix of 'para-' was enough to show that it was weaker than real military physical conditioning. Therefore, if someone could pass the military's physical training and evaluations, then they would definitely be able the pass the military academy's physical assessments.
"Hn, my dad has settled everything for me using that backdoor. I only need to focus on recovering from my injuries in the first year." The more Ling Lan elaborated, the more she felt like an entitled loafer. This made Ling Lan, who had always liked to let her strength do the talking, feel somewhat unsettled. It looked like one needed to have a strong heart to be an idle good-for-nothing rich kid, otherwise one just wouldn't have the proper aura for it ...
"General Ling is too amazing!" Qi Long and the others had all regained their senses by now. Hearing what Ling Lan had to say, they exclaimed in astonishment, gazes filled with the light of idolisation, admiration, etcetera. When it came to their dear cherished idol, they were completely blind to the fact that Ling Xiao's actions were already within the realm of abuse of power, an official misconduct.
"That's wonderful! Boss, we can be together again!" In his excitement, Qi Long glomped Ling Lan and would not let go, the initial morose uncertainty in his heart vanishing without a trace. Only now did he realise that, all these years, his Boss Lan 1 had already become the pillar of support in his heart. As long as Ling Lan was standing by his side, his heart would be filled with courage, confidence, and strength. Even if the path ahead was filled with countless trials and tribulations, he would be able to scream at the skies. Even if the skies of the Federation were to be ripped asunder, he would have no fear.
"Boss, you're so mean! Actually tricking us!" Luo Lang did not want to be left out. He also pounced over and hugged Ling Lan and Qi Long. Draping himself over the both of them, he snuggled forcefully into the nape of Ling Lan's neck in discontentment. He did not notice that when he said 'tricking us', his tone had lilted up at the end, the sounds drawn out, giving his words a sense of coquettishness.
Luo Lang's voice and actions made Ling Lan shudder and push him away. "Luo Lang, don't hang on me and act cute. You should remember you are a man! A man!" By the end, a growl could be heard in Ling Lan's voice; it was clear to see how deep her resentment ran on this matter.
D*mmit, why did her own voice have to be so cold, so flat? Sometimes, she had tried to intentionally curl her tone of voice at the end of her sentences, trying to warm up the atmosphere, but it only came out sounding even more threatening than before ... Fine, she had now utterly given up on acting cute in this life. Her mum had not given birth to her with talent in this area; she could not force it!
Luo Lang flushed, his face becoming even more alluring with its pink glow. It was so pretty the others could not bear to look at him directly, all of them turning their heads away. Luo Lang said rather sadly, "Boss, when did I do that? Aren't I just being happy? Also, I'm a man to begin with. It's not like I wanted to look this way ..."
His eyes were blurry with a light sheen of moisture, and there was a hint of a nasal tone to his voice due to his sadness, making his retort sound soft and weak. Anyone who heard it would instantly feel compassionate, reflexively wanting to speak up and comfort this cute and lovely sweetheart before them ...
At this, even Ling Lan could not help but feel her face start to twitch. She pressed a hand to her forehead, trying to dispel her headache — for Luo Lang to enter the all-boys First Men's Military Academy looking like this ... was this really a smart move? All kinds of BL stories she had read in her previous life surfaced in her mind ... a boys' military school was fertile ground for cultivating homoerotic relationships!
"Little Four, control yourself!" Ling Lan's headache felt even worse. This Little Four — actually sneaking out at this moment to come and cause trouble for her ... those BL stories that had appeared in her mind earlier had all been Little Four displaying the stories he had archived.
"The fertile ground of homoerotic relationships!" Little Four cheered in the mindspace. Of course, he secretly fantasized — would his boss go have a steamy gay fling at the military academy just once? Little Four started to feel excited, thinking that he had found a fun new game to play.
Right then, Ling Lan could not know what Little Four was thinking. She merely threw Little Four into the learning space, packing him up so he would not be able to come out and mess with her thoughts. Looking at the teary Luo Lang, Ling Lan thought of her own situation and could not help but sigh internally.
Forget it. She was already unintentionally on this road of cold and aloof dominance; having Luo Lang, who seemed to be developing unstoppably in the direction of having a face as fair as a flower and as lovely as the moon 1 , by her side, was somehow a comfort to her. Perhaps this was a gift from the heavens — specially gifting her a little companion to share her androgynous fate. This path was no longer as lonely as before!
Ling Lan consoled herself. This way, she could now accept Luo Lang the way he was. And thus, Ling Lan put down the conflicted feelings she had in her heart. She walked over and patted Luo Lang on his shoulder, saying, "Then just stay like this! We only need to be ourselves!"
Ling Lan's words had a double meaning, but this could not be known by the other five. Only she herself knew that she was also consoling herself as she was consoling Luo Lang.
Luo Lang's feminine appearance had always been a bitter pill in his heart. Originally, Luo Lang had thought that Boss Lan would be just like his other teammates, somewhat disapproving of his looks, but unexpectedly, Boss Lan had said such a thing to him instead. He was instantly greatly moved, abruptly gripped by a profound sense of being understood. "Boss, thank you!"
Boss, only you understand my true heart. Luo Lang is still the same Luo Lang as before — I won't change just because my appearance has changed! Thank you, Boss. Having your trust, even if everyone else in the world looks down on me for my looks, I will not be angry or depressed, or ever doubt myself!
Luo Lang's internal frustration with his looks disappeared. He smiled joyfully, radiantly, and even more beautifully. His initially still somewhat concealed radiance was fully unleashed at this moment, causing the others to feel as if they could not look at him directly ...
But all the companions knew deep down that — Luo Lang had become stronger again! Because his charisma had risen to a whole new height! The companions who had grown up alongside him all knew very well that Luo Lang's capabilities and his charisma were correlated. The stronger he was, the brighter his charisma would shine!
Ling Lan did not know that her inadvertent consolation had let Luo Lang untie the knot in his heart. The release of the bindings caused his mental state to level up, increasing his initially secured physical skills plane once more, allowing Luo Lang's charisma to be improved and enhanced. This point would incite a great storm later on, causing their team to have a much harder time in the military academy with a never-ending string of conflicts!
