The pressure hit like a falling mountain.
One instant the hallway was filled with noise, students arguing about the student council elections, Luna laughing too loudly at some joke Wei Zixin cracked about turning the cafeteria into a buffet hall, Shen Hao leaning lazily against the window, watching sunlight spill across the courtyard below.
The next instant, silence.
A weight slammed through the air, invisible yet suffocating, sweeping through the entire third floor like a storm given form.
Students gasped.Some fell to their knees immediately, palms flat on the cold floor, eyes wide with panic. A few collapsed outright, coughing as though their lungs had been squeezed by an iron fist.
Shen Hao felt it, a suffocating spiritual pressure unlike anything the school had ever known, but his body held firm. His heart pounded, instincts screaming to move, but he stood rooted in place, muscles locked, eyes snapping toward the source.
Outside the third-floor window, a man floated in midair.
Human-looking.
Almost.
His black hair whipped lazily in the breeze though the air around him was utterly still, each strand glimmering faintly like threads of night sky. His robe, dark gray with faint gold embroidery, carried no crest or mark, but his presence alone screamed power beyond reason.
And his eyes, Shen Hao's breath caught.
Triple pupils.Each eye held three rotating rings of violet light, slowly spinning, overlapping, as though entire constellations had been trapped within them. The moment those eyes locked on Shen Hao, his skin prickled like he'd been dragged naked into a blizzard.
The man smiled faintly.Not cruelly.Not kindly. Just… watching.
Whispers rose around the hallway, confusion bleeding into panic.
"Is he… flying?"
"Who is that? A cultivator? Is this a prank?"
"My chest… I can't… breathe…"
Luna staggered, gripping Wei Zixin's arm. Even the loudest, nosiest students now stared wide-eyed at the floating figure, voices cracking with fear.
Only Shen Hao remained standing, though sweat slid slowly down his spine.
Lingfeng's voice snapped through his mind, sharp as a blade.
"Master… his cultivation… this isn't normal. That pressure alone would crush a Beginning Realm Level 4 into paste. Be careful."
Mo Han's tone followed, calm but edged with iron.
"Beginning Realm… no. This is beyond that. I cannot gauge him fully."
Shen Hao's jaw tightened.That alone said everything. Mo Han was never unsure.
The man spoke.
His voice was deep, steady, carrying easily through the glass though he didn't shout.
"So you are the one he calls Shen Hao, huh!."
The words weren't a question.
A faint smile curved his lips as his gaze swept slowly over Shen Hao, measuring, dissecting, as though peering not just at his body but through it.
"Demi-Conqueror Realm. Level Three. Peak stage." He nodded slightly, almost to himself. "Less than fifteen years of cultivation. Remarkable."
Shen Hao didn't reply.Not yet.His muscles were coiled tight, ready to react at the slightest killing intent.
But the man wasn't looking at him anymore. His triple-pupiled gaze tilted upward, as though studying the clouds, his voice dropping to a murmur only he could hear.
"So the threads converge here after all… the Gate's pulse… the remnants of Zahraan's legacy… curious. And the boy stands at the center of it…"
The words meant nothing to Shen Hao. Zahraan was his master's first disciple, yes, but what did this man know about him? What Gate?What threads?
Shen Hao's fingers twitched slightly at his side. Lingfeng's voice muttered darkly.
"I don't like him. Too calm. Too strong. Master, if he attacks..."
Before Shen Hao could answer, space rippled beside the man.
A second figure appeared in midair.
It was a man Shen Hao did recognize.
Haoran.The Administrator of Void Gate City.
White robes edged with silver, expression calm but sharp as polished steel. His presence carried weight, yes, but nothing like the suffocating, bone-crushing aura of the triple-pupiled stranger.
"Brother," Haoran said flatly, arms folding across his chest. "Really? Was this necessary?"
The stranger, the brother, smiled faintly without looking at him.
"Always so serious, Haoran. I simply announced my arrival."
"You nearly killed them announcing it." Haoran's voice sharpened, though he made no move to attack. "Release your spiritual pressure. Now."
A faint shrug.Then, Like a storm vanishing mid-thunder, the crushing weight disappeared. Students collapsed in gasping heaps, clutching their chests, dragging in ragged breaths. Some had nosebleeds running down their faces. Others trembled violently, pale as chalk.
Luna leaned against the wall, eyes wide, staring between Shen Hao and the floating strangers like she'd stepped into a dream she didn't understand.
Haoran exhaled slowly, rubbing his temple. "Brother… I told you. This planet is a non-cultivation world. No sects, no Qi arts, nothing. We were going to enter quietly."
The brother chuckled softly, finally turning toward Shen Hao again.
"And yet," he murmured, "you didn't tell me the boy reached Demi-Conqueror Realm already. At his age." His triple pupils gleamed faint violet for a moment. "Fascinating."
Shen Hao's mind ran cold.
This man, stronger than Haoran? Even Haoran, i mean the admin, who ruled an entire interstellar city, spoke to him with the weary patience of someone scolding a tiger cub.
"Master," Shen Hao asked inwardly, "who is he?"
Mo Han's voice came slowly, weighted.
"I do not know. That alone is… troubling."
Lingfeng hissed."He looked at you like a hunter looks at a blade he wants to sharpen. I hate it."
Haoran finally turned toward Shen Hao, expression softening slightly.
"It has been a while," the Administrator said, his voice pitched lower now, meant only for Shen Hao despite the dozens of students staring.
Shen Hao inclined his head stiffly. "Senior admin. And… your brother?"
The brother smiled faintly, watching him without speaking.
Haoran sighed."This is Zhenyu. My elder brother. Stronger than me, more arrogant than me, and apparently determined to terrify Civilians whenever he travels."
Zhenyu's smile didn't change."You make me sound unreasonable."
"You are unreasonable." Haoran pinched the bridge of his nose, muttering something under his breath about "never traveling with family again."
Meanwhile whispers erupted among the students huddled near the hallway walls.
"Did he say… Demi-Conqueror Realm? What is that?"
"Why… why didn't it crush Shen Hao? He was standing like nothing happened,"
"Are they… aliens? other worldly beings? What is going on?"
Luna stared at Shen Hao, thoughts racing, a dozen questions rising and dying in her throat all at once.
Shen Hao ignored them all. His gaze stayed locked on Zhenyu, muscles still tense despite the vanished pressure.
Zhenyu finally spoke again, voice almost casual. "You have questions, boy. I can see them burning behind your eyes."
Shen Hao's jaw tightened."Later," he said simply.
For the first time, Zhenyu's faint smile widened slightly. Almost amused.
Haoran finally addressed the students, voice firm but calmer now.
"No one here is in danger," he said clearly, eyes sweeping the trembling teenagers. "My brother's entrance was… unnecessary. He apologizes for the pressure you felt. It will not happen again."
Zhenyu inclined his head slightly. "My apologies. Truly."
The students only stared, half-terrified, half-convinced they were dreaming.
Shen Hao stayed silent, thoughts churning as Haoran stepped closer, lowering his voice so only Shen Hao could hear.
"There is much to explain," Haoran said quietly. "About him. About why we're here. And about you, Shen Hao."
Shen Hao's eyes narrowed slightly. "Then start talking."
But before Haoran could, a sharp knock rattled the classroom door behind them.
The teacher had arrived.