The oil lamp in Moen Kang Yo's break room flickered, casting long, dancing shadows on the cracked wooden walls. Yoe Choin sat leaning back with his arms folded, while in his inner chamber, the real Moen Kang Yo stared at an imaginary stack of papers containing a new training schedule.
"Are you serious about this schedule, Foreman?"
Kang Yo's voice echoed, his tone containing a rare doubt.
"This isn't martial arts training. This is structured torture,"
Kang Yo continued.
Choi smiled faintly.
"In construction, before you put a heavy load on a structure, you have to stress test it. We push them to their point of fatigue, but we stop exactly one millimeter before they completely break."
"Training from 12 a.m. to 3 a.m. for Class 2? And from 3 a.m. to 6 a.m. for Class 1?"
Kang Yo was confused.
"When do they sleep?"
"They wouldn't need so much sleep if their nutrition and Qi flow were regulated efficiently,"
Choon replied calmly.
"I'll force their bodies to adapt to the high pressure. If they can survive, they'll become 'High-Grade Concrete.' If not, they're just scrap metal unfit for my grand plan."
Moen Kang Yo paused for a moment. He was a demon accustomed to cruelty, but seeing Choin calculate human suffering with numbers and cold logic... it made him feel a little unnerved.
"This foreman... he's more of a demon than I am when it comes to efficiency," he thought.
In the dining hall...
The Class 1 dining hall was still bustling with the clink of wooden bowls when Choin stepped inside. The aroma of corn rice and wilted vegetables filled the air. As Moen Kang Yo's figure appeared at the door, the noise slowly died down to a cynical whisper.
"Listen, everyone!"
Choin's voice boomed, cold and authoritative, like an instruction amidst the din of heavy equipment.
"Based on the agreement with Instructor Ma, your schedule has been reshuffled. Starting tomorrow morning, your work hours... I mean, your training will be from 3:00 AM to 6:00 AM. No exceptions."
"Who are you to order us around?"
one of the students taunted.
"Just because you're the Sect Leader's illegitimate son doesn't mean you have any authority here. Go back to your cave, trash!"
Several other students chuckled, but their laughter died out as Choin moved.
Choin didn't use a sword. He lunged forward with a remarkably efficient stride, closing the distance in milliseconds. Using the laws of classical mechanics, he concentrated his entire body mass on a single point of attack.
Boom!
A single palm strike, imbued with internal Qi, struck the student's chest. It wasn't a wild blow, but a controlled pressure that instantly shut off his breathing. The student fell to his knees, his face turning blue from the inability to draw oxygen into his lungs.
"Your status as a student doesn't give you the right to evaluate your new leader's training methods,"
Choin said, looking at the other trembling students.
"3:00 to 6:00 AM is your time. Prepare your stamina. Anyone who is one second late will receive a tenfold physical penalty. Understood?!"
"I...understood, Young Master!"
they replied in unison, their heads bowed deeply.
If Class 1 could be silenced with a single strike, Class 2 was a different matter. They were older, stronger, and accustomed to Elder Gong's intimidation. When Choin arrived at their barracks the previous midnight, the atmosphere already felt like a battlefield.
"So, the Cave Rat is back and wants to play teacher?"
said a burly senior Class 2 student. He was one of Elder Gong's trusted aides.
A group of about seven men immediately surrounded Choin. Choin could sense that their cultivation levels were approaching the peak of the Foundation Realm.
"Your schedule is 12 midnight to 3 a.m.,"
Choin said expressionlessly.
"Prepare your stamina now, because these will be the longest three hours of your lives."
"We don't need training from losers like you!"
they shouted, charging in unison.
The fight was fierce. Choin was at the third level of the Structure Realm, but Moen Kang Yo's body was still recovering, and he faced a mob attack from multiple angles. He had to quickly calculate every attack vector.
"Use the second technique, Foreman! There are too many of them!"
Kang Yo shouted.
Choin spun around, using the Eternal Night Storm Sweep, but in its unarmed version, it was just a sweep of energy that dampened his opponent's momentum. He was hit in the left shoulder, causing a sharp pain, but he managed to retaliate by striking each of their foot points one by one.
After ten grueling minutes, the Class 2 students lay sprawled on the dirty barracks floor. Choin stood among them, his breathing slightly labored, but his eyes sharp.
"You have energy, but your energy distribution is messed up,"
Choin said as he caught his breath.
"This morning, make sure you're on the field before the midnight bell rings. If anyone is absent, I'll make sure you never hold a sword again."
Seeing the unreasonable assertiveness and strength of the "Bastard Child," Class 2 was finally forced to submit to this new, harsh authority.
After ensuring both classes were "installed" with the new schedule, Choin walked outside to breathe in the fresh night air. However, he stopped short as he passed the dark logistics warehouse area.
There, under the dim moonlight, he saw a large young man sitting limply beside a pile of firewood. His face was battered, his eyes swollen, and his clothes torn.
Choin recognized that silhouette from Kang Yo's memories.
"Jin-Pyo?"
Choin called softly.
The large young man looked up with difficulty. When he saw Moen Kang Yo, tears began to flow down his bruised cheeks.
"Young Master... You've really returned?"
Choin approached and knelt before him. His glowing blue eyes immediately scanned Jin-Pyo's body.
Analysis:
Three fractured ribs,
soft tissue trauma to the face,
and signs of chronic malnutrition.
"Who did this to you?"
Choin asked, his voice now carrying a chill that made even the original Moen Kang Yo speechless.
"The senior disciples... they said I should be punished for faithfully waiting for you,"
Jin-Pyo whispered, enduring the pain.
Choin clenched his fists. In his eyes, Jin-Pyo was the "Model Coolie," the most honest pillar the sect had. And seeing that pillar being ravaged by the sect's termites made his foreman's instincts boil.
"Calm down, Jin-Pyo,"
Choin said, gently patting the young man's shoulder.
"Starting tomorrow, no one will be able to touch you anymore. I will renovate your body into the strongest pillar of this sect. And as for those who did this..."
Choin looked towards Elder Gong's Pavilion.
"...I will send them a very expensive repair bill."