Enlightenment: Attaining the Dao at Age 8

”The way you say that, it’s not like anyone *wants* to charge in!” Sun Yang retorted. ”Then have the guts to not ask for my cover fire. If it weren’t for me last time, would you still be here chilling?”

”Don’t you dare pretend you did me a favor!” Han Ruoxi rolled her eyes, her tone teasing. ”I was clearly the one who saved you with my Electric Energy last time. How can you be so ungrateful?”

Their bickering echoed through the cafeteria. Li Chang’an didn’t join in, just listened quietly with a faint smile on his face.

Bai Lin sat beside them, head down and fiddling with his wristband as usual, seemingly completely uninterested in their idle chatter.

”Alright, we’ve eaten. Time for training!” Li Chang’an stood up and slapped the table. ”Stop dawdling. The Combat Group has a training mission for us today!”

”Ugh, more training...” Sun Yang whined, but he didn’t argue.

On the training grounds, the squad began their routine tactical drills.

”Han Ruoxi, your Electric Energy control is a bit unstable. You almost zapped our own people last time!” Li Chang’an stood to the side, arms crossed and brow furrowed as he watched her. ”Tell me yourself, would that be acceptable on a real battlefield?”

”Captain, I’m still calibrating it! You know how it is with electric currents—if you don’t control them well, they tend to overflow!” Han Ruoxi sounded a little wronged, but she quickly added with a grin, ”But don’t you worry, Captain. I won’t zap you. At worst, it’ll just be Sun Yang’s unlucky day!”

”What about me?” Sun Yang protested immediately upon hearing himself catch a stray. ”Han Ruoxi, you’re doing this on purpose, aren’t you? Did I wrong you in a past life or something? Why do you always use me as your guinea pig in training?”

”Just your bad luck!” Han Ruoxi shrugged, looking completely innocent.

Li Chang’an ignored their bickering and turned to Shen Qiuyue. ”How are things on your end? Have you mastered that new Swordsmanship technique yet?”

”More or less,” Shen Qiuyue answered casually. ”I still need some live combat to polish it.”

”’More or less’ isn’t good enough. Your Swordsmanship is crucial to the squad. If you make a mistake, none of us can cover for it!” Li Chang’an’s tone grew serious. ”In this exercise, don’t rush in. Stay steady!”

”Understood.” Shen Qiuyue nodded, her expression calm. It seemed Li Chang’an’s warning didn’t faze her in the slightest.

”Bai Lin, how are preparations for the recon system coming along?” Li Chang’an turned to Bai Lin, his gaze filled with a hint of expectation.

Bai Lin looked up at Li Chang’an and said flatly, ”The equipment is already upgraded. There shouldn’t be any problems today. A few programs had some errors last time, but I’ve fixed them.”

”Good. Everyone to your positions. Let’s begin today’s exercise!” Li Chang’an clapped his hands, signaling for everyone to get ready.

The exercise began. Li Chang’an led his team into the virtual battlefield, and everyone moved into action at their respective positions.

”Han Ruoxi, tighten the range of your Electric Energy! Keep it under control!” Li Chang’an commanded coolly.

”I know, I know! I’m holding back! See how well I’m controlling it this time?” Han Ruoxi’s voice was tinged with pride.

”Sun Yang, stop firing wildly! Concentrate your fire!” Li Chang’an turned to Sun Yang.

”Don’t worry, Captain! This is suppressive fire, not wild shooting!” Sun Yang said while unleashing a fierce barrage.

Shen Qiuyue had already charged to the front lines. The High-Energy Dueling Sword in her hands pulsed with a faint light. Her movements were swift and precise, each strike perfectly placed.

”Qiuyue, slow down! Don’t rush!” Li Chang’an reminded her in a low voice.

Shen Qiuyue didn’t reply, merely carrying out Li Chang’an’s orders in silence, appearing remarkably composed.

At that moment, Bai Lin also entered the system, controlling the reconnaissance equipment to provide real-time feedback. ”Enemy activity fifty meters ahead. Captain, you need to watch your right flank!”

”Roger that!” Li Chang’an nodded. ”Sun Yang, watch the right! Han Ruoxi, prepare for support!”

