A Journey to the Past, A Stand for the Future
The simulated battles had honed his edge, merging newfound power with instinct. As Yao Xuan withdrew from the mental arena, the fatigue was a satisfying burn, a testament to progress. 'Control is improving. The synergy of the dual transformations is seamless now. The leap is real.'
Yet, satisfaction did not breed complacency. Standing at the window of his dormitory, watching the dawn paint the academy grounds, his mind worked with cool clarity. 'The bloodline breakthrough has catapulted me forward a full major realm. But the path ahead steepens.' He mapped the thresholds: Soul Elder, Spirit Sea, the third bloodline limit, a ten-thousand-year soul ring. Each was a formidable gate, requiring not just points, but time, experience, and profound comprehension. A period of consolidation lay ahead, where raw power would be tempered into unwavering mastery.
He was at peace with this. Among his peers, his strength was already anomalous. With the system as his guide and the Ancestral Dragon as his legacy, bottlenecks were illusions. He simply needed to walk the path, one deliberate step at a time.
Several days passed in a blur of final preparations and subdued anticipation. Then, on a crisp morning, Wu Changkong gathered them.
"Today, we'll have the second final exam. Follow me."
A ripple of curiosity passed through the group as they fell in behind their stern teacher, leaving the familiar halls of Donghai Academy behind. Yao Xuan's heart held a complex mix of emotions. 'The Tang Sect.' Excitement for the unknown warred with a deep-seated, immutable resolve.
Objectively, the Tang Sect was a pillar of the continent. Its heroes—the Sky-Supporting Douluo, the Amorous Douluo, the Light and Dark Douluo—were legends who had spent lifetimes guarding peace. Their contributions were undeniable.
But Yao Xuan's soul carried knowledge from another world. He knew the shadow behind the gleaming legend, the calculated manipulations and the cruel, hypocritical dogma centered on the deification of its founder, Tang San. He knew of the future where that same dogma would seek to chain and shatter the silver dragon walking beside him. To bow to that symbol, to become another brainwashed disciple in that cult of personality, was unthinkable. He would walk their halls, face their trials, but he would never swear their oaths. His loyalty was pledged elsewhere—to the girl whose hand he held, and to the truth in his own heart.
The soul-guided bus carried them from the bustling city center to the sprawling outskirts. Yao Xuan watched the urban landscape give way to wider streets and lower buildings with keen interest. Unlike his locally-born friends, much of Donghai City remained unknown to him.
They arrived at a gate marked "Donghai City Soul Guidance Technology Park." After a security check, Wu Changkong led them into a realm of sleek, geometric buildings that hummed with subtle energy. After a winding journey, they stopped before a structure of stunning, reflective dark blue glass, about twenty meters tall. It looked more like a corporate headquarters than a martial sect's hall, which, Yao Xuan mused, was precisely the point. This was the modern face of the Tang Sect: the Technology Hall, its heart of research and innovation.
"Your second final exam will be held here," Wu Changkong announced, his voice echoing slightly in the pristine plaza. "Follow me. Do not stray. Do not touch anything. The dangers here are not simulations."
He stepped forward and placed his palm flat against the seamless glass. A beam of blue light scanned him, and a cheerful, synthesized voice chirped, "Yo, long time no see, Donghai Xiao Changkong!"
Wu Changkong's expression turned to frost. "Open the door."
"Fine, fine, still as boring as ever," the voice lamented. With a near-silent hiss, the glass panels parted.
Inside, the aesthetic continued—cool blue tones, soft white lighting, an atmosphere of sterile efficiency. No people were in sight. A circular metal platform glided to a stop before them, bearing six simple metallic bracelets.
"Put them on," Wu Changkong ordered.
Xie Xie, ever the questioner, piped up. "Teacher Wu, what are these for?"
"Identity verification and life-sign monitoring. Without them, the autonomous defense systems will classify you as an intruder and neutralize you."
The explanation was delivered with such matter-of-fact coldness that no further questions were asked. Bracelets were swiftly fastened.
They proceeded through two more silent, automatic doors and entered a short, plain corridor. Then, the air thickened, warping around them. A strange, pulling sensation gripped their bodies—not unpleasant, but profoundly disorienting.
"Whoa!"
"Spatial transfer?"
Xie Xie, Tang Wulin, Zhang Yangzi, and Wang Jinxi stumbled, eyes wide with shock. Even Yao Xuan, forewarned by his knowledge, felt a jolt of visceral awe at the seamless application of such power. This was no soul skill; this was technology harnessing the laws of space itself.
Gu Yue, beside him, went utterly still. Her silver eyes widened fractionally, not with fear, but with profound, earth-shaking revelation. The sovereign's mind, capable of comprehending cosmic laws, raced. 'Spatial translocation… achieved through engineered means? Not soul power arrays, but pure machine logic? Human technological evolution has reached foundational law manipulation? This… changes every parameter. The threat assessment… no, the potential assessment requires complete recalculation.' The naive wonder of Na'er was absent; this was the Silver Dragon King confronting a paradigm shift in her understanding of the species she observed.
In a blink, the corridor was gone. They stood in a vast, circular chamber of polished grey alloy. The air was cool and carried a faint, metallic tang. Around the chamber, various sealed doorways hinted at deeper complexities. At the center of the room stood a middle-aged man in a simple grey Tang Sect uniform, his hands clasped behind his back, his gaze sharp and assessing as it swept over the new arrivals.
Wu Changkong gave a slight nod to the man. "The examinees are here."
The man's eyes lingered for a moment on Yao Xuan, feeling the unusual density of his aura, then on Gu Yue, noting her striking composure. He gave a curt nod in return.
"Welcome to the Technology Hall's Trial Nexus. Your final exam is simple in objective: survive, and complete the assigned retrieval task within the simulated environment. The rules, however, are different from the Spirit Ascension Platform. Here, 'death' results in immediate expulsion and failure. There are no second chances. The environment is adaptive. It will react to your strength, your strategies, and your mistakes."
He gestured, and a large, light-based screen materialized in the air beside him, showing a complex, multi-layered schematic of a futuristic, derelict cityscape. "You will be inserted here. Your target is a core data module located at the central spire. Defenses are automated and will escalate. Collaborate or compete; that is your choice. But remember, only those who retrieve the module and return to the extraction point will pass."
He looked at each of them, his gaze finally settling on Yao Xuan as the unofficial leader. "Prepare yourselves. Insertion in ten minutes."
As the group clustered together, whispering strategies and checking gear, Yao Xuan felt Gu Yue's hand slip into his. Her grip was firm, her touch cool. He glanced down. Her earlier shock was now buried beneath a layer of intense focus, but in her eyes, he saw a flicker of something else—a shared recognition of the stakes, and a silent question.
He gave her hand a gentle, reassuring squeeze. 'Whatever this test throws at us,' the pressure said, 'we face it together.' The Tang Sect's trial awaited, a gauntlet of technology and tactics. But for Yao Xuan, the most important mission remained unchanged: to walk this path beside her, protecting the future they would build, far from the shadow of a hypocritical god.