Chapter Summaries

Key plot points and events

• Zhou Fan enters the Esper College Entrance Examination’s ring battle and is matched against five A-rank candidates from Changyue Middle School. Their principal, Qu Yang, has ordered them to eliminate him, hoping to protect his school’s long-held top ranking.
• When the countdown ends, all five attack Zhou Fan at once. He answers with a single Fire Release technique, Majestic Destroyer Flame, sweeping away their attacks and knocking them—and two weaker C-rank candidates—out of the ring.
• Zhou Fan’s effortless win shocks the venue and earns him a flood of “Shock” emotion points. He allows two remaining classmates from Tianhai No. 1 High School to stay in the ring until time runs out.
• The Quick Battle concludes, with only the top half of candidates advancing. The next stage is the Advancement Round; only its top sixteen will reach the Individual Finals. The chapter ends as Zhou Fan checks his newly assigned opponents.

Character developments and interactions

• Zhou Fan displays overwhelming confidence and strength, dismissing the five A-rank Espers as unimpressive. He also shows consideration for his classmates by refusing to eliminate them.
• Qu Yang, Changyue’s principal, is revealed as willing to target Zhou Fan to protect his school’s standing. His plan backfires spectacularly, leaving him humiliated.
• Wang Daochuan, principal of Tianhai No. 1 High School, takes pleasure in Qu Yang’s defeat and mocks Changyue’s performance.
• Lin Qianqian watches Zhou Fan’s victory with frustration, feeling once again that others are comparing her unfavorably with him.
• The two Tianhai classmates are frightened enough to ask whether Zhou Fan wants them to leave the ring, but gratefully accept his permission to stay.

Significant themes

• Competition and ambition: The exam encourages rivalry between both individuals and schools, with Changyue’s students motivated by rewards, fame, and school pride.
• Power and spectacle: Zhou Fan’s one-sided victory turns him into the center of attention, and the crowd’s excitement directly benefits him through emotion points.
• Respect and restraint: Despite the ruthless rules, Zhou Fan chooses not to eliminate his own classmates when he has no need to do so.
• Rivalry and insecurity: Lin Qianqian’s reaction highlights the pressure of being measured against an exceptionally strong peer.

Key plot points and events

• The Advancement Round keeps its arena-battle-royale format, expanding each match to fifteen contestants and ten minutes.
• Match 51 draws extraordinary attention: Zhou Fan, the only C-rank, faces three S-ranks—Liu Feng, Yang Wei, and Tang Yan—and eleven A-ranks. The audience expects the others to gang up on him.
• Changyue principal Qu Yang urges Liu Feng and Yang Wei to eliminate Zhou Fan at any cost. He wants revenge for the school’s earlier losses and hopes to protect Changyue’s decade-long record of producing the top exam scorer.
• Lin Qianqian dominates match one, eliminating all fourteen A-rank opponents and claiming every point.
• Zhou Fan enters match 51 as the crowd’s main attraction. The other contestants keep their distance, while Liu Feng and Yang Wei stand together and Tang Yan positions himself apart.
• Xia Qingran watches the livestream, hoping the match will finally reveal Zhou Fan’s full combat ability. The chapter ends just before the battle begins.

Character developments and interactions

• Zhou Fan is amused and wary of the punishing lineup, but remains the focus of the spectators’ expectations.
• Qu Yang is driven by wounded pride and fear of losing Changyue’s top-scorer title; he commands his students to prioritize Zhou Fan above all else.
• Liu Feng and Yang Wei accept the order, with Yang Wei eager to test Zhou Fan himself.
• Lin Qianqian reinforces her dominance with a flawless sweep of her arena.
• Xia Qingran remains intrigued by Zhou Fan and wants to see him fight at full strength.
• The crowd and livestream audience build the confrontation into a highly anticipated showdown, while the contestants’ spacing signals that Zhou Fan is already viewed as the central threat.

Significant themes

• Underdog versus overwhelming odds: Zhou Fan’s C-rank status contrasts with a field packed with higher-ranked opponents.
• Reputation, rivalry, and revenge: Changyue’s effort to restore its standing turns the match into more than a competition.
• Spectacle and expectation: The audience, livestream, and matchmaking system amplify the drama before combat even starts.
• Power versus proof: Zhou Fan’s earlier success has impressed observers, but his true fighting limits remain unknown.

Key plot points and events

• Before the arena match, Zhou Fan trades insults with Liu Feng, whom he defeated earlier, and warns Yang Wei not to underestimate him.
• Liu Feng and Yang Wei attack Zhou Fan together, aiming to remove the arena’s strongest competitor. Zhou Fan dodges, counters with powerful Fire, Wind, and Water techniques, and injures Yang Wei.
• Tang Yan, an S-rank earth user from Chengfeng Middle School, joins them, reasoning that the competitors must eliminate Zhou Fan before he can defeat everyone else.
• The three S-rank users and eleven A-rank users launch a coordinated assault. Zhou Fan’s Mangekyō Sharingan lets him track their movements, but their numbers overwhelm his ability to evade every attack.
• Yang Wei lands a full-power punch, followed by a barrage of attacks from the group. Zhou Fan survives behind an enormous azure energy construct: Susanoo, revealed as his “Third Power.”