And this storm would also lead a cadet with very hidden depths to stumble into Ling Lan's life ...
1. 雷打不动天塌不惊: The original phrase here is fun. Literal translation is 'unmoved by thunder and unafraid if the sky falls'.
2. T/C: awww, 'his' Boss Lan. :3
3. 花容月貌: literally 'flower face moon appearance'. Usually only used to depict women.
Chapter 206 - Journey!
The reality of Ling Lan's enrolment into the First Men's Military Academy thrilled Qi Long and the other four. Ling Lan waited for them to calm down, and then led them to enter platform 99.
The moment they entered platform 99, they saw a medium-small interstellar spaceship parked silently on the port runway. It went without saying that this was the spaceship which would be bringing them to the First Men's Military Academy.
The First Men's Military Academy was famous throughout the entire Federation. Everyone knew it was situated on planet Edusea 1 , but its specific address was not publicly known. This was very likely a measure to protect its students, but could also be to prevent riff-raff from getting close to the school and causing trouble. Whatever the reason, the obscurity of the academy's address was an undeniable fact.
The spaceship was quite a distance from them; a long and straight travellator 1 was directly connected to the entrance of the spaceship. The six of them stepped onto the travellator, and holding onto the handrail, they chatted leisurely as they were swiftly carried to the entrance of the spaceship.
They then walked off the travellator, and just as they neared the cabin door, an icy voice rang out, "Please display your boarding pass."
Inside the area right after the cabin door, a fully outfitted officer was standing. He politely saluted them and began going through the necessary pre-boarding check.
Ling Lan brought out that palm-sized acceptance letter from her pocket and passed it to the officer.
The officer reached out his right hand for it, and then lifted his left hand as well. There was a miniature device in the palm of his left hand — Ling Lan took a glance, and immediately realised that it was the Federation's latest data scanner model, which was also the most portable version.
Sure enough, the officer swiped Ling Lan's acceptance letter across the scanner, and Ling Lan's associated data instantly appeared on the device's screen.
When he saw the words 'DATA MATCHED' appear, only then did the soldier return the acceptance letter in his hand to Ling Lan. At the same time, the data on the scanner's screen quietly disappeared.
Somewhere internal where Ling Lan could not see, her name, which had been bright white on a registration name list, instantly turned black. Ling Lan's data had been transmitted instantaneously to the First Men's Military Academy's mainframe database to form a student file.
Of course, this was also another measure by the school to prevent outsiders from sneaking in. If by any chance someone managed to forge Ling Lan's acceptance letter and came to register, the registration list that already had Ling Lan's name dimmed would immediately cause the other to be withheld at the door. At the same time, the registered Ling Lan's data would be sent to the National Security Agency. The National Security Agency would then send an officer to investigate the two parties post haste to determine the truth of the matter before passing judgement.
The reason for this strictness was entirely because the First Men's Military Academy was the gathering grounds of the most exceptional young talents of the entire Federation. If an enemy spy managed to infiltrate the school and sabotage the students there, the Federation's combat capability would not only be greatly reduced for about 10 years, but could even result in a discontinuation of particular legacies. This was something the Federation could not abide; therefore, the registration period for new students every year was when the National Security Agency was most pressured.
After that, Qi Long and the others all passed through one after another, and then the six of them walked deeper inside the spaceship. Although it was considered a small ship, it was still rather large on the inside — larger than the large cruise ships of Ling Lan's previous world by 5 to 6 times.
They were led by a staff member of the spaceship to a large hall. In there were many seats, but they were not arranged like the seats of aeroplanes in her previous world, row by row. Six extremely comfortable armchairs were arranged around a round table, and this formation was repeated again and again to fill the entire hall.
Ling Lan estimated that, if all the seats were filled, it would amount to 700 to 800 people. However, right now, the hall was pretty empty, not many people in there at all. It looked like it was still rather early in the registration period, so many of the students were not here yet.
Ling Lan randomly chose one of the tables near the entrance of the hall and sat down, the others moving along with her.
As time passed, the spaceship started to fill with students. The initially quiet hall began to grow noisy and lively as people found others familiar to them and sat together, excitement written on every youthful face. Without question, each and every one of them was full of curiosity about their new life at the military academy.
Of these students, a large majority was undoubtedly from the Central Scout Academy. As they trickled in, some of them may not have noticed Ling Lan seated among them, but as the number of people increased, some sharp-eyed students finally noticed the presence of Ling Lan who should not have appeared here. Their first action then was to rush over excitedly and greet Ling Lan — the uncrowned king Ling Lan had their unquestioning deference.
As more and more students from the Central Scout Academy found out that Ling Lan was present, they all would run over by themselves to greet her. This caused the gazes of all the students from the other scout academies to turn pensive, starting to wonder who this person really was. Why did he have such high repute, to inspire these other elite talents to offer their greetings voluntarily?
They could see very clearly that these students had not a single bit of coercion in their demeanours; they were doing this sincerely. When they returned to their own seats, the smiles on their faces were obviously brighter than before, and their conversational manner became even more natural and at ease. It was as if just by greeting that youth, their confidence had increased.
This unusual reaction caused these students who did not know Ling Lan to become cautious of her. In combination with Ling Lan's originally cold demeanour, her expression icy and unapproachable ... no matter how you looked at it, she did not seem like someone easy to get along with.
Wu Jiong's team and Li Yingjie's team entered at about the same time. Originally somewhat at odds with one another, the moment they stepped into the hall, they noticed Ling Lan seated among the other students. Their complexions shifted minutely — Li Yingjie's face turned dark and he frowned slightly, while Wu Jiong donned an expression of pleasant surprise as he walked over and said in a raised voice, "Boss Lan!"
This cry was heard by almost everyone in the hall, and caused a change to come over the expressions of those people who were already wary of Ling Lan. The words 'Boss Lan' conveyed many things — strength, means, and also the ability to put pressure on them!
