Wei Jin left the apartment building and stepped into the morning streets, Hover-buses slid along magnetic rails overhead.
advertisements flickered on tall buildings, and people moved with urgency. To anyone else, it was just another day.
To Jin, it felt overwhelming.
The moment he merged into the crowd, his senses sharpened without warning.
Sounds layered themselves clearly instead of blending together—the footsteps on concrete, the faint hum of energy cores embedded beneath the streets.
even conversations that should have been lost to distance.
More than that, he felt people.
As students passed by in academy uniforms, Jin could sense subtle differences between them.
Some felt dull and muted, their presence barely noticeable. Others carried a faint pressure, like standing near a warm flame or a coiled predator.
A tall boy ahead of him had slightly elongated canines and an unnatural steadiness to his steps—Rare-grade gene, Jin guessed instinctively.
A girl across the street radiated a sharp, prickling sensation that made his skin tighten—probably an elemental-type fusion.
In his past life, he wouldn't have noticed any of this. He had only known strength when it crushed him head-on.
Now, for the first time, the invisible hierarchy of the world unfolded clearly before him.
So this is what I was missing, Jin thought quietly. I was walking blind.
As the academy gates came into view, the pressure thickened.
This was where young gene-fused humans gathered, where potential was measured openly and weakness was silently pushed aside.
Jin passed through without incident, keeping his head low, aware of how small his presence felt compared to others.
Inside the classroom, students were already scattered across the benches.
Some chatted loudly, others compared recent hunts, while a few openly showed off faint manifestations of their monster genes.
"I heard Liu Fang awakened a skill from a Unique monster," someone said proudly from two rows ahead.
"Unique? That's nothing. My cousin fused with an Epic-grade core last month," another replied, voice full of smug certainty.
"At least you all awakened early. Some people are still stuck at low-grade genes."
A few glances flicked toward Jin before quickly looking away.
He sat down quietly near the back, resting his arms on the desk. Even with his eyes half-lowered, he heard everything.
Conversations from across the room reached him clearly, overlapping yet distinct.
The sound of pages flipping, the scrape of chairs, even the faint heartbeat of the student sitting beside him.
In his past life, this room had felt distant, unreachable. Now, it felt exposed.
I really was weak, Jin admitted to himself. Not just in power, but in awareness to.
Suddenly, a presence rushed toward him from behind.
Before his mind could react, his body moved.
Jin ducked sharply, twisting to the side as a hand passed over where his shoulder had been a moment earlier.
The movement was clean and instinctive, honed by years of combat he hadn't lived yet in this body.
The classroom fell silent.
Several students stared at him in shock. The hand froze midair, then pulled back awkwardly.
"Whoa—what was that?" the boy behind him said, eyes wide. "Man, you dodged like you had eyes on your back."
Jin looked up and froze.
It was Zhao Chen.
Alive, healthy, grinning stupidly like always.
Before he could stop himself, Jin stood up and pulled him into a tight hug.
"It's you," Jin said, his voice rougher than he intended. "You're alive… thank you."
Zhao Chen stiffened, then awkwardly pushed him back. "What the hell are you saying?" he asked, scanning Jin's face with concern.
"Did you hit your head or something? You look like you saw a ghost."
Jin's chest tightened. Images flashed through his mind—blood, screams, Zhao Chen standing in front of others during a breach, refusing to retreat until it was too late.
"I remember how you died," Jin muttered before catching himself.
Zhao Chen's expression turned serious. He reached out and pressed the back of his hand to Jin's forehead.
"You okay, man? Did you even sleep last night? This better not be one of those nightmare-after-training things."
Jin exhaled slowly and forced a small smile. "I'm fine," he said. "Really. Just… a very long nightmare."
Zhao Chen studied him for a moment longer, then shook his head. "Man, don't joke like that. But seriously—how did you dodge that? You moved like you knew I was there."
Before Jin could answer, his senses flared again.
A calm, heavy presence approached from the corridor outside the classroom, controlled and sharp, unlike the students.
Jin turned his head toward the door a split second before it opened.
Several students noticed and followed his gaze.
The door slid open.
Instructor Han Qiu stepped inside.
Silence snapped into place immediately.
Han Qiu's eyes swept the room, lingering for just a fraction of a second on Jin before moving on.
The faint scale patterns along his neck caught the light, proof of an advanced fusion.
"Take your seats," Han Qiu said evenly. "Class begins now."
Students hurried back to their places. Zhao Chen glanced at Jin one last time, clearly unsettled, before sitting down.
Jin rested his hands on the desk, his heartbeat steady but his mind sharp.
Instructor Han Qiu placed his materials on the desk and looked over the class, his gaze steady and assessing.
"You all know what's coming in seven days, right?" he asked.
For a brief moment, the room was quiet.
Then voices rose.
"The National Combat Entrance Exam."
"The NCEE."
"That decides which academies will even look at us."
Han Qiu let the murmurs continue for a second before raising his hand.
"If you plan to participate," he said calmly, "submit your names by tomorrow."
The atmosphere shifted instantly.
"From today onward, train harder. Refine your abilities. At the very least, aim to enter the top one hundred in the province".
Han Qiu continued, his voice firm. "This year, we have a few decent students. I expect more from you."
Several students straightened unconsciously.
"Your performance doesn't just represent you," he went on. "It represents this school. Don't think you can scrape by and still keep its name intact."
His eyes swept the room, lingering for a heartbeat at the back.
"Those who perform well will receive additional rewards from the academy," Han Qiu added.
"More importantly, good results will determine which colleges are willing to accept you."
That last sentence struck deeper than the rest.
"Train seriously," Han Qiu concluded. "Don't embarrass yourselves. Don't embarrass this school."
With that, he turned and left the classroom, the door sliding shut behind him.
The moment he was gone, noise flooded back in.
"Top hundred in the province? That's brutal."
"But the rewards are worth it."
"If I get into a good college, my family's status will change."
Wei Jin remained seated, silent.
Seven days.
In his past life, he hadn't even dared to sign up. His gene had been too weak, his confidence nonexistent.
Now, as his senses quietly mapped the room, he could feel the pressure, ambition, and desperation radiating from his classmates.
Tomorrow to submit names, he thought.
His fingers curled slightly against the desk.
This time, he would at least step onto the stage.