Yan Tianheng

Although it was night, the manor grounds were brilliantly illuminated. Following Heng Qiu down a covered walkway, Fang Yu soon arrived before a pavilion of modest size. "Bai Yu, Wei Mo! Aren't you going to come out and welcome our guest?" Heng Qiu shouted loudly before they even reached the door. *Whoosh! Whoosh!* Blurred afterimages flickered, and two figures—a man and a woman—appeared at the pavilion's entrance. The young woman had her hair pulled back into a ponytail and stood a little over one point seven meters tall. She wore a white martial arts uniform, and her skin was very fair. While her facial features were not extraordinarily pretty, her figure was athletic and well-proportioned, her distinct muscle tone evident even beneath her clothing. She carried an exceptional aura. The other person was a tall young man clad in an ink-black martial arts uniform. He was noticeably taller than Fang Yu, with an extremely lean, muscular build and sharp, chiseled features. Confidence brimmed between his brows as he looked at Fang Yu with a smile. Judging merely from their bearing and composure, Fang Yu could instantly tell that both were formidable. "Hello, Senior. I'm Bai Yu," the woman in the white uniform greeted him with a smile. "Senior Fang Yu, I'm Wei Mo," the tall young man chimed in warmly. "I hope you'll give me plenty of guidance from now on." "Senior?" Fang Yu was slightly taken aback. "Bai Yu is a sophomore, and Wei Mo is a junior. Since you're a senior, they naturally should call you 'Senior,'" Heng Qiu explained with a laugh. "Here, seniority is based on your academic year, not purely on strength." Understanding dawned on Fang Yu. "Senior, come inside with us first," Bai Yu said with a grin. "Seniors Yu Guizhou and Yan Tianheng are already waiting inside." "Fang Yu," Heng Qiu said with a smile, "this is your gathering. You all go ahead and chat; I won't go in. I'll head over to Villa No. 5, where you'll be staying, to double-check all the equipment and rooms to make sure everything is in order. Just send me a message after dinner." They had already exchanged contact information on the way here. "All right," Fang Yu nodded. Inside the pavilion, several staff members and humanoid service robots were bustling about. Bai Yu and Wei Mo led Fang Yu into the main hall. "Today's guest of honor has arrived!" Bai Yu announced cheerfully as she walked ahead. "Hello, Fang Yu. I'm Yu Guizhou." A young man stepped forward to extend a hand. If Wei Mo was tall, then Yu Guizhou was practically a minor giant, easily exceeding two meters in height. Moreover, he was exceptionally handsome—not with delicate, effeminate features, but with a rugged, masculine handsomeness. In all his life, Fang Yu had rarely seen anyone in person as handsome as this man. Powerful martial artists usually possessed remarkable presence due to years of cultivation, but physical looks bore no direct correlation to martial prowess. "Hello, Senior," Fang Yu said, extending his hand in return. Bai Yu had already mentioned earlier that both Yu Guizhou and Yan Tianheng were fifth-years. Immediately after, Fang Yu's gaze shifted to the last person in the room. He was not particularly tall for a martial artist, standing around one point seven five meters, yet his presence was utterly unique. His eyes shone with intense brightness. Standing there, he resembled a spear of incomparable sharpness, giving off an aura as though he might pierce the sky at any second. Bai Yu, Wei Mo, and Yu Guizhou all possessed extraordinary bearing, yet the moment Fang Yu set eyes on Yan Tianheng, he almost subconsciously overlooked the other three. "Fang Yu, welcome to our ranks," Yan Tianheng said in a rich, resonant voice, breaking into a chuckle. "Haha, to skyrocket from a junior college all the way to a Sky-Patrol Contract student in just two short months—you definitely have unique qualities that the rest of us can learn from." "Junior college?" "He upgraded from a junior college?" Bai Yu, Wei Mo, and Yu Guizhou were all visibly surprised. It was not their fault; they had only been notified that a new member named "Fang Yu," a senior, was joining them. Subconsciously, none of them had even considered the possibility that he was a junior college student. Evidently, Yan Tianheng had looked into it beforehand. "Senior, you flatter me," Fang Yu said with a smile. "Ever since I arrived on campus, whether on the school forum or in everyday conversations, almost everything I've heard has been about your name and achievements." "Empty fame, nothing more," Yan Tianheng replied serenely. "All right, now that everyone's here, let's eat and talk." The food served was exquisite, but none of the five ate very much. As martial artists still in their rapid-growth phase, they primarily relied on cultivating and absorbing star force to nourish their bodies. Food and water served only as supplements, and they strictly regulated their diets. Through their conversation, Fang Yu gained an initial impression of the residents of the Student Manor. As the youngest underclassman, Bai Yu had the liveliest, most spirited personality. Wei Mo appeared much more modest and polite. Yu Guizhou was a man of few words, speaking sparingly. As for Yan Tianheng, every word and gesture gave Fang Yu a sense of forthright magnanimity, like an older brother who effortlessly inspired trust. "Speaking of which," Yan Tianheng remarked with a smile, "since our university was founded, even if you aren't the very first student to earn a Sky-Patrol Contract through a junior-college-to-undergraduate upgrade, you must be one of the rarest. At least, I've never heard of one before." "That's true!" Bai Yu chimed in with a laugh. "I always used to hear that gold shines wherever it is, but this is the first time I've ever seen a Martial Junior College student shine this bright. Senior, how did you end up at a junior college in the first place?" The others also turned curious eyes toward Fang Yu. "I only awakened my Star Aspect recently," Fang Yu said with a smile. Realization dawned on them. During the College Entrance Exam, how many martial arts students had been eliminated and barred from undergraduate programs simply because their Star Aspects had yet to awaken? "What rank is your Star Aspect?" Yan Tianheng pressed. "Middle-Rank, Crimson-Scaled Snake." Fang Yu had no intention of hiding it; this information was