“Lucas Taylor, Blood Qi: 119 calories!”

The numbers dropped, and the class went quiet for a breath. Eyes turned, one by one, toward the boy at the back.

Adrien Harper, their homeroom teacher, let out a sigh. He looked up and spoke slowly, voice heavy.

“Lucas, not every Awakener is suited for the martial path. Your academic scores are excellent. There’s still time to switch tracks…”

He paused, then added, more firmly this time, “Your talent is Taming.”

“If you fail the martial exam, you’ll be forced into society early. At best, some ordinary firm or guild might take you in.”

“But listen—” His voice sharpened, “Go for the academic exam, and you’ll make it to a top university. A few years down the road, with a degree in hand and your talent, research institutes or major corporations would welcome you.”

“Think it through.”

His words weren’t harsh, but they were real. Spoken from the heart.

Around them, the students couldn’t hide their smirks. Some exchanged knowing glances, watching Lucas like he was the day’s entertainment.

After all—

This was about an Awakener.

Someone who should’ve been destined to shine. And choosing the academic path? A joke.

But he didn’t flinch.

Lucas Taylor stood still. Eyes sweeping across the room, cold and clear like snapping out of a trance.Looking at the middle-aged man on the podium, Lucas Taylor replied, “Mr. Harper, what you said makes sense. But I’m still going for the martial exam.”

If it had been ten minutes earlier, he might’ve listened—switched paths, taken the scholarly route. Four years of university, then grinding away in some dead-end job like in his last life...

But now? No way.

With a single thought, a translucent prompt flickered to life before his eyes:

[Current Bound Origin Insect: Bloodthirster]

[Description: Ancient and rare, born from the depths of the Endless Blood Sea. Once sparked a world-ending catastrophe…]

[Talent: Energy Feedback

may grant special rebounding effects under specific conditions

]

[Abilities: Flame Form, Bloodthirst, Frenzy, Rip…]

[Mother Evolution Count: 0]

[Offspring Count: 0]

[…]

Lucas’s golden finger had just kicked in—his system, “Zerg Dominion.”

Every time he broke through to a higher realm, he’d get a new origin mother-insect, each with unique powers.

Take the Bloodthirster just bound, for example.

Its core ability? Feeding him energy right back.

In simple terms—it’s like having an auto-training hack.

As long as the Bloodthirster devours flesh and blood, the feedback doesn’t stop.

The only downside…Only the queen bug could do that kind of energy feedback.

The rest—the offspring—wouldn’t have that ability.

Even so, Lucas Taylor was satisfied.

After all, the Bloodthirster was just his first source bug.

With each breakthrough, he’d unlock more.

One day, he'd raise an entire swarm...

Just thinking about it made his heart race.

“A Breeder raising a Zergstorm,”

“Doesn't sound wrong at all, right?”

Lucas couldn't help but look forward to it.

Of course, building a Zergstorm wasn’t gonna be easy.

The resources needed? Probably beyond imagination.

This would be a massive undertaking—no rushing it.

But right now—

The most urgent thing—

Was the martial exam.

Was padding out his blood and energy.

He pulled his thoughts back and recalled what he knew of this world’s martial path.

Hundreds of years ago,

A red moon hung overhead. That night, Blue Star changed forever.

It started with spiritual energy awakening.

Mountains grew, rivers shifted—the very land expanded like a living being.

Then came secret realms, ancient ruins, forbidden zones…

And finally, martial arts emerged.

That’s when humans began to take root again.

That moment—

Marked the beginning of the Martial Era.Blue Star had left its old path behind—it was now a world ruled by martial power.

After generations of refining, the martial arts system had taken shape, with one key indicator at its core: Blood Qi.

Normally—

An adult’s Blood Qi level hovered between 80 and 90 calories, with 100 calories marking the natural limit.

But with enough body tempering or rare resources, one could break this limit and become a quasi-warrior.

And beyond that—

149 calories was the ceiling for quasi-warriors.

Once past that, a person would fully step into the martial path—becoming something beyond normal.

Still, outside the regular martial system, another group existed—

Awakened Ones.

These people could unlock an innate talent during the quasi-warrior phase. From the starting line, they were already ahead of the pack.

So far, awakened talents fell into three main categories:

Combat, Support, and Life-type.

Combat talents were the most powerful—and the most desired. Abilities like controlling fire, boosting strength, attacking the mind…

Those ones stood at the very top of the pyramid.

At the same level, a fighter with a combat talent crushed one without.

Support talents were essential too, in their own way.Take healing-type talents, for example—they can patch you up in a flash or boost your strength with buffs.

But the last kind... can't fight, can't support either.

More like crafting and daily stuff.

Just like Lucas Taylor's awakening—【Taming】. All he got was some beast affinity.

Felt like he awakened, but not really.

Useful for making a living, sure. Basically just another way to earn coin...

But in the martial world?

Life-type talents sit at the bottom of the ladder.

You're called an “Awakened,” but screw-all use in a fight—people laugh behind your back.

That was Lucas Taylor.

“Let 'em laugh...”

“If someone with a life-type talent like me takes top rank in the martial exam, what’ll you say then?”

This wasn’t his first life.

Lucas didn't give a damn what others thought.

Right now, he was just waiting for class to end—time to kick off auto-leveling.

…

At the front of the room, Adrien Harper finished reading out everyone's blood Qi scores.

He put down his sheet, scanned the class, and said, “A month from now is the martial exam.”

“As usual, the school will gather all martial exam candidates, take you outside the city for real practice. Last sprint before the test…”

“Of course!”“If you’ve got your own plans, you don’t have to join in.”

Adrien Harper quickly started taking names, checking who would follow the school’s training route.

There weren’t many.

Soon, it came to the last one.

“Lucas Taylor, what about you?” he asked, then couldn’t help adding, “Based on past data, the lowest blood energy accepted by the martial academies is 130…”

“You’re currently at 119…”

“Even if you train like mad for a month, you’ll maybe gain 2 points at best.”

He wasn’t wrong.

Raising blood energy was incredibly hard.

Out of three thousand students graduating from Lincang No. 3, only around seventy dared to go for the martial exam.

“Thanks, sir,” Lucas said, grinning a little. “But I’ve made up my mind—I’m still taking the exam.”

“And…”

He cracked a wider smile. “I won’t be sticking with the school’s plan. I’m heading out on my own trial.”