The monthly Trial Tower challenges were identical across all three academies. S-rank ratings belonged exclusively to the realm of geniuses. Only five people in Red Earth Academy's history had ever earned one, and the records they had set had long since been broken by those who came after them.
The last S-rank rating had appeared over forty years ago, earned by a genius from Mystic Radiance Academy.
"President Song, who is Wen Jing?"
Shocked, curious faces crowded toward the Ocher Soil exchange students, surrounding the equally stunned group.
Then, as they realized what had happened, even Song Zhi, who never let his feelings show, began to flush.
Throughout their month at Azure Jade Academy, the exchange students had always kept their expressions taut and their backs straight, afraid of being looked down on.
But at this moment, they were all at a loss, unsure what expressions to make, yet for the first time here, they truly felt they could hold their heads high.
"Ding! Ding! Ding!"
While Azure Jade Academy's students were discussing the news in shock, more secondhand messages from Red Earth Academy arrived one after another.
Everyone's first reaction was that Red Earth Academy was hopeless. Had a single S-rank rating excited them so much that they had to send broadcast after broadcast? And their own academy was simply letting them, without filtering anything?
Yet once they read the contents, all of Azure Jade Academy erupted.
And Azure Jade was not alone. Mystic Radiance Academy erupted too.
To Mystic Radiance's favored geniuses, the news of a first-floor record being broken was merely an amusing novelty, with discussion limited to the first-years who knew her.
But the three consecutive messages that followed made everyone learn her name that day.
"What? She cleared four floors of the Trial Tower with S-rank ratings?"
When the Mystic Radiance first-year winter entrants who had shared a spaceship with Wen Jing heard the news, their expressions were shocked and complicated, and they could not calm down for a long time.
After entering different academies, the gap in their potential and prospects had made all of them feel that their futures would no longer intersect with hers. None had expected to hear her name again so soon, under such circumstances.
"How could this happen?!"
When ■■■ received the news, he had been playing a holographic game with friends in the recreation area. As though struck by lightning, he let out a piercing shriek, abandoned the game, and ran toward the Trial Tower.
He had applied himself for a while after first enrolling, but the capital planet's dazzling prosperity was captivating, university life was rich and varied, and there were all sorts of valuable connections worth spending time cultivating.
At Mystic Radiance Academy, many considered burying oneself single-mindedly in training the stupidest approach. Even plenty of students born on School District Planet had picked up the sleep they had once evolved beyond, let alone ■■■, who came from a plutocratic family and whose position within it had been secured by his admission to Mystic Radiance.
The news of Wen Jing breaking records returned the atmosphere among the other two academies' first-years, who had only just begun to relax, to that of School District Planet on the eve of final exams, all within a single day.
Although the Trial Tower primarily reflected talent in combat techniques, and in actual combat, Wen Jing, an F-rank, was bound to fall short of them in ability stats, they had the best educational resources at their disposal. Would being surpassed by an F-rank in combat techniques sound any better?
The same phenomenon appeared at both academies-the Trial Towers were packed!
Wen Jing had just stepped out of the machine and through the hall's passageway when she was greeted by a tidal wave of cheers.
"Why is it so lively?"
Just as Red Earth Academy knew nothing of the reactions at Azure Jade and Mystic Radiance Academy, when she emerged to face this massive spectacle of "haters turning neutral, neutrals turning into fans, and fans turning into diehard fans," she could not help being startled.
So an S-rank carried this much weight?
The atmosphere was fervent and excited, but when Wen Jing actually approached, more people instinctively stepped aside. Only Yu Yang and the others dared come forward to speak.
"Wen Jing, you're incredible! The news has already been broadcast to Mystic Radiance and Azure Jade! It's been nearly a thousand years since our academy last had an S-rank rating, and you broke records on four floors in a row..."
The others beside him all chimed in with explanations, and Wen Jing soon understood why.
Just then, someone in the crowd suddenly called out, "Dean!"
"The dean's here?!"
At that startled cry, the crowd quickly parted, revealing a familiar figure opposite them.
The woman had white hair and golden eyes. It was Dean Bai.
Facing Dean Bai, who had looked after her, Wen Jing immediately strode up. "Dean, even you came?"
"Hahaha!" Dean Bai remained entirely without airs. After three booming laughs, she jumped up and hooked an arm around Wen Jing's neck. "You've done our academy proud! Come with me!"
With the dean there in person, no matter how excited the students were, they did not dare overstep and ask Wen Jing to stay. They could only watch the two leave, chatting and laughing.
Only after they had left the Trial Tower hall did Wen Jing find a chance to speak. "Dean, where are you taking me?"
