The final part of the opening ceremony was a fireworks display. He Qing looked up as the colorful fireworks exploded in the sky, filling the air with beauty and excitement.

Suddenly, he heard Duan Chenhui ask, “Where do you want to go after the competition?”

He Qing thought for a moment and cautiously replied, “I still need to write my thesis and then heal your leg.”

Duan Chenhui seemed to smile. “When the lotus blooms, that’s when you’ll graduate.”

“Right…” He Qing nodded, but in his mind, he wasn’t sure if his blooming would coincide with his graduation.

The next day, the competition began. The rules for the friendship match were simple: the first round was a fighting arena match, where a group of people would be eliminated. The second round was a field shooting match, eliminating more participants. The final round was wilderness survival, where the last person standing would be the victor. Luck played a part in this strange contest.

He Qing didn’t need to participate in the arena fight just yet, so he joined Shi Lei to cheer for their team.

Shi Lei held a colorful pom-pom and stared wide-eyed, “I thought you were joking when you said we’d be cheerleaders.”

“Zhang Yi and the others are up there fighting, so we need to support them in spirit,” He Qing said, holding two pom-poms and shaking them.

Shi Lei reluctantly followed suit, shaking his pom-poms. Zhang Yi, nearby, rolled his eyes at them. “The way you’re shaking those is disgusting.”

“…” Shi Lei wiped his face. “I’m an Alpha, tall and brawny—what do you expect?”

He Qing chuckled, “Classmate Shi Lei, you’re too modest.”

Zhang Yi turned to He Qing with a glare. “Enigma, keep quiet.”

“…” He Qing shut his mouth, shaking his pom-poms again as he spotted Duan Chenhui emerging from backstage.

Duan Chenhui paused when he saw him. “Why are you dressed like that?” He glanced over He Qing, who today was dressed in a light, airy outfit that resembled something from Western mythology, made of thin white fabric.

“Cheerleading,” He Qing pointed at the neighboring cheer squad, “The group next to us is even more over the top.”

Duan Chenhui glanced over and saw a group of Alphas dressed in flamboyant, revealing outfits. They were practically an eyesore, in his opinion, as all Alphas looked big and burly to him.

Turning back to He Qing, Duan Chenhui felt somewhat relieved that He Qing’s outfit wasn’t too revealing. He handed He Qing a bottle of water. “If they lose, it’s because of their lack of skill, not the cheerleaders.”

“…” Zhang Yi & Shi Lei exchanged looks. General, we’re still standing right here. Do you really have the nerve to say that?

He Qing took the bottle, smiling. “The General is right.”

They sat down on the benches to wait for the draw. At one point, an octopus person passed by. He Qing glanced at his tentacles—eight hands. If he were to copy the Heart Sutra, it would be quick.

Zhang Yi’s team didn’t get to compete that day. After watching the opening matches, He Qing asked Duan Chenhui, “General, have you ever copied the Heart Sutra? It might help resolve your inner demon.”

Duan Chenhui, who hadn’t copied the sutra in a while, shamelessly replied, “Do you really not know what my inner demon is?”

“…” He Qing silently shook his head.

Duan Chenhui chuckled, closed the car door, and got in. “You’ll know tomorrow. Maybe I should be more direct.”

He Qing suddenly felt a sense of danger and quickly said, “No need, I prefer subtlety.”

Duan Chenhui narrowed his eyes slightly. “I think I’ve been subtle enough.”

After a brief silence, He Qing took off his prayer beads and slipped them onto Duan Chenhui’s wrist. “General, why don’t you try reciting the Heart Sutra?”

Duan Chenhui stroked the beads, smiling. “Alright.”

He Qing breathed a sigh of relief, but the next day, he noticed that Duan Chenhui’s inner demon seemed to have grown even stronger. Feeling helpless, he sought out Sun Tu for advice. Sun Tu was blunt, “It’s just an inner demon. I have one too. Worst-case scenario, just practice demon cultivation. It’s not like the only path is cultivation.”

