Ever since the children at the neighboring welfare institution were beaten to tears, no welfare institution in Xiaguang City dared to spar with Nikko.
However, after this battle, Nikko Welfare Institution's resource allocation also significantly increased.
If before, Nikko Welfare Institution's resources were only standard allocations, now they were top-tier allocations. First-class in the entire empire, there weren't many cultivation welfare institutions in the Yunxia province that enjoyed this treatment.
Even the welfare institution's real human team saw a considerable expansion.
Based on this, Director Fang also hired some tool-person instructors with public funds.
Puppets were never as reliable as real people, and real instructors could also be cultivated. They might be a bit lackluster, but perhaps one, two, or three mythological-level individuals could emerge from them?
His mission was to cultivate embers, and embers could be the children, or the old, seasoned instructors.
Director Fang’s intention in recruiting was not limited to just hiring.
It would be fantastic if he could trick some young geniuses into working for him.
...
Welfare Institution, Cafeteria.
Several real human instructors were devouring their meals, and at the end, they asked the attendant puppet to bring more bowls.
"The food at the welfare institution is actually this delicious! I always thought it was pig slop."
A newly recruited instructor said indistinctly, his cheeks bulging.
Another instructor shook his head, "No, the food at the welfare institution was originally not very tasty. Old Li has served as a sword instructor at three welfare institutions.
"In the beginning, the dining at Nikko Welfare Institution was the same. You know how those chef puppets are; they only guarantee nutrition when cooking, and as for taste, well, hehehe.
"Later, our Director Fang hired Special Grade Chef Master Yang as the head chef of Nikko Welfare Institution..."
"It's actually Master Yang, no wonder it's so delicious... Only a welfare institution like Nikko, enjoying top-tier treatment, could afford a Special Grade Chef, right?"
"No, I haven't finished speaking. After Master Yang arrived, the quality of the dining improved significantly, but it was still far from this delicious."
Instructor Old Li slurped a mouthful of noodles before continuing, "Later, it was the Director Fang who improved the recipes, which resulted in these delicious dishes... At that time, Master Yang even wanted to apprentice himself to Director Fang to learn cooking. It's unbelievable!"
"Is that true?"
"Our Director Fang is skilled in swordsmanship, sabermanship, and sorcery. It's rumored he's also proficient in plant cultivation. Now, he even knows how to cook? What doesn't he know?"
"Uh, Director Fang himself said that as a director, he knows a little bit about everything... Although I find it unreasonable."
"Indeed, that's too unreasonable!"
After the meal, the instructors stopped chatting.
They still had to prepare their lessons and training equipment, which would justify their increased salaries. Moreover, they had to utilize their time outside of work to train their bodies and temper their minds. They still had opportunities for improvement and had rekindled their youthful passion!
The children were also incredibly diligent, giving the instructors the illusion that if they didn't work hard enough, they might be surpassed by these young boys and girls in the blink of an eye.
They shook their heads and chuckled.
Director Fang was indeed formidable, so much so that they had such an absurd illusion.
...
Nikko Welfare Institution, Underground Training Ground.
A tender boy, one meter sixty tall, and a muscular... boy, two to three meters tall, faced each other from afar.
"Imperial Sword Technique, rise!"
(Skill: Telekinesis!)
The cool boy brought his hands together and pointed forward. Three sharp swords whizzed out from the sword box on his back, hovering a few meters in front of him.
He then shouted:
"Thunder Talisman Sword!" The sword on the left began to glow with azure lightning.
This was Thunder Palm.
"Fire Talisman Sword!" The sword in the middle turned fiery red and was enveloped in blazing flames.
This was Fireball Spell.
"Ice Talisman Sword!" The sword on the right was chillingly cold, exuding wisps of frost.
This was Frost Wind.
But for the boy, these were all sword techniques; they had to be.
The two-to-three-meter-tall boy on the right, his muscles bulged again, his body grew to tens of meters high, covered in rumbling stone.
The giant figure smashed through the flying swords and charged towards the tiny figure.
Rumble!
Tremor!
Flames and lightning surged!
This battlefield, located tens of meters underground in the welfare institution, was completely engulfed in a doomsday-like scene.
If Director Fang hadn't personally funded the establishment of an epic ritual and replaced the main materials, this battleground would have long since collapsed.
If the instructors at the welfare institution were present, they would have been dumbfounded.
These two youths, who had only cultivated for ten months, already possessed strength surpassing theirs!
This was absurd, what a joke!
However, Director Fang was not very satisfied; he felt it was still too slow.
"Ten months of cultivation, Level 5 Awakening, possessing power comparable to the most elite Level Six Awakened."
This was indeed not fast.
Geniuses among the early official members of the 'Spark' program had reached similar levels after ten months, but the training conditions in the early days of 'Spark' were quite limited and only improved gradually later.
Nowadays, top geniuses in the 'Spark' training camp could reach this level from novice in 8 or 9 months.
