Beneath the bright, silvery moonlight, Xia Ye stood gazing into the distance, lost in thought.

After that summer, he had read everything he could find about Chi Zhou.

In the Alliance’s publicly released footage, Chi Zhou piloted Prometheus straight toward the extraterrestrial lifeforms. The roaring Black Dragon soared into the sky, cleaving the heavens in two.

In just thirty seconds, the extraterrestrial creatures that had once destroyed countless cities and plunged humanity into terror were reduced to fragments.

Under the sky eclipsed by the Black Dragon, foul blood rained down in torrents. Even the fearless extraterrestrial creatures halted in their tracks, shaken by the sight before them.

Ten minutes later, the monsters retreated like an ebbing tide. The interstellar warships lifted into the air and withdrew.

The Alliance had turned that recording into promotional material, broadcasting it around the clock on every kind of public transport.

Xia Ye had watched it so many times that every single frame had been engraved into his memory.

“What’s wrong?” Lin Kezhi had been chatting enthusiastically. Seeing Xia Ye remain silent for so long, he reached out and patted him on the back. “Why think so much? It’s all in the past.”

Xia Ye shook his head. “It’s nothing.”

He didn’t believe those things were all in the past.

In the colonel’s office, Chi Zhou had worn a casual, indifferent expression, as though nothing mattered. Yet he hadn’t responded to the colonel’s complaints.

Xia Ye didn’t think Chi Zhou believed it was all behind him.

After a long silence, he asked, “What time is Chi Zhou coming tomorrow?”

“Ten in the morning, at the Hall of Glory,” Lin Kezhi answered instinctively. “You’re coming?”

“En.”

“Great, then I’ll save you a seat. By the way, aren’t you going to see your sister tomorrow?”

“I’ll go after the lecture.”

Xia Zhi had run into a bit of trouble at school and had called him the day before. Xia Ye had already spoken with one of her teachers over the phone, and they had arranged to meet at the school the next day.

“It’s rare to see you interested in something. I’ll come get you tomorrow,” Lin Kezhi said excitedly. Then something occurred to him. “Wait… Are you and Instructor Chi close?”

Xia Ye lied.

“No.”

He didn’t want anyone to know about his connection with Chi Zhou.

“Really?” Lin Kezhi muttered. “That’s strange. Someone who never attends school events suddenly wants to hear a lecture, and you even called him ‘Chi Zhou’ directly… We all call him Instructor Chi.”

“I’ve seen him in the news too many times,” Xia Ye explained. “It’s become a habit.”

The explanation only made it sound more like he was trying to cover something up.

—

By the time they returned to the academy, there were only fifteen minutes left before midnight.

“Hurry, hurry!” Lin Kezhi dashed toward the school gate. “If we don’t get there now, we’ll miss curfew.”

Xia Ye pointed toward the entrance.

“We’re already too late.”

Standing in the shadows near the imposing iron gates was a lone figure.

Lin Kezhi muttered under his breath, “No way… We sneak out for the first time and immediately get caught…”

The man stepped out of the darkness.

It was Yue Sen, the military academy’s dean of academic affairs.

As dean, Yue Sen detested students breaking the rules. Yet he was far from being an upright and principled man. Instead, he greatly enjoyed using his authority to secure benefits for himself.

With his hands clasped behind his back, Yue Sen stood before them, looking down at them from above.

“Where have you been? Academy regulations forbid students from staying out overnight.”

A fine layer of sweat appeared on Lin Kezhi’s forehead.

He had no idea how to answer. He couldn’t exactly say they’d gone to an underground fighting arena…

Just as he was desperately trying to invent an excuse, Xia Ye spoke.

“Instructor, it’s not twelve o’clock yet,” he said mildly. “So this doesn’t count as staying out overnight.”

Lin Kezhi nearly burst out laughing. He had never expected Xia Ye to expose Yue Sen’s trick so calmly.

The academy’s intranet groups had been talking about Yue Sen for a long time.

