“Have you heard? Another powerhouse has emerged in our department.”
“I know, I know—that amazing person who challenged a third-level as a first-level and won.”
“Yeah, this is the only person since Senior Zhao Heng in our department who can challenge across levels.”
“But it’s not the same, right? We all know Senior Zhao Heng’s strength, but I heard this person applied for a level restriction. Even though the opponent was third-level, they could only use first-level abilities.”
“That was true at first, but that third-level student got desperate in the end, directly broke through the restriction, and unleashed all their energy. Not only did they lose, but they were also crippled.”
“Right, right. I also heard the opponent is still lying in the medical ward and can’t even sense their Transcendent Ability anymore.”
“That brutal? What exactly is that first-level student’s Transcendent Ability?”
“I heard they can transform their body into weapons.”
“How come I heard it’s a hand that can cut through anything?”
“Isn’t it an earth-diving type Transcendent Ability?”
“It’s reflection, isn’t it?”
“Huh? Isn’t it ‘whoever they glare at gets crippled’?”
“What? Whoever she glares at gets pregnant!”
“What? She eats children!”
“What…”
Su Xi, who had been listening to the rumors all the way: “…”
If this keeps spreading, she’ll ascend to heaven!
Since the incident at the Star Duel Arena, Su Xi had been hearing all sorts of bizarre rumors, each more outrageous than the last. The way others looked at her had also changed, inexplicably tinged with fear. She couldn’t understand why—both were cases of challenging across levels—Zhao Heng was the department’s star, while she had become the great demon king?!
“Hey, Su Xi!” Just as she was thinking this, a certain star took the initiative to approach her. “I heard all about it—you crippled that third-level student from the Elemental System. I didn’t expect you to actually win.”
“…” Can we not bring this up?
“It seems my guess was right.” Zhao Heng’s eyes lit up with excitement. “Your ability targets Transcendents—not only can you help others awaken, but you can also completely cripple them.”
Su Xi had actually anticipated Xiao Ren’s crippling. The energy the opponent suddenly unleashed at the time was too terrifying, and in her panic, she directly attacked the other’s Consciousness Sea.
Yes, it was an attack, not a shield.
The opponent’s Consciousness Sea was definitely injured, but at the time, she wasn’t sure how severe the damage was—whether the entire Consciousness Sea had collapsed or only part of it was injured. But none of that mattered anymore. The result was that the opponent’s Transcendent Ability was crippled.
Regarding this, Su Xi felt no sympathy whatsoever. After all, the other party had started it and should bear the consequences. Moreover, the opponent had gone all out to kill her—if she hadn’t fought back, she would be the one lying in the treatment ward now.
What Su Xi found strange was the academy’s attitude. For such a major incident, even if they didn’t pursue accountability, they should at least have questioned her to understand the situation. But miraculously, the school did nothing, as if they had tacitly accepted the outcome.
Zhao Heng was right—the academy truly didn’t interfere in private fights between students.
“It seems it won’t be long before you receive a pile of challenge letters!” Zhao Heng suddenly said.
“What?” Su Xi was startled. What kind of horror story are you telling?
Zhao Heng, however, chuckled, with a hint of schadenfreude in his tone. “You’re now the genius in our department second only to me—the amazing person who challenged two levels above. Did you think it was over just because you defeated Xiao Ren? At the very least, those guys from the Elemental System will definitely come to challenge you again.”
“You mean they’ll stand up for Xiao Ren.” What kind of grudge is this?
“Not exactly,” Zhao Heng shook his head and explained, “They simply want to save face. There’s always competition between the different departments of the academy. Since you defeated someone from the Elemental System, they naturally want to win back.”
“…”
“And not only that,” he continued, “Other departments also want to test your limits, especially the Transcendence Department—they’ll definitely come.”
“Why?”
“Because they lost to me,” he patted his chest proudly. “Since they can’t beat me, the top-ranked, they’ll naturally want to challenge you, the second-ranked genius.”
What the hell?
“Wait, I haven’t received any challenge letters!”
“That’s because the academy has a rule: the same person can only be challenged once every three months,” Zhao Heng explained. “Besides, the academy tournament is coming up soon, so they’re too busy for now.”
“What should I do then?” This seems never-ending.
“There’s no way around it. Either admit defeat or do what I did—take on ten at once and beat them until they don’t dare challenge you again,” Zhao Heng patted her shoulder. “Anyway, with that Transcendent ability of yours, you can just cripple anyone who comes.”
“…” If it really came to that, she’d end up offending the entire academy.
“Sigh, if I’d known your Transcendent ability was this overpowering, I wouldn’t have worried this time. You’d win anyway,” Zhao Heng said.
“I only won by luck this time, and it was all thanks to you,” Su Xi said with a hint of bitterness. “If it weren’t for the technique you taught me, I wouldn’t have been able to dodge the opponent’s attacks at the start.”
“What technique?” He was taken aback.
“The diagram you sent me earlier,” she pointed to her Intellect-Brain.
“What?!” Zhao Heng’s eyes widened. Hadn’t he retracted it? “You… you understood it? Just from that one glance?”
“Yeah!”
“You really understood it?” He looked utterly incredulous.
“Of course. Look…” As she spoke, she brought two fingers together and channeled Divine Power. In the next moment, a faint layer of white light appeared at her fingertips. Though it hadn’t solidified, it inexplicably radiated a chilling aura.
Zhao Heng froze completely, staring at her as if he’d seen a ghost. How was this possible? Back then, he had…
“By the way,” Su Xi, unaware of his shock, continued, “What exactly is this technique? It feels incomplete somehow.”
“How did you know?” he blurted out, his eyes filled with astonishment. After a moment, he seemed to remember something, his gaze drifting away. A mix of conflicted emotions flickered across his face, as if he were hesitating. Finally, he gritted his teeth and said, “Um… about this… Divine… about this technique, you haven’t told anyone else, right?”
“Of course not. Didn’t you say it’s a family secret and shouldn’t be shared?” she nodded.
“That’s good, that’s good…” He seemed to relax, but then couldn’t help adding, “Um… you remember what you promised me, right?”
What promise? Su Xi paused for a moment before remembering. “Oh, right, the Divine Grace Day holiday. Don’t worry, I’ll go to Qiping Star with you on time.”
“As long as you remember. If there’s nothing else, I’ll head back first.” He turned to leave, almost as if fleeing in a panic.
“Wait!”
“What now?” He stiffened.
“Let’s make a deal,” she pointed to the window in front of them. “Next time you come, could you not climb through the window?”
Having someone’s head suddenly pop up at the window in the middle of the night is really terrifying, you know.
“Oh, I get it.” He made an OK gesture, then… deftly slipped back out the window again.
Su Xi: “…” Get it my foot!
Grrr!