The moment the ₹10,00,000 transfer from the Gurukul Educational Group was confirmed, the battlefield shifted from physical infrastructure to the digital realm. The National Potential Index Test (NPIT) was designed to be administered online to accommodate the thousands of students expected nationwide. A single system failure, a DDOS attack, or even a minor lag would be seized upon by Gurukul's auditors as proof of incompetence.
Nihal Verma, fueled by the continuous, stable power of the Stable Energy Nexus, turned his S-Rank Engineering Aptitude toward computer science and network architecture. His command center was now the server room, recently fortified and cooled using principles of thermal dynamics taught to the A-Rank Applied Physics students.
"The test's integrity is the only thing standing between us and complete academic dismissal," Arjun stressed to Nihal. "Gurukul will not attempt a brute-force hack; they will try to exploit latency, probe for backdoors, or flood the network with junk data to crash the platform. We need an unassailable digital fortress."
Nihal's solution, developed rapidly in collaboration with the A-Rank computer science students, was the LID-Net.
"We can't afford commercial hosting services with the required reliability, Principal," Nihal explained. "Instead, we've utilized the processing power of our LID Index Supercomputer—which is already running on dedicated, clean power—to host the exam. The LID-Net is a proprietary, closed-loop server environment. It has zero external dependencies during the exam, and its architecture is designed for dynamic, anti-fragmentation processing. Simply put, it cannot be crashed by traffic overload."
The A-Rank students excelled under the pressure, the [Aura of Accelerated Insight] granting them instantaneous comprehension of advanced network security protocols. They didn't just configure firewalls; they wrote custom protocols designed to identify and isolate 'coached' answer patterns, even if a student attempted to copy from a remote source.
[System Notification]: "Infrastructure Optimization: LID-Net developed by Nihal Verma (S-Rank) and A-Rank students. Network Stability Rating: A+. Coaching infiltration probability: <1%. Quest progress for [National Visibility Event] stability secured."
(Paragraph 2: The Gurukul Audit Team Arrives - 1000 words)
Three days before the NPIT, the Gurukul auditing team arrived, led by the CEO, Mr. Bhatia, himself. He brought two technicians—highly paid experts in corporate espionage and exam security, whom he clearly considered intellectual heavyweights.
They arrived in a black, air-conditioned sedan, a stark contrast to the dust and history of Nalanda. Mr. Bhatia, a man whose expensive silk kurta strained over his considerable girth, wore an expression of smug condescension.
Shraddha Singh, the picture of professional composure in a crisp cotton saree, met them at the main archway. "Welcome, Mr. Bhatia, to Nalanda. As per the terms of the Institutional Challenge Sponsorship, we grant you full transparency in the non-sensitive aspects of the examination process."
Bhatia barely acknowledged her, looking around the campus with disdain. "Transparency, Ms. Singh? I see mud, crumbling walls, and a new, illegally-wired power shed. We are paying ten lakh rupees, not for transparency, but for the right to expose this entire, fraudulent operation."
He then laid his challenge on the table: "My team will audit your server room. We will review the security protocols. We are looking for any instance of external server dependency, pre-loaded answers, or suspicious external funding sources. We will prove this is a scam designed to siphon fees from desperate parents."
Arjun Singh arrived then, looking unassuming but carrying the quiet authority that had rapidly become his trademark. He extended his hand, meeting Bhatia's cold gaze.
"Mr. Bhatia, you are welcome to audit anything you wish," Arjun said, his voice level. "You are paying for the right to prove our test is hackable. If you succeed, you win. If you fail, you must accept our NPIT results as conclusive proof of the superiority of the Nalanda Method."
Arjun casually used the System's most intimate tool: the Aptitude Scanner.
[Aptitude Scan Results]:
Mr. Bhatia (CEO, Gurukul): Aptitude: C-Rank (Organizational Management). Weakness: Extreme emotional bias (Arrogance).
Auditor 1 (Technical Lead): Aptitude: B-Rank (Network Security). Limitation: Rigid adherence to textbook protocols.
Auditor 2 (Data Analyst): Aptitude: B+ Rank (Data Interpretation). Limitation: Reliance on comparative data metrics (unable to judge novel systems).
Arjun internally scoffed. C-Rank leadership and B-Rank compliance. They were dangerous only because of their financial might, not their intellect. They would never comprehend the LID-Net or the System's complex physics.
(Paragraph 3: The System's Subtle Disorientation - 1300 words)
The audit began in the server room—the heart of the LID-Net. Arjun stood back, watching as the B-Rank technical lead connected his auditing device, looking for familiar vulnerabilities.
As the auditor started running standard penetration tests, Arjun made a conscious decision: to use the [Aura of Accelerated Insight] not for acceleration, but for subtle interference against the hostile intruders.
He mentally commanded the System to localize a minor, non-critical ripple in the Aura around the two auditors. The effect was not debilitating, but profoundly disorienting to their linear, B-Rank-level thinking.
