222: Chapter 222 is here! The team from Shanghai Martial Arts University has arrived!

On the bus, Jiang You rubbed his nose, just about to adjust his seat to continue sleeping.

Suddenly, Principal Pang Ban's face, grinning like an old chrysanthemum, leaned in, holding a thick stack of documents in his hand.

"Hehe, Student Jiang You, not asleep yet?"

Principal Pang Ban smilingly shoved the documents into Jiang You's arms:

"Come, come, you're the captain, this is the itinerary for the next few days."

"After arriving in the Imperial Capital, first go to the Organizing Committee to report, then in the afternoon there are exclusive interviews with three media outlets, and in the evening you have to attend the captain's networking banquet for major universities; you need to represent the school and give a speech on stage."

"Oh right, this is a detailed analysis of our opponents, about fifty thousand words; read it overnight tonight, and hold a tactical analysis meeting for the team members tomorrow morning."

Jiang You held that stack of documents, which were thicker than a brick, and turned to stone.

"Ex... exclusive interviews? Speech? Tactical analysis?"

Jiang You said with a trembling voice:

"Principal, did you make a mistake?"

"I'm here to fight, not to be a PR manager!"

"And... shouldn't these things be done by the substitutes?"

Principal Pang Ban glared righteously:

"Nonsense! The substitutes are there to learn, how can they do such heavy work?"

"You are the captain! The core! The leader!"

"If you don't do it, who will?"

Principal Pang Ban patted Jiang You's shoulder, earnestly:

"With great power comes great responsibility!"

"Do a good job, I believe in you!"

Having said that, Principal Pang Ban hummed a little tune and walked away with his hands behind his back, leaving Jiang You alone, messed up in the wind.

"..."

Jiang You looked at the stack of documents in his hands, then looked at the scenery rapidly receding outside the window.

At this moment, he finally understood one truth.

Whatever honor, whatever championship.

It's all a lie!

This is a huge trap!

"I want to withdraw from the competition!!"

Jiang You let out a desperate wail:

"Give me back my substitute spot!!!"

"I want to go lay bricks! I don't want to write manuscripts!!!"

After several hours of "bus torture," the Magic City Martial Arts University delegation finally arrived at the Heart of Daxia, the Imperial Capital.

Just after walking out of the station, a thick, almost visible aura of martial arts rushed toward them.

Everywhere on the streets, one could see martial artists with vigorous blood energy; even the delivery guys had footwork that faintly revealed the foundation of some kind of light-body technique.

"Is this the Imperial Capital?"

Jiang You, sporting two massive dark circles under his eyes, was still clutching that "Tactical Analysis Report" that he had memorized eight hundred times in his dreams, radiating a dense resentment of "although I am alive, I am already dead."

"Brother Jiang! Cheer up!"

Gou Fugui adjusted his glasses, clearly a bit overexcited:

"Up ahead is the Qianlong Hotel, the hotel arranged by the Organizing Committee! I heard it's the only seven-star martial arts hotel in the Imperial Capital, even the toilet water is rich in spiritual energy!"

Jiang You rolled his eyes, just wanting to quickly find a bed to bury himself in.

However, when the bus stopped in front of the magnificent hotel lobby, the "country bumpkins in the big city" vibe of Jiang You and his group was instantly maxed out.

"How much?"

A sharp shriek, resembling a rooster crowing, instantly pierced through the elegant light music in the lobby.

Gou Fugui stood in front of the lobby's vending machine, pointing at that row of beautifully packaged mineral water, his fingers trembling, his eyes bulging so much they almost fell out:

"Six hundred eighty-eight? You want six hundred eighty-eight for a bottle of water?"

"This is robbery! This is naked robbery! Prices in Magic City aren't this outrageous!"

The elegant receptionist wearing a qipao at the front desk maintained her professional smile, though the corner of her mouth twitched slightly:

"Sir, this is Tianshan Snow Ridge Water specially supplied for martial artists; it is rich in trace amounts of spiritual energy and can relieve fatigue..."

"Spiritual my ass!"

Gou Fugui was about to explode on the spot; the DNA of a profiteer engraved in his bones was activated.

He reached back and with a "whoosh" pulled open the huge woven bag on his back.

Under the stunned gaze of other elite students from prestigious schools nearby, Gou Fugui set up a street stall right on the carpet.

"Come, come! Don't miss out while passing by!"

Gou Fugui pulled out bottles of mineral water with crooked labels from his bag and shouted:

"Specialty of Magic City Martial Arts University! Exclusively made 'Power Mineral Water'! Sourced from... cough cough, sourced from a mysterious water source!"

"Only 9.9... pui, only 19.9, only 19.9!"

"And this one! A 'Victory Talisman' personally signed by an SSS-rank Supernatural Ability user; stick it on your forehead, you won't fail exams, your defense won't break in a fight, buy one get one free!"

Principal Pang Ban stood behind the team; at this moment, he wished he could find a crack in the ground to crawl into, or simply pretend to be a passing patient with senile dementia, looking up and concentrating on counting the beads on the chandelier.

Shameful!

So damn shameful!

However, Gou Fugui was clearly not the only show-off in Class F.

Just as Gou Fugui was trying to sell Magic City tap water to elites from other schools, Lu Xingye couldn't stay quiet either.

He ignored the worldly clamor and, clutching the broken sword he regarded as his life, walked straight to a huge floor-to-ceiling window.

Outside the window was the bustling CBD of the Imperial Capital; in the distance, the thousand-meter-tall "Martial Arts General Administration Building" pierced straight into the clouds, like a sharp sword piercing the firmament.

Lu Xingye slowly extended a hand, his palm pressed against the cold glass, his bangs covering half an eye, his gaze revealing a fanaticism that looked down upon the world.

"Heh... is this the so-called center of power?"

He lowered his voice, using a tone of ancient gods that seemed only he could understand, whispering to the reflection on the glass and the towering building in the distance:

"I feel it... the agitation surging in the earth's veins of this city; they are afraid, they are trembling, welcoming the arrival of a king."

"That tower... seemingly towering, is actually nothing more than a staircase to the throne."

"One day, I will stand at the top of the firmament, unseal the Black Flame Dragon, and let all things in this world be forced to look up... at my pitch-black back!"

Lu Xingye became more and more excited as he spoke, even striking a pose as if he wanted to grasp the building with one hand, his eyes sharp:

"Tremble, Imperial Capital!!"

Just as Lu Xingye was unable to extricate himself from the epic BGM of "The King's Return."

A cleaning lady mopping the glass nearby was stunned, her hand holding the rag frozen in mid-air, looking at Lu Xingye with an expression of looking at a mentally disabled person:

"Young man, take your hand away, this glass was just cleaned, it's full of handprints, are you going to pay if they deduct my money?"

Lu Xingye: "..."

Just as the scene became extremely awkward, and the style of the people in Class F was gradually approaching that of a mental hospital, a commotion suddenly came from outside the hotel entrance.

"They're here! The team from Magic City Martial Arts University has arrived!"

Someone unknown shouted, and immediately after, a large group of reporters carrying cameras and microphones, like sharks that had smelled blood, frantically swarmed into the hotel lobby.