Foolish Things from Youth

Jiang Feng stood there feeling quite pleased with himself. He could sense everyone else's disorientation and confusion at the moment, which gave him a strong sense of achievement. The only one who could not really be considered disoriented seemed to be the boss himself. Yet, Huoye was not simply taking a leisurely stroll within his own domain; he was advancing with great difficulty. It was not that he could not walk, but rather that he was trying to comprehend his own rules—truly worthy of being the boss.

Then Huoye stopped, having been pinched on the soft flesh of his waist by... the vice president. Better not look, absolutely cannot look, or he would be silenced by the vice president.

What about the others? Both Leilimi and Alice were standing quietly in place, seemingly aware that moving blindly was futile. As expected of children from the upper echelons of the Grim Reaper Hunting Corps, they deeply understood the significance of domains, hence why they were standing still and trying to perceive it with their hearts.

Who were the other two walking together? It was Luo Jiajia and Lu Dingyuan, quite an interesting combination. Luo Jiajia, lively yet timid and clingy, was holding tightly onto Lu Dingyuan's arm out of fear. As for Lu Dingyuan, that blockhead, he did not show a single reaction that a normal young man should have; he was truly dense.

Yet... it seemed someone was missing. Where was Ruri? Where was Ruri, the one who deserved my attention the most?

Just as Jiang Feng was feeling puzzled and trying to concentrate harder to find Kazama Ruri, a dull "bang" echoed against the back of his head. It was the handle of a parasol, which was simultaneously the hilt of Kazama Ruri's ninjato.

What was going on?

"Ara ara, did I hit something? Hmm? Jiang Feng? To think you are actually here!" Kazama Ruri sounded quite surprised.

Jiang Feng was full of bewilderment. "What is going on? How did you find me? Why couldn't I sense your presence?"

Kazama Ruri replied as if it were the most natural thing in the world: "Oh that~ Ninjas, you see, stealth is a fundamental skill. These days I've been exchanging assassination techniques with Oyuki, and I've learned so much! As for how I found you... I'm sorry, I was just using the umbrella handle like a blind cane to see if I could bump into anyone, I wasn't intentionally searching for you. Up until now, I can still only see a blanket of white in this fog."

"You can move around freely and remain undiscovered by me without even seeing clearly?" Jiang Feng said in astonishment.

Terrifying! That was the only word in Jiang Feng's mind at that moment. To reach this level meant that among everyone, her comprehension of the domain was second only to Huoye's. Kazama Ruri, a ninja who had faded away in the past era, a new ninja awakened in the era of superhuman abilities—this was the glory of the new generation of the Kazama family. Was such a girl the one he needed to chase after, surpass, and protect?

"Nani?" (What?) Kazama Ruri asked, noticing that Jiang Feng was staring at her in a daze.

Jiang Feng answered subconsciously, "Aa, nanimono mo nai." (Ah, it's nothing.)

"Eh? Japanese? When did you learn Japanese, Jiang Feng?" Kazama Ruri asked in surprise.

Cold sweat broke out on Jiang Feng's back. He had subconsciously slipped into studying Japanese conversation—how had he exposed himself? He hurriedly defended himself, "Well, after you spoke Japanese to me before, I wanted to learn a bit. You know me, anyway, my individual superpower helps me learn things fast. I just picked it up casually."

Actually, Jiang Feng had not just picked it up casually at all. He was studying Japanese very seriously, along with the cultural traditions of the Rising Sun Colony. What was his purpose? To meet her parents in the future. Young people were always like this, fond of aiming high; before even holding hands, they were already thinking about meeting the parents. Yet who could say this was not a kind of beauty belonging to youth?

In one's youth, foolish things, when savored again in old age, are like aged wine with a lingering aftertaste, filled with nostalgia and emotion, making one reluctant to return.

"Eh...? Is that so?" Kazama Ruri looked at Jiang Feng strangely. "Then, do you know what the words I said to you during our previous mission mean by now?"

Jiang Feng said, "That phrase? Wasn't it meant to encourage me? I was really too nervous back then, so I didn't remember what you specifically said," Jiang Feng laughed heartily. But inwardly, he was thinking:

"How could I not remember? I literally have a photographic memory. I already fully understand the meaning of those words, so I won't let you look down on me. I will make you unable to say things like that ever again. I will become strong enough to leave the entire Kazama family speechless, willing to acknowledge me—that is my obsession to grow stronger."

