Because of what had happened earlier during training, many trainees had begun to look at Zhao Mu in a different light.
His performance had left a deep impression on everyone.
When Zhao Mu and his three roommates walked toward the restroom, quite a few students greeted him warmly along the way.
Some even looked at him with admiration.
Golden Elephant City exaggeratedly covered his crotch as he approached Zhao Mu, his face full of embarrassment.
"Brother Zhao," he said awkwardly, "if it weren't for you earlier… I might have wet my pants on the spot!"
The surrounding trainees burst into laughter.
But the words were not entirely a joke.
During that terrifying standing training earlier, many people had truly felt as if their bladders no longer belonged to them.
The pressure had been unbearable.
Zhao Mu smiled faintly but didn't respond much.
Instead, his eyes fell on the small, chubby figure beside him—Meng Qiuqiu.
Although the little fatty was breathing heavily, he had managed to hold on through the entire process without collapsing.
Zhao Mu could easily guess why.
He must have used the power of the ember remains.
Thinking of this, Zhao Mu's thoughts drifted briefly.
"Ember remains are truly incredible things," he thought to himself.
"If I can increase my proficiency faster, become a First-Level Jinhai Master sooner, and forge my own exclusive ember remains… my strength will increase dramatically."
He shook his head lightly, bringing his attention back to reality.
Looking at his three roommates, Zhao Mu smiled.
"Recover your strength as quickly as possible."
He spoke casually, but his tone carried a hint of seriousness.
"I guarantee that something even more brutal is waiting for us."
"Huh?"
Lu Yan blinked in confusion.
"Didn't they say we were going to eat?"
Zhao Mu shook his head.
"If the instructors simply wanted us to eat, they would have just told us to go to the cafeteria."
"So why bring us through all this trouble?"
His expression became thoughtful.
"I have a feeling…"
"This meal will not be pleasant."
Zhuo Yun nodded immediately.
"I've heard about similar training before."
He lowered his voice.
"Frontline soldiers often go through wild survival training."
"In extreme situations, they might have to eat raw meat, insects, or even drink urine to survive dehydration."
Meng Qiuqiu's face instantly turned pale.
"Then we'd better hurry and pee everything out now!"
Everyone burst into laughter.
Zhao Mu wrapped an arm around his neck teasingly.
"Relax."
"If you run out of pee later, I can share some with you."
Their joking helped relieve the tension left by the intense training.
Returning to Training
After using the restroom, the group returned.
Interestingly, Zhao Mu didn't feel tired at all.
Instead, the earlier standing meditation had actually refreshed him.
Both his body and mind felt calm and energized.
Soon, all the trainees gathered again.
Zhang Biao glanced at them briefly before giving an order.
"Right face!"
"Double time!"
The trainees immediately began moving.
Bai Meimei walked in front, leading the group toward a massive warehouse not far away.
As they approached, Zhao Mu suddenly sniffed the air.
A heavy smell drifted toward them.
His expression changed slightly.
The scent was thick… metallic… and nauseating.
Blood.
A lot of blood.
The smell was so strong that it made the stomach churn.
Among the trainees, Shen Moran suddenly covered her nose.
Her face turned pale as if she might vomit.
Others also began to notice something was wrong.
They looked nervously at the large rusty iron door sealing the warehouse.
"What are they making us eat?"
Someone whispered.
"Could it be exotic beast meat?"
Another trainee swallowed nervously.
Although they had mentally prepared themselves for something unpleasant…
Nothing could have prepared them for what they were about to see.
The Bloody Warehouse
The warehouse door slowly creaked open.
The moment the trainees saw what was inside—
Almost everyone's face turned deathly pale.
Exotic beast meat?
That would have been too optimistic.
Inside the warehouse lay something far worse.
The entire space looked like a butchery from hell.
There were shredded corpses everywhere.
It was impossible to tell whether the remains belonged to exotic beasts, wild animals, or something else entirely.
The bodies had been completely pulverized.
In the center of the warehouse was a huge pool.
But instead of water—
It was filled with multicolored blood and bodily fluids.
The strange colors came from different liquids mixing together.
Floating within the pool were horrifying things.
Bloated organs.
Gigantic intestines.
Chunks of flesh.
