The image on the screen changed.
A group of students in Tianhai University uniforms stood on a seaside cliff, with raging winds and waves behind them.
They weren't practicing techniques on a training ground. They were fighting exotic beasts in the wilderness.
One student was covered in blood. With a clean, decisive swing, he cut down a Mutated Sea Serpent, his movements carrying the ruthless edge unique to real combat.
Song Chen stared at the footage, feeling something stir inside him.
The Slaughter System required slaughter. He needed to keep killing, to grow stronger without pause.
Shangjing University was an excellent school: safe and stable, with the best teachers and facilities.
But it was too safe.
His path didn't lie on the training ground or in the library. It lay beyond the city, in the Wilderness, in places overrun by exotic beasts.
He needed real combat. He needed to fight for his life. He needed to dance on the edge of a blade every day, just as he had in Vast Wild Mountain.
"Fourth in the rankings is Qingmu University..." the principal continued.
Song Chen didn't listen. He had already made up his mind.
"I choose Tianhai University."
The meeting room fell silent for a moment. The principal's smile froze. "Tianhai? Not Shangjing?"
"No."
Li Guohua opened his mouth beside him, then swallowed whatever he had been about to say.
A teacher across the table couldn't help speaking up. "Song Chen, think this through. With your scores, you'd have no problem getting into Shangjing University."
"Tianhai University can't match Shangjing in terms of faculty and resources. And Tianhai's practical assessments are dangerous. Students get hurt every year. With your talent, there's no need to take that risk."
Song Chen shook his head. "I don't need the best teachers. I need