Translator: CinderTL
On the bus, Jiang Ye looked around and noticed several unfamiliar faces—students who weren't from Class One.
"Those three are second-year students," Wang Zi'ang explained from beside him.
Jiang Ye's expression turned to surprise. He knew that students in the Elite Class could achieve Perfection in their cultivation methods by their second year. But it was only January—the first semester of their second year wasn't even over yet. How could they have already reached Perfection?
If it had been Jiang Ye back then, he would still have been at the Entry stage.
Wang Zi'ang crossed his arms. "What's so surprising? Last year at this time, five people in our cohort had already reached Perfection."
"Brother Wang is truly impressive," Jiang Ye remarked.
Over the past few days, he had grown accustomed to Wang Zi'ang's speaking style. He would remain silent until he spoke, but when he did, his words always carried an undercurrent of arrogance.
Take Wang Zi'ang's previous statement, for example. He was undoubtedly one of those five who had reached Perfection; otherwise, he wouldn't have brought it up so casually.
Hearing Jiang Ye's praise, Wang Zi'ang sighed dramatically. "Talking to you is so refreshing. Unlike that cold-hearted Class Monitor Zhao, who's always snapping at people."
Jiang Ye shook his head with a smile. Zhao Qingli, being from a wealthy family, could afford to snap at anyone—even the heavens and the earth—without consequence.
It was the poor who had to master the art of social maneuvering.
Jiang Ye seized the opportunity to ask, "When did Class Monitor Zhao reach Perfection?"
Wang Zi'ang replied, "She achieved Perfection shortly after the start of the first semester of her junior year."
"So early?" Jiang Ye exclaimed in surprise. "It's been a year and a half since then. Hasn't she made her first breakthrough yet?"
Wang Zi'ang explained, "She's cultivating the Star Martial Foundation Building Method, which requires at least ten cosmic temperings to achieve the first breakthrough."
"But she's close now. I reckon she'll break through next semester."
Jiang Ye nodded.
Zhao Qingli usually focused on internal cultivation, so he hadn't been able to discern which refinement method she was practicing.
"I never imagined even the class monitor would choose the foundation establishment method," Jiang Ye remarked. "It seems those of us who directly opt for the Advancement Method are a rare breed."
Wang Zi'ang chuckled. "The Star Martial Advancement Method is reserved for true geniuses."
"When I first chose this technique, it took me a full three months just to achieve Entry."
He turned to Jiang Ye. "I think you should wait a few months until you've achieved Entry with the Advancement Method before attempting cosmic tempering. Participating now would be a waste."
Jiang Ye smiled noncommittally.
Amidst their casual conversation, the bus arrived at its destination:
A cubic blue building.
By the time Jiang Ye stepped off the bus, a considerable number of students had already gathered.
"Ancheng No. 1 High School and Ancheng No. 2 High School," Jiang Ye observed, scanning the crowd.
Only three high schools were participating in this cosmic tempering session.
Ancheng No. 2 High School had a similar turnout to Ancheng Third High School, with just over a hundred students.
But Ancheng No. 1 High School...
Astonishingly, they had brought over three hundred students!
"Ancheng No. 1 High School truly lives up to its reputation as a powerhouse," Jiang Ye murmured to himself, his gaze sweeping over the sea of students from the elite institution.
As Ancheng's top high school, Ancheng No. 1 High School boasted students of far superior caliber compared to other schools.
Even among freshmen, there were significant disparities in innate talent.
For instance, not a single A-Grade Mortal Physique could be found in all of Ancheng Third High School.
Yet Ancheng No. 1 High School had five such students present.
However, as Jiang Ye surveyed the crowd, he didn't spot any students with Upper A-tier physiques.
Could my Upper A-Grade Mortal Physique be the strongest physique among all the Nascent Aptitudes?
The thought suddenly struck him.
Just then, he noticed a familiar figure with an unusually large head—Lin Xuan, whom he had previously encountered during the trial.
Standing beside Lin Xuan was another youth with an even larger head, his face covered in pockmarks and his hair a tangled mess of curls.
He was strikingly ugly!
