"Where on earth did this Su Chen pop out from? It's been nearly a year, and we've never heard of such a badass in our class."
"Who knows? Maybe he registered ages ago, never showed up at the academy, and only just arrived recently."
"He's bloody amazing. Reaching the number one spot on the Dragon Ascension Ranking at the Foundation Establishment Realm—nothing like that has ever happened in the history of East Wasteland Academy. This time, our lousy junior class has finally made a name for ourselves across the entire academy."
The three girls were completely stunned. After all, within East Wasteland Academy, the worst junior class was the most obscure, a laughingstock in the eyes of every student.
"Hey, the three of you, hold on. I've got something to ask."
"What is it?"
Seeing students from other junior classes, the three girls felt an instinctive sense of inferiority. There was no helping it; everywhere you went, might made right.
"What's this Su Chen's background?"
Shi Xiaoman shook her head and said helplessly, "We'd love to know who this Su Chen is, too. We've never laid eyes on him, haven't even heard his name."
The questioner was quite surprised.
Even the students of the worst junior class didn't know the guy? This Su Chen really was a complete mystery.
Su Chen's ascent to the number one spot on the Dragon Ascension Ranking sent shockwaves through East Wasteland Academy.
Everyone was scrambling to find out who Su Chen actually was.
A Foundation Establishment Realm student from the worst junior class had actually managed to reach the top of the Dragon Ascension Ranking during the tournament.
As all the participating students returned to the academy, various pieces of information regarding Su Chen spread rapidly.
Su Chen possessed a Sword Blood Wheel, was already in the Void Pill Realm, and acted like a complete madman, hunting down points everywhere he went. No one could stand against him.
The Void Pill Realm?
And he was just a regular student in a junior class—the worst junior class, at that?
For a full day, rumors about Su Chen flew across East Wasteland Academy. Before he had even formally stepped foot into the academy proper, the "madman" Su Chen was already famous throughout the entire grounds.
In the northwest corner of the academy.
This was the most remote area of the entire campus, lined with neat rows of detached bungalows. It was the dormitory for the worst junior class.
To call them dormitories was a stretch; they were simply basic bungalows, not even in the same league as the dorms of other classes.
Upon returning to the academy, Su Chen first went through the admission procedures and collected his point reward for taking first place on the Dragon Ascension Ranking: a full thirty thousand points. Combined with the three thousand three hundred thirty-three points he had plundered during the tournament, he now held a total of thirty-three thousand three hundred thirty-three points.
"You must be Su Chen?"
Before Su Chen could even locate his assigned room among the rows of dormitories, he heard someone calling out to him.
Seeing five people walking toward him, Su Chen nodded and said, "I am Su Chen."
"Ha, knew it was you! I'm Qiao Hong, and these four are Liu Yu, Wan Niyun, Huang Qi, and Fang Jue. We're all from Junior Class Twenty-Two—the other four haven't arrived yet."
"Who says we haven't arrived?"
Just as a voice as crisp as an oriole's finished speaking, Xing Yingxue and three others walked over.
"Junior Brother Su, let me introduce you. This is Xing Yingxue, Fang Qing, Shi Xiaoman, and Ye Xuanxuan. With you, our Junior Class Twenty-Two now has ten members in total. We're officially the smallest class in the entire East Wasteland Academy."
The worst junior class.
Also dubbed the "trash class" by the academy, because anyone assigned here was invariably a piece of trash among trash—poor talent and useless blood wheels. If they failed their periodic evaluations, the academy would forcefully expel them.
"You must be Big Brother Su?"
Fang Qing walked right up to Su Chen, extended her right hand, and said with a smile. She was very pretty, and her dimples made her look especially cute when she smiled.
Su Chen extended his hand in return, shook Fang Qing's, and said with a smile, "Hello, Senior Sister Fang."
"Don't call me senior sister. Even though you just entered the academy, you're ranked number one on the Dragon Ascension Ranking, and you're famous across the whole campus now. If anyone heard you calling me senior sister, I'd die of embarrassment."
Su Chen insisted anyway. "I don't care about others. Here in Junior Class Twenty-Two, you are all my seniors."