"The instance space cannot benefit from the Black Blade's instructor talent, which is indeed a disadvantage. However, the cultivation environment of Nikko Welfare Institution is even better than the current 'Spark' training camp."
The real deficiency was the lack of sufficient tempering. No matter how talented they were, they were still flowers in a greenhouse.
The real world was the same.
Although the cultivation conditions were more generous, and the talent potential of the new generation of trainees was far higher than that of Xu Tian and Luo Rui in the early days, in terms of awakening level and combat strength, the new generation was still weaker compared to Xu Tian and Gou Ping'an at the same stage.
Even so, these new generations often dealt with anomalies and fought on the front lines.
Children like Chi Yan, Liu Feng, and Zhou Bao were still young, and Fang You wanted to give them more time, but there wasn't much time left.
...
Fang You opened his panel. The vast majority of the more than two hundred boys and girls under the instance space contract were at the Non-human level or above, with 26 of them having reached the Commander level.
However, at the Commander level, their accumulation of mystery was still insufficient.
The Kandra Empire had 'Mystery Orbs' as experience items. After obtaining a high allocation, he had also instructed Unit 1045 to purchase them in large quantities.
But no matter how large the quantity, it couldn't keep up with the consumption of his students.
If it was this difficult for Level 5 to Level 6, then Level 6 to Level 7 was even more remote. At least, practicing with peace of mind within the welfare institution was no longer feasible.
On the other hand.
Fang You's spiritual sense probed, accessing the spherical instrument.
"The 'Corrupt Scars' are spreading again!"
"It is rumored that the empire's eastern front has been eroded by the 'Corrupt Scars,' and the Third Sacred Pillar Army has retreated thirty thousand miles!"
"Can the 'Corrupt Scars' not be cleared?"
"The Imperial Institute of Technology is researching it, but currently, they don't quite understand what the 'Corrupt Scars' are. They can be seen but not touched, nor can they be destroyed. Moreover, they invisibly affect those who step on them! In the Mythic battlefield, several mythic beings were infected by the 'Corrupt Scars' and became corrupted and blackened."
"Not only that, but in areas with 'Corrupt Scars,' anomalies also become extremely difficult to kill. I was stationed at Fortress T-108, and it was extremely difficult to fight even a Level Six anomaly."
"The most terrifying thing is that the 'Corrupt Scars' are still spreading! Our empire..."
"Don't worry, our Kandra will always be bathed in glory. Such minor 'Corrupt Scars' will surely be resolved quickly by the higher-ups."
"That's true. The sky won't fall, and even if it did, the taller ones would hold it up."
Fang You frowned.
What were these 'Corrupt Scars'?
Based on the description, they seemed different from the pollution disasters he had encountered in the real world.
He couldn't obtain more information from the communication device, but he couldn't just sit back and wait; he had to conduct some investigations actively.
Fang You couldn't leave the welfare institution, but he had made preparations. During this time, in addition to signing contracts with the more than two hundred boys and girls, he had also tricked three instructors into becoming his workers.
Adults were not so easily tricked.
Although the benefits he offered were enough to make most people envious, the secrets of skill cultivation and awakening could not be revealed before the contract was signed, as it might cause unpredictable changes and disasters.
He could only be cautious.
Currently, he had three tool people: Instructor Old Li, a swordsmanship instructor; Instructor Chen, a tactics instructor; and Tong Lin, the welfare institution's physician.
"This mission will be assigned to Old Li." After all, Old Li was the least useful as a tool person... *cough*.
But Old Li's combat power was only slightly stronger than the peak Level Six Awakened, still a bit weak. After careful consideration, Director Fang decided to give Old Li a 'Blade of Radiance' puppet as a bodyguard.
He had already investigated.
'Blade of Radiance' puppets existed in this era and were not prohibited items. It was reasonable for some mythic beings with connections and wealth to obtain one or two 'Blade of Radiance' puppets.
After assigning Old Li an external mission, Fang You's gaze fell on the more than a dozen or twenty outstanding and powerful youths, who were still a bit young, and he hesitated.
Gradually, he made up his mind.
He couldn't treat this place as a peaceful era just because Xiaguang City was quiet and harmonious.
...
Chi Yan was quite different from many other youths at the welfare institution.
Others were orphans from birth; she was not. She became an orphan at the age of eight after an accident claimed her entire family and was sent to the welfare institution.
She was withdrawn and aloof, keeping others at a distance.
It wasn't until she came to Nikko Welfare Institution that Chi Yan found her goal: to cultivate and become stronger! Only by becoming powerful would she be able to resist disasters!
And according to her teacher, she was not strong enough.
Ten months of cultivation, defeating a Level Six Awakened, was something to be proud of? No, she didn't feel proud. Her teacher said there was always someone better and that their apparent strength was only because the pond of Nikko Welfare Institution was too small. There were still many people more talented than them.
