The vast grounds of Tianlan Magic High School were buzzing today, transformed into something far removed from their ordinary routine. Set up across the raised stage stood a series of stone pillars, each topped with a heavy, polished black sphere. These were black starlight stones – the primary instruments used to evaluate student progress.
The annual assessment was a straightforward affair, much like the awakening ritual itself. Students placed a palm onto the starlight stone, and the examiners judged the culmination of their year's cultivation based entirely on the intensity of the light it produced.
— The brilliance of your starlight reflects the sheer volume of magical energy housed within your stardust! — Xue Musheng, our head teacher, boomed passionately to the crowd. — Class Eight, the time has come to reveal the fruits of your relentless labor over the past year. Let your stardust shine!
Three examiners soon filed into their seats at the judging panel assigned to our sector. They settled in one by one. Before them, over a thousand students clad in the uniformed colors of Tianlan Magic High stood in grand formation, organized by class across the training grounds.
Before the actual testing could commence, the principal naturally stepped forward to deliver an agonizingly dry speech. Though few students present seemed to mind the tedium, that was only because they had never heard Principal Xiao from Pearl University speak; now that was a man who truly knew how to weave words and ignite a crowd.
When it came time for my uncle, Mu He, who served as the school governor, he dispensed with the usual platitudes. After a few standard words of encouragement, he immediately launched into bragging:
— Today is a truly special occasion, which is why we have invited the most outstanding young mage in all of Bo City. Admitted directly to Imperial University at the tender age of fifteen! Please, give a warm round of applause to welcome this magical prodigy – Mu Ningxue! She should have been studying right here in the same year as all of you, but has already been transferred to university!
The moment his voice fell, my cousin, Mu Ningxue, stepped up onto the dais.
She wore a long, silver-white dress embroidered with snowflake patterns, her long, snow-colored hair falling across her shoulders like a shawl. Her skin was paler and flawless, purer than that of a newborn infant.
Her exquisite features were breathtaking, sculpted like a priceless piece of fine art, utterly without fault. Even standing there in complete silence, her expression cold and distant, she effortlessly captured the undivided attention of the crowd.
He Yu was the first student from our class to step forward for evaluation, but Mu Ningxue didn't grace her with so much as a glance. Instead, she followed her father to observe the performances of the other classes.
— Master Mu, take a look over there, — Principal Zhu said, sidling up to Mu Zhuoyun with a flattering smile. — That is one of our most exceptional students, Xu Zhaoting. — After all, the school wasn't going to sponsor itself.
— Ningxue, take a look, — Mu Zhuoyun murmured.
— Yes, Father, — Mu Ningxue replied, her gaze shifting toward the young Lightning mage.
Ascending the platform and noticing the goddess herself watching him, the young mage straightened his back, placed his hand upon the stone, and poured every ounce of his potential into the vessel.
— A!
— A!
— A!
The judges rendered their scores. When prompted to demonstrate his spellcasting, the youth obliged, earning three 'C' grades for his release.
Mu Zhuoyun cast an inquiring look at his daughter. After a moment's thought, she offered a measured response:
— For Bo City, it is not bad. But by the standards of Imperial University, it is thoroughly average. — Mu Ningxue phrased it tactfully, but her meaning was clear: the boy would never pass the evaluation at her institution.
Principal Zhu stood there in awkward silence, entirely unsure of how to respond.
— Brother, it is nearly time for Mu Bai's evaluation, — Mu He chimed in, filling the quiet. — Shall we head over and take a look? I heard that five months ago, he was already capable of casting spells.
Mu Zhuoyun shifted his eyes back to his daughter.
— Let us go see, — Mu Ningxue said, a flicker of genuine interest glinting in her eyes. Even by Imperial University standards, such progress at this stage was the mark of a monstrous genius.
The entourage slowly made its way toward the testing area for Class Eight.
When the balding, middle-aged examiner caught sight of the influential figures approaching, he caught the hint instantly. Skipping several names on his roster, he called out at the top of his lungs:
— Next up, Mu Bai!
I offered a slight nod and stepped onto the platform.
Placing my palm onto the stone, I centered my focus and directed the magical energy of my Ice stardust straight into the artifact.
A radiant, sky-blue light burst forth from the stone, so intense it nearly blinded the examiners and the students standing in the front row.
— Is this… the second tier!? — The examiners stammered, scrambling to their feet in shock.
— Is that even possible?!
— In all my years, I've never seen anything like it…
Mu Zhuoyun turned a stunned gaze toward his daughter. — Are you not also at the second tier right now?
— I am five or six months away from reaching the third tier… — Mu Ningxue murmured, her voice laced with disbelief. — Even at Imperial University, he would be considered a top-tier genius.
While whispers of shock and skepticism rippled through the crowd of students, I turned my attention to the examiners.
— Are you able to record the scores now? — I asked casually, as if I hadn't just shattered the school record for the fastest progression to the Primary second tier.
Exchanging bewildered glances, the examiners finally announced their verdict amid the gasps of the onlookers:
— S+!
— S+!
— S!
The other two judges cast strange glances at the third officer, who quickly cleared his throat.
— Ahem… plus! S+! I just had a cough, — the elderly mage squeaked, covering his blunder.
— Will you be taking the magic release evaluation? — One of them asked, his tone now laced with a newfound touch of respect.
I nodded in response. In just over a second, I summoned the Primary second-tier Ice spell – Ice Spread: Solidify. It was fundamentally the same as the first tier's freeze, but the encasing effect was vastly superior, and the ice was far denser. The training dummy before me was instantly shrouded in thick frost halfway up its body.
Honestly, the Ice element lacked any flashy ways to obliterate targets at the Primary level – unless, of course, I chose to reveal my modified spells, which I had no intention of doing. I already had plans for my officially registered talent, and wasting it on enhanced star control, which was useless at higher levels and wouldn't rank me high among China's top talents, wasn't part of the vision.
— S+!
— S+!
— S… plus! — The third examiner caved to peer pressure once more. I had a feeling I knew who wore the pants in his household.
Stepping down from the stage, I was swarmed by a wave of admiration from my classmates. I casually took my place to await the iconic scene I had once watched from the front row in my past life.
Unlike the original timeline, Mo Fan didn't step up immediately after me, as I hadn't rigged a little surprise beneath his evaluation stone. Five other students went through the process before his name was finally called.
— Next, Mo Fan!
Just as expected, without my interference, he earned three well-deserved 'S' grades for luminosity and three 'A's for release.
Then came the formal invitation to join the family from Mu Zhuoyun, followed swiftly by Mo Fan's thoroughly rude, personal refusal.
Now Mu Ningxue would step forward to defend her father's honor, Mu He would push the idea of a duel with Yu Ang, and then…
— Father, Uncle, — Mu Ningxue said in a single breath, — let Cousin Mu Bai defend our family's honor, since you do not wish for me to step in. There is no need to involve the family heir; my cousin will be more than enough.
I expected this from anyone else, dear sister, but not from you…