Making the News

Lu Yuan and Wang Xiangxiang were sitting in the coffee shop chatting over their drinks when, before long, two beautiful girls walked in arm in arm.

One had long golden waves; the other wore a brown bob. The golden-haired girl wore a green spaghetti-strap dress, her figure slender and graceful, collarbones delicate, skin pale as snow. The brown-bob girl had on a black short-sleeve and a black lace skirt, her whole bearing cool and aloof.

The golden-haired girl waved at Wang Xiangxiang, then turned to look at Lu Yuan, eyes bright and sparkling.

"Xiangxiang! We're here. Lu Yuan — wow, you've gotten even more handsome. Do you have a boyfriend?"

Lu Yuan stalled for a beat, caught off guard. "...Boyfriend?"

Wang Xiangxiang propped her cheek on her right hand and glanced at him. Then, with a look of flat disdain at the golden-haired girl, she said, "Don't mind Wenni, Lu Yuan. She's been deep into those romance novels lately — the kind with two guys."

Lu Yuan's expression went completely dark.

*...Is this woman a fujoshi?*

He looked at Wenni's sparkling eyes and felt his scalp prickle.

Mo Li sat down beside Wang Xiangxiang and gave Lu Yuan a cheerful little wave.

Lu Yuan had shared a desk with Mo Li for a stretch of time before — they hadn't talked much, but she was still the most familiar face in class besides Zhuo Ming.

Before long, three young men came walking over.

The one in the center wore a white shirt with the sleeves rolled up, a faint smile always at the corner of his mouth, short black hair with a natural curl — the picture of the refined, scholarly type. Beside him stood a tall, clean-featured young man in a black tiger-print T-shirt. And then there was Zhuo Ming, whom Lu Yuan had crossed paths with multiple times inside the Land of Origin.

When they spotted Lu Yuan's group, their eyes lit up and they headed straight over.

"Yuan-bro! Over here!"

"Yuan-bro. Xiangxiang-jie."

Lu Yuan stood up with a smile. "Gu Yu, Cao Yan — long time no see."

Cao Yan, the refined-looking one, grinned. "Lu Yuan, today's on you."

Gu Yu, the tall one, flashed a grin and waved in greeting.

Once everyone had settled in, Wang Xiangxiang smiled and said, "By now the whole Battle Net knows. A trial ruin appeared in Sandy Rock City's Sandy Rock Underground Palace."

Zhuo Ming startled. "You guys already know about the ruin?"

Lu Yuan blinked. "It's all over the Battle Net?"

Cao Yan smiled, took out his phone, and started browsing. Before long he found a post, and with a swipe of his finger, he projected the contents into the air above the table.

*《 Sandy Rock Underground Palace Trial Ruin Rankings 》*

*"By now, everyone probably knows that a trial ruin has appeared in Sandy Rock Underground Palace. Based on current information, the ruin tiers are divided into the Genius Trial, the Elite Trial, and the Normal Trial. After extensive investigation, this poster has compiled the ranking of trial participants for this instance — accuracy not guaranteed. Up until the ruin's closure, only one person activated the Genius Trial; who that person is cannot be determined. The Elite Trial rankings, from highest to lowest, are as follows: Ping Xing, Elite Level 3; Sun Qian, Elite Level 3; Kaman, Elite Level 3 … Lu Yuan, Elite Level 2 …"*

A sharp collective intake of breath went around the table.

Lu Yuan quickly found his own name — and then found the post's evaluation of him.

*So I just made the list, just like that?*

"This post even calls Lu Yuan a rare genius," Cao Yan noted.

Zhuo Ming stared at the rankings, visibly amazed.

*"Among the human warriors who cleared the Elite Trial, several deserve special mention. First is Lu Yuan — reportedly a brand-new Awakened, yet in just over a month inside the Land of Origin, he has already reached this level. A rare genius. According to information obtained by this poster, numerous organizations are already paying close attention to Lu Yuan and are looking to bring him into the fold. Second is Sun Qian …"*

A sharp hiss went around the table.

Gu Yu's eyes went wide. "That's really Yuan-bro! Yuan-bro is incredible — he's literally made the news!"

Lu Yuan's expression turned complicated.

*Just for clearing Elite Level 2, and they're calling it 'rare genius.' So what exactly would clearing the Genius Trial Level 1 make someone?*

His brow furrowed slightly.

*When he'd talked directly with Liu Xi and the others inside the ruin, there had been people standing nearby. Someone must have overheard... and spread the word.*

Good thing he hadn't said anything outright about clearing the Genius Trial Level 1. If he had, that post would have completely exploded.

Zhuo Ming raised his eyebrows, practically buzzing with excitement, and leaned forward.

"Speaking of which — you all know the Tianfu Consortium, right? Their representative Liu Xi tracked down Yuan-bro inside the ruin and tried to recruit him on the spot. Do you know what annual salary she put on the table?"

"How much? Stop dragging it out."

Zhuo Ming was clearly drawing it out, and Gu Yu gave him a smack on the back.

Zhuo Ming held up five fingers.

Everyone stared.

"...Five hundred million?!"

"Five hundred million. Per year."

A sharp intake of breath swept the table.

Even Cao Yan and Wang Xiangxiang — both children of Gene Warrior families — looked genuinely stunned.