Any student who was accepted by the First Men's Military Academy was definitely the cream of the crop of all the scout academies from the various cities around Doha. In their world, they were like kings, each of them leaders of a sort. The words 'Boss Lan' raised their hackles instinctively, instantly turning Ling Lan into a public adversary.
Ling Lan quirked a brow and nodded, and then said calmly, "Wu Jiong, long time no see." This Wu Jiong had become really devious now! However, she had not intended to become a boss at the First Men's Military Academy anyway, so Ling Lan, who was determined to keep a low profile, did not really mind Wu Jiong's little manipulation. Rather, if Wu Jiong had not shown any ambition and desire to scheme, Ling Lan was more likely to have looked down on him.
"You have also come to the First Men's Military Academy?" Ling Lan's application to a school on planet Aureolin was known to almost everyone who paid attention to her. This question made all the other curious students who had been too afraid to ask perk up their ears, waiting for Ling Lan's reply.
Ling Lan said breezily, "I was lucky. The military recommended me." In front of outsiders, Ling Lan made sure to protect Ling Xiao's glorious image. Although at present these people did not know Ling Xiao was her father, Ling Lan believed that this fact would not be hidden for long. Mostly because Ling Xiao, who was eager for the whole world to know he was Ling Lan's father, would definitely find an opportunity to declare his identity in front of her fellow students ...
Ling Xiao had a deep resentment over how Ling Lan had kept the fact that she was Ling Xiao's child a secret from her schoolmates for so long. Thus, Ling Lan knew that the seemingly mature and wise Ling Xiao would definitely act foolishly when it came to this matter!
Ling Lan's reply caused the hearts of Wu Jiong, Li Yingjie, and those in their company to skip a beat — but it made sense once they stopped to think about it. They themselves had been witness to Ling Lan's strength. It was reasonable to believe that the military, which had always gathered data on the top talent from the various major scout academies, would not let such an unparalleled prodigy go to waste.
After exchanging a few more words, Wu Jiong led his team members away to sit at a position close to Ling Lan's table. On the other hand, Li Yingjie nodded stiffly at Ling Lan in greeting and then moved off to sit on another side. In contrast to Wu Jiong's sophisticated way of handling things, Li Yingjie was obviously much more inexperienced.
Very soon, it was 12. At this time, on the four walls of the hall, four huge virtual screens appeared. On the screens, a middle-aged man with a dishevelled face and a messily put on captain's uniform appeared.
The man snickered, and then said rudely, "You brats who are about to enter the First Men's Military Academy, I have to tell you, we are about to depart! This journey will take 2 days and 1 night. If you get hungry, on your right-hand side, is the cafeteria catering to you lot. Eat whatever you are given, no whining and backtalk! Also, on this journey, you all have to listen to me. You do what I tell you to do. Even if you are princes or geniuses outside, here, you are just the tiniest of all tiny little worms ..."
The captain's arrogant words caused the expressions of everyone in the hall to change. Only Ling Lan's countenance remained unmoved; she merely continued to stare coldly at the bad-mannered, irritable spaceship's captain on the screen ...
The captain seemed to notice Ling Lan's stare, for a mocking smile appeared on his lips. He swept a challenging look in her direction — though of course it could also be that he was just challenging everyone in the hall — and said, "What? You guys don't want to? That's fine. The crewmen under me just so happen to be so free they don't know what to do with themselves right now, and want to loosen their bones. I'll let them tell you lot what's the right choice to make in this situation!"
Accompanying the captain's words, a bevy of brutish and rowdy crewmen instantly surged out from passages at all corners of the hall to appear before the students. Their eyes were similarly filled with taunting challenge, as if eager to find any disagreeable brat so they could flex their muscles.
A portion of the students was petrified by this sudden situation. The faint signs of rage on their faces slowly faded away as they made their way back to their own seats. It could be said that they were extremely rational, unwilling to become the chicken killed as a lesson to the monkeys 1 .
Qi Long, who was sitting beside Ling Lan, leaned close to Ling Lan and asked quietly, "Should I go teach them a lesson?" The other party's high-handedness rubbed Qi Long the wrong way. More importantly, this scamp's fists were starting to itch for a good fight.
Of course, Qi Long had also volunteered because he had confidence in himself. He had received focused instruction from Ling Lan since young, and he had also trained desperately to improve his skills in those three years when Ling Lan had not been around. Moreover, two months before this, he had also went on that high-risk interplanetary adventure. Having been through all this, he was no longer the unpolished fighter he had been before.
1. 学海星: This one was tricky for me. The literal meaning of the name of this planet is 'sea of knowledge/learning'. For those interested, it would have been pronounced 'planet Xuehai' if I stuck with pinyin.
2. a.k.a. a moving walkway, or a conveyor belt which people step on.
3. i.e. be made an example of for the other students to see. This idiom is literally translated as 'kill chicken scare monkey' (杀鸡儆猴). The story goes that a street performer had a monkey that was disobedient and would not perform. So, he went to the market, bought a chicken, and killed the chicken in front of the monkey's eyes. After that, recognising the threat, the monkey behaved.
Chapter 207 - Scheming!
Ling Lan shook her head and said, "No need. Wait and see!"
The spaceship's captain must have some reason for suddenly acting this way. A memory of the manga Hunter x Hunter she had read in her previous life surfaced in Ling Lan's mind. From the moment Gon Freecss 1 got on the boat to take the Hunter Examination, the testing had already begun.
"Is this a show of force to put us in our place? Or is it, like I suspect, our first test? How interesting!" A trace of humour appeared at the corner of Ling Lan's lips. This originally dull journey had suddenly become much more intriguing.
At this time, the crew members began to hurl jeers and taunts at the students, as if purposely trying to incite the students' anger and make them choose to fight. However, their efforts were all in vain, because the students all managed to restrain themselves in the end, not responding to their taunts.