They needed to go out and explore the world.
"No, this must be the teacher exaggerating... I don't disagree with going out and exploring, but geniuses like us, if not unique, are at least rare... Ah, of course, this is because the teacher taught us well."
Liu Feng, the swordsmanship youth, muttered.
It was easy to understand; the teacher was probably afraid they would become too arrogant and complacent, so they said this.
But did Chi Yan, this stubborn madwoman, believe it directly?
"But the teacher is right," said Zhou Bao, the honest and tall youth. "We can become so strong in a short time, and others can definitely do the same. The empire is so vast, and there must be people more powerful than us elsewhere."
It seemed to make sense.
So he was not truly a genius and needed to work even harder.
"The teacher said that the empire's trial grounds are places where geniuses gather, so let's start there."
...
Within Nikko Welfare Institution, the boys and girls who had reached Level Five Commander level had formed teams and gone out to explore.
Some were full of drive, while others were nervous and timid.
Director Fang was also a little worried about these children.
They were too young and like flowers in a greenhouse.
But he understood that there was no time for the children to progress slowly. Moreover, in the real world's 'Spark' training camp, there were trainees of similar ages.
Undergoing some tempering now was better than being helpless when disaster struck.
"The overall situation in Yunxia Province is still very safe now, so it's quite appropriate to let them go out and explore to find trial grounds. But if the 'Corrupt Scars' continue to spread and Yunxia Province also becomes unsafe, it will be difficult to travel to trial grounds outside Xiaguang City."
"And with the current strength of Chi Yan, Liu Feng, and the others, they are almost at the point where they can gain some good rewards from the trial grounds, especially skills."
"Nikko Welfare Institution only has a few elementary skill legacies, and there aren't many in the entire Xiaguang City, no epic legacies."
The second phase of the "Spark Cultivation Plan" had begun.
...
Nikko Welfare Institution, Director's Office.
Fang You focused his gaze on Chi Yan and the others, witnessing the prosperity of Xiaguang City.
White towers stood in dense rows, and wide roads crisscrossed, perfectly straight. In the sky above the city, aerial rail paths were set up for flying vehicles or hovercrafts.
This was an era where rune techniques had been researched to their peak.
But after Chi Yan and the three of them moved further away from Xiaguang City, Instructor Fang gradually lost sight of them.
He had an intuition.
Forcing his vision to follow was not impossible, but it might affect the anchoring of the strings of fate, leading to a shortened duration he could stay in the instance space-time.
He regretfully withdrew his gaze.
Afterward, Director Fang's daily work increased: opening his panel and browsing the recorded information.
Without Little Huan by his side, he felt quite unaccustomed to it. He could only manually filter the information of the boys and girls who had gone out to explore and check them one by one.
"Notification: Sub-Apostle Chi Yan has learned the skill 'Void Shattering Punch (Blue)'."
"Notification: Sub-Apostle Liu Feng has learned the skill 'Thousand Leaf Sword Art (Blue)'."
"Notification: Sub-Apostle Zhou Bao's physique has been greatly enhanced through the use of an Epic Secret Potion."
"Notification: ..."
Apart from missions, Apostles only left records on the panel when they achieved major breakthroughs (2D, skill, or level).
Initially, the panel's notifications were few, sometimes less than one per day.
By the time a year had passed, Chi Yan, Liu Feng, and Zhou Bao had successively broken through to Level Six Awakened, and other boys and girls also broke through one after another. The panel's notifications began to shake more frequently.
Instance time: one year and two months.
Chi Yan obtained her first Epic skill legacy, 'Indomitable Body.' The ability was as its name suggested; no matter how devastating the attack, her body remained as stable as a rock, allowing her to attack without disturbance.
"It's quite in line with Chi Yan's style." Her style was to fight to the death; the thinner her life, the stronger she became.
Her talent was thus.
Her personality was also like this.
Following 'Indomitable Body,' the second, third, and fourth Epic skills were recorded in the 'Spark' skill library.
Director Fang also became busy.
Chi Yan and the others were still at a low level, and it was impossible to cultivate Epic skills to the expert level in a short time. Fang You could only cultivate them himself.
This was not easy.
He didn't have skill fruits; he could only borrow skills and cultivate them from scratch, accumulating and perfecting them bit by bit.
Instance time quickly reached one and a half years. Not long ago, another performance review ended. Beneath the seemingly excellent performance, the seedlings of Nikko Welfare Institution had grown astonishingly strong and robust.
The number of Level Six Awakened individuals climbed to 49.
Among the instructors, two advanced to Mythic under his direct guidance!
However, this improvement was not something to be proud of.
What truly delighted Fang You was that the most outstanding trio, Chi Yan, Liu Feng, and Zhou Bao, had accumulated a considerable number of Epic skills and high-level blue skills on their panels.
Perhaps, they could truly fuse a Universal Legendary Skill.
(End of Chapter)