Across the web, immortals and true beings, their thoughts and energy creating the heavens.

Chapter 124 Path of the Dao Mission Settlement

I slept soundly all night and woke up to find it was Saturday.

This morning, Lin Zhuo received a message notification.

[Wanghe Community]: (Automatic Message) Dear Citizen Lin Zhuo, the Wanghe Community Management Committee reminds you that at 9:40 AM today...

Your attendance is required for a neighboring group meeting. The meeting minutes have been attached; please check them promptly. Let's unite, consult amicably, build a harmonious political environment, and create a better home together. Thank you for your active participation! [6:00][Read]

The most basic political unit of a community is the neighborhood group, with a dozen or so households in each group. A dozen or so neighborhood groups occupy the middle floors of a building, forming a community. Tens of thousands of residents in twenty or thirty buildings together form a district. Lin Zhuo's hometown was in the Qixing Community of the G4 Building, the ninth neighborhood group. Now, after moving out, he lives in the Wanghe Community of the G11 Building, the seventh neighborhood group.

The neighborhood group practices direct democracy, with all adult residents gathering once a week for a group meeting to vote on all sorts of trivial matters.

Lin Zhuo has been attending university since he moved here. After graduating, he attended a neighborhood group meeting once, which gave him a basic understanding of the surrounding residents. Today is his second time attending a group meeting, and he doesn't know when the next one will be.

He didn't say much at the meeting, adopting a "good guy" attitude. It was all miscellaneous work like cleaning the corridor and repairing the pipes; everyone discussed how much labor each household would contribute, and the task could be solved by division of labor. Lin Zhuo simply followed the crowd and raised his hand, readily agreeing to any tasks assigned to him.

Just as Lin Zhuo finished the group meeting and came out, it was lunchtime. He had just walked out of the meeting room of the neighboring group when Min Peier called him and asked him to go to the canteen of G6 community.

Today is the opening day of the Youth Cup Fighting Tournament. Many members of the Iron Horse Association gathered together to cheer on the four participating children. After having lunch together, they headed to the competition venue in a large group.

Lin Zhuo, a coach, and Min Peier, the person in charge of liaising with the event organizers, both carried heavy responsibilities in this competition. When the two met, Min Peier gave Lin Zhuo a series of instructions, telling him where his viewing position was and how to handle any emergencies.

After she finished speaking, she went to handle the formalities, leaving the four little ones with Lin Zhuo.

The venue was packed with spectators, including students' parents, classmates, and their parents, all enthusiastically holding up banners supporting their respective elementary schools and waving colorful flags.

During his school years, Lin Zhuo participated in many competitions, the loudest of which were those held in the military. But the most enthusiastic audiences he had ever seen were the martial artists and ordinary people in the world of "Cangcheng".

"See that? All of these people are looking forward to your amazing performance. Don't let this expectation weigh you down and make you lose confidence. Play your best and let everyone in this stadium cheer for you." During the pre-match encouragement session, Lin Zhuo's heartfelt words, imbued with profound inner energy, further boosted the fighting spirit of the four students.

"Ooh ooh!" The four little monkeys came onto the stage with loud cries, especially Hou Shiying, whose fierce eyes made the other children tremble. Some of the more timid ones even turned around and hugged the coach's legs, crying.

Don't expect much sportsmanship from elementary school fights; the rules are only scratching the surface. Only a few children who have undergone long-term professional training can put on a show that is truly inspiring.

After finishing her chores, Min Peier also came over and stood side by side with Lin Zhuo.

She truly cares about these children. When watching the games, she is so immersed in the experience that she dances and laughs with abandon. Whenever her students win, she rushes over to offer them towels and water, showering them with endless praise.

Lin Zhuo was more concerned about the level of the other contestants. There were no particularly outstanding ones in the girls' group. With the strength of Yu Zhenzhen and Xiao Min, they were enough to take the first and second place.

There are two trained fighters in the boys' group who have been trained since childhood. It will definitely be a tough battle to snatch victory from them.

"Hou Shiying, this is how you should fight your opponent in the next match—" Lin Zhuo directly instilled the thought process into his quick-thinking student.

Hou Shiying memorized it and, upon entering the arena, executed his moves according to Coach Lin's instructions. Every change in his opponent's movements was predictable; with such keen insight and superior position, how could he not win?

"Fang Ruichi," Lin Zhuo looked at the somewhat simple-minded, burly boy in front of him, "Do you want to win?"

"Yes, Coach."

"Then be prepared to be knocked to the ground, but I want you to get up, get up every single time, until your opponent is afraid, do you hear me?" Lin Zhuo did not use Xuanji True Qi to enhance the effect of these words.