Frankly, this was all because Ling Lan had chosen to wait and see. Seeing Ling Lan's party's inaction, the slick Wu Jiong was naturally unwilling to make a move recklessly. And while Li Yingjie may be immature and brash, he was not brainless, so he of course knew as well that this was not the time to act rashly. Meanwhile, ever since the grand armed melee, the rest of the Central Scout Academy students 1 had gotten used to following the lead of the three major teams. Since the three major teams were biding their time, the other students naturally followed suit to observe the situation.
And since a large half of the Central Scout Academy students had chosen not to do anything, the students from the other academies naturally would not be so retarded as to volunteer themselves as lab rats. After all, they were all elites from various academies — they were not so simple-minded that they would blow up from some taunting. Thus, this powder keg of a scene was resolved by the silent tolerance of one side.
********
Inside the captain's room, the captain could not hold back a curse, brusquely cutting off the video feed and auditory system on his end.
He turned to glare at the other person in the captain's room and barked, "D*mn, do these batch of students have no bloody guts?"
"They are just being rational. The provocation you arranged is too low-level. Any child with a bit of intelligence would be able to see that something wasn't right." The one who spoke was a middle-aged man dressed in a clean pressed major uniform. His air was dignified, and the flecks of white in his sideburns made him appear mature and reliable, a stark contrast against the captain's crude messiness.
The major passed a bottle of white wine over with a smile. The captain harrumphed, but accepted it, twisted the cap open, and began chugging it down.
"Don't drink so fast. Why are you taking out your anger on yourself?" chided the major.
"D*mmit, isn't there a single one of these little bastards who is more hot-tempered? After all these years, this is the first time I've seen something like this," said the captain in frustration.
Mind you, his task was to assess the students' capabilities and personalities. Provoking them right from the start had always worked very well for him, because there would always be that one or two hot-headed and impulsive brats who would jump out for him to use as an example. This would give him the opportunity to assess the students' attitudes when faced with overwhelming force.
"Well, it's not that there aren't any. They've just been restrained." The major walked over to the screen and replayed the previous footage. On the screen, they could see that there had been a few people who had stood up to protest, but they had been quickly stopped by the people beside them. The scene between Qi Long and Ling Lan was also noted by the two men.
The major enlarged one of the images. It was one of the students from the Central Scout Academy. He was tugging on his teammate's arm, using his gaze to point out a certain direction to his teammate, as if reminding the other that he should be aware of the situation.
Following the student's line of sight, the major scrolled across the image, and Ling Lan's, Wu Jiong's, and Li Yingjie's teams came into view.
"Do you not notice that these students were all waiting for the reactions of these few people?" said the major, pointing at Ling Lan's area.
"Tch, you think I can't see that? While I was speaking, this bunch of brats had obviously been enraged by me, but they all chose to look there at the first moment ..." The captain had noticed.
"That's right. I did a brief check and these students should be from the Central Scout Academy. You too know that a whole 10% of the First Military Academy student population comes from the Central Scout Academy. It goes without saying that within our military academy, the Central Scout Academy faction has the most members ...
"But, it is also the one with the least cohesion!" The spaceship's captain's face was filled with disdain. He himself had not come out from the Central Scout Academy, so he did not bear much good will for the Central Scout Academy. Even though the people who graduated from the Central Scout Academy were generally more talented and more capable than students from the regular scout academies like them, there was just too much infighting within their ranks. They were like a plateful of scattered sand.
"Yes. This is also why although the Central Scout Academy faction has the most people, it has never managed to become the top faction within the military academy! Forcefully being suppressed by the other scout academy factions ... this is their tragedy." These past three years in particular, the Central Scout Academy faction had been even more sluggish 1 — it had not even managed to rank within the top three.
"That's not the only point. Although the students from the Central Scout Academy are all very strong and talented, in our military academy, none of them managed to become the strongest in the school. This is also why they have been unable to make their faction the number one faction." The captain bluntly pointed out the weakness of the Central Scout Academy. Even though its students were more talented and stronger than other students across the board, the one standing at the peak just wasn't any single one of them ...
"True. Especially these last three years, there wasn't a single Central Scout Academy student within the top three. Even the strongest one is just at 5th place. Sigh, the well-established top Central Scout Academy has finally begun to decline ..." The major was affected by a wistful melancholy. Although he was not from the Central Scout Academy, his superior, mentor, and benefactor were all part of the Central Scout Academy faction. Thus, he still had a deep affection for the Central Scout Academy.
"However, this year might be different." The major's initially regretful gaze became focused in a split second. The students from the Central Scout Academy were surprisingly united this time — perhaps a true king had appeared among them, earning all of the students' deference. If that was the case, the power balance of the factions within the military academy may very well go through a momentous change with their addition.
"Perhaps, the assessment this time will give us a pleasant surprise." He and the captain had never been satisfied over all these years, because the students' final decisions had never truly been the answer they wanted.
"You think?" The captain, who had never thought well of the Central Scout Academy, did not think much of the students from it. Infighting was a characteristic of the Central Scout Academy from the start — could this batch really be an exception?
"Then let us just wait and see!" said the major good-naturedly with a laugh, not at all bothered by his friend's scepticism.
"Sure. But, I need to make them stop holding back as soon as possible, otherwise we won't be able to see what we want to see." A sharp light entered the captain's eyes, and a great force of presence silently began to spread. At this moment, he was no longer that rough and arrogant captain, but was more like a wild beast from the depths of the universe, powerful and dangerous!
********
Ling Lan had long known that these two days and one night would not be so peaceful, but she still could not put a finger on the reason for the captain's provocation. If this was really a test — then what were they testing for? Before she could figure anything out, an unexpected conflict occurred before her eyes.
The first half of the first day went by peacefully. Although the crew members would still throw in the occasional taunt, the now calm students managed to resist rising to the bait. However, this peace vanished by the time night came.
At dinner time, Ling Lan's group of six came to the cafeteria and ate a simple dinner. The ship provided a buffet-style meal, but the options were very limited, and the taste was not very good. Although the students were rather unhappy about it, they knew that they were now on the other's home ground, and so could only tolerate.
