Chapter 143: Official Reply

Time passed. In a flash, it was April.

Chen Chuan stood in front of the floor-to-ceiling window in his room and watched the rain outside.

Almost a month had passed since he submitted his application to take the test for the unrestricted defense permit at the beginning of March.

He should have gotten a reply within a month, but he was still waiting for it.

He had fulfilled all the conditions to get approved for the test to the point where his achievements far surpassed the usual standards of judgment, but the final decision lay in the hands of the review team from the main campus. He could not dismiss the possibility that he might be held back until his sophomore year to take the test.

This was not good for him, because there was a possibility that the news about him applying for the test would leak out. Also, the Foreign Affairs Department could only cover up the fact that they gave him evaluation points for a year.

Once it became known, some people would not wait until he got the unrestricted defense permit and attack him. Chen Chuan had to start preparing to defend against them.

One of the possible solutions was to stay in the university and throw himself entirely into training. The moment he reached the Second Limit, he would get new medicine from the university, which could support his training for some time.

But that would be a rather passive and pessimistic stance. It would also be bad for his future development. Cheng Zitong had offered him another way to avoid those people—to go on an exchange program to other branches or universities in other countries. This would get him away from all the problems.

This was his plan if the worst came to pass. The best outcome for him was still to pass the review.

Over the past month, he had completed another five missions. Three of them had been issued so long ago that the clients and supernatural beings were already gone.

The other two were relatively easy ones. Even a layman would know how to take those supernatural beings out. It was no surprise then that they also left nothing after being exterminated.

Chen Chuan noticed that supernatural beings that could stay around for some time or show their faces to the public were likelier to leave something behind after they disappeared. These were also the supernatural beings who gave his mutated tissue more stimulation.

Only one of the missions the company took from the Department of Administrative Affairs fulfilled that condition, but it was in North Ornament Highlands. The old Chen Chuan had died of unknown causes there, so Chen Chuan was avoiding that place.

There was one other thing. This supernatural being was also not recorded in Cheng Zitong’s records, so Chen Chuan would have to think of a way to get rid of it on his own. He didn’t intend to go there until he was prepared to take on the supernatural being.

Just then, his phone rang.

He took a look at it before walking over and picking up the receiver. Cheng Zitong’s voice reached his ear. “Xiao Chuan, come to my office. Now, if you can.”

“Okay,” Chen Chuan said calmly as a flicker of emotion stirred in his heart.

He took out an umbrella from his shoe cabinet and left the room. Just then, Zhuang Zhi and his dormmates came back. They were drenched.

Their gazes met, but they ignored each other, just as always.

Over the past few days, Chen Chuan saw them leaving often, and they were starting to look like capable fighters. They had to be going on missions.

It was no easy feat for freshmen to get missions. The Mutual Aid Group had to be behind it. To the group, this was just maintaining their weapons. If they wanted to use these “weapons” in the future, they had to first polish them. That was why they weren’t stingy when investing in their members, but of course, the members would have to give back twice as much as what the group provided them now.

When Chen Chuan reached the entrance, the rain grew heavier. A strong gust of wind blew at him, bringing with it a sense of freshness and cool raindrops that cleared his head. He sucked in a breath of the crisp air, opened his umbrella, and walked into the rain until he got on the running track around the Spring-Autumn Lake.

Once Chen Chuan arrived at the administrative office building, he closed his umbrella and put it in the storage box by the side. Then, he kicked off the water on his shoes and went up to the fifth floor, where the Logistics Department was. He knocked on Cheng Zitong’s office. “I’m here, Mr. Cheng.”

“Come in.”

Chen Chuan walked in and shut the door before going to the table.

Cheng Zitong pushed a piece of paper to him. “You passed the review, Xiao Chuan.”

Chen Chuan looked down and picked up the piece of paper.

It was the official reply to his application and stated that he passed the review. The review team believed that he fulfilled all conditions for the test, which was why they were allowing him to take the test for the unrestricted defense permit. He had to complete it before September. If he went past the deadline, he would be seen as having given up on the test. Unless he had a special exception from the government, he would not be able to sit for the test again.

Chen Chuan felt relieved.

He had passed the review.

“Your cousin was right in his analysis. With the evaluation points and recommendation from three governmental departments, you were qualified to pass the review, even without the Resolution Department’s evaluation points,” Cheng Zitong said.

Before they submitted the application, they had sat down and thought long and hard before deciding not to get evaluation points from the Resolution Department.

After all, the only thing those points did was look nice on paper. Everyone in the review team knew exactly who they came from. Even if Chen Chuan didn’t go to get them, it didn’t mean that he had failed to get them. They just weren’t necessary for him. Getting the Resolution Department’s evaluation points would also expose the fact that he was applying for the unrestricted defense permit, so by not getting them, he could keep his application a secret for a while longer.