The effects of true qi are like a shot of adrenaline, effective in the short term, but once self-doubt begins, the hypnotic effect dissipates, leaving one feeling even more depleted and insecure.

Fang Ruichi didn't think much of it. He was an obedient and good boy, and he did whatever the coach said.

So he went on stage, and indeed, he was beaten down several times by the strong kids on the other side.

Min Pei'er tried to stop them out of concern, but Lin Zhuo stopped her.

"As his coach, how can you bear to watch him get beaten? It's not shameful to surrender in a match you clearly can't win. Besides, you can still try for third place even if you lose."

"What he wants is second place. If he loses this match, does that mean he can beat Hou Shiying's opponent? There's no turning back now. You were their mentor before, so why don't you believe in Fang Ruichi? He's not smart enough, not flexible enough, not brave enough. His only two strengths are his resilience and obedience. He probably doesn't understand why he has to stand up now, but his body is already fighting before his mind."

Min Pei-er turned to look at the arena and whispered, "Is it really necessary to put such a high-value competition on elementary school students?"

"It's necessary for kids. If they win this match, they can brag about it for a whole year; if they lose, they'll regret it decades later. This competition isn't for adults to watch like monkeys; the stage belongs to these kids."

"You have a point. Hey, why are you always squatting like that?"

"I wasn't used to squatting before, until I traveled to a place where I saw many people squatting on the street."

They squatted while waiting for work, squatted while eating, squatted while hoping a passing benefactor would toss them a couple of copper coins as a reward. Or perhaps, because they were blocking the way, they'd suddenly be whipped, with no recourse but to run aside with a forced smile.

"Where can you find a place like that anymore? Did you go back to the old society?"

"Pretty much. We've been standing up for too long, and all we see are vast landscapes. But those who squat down, and those little children, all they see are ants and insects on the ground. What they care about and are concerned with is naturally very small. Now that you've become a bored adult, why don't you squat down and see the world through the eyes of a child again?"

"He's got a whole set of grand principles to offer."

Min Peier puffed out her cheeks and squatted down as instructed. When she watched the match again, she felt that it was indeed different. These elementary school students seemed to have suddenly grown up. Fang Ruichi's opponent looked like a real warrior, and Fang Ruichi was not so disheveled. The chubby boy was breathing steadily, and his eyes refused to admit defeat.

"Now, who do you think will win?"

"Little Fatty."

Just as she said, Fang Ruichi's opponent was worn down and couldn't even stand up. After taking a punch, he lay on the ground and couldn't get up, only able to keep crying.

The finals in both groups were all between students from the same school. The students from the Iron Horse Association swept two gold medals and two silver medals, and were surrounded by parents and classmates who praised them highly.

[Network notification: The Path Quest "Youthful Indulgence" has been completed]

[Assessing the historical impact of his achievements]

Youthful Indulgence: Helping your disciples Hou, Fang, Yu, and Xiao achieve top-three finishes in both the boys' and girls' categories of the Hongshui City Youth Cup Fighting Tournament. Path: Ancestral Master's Evaluation: Your disciples have achieved remarkable results. This experience adds a touch of brilliance to their childhood, something to cherish for many years to come. There are no earth-shattering achievements, just some insignificant personal stories. As a teacher and mentor, this will be the beginning of your widespread cultivation of talent.

[Task Settlement: This Path Quest has earned [II] Merit Points]

Lin Zhuo chuckled. It was indeed a trivial task. He only had eighteen merit points left, which was far from enough to buy a higher-level dungeon.

Staying in Hongshui City would make acquiring Dao achievements quite troublesome. Once Lin Zhuo joins the Orbital Assault Army and enters the combat sequence, he will be able to frequently trigger the [Champion] Dao quest.

The battlefield was indeed a suitable place for him to make his mark.

The members of the Iron Horse Association were all in high spirits, but Lin Zhuo was nowhere to be seen at the celebration banquet. The four disciples were somewhat disappointed, unable to share their joy with their coach.

Min Pei'er called him and learned that Lin Zhuo was at home with his family. The background noise on the phone was lively, no less festive than a victory celebration.

"Hey, are you going to a concert tomorrow?" Before hanging up, Min Pei-er asked one last question, "My family and I are coming."

"Since I've promised, I'll definitely come."

"Okay, then we'll meet there!" Min Pei'er was inexplicably happy. After hanging up the phone, she held the phone and looked up at the narrow sky over Hongshui City.

Lin Zhu put away her phone, still holding her face in her hands, and watched with a smile as her younger siblings scrambled for the delicious food.

>