However, there were some things that could not be resolved just by tolerating them. Very soon, when a student who had finished eating was walking out of the cafeteria, he was shoved back. Quickly, several hulking crewmen had surrounded the student. One of the crewmen rubbed at his own shoulder, demanding arrogantly for the student to kneel and apologise to him for hurting him when he had crashed into him.
The student naturally would not agree to this humiliating style of apologising. He argued with logic, saying that he had been walking just fine — it was the other who had suddenly changed directions when they were about to cross each other to bump into him. He had no time at all to react, which was why the collision happened. If anyone should apologise, it should be the crew member.
"Looks like, that captain has made his move!" Ling Lan's brow furrowed. Could it be that the other wanted to see the students' combat ability? Or was he trying to see how the other students would react to this sort of scenario?
"To observe coldly from the sidelines, or take on the confrontation with righteous anger? Or perhaps they are trying to assess the students' true hearts?" Ling Lan looked at Han Jijyun, an inkling of realisation in her mind.
Han Jijyun also seemed to have figured something out. Without sharing a word, the frowning duo simultaneously thought of the time they had taken the enrolment tests for the Central Scout Academy.
"It's exactly like the Central Scout Academy's test." Not long after, Han Jijyun smiled in realisation.
"This time, the main content of the test is most probably unity!" Unlike before, Ling Lan slowly deduced the test's content.
"I agree!" Han Jijyun nodded. He too felt that this was the greatest possibility.
Against such a large bevy of well-built crewmen with deep bonds and great rapport, it was impossible to fight back as an individual or with the strength of several small teams. To obtain equal standing, they needed to have sufficient power to defend themselves and their rights — the weak have no right to speak ...
The disadvantage of their numbers required them to band together as one unit. Of course, individual performance and combat power would also be important areas of observation — how the students united would depend on the individual abilities of several people, while combat power was a condition to achieve equal status. Otherwise, even if they banded together, it would be a waste of energy if they did not have the strength to back it up.
"Killing many birds with one stone! A great plan!" Han Jijyun commented, tone admiring. The person who designed this test condition was undoubtedly a genius.
********
The major in the captain's room suddenly felt his nose itch, which caused him to sneeze loudly. He rubbed his nose and said bemusedly, "That's strange, why would I sneeze for no reason? Could the temperature regulation system be down?"
"Checking ... the temperature regulation system is functioning normally. Major Wang Yi, your senses are mistaken." The ship's mainframe did a self-check in response to the major's query and swiftly replied.
"Is that so? Could it be that someone is thinking of me? 1 " wondered the major.
"This question ... there is no detailed data for me to analyse. Please excuse me for not being able to provide an answer!" The mainframe answered dutifully, even though it felt that the major's question was really very pointless and idiotic ...
1. Main character of the manga/anime 'Hunter X Hunter'.
2. Reminder: all the CSA students here are from Ling Lan's grade.
3. Lol! Those would have been the seniors who were dominated by Ling Lan's grade ...
4. There is a superstition among some Asian countries that thinking/talking about someone behind their back will cause the person in question to sneeze.
Chapter 208 - Ling Lan's Plan!
By now, the commotion at the cafeteria entrance had drawn many of the students' attention as they gathered around the scene. Of course, there were quite a few with angry expressions, but they still did not move recklessly. The crew members around were observing them closely — the moment the students made any strange movements, the crew would probably surge forward to show them their place.
Ling Lan glanced coldly at this scene, and suddenly turned to look at Xie Yi and said, "Xie Yi, go invite Wu Jiong and Li Yingjie over!"
Xie Yi's gaze brightened. "Yes!" Since Ling Lan was giving him this order, it meant that he must have acknowledged the role he had set for himself. Even though Luo Lang had said that Boss Lan already recognised him, before he received a clear response from Ling Lan, Xie Yi had still felt somewhat unsettled, afraid that Luo Lang had only been consoling him.
Xie Yi was very good at diplomacy — very soon, Wu Jiong and Li Yingjie had both arrived at the cafeteria with their teams in tow.
"Boss Lan, I heard you were looking for us?" Wu Jiong's expression was surprised. Ling Lan very rarely looked for him, and whenever he did, it always meant something big was about to happen, just like with the grand armed melee back then.
In contrast, with an awkward expression, Li Yingjie called out in a low voice, "Boss Lan!" The pride in his bones made him reluctant to address Ling Lan this way, but ever since Wu Jiong had changed the way he addressed Ling Lan to 'Boss Lan', Li Yingjie had drawn weird looks from everyone in Class-A and Class-B when he had once called Ling Lan by name directly. Even the members of his own team had stared at him strangely. This gave him no choice but to bend his proud neck and lower his head, acknowledging Ling Lan as the boss of their year through clenched teeth.
Ling Lan actually did not mind how others addressed her — whether they called her Boss Lan or called her name directly, it was all fine. They were both just forms of address. She signalled for them to look towards the centre of the conflict, and asked quietly, "What do you both think?"
"Eh? Him? Boss Lan, that's a student from our academy, called Peng Jiayen. He used to be in a merit class, but managed to achieve an upset in his final year to enter Class-B, and then successfully qualified for the First Men's Military Academy. He's talented." Wu Jiong was very familiar with all the outstanding students in the academy, swiftly listing out the other's background without any trouble.
Wu Jiong had just finished telling them about the student's background when the conflict escalated once more. Several crew members of the ship had lost their patience. They took action — two of the crew members stepped forward in unison, attempting to grab the student and force him to his knees to apologise.
Students from the Central Scout Academy were not as weak as they had imagined — sensing the threat, the student twisted his body, evading the two men's pincer attack. However, just as he finished dodging, two more crew members suddenly attacked, leaving no room for the student to evade anymore. He was instantly caught and brought under their control.
This series of attacks happened in the blink of an eye. The other students on the scene did not have any time to react and that student had already been subdued by the crew. Not just that, the other side had even used pure force to push the student to his knees ...
This scene caused rage to emerge on all the students faces; even the expressions of Wu Jiong and Li Yingjie, and the others with them who had just arrived could not help but change. The other side was really going too far in their bullying.
