Everyone grew more and more excited as they spoke. Teacher Lin, who had been floating in the air above, also flew over. She tapped Niuniu’s forehead with a bent finger, checking her state and incidentally waking her from her meditation. Satisfied, she nodded and said, “Not bad. To reach this level in your first meditation session is quite an achievement, though it’s only a semi-awakening. Keep working hard—you’re not far from becoming truly Transcendent.”
“Thank you, Teacher Lin,” Niuniu nodded and asked earnestly, “May I ask, Teacher, what does it mean to be Transcendent?”
“Hmm?” Teacher Lin was momentarily taken aback, seemingly not expecting such a question. She raised her hand and opened the student’s information file. “Ah, you’re from a newly joined initial civilization in the Star Alliance. These questions of yours are quite basic. So-called Transcendence refers to the special power bestowed by the gods upon individuals, allowing them to surpass the ordinary. It is the exclusive glory of the God-Blessed. Each person’s Transcendent abilities are different. I’ll send you some materials and a reading list later—you’ll understand after going through them.”
With that, she flew back into the air, raised her hand, and withdrew the Magic Array above. “You probably won’t be able to enter a second round of meditation today, so the class ends here. Class dismissed!”
As soon as she finished speaking, Su Xi felt her surroundings darken, and in the blink of an eye, she was back in the empty study room.
Was it over already? She checked the time—only two hours had passed.
And according to the freshman class schedule, there was only one meditation class in five days. School life was surprisingly relaxed.
Over the next few days, Su Xi focused on studying the Consciousness Sea. However, since that incident, she seemed unable to enter others’ Consciousness Seas again. Was it due to distance? Or could she only enter others’ Consciousness Seas during meditation?
Moreover, the Transcendent Ability Teacher Lin mentioned was likely related to each person’s Consciousness Sea. So what was her ability? That sphere? But after several days of meditation, aside from spinning more cheerfully, the sphere in her Consciousness Sea showed no other changes.
Just as she was about to search for some information, her Intellect-Brain beeped several times. It was a message from Captain Lyu, instructing everyone to gather at Aunt Wang’s place for a meeting to discuss important matters.
Su Xi immediately headed to Aunt Wang’s dormitory. As soon as she pushed the door open, a wave of heat and fragrance enveloped her. Seated around a steaming table were four familiar faces, enthusiastically… eating hotpot!
“Oh, Xiao Xi, you’re here! Come over quickly. We’ve just started. Do you want the spicy pot or the clear broth?” Aunt Wang poked her head out from the kitchen and waved her over.
Was this a meeting or a team-building event? Su Xi frowned disapprovingly, glancing at the four people who were too busy eating to even look up. She stepped forward and declared righteously, “I’ll take the extra spicy one!”
“Great! I’ll mix the dipping sauce for you right away,” Aunt Wang replied before returning to the kitchen to busy herself.
Su Xi promptly pulled out a chair and joined the four in grabbing food. Good thing she made it in time—there was only one piece of shrimp paste left.
Two hours later.
The group, now stuffed to the brim, each held a cup of tea and sprawled on the sofa, finally getting to the main topic of the day.
“Ahem!” Captain Lyu cleared his throat, trying to regain his authoritative demeanor as team leader. “We’ve been enrolled for a few days now. Let’s all share what we’ve discovered.”
“Ahem, then I’ll be the first to say a few words.” Gu Mingjie spoke up first, habitually adjusting his tie. “I’ve been reviewing a lot of the school’s materials and documents these past few days and discovered that the Academy of Divinity is quite different from ordinary universities. It has independent law enforcement and autonomy rights, meaning even the Alliance can’t interfere with the academy. Additionally, our academy doesn’t operate on an academic year system but rather a rank system.”
“Rank?” The others were taken aback; this was something they hadn’t known.
“That’s right,” Gu Mingjie continued. “Unlike universities on Blue Star, studying at the Academy of Divinity isn’t about completing fixed semesters to graduate. Instead, you must reach a certain Transcendent Rank; otherwise, you can’t be considered a student of the Academy of Divinity.”