Everyone quickly realized that Su Chen spoke very little, yet had a wonderful personality—nothing like the arrogant and overbearing figure they had imagined.
In an instant.
Everyone crowded around, chattering away all at once. Within a short time, they all hit it off. Su Chen was quite pleased with this so-called worst junior class.
"Good day, Vice Dean."
Inside the admissions hall.
Two instructors were sorting through student records when an elderly man walked in. He had a plump body with a watermelon-like belly, hair as messy as a bird's nest that looked as though it hadn't been washed in ages, and he was currently gnawing on a chicken leg.
Nodding slightly, Qin Zhu walked up to the two instructors and said, "I hear a madman popped out of Junior Class Twenty-Two—actually grabbed over three thousand points during the Dragon Ascension tournament and took the number one spot on the ranking. Let me see his file."
"Please take a look, Vice Dean."
Handing over the profile card, it detailed Su Chen's background.
Su Chen, hailing from the Su family of Panyou City, possessed a Sword Blood Wheel. Before entering the academy, he was at the Foundation Establishment Realm, which rose to the Void Pill Realm after participating in the Dragon Ascension tournament. He then seized first place on the ranking with absolute, tyrannical force.
Frowning, Qin Zhu said with evident dissatisfaction, "Previous matters aside, now that he has broken through to the Void Pill Realm and claimed the top spot on the Dragon Ascension Ranking, why is he still stuck in a junior class—and the worst junior class, at that?"
"Vice Dean, we already tried to arrange a transfer, but Su Chen was unwilling to move to the intermediate class and insisted on staying in the junior class."
What?
Qin Zhu looked surprised.
The two instructors wore expressions of utter helplessness and bewilderment; it made no logical sense whatsoever.
Under normal circumstances.
Anyone entering the academy to cultivate did so to climb higher. As the saying goes: men go to higher places, while water flows downward.
Given the chance to enter an intermediate class, who would want to remain in a junior class? After all, the cultivation resources available to the two tiers were worlds apart.
Yet Su Chen was an exception.
"Why does he want to stay in the junior class?"
"Vice Dean, he didn't say. Do you think we should force—"
Before the instructor could finish.
Qin Zhu waved a hand dismissively and said with a chuckle, "Leave it be. Since he wants to stay in the junior class, let him. But remember this: his privileges and treatment must be identical to those of the senior class students."
The senior class?
The two instructors grew even more astonished, though they dared not ask any further questions. After all, the Vice Dean's status far surpassed theirs.
Qin Zhu was even hailed by East Wasteland Academy as the First Vice Dean—a master at the Peak Condensed Spirit Realm.
The dormitory.
The dilapidated courtyard was swept clean in a mere half-hour by Shi Xiaoman and the others. Every weed was cleared away, and under the blazing sun, it actually looked rather decent.
Su Chen loved this kind of environment: clean, secluded, and free from the disturbance of others.
His seizure of the top spot on the Dragon Ascension Ranking had been a haphazard affair; who would have thought that a little over three thousand points would be enough to claim the crown?
He had originally intended to participate in the Hundred Battles tournament—not necessarily to fight for a spot on the Hundred Battles Ranking, but rather to spar with Solid Pill Realm students. Unfortunately, whether it was the Dragon Ascension tournament or the Hundred Battles tournament, each only lasted ten days.
"Junior Brother Su, the courtyard is all cleaned up. Let me tell you a bit more about the academy."
"Alright."
Everyone gathered around a stone table. The rich, fragrant aroma of tea prompted Su Chen to pick up his cup and drain it in a single gulp.
Wan Niyun smiled and said, "Our East Wasteland Academy is a top-tier power across the entire East Wasteland. There are many places within the academy suited for our cultivation, and you can visit the Martial Pavilion, Weapon Pavilion, and other places, exchanging points for whatever you need."
"Junior Brother Su, if you're looking for a place to cultivate, let me tell you: the first place you must go is the Myriad Beasts Tower. Rumor has it that the Myriad Beasts Tower was formed over countless years by various deans, vice deans, and instructors using the suppressed spirits and souls of countless fierce beasts as its auxiliary foundation, built atop a top-tier spiritual vein. It's a sacred ground for cultivation and offers immense benefits to students. The only problem is that the points required to enter the Myriad Beasts Tower each time are simply too exorbitant."
