After going through registration, picking up his cultivation technique, uniform, and all the other little procedures, Wang Baole finally stood there in a special red Daoist robe, exclusive to "specially recruited students."
He was near the mountaintop region, in a spot a bit remote but with stunning scenery, and his grin was about to reach his ears.
Right in front of him…was a purple stone gate.
As the stone door slowly rumbled open, what appeared inside was—a cave dwelling!
"So this is the legendary cave abode!"
Wang Baole was so excited he could barely breathe.
For ordinary students, most of them could only live in the pavilion dorms that covered the mountainside. Only a very small number of people had the qualifications to live in a cave dwelling carved into the mountain itself.
After all, what is rare is precious. You can always build more buildings, but cave abodes were limited. You couldn't just add more. Every cave was inscribed with formation arrays that gathered spiritual energy, so the spiritual density was far higher than any pavilion.
So even though his cave wasn't big, it was enough to make countless students green with envy.
He looked down at his unique red robe, then back up at his cave. Seeing no one around, he finally couldn't hold back anymore. He threw back his head and laughed wildly at the sky, feeling like his spirit was soaring.
After entering the cave, he soon discovered that although it wasn't very large, it had a small terrace jutting out of the mountainside by about two zhang. Standing there felt like standing in midair.
Feeling thoroughly pleased with himself, he simply sat down on the terrace, looked out over the sky and earth, and happily took out a bag of snacks.
In this beautiful mood, munching on his snacks, Wang Baole opened the Ethereal Dao College's unique martial technique he'd just received and saw three large characters on the very first page, written in bold, vigorous strokes—
Ancient Martial Art!
This Ancient Martial Art wasn't exclusive to the Armament Department. It was a foundational technique every new student in the lower academy had to learn, regardless of department.
After new students arrived, they would choose different departments and begin studying their specialized knowledge systems. This Ancient Martial Art, however, existed to support those systems. It was the basic cultivation method that underpinned them all.
"The Ancient Martial Realm has three stages—Qi and Blood, Body Seal, and Vessel Mending!"
By now, the sky was heading toward dusk; the wind had cooled down significantly and felt very comfortable on his skin. It helped him focus, and his expression grew more and more serious as he read.
By the time the evening glow at the horizon had been completely swallowed by night, Wang Baole lifted his head. He had finished the entire Ancient Martial Art manual, and he finally had a thorough understanding of the Ancient Martial Realm.
"Those who reach Qi and Blood gain tremendous strength.Those who reach Body Seal attain absolute bodily precision.Once you reach Vessel Mending… the body reaches its peak!"
Taking a deep breath, Wang Baole couldn't help but recall the image of red-robed Chen Ziheng smashing a mountain with a slap. A faint heat rose in his eyes.
"If I want to become President of the Federation, Ancient Martial Arts is a must.Besides, training Ancient Martial Arts can help me lose weight.That's killing two birds with one stone!"
Excited, Wang Baole was about to start cultivating when his expression suddenly shifted. Raising his right hand, he groped around in his chest and pulled out that half of a black mask.
Staring at the mask, his gaze turned thoughtful. He couldn't forget what had happened during the assessment—the way this mask had turned illusory, and those blurred words that had appeared on its surface.
"This is definitely a treasure!"
His heart began to race.
Both his parents worked in fields related to archaeology. Because of that, their home had always been full of strange, old, shabby-looking items.
Wang Baole had often imagined that maybe one of those "antiques" hid a true treasure. Growing up, he'd basically played with every single one, even secretly dropping his blood on them.
Not a single reaction.
Now, holding this mask, he examined it carefully again. Aside from the slightly icy feel of its material, nothing seemed out of the ordinary. Eventually he remembered that it had only changed in that special environment during the assessment.
His eyes lit up.
"Looks like I need to borrow some similar magical tool and try to replicate that environment. Maybe I can uncover this mask's secret!"
With that idea planted firmly in his mind, the sky now completely dark, a wave of fatigue washed over him. Wang Baole went back inside the cave, humming to himself as he sorted through his luggage.
His small bag didn't hold many clothes. Most of the space was filled with all kinds of strange and random gadgets… including a very large loudspeaker.
"Every single one of these is a treasure for my future as an official.If not for my bag going missing in the dream, I wouldn't have had to fight so hard there!"
Looking at his "official starter kit," Wang Baole chuckled smugly, then yawned. Just as he was about to lie down and sleep, his body suddenly stiffened, and he jerked upright.
"I can't get carried away! In all those high-ranking officials' memoirs, there are so many examples—anyone who gets complacent at the height of success ends up with their joy turning into tragedy!"
Wang Baole sucked in a breath, forcibly pressed down his excitement, and began seriously analyzing the looks the teachers had given him today—and that goateed teacher's attitude. Then, adding his special recruitment status into the mix, the answer was practically bursting out.
"They must've noticed something off…"
Following that line of thought, a chill ran through his heart. His back felt icy.
"I have to keep a low profile for a while. Best if I have no presence at all… Otherwise, it'll be bad!"
Wang Baole clutched his head in despair. He didn't want to lose everything he had just earned. At this moment of headache and anxiety, he couldn't help but sigh from the bottom of his heart:
"This is what I get for not having a patron…"
"I have to think of a way—fast—to find myself a backer."
