The morning of the Inner Sect Trial arrived not with the gentle ringing of bells, but with a rhythmic, heavy thrum that seemed to vibrate through the very mountain. For the Cloud Fist Clan, this was the "Grand Filtering"—the day the wheat was separated from the chaff. For Lu Chen, it was [DEPLOYMENT_DAY].
At the foot of the Main Peak's Great Arena, thousands of disciples gathered. The atmosphere was a thick soup of nervous energy (Latency) and competitive heat. In the center of the arena stood a massive stone monolith known as the Measurement Pillar. It was a primitive diagnostic tool (Hardware Interface) that measured a cultivator's strength by how brightly it glowed when struck.
[ LOCATION: THE_GRAND_ARENA. ]
[ AMBIENT_ENERGY_DENSITY: HIGH. ]
[ SPECTATOR_COUNT: 2,400. ]
"AIDA," Lu Chen thought, standing at the back of the crowd. His grey Outer Sect robes were frayed, but they couldn't hide the fact that his body now possessed the density of forged steel. "Scan the Measurement Pillar. What's its limit?"
[ ANALYSIS: THE_PILLAR_IS_RATED_FOR_STAGE_10_PHYSICAL_IMPACT. ] AIDA's voice was a cool breeze in his mind. [ HOWEVER, THE_INTERNAL_ARRAY_IS_DEGRADED. A_STAGE_10_MAX_IMPACT_WILL_LIKELY_TRIGGER_A_HARDWARE_FAILURE. ]
"Good," Arthur whispered. "I've always enjoyed breaking things that are obsolete."
***
As Lu Chen led his group of seven "Networked" disciples through the crowd, the sea of white-robed Inner Disciples parted, followed by sneers and laughter.
"Look at them," one Inner Disciple mocked, fanning himself with a jade fan. "The trash from the shacks actually showed up. And look at Lu Chen—he's walking like he owns the mountain."
"I heard he tricked the Elders into thinking he has a legendary bloodline," another whispered. "The fool. Today, the Pillar will reveal his true nature (Current Version)."
Fatty Han shifted uncomfortably, clutching his fists. "Lu Chen, they're all looking at us. My legs feel like they're going to turn into jelly."
"Keep your breathing in sync (Maintain the Link), Han," Lu Chen said, his voice low and commanding. "Your legs aren't jelly; they're just experiencing a bit of feedback because you're not used to this much power. Remember the routine (The Protocol). We aren't here to pass. We're here to reset the standards."
Up on the high balcony, the Sect Elders sat in a row. Elder Feng, the Auditor from the previous day, watched Lu Chen with a mixture of anticipation and lingering doubt. Beside him sat the Sect Leader, Zhang, whose presence felt like a mountain peak pressing down on the arena.
"Let the Trial begin!" the Grand Herald shouted. "Step forward and prove your worth (Verify your Integrity)!"
***
One by one, disciples stepped up to the Pillar.
"Disciple Mao! Stage 5 Body Refining! The Pillar glows yellow. Pass!"
"Disciple Sun! Stage 4! The Pillar glows dim orange. Fail! Return to the fields!"
The process was slow, a repetitive cycle of data entry that bored Lu Chen. He watched as the "geniuses" of the Sect struck the stone with elaborate forms, their Qi flaring in bright bursts. To the crowd, it was a display of martial beauty. To Lu Chen, it was a series of inefficient commands (Spaghetti Code) that wasted half their energy in flashy displays.
Finally, a name was called that silenced the crowd.
"Fang Wei! Step forward!"
The "genius" Lu Chen had humiliated three days prior stepped onto the stage. His arm had been healed by the Sect's finest medicines, but his eyes were bloodshot, filled with a desperate need to reclaim his status (Reinstall his Reputation).
Fang Wei didn't look at the crowd. He looked directly at Lu Chen. Then, with a roar, he unleashed a strike so powerful the air itself seemed to crack.
BOOM.
The Pillar erupted in a blinding green light—the signal for Stage 7. Then, it flickered and turned a deep, royal blue.
"Stage 8!" the Herald screamed. "Fang Wei has reached the eighth stage of Body Refining! A true genius reborn!"
The crowd erupted. Fang Wei turned to Lu Chen and mouthed three words: You are dead.
[ TARGET_ANALYSIS: FANG_WEI. ]
[ CURRENT_LEVEL: STAGE_8_ (OVERCLOCKED_BY_MEDICINE). ]
[ STABILITY: 62%. HIS_FOUNDATION_IS_LEAKING_ENERGY. ]
"He's running on a temporary boost (Trial Version)," Arthur thought. "AIDA, prepare the counter-strike. When it's my turn, I want to bypass the standard measurement."
***
"Lu Chen! Step forward!"
The arena went silent. The "legend" of the dormant lightning bloodline had spread, and everyone wanted to see if the "Trash" was a miracle or a fraud.
