Chapter 96: Extreme Training

Is something wrong with this person?

Lin Qiye looked at Cao Yuan with a strange expression. He always tended to think the worst of others, especially when someone suddenly came over to act overly friendly for no apparent reason. It was hard not to be suspicious.

"I don't understand," Lin Qiye shook his head. "Is it because I managed to suppress your berserk state?"

"You can also help me clear my sins and achieve redemption," Cao Yuan joined his hands together and softly chanted a Buddhist prayer.

Lin Qiye furrowed his brow. "What are you talking about?"

Cao Yuan's expression grew dim. His eyes flashed with a trace of pain. After a long silence, he spoke slowly:

"I carry the lives of 333 innocent souls on my shoulders. The bloodshed is overwhelming, and the sins are like a vast ocean… Only you can help me wash away these sins and save me from the punishment of the flames of karma."

"You killed 333 people?" Bai Li Pang Pang's eyes widened in shock. "Were you a bandit?"

"…No."

"Then what did you do?"

Cao Yuan kept his head lowered, his gaze distant, remaining silent.

Lin Qiye spoke slowly, "Sorry, but I don't have the ability to clear anyone's sins. You should find a monk."

"I already did," Cao Yuan looked Lin Qiye in the eyes, "I spent seven years in silent meditation at Mount Jiuhua, reciting Buddhist sutras, yet the bloodlust hasn't faded at all… Master Jinchan said only one person can help me clear my sins and achieve redemption."

"Did he get my ID number?" Lin Qiye asked, confused.

"…No, but it doesn't matter. It's the same." Cao Yuan said calmly. "The double tree stands, eight gods leave one, ten years into the night, guiding the world... Isn't that exactly your name, Lin Qiye?"

Lin Qiye didn't respond to the first two lines, but when he heard "ten years into the night, guiding the world," his expression gradually became serious.

Was it referring to the ten years he was blind? Or to his agreement with Zhao Kongcheng to serve as a night watchman for ten years?

If it was the former, it meant Cao Yuan had thoroughly investigated him. But if it was the latter... When he made that vow, there was no one around to hear, so how could Master Jinchan have known?

"I'll say it again. I can't help others avert disaster or cross over their karmic retribution," Lin Qiye shook his head.

"Perhaps not now, but I believe that one day you will be able to," Cao Yuan said.

"Do you believe in me that much?"

"I believe in Master Jinchan."

Lin Qiye stared at Cao Yuan for a long time. He sighed helplessly. "Do as you wish, but I won't make any promises."

Cao Yuan's lips curled into a faint smile as if remembering something. He handed Lin Qiye the plate of pickled vegetables.

"Eat the pickles."

Lin Qiye hesitated for a moment but still reached out to grab some and placed it in the steamed bun, taking a big bite.

Cao Yuan showed a satisfied smile.

"This smile looks more and more like a devoted fan…" Bai Li Pang Pang muttered, shamelessly moving closer to Cao Yuan to grab some pickles.

Cao Yuan's face changed immediately. He quickly covered the plate of pickles with his hand. "Get lost."

"Let me have a bite! If Lin Qiye can eat it, why can't I? You're so stingy…" Bai Li Pang Pang pouted.

"These are Lin Qiye's," Cao Yuan said expressionlessly.

Bai Li Pang Pang, feeling wronged, leaned closer to Lin Qiye. "Seven Night, tell me, do I, Bai Li Pang Pang, deserve to eat your pickles?"

"Not really."

"…My Rolex…"

"Well… you can have a little bit."

Seeing Lin Qiye relent, Cao Yuan could only reluctantly let go, silently continuing to gnaw on his raw meat.

Bai Li Pang Pang held his steamed bun in one hand, pickles in the other, arrogantly standing in front of Cao Yuan, munching away and grinning like an empress in a harem.

"Attention, everyone!!"

Just as everyone was focused on eating, Instructor Hong and two other instructors walked into the cafeteria, their loud voices echoing throughout.

Everyone immediately put down their buns, except for Bai Li Pang Pang, who stuffed a large bite into his mouth, cheeks puffed up, standing straight.

Instructor Hong's sharp gaze swept over the crowd before he spoke slowly:

"Today afternoon, you will have your first extreme training! After finishing your meal, gather behind the cafeteria! Do you understand!!"

"Understood!" The new recruits answered in unison.

Instructor Hong nodded. "Here's some advice: the extreme training this afternoon will be tough… You'd better finish your food."

With that, the three instructors turned and left, and the noise in the cafeteria began again.

"Extreme training? What's that about?" Bai Li Pang Pang chewed his bun while asking in confusion.

"I don't know," Cao Yuan shook his head.

"Just finish the food," Lin Qiye looked toward the direction the instructors had gone and sighed. "This afternoon, it's probably going to be hell…"

…

After finishing their meal, Lin Qiye and the others walked straight toward the back of the cafeteria, where several black buses were parked, destination unknown.

"Leaving the camp?" Bai Li Pang Pang's eyes lit up with anticipation.

"Leaving the camp isn't necessarily a good thing," Lin Qiye's brow furrowed.

"Why?"

"It means the camp's facilities can't meet the extreme training conditions anymore," Zheng Zhong, a former special forces member, appeared behind them and spoke casually.

"Have you trained here before?"

"I don't know if the training for the Night Watchmen is the same as in the army, but one thing's for sure… this afternoon's training won't be as easy as this morning. Save your energy."

Zheng Zhong walked past Lin Qiye. The black buses' doors opened slowly. He jumped up lightly and disappeared from their sight.

Lin Qiye thought for a moment but couldn't figure out what extreme training would entail, so he stopped dwelling on it and followed Zheng Zhong onto the bus, with Bai Li Pang Pang and Cao Yuan following behind.

Once everyone was aboard, the vehicles began to move, and the five black buses drove out of the training camp's gates, speeding toward the wilderness.

After about half an hour, the vehicles came to a stop.

Lin Qiye, who had been resting, opened his eyes and looked outside. He froze for a moment.

"Tian Nan Mountain?"

As a local from Cangnan, Lin Qiye immediately recognized the lush green mountains before him.

Cangnan City is located in the southeast of the Great Xia Empire and doesn't have many tall or famous mountains. Tian Nan Mountain is about 4,000 meters high, not particularly tall, but it is surrounded by a series of smaller peaks, forming a mountain range. While not particularly big, it isn't small either.

What's more, Tian Nan Mountain hasn't been developed on a large scale, making it a remote and little-known tourist spot. The only thing built there is a small cable car to the summit, but even so, very few tourists visit.

Once the vehicles came to a stop, Instructor Hong stood up, turned to look at the new recruits, and smiled cruelly.

"Everyone out, off the bus!"