Character developments

• Zhou Fan shows the breadth of his abilities and remains confident under pressure. When faced with a united attack, he escalates from his Sharingan to the Mangekyō and then Susanoo.
• Liu Feng remains bitter about his earlier defeat but is wary of Zhou Fan’s Genjutsu and warns the others to avoid his eyes.
• Yang Wei is determined to beat Zhou Fan and demonstrates the force of his strength-type ability, but his strongest punch fails against Susanoo.
• Tang Yan puts competition above personal grudges, joining the attack because Zhou Fan poses a threat to everyone’s chances.

Significant themes

• Strength and teamwork: Zhou Fan’s power makes him the shared target of the other competitors, who set aside individual rivalries to confront him.
• Escalating power and surprise: Each wave of attacks reveals another level of Zhou Fan’s abilities, culminating in the unexpected Susanoo.
• Confidence versus numbers: Zhou Fan is formidable, but the coordinated assault shows how even exceptional perception and skill can be challenged by many opponents at once.

Character interactions

• Zhou Fan and Liu Feng exchange taunts rooted in Liu Feng’s previous loss; Zhou Fan also challenges Yang Wei’s warning.
• Liu Feng alerts the group to Zhou Fan’s eye-based Genjutsu, turning his prior experience into tactical advice.
• Tang Yan explains why he has joined the attack, while Yang Wei questions whether Zhou Fan can withstand their combined numbers.
• The competitors’ coordinated assault ends with Zhou Fan protected inside Susanoo, leaving the confrontation unresolved.

Key plot points and events

• Zhou Fan reveals Susanoo, a towering energy avatar whose power exceeds the usual limits for an entrance-exam candidate. Even chief examiner Liu Ye, a fourth-tier esper, feels uneasy in its presence.
• Yang Wei, Liu Feng, Tang Yan, and eleven other A-rank candidates attack Zhou Fan together. He taunts them to “dance” and lets Susanoo withstand repeated volleys without damage.
• Once the attackers exhaust much of their spiritual energy, Zhou Fan counterattacks. Susanoo’s sword defeats Tang Yan, Liu Feng, and Yang Wei with single strikes, then sweeps the remaining candidates out of the arena.
• The crowd erupts in praise, and Zhou Fan receives boosts to his Shock and Admiration stats.

Character developments

• Zhou Fan displays overwhelming confidence, using Susanoo’s power to dominate the fight and provoke his opponents.
• Yang Wei, Liu Feng, and Tang Yan go from confidence in their group attack to desperation as their strongest techniques fail and they are swiftly defeated.
• Liu Ye is astonished by Zhou Fan’s strength and recognizes that his power exceeds expectations for the exam.

Significant themes

• Overwhelming power and spectacle: Zhou Fan’s extraordinary defense and offense make a coordinated attack by fourteen candidates ineffective.
• Confidence turning to hubris: The group assumes Zhou Fan is near defeat, but their taunts and repeated attacks only expose the gap in their abilities.
• Public recognition: Zhou Fan’s victory transforms the crowd’s skepticism into admiration.

Character interactions

• Zhou Fan deliberately humiliates the attackers with his “dance” taunt, provoking them into attacking again.
• The candidates coordinate their techniques against him, but their teamwork cannot penetrate Susanoo.
• After the fight, spectators celebrate Zhou Fan’s victory and shower him with praise.

Plot points and events

• Lin Qianqian watches Zhou Fan defeat three S-rank and eleven A-rank opponents with ease, using his Susanoo. She is shocked by the ability and resolves to train harder so she can beat him in their next comparison.
• Zhou Fan’s performance earns him over 10,000 Emotion Points, bringing his total for the day above 30,000. He hopes to reach 50,000 during the Finals.
• The Advancement Round ends with Zhou Fan and Lin Qianqian tied at 280 points, having each eliminated all fourteen opponents in their arenas. Their performances are viewed very differently: Zhou’s spectacular victory makes him the crowd’s clear favorite.
• The top sixteen scorers advance to the Finals. Several notable S-rank contestants are missing because Zhou eliminated three of them, lowering the tournament’s overall field strength. The audience is eager to see Zhou and Lin Qianqian meet.
• In the first Finals match, Lin defeats A-rank object manipulator Xu Yin almost instantly, trapping her iron plates and then binding her in paper.
• Zhou is scheduled to face A-rank beast-transformer Wu Hao in the second match. Before the match begins, Wu Hao asks to concede.

Character developments and interactions

• Lin Qianqian is impressed—and unsettled—by Zhou’s newly revealed power. Her competitive drive intensifies because she fears another loss and the system’s punishment.
• Zhou Fan treats the tournament as an opportunity to collect Emotion Points and plans to keep entertaining the crowd.
• Lin and Zhou remain tied in points, but the audience sees Zhou as stronger; their anticipated Finals showdown becomes the tournament’s central attraction.
• Lin and Xu Yin have a brief, one-sided confrontation: Lin calmly defeats her and tells her she has lost.
• Wu Hao declines to fight Zhou, setting up an unusually short second Finals match.

