277: Chapter 212: The Society Reaches Its Peak, Becoming Number One with Over a Thousand Members

The afterglow of the championship was like the most mellow wine, intoxicating not only the School of Literature and Law but also causing the entire Xinghai University to reminisce and tremble. As the direct creator of this miracle, the name "Hundred Schools Society" leapt overnight from a niche club previously considered somewhat "non-mainstream" with "novel ideas but questionable strength" to become the most sought-after, peerless focus of the entire university.

Starting the day after the victory, a jaw-droppingly long queue formed at the entrance of the Hundred Schools Society's original headquarters located in the School of Literature and Law district—a three-story, classical-style stone building of about five hundred square meters.

Students applying to join the society arrived in an endless stream, shoulder to shoulder.

They came from various colleges and all grades, even including some already famous upperclassman experts. Their Divine Realm types were diverse, ranging from traditional Dragons, Titans, Elves, and Orcs to rarer elemental lifeforms, mechanical constructs, necromancers, and even some bizarre mutated followers or special civilization paths.

Their motivations were also varied:

Some simply admired strength, worshiping Lin Zhou's legend of the weak defeating the strong and his wise capture of the championship, longing to join the command of a powerhouse.

Some were shocked and curious about the ideological power and rule potential displayed by "The Way of the Hundred Schools," wanting to personally experience and learn it.

Some were tired of the stagnation and internal competition of traditional Divine Realm development paths, viewing the "Hundred Schools of Thought" as a possible new way to break the deadlock.

Others saw the amazing cohesion and resource integration capabilities (an indirect effect of the championship rewards) the society displayed under Lin Zhou's leadership, believing that huge development opportunities and networking value were hidden here.

Of course, there was no lack of those with more complex motives, either wanting to pry into secrets or seeking to profit from the society's momentum.

Facing this surging tide of people, the society's original hundred-plus core and backbone members felt both excited and proud, but also felt immense pressure. How to screen them? How to manage them? How to ensure the purity and combat effectiveness of the society so it wouldn't be collapsed by this sudden expansion?

The pressure immediately passed to Lin Zhou, who had just finished his secluded meditation and had recovered most of his condition.

Society Headquarters, Top Floor President's Office.

The four core backbones, Zhao Hao, Wang Meng, Li Mo, and Qin Qing, gathered together, each with a light screen floating in front of them containing dense preliminary screening data of the applicants.

Zhao Hao clutched his signature red hair, his expression a mix of smugness and headache: "Old Lin, there are just too many people! From yesterday until now, the System has received over five thousand formal applications! That's not even counting those inquiring privately or sending word through connections! Our little place is about to be trampled flat! My guys in charge of maintaining Order have shouted themselves hoarse!"

Wang Meng crossed his arms and said in a booming voice: "Many people is a good thing; it shows our society's prestige. But we can't just take anyone. I see some guys with shifty eyes; one look and you can tell they aren't here to sincerely learn 'reason'."

Li Mo pushed his glasses, data streams scrolling rapidly across the lenses: "I have already established a preliminary quantitative scoring model based on the applicants' public data (Divine Realm type, follower composition, past battle records, academic tendencies, etc.). Combined with the dimensions our society currently needs most, such as 'complementarity,' 'ideological compatibility,' 'potential assessment,' and 'loyalty risk assessment,' we can quickly screen out about 6% of applicants who clearly do not meet the requirements. But the remaining 4% still exceeds two thousand people and requires further manual review and interviews."

Qin Qing focused more on processes and standards: "I have referred to the regulations of the Student Union and other large societies to preliminarily draft the 'Hundred Schools Society Member Graduated Management Measures (Draft),' 'New Member Admission Assessment and Probationary Period Regulations (Draft),' and the 'Society Contribution Point System Concept.' The priority is to establish standards and normalize processes to avoid chaos. At the same time, the society's existing activity venues and resource quotas are completely unable to meet the needs of a membership that could expand tenfold. Applying for a headquarters expansion and striving for more college resource support is imperative."

