{Trial: Survive the next 24 hours or get to the finish line}
{Reward: Will be decided by the academy}
--- ✦ ---
[XANDROS POV]
The air on Planet Nythra-9 was dense—not with heat, but with challenge.
Crimson skies hung overhead, like a warning sign painted across the heavens. The ground beneath Xandros' boots cracked faintly with each step. Not because of pressure—but because the planet could feel who walked upon it.
He glanced around. Seniors crouched in high places, watched from shadows, and flared their auras like predators. All armed. All waiting for the first year students. This test has happened for generations. It was a form of initiation for incoming students. They had to know the academy nurtured warriors, not weak-willed individuals
The first years weren't fighting beasts this time around.
They were fighting individuals leagues ahead of them in strength, influence, and knowledge.
Each freshman had a coin strapped to their wrist—lose it, and you were out. Make it to the warp gate with your coin intact—or better yet, with more than one—and you'd rise in the Academy's ranks.
Xandros, formerly relaxed, had switched to combat mode. He knew better than to act arrogant because he was strong; the people he was about to face were humans with cunning and combat strategy. Some might even have weird abilities that would be hard to deal with. If there's one thing he learnt most importantly in his past lives. It would be to not underestimate any opponent.
After setting off for some minutes, a senior appeared before him, bulky, carrying a high-grade plasma mace. He didn't speak. Just charged.
Good, Xandros thought.
He shifted a single foot forward. Telekinesis surged out invisibly, catching the senior mid-lunge. The man froze midair like a bug in amber—eyes wide, limbs twitching.
Then came the crunch.
Xandros didn't move. The senior dropped, unconscious.
One coin down.
He turned toward the horizon where the finish line was, determined to get there first. Although he knew it might be tricky, since he sensed a strong aura from afar.
--- ✦ ---
[JASON POV]
"Okay, okay, I can do this." Jason Arkus crouched behind a boulder, trying not to hyperventilate.
In front of him was a senior who looked like he'd eaten barbells for breakfast.
"And bonded," Jason whispered, pressing his palm to the coin on his wrist.
{Bond link initiated… Skill copied: Thermo Crush}.
His body heated up instantly. But instead of just mimicking the skill, his bond system took it a step further.
{100x amplification applied}
{Skill evolved: Solar Annihilation Fist}.
Jason's arm glowed a bright orange, solar energy swirling around it in coiled threads of flame.
"Oh-ho-ho! Jackpot!"
He sprang from behind the rock and lunged, fist ablaze.
The senior blocked with both arms—too slow.
BOOM!
The explosion cratered the ground, sending up a plume of dust. When it cleared, the senior lay unconscious, embedded in stone.
Jason grinned, shaking off the excess heat. "Note to self: get a fire resistance skill."
He scooped up the coin. Two now.
"Now who's next?"
--- ✦ ---
[MORGANA POV]
Morgana Darkstar's silver hair flowed behind her as she slipped through the dense, misty forest that sprawled across Sector 7. A senior fired a bolt of shadow energy at her.
She spun mid-air, cloak fluttering, and redirected the bolt with a flick of her fingers.
"Come on," she whispered. "Are these really seniors? I thought the academy would be more fun"
She landed softly, and her ears twitched slightly.
"Your shadows are too loud," she said.
She turned. The senior was behind her now—until he wasn't.
A streak of moonlight carved through the clearing, leaving him unconscious.
Coin collected. Her expression didn't change. Only her eyes narrowed slightly.
"Next."
--- ✦ ---
[RONALD POV]
Ronald Shadowheart didn't run. He walked—through the broken ruins of Sector 3 like he owned the damn place.
Three seniors stood in front of him, forming a triangle.
"Fresh meat," one sneered.
Ronald didn't speak.
Instead, he pulled his blade slowly, letting the metallic sound carry.
Shiiing.
The air grew heavier. His aura—unshackled—pressed down like gravity.
One senior's hands began to tremble.
"Get him—together!"
They charged.
Ronald moved once.
One flash.
Then silence.
All three lay sprawled on the ground, weapons shattered, coins spinning beside them.
He exhaled through his nose, flicked the blood off his blade, and walked on.
--- ✦ ---
[ANDREW POV]
Andrew Lionheart wasn't shaking off the seniors. He was showing off.
He'd turned a tree into a makeshift sniper perch, and was picking off seniors like they were clay pigeons.
"Two o'clock, purple armor. Gotcha."
He fired a beam arrow—clean, straight through the senior's defenses.
"Another one bites the dust."
He caught the coin midair with a smirk. "This quest is as easy as wooing a damsel in distress."
He leaned back against the branch. "I should make a move on Morgana soon. Her skills are versatile and might be useful for me."
--- ✦ ---
[GENERAL VIEW – PLANET VIREON]
All over the planet, chaos raged.
Some students cried. Some fought. Some ran like their lives depended on it.
And in a way—they did.
This wasn't just a test.
It was a message.
The Academy wasn't a playground. It was a crucible. And only the tempered would rise.
Above the battlefield, drones recorded everything. Professors and headmasters observed in silence. Betting pools were opened. Names were noted.
And one name stayed blank.
Xandros.
No data. No readings. The scanning system that tried to monitor him earlier? Broken. Literally. He was an enigma, truly.
--- ✦ ---
[OBSERVATION ROOM – ACADEMY COMMENTARY SECTION]
A lot of students and instructors were currently watching the trials. It was usually the hot topic on the academy's site for weeks to come. So a lot of viewers and comments were rolling in.
@FireFistFreshman: "YO WHO IS THAT DUDE?? He just choked a senior midair with his brain! 😱"
↳ @SeniorSlayer77: "Nah bro he didn't even blink 💀"
@MoonlightSimp42: "Morgana's is 🔥🔥🔥 I could literally lick her toes if she asked me to."
↳ @ElfQueenVibes: "She is not letting you hit bro 😂🙏"
@RonaldFanClubMod: "3 seniors at once?? Ronald built different fr."
↳ @PressurePointZ: "The way he walked away, That Aura-farming is crazy 😤"
@NovaSniperKing: "Andrew's up in a damn tree like a fantasy Robin Hood lmao 💀"
↳ @ArrowBoy202: "That man really said pew pew from the treetop."
@Arcanegeek: "Hold up, wait a minute, something ain't right. How do y'all have Fanclubs of them already, they aren't even official students yet
↳ @thirdwheel: "Lmao, the assessment made them popular
@JasonNation: "JASON OUT HERE GARDENING WITH FIRE WTF IS 'SOLAR BLOOM'🔥🌸"
↳ @PetalPunch: "Flaming Fist Flower?? He has a bad naming sense if you ask me."
@XanWho?: "Why can't we scan Xandros??? Bro got dat privacy setting MAXED."
↳ @DroneDownBad: "Xandros = walking EMP confirmed."
@Prof_Watching: "I bet my lunch credits on Xandros. Don't let me down, son."
@TechSupportPls: "We need a new drone… again."
@SeniorSweat: "This batch of first years is crazy strong, what do they feed them?"
[BACK TO XANDROS]
He moved like a ghost, appearing behind two seniors and knocking them out with precision flicks of his wrist.
No wasted energy. No rushed movement. Just motion.
A senior tried to lift him telekinetically. Xandros raised an eyebrow. The senior was crushed under the feedback.
He now held five coins.
And unfortunately, there was no real challenge yet.
TO BE CONTINUED…
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Hey guys, did you enjoy this chapter? I wasted a lot of time in the comment section, hope you guys like it. Throw me Power Stones, guys!.