Chapter 8: Starting Training

At six in the morning, sunlight filtered through the thin clouds, scattering across the training ground and bringing a vibrant scene of vitality to this stretch of land.

Long Yang arrived at the training ground on time. Seeing the twenty trainees in their training uniforms already assembled, he nodded with satisfaction. These young Psionics stood straight, their expressions focused and determined, clearly full of enthusiasm for the upcoming lesson.

"Very good, since everyone is here, let us begin today's lesson!" Long Yang greeted the trainees and gestured for them to sit.

"First, I want to tell you a fact: once you become a Psionic, you are destined to engage in life-and-death struggles with the Alien Race on the battlefield. Because this is not just for personal glory, but to fight for the protection of the entire Human Civilization." Long Yang's voice was steady and powerful, revealing a firm conviction.

"Psionics like you who have just Awakened Back Spirit are called Apprentice Psionics. Regarding the ways to graduate from the school, there are two choices. The first is to complete one year of study and then graduate smoothly as an Apprentice Psionic; the other is to work hard to raise your Spiritual Power to the primary level. At that time, you will see a Psionic Rune in your mind, which is the symbol of a Diji Lingnengzhe. Once you reach this realm, you can graduate early and report to the Military District." Long Yang explained in detail.

"As for the difference between these two methods of graduation, it is actually very simple—it depends on the strength of the unit you join after graduation and the nature of the Tasks you perform. If you graduate merely as an Apprentice Psionic, you will be assigned to a general unit, responsible for executing some relatively simple Tasks; but if your Spiritual Power reaches the primary level, you will have the opportunity to enter more powerful units and execute more important Tasks." Long Yang stood before the trainees and spoke slowly.

"Instructor Long, I have a question!" A male trainee raised his hand, stood up, and asked Long Yang.

"Hmm, go ahead."

"Why don't you mention the ranks after Diji Lingnengzhe?"

Long Yang looked at the youth with the slightly immature face before him and gestured for the other to sit.

"I can answer this question for you all, because for a Diji Lingnengzhe to become an intermediate Psionic, one needs to use Spiritual Power to condense 25 Psionic Runes, and each Psionic Rune requires a long time of Gathering Spiritual Power, combined with an auxiliary device, to form. Every time a Psionic Rune is formed, your strength will increase. Wanting to become an intermediate Psionic is not a problem you should be thinking about right now!"

"Now! Everyone run two laps around the school perimeter to warm up! You cannot use your Back Spirit!" Long Yang had all the trainees stand up and begin running toward the school gate according to his requirements.

While running, he explained to the trainees, "You have just Awakened Back Spirit, and most of them can strengthen your own bodies. But you cannot slack off on exercising your own bodies either. Anything can happen on the battlefield; exercising your physical fitness every day might just save your life on the battlefield!"

Yingzhou followed at the end of the line. The original owner's physical fitness was truly too weak; he had only been running for a short while and was already starting to fall behind the group.

"Yingzhou, can you still make it?" Bai Tao asked with some concern.

"Everyone look after yourselves, you must keep going! This bit of suffering is nothing compared to the future battlefield!" Long Yang's voice sounded from behind the group.

"I'm fine, don't worry about me." Yingzhou wanted to squeeze a smile at Bai Tao, but his facial muscles were no longer obeying his commands, so he finally gave up.

Bai Tao looked back at Long Yang and, finding that the other was watching Yingzhou, had no choice but to catch up with the group first.

When everyone had finished the two laps and returned to the training ground, they realized that Yingzhou, who was ranked first, had actually fallen behind.

"No way? Is his physical fitness really that bad?"

"Indeed, it's hard to believe he is number one on the leaderboard."

The group waited for about 10 minutes before seeing Yingzhou running back to the training ground with Long Yang.

Yingzhou now felt that his entire body had no strength left, as if all his energy had been drained away. The muscles on his body had also begun to ache, and everything before his eyes had become blurry, as if shrouded in a layer of mist. Yet, he still stubbornly kept his body in a running state, even though it looked very slow.

Finally, he reached his destination—the training ground. He stopped, panting, and braced his hands on his knees, gasping for air. Sweat poured from his body like a spring, completely soaking his training uniform and even forming streaks of water. Sweat slid down the tip of his nose and chin, dripping onto the ground.

However, despite this, Yingzhou still struggled to lift his head, trying hard to control his already exhausted body, and walked back into the group step by step.

Seeing this scene, a look of satisfaction appeared on Long Yang's face. He shouted loudly to everyone: "Alright! Now, everyone sit cross-legged on the ground, close your eyes, focus your attention, and start Gathering Spiritual Power!"

Hearing the order, everyone sat cross-legged on the training ground, closed their eyes, focused their minds, and began Gathering Spiritual Power. They sensed the spiritual energy in the surrounding environment and drew it into their bodies, converting it into their own Spiritual Power.

Yingzhou was no exception. He closed his eyes, sensing the faint and warm breath in the surrounding air, and slowly drew it into his body. As time passed, he gradually entered a state of etherealness; the sounds of the outside world gradually faded away, leaving only the tranquility deep within his heart.

Just then, Yingzhou was surprised to discover that a portion of the Spiritual Power he was gathering had actually split off and begun to permeate his body. This Spiritual Power flowed through every cell like a cool spring, bringing a sense of comfort. His originally aching muscles and exhausted body seemed to be soothed, and the pain was greatly reduced.

Unexpectedly, when the body was in a state of exhaustion, not only did the speed of Gathering Spiritual Power become slightly faster, but the body could also receive repairs from the Spiritual Power.

After about half an hour, seeing that everyone's bodies had recovered sufficiently, Long Yang spoke.

"Continue Gathering Spiritual Power for the morning, now you can go to the cafeteria to replenish your energy, dismissed!"

Long Yang announced the dismissal of the group. Bai Tao came to Yingzhou's side and asked, "How is your recovery?"

"It's okay, it's not as sore as it was at the beginning. Let's go, let's go to the cafeteria to get something to eat." Yingzhou stood up and walked with Bai Tao.

At this moment, Su Miao walked over and said to Yingzhou, "Going to the cafeteria? Do you mind one more person?"

"I don't mi..."

"We don't mind!" Bai Tao answered first.

Just like that, Yingzhou and Su Miao followed Bai Tao toward the cafeteria.