In the distance, the students and high-ranking officials watching the broadcast were shaken. Not by the impact—that wouldn’t have reached that far. Rather, it was because the 200 students were in mortal danger.

If so many promising students were to die during the academy’s entrance exams, New Creation Academy would suffer a major setback!

They would be judged and criticized by the entire nation.

And even though the teachers had already gone to handle the problem, they were too far away. At full speed, they could arrive in at least an hour—they didn’t have time.

That’s why, the moment they saw that impact and the dust rise, they knew someone had been hit. Because of all the dust, they couldn’t see what it was.

However, the dust quickly began to settle, and at the same time, an eerie calm enveloped the area around the impact site.

"Principal, what happened?" asked one of the teachers, looking at the academy principal, who had stood up.

Near him, Valerius Asturias was also standing, both of them drawing a lot of attention due to their unusual behavior.

"The Gorilla... is he dead?"

His words caused shock. How could he be dead? But just as many were about to ask him a question to which he himself had no clear answer, the dust settled, and they could finally see what had happened...

.

Lucius sat atop the completely hollowed-out and destroyed head of the Obsidian Gorilla with a slight smile. His right arm was torn to shreds.

His bones were broken, his flesh destroyed; he was completely covered in blood.

However, before him, his System announced his victory.

[You have defeated the D+ Rank Mutant Obsidian Gorilla!]

[You have earned 2,500 Mana Credits!]

[You have accomplished an Unprecedented Feat!]

[Your ranking is changing!]

[Local Ranking: 12,001,503]

[Local Ranking: 11,500,000]

[Local Ranking: 7,000,000]

[Local Ranking: 1,001,503]

[Local Ranking: 950,000]

[Local Ranking: 300,000]

[Local Ranking: 30,000]

[Local Ranking: 10,000]

[Local Ranking: 5,000]

[Local Ranking: 2,000...]

[Local Ranking: 1,503.]

[You’ve Climbed 12 Million Places in the Rankings in a Single Battle!]

[Global Announcement]

The moment those words appeared on the system, Lucius nearly panicked.

’Global Announcement? 12 million?!’ Even he was in shock.

He had never heard of anything like this...

Indeed.

It had never happened before.

Suddenly, and with no way to stop it, an announcement sent to every The Link interface worldwide echoed out.

[Global Announcement: Historic Achievement Detected: An F-Rank Awakened has eliminated a D-Rank Mutant Entity (Fortress Type) with a single punch.]

[Lucius Asturias, from New Asturias City on the "New Creation" Island, has been permanently entered into the History Books.]

[Analyzing historic achievement...]

[Inhuman Brute Strength.

Saved a large group of students.

Killed a Rank D Mutant while being Rank F.

Used Superior techniques.

Has been named a Rising Star.]

[Previous Ranking in the "New Asturias City" Local Ranking: 12,001,503.]

[Current Ranking in the "New Asturias City" Local Ranking: 1,503.]

[A magnificent 12-million-rank jump in the Local Ranking astonishes the world.]

’Rising Star...’ Lucius himself was moved.

He was once named a Rising Star, a title the system doesn’t bestow on just anyone. It doesn’t give you anything but status, but having it is crucial if you’re at the bottom.

You can easily catch the attention of the Top Guilds, even as an F-Rank.

Everyone outside the Obsidian Badlands was perplexed, staring blankly at the System’s Global Announcement. 𝕗𝐫𝐞𝕖𝕨𝐞𝗯𝚗𝕠𝘃𝐞𝚕.𝐜𝗼𝚖

Especially, looking at the name of the one who did it.

Above the Obsidian Badlands...

Lucius crouched down, grabbed the Mana Mark from the beast’s body, and then left. Since his work here was done and he’d managed to get the best Mana Mark he could afford, he slipped away among the students who were either unconscious or staring in shock.

It was best to get out, for now.

The students gradually got to their feet over the course of a few minutes, and none of them wanted to venture any further in, even though they could see the gorilla’s massive body lying on the ground.

The fear instilled in them by seeing it up close and watching their lives flash before their eyes was enough to shatter their spirits.

Many tried to look for Marks in another area, but the beasts had fled because of the Gorilla.

Upon their return...

Lucius returned among the first groups.

Many students still didn’t understand what had happened, but the older students, teachers, and leaders present looked intently at Lucius with questioning glances.

After an hour of waiting, all the students came out.

Among them, Joan Clark, who looked dirty and covered in leaves and twigs, emerged with a triumphant smile and walked over to stand beside Lucius.

"Looks like you didn’t die in there," Joan teased.

Lucius raised his eyebrows in confusion. "Why would I die in such an easy place?" he asked, genuinely surprised.

"Heh. Easy, you say. Did you know that the boss of this area, the Obsidian Gorilla, showed up? I saw him with my own eyes—I was standing less than 10 meters in front of him!" he growled.

Lucius rolled his eyes. ’10 meters? The only one who was that close was me,’ he thought, though he shrugged and didn’t respond.

"Heh, it’s no wonder you don’t get it. You probably just visited the outer regions and hunted some F-Rank monsters. I get it. For trash like you, that’s all there is."

Finally, Lucius frowned. "Kid, have you been living under a rock this whole time?"

"K-Kid?" Joan got upset and shouted.

However, a louder voice drowned hers out.

"Joan Clark." It was the voice of the professor in charge of calling out the names of those who were having the quality of their Mana Marks tested to see if they had passed.

Of all the students, only 70 had brought Marks.

Of those 70, 25 had passed so far, with 60 having been tested.

Joan Clark was number 61.

"I-I’m coming." Joan stammered as he was interrupted, but he puffed out his chest proudly and walked toward the professor.

With a confident smile, he handed the Mana Mark to the professor.

The professor took it and placed it on the device in front of them. It was small and round, resting on a blanket atop a table.

The professor moved the Mark, which passed through the device as if it weren’t there. The device then glowed, and some words appeared on its screen.

[E+ Rank Saber-Toothed Tiger Mana Mark.]

"Wow... E+ Rank? This guy is really powerful. How did he manage to kill a Saber-toothed Tiger in such a short time? He’s a real talent!" The spectators began to exclaim in surprise.

There weren’t many people present who could kill an E+ Rank beast. It was well known that, perhaps, only Joe Clark and Robert Asturias could do so in this group.

But Joan? They didn’t see him as someone that strong...

The professor was also surprised and smiled. "Very good. Return to your seat."

Joan smiled with delight. "I took a detour to kill an E+ Rank beast that was fleeing from the Gorilla. Even though that slowed me down, I’m sure I’m among the top three in this test. Only Young Lord Robert and Joe could beat me... Maybe not even Joe."

He turned and walked back to his spot, this time with his chest puffed out. He looked at Lucius over his shoulder and chuckled softly.

"Why don’t you just kneel already? You shouldn’t be wasting our time when we all know you’re not qualified."