65: Don't worry, sister. My dog won't bite... Hey! Where's my dog?
Tang Gao slept soundly, feeling like it had been a long time since he had slept so well; his bed at home was exceptionally comfortable.
When he opened his eyes, his parents had already gone to work, leaving two hundred Xia Yuan on the table, along with his mother's loving note telling him to go out and have a good time today.
Tang Gao washed up, changed his clothes, put the money in his pocket, and dialed Liu Ren's number.
“Beep, beep, beep… ”
“Hello? Brother Tang? My brother is still sleeping, just come over and call him. I'm going to my teacher for further Cultivation later.”
It was Liu Yi who answered the phone, Liu Ren's younger brother, and also the most promising heir of the Liu family, expected to support their family well.
As for Liu Ren… his family's only hope for him was to stay alive, avoid trouble, and be able to protect himself.
Tang Gao thought for a moment and gently instructed, “Meet at the bus stop near my house in 30 minutes. If he doesn't come, I'll break his leg this afternoon.”
How can you sleep at your age?
“Alright, Brother Tang, I'll tell my brother right away.”
After Liu Yi agreed, a crisp slap sounded from the other end of the phone, followed by Liu Ren's groggy, confused voice as he woke up.
“… Hmm? What's wrong? An earthquake?”
Liu Yi's voice came through: “Brother Tang, message delivered.”
Brother Tang gave a thumbs-up through the screen: “Xiao Yi, I trust you to get things done.”
“Alright, Brother Tang, I'm going to class now, bye-bye~”
The call ended. Tang Gao thought for a moment, then sat cross-legged on the sofa and began to meditate, using Cultivation to adjust his still somewhat tense state.
After Cultivating for 20 minutes, Tang Gao went downstairs, turned left out of the complex, and arrived at the bus stop shelter, waiting for Liu Ren to arrive.
The weather was a bit hot, and most people were hiding in the shelter; there were quite a few students.
Tang Gao stood in the shelter, Cultivating his Cultivation Technique, his eyes indifferently looking straight ahead, unconsciously exuding a faint, inexplicable aura of authority.
The Unranked Realm is the Realm of most Mortal Cultivators. The First Stage is when Mortals begin to transform to the Acquired Perfection Realm, thereby achieving the initial Perfection of a Mortal Stage life.
The Second Stage Realm already has an initial transformation, from Acquired Perfection transforming towards the Innate Realm.
At this Realm, one can already initially master some crude Spells and is different from Mortals; their lifespan also reaches over a hundred years, averaging one hundred and twenty years, with some living up to one hundred and eighty years if in good condition.
Talent is extremely important in this world; it is the entry ticket. Without it, everything is idle talk.
Without talent, one cannot Cultivate; without talent, Cultivation is slow; without talent, one cannot advance.
His own Cultivation to the Second Stage Innate Realm in fifteen years was already excellent talent.
Many Cultivators don't even have the chance to enter the Second Stage.
The surrounding students and passersby unconsciously kept their distance from Tang Gao, subtly sensing that he was a noble and powerful Cultivator.
Sometimes, to judge whether someone is a Cultivator, one only needs to look at that person's Qi and temperament.
A true Cultivator, simply by standing there, will bring a life-level pressure to Mortals, who will naturally understand that the other party is a strong person.
Tang Gao noticed the movements around him, frowned slightly, and used a disguise skill to mask his life fluctuations, so as not to disturb others.
After he contained his life fluctuations, the pressure on everyone in the shelter was greatly reduced, and their gazes towards Tang Gao were mostly curious, whispering amongst themselves.
“So young, I didn't expect his Cultivation to be so profound. Goodness, he's accomplished at a young age.”
“Accomplished at a young age? This one might be an Uncle; with such strong Cultivation, it's normal to look a bit younger.”
“Possibly. If they take Youth-Retaining Pills, it's normal for their appearance to remain youthful.”
Tang Gao rubbed his nose, realizing he was still too young and unaware of these small details. He must remember to adjust his state in the future to avoid disturbing others.
“Hey, hey, hey! Brother Tang! I'm here!”
Tang Gao turned his head and saw Liu Ren running over, holding an iron chain, laughing loudly, exuding youthful vitality and an inexhaustible enthusiasm.
Tang Gao was slightly puzzled, what was this kid doing with an iron chain?