Kazama Ruri's gaze returned to calmness, and then she smiled lightly, asking, "Ah, how annoying. Walking around blindly in a place like this white fog wasted so much of my energy. Jiang Feng, treat me to dinner tonight as compensation for me."

At that moment, Shangguan Yudie suddenly turned her head and looked in a certain direction.

Huoye asked, "What is it?"

"Nothing, just suddenly felt two very strong electrical signals. A firm resolve... and a deep sense of relief." Kazama Ruri turned her head back.

Unbeknownst to them, a voice drifted from beyond the clouds and mist, "Time is up, today's domain training is over."

As the clouds and mist slowly dispersed, Alice was the first to shout out in frustration, "Eh? Why? I was just starting to get a feel for it!"

"Indeed, I felt the obstacles to walking in the cloud and mist starting to lessen, but the training is still not enough," Leilimi replied immediately.

Lu Dingyuan scratched his head in puzzlement. "Is it hard? I never felt like there was anything difficult about it, isn't it just walking normally?"

"True, true, Senior Lu walked so fast, while I always felt like something was tripping my feet," Luo Jiajia chimed in.

At this moment, Huoye suddenly said, "Little Six possesses intuition that surpasses ordinary people. I think it was this intuition that helped him unconsciously grasp the rules of the misty depths. Although it wasn't systematically formed into knowledge, it was enough for him to move around freely inside."

"That's right, I just walked by feel; my steps were different from usual, but I walked exceptionally fast inside the cloud," Lu Dingyuan affirmed.

Ke Zhen, who had formulated this training plan together with Eddie, asked, "Jiang Feng, based on your experience, rank everyone's performance today."

Jiang Feng, who had been riding high on the prospect of going out to dinner with Kazama Ruri, was suddenly brought back to reality by Ke Zhen's words. He replied, "Ah. First place is the boss; the boss can already communicate with superpowers within a certain range and gain a perceptual range. Next is Ruri; she can now move around freely in the clouds and mist, and combine her stealth abilities so I couldn't discover her. After that is the vice president, who can also move around freely and use her individual superpower to locate everyone's direction."

Right at that instant, Jiang Feng suddenly felt a chill run down his spine. He turned his head to see Shangguan Yudie staring intently at him, her cold gaze like the edge of a blade. Only then did he realize what kind of blunder he had committed. Wasn't this a tacit admission that he had witnessed the chase between the vice president and the boss? He was going to be silenced!

"I must find a way to shut him up!" Shangguan Yudie thought to herself.

Jiang Feng had to feign composure as he continued, "Then Alice and Leilimi both have the awareness to communicate with the clouds and mist. After them is Little Six; although he can walk freely, his understanding of the domain is practically zero."

Lu Dingyuan said sheepishly, "Haha, that's true."

"And finally..." Jiang Feng did not continue; anyway, there was only one person left.

Luo Jiajia wiped her tears and said, "I'm sorry, I was just too scared and didn't think about training at all."

"It's fine, step by step is best. The more important knowledge is, the less one should be impatient for success," Eddie said with deadpan eyes. His words were gentle, but that gaze completely lacked persuasiveness. This was why, even though he was already outstanding enough during his university days, only Vivian was willing to pursue him. With such a fierce look in his eyes, which youthful and vibrant girl would want to find a lover like that?

Ke Zhen took a sip of his drink, then stood up and said, "Alright, domain training is over. Next is attribute training, prepare to exercise your own attribute powers. Especially you, Huoye, you are omni-attributed across the seven elements, so you better train all seven complete attributes for me, especially your Holy Light attribute, you hear me?"

Huoye replied, "I know even without you telling me." With that, he turned and walked toward another training ground.

The eight members of Constellations could be said to cover all seven major attributes, plus an extra attribute-free superhuman, and that guy with the Dark attribute possessed an outrageously monstrous dark compatibility. It was safe to say that no other major association could be as comprehensive as Constellations, after all, they were attribute-based associations and had to select members based on their attributes.

Consequently, when Constellations trained their attributes, they needed to scatter, since not everyone shared the same attribute. Moreover, within their respective attribute training grounds, members of other major associations were also present.