Translator: CinderTL
One day remained until the start of the Rookie Tournament.
After breakfast that morning, Feng Qi pushed his luggage and led the group of students to the gymnasium entrance.
Three large buses were already parked outside the gymnasium, each with a sign on the window indicating the class it would transport.
Star City Academy had three participating classes: Combat Class Three (Feng Qi's class), Combat Class Six, and Combat Class Eight.
Combat Class Two had initially intended to participate, but after a friendly match against Combat Class Six, they realized they would only be making up the numbers and wisely withdrew.
This year's Rookie Tournament for the eastern region, like previous years, would be held in Victory City.
Victory Academy in Victory City had historically won the Rookie Tournament more times than any other academy.
Approaching the bus labeled "Combat Class Three," Feng Qi explained the situation to the smoking driver. He then led the students to load their luggage and board the bus.
Once everyone was accounted for, the driver took a final drag from his cigarette, tossed the butt into the nearby trash can, and climbed into the driver's seat.
Without waiting for the other classes, the driver started the engine and immediately drove the bus out of Star City Academy.
The scenery blurred past the bus windows as they left Star City Academy and headed toward Star City East District Airport.
After a two-hour drive, the bus pulled up inside the airport.
Feng Qi and the students disembarked with their luggage, shook hands with the waiting staff, and followed them toward the "special airport" area.
Soon, they boarded a plane specially prepared for Star City Academy.
The plane wouldn't take off until all the other classes arrived.
Feng Qi gathered Liu Yue and the others to discuss the upcoming Rookie Tournament.
He had thoroughly researched the participating classes from other academies, especially a detailed analysis of their approximate strengths posted on the Star City Academy forum.
Based on this information, they had spent the previous night brainstorming different strategies for facing each opponent.
As they chatted, the teachers of Combat Class Eight and Combat Class Six arrived with their students and boarded the plane.
After exchanging greetings, Feng Qi and the teachers from Combat Class Six and Combat Class Eight began counting their students to confirm everyone was present.
Once the headcount was verified, they reported the information to the staff.
Moments later, the plane slowly taxied onto the runway.
As the engines roared to life, the plane surged forward, pressing them back into their seats.
Excluding his memories from the Future Line, this was Feng Qi's first time leaving Star City.
In his memories from the Future Line, both times he left Star City, he was heading toward death, his heart filled with grim resolve.
As he watched the shrinking landscape outside the window, he felt a pang of emotion.
"Brother Qi, if we win the championship, how are you planning to spend the prize money?" Lin Ran asked curiously from beside him.
"Treat you all to a good meal at the Academy Cafeteria?" Feng Qi replied with a smile, turning to look at Lin Ran.
"Just that?"
"What, should we eat out? The food outside doesn't taste as good as what we get at the academy."
"True, but I'm still really looking forward to the Rookie Tournament. I participated back in my day and got crushed by Victory Academy."
Feng Qi's face showed surprise. "You participated too?"
"Of course. I'm not a freshman. I'm an exchange student from Winterfrost Academy, so I naturally participated in my first year."
"But aren't you in the cultivation class?"
"They temporarily transferred me to the combat class because my skills were decent. After the tournament, I went back to the cultivation class."
Understanding dawned on Feng Qi.
"What place did your class get back then?"
"Winterfrost Academy has been the eternal runner-up for ten thousand years, always overshadowed by Victory Academy. My year was no different—we got second place. But this year might be different. According to online analyses, Winterfrost Academy is the favorite to win, and our class is their biggest rival."
Through his casual conversation with Lin Ran, Feng Qi gained a clearer understanding of the Rookie Tournament.
The Rookie Tournament was a major annual event held in the eastern region, attracting significant online attention. The competition was broadcast live online.
Five academies were participating this year:
Star City Academy from Star City
Future Academy from Future City
Winterfrost Academy from Winterfrost City
Victory Academy from Victory City
Old Day City Academy from Old Day City, located in the eastern region's most remote district.
Only academies with combat departments participated in the Rookie Tournament.
Academies specializing in technology, formation studies, spirit medicine, and other non-combat disciplines did not participate.
During their conversation, Feng Qi turned to look out the window.
The plane had already left Star City, and through the window, he could see the other side of the world.
Domain Fields of various colors blanketed different regions, like parasites rooted in the human world.
The Domain Fields extended into the sky as well.
During flight, planes had to avoid specially marked Domain Field areas.
Many air disasters had occurred when planes flew into Domain Fields.