”Understood!” Sun Yang and Han Ruoxi replied almost in unison.

The battle on the training grounds gradually intensified, the team’s coordination growing more and more seamless.

Li Chang’an stood at the rear, calmly directing every aspect of the fight. He occasionally struck out himself, tearing through enemies before him with his Saw Chain Sword in clean, efficient movements, with not a single motion wasted.

After the training session, Sun Yang was so exhausted he plopped right down on the ground, panting heavily. ”Man, Captain... we train like this every day. When are we gonna get a real mission?”

”What’s your hurry?” Li Chang’an walked over and looked down at him. ”There are plenty of bugs to go around. You don’t need to worry about that. The day you actually charge in, you’ll be crying and begging to come back!”

”Hey, I’m the Combat Group’s ace damage dealer! Why would I come back crying?” Sun Yang retorted.

”Ace damage dealer? Stop bragging!” Han Ruoxi scoffed from the side. ”If I hadn’t saved you last time, you’d have been toast!”

”Alright, alright, stop arguing. When a mission comes tomorrow, you’ll have plenty of chances!” Li Chang’an clapped Sun Yang on the shoulder and chuckled.

”By the way, Captain, is there a mission tomorrow?” Bai Lin asked out of the blue.

”Could be!” Li Chang’an raised an eyebrow. ”But we’ll wait for the notice from command. In any case, you all need to be prepared and on standby.”

”Standby again... This is killing me!” Sun Yang stood up, shaking his head and muttering discontentedly, but he didn’t say anything more in the end.

The squad members dispersed. Li Chang’an took one last look at the training ground, a faint smile on his lips, then turned and headed toward the base.

As Li Chang’an walked back to the dorms, Han Ruoxi bounced along beside him, looking rather excited.

”Captain, do you really think there’s a mission? What kind of mission? Are we going out to wipe out the Insect Race, or deal with the Alien Martial Artists? I heard the Insect Race has been really active on the edge of the Star System lately!”

”What are you so excited for?” Li Chang’an glanced at her and said flatly, ”You’ll know when the mission arrives. It’s useless to speculate now.”

”I’m just warming up in advance!” Han Ruoxi grinned harmlessly. ”Look, haven’t we all been bored to tears lately? My hands are itching for some action. I just don’t feel right if I’m not doing something!”

”Just try not to get yourself into trouble. If a big mission really does come, you’ll be the first one to complain about being tired,” Li Chang’an teased.

”That was the old me! I’m different now. After all this training, I’ve improved by leaps and bounds!” Han Ruoxi puffed out her chest, looking full of confidence. ”Besides, with you around, what do I have to be afraid of?”

”Stop sucking up,” Li Chang’an said, shaking his head without breaking his stride.

”Hey, it’s not sucking up, it’s team spirit!” Han Ruoxi giggled. ”Come on, Captain, can’t you offer a little encouragement?”

Li Chang’an shot her a glance but said nothing.

Just as the two of them reached the dorm entrance, Sun Yang caught up from behind, a drink in his hand. ”Captain! Ruo Xi! Why didn’t you wait for me? What’s the rush?”

”You’re too slow,” Li Chang’an said casually.

”Me, slow? No way!” Sun Yang grinned. ”You guys were the ones walking too fast! I just finished putting my gear away and you were already long gone!”

”Then you should’ve just moved faster!” Han Ruoxi teased. ”I’m not about to walk all the way back for you!”

”Hey, I was doing it for everyone. Gear inspection is detailed work. You should all be thanking me for being so thorough!” Sun Yang said with a straight face, patting the tool bag he was carrying.

”Alright, stop showing off. Let’s get inside,” Li Chang’an said, pushing open the dorm room door and walking in.

Inside the dorm, Shen Qiuyue was sitting on the edge of her bed, wiping down her High-Energy Dueling Sword with skilled, focused movements.

Bai Lin, as usual, was in his corner, typing on a keyboard with headphones on, occasionally glancing at the screen in front of him.

”You’re back?” Shen Qiuyue asked without looking up.

”We’re back!” Han Ruoxi threw herself onto the sofa, grabbed a drink from the table, and twisted off the cap to chug a few mouthfuls. ”Today’s training really wore me out!”