Simulation Ends

Although Ichinose Honami tried her best in the simulation to unite everyone in resistance, they were ultimately just students, and there was a limit to what they could do. Wu Qiao, too, found himself increasingly overwhelmed in the simulation; it was already exhausting enough to shield Ayanokoji Kiyoha from the storm and stabilize Class D, yet he still had to divide his focus to honor his promise to help Class B.

Finally, during the second-year special exam on the uninhabited island, the conflict erupted completely. Wu Qiao was pushed to the point where he resorted to a terrifying display of violence capable of shattering a giant boulder with a single punch!

Whether it was the underclassmen a year below them or the lackeys sent by Nagumo Miyabi, all were instantly struck down by this irrational, singular violence. Numerical superiority became a complete joke in the face of absolute power.

What was originally a targeted bullying campaign against a student with no background had directly summoned a true, chilling monster.

Ichinose Honami watched in horror, having no idea where Wu Qiao had acquired such power capable of destroying everything. Yet, she knew clearly that if this violence were allowed to vent unchecked, Wu Qiao would slide into an uncontrollable abyss, eventually becoming an existence even he would find unrecognizable.

Seeing the <strong>[Enter Real-Life Simulation]</strong> option pop up on the interface again, Ichinose Honami did not hesitate; she chose <strong>[Yes]</strong> without a second thought.

As soon as she entered the simulation, Ichinose Honami found herself standing beside a ruin on the uninhabited island.

The air was thick with dust and the scent of scorched earth. Students lay scattered across the ground in every direction, and Wu Qiao stood at the center of it all.

He slowly withdrew the fist that had just shattered the boulder blocking his path, his knuckles stained with blood. His entire being radiated a heart-stopping, violent coldness.

"Wu Qiao!" Ignoring the danger, Ichinose Honami shouted his name and rushed to his side.

Wu Qiao turned his head sluggishly. Those eyes, once gentle, were now bloodshot, as if he had just been jolted awake from a nightmare. Seeing it was Ichinose, the violence in his eyes receded slightly, yet they remained filled with exhaustion and struggle. "Honami... why are you here? It's dangerous—leave, quickly."

"I won't!" Ichinose Honami stared at him, her eyes rimmed with red. "Look at yourself! Is this what you wanted? To fight violence with violence, only to end up as a monster you yourself despise?"

Wu Qiao fell silent. He looked at his trembling hands, his voice raspy. "Then what else can I do? If I don't do this, Kiyoha will be expelled, Class D will be destroyed, and I won't be able to keep my promise to you... Nagumo Miyabi and Tsukishiro, they don't even treat people like human beings!"

"I know, I know all of that!" Ichinose Honami stepped forward and gripped Wu Qiao's trembling hand tightly. "But you aren't fighting alone! You have me, you have everyone in Class B, and you have those in Class D you've been protecting! We are a collective; we aren't here to let you carry all the darkness by yourself!"

She took a deep breath, her tone becoming incredibly firm. "Stop, Wu Qiao. Don't let them force you into becoming a monster anymore. Let's walk the path ahead together. Even if it's the clumsiest way, even if we fail, we must win in a human way, not through this destructive violence!"

Wu Qiao stared blankly at the determined girl before him. Feeling the warmth radiating from her palm, the violent impulse that had nearly consumed him miraculously began to subside.

After a long while, Wu Qiao's tense body finally relaxed. He gripped Ichinose's hand in return, a weary yet relieved smile tugging at the corners of his mouth. "Alright, I'll listen to you. Let's go."

As Wu Qiao laid down his "blade," the simulator's screen fluctuated violently before exiting the real-life simulation. Ichinose Honami knew she had successfully pulled Wu Qiao back from the edge of the abyss.

Although the road ahead remained difficult, as long as they fought side-by-side, there was no obstacle they could not overcome.

However, events unfolded far worse than Ichinose Honami had imagined. Despite her best efforts to turn things around, and despite Wu Qiao regaining his sanity in the simulation, individual struggle appeared pale and powerless against the predetermined torrent of fate.

