Chapter 2: The Draft
Over the next six months Long Shen followed a set routine wherein he would head to the gym first thing in the morning go to work and quickly farm for gold then head to the gym in the evening before cultivating. His body was noticeably improving even Goa Ge was shocked by his progress. It was clear that he had already reached the second level of the foundation stage. Goa Ge rolled over to Long Shen before he slipped his headgear on and whispered to him, "God Shen, I need to warn you. When you hit the third level of the foundation stage you'll be eligible for the draft."
Long Shen tilted his head, "You mean military service will be compulsory?"
Goa Ge nodded and then said, "People from Earth are sent right to the front lines in the war. We aren't Angelic so we aren't given the best roles. We are used as grunts."
Long Shen nodded and then smiled, "Well, that should be something I won't have to worry about for a while, right? You said it takes decades to reach that level of cultivation."
Goa Ge frowned and then said, "God Shen, what level of cultivation do you believe you are at right now?"
Long Shen chuckled, "I can only be at the first level, right?"
Goa Ge frowned and then shook his head, "There's no way you are at the first level, you look ready to break into the third level if you haven't already. Let's arm wrestle. If I am right, we'll be evenly matched."
Long Shen and Goa Ge moved over to a table and locked arms. Goa Ge started to slowly use his unnatural strength but Long Shen's arm never budged. Goa Ge's forehead broke out in a sweat as he pushed himself to his limits. Long Shen's arm never budged. Goa Ge roared and unleashed his full strength of elven men and still, Long Shen's arm wouldn't budge. Goa Ge cried out, "Enough!"
As they let go Goa Ge shook his head with a smile on his face, "God Shen, you aren't just at the third level, you are a half step fourth level at least."
Long Shen looked shocked as he stared at his hand in disbelief. He looked at Goa Ge and asked, "Do I need to report for the draft or will they find me?"
Goa Ge sighed and then said, "God Shen, you need to report to the Church, the priest there will test you and then you'll be assigned to the Angelic military. Failure to report will mean death if an inquisitor notices you. You need to go right now."
Long Shen nodded and then flew out the door as he sprinted to the Church. Everyone knew that the Angelic Inquisition was not to be trifled with. They had the power to smite heretics and cultivators that rebelled against the Church. When the Angelic first descended on the Earth it changed the entire planet as entire religions were wiped off the planet. Those that survived were the ones who were willing to adapt to the Angelic religion. Long Shen never really cared for religion, but he came to all of the compulsory masses to avoid becoming marked by the Inquisition. The Angelic Church was a building that was twice the size of a football stadium. It could seat half a million easily. Long Shen didn't feel safe until he made it to the ticket line.
As he stood in the line he started to use his breathing to calm his mind and body. Thankfully it was a Tuesday morning so the line was short, only ten thousand. The ticket counter was very efficient so the line moved quickly. Most of the people in the line were either fanatic true believers or people trying to be seen as faithful in order to improve their chances of being recognized for advancement in their careers.
When it was finally Long Shen's turn he smiled at the ticket lady and said, "Hi, I am a cultivator and I was told I need to present myself for the draft."
The girl smiled at him and then took out a hand stamp, "You'll go to the east entrance and show the doorman the stamp, they will lead you to the testing center. You're in luck because the line is short today. Only a thousand or so."
Long Shen nodded and then made his way around the building. He walked up to the doorman and showed him the stamp. The doorman grinned and said, "Congratulations young warrior. Just head through the door and make the first right. The military service office is down the left corridor. You'll be assigned a number as you come through the door, the system will announce your number and then you'll check-in at the window it indicates." He clapped his hand down on Long Shen's shoulder and said, "I used to be a soldier like you, but then I took an arrow to the knee." He tapped his prosthetic leg and said, "Those damned demons are fierce. Give then them hell for me when you see them."
Long Shen nodded unsure what to say. He suddenly felt very awkward as he followed the doorman's directions. When he arrived at the military service office he found himself in a huge warehouse-like room that was under the bleachers of the Church. As he sat down a message popped up on his contact telling him that his number was B96. After that, he saw that they were currently looking for G15. He sighed and decided to spend this time researching military service on the network.
