Light Fortress

"I must say, Gu Shen is a very resilient person."

"Every day, he runs fifteen kilometers with a weight, and he has never complained of being tired."

"On the boxing ring, if knocked down a hundred times, he would stand up a hundred times."

"Overcome by wooden swords, defeated by setbacks, no matter what happened, he always had the courage to try again. But … not everything grants the chance to try again."

The thirteenth day.

Through the soundproof glass, Zhong Wei looked at the training field, where the youth, under Nan Jin's guidance, clutched the wooden sword and continuously chopped at the dummy.

His eyes full of regret, "He can endure what 99% of people cannot, which is an incredible show of perseverance. However … the Judgement Institute's evaluation does not consider perseverance; those people only look at potential."

After a long reflection.

Zhong Wei sighed softly.

"Gu Shen seems not to possess the potential to become 'S' grade."

A seemingly light statement, yet it cast a heavy verdict on someone's fate.

If one only looked at the final outcome, many situations are encapsulated in just a word or two.

Passable, or not.

And in front of these light, trivial words like 'not', the sweat, tears, and blood paid by thousands become insignificant.

Fate is such a light, yet heavy thing.

"..."

Luo Er, through the glass window, watched the sweat-drenched youth silently, saying nothing.

The youth repeatedly chopped at the wooden dummy tirelessly, Nan Jin constantly tapped his shoulders, wrists, and abdomen with the scabbard to correct his sword-holding posture. The youth grimaced in pain but just grimaced, without a word of complaint, and he would never give up.

He always managed to quickly adjust himself, always managed to grit his teeth and hold on till the end.

The harder Gu Shen on the other side of the glass worked.

The sadder Luo Er felt in her heart.

She and Zhong Wei were among the first disciples taken in by their teacher, having spent the longest time in the Judgement Institute.

Over the years, they had seen many newcomers, some dazzling like meteorites, some fleeting like ephemeral flowers, but unquestionably... those discovered and specially recruited into the Judgement Institute were all extraordinarily talented geniuses.

But no matter how one looked at it, Gu Shen did not seem to be the "genius" the Judgement Institute was searching for. This youth resembled a cactus growing in the barren desert, plain to an extreme, one could search all over him and find nothing but resilience.

Because of resilience, even without rain, he could stubbornly survive.

But what good is merely surviving? A cactus is always unattractive, never appealing from any angle.

"I know, Senior Sister Luo has never been wrong in her judgment."

"But Gu Shen … he has shown not a trace of a 'Natural' talent." Zhong Wei was somewhat puzzled: "I tried many methods to guide him, but his manifestation of fire control abilities is entirely absent. He cannot sense free elements, nor can he manipulate actual flames. This is truly unreasonable."

Glancing at the training field, Zhong Wei muttered, "Clearly, he is not a 'Strong Attack Type', and the enlightenment duration for 'Spiritual' types is so mediocre... why would the teacher think he is 'S' grade?"

In the beginning, they came to Da Teng filled with anticipation to witness the flair of an 'S' grade newcomer.

But as the days passed, most of their expectations were dashed: the only thing commendable was Gu Shen´s resilient perseverance.

As the saying goes, persistence wears down resistance; perseverance is a remarkable trait.

But the time left for Gu Shen was only fifteen days.

No matter how hard he worked, it wouldn't change a critical issue.

The final evaluation two days later…

The outcome was already imaginable.

"Don't forget. Our exploration of Extraordinary Power is just the tip of the iceberg, the genealogical tree is still being updated, and new powers appear every year." Senior Sister Luo finally spoke, "Remember, three years ago, that unique Awakener from Central Continent who couldn't be categorized into any of the three types?"

"Are you saying… a Trait type?"

Zhong Wei suddenly realized, then muttered softly, "That… would make sense. But aren't the odds too low?"

"Is that so? Then how do they compare with the odds of being 'S' grade?"

Senior Sister Luo smiled: "Miracles are called miracles because they are highly improbable, often beyond belief."

"Okay, whether Gu Shen has potential is for the evaluation team to decide, not our worry... the important thing is, Gu Shen hasn't given up, he's still persisting, how can we lose faith in him?"

Senior Sister Luo looked at Zhong Wei, speaking earnestly word by word, "If it weren't for meeting our teacher, both you and I would have been abandoned by fate. Now it's Gu Shen's turn; we can't let him lose hope in this world. At least, his efforts should be duly rewarded."

Laughter came from outside the glass window.

It was Gu Shen.

Senior Sister Luo squinted her eyes, gazing intently.

Gu Shen sat sloppily on the ground, supporting himself with the palms of his hands on the grass, laughing heartily. In front of him was a wooden dummy, sliced from the shoulder down, whether it took a thousand or ten thousand chops was no longer important at this moment.

The small, askew wooden dummy, split from shoulder to abdomen, nestled that worn and old wooden sword in its gap, resembling a wobbling spinning top, swaying back and forth together with Gu Shen's laughter.

On the side.

Nan Jin held the scabbard, her face expressionless behind dark glasses, yet the corner of her lips unconsciously curled upward slightly.

She quietly stretched out her hand, pointing to Gu Shen for the siblings inside through the glass window.