In the end, Wu Qiao was still expelled during a special exam.

Yes, the boy who had swept through the world with his martial prowess in the first simulation, the genius who had solved the millennium-old problems in the second, was mercilessly erased by this cruel school.

There was no earth-shattering resistance, nor any miraculous reversal. He was like a burnt-out meteor that illuminated Class D before falling, disappearing silently from everyone's sight.

Ichinose Honami stared at the glaring "Expulsion" notice in the simulator, her heart feeling as if it were being gripped by an invisible hand.

Yet, Wu Qiao's departure acted like a switch, completely awakening someone else.

Ayanokoji Kiyoha, the girl who had always been protected behind Wu Qiao and appeared to have no ripples in her heart, seemed like a different person the moment he was expelled. For the first time, her eyes, which had always been as still as an ancient well, ignited with a cold, sharp flame.

She no longer remained silent or evasive; instead, with a chilling calmness and decisiveness, she began a long-overdue reckoning.

She first united Karuizawa Kei, Horikita Suzune, Sakura Airi, Shiina Hiyori, and even her former adversary, Sakayanagi Arisu, stood by her side.

These people, who once held different stances, now transformed into the sharpest of blades. They first triggered a brutal purge of the traitors within their own grade, followed by the swift removal of all the lackeys Nagumo Miyabi had planted in the student council, and finally resolved the troublesome underclassmen in one fell swoop.

As Ichinose Honami watched the plot progress, she was shocked to learn a hair-raising truth.

Those troublesome underclassmen, the ones who had joined Nagumo Miyabi to drive Wu Qiao into a dead end, were actually "White Room" spies sent by Ayanokoji Kiyoha's father.

Everything Wu Qiao had been fighting against was not just the malice of the school, but the cold will of the massive power behind Ayanokoji Kiyoha.

Everyone stumbled their way into their third year, baptized by blood and fire. However, the campus no longer held its former bustle or vitality.

Everyone in every class was listless; too many had been expelled, and the survivors were physically and mentally exhausted from endless targeting. Advanced Nurturing High School had completely turned into a silent cage.

Ayanokoji Kiyoha ascended to the position of student council president without suspense. As the days passed, under her iron-fisted rule, life at school remained stable—but it was only stable.

That oppressive atmosphere made Ichinose Honami feel suffocated.

Until, near the end of the third year, a sudden piece of news broke the deathly silence. A rising internet technology giant announced that it would open its doors to students graduating from Advanced Nurturing High School who were not in Class A.

It was strange—very strange.

In this school where strength was supreme, students outside of Class A were usually viewed as "defective products" and could never hope to gain the favor of such a top-tier enterprise.

Just as everyone was speculating about the company's intentions, Ayanokoji Kiyoha made a decision that shocked the entire school. She led her class to Class A, then applied for a transfer to graduate from the newly formed Class D.

Graduation season arrived as scheduled, and the mysterious tech giant opened its recruitment season just as expected.

When the massive holographic projection screen lit up at the graduation ceremony, displaying the company's name and logo, the entire venue fell into a deathly silence. Then, a familiar yet unfamiliar figure slowly walked onto the podium.

The figure wore a well-tailored black suit. His face was more mature than in memory, having shed the callowness of youth and gained a sense of steadiness and composure born from having weathered the storms of life.

The young man stood under the spotlight, his gaze sweeping calmly over the former classmates and enemies below. Finally, as if crossing through time and space, he locked eyes with Ichinose Honami in the mental space.

It was Wu Qiao.

Ichinose Honami's mind went blank. So, expulsion was not the end.

After he left, he had paved a path to the future for everyone abandoned by this school.

"Welcome to Ark Technology." Wu Qiao's voice echoed through the venue via the microphone, calm and powerful. "Here, strength is not the only standard of measurement. No matter which class you came from, no matter what kind of past you have, as long as you are willing, this is your new starting point."

Ichinose Honami watched this scene, her heart filled with a complex mix of emotions. Wu Qiao had used his own way to protect everyone's future.