As Long Shen browsed through the information he was startled by how rigorous the training was going to be. He made sure to take notice of the standards for behavior that were expected in the military. He didn't want to embarrass himself by being a recruit that spoke out of turn or didn't follow orders as he read horror stories from former soldiers about their own mistakes and the extra training they received as punishment. Long Shen was so engrossed in his reading that he almost missed the flashing B96 in the corner of his vision. He quickly made his way over to the window it pointed him to where he found an overweight middle-aged dark-skinned woman staring at him coldly.
"Did you think you were special because you are some wealthy family's young master?" She rotated her head in disgust. "Mhmm, well you better drop that attitude honey cause you are trash as a fresh recruit. Don't make people wait for you just because you can cultivate." She angrily typed something on her console and then said, "Go stand in the exam line recruit Long."
Long Shen could only follow her orders without making any excuses as he had no idea how long he had made her wait. The exam line took longer than the initial check-in. When it was finally his turn he was taken into a small room where a nurse took all of his vitals and then asked him to stand under a metal box. She smiled and said, "Ok, the last test. Just press your hands under the box like you are lifting it. Try as hard as you can."
He walked under the box and then pressed up against it as hard as he could. The nurse whistled and said, "Wow, you are lucky you came in finally. You are a half step level five. Didn't your family teach you that you need to report when you reach level three?"
He blushed and then coughed, "I only started cultivating this year. My brother was shocked that I managed to progress that much. He didn't expect that I would have even reached stage two."
The nurse was smiling and then suddenly dropped her tablet as an expression of shock covered her face. She bent down to pick up her tablet and then quickly composed herself. Then she moved up to him closely and whispered, "Make sure that you never mention how long you have been cultivating. If they find out, you'll only bring trouble to yourself."
Long Shen was stunned he gave her a look in the eyes and then nodded slightly. She led him into another office and told him to have a seat. A few minutes later the priest came in and sat down, "At ease young man, I don't bite. I was looking over your attendance records. It seems you only ever come to the compulsory masses. Is there a reason you never attend the voluntary masses?"
Long Shen thought for a moment and then said, "Your Reverence, I work as a VRMMO gold farmer, so I need to dedicate myself to being disciplined with my work. I work seven days a week."
The priest nodded and smiled, "I notice that you were an orphan, where did you learn a cultivation technique?"
Long Shen wasn't sure if it was alright to say but something about the way the priest was looking at him made him feel it was best, to be honest, "Your Reverence, it's true I am an orphan, I have no idea which family I am from. I was found and brought to an orphanage as a baby. I have a coworker that became a close friend. We are sworn as brothers. He is the last living member of his family and can't have children of his own so he felt that since we are like brothers now, I should be allowed to learn his family technique so that I might keep it alive by passing it to my own children."
The priest smiled and then looked over something and then asked, "Goa Ge? He was a good soldier. You have a good brother there, I hope you can make him proud. You are now an authorized recruit. We'll pack your things and notify your employer. You just need to head out that door and get on the bus. You won't need any of your belongings they will be stored for you until your service ends." He reached out and shook Long Shen's hand, "May God bless you, soldier. You are in the Lord's service now."
Long Shen was a little nervous as he headed out to the bus loading zone. A soldier with a tablet called out, "Recruit Long, bus 48." Long Shen looked at the row of buses and found number 48. He quickly got in line with the other recruits. Once he was on the bus everyone there looked forward not daring to utter a word. It was clear that this had happened far too fast for them. They had expected to be able to see their families, clear up loose ends and ready themselves for their service after applying for the draft. Long Shen only worried about standing out too much. The warning he received from the nurse was still in his head.
A younger portly man waded down the tight aisle of the bus and sat heavily next to Long Shen. He turned to look at his seat partner and said, "Yo, I'm Ding Lai, my friends call me Fatty Lai." He held out his hand. Long Shen saw that the others nearby were terrified the portly man would get friendly with them as well.
Long Shen sighed internally and then smiled and shook his hand, "Nice to meet you, Fatty Lai, I'm Long Shen, my friends call me God Shen."
Fatty Lai made a face and rolled his eyes, "God huh? Pretty arrogant guy."
Long Shen chuckled and shook his head, "No, it's not what you think. They call me the Gold Farming God. I play VRMMOs for a living."
Fatty Lai shook his head and then chuckled himself, "I wonder how long it will be until we eat. I am starving."