Never mind, this was Liu Ren; whatever he did, it always made sense for him.
Liu Ren ran into the shelter with the iron chain, threw an arm around Tang Gao's shoulder, and laughed loudly: “Brother Tang, it's really not easy! You, a Cultivation fanatic, actually bothered to call me out to play!”
The student sister beside them saw Liu Ren run in, her face filled with fear, and she couldn't help but retreat and swallow.
In the bus shelter, a mentally abnormally excited person running around with an iron chain—it looked a bit dangerous no matter how you viewed it.
Liu Ren noticed the expression of the student sister beside him and smiled brightly: “Don't be afraid, my General Feng doesn't bite. If you don't believe me, look… What the heck! Where's my General Feng?!”
Liu Ren stared dumbfounded at the empty dog leash, the other end of which was empty.
General Feng, Uncle Liu's military dog from when he was in service, had Second Stage Cultivation and was a legitimate military officer with outstanding combat records.
Later, when Uncle Liu changed positions, he begged and pulled strings, training a military dog to replace him, only then bringing General Feng back.
General Feng was a military dog full of spiritual insight, with a strong sense of responsibility, and excellent professional skills.
His combat ability was even stronger and more solid than many Cultivators of the same stage.
After all, he came from the Military System.
Tang Gao was utterly speechless: “General Feng ran off and left you?”
It couldn't be Liu Ren who lost General Feng; General Feng was much more sensible than Liu Ren. It could only be General Feng who lost him.
Liu Ren didn't bother to answer, quickly took out his phone and dialed the nanny's number: “Hello? Auntie? Is General Feng at home? Don't let him look for me anymore, I'm here at the station with Tang Gao.
What? General Feng is coming right away? Okay, okay, I'll wait for him.”
Tang Gao rolled his eyes; his understanding of his best friend couldn't be said to be ten out of ten, only eleven out of ten.
Liu Ren relaxed, smiling apologetically: “I ran too fast this morning and forgot to call General Feng. He was just looking all over the house for me.”
General Feng thought he had lost the child.
The student sister beside them was giggling, covering her mouth and laughing non-stop.
A moment later, a black-backed dog ran over quickly, huffing and puffing. It immediately delivered a thunderous two-legged kick, directly knocking the unsuspecting Liu Ren down, then followed up with two slaps to the face, making Liu Ren howl.
“I was wrong! General Feng! I promise not to run around next time!”
Tang Gao held out his hand to stop the nearby people from offering help, and calmly said: “It's fine, his family elder is just teaching the silly boy a lesson.”
After General Feng kicked the silly boy, he bit the leash himself, signaling Liu Ren to quickly put it on him and stop dawdling.
Liu Ren wiped the paw prints off his face with his sleeve, smiling apologetically as he put the leash on General Feng: “Alright, alright, don't be angry, I promise to be obedient.”
Liu Ren laughed, holding General Feng's leash, and asked: “Brother Tang, where are we going today?”
Tang Gao took out his phone, scrolled to the local forum interface, and pointed to a pinned post: “This venue is holding an event for high school graduates. I see it's officially organized, and getting good results will be very beneficial for future local employment. Let's go there.”
Liu Ren's face immediately fell, and he stammered: “No, Brother Tang, aren't we going to an amusement park, or to a park to shoot balloons and ride roller coasters?”
Tang Gao looked at him calmly, exuding a faint majesty, and said flatly: “Consider it training for your academic and martial test scores. You'd best come with me quickly, don't forget I promised your dad I'd help you improve.”
With Liu Ren's current grades, getting into Qingkai with a sixty-forty chance, truthfully, the probability of getting in was not small, but there was also a small probability of not getting in.
Of course, even if he couldn't get in, his dad could secure his entry.
But then again.
Tang Gao hoped even more that he could get in by his own strength and become a stronger person.
Liu Ren wailed, tears welling up: “I want freedom! I want entertainment!”
Tang Gao raised an eyebrow: “Excellent performers get 1-10 bonus points on the college entrance exam.”
Although limited to this state, this was a rare opportunity for most test-takers.
General Feng kicked Liu Ren in the leg, glaring at the optimistic silly boy, signaling him to be obedient.
Liu Ren reluctantly agreed, raising one hand to signal his surrender: “Alright, alright, I'll go, sigh.”