Douluo Continent III Haotian Wulin

"She's a genius."

Wu Changkong stood in front of his desk, his tone calm to the point of being indifferent, stating a fact that couldn't be simpler.

"Moreover, only by putting this kind of student in my hands can I truly teach her. So I hope Director Long will support me. No matter what happens in the future, she must stay in Class 5 of the first grade."

Long Hengxu, who was looking down at the letter of recommendation, looked up when he heard this.

Wu Changkong is a cold and arrogant man, but he rarely makes such direct judgments.

This only made Long Hengxu more concerned.

He glanced down at the "Martial Soul" section of the letter again and couldn't help but ask, "Elementalist? What kind of Martial Soul is that? Teacher Wu is very knowledgeable, do you know?"

"I just met him," Wu Changkong said. "He's very strong, and quite unique."

He paused slightly as he said this.

"You'll see it for yourself in the upcoming promotion tournament."

When the promotion tournament was mentioned, Long Hengxu's expression became more serious.

"I assigned Xie Xie to Class 5 this time because I wanted to give your class a boost." He tapped his fingers lightly on the table. "The purpose of the promotion tournament has never been just ranking. The classes behind need to push forward so that the classes ahead will feel a sense of crisis. The entire intermediate division needs to be pushed forward by this honor and pressure."

"Teacher Wu, do you have a plan? How many people are you planning to send to this promotion competition?"

"I've thought it through," Wu Changkong answered decisively.

Long Hengxu glanced at him but didn't ask any further questions.

He knew that when Wu Changkong said he had made up his mind, he really meant it. Asking further would be pointless.

……

When Wu Changkong returned to the playground, the morning's running training was almost over.

The students in Class 5 looked as if they had just been pulled out of the water; their school uniforms were soaked with sweat, their steps were unsteady, and their formation was almost falling apart. Although Xie Xie was no longer wearing his iron armor, his previous fight with Gu Yue had exhausted a lot of his energy, and after running the last few laps, his complexion wasn't very good either.

Tang Wulin, on the other hand, remained steadily ahead.

The two sets of iron armor he wore weighed him down heavily, but his steps were slow, not erratic. Every step he took was heavy and steady, as if he had pressed his entire center of gravity into the playground.

"gather."

At Wu Changkong's command, the students who had been gritting their teeth and dragging themselves forward almost simultaneously breathed a sigh of relief and shuffled towards the center of the playground.

Their appearance was so bad that it wouldn't be an exaggeration to call them defeated soldiers.

"That's all for this morning." Wu Changkong glanced at them. "Dismissed."

Upon hearing those two words, almost everyone's eyes lit up.

"Gu Yue left behind."

Upon hearing this, everyone who had just breathed a sigh of relief subconsciously glanced at Gu Yue again.

Gu Yue's complexion was rosier than when she first arrived because of running, and there was a fine sheen of sweat on her forehead, but she still looked very neat and tidy, without the slightest bit of dishevelment.

She stopped and walked up to Wu Changkong.

Wu Changkong picked up a set of prepared items from the side and handed them to her.

"I am your homeroom teacher, Wu Changkong." His tone was as cold as ever. "Here are your dormitory key, school uniform, and textbooks. From now on, you are a formal student of Class 5, Grade 1, of the Intermediate Department of Donghai Academy."

"Thank you, dance teacher."

Gu Yue accepted it with both hands, her voice soft and steady.

"Classes will start on time this afternoon," Wu Changkong said.

"Yes."

On the other side, Xie Xie had already grabbed Tang Wulin and dragged him towards the dormitory building.

Tang Wulin had originally planned to go eat first, but after being pulled along like this, he had no choice but to follow, frowning as he walked: "What are you doing now?"

"I have something to tell you." Xie Xie continued walking. "Let's talk back in the dorm."

As soon as the two entered, Xie Xie immediately closed the door and turned to look at Tang Wulin.

"Listen to me carefully, you'd better not get too close to Gu Yue."