Domain Fields with rules completely different from the human world posed extreme dangers to aircraft. Plunging into one could trigger a series of terrifying events: gravitational imbalances, instantaneous disintegration, engine explosions, monster attacks... In the early days of Domain Field encounters, air disasters were tragically common.
Except for those Domain Fields marked as safe for passage, all specially designated areas remained strictly prohibited to air traffic.
Three hours later, the plane pierced through the clouds and began its descent.
Through the window, he glimpsed a bustling modern metropolis.
Victory City, a historic city and the most legendary in the eastern region, traced its origins back to the earliest days of the Domain Invasion.
To resist the encroaching Domain Fields, several cities had merged their military forces, forming the nascent Victory Army. This period of crisis forged closer ties between the cities, laying the foundation for what would become Victory City.
The name "Victory" embodied the early settlers' unwavering determination to repel the Domain Fields and their fervent yearning for triumph.
The ultimate victory had been bought with the sacrifices of millions of warriors and civilians.
Victory City, forged through a baptism of blood, houses Victory Academy, the only institution in the Eastern District that trains war commanders.
For over five centuries, numerous commanders of armies and domain combat teams have graduated from Victory Academy.
The academy's teaching model follows a purely elitist cultivation path.
Ten minutes later, accompanied by a sensation of weightlessness, the aircraft landed at the airport in Victory City's northern district.
As the plane came to a complete stop, the captain's voice announced over the intercom:
The cabin doors opened, and the passengers disembarked one by one.
Nearby, a row of buses awaited at the docking platform.
After shaking hands with the welcoming staff, they were escorted onto the buses.
The vehicles slowly pulled away from the airport, heading toward Victory Academy.
Along the way, Feng Qi gazed out the window, taking in the sights of Victory City.
Unlike Star City's modern architecture or Future City's futuristic, technology-driven aesthetic, Victory City's prosperity coexisted with numerous old buildings.
These structures, weathered by time, still bore mottled stains on their exterior walls.
Yet these buildings had been preserved.
Each of these buildings held its own historical tale.
From the former residences of heroes to the war command center and memorial halls, every inch of this land was steeped in historical significance.
After several hours of travel, dusk began to settle.
The vehicle arrived at the grand entrance of Victory Academy.
A bloodstained statue stood sentinel before the academy gates, radiating solemn majesty.
As the accompanying staff explained, the statue depicted Ji Xianfeng, the founder of Victory Academy and the eighth commander-in-chief of the Victory Army.
After the driver presented his credentials, the vehicle was permitted to enter, slowly rolling onto the academy grounds.
Stone tablets lined both sides of the road, each inscribed with the name of a war and the names of Victory Academy alumni who had fallen in that battle.
Along the 300-meter stretch of road, a tablet stood every few steps, each commemorating a different war.
Every name etched into the stone belonged to a martyr who had perished in that conflict.
The sight left Feng Qi deeply shaken.
He couldn't help but imagine those vibrant young students, full of youthful vigor, marching out of the academy with dreams of the future, only to meet their end on the battlefield.
After another ten minutes of driving, the vehicle pulled up in front of the dormitory building.
As they disembarked, a staff member immediately approached to greet them.
After confirming the dormitory arrangements, he led the students and their luggage into the building.
Moments later, he arrived at Room 1702, swiped his card, and entered.
After setting down his luggage, he returned to the front of the dormitory.
While waiting, Lin Ran and the others who had already unpacked their belongings gradually arrived.
Next, guided by the staff member, they proceeded to the Victory Academy cafeteria for dinner.
The meals at Victory Academy were identical to those served at Star City Academy the previous month.
Feng Qi wasn't surprised by this.
After all, the culinary teams from the various academies rotated monthly. It was highly likely that the team now at Victory Academy had been at Star City Academy last month.
After dinner, the group was escorted to Victory Academy's reception hall.
By 9:00 PM, the students from the five participating academies had taken their seats.
At that moment, the principal of Victory Academy, the host of this year's Rookie Tournament, arrived.
The principal appeared remarkably young, around forty years old, with a warm, approachable smile that radiated scholarly refinement.
After taking his seat on the dais, he began explaining the details of the tournament.
Thirty minutes later, his assistant brought out the lottery box.
As the representative of Combat Class Three, Feng Qi immediately rose and approached the podium to draw a lottery ticket.
A total of twelve classes were participating:
Three classes from Star City Academy Two classes from Future Academy Four classes from Winterfrost Academy Two classes from Old Day City Academy * One class from Victory Academy
Each class had sixty participants, except for Feng Qi's Combat Class Three, which only had ten.
