In the distance, the high mountains blocked the remaining glow of the setting sun, leaving only half the sky dyed in orange against the pristine white clouds, while on the other side, dark clouds surged threateningly to chase away the very last trace of light at the edge of the sky.
If you looked closely, you would notice that the dark clouds were closely trailing the footsteps of Yuanchu and his group.
"What the heck, guys, how can it get this dark?" Moran couldn't help feeling a bit surprised as he watched the ominous dark clouds pursuing them relentlessly.
Clearly, Moran and Gu Feng still didn't know about Yuanchu's unique ability.
Walking ahead with a dark expression, Yuanchu didn't say a word.
Gu Feng, following behind Moran, didn't know what to say either.
Thus, the atmosphere among the three of them was as silent as the sky.
It wasn't that Yuanchu didn't want to answer Moran; he just really wanted to save his energy for climbing the mountain. Besides, the more he climbed, the more he felt like complaining about Elder Gu.
Starting with complaints, escalating into grievances, and finally bordering on absolute rage.
What else could he do? They were all just suffering, exhausted Awakened; surely he couldn't take his anger out on them?
By the time the group finally reached the mountain peak, the sun had almost completely set, and Moran's spirits suddenly surged:
"To survey all peaks from the highest summit—"
"Let's go down." Yuanchu had no mood for the scenery, his voice unconsciously turning cold.
Moran silently shut his mouth.
Just wait, once we get home I'm going to make you go bald!
Clenching his fists, Yuanchu made a silent vow.
Seeing the look of deep-seated hatred on Yuanchu's face, Moran and Gu Feng both pressed their palms together and silently prayed for Elder Gu.
They didn't know what Yuanchu was thinking. Although Yuanchu felt a bit cold to them, he was actually a really good guy; all along the journey he kept cheering them on and telling them to make sure they saw the scenery at the summit.
Their own moods were still quite good right now; the only one whose mood was ruined was classmate Yuan.
According to the Law of Conservation of Mood: moods do not simply disappear; they transfer, and their total amount remains constant.
Just like now, all the bad moods of those two had been transferred onto Yuanchu.
Meanwhile, the mastermind behind it all, Elder Gu, was sitting in a rocking chair, wearing sunglasses and drinking juice, occasionally lowering his gaze from above the sunglasses toward the direction of the mountain.
Going up is hard, coming down is easy. The trio who went on a pilgrimage to the summit had spent the better part of a day climbing up, but it took only a fraction of a day to return to where they started.
The color of the sky gradually deepened, and a golden banana hung far off in the horizon, waiting for the stars hiding behind the clouds to come and contend for it.
At this point, Yuanchu and the others were utterly exhausted, crawling their way back.
That's right, crawling back.
At the time, they had thought they could easily make two round trips in a single day, but only when they reached the foot of the mountain did they realize how tall it truly was and how punishing the climb.
Elder Gu spotted the shadows on the ground from afar and quietly hid the juice he had been holding.
By the time he clearly saw their three faces, Elder Gu had already stood up, leaning against a large tree with the demeanor of a worldly master, and said calmly:
"Back?"
Gu Feng and Moran were too exhausted to muster a reply, collapsing flat onto the ground the moment they saw Elder Gu. Yuanchu, however, gritted his teeth and forced himself to stand.
"Looks like the training volume still isn't enough..."
Elder Gu muttered under his breath, but aloud he said: "Why are you guys so slow? This is only one round trip..."
As Yuanchu stood up, he quietly picked up a small stone from the ground and hid it behind his back.
Moran and Gu Feng exchanged glances, simultaneously choosing silence.
Don't overthink it; they were just too tired to speak.
"And... Yuanchu, what's wrong with you? Didn't I tell you to run? Why were you all walking right from the start... If I hadn't made you run, would you even have made it back today..."
Yuanchu calculated the distance between himself and Elder Gu.
Elder Gu turned around, presenting his back to them:
"Forget it, forget it... seeing as you're all so tired today, we'll stop here for now. Tomorrow we—"
Before he could finish his sentence, a pebble flew straight toward the back of Elder Gu's head, while Yuanchu, having spent his very last ounce of strength, lost his balance and collapsed.
Everyone on the ground focused their gaze on the stone, watching to see where this missile of pure resentment would strike Elder Gu.
Unfortunately, the stone traced a graceful parabola through the air and ultimately landed harmlessly right beside Elder Gu's feet.
Nothing happened.
...
"Alright, later I'll use magic to send these two back, and Yuanchu is coming with me."
Afterwards, Elder Gu pressed his index finger against his lips, making a "shh" gesture while muttering something under his breath.
"Ha!" His bent arm snapped straight, pointing directly toward Gu Feng and Moran.
Gu Feng and Moran tilted their heads and looked at each other.
Is that it?
Could our home possibly be right here?
The two of them looked at Elder Gu, mouths opening to speak, when their figures instantly vanished.
With his big, round cartoonish eyes wide open, Yuanchu stared at the spot where the two of them had just been standing.
"Hmph, I know you're shocked, but this is just standard operating procedure."
Elder Gu arched an eyebrow, looking at Yuanchu with a boastful expression, waiting for Yuanchu to make a shocked remark.
"..."
Yuanchu glanced sideways at Elder Gu: "I'm exhausted. Send me back."
Elder Gu: "..."
"Walk yourself."
...
Two weeks later.
Elder Gu looked at the three figures collapsed on the ground, feeling immensely satisfied.
Going from one round trip a day initially to three round trips every two days now, Elder Gu once again felt the pride of a teacher witnessing his students' progress.
Wasn't he saying twenty round trips a day? You've got to be kidding me; Elder Gu couldn't even do that himself. Saying those words back then was just meant to crush the arrogance of these little brats.
And incidentally, to exact a tiny bit of revenge on Yuanchu for locking him out of the room back then.
Han Xinnian sat on a rock, her legs swinging back and forth in the air while her hands constantly fiddled with a thick walking stick.
"Hey, Xinnian, why don't you go back and sit down first? There's nothing interesting about these wild kids."
Han Xinnian raised her head:
"The scenery here is very nice."
"And besides, I can see how you train them."
Elder Gu nodded and continued yelling at the figures on the ground:
"Get up, get up, don't be so lazy. Yes, I'm talking to you, the kid surnamed Yuan."
Gu Feng and Moran were long used to it. For some reason, Elder Gu always seemed to love picking on Yuanchu, as if the two of them shared some deep, irreconcilable feud.
"Today, we are practicing the final item—horse stance."
"Straighten your backs."
"Stop sticking your butts out."
"Was he talking to you? No."
"..."
The scene of everyone training diligently reflected in Han Xinnian's eyes.
...
A few weeks later, Elder Gu called all four of them together.
"Your physical training stops here. Now, I'm going to teach you two things."
Elder Gu pointed a finger at the sky:
"First, I'll teach you how to regulate the energy in your bodies and release your power."
Everyone listened with rapt attention.
"Second, I'll teach you how to control that power so you can conceal the power in your bodies just like ordinary people."
Yuanchu and the others looked at each other, only now noticing that Gu Feng's hair was no longer green and Moran's eyes were no longer red.
"First of all, you must understand how to protect the area where you awakened."
"Take Gu Feng, for example: your hair was green when you awakened, so your hair turns green whenever you first use your power. However, if an enemy attacks your hair, your Origin will suffer trauma. Once your mastery of power becomes more refined, you will naturally learn to conceal the manifestation point of your Origin."
"If the person you want to defeat has also concealed their Origin, then you'll just have to rely on luck. Of course, if you possess absolute strength, you can also directly severely damage all parts of the opponent's body."