Sun Tu paused. “Oh, wait. Duan Chenhui can’t even practice cultivation.” He looked up at He Qing, “I don’t really get what you’re trying to do here.”

“I’m not thinking about much. I just want to heal him,” He Qing replied, sitting down and tapping on a wooden fish.

Sun Tu snatched the wooden fish from him. “Do you really think tapping that will do anything now?”

He Qing glanced at him, pursed his lips, and took the wooden fish back, continuing to tap it.

Sun Tu paced around, rubbing his chin. “But humans only live to be about a hundred. After a hundred years, all ties are severed.”

He Qing suddenly stopped tapping, got up, and walked out. “I’m going to meditate under the waterfall.”

—

Perhaps Sun Tu was right. After a hundred years, all ties should be severed. He Qing slightly opened his eyes, watching the water flow by. Suddenly, he saw someone standing in front of the waterfall.

He stood up and walked out of the water. “General, why are you here?”

Duan Chenhui looked at his dripping hair and handed him a towel. “I was just passing by. Saw someone meditating under the waterfall and got curious.”

He Qing wiped his hair. “General, that’s like saying you found wild coins lying around your house.”

Duan Chenhui chuckled at the metaphor. “I should be asking you what you’re doing here.”

“Meditating,” He Qing answered as he dried his hair and tied it back up.

“And why are you meditating?” Duan Chenhui asked again.

He Qing glanced down at the prayer beads on his wrist, evading the question. “General, have you been diligently reciting the Heart Sutra?”

“You said listening to the sound of the wooden fish brings peace of mind, so I listened to it all night,” Duan Chenhui said, suddenly grabbing He Qing’s hand. “But instead of calming down, my mental state got worse. What do you think went wrong?”

He Qing’s eyes flickered as he stared at Duan Chenhui for a long time without answering.

After a moment, Duan Chenhui slowly let go of his hand and smiled. “There’s a match with Zhang Lin today. Let’s go watch.”

“Okay,” He Qing nodded, using a spell to dry his clothes and following Duan Chenhui.

That day, Zhang Lin was up against an octopus person. His opponent not only had many hands and feet but also had lightning abilities. He Qing held his pom-poms, observing the match for a while.

Shi Lei, anxious, asked, “Can he win?”

“He can,” He Qing nodded. Relieved, Shi Lei shook his pom-poms enthusiastically, cheering, “Zhang Lin, go for it!”

The Imperial audience was even more excited, with their cheers rising in waves. The octopus nation on the other side wasn’t far behind, even using speakers to amplify their chants.

Duan Chenhui found it amusing. “You guys are just going to distract him.”

“Amitabha,” He Qing said. “Since both sides are doing it, let’s see who can stay calm the longest.”

Duan Chenhui glanced at He Qing, his tone meaningful. “You’re right. Let’s see who loses their composure first.”

“…” He Qing raised his pom-poms to cover his face, leaving only his eyes visible.

Shi Lei turned to him. “What are you doing?”

“I’m thinking,” He Qing sighed inwardly.

Shi Lei found him odd, but fortunately, Zhang Lin soon won against the octopus man. That evening, they all celebrated the victory with a group dinner.

—

The next day, He Qing noticed that Duan Chenhui wasn’t watching him as closely anymore. Specifically, Duan Chenhui didn’t come to pick him up like clockwork.

Even Shi Lei and the others found it strange. “Did you guys fight again?”

“No,” He Qing denied. “Maybe the General has something else to do?”

“You know, that might be it,” Zhang Yi said mysteriously. “I heard the king summoned him, and they talked for a long time. The General might be reinstated.”

“That’s great!” Shi Lei exclaimed. “And to think all the previous trouble was caused by some schemer.”

He Qing smiled and nodded. He glanced down at his messages and saw one from Duan Chenhui: [I’ve been reinstated. I’ll be busy for a while.]

[Good luck, General.] Over the next few days, He Qing noticed that Duan Chenhui’s power of belief had surged back to full. The belief power was quite mysterious, seemingly tied to reputation.