Chapter 34 The First Simulation
The simulation pod sealed with a mechanical hiss.
Darkness.
Then—
Stars exploded into existence.
Lin Yan stood on the command deck of a standard-issue B-17 Escort Vessel. It was old. Slow. Weak shielding.
Perfectly average.
The instructor's voice echoed through every pod:
"Objective: Escort supply convoy through pirate territory. Three hostile ships. Survive twenty minutes."
Around them floated Blue Star Planet — their home.
Blue. Beautiful. Fragile.
And beyond it?
A sea of stars.
The Truth of the Galaxy
Blue Star was not alone.
There were over one hundred known inhabited planets in the surrounding star cluster.
Some were industrial fortresses.
Some were military empires.
Some were technological monsters.
Blue Star?
Ranked middle-tier at best.
Every 2–3 years, conflicts erupted.
Sometimes political.
Sometimes resource-driven.
Sometimes simply because stronger civilizations tested weaker ones.
Ship wars.
Asteroid ambushes.
Planetary blockades.
And the high civilizations?
They were watching.
Always watching.
Blue Star had survived because it was useful.
And because it produced talent.
Talent like—
The simulation began.
Chaos Begins
Three pirate ships warped in.
Students panicked instantly.
On the spectator screens outside the pods, explosions flashed one after another.
One ship destroyed.
Another.
Convoys shattered.
Chin gripped his controls tightly.
He had trained for years. His military family background meant he understood formations.
He maneuvered cleanly.
Efficiently.
But careful.
Too careful.
Meanwhile—
Inside Pod 17…
Star materialized in the captain's chair wearing oversized sunglasses.
"Welcome to your totally not illegal future command experience!"
Lin Yan sighed.
"Please don't touch anything."
Star immediately touched everything.
Alarms blared.
"Oops."
Outside, one pirate ship locked onto Lin Yan's convoy.
Laser cannons charging.
Students watching from the hall leaned forward.
"He's done."
"He's finished."
But—
Lin Yan didn't dodge.
He accelerated straight toward the asteroid belt.
Chin blinked at his own monitor.
"What is he doing?"
Impossible Maneuver
Instead of weaving carefully through asteroids like textbook training—
Lin Yan turned off half his shields.
Reallocated power.
Boosted thrusters beyond safety margin.
The ship spun.
Drifted.
Cut gravity balance.
Used asteroid momentum slingshot.
He passed between two rotating rocks with less than three centimeters clearance.
The pirate ship followed.
Too late.
CRASH.
Asteroid impact.
Explosion.
One down.
The instructor sat up.
"That maneuver… who taught that?"
No one teaches that.
That kind of move comes from battlefield instinct.
Or experience.
Chin Notices
Chin destroyed one pirate carefully.
Textbook clean.
Then he saw Lin Yan's feed.
Two pirate ships remaining.
Lin Yan cut engines mid-flight.
Let himself float.
Convoy exposed.
"What is he doing?!" Chin muttered.
The pirates locked target.
Weapons charging.
Then—
Lin Yan vented plasma fuel.
A blinding flash.
The pirates' sensors scrambled.
He reappeared behind them.
Direct hit.
Second pirate destroyed.
The hall fell silent.
Only one pirate left.
It tried to flee.
Lin Yan didn't chase.
He predicted its escape vector.
Pre-fired.
The pirate warped directly into his shot.
Explosion.
Simulation: COMPLETE.
Time survived: 9 minutes 12 seconds.
No convoy losses.
Damage taken: 4%.
The Problem
The pod opened.
Lin Yan stepped out casually.
Stretching.
Like he just finished a nap.
Chin stood frozen.
"That wasn't standard training," Chin said quietly.
Lin Yan smiled.
"Lucky guess."
Star whispered only to Lin Yan:
"You calculated gravitational drift of 14 moving bodies while venting plasma manually."
Lin Yan nudged him.
"Quiet."
Chin's eyes narrowed behind his glasses.
"I've trained since I was six," Chin said. "That wasn't guessing."
Around them, students were whispering.
Even instructors looked unsettled.
One muttered:
"That combat pattern… looks like Outer Cluster war doctrine."
But that doctrine belonged to high civilization planets.
And Blue Star did not have access to it.
The Bigger Secret
Above the school.
Far above the atmosphere.
A silent probe hovered.
Not Blue Star tech.
Not registered.
Watching.
Recording.
Sending data outward.
To a civilization far stronger than Blue Star.
And on that distant world, someone paused the footage.
Replayed Lin Yan's asteroid maneuver.
Then leaned forward.
"Interesting."
Chin Realizes
Back at the academy…
Chin approached Lin Yan slowly.
"You're hiding something," he said.
Lin Yan shrugged.
"I hide my snacks too. You can't trust people."
Chin didn't smile.
"For someone from Blue Star's lower districts… you fight like you've seen real war."
For a split second—
Lin Yan's expression changed.
Just a flicker.
Then gone.
Star coughed dramatically:
"Breaking news! Our protagonist may or may not be suspiciously competent!"
Lin Yan covered Star's mouth.
"Battery malfunction," he said smoothly.
Chin stared.
Not afraid.
Not jealous.
Just curious.
And slightly… respectful.
"You're not normal," Chin said finally.
Lin Yan smiled.
"I'm slightly upgraded."
Hook
The instructor's voice echoed:
"Top simulation score: Lin Yan."
Applause.
Shock.
Whispers.
But somewhere in the dark of space—
Blue Star had just been marked.
And Lin Yan?
He had just unknowingly announced himself to the galaxy.
And this time…
The war coming in two years?
Might come sooner.