"Congratulations, Host, for completing the final mission (5/5): Brilliant Red Star. You have received one Advanced Treasure Chest." As the mechanical voice finished, a glittering golden treasure chest appeared before Gao Neng.

"Finally, the mission’s done! Open it!" Although Gao Neng felt the world spinning, he still wanted to see what was inside the Advanced Treasure Chest.

"BEEP. An Advanced Treasure Chest contains multiple different rewards. The Host may choose one based on their own needs!"

"Drawing random rewards..."

"Drawing complete. Presenting three treasures: 1. One Ningshen Awakening Pill, which can instantly sharpen the Host’s mind, heal all injuries, and grant a full-health revival on the spot. 2. Random Skill (one). 3. Two pages of money-making tips (these pages contain two no-penalty bonus missions.)"

’I have to pick one of three?’ Gao Neng was speechless. 𝚏𝕣𝕖𝚎𝚠𝚎𝚋𝚗𝐨𝐯𝕖𝕝.𝕔𝐨𝕞

He was about to pass out, yet this damn system was giving him a multiple-choice question? And it just had to offer a Ningshen Awakening Pill. ’Why didn’t you just offer me a vitamin gummy while you’re at it?’

But Gao Neng didn’t mind too much. All three options seemed pretty good. The first one was basically an extra life; even if he didn’t use it now, it would be a great deal to save for later.

Of course, he wasn’t planning to pick that one. He hesitated between the random skill and the money-making tips. A random skill was great, but being random, there was no telling what he’d end up with.

The money-making tips, on the other hand, were more practical...

They were equivalent to two bonus missions.

Bonus missions—missions without penalties—were still a very good deal.

So...

’I’ll just choose the random skill then.’

"I choose 2, the random skill!" Gao Neng forced himself to stay conscious for one last moment. Determined not to let the damn system screw him over, he made his choice decisively.

"DING. The Host has successfully chosen the random skill reward."

"BEEP. The Host’s luck has struck again. You have obtained the random skill: Infinite Energy Enchantment."

’What the hell is this thing?!’ Upon hearing the announcement, Gao Neng could no longer hold on, even though he still hadn’t figured out what "Infinite Energy Enchantment" was used for.

’Still, since it’s a skill from the system, it must be powerful.’

THUD!

Gao Neng passed out.

"Gao Neng? Don’t you dare faint, kid. Are you really trying to pull a scam on me?!" Gui Zian froze for a moment when he saw Gao Neng actually pass out.

"Where are the people from the Logistics Academy?!"

"Coming!" Two instructors from the Logistics Academy rushed over, immediately helped Gao Neng up, and began administering first aid on the spot.

"His vitals are unstable!"

"It looks like he’s been poisoned..."

"Could he have poisoned himself with his own phosphorus pentoxide during the fight?"

"It’s possible, but that was a while ago. How did the kid hold on for so long? It’s a miracle!"

"It’s not too serious. He just needs some water and two or three hours of rest. Principal, if possible, we should send Gao Neng back to his dorm to rest right now!"

The two instructors from the Logistics Academy quickly made their diagnosis.

"Alright, take him there," Song Tianyun nodded.

"Principal Song, Gao Neng has passed out. So how do we handle his academy and mentor assignments?" Gu Yi asked the question on his mind.

The new student orientation assembly was meant for assigning students to their respective academies.

But that wasn’t the main issue. The main issue was that the entry requirements for the four major academies were all different.

For example, the War Academy assessed a student’s combat prowess, while the Manufacturing Academy focused on a student’s talent for creating devices (the number of their talents, their knowledge of various mechanisms, and so on).

If they waited for Gao Neng to wake up before arranging the tests...

...it would mean that the instructors from all four major academies would have to be on standby for one student.

"Dean Gu raises a valid point. Academy placement is a two-way street. Vice Principal Wang, is your Manufacturing Academy interested in Gao Neng?" Song Tianyun asked, looking at Wang Qixing.

"I won’t poach someone you’ve clearly got your eye on. Principal Song, if you want him, just say so. Why bother asking the Manufacturing Academy?" Wang Qixing shook his head.

"Haha, Vice Principal Wang has a point. With only five talents, the kid wouldn’t be considered elite in the Manufacturing Academy. So... what about the Research Academy?" Song Tianyun chuckled and looked at an elder beside him.

"He’s too much of a troublemaker. I doubt he could quiet his mind enough for research. Besides, I don’t think that personage from the Shen Family would want someone at the Fourth Human Limit tossed into my Research Academy, would they?" The elder shook his head as well.

"I see... In that case, the Logistics Academy... never mind. Let’s just put the kid in the War Academy." Song Tianyun mused for a moment, completely skipping over Gu Yi of the Logistics Academy.

"..." Gu Yi’s expression turned grim.

’Why didn’t he even bother asking when it came to the Logistics Academy?!’

Truthfully, he had no intention of trying to snatch Gao Neng for the Logistics Academy, but being ignored like this still stung. This was blatant disrespect for the entire Logistics branch.

Having made his decision, Song Tianyun’s gaze fell on Gui Zian.

"Old Gui, I’ll have to trouble you with this. Will you take this kid?"

"To me?!" Gui Zian rubbed his gleaming bald head and glanced at the unconscious Gao Neng on the ground. "Principal Song, I don’t like troublemakers!"

"You’re the Vice Director of the War Academy anyway. If you really don’t like him, you can always switch him to someone else later. Besides, I’m doing you a favor here!" Song Tianyun finished, giving Gui Zian a meaningful look.

