Then it hit me.
Tomorrow is the test. The Sector A Forbidden Zone.
The first real battle.
Where everyone would hunt monsters, fighting for cores, racing to collect them like vultures.
For everyone else, levelling comes from monster cores.
They climb the same damned ladder — ten little steps in every rank. F-1, F-2, F-3… clawing their way up with monster cores, praying they don't die before F-10 just to crawl into E-rank. Slow. Miserable. Pathetic. Beg for cores or stay trash. That's their cycle.
But me?
I don't need monster cores.
I gain experience straight from devouring.
It didn't matter who killed them.
Every strike of theirs makes me stronger.
While they fight and beg for a single core… I'll just wait and level up.
I tilt my head back and laugh — rough at first, then louder. My face actually hurts from how wide I'm grinning, but I can't stop. You know why? Because it feels damn good, thinking they'll be the ones helping me level up.
Those who called me trash… Tomorrow they'll see.
For the past two years I swallowed it all. Their laughter. Their spit. Their whispers behind my back. Acting like a fool just to survive. Pretending I didn't care.
But now?
Now I had this as my cheat system.
A cheat no one else in the world had. Something beyond bloodlines, beyond anything in their books.
Then my sister's face flashes in my head — like one of those annoying ads you can't skip, no matter how many times you press the skip button.
My fists clenched until my nails dug deep into my palms. My teeth ground so hard I thought they'd shatter.
How stupid was I?
All these years, I thought I was living for her. I told myself everything I did—the books I memorised, the humiliation I endured, the jokes I forced just to cope—it was all worth it if it helped her shine.
She was my whole world. And in the end, what did I get?
She looked me in the eye and spat on me. She didn't just turn away. She humiliated me in front of everyone. She cut me off, threw me away like garbage she was ashamed to touch.
That isn't the sister I knew. Guess she finally evolved — from sister to goddess. And I'm just the trash she left behind in the tutorial stage.
Fine. If she wants to stand in the light, then I'll crawl through the dark.
If she's a goddess, then I'll be the abyss.
And when the abyss swallows the heavens, she'll regret the day she denied me.
I remember that day clear as day.
The great "Aptitude Examination".
The day my glorious reputation got thrown into the trash where it apparently belonged.
---
We all stood in that fancy hall, pretending to be calm, hands sweaty as hell. One by one, everyone took turns touching that stupid glowing crystal.
Chi Yan went first. The crystal lit up so bright I thought it was going to explode. Ninety per cent. Rare aptitude. The teachers nearly broke their necks nodding. "Good, very good," they said — like they'd just found a new messiah.
Then came Bai Shou. Oh, that smug bastard. He touched the crystal, and boom — ninety per cent again, but brighter. Legendary.
The crowd went nuts. Girls screamed like they'd just seen a celebrity.
Someone yelled, "Ahh! Legendary!" And I swear, even the janitor probably fainted.
Bai Shou stood there smiling like he was already the main character of life — chin up, hair perfect, the whole hero pose going on.
I swear that smirk looked like he was already daydreaming about a harem.
And honestly, who wouldn't? You awaken as "legendary", and suddenly every girl in school looks at you like you're made of chocolate.
Not that I can talk. I probably would've done the same if the crystal had liked me that day.
That was two years ago, though. I've grown… kind of.
Then came my turn. Shen Yan. The 'genius'. The one everyone thought was destined to rewrite the academy's history.
Yeah. About that.
I placed my hand on the crystal, heart pounding like it mattered. Everyone leaned in — oh, the anticipation, right?
And then it happened.
The light flickered… then died.
Common: 5%. Uncommon: 3%. Rare: 2%. Legendary: 1%. Mythic… zero point zero zero zero one.
Basically, congratulations, Shen Yan—you're the most decorative piece of trash in the room.
The silence lasted, what, two seconds?
Then the laughter started.
First one guy. Then another. Then the whole damn hall.
"Heh, all that studying for this? Trash."
"Legendary? More like 'Never-dary!'"
Yeah, I still remember that one.
It was stupid, but kinda catchy.
I swear I'd heard it in some old show I used to watch as a kid — that one with the guy who'd always go, "Legen—wait for it—dary."
