[Restart Volume] Chapter 250: The Torch Never Dies

"Why is her element listed as unknown?" Mo Xing asked in surprise, pointing at the attribute column where a small pop-up window displayed the words:
"Element unclassifiable."
"Aren't there only nine elements in this otherworld? Wh... why does Shiyan's element column show as unclassifiable?"
"Perhaps it lies beyond the nine fundamental elements," Zhang Zhihao said quite calmly. "Anything is possible, and we must use our actions to prove that possibility."
"Exercise your subjective initiative; this task is entrusted to you." Zhang Zhihao patted Mo Xing on the shoulder. "Mo Xing, you should go ahead and properly explore and interact!"
"Huh? This..." Mo Xing was momentarily at a loss for words.
Great God, O Great God, aren't you blatantly playing matchmaker here?
"Orange, how is Crimson Moon Academy arranging personnel for the reinforcement mission?" Zhang Zhihao suddenly asked.
"The school doesn't plan to send too many people. After all, there are more female students, the journey is long, and the tasks are arduous. Very few female students can endure such hardship, so such relief operations usually send male students," Orange paused, "which includes Gadi Gus."
"Oh? Gadi Gus is participating too?" Zhang Zhihao's eyes lit up. "He's a pretty good opponent."
"Di... Diga? Ah, no..." Realizing he had misspoken, Mo Xing quickly corrected himself. "Is that Gadi Gus really that strong? To actually be recognized by the Great God..."
"Yes, he is a very exceptional Berserker," Zhang Zhihao smiled. "We met in the individual semifinals of the [Newcomer Cup] last year, and it took a full ten minutes to decide the winner."
"Ten minutes..." Mo Xing had no concept of what ten minutes meant for a PK between top tier experts, but to him, it felt neither short nor long. "Th... then in the end, Great God Zhang Zhihao won, right?"
"Of course," Xia Ningxin said coldly.
"The individual finals of last year's [Newcomer Cup] were actually an internal civil war of Royal Sky Academy~" Orange smiled. "The two opponents were none other than Zhihao and Xiaoning sitting right in front of you~"
"Th... this strong! Sweeping the championship and runner-up spots..." Mo Xing was greatly astonished. To think he had the honor of dining with the champion and runner-up of last year's [Newcomer Cup]...
By what right or virtue did he deserve this!
"Not only that, Royal Sky Academy also achieved the magnificent feat of a three-consecutive-championship streak in the [Newcomer Cup], while simultaneously capturing the overall championship of the previous [Academy League], realizing a true Grand Slam." Orange added.
"Aw... awesome, my alma mater!" Mo Xing praised, a surge of pride welling up spontaneously in his heart.
The strongest institution truly lives up to its name! It's not a title earned for nothing! A three-consecutive-championship streak in the [Newcomer Cup]! The overall champions of the previous [Academy League]! No wonder the elimination rate for Royal Sky Academy's freshman assessment was close to fifty percent! It was all to screen for talent and cultivate them selectively!
This is simply Teiko Junior High from *Kuroko's Basketball*! An absolute super powerhouse! How did that saying go...
Champions come and go, but the dynasty remains eternal!
"Could you tell me something about that [Newcomer Cup] thing?" Mo Xing scratched his head. "I... I'm quite curious."
"Your mentors will explain all these tournament details in detail during future classes," Zhang Zhihao gave a faint smile. "If you're really curious, we can give you a rough overview."
"Great, thank you, Great God!" Mo Xing nodded vigorously, looking like an obedient fluffy dog.
"The [Newcomer Cup] and the [Academy League] are just traditional names; their true names are the [New Spring Cup] and the [Midsummer Cup] respectively. They are held at different times and feature different contestants," Zhang Zhihao said.
"The [New Spring Cup] is held during the period from the end of winter to the arrival of spring, which is the winter vacation," Zhang Zhihao paused. "It is a stage for all academy freshmen to showcase themselves. You'll be participating in it three months from now."
"Ohh, so that's how it is." Mo Xing nodded, muttering to himself, "This world has winter and summer vacations too..."
"Of course." Zhang Zhihao smiled faintly. "Similarly, the [Midsummer Cup] is held during the summer vacation and is a tournament open to all currently enrolled students across all academies. If the group draws are favorable to you, you might just have a PK match against me."
"You jest, Great God." Mo Xing scratched his head. "How could I ever hope to beat you?"
"The era belongs to us, but even more so, it belongs to you." Zhang Zhihao smiled calmly. "If one day I fall, remember to carry the torch. Before that day arrives, hurry up and grow stronger."
"Rescue everyone and return to the human realm." Orange nodded.
"The torch never goes out." Xia Ningxin concluded.
"..." Mo Xing froze. Something deep within his soul seemed to have been stirred. Looking at the three Great Gods before him who shared a common conviction, he smiled as well, a gleam in his eyes. "Okay... I will..."
"I'll work hard to get stronger and carry this baton well..."
"Rescue everyone and return to the original world..."
"The torch never goes out!"
Sunday afternoon.
After finishing today's training, Mo Xing collapsed exhaustedly onto the lawn, panting heavily.
He recalled the events of Saturday night—last night's dinner. After the Great God Zhang Zhihao and the others finished discussing the matches with him, they went on to instruct him on what precautions to take for the Dragon Tooth Island reinforcement operation.
