High School Student with Immortal Race System

The "Challenge Ranking System" was designed to continuously gauge student rankings through dynamic challenges.

It had nothing to do with academics, but it determined a great many things.

At Qiangwu Academy, strength was paramount. Everything was judged by the results of actual combat.

The 2,000 new students were divided into 40 classes of 50 people each, and the "supplement allocation" from Jiangti decreased in tiers corresponding to the class rankings.

For example, in Class 1, where Yang Shen was, if they maintained their rank, the free supplements from the university alone would be enough for them to reach the Late-stage Innate realm by graduation, surpassing a Qi and Blood Value of 2,000, and earning the title of "Outstanding Graduate."

Calculated at market price, this was worth no less than 10 million, given to the students for free.

Meanwhile, for Class 40, the supplement quota was kept at the bare minimum. Without external resources, it wouldn’t even be enough to reach the Early Innate Stage, meaning they couldn’t graduate.

Someone might ask: Doesn’t that just mean the strong get stronger and the weak get weaker?

Exactly! How else would they get everyone to compete?

For someone who wanted to just coast, they could calculate the deficit and scrape by to the Early Innate Stage in four years. But if you wanted to climb to the top...

’Get a job, take out a loan, or go hustle on the practice fields! If you can’t handle this little bit of pressure, how can you expect to compete in the world of Martial Arts?’

Go take a look at other ordinary universities. The maximum free supplements they offered couldn’t even compare to Jiangti’s lowest tier. Most students only received a 20,000-yuan monthly subsidy for martial arts students.

With so much real money being poured in, it was only natural to favor those with more talent.

Furthermore, the bottom ten students of the entire year would be "advised to withdraw" each month.

They wouldn’t be directly expelled, but they’d be required to transfer to another major. ’If your combat skills are this pathetic, go to the Martial Arts Theory School or the Precision School.’

Therefore, for every Qiangwu Academy student, the Challenge Ranking System was a warning bell that would ring for all four years.

However, with 2,000 students in total, letting everyone challenge whomever they wanted was obviously not feasible. The fights would go on until the end of time.

So, the rules were as follows: each person had three challenge opportunities per month, and they could challenge someone up to fifty ranks above their own.

As for challenging downwards, there were no restrictions.

’That would probably be for purely personal grudges.’

The school didn’t prohibit experts from stomping on noobs.

Similarly, each person could only be challenged three times. After the third time, they could refuse any further challenges to avoid being worn down by consecutive opponents.

If a person was challenged by many people at the same time, the challenged party couldn’t just pick the weakest opponents to fill their quota. They had to respond to challenges in order from strongest to weakest to prevent cheating.

The challenge selection period was very flexible, lasting for the entire month. The one-on-one matches were tallied and arranged at the end of the month. After the fights at the beginning of the next month, the rankings would be reset, and another month of challenge selection would begin.

Yang Shen sighed...

’Isn’t this just a "Monthly Exam Plus" edition? And they’ve cut everything down to just a single event: actual combat.’

’As I thought. My fantasy of a bright and youthful university life was pure delusion.’

After Sheng Qin finished explaining the rules, the 50 students of Class 1 quickly processed the information. Even Xu Bamboo was lost in thought.

But soon, everyone accepted this reality and began rubbing their hands together in anticipation...

’We’re all champions who survived the gauntlet! What the hell is there to be afraid of!’

At Jiangti, they were sorted into different tiers, but just a few months ago, wasn’t every single one of them a "prodigy" in their own region?

How many people from any given region could even get into Jiangti?

Sheng Qin was already prepared. She took out a ranking board with the 50 students’ names on it. It was designed with slots so the name cards could be rearranged.

"This board will be posted outside the academy office later for all students to see."

At the very top, ranked number one, was Yang Shen.

As the Champion Scholar of Jianghuai, he was clearly the apex of this year’s 2,000 new students, the undisputed number one.

And the second name was "Jiang Xin."

As for Xu Bamboo... she was in a somewhat precarious position.

During the college entrance exams, Xu Bamboo was ranked 23rd in Jianghuai City. But now, with students from all over the country, her rank had dropped to 48th...

It was a dangerous spot to be in. At least, it looked like she could be kicked out of Class 1 at any moment.

Yang Shen suddenly chuckled, nudging Xu Bamboo with his shoulder and whispering, "Looks like we’ve switched roles. This time, you’re the one bringing up the rear while I’m at the top."

Xu Bamboo rolled her eyes prettily. "It’s temporary. I wasn’t slacking off during the summer break."

"Just you wait. I’ll claw my way back up, bit by bit!"

’It’s just a matter of following Yang Shen’s script. Nothing to be afraid of.’

"Now that the rules are clear, I’ll be handing out the Challenge Cards."

Without needing any help from the students, the instructor stood at the podium and, with the technique of throwing hidden weapons, rapidly distributed the Challenge Cards, her hands moving so fast they left afterimages.

Then, her tone shifted as she looked toward Jiang Xin. "I’ve been tolerating you for a while now. Drinking in the classroom—do you have no self-awareness at all?"

Jiang Xin’s expression didn’t change. He pulled out an even larger bottle from under his desk. "It’s just High Source pomegranate juice, Instructor Sheng. That shouldn’t be against school rules, right?"

Sheng Qin fell silent...

