Lin Feng's POVThe smoke in the Great Hall hadn’t even fully settled before the weight of the world crashed back down on me.I had survived Shen’s strike, but I wasn't a hero yet. I was just a survivor who had forgotten his place. The High Priest’s shock had quickly curdled into indignation. A Zero-Percentile Nullity standing in the wreckage of a Tier-4 spell wasn’t a miracle to them, it was an insult to the natural laws of Mana.Before I could take a second step toward Shen, the heavy iron grip of the Academy Guards locked onto my scorched arms."Insolence," the Priest spat, his voice trembling with a mix of fear and fury. "To provoke a High-Talent and defile the Awakening Ceremony... take him to the Pits. Let the filth scrub the filth."The Scavenger Pits sat at the very bowels of Silver-Spire, a series of damp, echoing caverns where the Academy’s pride, the spirit beasts, were housed. It was a place of rot, sulfur, and the constant, low-frequency growls of creatures that viewed hum

Lin Feng's POVI climbed the steps. Every movement was heavy, my muscles denser, my weight literally cracking the fine gravel under my bare feet. I stopped three paces from my brother."Chen," I said. My voice was a low rasp.He didn't flinch. He stepped toward the edge of the stage, addressing the crowd of hundreds. "Citizens of the Spire! Honor is not a right of birth, but a harvest of merit! My brother, Lin Feng, is a void. A rot that threatens the prestige of my house and this institution. To prove my devotion to the Light, I must sever the tie that binds me to the darkness."The crowd erupted. "Cut the rot! Long live the Spire!"They weren't just shouting; they were salivating. They wanted to see the "Zero" humbled by his own blood.Chen turned back to me. His eyes were cold, but I saw the tiny tremor in his hand as he reached for the dagger. He wasn't doing this for justice, he was doing it for a scholarship. For a chance to leave the mud behind."Forgive me, brother," he hiss

Lin Feng's POVThe damp stone of the Gravel-Run seemed to pulse in time with my shattered arm. Kenan stood frozen, his eyes wide and vibrating with a primal, soul-deep terror. The violet mist of the [Soul-Devouring Counter] snaked up his arms like hungry vines, turning his tan skin a sickly, translucent grey. "My... mana..." Kenan managed to choke out, his voice sounding like it was being dragged through gravel. "What are you... doing to me?" "I’m not doing anything, Kenan," I whispered, the [Phantom Rib] hovering inches from his throat, though he couldn't see the invisible blade. "The Void is just hungry. And you brought a feast." I could feel it. The Tier-2 Earth mana he had spent a decade cultivating was being ripped from his meridians. It didn't flow into me like a refreshing spring; it hit my core like molten lead. My [Devouring Void-Body] groaned under the pressure, the "Zero-Percentile" vacuum in my soul finally finding something to grind into dust. [MANA ABSORPTION I

Lin Feng's POVThe Arena of the Silver-Spire was a bowl of cold basalt, its floor stained with the history of a thousand "lessons" taught to those who dared to climb too high. Young Master Shen didn't step down himself. He sat in the velvet-lined VIP box, his fingers white as he gripped the railing. Standing in the center of the pit was his lead enforcer: Tie Yan. A Tier-3 Earth User whose skin had the dull, grey sheen of reinforced granite. He was a wall of muscle and mountain-mana, a brute designed to end fights before they truly began. "You really think a few lucky tricks in the dark make you a warrior, Lin Feng?" Tie Yan’s voice was a low rumble, like tectonic plates shifting. "I’m going to bury you so deep the drakes won't even find your bones." Tie Yan slammed his palms onto the basalt floor. The arena groaned. "[Earth Art: Grave-Born Sentinel]!" The ground shattered. Jagged shards of rock and sediment swirled into the air, pulled together by a violent vortex of brown m

Lin Feng's POV The damp heat of the Scavenger Pits felt different now, heavy with the weight of Yue’s revelation. If this Tablet was one of seven, I wasn’t just a glitch in the Academy’s system; I was a target for the masters of the world.I needed eyes in the high places.I sat cross-legged in the center of my "throne room," the Cursed Tablet pulsing against my shins. I had 15,000 points left from the duel with Tie Yan. I didn't need a sword. I needed a secret.Pull, I commanded.The wheel didn't scream this time; it hissed. The thorns of the interface twisted into the shape of a thousand overlapping ears.[TOTAL POINTS EXPENDED: 10,000.][EXECUTING 'SUBTERFUGE-GRADE' PULL...][CONGRATULATIONS!][You have obtained the 4-Star Skill: "The Whispering Shadow".][Type: Reconnaissance Manifestation.][Description: Detach a sliver of your own shadow. It is weightless, silent, and can pass through any mana-barrier below Tier-6. Anything it hears, you hear. Anything it sees, you see.]I fe