His Name Arrived Before He Did

Su Yu was working hard at cultivation, striving to complete his three goals.

At the same time, Daxia Civilization Academy.

This was an incomparably vast academy, with pavilions and towers stretching as far as the eye could see—commercial districts, residential districts, teaching districts, Secret Realm Areas, exchange districts...

The areas were divided one after another, making it seem like a small city.

Admissions Office.

Bai Feng had just emerged from seclusion. After more than a month, he stepped out of his home again and breathed in the fresh air.

At the entrance to the Admissions Office, Bai Feng strolled inside at an unhurried pace.

It was not yet admissions season, but this place was already extremely busy. Before long, recruitment assessments would begin in various regions.

"Old Zhou, cut me some slack. That's my nephew. I'll bring him in and teach him myself! His Myriad Races Language proficiency isn't bad, he has talent for divine characters, and his Willpower isn't weak either. Just take a little care of him when the time comes..."

"Absolutely not!"

Amid the crowd, a middle-aged man shouted, "Not even if you teach him yourself! If he can't pass the basic threshold, it doesn't matter whose nephew he is—I won't let him through!"

"Old Zhou, you're clearly trying to hold me back!"

"Cut the act. There are records from Tianfeng City. Your nephew spent five years at a middle academy and mastered three basic Myriad Races Languages. And you call that not bad? Who are you trying to fool? Without talent, coming here would only waste resources. If you can't bear to let him go, take him home and teach him yourself!"

"You!"

"What about me? What, do you want to fight me?"

"I..."

"What about you? You're just a junior researcher. You think you can challenge me, a mid-level researcher?"

"..."

The clamor boiled over. Bai Feng shook his head. In the entire Civilization Academy, this was probably the noisiest place.

Some had come to pull strings through the back door, while others had come to recruit gifted youths from various cities in advance.

An ordinary person truly could not keep order in a place like this.

Bai Feng did not go over there. He found a quieter window, waited for a while, and soon it was his turn.

"Help me check Su Yu from Nanyuan Middle Academy. Has his file been updated recently?"

The young girl at the window blushed slightly when she saw Bai Feng and hurriedly said, "Assistant Bai, I'll look it up for you right away."

Bai Feng wore a smile, but inwardly he thought, This girl won't do. I won't come to her window next time!

Why call him Assistant Bai?

Could she not call him Researcher Bai?

"Su Yu, student of the Nanyuan Middle Academy Pre-exam Class. Passed assessment in eighteen Myriad Races Languages, Kaiyuan Fifth Stage, accumulated 21 Merit Points, recommended by Nanyuan instructor Liu Wenyan. Comprehensive score: 300. Lower-middle."

"Lower-middle?"

Bai Feng nodded slightly. This was Daxia Civilization Academy's internal evaluation. Based on the scores submitted in recommendations from each city, lower-middle was not good, though it was not particularly bad either.

"For this year's assessment, around 200 points should be enough, right?"

The girl hurriedly replied, "That hasn't been confirmed yet, but based on previous years' records, 200 points should be more or less sufficient."

For every Myriad Races Language mastered and passed through assessment, there were ten points.

For the Kaiyuan First Three Stages, each stage was worth ten points.

For the middle three Kaiyuan stages, each stage was worth thirty points.

Apart from Merit Points rewarded for Myriad Races Languages, every additional Merit Point earned counted as ten points.

With Su Yu's comprehensive score of 300, getting admitted would not be difficult.

Of course, students would not be told this during the assessment. If something unexpected happened to a student, they would be given a second chance at assessment. That was the advantage of talents recommended by each city—they did not need to fear one mistake.

Under normal circumstances, a Kaiyuan Third Stage student who had mastered seventeen Myriad Races Languages would definitely pass the assessment.

Some people earned unexpected Merit Points, so their requirements were even lower. Mastering around fifteen Myriad Races Languages would be enough to pass.

Or, at Kaiyuan Fourth Stage, mastering fourteen Myriad Races Languages would suffice.

Thus, when Su Yu had mastered eighteen Myriad Races Languages and reached Kaiyuan Third Stage, he had practically been guaranteed a place. Nothing unexpected should have happened.

Back in Nanyuan, Su Yu had been certain to pass the Civilization Academy assessment and could be considered a genius. Yet at the time, Su Yu's evaluation within the Civilization Academy had been low-tier. A low rating meant that after enrollment, almost no researcher would accept him as a student.

Now, lower-middle could be considered decent.

If he was lucky, an assistant researcher might even take him in to help with odd jobs.

Bai Feng pondered for a moment, then said, "Put Su Yu under my name. Don't I still have two student slots? Give him one."

"Ah?"

The girl cried out in surprise, suspecting she had misheard. She hurriedly said, "Assistant Bai, his comprehensive score is lower-middle."

