Chapter 5: The Ominous Sign

The moment the fat man died, a dense spiritual energy was released.

Su Ninglong’s lost spiritual energy rapidly replenished, and her Qi Refining level rose by one rank.

Her pupils contracted slightly. “What’s going on?”

But she had already been kicked out of the simulator and couldn’t log back in.

The Star Awakening attendant helped her remove the helmet and waved his hand in front of her eyes, asking, “Little one, are you okay?”

Su Ninglong clenched her fist; her strength remained, it hadn’t vanished.

“I’m fine, better than ever before.” Su Ninglong was determined to enter the Star Alliance Academy.

She had to get in—she wanted to uncover its secrets.

In the monitoring room, two officers raised a bottle of tea in a toast. “This year’s kids are incredible. With this girl, our Twin Stars have at least fulfilled one of our targets.”

“An astonishing execution and excellent judgment. But we must guide her carefully, so she doesn’t stray down the wrong path.”

The child who had passed immediately bragged excitedly to another, “I cleared the second level—just a little scary, not nearly as hard as you said.”

The child who hadn’t entered the simulator wasn’t pleased. If peers could do it, so could he.

He asked the Star Awakening attendant, “Brother, can I go in again? I can clear it too.”

“Next time. You should move on to the next round now.”

The attendant’s tone was firm, offering no promise and leading them into the next room.

Before entering the next room, Su Ninglong looked back at the enormous simulator. “Brother, have you been inside that machine? Have you killed the monsters in it? I want to understand it in detail.”

“If you pass the test, you’ll know,” the attendant smiled.

The Riddler was truly annoying—a new word she had learned from television.

The adjacent room contained only a table with three tiles about the size of mahjong pieces.

The attendant pointed at the three tiles. “Each of you take one and hold it in your hand for ten minutes. When the time’s up, put down the tile and exit through the door opposite you.”

“Behind that door is a corridor. At the end of the corridor is another door. Once you reach there, your test is complete. I will be waiting beyond that last door.”

He added, “If the tile makes you uncomfortable, you can drop it on the table anytime and proceed to the door to leave.”

“Go get your tiles. We’ll meet shortly.” The attendant quickly exited through the door they came from and locked it, preventing the children from returning.

Su Ninglong picked up her tile, her gaze fixed upon it. She was very familiar with this tile—once she had dismissed it as a worthless piece of junk.

She flipped it over and over; it seemed no different.

Closing her eyes, she reached out with her spiritual power to touch it.

Suddenly, a noisy clamor rushed into her mind—loud and incomprehensible, yet irritating and disturbing.

The ominous aura was thick, the entire stone emitted an unpleasant sound, or rather, a fluctuation.

Su Ninglong withdrew her spiritual power and tried to break it with her hands.

It was as hard as ever, unbreakable, with no inscriptions or patterns—simply born to be ominous.

She had once melted it down, shaping it into the form of a gluttonous beast and even embedded a devouring seed—a demonic core used in forbidden arts—hoping it would have some effect.

But it only became more useless, losing even its ominous aura.

Su Ninglong was a meticulous person; she wouldn’t give up without thorough investigation.

On the other side of the monitor, the two officers watched as Su Ninglong attempted to communicate with the child who had passed the second test, asking him to take a tile and clash it against her own.

“No, what is she doing?” They thought she was courting disaster.

As the two tiles touched, thin strands of black mist intertwined, creating a suction force, and the ominous aura escalated at a geometric rate.

Su Ninglong clicked her tongue, not wanting to complicate matters, and naturally pulled them apart.

A cough came through the overhead speaker, causing the three children to look up in confusion.

The monitors showed the two tiles separating, then the sound system was shut off.

The two officers in the monitoring room exhaled deeply.

“Goodness, that was intense. I was just about ready to risk everything.”

“Next time, we’ll have to mark a range so they can’t come into contact.”

“But this child—does she have special abilities?”

“Definitely. Gaining power the first time confronting those things. Destined for greatness. We’ll observe more once she enrolls.”

Inside the test room, Su Ninglong asked the two children, “Do you feel uncomfortable?”

They nodded, both saying in unison, “A little uneasy.”

Su Ninglong tossed the tile lightly. The two children watched her effortless gesture in unison. “Don’t you find it heavy?”

The tiles in their hands grew heavier, gradually becoming difficult to hold.

“Heavy? I don’t feel anything.” Probably due to the ominous aura.

Su Ninglong’s core was strong; such petty attempts to disturb the mind wouldn’t affect her.

When the ten minutes were up, the speaker instructed them to put down the tiles.

Su Ninglong placed hers on the table.

The child who had passed with her hesitated. Seeing her walk straight to the other door the attendant mentioned, he quickly set his tile down and followed.

The third child didn’t follow instructions; he clenched his tile tightly. “Can I keep it for now?” The plain tile seemed like his most treasured possession, and he wanted to take it home.

“You should put it on the table and then enter the door,” the voice in the speaker advised against pointless actions.

“But it told me to take it with me.”

Su Ninglong hadn’t left yet. “It’s not telling you to take it, but that your soul is delicious. Listen carefully.”

The child was surprised. “Really?” He pressed it close to his ear to listen attentively.

Su Ninglong smiled. “When you lie, don’t use lame excuses. You holding it looks like a kid who’s never seen a toy.”

“I haven’t,” the child denied.

Yet he still didn’t put down the tile, seemingly struggling with the decision.

“Heh.”

The mocking laughter was harsh to hear. The child slammed it down heavily, his face flushed. “I have lots of toys at home.”

Su Ninglong raised an eyebrow and turned to proceed.

“You’re the one without toys, aren’t you?” The child was trying to argue with her, holding back frustration.

“Maybe. I don’t have toys, so does that make you feel better?”

Not in the slightest.

The corridor ahead was short, barely twenty meters. On the left side was a huge transparent glass wall.

The glass was spotless, reflecting the empty room beyond.

Yet someone stood in the corner, entirely black.

A tall, slender shadow with its back to them.

Ominous—still the same ominous aura. It was difficult to describe, and Su Ninglong didn’t know what to call such things.

Her steps faltered.

At the same time, the shadow slowly turned around—so slowly that it compelled one’s full attention, eager to see what its other side looked like.

She vaguely sensed the shadow wanted her curiosity, hoping she would observe it longer.

A true pervert.

Ugly, yet full of delusions.