Lin Zhou sat in the main seat, quietly listening to everyone's reports, his fingers lightly tapping the table. His Divine Thought had already swept over the noisy crowd downstairs and quickly browsed through some of the high-scoring applicant profiles Li Mo had screened.

The explosive growth of the society was within his expectations, even part of his plan. For "The Way of the Hundred Schools" to spread and grow, relying on just a few of them at the core was far from enough. He needed more fellow travelers, more practitioners, and a larger organizational structure that could support his future plans.

But as everyone said, if it expanded too quickly without a solid skeleton and effective management, it would easily become bloated or even collapse from within.

“Everyone's opinions are correct.” Lin Zhou spoke, his voice steady with the calmness of a decision-maker, “The society's expansion is imperative, but it must be orderly, screened, and focused.”

He looked at Li Mo: “Li Mo, your quantitative model is very good; continue to optimize it. The first round of screening will follow your model, but the passing score can be set higher—quality over quantity. Focus on inspecting 'ideological compatibility' and 'potential.' For those who are purely seeking strength or opportunists, unless they have some other irreplaceable scarcity value (such as an extremely rare Divine Realm type or special talent), exclude them first.”

“Yes, President.” Li Mo nodded, his fingers operating rapidly.

“Qin Qing,” Lin Zhou turned to Qin Qing, “finish the draft regulations as soon as possible and form a formal text. New members must sign an acknowledgment and promise to abide by the basic charter of the society (the core of which is identifying with the spirit of exploring the Hundred Schools of Thought and maintaining the collective interests of the society). Establish a 'Probationary Member' Rank; all new members must go through at least a one-month Probationary Period, during which they must complete designated learning tasks (Basic Introduction to the Hundred Schools of Thought) and at least one team practice task. Formal members will evaluate their performance and attitude, and they can only become full members after passing.”

“At the same time, immediately initiate the headquarters expansion application process. I will personally submit a formal application to the Dean of the School of Literature and Law and the relevant university departments, explaining the society's development plan and potential contributions to the college and university. The reasons for the application must be sufficient, and the plan must be clear. If necessary, we can ask Professor Gongsun Yan, Professor Mo Heng, and other professors who support us to step forward and communicate.”

A flash of understanding crossed Qin Qing's eyes: “Understood. I will refine the draft and prepare the planning document needed for the expansion application as soon as possible.”

“Zhao Hao, Wang Meng.” Lin Zhou looked at these two, the heads of the War Hall and the Battle Hall, “The second round of manual reviews and interviews will be mainly handled by your War Hall and Battle Hall, with assistance from Qin Qing's Administration Hall. The interview should not only look at actual combat data but also observe the applicant's Heart-Nature, speech, and preliminary understanding or points of interest in the Hundred Schools of Thought. You can set up some simple combat simulations or situational questions to inspect their responsiveness and sense of collaboration. Remember, we need fellow travelers, not just thugs.”

Zhao Hao grinned: “Don't worry, Old Lin. When it comes to reading people, I'm an expert! Whether they're sincere or not, I can test it out in a few sentences.”

Wang Meng also nodded heavily: “I'll keep an eye on those guys who want to sneak in.”

“Good.” Lin Zhou finally summarized, “Our goal is to stably control the scale of the society's formal members at around one thousand in the short term, while ensuring quality, becoming the well-deserved number one freshman-led society at Xinghai University (upperclassman experts can serve as specially invited Advisors or Guest Elders, not taking up formal member slots). This is not just a number; it is a sign that our 'Way of the Hundred Schools' has gained preliminary recognition and formed a scale.”

His gaze swept over everyone: “Expansion will bring more resources, but it will also bring more challenges. Management, coordination, internal competition, external pressure... everyone must be mentally prepared. But this is also the path we must take to transform thought into power and expand concepts into practice.”

