Chapter 41

Today is Saturday, and the Cultivator Academy has organized a strength assessment for the students in the academy.

Although the students have only been enrolled for twenty days, after the systematic teaching of the academy and the extensive resources spent on their cultivation, many outstanding students have already begun to stand out.

Currently, there is one student at the peak of the first stage, ten students at the high level of the first stage, and a thousand students at the mid-level of the first stage. The remaining students at the initial level of the first stage will not take long to break through to the mid-level.

The sudden storm today was not naturally formed; it was generated by a peak first-stage student in the academy using their ability.

"Ji Xiaoxiao's ability awakened just a week ago. She had already awakened one ability before that."

"So, she is now a multi-ability cultivator! That's amazing!"

"Beautiful and so powerful, I wonder if she has a boyfriend."

"Tsk, it's not even dark yet! Wake up!"

"Right! Dream when it gets dark. If you want to be her boyfriend, you need to surpass her first."

"Quiet!" The homeroom teacher's steady voice echoed across the first training ground, and the students immediately fell silent.

"Although your ability only lasted two minutes, the powerful force it displayed is undeniable. In the future, as your strength improves, the duration of this ability will increase. Keep working hard and don't slack off." The teacher smiled and encouraged Ji Xiaoxiao.

"Yes, Teacher! I will continue to work hard." Ji Xiaoxiao replied succinctly.

The assessment continued until around 4 PM, when the teachers finally finished recording all the students' cultivation progress.

At 6 PM, in a meeting room within the Cultivator Academy, the principal and the homeroom teachers of each class held a meeting.

The elderly man in his sixties, with a kind face, finished reviewing the statistical data in his hands and gently placed it on the conference table.

He scanned the attendees, pondered for a moment, and then said, "I am quite satisfied with the results of this assessment. It hasn't even been a month since the start of the semester, and everyone's overall strength has significantly improved. Thank you all for your hard work."

"Principal Zhou, not at all, we didn't work hard at all." Everyone responded.

Principal Zhou raised his hand to signal, "Alright! No need to be modest. I see your efforts."

"Principal, Ji Xiaoxiao from Class 1 and Wang Chao from Class 3 have both awakened two abilities. Their spiritual energy has improved rapidly, and they have great potential. I suggest we allocate additional resources to them to accelerate their cultivation." Deputy Principal Lin Pengfei, who was sitting to the right of Principal Zhou, spoke up.

The homeroom teachers of the other classes looked enviously at the homeroom teachers of Class 1 and Class 3 upon hearing the deputy principal's suggestion.

"Ji Xiaoxiao? I just reviewed the data. This student was already at the mid-level of the first stage, close to breaking through to the high level, when she enrolled. She hadn't cultivated much before, yet she could reach this level. Since joining the academy, her strength has improved dramatically, and she has awakened a second ability. She is indeed a promising student.

Wang Chao is also excellent. He awakened his second ability at the beginning of this year. Although he is currently at the high level of the first stage, he should break through to the peak of the first stage in a few days.

The other nine high-level students, while not as outstanding as these two, are also promising.

Pengfei, let's give these eleven students additional resources!" Principal Zhou said with a smile.

"Yes, Principal." Lin Pengfei nodded.

"While teaching the students, don't forget to cultivate yourselves. At the last meeting in the capital, I learned about some serious matters. Don't be complacent." Principal Zhou said seriously.

"Yes!" Although everyone didn't know the specific serious matters Principal Zhou was referring to, they could tell from his serious expression that it was no small matter.

They then discussed the future teaching plan, and the meeting lasted for two hours before concluding.

"Meeting adjourned!" As Principal Zhou announced the end of the meeting, everyone left the meeting room. Soon, only Principal Zhou and Lin Pengfei remained.

The room was quiet. Principal Zhou, though only in his sixties, had already turned completely white-haired. He closed his eyes and leaned back in his chair.

Lin Pengfei looked at him without speaking, sighing softly.

"Pengfei, what are you sighing about?" Principal Zhou opened his eyes and looked at Lin Pengfei.

"Principal, has that matter been confirmed?" Lin Pengfei hesitated but still asked.

"Yes, it has been confirmed." Principal Zhou nodded.

"I thought the emergence of spiritual energy was a natural evolution of the Blue Planet, but I never expected it to be for this reason. It's hard to believe." Lin Pengfei said bitterly.

"So what? I, Zhou Weiguo, have seen many strange things in my life. Now, in my old age, I can still encounter an invasion from another world. I haven't lived in vain." Principal Zhou said indifferently. "Don't worry. Each of us should do our part, work hard to improve our strength, and when they do invade, we won't be completely helpless."

"Understood."

The meeting room fell silent again.

Deep in the Xing'an Forest, thousands of kilometers away, a place that was once a lush hillside now lay barren.

A few days ago, the Ability Management Bureau dispatched a peak third-stage cultivator to lead a special task force from the capital. The team consisted of ten members, all at the high level of the third stage.

The Xing'an Forest, the largest primeval forest in the country, spans the entire northern region. It was already dangerous before the emergence of spiritual energy, and now it is even more terrifying.

At this moment, the special task force, led by the scout, was cautiously advancing through the forest.

"Everyone, rest here for a moment. We'll reach our destination after two more hills." The scout, Yang Jian, said to the team members.

"Yang Jian, how many energy entities can you sense now?" The leader of the team, a 40-year-old man at the peak of the third stage, asked.

"Zhang Yi, I can't sense the situation there now. The energy is chaotic, and my ability can't detect it. It wasn't like this when I scouted the area before." Yang Jian said, puzzled.

"Could something unexpected have happened?" someone asked, frowning.

"Even if something did happen, we're already here. We can't turn back now."

"Old Niu is right. We've come this far. Even if the black bear isn't there, we still need to check the destination."

"Xie Yurong, do you have any suggestions?" Zhang Yi asked Xie Yurong, who had been silent.

Among the group, Xie Yurong was the youngest but one of the strongest.

Looking at this future fourth-stage cultivator, Zhang Yi wanted to hear her thoughts.

"Captain, since the energy is chaotic and we can't use our abilities to sense it, for safety, I should go ahead and scout the area," Xie Yurong said seriously.

"Yes, for safety, we should send someone to investigate. However, you going isn't appropriate. I'll do it," Zhang Yi said.