Asteria Academy - Main Entrance
The door closed behind him with a soft click. Vorn stood before the academy's main entrance, a simple black suitcase in hand, watching the controlled chaos of orientation day.
Students floated luggage with casual magic. Others teleported short distances across the courtyard. A few showed off by conjuring elaborate light displays that drew admiring crowds.
Flashy skills can be convenient sometimes
He walked through the massive doors into a lobby that screamed expensive. Marble floors inlaid with mana crystals, floating chandeliers that pulsed with soft light, portraits of famous graduates whose eyes actually followed movement.
The registration desk was staffed by a bored-looking woman in academy robes. She didn't look up from her paperwork as he approached.
"Name?" she asked mechanically.
"Vorn Xiaotian."
Her fingers moved over a crystal interface, pulling up his file. Still didn't look at him.
"Room 847, Obsidian Tower. Here's your key." A small metal card materialized on the desk. "Orientation materials are in your room. Next."
---
Obsidian Tower - Room 847
His dorm room was spartanly furnished but spacious. Single bed, desk, wardrobe, private bathroom. A large window overlooked the academy's training grounds where students practiced with weapons and spells.
Adequate
Vorn set his suitcase on the bed and pulled out a credit tablet Master Li had given him. The account showed more money than most people saw in years.
Time to prepare
He activated the room's shopping interface - a holographic display that connected to the academy's supply network. His purchases were just what he needed:
- Basic training weights, resistance bands
- Nutritional supplements optimized for body enhancement
- Simple, durable workout clothes in dark colors
- A few books on advanced anatomy and biomechanics
- Non-perishable food supplies
Nothing flashy. Nothing that would draw attention. Just tools for training
---
Room 847 - Training Session
While waiting for his supplies, Vorn decided to test his current capabilities. He dropped to the floor in a perfect push-up position.
One
His form was flawless - back straight, core engaged, controlled descent and ascent.
Two, Three, Four.
By the twentieth rep, he noticed something interesting. His muscles weren't fatiguing. If anything, they felt stronger, more responsive.
*Fifty. Sixty. Seventy.*
His breathing stayed steady. No burn, no exhaustion. His body was adapting in real-time, optimizing for the exercise.
He switched to sit-ups, then squats, then burpees. Same result - continuous improvement with no plateau.
One hundred of each. Still no fatigue.
[ABSOLUTE ADAPTATION: PHYSICAL OPTIMIZATION ACTIVE]
[MUSCLE EFFICIENCY: +15%]
[RECOVERY RATE: ACCELERATED]
[PERFORMANCE: CONTINUOUSLY IMPROVING]
Time for a real test.
---
Obsidian Tower - Emergency Shaft
Vorn took the elevator to the top floor - the 50th level of the tower. The emergency access hatch was secured with a simple lock instincts...
Wait. Matter manipulation is gone.
He tried a different approach, focusing on the lock's internal mechanisms. His enhanced senses picked up the sound of tumblers, the feel of metal stress points. Without conscious thought, his fingers found the exact pressure points to manipulate the lock manually.
Click.
Interesting. The skills merged, but the knowledge remained.
The emergency shaft plunged down into darkness - a 50-story drop that should kill anyone who fell.
Vorn stepped to the edge and jumped.
*WHOOSH.*
Air rushed past him as he fell. But instead of panic, he felt... analysis. His body was already adapting to the fall - adjusting bone density, muscle tension, preparing for impact.
*40th floor... 30th... 20th...*
His enhanced senses calculated trajectory, wind resistance, optimal landing position. At the 5th floor, his body began a subtle shift - muscles coiling like springs, bones reinforcing impact points.
He hit the bottom of the shaft with barely a sound.
No pain, no damage. He stood up, brushed dust from his clothes, and walked away.
[ADAPTATION COMPLETE: IMPACT RESISTANCE]
[BONE DENSITY: +30%]
[MUSCLE ELASTICITY: OPTIMIZED FOR SHOCK ABSORPTION]
[INJURY ASSESSMENT: ZERO DAMAGE]
Fifty stories. Not even winded.
The elevator doors opened at his mental touch - some combination of enhanced senses and residual manipulation ability.
---
Academy Campus - Evening Walk
The campus at dusk was beautiful in an ostentatious way. Floating lanterns cast warm light over manicured gardens. Students gathered in small groups, practicing magic or simply socializing.
Vorn walked among them like a ghost.
Near the Elemental Studies building, he spotted his first target. A young man with brown hair sat under a tree, reading by the light of small flames that danced around his fingers without conscious direction.
Rei, The Elementalist.