Tang Wulin was baffled by what he said.

"How did I get so close to her?" he asked, bewildered. "We just met, didn't we?"

Xie Xie choked on his words, then became even more annoyed.

"Haven't you noticed? Things changed the moment she arrived."

"What has changed?"

"The promotion tournament!" Xie Xie lowered his voice, as if he were talking about something incredibly important. "Teacher Wu initially chose you and me. Now that she's here, do you think she won't participate?"

Tang Wulin shook his head without even thinking.

"Of course."

"So you think you're better than her?" Xie Xie asked again.

Tang Wulin was quite honest this time.

"Definitely not now."

"That settles it then!" Xie Xie slammed his hand on the table. "Aren't you afraid of being squeezed out?"

Tang Wulin was taken aback by what he said, then said naturally, "So what if she's squeezed out? She's better than me, of course she should go."

Xie Xie stared at him as if he were a fool.

"Have you forgotten that there are rewards for the promotion tournament?"

Upon hearing this, Tang Wulin's calm expression immediately cracked slightly.

reward.

food?

money?

Or something else?

Most importantly—he's really hungry right now.

I didn't eat breakfast, and then I ran ten more laps, so my stomach is practically empty.

"I reckon..." Zhou Changxi's voice suddenly came from the doorway, "It should be Wu Lin and Gu Yue who go on stage last."

He had just come in from outside and had obviously overheard most of the conversation.

Xie Xie immediately turned his head, pointing at his own nose: "What do you mean?"

Zhou Changxi replied matter-of-factly, "It means you look the most dangerous right now."

Why?

"Because you've fought Wu Lin three times and lost twice. And today you lost to Gu Yue. If you really only have to choose the two strongest, why is it always you?"

Xie Xie fell silent on the spot.

It's an unpleasant thing to say, but you can't find fault with it.

His facial expression suddenly became quite interesting.

"What are you guys thinking?" Yun Xiao, who was the last to enter, looked at them helplessly. "When did Teacher Wu say that only two people could participate? The minimum requirement for the promotion competition is two people, not a maximum of two. Now that Gu Yue is here, it's very likely that it's just adding one more person."

At this point, he glanced at the group of people.

"Maybe in the end all three of them will come together."

The dormitory was silent for two seconds.

Xie Xie realized what was happening first and immediately breathed a sigh of relief.

Zhou Changxi touched his chin, as if he was seriously considering this possibility.

Tang Wulin, however, no longer cared about any of that.

He raised his hand to press his stomach and announced earnestly, "The number of participants doesn't matter. All I know right now is that I'm starving. I need to go eat."

……

At noon, a new legend was quickly born in the Donghai College cafeteria.

Tang Wulin has broken another record.

To be precise, it pushed the already exaggerated record even higher.

The students from Class 5 sat to the side, watching him stuff steamed buns into his mouth one basket after another, their surprise almost too great to bear.

It was steamed buns again for lunch today.

Plump and white, steaming hot, with the aroma of meat wafting out.

Tang Wulin started eating almost as soon as he sat down, not even wanting to waste a moment to talk. Xie Xie, Zhou Changxi, and Yun Xiao sat beside him, watching as he emptied one plate and then went to get another.

Xie Xie remained silent for a long while before finally speaking very solemnly:

"I swear, if I ever bet with you on food again, I'm a fool."

Tang Wulin swallowed a mouthful of steamed bun and mumbled, "Besides this, I won't bet anything else with you. I have no motivation."

"Here, take mine."

Just then, a voice came from the side.

A snow-white steamed bun was gently placed on Tang Wulin's plate.

Tang Wulin looked up and saw that it was Gu Yue.

She had already changed into the Donghai Academy uniform, and was no different from the students around her, except that her quietness was still very obvious.

"Thank you." Tang Wulin nodded to her immediately.

He always easily develops a liking for people who will share their food with him.

Gu Yue simply nodded slightly, said nothing more, and turned to leave.

