That night, all the students of the Tenth Academy gathered at Realm Mountain to cheer Lu Yin on.
Lu Yin smiled wryly. Sitting on Realm Mountain, he closed his eyes, then opened them again in the Rebirth Realm, at the place where the Ten Academies Grand Competition had been held. Quite some time had passed since the last competition. Returning now, the place felt both familiar and strange. It had been the first step toward making a name for himself.
All the students of Starry Sky Academy had gathered, waiting outside for the Greatest Competition to begin the next day.
Lu Yin wasn't the first competitor to arrive, nor was he the last.
Not far away, Han Chong smiled and nodded at Lu Yin. Lu Yin returned the greeting.
On the other side, Liu Shaoqiu had already arrived. The moment he saw Lu Yin, his gaze turned stern. He had lost here before, and today, he would wash away that shame.
Farther away, several oddly shaped beings caught Lu Yin's attention. One was humanoid, with most of his body made of machinery, like some people from the Rose Empire. Another was a mechanical wolf. Hm? And there was a book? Lu Yin was speechless. The last one looked normal, at least—a woman, though even her face had mechanical parts.
Perhaps sensing Lu Yin's gaze, the woman looked over with contempt. The genuine disdain and scorn in her eyes made Lu Yin very uncomfortable. What gave her the right to look down on him like that? No, she wasn't looking down on just him. She looked down on everyone—on everything.
Lu Yin found it bizarre. Was this woman crazy?
"They're the competitors from the Technology Starfield," Han Chong said, coming up beside Lu Yin.
Lu Yin looked puzzled. "That book is