Jin Huang went off in search of Qin Shuyue, but was not able to find her right away.
The Club Fair felt endless, cloud platforms stretching into drifting layers, banners overlapping like constellations of noise and color. Voices blended together into a constant hum of shouting, laughing, chanting, and recruitment pitches. Eventually, he ended up coming across someone he recognized from Class Four; a young man that was impossible to miss.
Wu Shen.
Wu Shen stood atop a raised cloud dais that had been very deliberately thickened and polished beneath his feet, its surface gleaming faintly like pearl. His arms were crossed, his posture rigid, his chin lifted at an angle that suggested he was addressing both the crowd and the heavens simultaneously, as if the stars themselves were part of his audience.
Behind him hovered three other first-years wearing identical robes and identical expressions of reverent exhaustion, as though holding his presence together required constant spiritual effort.
A banner floated overhead, gleaming in gold and white light:
"Path of Supreme Ascension Association -- For Those Destined to Lead (Unofficial Club)"
Jin Huang's smile went crooked.
It twisted even more when Wu Shen noticed him and immediately scowled.
The younger student's body, adorned in splendid embroidered dragons, bent as he reeled back, and his face contorted as though he had just smelled something deeply offensive. "It's you! The bumpkin that can't cultivate!"
His voice rang out sharply, carrying across the platform.
Quite a number of people looked over at Jin Huang. Some recognized him instantly from his performance at Madame Cho's. Others only knew the name. Either way, his presence drew attention like a magnet.
"Hey, Wu Shen. Did you start your own club? That's cool." Jin Huang waved casually.
"Hmph," one of Wu Shen's lackeys snorted coldly and flicked his sleeve, spiritual fabric snapping in the air. "Piss off, trashbag! Lord Shen is trying to attract prodigious students to his club."
"Heh, yeah, piss off. We don't want you," said the other, eyes full of open disdain.
Jin Huang frowned slightly, but his eyes never left Wu Shen, treating the other two like they didn't exist in his eyes. "I didn't know freshmen could start clubs."
Wu Shen stepped down from the dais, robes swaying dramatically as he sucked his teeth. "Freshmen are allowed to create unofficial clubs. If they acquire enough members with considerable potential, they can be promoted to an official club right away. If not, the club captain has to wait until second year for it to be legitimized."
He waved his hand dismissively.
"Now piss off. I don't want any of your braindead, gluttonous fans crowding me."
He swatted the air like he was banishing a fly, making it very clear that Jin Huang was not welcome within ten steps of him.
Jin Huang tilted his head.
"Well, I just thought you should know that the true geniuses aren't interested in any of these clubs. I heard Dao Yuan and Li Qingyu say that they were gonna be joining the Eternal Recalcitrance Club. I figured you'd be interested—what with you being a once-in-a-generation genius and all."
Wu Shen groaned loudly, face twisting in irritation. "Just get the hell away from me, damnit! Who cares about those two!?"
Jin Huang was chased away like a mangy mutt, but he kept his playful smile the entire time, hands in his sleeves, expression almost amused by the whole exchange.
He ventured further into the fray and soon found a large, chaotic setup. In the midst of it were a number of tables designed for all sorts of gambling activities—dice tables, spirit-card boards, spinning talisman wheels—and an expensive-looking banner that read:
"Gambling Addiction Support Group - Support Your Gambling Addiction!"
There he found Shen Wuyou.
He was in the middle of a heated game of dice, surrounded by a dense crowd.
"Come on, come on, double pills!" yelled a scruffy third-year, veins bulging.
"Surely Senior Student An will win this time. He's brought out Ronda and Rando, his twin golden dice!" said an onlooker dramatically.
"I don't know. Something about the dice in that first-year's hands has thrown off the whole balance of the game," muttered someone else, peering through a magnifying glass as if fate itself could be analyzed.
Shen Wuyou flicked his wrist and tossed his dice from one end of the table. His opponent, Senior Student An, did the same. Their dice rolled across the table, bypassing piles of spirit stones, spatial rings filled with spirit stones, and spatial rings containing bags of holding that contained even more spirit stones.