Ever since they had gone through the grand armed melee, as the Central Scout Academy students had fought valiantly together to cooperatively defeat the 10th grade, they had developed a good comradeship with one another. This was unlike the other years before them whose students were mostly indifferent towards one another with clear divisions between the classes. Now, seeing one of their schoolmates who had fought alongside them being shamed this way, all the Central Scout Academy students found themselves growing angry on his behalf!
Several students even reached out to help, but were forced back by the crew ...
Still, the palpable agitation of the surrounding students made the crew members cautious in their continued bullying of that student. At this moment, a leading crew member said with a mocking huff, "This matter has nothing to do with all of you. It's our personal business! Those who tried to take action earlier, I forgive you all for your emotional loss of control. But if you all dare to try and help again now, don't blame us for not staying polite!"
That said, the crew members who had been initially been watching the show from a distance all drew in to close ranks. The crewmen had already been stronger than the students by a clear margin, and now their numbers had grown — this made many of the students begin to waver ...
However, as Ling Lan, Wu Jiong, and company were at their backs, and since they had not indicated that they were going to let this slide, the students did not retreat and disperse, merely holding their ground without taking further action. The two sides were abruptly submerged in silence in an unofficial face-off. The atmosphere became tense in an instant.
"Boss Lan, we cannot just tolerate this offence!" Although Wu Jiong did not want to escalate things, he also did not want to be this cowardly.
By the side, Li Yingjie nodded in agreement, full of support for Wu Jiong's words. They were all prideful elites — this baseless humiliation could not be borne.
Right then, a faint smile pulled on the corner of Ling Lan's lips. Her initially cold and forbidding face was not warmed much by this trace of a smile. Instead, the surrounding people who were familiar with Ling Lan only felt a deeper chill pervade their hearts. They could clearly feel the temperature emanating from Ling Lan drop by another few degrees.
Ling Lan tugged lightly at her sleeves and said calmly, "Three years ago, you all accompanied me in orchestrating a grand armed melee. Now, would you all still have the guts to make a big play with me?" That said, the corners of her eyes lifted slightly as she peered at them through slitted eyes and waited for their response.
Ling Lan's question caused a shudder to run through Wu Jiong's and Li Yingjie's hearts. Wu Jiong calmed himself for a moment before asking warily, "What are you planning?"
Ling Lan threw a glance at Qi Long, and Qi Long and the other four members of her team spread out to surround the three of them. Ling Lan also did not forget to instruct Little Four to scramble the surveillance equipment in this area, manufacturing a false image to fool the monitors.
After receiving the all clear from Little Four, in a voice only loud enough for the three of them to hear, Ling Lan said, "Take complete control of the ship!"
Wu Jiong jerked his head up to stare dumbly at Ling Lan; even Li Yingjie was so shocked by Ling Lan's words that he could only gape at her.
"What? You don't dare?" Ling Lan's gaze swept over to stare at them, a trace of mockery in the corners of her eyes.
Wu Jiong was after all a child from a military family. He quickly regained his composure and asked softly, "You have confidence? That captain does not seem easy to handle." There may be many crew members, but the number of students was also nothing to scoff at. With Ling Lan's reputation and their status and capabilities, it was entirely possible to unite the Central Scout Academy students to form a resistance.
The only worrisome point was that captain. The other was most definitely a Qi-Jin stage expert, if not a Domain-stage one. If Ling Lan was not injured, they might have been able to succeed by attacking altogether.
"Also, the ship must have a protective mecha squad. Once the mecha make a move, we won't have any chances of winning." By now, Li Yingjie had also regained his calm, and brought up the issue of the ship's combat resources.
"Mecha? We just need to lock down the mecha hold and it'll be fine. Unless they want to destroy the ship to perish together, the mecha will just be accessories ..." It's not like they were implacable enemies, determined to kill each other; the other side would definitely never mobilise their mecha squad.
Ling Lan's words enlightened Wu Jiong and Li Yingjie. They were the new students of the First Men's Military Academy, the warriors who would protect the nation in the future — the people on this ship would never dare to truly harm them, so they really did not have anything to fear.
Of course, this did not exclude the possibility that this ship had been sent by the enemy. But if that was the case, things would not end well for them even if they did not fight back. Thus, they might as well take the risk and perhaps win a chance of survival.
Wu Jiong's heart began to pound. If they truly managed to take control of the entire ship, this would definitely be an unprecedented miracle, for he believed that the previous cadets would never have dared to attempt this ... his palms began to sweat, and his face turned somewhat red from his excitement.
Similarly, Li Yingjie also figured it out. He shared a look filled with irrepressible excitement with Wu Jiong, and then they both turned as one to nod solemnly at Ling Lan. They would take this wild gamble together with Ling Lan.
Seeing the both of them agree, Ling Lan let out an internal sigh of relief. Although she had confidence in herself, without the support of Wu Jiong and Li Yingjie, this grand and ambitious endeavour would undoubtedly be much more difficult.
Ling Lan immediately let Little Four create a tactical map with the crew members' positions plotted on it and sent a copy each to Wu Jiong and Li Yingjie. After that, she swiftly outlined her plan.
Wu Jiong and Li Yingjie nodded repetitively as they listened, their eyes shining brighter and brighter. What they had initially thought would be a campaign with very small chances of success changed into a real possibility under Ling Lan's clever planning.
It looked like what Ling Lan had said about taking control of the ship was not a brash and foolhardy attempt, but an idea formed through careful consideration. Otherwise, he would not have this detailed tactical map ready at hand. It looked like while they had been stewing in their forced tolerance, Ling Lan had already been making preparations for her next move.
Although they did not know how Ling Lan had obtained this tactical map with all the positioning of the crew, they believed that this map was real. They had taken a quick glance at several spots as noted on the map, and had found that those crew members had pretty much been standing right where the map said they would be ...
