Big Pao glanced at Michelle in surprise; this brat knew quite a lot. "I don't know, I'm just a student. Although I'm a little handsome and have a bit of seniority, I have no right to interfere with the academy's matters."
Michelle retracted her gaze and continued to record something on her gadget.
Big Pao looked at it and suddenly thought of something. His expression changed, and he immediately whispered into his gadget, "Sandmaster, the rumors might be true. The Ten Arbiters Council sent someone to monitor the academy, and it should be that woman. What?
Ignore it?
How can that be?
That brat will leak our secrets. Yes, yes, yes, I know we don't have any secrets, and there's just a problem with our education policy. But your catchphrase, 'whoever learns is an idiot', doesn't sound good. Fine, I won't care, but don't blame me if the academy is shut down by the council. "
"How do we confirm that we've been recognized by the Rain Observatory?"
"It's simple. You just have to write your name with star energy and it won't shatter after crossing the Rain Observatory," Big Pao answered.
Zhao Yilong moved and flicked his finger, causing the star energy at his fingertips to form a long sword.
It then twisted to form the words "Zhao Yilong" and was pushed into the distance. However, it was destroyed by the raindrops and the star energy dissipated into nothingness.
Michelle's voice was cold, "To be recognized, you have to improve your use of star energy. It's too harsh. No wonder Astral-10 hasn't had any outstanding talents for thousands of years. There's something wrong with your education methods; the mentors don't even want to teach."
Big Pao rolled his eyes. Although this woman was pretty, she seemed to be looking for trouble.
Coco raised her hand and asked, "Are the mentors here really that powerful?"
Michelle replied, "They're at least Hunters. Otherwise, they don't have the qualifications to be mentors in the Astral Combat Academy."
Coco exclaimed, "Hunters? That's amazing."
Hunters were on the same level as Undying Yushan, but Undying Yushan was a powerhouse from the Outerverse while the mentors here were from the Astral Combat Academy. It was obvious that they were far stronger than Undying Yushan. Were all mentors that powerful?
"It would be great if we could get a mentor to teach us," Coco muttered.
Big Pao smiled, "Of course. As long as you meet the requirements, you can even become a mentor's direct disciple and obtain Astral-10's ancient battle techniques."
Everyone's eyes lit up. "What conditions?"
Big Pao laughed strangely. "Passing one's name across the Rain Observatory will allow one to gain recognition, but since ancient times, there have always been peerless geniuses who have not only passed their names across the Rain Observatory, but also left their names behind for hundreds, thousands, or even tens of thousands of years. These names have formed a list called the Rain List. As long as one enters the Rain List, they can become a direct disciple of any mentor and obtain Astral-10's ancient battle techniques."
Everyone's eyes lit up. The Rain List?
It was a name that had been passed down since ancient times and had not faded for tens of thousands of years.
"Where is the Rain List?" Zhao Yilong asked loudly.
Big Pao chuckled. "I don't know. Apparently, only those who have entered the Rain List can see it. Others aren't qualified to see it."
Michelle turned around and faced the rain. She raised her hand and used her star energy to carve out the words "Michelle." Then, she pushed it into the rain as everyone watched.
Although there was no comparison, Michelle was probably the strongest. She had been the first to receive a gift and knew the most about the Astral Combat Academy. Everyone was curious about her origins, but they were even more curious about her strength.
Zhao Yilong was a Sentinel from the Ten Thousand Swords Peak, but his name didn't even make it a hundred meters. Michelle's name, on the other hand, was pushed further and further into the rain. Everyone stared at it, and it didn't take long for the name to shatter.
"What a pity, it didn't fly out of the tree," Big Pao commented.
Michelle frowned.
The others continued to experiment. Lu Yin used five stars to open a path and pushed his name into the rain, but it shattered around three hundred meters away.
Hui Daynight's name shattered around five hundred meters away.
Xia Luo's name was the closest to Michelle's, but it shattered as well.
"There's no need to try. I've been in Astral-10 for so many years, and even I haven't been able to do it. You guys are still far from it. Rumor has it that only a hundred people are left on the Rain List. If you guys are strong enough, you can try to push those hundred people down, but not now," Big Pao said.
Hui Daynight was disdainful. He wouldn't have been confident in the other nine academies, but Astral-10?
There weren't any powerhouses there, and he was confident that he would be able to enter the Rain List as long as he had enough time to comprehend it.
