The morning sun rose over Skyblade Academy, casting golden light over the sprawling stone courtyards, the training fields, and the grand arena at its heart. Birds flew lazily across the sky, yet in the arena, the air was thick with tension, anticipation, and something darker: ridicule.
At the center of this colossal stone arena stood Kai Ren, a boy barely eighteen, with messy black hair, ragged robes, and fists clenched so tightly that his knuckles were white. He was shaking—not from fear, but from the years of bottled anger, frustration, and humiliation that had accumulated inside him.
The students surrounding the arena weren't here to support him. They were here to watch a spectacle.
"Look! The trash is here!"
"Trash Kai. HA! I can't believe they let him even step on the stage."
"Why bother? He'll just make everyone waste their time."
And then there was Liu Fen, standing across the arena. Tall, confident, with an iron sword in his hand, he was the pinnacle of the academy's pride. His talent had been measured as Spirit Grade, the second-highest in the martial hierarchy. Born into a prestigious family, trained since childhood, and groomed for greatness, Liu Fen was the very definition of perfection to the academy's eyes.
He sneered down at Kai. "Zero-Talent, huh? The academy must be desperate to let a useless worm like you walk among real students."
Kai clenched his jaw. He had expected this. Expected the laughter, the mockery. He had been the academy's trash for as long as he could remember.
At the age of sixteen, he had tested his talent for cultivation. The crystal orb had spoken the unthinkable: Zero Talent. He couldn't absorb energy efficiently. He couldn't perform basic spells or cultivate even a fraction of his classmates' potential.
For years, he had been mocked, beaten, and dismissed. Every day, every interaction was a reminder of his inadequacy.
And yet… Kai had survived. He had endured. Because giving up was not an option. Not when his mother worked herself to exhaustion just to put a roof over his head. Not when he remembered his father, who had died in the frontier war, telling him that even the weak could find a way.
Today, he would try again. Not for the academy. Not for the spectators. For himself.
The duel began.
Liu Fen didn't even bow—he thought it beneath him. His iron sword glimmered, radiating a sharp aura that made everyone in the stands flinch. With a roar, he lunged.
Kai raised his weapon—a broken wooden stick he had picked up from the junk pile near the training grounds. The audience erupted into uncontrollable laughter.
"HA! That's his weapon? A stick?!"
"You call that martial training?!"
Kai ignored them. He could feel the hatred and mockery buzzing in the air like electricity. It burned, but it also fueled him. He held the stick with both hands, bracing for impact.
Liu Fen's blade came down in a streak of silver. Kai barely blocked, the wood splintering under the force. The vibration traveled up his arms, making them ache with every fiber of his being.
"You really think you can stand against me, worm?" Liu Fen taunted, pressing his attack. Each strike was like a hammer smashing against a fragile wall.
Kai bit back a scream. He had no power. No talent. No chance.
And yet… a strange sensation rippled through his mind. A voice.
> [Ding! Useless Item Detected.]
[Infinite Upgrade System Activated.]
[Do you wish to upgrade: Broken Wooden Stick?]
Kai froze. His eyes widened. A voice? In his head?
"Wh… What the hell…" he muttered.
> [Do you wish to upgrade: Broken Wooden Stick?]
YES! Kai didn't think. He didn't hesitate. He had waited his entire life for a chance like this.
> [Upgrading…]
[Broken Wooden Stick → Reinforced Staff.]
The stick in his hands glowed faintly, like the birth of a star. The vibration that had once hurt his arms now flowed like a river of power. Strength, speed, and clarity surged through him. His movements felt lighter, faster, sharper.
The next strike of Liu Fen's sword came down—and Kai blocked it effortlessly. The staff didn't splinter. It didn't even quiver. He pushed back. For the first time in his life, he felt the thrill of power.
The arena went silent.
Liu Fen staggered back. "What… what is this?!"
The crowd, initially laughing, froze. Some gasped. Others whispered in disbelief.
Kai's eyes gleamed. Rage, humiliation, determination—everything coalesced into a single moment of pure focus. He swung the staff forward. CRACK! Liu Fen's iron sword, tempered and sharpened over years, broke into pieces under the strike.
The silence shattered.
"Impossible…" Liu Fen's voice shook. "A… stick? You… broke my sword?!"
Kai didn't respond. He didn't need to. The voice in his head spoke again.
> [Reinforced Staff → Steel-Edged Rod.]
Light enveloped the staff. Metal replaced wood. The edges sharpened, gleaming with an aura that radiated strength.
He swung again. The fragments of Liu Fen's sword flew like leaves in the wind. Liu Fen stumbled backward, fear flashing in his eyes for the first time.
The crowd erupted—not with laughter this time, but with shock, awe, and disbelief.
> "No… no way…"
"Trash… becoming stronger than a Spirit Talent?"
"Is this some kind of joke?!"
Kai's lips curved into a faint, cold smile.
"I… am not trash," he said, voice steady. "I'm just… upgraded."
> [Steel-Edged Rod → Spirit-Piercing Spear.]
The rod stretched, glowing with spiritual runes. A spear of such beauty and sharpness that even the elders in the stands instinctively took a step back.
Kai's mind was calm. His body moved instinctively. He thrust.
The spear pierced Liu Fen's shoulder, lifting him off the ground and throwing him across the arena. Blood splattered, screams echoed, and silence fell again.
The students could not believe their eyes. The boy they had mocked, the academy's laughingstock… had just humiliated the pride of Skyblade Academy.
The voice spoke again, calm and mechanical:
> [Congratulations! First Victory Achieved.]
[Reward: Ability Unlocked – Upgrade Self.]
Kai's heart skipped. Upgrade… myself?
A wave of realization hit him. Everything he had been denied, everything he had been mocked for, everything the world had called useless… could now be changed. Anything could evolve. Everything could become more.
For years, he had been the trash of the academy. A Zero-Talent joke. The scorned, the overlooked, the discarded.
But now…
The world was his canvas. The Infinite Upgrade System was his brush.
He could take the weakest, the most broken, the most useless… and turn it into the strongest, the most divine, the most feared.
And he would start with himself.
The crowd slowly realized that this was no ordinary event. Whispers turned into chatter. Chatter turned into astonishment.
"He… he's not even a real talent!"
"But… he's stronger than Liu Fen!"
"Wha… what system is that?!"
Kai's eyes scanned the arena, lingering on the faces that had tormented him for years. On the students who had called him trash, on the teachers who had ignored him, on the elders who had deemed him worthless.
> They will all remember my name.
The system had given him the first step. But he needed more. Much more.
And he would take it. One upgrade at a time.
Today, Kai Ren had changed.
Tomorrow… the world would.