Chapter 19: Unlocking

"AGAIN!" 

BOOM 

A loud crash echoed from one of the academy's rooms. 

"Stronger!" a female voice demanded. 

BOOOM 

"I said, STRONGER!" 

BOOOOOM 

"That's better." 

Inside the room where the noise originated, a young man on his knees, panting heavily, tried to catch his breath. 

"What's wrong? Already tired?" 

"N... no, ma'am!" the young man replied and immediately got up for the next strike. 

BOOM 

After a while, the noise ceased. The woman looked down at the boy lying on the floor. 

"Today's the big day. How are you feeling, Jihan?" 

"Ti...red, very tired," Li replied, laughing. 

"If you have time to laugh, maybe we should continue," the woman smirked maliciously as she looked at him. "Although I must admit, you've improved very quickly. Even I didn't believe you could evolve this much." 

"I had a good teacher," Li said, sitting up after catching his breath. "So, do you think I'll do well?" 

"It's hard to say. I don't have a good sense of how strong the participants are this year, but if we take the average, I'd say you have a good chance of being in the top ten." 

"Only the top ten?" 

"Don't get too confident, boy. You are strong for now, but never underestimate your opponents. There's more to people than what meets the eye," she scolded. "Anyway, you should go. The mana flow unlocking will begin in an hour." 

"Isn't it a problem that I'm exhausted?" 

"Don't worry. We just need to do one last recharge on the meridians in your hands. Other than that, physical exhaustion shouldn't interfere much with the process." Sitting on the floor, Amélie extended her hands forward, palms horizontal. Jihan did the same in front of her. 

In a few seconds, a blue glow appeared in the woman's hands, which soon began to transfer to Li's hands. The boy seemed to feel some pain but quickly got used to it. After a few minutes of this procedure, the director released him. 

"Alright, you're ready to go now." 

"Thank you for everything you've done for me so far!" 

"What's this? It's not a goodbye. Make sure to come back here so we can continue our training!" 

"Ye... yes, ma'am!" Smiling, Jihan got up with some difficulty, bowed in thanks again, put on a shirt, and left. 

Seeing him pass through the door, Amélie looked a bit worried. "I wonder what will happen now..." 

Elsewhere, at the same time, a rain of arrows fell upon a single person, one after another. Surprisingly, the blond man dodged most of them, and those he couldn't were suddenly deflected just before hitting his body. It seemed like a one-sided fight totally controlled by him, but his opponent didn't back down. The wave of arrows suddenly stopped. 

"Already given up? That's not like you, Akemi," the blond man taunted. 

"I don't know what you're talking about," the Half-Elf stood still. 

"Do you really think that will work?" Michael tilted his head to the left, and a split second later, an arrow passed by his right side. 

TSK 

Akemi clicked her tongue. 

"You're still very immature," the man mocked. 

As soon as he finished speaking, his eyes widened. The woman smiled and then fired an arrow just above his head, fast enough to intercept the one falling directly above Michael's head. 

"So, do you still think I'm not ready?" 

"I am truly a great teacher!" he boasted. 

A while later, Li arrived at the square where the announcement would be made. After a few minutes, a group of people presented themselves in front of all the participants. Among them was Liming. 

"Good morning, everyone! My name is Ya Shen, for those who don't know me. I am the person managing this test." 

A tall man with an average build, long black hair, and an unshaven beard appeared in front of everyone present. His voice was deep but relaxed, not at all like a leader. In fact, the "nobody" didn't exude any particular feeling, neither good nor bad. In a way, he seemed "invisible." Despite this, Jihan's fighting instincts screamed, warning him not to overstep near him. 

"What is this man? If I didn't see him, I wouldn't think anything of him, but with him standing in front of me, my instincts are screaming in alert," Li thought to himself. 

"As many of you know, today marks the unlocking of everyone's mana flow," the man continued. "However, in this specific edition of the test, in respect to a request from our 'sponsors,' I will reveal in advance how we will proceed with the final classification of the third phase." 

A large screen projected by a device similar to a camera appeared behind the man. 

"As you can see, this year's classification will be different. At the end of the second month, we will have a Battle Royale between teams of participants. The teams will be balanced and divided based on the mission system from the mural." Shen's eyes swept over everyone present. "This means all your achievements are being recorded." 

"This is completely senseless! Why do I have to carry a bunch of dead weight?" 

"Who is this guy?" Li observed the young man complaining. The boy seemed to be about the same age as Jihan, with white hair, red eyes, and pale skin. "Is he albino?" 

"Ah, you're one of the kids causing a sensation among the higher-ups?" Shen smiled and continued, "Let me tell you a story. There once was an extremely powerful man who thought he could defeat everyone alone. Do you know what happened to him?" 

"What does that have to do with me?" 

"He died miserably, surrounded by a gang of bandits who overwhelmed him in numbers until nothing was left." The smile never left Shen's face, but the boy's arrogance began to fade, replaced by a flushed face, as if under tremendous pressure. "So, little worm, if you think you're so powerful that you don't need support, I suggest you disappear from my sight and go die somewhere hidden, so I don't have to waste seconds of my precious hearing listening to your screams." 

The young albino vomited on the ground at the end of Ya Shen's speech. The spectators were shocked by the display of power, and the man on the stage didn't need to move a finger, much less show a hint of killing intent; he just stood there talking. 

"Anyway, after this little show, let's continue," he proceeded as if nothing had happened. "At the end of the battle, the top 5 groups, along with the top 5 performers among the disqualified, will pass the test and gain access to the 'System.' Good night and good luck to you all." 

Descending from the stage, the man disappeared among the corridors, and no one dared to stand in his way. 

"Alright, from here on, I'll take over. Please, follow me to the test room," Liming announced from the stage. 

The tense participants followed the woman through a gigantic corridor, not uttering a word. At the end of the path, a large door sealed a room. 

"So that's what this room was for?" Jihan, who had explored all the corridors of that place in his spare time, was surprised. 

"We will call one at a time. When your name is called, please proceed to the entrance. Xu Wang!" 

The albino boy from earlier went ahead, this time without a word, seemingly having learned from the previous lesson. After a few minutes, he came out of the booth. His aura had changed; if he had previously appeared like an arrogant kid, now he was like a bomb ready to explode, his presence raising the room's temperature. 

"As I thought, fire! It suits me well," he said happily, following the path back to the square. 

Everyone looked at the young man with disdain, but he seemed not to care. 

"Next, Akemi Belvel!" 

"Akemi? Her last name is Belvel. It suits her," Li thought to himself. 

The short-haired Half-Elf stepped out from the crowd and entered the booth. Over ten minutes later, she emerged. Her presence felt lighter. Ignoring everyone, Akemi walked straight towards the square. 

"Muhan Simba!" 

A tall, strong black man emerged from the crowd. His skin seemed like silver, reflecting the light from the lamps, and his mere presence exerted pressure on all the participants. Simba seemed like an unbreakable barrier. 

"Make way, plebeians, the great 'I' is passing." His voice, though somewhat deep, was smooth, contrasting with his intimidating appearance. 

Muhan walked ahead and passed through the door. After a few minutes, everyone could feel and even hear him returning. He didn't seem very satisfied, but if he had been a barrier before, now the man resembled a mountain, even his steps felt extremely heavy. Without looking at anyone, he just walked back. 

"Alright, Li Jihan!" 

"Ah, it's me!" 

The participants didn't pay much attention to him. Unlike the previous ones, Jihan wasn't very intense in any sense, but excitedly, he walked through the gate.