The Fallen Undead Element (Seeking Follow-ups!!!!)

The teachers of Pearl Institute posed many challenging magical questions, and Jiang Yuan answered each one flawlessly.

Some of his insights drew continuous praise from the faculty.

Afterward, they had him undergo a magic power test.

It was somewhat similar to the Annual Assessment he had taken at Tianlan High School.

"Your final score is SSS, which meets the admission requirements for our Pearl Institute. Congratulations, you're accepted!" said a teacher with thick glasses, a smile on his face.

He paused, then continued, "Before you officially enroll, there are a few things I need to explain to you."

"Regarding the Undead element—though the Ancient King created it thousands of years ago, the number of mages who awaken it in our country is extremely rare, far fewer than even the Summoning System. Our institute does have an Undead element department, but it's always been... well, a single line of succession."

By "single line of succession," he meant only one Undead element student per grade.

It wasn't that they only recruited one per year—it was that they could only find one, and sometimes none at all.

So the admission requirements for the Undead element were very lenient. As long as you met the minimum standard, they wouldn't even check what undead your Beginner level magic summoned.

The glasses teacher paused again, gathered his thoughts, and added, "As of now, for this year's recruitment, Pearl Institute has only accepted you as an Undead element student."

"Hm?" Jiang Yuan lifted his head slightly, a flicker of surprise in his eyes.

He really hadn't expected so few people to awaken the Undead element.

Egypt had also created the Undead element, but the number of Undead Mages there was far from small.

The gap in development between the two sides was enormous.

He recalled that magic history books mentioned something about the Undead element—how it had undergone a large-scale purge in this country many years ago.

"That's all I needed to say. Once again, welcome to Pearl Institute!"

The teacher was very pleased with Jiang Yuan.

His fundamentals were solid, and his understanding of magical theory was deep.

More importantly, they had finally recruited a new student for the Undead element, which lifted a weight off the teacher's shoulders.

If they hadn't managed to enroll anyone, they would have had to go to the Ancient Capital specifically to find Undead element freshmen for their instructor.

After confirming his admission, a teacher led Jiang Yuan to a building on the Pearl Institute campus. Above the entrance hung a plaque with five large characters: "Summoning System Academy."

Jiang Yuan was puzzled. Why was the teacher bringing him to the Summoning System Academy?

It wasn't until he saw the Undead element teacher's office and the department's sole instructor, Qin Yun, that it all clicked.

So the Undead element had fallen so far that it was merged into the Summoning System Academy!

Damn. The prestigious Pearl Institute.

And they didn't even have an independent Undead element academy!

Actually, thinking it over, it wasn't entirely incomprehensible.

Like in Jiang Yuan's past life, some smaller departments were indeed folded into other colleges.

Still, the current state of the Undead element was downright shabby.

Was joining Pearl Institute as an Undead element student really a good thing?

Jiang Yuan was starting to have second thoughts.

"We had no choice—what can we do when there are so few Undead element students?" Qin Yun, the sole Undead element instructor, sighed helplessly.

Awakening the Undead element was no easy feat.

"But as our only new Undead element student, I promise you won't miss out on what's due!"

"Alright." Jiang Yuan accepted the current state of the Undead element, then asked, "So will I be taking classes with the Summoning System students?"

"Let me explain the class situation in detail."

Qin Yun patiently clarified, "The Undead element and Summoning System share a lot in common, so there's plenty of overlap in the curriculum. Most classes will indeed be taken together with Summoning System students."

As he spoke, it sounded more and more pathetic, so he quickly added, "But don't worry—we have our own unique courses too, completely different from theirs!"

The more Qin Yun talked, the more unreliable the Undead element seemed to Jiang Yuan.

Even classes had to be shared with Summoning System students, piggybacking on their curriculum.

If the Ancient King knew what the Undead element had become...

He'd probably be furious.

Oh, right—the Ancient King was now just a suit of armor.

Whoever wore that armor would become the new Ancient King.

"..." Jiang Yuan was speechless for a moment.

"Teacher, I feel like the Undead element isn't very reliable. Maybe I should just transfer to the Summoning System."

"No!" Qin Yun slammed the table and stood up, then realized he was getting worked up and slowly sat back down.

He tried to soften his tone and coaxed, "Even though our Undead element is under the Summoning System Academy, our cultivation resources are allocated separately. From now on, you'll have them all to yourself."

"Also, the cultivation resources from the Summoning System will be split evenly with our Undead element—this is the institute's special treatment for us."

That basically sounds like targeted poverty alleviation, doesn't it?

Jiang Yuan silently grumbled to himself.

But thinking it over, getting to enjoy resources from two branches wasn't half bad.

"There's one more thing. Since you just arrived at Pearl Institute, you might not know yet. The Summoning System has an entrance trial."

Qin Yun continued, explaining the annual trial tradition of the Summoning System in detail.

During the welcome assembly, Summoning System students had to face challenges from a hundred other students.

This event was called the Welcome Assembly Beast Taming Competition, always the most anticipated part of the ceremony.

Qin Yun had gone on at length just to drive one point home to Jiang Yuan.

That the Undead element was good. That the Undead element was great.

Joining the Undead element would surely lead to soaring success!

Jiang Yuan had only spoken offhandedly earlier; he hadn't really meant to switch systems.

The enrollment was settled just like that.

Under Qin Yun's lead, Jiang Yuan arrived at a student apartment.

The decor inside was simple, but all the necessary furnishings were there, and the layout felt quite comfortable.

"This is your student dorm—single room, private bath and toilet, plus a kitchen and living room." Qin Yun handed over the apartment key.

Huh?

Pearl Institute's dormitory perks were this good? A single-person apartment?

Jiang Yuan distinctly remembered Mo Fan living in a regular dorm, and Zhao Manyan had met Mo Fan in that student housing.

As if reading Jiang Yuan's confusion, Qin Yun said, "Our Undead element has few people, so the institute specially approved a few single-student apartments for us."

Jiang Yuan caught on.

This was another part of the Undead element's targeted poverty alleviation program.

"..."

"Why aren't you saying anything? Don't want to live alone? If you'd rather not, I can apply for mixed housing for you."

"No need, teacher. This is fine."

Actually, the Undead element wasn't shabby at all. It should be phrased differently.

Call it special care.