Xiantian Mid-stage

Inside a rock cave.

"You are absorbing Geng Metal Mother Qi of the same origin. Your Qi Absorption speed has slightly increased."

"You are absorbing Geng Metal Mother Qi of the same origin. Your Qi Absorption speed has slightly increased."

"You have vaguely grasped some tricks to Qi Absorption."

Jiang Yan's breathing grew smoother. His brow relaxed, quite at ease.

Then, looking as if he was enjoying himself, he lay sprawled on the ground.

Qi Absorption—whatever's comfortable. Who knows who invented the rule that you have to sit cross-legged, making it all so formal.

"Alright, let me switch the camera and see what Jiang Yan, the first-place candidate from the first two rounds, is doing now."

"Uh... this."

The live broadcast camera switched, and the commentator's voice died in his throat. The barrage from tens of millions of viewers also died.

: Bro, your sleep quality's this good? Not even a snore?

: Hey, Brother Jiang, are you getting up to eat?

: Excuse me, is this a crib livestream? My kid keeps tossing and turning at night, and I desperately need sleep like his.

: Wake up, man! You're in the middle of the College Entrance Exam!

The audience was speechless, but the commentator's professionalism held. Soon, a male and female commentator started covering for him.

"I guess this might be Jiang Yan's tactic—first conserve his energy, then make a stunning comeback later."

"Uh, right. Compared to other candidates, our classmate Jiang Yan seems a bit more steady. Maybe he has his own considerations."

: Pfft—who else feels that destined vibe of the commentators forcing an explanation?

: Hahahaha, I'm dying (not really dead). Everyone else is working hard to fight monsters. Even the strong ones like Shang Xingren wouldn't dare to not earn any Points in the early stage. But Jiang Yan? He's just sleeping through the exam without a care.

: Could it be that this guy realized he's not strong enough, so he found a place to hide?

: Don't trash-talk blindly, upstairs. He probably has some strength, but for now, he can't compare to Shang Xingren and the others. We'll have to wait and see how he performs later.

The live broadcast switched again. They couldn't just keep streaming a guy sleeping—it wouldn't look good.

Jiang Yan was hitting his stride. The absorbed Geng Metal Mother Qi of the same origin flowed through the meridians of his entire body, ran a Great Cycle, then gathered in his Dantian, cycling over and over.

Jiang Yan's Limbs and Bones were scoured by the golden same-origin energy, becoming tougher.

"No wonder they say Innate is a threshold. The gap between this and Acquired is just too huge."

An Innate Martial Artist had already transcended pure flesh and blood, granting the martial artist power beyond the physical body.

Jiang Yan was neither impatient nor restless. He didn't join the battles outside, continuing to strengthen his Geng Metal Mother Qi.

Still sleeping like a baby. No Breathing Technique to assist, yet his Qi Absorption speed was no less than those martial artists with high-grade Breathing Techniques. If other martial artists discovered this violation of common sense, they'd probably be curious enough to cut open Jiang Yan's head to see what was inside.

Four days later.

The battles outside had reached a white-hot stage.

All candidates started to go all out. Those at the top of the Rankings no longer hid their strength. One unfamiliar name after another appeared on the list.

Now, with no more revival chances left, as long as your score card was taken, your exam journey ended there.

The weak began to hide and cower. The strong went all out.

Jiang Yan's personal candidate livestream room saw batch after batch of viewers come and go.

Jiang Yan had been sleeping the whole time in the livestream. Even those who had high hopes for him grew bored and switched to other streams.

It was at this moment that Jiang Yan opened his eyes.

System Log updated.

"Congratulations. Your realm has broken through to Innate Mid Stage."

"You have been diligently absorbing Qi these past days and have summarized your own breathing rhythm. Congratulations. You have created your own Breathing Technique."

"You have trained hard in Abyssal Thunder Annihilation Slash. Congratulations. Your Abyssal Thunder Annihilation Slash proficiency has reached Subtlety. You have mastered Startling Thunder."

Jiang Yan's character panel underwent another major update.

Host: Jiang Yan

Talent: Battle Saint Armor (Awaiting Evolution)

Realm: Innate Mid Stage

Breathing Technique: "Breathing Technique" (Unnamed)

Martial Skills: (Unranked) "Basic Saber Technique" Mastery

(Yellow Grade Low Rank) "Fierce Bull Strength" Mastery

(Yellow Grade High Rank) "Explosive Step" Mastery

(Mysterious Grade High Rank) "Nine Consecutive Steps" Mastery

(Heaven Grade High Rank) "Abyssal Thunder Annihilation Slash" Subtlety

Entry: Heaven Rewards Diligence (Lifebound) | Desperate Truth (Blue) | Swiftness (Blue) | Wind Rider (Blue) | Blade Bearer (Purple) | Moment of Truth (Orange) | Multiple Casting (Self-Selected Special) | Demon's Scale (Purple) | Flower Language Amidst Thickets (Purple) | Premonition (White)

Special: Blade Momentum (can break through to Blade Intent)

Geng Metal Mother Qi

The few thousand loyal fans left in the livestream began to stir.

: He's awake, finally awake. I thought he'd sleep through the whole match.

: Yeah, I've been camping this stream for four straight days. No one gets the relief of him opening his eyes like I do.

: Awaken, time to hunt!

: Northern Expedition! Northern Expedition!

: Settle the score!

Jiang Yan stood up and stretched his body. Instantly, a clatter like popping beans rang out from his joints—a symphony of drums and gongs.

Boom!

Jiang Yan took a step forward, landing squarely at the edge of the cliff.

Not far from Jiang Yan, an Air Wall stood silently in place—presumably the so-called "poison zone."

"Didn't expect the map to shrink this much."

Jiang Yan had deliberately chosen a spot near the center, yet the poison zone had still crept over. That meant the remaining examinees had already been through several battles, and their scoreboards were fat as hell.

Jiang Yan licked his dry lips and leaped into the air.

Whoosh!

In no time, he locked onto a target and dove down like a meteor.

Rumble!

That examinee didn't even have time to counter before Jiang Yan knocked him out with the flat of his blade.

He grabbed the scoreboard. The number on it read 300.

The next second, the scoreboard and the examinee vanished together, marking the end of his College Entrance Exam.

After four days, Points were no longer halved, and examinees no longer had resurrection chances.

Jiang Yan glanced at his own scoreboard:

302.5

He curled his lip, then soared into the sky again, searching for his next target.

One minute later.

Jiang Yan locked onto a figure among a few people. A smirk tugged at his lips as he dove straight down.

Ai Ning had been playing it steady these past few days, holding four hundred Points. Though he'd been robbed midway by another second-stage Perfect examinee and lost his resurrection chance, luck had been on his side since—no more strong opponents, and he'd managed to scrape by until now.

A smile spread across his face. With this score plus the Points from the second round, he could already get into a decent university.

Suddenly, his face froze. His eyes met the gaze of the man high above.

The man winked at him, then dove down.

"No—don't!"

"I can't fall here. I want to go further!"

Ai Ning stumbled backward, his legs churning as he fled in panic.

The dismissive words from before: Meet in the exam hall, and you'll be swept away like dust without even knowing it.

That prophecy had finally come true.

Only now, the protagonist had changed.