A Special Mission — The Forbidden Zone Beast Tide

Yang Ping froze mid-step, staring blankly at Lu Yuan.

"Th-thirty-eight?! Come on, Yuan-ge, you're pulling my leg! Level 38 — that's an 80%-tempered Lord Grade at the same rank, isn't it?!"

Lu Yuan smiled and nodded. "It really is a high-tier Lord Grade. If you don't believe me, go check the Combat Rankings downstairs."

Yang Ping stared at him, visibly stunned.

"Come on, let's head down. I'm a little curious where I ended up myself."

*Shouldn't be too low — maybe top fifty?*

He genuinely had no idea.

They'd barely made it two steps down the stairwell when a wave of noise rose from the hall below.

Lu Yuan and Yang Ping exchanged a glance, both mildly puzzled.

They descended and followed the corridor into the main hall.

The moment they stepped through the door, every head in the room swiveled toward Lu Yuan — eyes bright with excitement.

A brief silence fell. Si Tinglei walked over, wearing a broad smile.

"Junior Lu Yuan, you truly are full of surprises. I never imagined you'd score this high on your very first test."

Lu Yuan blinked, taking in the stunned, excited expressions surrounding him. A suspicion formed.

"My ranking is… high?"

He turned to find the Combat Rankings display on the nearby wall. His gaze swept across it — and landed on his name.

25th.

A flicker of surprise crossed his face.

That was considerably higher than he'd expected. He'd figured forty-something at best.

Twenty places higher than that.

Beside him, Yang Ping had heard Si Tinglei's words and craned his neck toward the display as well. The moment his eyes found the number, he sucked in an audible breath — loud enough that Lu Yuan heard it clearly.

Yang Ping's eyes went wide.

"25th?!"

He spun toward Lu Yuan.

"That was real, Yuan-ge? You actually cleared Level 38?!"

"Why would I lie to you?" Lu Yuan said.

Yang Ping stared at him, completely speechless.

Si Tinglei stepped in smoothly, his smile warm and well-timed. "By the way — to celebrate Junior Lu Yuan's remarkable debut ranking, I'd like to treat you to a meal at the Gold Tower here in the capital. I wonder if you'd honor me with your company?"

Lu Yuan blinked. He hadn't expected Si Tinglei to want to take him out for dinner.

Before he could respond, a voice came from behind.

"Fourth Brother, take a look — there's no shortage of people wanting to invite Yuan here. No need to stand on ceremony. The four of us from the dorm may as well all go together."

Lu Yuan turned. Si Tingfeng and Maige had appeared at the back of the crowd.

Both were staring at the Combat Rankings display, expressions visibly stunned.

"I had no idea you'd already gotten this strong, Yuan," Maige murmured, still slightly dazed.

His own rank was 133rd.

Far below Lu Yuan's — and Maige was a third-year student. Lu Yuan had been enrolled for barely a month.

Si Tinglei's expression shifted the instant he saw Si Tingfeng and Maige arrive. He studied Si Tingfeng for a moment, eyes narrowing almost imperceptibly.

Then he turned to Lu Yuan with an easy smile. "Since your whole dorm is going out together, let's save our dinner for another time, Junior."

"Sure," Lu Yuan said. "Anytime."

A stream of other students came forward with congratulations after that, extending invitations to future banquets and social events. Lu Yuan smiled his way through every one, offering a warm "next time, definitely" to each.

When exactly that next time would be, he had no idea.

Honestly, what he really wanted was to focus on cultivation and keep pushing his strength forward. He wasn't much of a social butterfly.

The four dormmates left the hall together.

On the way out, Si Tingfeng smiled and said, "Reaching 25th on your very first Combat Power Test — in the history of the Talent Camp, that's genuinely rare. The few who've done it before were either Innate Lord Grade or Innate King Grade. As an ordinary Awakening Gene Warrior, Yuan, you're the first. We should celebrate. My treat."

Maige looked at Lu Yuan with open envy. "How are you even this good? Your ranking is higher than mine — and I'm a third-year."

Lu Yuan gave an embarrassed laugh. "Ah, it's nothing special, really. Pretty average, honestly. Keep complimenting me like that, Senior Maige, and it'll go to my head."

The other three went quiet.

*Average.*

Si Tingfeng was ranked ninth, which at least put him in a different league. But Maige and Yang Ping both felt a sudden, dark impulse to shut down entirely.

After a beat of silence, Yang Ping shook it off and asked, "So where are we going to eat?"

Si Tingfeng grinned. "The Gold Tower, of course."

"Really?!" Yang Ping's face lit up. "That place is practically for royalty — you need to be a high-ranking powerhouse or a Local Governor just to get through the door. I've only been once. Looks like I'm riding your coattails tonight, Senior Tingfeng."

"Mine?" Si Tingfeng laughed. "Yuan's coattails, not mine. Under normal circumstances, even I'd think twice before going there — the prices are brutal."