Lu Chen walked onto the stage. He didn't take a martial stance. He didn't gather his energy in a visible vortex. He simply stood before the massive stone monolith, his hands at his sides.
"Well?" Elder Feng shouted from the balcony. "Show us this 'Dormant Talent' of yours, Lu Chen!"
Lu Chen looked up at the Elders. "Sect Leader, I believe this pillar is too old. It might not be able to handle a modern update (Refactored Strength)."
A wave of laughter rippled through the Inner Disciples. "Too old? That stone was blessed by the Founders! Just hit it, you arrogant brat!"
Lu Chen smiled. It was the smile of a technician who knew exactly where the structural weak point was located.
"AIDA," he whispered. "[INITIATE_FULL_SYSTEM_OUTPUT]. Direct all processing power to the right fist. Execute the 'Impact' command at the moment of contact."
[ PREPARING_MAX_THROUGHPUT... ]
[ 100%_CAPACITY_REACHED. ]
[ WARNING: STRUCTURAL_FAILURE_OF_ENVIRONMENT_IS_IMMINENT. ]
Lu Chen raised his hand. He didn't swing with his whole body. He simply flicked his wrist, his fist traveling a mere three inches before it tapped the surface of the stone.
At first, nothing happened. The crowd began to jeer.
Then, the Measurement Pillar began to scream.
A high-pitched whine emitted from the jade core of the monolith. The light didn't turn yellow, orange, or even blue. It turned a violent, flickering white—a color the Sect hadn't seen in centuries.
Crrr-ack.
A hairline fracture appeared where Lu Chen's fist had landed. Then another. And another.
"Wait! The light!" the Herald shouted, backing away. "It's... it's not stopping!"
The white light became so intense that the spectators had to shield their eyes. It was the visual representation of a [BUFFER_OVERFLOW]. The Pillar's internal array was trying to calculate a value higher than its "Max_Int" variable.
KABOOM!
The Measurement Pillar didn't just break. It exploded. Shards of ancient jade flew across the arena, embedded into the stone walls like shrapnel. A cloud of spiritual dust settled over the stage, leaving a crater where the "sacred" monolith had once stood.
Lu Chen stood in the center of the debris, his hand completely unharmed.
"I told you," Lu Chen said into the dead silence. "The hardware was outdated (The Pillar was too weak)."
***
The Sect Leader, Zhang, was on his feet. His hands were gripping the balcony rail so hard the wood was turning to splinters.
"Stage 10," Zhang whispered, his voice carrying through the silent arena. "A perfected physical body (Maximized Hardware). No... it's more than that. He didn't just hit it; he bypassed the resistance (He hacked the flow)."
"Sect Leader!" Elder Feng stammered. "This... this is impossible! No bloodline awakening can grant a Stage 10 body in three days! This must be some sort of trick (Cheat)!"
Lu Chen looked up at the balcony, his eyes glowing with that terrifying sapphire-emerald light.
"It's no trick, Elder," Lu Chen called out, his voice echoing. "It's just that your 'standards' were set too low. My body has finished its 'update' (The awakening is complete). Now, I believe the trial requires us to fight for a spot in the Inner Sect?"
He turned to the thousands of disciples, specifically pointing his finger at Fang Wei and the other top-ranked geniuses.
"All of you," Lu Chen said, his tone casual, as if he were discussing a routine maintenance check. "The 'Network' of the Outer Sect is ready to take your places. Why waste time with one-on-one fights? Why don't the top ten of you just come at me at once? I'd like to see if your 'Old Ways' can handle a group-processed attack (A Multi-Threaded Strike)."
The insult was so massive, so absolute, that the "Logic" of the Sect's hierarchy shattered. Fang Wei roared in fury, jumping onto the arena floor, followed by nine other Inner Disciple elites.
"You want to fight us all?!" Fang Wei screamed, his Stage 8 aura flaring. "We will tear your 'Network' apart limb from limb!"
Lu Chen didn't move. He simply raised his hand and made a "come here" gesture to his seven disciples—Fatty Han and the others—who were trembling but standing their ground.
"Connect," Lu Chen commanded.
[ INITIATING_GROUP_PROTOCOL: 'CELL_CLUSTER'. ]
[ MASTER_NODE: LU_CHEN. ]
[ SLAVE_NODES: 7. ]
[ TOTAL_THROUGHPUT: UNCALCULATED. ]
As the seven disciples formed a circle behind Lu Chen, their auras began to hum in perfect unison. To the onlookers, it looked like a strange formation. To Arthur, it was the world's first [HUMAN_SUPERCOMPUTER], and he was about to use it to "Alt-F4" the entire Inner Sect elite.
"AIDA," Lu Chen whispered as the ten geniuses charged toward him. "Synchronize the impact. Let's show them what happens when you try to fight a system that's been properly optimized."