The first week at the Imperial Academy passed in a whirlwind.
Every day brought new lectures, new techniques, and new ways for Zhao Lingxi to quietly terrify everyone around her. In Spiritual Cultivation Theory, she answered questions that left the instructor speechless. In Tactical Strategy, she dismantled hypothetical battle formations that had stumped students for years.
But it was Combat Arts that turned heads.
Master Jiang, the combat instructor, was a scarred veteran with one eye and zero patience. He paired students randomly for daily sparring, and Zhao Lingxi won every single match.
"Fourth level of Qi Condensation, and she fights like she's at Foundation Establishment," Lan Yue overheard one student whisper. "It doesn't make sense."
"Her technique is too refined," another muttered. "Where did she learn it? The countryside?"
By the end of the week, no one was calling her trash anymore.
They were calling her dangerous.
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