"Senior, I want to go to the trial zones," Lulu said excitedly.
Everyone's hearts skipped a beat, and they all looked at Big Pao. The most attractive places in the Astral Combat Academy were none other than the Nine Trial Zones. It was rumored that one could obtain ancient battle techniques, cultivation methods, bloodlines, and so on. Even the Ten Arbiters had been there before, so it was very attractive to everyone.
Big Pao shrugged. "Sorry, Junior, but the trial zones can't be entered casually."
Michelle's gaze turned cold. "The Astral Combat Academy holds the keys to the Nine Trial Zones. Anyone who enters the academy can enter, so why can't Astral-10?"
Big Pao spread out his hands. "There are conditions."
Everyone was helpless. Was this still an academy?
Shouldn't the academy allow students to learn freely?
How could the academy not teach students what they wanted to learn?
"What conditions?" Hui Daynight asked coldly.
"You should have heard of the ported battles. As long as you win a hundred battles, you can enter the Six Daos of the Trial Zones," Big Pao said with a sympathetic look.
Michelle was furious. "Preposterous! I represent the Ten Arbiters Council in protesting against this. Any student who enters the academy has the right to enter the trial zones. This is publicly acknowledged by the universe. What right does Astral-10 have to violate this rule?"
The Ten Arbiters Council?
Everyone looked at Michelle in shock. This woman was actually from the Ten Arbiters Council.
Big Pao was helpless. This woman was indeed here to cause trouble. It was a pity that such a beauty was going to die. "Junior, this isn't something that a senior like me can decide. Why don't you go see the Trialmaster?"
Michelle snorted. "Lead the way."
They didn't know how far the Rain Observatory was from the trial zones' entrance, so they followed Big Pao to the teleportation device and directly teleported to the trial zones' entrance.
"Brother Xia, what's a ported battle?" Lu Yin asked. He had never heard of it before.
Schutz and Meng Yue looked over. "How should I put it? The universe is very mysterious and gives birth to many strange things. There's a type of stone called a teleportation stone. Once touched, you'll be able to perfectly copy yourself into another space. You'll then be able to fight with another person who touches the stone at the same time. This is a ported battle."
"Matchmaking?" Lu Yin was shocked. He had seen an introduction to a game from a hundred years ago on Earth, and it had mentioned matchmaking.
Xia Luo shook his head. "Matchmaking is based on both parties' conditions, but a ported battle isn't. You can meet any powerhouse, and they might only be Hopefuls or space-exploring powerhouses. It's not fair at all. Teleportation stones are extremely rare and only in the hands of the strongest academies, races, and powers in the universe. Therefore, any opponent in a ported battle is an absolute elite. With our current level, we should be considered the weakest in the ported battle."
Lu Yin was shocked that such a thing existed. According to Xia Luo, those who were qualified to own a teleportation stone were definitely terrifying powers. There was no lack of tyrants like the Daynight Clan and the Mavis Clan, and there were also the Nine Academies in the universe. Their strength varied, but Sentinels were probably the weakest. No wonder Michelle was so angry; their level was too low compared to those people, and it would be extremely difficult for them to achieve a hundred victories.
Those weren't people like Eddy or Raas, but true geniuses of the universe. It would be difficult for any of them to find an opponent at the same level, and defeating them would be as difficult as ascending to the heavens.
For a moment, Lu Yin felt the pressure. He could vaguely see countless powerful geniuses in front of him; these people would be his future opponents.
His vision flashed, and he left the dark green Rain Observatory to appear on a grassy plain.
Withered yellow grass covered the ground, swaying in the breeze and emitting a faint glow in the strange dusk. A fresh and pleasant scent filled the air.
"This is the trial zone entrance, and also where the teleportation stone is located. Everyone, the Trialmaster is in that hollow tree. Go on, I'll see you later." Big Pao waved his hand and left.
Not far away, a huge tree that resembled a crescent moon lay on the ground. Its surface was withered, and countless cracks spread out. The tree was quite tall and even pierced through the clouds, but its insides had long since disappeared, forming an independent forest.
Michelle was the first to rush towards the withered tree, and the others followed closely behind.
The moment they set foot on the tree, their attention was immediately drawn to a stone emitting a strong light in the distance.
The stone floated in the air, and a hazy fog hung down from it, making it impossible to see what was inside.
"That must be the teleportation stone. What a mysterious thing," Xia Luo sighed. This was his first time seeing one as well.