Auditor 1 ran his advanced vulnerability scanner against the LID-Net. The results came back immediately: Zero Vunerabilities. Zero External IP Calls. But the scanner's own internal log, under the influence of the localized Aura ripple, seemed to confuse itself.
"Sir, the network traffic is… non-standard," the auditor muttered, wiping sweat from his brow. "The server is running on a Unix kernel, but the protocol handshake is using a self-referential algorithm I've never encountered. It's too clean. It reports a 99.99% stable power source, which is impossible on a local grid. My device is registering internal conflict between the network's reported stability and the geological reality of this location."
The System had introduced a level of intellectual perfection that their B-Rank logic—trained to spot flaws and loopholes—could not reconcile. The LID-Net was too robust, too stable, too perfect.
Mr. Bhatia, watching the confused expressions of his experts, became agitated. "Forget the code! Find the physical fraud! Where is the backup power? Where are the cooling units for this supposed 'supercomputer'?"
Arjun calmly led them outside, pointing toward the massive, humming structure. "Mr. Bhatia, meet the Stable Energy Nexus. It provides dedicated, stable, and clean power, far exceeding the demands of our servers. And the cooling? That is handled by our A-Rank Applied Physics team, utilizing a passive, sub-surface geothermal heat exchange—part of the engineering project funded by your own sponsorship."
Bhatia was visibly furious. His experts confirmed the stable power source and the undeniable efficiency of the structure. They had come to find a cheap, poorly managed scam, but they found a high-tech, perfectly optimized engineering marvel. Their B-Rank skills, limited by their understanding of conventional engineering and network architecture, were useless against the genius of the System's accelerated S-Rank and A-Rank minds.
(Paragraph 4: Shraddha's Final Revenue Goal and the Quest Completion - 1000 words)
While the auditors were busy failing to breach the LID-Net, Shraddha Singh managed the remaining, critical task: securing the final ₹5,00,000 revenue required by the [National Visibility Event] Quest.
The controversy engineered by the press release, coupled with Gurukul's overly aggressive response, had generated a massive wave of student interest. The narrative was simple: Gurukul wants to maintain the status quo; Nalanda offers an escape.
Shraddha utilized this momentum perfectly. She extended the NPIT registration deadline by 24 hours and released a short, powerful video featuring the A-Rank students working with Nihal and Jha—an image of young genius already engaged in real-world national infrastructure projects.
The floodgates opened. Students who were tired of rote learning, who felt they were genuinely smarter than their test scores suggested, flocked to the NPIT registration link. Each ₹500 fee added to the rapidly increasing revenue counter.
[System Revenue Generated]: ₹4,80,000... ₹4,95,000... ₹5,00,000.
Just hours before the auditors were due to leave, Shraddha received the final confirmation.
[System Notification]: "Revenue Goal Achieved! Total System Revenue generated: ₹15,00,000. [The Seventh Step: The National Visibility Event] Quest Success!"
[Reward Granted]: "System Funds: ₹4,00,000 has been released."
[Reward Granted]: "Aptitude Voucher: 1 x A-Rank."
[Reward Granted]: "System Blueprint: Advanced Library Access Module (ALAM). Allows the Principal to select one subject and grant 10x Deeper Insight into all Library knowledge for a period of 7 days."
Arjun felt the surge of energy from the new funds and the rush of the rewards. The A-Rank Aptitude Voucher was a prize of immense strategic value—the ability to instantly recruit another A-Rank genius or bolster the aptitude of a promising B-Rank faculty member. The Advanced Library Access Module promised an intellectual leap for his own understanding.
(Paragraph 5: The Eve of the Reckoning - 550 words)
Mr. Bhatia and his exhausted, bewildered auditors left Nalanda late that evening. They had failed to find a single exploit, financial anomaly, or structural flaw. The LID-Net was impenetrable, the finances were meticulously clean, and the Stable Energy Nexus was an undeniable engineering feat.
Bhatia's face was a mask of constrained rage. "You may have won this technical round, Principal Singh. But the proof is in the results. If your 'uncoachable test' fails to find any real genius, if your scores are random, your reputation will be destroyed, and your little institution will be shut down by the public outrage."
"You are welcome to analyze the results, Mr. Bhatia," Arjun replied, maintaining his unshakeable calm. "You paid a million rupees to observe the birth of a new era of education. I suggest you enjoy the show."
As the Gurukul car disappeared down the dirt road, Shraddha leaned against the main archway. "He is terrified, Arjun. He realizes he didn't buy an audit; he paid for the stage."
"Precisely," Arjun affirmed, looking up at the sky. The university was silent, the 110 students in the Dormitory of Focus resting, their minds sharp and ready. "Tomorrow, the LID-Net will be deployed. Tomorrow, Rajesh's genius will be unleashed on the nation. And tomorrow, we will prove that the Strongest Principal System is not a miracle, but simply the new standard of human potential."
The next morning, the nation would log in. The NPIT was about to begin.