"How many points?"
Shi Xiaoman smiled bitterly and said, "One hundred points for a single day of cultivation. Furthermore, inside the Myriad Beasts Tower, you have to fight for your own spot."
One hundred points might not mean much to students from other junior classes, or even the intermediate classes, but to students from the worst junior class, it was a fortune.
"There are many ways to earn points within the academy: hunting fierce beasts to harvest their beast cores and exchanging them at the academy, or wagering against others in duels. However, the academy explicitly stipulates that intermediate class students are not permitted to forcefully extort points from junior class students. Anyone caught doing so is immediately expelled."
Listening to this.
Su Chen could tell that Shi Xiaoman and the others desperately wanted to cultivate inside the Myriad Beasts Tower, but were held back by their empty purses, leaving them able only to dream.
"I have some points on hand. If you're willing, let's head to the Myriad Beasts Tower to cultivate right now. But before that, I want to take a look at each of your blood wheels."
Aside from Xing Yingxue.
The remaining eight individuals each released their respective blood wheels. To Su Chen, the grades of their blood wheels were indeed very low, and every single one was a useless blood wheel.
No wonder these eight ended up in the worst junior class.
"Junior Sister Xing, where is your blood wheel?"
Shi Xiaoman giggled and said, "Let me share some good news with you all. Big Sister Xing has already awakened a mutated blood wheel: the Heaven-Covering Lark! This is a top-tier blood wheel in the East Wasteland. I bet there are very few people in the entire academy who could suppress Big Sister Xing's blood wheel."
Upon hearing the words "mutated blood wheel: Heaven-Covering Lark," everyone except Su Chen experienced a drastic change in expression. Everyone knew full well what a mutated blood wheel implied—especially one that was a top-tier East Wasteland blood wheel like the Heaven-Covering Lark.
One by one, they began offering their congratulations to Xing Yingxue.
After all, the worst junior class only had ten members in total; seeing a classmate awaken a mutated blood wheel was naturally a moment of pure joy.
"It's all thanks to Junior Brother Su. If not for him, I never would have been able to reawaken a mutated blood wheel."
Hearing this.
Everyone immediately guessed that, without a doubt, Junior Brother Su must have helped Senior Sister Xing awaken her mutated blood wheel during the Dragon Ascension tournament.
"The academy doesn't know yet that Big Sister Xing awakened a mutated blood wheel. If they find out, they'll definitely force her to leave our class."
"I'm not leaving."
Su Chen chimed in, "Senior Brother Huang, your blood wheel is also rather peculiar. Let me help you test it."
Hearing this, Huang Qi's heart skipped a beat. He knew full well what Su Chen implied.
What he had awakened was a stone blood wheel—one of the most unremarkable kind. It could be considered trash among trash blood wheels.
"Junior Brother Su, do you mean to say my blood wheel might also be a mutated blood wheel?"
Seeing Su Chen nod, Huang Qi was overjoyed to the extreme. No matter how useless a blood wheel was to begin with, if it mutated, there was a high probability it would become a top-tier blood wheel.
"What should I do?"
"Come with me."
Watching the two of them enter the room.
Aside from Xing Yingxue, the others wore faces full of envy. That was a mutated blood wheel—a top-tier blood wheel! Awakening one meant their future martial path would stretch much further.
Who would have thought that the worst junior class, with a mere ten members, would produce two mutated blood wheels and the number one ranked student on the Dragon Ascension Ranking?
"Junior Brother Su is truly miraculous. Someone like this will definitely be valued by the academy's upper echelon. I suppose Junior Brother Su will be leaving our junior class very soon."
"Probably not. Logically speaking, since Junior Brother Su is already number one on the Dragon Ascension Ranking, the academy certainly wouldn't let him stay in the junior class. Yet he chose to stay, which means he simply doesn't want to leave."
"That's very likely."
Half an hour later.
The door slowly creaked open, and the two men walked out.