“So what is the Transcendent Rank?” Captain Lyu asked.
“The so-called Transcendent Rank refers to the level at which an individual awakens their Transcendent Ability. According to the information I found, there are nine ranks in total. Among them, being able to awaken and freely control one’s own power is considered Rank One. Only by reaching Rank One can one join their respective Transcendent Department. Right now, we’re only considered students of the preparatory department. To graduate, you must reach Rank Four, and most of the academy’s teachers are Transcendents of Rank Five or Six.”
“So, does that mean everyone in the school can awaken superpowers?”
“You could say that. Star River Academy has four major Transcendent Departments, each categorized based on the Transcendent Ability they awaken. First is the Transcendence Department, which focuses on self-enhancement, such as strength enhancement, speed enhancement, sensory enhancement, and so on. Next is the Elemental System, which involves manipulating natural energy, like Transcendents who can summon wind, fire, thunder, or electricity. Then there’s the Psychic-type, which includes all mental-based Transcendents, such as telekinesis, spatial manipulation, mind control, and the like. Finally, there’s the Conceptual System. Their Transcendent Abilities are very unique and come in all sorts of strange forms. Anything that doesn’t belong to the other three major Transcendent Departments falls under the Conceptual System.”
“So that’s how it is…” With this explanation, it seemed they would be separated after awakening. Captain Lyu frowned and turned to the others. “Tell us what you’ve discovered.”
“Me, me, me!” Jamie quickly raised his hand. “These past few days, Aunt Wang and I went out to explore and found that the place we’re in is only the academy’s outer campus. Many facilities aren’t open to the outer campus. Only after awakening Transcendent Abilities and joining one of the four major departments can you enter the inner campus, which is the core of the academy.”
“That’s right, that’s right,” Aunt Wang nodded. “Those places don’t allow entry. If you get too close, the wristband alarms go off.”
“I’d like to add something…” Niuniu spoke softly. “Although the school operates on a rank system, there’s still a three-year time limit for the outer campus. If you haven’t awakened a Transcendent Ability and reached Rank One within three years, there’s a high chance you’ll be expelled.”
The group was startled, instantly recalling those older students from the last Meditation class who seemed much more anxious compared to the other freshmen. They had initially thought those students, like themselves, were from newly joined civilizations and thus not subject to age restrictions for enrollment. But now it seemed they were held back?
“Good, this information is very important,” Captain Lyu nodded affirmatively at the group, then shifted the topic. “But I’ve also gathered some even worse news.”
Captain Lyu sighed, his expression growing heavier. “Does everyone remember Cinderleaf Planet, which invaded Blue Star? I found out yesterday that there are also Transcendents from Cinderleaf Planet in the Academy of Divinity, and the other party is currently a third-level Transcendent.”
Everyone was shocked, and Gu Mingjie anxiously asked, “Captain Lyu, are you saying they’ll come looking for trouble with us?”
“It’s not impossible,” he said seriously. “The invasion back then involved divine punishment, so the alliance imposed the maximum penalty. Cinderleaf Planet almost lost half its civilization as compensation. And unless it’s something like a direct invasion, deities generally don’t intervene in conflicts between civilizations under normal circumstances.”
Su Xi: “…” What if she wanted to break the norm?
The group fell silent instantly. A third-level Transcendent—they hadn’t even awakened to the first level yet. If trouble came their way, it would indeed be hard to guard against.
“But this is just my speculation, and the academy won’t just stand by either,” Captain Lyu quickly added to reassure them. “Right now, our most important task is to gather all the information we can and do our utmost to awaken as Transcendents.”
Then he turned to look at Su Xi, and the others followed suit, their eyes fixed on her. It’s your turn to speak. What did you discover?
“Uh…” Could she say she’d spent the past few days tinkering with her Consciousness Sea and found nothing? Su Xi stiffened, forcing herself to speak up. “I discovered that I might… perhaps be able to help others awaken as Transcendents.”
“What?!”
Clatter!
The cups in everyone’s hands fell to the ground, splashing water all over her pants. Five figures stood up in unison.