"Is there a problem?"

Bai Feng smiled. "Lower-middle is not bad. He was recommended by Nanyuan, and Instructor Liu Wenyan is my senior uncle. There shouldn't be a problem with me taking in one student, right?"

"That's not it..."

The girl was getting anxious. A lower-middle student might be good enough by ordinary standards, but for Bai Feng, using up one of his student slots on such a person was far too wasteful.

"Assistant Bai, before you become a full researcher, you can have at most two students. Su Yu hasn't even enrolled yet, and his rating is lower-middle. He would be of limited help to your daily research..."

"Thank you. I know. Give him the slot."

Bai Feng still smiled. The girl before him meant well, but he did not need the reminder.

"Then..."

The girl found it somewhat regrettable, but since Bai Feng was the one accepting a student, she had nothing more to say.

Just as she was about to handle the registration, someone beside them chuckled. "Bai Feng, you're taking in a student? Instead of choosing someone from the academy, you're choosing a newcomer. Fine, a newcomer is one thing, but a lower-middle-rated one? What are you thinking?"

"Just among those reported this year, there are quite a few with upper-tier ratings, and several with top-tier ratings."

"When the assessments actually begin, even more might emerge."

Bai Feng turned his head and frowned slightly.

He had intended to keep a low profile, finish his business, and leave. Yet this fellow had come to cause trouble again!

"Liu Hong, what does me taking in a student have to do with you?"

Five or six meters away, a young man stood with his arms folded, looking at him with a smile. Hearing that, he laughed. "It has nothing to do with me, but... I enjoy watching a show!"

"If it has nothing to do with you, shut up!"

Bai Feng could not be bothered with him. He turned back to the girl. "Is the registration done?"

"Done, Assistant Instructor Bai."

"Bai Feng!"

Seeing that Bai Feng was ignoring him, Liu Hong spoke again. "Are you really going to take in a new student?"

"None of your business!"

Bai Feng stepped forward to leave, but Liu Hong frowned and said, "It has nothing to do with me, but Bai Feng, have you considered how many people will be dissatisfied if you take in this new student this year?"

Bai Feng stared at him with furrowed brows.

"Last year, my younger brother wanted to enter under you, but you refused to take him. Fine. If you never accepted students, or accepted a few top-tier geniuses, I would have no objections. That would just mean my brother was useless."

"But this year, you're taking in someone with a lower-middle rating. Bai Feng, tell me yourself—what reaction will my brother have when he finds out? What reaction will my family have?"

Bai Feng sneered disdainfully. "What the hell does that have to do with me?"

"Bai Feng, you're right. It has nothing to do with you." Liu Hong's expression turned serious. "I don't care, and whether my family cares is actually irrelevant. But my brother wasn't the only one who wanted to enter under you. There were many others."

"There were even top-tier genius students, yet you were unwilling to accept any of them."

"This year, you suddenly accept a lower-middle student. What do you expect them to think?"

"It has nothing to do with you, but have you considered that you're drawing hatred toward this new student? Others will think: why won't Bai Feng accept them, yet he accepts some mediocrity as a student? Are they inferior to him, or what?"

Bai Feng said coldly, "So what?"

"Nothing. There's no problem with accepting him, but you still have one slot. One person attracts too much attention. Why not take another?"

"Your younger brother?"

"Not him. He's already entered under Researcher Hu. It's Wu Qi's younger sister. Her rating is upper-middle, which is quite good. Before, you had no intention of taking students, so neither Wu Qi nor I brought it up. Since you have the inclination this year, teaching one is teaching, and teaching two is teaching. What do you think?"

"I think... get lost!"

Bai Feng's face was full of impatience. "So what if she's upper-middle? So what if it's Wu Qi? Is her younger sister some kind of big shot? I'll accept whoever I want!"

"As for trouble... go find it if you want!"

"As long as you don't kill or cripple him, suppress him however you please!"

Bai Feng did not care in the least. Inwardly, he was contemptuous. Suppress him?

If they had the ability, then go ahead and suppress him!

"I'm taking in a student—what the hell does it have to do with you? Get lost, Liu Hong. Stop trying to cozy up to me, and don't pull this crap with me! I'm not just saying this to you, but to Wu Qi and everyone else too. Take in whoever you want yourselves. Keep setting your sights on my side, and I won't be polite!"

Bai Feng's voice was not quiet. He had originally wanted to stay low-key, but after Liu Hong stirred things up, quite a few people had noticed his side.

Bai Feng did not mince words either. He declared loudly, "Whomever I accept as a student is my freedom! Even if I accept a cripple as a student, if he can get in, I dare to take him! What, do you think you can control me, Bai Feng?"

