23: Chapter 23 Ranking and Neighbors

The elevator doors opened on the 9th floor of Building B, District C. The hallway was quiet, with sound-absorbing dark gray carpet laid on the floor. He walked to the entrance of Apartment 12 and scanned his fingerprint on the access panel; the alloy door slid open silently.

The apartment was nearly four times larger than his original dormitory, which had been less than twenty square meters. The sensor light in the entryway turned on automatically, and beside the living room was a full-wall transparent alloy window facing the direction of the Seventh Safe Zone's main thoroughfare.

At the very back was a small training room with shock-absorbing black mats on the floor, and a basic physical training rack and data monitoring terminal in the corner.

Lin Yan took a tour of the apartment before returning to the living room to sit on the sofa.

There was nothing in his old dormitory worth making a special trip to move; he could just let the Federal Logistics Department handle the collection and disposal later.

He raised his wristband and quickly swiped through the Federal living supplies procurement page, selecting a few sets of daily casual wear, two sets of sportswear for training, bedding, bath towels, and hand towels... before confirming the order. The wristband popped up a payment notification: Total, 1,200 Star Coins.

It would be a while before the items were delivered, so he leaned back on the sofa and idly browsed the information on his wristband.

Several notifications from the school's academic affairs system were in his inbox; the report time for the Core Class was the day after tomorrow at 8:00 AM, at Area A on the third floor of the Training Center. He double-checked the registration process and the required documents, then casually clicked on the forum.

The forum was already exploding.

The pinned post was an official statement released by the Central Information Office of the Federal Awakened Management Bureau, with wording that was brief and rigorous: "Lin Yan, an Awakened from the Ninth Public Awakening Middle School in the Seventh Safe Zone, F-rank Talent, one-star novice Dungeon rating S+. After verification, the rating data is true and valid. Although there are anomalies in the talent detection results, there is no record of conduct violating Federal Awakened management regulations."

Hundreds of comments had piled up under the post; some said the Federation was endorsing him, while others guessed that his true talent was not F-rank at all.

Another post that had been pushed to the very top was: The Federal Awakened Management Bureau's Seventh Safe Zone branch had just released the official rating list for this year's Awakened.

He clicked on the public notice page.

The header bore the Federal Star Shield emblem and the title "Seventh Safe Zone Current Awakened Rating Notice (B-Rank and Above)." The list was arranged from highest to lowest rating, with each name followed by their level, talent, rating, and affiliated school. His gaze swept down from the very top.

First row: Lin Yan, Level 10, F-rank Talent, Rating S+, Ninth Public Awakening Middle School.

Second place, Lu Zhiyao, Level 10, A-Rank Talent, Rating S-, First Awakening Middle School.

Third place, Gu Congyi, Level 9, A-Rank Talent, Rating A+, First Awakening Middle School.

Fourth place, Jiang Ruoxue, Level 9, A-Rank Talent, Rating A+, First Awakening Middle School.

Fifth place, Fang Shen, Level 9, A-Rank Talent, Rating A+, First Awakening Middle School.

Sixth place, Pei Yan, Level 9, A-Rank Talent, Rating A+, First Awakening Middle School.

From first to twentieth place, First Awakening Middle School occupied a full fourteen spots, with one student receiving an S- and seven receiving an A+. Further down, in the twenty-first to fortieth spots, First Awakening Middle School occupied nearly half again.

Lin Yan stared at the list for a few seconds. He certainly knew the name First Awakening Middle School; it was the only privileged school in the Seventh Safe Zone, enrolling only the descendants of Awakened with B-Rank Talent or higher.

They were not unified cultivatees, nor artificially selected embryos, but privileged heirs with biological parents, family legacies, and private resources. Before entering a Dungeon, they had already been equipped with gear, skill books, potions, and other resources...

But even so, they were all suppressed by him, an F-rank.