Significant themes

• Rapid growth and hidden strength: Zhou’s Susanoo surprises Lin and reveals that his power has advanced beyond what she previously knew.
• Rivalry and self-improvement: Lin’s fear of losing motivates her to grow stronger.
• Spectacle and public perception: Zhou’s dramatic victory shapes the audience’s expectations and overshadows the rest of the competition.
• Competition and unequal matchups: The Finals quickly reveal large differences in ability, as Lin dominates Xu Yin and Wu Hao appears unwilling to challenge Zhou.

Key plot points and events

• In the Finals’ first round, Zhou Fan’s opponent, Wu Hao, concedes immediately. The crowd mocks him, but Wu Hao explains that facing Zhou Fan—who dominated the earlier rounds, including defeating fourteen opponents—is a losing proposition. Chief examiner Liu Ye approves the concession, and Zhou advances without fighting.
• The quarterfinals continue. Lin Qianqian swiftly defeats her A-rank opponent, while two other matches are hard-fought. Zhou’s quarterfinal opponent also concedes as soon as the match begins, leaving Zhou frustrated that he cannot fight.
• In the semifinals, Lin again wins quickly. Zhou’s opponent concedes for a third time. By now, spectators have stopped protesting and simply accept that Zhou’s reputation has made him nearly impossible to face.
• Zhou and Lin both reach the championship match. Their showdown will determine the Southern District’s top scorer.

Character developments and interactions

• Zhou Fan is eager to test himself and is surprised—and somewhat embarrassed—when opponents repeatedly surrender. He criticizes them for giving up without trying, even as his overwhelming reputation explains their choices.
• Wu Hao refuses to take a beating he believes he cannot avoid. He challenges the spectators who insult him to take his place, exposing their bravado.
• Lin Qianqian continues to demonstrate her strength through decisive victories, contrasting with Zhou’s progress by concession. Her opponents fight, but none lasts long.
• The spectators shift from condemning the first concession to recognizing why Zhou’s opponents withdraw. Their disappointment turns to renewed excitement once the final between Zhou and Lin is announced.
• Liu Ye, as chief examiner, authorizes the unprecedented concession, allowing the match to proceed officially.

Significant themes

• Reputation and intimidation: Zhou’s earlier victories are so overwhelming that his opponents surrender before testing their chances.
• Effort versus certainty: Zhou believes opponents should fight rather than assume defeat; they prioritize avoiding an inevitable loss.
• Unusual success and anticlimax: Zhou advances without fighting, making the Finals feel absurd and unusually dull.
• Contrasting forms of dominance: Lin proves her ability through combat, while Zhou’s power is demonstrated indirectly by the fear he inspires.

Plot and events

• The college entrance exam’s final match—and the contest for top scorer—pits Tianhai No. 1 High School classmates Zhou Fan and Lin Qianqian against each other.
• Principal Wang Daochuan celebrates that both finalists are from his school, while Changyue Middle School’s principal, Qu Yang, broods over his school’s disastrous showing. He blames Zhou Fan for eliminating Changyue’s strongest contenders before the finals.
• Zhou Fan sees the duel as another sparring match and intends to hold back so he does not hurt Lin Qianqian. Lin, however, is determined to prove she can beat him and insists he fight seriously.
• Lin opens with a relentless barrage in her Paper Transformation state. Zhou counters with fire and water techniques and uses his Sharingan to evade, but her defense and attacks keep the fight intense. The crowd realizes she had not shown her full strength in earlier matches and begins to speculate that she may be the only contestant capable of defeating Zhou.
• When Lin calls out Zhou for still holding back, he agrees to take the match more seriously and activates his Mangekyō Sharingan. The chapter ends before the outcome is revealed.

Character developments and interactions

• Lin Qianqian emerges as fiercely competitive and far stronger than her earlier matches suggested. Her frustration comes not only from past losses to Zhou but also from others assuming she cannot match him.
• Zhou Fan remains confident and initially underestimates the need to exert himself, partly out of concern for Lin as a schoolmate. Her persistence finally prompts him to raise his level.
• Their familiar sparring relationship becomes a genuine championship rivalry: Lin demands respect as an opponent, while Zhou must decide whether to stop treating the match casually.
• Wang Daochuan and Qu Yang exchange barbs over their schools’ contrasting fortunes, with Wang gloating and Qu choosing silence.

Themes

• The match explores ambition, recognition, and respect: Lin wants to prove herself rather than remain in Zhou’s shadow.
• It also highlights hidden ability and underestimation, as the crowd discovers Lin’s true strength only when she faces a formidable opponent.
• The competitive atmosphere contrasts with personal concern: Zhou’s reluctance to hurt Lin conflicts with her demand for a fair, serious fight.

Plot points and events

• Lin Qianqian reveals a new ability: Paper-Style Clones. Because the clones can act independently and aren’t affected if her real body falls under Genjutsu, she hopes they’ll counter Zhou Fan’s Sharingan.
• The two trade increasingly powerful fire and paper attacks. Lin’s clones help overwhelm Zhou with attacks from multiple directions, while Zhou uses his Sharingan to track and counter her explosive paper swallows.
• Lin unleashes her apparent ultimate technique, Paper Explosion Technique: Flowing Flames, filling the arena with hundreds of Explosive Tags. Zhou protects himself with a skeletal Susanoo.
• Lin pours her remaining energy into the barrage, cracking and nearly destroying the Susanoo, but exhausts herself in the process. Zhou counters with Yasaka Magatama, which breaks through her last paper shield and knocks her from the air.
• Zhou catches Lin before she hits the ground. She concedes the match, and the spectators react with comic jealousy and disbelief at the unexpectedly intimate rescue.

