When Mo Chen returned to the academy, Zhao Kai was waiting near the courtyard .
Zhao Kai smiled.
"You went into the forest again," Zhao Kai said.
Mo Chen nodded once.
"Yes."
Zhao Kai studied him fior a moment. His expression was different from before. Less sharp. Less guarded.
"You're not hiding your progress anymore," he said.
Mo Chen answered quietly, "There is nothing to hide."
Zhao Kai gave a short laugh.
"That is exactly the kind of answer I expected from you."
They sat down under the tree, side by side, with the academy courtyard moving around them. Students passed by in small groups. A few were talking
loudly. Others were practicing. The noise drifted in and out like wind.
Zhao Kai leaned back and looked at the sky.
"My father says a person's future depends on who notices them first," he said.
Mo Chen did not look at him.
"And what do you think?"
Zhao Kai paused.
"I think that's only partly true."
He turned to Mo Chen.
"The rest depends on whether that person is worth following."
Mo Chen finally glanced at him.
Zhao Kai smiled faintly.
"I'm not saying I admire you. I'm saying you're not like the others."
Mo Chen lowered his eyes again.
"That is not praise."
"It is for me," Zhao Kai said.
The words were simple, but there was something more serious behind them now. Before, Zhao Kai had liked testing people. He still did. But now he no longer treated Mo Chen like a curiosity. He treated him like someone real.
That mattered.
After a while, Zhao Kai asked, "What did you do in the forest?"
Mo Chen answered honestly.
"Tested my sword style. Practiced darts. Fought a spirit beast."Zhao Kai raised an eyebrow.
"Alone?"
"Yes."
"You really like doing everything yourself."
Mo Chen closed his eyes briefly.
"It is easier."
Zhao Kai was quiet fior a moment, then said, "That may be true. But it is not always better."
Mo Chen looked at him.
Zhao Kai shrugged.
"Ifi you keep doing everything alone, people will assume you don't need anyone."
Mo Chen did not reply at once.
Then he said, "Need is not the same as choice."
Zhao Kai smiled.
"That is the kind of answer I meant."
They sat there until the courtyard grew noisier with the end ofi practice time.
Before leaving, Zhao Kai said, "Come with me tomorrow. I want to show you something near the outer wall."
Mo Chen looked at him.
"What is it?"
"Something useful," Zhao Kai said. "And don't ask me twice."
Mo Chen nodded.
"Fine."
That was enough to deepen the friendship.
No speech.
No oath.
Just repeated presence.
Xiao Wu's Authority
The next afternoon, the working students gathered near the open training area again.
The mood was different now.
Xiao Wu stood in the center, arms folded, looking small but impossible to ignore. Since Tang San beat boss xiao, her position among the working students had become even stronger. She was quick, sharp, and not afraid ofi anyone in the academy courtyard.
Everyone knew it. Even the older students knew it.
Especially Zhao Kai.
He walked in with his usual confidence, but there was a seriousness in his eyes now. Mo Chen stayed at the side, where he could see clearly without
needing to join the center ofi attention.
One ofi the older students muttered something disrespectful about working students.
Xiao Wu turned her head.
"Say it again," she said.
The older student laughed nervously, but Zhao Kai stepped forward before the situation could become smaller or uglier.
"You've been acting like this courtyard belongs to one group," Zhao Kai said. "That is not how an academy works."
Xiao Wu looked at him.
"You're talking too much."
Zhao Kai lifted his chin slightly.
"And you're acting like you can decide everything just because people follow you."
The courtyard quieted.
Mo Chen watched carefully. He did not interfere.
He only observed.
Xiao Wu's gaze sharpened.
"Do you have a problem with me?"
Zhao Kai did not step back.
"I have a problem with anyone who thinks force is the same as order."
Xiao Wu smiled. Not warmly. Then she moved.
Fast.
Too fast fior the weaker students to fully see.
Zhao Kai reacted in time, but only barely. He blocked the first strike and shifted back half a step. The pressure of her movement made the difference
immediately clear.
She was smaller, but she moved like a sharp blade.
Zhao Kai's expression changed.
Mo Chen's eyes narrowed slightly.
Xiao Wu attacked again, and Zhao Kai gave ground. He was not weak, but he was not built fior direct pressure in the same way she was.
Still, he did not panic.
That was good.
Mo Chen noted that in his mind,
Then a voice came from the edge of the courtyard.
"Enough."
The crowd separated slightly.
Tang San had returned.
His presence changed the atmosphere at once. Calm. Controlled. Quiet, but impossible to ignore.
Xiao Wu stopped. Her expression softened the moment she saw him, though she still looked annoyed.
Zhao Kai exhaled once, then stepped back.
Tang San looked at both sides.
"Fighting here solves nothing," he said.
No one argued with that.
Xiao Wu folded her arms and looked away, but she did not continue.
Zhao Kai's jaw tightened, then relaxed. The tension broke.
Mo Chen turned his gaze away once the matter was settled.
He had seen enough.
Diary Pages
That night, Mo Chen sat at his wooden desk and opened the diary under the light ofi a small oil lamp.
The room was quiet. His mother was asleep in the next room. The wind outside moved softly through the branches.
He wrote what mattered.
Forest hunt result:
One spirit beast defeated.
Dart control effective.
Wind Step useful in real combat.
Swift Gale Slash and Falling Tempest strong enough to finish.
He paused, then continued.
Zhao Kai:
Friendship deepening. He speaks more honestly now.
He does not just test me. He understands me a little.
XiaoWu conflict:
Her authority over working students is real.
Zhao Kai challenged it.
Tang San resolved it.
I did not Interfere he turned the page.
The handwriting remained neat, not emotional.
Conclusion:
Training is working.
Observation is useful.
I do not need to overthink.
I only need to keep moving forward.
He closed the diary.
The sword rested near the bed.The darts were wrapped carefully in cloth.
His martial soul had improved again during the day, though not enough to make him proud. Enough to make him steady.
He lay down and stared at the ceiling fior a while.
Not worried.
Not afraid.
Not lost in thought.
Just calm.
The path ahead was still long.
But now he could see the next step.
And that was enough