Lin Yuan looked at Zhou Zhenyuan. The old man’s tone was flat, as if he were discussing a trivial matter, but the weight behind his words was anything but light.
He didn’t say “wait until the duel is over,” nor did he say “we’ll see based on your performance.”
He said that since Qi Feng had it, Lin Yuan should have it too.
He was keeping things balanced.
No, it wasn't just about balance…
Someone had given Qi Feng special treatment beforehand, and now Zhou Zhenyuan was personally stepping in to fill that gap for Lin Yuan.
Lin Yuan didn’t ask any questions.
He simply looked at Vice Principal Zhou Zhenyuan, waiting for him to continue.
Sure enough, Zhou Zhenyuan went on, “I’ll notify the Secret Technique Pavilion. You can head straight there.”
“As for your other S-rank benefits…”
He paused.
“Those will be determined after the results of the duel. Whether you get the full package depends on your performance.”
Shen Man frowned and was about to speak, but Zhou Zhenyuan raised a hand to stop her.
“If anyone has an objection,” he said.
“Tell them to come find me!”
Five words.
They weren't loud, but the air in the corridor seemed to grow heavy with their weight.
A Tier 7 Peak powerhouse, one of the vice principals of Magic City Ability Academy, and an S-rank weapon system ability user.
There were likely very few people in the entire academy who would dare to challenge those five words.
Lin Yuan lowered his head slightly. “Thank you, Principal Zhou.”
Zhou Zhenyuan glanced at him.
That gaze wasn't like a teacher looking at a student; it was more like looking at a piece of unsharpened iron.
It was as if he knew it was hard, but he didn't know just how hard it could be.
“No need for thanks.” Zhou Zhenyuan turned and walked back the way he came.
“Go get your secret technique.”
His figure disappeared around the corner of the corridor.
Shen Man leaned against the wall and let out a long breath. “Damn, is the old man in a good mood today?”
“Is he not usually like this?” Lin Yuan asked.
“Normally, he doesn't say a single word to freshmen for an entire semester. His opening ceremony speeches are usually only three sentences long… ‘Welcome,’ ‘Work hard,’ ‘Dismissed.’”
Lin Yuan looked back toward the end of the corridor, but Zhou Zhenyuan was already gone.
Shen Man slapped him on the shoulder and continued, “Let’s go. I’ll take you to the Secret Technique Pavilion.”
The two of them walked out side by side.
As they walked, Shen Man began to explain, her tone uncharacteristically serious.
“Once you enter the Secret Technique Pavilion, it will automatically sense your ability characteristics, combat style, and number of bone tempering rounds. Then, it will match you with the most compatible secret technique.
No one knows which one you’ll get until the matching results come out.”
She glanced at Lin Yuan. “So, there’s no point in being nervous. It all depends on fate.”
Hearing this, Lin Yuan thought for a moment. “Then what did Qi Feng get?”
Shen Man shook her head without hesitation.
“I don’t know. Qian Kun keeps his mouth shut tight.
But an S-rank freshman from the Beastification Academy definitely got a beastification-related secret technique, likely something in the close-combat fortification category.”
Listening to Shen Man’s explanation, Lin Yuan walked out of the Integrated Teaching Building with her, lost in thought.
The reason Lin Yuan hadn’t revealed his dual abilities was that he wanted to secure two or even more sets of S-rank benefits.
If he exposed his dual abilities, Qian Kun would have nothing to say about him receiving S-rank treatment.
But if he did that, he wouldn't have been able to set up the match with Qi Feng.
Without the match, it meant losing a free set of S-rank Blood Condensation Realm materials.
Lin Yuan thought to himself, “Man, if I did that, it would be such a loss.”
...
Outside, the Glowgrass shimmered with a pale blue fluorescence in the morning light, and the air carried the faint scent of fresh grass.
On the roofs of several training chambers in the distance, students were practicing their morning routines, the light of their abilities flashing occasionally.
On the sixth floor of the Integrated Teaching Building, in front of a massive floor-to-ceiling window.
Zhou Zhenyuan stood with his hands behind his back, his gaze silently following the winding stone path below.
Two figures were walking side by side—Shen Man and Lin Yuan.
The youth stood tall, his pace steady, with broad shoulders and a narrow waist.
Beneath his black school uniform, the outlines of his extremely refined bones were faintly visible.
“I wonder if you, Lin Yuan, can awaken that Law of the Thunder Emperor - Fragment.”
Zhou Zhenyuan murmured to himself, his voice so low only he could hear it.
His decision to let Lin Yuan enter the S-rank Secret Technique Pavilion wasn't just about so-called fairness and justice.
He had a hidden motive.
That Law of the Thunder Emperor - Fragment had been sitting on the top floor of the Secret Technique Pavilion for over a hundred years.
In those hundred years, the academy had produced countless peerless geniuses.
Though lightning ability users were rare, powerhouses among them had appeared in constant succession.
S-rank abilities, eight rounds of bone tempering, and even geniuses with nine rounds of bone tempering from decades ago had all visited.
Yet, the pavilion’s exclusive matching mechanism had never responded to anyone.
There had been one exception over a hundred years ago, but since then, the Law of the Thunder Emperor - Fragment had sat neglected, gathering dust.
Zhou Zhenyuan narrowed his eyes slightly.
He could clearly sense that Lin Yuan might have achieved the legendary Ten Rounds as One bone tempering; at the very least, he was stronger than a typical nine-round practitioner.
He had seen nine rounds of bone tempering before; he would never forget that level of bone strength and energy resonance.
But Lin Yuan’s bones were stronger, heavier, and more stable.
The two were simply not on the same level.
Others couldn't see the anomaly because ten rounds of bone tempering had never existed in this world.
Precisely because no one had seen it, no one dared to even imagine it.
But Zhou Zhenyuan was experienced and had witnessed countless hidden opportunities.
Some things didn't need to be seen with one's own eyes; as long as he could sense them, he wouldn't be wrong.
If even Lin Yuan couldn't awaken that fragment, then no one else would ever be able to obtain this ancient secret technique.
Below, Lin Yuan walked across the Glowgrass lawn, his figure disappearing behind the silver-gray spherical library.
Zhou Zhenyuan retracted his gaze and walked to his desk.
A list of freshmen lay on the desk. The six top S-rank freshmen were all circled in red, including Qi Feng.
At the very bottom of the list, the name Lin Yuan was written alone.
There was no circle, only a solitary question mark.
Zhou Zhenyuan picked up a pen and lightly traced along the question mark.
He didn’t cross it out; he simply completed the curve, turning the question mark into an incomplete circle.
He set down the pen and pressed the desktop intercom.
“Secret Technique Pavilion, once Lin Yuan arrives, open top-tier access immediately.
Unlock all lightning-system secret techniques for him, including that ancient fragment.
There is no need to report the matching results; let the technique choose its own successor.”
There was a moment of silence on the other end before an old voice replied with shock:
“Understood, Vice Principal.”
Zhou Zhenyuan turned off the intercom, leaned back in his chair, and closed his eyes to rest.
He had paved the way as much as he could.
Everything that followed would depend on Lin Yuan’s own luck and destiny.
Rate on N.U.
