Chapter 74: A New Star Joins God Gym
Garion began to walk down the line of young cultivators, stopping whenever he saw a login arrow above someone’s head.
Every time he nodded, that person stepped forward, nervous but excited.
One by one, almost a hundred chosen gathered near him.
The rest just watched silently, uncertain what was happening."
Dahlia frowned, crossing her arms.
"Master, what exactly are you doing? Is your idea just to directly pick one hundred without even testing them?"
Garion smirked.
"So what? Didn’t you do the same thing earlier? I’m just being more professional about it."
"Professional?" she repeated flatly.
Garion nodded confidently.
"Yep. Just by looking at their bodies, I can already tell who fits our God Gym style."
Dahlia squinted at him.
"Really? Because from what I see, all the ones you picked have the best faces, but their bodies... well..."
Dahlia flipped her hand back and forth.
"Let’s just say I’ve seen better and sturdier bodies from other recruits."
Garion could only smile a little, forcing a laugh.
’The system chose them... I can’t exactly say that out loud, can I?’
He rubbed the back of his neck instead.
"I can tell that once they train with us, their bodies will develop nicely. Don’t worry too much. Just trust me."
She raised an eyebrow.
"Trust you? Last time I did that, we flew here on a fucking tree log!"
Garion grinned wider.
"Hey, that worked, didn’t it? And besides, did you forget what you said a few months ago?"
Dahlia blinked.
"What did I say?"
Garion looked at her teasingly.
"You said, ’If we ever get new members, make sure they’re young, handsome, or beautiful. It’ll make the view better.’ Remember that?"
Dahlia’s face turned red immediately.
"I-I was joking!"
Garion’s grin widened.
"Well, I’m just fulfilling your wish. You should thank me for my thoughtfulness."
Dahlia groaned.
"Damn it, Master..."
She rubbed her forehead and sighed.
"Fine, fine. Do whatever you want. I just hope you didn’t pick wrong."
Garion smiled smugly.
"Of course I didn’t."
After a few minutes, Garion had finished selecting exactly one hundred people.
The crowd began to relax, assuming the process was over, until Garion suddenly walked toward the center of the remaining ones.
There, one young man stood frozen, not knowing why Garion stopped in front of him.
Garion looked at him and just smiled as he looked at the golden arrow.
The other recruits began to whisper again, wondering if this one would be chosen too.
Dahlia, on the other hand, looked confused.
"Master? You said you’re going to choose one hundred outer disciples. Why are you choosing another?"
Garion turned and smiled.
"Those one hundred are indeed outer disciples. But this one..."
He pointed at the boy.
"He will be my new personal disciple. The same status as you, Dahlia."
The other went silent.
Dahlia blinked, surprised.
"Are you serious, Master? Him?"
She glanced at the boy again. He was around fifteen, maybe sixteen.
He was slim, not very tall, and honestly a little too handsome for his own good, and his eyes were full of uncertainty.
Dahlia tilted her head.
"He looks... fragile. His body’s smaller than mine. Are you sure about this?"
Garion chuckled softly.
"Don’t worry, Dahlia. I just feel something from him, like the spark I felt when I first met you."
She frowned but eventually sighed
"Alright, alright. I get it, Master. Your instinct hasn’t failed us yet."
Garion nodded, satisfied, and turned back to the boy.
"What’s your name?"
The boy straightened up nervously, voice trembling a little.
"A-Arden, Master."
Garion’s grin returned instantly.
"Good. From now on, Arden, you’ll be my second personal disciple. Welcome to the God Gym."
Arden’s eyes widened in shock, then quickly lowered as he bowed deeply.
"T-thank you, Master!"
Garion pointed at Dahlia beside him.
"That’s your senior sister. Make sure to greet her properly."
Arden turned and bowed again.
"Senior Sister Dahlia."
Dahlia blinked, then smiled faintly, a little proud and a little amused.
"Well, aren’t you polite. You can call me Dahlia. But don’t expect me to go easy on you."
Arden nodded quickly.
"Y-yes, Senior Sister."
Garion laughed softly, watching the exchange.
"Good. You two will get along fine."
Dahlia smirked.
"Of course. I’ve always wanted a junior to boss around... uh, I mean, train properly."
Garion rolled his eyes.
"Just don’t break him too early."
She grinned.
"No promises."
Garion turned toward the elder, who was still watching them.
"Alright, Elder. That concludes the selection. We’ve got a hundred outer disciples... and one new personal disciple."
The elder nodded approvingly.
"Very well. I’ll return and report the results. Good luck with your new recruits, Sect Master Garion."
Garion waved casually.
"Thanks. They’ll need the luck more than me."
Dahlia smirked, cracking her knuckles as she turned toward the wide-eyed group of outer disciples.
"Alright, everyone. Welcome to the God Gym. Time to see if your pretty faces can survive real training.
---
Garion crossed his arms and focused his mind, calling out the system.
’Alright, system. I’ve recruited one personal disciple and a hundred outer disciples. Now, give me my reward.’
A familiar blue screen appeared.
[Mission: Recruit 100 new members.]
[Progress: 100/100]
[Reward Unlocked: 100 Outer Disciple Dormitory Rooms constructed.]
---
[Mission: Recruit one new personal disciple.]
[Progress: 1/1]
[Reward Unlocked: 1 Personal Disciple Room constructed. Personal Disciple Dormitory upgraded.]
Garion blinked a few times, waiting for more to appear and... Nothing.
’Wait... that’s it? Just rooms? No bonus or items? Not even a special protein shake?’
He quicklyu opened the main interface and checked the God Gym’s level.
[God Gym Level: 1]
Garion quickly groaned.
’Still level one?! Are you kidding me? I just recruited over a hundred people.’
He waited for a few seconds, hoping the system would respond. As usual, it stayed completely silent.
’Yeah, of course. Ignored again.’
He sighed, rubbing his temples.
"Fine. I guess just getting the new rooms is already something. But seriously, this lazy system..."
He stared at the screen for a bit longer, sighing again.
"Looks like I’ll have to make Dahlia reach the Second Realm if I want the God Gym to level up."
With that, he dismissed the screen and turned away.
"Always making me do the hard work..."