Kali did not return home that night.
He lay on one of the cold recovery benches inside Gravity Hall, staring at the ceiling while his body slowly remembered how to breathe without screaming. The Grade-C serum Luo Lan had given him burned through his veins, stitching torn muscle and cracked vessels just enough to keep him alive.
Just alive.
Every movement sent fire through his bones.
Good.
Pain meant he hadn't failed.
Above him, the countdown floated across the central hall's display:
FEDERATION EXAM CYCLE — 88 DAYS REMAINING
Eighty-eight days.
The fracture in the invisible wall inside his body throbbed with pressure. It wasn't a breakthrough. It wasn't even close. But it was proof that the ceiling could be broken.
Kali forced himself off the bench.
His legs shook.
His vision blurred.
He stood anyway.
The Second Descent
At dawn, Kali returned to Booth 7.
The same attendant looked at him, eyes widening.
"You were the one from last night."
Kali nodded.
"Set it to 5.2x."
The man's lips parted. "You—"
"Set it."
The chamber sealed.
The world collapsed again.
This time his body knew what was coming.
This time it still wasn't ready.
Gravity crushed his spine. His lungs screamed. Blood flooded his mouth as vessels ruptured. His hands clawed against the floor, nails splitting.
He didn't scream.
He breathed.
Inhale.
Hold.
Exhale.
Cosmic energy roared through his cells. The fracture in the Rank 5 barrier widened by a hair.
Thirty seconds felt like an hour.
Five minutes felt like death.
At seven minutes, Kali blacked out.
He woke up on the chamber floor, body locked in convulsions.
The system voice echoed faintly:
"Session terminated. User survival probability: 43%."
He laughed weakly.
Forty-three was better than yesterday.
The Elite Above
Across the upper balcony of Gravity Hall, a small group of students watched him.
Among them stood Luo Lan.
Next to her, a tall boy in silver-trimmed uniform narrowed his eyes.
"That's the Rank 5 idiot?" he asked.
Luo Lan didn't answer.
The boy's gaze hardened.
"Pressure training won't save someone without talent."
Luo Lan's voice was quiet.
"Pressure breaks steel into blades."
The boy scoffed.
Home
That evening, Kali finally returned to Ironreach Block.
Lin Xiu rushed to him the moment he stepped inside.
"Kali! Your comm went dead—"
"I'm fine."
He wasn't.
Lin Wei saw the tremor in his hands.
"How bad?"
Kali met his father's eyes.
"Not bad enough."
Tian looked up from the corner, her small hands glowing faintly again.
"Brother… your energy feels different."
Kali forced a smile.
"Does it?"
She nodded.
That night, Kali lay awake listening to the building's pipes rattle and the city hum beyond the walls.
Inside his chest, the crack in the ceiling pulsed.
Eighty-eight days.
Tomorrow, he would push again.