Don't try to cultivate immortality; mortals live longer than immortals.

Ah this...

Duan Xuan felt a chill run down his spine. He spat out the mouthwash he had been rinsing, turned over, opened the window, and jumped from the tenth floor without hesitation.

Although he has not yet established his foundation, and theoretically cannot fly freely in the sky without the aid of magical artifacts, as a cultivator at the peak of Qi Refining, this height is naturally no problem for him to jump down.

Moreover, it's convenient and stylish.

Soon, we arrived at the square.

Duan Xuan was surprised to find that he was not the first one to arrive. Although there were not many people at the meeting point at the moment, there were still a dozen or so in twos and threes.

He even spotted a familiar figure: Fairy Yaoguang was already dressed in her finest attire, and when she saw him looking over, she gave him a peace sign.

Duan Xuan couldn't help but mutter to himself.

It seems we really shouldn't be arrogant or underestimate other cultivators. Take the current situation for example: while there aren't many truly intelligent people, their proportion isn't small either.

Even without systematic reminders, these people still wisely allowed themselves extra time.

If the senior students are like this, then the cultivators of the Azure Sky Immortal Cultivation World should not be underestimated.

In the distance, more and more people were arriving.

……

Five minutes passed in the blink of an eye.

When the instructor announced the end of the time, Duan Xuan roughly counted that there were 32 people who had arrived, which was only a little over 10% compared to the number of cultivators in the square yesterday.

Zhou Ran was not among them.

On the contrary, at this moment, the guy was muttering to himself as he lifted the bedding.

"Seriously, they clearly said yesterday that the assembly time was 6:30, and it's only a little past 6 o'clock. Why is the instructor going back on his word? Is he suffering from insomnia or dementia?"

The guy got up slowly, dressed, and then went downstairs.

Unsurprisingly, Zhou Ran was the last student to arrive, without exception.

"You're a full seven minutes late for assembly." Zheng Lei's expression was grim, his face dark as he glared fiercely at Zhou Ran: "Kid, you've got guts, daring to talk badly about the instructor behind his back."

Zhou Ran's legs went weak, and beads of cold sweat appeared on his forehead: "Damn it, I really was half asleep. I forgot that the instructor is a Golden Core Ancestor, whose divine sense is strong enough to cover an extremely wide area. He heard every single word I said behind his back!"

"What should I do? What should I do? Won't I be targeted now?"

Zhou Ran was sweating profusely with anxiety when suddenly a brilliant idea flashed in his mind. He knelt down before Zheng Lei, cupped his hands in a fist and said, "I have wandered for half my life, only regretting that I have not met a wise ruler. If the instructor does not abandon me, I am willing to become his godfather."

"..."

"..."

"..."

Duan Xuan covered his face, unable to bear to look. Although he knew his good brother was a goofball, this reaction was still truly speechless.

In front of so many people, do you really not know what shame is?

The students in the square were equally bewildered, wondering if they were still half asleep or if there was something wrong with their eyes and ears...

Even the instructor named Zheng Lei, who had experienced countless battles and all sorts of dangers during his time in the Demon Suppression Army, was speechless in the face of this scene. His brain's CPU almost crashed, and he was at a loss for words... Is there something wrong with this kid's head?

For a moment, the huge square was so quiet you could hear a pin drop. No one knew how to react or act, and they could only numbly watch Zhou Ran continue her performance.

Of course, the joker's suggestion didn't come to fruition in the end. After a brief moment of surprise, Zheng Lei regained his composure and scolded, "Stop joking around. If you fail to assemble at the designated time, you'll have to accept the punishment. Today, anyone who's late will have their breakfast replaced with some kind of culinary disaster."

"And it depends on the time of day; the later you arrive, the worse the 'disgusting food' you get..."

"No waste allowed, and you can't say you have no appetite. You have to eat every last bit of the terrible food, even a single grain of rice."

"As for the students who arrived on time, they deserve praise; you can enjoy a delicious and nutritious normal breakfast."

For a time, cries of despair filled the air.

But complaining is useless and meaningless. After all, they are just weaklings at the Qi Refining level. They have no chance of resisting a Golden Core Ancestor.

However, this was just a minor incident. From beginning to end, Zheng Lei did not explain to everyone why he broke his promise and deliberately brought forward the meeting time.

After all, no one present was stupid; they were all college students, and unless they had intellectual disabilities, they all understood the meaning behind it.

In the next trial, they will go to the hostile interface, where they may encounter danger at any time and must be on high alert at all times. They will even have to sleep with one eye open. Compared to such a crisis, the so-called advance of the assembly time is just a small test.

A fall into a pit, a gain in your wit. The terrible cooking is certainly a punishment, but isn't it also a way to make them remember this lesson?

This is just a punishment. If you make a mistake or are careless during the trial, the price you pay could be your life!

Therefore, although there was widespread lamentation, no one actually complained.

After breakfast, the formal training began.

Time was of the essence, with only three days left before the secret realm opened, so the instructors didn't waste any time and went straight to the point without even exchanging pleasantries.

"The first lesson is about using and mastering the equipment!"

Zheng Lei's voice entered my ears: "I won't go into detail about magic tools and talismans. You should have all learned about these things related to cultivators, so there's not much to say about them. Today's focus is on the use and mastery of technological equipment."

"You are all cultivators here, but don't underestimate these technological things. They not only cover a wide range of categories, but also have excellent effects. It is no exaggeration to say that they are your greatest reliance and confidence when facing enemies from the Azure Sky Cultivation World."

"I'm not making this up. This is a unique advantage you have. After all, cultivators in that realm don't have these things, especially lower-level cultivators. They probably haven't even heard of them..."

"Therefore, if used properly, technologically advanced equipment can have a surprising and decisive effect."

However, Zheng Lei was interrupted before he could finish speaking.

"Instructor!"

Zheng Lei turned around and saw Zhou Ran; his face immediately darkened. "What is it?"

"Um... regarding the use of talismans and magical artifacts, instructor, could you please not skip this and explain it in detail? I... I didn't learn about it at school."

Having just witnessed what happened, Zhou Ran seemed somewhat lacking in confidence, and even spoke in a soft voice.

Zheng Lei's face darkened instantly, and he retorted, "Bullshit! Do you think I'm an idiot? I've been in university for so long, how could I not have come into contact with talismans and magical artifacts?"

"This is a required course in the second semester of freshman year, and it's a core subject."

"Little one, don't test my patience. If you continue to cause trouble here, I'll make you understand the consequences of offending a Golden Core cultivator."