Character developments and interactions

• Lin demonstrates how much she has grown since their last sparring match, showing new defensive tactics and formidable offensive power. Though she is defeated, she earns Zhou’s admiration.
• Zhou takes the fight seriously and withstands Lin’s strongest attack, but worries that he has hurt her when his final strike lands. He catches her and checks on her.
• Lin responds with an uncharacteristically flustered calm rather than anger, hinting at a new romantic tension between them. The onlookers interpret the rescue as more than ordinary sportsmanship.

Significant themes

• Growth and rivalry: Both fighters have improved, and their contest pushes them to reveal more of their abilities.
• Power and strategy: Lin’s numbers and adaptability challenge Zhou’s raw defensive strength, while each fighter adjusts to the other’s techniques.
• Intimacy amid competition: The match ends not just with a victory, but with a tender moment that changes how the crowd views their relationship.

Key plot points and events

• Zhou Fan is officially named the Southern District’s top scorer after defeating Lin Qianqian. Fireworks mark the end of the college entrance exam.
• Tianhai No. 1 High School celebrates: Zhou Fan takes first place and Lin Qianqian comes second, a record achievement for the school.
• At home, Lin Qianqian reviews her loss. She is particularly impressed by the defensive strength of Zhou Fan’s Susanoo and vows to prepare better for their next match.
• Her system grants her a consolation reward: the Mutually Multiplying Paper Bomb Technique, which lets Explosive Tags summon more tags in layers. She believes this could give her enough explosives to break through Zhou Fan’s defense next time.
• Zhou Fan returns home, counts the more than 50,000 emotion points he earned during the exam, and considers redeeming new abilities. The Eternal Mangekyō Sharingan remains out of reach, so he weighs several Wood Release options instead.

Character developments and interactions

• Zhou Fan is tired but satisfied with his victory and the large reward of emotion points. He remains on friendly terms with Principal Wang Daochuan, who enthusiastically praises him.
• Lin Qianqian is frustrated by yet another defeat, but turns that frustration into determination. She interprets each loss as the result of one decisive technique and is excited by her new skill.
• Wang Daochuan proudly celebrates both students, especially Zhou Fan, and boasts that Tianhai No. 1 High School has taken the top two places.
• Lin’s system awkwardly congratulates her for losing, then corrects itself and offers the reward; Lin challenges its wording before accepting the gift.

Significant themes

• Rivalry and perseverance: Lin Qianqian is set on defeating Zhou Fan in their next comparison.
• Growth through competition: Both students gain motivation and new possibilities from the exam’s outcome.
• Rewards and ambition: Zhou Fan’s emotion points and Lin’s new technique turn the competition into a path for further power.

Key plot points and events

• Zhou Fan spends 10,000 emotion points to unlock beginner Sage Mode. He’s annoyed to learn that advanced and perfect versions cost far more.
• He uses 30,000 points to obtain Hashirama Cells. They grant him Yin Healing, double his Wood Release power, and reduce Mangekyō Sharingan side effects by 90%. His strength rises from Second Tier, 3 Stars to Second Tier, 4 Stars.
• With his remaining 10,000 points, he unlocks Wood Release: Deep Forest Emergence (called “Birth of the Tree World” in the chapter title).
• Confident that his new abilities may let him defeat a Third Tier Esper, Zhou Fan considers testing his strength.
• Later, he receives recruitment messages from the admissions directors of Xuan Kun, Hailan, and Heavenfire—three of Xia Country’s four top Esper universities. He accepts their requests, then creates a group chat so they can make competing offers at once.

Character development

• Zhou Fan continues to be ambitious and pragmatic, prioritizing abilities that provide the greatest combat benefits for his limited points.
• His irritation with the system’s pricing is played for humor, but he remains resourceful and pleased with his rapid growth.
• Faced with several elite university offers, he shifts from being flattered to strategically negotiating.

Significant themes

• Power and value: Zhou Fan weighs the cost and benefits of upgrades, while Hashirama Cells demonstrate how one enhancement can improve several abilities at once.
• Ambition and opportunity: His rapid rise attracts powerful institutions, opening a new contest for his future.
• Humor and bargaining: The system’s blunt pricing and Zhou Fan’s group-chat negotiation keep the chapter’s power progression lighthearted.

Character interactions

• Zhou Fan sarcastically challenges the system over Sage Mode’s escalating prices; the system dismisses his complaints.
• He engages with the three university directors by inviting them into a shared negotiation, turning their separate recruitment attempts into a direct competition.

