As he made his way to the middle field, he passed by several kids around his age but these kids weren’t normal. One was flipping a log taller than a horse. Another was doing push-ups with a rock tied to his back.

Fu HongJun gulped. “…Are these… humans?”

Soon, he spotted a stern-looking woman in black robes with her arms crossed. She stood like a martial statue amidst the chaos.

He ran up to her and bowed. “Grandma Yang! Uncle Qin asked me to give you this!” he offered the plate with both hands.

The woman’s eyes narrowed. “…Did you just call me Grandma?”

She clenched her fists.

But seeing how small Fu HongJun was, her expression softened into curiosity.

“How old are you, little guy?” she asked.

“I’m six years old, Grandma.”

A vein popped on her forehead. “Do I look like a grandma to you? Don’t you see how youthful and radiant I am?”

Fu HongJun looked up at her glowing forehead, the intensity in her eyes, and nodded earnestly. “Yes, very radiant, Grandma.”

THWACK! She flicked his forehead with a fan.

“Call me Auntie Yang!” she snapped, though she was clearly amused. She patted his head.

Fu HongJun nodded obediently. “Yes, Auntie Yang!”

She pointed at a row of training stones lined up from smallest to largest. “Good. Start by lifting that small stone over there,fifty times. Then fetch water from the well and fill that iron pot. After that, I’ll teach you more.”

“Yes, Auntie Yang!” Fu HongJun replied, already running toward the stone like a soldier sent to war.

 At the north corner, Qin An was sitting leisurely, legs crossed like a retired hero, sipping tea and muttering to himself with the smug grin of a man who thought he was safe.

“Hehe… I’m sure that brat’s getting punished by the old hen right now. Will the old hen kick that brat? Hahaha…”

He leaned back, clearly enjoying his imaginary comedy.

But then

A voice suddenly cracked through the air behind him like a whip:

“Oh? Who... is the old hen?”

Qin An’s smile froze.

He didn’t dare turn around immediately. His neck twitched. His tea cup trembled. His soul quietly began planning its escape.

Slowly… very slowly… he turned his head

Behind him stood Auntie Yang, arms folded, her black robe fluttering lightly in the wind. Her expression was calm,too calm. Her lips curled into a smile that could only be described as a danger alert.

Qin An chuckled nervously, wiping sweat from his forehead.

“Ahaha, Senior Sister Yang, did I say old hen? No, no, no, you must have misheard.”

Auntie Yang took a step forward.

The ground beneath Qin An cracked slightly.

“I see. So I’m a hen now?”

“No, no! That was the brat! That little brat twisted my words!” he said, pointing vaguely toward the middle field.

Auntie Yang's smile vanished.

“I see. So you're blaming the child now?”

Qin An began backing up like a turtle facing a saber-toothed tiger. “Senior Sister, please, I—”

SMACK!

Auntie Yang kick Qin An and he sent flying straight into the sky and fall on the ground with his face.

Auntie Yang approached the fallen Qin An, who now lay like a defeated turtle, dazed and blinking.

“Now My lovely black Junior Brother ” she said sweetly, “Would you like to call me hen again?”

“No ma’am,” he croaked, still seeing stars. “You are a majestic phoenix.”

“Good boy.”

She smiled, dusted off her hands, and turned back toward her students like nothing had happened.

Qin An lay in the dirt for a long while, his pride leaking out through his ears.

And above the academy gates, the wind gently rattled the carved motto board:

Mortal Academy
No Talent. No Treasure. Just Trauma.

Back in the field, Fu HongJun approached the training stone. He grabbed the smallest one and gave it a test lift.
Surprisingly light.

“Huh... So easy,” he muttered, puffing up a little. “I hope night comes soon so I can rest. This might be easier than I thought.”

With that thought, he started lifting the stone repeatedly, counting softly with each rep. After finishing the 50 lifts Auntie Yang assigned him, he jogged over to the well.

He picked up the water buckets, which were almost as tall as he was, and began hauling water to fill a large pot near the training area. The wooden buckets creaked, and the sloshing water soaked his sleeves, but he grit his teeth and worked through it.

In the middle of pouring the third bucket, a loud bell rang through the air like thunder.

CLANG…..CLANG……CLANG!

Suddenly, chaos.

Dozens of kids dropped what they were doing and bolted in one direction like a pack of wild rabbits, shouting and pushing each other.

Startled, Fu HongJun almost dropped his water bucket.

“H-Huh?! What’s going on?! Are we under attack?!” he gasped, eyes darting around like a startled squirrel.

His instincts kicked in. He took one step forward, ready to bolt with the others

Then a lazy voice called out from behind a nearby tree:

“Hey! Little brother!”

Fu HongJun turned sharply.

A lanky boy with sharp eyes and a crooked smile was lounging behind a tree, one leg casually propped against the trunk like he had all the time in the world.

“You’re new, right? Don’t bother running.”

“Huh?” Fu HongJun blinked. “Why?”

The boy waved a hand dismissively.

“It’s just a daily running drill. Nothing important. New kids like you don’t have to join yet. Just wait.”

“Oh…” Fu HongJun let out a breath and nodded. “Thanks, big brother.”

Feeling slightly relieved, he picked up the bucket and resumed his water-filling mission, grumbling softly to himself.

“…Running drills right before lunch? These seniors are really weird.”

Behind him, the so-called "helpful big brother" took one last glance at him… and dashed away like a spirit-chased chicken, disappearing into the dust cloud of stampeding children.

Auntie Yang, who had been supervising from across the field, saw the entire thing. She couldn’t hold back her laughter.

“Pfft. Little guy! You should run too! That’s not a drill! That’s the lunch bell!”

Fu HongJun froze.

“…Meal time?”

His little eyes widened. He turned his head slowly toward the fleeing crowd.

“Damn that boy tricked me!!!”

His stomach growled as if to mock him.

Without another word, Fu HongJun threw the bucket aside like a hero discarding a useless weapon, lifted his little legs, and sprinted after the others with everything he had.