Jin Huang straightened instinctively.
"You were absent during testing," Mr. Nagira said. "As such, you have no recorded results."
Several students glanced over. Curiosity stirred again. Qi Shuyue looked in, somewhat excited to see what was about to happen.
Mr. Nagira studied Jin Huang for a long moment, eyes narrowing in calculation.
"Come forward."
Jin Huang stood and walked to the center of the hall, stopping before the teacher. Up close, he felt something strange- the subtle pressure of someone whose cultivation was immeasurably deep.
"This student, believe it or not, is the only one of the first-years this time with a Stamp of Approval," Mr. Nagira said as he took hold of Jin Huang's arm and raised it for the students to see the glowing flame in his palm. "And a high-tier one at that."
A number of gasps and mutterings about the stamp could be heard. Some of the students didn't even know what a Stamp of Apprival was. Qin Shuyue was surprised, giving him a look of 'what the hell, man' for not telling her sooner.
Li Qingyu seemed to move a bit closer to the edge of his seat, eying the stamp on Jin Huang's palm with interest.
Wu Shen snorted coldly, still refusing to place Jin Huang in his eyes, although the signs of pressure and small trickles of sweat could be seen running down the sides of his face.
As for Dao Yuan, here eyes sparkled as she gazed at Jin Huang's palm, but she showed no emotion whatsoever. Her face was as a placid lake: still and serene.
"Question about that," Jin Huang looked to Mr. Nagira, "when does the stamp go away?"
A few snickers came from the students that understood the stamp a bit more. Even Wu Shen smirked and chortled.
"You are... without a cultivation base?" Mr. Nagira realized as he spoke, his tone sounding more questioning.
Jin Huang nodded, "That's right. I'm Jin Huang, 17, from a farm in Sylkwood Town. I have never cultivated and don't really understand cultivation all too well either. I missed the orientation because I was eating at Madam Cho's."
The class, despite always having been silent, somehow got even quieter. Among themselves, the students shared looks of incredulity and ridicule.
"Hmm," Mr. Nagira folded his arms and took a moment to think. "I suppose that's why you would ask such a thing. Anyone with even the slightest bit of cultivation would easily be able to manipulate the stamp."
"Ohh," the young man stared at the little flame image in his palm. "I guess that makes sense."
Mr. Nagira placed a hand on his shoulder. "Alright then, Jin Huang. Let's have a little test of our own right here, right now."
With a flick of his wrist, the floor shifted. A testing platform rose, inscribed with layered pressure arrays.
"Place your hand on the pillar," Mr. Nagira instructed. "This requires no techniques, no circulation, just pure physical output."
Jin Huang nodded and complied. The moment his palm touched the stone, the array activated and pressure descended.
It was not spiritual pressure, though. It was weight. Bone-deep, muscle-crushing force meant to expose the limits of flesh.
Jin Huang's knees bent slightly.
Then stopped.
His expression didn't change. No glow, no aura, no surge of energy. His body simply… endured. The pillar trembled slightly, lines of light crept across its surface, reaching the first of the marker on it.
Then, after reaching the second marker, it slowed.
The students looking on suddenly found themselves taking Jin Huang a lot more seriously. Wu Shen glared down at him; Li Qingyu appeared interested. Dao Yuan's shallow frown never left her face. Some of the other students were unable to maintain silence, and started whispering to one another.
"That first marker corresponded to the first realm, right?"
"That's right. The Mortal Foundation Realm."
"Are you telling me that bumpkin with no cultivation possesses bodily strength greater than someone at the peak of the Mortal Foundation?"
"Not just that. If the first marker corresponds to the Mortal Foundation Realm, it means that the second marker signifies the second realm of cultivation: the Energy Gathering Realm."
"No way."
Amongst them, a boy with white streaks in his hair and a dice-shaped pendant hanging around his neck nodded as if approving of Jin Huang. This was Shen Wuyou, and he was currently regarding Jin Huang as though he intended to do something with him in the near future.
Back in the spotlight, Mr. Nagira's eyes sharpened as the pressure increased.
A faint warmth spread through Jin Huang's body, feeling somewhat familiar and almost comforting. Like the moment just before fullness. Something deep inside him stirred, then settled again, robbing him of that feeling and replacing it with intense hunger.
Simultaneously, the light reached the third marker and stopped.
The lecture hall was silent. This implied that Jin Huang's innate strength was equivalent to someone at the third natural realm of cultivation: the Inner Core Realm.
Those present that once viewed him as a bumpkin were having other thoughts. This sole feat was more than enough for him to stand on the same stage as them; to be regarded as a total freak of cultivation.
Mr. Nagira waved his hand, ending the test. The pressure vanished and Jin Huang stepped back, rubbing his palm and also his stomach
"That's it?" he asked, a little uncertain.
Mr. Nagira stared at the pillar, then at Jin Huang.
"…Yes."
He turned back to the class.
"No spiritual roots worth noting. No elemental affinity. No resonance with techniques. No special bloodline or inheritance." His gaze lingered. "And yet, your body has already crossed a threshold most do not reach until far later on the path of body cultivation."
Mr. Nagira paused.
"Your flaw," he calmly continued, "is that there seems to be no map for the path you, specifically, must walk. No way to understand what you carry, as of right now."
Jin Huang nodded, not entirely sure what that meant.
Mr. Nagira fell into thought again before saying, "I see now why the Headmaster sent you to my class. You are a most curious case. I am interested in working with you to see what marvels your body will show me."
A few students exhaled without realizing it, surprised that a boy with no cultivation had surprised them so. After hearing his results, there was a divide in their reactions.
Some thought he was just a nobody with no talent, others felt like there was some egnimatic explanation for Mr. Nagira being currently unable to figure him out. Regardless, his strength was the real deal, proven before their eyes.
Qi Shuyue was one such person, knowing that there was far more to Jin Huang than met the eye. She was likely just as excited as Mr. Nagira was to find out more about him.
As for Jin Huang himself, he was feeling more and more hungry- a kind of hunger that was foreign to him. It did not feel physical at all, but spiritual. The more he dwelt on it, the more he craved Madam Cho's energy-infused dishes.
He could not wait for class to be over so he could reach into his bag and stuff his face.
He could not wait at all... so he started eating right there at the front of the class.
"Pardon me, Mr. Nagira, sir. I'm just so damn hungry. I'll return to my seat now, okay?"
Not even waiting to be properly acknowledged, Jin Huang stepped back up the stairs to his seat, plopping down next to Qi Shuyue as he stuffed his face with dumplings. The vital energy in them was so rich that a thin misty cloud formed around his mouth as he ate, but it would also soon be pulled into his body through his pores.
Those watching marveled at this, but were quickly repulsed by his piggish method of eating.
Dao Yuan gave a thin smile as she shook her head, and Shen Wuyou laughed to himself. Li Qingyu folded his large arms and closed his eyes, once again seeming disinterested.
"I told you. Freakish." Qi Shuyue smiled as she nudged his shoulder. Then she suddenly sucked her teeth and nudged him a little harder, causing him to temporarily break eye contact with his food.
"That was for doing such a good job on telling me about the Stamp of Approval. Who even gave it to you?"
As he went back to eating, opening up another package of dumplings, he shrugged, his mouth dirty. "I dunno."