Chapter 4: The Little Broken Watch
"Zhang Fan, Fire element, Excellent Grade Talent, Combat type."
"Li Gua, Wood element, Common Grade Talent, Support type."
"Hahahahaha! Dad! Mom! I've made it! When I go back, I'll tell them to burn the family genealogy and start a new page with me!"
"We're all human, so why is the gap so huge? Why am I only a Common Grade Talent?"
Each awakening took about 1 minute, and there were roughly 30 students in a class. Su Ke was in Class Four, and he also happened to be the last student.
That meant it would be nearly 2 hours before it was his turn.
Because the Awakening Crystal Ball was extremely precious, each awakening was a one-time process with no possibility of interruption.
After a long wait, it was finally their class's turn.
"Lin Ning, Rock element, Outstanding Grade Talent, Support type."
"Beautiful!!!"
Wang Zhong shouted excitedly, as if he were the one who had awakened an Outstanding Grade Talent.
"Next!"
Wang Zhong stepped forward.
The moment he placed his hand on the crystal ball, it burst forth with dazzling light.
"Wang Zhong, Earth Grade Talent, Physical Body element, Combat type."
An uproar instantly erupted below the stage.
"Earth Grade! Another Earth Grade! My heavens! I actually witnessed the birth of 2 Earth Grades in a single day!"
"Good heavens, I thought Miss Lan was already incredible enough, but there's actually another one!"
Wang Zhong walked down from the stage, his trembling steps betraying the excitement in his heart.
Lin Ning smiled. "Congratulations."
Su Ke added, "Congratulations, Old Wang."
"I—I—hahaha!"
Wang Zhong excitedly lifted Lin Ning and spun her around several times.
After setting her down, he tried to hug Su Ke as well.
Su Ke immediately squatted down and rolled to the side to dodge.
He had no desire to experience the embrace of a muscle-bound man. He had suffered through a 'strong man's hug' once as a child and never wanted to relive it.
Unlike the excitement below the stage, the leaders seated above appeared far more composed.
Wang Zhong's father, Wang Fu, the head of the Wang Family, tried hard to suppress the corners of his mouth, though his hands still trembled slightly.
At the very least, he appeared calm on the surface.
Lan Guang, the head of the Lan Family, calmly took a sip of tea and said, "Mr. Wang has truly raised a fine son. Earth Grade Talent, just like my daughter."
Lin Yu, the head of the Lin Family, sensed something amiss in those words and quickly spoke up, "Yes, I've watched Wang Zhong grow up since he was young. I even arranged a marriage pact between him and my daughter."
Wang Fu followed up smoothly. "Indeed. These 2 children are childhood sweethearts. With one possessing Earth Grade Talent and the other Outstanding Grade Talent, they are quite well matched."
Lan Guang replied lightly, "Outstanding Grade is indeed good, but compared to Earth Grade, it is still somewhat lacking."
Wang Fu smiled. "Mr. Lan need not worry. Matters between the younger generation should be decided by the children themselves."
Lin Yu nodded hastily. "Brother Wang speaks reasonably."
Lan Guang paused, then said, "Very well. If that is the case, I won't insist."
This was the importance of talent. With a single awakening, even the head of a top-tier family was willing to lower his status to associate with a second-rate one.
As time passed, it was finally Su Ke's turn.
He extended his left hand and slowly placed it on the crystal ball.
1 minute later, a completely black watch with a green, hourglass-shaped dial appeared on his wrist.
However, the crystal ball emitted no light at all.
The Commander examined him with confusion before speaking. "Su Ke, Manifestation element, no grade, category…"
He paused and asked, "What type is this watch?"
Su Ke stared at the watch in shock.
'Isn't this the Omnitrix? My Supernatural Ability is actually this?'
He clearly remembered that he had died suddenly while watching the cartoon Ben 10, and when he woke up, the world had completely changed.
Now, the Supernatural Ability he had awakened was the core item from that cartoon.
The Omnitrix—also known as the Super Energy Meter, and nicknamed the little broken watch—allowed its user to transform into aliens with various abilities.
The thought made Su Ke so excited that his heart nearly skipped a beat.
"Hey! Hey! Wake up!"
"Huh?"
Su Ke snapped out of his daze and looked at the Commander, whose face was already dark with impatience.
"What exactly is the type of your Supernatural Ability?"
The other party's tone was clearly irritated. After all, Su Ke had been standing there blankly for far too long.
"Uh… please wait a moment."
He checked the dial and confirmed there were no three tentacle-like protrusions around it. Then, filled with anticipation, he activated the watch according to the instinctive knowledge that came with his awakening and rotated the dial.
What appeared before him was… a patch of green light.
That was all. No silhouettes, no figures, nothing at all.
"What's going on? That's impossible. Is it broken?"
Unwilling to give up, Su Ke continued rotating it. He even pressed the dial down once, yet nothing happened.
"What in the world is going on?"
"How would I know? Are you done yet?"
Su Ke looked at the Commander awkwardly. "Um… I might need more time to study it. How about we just record it as 'none for now'?"
The Commander fell silent for a moment. "Then what is your inherent skill?"
"I don't know."
"…Su Ke, type: none for now!"
"How is that possible? Something like that actually exists?"
"None for now? I've never seen this before."
"And it's no grade. Tsk tsk, this has never happened before. It's even worse than Common Grade."
"A poor student is still a poor student. Even their Supernatural Ability is useless."
Su Ke did not have the energy to listen to them. He continued fiddling with the watch as he walked down the steps.
He nearly tripped on the stairs, but Wang Zhong quickly caught him.
Lin Ning asked, "Old Ke, are you okay?"
"I'm fine."
Wang Zhong frowned. "You call that fine? Your eyes are practically glued to that watch."
"I really am fine. Maybe there's just something wrong with my Supernatural Ability. It's nothing. It might improve after some time."
Wang Zhong sighed. "Don't be too down. At worst, I'll take care of you in the future. I guarantee you won't starve. How about this—call me Dad, and I'll make you the manager of my family's spirit medicine shop."
"Get lost!!!"
"Alright, alright!"
Su Ke lowered his head and looked at the little broken watch on his wrist.
'Maybe it really is just an ordinary little broken watch that can't even tell time.'
He patted his cheeks lightly.
"No. I can't give up yet. Even if I don't have an inherent skill, I'll awaken one after breaking through to the first stage, first segment. Maybe the little broken watch will change then."
After a long wait, the awakening ceremony finally came to an end.
The homeroom teachers led their students back to their respective classrooms.
Zhao Gang said, "Now that you've all awakened your Supernatural Abilities, go home and cultivate properly. I'll send the cultivation techniques to the class group chat later. Follow the instructions to absorb spiritual energy."
"For those who have already broken through to the first segment and awakened strong talents, do not become arrogant. For those with weaker talents, do not lose heart. As long as you cultivate diligently, you can still grow stronger."
As he spoke the final sentence, Zhao Gang's gaze fell on Su Ke.
Su Ke, however, was still focused on studying his little broken watch and completely failed to notice.
Seeing his apparent dedication, Zhao Gang felt quite satisfied.
"Alright. Once you step out of the school gates, your summer vacation officially begins. Use this time to cultivate well. After the vacation, there will be a school-wide competition, which will determine your resource allocation for the next year. Take it seriously. Class dismissed!"
"Charge!"
"My fighting spirit is surging!"
"Beautiful vacation, here I come!"
In less than half a minute, the classroom was completely empty, even faster than an emergency drill.
Outside the school gates, Su Ke waved goodbye to Wang Zhong and Lin Ning before heading home alone.