’You’re drinking pomegranate juice out of a wine glass?!’

’Another troublemaker from a Martial Arts Family! So annoying!’

’I really want to beat him up!’

Each person was given three small red cards. They contained a chip that recorded their owner and could be placed behind the name of any person on the list they wished to challenge.

Even though they were already in Class 1, they could still challenge each other to improve their internal ranking. If they wanted to stomp some noobs, they could go to the all-years list outside the academy office later and challenge someone further down.

There was no real benefit, but it could be satisfying.

Because their ranks were so high, as long as they posted a challenge, the other person had to accept!

This was a blatant, oppressive privilege that the "top students" held over the common students, one they couldn’t escape.

Rumor had it that a talented girl who followed the Horizontal Training Route had used this exact method to conquer the "Campus Prince," whose results were much worse than hers.

She would utterly dominate him every month... disciplining him by clamping his head in her armpit.

Ultimately, between being beaten and being loved, the Campus Prince tearfully chose to be loved...

The key was, she was also quite magnanimous... and ended up openly having four boyfriends.

She became known as the "Horizontal Training Queen."

Yang Shen was speechless as he held his three cards. ’I’m number one in the year... who am I supposed to challenge?’

Just then, a small red card flew over and magnetically attached itself to the board below Yang Shen’s name.

Yang Shen turned his head to look. Jiang Xin raised an eyebrow. "I’m second, you’re first. This is only fair, right? Where else would I use it?"

Yang Shen turned back and scoffed.

Yang Shen wasn’t arrogant; in fact, he was very cautious about the hidden depths of Yanhua.

But that threat wasn’t Jiang Xin. ’Early or Mid-stage Innate? I’ll knock those eyebrows clean off.’

However, after using his Challenge Card, Jiang Xin glanced at a name further down the list, a thoughtful look flashing in his eyes for a fleeting moment....

’Xu Bamboo...’

’During the college entrance exams, all my attention was on Yang Shen; after all, the guy took so much from me.’

’Ranked 23rd in Jianghuai? Not even worthy of a downward glance, not even on the first page of the leaderboard.’

’At the school gate this morning, I didn’t pay her any mind either. I just thought she was a "vase" to boost Yang Shen’s status, just like the two girls hanging on my own arms. But now, seeing the name...’

’A surname of Xu... female, with a wood-related name...’

’It’s very similar to the Xu Family’s naming conventions.’

’The top Martial Arts Families were mostly familiar with each other, with tangled connections. For instance, I have a great-aunt who was once a woman of the Xu Family.’

’But the Xu Family... has no heirs in this generation...’

’The eldest son, Xu Cheng, died young. The second son, Xu Mo, and the eldest daughter, Xu Nan, are both unmarried.’

’As a top family with very few members, many people are watching the marital situations of these two. Xu Mo is the current Patriarch, and Xu Nan manages the Xu Family’s wealth and connections. A marriage for either of them would have significant implications, so there’s no way I could be mistaken...’

Neither Yang Shen nor Xu Bamboo noticed Jiang Xin’s state; they were just discussing how to use their own red cards.

Xu Bamboo hesitated for a long time before deciding to wait. They didn’t know anyone here; she needed to get a feel for the situation first.

She had no intention of picking on the weak—like deliberately seeking out the lowest-ranked person—but she still needed to know her enemy and herself.

Quite a few people had similar ideas. Yang Shen even heard someone behind him discussing it:

"Later, I’m gonna check if there are any beauties in the lower classes and go beat them up!"

"Holy shit, my friend, what a brilliant idea! They say beating is a sign of affection, and scolding is a sign of love!"

It seemed the story of the Horizontal Training Queen had already spread widely among the new students.

’The lower-ranked classes are really going through hell...’

Yang Shen took a deep breath...

’How fucking bizarre...’

Cao Wei, Yuan Rui, and Tian Zihan were in Class 29, 31, and 38, respectively.

To be honest, that was extremely far from Class 1. Even if they jumped three class ranks at a time, it would still take half a year just to get a glimpse of Class 1’s tail end...

Even with the bonus from their "Martial Arts Gate" title, they couldn’t be considered safe in the short term.

’Their actual skill level is probably around the 20th class, but there’s still a huge gap to Class 1.’

’I could let the word out that they’re my people to prevent them from being bullied.’

Yang Shen suddenly had a feeling... under this system, the top students truly had every advantage. It was even more blatant than at Nanliang High School.

It allowed for the systematic and rule-based suppression of "underperforming students," even establishing a form of governance over them.

Moreover, in their search for shelter, the weaker students would quickly realize they needed the protection of the strong.

For example, if they latched onto a big shot like Yang Shen, they wouldn’t risk being maliciously stomped on by others. Whoever bullied them, the big shot would bully back.

’And then, working backward... the school is letting students naturally form groups, honing themselves into future "Exotic Realm Exploration Teams."’

’What an... inhuman system design...’

And there was another hidden truth...

Ordinary students felt pressure from this system, but for the descendants of Martial Arts Families, these rules and pressures made it easier for them to gather talent... to naturally form their own cliques.

With their own abundant resources, they only needed to offer a little, and plenty of people would come flocking.

But Yang Shen had nothing to complain about.

Because when it came to speaking with strength...

...he would always be the biggest beneficiary.

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