118: Incongruous S-Class

Early the next morning, the delegation was taken to visit the so-called "Academy."

That place wasn't called an academy; its official name was the "Northern Military District Third Special Superpower Training Center," but the North Bear Country reception staff habitually referred to it as the "Icefield Camp."

As the vehicle drove through the main gate, Lu Guangming knew this place was an entirely different world from Donghuang Academy.

There were no teaching buildings, no library, no dormitory area. Only rows of low, snow-covered concrete structures, like military bunkers. The training grounds were astonishingly vast, bordered by towering walls and watchtowers, the walls covered with energy sensors and automated defensive weapons.

The air carried the scent of sweat, metal, and a faint trace of blood.

"Here, there is no distinction between students and instructors," explained the man receiving them, around thirty years old, wearing a crisp military uniform with a single general's star on his epaulette—the rank of Major General.

He wasn't tall, about 1.75 meters, with a lean build that made him look more like a clerical worker than a soldier. A pair of thin-framed glasses rested on his face, his eyes calm and unreadable behind the lenses.

"My name is Andrei Petrovich Sokolov," he said in a gentle, even scholarly voice. "I am responsible for the camp's daily management and training program development."

Ambassador Zheng stepped forward to shake hands and introduced the delegation members.

Andrei's gaze swept over the five of them in turn.

When his eyes fell on Sister Lin, his brow furrowed almost imperceptibly.

Sister Lin was wearing a long down jacket today, but on her feet... were ankle boots with a 5-centimeter heel. In this snow-covered training camp, her attire was far too "civilian."

Major General Sokolov's gaze lingered on her heels for half a second before moving on, his eyes now holding something indescribable—not contempt, but more like a confirmation of "just as I thought."

Next was Qin Lie. He had deliberately worn the Association's standard-issue trench coat today and stood ramrod straight, but the look in Major General Sokolov's eyes... was like looking at a lion kept in a cage for too long, one that had lost its wildness.

"The Aura of a corporate workhorse." That was the subtext Lu Guangming read from the other's micro-expressions.

When it was Chen Long's turn, Major General Sokolov took in his straight posture, serious expression, and the confident Aura of a strong individual, a faint, almost imperceptible smile tugging at the corner of his mouth.

"A serious kid." The look in his eyes said, "A bit ridiculous, but worth observing."

Then came Zhai Yingying. The young girl was extremely nervous today, instinctively shrinking behind Lu Guangming. When Sokolov looked at her, his expression grew even more peculiar.

"Why are there so many children?" his eyes seemed to ask. "Did Xia Country send you here on a taxpayer-funded vacation?"

Finally, his gaze settled on Lu Guangming.

Lu Guangming was wearing an ordinary down jacket and snow boots today, standing casually, even lazily, looking like an ordinary student dragged out by a teacher for a social practice activity.

But Major General Sokolov looked at him the longest.

Three seconds.

Then he withdrew his gaze, his expression returning to calm, but Lu Guangming caught that fleeting... confusion?

"Welcome, everyone," Major General Sokolov turned. "Please follow me. I'll show you around our daily training."

The group followed.

Lu Guangming walked at the back of the group, watching Major General Sokolov's back, his eyes narrowing slightly.

During that brief moment of eye contact just now, he had sensed it.

That oppressive feeling, deliberately restrained yet still as heavy as an iceberg... S-Rank.

And not a newly promoted one at that. He was firmly established at the S-Rank level; he must be a Rule Fragment possessor!

Chen Long and the others clearly hadn't noticed—their Perception attributes weren't high enough to detect that level of energy control precision.

But Sister Lin seemed to have sensed something. Walking beside Lu Guangming, she lowered her voice, "That Major General... something's off about him."

"Hmm?" Lu Guangming feigned ignorance.

"Hard to say," Sister Lin frowned. "He looks like a clerical worker, but when he walks... his center of gravity is terrifyingly stable. And look at his hands."

Lu Guangming looked.

Major General Sokolov's hands were ordinary, even a bit thin. But when he occasionally raised a hand to indicate direction, the angle of his wrist turn, the spread of his fingers, were all as precise as machinery—that wasn't something achieved through training alone; it was body memory carved into instinct through countless life-and-death battles.

"Interesting," Lu Guangming said softly.

The tour began.

In the first training ground, over a hundred Ability Users were undergoing basic physical training.