Wu Jiong's admiration towards Ling Lan rose once again, a strange bitterness rising in his mouth at the same time — he could once again feel the huge gap between Ling Lan and himself. Whether it was in terms of strategy or in terms of mental state, he was weaker than Ling Lan by too much. He too had been equally unhappy with the captain's attitude during his welcome speech and the myriad taunts of the crew, but he had only chosen to tolerate all the way, only thinking to safely get through these 2 days and 1 night.
Even when he saw a schoolmate being bullied and shamed for no reason, although he was indignant, he had still only been thinking of how to help that student get through that particular trial and let the matter die down ... yes, in his mind, even as he thought of ways to help his own schoolmate, he was also keeping in mind that he should do his best not to offend the other party, because this was their territory ...
But Ling Lan was different. The fact that his preparations were so thorough meant that Ling Lan had been thinking of taking control of the entire ship from the start. He had never even entertained the idea of just tolerating the crew's abuse in silence. Perhaps Ling Lan's way of thinking was extremely radical, but godd*mn was it exciting! It made his heart race — this was what a man should do ... he truly could not match up to Ling Lan!
Wu Jiong and Li Yingjie led their respective teams away from the scene to carry out their tasks. As the two left, their expressions were extremely interesting. In contrast to Wu Jiong's bitter resignation, Li Yingjie's expression was undoubtedly much more complex. All kinds of envy-jealousy-hate flashed across it, only to end in a helpless sigh as he left downcast ...
Finding that the person he wanted to overcome was so unassailably strong on all fronts, no matter how proud or unyielding Li Yingjie was, he could only let go of his competitive spirit. He knew now that he could no longer rival Ling Lan in this life, because he had already lost the courage to fight against Ling Lan. Just thinking of a head on battle with the other made his heart feel unimaginably weak and feeble.
Chapter 209 - Move!
After Wu Jiong and Li Yingjie left the cafeteria silently with their teams, Qi Long approached Ling Lan and said, "Boss, what do we do next?"
With his capabilities, he had naturally heard Ling Lan's speech on taking control of the ship as well — though of course this was also because Ling Lan had no intention of hiding it from him to begin with. Qi Long was thoroughly fired up by Ling Lan's plan, ready to move.
This was his boss, forever daring to do what others would not dare to do! Qi Long's heart was bursting with pride!
"You are required here to hold the fort. Delay for us as long as possible — attract and hold the crew's attention," instructed Ling Lan in a low voice. Qi Long's task was very important. According to her plan, it would be best if Qi Long could fish out the captain from his room.
"Later, first let Luo Lang step up to help Peng Jiayen! You stay put and keep an eye on things. Wait for my final order!" Ling Lan's expression was extremely serious. Whether or not things would go smoothly on their end depended on the situation here with Qi Long; she hoped everything would turn out well.
"Got it, Boss!" Qi Long replied solemnly.
"Xie Yi!"
"Here, Boss!" Xie Yi replied hurriedly.
"While Luo Lang is holding everyone's attention, you go and gather all the students of Class-A and Class-B from the cafeteria, and get them to come back to the main hall. Remember, do it stealthily. If you can't, it's better not to move at all than to move recklessly!"
Their plan did not have many steps, but each step required finesse. Moreover, Ling Lan did not want the students to leave the cafeteria en masse — this would make those crew members suspicious.
"Understood, Boss," replied Xie Yi somewhat nervously. Ling Lan's request was not easy; his task would definitely be very challenging. However, Xie Yi did not want to disappoint Ling Lan.
After assigning these tasks, Ling Lan brought Lin Zhong-qing and Han Jijyun with her out of the cafeteria into the main hall.
Right now, there was already a significant number of Central Scout Academy students gathered there. They were almost all Class-A and Class-B people. While she had been arranging things with Qi Long and the others, it seemed that Wu Jiong and Li Yingjie had not been idle.
Seeing Ling Lan appear, the spirits of all these students rallied, fighting spirit filling their eyes. Earlier, back when Wu Jiong and Li Yingjie had called them out, they had told them that Boss Lan was going to lead them in playing a grand game today.
Everyone was wondering what this 'grand game' was referring to; many of them were guessing whether it would be like the grand armed melee, but against the crew. Thinking of the possibility, their blood began to boil with excitement. Ever since the grand armed melee, they had not encountered a stage as thrilling as that again. They had really missed that feeling. Furthermore, they did not have a favourable impression of the ship's captain and the crew — it could perhaps even be said that they hated them. As such, they were extremely willing to engage the crew in a vigorous battle.
Wu Jiong and Li Yingjie were currently staking out a corner each, quite a crowd gathered around each of them. When they saw Ling Lan enter the room, they nodded at her silently, signalling to her that they were ready.
However, Ling Lan did not say anything in response nor signal the attack. Instead she walked back to her seat and sat down, at the same time telling the others to do the same. "Watch the show for now!"
Just as everyone took a seat, baffled, rousing cheers rang out from the cafeteria, along with bellows of rage from the crew. A Central Scout Academy student ran into the hall, shouting, "Luo Lang has attacked!"
Luo Lang's actions represented the decision of the uncrowned king, Ling Lan. He would not bow his head to the opponent. It was just like with the grand armed melee back then — he would rather fight valiantly, never submitting even if he might lose terribly.
Everyone turned to look with expectant faces at the seated Ling Lan, waiting for him to give the order.
"Wait a little longer!" Ling Lan glanced at her communicator and said calmly.
At this time, several Class-A students were trickling in from the cafeteria. When they saw the group assembled within the hall, pleasant surprise flashed through their eyes. However, they remembered Xie Yi's warning, so they did not react outwardly. They made their way almost casually to Ling Lan's side, demeanours natural as they found empty armchairs to sit in. It was as if they did not know one another, or perhaps were not very close; everyone treated each other indifferently.
Right then, Ling Lan appeared at ease, but she was in fact anxiously collecting data on the situation around the whole ship with Little Four. Little Four was very reliable. He had already managed to infiltrate the mainframe to use its surveillance systems to monitor the entire spaceship. He then marked the danger zones and areas where the crew were gathered on a map, to facilitate Ling Lan's subsequent actions.
