Su Xi was genuinely worried that once the three months passed, she would be flooded with Star Duel Arena challenge notices. Currently, she could only mobilize a tiny wisp of Divine Power. Fighting against first-level opponents was manageable, but if she were to face a third-level opponent head-on, she would likely be instantly defeated. Unless, like last time, she directly attacked the Consciousness Sea—but she couldn’t possibly incapacitate every challenger, could she?
Just as she was fretting, her Intellect-Brain received another notification first.
“What’s this?” She was momentarily stunned by the sudden pop-up notification, which displayed a few shimmering golden characters: “Supernova Grand Competition” Participation Notice.
“Wow, this is the participation notice for the Academy Grand Competition!” Yaya exclaimed excitedly, looking at her with delight. “I knew you’d definitely qualify, Su Xi. There are only a hundred slots for first-year students across all four systems.”
“But I didn’t sign up for it.” She hadn’t even participated in sports events back in university.
“You don’t need to sign up for this—it’s all based on voting. Look…” As she spoke, she opened a voting list and pointed at it. “The rewards for the Academy Grand Competition are incredibly generous, and the top prizes can even enhance Transcendent Abilities. That’s why so many people sign up every year. But since first-year students have just awakened their Transcendent Abilities and lack combat strength, the academy limits participation to a hundred slots to prevent accidents. Selection is based on voting results.”
“…” What voting? She had no idea about this.
“You just defeated a third-year student from the Elemental System, so your combat prowess is undeniable. Look… you’re ranked first!” She pointed to the top of the list, where Su Xi’s name indeed appeared. “Senior Zhao Heng was also a first-year student back then. In the previous competition, he dominated third and fourth-year students so thoroughly that he was exceptionally promoted directly to the third level.”
Yaya grew more and more animated as she spoke, grabbing Su Xi’s hand with starry eyes. “I heard his strength is actually comparable to a fourth-level Transcendent, but he chose to remain at the third level. Maybe you’ll be the next Senior Zhao Heng, Su Xi!”
“…” Can I withdraw from the competition? Thanks!
Su Xi carefully scanned the participation notice and searched the academy’s network but found no option to withdraw. Well, it seemed she couldn’t back out. She could only ask Yaya for details about the competition.
“The specific competition content won’t be revealed until the day of the Grand Competition,” Yaya explained seriously. “Although it’s an individual competition, students from the same system and level often form alliances. I wonder how many first-year students from our Conceptual System will qualify this year?”
“How many participants are there from other Transcendent levels?” she couldn’t help but ask.
“At least a thousand,” Yaya replied. “There’s no limit on participation for second-level students and above. Many people try their luck, and there are even more third and fourth-level participants.”
From this perspective, the hundred slots for first-level students were indeed very limited.
Su Xi had initially wanted to withdraw, but upon second thought, wasn’t this an opportunity? The Academy Grand Competition wasn’t like the Star Duel Arena, where fights were mandatory. As long as she was eliminated early, those who wanted to challenge her would naturally realize her true strength wasn’t that high, and they’d stop sending challenge notices.
Instantly reassured, she waited for the competition. Soon enough, the day of the Grand Competition arrived.
The Academy Grand Competition was not only a top-tier event within the Academy of Divinity but also across the entire star system. Su Xi had imagined the competition would be grand, but she never expected it to be this spectacular. Even the competition venue wasn’t within the academy itself but on another planet.
That’s right—the entire planet served as the competition grounds. The academy had specially opened a temporary, independent Star Gate. By passing through the Star Gate, participants could reach the planet directly, eliminating the need for lengthy interstellar travel.
“Students, first of all, welcome to this year’s ‘Supernova Grand Competition.’ Let me briefly say a few words…” Above, a meticulously dressed academy Leader began a lengthy routine speech. It seemed that the winds of formalism had indeed blown their way into the interstellar realm.
Su Xi was too far away to see the speaker clearly. She filtered out the stream of useless chatter in her ears until, an hour later, she finally heard some useful information.
“This competition will last one month, with victory determined by points. After passing through the Star Gate, everyone will be scattered to various corners of the planet. Your Intellect-Brains have been forcibly activated in emergency mode, automatically preventing fatal injuries and teleporting you back to the Star Gate. Let me emphasize two points again…”
Su Xi was startled—the competition would last a month! That meant she would have to survive alone on an unfamiliar planet for an entire month. Remembering the survival kits the academy had distributed to each participant, she quickly opened her Intellect-Brain’s Storage Space to take a look. To her surprise, the small survival kit contained everything: food, clothing, tools, and even a simple shelter, all compressed into the small bag using spatial technology.
Just as she was marveling at this, the “brief few words” from above finally concluded after two hours.
“The detailed point rules have been sent to your Intellect-Brains for your review. I hereby declare the ‘Supernova Grand Competition’ officially open!”
As soon as the announcement ended, the previously quiet Star Gate hummed to life. White light gathered at its entrance, instantly forming a passageway. The drowsy crowd, having waited impatiently, instantly snapped awake and surged toward the Star Gate.
The first to enter were the third- and fourth-year students, followed by the second-years, and finally the first-years, who hurried forward. Su Xi didn’t hesitate either, following the crowd through the Star Gate.
All she felt was a flash of white light and a brief moment of disorientation before her feet landed softly on a patch of soft ground. The rustling of leaves echoed in her ears. Looking around, she found herself in a dense forest. Unfamiliar trees blocked the sky, casting a dim light over the surroundings.
Her fellow students were nowhere to be seen, leaving her alone. It seemed everyone had been scattered.
Su Xi had read the materials beforehand. This planet was no smaller than Earth, and although tens of thousands of participants were competing, it was highly unlikely for them to be assigned to the same location on such a vast planet.
She opened the competition rules on her Intellect-Brain and read them carefully. Only then did she understand that this competition was point-based. The planet was teeming with Xeno-beasts. These so-called Xeno-beasts weren’t unique to any particular planet but were a common species throughout the star system.
They lacked intelligence, fed on planetary energy, came in many varieties, were massive in size, and reproduced at an alarming rate. They also possessed various bizarre abilities, growing stronger with higher tiers. At the seventh tier, they could even traverse the stars with their entire species, earning them the name Astral Exotic Beasts.
The Star Alliance invests significant effort each year to clear out Xeno-beast packs that have spread to various planets. Currently, this competition planet harbors quite a few Xeno-beasts, though those above the Fifth Rank have already been cleared, leaving only those from the first to fourth ranks.
The objective of this competition is to eliminate them. Points are awarded as follows: 100 points for killing a fourth-rank beast, 50 points for a third-rank, 10 points for a second-rank, and 1 point for a first-rank.
Of course, there is also competition among the students themselves. Eliminating other students also earns points: 50 points for a fourth-year student, 10 points for a third-year, 1 point for a second-year, and for first-year students like them, 0.1 point.
First-year student Su Xi: “…”
It seems the academy has a very clear stance on first-year students like them—emphasizing participation above all else.