Among everyone present, only Mingyue understood the Empress best.

A cold smile touched the corners of Mingyue’s lips. "The Empress has used Astrology. It seems something interesting is about to happen."

After speaking, she gazed at the starry sky, looking as if she were about to merge with it.

In the Cultivation Academy, there were a few incredibly powerful individuals with one-hundred-percent win rates. They were very young, yet they were already members of the Star Alliance. A group of experts from various Sects gathered around them. Though they hailed from different Sects, they had undoubtedly formed a new group here, united by their interests.

One of these top-tier experts was known as the "Empress." She had five followers, nicknamed the "Five-Star Monarchs," all of whom came from Sects ranked in the top fifty of the Star Alliance.

Wang Meng returned to his room. Before he could even sit down, there was another knock on the door.

When he opened the door, it was Fan Hong again.

"Hello, I’m Fan Hong, a disciple of the Dharma Flower Sect. It’s a pleasure to meet you."

Wang Meng looked at Fan Hong at the door, exasperated. "Hello, I’m Wang Meng. We already met yesterday."

"Ah, is that so? My apologies, my memory is poor. I’ll be sure to remember next time, I promise."

He bowed and apologized profusely. Wang Meng was speechless. ’This guy can survive here?’

’With a memory like that?’

Then, Fan Hong went to knock on the door next to Wang Meng’s. Others weren’t as kind as Wang Meng; he was either ignored or threatened. After all, having a crazy stranger disturb you was bound to be annoying.

’Anyone who made it here should have a bit more sense than that.’

Wang Meng closed the door. He wanted to go practice in his Sea of Heart, but... he felt that training like this was completely ineffective.

He had discovered the sparring potential of his Godhood, but the difference in power was just too vast. No matter how much he tried to suppress its power, he was still the type to get instantly defeated. Wang Meng’s resilience was second to none, and he grew more determined with every setback, but making no progress at all was a problem.

Suddenly, he remembered the Battle Space recorded in his Star Ring.

It was a place specially created by the Cultivation Alliance for students to engage in Magical Combat. After the first year, the monthly required Magical Combat would be held there.

’After a year?’ Wang Meng suddenly recalled Shan Lin’s words: ’those with confidence could give it a try.’ ’Why don’t I give it a try?’

’Anyway, the official battles don’t start until after the first year. It’s no big deal even if I lose. It’s better than getting serious with my Godhood.’

Wang Meng channeled his Elemental Power into the Star Ring. An Array projected onto the floor. Without hesitation, Wang Meng stepped into it. A flash of light later, Wang Meng vanished from the room.

He found himself floating in a void-like space. A bright screen appeared before him with a line of text: Wang Meng, Current Record: Zero Wins, Zero Losses.

Immediately after, a choice flashed in Wang Meng’s mind: Anonymous Battle? Or Named Battle?

Wang Meng naturally chose Anonymous Battle. Another choice followed: Random Challenge? Or Issue Challenge?

’Issue a challenge? I’m a nobody, what kind of challenge could I issue?’ He just wanted to fight.

If you issued a challenge, the Star Ring would arrange an opponent for you, and you could refuse if they weren’t suitable. A random challenge, however, was completely up to luck.

Almost instantly, Wang Meng’s opponent appeared.

The opponent seemed very eager for Wang Meng. The Star Ring’s inquiry continued: Use your own weapon, or be matched with one by the Star Alliance?

Wang Meng decisively and readily chose to be matched by the Star Alliance.

A beam of light appeared in the void. After it faded, a massive Dueling Platform materialized beneath Wang Meng’s feet, and an opponent appeared across from him.

His opponent was Li Jidong from the Feather Fan Immortal Technique Sect, with a record of nine battles: three wins, five losses, and one draw.

At the same time, dozens of sighs of frustration echoed throughout the Cultivation Academy. Damn! They had just missed snatching up an easy target.

What did zero wins and zero losses mean?

A total rookie! A free win!

A single victory meant a month of satisfaction. For all the Cultivators in the Cultivation Academy, except for the top experts, this was crucial.

Issuing a challenge was relatively safer, but you could only do it three times. It wasn’t necessarily any better than a random battle. If you were targeted, it could be even more dangerous.

Wang Meng could only see his opponent, a Sword Cultivator. However, he knew that in the void, there were others watching; the combatants just couldn’t see them.

After seeing Wang Meng, they were even more disappointed. Damn it, the guy was a complete idiot! Being a rookie was one thing, but he even used a weapon matched by the Star Alliance. "Star Alliance matched" just meant you were given the bare minimum. For example, a Sword Cultivator would get a sword, a Talisman Cultivator would get a Talisman, and a Bow Cultivator would get a regular bow. These weapons ensured Elemental Power could flow freely but had no special Arrays or skills. Only supremely confident experts or those who wanted to hide their identity would do this. And this guy... wasn’t he just asking to die?

Wang Meng took a deep breath and unleashed his Elemental Power at full force. He had to go all out for his first battle. After all, this was the Great Yuan Realm!

Li Jidong had been a little worried. People like him, whose Elemental Power hadn’t even reached the Thirtieth Layer, were the majority here, and the competition was fierce. He was afraid his opponent was an expert feigning weakness. But when his opponent erupted with a "mighty" Twenty Layers of Elemental Power, Li Jidong was so thrilled he almost cried.

His Long Sword left its sheath, and Elemental Power surged forth. Before Wang Meng was even ready to make a move, Li Jidong’s Sword Qi poured over him like a great river.

’What... kind of move is this?’

Wang Meng was defeated in an instant. It was a completely different way of fighting, a completely different philosophy.

Everyone watching was speechless. Had this guy lost his mind?

’He came here to die without having any skill at all?’

The instantly defeated Wang Meng stood there quietly for a moment, but inside, he was ecstatic!

’This is a new realm of Elemental Power usage! That guy’s Elemental Power level isn’t even as high as Ning Zhiquan’s, but the power of that Sword Technique... Damn, it’s practically divine!’

This reminded Wang Meng of his one-on-one fights with "Wangtian." Even when their Elemental Power was balanced, he was still instantly defeated. But the power of a Godhood was one thing; this was a living, breathing opponent. ’Is this what the Cultivation Academy is going to teach us?’

Wang Meng immediately and excitedly went back for more.

His next opponent looked at him like a bee seeing honey and defeated him in an instant with a wide grin.

Zero wins, two losses.

This was Wang Meng’s current record. But Wang Meng couldn’t care less about this crap; he didn’t mind at all. Although he had been defeated twice in a row, it had opened up a whole new world for him, filling him with anticipation for the Magic the Cultivation Academy would teach.

Back in Thunderlight City, this was the kind of place he had dreamed of.

However, Grand Master Wang had taken it for granted that the real records would only start being calculated after a year. But the rules of the Cultivation Academy only said... that new students were not required to fight.

But if you *did* fight... then it counted!

That day, Wang Meng lost eight matches, digging himself into quite a hole.

As a Sword Cultivator, Wang Meng arrived at the Sword Cultivation Hall early in the morning. Many people were already there.

A person sat within a circular space every five or six meters. This was the Array for teaching Star Alliance Magic. Following the guidance of his Star Ring, Wang Meng found a circular Array and sat down.

The Array emitted a faint glow, and Shan Lin appeared before Wang Meng.

Of course, this Shan Lin was just a phantasm. He began to explain the Cultivation Academy’s understanding of Sword Technique to Wang Meng.

In the Star Alliance’s view, power was not divided into sacred, Demonic, or Evil; the difference was purely in how it was used. The goal was to pursue the strongest power. Even ascension was just a way to seek the mysteries of even greater power.