"So, these are the Professionals of this world? I suppose I’ve finally stepped through the threshold."

  Lance reined in his presence, a faint, indifferent smile playing on his lips. He knew this was only the beginning; his true journey lay within the boundless sea of stars.

  With a thought, he summoned his status once more.

  User Status Panel

  Name: Lance

  Reconstruction Quota: 1/4

  Martial Realm: Gold Tier - Rank 4

  Soul Realm: Gold Tier - Rank 9

  Constitution (CON): 4154 (1 point = 300kg explosive force)

  Soul: 9435

  Technique: Spear Mastery Proficient (Late-stage, 300% boost)

  Traits: Undying God-Body, Elemental Saint Body, Titanium War Body, Solar Stellar Flame (S-Rank)

  Protocols: Titanium War Art, 灵魂不灭协议 (Rank 5 partially unlocked)

  War Arts: Titanium Collapse Fist, Meteor Spear Art, Nine Heavens: Solar Flare Blast (Rank 6 - MAX)

  Pets: Noir (Infernal Cerberus-Dragon, Rank 4 - Rank 4)

  Lance’s lips curled into a satisfied smirk as he reviewed the data. During those ten hours in the Holographic Simulation Space, he hadn't just reconstructed a War Art—his soul had been subjected to a high-frequency "tear-and-reshape" cycle.

  A Gold Tier, Rank 9 soul. If this data leaked, it would drive the top brass of the entire province into a frenzy. A fifteen-year-old at the peak of the Gold Rank wasn't just a genius—he was a freak of nature.

  Furthermore, Noir, nestled in his pocket, had evolved to Rank 4 - Rank 4 thanks to the overflow of energy.

  "I almost forgot. I’m sitting on seventy thousand units of refined Mana Energy, not seven thousand. At this rate, I won't even need a new Void Core to break through to Grandmaster."

  "Lance! The selection continues. Get ready to draw!"

  Instructor Reed’s voice pulled Lance back to reality. He opened his eyes to find a heavy atmosphere in the hall. Everyone was staring at him.

  "This kid has some nerve, falling asleep during the trials."

  "So what if he has talent? With an attitude like that, he’ll end up as beast fodder in the Wilderness."

  "He's probably just some backwater brat who's never seen a ship this big and decided to just give up."

  The eliminated students, full of resentment, began their mockery the moment they saw Lance’s "just woke up" expression.

  "Tough crowd," Lance shook his head. "I wasn't sleeping. I was in deep meditation."

  "Enough. Final round of drawing," Reed announced, waving his hand. Due to a brutal previous match where two favorites had double-KO'd each other into Med-Pods, the numbers were off.

  Hum—!

  The cards appeared. Lance tapped one.

  Bright red. Again.

  "ARE YOU KIDDING ME?! ANOTHER BYE?!"

  The hall exploded.

  "This luck is absurd! Three rounds, and he makes the top three without throwing a single punch?"

  "Rigged! This is absolutely rigged!"

  Even Lance was speechless. In the last match, two seed players had lost their tempers and fought until they both collapsed. Now, a six-person bracket had become five, and the system handed Lance another Bye.

  "Luck is a part of strength," Reed said solemnly. "Now, only three remain on the stage: Selina, Victor, and... the incredibly lucky Lance."

  The temperature on the stage dropped to freezing. Victor, the top student of the First Royal Preparatory Academy, stood in his black combat suit, gripping a Rank 3 top-tier longsword. His gaze was sharp.

  "Junior Selina, last year you were only Silver Tier, Rank 4. I didn't expect you to cross the Gold threshold in a single year," Victor said, his sword intent swirling. "But despite your rank, you're no match for me in terms of sword mastery."

  Selina remained cold and distant, her face a mask of indifference. She didn't even bother to reply, simply flicking her wrist to signal him to move.

  "Forgive me!"

  Victor lunged, turning into a blur.

  "Unified Sword Art!"

  In an instant, a barrage of sword light locked down all of Selina's paths of retreat.

  Unlawfully taken from Royal Road, this story should be reported if seen on Amazon.

  "So fast! That’s Expert level sword technique!" Reed praised. "To reach this level at his age, Victor truly is the top seed."

  Selina simply uttered four words: "Ice Soul Sword Art."

  BOOM—!

  An extreme cold wave erupted. The two sword pressures collided, and the alloy floor of the hall began to crack and peel away. The Rank 3 stage was literally shaved down by several layers.

  "Is this the power of the Gold Rank?" Reed watched, heart racing.

  The battle lasted for an hour. Victor’s swordplay was exquisite, but against Selina’s sheer energy suppression, he gradually faltered.

  "He lost," Lance commented casually from below.

  Sure enough, Selina caught a gap in Victor’s breathing. Frost light flared on her blade.

  Splurt—!

  Blood sprayed as Victor was sent flying along with his shattered sword intent. He slammed into the energy shield and lost consciousness.

  "Selina wins! Next is the final match." Reed looked at Lance and the last remaining physical-cultivator, Rowley. "Do you want to draw for another bye, or...?"

  "Let's just do a free-for-all. Let’s make this quick," Lance said, stepping onto the stage.

  His words stunned everyone. A Silver Tier, Rank 3 (his disguised rank) was demanding a three-way brawl against two Gold Rankers?

  "Arrogant," Selina said coldly.

  "If you want to die, I’ll help you!" Rowley roared. Crimson Battle Aura covered his body like a human tank. He ignored Lance entirely and charged Selina. In his mind, she was the only threat.

