The finish line.
After running ten laps, I unsurprisingly ended up in... third place.
My stamina really is limited. At the very last moment, a tall, sturdy guy overtook me.
Old Gu, the homeroom teacher for Class 1, walked over and looked at the tall guy. "Where's your spirit?"
The tall guy glanced back, searching for a moment before spotting the Small Rolling Stone dozens of meters away.
It was rolling along weakly.
"It's... over there." His voice lacked confidence.
"Do you know the test requirements? Run ten laps together with your spirit."
"I... I just got to the finish line first to wait for it. Besides, other people's spirits aren't always right by their sides either!"
The tall guy grew more self-righteous as he spoke.
On the track, plenty of spirits had bolted off on their own.
His Small Rolling Stone was only a few dozen meters behind—what was wrong with that?
Old Gu shot the tall guy a disappointed look. "You think we didn't notice your Small Rolling Stone skipped a lap?"
The tall guy wanted to stubbornly deny it.
But facing Old Gu's gaze, which seemed to see through everything, the defiant words stuck in his throat.
Instinctively, he lowered his head.
"Remember this: no spirit master abandons their spirit... Your placement test results are canceled."
The Small Rolling Stone wasn't weak. If it had run all ten laps normally, it could've competed for the top ten.
The tall guy opened his mouth, then trudged off dejectedly.
Old Gu turned to Su Hao, and his stern face actually broke into a smile:
"Student, you did well. Keep it up."
Su Hao nodded cheerfully.
Sure enough, a good-looking guy is popular anywhere.
And with looks and skill combined... ahem, can't get cocky. Stay calm.
The crew-cut guy who'd led the whole ten laps and still had energy left suddenly walked over, grinning.
Su Hao thought he saw... gleaming teeth??
"Let me introduce myself. I'm Li Songting. Once you patch up your stamina weakness, I hope we can have a rematch."
"Uh... okay. I'm Su Hao, from Class 2."
Su Hao rubbed his nose.
A challenge is fine, but...
Could you not be so blunt?
What 'stamina weakness'? I was clearly conserving energy strategically!
Strategic stuff can't be called a weakness!
Su Hao muttered.
The Silkworm grabbed his pant leg, crawled up to his head, and lay there with its eyes closed.
It looked like Su Hao was wearing an oversized yellow hat.
And it was kind of heavy!
Su Hao, who'd only caught his breath a few dozen times after running ten laps, tried to pull it off but couldn't.
"Guno, guno!"
The Silkworm protested discontentedly.
Spirit stuff can't be called lazy!
It's clearly recharging!
...
Su Hao found a tree and sat down to rest.
The best part of life? When others are still exhausting themselves running ten laps, you can chill in the shade.
Awesome.
Ten laps were already out of reach for most classmates, let alone with a bunch of mischievous spirits holding them back.
Before even halfway, many had shifted from running to a jog-walk hybrid.
—All the class teachers had said they had to finish ten laps, even if they walked.
Some students who pretended to finish ten laps were called out by their homeroom teacher, who knew exactly how many they'd missed.
The remaining students were utterly despairing.
There were over a hundred people on the track—how could you see so clearly!
An hour later,
Liu Ren finally crossed the finish line, flopping onto his back with a thud, his little belly jiggling like waves.
Beside him, the Charcoal Fire Turtle spat out a few sparks, showing no signs of fatigue.
Su Hao had watched Liu Ren's entire ten-lap run.
At first, Liu Ren urged the Charcoal Fire Turtle on.
Midway, he jogged alongside it.
But in the last two or three laps, even fast walking was a struggle for Fatty Liu, yet he gritted his teeth to keep up with the turtle's pace.
Was this the legendary turtle-and-man race?
...
Liu Ren wasn't among the last to finish; he was barely in the middle.
He was two full laps ahead of the last-place student.
But that last-place student still beat a third of the Spirit Science classmates in score.
Those people, even if told to finish the whole run, simply couldn't—what could they do if their own spirits wouldn't cooperate?
Newbie spirit masters were just as hopeless!
Some were still coaxing their spirits, others had already given up.
Just then,
A whistle blew.
"Class 2, assemble!"
Old Chen's loud voice rang out from afar.
Many trudged slowly to the assembly point with drooping heads.
Old Chen scanned the group, his eyes sweeping over each student. "I'm disappointed in you. You're the worst class I've ever had!
"Look at yourselves! Huh? A spirit master who can't even command their spirit—do you even deserve the title?
"Don't tell me you just contracted your spirits. A contract is a contract! If you can't do it, how can others? Commanding your spirit is the most basic requirement of a spirit master!"
Old Chen rattled off a tirade, and the third of the students in the formation hung their heads in shame.
Then Old Chen shifted targets, his tone softening slightly. "Those of you who finished ten laps, think carefully—how many of you couldn't keep up with your spirit's pace and held them back?"
It wasn't just Liu Ren.
In fact, most spirits that had just entered their growth phase couldn't match a high schooler's fast run in speed, but in stamina, they were leagues ahead!
The students who initially thought their spirits were too slow soon realized, after a few laps, that their own stamina was the real problem.
They had to slow their spirits down.
"A spirit master isn't just a flashy job commanding spirits in battle. It's a profession where human and spirit fight together!"
Old Chen's tone was serious, hands on his hips, eyes sharp. "Lack of stamina, insufficient speed, slow reactions—these will all become your weaknesses, fatal flaws in your combat chain.
"Of course, this might seem distant to you now, but remember: don't neglect your own training. A spirit master and their spirit are never separate individuals.
"This time, a few students in our class performed well. Li Songting, Su Hao, and Qi Lin took first, second, and eighth place respectively. I hope you'll look up to them and keep working hard to become qualified spirit masters."
Old Chen hid the smile in his eyes, saying flatly, "Alright, you three, come with me."
...
In the office,
Old Gu, the Class 1 homeroom teacher and also the dean... Dean Gu, was arranging the rewards.
"Wood-type spirit school rewards 'Sap' Jade Powder, earth-type is 'Blackrock' Jade Powder, water-type..."
"If you have no objections, the jade powder can be picked up tomorrow... today?" Old Gu shook his head. "The school has to buy the corresponding jade powder based on your spirits' attributes."
Very practical.
A month's worth of jade powder cost over two thousand, three months over six thousand.
Free money, even Gu Lingyao, who was a tier above a whale spender, was grinning ear to ear.
Su Hao didn't leave immediately. When the other students had mostly gone, he cautiously asked, "Uh, teacher, could I swap the 'Sap' Jade Powder reward for 'Green Bamboo' Jade Powder?"
"Huh, why?"
A box of Sap Jade Powder cost 650, Green Bamboo 599—this deal didn't seem worth it.
"...Because my spirit is used to eating Green Bamboo Jade Powder."
Su Hao gave the Silkworm a knowing look.
"Guno—" The Silkworm reluctantly chimed in.
"Fine, that's a small matter. You couldn't swap for something more expensive, though." Old Gu chuckled.
Su Hao swallowed the words about cashing out the price difference.
As Su Hao left,
Old Gu rubbed his slightly balding scalp. "Looks like this is another student with his own ideas."