The competition format was straightforward:
Round 1: The twelve classes were randomly divided into six groups (A through F), with two classes per group competing for the sole advancement spot.
Round 2: The six remaining classes were paired into three groups (A-B, C-D, E-F) to compete for advancement.
Round 3: One class received a bye, while the other two faced off.
Round 4: The final match.
Throughout the competition, classes eliminated from advancement continued to compete until all rankings were determined.
In the first round draw, Feng Qi drew Group B, which also included Combat Class One from Future Academy.
The results were immediately displayed on the large screen.
As Feng Qi returned to his seat, Lin Ran turned to him and said, "Brother Qi, the first match will be a cakewalk. With our strength, we'll crush them like dry leaves."
"Stay humble," Feng Qi grinned.
"But the second match against Winterfrost Academy's Combat Class Four should be a lot more fun."
During their casual conversation, Victory Academy's Principal Ji returned to the podium and began finalizing the competition schedule for the following day.
The final results were once again displayed on the large screen.
By the time Feng Qi returned to the dormitory building, it was already ten o'clock at night.
After bidding farewell to Lin Ran and the others in front of the dormitory, Feng Qi went back to his room.
The Victory Academy's dormitory rooms were larger and better equipped than those at Star City Academy.
He stepped onto the balcony, pushed open the glass door, and let the cool night breeze flood into the room.
Leaning against the railing, he curiously surveyed Victory Academy's nightscape.
From the 17th floor, he had a panoramic view of most of the academy grounds.
Just then, he noticed a figure standing on the balcony of the adjacent room to his left.
Turning to look, he found the person's attire strikingly peculiar.
Dressed in a crimson Daoist robe, the man held a Bagua compass in his right hand and gazed up at the starry sky.
The man's appearance struck Feng Qi as strangely familiar, as if he had seen it somewhere before.
As he racked his memory, he suddenly recalled where he had seen it.
He had previously searched the Star City Database for information about the Dawn Army, and the results included brief profiles of its members.
The database referred to the Dawn Army's top leadership as the "One Demon, Three Fiends, Eight Heavenly Kings."
The man's appearance bore a striking resemblance to Qin Shikong, one of the Dawn Army's "Three Fiends."
"Narrator, am I seeing things?"
N[o, you're right. He's the Qin Shikong from the photos you saw when researching the files.]
Hearing the Narrator's confirmation, Feng Qi nodded inwardly.
He completely understood why Qin Shikong would be here.
The Rookie Tournament wasn't just drawing attention from academy students and online viewers; many domain combat teams were also watching closely.
Every year, the group leaders of these teams personally attended the tournament to scout promising talents early on.
Qin Shikong's presence was perfectly normal under these circumstances.
As if sensing Feng Qi's gaze, Qin Shikong turned to look at him, a smile spreading across his face.
"Here to compete?"
"No, I'm here with my class."
Realizing this man was his counterpart from the next timeline, Feng Qi immediately replied with a smile.
"Bringing your class? You're so young to be a teac—Wait, are you Feng Qi?"
"You've heard of me?"
"Your reputation as a genius has been ringing in my ears lately."
Qin Shikong glanced up at the starry sky before turning back to Feng Qi.
"Interested in having me read your fortune?"
Feng Qi blinked in surprise. "Fortune-telling?"
"What, do I look like some unreliable charlatan?" Qin Shikong chuckled.
Feng Qi, a staunch skeptic of mysticism, hesitated for a moment before nodding.
"Alright, then give me a reading."
"Tell me your birthdate, zodiac sign... everything."
"Zodiac sign too?" Feng Qi asked, surprised.
"It's a fusion of Eastern and Western divination methods—my own creation," Qin Shikong grinned.
Hahaha, this guy's got some nerve! A self-invented fortune-telling method? That's just ridiculous! Let's see what nonsense he comes up with.
Feng Qi stared at Qin Shikong, mentally exhausted from trying to find the words to retort.
But remembering that they would be allies in the next timeline, he paused for a moment before reluctantly sharing his zodiac sign, birthdate, and other details.
With the information in hand, Qin Shikong gazed up at the starry sky, flicked his left hand, and held up the Bagua compass in his right, entering a mysterious divination trance.
After a series of incomprehensible gestures, Qin Shikong suddenly turned to Feng Qi, his expression astonished.
"Hey, how did I calculate that you'll die young?"
Feng Qi: ...
Hearing the Narrator's uproarious laughter, Feng Qi's lips twitched.
"Maybe you should try another reading?"
"Sure, let's cast another divination," Qin Shikong agreed immediately.
(End of the Chapter)
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