From time to time, he would ask Great God Zhang Zhihao some detailed questions, such as whether there were lots of Tyrannosaurus Rexes on Dragon Tooth Island. However, he was immediately met with Xia Ningxin's cold retort: "Do you think this is Jurassic Park?" At that, he had frozen completely, instantly feeling so foolish... At the same time, Orange would comfort him along the way, telling him not to take it to heart.
Through the course of a single meal, not only had he unlocked a great deal of knowledge, but he had also roughly figured out the personalities of the three Great Gods:
Xia Ningxin...
A cold and aloof little princess who always liked to tease him. Even though you're the campus belle and gorgeous, that's no reason to keep roasting me!
Orange...
A warm and comforting big sister. In contrast to Xia Ningxin, she was gentle, amiable, and always patient in answering his questions.
Great God Zhang Zhihao...
The embodiment of strength. His demeanor was refined and scholarly, and he was handsome, smart, and possessed leadership qualities. Everything about him was great, except that he was a bit of a gossip...
"What are you muttering about?"
Suddenly, a familiar voice rang out by his ear, startling Mo Xing into scrambling to his feet.
"Great God..." Mo Xing breathed a sigh of relief. "You always pop up like a phantom; you almost scared me to d-e-a-t-h."
"Haha, how does training feel?" Zhang Zhihao smiled.
"Tiring~ Even more tiring than military training! Three days' worth of training volume crammed entirely into today, I almost didn't make it!" Mo Xing wryly smiled. When he got back after dinner last night, he suddenly remembered he hadn't asked the Great God for training, and coupled with the fact that Friday's training hadn't met the passing criteria, he had a new set of training tasks for today.
A full three days' worth of training volume! Tossed entirely into today, he had been training from eight in the morning straight until now, and apart from lunch, he hadn't rested at all!
Too miserable!
Simply too miserable!
"It's fine, didn't you carry through it just the same?" Zhang Zhihao smiled. "The real battlefield is even harsher than this; you might not even get the chance to eat lunch."
"Is that so?" Mo Xing asked, knowing the answer.
Zhang Zhihao sat down on the lawn, took a water flask out of his storage bracelet, and handed it over to Mo Xing.
"Want a drink?" Zhang Zhihao smiled. "Clean, clear drinking water."
"Of course! I'm dying of thirst!" Mo Xing took the flask and gulped down large mouthfuls. Actually, he could also rely on the Dragon God's power to condense some small water spheres to quench his thirst, but for some reason, the taste of those small water spheres was very bland, just like spicy strips without any chili—not "authentic" at all!
"Great God, you really are a Doraemon! Carrying so many good things with you!"
"Plot requirements." Zhang Zhihao smiled.
"Haha, I never expected the Great God to crack such international jokes. Cough, cough—" Mo Xing couldn't help laughing out loud, only to immediately choke on the water and start coughing.
"By the way, the class assignment results are out." Zhang Zhihao retrieved a document from his storage bracelet and waved it in front of Mo Xing.
"Holy crap! So fast?" Mo Xing took the document and began flipping through it.
"The first few pages seem to be the theoretical mentors..." Mo Xing muttered, sliding his forefinger across the paper. "Let me check Instructor Long Lian's student roster first..."
"Looks like I'm not on it..." After skimming through the whole thing, Mo Xing sighed. "Wonder which mentor I'll be assigned to."
"A master can lead you through the door, but your cultivation depends entirely on yourself," Zhang Zhihao smiled. "No matter which mentor teaches you, you must study hard."
"Of course!" Mo Xing patted his chest and said, "I will definitely listen attentively in class and cultivate diligently!"
The document in his hand was turned to another page, and Mo Xing's gaze was instantly captivated by the two lines of text at the very top:
In large blue characters: "Student Roster for Instructor Xue Dinghai"
In smaller black characters below: "Mo Xing"
"This..." Mo Xing froze entirely, momentarily struck speechless.
Holy crap?
Xue Dinghai?
That head of student affairs whose lectures were deadly boring?
He actually turned out to be his theoretical mentor?
Good heavens! You've got to be kidding me?
They actually assigned such a bald middle-aged man who came with a built-in "lullaby" buff to be his mentor?!
"Th... this is leading someone through the door? This is practically escorting them into the gates of hell! Looks like I really have to rely on myself from now on!" Mo Xing said helplessly. He didn't even dare to recall the scene of Xue Dinghai lecturing; it was simply a silent demon!
Wherever he went, not a single blade of grass grew!
"It's not that despairing, is it?" Zhang Zhihao beside him smiled faintly. "Theoretical classes are all large-class formats, and what the teachers lecture on is knowledge with a broader audience. If you want to truly enhance your personal abilities, it still depends on how your combat mentor guides you to excavate your own depth—"
"In other words, your potential."
"The Great God is right!" Mo Xing nodded in agreement. "Combat classes are small-class formats, where mentors explain things with much greater detail, and coupled with actual combat, your abilities improve all the faster!"
At this point, Mo Xing hurriedly accelerated the speed at which he flipped through the document, a strong curiosity driving him to want to know the answer quickly...
His combat mentor...
Who on earth would it be?
"Chen... Chen Mousse?" Having found the answer, Mo Xing froze. "I don't seem to have heard of this mentor's name... Great God, do you know this person?"
"Quite familiar." Zhang Zhihao smiled faintly.
"Th... then what kind of person is she?" Mo Xing continued to ask.
"Her?" Zhang Zhihao paused.
"It's a long story."