virtually public, and anyone could easily look it up. "In that case, your technical talent must be phenomenal," Yan Tianheng deduced at once. "Have you reached the Inner Vista?" "Inner Vista?" "Senior Fang Yu has reached the Inner Vista in his martial technique?" Both Bai Yu and Wei Mo set down their cutlery and stared at him in disbelief. "Yes, Inner Vista," Fang Yu confirmed with a nod. "Incredible!" Bai Yu could not help exclaiming. "My physical technique is only at the Great Accomplishment of Entering the Minute. I still have to figure out how to reach Weapon Entering the Minute, and then push to the Limit of Entering the Minute. I don't even know if I'll be able to break into the Inner Vista by my senior year." "I've only mastered a single Entering the Minute secret technique myself," Wei Mo admitted candidly. Fang Yu, however, was quietly stunned. It sounded as if Bai Yu's technique was ordinary, but one had to remember she was only nineteen years old! Achieving the Great Accomplishment of Entering the Minute at nineteen was already mind-boggling. When Fang Yu had been nineteen, just entering his second year of junior college, his Life Level had been merely 11, and he had not even attained the Lesser Accomplishment of Entering the Minute. As for Wei Mo, he was just as absurd—he had mastered an Entering the Minute secret technique at only twenty! Fang Yu now understood why they had received Sky-Patrol Contracts. From their earlier chat, he had gathered that aside from Yan Tianheng, the others had also awakened Middle-Rank Star Aspects, but their technical talent was terrifyingly high. Geniuses like Bai Yu and Wei Mo could have easily gotten into the New Moon Top Ten during their College Entrance Exams. In the end, Huguang Martial University had spent lavish sums to recruit them. Here, they were big fish in a smaller pond, receiving the finest resources and cultivating at an astonishing pace. "Excellent!" Yan Tianheng smiled broadly. "Among the students at Huguang Martial University, aside from Guizhou and me, we finally have another person whose technique has stepped into the Inner Vista. Fang Yu, even though you're only a senior, with your level of technique, you should push yourself hard and strive to claim a spot in the main tournament from the fifth-years." "A spot in the main tournament?" Fang Yu was puzzled. What main tournament? He had no idea what Yan Tianheng was talking about. "Senior," Bai Yu explained, "every December, the Blue Moon Collegiate Martial Arts Tournament takes place. It's a grand event spanning hundreds of martial universities across our entire civilization, and every school sends student representatives to compete." Fang Yu's interest was piqued. The Blue Moon Collegiate Martial Arts Tournament? Back in junior college, he had vaguely heard of it, but had never paid it much attention. After all, Wuling Martial Junior College was not even eligible to participate, so what was the point of following it? Moreover, Fang Yu recalled the fifth bonus clause of his Sky-Patrol Contract: if he could fight his way into the "Pinnacle Battles" of the Blue Moon Collegiate Martial Arts Tournament, the reward was a staggering two hundred million Star Coins. That alone showed how monstrously difficult it was. "The tournament holds campus qualifiers first," Bai Yu said with a smile. "The ten strongest students are chosen to represent the university and travel to New Moon to compete in the main tournament." "The main tournament is held on New Moon?" Fang Yu asked with curiosity. "Major events like this are almost always held on New Moon," Bai Yu said. "The novice protection measures there are far more comprehensive, making serious casualties much less likely." Fang Yu nodded slightly. Since it was a tournament where both sides were elite students from universities across the civilization, minimizing casualties and having contestants stop at touch was only natural. "What about the Pinnacle Battles?" Fang Yu inquired. "How are they different from the main tournament?" "Senior, you sure are ambitious, asking about the Pinnacle Battles right off the bat," Bai Yu teased with a giggle. "In the main tournament, when you factor in the massive student delegations from New Moon Martial University and the New Moon Top Ten, the total roster usually exceeds ten thousand competitors," Yan Tianheng said evenly. "Only those who fight their way through the field to reach the final top sixty-four are qualified to compete in the concluding Pinnacle Battles." "Top sixty-four?" Fang Yu was privately stunned. That meant standing among the sixty-four strongest students in all universities across the entire civilization. Such a stage was indeed worthy of being called the Pinnacle Battles—and the difficulty was undeniably astronomical. One had to realize that even Huguang Martial University boasted several Sky-Patrol Contract students. Those premier universities and the New Moon Top Ten possessed far deeper foundations. "This year is the final tournament for both Guizhou and me, so we'll be giving it everything we've got," Yan Tianheng smiled. "My goal is to break into the Pinnacle Battles. "Fang Yu, Bai Yu and Wei Mo are both exceptionally talented, but they're still quite young. Once we graduate, it'll be up to you to lead the team next year. That's why I hope you can take part in the main tournament this year to experience the atmosphere in advance." "I'll do my best," Fang Yu said. The main tournament? That meant he would have to break into the top ten of Huguang Martial University this year. For Fang Yu right now, achieving that would be extraordinarily difficult. After all, among the fifth-year students, there were still dozens of Earth Contract martial artists. Their latent talent might fall short of Sky-Patrol Contract students, but years of additional cultivation could easily make up for the gap in potential. "All right, that about wraps up our meal," Yan Tianheng said, cutting straight to the point. "Since everyone is here today and you've just returned from field combat, let's gather for a combat assessment to update the system records. It'll also let me see if any of you slacked off over the break." "Sounds good." "Works for me. Time to refresh our baseline ranking points." Everyone agreed, and Fang Yu was no exception. "Let's go—to the Combat Building." With a faint smile in his voice, Yan Tianheng rose and led the way out.