Chapter 106: Shock

Regardless of the number of subjects, the scores are always aggregated to calculate a final result. The "Universal Divine Network" is the epitome of fairness and impartiality, never prone to error. This score represents the overall academic standing, with 100 being the perfect mark. As everyone knows, however, such a high score has not been seen for countless years.

A score of 100 would undoubtedly secure the top spot!

At the thought of his unsightly physique being exposed before the vast student body and faculty, even the thick-skinned Xi Tiande could not help but feel the world go dark. Blood rushed to his head, and he fainted on the spot.

The entire class stared at Le Kai as if he were a monster. Ever since the principal's public announcement, Le Kai's background information had been made public; everyone knew his history. For a student who had never even set foot inside the school gates until recently—and a young one at that—passing would have been a miracle. What was this perfect score? Had the Divine Network malfunctioned?

It was too shocking, too subversive, and completely beyond anyone's expectations.

Even more astonishing was the second-place result. Trailing right behind Le Kai was a score of 99! This was also an incredibly high mark, the likes of which had never been seen before at the Azure Star Noble Academy. Unfortunately, her limelight had been entirely stolen by that perfect 100.

Little did they know, it wasn't just the class that was stunned; countless people who witnessed the results were left speechless. These test questions were not authored by any individual, but generated by the Universal Divine Network itself. Not even a second before the exam began could anyone know what the questions would be. The grading process by the Divine Network was also extremely rigorous; through cameras and devices installed in every classroom, it required no human intervention whatsoever.

In the Zhanlang Empire, a royal elder watched the screen, a flash of keen insight crossing his eyes. He stood up and muttered to himself, "It has finally appeared again. After waiting for so many years, a 'Perfect Vessel' has finally emerged. This time, I must not let it slip away!"

Li Chenxing, also an elderly man of vigorous health, stood up abruptly upon seeing the data on the screen. He exclaimed in disbelief, "How is this possible? Yan'er is not in first place? How? A 'Perfect Vessel'... has it finally appeared again? It seems the era of chaos is about to begin anew."

He spoke loudly, "Send word out: convene the full clan assembly today."

In a certain hidden abyss, surrounded by swirling mists that made it look like a celestial paradise, a middle-aged man sat cross-legged on a massive leaf, swaying gently in the wind like an immortal. On his wrist, a communicator projected a virtual screen displaying the very results that had caused such a stir.

"The Perfect Vessel, has it finally reappeared? The millennial prophecy is manifesting at last. It is time to go out and walk the world."

With that, he vanished.

...

What Le Kai could never have imagined was that his simple perfect score had sent shockwaves through the highest echelons of power. Even more unexpected was that, aside from the students in Class 3, Grade 1 of the Azure Star Huazhong Noble Academy who knew the top student was their classmate, no one else in the world knew where this person was located.

He could never have known that the previous perfect score had occurred a thousand years ago.

He only knew that he had won. Not only had he won one million Zhanlang coins from Li Xiuxiang, but he had also defeated the fat pig Xi Tiande and earned the respect and admiration of countless classmates. The students of the Noble Academy looked down on the local "natives" primarily because of their arrogance, believing themselves superior and viewing the locals as dull-witted and unrefined. Now, however, Le Kai had taught them a harsh lesson with hard facts.

The prouder people are, the easier it is for them to accept reality and submit to those stronger than themselves.

Now, no one dared to dwell on Le Kai’s status as an "Outlander." If anyone brought it up, wouldn't they be slapping their own faces, implying they were even worse than an Outlander?

Principal Lan Kai could not stop grinning in his office, pacing back and forth in excitement, as if he could already see the Lan family rising to regain its former glory.

Just as suffocated and prone to fainting as Xi Tiande was Li Xiuxiang. Upon hearing Le Kai’s score, he remained catatonic for a full minute before muttering in a daze, "How is it possible? He... he actually scored a perfect 100? This is absurd. The previous record was only 98! How did he manage it?"

It wasn't the loss of the million Zhanlang coins that pained him, but the blow to his ego. He had been trampled by that boy once again. To a "perfect genius" who had never known defeat, this was an unforgivable humiliation. He had sailed through life so smoothly, once believing himself a peerless prodigy. To think that Le Kai had appeared, not only thwarting him at every turn but shattering the 98-point record he had held—it was simply ridiculous!

