"Jin Yu, hit her. Let her learn that villains die from talking too much."
Without a word, Jin Yu from the Seventh Academy mounted his cannon and fired a rapid barrage toward the enemy's position.
Behind him, the analyst of the Seventh Academy locked onto Tian Ran—who was rushing toward her—and fired as well.
The two sides clashed violently, drawing a soft tsk from Jiang Tianyi, the commander from the First Academy, who was watching from within his black-and-gold mech suit.
"The analyst from Zhuojing Mansion is really troublesome. Captain Lin, are you going to send someone in too?"
On the other side, Lin Fengchi, the commander of the Third Academy, glanced behind him. The rest of his team formed a protective triangle around their analyst's mech, vigilant and on guard against any attacks.
"Zhuoyang."
At the front of the triangle, Zhuoyang—the offensive unit of the Third Academy—pulled a light blade from behind.
Chen Sui noticed Jiang Tianyi humming off-key, as one of the black mechs behind him pushed their analyst forward into the commander's protective radius. The offensive mech then moved closer to the Third Academy's analyst.
It seemed these two allied academies were not quite as solid as they appeared. Watching the First Academy make underhanded moves in the shadows, Chen Sui came to that conclusion.
Inside the cavern, the apparent two-sided conflict was actually a three-way standoff. Just then, Chen Sui keenly heard faint sounds coming through the holographic projection, originating from deeper inside the cave.
Following the direction of the sound, she turned her attention to one of the cave's exits shown on the projection.
Meanwhile, at the center of the stone cavern, the Third Academy's addition of Zhuoyang quickly pushed the Seventh Academy into a disadvantageous position.
As the First Academy's mech approached the Third Academy's analyst, the weapon it had been twirling suddenly came to a halt.
Jiang Tianyi stopped humming and barked an order, his voice sharp: "Attack."
The First Academy's offensive unit suddenly aimed at the Third Academy's analyst. Zhuoyang, who had been helping Tian Ran surround the Seventh Academy analyst, heard the gunfire and turned back, intending to retreat and assist.
However, Tian Ran evaded the Seventh Academy analyst's cannon fire, then whipped her hand and shouted, "Ghostfish, restrain him."
A massive, spectral fish flickered behind her, tendrils extending from its shadowy body to wrap tightly around Zhuoyang's mech.
Seeing this, the Seventh Academy analyst quickly redirected her aim, pulling Jin Yu out of the skirmish.
The two quickly retreated to a corner.
Within moments, the battlefield shifted entirely—now the First and Third Academies were locked in fierce combat.
Simultaneously, a heavy footstep echoed above the cave, as if something was about to crush it.
A slender spike jutted from one of the cave's openings, followed by the Sixth Academy's mech bursting out, gasping like it had been freed from confinement. "Finally, I can breathe again—I was about to suffocate in there."
Unfortunately, no one paid attention to him. Right behind the mech, a massive, rhino-like beast charged from the same tunnel.
Its weight made the cavern floor quake as it landed, carving a crater into the stone.
The beast snorted two streams of red gas from its wide nostrils and then stood up, baring its fangs at the surrounding mechs.
A roar exploded across the cavern.
A column of fire spewed from the beast's mouth, sweeping toward the nearest mechs.
Back in the Cave...
The two remaining members of the Seventh Academy shrank into a corner. They exchanged glances, then looked toward the tunnel leading to another exit.
"Go," said Jin Yu.
He gave the analyst a shove.
Chen Sui looked at the chaotic battlefield—four academies present, along with a rogue energy beast. Absolute chaos.
Seizing the opportunity, the Seventh Academy's analyst hugged her monitoring equipment and started moving toward the upper exit of the cave.
Chen Sui's gaze swept across the other academies. Jiang Tianyi from the First Academy noticed the movement, but he was surrounded by the beast's fire wall, with gunfire from the Third Academy pressing him from behind. He could not split his focus.
Just then, Lin Fengchi broke away from the Third Academy's formation.
"Ice," he commanded calmly.
Chen Sui watched as a blue energy field cascaded down the cave walls, forming frost that rapidly condensed into a thick ice wall, sealing off the tunnel exit.
Mid-air, the Seventh Academy duo was abruptly blocked.
The analyst's mech lit up with a red glow. From it burst a blood-red bird.
"Hold them off. I'll clear the way," the analyst said.
Jin Yu hoisted his cannon. A golden glow rose from his shoulder, and he fired a brilliant shell toward the blue light shielding the Third Academy's commander.
The Xuan Fire Bird shrieked, and crimson flames shot forward like arrows, piercing into the icy barrier.
Chen Sui watched in deep concentration. Her eyes moved constantly across the spiritual projections of each combatant.
The beast's injuries, inflicted by cannon fire, healed almost immediately. Only spirit energy could cause lasting harm.
This was the gift of awakening, she thought to herself.
Relaxing into the soft seat of her passenger cabin, Chen Sui was just about to check how far the Seventh Academy had gotten—
—when the holographic projection flickered.
Voices cut in and out.