As soon as she left, Zhou Changxi immediately leaned over, looking mysterious.

"Wu Lin, do I think she might have a crush on you?"

Tang Wulin, with a steamed bun still in his mouth, looked up at him.

Zhou Changxi lowered his voice and said, "Look, she talked to you as soon as she entered the classroom today, and now she's even offered you a steamed bun. Isn't that obvious?"

Tang Wulin looked helpless.

"You're only nine years old, what's going on in your head?"

Zhou Changxi said in a serious tone, "A few days ago, all I could think about was how to give you a good beating. But that thought is gone now."

Why is it gone?

"Because when you're carrying a hammer, I feel like you're more of a ferocious beast than I am."

Xie Xie burst out laughing.

Tang Wulin ignored them and took a bite of the bun that Gu Yue had given him.

Mmm, it smells good.

……

Before afternoon classes, everyone in Class 5 thought that since the morning had already gone on like this, the afternoon would surely involve some theory.

As a result, Wu Changkong shattered their illusions in the simplest way.

"This afternoon, we'll continue with physical training."

A deathly silence fell over the area.

Someone asked in a low voice, "Teacher, wasn't there supposed to be a theory class this afternoon?"

Wu Changkong glanced at that person.

"With your current physical abilities, what theory can you learn first?"

In short, it completely extinguished everyone's hopes.

The aloof and arrogant male god clearly has no intention of reasoning with people.

As a result, the afternoon training was even more painful than the morning training.

I'll at least run around in the morning.

In the afternoon, we started with a sprint back and forth, followed by squat jumps, and finally it turned into frog jumps.

In less than half an hour, the playground was covered with people lying haphazardly.

Some children were hugging their legs, some were clutching their backs, and some didn't even want to sit anymore, collapsing onto the ground without moving. This group of nine-year-old children in Class 5 were so exhausted that they barely had the strength to speak.

Tang Wulin's condition remains the most stable.

It's not that he's not tired, but rather that his physique is much stronger than that of his peers. Coupled with long-term training, this kind of simple strength and endurance consumption is far from enough to break him.

Xie Xie fared much worse.

His strengths lay in explosive power and agility, but this kind of long-term, repetitive training that tormented his legs and core strength was even more grueling for him than the long-distance run he did in the morning. By the end of the training, he could barely stand without Tang Wulin's support, and his legs were still trembling uncontrollably.

The situation in Guyue is different.

She also had sweat on her forehead and her breathing was a little erratic, but her overall condition was clearly much better than Xie Xie's.

It wasn't because she was physically stronger, but because that sense of "lightness" was always present in her training. The wind made her movements less strenuous, the light helped her recover faster, the fire provided her with the driving force, the earth made her lower body more stable, and the ice allowed her to always remain calm—her affinity for and manipulation of the elements had almost become instinct.

Even Tang Wulin noticed this.

Her physical abilities may not be stronger than theirs, but she always seems to be able to draw some strength from those around her.

Before the training ended, Wu Changkong stood in front of the team and coldly glanced at Class 5, who could barely stand up straight.

"Tang Wulin, Xie Xie, Gu Yue."

The three people whose names were called froze simultaneously.

"Come find me after dinner."

After those words were spoken, the students in Class 5 looked at the three of them with a complex mix of sympathy.

Xie Xie's face turned pale, and his voice almost faded.

"No way... coming back tonight?"

All he wants to do right now is lie down.

Gu Yue placed her hands on her knees and slowly stood up. A few strands of hair on her forehead were damp with sweat and stuck to her face, but she still didn't complain. Her eyes were just calmer than usual.

Tang Wulin supported Xie Xie. He was also tired, but compared to being tired, he was more concerned about something else.

"Let's eat first," he said in a low voice.

Xie Xie glanced at him listlessly.

"How do you even manage to think about food at a time like this?"

Tang Wulin thought for a moment and answered seriously:

"Because I was really hungry."