Vorn moved closer, settling on a nearby bench with perfect sightlines. The flames responding to Rei's emotions rather than his commands - brightening when he was interested in the text, dimming when he concentrated.
Instinctual mana control. Dangerous if he ever learns to focus it properly.
[TARGET ANALYSIS: REI]
[CLASS: ELEMENTALIST]
[POWER LEVEL: MODERATE BUT GROWING]
[WEAKNESS: LACKS CONSCIOUS CONTROL]
[THREAT ASSESSMENT: LONG-TERM SIGNIFICANT]
Across the courtyard, a much louder display was taking place. A blonde young man in expensive clothes was demonstrating sword techniques to an appreciative crowd. Each swing left trails of golden light, each stance perfectly choreographed for maximum visual impact.
Kael, The show-off.
Vorn watched the performance with cold analysis. The techniques were flashy but inefficient. Too much wasted motion, too much energy spent on effects rather than lethality.
All style, questionable substance. But dangerous in groups - he attracts followers.
[TARGET ANALYSIS: KAEL]
[CLASS: WARRIOR]
[POWER LEVEL: HIGH BUT INEFFICIENT]
[WEAKNESS: PRIORITIZES APPEARANCE OVER EFFECTIVENESS]
[THREAT ASSESSMENT: MODERATE IMMEDIATE, LOW LONG-TERM]
Neither student glanced in his direction. To their enhanced senses, he didn't exist.
Perfect for intelligence gathering. They can't defend against an enemy they can't detect.
---
Obsidian Tower - Return
GONG.
The academy's massive bell tolled across the campus, its deep tone reverberating through stone and crystal alike. Conversations stopped. Students looked up from their activities.
A voice echoed from every direction - magical amplification carrying the Headmaster's words to every corner of the grounds.
"All first-year students report to the Forest of Trials. Orientation begins in thirty minutes."
The campus exploded into motion. Students hurried toward the academy's northern gate, excitement and nervousness crackling in the air like static electricity.
Vorn joined the flow of bodies, another unremarkable figure in a sea of nervous energy. Around him, conversations buzzed with speculation:
"I heard last year's trial had dragon spawn..."
"My brother said half his class didn't make it through..."
"The Headmaster himself designed the challenges..."
Feeding frenzy of anxiety and anticipation
[CURRENT STATUS UPDATE]
[LEVEL: 5]
[EMOTIONAL CAPACITY: 84% (DECLINING)]
[PHYSICAL ADAPTATION: ONGOING]
[STEALTH STATUS: PERFECT]
[INTELLIGENCE GATHERED: PRELIMINARY]
---
Forest of Trials - Entrance Gate
The gathering crowd filled a massive amphitheater carved from living rock. Hundreds of first-year students - the elite of the awakened world - clustered together in groups based on family alliances or shared backgrounds.
Vorn stood alone, unnoticed and unremarkable.
At the amphitheater's center, a figure materialized from thin air. The Headmaster - tall, dignified, radiating the kind of controlled power that made reality bend subtly around him. His presence alone silenced the crowd.
"Welcome to Asteria Academy," his voice carried without amplification, reaching every ear clearly. "You are here because you represent the pinnacle of your generation's potential."
He gestured toward the massive gates behind him - ancient wood bound with metal that hummed with contained energy.
"Beyond these gates lies the Forest of Trials. You will enter in groups of twenty. You will face challenges designed to test not your raw power, but your judgment, adaptability, and character."
His gaze swept across the crowd, seeming to meet every student's eyes individually.
"Some of you will discover strengths you never knew you possessed. Others will confront weaknesses that could prove fatal. All of you will emerge changed."
Standard intimidation speech. But the forest... that's real.
The gates began to creak open, revealing darkness beyond.
"The rules are simple," the Headmaster continued. "Survive, Learn and prove you deserve to be here."
He stepped aside, gesturing toward the entrance.
"First group - enter."
Twenty students - including both Rei and Kael - moved toward the gates with varying degrees of confidence. Vorn wasn't in the first group, but his enhanced hearing caught fragments of their whispered strategies and bravado.
The gates closed behind them with a sound like thunder.
"Second group," the Headmaster called.
Vorn found himself among the next twenty, standing at the threshold of something that made his enhanced senses whisper warnings. The forest beyond wasn't just dark - it was alive, aware, hungry.
This is going to be interesting.
The gates swung open again.
Vorn stepped into the darkness, his mind already analyzing threat patterns, escape routes, and opportunities for advantage.
[TRIAL BEGINNING]
[ENVIRONMENT: HOSTILE]
[ALLIES: NONE]
[VISIBILITY: ZERO]
[ADAPTATION: ACTIVE]
Behind them, the gates closed with finality.
In the darkness ahead, something roared.