"Le Kai, are you truly to be my greatest nemesis in this life?" Li Xiuxiang clenched his fists, causing the air to crackle. His long hair rose without a breeze, and his gaze was sharp as a blade. A piercing screech echoed in the room, and invisible streams of energy suddenly erupted uncontrollably. Like ten thousand arrows released at once, the entire room was instantly shredded; furniture turned into dust as if sculpted from sand, scattering across the floor.

Li Xiuxiang took a deep breath, pulling his rampaging internal energy back in. He gave a cold smile. "It seems I have lost my composure. How could I let him rattle my spirit? A heart of a true warrior fears no challenge. The greater the genius, the more satisfying it is to kill them. Le Kai, you must grow faster. As you are now, you are not yet qualified to be my enemy."

Everything returned to calm. He slowly closed his eyes, and when he opened them again, the trace of violence had vanished, replaced by his usual confidence and indifference.

He pushed open the door and walked out. Meeting the nanny's startled gaze, he said coolly, "Get me a new room."

Li Yan watched Le Kai in shock. Although she knew his knowledge surpassed high school and even university curricula, scoring a perfect 100 was still beyond her expectations. This exam hadn't just tested standard knowledge; many questions were unheard of. Most students couldn't even finish half the paper. Li Yan, studious since childhood and tutored by many, had only managed a 99.

It could be said that anyone scoring over ninety was a peerless genius who knew almost everything. One needed not only mastery of standard knowledge but also understanding of highly classified information. For instance, the exam even included a question on alchemy—a field so obscure it had been unheard of until now. No one but Le Kai could have answered it.

Li Yan had lost her one point on that very question.

Knowing Le Kai had achieved a perfect score, her astonishment was understandable. From what she knew, that question’s difficulty required more than just surface knowledge; only a master deep in the craft, perhaps even an alchemist, could answer it. If Le Kai had answered it, it meant he was either an alchemist himself or had a true master of the art!

Alchemists had not been seen for a thousand years.

The news was truly staggering!

Le Kai, however, was unaware of this. To him, the questions were all strange and bizarre, with very few orthodox ones. Instead, they involved odd topics, even touching upon the legendary Great Emperors.

Had his professor not been a man of immense erudition who had spent years tirelessly recounting these strange tales, Le Kai would never have been able to answer them. In this light, it almost seemed as if the professor had written the questions specifically for him!

But that was impossible. Legend had it that the Universal Divine Network was a massive corporation existing outside any faction. No one knew who founded it or who managed it; it seemed to have been serving humanity since the dawn of civilization. It was fair, impartial, and absolutely reliable. Since its inception, it had never made a mistake, which was why no one ever questioned its results.

If anyone claimed they could influence or control the Universal Divine Network, no one would believe them.

Azure Star, as a colonial planet, had established a receiver tower when it was first settled to connect with the Divine Network. Here, people could communicate with the infinite expanse of the universe without leaving their homes. However, due to its distance from the main star, the signal here was poor.

The receiver tower was located on a space station 100,000 light-years away from Azure Star, guarded year-round by a "Shark" combat squad. One hundred staff members maintained it twenty-four hours a day to ensure the network remained clear. Guarding the station and maintaining the tower was an incredibly dull task. It was a desolate place that even space pirates couldn't be bothered to visit. For decades, several shifts of maintenance crews had come and gone, and no accidents had ever occurred. Everyone treated this place as an invisible penal colony; if you offended your superiors or committed a crime, you were sent to this godforsaken place to work.

Such a job was more maddening than prison.

The squad leader, She Luo, had eight subordinates and one patrol ship. Having offended a superior three years ago, he had been transferred here, and no one had heard of him since. This was a place of oblivion, a place of deathly silence. It was pitch black, unchanging, and even the arrival of space pirates would have been a welcome diversion. In truth, aside from the fact that people were slowly aging, everything else felt frozen in time.

She Luo was lying on the command chair with his eyes closed, resting as usual. Outside the porthole, aside from the dim automatic lights of the patrol ship, there was nothing but darkness. How She Luo hoped that a glimmer of light would suddenly appear in the void, tearing through this damn black curtain. The monotonous environment was driving him insane; he craved change.

"Captain, wake up and look! There’s finally some activity!"

A soldier ran over, excited. Judging by his agitation, he must have discovered something significant.

She Luo jolted, scrambled up, and rushed to the cockpit to follow the soldier's lead.