Persistence needs time.

But even piercing a stone begins with a single crack.

This was the first time in thirteen days that Gu Shen had completed the extra strength training assigned by Nan Jin … for a newcomer, especially one who is not a Strong Attack Type Extraordinary Ability User, reaching this stage was not easy.

He had mastered the technique of chopping and grasped the importance of finding weaknesses.

This was no longer a task that could be accomplished simply through sheer determination.

Although... in the formal audit, this level was far from sufficient, the fact that Gu Shen could achieve this was a small "miracle".

...

...

Luo Er and Zhong Wei stepped out of the soundproof room.

"Whew... Senior Sister, Senior Brother..."

Gu Shen collapsed to the ground, his clothes soaked with sweat. He smiled and stretched out his hand, pointing at the swaying wooden dummy, "I... I did it... Not bad, right?"

Standing with her blade to the side, Nan Jin immediately threw cold water on his excitement, "It's just chopping down a wooden dummy. What's there to be happy about?"

"Do you think everyone is a freak of nature like you with double A's in strength and speed?" Gu Shen sprawled out on the ground and said irritably, "If I were as fierce as you, would I still be chopping at wooden dummies here? I would have been at the airport waiting for the so-called audit team... As they land, I'd chop them one by one, two by two... Creating a whirlwind of chaos, cutting through any S-rank nonsense."

"If you could really take down the entire audit team, then S-rank would indeed be nonsense," Senior Sister Luo laughed, "Tonight, the people from the audit team will be arriving in Da Teng. How about it, would you consider putting your words into action?"

Zhong Wei smiled and said, "This audit team includes many important figures, and the one in charge of issuing amnesty is particularly interested in you. So..."

"The council member is coming to audit me personally?"

Gu Shen was startled and immediately balked, "I was just talking... just joking around."

"Look how scared you've got." Nan Jin laughed, "Council members don't have time to audit you personally. Relax, those big shots are far too busy."

"It's the assistant of that important figure who has come to Da Teng City, together with the audit team. They said they wanted to see your performance personally. Senior Sister Luo and I need to go and meet this assistant council member and keep the audit team in check."

Senior Sister Luo seriously said, "The special training can almost end now... Take the next two days to relax a bit. Nan Jin, you're responsible for taking Gu Shen somewhere away from here, and don't meet with the audit team prematurely."

Nan Jin nodded.

Gu Shen seemed a bit lost.

"Are Senior Sister and Senior Brother leaving then?"

"Yeah... There are some familiar faces in the audit team. I need to say hello and see if face still counts for anything." Luo Er remembered something, "Gu Shen, I have good news for you. The business our teacher has been busy with... is about to conclude. If nothing unexpected happens, he should be able to get back to Da Teng before the audit and see you one last time."

Gu Shen scratched his head.

Seeing each other one last time... somehow that sounded odd.

"In short, these next few days, eat well, sleep well, and as for the audit... don't think too much about it." Before leaving, Brother Zhong considerately advised, "There's still some money on the card that the Judgement Institute gave you; you can spend it all."

Hey, hey, hey.

The more he listened, the more ominous it sounded.

This audit... it seemed like no one had much faith in him.

But...

Perhaps it should be this way...

Gu Shen looked at the wooden dummy which had mockingly fallen forward and backward after a chop, and quietly closed his mouth.

He thought about how his seniors were all extraordinary transcendents, yet only rated as "A", while he had struggled so hard just to chop a wooden dummy. What right had he to be favored or rated "S"...

Why does everyone seem so impressive, but it all falls apart with you?

Gu Shen's eyebrows drooped, and he silently clenched his fists.

Something was brewing and rising in his heart.

As he watched Senior Sister Luo and Brother Zhong walking away, he suddenly shouted, "Senior Brother! Senior Sister—"

The two paused momentarily.

Then turned back, looking at him in confusion.

The moment he opened his mouth, Gu Shen regretted it. The flame brewing in his heart extinguished as quickly as it had flared. He had intended to say that he would definitely pass the assessment and become the much-anticipated S-rank, but what came out was,

"Actually, it's nothing..."

Gu Shen's voice got quieter uncontrollably, "It rained outside today... Be careful on the road, and say hello to that assistant council member for me... And... I'll definitely give my all in the audit."

After all, he had taken their amnesty.

He had to let them "inspect the goods"... Whether the boss was satisfied was one thing, but whether he had put in the effort was another.

So he didn't say he would definitely succeed, didn't say he would definitely make it, but that he would definitely give his all.

"..."

After stomping her feet, Senior Sister Luo turned back to gaze at the solitary young man.

After a long silence.

"Don't say 'I will definitely give my all'... That's something said by a person who admits defeat in advance."

She spoke deliberately and seriously, "We all think you can, so we've stuck with you till now. If you think you can too, then say 'I will definitely make it.'

After she finished speaking, she no longer looked at the young man, and walked off with Zhong Wei.

Just as they were about to leave the training grounds,

a voice called out.

"Senior Brother! Senior Sister!"

"In the audit two days from now... I, will definitely make it!"

Senior Sister Luo waved her hand, didn't turn around, and left the training ground.