"Jiang Qiu, General Mo has heard about the result of your match with Liu Yong. He’s amazed by your talent. Inside this is a Storage Ring, a personal gift from him as encouragement."

A metal box engraved with the Military Department’s insignia landed in Jiang Qiu’s palm. It felt like a thousand-pound block of ice pressing on a burning coal, and his hand trembled in shock.

’A Storage Ring?!’

’Holy shit!’

’Those things are forged from precious materials like Space Stones mined from special Secret Realms! They’re harder than diamond and even contain a pocket dimension!’

’You usually only catch glimpses of them with teachers at the Martial Artist level or on news reports!’

"Haha, don’t be so nervous. General Mo has deep pockets, and he’s always been generous toward promising prodigies," Zhao Gongzheng said, a flicker of emotion in his eyes. "Besides, with your talent, you should have joined the Prodigy Program long ago. For General Mo to give you this... it means he sees great things in your future.

Come to think of it, I didn’t get my first storage accessory until after I became a Martial Artist, and I had to trade military merits for it...

Ah, go ahead and open it. I’ll help you bind it."

Jiang Qiu slowly pried open the magnetic lid, his fingertips cold, his heart thumping with excitement.

’I can’t believe General Mo is this generous! He’s never even met me, and I haven’t even passed the Military Department’s test yet. And he still gave me such a valuable reward!’

’A Storage Ring... Unless you come from a powerful family, even Martial Artists have to fight their way up on the battlefield to earn one, right?’

CLICK—

The solid black metal lid opened along its seam, and a subtle silver light blossomed before him. Inlaid in black foam was a classic-style bracelet, silver-white with a purple-gold pattern, its reflection shimmering in Jiang Qiu’s eyes.

It resembled a well-forged steel Dragon Form, its intertwined purple-gold lines accentuating mysterious spatial markings.

The moment it was revealed, it drew Jiang Qiu’s gaze like a moth to a flame.

"Purple Gold Patterned?" Zhao Gongzheng exclaimed, urging him on. "The space in that one can’t be small. Quick, put it on."

"Okay..."

As Jiang Qiu slid his left wrist through the Storage Ring, he suddenly caught sight of a strange spark of light flying from between Zhao Gongzheng’s left index finger. It shot out and ignited the Storage Ring with a ZAP.

HUMMM...

With a startling tremor, a third of Jiang Qiu’s soul was wrenched away as if it were a dishrag. It felt like an invisible thread was pulling his very spirit through a tiny pinhole, squeezing it through with a WHOOSH, like a minnow passing from a stream into the ocean.

For a moment, his pupils unfocused, his consciousness leaping into a cubic space. He looked around at a vast expanse of white. It was like breaking into a huge storage room—you could fit an elephant in here!

The storage accessories usually mentioned online were only 1m x 1m x 1m, and even those were considered essential tools for leaving the city to hunt monsters. A 3m x 3m x 3m one was a luxury version that Martial Artists strived for.

But upon closer inspection, he realized the space in this ring was 5m x 5m x 5m!

’I’m just an eighteen-year-old high school student, not even a Martial Artist yet, and I’ve already gotten my first-ever storage accessory... and it’s a 5m x 5m x 5m Purple Gold Patterned one!’

’An accessory like this could cost millions. Plus, it’s state-controlled with restricted access channels. You can’t just buy them in the country!’

At this thought, Jiang Qiu sucked in a sharp breath.

"Holy shit... Is that a Storage Ring on Brother Jiang’s wrist?"

A sudden cry pulled Jiang Qiu from his thoughts. His gaze refocused. In the blink of an eye, the silver and Purple Gold Patterned Storage Ring was perfectly snug on his left wrist. The white metal against his skin created an air of refined luxury.

Not far away, the students gathered on the field were on their tiptoes, craning their necks and staring wide-eyed. "Ah! Director Zhao gave him a Storage Ring just for him? It’s the Purple Gold Patterned kind! So cool!"

"Damn... it really is the Purple Gold Patterned kind. The space in that must be huge. What on earth did Brother Jiang do?"

"I think I overheard a little... Apparently, it’s because our Brother Jiang beat Liu Yong, and General Mo took notice of him. This is a personal gift from the general..."

"General Mo?!" Zhang Shan cried out, his eyes swirling with envy. "Brother Jiang is really on another level, getting noticed by a big shot like that..."

"Shhh, shhh! There’s more. Quiet down."

Li Si made a sharp hissing sound, instantly silencing some of the commotion.

Wu Shan, who had just finished distributing the Wusu Fragrance, paused and turned to look at Zhao Gongzheng and Jiang Qiu, muttering to himself, "General Mo actually gave him a Purple Gold Patterned Storage Ring? I thought only the candidates for the top ten prodigies in the Prodigy Program could get one of those..."