Once Chen Chuan finished reading the reply, he put the paper down and asked, “What’s my test, Mr. Cheng?”

“I was just about to tell you. The test for the unrestricted defense permit is different every time. Class C permits are easier to talk about because they’re announced to the students in advance. I’ve already received the details about it, while the students will be informed later today.

“The examination committee doesn’t announce the Class B permit test to the public. Instead, they’ll send the details to you via post. That’s why I asked you to fill in your house phone number and address before you submitted your application. Now that you’ve passed the review, you should get the details in a day or two. Stay at home after you go back so word about this does not leak to the university.”

Chen Chuan understood what Cheng Zitong meant. “I’ll go back home, then.”

“Once you get the test’s details, call me, and we can meet to talk about it. Remember, do

not

mention anything about the test on the phone,” Cheng Zitong cautioned him.

Chen Chuan nodded. He left Cheng Zitong’s office and walked down. Just then, he saw a meticulously dressed, stern-looking man walking toward the elevator with an executive member of the university.

He observed them a little before picking up his umbrella and returning to his room to collect some things. Once he put on his raincoat, Chen Chuan rode out of the university and went back home.

Since it was not a day off, no one was at home. Chen Chuan returned to his room and put his things down, changed out of his drenched clothes, and took out

the Legend of the Three Mountains

to start reading.

The three mountains were the North Ornament Highlands in the north, Jia Mountain in the southwest, and Spill Hill in the southeast. Most of the legends happened around the three of them.

Before the Great Expansion, Yangzhi City did not exist. There was only Yangzhi Town. At that time, the three mountains spanned such a vast region that the site of today’s Yangzhi City, along with most of the surrounding areas, all lay within their bounds.

Most of the legends had traces of supernatural beings, so they were likely derived from them. People who knew about supernatural beings could find value in the legends, so Chen Chuan was reading the book at a slow pace. Every time he finished a legend, he would ponder over it carefully. That was why he had not gone over even half of the book after a month.

A little past 3 p.m., he heard the phone ring. People who knew their house number would not be calling for Nian Fuli and his family at this time.

Chen Chuan put away the book and went to the living room to pick up the receiver. “Hello, Chen Chuan speaking. Who are you looking for?”

A stern voice came through the phone. “I’m at the entrance of the alley to your house. Please come out to get your things.”

“Okay,” Chen Chuan answered.

He put down the phone receiver and went out with an umbrella. When he reached the entrance of the alley, he saw a majestic, black sedan parked there. Three men in black trenchcoats stood in front of it, and one of them held a black briefcase. Chen Chuan stopped in front of them.

A man with a broad, square jawline sized him up before producing a business card and showing it to him. “I’m a messenger from the examination committee. Chen Chuan, please show us your student ID and weapons permit so that we can verify your identity.”

Chen Chuan nodded and took out his student ID and weapons permit. The man took them over, checked them, and motioned for the people beside him to step aside a little so that he could take a few pictures of the cards. Then, he handed them both back to Chen Chuan, along with a delivery form. “Please sign this.”

Chen Chuan took it and examined it before signing his name at the bottom. The man then gave him a receipt and grabbed the black briefcase from one of the other men. He didn’t take anything from inside. Instead, he handed the bag straight to Chen Chuan.

The tension on the man’s face eased a little. He shook Chen Chuan’s hand and said, “Please read the details and requirements carefully. I wish you luck in the test.”

Chen Chuan thanked him and watched the car leave before he returned home.

***

The man handed the business card to the man beside him, who put it away respectfully. “Mr. Cao, he’s just a student. Did you have to travel here personally to meet him?”

“I wanted to see what the commoner who managed to get evaluation points and recommendations from three governmental departments and a weapons permit during his freshman year looked like,” Mr. Cao stated.

“His achievements are indeed rare.”

“That’s not what’s rare. What’s rare is him knowing that this is what he should do, having the courage to do it, and succeeding at it,” Mr. Cao clarified.

“It seems like he’s a promising one.”

“I think so as well, but he needs to pass the test on his own. No one can help him. We’ll have to wait and see.”

As their conversation ended, the car disappeared into the rain.

***

When Chen Chuan got home, he opened the briefcase and took out an envelope. After opening it, he retrieved a stack of papers. They had the description of the test’s location, the route to the place, and a map. Attached to it was a test permit that resembled a business card.

It was just as Cheng Zitong said. They made him leave the city for his test with the intention of cutting off all possible interference from local forces.

Chen Chuan picked up the map and read through the papers. His test was going to be held in the wilderness.

Even though he could take half a year to complete his test, Chen Chuan had a feeling that he could not afford to drag it out for so long.

In at most half a month, he was going to reach the Second Limit. Once he grasped the basics of the Second Limit’s refined forces and techniques, he would take the test.

Usually, even the elite students only managed to reach the Second Limit after graduation. If he reached it now and had his second self helping him, he would have no trouble passing the test.