Then came the full-ship announcement:
"Dear passengers, this flight is approaching the first jump point. You may experience signal instability. Please use communication devices cautiously. We apologize for the inconvenience."
Before the broadcast ended, the projection vanished altogether. The cabin dimmed, leaving only the white glow of the jump corridor outside the window.
"Aww, not now!"
"Right? It was getting good. I mean, what's Jiang Tianyi playing at? Wasn't he allied with Lin Fengchi? Did he just betray him?"
Chen Sui heard other passengers leaning out of their cabins, discussing the latest developments in the league.
It was the final stage of the Interstellar Alliance Military Academy Tournament—the peak of public attention on the star net.
She perked up her ears.
"What alliance? I watched the earlier matches. Jiang Tianyi is slick. Nine out of ten things he says are lies."
"Lin Fengchi is just too straightforward. He's no match for a fox like Jiang Tianyi."
"But you've got to admit, Zhuojing Mansion has unbelievable luck. They lost three members, even their commander Yun Fang, and yet they survived this round thanks to their opponents turning on each other."
Others agreed.
"They started in the elimination round, and nearly everyone on the forums bet they'd be knocked out. But they forced their way into the main tournament. Twice, they avoided facing top-tier teams. Their luck is out of this world."
"Their analyst isn't bad either. Strong self-preservation skills. In terms of spiritual threshold, she ranks mid-to-high among the five academies—threshold 82. That's given the Seventh Academy a real fighting chance."
"True, but their overall strength just isn't there," someone sighed.
"No helping that. Ever since Director Song went missing, the council has been dissatisfied with how resources are allocated to Military District 11. The Seventh Academy has been struggling. The fact they're even in the main competition is impressive."
"Yeah, it's a shame about Director Song."
"Song family was full of talent. Their voice carried weight on the central star. Life in the outer rings was good under their leadership. Things may be rough now, but once the younger Song heir rises, things will improve."
"Still, no one's like Director Song."
At this point, Chen Sui could feel the cabin's mood shift into quiet melancholy.
Director Song... Song Bai Ning?
She remembered reading about her on the star net.
The Song family hailed from Yuguang Star. Song Bai Ning, rebellious in youth, left the central system to study at the Seventh Academy. She rose to fame through the league.
After the competition, she joined the frontier military and later became the Director of Military District 11. Under her leadership, countless talents emerged, injuries from energy beasts decreased, and the outer rings prospered.
Sadly, ten years ago, she disappeared during a top-tier energy field disaster. Her fate remains unknown.
Since then, Zhao Loulan took over. The council has micromanaged the district, and the alliance's internal politics have grown increasingly volatile.
Chen Sui had little interest in all this. She was good at fighting and slaying aberrants, but politics? Factions? Scheming? Those made her head spin. The marketing articles on the star net sounded impressive, but whether they were true—who could say?
She yawned, brushing away her thoughts.
The jump tunnel's white light bathed the cabin. Passengers returned to their seats as automated voice alerts reminded them of safety protocols.
A brown honeycomb-patterned filter slid over the transparent cabin walls, reducing the glare. The light dimmed, and silence returned.
Chen Sui lay down, closing her eyes.
The jump took longer than she expected. After days of managing documents and submitting applications, fatigue overtook her, and she slipped into sleep.
It was a deep, undisturbed rest. The cabin had switched to sleep mode, filtering out all noise—no gunfire, no cheering, no projection of the five academies' explosive battle.
The jump ship finally docked at Yuguang Star Port. A gentle alert roused Chen Sui.
She opened her eyes to a dazzling golden sea.
The central starport floated above the Shimmering Gold Sea, its vast suspended structure built entirely of metal.
Its size spanned nearly half the sea.
Transparent descent corridors encircled the port, connecting all areas of the coast.
Following instructions, Chen Sui headed for the closest exit to the Seventh Academy.
On the staircase of the descent corridor, she could see the golden waves of the Shimmering Gold Sea. The setting sun cast gorgeous fire across the surface.
Artificial marine life floated on the water, glowing red under the light.
A gust of wind stirred the sea, splashing golden droplets that shimmered like molten metal in the sunset.
The rushing wind from the descent corridor blew her hair loose, popped open the buttons of her dark green coat, and filled it with chilly sea air.
In Yuguang Star's sky, crisscrossing hoverways divided traffic by vehicle type. Only pedestrians and cleaning drones occupied the streets below.
Chen Sui boarded a city hover-bus. Towering skyscrapers flashed past. Neon signs reflected off her face, coloring her green eyes with a shifting glow.
"Tatamu City, Songluo District. Please gather your belongings and watch your step. White Day Intercity Transit wishes you a pleasant journey."
At the station's main hall, Chen Sui downloaded a map of Tatamu City and located the Seventh Academy.
It lay on the outskirts of Songluo District. The front faced the busiest commercial street. The rear, a natural chain of hills.
At night, the commercial street came alive. The hover-car lots were overflowing, and patrolling robots redirected latecomers to other areas.
Shops opened their doors wide. Simulated voices advertised their goods. Some shops had catchy slogans. Others projected trending web novels onto large screens.
One display's flashing font made Chen Sui pause at the entrance.