“Playing with me?”

Baili Pangpang ran towards the training ground with a mournful face, not knowing where he got the strength from. He had been a mess in bed just a moment ago, but now he was running as fast as the wind!

As the night had dissipated, Lin Qiye had to rely on his own speed to run towards the training ground. Fortunately, he was not slow, and he arrived at the training ground within three minutes.

This time, there were clearly more people who arrived on time.

However, there were still a few who had just finished running 20 laps, either falling behind or passing out as soon as they reached the training ground.

As soon as someone passed out, a group of medics would rush over with stretchers, carrying the person away like a sandbag, cheerfully and skillfully.

Instructor Hong looked at his stopwatch and nodded in satisfaction.

“Very good, this time most of you arrived on time, showing improvement.”

Then, he continued, “The next twenty minutes are your mealtime. If you don’t return here within twenty minutes, you know the consequences.”

After speaking, he left with two other instructors without looking back.

The new recruits looked at each other and then ran frantically to the cafeteria!

Even the seemingly lifeless Baili Pangpang perked up and dashed to the front, looking as if he wanted to devour the entire cafeteria.

When the new recruits rushed into the cafeteria like tigers, they suddenly froze in place at the sight before them.

In the vast cafeteria, there were square tables with two large basins on each table. One basin was filled with steamed buns, and the other basin was filled with meat.

The meat still had traces of blood on it… raw meat.

The new recruits walked into the cafeteria, standing next to the square tables and looking around in confusion.

“Where’s the food? Where are the dishes?”

“I don’t know?”

“What is this? Raw beef? How are we supposed to eat this?”

“Maybe they’ll bring out a hot pot later and cook it…”

“I don’t think so.”

“…”

Lin Qiye and Baili Pangpang stood at a table, the latter frowning as he picked up the two large basins, as if trying to find food at the bottom of the basin.

“Qiye, what do they mean by this?”

“It doesn’t mean anything, they just want us to eat.”

“How are we supposed to eat this? They didn’t even give us water for the steamed buns, and the raw meat makes me sick… even a jar of chili sauce would be better!”

Lin Qiye didn’t say anything, just gestured to the table next to them.

At the next table, Zheng Zhong, who came from the special forces, had already picked up the raw meat expressionlessly and was tearing into it with large bites. With his other hand, he wiped the blood off the meat and stuffed it into his mouth.

Baili Pangpang looked on in shock, unable to speak for a while.

“Where are the people? Come out!” Shen Qingzhu threw the steamed buns back into the basin and shouted in a deep voice.

Soon, an old man with a ladle came out of the kitchen with a dark expression. “Who the hell is making a fuss?”

“Is this stuff meant for people to eat? Do you look down on us?!” Shen Qingzhu glared at the old man, speaking coldly.

“Love to eat? Eat it. Don’t want to? Get lost!” The old man glared and replied irritably.

“Oh?” Shen Qingzhu raised an eyebrow, about to say something else, when a few more people walked into the cafeteria.

They were wearing gray cloaks and masks, walking straight through the center of the cafeteria and sitting down at the round table in the back.

At that moment, everyone fell silent.

This time, they were not wearing masks, but everyone knew who they were.

“Well, well, you little rascals.” The old man smiled when he saw the seven people.

“Sun Lao, it’s been so many years, and you’re still cooking for the new recruits in the cafeteria?” Wang Mian, with a handsome face, stood up respectfully and said.

The other members of the Mask Team also stood up and bowed slightly to Sun Lao.

“Heh, I’m an old man who can’t go to the battlefield, so I can only show off my skills in this lousy kitchen.” Sun Lao waved his hand, not caring much.

“I’ve been away for so long, and I really miss your cooking. I’ll have to trouble you again this time.”

“Ah, don’t worry about it. Just wait here, and I’ll make a few dishes for you.” Sun Lao picked up a ladle and walked into the kitchen, completely ignoring the new recruits.

With the Mask Team present, the other new recruits dared not stop Sun Lao, and could only frown and look at the steamed buns and raw meat in the basin, motionless.

“Go ahead and eat.” Lin Qiye reached into the basin and took out a piece of steamed bun, taking a bite.

The steamed bun was very hard and had no taste at all, as if chewing on wax.

“I… I can’t eat this.” Baili Pangpang felt a bit nauseous at the sight of the raw meat.

“Don’t eat, you won’t last through today’s training.” Lin Qiye nibbled on the steamed bun and said lightly, “And in the future, when you’re on the battlefield, no one can guarantee that there will be food everywhere. If you don’t want to starve to death, you have to learn to adapt early.”Having said that, Lin Qiye grabbed another piece of raw meat, took a deep breath, closed his eyes, and bit off a large chunk.

Baili Pangpang clenched his teeth and also took a bun from the basin to gnaw on.

Mo Li, who had been watching from the side, struggled for a long time but finally made up her mind, hugged the raw meat in the basin, and started to eat. Cao Yuan, standing opposite her, had already finished an entire piece of meat without changing his expression, shocking the new recruits for a whole year.

Shen Qingzhu’s face darkened slightly, and after a cold snort, he also started to eat.

Gradually, more and more new recruits began to eat, but the vast majority still stood in place with faces of resistance, preferring to go hungry rather than eat what was before them.

In the room on the second floor, Instructor Hong looked down at the entire cafeteria and nodded slightly.

“Not bad, there are more people who can eat this time than the last batch, and among them are a few good seeds.”

“Mm, that Zheng Zhong is truly worthy of being a special forces soldier, not even frowning as he eats. Lin Qiye is also good, but what surprised me is that Shen Qingzhu has started eating too…”

“Hmph, he’s just a military ruffian!”

“Old Hong, judging people can’t always be based on appearances. I think he’s just a bit prickly in nature, but essentially not bad.”

“You have a high opinion of him?”

“People change, after all. This year of intensive training will change a lot of things. Who knows what they’ll be like on the day they leave this place.”

Instructor Hong shrugged, noncommittal.

“Speaking of which, in this day and age, do we still need to be so strict?” The new instructor next to him hesitated and asked, “No matter how tough it is, do we really need to eat raw meat?”

Instructor Hong slowly closed his eyes, as if recalling something, “Over eighty years ago, when the Night Watchman was first established, it coincided with a great disaster, and food was scarce everywhere… Those years, our predecessors survived on tree bark and grass roots, fighting desperately with knives against the supernatural!

Even now, with economic development, some things should not be forgotten! Every batch of new recruits who come for training must eat raw meat for their first meal! It’s already quite generous not to feed them grass roots and tree bark. This is the tradition of the Night Watchman, it was so in the past, it is so now, and it will continue to be so in the future.”

Instructor Hong paused, then opened his eyes to look out the window and slowly said:

“Until the day comes when this country no longer needs the Night Watchman, these ancient traditions will also be buried forever in history, along with those secrets unknown to the public…”