“Yes!” the four responded in unison, their eyes filled with fighting spirit.

In the following days, the Hundred Schools Society entered a period of rapid and orderly expansion.

Li Mo's quantitative model operated efficiently, screening out over three thousand applications in the first round.

The remaining nearly two thousand people underwent multiple rounds of reviews and actual combat situational tests hosted by Zhao Hao, Wang Meng, Qin Qing, and others, with a level of strictness that even exceeded some company interviews.

Ultimately, more than six hundred freshmen (mainly freshmen and sophomores) and nearly a hundred juniors and seniors who had undergone special inspection successfully passed the assessment and became "Probationary Members" of the Hundred Schools Society. Adding the original hundred-plus core and backbone members, the total number of the society surpassed eight hundred, moving steadily toward the goal of a thousand.

At the same time, with the full support of the Dean of the School of Literature and Law and the promotion of several professors who favored the "Hundred Schools," the headquarters expansion application was approved by the university at an amazing speed.

The original three-story stone building was kept as the "old site" and for partial archive storage, while next to it, a piece of land covering more than five thousand square meters was allocated. With joint funding from the college and university, plus a portion of faith crystals Lin Zhou took from his championship rewards as seed money, a brand-new, fully functional Hundred Schools Society headquarters complex began to be rapidly constructed using a combination of Divine Power and magic.

Just one week later, the new headquarters had taken initial shape, and the main building was completed.

The new headquarters was no longer a lone building but a small complex:

Central Main Building: Seven stories high, using obsidian and white jade as the main materials, it blended classical stability with modern simplicity. The roof was not pointed but a slightly concave dome simulating the firmament, symbolizing "Round Heaven and Square Earth" and "Inclusivity of All Things." The main building housed the President's Office, offices for each Hall Master, large conference rooms, strategic deduction rooms, archives, and Advanced lounges.

The "Strategy Building" and "Martial Arts Arena" on the east side: The Strategy Building is for the use of the War Hall and Battle Hall, containing various tactical sandboxes, equipment maintenance rooms, and vassal coordination training simulators. The adjacent open-air Martial Arts Arena has undergone spatial expansion, making it large enough for thousand-scale vassal combat drills (simulation mode).

The "Investigation Building" and "Hundred Workshops" on the west side: The Investigation Building is the territory of the Research Hall, filled with various research equipment, experimental fields, and data terminals. Li Mo, his Mechanical Goblins, and the Tiangong Dwarves treat this place like paradise. The Hundred Workshops is where actual production activities like mechanism manufacturing, rune engraving, and potion compounding take place.

The "Hall of Reason" and "Library" on the north side: The Hall of Reason is where the Administration Hall manages daily affairs, member services, and contribution settlement. The Library has begun collecting classics and materials related to the Hundred Schools of Thought, as well as various research reports and combat insights submitted by members; it will become the society's knowledge hub in the future.

Most eye-catching is the towering high platform newly built in the center of the plaza directly south of the building complex—the 【Hundred Schools Forum】!

【Hundred Schools Forum】

Type: Society-exclusive Wonder building (Special, not a God Domain building, but can be nourished by society Luck and core members' divinity)

Rank: Elementary (Can be upgraded as the society develops)

Effect:

Thought Resonance: When conducting academic lectures, ideological debates, or sharing insights within the forum's range, the speaker's verbal persuasiveness +3%, and the audience's understanding and comprehension efficiency +2%. There is a certain chance to trigger "Spark of Wisdom" (briefly increasing the comprehension speed of related skills).

Rule Manifestation (Weak): When a speaker has an extremely profound understanding of a certain thought or rule, the forum may assist them in demonstrating abstract concepts through a degree of visualization (light and shadow effects), enhancing persuasiveness and dissemination.