Dean Bai tilted her head and, smiling, gave an answer that made her heart race:
"The academy treasury."
Chapter 35
From the moment the news arrived that afternoon, Azure Jade's and Mystic Radiance's Trial Towers were bustling.
Even some fourth-years still at the academies made a point of attempting the Trial Tower.
However, each student had only three challenge attempts per month. In the end, they exhausted their attempts, yet no one broke a record.
If records were so easy to break, this would not have caused such a stir.
After all, an S-rank represented an all-time record since the Trial Tower system's establishment. Under this model, after the initial golden age when S-rank ratings appeared in great numbers, they were destined to become increasingly rare. Later challengers might match a record, but breaking it would take a very long time.
Song Zhi and the other exchange students at Azure Jade got a taste of being hot commodities. Wherever they went, people gathered around to ask about Wen Jing.
Busy as he had been at Azure Jade Academy, how could Song Zhi have specifically looked into a new student? All along the way, he could only offer cautious, noncommittal answers:
"She's a first-year. I wasn't there when this winter's students enrolled, but our personnel department certainly wouldn't overlook a genius like her!"
Song Zhi spoke with some confidence. Every student council department had its own procedures, and they screened new students who achieved good Trial Tower results for recruitment.
Unless the personnel department was full of idiots, there was no way they had failed to recruit Wen Jing.
At this thought, Song Zhi could not help brimming with ambition-a genius like this appearing during his term would undoubtedly make a significant addition to his future résumé.
Then the crowd parted again, revealing Azure Jade's student council president, who had hurried over upon hearing the news.
"President Song, could Wen Jing come for next year's exchange at our academy?"
Seeing the enthusiasm on the face of Azure Jade's president, who had previously treated him with indifference, Song Zhi felt immensely gratified. He maintained a modest expression. "I wouldn't dare make any promises on our genius's behalf. I'll do my best to persuade her not to miss such a fine opportunity for growth and exchange."
"Of course, of course." Azure Jade's president smiled cheerfully in understanding.
The presidents of the two academies exchanged more pleasantries and back-and-forth before Song Zhi and the others finally extricated themselves.
Then he opened his communications and checked the information about Wen Jing sent by Ocher Soil's student council.
Since taking over the student council, Song Zhi had achieved quite a bit, scouting talent for the Operations Department and balancing factional struggles, among other things. He held genuine power within the council.
Even with a planet between them, those on the other end did not dare conceal information he requested.
Thus, as he read the messages, Song Zhi's expression shifted from initial excitement to astonishment, then anger... Dangerous energy fluctuations faintly stirred around him.
Just as he was thinking of making a proper effort to win Wen Jing over upon his return, they told him the personnel department had already thoroughly offended her, and she was still being "blacklisted"!
If the smart terminal's messages had not been projected onto his retinas, he would have wanted to crush the image before him.
Finally, Song Zhi rubbed his brow, his expression icy, and replied:
"So what's the situation now? With something like this happening, weren't several Operations Department members there at the time? Did none of them go speak to Wen Jing?"
He prided himself on being clever, yet were all his subordinates fools?
"No, Wen Jing has already been taken away by the dean," Ji Shuang's group sent back.
The dean... Had she actually caught Dean Bai's attention too?
Reading this message, Song Zhi, who had still been regretting that Wen Jing's potential was only F-rank, felt his pupils tremble. The importance he placed on her rose yet again.
As student council president, he was one of the few people in the entire academy who knew Dean Bai's true background.
The flourishing changes at Red Earth Academy over the past fifty years had all been brought about by Dean Bai. Many of the educational resources the academy now possessed had been obtained through her mediation. Certain advanced electives and the current exchange student slots were ready examples.
After weighing things briefly, Song Zhi could not wait for the exchange program to end and issued orders directly from afar.
"What?! How could they just dismiss us from our posts?"
At Red Earth Academy, Tan Junhao and the others turned deathly pale upon receiving the news. He had felt disaster looming as early as when Wen Jing earned her S-rank rating, but he had thought the worst possible outcome would merely be losing the promotion he had considered guaranteed.
He had never expected an order from the president dismissing him, and it was not just him-all twelve members of his entire team were being removed!
At the president's command, two Operations Department members who answered directly to him soon arrived at the personnel department office and watched robots pack up the team's belongings and send them away.
The atmosphere was utterly dismal. Deeply shaken, quite a few of the team's officers periodically cast hateful, indignant looks at their former poser of a team leader.
Only when a robot began packing up the "antique" printer did the silent Tan Junhao seem to finally recognize reality. Trembling all over, he rushed forward to block the robot:
"No! I've made contributions to the council! The former president is my relative! You can't treat me like this! I want to see the president!"