Dark Moon Era

Whenever he thought about Yu eventually leaving, Andy felt a little gloomy. They had been through some tough times together and were finally able to call each other friends.

Even though Yu was still in the First Reserved Camp, he would not be staying together with the others anymore. So, would their relationship stray further as time went by?

Nonetheless, for the last few people in the power rank, staying in this cave forever was not an option either. Everyone would grow stronger and leave this place one day.

Speaking of which, Tang Ling is the last in the ranking. How lonely will he be then? With that thought in mind, Andy could not help but look at Tang Ling sympathetically.

“What are you looking at?” Tang Ling looked asquint at Andy. He then took seven to eight apples out from all over his body and shouted into his dorm, “It’s apple time!”

Right after his voice subsided, noises came from all over the smaller caves of the cave dorm. Other than Amir, the others were also staying in the same dorm together with two more seniors. Unfortunately, all of them were last on the ranking list, so they had to stay in this cave.

Tang Ling distributed the apples to everyone, then jumped back into his own little cavern. He sat on the edge and swung his legs as he put an unlit cigarette in his mouth, watching as everyone munched on their apples.

He loved it when the others joined him in his evil doings.

“Tang Ling, let’s go for a mission together today,” said Yu. Compared to a month earlier, Yu was a lot better at talking and he realized that living together with others had its perks as well.

“Nope,” Tang Ling rejected him quickly as he stretched out before putting his hands behind his head, acting frivolously.

“It’s not that difficult. The mission is in Area 10, the safest place in the battlefield. The objective is to kill some zombies and wild beasts,” added Yu with a frown. He could not reconcile with the rejection since it was rare for him to speak that much.

“Nah, you can go clear the missions and earn more Hope credits.” Tang Ling smiled goofily, still not changing his mind.

Strictly speaking, all of them had not begun training yet. According to what Yang Kong told them during class, in order to truly start their cultivation class, every one of them had to achieve a ton in punching force, speed of less than 5 seconds per 100 meters, and attain a certain level in their reflexes and stamina.

Yang Kong said, “The numbers signify that your body is ready to sustain the power from training. Of course, all of you, or at least most of you, have to reach the numbers first before Instructor Ors, who is in charge of the cultivation class, starts teaching you. As for why? There is no why. Time is precious for us instructors as well. Do you think it’s logical for a one-to-one lesson?”

Considering what Yang Kong said, improving together was an important factor for them. Because of such harsh conditions, for many years, the teams that came out from the First Reserved Camp were able to forge genuine friendships.

Tang Ling was more like a dead weight than a valuable teammate.

“Tang Ling, you little bastard, can you be a little harder working? Didn’t you notice that Yu is trying to bring you along on the mission so that you can earn more Hope credits?” Upset, Orston who was munching on his apple walked up to Tang Ling. He tried to grab Tang Ling but the latter stopped him halfway.

Tang Ling was still smirking, so Orston helplessly sighed. Why didn’t I notice that this guy here is such a slacker?

Other than fulfilling the necessary missions every week and showing up in classes on time, Tang Ling was always doing his own thing.

It was the First Reserved Camp, after all, and not some kindergarten in the safety sector. As long as the reserved warriors followed the rules and finished what they should, they would be given ample freedom.

No one knew what Tang Ling did during his free time, but since they stayed together in the same dorm, they could tell he was not improving.

Development relied mostly on one’s hard work and realization, so Orston was truly worried about Tang Ling.

“Orston, forcing him is no use. Nonetheless, we, the 107th Fierce Dragon Squad, will not let anyone fall off!” Vian’s kind but firm words rang out. She was holding a battle uniform that appeared to be cleaned and repaired.

It was Tang Ling’s battle uniform, which he always managed to ruin. What was he doing during his free time?

Orston grunted unhappily. The Fierce Dragon Squad. Hmph! Such a lousy team name could only be Tang Ling’s idea, but the problem was that everyone agreed.

Tang Ling claimed that the dragon was the strongest mythical beast, especially the dragon of the Dong Sheng Continent in the Hua Xia Kingdom from the old civilization. It was almighty and omnipotent.

“Yup, if Tang Ling really becomes dead weight, we’ll find a way to keep him on track.” Christina munched on her apple as she wiped her mouth. She glared at Tang Ling while she was talking about him.

Tang Ling pulled a funny face at her while Chirstina echoed her statement and turned away angrily.

“I guess we’ll have to do that. You lucky little rascal.” Orston was still troubled. He truly admired Tang Ling because of the astonishing feat he achieved during the first exam which left a deep impression on him and lasted until this day.

Tragically, he realized that Tang Ling was a full blown rascal.

“Tang Ling, here are your clothes. Be careful the next time. You’re out of Hope credits, so you don’t have anymore to exchange for a new battle uniform,” Vian said bashfully as she lowered her head and handed him the clean uniform.

“Andy, can you please take it for me?” Tang Ling was not bothered at all. He then asked, “Where’s Amir?”

“You little rascal!” Those words were squeezed out of Orston’s gnashing teeth as he glanced at Vian who was a little dejected but maintained a forced smile. He was at a loss of words. He did not want to answer Tang Ling’s question at all.

“How dare you ask!? Amir isn’t like you. He’s on a mission! I’m really worried about him. I guess he doesn’t even have time to sleep.” Christina looked askance at Tang Ling.

“Eh, Tina, you seem to pay a lot of attention to Amir, hmm?” teased Andy with great interest as if he found new land.

While everyone laughed, the two unfortunate seniors, who were eating their apples, chuckled too. One of them showed envy on his expression while the other could not help but say, “These guys in the Fierce Dragon Squad are really tight.”

Tang Ling’s smile lingered on his face. He shut his eyes and lay down while his friends’ laughter lingered in his ears.

If it were possible, he did not want to play a dead weight character. He also desired to improve together with everyone else brazenly.

However, he was traumatized by the mysterious person who targeted him in the dark, so he must stay in hiding and keep a low profile. He had to.

Besides, he still could not fill his stomach due to the gnawing hunger, so in order not to drag everyone down, he had to deal with the problem himself.

Carrying a secret at all times was exhausting. Tang Ling quietly clenched his fists. He could not allow himself to have such weak thoughts.

After that, everyone tidied up, and those who had missions were ready to go out.

In fact, had they not waited for Tang Ling and Andy to come back, they would have gone out earlier.

It was at that moment when Tang Ling suddenly said, “I’ve got some reliable news. Why don’t we go on a group mission on Friday?”