"And this. A few years ago, I met a Martial Artist from Jiangnan who came to assist us here in the Northwest Province. He transferred to the Martial Education Department after returning and has access to certain Su Fragrance resources. This is a serving of Bone Su Fragrance he helped me procure."

As he spoke, a small metal box, smooth and cool as ice, was placed in Jiang Qiu’s right palm. His eyes widened slightly. ’Bone Su Fragrance?!’

’Bone Su Fragrance is also a Middle Level Su Fragrance! It’s like an advanced version of Wusu Fragrance, and a vital resource for breaking through to the Steel Bone Realm!’

This type of Su Fragrance is rarely even mentioned in the eight major high schools of the Outer City. After all, if a regular high school can produce just a couple more students at the Iron Flesh Realm before the college entrance exams, it’s considered a massive success.

Even among the Inner City’s high schools, you rarely see anyone at the Steel Bone Realm on the annual college entrance exam leaderboards. Finding one in several thousand would be considered a miracle.

Nearly all geniuses at the Steel Bone Realm are products of the Prodigy Program.

’In other words, here in the Northwest Province—at least in Gao Yuan City—most of the Bone Su Fragrance is stored by the Military Department. It’s probably held as a strategic reserve, which makes it incredibly hard to get...’

"Go ahead and put this in your Storage Ring for now," Zhao Gongzheng said with a chuckle. "You won’t be able to use the Bone Su Fragrance for a while. Its medicinal bath is extremely potent. If you haven’t trained your body to be as tough as iron, you won’t be able to handle it. The pain is unbearable, even if you cry until you have no tears left.

Besides, just like Wusu Fragrance, its effects are most potent the first time. After that, its benefits are negligible.

If you can master the Iron Flesh Realm before the college entrance exams, you might be able to use this to break through to the Steel Bone Realm. Even if you don’t make it into the Prodigy Program, you’ll still have a decent shot at challenging for a spot among the top ten prodigies!"

The moment he finished speaking, the crowd of students who had been openly eavesdropping nearby were left dumbfounded. The faces of two girls in the group turned pale.

"Bone Su Fragrance is the real deal... it genuinely enhances your body’s potential."

"I thought the news said that the Gao Yuan City Military Department’s main supply of Bone Su Fragrance was shipped to Tianshan City. It’s not easy to get ahold of this stuff, yet Director Zhao actually went to the trouble of getting it from Jiangnan..."

"I’m so jealous. For us to see something like that, we’d probably have to get into Northwest Martial University, or fail the exams and spend years slogging it out in the military."

"Brother Jiang is really something else. He just got the Qiang Su Fragrance from the training hunt, and now Director Zhao gets him Bone Su Fragrance."

"Are you kidding? This is Brother Jiang we’re talking about. If he performs as usual on the college entrance exams, he could be the one to lead our Eighth Middle School to become a ’Distinguished Student Recruitment Base’!"

The excited chatter washed over him like a spring breeze.

PAT. PAT.

A broad hand patted Jiang Qiu’s right shoulder. It felt tough, like hard rubber, yet carried the weight of a mountain.

"Jiang Qiu, you’ve missed out on too many opportunities compared to the other geniuses. I haven’t been able to help you much, but perhaps this Bone Su Fragrance can help close the gap between you and them.

But you have to understand, this world has many geniuses. Most, however, are like shooting stars—they flash brightly and are gone before they ever truly shine.

At the Military Department’s test in a few days, you should give it your all, but don’t throw your life away fighting for an extra spot in the Prodigy Program..."

Looking into Zhao Gongzheng’s half-lidded, wrinkled eyes, Jiang Qiu felt a warmth spread through his chest. A lump formed in his throat, and his bright, dark eyes seemed to shimmer like distant stars. "I understand, Director Zhao."

’From the moment I defeated Liu Yong, whether or not I would fight for that spot was never in question.’

’The Prodigy Program is something Director Zhao sincerely hopes for me, and for me, it’s an unexpected opportunity.’

’I can’t let Director Zhao down, and I can’t let my future self live with regret!’

’Once you start down a path, there’s no turning back. You have to see it through to the end.’

At this thought, Jiang Qiu clenched his fists, his blood boiling with determination.

’Once I use this medicinal bath to break through to the Steel Bone Realm today, will I still be inferior to those geniuses who got into the Prodigy Program early?’

’So what if it’s the Military Department test? In the end, it’s just a monster-killing competition. However many they want killed, I’ll kill them!’

’I *have* to get a spot in the Prodigy Program!’