Society Cohesion: Holding regular activities at the forum can slowly increase the sense of belonging and centripetal force among society members, slightly enhancing the society's overall Luck (a metaphysical concept affecting resource acquisition, event trigger probability, etc.).

Legacy Imprint: Important lecture or debate content can be recorded by the forum itself (consuming energy) for future generations to repeatedly observe and learn from (requires permission).

Construction Requirements: Occupies 8 square meters, 15 meters high, requires core members (at least three) to inject a wisp of their own divine imprint and a small amount of civilization points (provided by Lin Zhou) for activation and binding.

The completion of the Hundred Schools Forum is not just a new building, but the physical manifestation of the Hundred Schools Society's spiritual symbol. It marks the society's development moving from simple "gathering like-minded people" and "fighting together" toward a deeper level of "researching thoughts," "spreading concepts," and "building an academic community."

Lin Zhou personally inscribed the plaque for the forum and held the first public lecture on the day of its completion, titled "Initial Interpretation of 'Civilization' — From Individual Power to Community Evolution." The lecture attracted almost all members of the society as well as a large number of students from the outer academy who came upon hearing the news. The "Thought Resonance" effect of the forum appeared for the first time. Lin Zhou's explanation was simple and profound, combined with examples, giving many people a more intuitive understanding of Way of Civilization. The scene erupted in warm applause and discussion many times.

With the opening of the new headquarters and the completion of the forum, the reputation and cohesion of the Hundred Schools Society reached a new Peak. The number of formal members quietly surpassed 1,100 after the Probationary Period assessment. It has not only undisputedly become the largest freshman-led club at Xinghai University, but its overall strength and influence have also begun to faintly touch the edges of some established large clubs.

On this day, Lin Zhou was in the president's office of the new headquarters, listening to Qin Qing's report on the society's recent operations. Zhao Hao, Li Mo, and Wang Meng were also present.

"...Currently, the society's contribution point System is initially operational. Members can earn points by completing various tasks (including research, production, teaching, external exchange and collaboration, resource exploration, etc.). Points can be exchanged for resources in the society's internal inventory, equipment blueprints, special knowledge access rights, or even applications for guidance from core members," Qin Qing reported meticulously. "Overall operation is stable, and member enthusiasm is high. Additionally, seventeen other clubs or student organizations have sent friendly exchange or cooperation intentions, including three established first-class clubs."

"Well done." Lin Zhou nodded approvingly. Qin Qing's efficient and rigorous management was indispensable for the society's rapid progress.

Zhao Hao chuckled and said, "Now, wherever I go, as long as I show our society badge, I feel like I have so much Face! Those guys who used to look down on everyone are much more polite now when we meet."

Li Mo was more concerned about actual output: "On the Research Hall's side, combined with the diverse God Domains of the new members, seven joint research projects have been launched. These involve 'Optimization of Multi-Civilization Vassal Collaborative Combat Models,' 'Preliminary Exploration of the Possibility of Fusing Alien Energy with Hundred Schools of Thought,' and 'General-Purpose Logistical Auxiliary Constructs Based on Mohist Mechanical Arts.' Progress is smooth, and resource consumption is within budget."

Wang Meng was concise: "The Battle Hall is ready for battle at any time."

Just then, there was a soft knock on the president's office door.

"Come in."

The door opened, and Su Yueyao appeared at the entrance. Today, she had changed into a light green martial outfit suitable for movement, appearing less cold and more heroic, holding a tightly sealed Jade Slip in her hand.

"Senior Sister Yueyao?" Lin Zhou was somewhat surprised and stood up to greet her. Zhao Hao and the others also greeted her one after another.

Su Yueyao nodded slightly to everyone, looked at Lin Zhou, and got straight to the point: "Junior Brother Lin Zhou, some of the more hidden connection information regarding that grotto-heaven and the 'son of heaven sword fragments' that you asked my Family to investigate has some leads. Additionally, I have a few words I want to discuss with you privately regarding the society's recent development."