Lin Yan's gaze swept over the list again, noticing another detail: besides himself at the top of the list, only a few students from the Ninth Public Awakening Middle School had achieved a rating above B-rank, and only two had achieved A-rank or higher: Qin Chuan with an A rating, and Luo Zhenyu, who was the first in school to awaken an A-Rank Talent, with an A- rating.

A highly upvoted comment on the forum read: "Have you noticed that First Awakening Middle School occupies more than half of the top forty? This ratio is just ridiculous."

"They have full sets of gear and skill books before entering the Dungeon, while those of us from ordinary schools go in with just a standard issue dagger. We can't compete in ratings, not just because of talent, but because the starting line is a whole track behind."

Dozens of replies followed this comment, some agreeing, some refuting: "It's the same every year, what's there to be surprised about?" or "Why shouldn't they be allowed to leave the resources their parents risked their lives for to their children?"

There were also those who said, "The Federation claims to support fair competition, yet before the first step is even taken, it's already divided into tiers." In the end, no one could convince anyone, but the comment kept getting pushed higher and higher, staying on the front page without ever dropping off.

The doorbell rang, and Lin Yan closed the forum. A delivery robot stacked several cardboard boxes at the door, emitted two beeps, and left automatically. Lin Yan put the items away, and the apartment was no longer the empty space it had been when he first moved in.

After tidying up, he took a shower and changed into his newly purchased casual clothes. The reflection in the mirror showed a youth with a tall, upright stature, broad shoulders, and a narrow waist; his muscle definition was much firmer than before entering the Dungeon, but his physique had completely returned to that of a normal person.

Lin Yan decided to go out for a walk around the apartment area. The hallway in District C was very quiet, as most of the residents were high-rated Awakened. He walked a few steps along the corridor when the door to Apartment 11 next to him suddenly opened.

A tall, thin boy walked out, holding a sports drink with the cap unscrewed. He was stunned for a moment when he saw Lin Yan, then the corners of his mouth curled up: "Lin Yan? It really is you. You actually moved in across from me."

He took two steps forward, his tone carrying a sense of familiar surprise: "My name is Qin Chuan, A-Rank Talent, I got in with an A rating. I was a few rows behind you on the day of Awakening, and when that F-rank Talent of yours lit up, the whole place exploded."

"And then three days later, you came back with an S+, and today when the public list came out, your name was in the first row."

"Someone on the forum even made a special annotated chart of this list, circling your name in red and writing three words next to it: 'Why you?'. Someone from First Awakening Middle School replied, 'Just good luck,' and ended up getting flamed for over a dozen pages."

"You seem to be paying quite close attention," Lin Yan said.

"Duh, you live across from me, how could I not pay attention?" Qin Chuan leaned against the doorframe and took a sip of his drink.

"But honestly, that bunch from First Awakening Middle School definitely won't be convinced. Their gear is custom-made before they enter the Dungeon; some even brought a full set of green-tier equipment, yet when the ratings came out, they were all suppressed by you. I reckon on the day of reporting, there will be no shortage of people in the Core Class looking to challenge you."

As the two were talking, the elevator door at the end of the hallway opened. A girl walked out, wearing a neat high ponytail and the school jacket of the Second Awakening Middle School, holding a moving storage box in her arms.

Her features were bright and soft, her eyes very bright, and the corners of her mouth naturally curved slightly upward, making her seem approachable at first glance.

She saw the two people talking in the hallway, nudged the storage box against her waist, and walked over generously. Her gaze swept over Qin Chuan, then landed directly on Lin Yan, her eyes lighting up.

"You're Lin Yan, right? I saw your name in the first row of the public list, and I specifically went to your school's notice board to confirm it before coming upstairs just now."

Her voice was clear, carrying undisguised curiosity, "F-rank Talent getting an S+ rating, the Central Bureau issuing a statement specifically for you—the entire Awakened circle in the Safe Zone is discussing you today. My name is Shen Xin, from the Second Middle School, A-Rank Support Talent, A rating, I live in 14, right next door to you."

