The Awakening Stage of Yunhai First Magic Academy was quiet. No one had any mind for a discussion when all eyes were on the platform.
The [Talent Trial] Platform.
A crystal pillar stood at the center, glowing faintly.
Su Lan leaned back freely, his arms dangling around.
His appearance meter was just slightly better than the average person. Not too stunning, but he would throw hands if someone said he was ugly too.
His attention drifted between the crystal and the students.
Beside him, Chen Wang kept fidgeting. His body was that of someone bulking... except he actually didn't have any muscle.
As for his attractiveness scale, well...
One could only say he was probably skipped by the god of beauty.
"Damn, my hands are sweating." Chen Wang muttered, wiping them on his pants.
Su Lan glanced at him and scoffed. "It's not even your turn yet."
"How can I relax? We've gone through all those bullcrap lessons just for this."
"Heh, if I ever get a talent worse than yours, I should just smash my head on a block of tofu."
Chen Wang shot him a angry look. "What if mine's worse? You probably can't live without me anyway."
"Easy. I'll pretend I don't know you."
Chen Yu froze, then twitched slightly. "You little bastard. If my talent's better, you have to shout Daddy and call out my name on the platform!"
"Deal."
At the front, Vice Principal Zhao finally finished his speech and stood beside the crystal.
As a former A-Class Hunter, his name had already spread to all students in the academy.
"The ceremony begins."
"Step forward when your name is called."
"Yi Qiao!"
A girl walked up the platform and touched the crystal.
[Talent Awakening…]
[C Class, Flame Manipulation]
A small flame appeared in her hand.
"Zhang Wei!"
[D Class, Enhanced Strength]
"Talentless, next!"
...
"Talentless, next!"
Everyone else started with the same nervous and hopeful expression, but some unfortunately wilted like a dead flower when walking back.
Chen Wang unconsciously swallowed. "Bastard Su, our chances aren't looking good at all!"
After another person regrettably walked away the platform, Vice Principal Zhao's voice was suddenly a bit louder than usual. He seemed to have higher confidence for this specific student.
"Li Yue!"
A beautiful girl stepped forward, calm and steady. Unlike others, her eyes were burning with confidence as she stepped on the platform.
The moment she touched the crystal, the light surged.
[Talent Awakening…]
At this moment, cold air suddenly spread across the crowd.
"Hiss... Why did it suddenly become so cold?" The shivering students complained at the same time while staring intensely at the platform.
Su Lan also noticed the change in temperature.
[Ding!]
[A Class, Frost Domain]
Boom!
The students erupted immediately!
"A class?!"
"As expected of the top student… I would already consider myself lucky if I got a C!"
Chen Wang grabbed Su Lan's sleeve. "Did you see that?! A Rank Talent! Our Academy has an A Rank Awakener!"
"Damn it, get off me!"
"That's a potential A Class Hunter in the future, the same level as Vice Principal Zhao!" He exclaimed in awe as he watched.
For a moment, even he felt envious!
The girl in the platform stepped down without reacting. looking like she had already expected this result from the start.
After Li Yue's successful A Class awakening, the tension among the students inevitably rose.
"Su Lan." Vice Principal Zhao's voice resounded throughout the tense crowd, piercing through dozens of people straight to Su Lan.
Chen Yu elbowed him, signaling him to go up. He didn't dare speak at this moment.
Su Lan nodded. He walked to the platform with a nervous expression, stopping in front of the crystal.
Slowly, he placed his hand on the crystal. 'Please don't give me something useless. At the very least, not worse than Fatty Wang.'
Suddenly, the air around him became slightly distorted, and he was affected too. He felt like his skin was being stretched.
A blue screen appeared.
[Talent Awakening…]
[Special-Class Talent Detected]
"Huh? A Special-Class?!" Someone among the crowd exclaimed.
The system interface finally stabilized after a mild distortion.
[B-Class, Spatial Cyclone]
Space around the system interface warped briefly, then returned to normal.
The students reacted immediately, even slightly surpassing the noise during the A Class Awakening.
"Wow, Space talent?!"
"Even B-Class is strong, let alone a Special B Class Talent!"
Chen Yu's voice rang out. "Lucky bastard!"
Su Lan exhaled deeply, suppressing the urge to let out a long howl to vent his emotions. As he prepared to step back, a black-red system interface suddenly appeared in front of him.
[Initial Talent has been awakened, Identity Verification successful. Welcome, Host Su Lan!]
[Ding! Detected that Initial Talent has been awakened. Eternal-Class Talent Unlocked!]
[Talent: Rule]
[Effect: Establish rules within a defined area]
[Rules: Unbreakable, formless laws that act upon a specified area. Whenever a rule has been established, all changes will remain in state for a period of time.]
'Huh, what the hell is this?' Su Lan abruptly paused while walking down the platform.
After a moment of hesitation, he slowly turned his head to Vice Principal Zhao.
Vice Principal Zhao's face was still the same, only with a hint of approval in his eyes as he watched Su Lan awaken a Special Talent.
"What are you doing? Step down."
"..."
"Yes, Vice Principal!"
Faint whispers of admiration from the crowd were audible, but he was thinking of something else.
'Vice Principal Zhao didn't see the black system? Could he be acting?'
'It couldn't be, right? he wouldn't stoop that low for a mere awakened. Plus, no one else reacted too.'
His suspicion was correct, because only he could see the black-red colored system, and his so-called Eternal Class Talent.
"An A Class and Special B Class Talent in our academy, I truly came to the wrong place to show off." A student at the back muttered, feeling wronged and that his C Class Berserker didn't sound as pleasing to the ear now.
He found his seat beside Chen Wang and sat down. Chen Wang leaned in immediately.
With a flattering smile, he put his arm on Su Lan's shoulder. "Brother, how about I treat you to a good meal today? Everything's on me!"
For some reason, he didn't address him as "Bastard Su" anymore, now respectfully calling him "Brother" instead.
Su Lan countered. "Trying to make me forget, huh? Call me Daddy first!"
His smile froze. "This... Surely Handsome Brother Su wouldn't actually make me fulfill the bet, right?
Su Lan ignored him, his focus on the other system interface displaying basic information about his talent.
'Rule…'
Though he had already figured out the gist of his other B Rank Talent, he didn't fully understand this suddenly appearing talent yet.
He would gradually investigate both his talents out first before daring to confirm anything.
'Is this what those novels call a golden finger?'
'...Well, as long as I can always lord over that fatty, I should be fine.'