Funny how that stuck with me.
Guess even back then, I just wanted to be the guy who got to say it.
You know… find the mother for my future kid and all that.
And the girls — oh, the same ones who smiled at me the day before — now looked at me like I'd stepped in something.
I still remember there were two girls in the back.
"Ugh, I actually thought of confessing to him today," one said, like I was already dead.
Her friend didn't even look up. "Confess? Please. He's done. Let's go chase Bai Shou. He's legendary."
Yeah. Legen-dary.
They said it like the word itself could make someone worth loving.
Back then, I didn't say anything. Just stood there, pretending I didn't hear it.
But I did. Every word. Every laugh.
The funny thing is, when I think about it now, it doesn't even make me angry.
It just feels… stupid.
Like watching a younger version of yourself fall face-first on the ground and thinking, Damn, that really hurt, didn't it?
And just to put the cherry on top, the girl who swore she'd marry me if I awakened something great? Yeah, she was clapping for Bai Shou now, screaming his name like she'd been paid to.
"Bai Shou, you're amazing! You'll definitely join the top guild!"
Sure. Maybe he'll also develop a personality someday.
And seriously, what is it with girls and bad boys?
Is there some secret perfume they smell that turns their brain off?
Because whatever it is, Bai Shou must've bathed in it.
The teachers who once called me "a prodigy" suddenly discovered their shoes were really interesting. No eye contact, no smiles — just that pity look, the kind that stings worse than anything.
I stood there, smiling like an idiot. Didn't cry, didn't shout.
Just stood.
And from that day on…
Well, I became "Shen Yan, the Joke".
Hah.
Looking back now, I almost want to thank them.
If they hadn't laughed that hard, I might've stayed weak forever.
----
Back to the present. The next morning. The Forbidden Zone Trial.
We stood in front of the massive black gate…
Beyond it lay Sector A—the forbidden zone.
Everyone knew the rules. The further you went inside, the deadlier it became. At the edge, only weak creatures roamed. Deeper in… beasts that could crush you in a single bite.
I stayed at the very back, arms crossed, a grin spreading across my face. Inside, I was laughing.
Those foolish people.
They scrambled, shouting, forming their pathetic little parties.
"I'm Rare Bloodline Thunder Tiger; join my team!"
"Common Wolf Bloodline here, we need more fighters!"
"Uncommon Ice Root, looking for a healer slot!"
Their voices overlapped like desperate merchants in a fish market, hawking their bloodlines, begging for scraps of power.
Pathetic.
I couldn't stop it—I laughed. Low at first, then sharper.
"Haha…"
My lips curled as I watched them, my eyes cold. How astonishing. How fascinating, to look at them with pity.
For the first time, I understood.
This… this was how they looked at me all those years. Like I was beneath them. Like I was nothing.
Trash. Pathetic. Worthless.
And yet now?
Now I stood here, smiling at them the same way.
The roles had changed.
And my heart almost burst—not with pain this time, but with dark satisfaction.
Of course some people would never change.
"Well, well, look who crawled out of the trash bin," Chi Yan drawled, stepping forward like he owned the place.
He pushed through the crowd with Bai Shou at his side, both of them swaggering like kings on a parade.
"Pig bloodline, huh? Perfect—oink oink," Bai Shou sneered, and a couple of fools nearby snorted and laughed.
Chi Yan leaned close enough that his breath hit my face. "Listen up, trash. I told you—if I see you today, we'll beat the hell out of you. Make sure you don't die before we get our fun."
I heard someone laugh — right next to me. Too close.
Then another joined in. The sound scraped at my ears.
The circle around me tightened like a noose. They wanted a reaction. They wanted to see the trash finally snap.
I didn't give them that.
I kept my face still. Calm.
People only enjoy it when you react.
If you break, they win.
If you don't, they get bored.
They feed on your pain — like sadists who need you to scream just so they can feel something.
So I gave them nothing.
Let them think I was weak. Let them think I'd given up.
They shoved my shoulder, spat near my feet. I didn't move. Just watched. Let them have their fun. Let them feel big for once in their lives.