Gu Yu asked, wide-eyed, "Why didn't you agree?! That's five hundred million a year!"

Lu Yuan rolled his eyes. "I never agreed to join the Tianfu Consortium."

He smiled. "I'd rather keep my freedom. I'll earn money at my own pace."

Zhuo Ming slapped the table, looking pained. "I still can't wrap my head around why Yuan-bro would turn that down."

Gu Yu shook his head in disbelief. "Lu Yuan is terrifying. My dad is a First-rank warrior — what he earns in a whole year is probably less than a tenth of that."

Cao Yan gave a wry smile. "My parents are both Second-rank Battle Masters. The two of them together earn only a little more than what Lu Yuan was offered. Tsk... Lu Yuan is on a completely different level."

He then chuckled and shook his head. "Though, honestly — I think I can understand it. Strength is what matters most. If you're powerful enough, money finds its way to you whether you want it to or not."

Wang Xiangxiang glanced at Lu Yuan and smiled. "Alright, everyone must be starving by now. Let's head to that restaurant Wenni mentioned."

They filed out of the coffee shop and made their way toward Nine Walnuts, the restaurant Wenni had picked.

Nine Walnuts was tucked into a residential alley not far from Jiuhu Mall.

Wenni led them through the lanes without a moment's hesitation. Looking up at the modest two-story restaurant with its sliding-door entrance, she smiled, her long golden hair catching the afternoon light.

"This place is so out of the way — we'd never have found it without you."

Wenni smiled with obvious satisfaction. "Of course! Who do you think you're talking to? I won't claim to know every corner of the city, but in this southern district, there's no good food that Wenni doesn't know about!"

Lu Yuan heard the name of the restaurant and his expression turned strange.

They stepped inside. A young woman with a white prosthetic left arm sat behind the counter, scrolling through her phone. When she looked up and saw them, she smiled.

"How many today? Do you have a reservation?"

"We do — under Wenni."

She checked the system. "Wenni — here it is. 'Two Walnuts' private room. Please head right upstairs."

She gestured down the counter. "This is 'One Walnut.' 'Two Walnuts' is here."

*Even the room names are this literal?* Lu Yuan thought.

"Let's head up, then."

Upstairs, the atmosphere was pleasantly quiet — a single corridor with private rooms on both sides, the walls decorated with murals of walnut trees.

Wenni led them straight to Two Walnuts and swung the door open, revealing a set of clean, simple wooden chairs.

The group settled in. Wenni and Wang Xiangxiang picked up the menus, and the three women immediately fell into their own conversation.

"Xiangxiang, your skin has been looking so dewy lately. What are you using?"

"I picked up some Eternal Love toner recently. Really good results — you should try it."

"Oh, I used that one. Way too harsh for me — broke out in pimples last time…"

On and on they went.

Lu Yuan sat expressionlessly at the table, watching them chat, his head an unbroken stream of question marks.

*…Isn't toner for drinking?*

*…Could it be toxic?*

*…You can get an allergic reaction from it?*

He silently reached for his cup and took a sip, suddenly gripped by a vague, low-grade suffering.

Wenni turned to look at him, eyes sparkling.

His scalp crawled.

Wang Xiangxiang sent the golden-haired girl a flat look. "Lu Yuan, don't mind Wenni. She's been completely absorbed in those boy-love novels lately."

*This woman is absolutely a fujoshi.*

Lu Yuan composed himself and stated firmly, "I like women. Beautiful women."

Wenni's face fell with visible regret.

Cao Yan smiled and shook his head. "Is this what a genius's mind looks like? Truly beyond comprehension."

While Wenni was busy with the menu, Zhuo Ming grinned, gave the table a light tap, and cleared his throat.

"Everyone! I have an announcement to make."

Cao Yan glanced up. "Good news?"

"My tempering has hit forty percent!"

The table went quiet for a beat.

Wenni and Wang Xiangxiang both paused their ordering to look over.

Wang Xiangxiang studied Zhuo Ming with a touch of surprise. "Xiao Ming — not bad! Your cultivation's been moving at quite a clip lately, hasn't it?"

"About a few months, I think?"

Cao Yan tilted his head, a little puzzled. "At the rate you absorb Spirit Crystals, shouldn't it take a few more days? Is it the ruin?"

Zhuo Ming smiled. "Yeah."

Lu Yuan quietly reached for his cup and took a slow sip. A quiet, gnawing discomfort settled over him.

Wang Xiangxiang glanced at him and smiled.

Cao Yan smiled. "We're all Gene Warriors now — we should keep in touch. Maybe when the time comes and we make it to Red Maple City, we'll end up running as a team."

Gu Yu's eyes lit up immediately. "Right, right! If Yuan-bro and Cao Yan-ge and Xiangxiang-jie are leading the group, wouldn't we just be unstoppable?"

Wang Xiangxiang looked at him. "Xiao Yuzi, by the time you're actually ready for Red Maple City, the rest of us will probably all be Second-rank. You want to tag along and get yourself killed?"

Gu Yu's bright grin froze and slowly curdled into a grimace.

Mo Li laughed from across the table. "Is it too late for me to latch onto this group's coattails right now?"

Lu Yuan: *???*

Fortunately, he thought privately, he hadn't said anything outright about clearing the Genius Trial Level 1. If he had, that post would have gone up in flames.