Chapitre 35: Chapter 35: The Fierce Scramble Over Talent—Western Academy's Wealth
Zhong Jing, the vice principal of Western Academy, stood up abruptly, completely disregarding his usual composed image as he cursed in disbelief.
"How the hell is this even possible? How did he do that? Not even past psychic-powered students, who hadn't undergone proper training, could achieve something like this!"
"Hey! Old Dong! Can you track someone down with that level of precision? What is this kid?"
Dong Wushuang, who had a favorable opinion of Liam, was equally astonished by what he had just witnessed. Instead of directly responding to Zhong Jing, he deflected, saying, "That's not my area of expertise. My abilities are more physical. Psychic abilities are Old Xu's specialty."
"Don't change the subject. This kid is behaving like a psychic user when he should be an ice elemental! Wait... isn't his ability supposed to be energy chains?"
Zhong Jing's tone was filled with excitement as he turned to Sophia and asked, "You're calling this energy chains? Seriously, does ice elemental power boost psychic abilities?"
Sophia, witnessing Zhong Jing's shock, was inwardly thrilled. Finally, someone was acknowledging Liam's extraordinary potential and talent!
Surely now, no one would doubt Liam's abilities or reduce him to just an E-level talent.
"No, it has nothing to do with the ice element," Sophia replied, suppressing her inner joy as she shook her head. "However, I do know why he's able to do this."
"What? What's the reason?" Zhong Jing asked, still in disbelief.
"Because a few days ago, about three days back, Liam mentioned to me that his ability had evolved again."
"This time, it evolved into a sensory ability. He claims it allows him to easily analyze and gather information from his surroundings, even to the extent of having a form of precognition."
Sophia's calm explanation left not only Zhong Jing but all the evaluators unsettled.
"Evolved again? Can abilities change so unpredictably?"
"Is he trying to make his powers into some sort of malleable tool? And energy chains with such strange potential?"
"I've seen many prodigies, even some with freakishly good talents, but I've never encountered one so... peculiar!"
Despite the evaluators' skepticism, the results on the map were undeniable. The blue dot representing Liam was steadily and quickly moving towards a red dot!
Cain turned his head back towards Sophia and asked, "Was the event a few days ago achieved through this new ability of his?"
Seeing Sophia nod, Cain turned around with a growing interest in Liam.
"What event? And did you investigate this kid's background?" Zhong Jing asked.
"I'll explain the event after the assessment. As for his background, there's nothing suspicious," Cain reassured.
With Cain's guarantee, Zhong Jing nodded solemnly, as if he had made up his mind about something. Suddenly, he slammed his hand on the table and loudly declared, "This person, we at Western Academy want him! Whatever the price!"
"What?!" Zhong Jing's sudden announcement sent shockwaves through the room, catching the other evaluators off guard. They hadn't expected anyone to start making offers so soon, especially within the first hour of the assessment.
Naturally, the other academies were not pleased and quickly voiced their objections.
"What do you mean you want him? The assessment isn't even over yet."
"Zhong Jing, you're talking big, but there are eight academies here. You think you can just claim him?"
"I like this kid too. What makes you think you get to decide?"
Ignoring their objections, Zhong Jing scoffed and sat back down with a smug expression. He crossed his legs arrogantly and said, "Because Western Academy has the resources and the money. If anyone's not happy about that, tough luck."
His declaration left the other academy leaders momentarily speechless. Zhong Jing wasn't wrong—Western Academy was indeed the wealthiest, with the largest campus, the most funding, and a surplus of resources.
At that moment, Cain chuckled again and casually remarked, "Hehe, this kid is certainly impressive. An Yi, you know him better, right? Why don't you introduce him to Eastern Academy?"
Zhong Jing immediately became alarmed, realizing exactly what Cain was trying to do. "Damn you, you sly old fox! You're trying to play the favor card at a time like this?!"
Standing at the edge of the crowd, Li Qi watched the scene unfold, her teeth nearly grinding into dust from frustration. This Liam, who not long ago was a target of ridicule, was now being fought over by the academies?
Even Zhong Jing, who had initially dismissed him, had now been swayed?
Why? Why does Sophia always get to win?
"Enough, everyone quiet down. It's about to begin," Dong Wushuang interjected, breaking up the argument.
On the map, the blue and red dots were about to collide.
"Let's see if he can take down his 'prey' on his own."
...
[Illusion Stone: To the right. The sky is darkening; you better hurry.]
[Illusion Sand: You've arrived. Be careful, aim for the vital points; anything else will be pointless.]
Following the guidance of the Voices of All Things, Liam sprinted ahead and finally arrived at his destination.
"Finally found you. Can you teleport or something? How do you keep changing locations every twenty minutes...?"
Without any hesitation, Liam conjured his energy chains and lashed out at what appeared to be empty air in front of him.
But the strike hit its mark. The sand dune ahead of him was actually a living entity!
A massive sand giant began to rise slowly from the ground, exuding a suffocating sense of pressure. Liam's energy chain was wrapped around its neck.
With a roar, the entire desert became restless, as wind and sand coalesced into a rain of swords, descending from above.
Liam raised an ice shield with his right hand, blocking and dodging the onslaught, jumping side to side across the ground.
He had never felt such force from sand before, and this one attack made him realize that this assessment was anything but simple.
Ice Time!
With a forward thrust of his hand, icy energy surged forth. Unconcerned about harming others, Liam unleashed his full power, instantly freezing the entire sand field, including the enormous sand giant.
However, when he examined the clear ice, he found it empty. The sand giant had disintegrated into yellow sand the moment it was frozen, vanishing into the air.
The next instant, a massive hand of sand grabbed hold of Liam's body, while a gaping maw appeared beneath his feet, as if it intended to swallow him whole!
Seeing this, Dong Wushuang smiled and shook his head, saying:
"You're doing well, but it's not that simple."
"Let's see if you have any more surprises for us..."
État de l’alimentation hebdomadaire
-- Classement
Power Stone 
-- Power
stone