Lin Zhou's expression turned serious as he said to Zhao Hao and the others, "You guys head out first; I'll have a private chat with Senior Sister Yueyao."

Zhao Hao and the others tactfully left and closed the door.

Inside the president's office, only Lin Zhou and Su Yueyao remained.

Su Yueyao handed the Jade Slip to Lin Zhou: "This was compiled from some ancient scrolls in my Family's secret collection by my great-uncle, combined with the speculations of several elders. It mentions that the great calamity that led to the fall of civilization in ancient times seems related to an 'Orthodoxy Dispute' and a 'Civilization Path Choice.' Its severity was beyond imagination, potentially even distorting some of the Universe's underlying rules. The Origin of the son of heaven sword fragment in your hand, the 'Sovereign's Way,' also seems to have played a role in that great calamity, but the records are vague, only mentioning the words 'The sword is broken, the cauldron overturned, and the Mandate of Heaven wavers.' With this fragment in your hand, fortune and misfortune are unpredictable. When exploring the grotto-heaven, you must be extra vigilant; it may produce unpredictable resonance or conflict with certain existences within the grotto-heaven."

Lin Zhou solemnly took the Jade Slip: "Thank you, Senior Sister. This information is crucial."

Su Yueyao shook her head slightly, her gaze sweeping over the new and grand society building complex outside the window and the bustling, vibrant society members in the plaza. Her tone carried a hint of deeper meaning: "The society is developing very fast, which is good. But the tree that stands out in the forest will be destroyed by the wind. Although Xuanyuan Hao is temporarily silent, the Xuanyuan Family behind him, as well as those who believe in the traditional 'Imperial Way,' 'Royal Way,' and even other highly exclusive paths, will not be happy to see a society that promotes 'inclusiveness' and 'civilizational diversity' rise so rapidly. The expansion of the society has also invisibly touched many existing interest patterns. Open spears are easy to dodge, but hidden arrows are hard to guard against."

She looked at Lin Zhou: "You are now not only the president of the Hundred Schools Society but also the most prominent banner of Way of Civilization among the younger generation. Your gaze cannot just stay on the internal management and development of the society. You need a more macro perspective to think about how to deal with external pressure and challenges, and how to strive for a broader living space and development opportunities for the society and the path you represent. Sometimes, Vertical and Horizontal Alliances are not just used for a competition."

Lin Zhou was silent for a moment, then slowly nodded. Su Yueyao's reminder was like a splash of cold spring water, cooling his head which had become somewhat heated due to the society's rapid development.

"Senior Sister is absolutely right," Lin Zhou said solemnly. "I have been somewhat negligent. The halo of the champion and the prosperity of the society can easily make one complacent. The upcoming grotto-heaven exploration is both an opportunity and potentially a test. As for the society..."

His gaze became sharp: "It's time to take the initiative to step out and deepen connections with potential friends. At the same time, I must let potential opponents know that the Hundred Schools Society is not an easy target that can be pushed around at will."

Su Yueyao looked at Lin Zhou's quickly adjusted state, a hint of admiration flashing in her eyes.

"Consider it settled then. I'm relieved." She paused slightly. "The grotto-heaven exploration is imminent; you need to return to your Peak as soon as possible and make full preparations. If you need any help, feel free to ask."

"I will." Lin Zhou thanked her sincerely.

After seeing Su Yueyao off, Lin Zhou stood alone in front of the large floor-to-ceiling window of the president's office, overlooking the vibrant society headquarters below.

A thousand-member society, the number one freshman club, new buildings, a flourishing atmosphere...

All of this was gratifying.

But Su Yueyao's reminder, the mysterious Jade Slip in his hand, and the upcoming, peril-filled unknown grotto-heaven...

All clearly told him:

Behind the glory and prosperity are even more surging undercurrents and even more arduous challenges.

The society's Peak is just the starting point.

The true waves may have only just begun.