Among this year’s faculty, the dean of academic affairs loved making life difficult for students. He constantly preached that ‘military academy students must obey orders absolutely’, yet privately sneered at the military’s own regulations. Behind the scenes, he threatened parents by leveraging their children’s treatment at the academy, demanding money and expensive gifts.

In less than two weeks since enrollment, several students had already fallen into his hands.

Most students at the academy came from District Seven, where the wealthy and influential gathered. They had enrolled mainly to polish their résumés before entering the various government bureaus. Though furious, they dared not speak up and could only swallow the humiliation.

Yue Sen had been throwing his weight around at the academy for years.

This was the first time he had encountered a student like Xia Ye.

His face turned pale with anger.

He still remembered what had happened that afternoon.

Li Feile’s parents had close ties with Yue Sen. Long before admissions began, they had instructed him to make sure Li Feile ranked first in the entrance assessment.

Given Li Feile’s abilities, there should have been no need to interfere. Yue Sen had readily agreed and accepted a hefty payment with a clear conscience.

During the entrance assessment, he had deliberately arranged for Li Feile to suppress Xia Ye’s momentum by sending him onto the field.

He had never expected Xia Ye to be that strong.

The moment Xia Ye expanded his Mental Domain, Li Feile and Qiu Luo hadn’t even been able to get close to him.

After their son had suffered such a humiliating defeat, the Li family naturally came looking for Yue Sen, convinced that he had sabotaged things behind the scenes.

There could only be one first place.

No one remembered second place.

Especially at a military academy, where strength was worshipped above all else. They couldn’t allow anyone to steal their son’s spotlight.

The Li family held extraordinary status within the Alliance. Yue Sen had bowed and apologized repeatedly, assuring them that he would find a way to expel Xia Ye from the academy so he wouldn’t stand in Li Feile’s way.

It had become a tradition for students who enjoyed having fun to leave campus and celebrate after the entrance assessment.

When Yue Sen discovered that Xia Ye wasn’t in his dormitory, he had deliberately come to make trouble for him.

“So, you went out drinking, didn’t you?” Yue Sen sneered. “Academy regulations state that students, as reserve military personnel, must remain clear-headed at all times. Alcohol is strictly forbidden.”

Lin Kezhi looked even more panicked.

He had indeed drunk a little earlier. Although the alcohol had mostly worn off during the walk back, any proper test would definitely show a reading above the limit.

Yue Sen secretly congratulated himself.

Judging by Lin Kezhi’s expression, the two of them had definitely gone out drinking to celebrate.

And Xia Ye was still pretending? A poor kid from District Twelve who had taken first place—how could he not be overjoyed?

There was no way he would resist showing off.

Prepared for exactly this, Yue Sen beckoned to Xia Ye.

“Alcohol test. Come here.”

Xia Ye smiled nonchalantly. “If you insist on testing me, then go ahead.”

He walked over and extended his left hand before the testing device.

Yue Sen stared at his wrist. It was slender, almost delicate, his skin seeming to glow beneath the moonlight. No matter how hard he thought about it, he couldn’t understand how Li Feile had lost to someone like this.

Three seconds later, the machine let out a beep.

“Test complete. Blood alcohol level within the normal range. Entry permitted.”

Yue Sen looked at Xia Ye in disbelief. Lin Kezhi still reeked faintly of alcohol, so how could Xia Ye not have had a single drink?

He couldn’t make things difficult for Lin Kezhi. In District Seven, Lin Kezhi was also considered a young master of considerable standing, and Yue Sen had no intention of offending him.

His expression darkened as he sized Xia Ye up.

“You stay. Lin Kezhi, you can go in first.”

Lin Kezhi was just about to protest when he caught Xia Ye’s look.

Swallowing his words, he glanced back. Xia Ye gave him a slight nod, signaling that everything was fine.

—

After Lin Kezhi left, Yue Sen’s face grew even darker.

“I don’t care what trick you used. If you drank, then you drank,” Yue Sen said sinisterly, glaring at him. “Come to my office.”

Xia Ye shrugged. “Are you sure?”