As she spoke, she freed one hand to extend toward Lin Yan, while the storage box was held steadily in her other hand.

Lin Yan reached out and shook her hand. Shen Xin's palm was warm, and her grip was heavier than the average girl's; it was a firm, solid handshake before she let go.

"Reporting is the day after tomorrow, and the Core Class will definitely be filled mostly with these people from First Awakening Middle School," Qin Chuan threw his empty drink bottle into the recycling chute by the door.

"What do you think their reaction will be when they see Lin Yan?"

"Curiosity, scrutiny, resentment—probably all three at once." Shen Xin thought for two seconds.

"They pour the best resources of an entire school into it, yet the highest rating isn't theirs, but an F-rank. For them, this is more uncomfortable than having their answers copied during an exam."

"I will make them even more uncomfortable," Lin Yan said with a shrug.

Shen Xin looked at him and laughed, "Alright, I like hearing that."

Qin Chuan leaned back against the doorframe. "Speaking of which, have you checked the class assignment results? I just refreshed it in the academic affairs system—the three of us are all in Class AR-01."

"I saw it too." Shen Xin switched the storage box to her other hand and nodded.

"AR-01, AR-02, AR-03, three Core Classes, twenty-four students per class, seventy-two students in total across the three classes. The assignment was randomly distributed based on talent."

"The number twenty-four is quite particular." Qin Chuan counted on his fingers. "Common Dungeon team modes—two-person groups, three-person groups, four-person standard squads, six-person tactical teams, eight-person medium-sized formations, twelve-person full-load raid groups—twenty-four is divisible by all of them. The Federation setting this structure clearly intends for every class to be able to split up conveniently in a Dungeon."

"First Awakening Middle School occupies nearly half of the top forty, so all three classes will be stuffed with them; no one can avoid that." Shen Xin nudged the storage box against her waist and continued.

"With a big shot like Lin Yan, an S+ rating, holding down the fort in our class, our overall strength is definitely the strongest among the three classes. I heard the three classes have different focuses; our class, Class 1, leans towards Dungeon combat output and tactical assault, and is led by Instructor Meng Yuan."

"Instructor Meng Yuan?" Qin Chuan tilted his head to look at her.

"Meng Yuan, former Deputy Commander of the 7th Division of the Federal Legion. After retiring from the front lines, he has led six batches of Core Classes." Shen Xin's tone was very casual, but the content she spoke was anything but.

"He has led teams to clear high-star Dungeons many times and became the chief instructor after retiring due to injury. His nickname among students is 'The Ghost's Sorrow'—it's said that the monthly elimination rate has never been lower than twenty percent."

"Former Legion Deputy Commander, led six batches of Core Classes, twenty percent elimination rate..." Qin Chuan chewed over these three pieces of information. "Better arrive early on the day of reporting; I don't want to be eliminated and sent back to school on the first day."

"The chief instructors of the other two classes have similar resumes; they are all veteran officers retired from the Federal Legion. All seventy-two people are being cultivated for the core echelon of the Legion."

"I'm going to go unpack my things. Let's go together on the morning of reporting. Don't be late; I don't want the instructor to eliminate the three of us collectively on the first day. By the way, let me add both of your communication frequencies." Shen Xin hugged her things and extended her wristband.

The three of them exchanged wristband communication frequencies. Shen Xin picked up her storage box again, nudged her apartment door open with her shoulder, waved back at the two, and the three returned to their respective apartments.

The morning two days later, Lin Yan changed into clean casual clothes and stood before the full-length mirror in the living room for a moment. The youth reflected in the mirror had a tall, upright stature, broad shoulders, and a narrow waist.

He pushed the door open, and Qin Chuan was already waiting in the hallway. Shen Xin also happened to come out from number 14. She had changed into a light blue sports jacket today, her hair still tied in a high ponytail, and she revealed a bright smile when she saw the two.

"Morning. Let's go. It's the first day of reporting; arriving a bit early never hurts."