Just as he spoke the soldier with the tablet who had called his name climbed on the bus and took a seat the bus driver closed the door and then the bus lifted off the ground and shot forward aggressively. Pressing everyone into their seats. No one spoke for the fifteen minutes it took for the bus to shoot out of the city and deep into the forest eventually the bus landed on top of a tall mesa that looked like a huge island in the sky. The soldier stood up and shouted out, "Listen up maggots. Step off this bus and stand in rows just like you are seated on the bus. The man sitting next to you is your bunkmate. The inside seat on the bottom, the outside seat on the top. Bus 48 is now Squad 48. I am Sergeant Xian you will only refer to me as Drill Sergeant. Is that understood?"
Everyone on the bus all shouted out, "Yes Drill Sergeant!"
Leaving the bus was a disaster as the recruits lined up in crooked lines some with horrible posture. Long Shen had read enough to know how and where to stand. He motioned for Fatty Lai to do as he did. Sergeant Xian walked down the line straightening the recruits out and forcefully adjusting slouchers. After checking everyone out he walked up to the front and shouted, "Memorize your place here. From now on each morning you will always line up in this same order. You will line up for food, for the toilet, for training, and for sleep in this same order. I expect this squad to be a team. The last man will be treated the same as the first man. If one of you made a mistake, you all made that mistake. You have already made several mistakes this morning so drop and give me two hundred pushups."
Squad 48 shouted out in unison, "Yes Drill Sergeant!"
The first day went by in a blur. Each time a recruit made a mistake they had to drop and do another two hundred pushups. Even as cultivators so many pushups started to wear them down. Long Shen noticed that his bunkmate Fatty Lai was one of the worst offenders for making them do punishment exercises. It was clear that his weight and his attitude had drawn the ire of Sergeant Xian. After they had dinner they were instructed to come to a cultivation room. Sergeant Xian walked around the room as they all sat down in the lotus position. He shouted out, "Alright maggots I don't give a shit about what cultivation technique you are used to using. Today you will start using the military technique. You'll all use this chant each night together. Repeat after me. 'My body, my soul. My life for the Lord.' Picture in your mind kneeling before the Lord, then the Lord granting you power." He walked around the room and smirked, "Listen here maggots, you will be facing a demon army filled with fourth level experts. Do you think your pathetic third level cultivations will help you? Everyone in this squad needs to be at the fourth level by the end of boot camp. I promise you, those who aren't won't survive the first battle."
The entire room started to repeat the chant as Long Shen tried to imagine the scene of himself kneeling before the Lord the voice in his mind roared, "Stop that ridiculous chanting. A dragon bows before no one." Once again Long Shen found himself at the lake, the red rock was glowing as it spun. The voice continued, "A dragon stands above all. You have built your body, now earn respect on the battlefield." Long Shen felt a rush of power fill his body. He found himself roaring like a dragon. Everyone in the room opened their eyes and looked over at him as they saw his muscles visibly bulging and writhing. His face was red and he shook like he was in a rage his fists clenched in tight fists.
Sergeant Xian's eyes opened wide in astonishment, "Don't look at him, he had a breakthrough, work on your own cultivation or he'll be the only one of you left alive in six weeks when you are thrown into actual combat. That's the power of the Lord's cultivation. Breakthrough to the next level just like recruit Long." Sergeant Xian looked at Long Shen closely. Right next to Long Shen, Fatty Lai went back to cultivating he realized that Long Shen had stopped doing the same chant as everyone else so he spoke up louder to cover his friend's chant.
Sergeant Xian heard Long Shen's chant and shook his head, he overlooked it because he had an obvious breakthrough. He would speak to him later away from the others. He slowly walked around the room and watched as they cultivated. He saw a couple of others who looked ready to have a breakthrough. The fatty caused him to frown, he would keep putting extra training on the group until they shamed him into losing weight or made his life so uncomfortable that he gave up and was assigned to a useless support position away from the battlefield. He looked over his squad and frowned. He had a bad feeling that his group would come in last causing him to lose face with the other sergeants. Aside from Long Shen, he didn't see a single soldier in the bunch.
Something about Long Shen felt different from other soldiers. He looked again at his recruitment data. Peak fourth level cultivation. He raised an eyebrow, that meant he just entered the fifth stage? Sergeant Xian had only broken through to the fifth level himself after four years on the front lines facing life and death struggles at thirty years old and he was considered a rare genius. Sergeant Xian could only shake his head, he noted the file about the breakthrough and highlighted his name for future command training. He might make corporal by the time they finish their first campaign.
Weekly Power Status
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Ranking 
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