Chapter 444: with translation of chapter title

444. Chapter 444: A Show of Force?

A meal, host and guest enjoyed themselves fully.

Jiang Cheng saw Qin Lao and his companion off, then took a deep breath.

He was indeed eager to go take the assessment.

But he also had worries, fearing that his merely proficient Shadowless Blade Technique might not be enough to pass.

Or, after his blade technique reaches mastery, his chances would be greater; by then his spiritual power should also reach grandmaster level, and with the ability to use weapons plus psychic weapons, his odds would improve.

Furthermore, Qin Lao said that after passing the assessment, he would be assigned a mission and go out on an adventure.

"Hmm, there's no need to rush."

Jiang Cheng nodded silently.

The proficiency of the Azure Jade Coiled Dragon Pendant was also steadily increasing.

Going from a Fifth-level Spirit Mind Master to a Spirit Grandmaster absolutely could not take two or three months; perhaps one month would suffice.

Another three or four days passed.

In Jiang Cheng's mind, a boom sounded.

After a moment, he opened his eyes.

He had broken through.

Level 7 Spirit Thought Master!

That's right, not a sixth-level Spirit Mind Master, but a level 7 Spirit Thought Master.

The day after Qin Lao came over for a meal, he had already broken through to become a sixth-level Spirit Mind Master; after several days of effort, the proficiency of the Azure Jade Coiled Dragon Pendant reached the proficient level, and his spiritual power recovery speed increased fiftyfold.

Originally it took fifteen minutes to fully recover his spiritual power; now it only takes seven or eight minutes! Thus his training speed increased enormously—over three or four days, even while he had to do refining alchemy and teach students, he successfully broke through from the sixth-level foundation to a level 7 Spirit Thought Master.

After reaching level 7 Spirit Thought Master, the strongest strike of a psychic weapon equals a mm Machine Cannon, and he can instantly fire multiple; with enough quantity, their combined power is comparable to a 30 mm Machine Cannon.

Moreover, the sensing range of his spiritual power increased from 40 meters at level six to 50 meters, meaning his attack range reaches 50 meters, allowing him to strike first against Force Warriors lacking long-range attacks.

Jiang Cheng's face showed a smile.

The strength of a level 7 Spirit Thought Master is about that.

But having broken through, he is now one step closer to becoming a Spirit Grandmaster.

Furthermore, breaking through to eight-level will happen within this week; if the proficiency of the Azure Jade Coiled Dragon Pendant goes up another level, it will be even faster.

"I have to go to the academy."

Jiang Cheng rose reluctantly; if he could, he would truly want to go into closed-door cultivation all day.

"Right, today seems to be Friday, the day of the meeting."

Thinking of this, Jiang Cheng shook his head helplessly.

Whether it's blessing or disaster, disaster cannot be avoided; we'll take it step by step.

Upon arriving at the Director's Office, sure enough, just as he greeted, Ma Ming chuckled and said, 'Director Jiang, there's a meeting tonight at seven; you see...'

"Don't worry, Director, I'll come to the office early and go with you then." Jiang Cheng nodded.

"Good, good."

Ma Ming quickly agreed, seeming still a bit worried, and added, 'Director Jiang, rest assured, I'll report everything then; you just need to stand by, unless the school leaders actively ask you, you just answer, it's fine.'

"Good."

Daytime passed in a flash; at night, the whole institute remained brightly lit, even though it was Friday.

In fact, Saturday and Sunday are the same; for teachers and students, weekends are off, but they can't really just go out and play for two days straight.

Just like Jiang Cheng, who needs to refine two batches of pills on weekends, the other teachers are the same.

At 6:45, Jiang Cheng arrived at the Director's Office; he had thought arriving fifteen minutes early was early enough, but Ma Ming seemed already there; seeing Jiang Cheng come in, he hurriedly hugged his computer and said, 'Director Jiang, come with me; the other teachers from the Alchemy Workshop have basically already arrived at the conference room.'

"Good." Jiang Cheng followed behind, went up to the fifth floor, turned a few corners, and entered a large conference room.

In the middle of the conference room was an oval long table, already seated with many people; around the walls, chairs were placed in a circle, basically all filled.

At a glance, there were at least over a hundred people inside.

Some faces were familiar, from the Alchemy Workshop; the others were strangers.

At the same time, everyone in the room noticed Jiang Cheng's arrival.

"Is that the new deputy director of the Alchemy Workshop?"

"Looks like him."

"He didn't come last time, did he?"

"Yeah, back then President Sun was still a bit unhappy."

As his words fell, everyone exchanged a knowing smile.

Obviously, Jiang Cheng's arrival this time was under pressure.

But that's to be expected.

Among them, many are deputy directors and directors who must attend this meeting; why shouldn't Jiang Cheng come?

Moreover, these days Jiang Cheng's reputation has spread throughout the institute, and some people inevitably feel resentment.

Jiang Cheng withdrew his gaze, followed Ma Ming, and sat at the side of the long table.

Several seats on the other side of the long table were empty, evidently reserved for President Sun and others.

The clock hanging on the wall ticked away.

As it approached seven and the people inside had mostly arrived, a steady, powerful footsteps sounded outside.

Instantly, the over a hundred people seated all rose from their seats.

Jiang Cheng could only stand up as well, his gaze toward the doorway, as several men walked in.

The leader looked about forty or fifty, with a crew cut, a square face, a solemn expression, giving off an imposing aura.

"Everyone's here?"

The man walked to the front, his gaze sweeping around; when he saw Jiang Cheng, he paused briefly, then looked away.

"Principal, the first-year teachers are all here."

"Principal, the second-year teachers are also here."

"Principal, the third-year teachers are also here."

"……"

"Principal, all the teachers of the Alchemy Department are also here." Ma Ming also raised his hand and said.

"Principal, we……"

"Oh."

Before the person behind could finish speaking, Sun Bo interrupted him, looking toward Ma Ming: "Director Ma, have all the teachers of the Alchemy Workshop really arrived? I recall last time there seemed to be one missing."

Hearing this, the people around exchanged glances, their eyes unconsciously falling on Jiang Cheng.

Some secretly rejoiced; obviously, Principal Sun intended to give this newcomer a show of authority.

After all, they all saw Jiang Cheng appear; Principal Sun's eyesight is exceptional—he couldn't have missed it, yet he still asked that.

"This."

Ma Ming broke out in a cold sweat, hastily explaining: "Principal, last time it was an accident; Director Jiang was temporarily occupied and missed the meeting, but this time he's here, and he will attend future meetings as well."

(End of chapter)