The dice clattered, spun, and came to a halt.
One set totaled three.
The other totaled two.
"The winner is the First-Year, Shen Wuyou, with double pills!"
The crowd erupted. Double pills- two ones- seemed to be all Shen Wuyou was capable of throwing.
Cheers exploded from every direction. Students jumped, laughed, cursed, and screamed in disbelief. Some chanted his name. Others chanted:
"Gambling Saint!"
"Gambling Saint!"
Collecting his winnings under the bitter, hollow stares of the club members, Shen Wuyou calmly retrieved his dice and stood up. That was when he saw Jin Huang.
His smile widened instantly.
"Jin Huang! You should've told me you were coming!" He walked over and clapped a hand on Jin Huang's shoulder. "I owe you for this and all my wins thus far. Come, let's go celebrate."
As he started to pull Jin Huang along, Jin Huang took out a jade talisman.
"Have you seen? Hei Shisan's got a club, and I think it might be the perfect one for us."
Shen Wuyou's head tilted. "Hei Shisan? That troublemaker's got a club? Have the staff gone mad?"
Laughing, Jin Huang continued, "It's called the Eternal Recalcitrance Club. He said joining is the best option for us. Gave me this jade and told me to recruit you. He also said you can join any other club you want—just be there when he calls."
Smirking, Shen Wuyou snatched the jade and chuckled. "As long as I can have more crazy adventures, I'll do anything. I'm in!"
After that, Shen Wuyou immediately went off in search of more people to win money from.
Jin Huang continued his search for Qin Shuyue.
As he walked up to another cloud platform, he noticed a large group surrounding one of the club booths. While trying to make his way through, he heard a voluminous thud and felt a tremor beneath his feet.
Then people cried out. Someone had been punched so hard that they flew backward and knocked over a whole portion of the crowd like bowling pins.
Looking toward where the body had been launched from, Jin Huang realized that Li Qingyu was responsible.
He sat at a simple table with two stools on either side. On it rested nothing but a jar of wine and two cups. His face carried a faint rosy tint, his posture relaxed, loose, almost lazy.
Above him, the signage read:
"Wine Gods and Goddesses Club."
Li Qingyu exhaled. A faint aromatic aura drifted from his breath and pores, the inebriation dispersing into the air like mist.
"Who's next?" he said, half-smiling.
The crowd cheered—even the ones that had just been knocked over. Some clutched their ribs, arms, legs, and backsides, wincing in pain while still shouting in approval.
Jin Huang smiled wryly and stepped forward. "Hey, Li Qingyu."
Nodding, Li Qingyu sat back down. "So the famed Jin Huang approaches. Are you here to challenge me for a spot in this club?"
Jin Huang chuckled and sat. "Not that. I'm here to ask you to check out Hei Shisan's club. If he thinks you've got the stuff, he'll invite you in."
Li Qingyu's eyes flashed with interest. "Hei Shisan? Number Thirteen? I heard he's a wild card, but is also one of the most amazing students the Academy's ever seen."
Jin Huang nodded, his smile widening.
"Hm! He's a troublemaker, with no respect for elders or the laws of the Academy."
Jin Huang's smile became meek, and he swallowed.
Li Qingyu narrowed his eyes, then moved. He grabbed the jar, poured, filled both cups, and slammed the jar down.
"I'll tell you what," he said. "If you can out-drink me, I'll go check his club out."
"Really?" Jin Huang beamed.
Nodding, Li Qingyu raised his cup. "He sounds like an interesting man. I've heard enough about this world to know that those who blindly follow the rules are far too spineless to ever reach the peak. Only pioneers—troublemakers—can carve their own path to the top."
Jin Huang raised his cup.
They clinked.
They drank.
It went without saying that Jin Huang easily stomached far more wine than Li Qingyu could handle.
After making sure Li Qingyu knew exactly where to find Hei Shisan's club, Jin Huang resumed his search for Qin Shuyue.