Fang Jue asked impatiently, "Well? How did it go?"
Su Chen smiled and said, "Just as I thought. Senior Brother Huang has awakened the mutated Petrofaction Blood Wheel."
Petrofaction?
Still a stone blood wheel?
Huang Qi seemed to understand what everyone was thinking. He chuckled softly and activated his blood wheel. Above his head, a blood wheel materialized, inside of which floated the phantom image of a pale-yellow stone.
"Petrofaction!"
Before the shocked gaze of everyone present, a wine glass on the stone table in front of Huang Qi instantly turned to stone, transforming into a stone wine cup.
Drawing in a sharp breath of air, they realized just how tyrannical this blood wheel was.
Dropping to one knee, Huang Qi moved to bow toward Su Chen, but was hastily pulled back up by Su Chen.
Huang Qi insisted on remaining on one knee, saying, "Ever since I left my family and managed to enter the academy by a stroke of luck, I knew that in a few months I'd be driven out for having too little talent. It's thanks to meeting you that my fate changed."
The others let out deep sighs; everything Huang Qi said was the truth. The students of the worst junior class faced evaluations in two or three months, and failing to pass meant forcible expulsion from the academy.
The law of the jungle—such was the cruel reality.
No one cared about your hard work or past struggles; only talent and strength mattered.
"And now, I, Huang Qi, have actually awakened the Petrofaction Blood Wheel and possess one of the top mutated blood wheels in the East Wasteland. Everything is a gift from you; you are my rebirth, my second parent."
"Here and now, I, Huang Qi, take a blood oath: from this moment on, Su Chen is my master. For this lifetime and all to come, I shall follow my master with absolute loyalty and zero betrayal. Should I break this oath, may heavens condemn me to a wretched death!"
As the words fell.
Before Su Chen even had a chance to stop him, Huang Qi forcefully squeezed out a drop of his own essence blood and swore the oath before him. It condensed into a peculiar cluster of light that vanished into thin air—the most ruthless of blood oaths. Once formed, it was utterly impossible to betray.
Everyone watched in shock as Huang Qi went so far as to swear a blood oath. Yet upon second thought, they understood; Su Chen had essentially granted Huang Qi a second lease on life.
A trash blood wheel and a top-tier mutated blood wheel were two completely different concepts. With this reawakening, Huang Qi's future path would take an entirely different turn.
No matter where he went, no one would ever call Huang Qi trash again. No matter which faction he wished to join, he would receive focused cultivation. The person who once possessed a useless blood wheel was gone.
Looking at Huang Qi kneeling before him after swearing the blood oath, Su Chen let out a deep, internal sigh; it was already too late to stop him.
Pulling Huang Qi to his feet, Su Chen said helplessly, "Why did you have to do this? You don't know my situation yet—following me means you'll face mortal danger in the future."
Reading between the lines, anyone could catch the implication, including Huang Qi.
"Master, rest assured—"
"Stop. Remember: never call me master, no matter what. Since you're willing to follow me, address me as Young Master from now on."
"Yes!"
Having sworn the blood oath and resolved to follow Su Chen, gratitude had overridden reason. After all, Su Chen gave him a second life and allowed him to reawaken a mutated blood wheel. What Huang Qi never could have imagined was that this single decision today would lead him to become a supreme entity who would shake the entire continent in the future.
Among the nine—aside from Xing Yingxue and Huang Qi, who awakened mutated blood wheels—the rest still possessed useless blood wheels.
Su Chen could see the deep envy in the eyes of the other seven; after all, nobody wanted to carry a useless blood wheel.
With a useless blood wheel, you were treated as inferior wherever you went, forever stuck at the very bottom.
"I only want to tell all of you one thing: in this world, there is no such thing as a useless blood wheel—only lazy people. As long as you refuse to give up, I, Su Chen, will find a way to help you."
"Many thanks."
"Thank you, Junior Brother Su."
Though they spoke words of gratitude, deep down they didn't really believe it. A trash blood wheel was a trash blood wheel; unless it reawakened into a mutated variant, your life was thoroughly finished.
"Let's go. We're heading to the Myriad Beasts Tower to cultivate—my treat."