He knew exactly how to provoke people. His voice remained light and calm, carrying a hint of casual indifference.

As expected, Yue Sen flew into a rage. “When I tell you to come, you come! Why are you talking so much?”

Standing by the academy gates, Xia Ye quietly took two steps toward the surveillance camera, making sure both he and Yue Sen were clearly within its view before replying in an even tone, “Academy regulations state that after midnight, students may not appear anywhere outside their dormitories. Your office is no exception.”

Yue Sen was beginning to lose control. The veins at his temples throbbed violently.

It was the first time he had ever encountered such a troublesome student. Most military academy students feared disciplinary punishment and didn’t dare openly defy an instructor.

But Xia Ye was different.

What gave him confidence wasn’t his family background—

It was his talent.

A Dark Guide, one that appeared perhaps once in a century.

Once the Alliance learned of his existence, they would never leave him on his own. They would undoubtedly recruit him into the military.

“Xia Ye,” Yue Sen snapped as he glared at him, “don’t refuse a toast only to be forced to drink a forfeit. Don’t think taking first place in the entrance assessment makes you somebody. A poor brat from District Twelve like you is nothing in District Seven.”

A snow leopard appeared silently behind Xia Ye.

He crouched down and gently stroked its back before asking once more, “Are you sure?”

Enraged by his attitude, Yue Sen instinctively released his own spirit animal the moment he saw the snow leopard.

In the darkness, a brown bear let out a thunderous roar and charged recklessly at Xia Ye.

Xia Ye remained where he was.

Slowly raising his head, he smiled. “Instructor, I must remind you. Academy regulations state that outside teaching hours, faculty members are forbidden from releasing their spirit animals against students. Any instructor who attacks a student will be dismissed.”

Just one second before reaching Xia Ye, the brown bear stopped.

It huffed heavily, looking almost comically docile. Xia Ye even reached out and patted it on the head.

“Good.”

Yue Sen’s face went deathly white, as though he had suffered a crushing blow. Only then did he understand Xia Ye’s intentions; Xia Ye had done it on purpose.

He had deliberately provoked him.

Deliberately lured his spirit animal into appearing, and deliberately tempted him into attacking.

As a newly enrolled student, Xia Ye could easily explain that he still hadn’t learned to control his spirit animal properly.

Those old fossils in the Disciplinary Department would believe him.

Yue Sen suddenly looked up.

Sure enough, a surveillance camera hung directly overhead.

“You little bastard…” he ground out through clenched teeth.

“Instructor,” Xia Ye said politely, “you have three days to clean out your office. The academy reviews its surveillance footage once a week. The next inspection is in three days.”

There was a smile in his eyes, though it carried no warmth.

“I imagine you have quite a few things that need cleaning up.”

Yue Sen glared at Xia Ye viciously.

He did indeed have many things to clean up. Over the years as dean of academic affairs, he had become entangled with far too many people. He couldn’t afford to let his own downfall drag those influential figures down with him.

Otherwise, his future would be completely ruined. No longer caring about Xia Ye, Yue Sen hurried into the academy.

The office building was brightly lit, completely unlike its usual state.

The moment he pushed open the door, his secretary immediately came over and spoke in a low voice.

“Commander, the application report we submitted today has come back.”

Yue Sen took the file from him, and his expression changed instantly.

“Xia Ye really is a Dark Guide?”

The kraft envelope bore the seal of the Bureau of Social Administration.

Opening it, Yue Sen pulled out a single sheet of paper. It was an assessment report issued by the Alliance’s Special Operations Department, officially classifying Xia Ye as an SSS-rank Dark Guide.

“How did they even assess this? That brat wasn’t even at school this afternoon.” Yue Sen’s face darkened. “And why was the report issued by the Special Operations Department? Shouldn’t the Bureau of Social Administration have sent people to conduct the evaluation?”

The secretary lowered his voice until it was barely audible.

“The Special Operations Department has higher authority than the Bureau of Social Administration.”

He paused.

“And… this report was personally issued by Chi Zhou.”

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