Lu Yuan tilted his head. "Is the food actually good? I've never been."

"More than good." Maige, knowing something of Lu Yuan's background, explained with a grin. "The ingredients are all Rare Natural Materials and powerful Feral Beasts. Eat enough of it and you'll see genuine improvements to your physique and cultivation."

That caught Lu Yuan's interest immediately.

Besides — the seniors were paying. He wasn't spending a single credit.

Free food was always worth showing up for.

The Talent Camp's gate rules were relaxed. Students came and went freely for mission purposes; leaving campus at any hour was never an issue.

The four of them walked out of the school and climbed into Si Tingfeng's four-seat hover sports car.

The dark-red vehicle swept through the sky, heading toward the heart of the imperial capital.

The Gold Tower stood in the capital's central business district — and even among that neighborhood's prestigious buildings, it was impossible to miss. The entire structure gleamed gold from top to bottom, several thousand meters tall. There was nothing else like it anywhere.

The hover car had barely pulled up to the entrance when two attendants in black suits stepped forward.

The moment they recognized Si Tingfeng, both men bowed with practiced elegance.

"Your Highness, Third Prince. Welcome to the Gold Tower."

Si Tingfeng gave a small nod. "Prepare a private room for us."

The blond attendant on the right glanced discreetly at the other three, then inclined his head. "Of course. Right this way, Your Highness and honored guests."

The four followed him inside.

Lu Yuan was nearly stopped in his tracks by the lobby.

The interior was breathtaking — walls sheathed in deep gold, an enormous crystal chandelier blazing overhead, the overall effect somehow managing to be both extravagant and genuinely refined. Lu Yuan didn't know the first thing about interior design, but if he had to put it into words: *wealthy opulence with actual taste.*

The attendant led them upstairs and into a private room.

"Please, right this way."

Lu Yuan stepped inside and looked around. The room was easily a hundred square meters, decorated in the same style as the lobby. Genuine paintings hung on gold walls. Gold chairs, a gold dining table — even the tableware already laid out gleamed gold.

Once the four of them were seated, Si Tingfeng smiled and gestured at the menu. "Everything here is settled in Spirit Crystals — not many restaurants in the entire Red Maple Empire can say that. Take a look. Tonight is Yuan's celebration, so Yuan should do the ordering."

Despite how advanced the Empire's technology was — most restaurants used holographic menus projected on light panels — this place still used a physical book. A thick, gold-covered volume; when Lu Yuan opened it, even the pages were dusted with gold flecks.

He scanned the first few entries casually.

*Stir-Fried Crystal Cabbage — 10 Fourth-Tier Spirit Crystals per serving.*

Lu Yuan stared at the page.

*…Ten Fourth-Tier Spirit Crystals. For cabbage.*

*Who in their right mind eats here?*

He kept reading.

*Pan-Seared Earth Shell Dragon Meat — 30 Fourth-Tier Spirit Crystals per serving.*

*Poached Nightmare Spider Leg — 300 Fourth-Tier Spirit Crystals per serving.*

*Great Earth Bear Paw — 1,000 Fourth-Tier Spirit Crystals per serving.*

Lu Yuan quietly set the menu down for a moment.

He was profoundly relieved he wasn't paying. A few dishes at these prices would run hundreds of Fourth-Tier Spirit Crystals — a figure that would have been genuinely significant to him before the Aier Mechanical Ruins.

Not wanting to put Si Tingfeng out, he kept his selections modest. His choices totaled only a few hundred Fourth-Tier Spirit Crystals.

Si Tingfeng glanced over the order and couldn't quite suppress a small smile.

"Yuan, don't worry about my wallet. I'm nearly at Battle Venerable — a few Spirit Crystals won't break me. Let me add the Great Earth Bear Paw, the Frost Giant Tiger meat, and a few more of these…"

He took the menu back and added several dishes himself.

The final bill came to over four thousand Fourth-Tier Spirit Crystals.

Lu Yuan had never imagined a single meal could cost that much. But the food was, he had to admit, genuinely exceptional.

The small celebration stretched into the evening, winding down a little past seven.

As Gene Warriors, both Si Tingfeng and Maige still had Land of Origin sessions that night. Seeing Lu Yuan's progress firsthand had placed considerable pressure on both of them — pressure that translated directly into renewed resolve to push harder.

After dinner, the four returned to the dormitory.

Back in his room, with time still before his own Land of Origin session, Lu Yuan posted listings on the school's trading board — Gene Armaments, Transcendent Genes, Psionic Bombs, Gene Evolution Fluid, Talismans, and other items from his Aier Mechanical Ruins haul.

His Combat Rankings position had already spread across campus. The moment his listings went live, replies flooded in. Lu Yuan noted every order and planned to deliver the next day — the dormitory complex was only a short walk; it would take no time at all.

With nothing else pressing, he picked up his phone.

