Chapter 24: The Zero-Point Legend
The seven days of the Grand Beast Hunt had officially ended.
The atmosphere at the Academy Sky-Dock was heavy with anticipation. Thousands of students who hadn't participated—mostly non-combat majors—gathered to welcome the returning heroes. Parents, clan elders, and merchants lined the perimeter, eager to see who had survived the Shattered Plains and who had risen to the top of the rankings.
"I hear Prince Valerian cleared Zone A by himself!"
"The Sword Sect team brought back a Rank-2 Tiger!"
"What about Zone Z? Did anyone survive?"
Vice-Principal Vex stood on the main platform, his hands clasped behind his back. He wore his ceremonial green robes, looking every bit the benevolent administrator. But inside, he was seething.
He checked the scoreboard floating above the dock.
[Rank 1: Valerian Storm - 5,400 Points]
[Rank 2: Iron Fist Sect - 3,200 Points]
...
[Rank 999: Rudra Ye - 0 Points]
"Zero," Vex whispered, a cruel smile touching his lips. "He survived, somehow. But with zero points, he has failed the mandatory requirement. I can finally expel him for 'Academic Incompetence'."
WHOOSH.
The massive Spirit Airships descended through the clouds.
The first ship, carrying the Zone A students, docked. The ramp lowered.
Prince Valerian walked out first. He looked... tired. His golden armor was dented. His hair was messy. Behind him, his team carried sacks of low-grade beast cores. They looked like they had spent a week sleeping in mud and fighting for their lives.
"Hail the Prince!" his lackeys cheered, though somewhat weakly.
Valerian waved, forcing a smile. "It was... a challenge. But a True Genius overcomes all."
Then, the second ship docked. The one from Zone Z.
The crowd held its breath. They expected to see corpses. They expected to see traumatized survivors dragging their wounded.
The ramp lowered.
Instead of the smell of blood, the scent of Spicy Barbecue wafted out.
I walked down the ramp first. I was wearing a fresh set of black silk robes (changed inside the Ring). My hair was combed. I was holding a cup of hot tea.
Behind me, Anya skipped down the ramp, holding a skewer of grilled meat.
"Big Brother, can we buy ice cream now? The meat was too spicy."
"We have to sell the leftovers first, munchkin," I replied.
Behind us came the fifty members of the Dining Hall Faction. They didn't look like soldiers returning from war. They looked like tourists returning from a luxury resort. Their skin was glowing with health (from eating high-grade meat). Their Qi cultivation had visibly increased.
And bringing up the rear was Viper—the feared assassin—wearing a janitor's uniform and carrying a massive sign that read: "DINING HALL: NOW HIRING."
The crowd went silent.
Valerian stared. Vex stared.
We looked cleaner than the students who stayed on campus.
"Student Rudra!" Vex barked, stepping forward to interrupt our leisurely stroll. "Explain yourself!"
I stopped and sipped my tea. "Explain what, Vice-Principal? We are back. On time."
"Your score!" Vex pointed at the scoreboard. "Zero points! You spent seven days in the deadliest zone in the world, and you didn't turn in a single Beast Core? Did you hide in a cave the whole time?"
The crowd murmured.
"He really has zero points?"
"Coward. He must have found a safe zone and slept."
"What a waste of resources."
Vex grinned. "According to Academy Rules, a score of zero in the Grand Hunt is grounds for immediate expulsion. Hand over your token, Rudra. You are done."
I looked at him. I looked at the scoreboard.
"Oh, that," I laughed. "I didn't turn in the cores because the Academy's buy-back prices are a scam."
"Excuse me?" Vex blinked.
"You pay 10 Merit Points for a Rank-2 Core," I explained loudly, addressing the crowd. "But on the open market, that core is worth 50 Spirit Stones. Why would I give my hard-earned loot to you for store credit?"
"Because it's the rule!" Vex shouted. "If you don't turn them in, you get no points! No points means you fail!"
"Actually," a calm voice cut through the air.
Headmaster Altair descended from the sky, landing between me and Vex.
"The rule states that a student must 'Demonstrate value equal to the passing grade.' Points are just one way to measure value."
Altair looked at me. "Student Rudra. Did you bring back anything of value?"
"I brought back souvenirs," I said.
I snapped my fingers. "Ria, dump the truck."
Ria walked to the center of the plaza. She held up her hand. The Ouroboros Ring (disguised as a simple spatial ring) flashed.
BOOM.
A mountain of items crashed onto the pavement.
It wasn't beast cores.
It was Materials.
* Stacks of Iron-Hide Bear Fur (Perfect Condition).
* Jars of Basilisk Venom (Harvested from Viper's failed attempts).
* Crates of Void Scorpion Stingers.
* And right on top... the massive, severed horn of the Thunder-Horn Drake King.
The horn was six feet long, crackling with residual blue lightning. The pressure it released forced the nearby students to step back.
"Is that..." the Artificing Elder pushed his way through the crowd, his eyes bulging. "Is that the horn of a Rank-3 Drake King?"
"Freshly harvested," I said. "And look at the cut. Surgical precision. No energy leakage."
I turned to the crowd of merchants and elders.
"I'm not turning this in for points. I'm holding a flash auction. Right here. Right now."
I hopped onto the pile of furs.
"Who wants the Horn? Bidding starts at 5,000 Spirit Stones!"
"6,000!" The Artificing Elder shouted instantly. "I need that for a lightning array!"
"7,000!" The Sword Sect Elder screamed. "I can forge a Heaven-Grade Sword with that!"
"8,000!" A merchant from the capital yelled.
