“Upon reaching Gold Rank, I gained a new understanding of my ability. If I can fold objects I touch, why can’t I fold the omnipresent air?”
Professor Yuan formed his right hand into a pistol shape, pointing his index finger at a white mannequin not far away. “Fold, then fold again…”
A vacuum-like void appeared at his fingertip, and the air in the training room instantly rushed towards it.
Before everyone’s eyes, a tiny, sky-blue cube of air quietly materialized in front of his index finger.
“And so, I began developing my ability towards precision control, ultimately creating this technique.”
“I’ve named it: Air Cannon.”
With that, Yuan Fei made a ‘bang’ sound with his mouth, his right hand mimicking the recoil of a gunshot as he slightly raised it diagonally upwards.
The crystalline, sky-blue air cube then slammed into the white mannequin at a speed imperceptible to the naked eye.
Next second,
A fierce gust of wind suddenly erupted within the room, causing the students’ hair to fly wildly. The two white mannequins were blasted apart at their waists, shattering into countless fragments.
They scattered across the floor with a clatter.
“The inspiration for this technique came from anime, which is why I asked if any of you were into two-dimensional culture.”
Yuan Fei turned to face the students.
“One person’s imagination is ultimately limited. You must learn to leverage the creativity of others to develop your own abilities.”
“Novels or anime, born from the imagination of their creators, serve as excellent sources of inspiration.”
“Therefore, I will assign you a task.”
Yuan Fei smiled. “Find an anime or novel online with abilities similar to your own, watch or read it, and then write a short essay—around 1,000 words—reflecting on the future development of your own ability.”
Upon hearing that they had to write a 1,000-word essay, a collective groan of despair instantly swept through the students.
Wails of lamentation filled the air.
After finishing his explanation, Professor Yuan did not continue lecturing.
Instead, he allowed Huang Xiu and the others to study independently.
He claimed it was to give them time to digest the day’s knowledge.
However, today’s lesson was indeed full of valuable insights.
The idea of determining different development directions for abilities during different periods was particularly useful.
Especially the final point about drawing inspiration from anime and novels to develop one’s abilities.
This offered Huang Xiu an entirely new perspective.
Watching Professor Yuan walk out of the classroom with light steps, she remained lost in thought, recalling how many plant-related abilities existed in the anime and novels she had seen.
“The First Hokage Hashirama’s Wood Style can actually be considered a plant-based ability,” Huang Xiu mused, touching her chin.
When it came to plant-related abilities, Wood Style was an unavoidable benchmark.
This was not only due to *Naruto*’s widespread popularity but also because of the sheer power of Wood Style itself.
With his Wood Style and unparalleled chakra reserves, Hashirama earned the title of ‘God of Shinobi’.
“In some ways, my [Senluo] actually bears a resemblance to Wood Style.”
Wood Style was a ninjutsu primarily focused on controlling trees.
[Senluo], however, could mutate plants into any form Huang Xiu imagined, and trees were naturally no exception.
Whether it was the Deep Forest Emergence or other Wood Style techniques, as long as her ability was strong enough, she might be able to replicate them.
“It seems *Naruto* holds significant value as a reference!”
A flicker of excitement passed through Huang Xiu’s eyes. She yearned for class to end immediately so she could return to her dorm and rewatch *Naruto*.
Checking the time, she realized there was still about an hour left until class was dismissed.
She silently grumbled, noting that Professor Yuan seemed even more eager for class to end than the students.
Just as she was about to stretch and idly browse on her phone, a male student suddenly stood up in front.
He surveyed the room and announced loudly, “Excuse me for interrupting, everyone. My name is Tian Rong. Didn’t the teacher just say we need to elect class representatives next class?”
“I suggest we use this time to hold an internal class election. This way, we won’t have to take up everyone’s free time later.”
“What are your thoughts?” Tian Rong asked with a smile.
His words were not without reason; after all, class representatives had to be elected sooner or later, so why not get it done during class time?
Many students nodded in agreement.
As the initiator, Tian Rong naturally took charge of the election.
“Alright, since everyone agrees, those of you interested in running for class representative, please sign up!”
“Just send me a private message stating which position you’d like to run for.”
After speaking, Tian Rong proceeded to outline several rules.
For instance, there was no limit to the number of votes each person could cast, but candidates could only run for one position, and speeches were limited to a maximum of three minutes.
These rules were all reasonable, making the informal election feel surprisingly legitimate.
“This guy has some talent!” Huang Xiu whispered to Ying Zhiyu, who was sitting beside her.
Holding an election might seem simple, but controlling the situation without any leadership skills was truly impossible.
Ying Zhiyu nodded emphatically, sharing the sentiment. “I bet he was a class monitor before.”
“By the way, Sister Xiu,” she asked, looking at her phone, “which position are you planning to run for?”
‘Me?’
Huang Xiu rubbed the smooth black casing of her phone, feeling a bit conflicted.
Among the three positions, class monitor was undoubtedly the best.
However, she had never been a class monitor since she was a child, and now she wasn’t sure if she could handle it.
To be honest, she preferred not to run at all and simply be a regular student.
But she needed to compete for a scholarship, and being a class representative was a necessary step.
Excluding the class monitor position, Huang Xiu thought for a moment and made her decision.
“I’m running for the Practical Activities Committee member,” she said, pulling out her phone and signing up under that position. “Xiao Yu, are you running too?”
“Yes.” Ying Zhiyu nodded vigorously.
“My mom specifically told me that university is a new beginning. She wants me to strive for excellence, secure a spot for postgraduate studies, and compete for any class representative positions.”
Huang Xiu listened with a wry smile, reminding her, “But we don’t have automatic postgraduate admissions here… Still, it shouldn’t be too difficult. You can certainly try!”
“It’s fine, I’ve already signed up for class monitor.”
She chuckled, “Anyway, the important thing is to participate.”
“What a coincidence, I also signed up for class monitor,” Bu Chenghua said, turning around with a smile.
Huang Xiu looked at Liu Lu, noticing a stiffness in her expression, and asked curiously, “Liu Lu, what did you sign up for?”
“Don’t ask…” Liu Lu sighed, tilting her head back. “I also signed up for the Practical Activities Committee member!”
It wasn’t long before the class representative elections began.
Tian Rong conducted the election in the order of Class Monitor, Study Committee Member, and Practical Activities Committee Member.
The class monitor position was the first to be contested, and undoubtedly, many people ran for it.
Many had already started campaigning during the registration phase, and this election did not restrict the number of votes each person could cast.
Some of the initial speakers, despite presenting well and making promises as if they cost nothing, all received roughly the same number of votes.
Huang Xiu cast her votes for both Bu Chenghua and Ying Zhiyu.
However, what surprised her was that Bu Chenghua, leveraging his so-called nine years of experience as a class monitor, managed to garner a significant number of votes.
He temporarily became the candidate with the most votes.