Time flew. Three days passed in a blink. With the various departments publishing their admission lists, the new class officially moved into their respective peaks. After learning the academy's rules and regulations, life at the Ethereal Dao College was about to settle into a routine.
During these three days, Wang Baole kept an extremely low profile. He stayed inside his cave, barely stepping outside, diligently trying to cultivate the Ancient Martial Art. He was terrified of running into that goateed teacher. His plan was to just get through this stretch quietly—after that, things might be much safer.
Unfortunately, although his wish was good, reality…
With all the new students settled, scenes from the journey here and the district assessments along the way started spreading across the academy's spiritnet, quickly becoming the hot topic of discussion.
After all, nearly one hundred hot-air airships, and nearly one hundred simultaneous district assessments… it was inevitable that a few eye-catching geniuses would emerge.
"Hey, did you hear? Among the new students from Tianyun City, there's someone called Lü Jingnan. He set up mechanisms and killed a Frostbone Lizard—really impressive!"
"That's nothing. I heard in Phoenix City's assessment, there was a powerful guy named Chen Ziheng. He was only a step away from the second stage of Ancient Martial, the Body Seal realm. He got invitation letters from eight departments at once. His reputation is booming!"
With discussions flying back and forth across the lower academy island's spiritnet, more and more names kept popping up.
"The brightest of them all this time is Chen Yameng. They say she's a natural spirit body who can refine spirit stones with eighty percent purity. She could've gone to White Deer Dao College, the number one institution in the Federation, but our Ethereal Dao College paid a huge price to poach her!"
"Chen Yameng is amazing, sure, but there's another person who's just as good, maybe even better—Zhuo Yifan. They say he was born with 'Ink Star Eyes,' and that whenever he activates them, everything he sees slows down. He's already at the great circle of Body Seal! His background is mysterious too. Supposedly he's from one of the Five Aristocratic Lineages. The Battle Martial Department has already used its authority to pre-reserve him!"
As all this uproar continued, one new name after another rose to prominence. Even some of the old students felt the pressure rising.
Meanwhile, no matter how much he wanted to stay low, Wang Baole's special recruitment status, combined with his "performance" during Phoenix City's assessment—spread by the hundreds of students who had witnessed it—began shining across the spiritnet like a star.
"There are only two specially recruited students this year.One is Zhuo Yifan.The other is… Wang Baole!"
"Speaking of this Wang Baole, he's a man of noble character, righteous to the core, and self-sacrificing. When the Red-Bone White-Infant Snake appeared, he still charged into the snake tide to buy time for his classmates, offering himself as food for the wolves. He even shouted that line, 'Alive, I am the Dao College's man; dead, I am the Dao College's soul!' It was earth-shattering!"
"And later, when the Ancient Savage Ghost Bear appeared, even though he was gravely injured and weak, he still crawled forward, intending to lure the Ghost Bear away with his body to save everyone!"
These stories spread like wildfire, and soon, Wang Baole's reputation soared, echoing throughout the entire lower academy island.
Meanwhile, Wang Baole, sitting in his cave and browsing the spiritnet through his transmission ring, felt his heart go cold… then his blood.
He was about to cry.
He felt as if calamity was looming over his head. Panicking, he quickly posted a clarification.
"Hello everyone, I'm Wang Baole. You've misunderstood.I was actually terrified at the time.The only reason I rushed into the snake tide wasn't because I'm selfless—it's because I thought Zhou Xiaoya was really pretty, and I wanted to pursue her. I swear, that's the truth…"
Posting this message was like ripping his own heart out. It was Wang Baole's deliberate attempt at self-sabotage to cool things down. He didn't dare stay in the spotlight.
But what he never expected was that the moment this post went up, it received overwhelming agreement and replies—especially from the female students.
They lined up one after another, saying:
"Now that is a real man!"
Wang Baole felt his vision go black. Tears were about to spill from his eyes.
"I just wanted to cool things down… not heat them up!"
He wailed inwardly. Realizing things were only getting worse, he gritted his teeth and posted again.
"Actually, the reason I blocked those wolves was because I had been poisoned and knew I was going to die, so I just wanted to die in a way that felt meaningful. I'm not the one who saved everyone. The credit belongs entirely to Chen Ziheng!"
After sending that, Wang Baole finally exhaled.
He felt that he'd thrown all the credit over to Chen Ziheng. Surely that'd divert attention and cool things down.
However…
His relief only lasted a short while.
Chen Ziheng himself posted a public response.
"If we're talking about martial prowess, Wang Baole isn't as good as me.But when it comes to courage, ferocity, and self-sacrifice—I am not his equal!"
When that message appeared, the spiritnet exploded.
After all, Chen Ziheng was a big name, and his words carried weight. Instantly, the discussions boiled over again. The attention on Wang Baole soared yet higher, completely overshadowing even Chen Yameng.
Seeing this, Wang Baole was utterly dumbstruck. He stared blankly at the spiritnet. Even he didn't think he was that great.
It took him a long time to recover. When he did, his eyes were filled with despair. It was as if life had no meaning anymore. He took out another bag of snacks and chomped down viciously.
"It's over, it's over. I'm in big trouble…"
Sure enough, not long after, one of the teachers from the Phoenix City airship, unable to bear it any longer, spoke up in a public forum and revealed what had truly happened during the assessment—that Wang Baole's "heroic deeds" were a giant, cheating farce…
It was like a stone thrown into a calm lake.
The entire lower academy island shook.