"Stop playing those useless tricks with me!"

Bai Feng left after saying that. The hall fell silent for a moment, then people began discussing it in low voices.

"Bai Feng is taking in a student?"

"What is that guy thinking? So many people sought him out these past two years, and he rejected them all. Why did he suddenly get this idea this year?"

"I heard he was recommended by Liu Wenyan..."

"Liu Wenyan recommended quite a few before too, but Bai Feng never wanted to take them."

"Then who knows? But... once word of what Bai Feng did today gets out, quite a bit of trouble will be waiting for him. Many people have their eyes on Elder Hong's side."

"Not just Elder Hong's side. Those few youngsters are eyeing Bai Feng too. The competition for slots three years from now... Bai Feng will definitely fight for one. And there is the matter of researchers becoming full researchers—slots are limited there too, and he'll compete for those as well."

An older man laughed. "That kid has been tinkering with something lately, and plenty of people are interested. Tell me, if he suddenly takes in a student, how could they not pay attention? On top of that, Elder Hong has quite a few things hidden away at the bottom of his chest. Who wouldn't be jealous?"

"That is true."

Someone laughed softly. "Still, that's good. Let's watch the excitement. It's no good for the academy to be too quiet. Every ten years, it comes full circle. The fight for slots seven years ago caused plenty of incidents. I thought we'd have to wait at least another year or two to see some excitement this time, but now it seems the show can begin early."

"Great Xia Prefecture has only twenty slots in total. Our academy won't get many—around five or six. Bai Feng has considerable competitiveness. It depends on whether he can hold on."

"He's already Soaring Seventh Level. There shouldn't be much of a problem."

"Hard to say. Who can be certain about this? Besides, those few youngsters aren't easy to deal with now either. I think this round may be even more intense."

"..."

The crowd discussed animatedly, while Bai Feng had already left the hall.

In the hall, Liu Hong watched him leave without saying anything. After pondering for a moment, he went to the window and requested Su Yu's file.

A short while later, Liu Hong entered a small villa in the residential district.

"Wu Qi, Bai Feng is recruiting students this year."

In the living room, a young woman was using a pen to outline divine characters. Without raising her head, she said, "Then let him recruit them. What does that have to do with me?"

"He's a lower-middle-rated student. I recommended your younger sister, and Bai Feng told me to... get lost."

Liu Hong said softly, "That guy is Soaring Seventh Level now. He's much more arrogant than before."

"When was he ever not arrogant?"

Wu Qi remained calm. "Other than several years ago, when that person from the War Academy beat him until he vomited blood and he couldn't act arrogant, there has never been a time when he wasn't arrogant."

Mentioning that, Wu Qi smiled faintly. "I'm still waiting to watch the show. In a few years, once he reaches Soaring Ninth Level, he'll definitely go looking to settle the score. That person had better not break through to Cloudsoar too quickly, or there won't be a good show to watch."

Liu Hong hurriedly said, "This isn't about watching a show. He has accepted a student—this is an opportunity! Elder Hong is nowhere to be seen, like a divine dragon whose head is visible but tail is hidden. The laboratory is still under Bai Feng's control. Once someone enters under Bai Feng, leaving aside everything else, a single laboratory would be enough to feed us our fill."

"Mm?"

Wu Qi looked up. Her face was frosty as she said coldly, "Get lost!"

"Wu Qi, you..."

"Get out!"

With a soft snort, her eyes carried a trace of contempt. "I, Wu Qi, have no need for such methods. Bai Feng is not my match. Whether it is this year's assessment for becoming a full researcher or the competition for slots three years from now, I... will definitely be there!"

"Liu Hong, don't play around with those petty schemes of yours. Be careful not to bite off more than you can chew!"

Liu Hong clenched his fists and said deeply, "If I truly wanted to play crooked tricks, I wouldn't have come looking for you! Fighting for opportunities, fighting for fortuitous chances—I don't care how others see it or whether they know. None of that matters!"

"The opportunity is right in front of me. If I fight for it, that is my right!"

"Bai Feng controls Elder Hong's laboratory. I want to fight for this opportunity. Even if Elder Hong knew, he would not object—he would only tacitly approve. If Bai Feng loses, that means I am stronger than him. That cannot be refuted. Wu Qi, do you think that is beneath me?"

Wu Qi raised her head again. "You're right. It is your right, but... what does it have to do with me?"

"You don't want your younger sister to obtain better resources and a better future?"

"Then I will talk to Bai Feng myself. It is not your place to interfere."

"Talking to him is useless. He won't yield to soft or hard tactics. You can only force him to agree while pinching his nose. You can't accomplish that alone."

Wu Qi scrutinized him. Only after a while did she say, "You want me to lend you strength? Fine. Let me study your Strength divine character for three months!"