Key plot points and events

• After Zhou Fan becomes the Southern District’s top college entrance exam scorer, the directors of Xuan Kun, Hailan, and Heavenfire Universities compete to recruit him.
• Each offers scholarships, Mid-Grade Spirit Stones, and A-Rank superpower books. Zhou encourages them to outbid one another, but the contest drifts into promises to introduce him to girlfriends.
• Xinghai University’s Xia Qingran contacts Zhou, reminding him that he had agreed to apply there. Zhou tells her about the other offers and invites her into the group chat.
• Once Xia joins, the three directors immediately back down when she rebukes them for their unprofessional behavior. They all endorse Zhou joining Xinghai, then leave.
• Xia declares that Zhou’s only choice is Xinghai. Zhou asks what it will offer him; she promises a ten-million scholarship, one hundred Mid-Grade Spirit Stones, and a choice of A- and S-Rank superpower books.

Character developments and interactions

• Zhou Fan uses his popularity and the rival universities’ interest to negotiate better terms. He remains willing to attend Xinghai but wants to know what he will receive.
• Xia Qingran shows how much she wants to recruit Zhou and reveals considerable authority: the other directors defer to her instantly. Zhou, however, still mistakes her for a university staff member.
• The three directors begin as aggressive bidders but abandon the competition as soon as Xia intervenes, shifting from playful, improper offers to obedient agreement.

Significant themes

• Competition and leverage: Zhou turns institutional rivalry into bargaining power.
• Status and authority: Xia’s influence outweighs the directors’ offers and ends their contest.
• Comic misunderstanding: Zhou misreads both the directors’ submissiveness and Xia’s position, while the recruitment pitch escalates into increasingly absurd promises.

Plot points

• Zhou Fan is impressed by Xia Qingran’s generous offer to recruit him to Xinghai University: a large scholarship, spirit stones, and his choice of powerful ability books. He accepts, having already planned to attend the Southern District’s top university.
• When exam results arrive, Zhou Fan scores a record-breaking 820 points and applies only to Xinghai University. Lin Qianqian scores 660, ranking second in the district, and also applies only there.
• Lin checks the system and learns the next comparison is in three days. Convinced her newly mastered Mutually Multiplying Paper Bomb Technique can break Zhou Fan’s Susanoo, she resolves to train hard and avoid underestimating him again.
• Xia Qingran monitors Xinghai’s admissions list. When Zhou Fan and Lin appear at the top, she accepts both immediately, eager to train them together.

Character developments and interactions

• Zhou Fan remains confident about his future and is pleased by the rewards, but sees no need to consider other universities.
• Lin Qianqian turns repeated defeats into renewed determination. She believes her upgraded technique gives her a real chance to beat Zhou, though she vows to stay vigilant this time.
• Xia Qingran is ambitious and enthusiastic about recruiting both top candidates. She has followed Zhou’s progress closely and recognizes Lin’s exceptional strength as well.

Significant themes

• Rivalry and self-improvement: Lin responds to losing by training and preparing for another contest.
• Talent and recognition: Zhou and Lin’s exceptional scores draw the attention of a leading university.
• Competition and opportunity: Xia Qingran’s recruitment offer shows how universities compete for promising students.

Key plot points and events

• Xia Qingran learns that the two people she wanted have been accepted. She plans to bring them into her organization, Evening Bell, hoping to challenge the four great families and defy the elders who control her fate.
• Zhou Fan receives his Xinghai University admission letter just one day after submitting his preferences. He must report to an assembly point the next day, leaving little time to prepare.
• Lin Qianqian trains her Paper-Style ability and increases the number of clones she can create from three to six. She calculates that combining the clones with her multiplying paper-bomb technique could produce thousands of explosive tags, and resolves to improve the technique further.
• Zhou Fan, Lin Qianqian, and Zhao Qiu meet at Tianhai No. 1 High School before traveling together to Xinghai University’s assembly point. Zhao Qiu surprises Zhou Fan by revealing that he was also accepted, helped by his A-Rank Superpower.
• Principal Wang Daochuan cautions the students that Xinghai University is full of talented people and urges them to stay grounded. He offers to help them after they leave, then becomes emotional about their departure.

Character developments

• Xia Qingran is determined to build Evening Bell despite the difficulty, driven by her desire to control her own destiny. Her mother supports her while warning her not to overextend herself.
• Lin Qianqian shows rapid growth and a strongly ambitious streak. She is already imagining how her improved techniques could overwhelm opponents, including Zhou Fan.
• Zhao Qiu proves himself more capable than Zhou Fan expected: his respectable exam score and A-Rank Superpower earn him a place at Xinghai University.
• Wang Daochuan shifts from giving practical advice to expressing genuine affection and concern for his departing students.

Significant themes

• Self-determination and resistance to authority: Xia Qingran insists that her future belongs to her, not to fate or powerful elders.
• Ambition and preparation: Lin Qianqian’s experimentation and Zhou Fan’s rapid transition to university reflect the pressure on Espers to keep improving.
• Humility amid competition: Wang warns that success at their school will not make the students exceptional at a top university.
• Mentorship and attachment: The principal’s farewell highlights the lasting bond between students and their school.

Character interactions

• Xia reassures her worried mother, who offers protection while respecting her daughter’s decision.
• Lin’s thoughts frame her new technique as a potential challenge to Zhou Fan.
• Zhao Qiu greets Zhou enthusiastically; Zhou is surprised by his acceptance, while Zhao credits his Superpower rank.
• Wang teases Zhao about being unlikely to stand out, then gives all three students serious advice and promises continued support.