Some organs were as large as ox hearts.
Others bulged grotesquely with unknown contents.
The smell exploded outward the moment the door opened.
It shot straight up everyone's noses and into their brains.
Many trainees felt like vomiting instantly.
"Gulp… gulp…"
Several people desperately swallowed.
Their stomachs churned violently.
They wanted to throw up everything they had eaten that morning.
But no one dared vomit in front of the instructors.
They forced the nausea down.
Among the crowd—
Only two people remained calm.
One was Zhao Mu.
The other was Mo Guanguan.
Both stood quietly without covering their noses.
They glanced at each other briefly.
Zhao Mu raised an eyebrow.
This girl… she's not simple.
Since the age of eight, Zhao Mu had trained under Bu Yanhuan.
During that time, he often visited Blood Bone Mountain.
There, he personally slaughtered countless animals.
It was part of his training.
He had stabbed beasts with knives.
Carried their corpses back.
Skinned them.
Deboned them.
Butchered the meat.
The hides were sold.
The meat was cooked.
After years of such experiences, Zhao Mu had become completely accustomed to the smell of blood.
To him, the stench inside the warehouse was no different from the smell of a fish market.
But Mo Guanguan standing calmly beside him…
That was unexpected.
Meanwhile, Mo Guanguan was also observing Zhao Mu.
Who exactly is this guy?
She wondered.
Unless he grew up in a military family… how could he be so used to this kind of scene?
Before either of them could think further—
A loud shout interrupted them.
"Don't you dare vomit!"
Bai Meimei's angry voice echoed through the warehouse.
One trainee had turned pale and leaned against the wall, trying to throw up.
Bai Meimei grabbed him and covered his mouth.
"Swallow it back!"
She sneered.
"You can't even handle a little blood?"
"What useless trash."
Time to Eat
Soon, two Discipline Department members pushed a food cart forward.
"Everyone line up!"
"Come collect your food!"
"And remember—"
"You must finish everything."
"Not a single bite can be left!"
Zhao Mu glanced at the food and felt slightly relieved.
Fortunately, it wasn't anything too disgusting.
The meal consisted of:
Tofu pudding
Chao gan (stewed pork organs)
Curry beef brisket rice
Zhao Mu calmly collected his portion.
Then he sat down beside the edge of the foul blood pool.
Without hesitation, he began eating.
The other trainees stared at him in disbelief.
To them, the food looked horrifying.
The white tofu pudding…
The yellow curry rice…
The chao gan…
Everything reminded them of the disgusting organs floating in the blood pool nearby.
The warehouse was small.
The stench filled every corner.
Under the scorching summer heat, the smell grew even stronger.
It felt like the entire building was a giant pot boiling corpses and waste.
After taking one bite—
Someone instantly vomited.
Zhang Biao burst out laughing.
"No vomiting!"
He pointed at the trainee.
"Whatever you throw up…"
"You must eat back!"
The trainees froze.
Zhang Biao continued.
"This food was bought with taxpayers' money!"
"Anyone who wastes it…"
He pointed toward the disgusting blood pool.
"…will jump in there and take a bath!"
Everyone nearly cried.
That threat was far worse than the food itself.
If someone jumped into that pool…
They would probably stink for months.
Their dormmates would refuse to let them enter the room.
Meng Qiuqiu finally understood what Zhao Mu had meant earlier.
"This… this was the test you were talking about?"
He looked at Zhao Mu with admiration.
Watching Zhao Mu eat calmly beside the blood pool made him look unbelievably cool.
"Brother Zhao…"
Meng Qiuqiu asked weakly.
"How can you possibly eat that?"
Zhao Mu took another bite before answering calmly.
"The most basic purpose of eating is survival."
He looked around the warehouse.
"If you treat food as something meant only to keep you alive…"
"Then taste doesn't matter."
He continued quietly.
"Any demand for food beyond survival is just luxury."
"Just like any desire beyond reproduction is merely indulgence."
The trainees were stunned.
Zhao Mu's expression remained calm.
"If you focus only on survival…"
"Then this meal becomes much easier to swallow."
And with that—
He continued eating peacefully beside the pool of blood.
An unforgettable meal had officially begun.
Advance Chapters avilable on patreon (Obito_uchiha)