"..."

Liu Hong nearly ground his teeth to pieces. "That's excessive!"

"It's not excessive. Otherwise... go play by yourself. I have no interest in accompanying you in this low-level game. You're not at Soaring Seventh Level, so you're not qualified to participate in this."

Liu Hong took a deep breath and quickly made his decision. "Fine!"

Wu Qi revealed a faint smile. "Tell me, what do you intend to do?"

"Simple. Lower Bai Feng's authority!"

"Mm?"

"If his students fail three monthly exams, rank at the bottom in the academy's quarterly exams, and lag behind every time in the yearly exams, Bai Feng will lose 300 Merit Points after one year, and his authority will drop by one rank! After three years, Bai Feng won't be qualified to register!"

"It won't take three years. After one year, I can apply to take up a position in Elder Hong's laboratory. Because Bai Feng's authority won't be as high as mine, even if he is Elder Hong's student, Elder Hong's laboratory was funded and built by the academy. If Bai Feng loses the laboratory himself, no one can say anything."

"By then, he'll have no choice but to recruit new students and raise his authority rating. They must be outstanding ones! As long as we prepare in advance, whoever he wants to accept, he'll only be able to let us place people in. Inferior ones won't do—he can only choose outstanding ones. And among the outstanding ones, there will only be that one... or a few. Tell me, what can he do?"

Liu Hong spoke rapidly. "This is an open scheme. Bai Feng brought it upon himself, and he even made such arrogant claims—he said we could do whatever we wanted. Since that is the case, I have no reason to be polite!"

Wu Qi glanced at him, then lowered her head and continued outlining divine characters. Only after a while did she say, "Very crude, but the effect should be good. You want me involved because you want me to block Bai Feng's retaliation for you?"

"Yes. That guy is arrogant. If he suffers a loss, he won't stay still. I'm worried... he'll directly attack me and seriously injure me, forcing me to withdraw."

"That is something he could do."

Wu Qi smiled. "At least you know your limits and know you're inferior to him. If you ask me, you should give up. But if you insist on fighting for it, this is indeed an opportunity. If he makes a move, he will challenge you properly... How about this? If he challenges you, I'll challenge him. I'll injure him beforehand. What do you think?"

"Good!"

Liu Hong was overjoyed. This was the true reason he had sought out Wu Qi.

As for those stronger than him, they wouldn't think much of him. The weak didn't have the qualifications.

There were also some at the Lingyun Shanhai level. They were all higher-ups and wouldn't interfere in their affairs. Otherwise, Elder Hong was no pushover either.

"By the way, if Bai Feng's student fails the assessment every time, he'll definitely take in a new student to balance out his rating. If my younger sister enters under him, she'll give it her all to win back his score. But... I won't let my sister deliberately cheat. That would ruin her life!"

"Of course!"

Liu Hong smiled. "The more outstanding your sister is, the better. The more outstanding she is, the more resources under Bai Feng's name will be tilted toward her—that's the rule. Meanwhile, the other student will only get worse and worse, dragging Bai Feng's rating down even further. Even if your sister can win back some points, Bai Feng still won't be able to stop the punishment of having his authority level reduced."

Wu Qi nodded slightly, tacitly agreeing with him.

As the two discussed this, Bai Feng was walking through the academy when he suddenly laughed. "A bunch of fools! They want to lower my authority level?"

He hadn't heard them, but he had guessed what Liu Hong wanted to do.

"There'll be a good show to watch then."

Bai Feng muttered, then shook his head. Su Yu would probably run into some trouble after enrolling, but... that was good.

Without enduring hardship, how could one become capable?

If that kid wasn't suppressed a little, how would he understand that the Civilization Academy was full of talent, and that he was nothing special here?

"Drafting a divine character in one day... I hope Liu Hong can help me press him down properly. Otherwise, this will be hard to handle. That idiot Liu Hong won't go and hand him free kills, will he?"

Bai Feng smiled and shook his head. Then it would have nothing to do with him.

"Wu Qi, Xia Yuwen..."

After muttering several names, Bai Feng's thoughts were no longer on Liu Hong. Until that guy reached the Soaring Seventh Level, Bai Feng couldn't be bothered with him. Those few were the real formidable enemies.

Not to mention that he was now at the Soaring Seventh Level—even when he had been at the Soaring Sixth Level, he hadn't cared about Liu Hong. That guy was clearly no match for him.

"Su Yu!"

At last, Bai Feng spoke Su Yu's name and murmured, "Kid, you'd better be reliable! It'd be best if you could crush those guys' students. That way, I'll have a chance to become a full researcher early and lead a team as a researcher..."

An assistant researcher still faced too many restrictions. Besides, his authority wasn't high enough in many places; he simply couldn't enter them.