• Arrival and registration: Zhou Fan, Lin Qianqian, and Zhao Qiu travel with Principal Wang Daochuan to Nanyang City to register at Xinghai University. The city is quieter than during the entrance exam but crowded with students and parents, while universities use flying mutant beasts instead of planes because they are cheaper and safer in a dangerous sky.
• Xinghai University’s selectivity: The group meets teacher Li Dong at the university’s unusually quiet registration point. He confirms that three students from their high school were admitted, including the Southern District’s top scorer and runner-up. The university accepts only twenty exam entrants each year, though other routes—including personal connections—also exist.
• New classmates: As the other students arrive, many recognize Zhou Fan and Lin Qianqian as the people who defeated them in the entrance competition. None of the S-rank contestants Zhou Fan eliminated earlier are among them, since they failed to reach the required rankings. Once all twenty students have gathered, they prepare to travel to campus on Xinghai University’s Seven-Colored Divine Sparrow.
• The first challenge: The sparrow’s back is coated in spiritual energy that makes it slippery. Zhao Qiu and the other newcomers repeatedly fall when they try to climb aboard. Zhou Fan uses his Sharingan to identify the cause and realizes they need to focus spiritual energy beneath their feet. He demonstrates by leaping aboard and standing securely, surprising the others.
  Character developments and interactions: Zhou Fan remains observant and resourceful, solving the problem through his special ability and quickly turning insight into practical advice. Zhao Qiu provides comic frustration as the first to slip, while Lin Qianqian and the other new students share the awkward first test. Li Dong’s teasing challenges the students’ confidence, and Wang Daochuan’s warm reunion with him highlights their long-standing friendship.
  Themes: The chapter introduces the shift from school competition to university life, emphasizes Xinghai University’s elite standards, and shows that clever adaptation—not just achievement or raw power—is essential when facing new challenges.

Plot points and events

• New students begin their journey to Xinghai University aboard a Seven-Colored Divine Sparrow. Before the flight, recruiter Li Dong reveals their first entrance test: students must use spiritual energy with precise balance to keep their footing on the bird’s back.
• Zhou Fan succeeds immediately, impressing Li Dong with his observation and control. Zhao Qiu struggles until Zhou Fan advises him to balance the energy beneath both feet. Lin Qianqian adapts quickly by landing on one foot first, then correcting her balance.
• The other students eventually manage the test after several attempts. Li Dong criticizes their performance and singles Zhou Fan out as the only one who passed on his first try.
• Once airborne, Li Dong warns that sitting also requires spiritual-energy control. Most students remain standing, while Zhou Fan casually lies down and Lin Qianqian sits.
• After a two-hour flight, the group reaches Xinghai University. Its enormous stone gate and the powerful auras within leave the newcomers awestruck.

Character development and interactions

• Zhou Fan demonstrates exceptional spiritual-energy control and confidence. He helps Zhao Qiu, then remains relaxed even during the flight. Seeing the university’s powerful presence awakens his competitive spirit.
• Zhao Qiu is eager to imitate Zhou Fan but initially wobbles; he succeeds with Zhou Fan’s practical guidance and celebrates proudly.
• Lin Qianqian shows intelligence and agility, quickly adjusting her landing technique. She is impressed by the university but maintains a composed image by sitting rather than lying down.
• Li Dong acts as a strict, teasing guide. He explains the test only after students are already facing it, praises Zhou Fan, and reproaches the group for their poor showing.
• The students’ reactions—complaints, anxiety, and envy—highlight the contrast between their caution and Zhou Fan’s ease.

Significant themes

• Skill and adaptability: The test rewards precise control and quick learning, not simply strength.
• Competition and ambition: Zhou Fan’s arrival at the university turns his awe into determination to measure himself against its many powerful people.
• Uneven ability: Zhou Fan’s effortless success contrasts with the other students’ struggles, foreshadowing differences in talent and confidence.

Key plot points and events

• Zhou Fan and the other exam-admitted freshmen arrive at Xinghai University. Li Dong shows them around and explains that the campus is large and their dorms are far more comfortable than their high-school rooms.
• Li Dong says classes contain only three to five students, allowing for intensive instruction. The twenty exam entrants are only part of the incoming cohort; roughly a hundred freshmen have been admitted through exams, family connections, or other routes.
• Zhou Fan shares a dorm with Zhao Qiu. Zhao is eager to prove himself, while Zhou warns him that an elite university is no place for overconfidence. Zhao jokes that he can use Zhou’s name for protection; Zhou warns that might make things worse.
• While exploring campus, they see wealthy freshmen arriving in luxury cars or on rare flying beasts. Zhao is struck by the inequality, but Zhou advises him to focus on their own path, noting that privilege does not necessarily mean lack of ability.
• At the opening ceremony, Operations Department director Luo Luodong welcomes the students. Principal Xi Yan—one of Xia Country’s ten strongest—delivers an extremely long speech.
• Zhou searches the stage for Queen Xia, a wealthy woman he suspects may hold a senior university position, but cannot identify her with certainty.
• Students and teachers are allowed to choose one another for small classes. Most freshmen are selected, including Zhao Qiu, but Zhou and Lin Qianqian are left unchosen.

