"What a strange place..."
Lin Yu shook his slightly dizzy head and opened his eyes to find himself lying in a small, enclosed room. It was completely empty, and yellow lights flickered on the walls.
'This isn't my home... Why wasn't I teleported back home?'
Before entering the competition, Lin Yu had been lying on his large bed at home. He'd assumed he would return there after exiting the Lord Competition, but instead, he'd been teleported to this unknown place.
After the dizziness faded, Lin Yu got up, planning to check his surroundings and see if he had transmigrated again.
Just as Lin Yu stood up, the yellow lights on the wall turned green. The change in color instantly put him on alert.
DING-DONG~
"Good day, sir."
"Welcome back. How may I be of service?"
A gentle female voice emanated from the walls.
"Uh... what is this place?"
Lin Yu glanced around the room but saw nothing that looked like a door. Figuring he was trapped, he asked with a sense of resignation.
"This is the Cuiwei City Lord Competition Service Center—specifically, the Competition Teleportation Service Center. All contestants from Cuiwei Star are teleported here after completing a stage of the competition."
"Sir, are you one of this year's contestants in the Lord Competition?"
"Yes!"
"To ensure your safety, we will be processing an identity bracelet for you shortly. Please wait a moment."
A minute later, a large, cylindrical device rose from the floor, nearly pushing Lin Yu, who was standing in the center of the room, into the ceiling.
The gentle female voice spoke again.
"Mr. Lin, please step into the scanner. We will scan your biometric data to create a file for you."
In the blink of an eye, the owner of the voice had already learned Lin Yu's basic information.
Lin Yu did as instructed and stepped inside. The overall environment on Cuiwei Star was quite good. The Governor's Mansion was considerate of its citizens, valued the law, and frequently cracked down on law-breaking rich kids. Compared to other planets, the wealthy scions of Cuiwei Star seemed exceptionally friendly.
As a result, Lin Yu was relatively trusting of official organizations.
After Lin Yu entered, the scanner emitted a low hum.
When the humming stopped, the scanner door opened.
A screen extended out in front of Lin Yu.
"Please confirm that the scanned information is correct and choose whether to fill in the remaining fields."
[Name]: Lin Yu
[Gender]: Male
[Date of Birth]: August 6, 404 N.C.
[Place of Origin]: Longhu City, Five Lakes Province, Cuiwei Star...
[Physique]: F-Rank
[Spirit]: D-Rank
[Talent]: Please fill in details (Optional)
[Territory Core]: Please fill in details (Optional)
"Can you tell me about these Physique and Spirit ratings?"
Lin Yu asked, looking down at his information.
"Of course. You may ask me any questions you have. It is my honor to answer them."
"The Physique and Spirit rankings are categorized based on their strength."
"F-Rank is the lowest, but it's also the maximum strength most ordinary humans can achieve."
"The ranks proceed in order: E, D, C, B, A, S, SS, SSS, and so on."
"Your Spirit has reached D-Rank because your soul is already linked to your Territory Core. As your Territory Core's level increases, your Spirit will gradually rise."
"Mr. Lin, your Territory Core must be very powerful. Most people only reach E-Rank in Spirit after passing the first stage," the owner of the voice said, offering a compliment.
"Thank you. I just got lucky and drew a decent core. It's nothing special. So... how does one increase their Physique attribute?" Lin Yu replied modestly.
"Mr. Lin, your points shop should be unlocked now. You can use points to redeem a class-change item from the shop. After changing your class, you will gain access to information on how to enhance your physical condition."
"What's the difference between filling out the optional Talent and core information and leaving it blank?"
"Mr. Lin, if you choose to fill in the detailed information, you will receive a blind box containing a 'Random Item'."
"If you don't fill in the details, you will not receive a reward item."
"Is it that simple? Aren't you worried people will just fill in fake information?" Lin Yu was a little skeptical.
"Mr. Lin, please do not underestimate the financial power of the government."
The implication was that the Imperial government wasn't afraid of people submitting false information. Even if they did, it didn't matter; they would just treat it as a support package for newcomers.
Since they'd put it that way, what was there for Lin Yu to hesitate about?
He took the screen in his hands and began to type.
[Talent]: Luck Boost. Effect—Slightly increases luck value.
[Core]: Large Tree, plant-type core. Trait—Continuously generates natural energy within the territory.
'It's not exactly false information,' he reasoned. 'After all, my current attribute *is* [Luck Boost]. My core is the World Tree, and "world" implies "large," so World Tree equals Large Tree. The logic is sound. Plus, my territory *is* continuously generating natural energy.'
After he finished and hit submit, the screen automatically retracted into the wall.
A few minutes later, a bracelet and a blind box were delivered in front of Lin Yu.
After casually tossing the blind box into his personal storage space, Lin Yu put on the bracelet. Its operating instructions immediately floated before his eyes.
Lin Yu was utterly shocked as he stared at the virtual screen in front of him.
In his previous life, this kind of technology existed only in fiction.
In this life, he had been stuck on a remote agricultural planet and had rarely seen any high-tech items. He knew the Empire spanned dozens of star systems and must have formidable technology, but he never imagined that a bracelet worn on his wrist could actually project information directly onto his retina.
After trying out the bracelet's various functions, Lin Yu walked toward one of the walls.
As Lin Yu approached, the wall automatically retracted to both sides, revealing a large doorway.
The door only appeared because the bracelet contained the relevant data and had established an information exchange with the wall.
Without the bracelet, the door would never have appeared, no matter what he did.
Stepping out of the room, he was greeted by the sight of an extremely sci-fi-looking circular corridor with a Teleportation Array in the center.
Only a few people were walking in the corridor. Most of them were in a hurry, quickly taking the Teleportation Array and leaving.
Along the pristine white corridor, blue, vein-like lights embedded in the walls provided illumination while also lending an air of mystery.
Countless rooms lined both sides of the corridor, each with a small, flashing yellow or green light outside.
The corridor also contained various pieces of equipment that Lin Yu didn't recognize.
Lin Yu was like Granny Liu visiting the Grand View Garden—it was a real eye-opener.
He touched this and that, looked left and right, all while looking up descriptions of the corresponding items on his bracelet.
The Teleportation Service Center was an enclosed, circular facility. Except for special circumstances that required staff intervention, only Lords teleporting out of the Lord Competition would ever appear here.
Therefore, Lin Yu wasn't worried about being seen making a fool of himself.
After a good while, Lin Yu finally satisfied his curiosity and prepared to take the Teleportation Array to leave.
Just then, the yellow light outside one of the rooms suddenly turned red.
A piercing alarm blared through the corridor.