Two new messages.

One from Li Qinghe. One from Si Tingyu.

Li Qinghe's read: *"Little Yuan, I heard you took your Combat Power Test today — 25th place? Is that real? Have you really grown this much already?"*

A smile spread across Lu Yuan's face — wider and more genuine than anything the afternoon's round of congratulations had produced.

Other people's praise was nice. But Li Qinghe's words hit differently, every time.

He typed back: *"Of course it's real. I've been putting in the effort — trying to close the gap on you, Senior Qinghe. But only 25th place, I still have a long way to go."*

Li Qinghe didn't reply. She was probably busy, or already in the Land of Origin.

He opened Si Tingyu's message: *"I heard you ranked 25th on the Combat Rankings. Good progress. Come by when you have time in the next day or two — I want to check on your force-deflection practice. If it's looking solid, I can start teaching you defensive Body Technique."*

Lu Yuan's eyes lit up.

Defensive Body Technique. That would be a meaningful boost to his defensive capabilities.

He thought through his schedule. Tonight was his Land of Origin session, which meant the earliest he could make it was the day after tomorrow.

*"Understood, Instructor. I'll come find you the day after tomorrow."*

He set his phone down — and it buzzed again.

A new message.

He glanced at it, and something changed in his expression.

It was from the school.

*"Special Mission: Abnormal Feral Beast activity detected at the Empire's southeast border. Garrison forces have requested support. All faculty and students will deploy to the border in two days. Credits will be awarded based on combat performance."*

A Special Mission.

When he'd first enrolled, Instructor Feng Zhou had explained how the school's mission system worked — most assignments were routine, but occasionally something exceptional came along.

He hadn't expected one this soon.

*Feral Beast disturbances…*

Lu Yuan's thoughts moved carefully. Great Qi Star had an enormous Feral Beast population. Even within the Red Maple Empire's interior, they roamed the spaces between cities in considerable numbers — and beast tides regularly struck at settlements.

The interior breeds, though, were manageable. Even their tides posed no catastrophic threat to established cities.

Beyond the Empire's borders, it was an entirely different story. Certain regions out there were true Feral Beast paradises — far greater in number, far greater in power. Even Battle Emperor-tier creatures lurked within them.

The two massive Feral Beast corpses standing outside the Talent Camp? Both had come from beyond the Empire's borders. That was the caliber of creature those outside regions produced.

For ordinary Gene Warriors, those places were genuinely off-limits. Only warriors of extraordinary power — Battle King Rank, Battle Sovereign, or even Battle Emperor caliber — could venture deep into them.

Right on the Red Maple Empire's southeast border sat two such zones: the Eastern Forbidden Zone and the Southern Forbidden Zone.

The Eastern Forbidden Zone was known as the Ice-Fire Rift Valley. The Southern Forbidden Zone was known as the Endless Mountain Range.

Both owed their existence to spatial rifts — tears in the fabric of space that connected to other reaches of the universe. The rifts had allowed terrifying Feral Beasts to pour through from unknown origins, and even the local environments had been warped by their presence. To this day, the deepest reaches of both zones harbored creatures too powerful to eradicate.

*If the disturbance is coming from the southeast border's forbidden zones… this is a beast tide we're talking about.*

How bad could a forbidden zone beast tide get?

Catastrophically bad. That much he knew.

*This is a serious mission.*

At that same moment, in the Talent Camp's conference room, more than twenty people sat gathered.

At the head of the table was a gray-haired elder whose expression carried the weight of long authority.

To his right sat a white-haired elder — Elder Yu.

The rest were a mix of middle-aged faculty and senior figures, with only a handful of younger faces among them. Si Tingyu was one.

A heavy silence had settled over the room.

Elder Yu broke it first. "Headmaster — sending students to deal with a forbidden zone beast tide right now, isn't that rushing things? Some of them are still first- and second-years. Their cultivation is Warrior Rank. At the border, that level of strength is genuinely dangerous."

Others in the room exchanged glances, then looked toward the gray-haired man at the head of the table.

A golden-haired woman of middle age spoke up. "Headmaster, I agree with Elder Yu. Sending the upper-year students is understandable, but do the lower years really need to go?"

The headmaster's gaze swept the room. When he spoke, his tone was level and unhurried.

"The spatial rift above Ice Vein Star keeps expanding. A new ice vein crystal deposit has been discovered there, and the Gnolls have poured several million additional soldiers in as a result. Sooner or later, we will go to war with them. If we don't cultivate the next generation of combat power now, when do we? The talent in this camp is not the same as ordinary recruits. First- and second-years will handle logistics and straightforward combat assignments. If they can't survive even that kind of environment, what business do they have calling themselves prodigies? This is my decision. If anything goes wrong, it's on me."

Silence fell again. The assembled faculty exchanged looks. Seeing the headmaster's expression — resolute, the matter clearly closed — no one pressed the point further.