  "Frost Domain!"

  Selina cried out, and a wave of absolute freezing power swept across the stage.

  CRACK—!

  Rowley’s Battle Aura shield froze instantly, turning him into a glittering ice statue.

  Lance, standing to the side, was also instantly buried under a layer of thick, white frost.

  "It's over. The energy gap is just too wide," the onlookers shook their heads.

  Reed sighed, reaching for the controls to end the match and thaw them out, when suddenly—

  BOOM!!

  A massive shockwave rocked the hall.

  The frozen Lance shattered the ice effortlessly. He walked out completely unharmed, brushing a stray frost flake off his shoulder.

  "This..." Reed’s eyes nearly popped out of his head.

  Selina’s indifferent face finally broke into an expression of pure horror. To shatter her Absolute Zero frost so easily, his energy level had to be...

  "It really is cold in here," Lance smiled. "A girl who’s this icy all the time... you should be careful, or no one will ever want to marry you."

  VROOOM—!

  A wave of pure, concentrated heat erupted from Lance.

  Golden Solar Stellar Flame instantly blanketed the entire arena. The thick ice vaporized in a heartbeat. The terrifying high heat caused the energy shield to scream with a high-pitched alarm.

  "AAHH!! I'M BURNING!!"

  The thawed-out Rowley screamed as he rolled off the stage, his combat suit literally smoking.

  "Gold Rank?! A fifteen-year-old Gold Ranker with an S-Rank Flame Trait?!"

  In the control room, Silas Stuart threw open the door and sprinted toward the hall, completely abandoning his composure.

  Lance looked at Selina, his gaze deep. "Your swordplay has touched the threshold of Expert, but unfortunately, in my domain, ice does not exist."

  Beads of sweat rolled down Selina’s forehead. She felt the energy circuits in her body being locked down by the heatwave.

  "How do you know my hidden cards?" Selina gritted her teeth.

  "I can see it, obviously," Lance smiled.

  Just then, a cold, ancient female voice echoed in Selina’s mind.

  “Selina, surrender. You are not his match.”

  Selina stiffened. “Master? Even you...?”

  “This boy’s soul realm has reached Gold Tier, Rank 9. Moreover, he doesn't control ordinary fire. That is the S-Rank Solar Stellar Flame—your natural bane,” the mysterious voice said gravely. “An interesting little fellow. There seems to be an Eternal-grade protocol running in his Consciousness Hub; even I cannot see through his depths. Do not provoke him.”

  Selina’s pupils dilated.

  Soul Rank 9?! S-Rank Flames?!

  She looked at the smiling youth before her, feeling a deep sense of defeat for the first time in her life.

  "I surrender," Selina bit her lip and lowered her head.

  If her mysterious master—a soul that was a top-tier entity even in the Capital—said so, then fighting would only result in humiliation.

  "Lance wins!" Reed’s voice cracked with excitement. "I hereby announce that Lance will be the primary representative for Silvermoon City! He is headed for Solaris Academy!"

  The hall went silent, followed by a thunderous roar of discussion.

  "S-Rank! Our sector actually produced an S-Rank monster!"

  "Those byes really were lucky for us. If we’d fought him in round one, we’d be reincarnating in a Med-Pod right now."

  Silas Stuart descended into the center of the arena.

  "Lance, your performance was just evaluated in real-time by the Guild’s central intellect. Your elite rating has officially been upgraded to S-Rank." The Chancellor smiled. "According to Federation law, an S-Rank elite receives an independent fast-track spot. You don't take up the planet’s original quota."

  Lance raised an eyebrow. "So, I can give my spot to someone else?"

  "Yes."

  Lance turned to Selina and smiled. "Give it to Selina, then. I trust she won't waste the opportunity."

  Selina froze, a flash of shock and complex emotion crossing her icy face.

  "Thank... thank you," she stammered, offering a formal bow.

  Lance didn't say much. He had been sensing the powerful soul in Selina’s Consciousness Hub. Though the entity was weak, the high-level pressure proved it had been a peak Galactic-level powerhouse in life.

  A female protagonist with a 'Grandpa' ring? Interesting, Lance thought. Protected by his Eternal Soul Protocol, the entity had no idea he had already detected her.

  "Alright, Instructor Reed, send the other students back," the Chancellor said, visibly beaming. "Lance, Selina, we have fifteen hours until we reach Planet Solaris. Go to your cabins and rest. Get yourselves into peak condition!"

  Back in his cabin, Lance didn't rest.

  He sat cross-legged on the alloy bed, sinking into his cultivation. This was the moment to push for Gold Tier, Rank 10.

  "System, initiate Near-Death Loop assist mode. Accelerate soul qualitative change!"

  System Alert: Mana Energy consumption: 300 units. Reshaping Soul...

  Soul Value: +300! Constitution: +100!

  Soul Value: +300! Constitution: +100!

  The alerts chimed repeatedly in his mind.

  Finally, at the exact moment the ship passed through the Dark Universe jump point, a brilliant purple light erupted within Lance’s Consciousness Hub.

  System Announcement: Congratulations! Your Soul value has broken the 10,000-point threshold!

  Realm Advancement: Gold Tier MAX!

  Detection: Soul strength has reached the point of qualitative change. Initiating Grandmaster evolution pre-requisites!

  Lance opened his eyes, a spark of golden divine fire flickering within his pupils.