At this time, on the ship, almost everyone's attention was focused on the cafeteria. Even the captain in the captain's room was also focused intently on the conflict in the cafeteria, only checking on the students in the main hall every once in a while.
However, by now, the video feed the captain was seeing was an edited version by Little Four. In his screen, there were only a small few within the main hall, and those few were scattered loosely around the hall with no signs of grouping together.
Meanwhile, Little Four placed the people 'missing' from the hall within the feed of the cafeteria. In this way — in and out, plus and minus — Little Four managed to conceal the movement of the students and the true situation in the main hall.
Soon, there were over a hundred people gathered around Ling Lan. Ling Lan finally gave Little Four the signal to let Qi Long make his move!
********
Inside the cafeteria, the standoff between the two sides had been broken due to Luo Lang's interference. The crew members turned to anger in their shame, and tried to band together to mob Luo Lang. But who was Luo Lang? He was the third rank on the verge of obtaining second rank (Ling Lan excluded)! Although he might still be a distance away from Qi Long, he was about the same level as Wu Jiong. If not for the fact that Wu Jiong's combat style countered his, he would not have had to bear the frustration of being the academy's third rank.
After Luo Lang beat off the third batch of crewmen who wanted to teach him a lesson, he was beginning to feel the strain. The crew members were all very strong and capable — if they had not been intent on subduing him without harming him, he might very likely have not been able to fend off these three batches.
"Tsk! Actually being beaten by a little lady. You all are such a disgrace!" Along with this voice, a young man appeared at the entrance to the cafeteria. His hairstyle was stylish, his expression mocking, his gaze wicked as he ogled at Luo Lang, making Luo Lang feel extremely uncomfortable.
When the crew saw the young man, they called out in unison, "Leader!" It was unexpected that this crew member who looked to be the youngest of them all was actually their leader. Luo Lang and the waiting Qi Long both frowned in silent accord, caution rising in their hearts.
"Tch tch tch, who knew there would be such an exquisite item ... why don't you warm my bed tonight?" said the young man predatorily, as if having discovered some great thing.
"Shut up, bastard!" screamed Luo Lang in response, his face turning red with anger from the other's offensive words.
But this angry appearance only made him even more enchantingly gorgeous! The lovely picture he made stunned all the crew members present. If their hearts and minds had been less steady, they might really have become bewitched by Luo Lang.
A keen light flashed through the young man's eyes, but he continued to mock irreverently, "Asking me to shut up? Then, you are inviting me to take action instead?" That said, with a quick dash, he was reaching out his fingers towards Luo Lang's jaw. It could be called an attack, but could also be called an attempt at molestation.
The other's action caused Luo Lang to become even angrier. He immediately blocked the other's fingers, kicking out fiercely with his right leg at the same time.
"Whump!" The other reacted quickly as well, blocking Luo Lang's attack with a leg of his own. The two of them retreated two steps back — it looked like it was a draw. The students cheered with raised arms for Luo Lang's impressive performance, but only Qi Long frowned lightly once more. He knew that the other's capability was likely slightly better — Luo Lang would have a tough fight now.
Luo Lang too knew this very well. The rage consuming his heart was abruptly pushed aside, his entire being becoming cool and collected. This ability to swiftly adjust his emotional state made the young man's eyes light up, exclaiming in wonder in his heart. Who knew that this girlish youth before his eyes was actually so proficient at controlling his emotions? Just a moment ago he was still raging at the skies, and now, in the blink of an eye, he had become so calm and composed. The young man greatly admired this smooth transition and control. It should be known that unstable emotions would affect one's ability to perform — it was possible that it could add to one's strength, but it was much more likely to cause weakness instead.
"This punk!" Qi Long's initially furrowed brow eased. He had not expected Luo Lang to be so daring, actually activating his innate talent right now. Mind you, Luo Lang's innate talent was very dangerous — it was entirely possible to unleash a dark character instead. It was considered an unstable innate talent, and Luo Lang typically would not activate it.
It was probable that Luo Lang was feeling pressured by the task Boss Lan assigned to him. Now, with the addition of an opponent stronger than him, unwilling to just admit defeat, Luo Lang had chosen to take the risk and activate his innate talent.
Undoubtedly, Luo Lang's luck today was exceedingly good. The character his activation brought out turned out to be his cool persona, which was extremely suited for battle. This made Luo Lang's combat power rise exponentially — even Qi Long now was unsure whether he could beat Luo Lang under the influence of this persona.
Luo Lang and the young leader clashed again, and this time, Luo Lang was again pushed back by two steps, but the young leader retreated a whole four steps. This made the leader's expression shift. From that last crossing of blows, he could already clearly sense the sudden increase in his opponent's strength. The youth who had initially been slightly weaker than him had suddenly become stronger than him by a hair, putting him at a disadvantage.
"What kind of abnormality is this?!" The young leader could not help but wonder silently. Mind you, he had always been called a prodigy, which was why he could enter the optimal peak of Refinement at such a young age, now just one insight and one chance short of entering Qi-Jin stage. In contrast, the opponent had originally been at the peak level of Refinement, but had suddenly shot up to a half step into Qi-Jin ... yes, it was a level even closer to Qi-Jin than optimal peak. He had believed the level to be a myth, but it had unexpectedly appeared in reality, and he had just encountered it.
In the captain's room, the captain saw the young leader and Luo Lang's fight, and his eyes lit up. "Good. This brat may look like a sissy, but his explosive power is astonishingly horrifying. Lil' Ghost has met his match."
In the time it took him to say this, Luo Lang and the young leader had exchanged several more moves. Currently, the leader was beginning to have trouble keeping up with Luo Lang's moves. Everyone could see that the young leader was the one who was disadvantaged; this reality caused the faces of the crew members at the scene to change ...
Right then, Qi Long received a message from Ling Lan. "Move!"
Without thinking, Qi Long darted out like an arrow, throwing his right fist straight at the young leader who was busily blocking Luo Lang's attacks.