Vex watched in horror as his disciplinary hearing turned into a marketplace.
"Stop! This is against regulations! You cannot sell loot on Academy grounds!"
"I'll pay the Academy a 10% venue tax," I said casually, pointing at Vex. "Put it in the scholarship fund."
"Sold for 12,000 to the Artificing Elder!" I slammed a gavel (which was actually a soup ladle).
I looked at Vex. "12,000 Spirit Stones. Is that enough 'Value' to pass your exam, Vice-Principal?"
Vex was trembling. 12,000 stones was more than the entire budget of the Grand Hunt. If he expelled me now, the Artificing Elder (who just bought the horn) would riot.
"Pass," Vex choked out. "Rank... Updated."
The scoreboard flickered.
[Rank 999] vanished.
It was replaced by:
[Rank 1 (Tie): Rudra Ye - Value Assessment: SSS]
I hopped down from the pile. "Pleasure doing business."
I handed a bag of coins to Simmons. "Take the team out for drinks. You earned it."
Then I turned to leave.
But the Headmaster raised a hand.
"Stay, Rudra," Altair said, his voice serious. "The Hunt was merely the qualifier. Now that the rankings are set... we must discuss the Tournament."
The Announcement.
The crowd quieted down. The mood shifted from celebratory to solemn.
Headmaster Altair floated up to the podium, overshadowing Vex.
"The Inter-Academy Tournament happens once every ten years," Altair's voice boomed. "It is not just a contest of strength. It is a selection process."
He waved his hand. An illusion of the stars appeared in the sky.
"We are on Planet Aerthos, a Low-Level World. Our resources are limited. Our Qi is thin. To reach the peak of cultivation, one must ascend."
"The Tournament is hosted by the Divine Sky Academy of the Middle-Level World. They open a portal to our world to select the top five geniuses to join them."
The students gasped.
Ascending to a Middle-Level World? That was the dream of every cultivator. It meant access to Demigod techniques, immortality pills, and power beyond imagination.
"However," Altair's expression darkened. "This year is different. The envoys from the Divine Sky Academy have sent a message. They are disappointed in the quality of our world. They are considering... cutting off the connection permanently."
Shockwaves went through the crowd.
"Cut off?"
"But that means we'll be stuck here forever!"
"Our world will slowly degrade into a Mortal World!"
"To prove our worth," Altair continued, "we must not just participate. We must Win. We must defeat the teams from the other three Low-Level Worlds in our sector. If we lose... Aerthos is abandoned."
Altair looked down at the students.
"I need a team of five. The strongest. The most ruthless."
He pointed to the scoreboard.
"Prince Valerian. You are Captain."
Valerian puffed out his chest, looking proud.
"Lyra. Student Council President. You are the Strategist."
The girl with glasses nodded stoically.
"Kael. Top Disciple of the Sword Sect. Vanguard."
A silent boy with a giant sword bowed.
"Anya Ye."
The crowd murmured. An eight-year-old?
Anya looked up from her ice cream. "Me?"
"Your fire is needed," Altair said simply. "You are the Artillery."
"And finally..."
Altair's eyes locked onto me.
Vice-Principal Vex stepped forward. "Headmaster! You cannot choose him! He is unmanageable! He is a cook! He mocks authority!"
"He killed a Drake King with a frying pan," Altair countered dryly.
"Rudra Ye." Altair called my name. "You are the Wildcard."
I sighed. "Do I get paid?"
"If we win," Altair said, "you get access to the Middle-Level World. And... I will open the Academy's Forbidden Library for you."
I perked up. The Forbidden Library. That was where the records of the World Core and the ancient history of the Arbiters would be kept.
"Fine," I said. "I'm in."
"Good," Altair nodded. "You have one month to prepare. The envoys arrive on the next full moon. Do not disappoint me."
The Aftermath.
The crowd dispersed, buzzing with excitement and fear. The fate of the world was on the line, and the team was... eclectic, to say the least.
I walked back to Villa Number 1 with my team.
"Big Brother," Anya asked, holding my hand. "What is a Middle-Level World?"
"It's a place with better food," I lied. "And stronger monsters."
"Yay!"
As we entered the villa, Viper (still in his janitor uniform) walked up, looking nervous.
"Master," Viper rasped. "I have... news."
"What is it, Garbage Boy?"
"While you were selling the loot," Viper said, looking around to ensure no one was listening. "I saw a signal in the crowd. A hand sign used by the Shadow Guild."
"Oh?" I stopped.
"It was a Kill Order," Viper whispered. "Not for you. For the Headmaster."
I narrowed my eyes.
"The Order of Providence wants to kill Altair?"
"It makes sense," Ria interjected. "Headmaster Altair is protecting you. He is defying the pruning process. He has become an obstacle."
I walked to the balcony and looked at the Headmaster's Tower in the distance.
Altair was strong—Peak Emperor. But if the Order sent a Demigod from a higher world... or if they activated a sleeper agent...
"Interesting," I murmured.
"Master, do we intervene?" Ria asked. "Altair is a useful asset."
"We do," I nodded. "But not yet. We wait for them to make the first move."
I looked at the Ouroboros Ring on my finger.
"In the meantime, we have a month. I need to fully unlock Seal 3: The Sword Emperor. If we are going to fight champions from other worlds, I might actually need to use a real weapon."
I turned to Ria.
"Fire up the Spirit Forge inside the Ring. Tonight, we reforge Antakala."
"Acknowledged. What materials shall we use?"
I pulled out the Drake King's Horn.
"We start with this. And then... we add a little bit of Void."