Character developments

• Zhou Fan is practical and wary of both campus rivalries and status differences. He discourages Zhao’s bravado and remains focused on finding his place, while also investigating Queen Xia’s identity.
• Zhao Qiu begins excited and confident, then recognizes the potential danger of standing out and the gulf between exam students and privileged entrants.
• Lin Qianqian, an S-rank Divine Paper Technique talent and second-place exam scorer, is also overlooked in the initial class selection, setting up a possible problem for her and Zhou.

Significant themes

• Privilege and unequal opportunity: Many students enter through special channels and arrive with expensive transport, while Zhou and his peers had to compete through exams.
• Merit versus resources: Zhou recognizes that privileged students may still be capable—and can use family wealth to strengthen themselves.
• Competition and uncertainty: Even celebrated freshmen may find that reputation does not guarantee acceptance or an easy start.
• Elite education: The university’s very small classes promise close instruction, but choosing teachers and classmates creates a new challenge.

Character interactions

• Li Dong guides the freshmen and explains the university’s structure.
• Zhou and Zhao trade jokes and advice, revealing their friendship and contrasting temperaments.
• The freshmen comment on one another and on the wealthy arrivals, highlighting social tensions.
• At the ceremony, Xi Yan addresses the students, then teachers select students for their classes—leaving Zhou and Lin as the conspicuous exceptions.

Plot points and events

• After the opening ceremony, Zhou Fan is surprised that none of the teachers chose him. Zhao Qiu suggests that his teacher take Zhou as well, but the teacher refuses.
• Principal Xi Yan assigns Zhou Fan and Lin Qianqian to a teacher and leads them to his office.
• Zhou Fan privately asks Xi Yan whether he is Queen Xia, prompting Xi Yan to deny it with an exasperated joke.
• The expected teacher arrives: Xia Qingran, the person Zhou Fan knows as Queen Xia. She is a strikingly beautiful second-year student.
• Zhou bluntly admits he had imagined Queen Xia as an unattractive middle-aged woman, then softens the insult by complimenting her appearance. Xia is annoyed but ultimately amused.
• Xia welcomes Lin Qianqian and announces that both students will study under her. When Zhou questions whether she is qualified, Xi Yan reveals she is the strongest of Xia Country’s younger generation and has reached tier four, one star—an achievement that stuns Zhou.

Character developments

• Zhou Fan remains confident and irreverent, openly questioning teachers and making tactless jokes. He is surprised by Xia Qingran’s appearance and far more impressed by her strength than he expected.
• Lin Qianqian remains reserved and polite, but feels inexplicably uncomfortable watching Zhou and Xia bond so easily.
• Xia Qingran is playful and self-assured, yet takes Zhou’s insult personally. Her strength and status are revealed to be far greater than her youthful appearance suggests.
• Xi Yan acts as a composed authority figure, steering Zhou and Lin toward their mentor and clarifying Xia’s credentials.

Significant themes

• Appearances versus reality: Zhou’s assumptions about Queen Xia prove completely wrong, while Xia’s youth conceals extraordinary power.
• Talent and status: The teachers’ reluctance to take Zhou hints at his unusual standing, while Xia’s rank establishes her as an exceptional mentor.
• Humor and social awkwardness: Misunderstandings and Zhou’s blunt remarks drive the chapter’s comedy.
• Jealousy and connection: Lin’s discomfort suggests that Zhou and Xia’s lively rapport may affect their relationships.

Character interactions

• Zhou jokes with Xi Yan about being Queen Xia, then meets Xia and trades teasing, sometimes insulting remarks with her.
• Xia warmly compliments Lin’s appearance; Lin responds courteously but watches Zhou and Xia’s exchange with unease.
• Zhou challenges Xia’s teaching ability, and Xi Yan answers by explaining her remarkable power and reputation.

Key plot points and events

• Xia Qingran reveals she is a nineteen-year-old sophomore and a fourth-tier, one-star Esper, demonstrating exceptional talent.
• She offers Zhou Fan and Lin Qianqian generous support—money, cultivation resources, and equipment—though her approach to teaching is simply to provide resources and let them learn on their own.
• Both agree to join her. She takes them to a luxurious villa on campus and tells them they will live there.
• Xia explains that she is founding Evening Bell, an organization she hopes will one day become the strongest in Xia Country. It currently has only three members: Xia, Zhou, and Lin.
• She gives Zhou and Lin a bank card each, loaded with one million, as their initial cultivation resources.
• Xia clarifies that she lives in the house next door, leaving Zhou and Lin to share the villa. Lin objects, but Xia insists they stay.

Character developments

• Xia Qingran is established as highly talented, wealthy, ambitious, and confident. She is eager to build her organization and treats generosity and determination as more important than formal teaching experience.
• Zhou Fan begins skeptical of Xia’s ability to teach and jokes that Evening Bell sounds like a pyramid scheme. Once she offers substantial resources, he enthusiastically backs her ambition.
• Lin Qianqian trusts Xia and accepts the offer, but becomes uncomfortable at the prospect of sharing a home with Zhou.

