After entering Ling High School, Huang Ming immediately felt the surrounding atmosphere become heavier. The academy grounds were enormous, far larger than anything outside the campus walls. Towering metallic structures stretched endlessly toward the sky while glowing streams of spiritual energy flowed across transparent barriers surrounding different sectors of the school. Thousands of students moved throughout the academy courtyard dressed in white and silver uniforms, many carrying weapons at their sides, while others radiated spiritual pressure strong enough to make weaker students instinctively avoid eye contact.
Compared to everyone around him, Huang felt painfully ordinary.
No—
Worse than ordinary.
Attached to his chest was a silver-colored insignia displaying the words he hated seeing most.
Trainee Warrior
The lowest rank possible at Ling High School.
Students with higher rankings naturally received more respect, more cultivation resources, better instructors, and greater opportunities. Some students entered the academy already capable of controlling spiritual energy, while others came from powerful cultivation families with access to techniques far beyond standard academy teachings.
Meanwhile Huang struggled simply trying to maintain basic cultivation progress.
"You're nervous again," Xiu Meiying said while walking beside him through the crowded courtyard.
"I'm always nervous here," Huang answered honestly. "Everyone in this academy feels like they could kill me accidentally."
"You exaggerate too much."
"I'm serious. Look around. Half the students here look like final bosses."
Xiu covered her mouth while laughing softly.
Floating holographic screens hovered high above the academy pathways, displaying rankings, academy announcements, and combat records from previous evaluations. Nearby students gathered in groups discussing cultivation techniques, elemental compatibility, and ranking matches while instructors dressed in black combat uniforms silently observed everyone from elevated platforms overlooking the courtyard.
Huang quietly lowered his gaze.
At Ling High School, rankings determined almost everything.
Future opportunities.
Cultivation resources.
Division placement.
Even the way other students treated you changed depending on your rank.
Students like Luna Ling and Kael Riven stood at the very top.
Students like Huang barely remained visible.
As Huang remained lost in thought, a loud mechanical sound suddenly echoed throughout the academy grounds.
BZZZZT.
Every holographic screen shifted instantly before glowing blue text appeared across the displays.
FIRST-YEAR EVALUATION BEGINS IN 10 MINUTES
ALL FIRST-YEAR STUDENTS REPORT TO TRAINING SECTOR THREE
The atmosphere around the academy immediately became more active as students began moving toward the designated evaluation area.
Huang stared at the floating message before quietly sighing.
"… I suddenly feel sick."
"You'll survive," Xiu replied casually.
"That confidence definitely isn't directed at me."
Before Xiu could continue teasing him, a calm voice suddenly spoke nearby.
"You lack confidence before the evaluation has even begun."
Huang immediately stiffened before slowly turning toward the source of the voice.
Luna Ling stood only a short distance away.
The moment Huang saw her again, his brain nearly stopped functioning.
Her long black hair rested neatly behind her shoulders while the silver-white insignia attached to her uniform reflected softly beneath the academy lights.
Warrior Saint Candidate
The highest possible rank for a high school student.
Everything about her felt distant and untouchable.
Even the surrounding students unconsciously maintained space around her.
"O-Oh… good morning," Huang said awkwardly.
Luna's calm violet-colored eyes rested silently on him.
"You are Huang Ming."
Huang nearly choked on air.
"She knows my name?!"
The thought exploded inside his head immediately.
"Y-Yeah…"
For several seconds, Luna quietly observed him.
"You seem weaker than your academy records suggest."
Huang felt emotional damage strike directly into his soul.
Beside him, Xiu instantly turned away to hide her laughter.
"That somehow sounded way more insulting than I think you intended," Huang muttered weakly.
"I was simply stating an observation," Luna answered honestly.
Huang suddenly realized something terrifying.
She genuinely wasn't trying to insult him.
That had simply been her honest conclusion.
Before the awkward atmosphere could continue any longer, another wave of pressure suddenly spread throughout the academy courtyard. Nearby students instinctively moved aside as a tall young man calmly walked through the crowd.
Kael Riven.
Unlike Luna's quiet elegance, Kael radiated sharp intensity. His posture was flawless, his movements controlled, and every step naturally carried overwhelming confidence.
Attached to his chest was a golden insignia.
Elite Division
The highest-ranked first-year student.
Whispers immediately spread throughout the surrounding students.
"That's Kael…"
"The strongest first-year…"
"I heard he already defeated upperclassmen…"
Kael ignored the surrounding attention completely while calmly walking forward. His sharp eyes briefly shifted toward Luna before eventually landing on Huang.
The pressure was immediate.
Huang instinctively stiffened beneath the cold analytical gaze.
It felt as though every weakness inside him had been exposed instantly.
"… Why does it feel like I'm about to be executed?" Huang whispered nervously.
Xiu nearly laughed beside him.
"Maybe because you look suspicious."
"How do I look suspicious?!"
"You were drooling over Luna ten minutes ago."
"That was unrelated!"
Kael continued staring at Huang silently for several moments before finally speaking calmly to Luna.
"The instructors are waiting."
Luna gave a small nod before following him toward the evaluation grounds. The moment both of them left, nearby students immediately erupted into discussion.
"Kael and Luna are participating in the same evaluation…"
"This year's first-years are monsters…"
"I heard Luna already formed partial Qi circulation…"
"There's no way…"
Huang quietly watched the two distant figures ahead of him.
One possessed overwhelming perfection.
The other possessed overwhelming strength.
And him?
He was barely managing to survive at the academy.
A strange frustration slowly settled inside his chest.
Not frustration toward them.
Frustration toward himself.
No matter how hard he trained, something always felt wrong with his cultivation. His body never adapted correctly to academy techniques, and every attempt at improvement ended in imbalance or failure.
Before his thoughts could sink any deeper, a familiar voice suddenly echoed calmly inside his mind.
"Your emotional state is unstable."
Huang's eyes widened slightly.
Lyra.
Ever since awakening inside the fractured inner dimension, her voice occasionally appeared during moments of stress.
"… You again."
"Your breathing pattern has become uneven."
"… I noticed."
"Your body reacts abnormally when comparing yourself to stronger individuals."
Huang quietly frowned.
"… You really know how to emotionally destroy someone."
A brief silence followed before Lyra responded calmly.
"That was not my intention."
Despite the situation, Huang almost laughed.
Even now, she still sounded more like an analyzing machine than an actual person.
Yet strangely—
Her presence felt calming.
"ALL FIRST-YEAR STUDENTS REPORT IMMEDIATELY TO TRAINING SECTOR THREE!"
An instructor's amplified voice suddenly echoed throughout the academy grounds.
The crowd of students quickly began moving toward the massive training sector ahead.
Huang quietly exhaled before tightening his grip around his academy bag.
Today's evaluation would determine rankings, cultivation resources, future opportunities, and academy treatment.
And for students ranked at the bottom—
One mistake could destroy everything.
As Huang walked toward Training Sector Three alongside thousands of other students, he completely failed to notice several academy instructors silently observing him from one of the floating towers overlooking the campus.
More specifically—
They were watching the strange, irregular fluctuations occasionally appearing around his body.