Despite his unappealing appearance, the surrounding students regarded him with awe.
"Ancheng No. 1 High School's top student, Lin Yushu!"
Nearby, Wang Zi'ang also watched the figure, his gaze tinged with apprehension.
"Lin Yushu?" Jiang Ye muttered to himself, "Lin Xuan's brother? Did they both grow up on Sanlu milk powder? His head is enormous."
At the same moment, Lin Xuan spotted Jiang Ye.
"Jiang Ye?" Lin Xuan exclaimed inwardly, "He made it into the Elite Class? No wonder he once defeated me."
"Still, with just a Primitive innate talent, he's participating in the cosmic tempering so soon? I'll crush him this time," Lin Xuan smirked.
Meanwhile, the E-Rank Girl Zhao Qingli was also observing Ancheng No. 1 High School's team.
Only those students from Ancheng No. 1 High School could ignite her competitive spirit. As for her own classmates? She had long dismissed them as irrelevant.
"My target," Zhao Qingli murmured, her gaze fixed on Lin Yushu.
He was Ancheng No. 1 High School's top student and the strongest high schooler in the entire city—the benchmark she had always strived to surpass.
Noticing Zhao Qingli's gaze, Lin Yushu grinned, revealing teeth stained with yellow spots.
Immediately afterward, he stared intently at Zhao Qingli's long, snow-white legs, scrutinizing them with brazen disregard.
"Disgusting," Zhao Qingli muttered, her delicate brows furrowing.
Lin Yushu was strikingly ugly—a large head, pockmarked face, yellow teeth, and a leering gaze. Just looking at him made her feel psychologically repulsed.
Yet she knew all too well that while Lin Yushu might inspire disgust, his score was an astonishing 849 points—higher than her own current score.
"I'll crush that guy under my heel sooner or later," Zhao Qingli vowed inwardly, gritting her teeth.
She firmly believed that there was nothing in this world that money couldn't accomplish. If something seemed impossible, it simply meant she hadn't spent enough yet.
"Brother, stop staring," Lin Xuan sighed, looking at the pockmarked youth before him. "Her father is a business tycoon, and her mother is a Star Practitioner. We're way out of our league."
Lin Yushu replied coolly, "Do you think I'm like you? I'm simply appreciating beauty."
Anyone who could achieve such a high score must possess an unwavering Martial Dao Will. If mere beauty could shake their resolve, they wouldn't have scored above 800 points. After all, the Virtual Cosmos Assessment places immense emphasis on one's Martial Dao Will.
For Lin Yushu, observing beautiful women was a daily practice, a way to temper his Martial Dao Will.
Take this moment, for example. Facing Zhao Qingli, a peerless beauty, and sensing the disdain in her eyes, Lin Yushu felt a peculiar sense of satisfaction.
He immediately sensed his Martial Dao Will strengthening.
"Hmm, I'm in excellent form today," Lin Yushu thought, a sharp glint flashing in his eyes. "This cosmic tempering is as good as done."
Moments later, the blue cubic structure opened its doors.
Over five hundred students filed inside like a school of fish.
"The Purification Pool?" Jiang Ye exclaimed upon entering. The interior revealed a futuristic energy pool, a hundred meters wide and long, suspended in a double-ringed, nested structure.
The outer ring was a streamlined frame of composite materials, its surface etched with intricate energy-conducting patterns. The inner ring, hovering half a meter above the ground on an energy base, made the entire pool appear to float.
Above the pool, a transparent glass dome enclosed the space, creating a sealed chamber.
Whoosh!
A middle-aged man in silver-black armor suddenly materialized in mid-air.
"The cosmic tempering is about to begin."
"Everyone, enter the Purification Pool!"
The Silver-Black Armored Man's tiger-like eyes swept across the crowd as he bellowed in a deep voice.
(End of the Chapter)
Translator's Corner
Hey guys, so as I tried to login into my ScribbleHub account to today and found that it was banned.😭 All the stories have also been taken off of the site. I don't what has happened, I will try to contact them and figure out what's going on. Please contact me if you know what could be happening and have any potential solutions.
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