Significant themes

• Talent and cultivation: Reaching the fourth tier marks Xia as exceptional, while the difficulty of progressing beyond early tiers highlights how rare such achievement is.
• Ambition and beginnings: Evening Bell’s grand goal contrasts humorously with its tiny starting membership.
• Resources versus instruction: Xia believes capable people can make use of resources without conventional teaching.
• Trust, wealth, and comic suspicion: Xia’s lavish offers persuade Zhou, even as he jokes that her recruitment pitch resembles a scam.
• Living together: The shared villa creates an awkward, potentially intimate situation that neither Zhou nor Lin initially expected.

Character interactions

• Xia boasts about her cultivation, while Zhou distinguishes personal strength from teaching ability.
• Zhou and Lin respond differently to Xia’s offer: both trust her, but Lin is more immediately interested in the benefits, while Zhou shifts from suspicion to support after seeing her commitment and money.
• Xia’s teasing declaration that Zhou and Lin will be “living together” embarrasses Zhou and makes Lin ask to return to the dorms. Xia dismisses the objection and makes the arrangement final.

Plot points and events

• Xia Qingran arranges for Zhou Fan and Lin Qianqian to live in a villa together as part of their special guidance. They choose bedrooms at opposite ends of the upstairs hallway.
• Zhou Fan packs and moves from his dorm. His roommate, Zhao Qiu, excitedly assumes the shared villa might bring Zhou Fan and Lin Qianqian closer, but Zhou Fan insists they are only rivals.
• Lin Qianqian arrives with her luggage carried by her Divine Paper Art. The villa is quiet and has a kitchen, though Zhou Fan prefers eating at the cafeteria.
• Zhou Fan invites Lin Qianqian to dinner, but she declines. He expects their arrangement to remain distant and independent.
• Lin Qianqian is preoccupied with the second comparison, scheduled for midnight. She trains intensely in the courtyard, determined to secure a win. Zhou Fan notices her effort, briefly feels self-conscious, then decides his system makes hard training unnecessary and returns to his room.

Character developments and interactions

• Zhou Fan is relaxed about living with Lin Qianqian and sees the arrangement as practical, not romantic. He tries to be considerate by inviting her to eat, but remains content to keep to himself. His confidence in his system reinforces his tendency to avoid strenuous training.
• Lin Qianqian remains focused on beating Zhou Fan. The sudden cohabitation makes her uneasy, but the approaching contest matters more; she responds to her nerves by training harder.
• Zhao Qiu teases Zhou Fan about the possibility of romance, while Zhou Fan rejects the idea. Their exchange highlights the difference between Zhao Qiu’s playful assumptions and Zhou Fan’s insistence that he and Lin Qianqian are rivals.
• Zhou Fan and Lin Qianqian choose distant rooms, and their first interaction in the villa is polite but restrained. They do not yet grow closer.

Significant themes

• Competition and comparison: The looming contest shapes Lin Qianqian’s thoughts and motivates her training.
• Different approaches to success: Lin Qianqian relies on disciplined effort, while Zhou Fan trusts that his system will let him progress without comparable exertion.
• Cohabitation versus intimacy: The characters live under one roof, but the chapter emphasizes their emotional distance and challenges assumptions that shared living will lead to romance.

Plot points

• Late at night, Lin Qianqian finishes training and sees that Zhou Fan is still awake. They exchange a brief greeting when she comes out of the shower, but she reads as unusually cold.
• Anxious for the scheduled comparison, Lin spends the remaining time tidying her room and reminding herself that her improved strength will let her win.
• The system compares their cultivation: both are at second tier, four stars. Lin rejects the option to postpone and chooses ten simulated battles.
• Zhou Fan wins all ten. Lin argues that her new techniques should counter his abilities, but the system insists its simulations used her full strength.
• Lin refuses to trust the system and takes control of the practical battle herself, confident in a planned combination of Paper Transformation, Paper-Style Clones, and the Mutually Multiplying Paper Bomb Technique.
• Her attacks are swallowed by Zhou Fan’s Wood Release: Deep Forest Emergence. The trees regenerate after her clones explode, then restrain her and drain her spiritual energy. Once she can no longer maintain Paper Transformation, the trees crush her.

Character developments and interactions

• Lin Qianqian is eager to prove how much she has improved, but remains overconfident and unwilling to accept the system’s assessment. Her insistence on fighting personally repeats her earlier mistake and ends in another defeat.
• Zhou Fan reveals a powerful Wood Release technique that counters Lin’s strategy by overwhelming and exhausting her rather than relying on the attacks she expected.
• Lin and Zhou have only a short, restrained exchange in the hallway. The main conflict between them unfolds through the comparison.

Significant themes

• Overconfidence and self-deception: Lin mistakes stronger abilities for guaranteed victory and dismisses evidence that Zhou remains ahead.
• Adaptation and counterplay: Zhou’s unfamiliar technique defeats Lin by bypassing her physical-attack immunity and exploiting its dependence on spiritual energy.
• Limits of strength: Having more techniques does not ensure success when an opponent can neutralize their underlying mechanics.