Gui Zian’s face, however, was a mask of bitterness.

’A favor my ass!’

’I didn’t actually beat Gao Neng down. Would Vice Commander Shen really have nothing better to do than come all the way to Eastern Capital Military Academy just to beat me up over this?’

’This is clearly Old Song just passing the buck!’

’He wants this prize student but doesn’t want to be the one to take the heat, so he’s pushing me out to be the scapegoat.’

’Truly, a higher rank is enough to crush a man!’

Gui Zian didn’t say anything else. He handed Gao Neng over to the two instructors from the Logistics Academy, then leaped back onto the high platform and sat down, his expression sour.

"Alright, let’s continue the new student orientation assembly," Song Tianyun said, giving Gu Yi a look. With all the instructors gathered, they couldn’t just stop now.

"Right." Gu Yi nodded.

In truth, after all the chaos, he no longer had the heart to lecture the new students, but the orientation assembly had to continue.

After all, the academy and mentor selections were mandatory procedures.

The rest of the proceedings went quite smoothly.

「Two hours later...」

Fang Tangtang, Kong Kun, Li Qing, and Feng Qingqing were all successfully accepted into the War Academy, while the other students also made their respective choices.

For the most part, over 80% of the mentors and students were quite satisfied with the pairings.

The only exception was Gui Zian, who now had a splitting headache.

Looking at Fang Tangtang, Kong Kun, Li Qing, and the recently-awakened Feng Qingqing standing before him, and then thinking about Gao Neng, who was currently in the Logistics Academy’s infirmary, his head throbbed intensely.

’These five...’

’Can they really coexist peacefully?’

"Ahem, Feng Qingqing, Teacher Li is also an excellent choice. And she’s a woman. Why didn’t you pick her?" Gui Zian voiced his confusion.

"Sir, Vice Director Gui!" Feng Qingqing gave a military salute, her gaze blazing. "My father ordered me to study under you. A father’s command cannot be defied!"

"..." Gui Zian rubbed his head. Feng Qingqing’s father was indeed his old comrade-in-arms; he couldn’t argue with that, so he had to accept it. He then turned his gaze to Li Qing. "And what about you, Li Qing? I can see you have an explosive fighting style. Teacher Tang would be a more suitable mentor for you."

"I, uh..." Li Qing was missing two front teeth, and his words whistled slightly through the gap. He glanced at Feng Qingqing before finally mustering his courage. "I want to study with Qingqing!"

"Nonsense! Once you enter a military academy, your duty is to serve the Alliance. You can’t be thinking about childish romance! Go to Teacher Tang right now, and tell him I sent you!"

"Vice Director Gui, I..."

"Get out!" Gui Zian roared.

"Yes, sir..." Li Qing finally scurried away, crestfallen.

Gui Zian’s headache eased slightly. He had finally gotten rid of one of them.

It wasn’t that he didn’t want to accept Li Qing, but as the Vice Director of the War Academy, he had to be considerate of others. He couldn’t keep all the good students for himself.

"Kong Kun, you..."

"Vice Director Gui, my fighting style is the same as yours!" Kong Kun stated with firm conviction.

"I see." Gui Zian nodded, showing no intention of sending Kong Kun away. Instead, he looked at Fang Tangtang again. "Tangtang, it’s not really appropriate for you to study under me, is it?"

"I know. To be honest, it’s not appropriate for me, Fang Tangtang, to study under anyone. I’m just putting my name on your roster, Uncle Gui. You don’t need to worry about it," Fang Tangtang said with a wave of her hand.

"..." For a moment, Gui Zian was at a loss for words.

However, what Fang Tangtang said was true. With the power of the Fang Family’s old patriarch, her training regimen had likely been set in stone long ago. She didn’t need him to teach her much.

As for why Fang Tangtang had come to the military academy in the first place... he knew the reason.

The Fang Family’s old patriarch truly couldn’t control the girl standing before him, so he had specially sent her to the military academy for some real-world exposure. To put it bluntly, it was to temper her wild personality. As for combat techniques, she didn’t need their instruction.

He said nothing more.

He’d only managed to get rid of one of the four, but one less person was still less trouble.

As for Gao Neng...

Gui Zian decided not to think about him for now. ’I’ll deal with it once he wakes up.’

...

Time flew by.

After lunch, Gao Neng finally woke up.

The Eastern Capital Military Academy’s infirmary was immaculate, staffed by dedicated caregivers. Two of them were female sophomores from the Logistics Academy, identifiable by the academy badges on their chests.

When Gao Neng opened his eyes, he saw the two female upperclassmen scrambling over something. The moment they saw he was awake, they both broke into smiles.

One was shy, partially hiding her face.

The other was as radiant as the sun.

"Gao Neng, you’re awake! Do you want something to eat? I saved this for you. Oh, and congratulations on getting into the War Academy!" the sunny upperclassman said immediately, placing a lunchbox in front of him and tucking a pillow behind his back.

"The War Academy?" Gao Neng was taken aback. The War Academy was the last place he wanted to join. The name alone screamed of fighting and killing on the battlefield. He much preferred sitting safely in the rear, observing the action.

’Did they just force me into an academy without even letting me choose?’

’No way!’

’I have to find a way to transfer academies!’

As he was thinking, he suddenly remembered something. ’All the final missions are complete. That means the damn system should be able to evolve now, right?’