No treadmills, no barbells. They were doing squats in the snow carrying solid metal logs over a meter in diameter, the logs covered in a thick layer of White Frost. Some were repeatedly charging against special alloy walls, each impact producing a dull, thunderous sound, the walls covered in cracks and dark red bloodstains—left by previous trainees.

An Ice-type Supernatural Ability user. He stood bare-chested in the minus-thirty-degree wind, hands pressed to the ground, trying to use his ability to freeze the land within a ten-meter radius beneath him—not just freezing existing water into ice, but instantly freezing the water molecules in the air and moisture in the soil, creating a hard, icy domain.

"He's practicing area control," Major General Sokolov explained calmly. "An Ice-type's role on the front lines isn't to be a 'mage,' but to create terrain advantages, divide the battlefield, and restrict enemy movement."

Lu Guangming noticed that although the Ice-type user's lips were purple from the cold, his muscles were bulging, clearly undergoing simultaneous physical enhancement training.

"Do non-Flesh system Ability Users also need to undergo physical training of the same intensity?" Chen Long asked.

"Of course," Major General Sokolov replied matter-of-factly. "Superpowers consume stamina and are affected by physical condition. A strong, healthy body is the foundation for all abilities. We don't have a 'Support Class' or a 'Logistics Class' here—support and logistics are handled by ordinary people and technological equipment. Every Ability User must be a frontline combatant."

He paused, then added, "To be strong, one must be strong in combat. Ability Users who focus purely on energy control often struggle to form decisive combat power on a rapidly changing battlefield. This is our core philosophy."

The group fell silent.

The second training ground was even more intimidating.

Here, they were conducting actual combat sparring. Not friendly, restrained exchanges, but real fighting.

Two Strength System Ability Users were trading blows, the sound of their fists colliding like cannon fire. The intensity was reminiscent of his own first personal tournament final match with Chen Long.

The most outrageous part was, Lu Guangming saw a Sensing Ability User—the type usually hiding in the rear for early warning and reconnaissance—engaged in... wrestling with a Physique System Ability User.

The Sensing user was being thrown around, his face bruised and swollen, but every time he was knocked down, he immediately got back up and lunged again.

"He's training close-quarters Perception and danger prediction," Major General Sokolov said. "Sensing types are often priority targets on the battlefield. If they get closed in on, they must have the ability to buy time, or even counter-kill."

Sister Lin watched the Sensing user being thrown to the ground again and again, her face pale.

She was a Sensing type. In Xia Country, her role was mid-range area control and reconnaissance. If judged by North Bear Country's standards... "I might die on the front lines," she murmured.

The tour lasted an hour, and the delegation members' moods grew increasingly heavy.

This wasn't an academy; it was a munitions factory. Putting living people in, grinding them down in the cruelest way, then producing standardized war machines.

Lu Guangming suddenly understood why Xia Country's higher-ups had sent them to North Bear Country.

This wasn't just a diplomatic visit; it was a naked "clash of philosophies."

Either they would convince North Bear Country with Xia Country's philosophy of "diversity, inclusivity, and each playing to their strengths," proving that different paths could also lead to strength.

Or, they would be seen by North Bear Country as "weak, inefficient, and easily crushed," forever dismissed and losing this potential ally.

Their current lineup was practically a microcosm of Xia Country's Ability User system—

Chen Long, Willpower System, auxiliary command type.

Lu Guangming, considered a Strength System, strongest among the A-Ranks.

Qin Lie, Physique System, the damage-soaking type.

Zhai Yingying, Spirit, control and disruption type.

Sister Lin, Sensing, reconnaissance/area control type.

A diverse array, a hundred flowers blooming.

In the eyes of North Bear Country's muscle-bound brutes, this probably looked like a circus performance.

The tour ended, and they returned to the reception room.

Major General Sokolov didn't keep them long. After a brief farewell, he had his subordinates escort the delegation out.

Watching the convoy drive out of the training camp gates, this seemingly frail Major General turned and walked towards a solitary building deep within the camp.

Entering his office and closing the door, he activated an encrypted communication device on the wall.

A few seconds later, a holographic projection lit up, revealing a figure—a young man sitting on a massive, specially made metal chair, his bare upper body muscles sculpted like a statue, his deep brown eyes calm as a frozen lake.

"Your Highness Ivan," Major General Sokolov bowed his head slightly.

"Andrei," the projection was of Ivanov, North Bear Country's only God's Chosen, the Inheritor of the God of Strength. His voice was low and resonant. "Well?"

Major General Sokolov was silent for a few seconds, then said, "The scent of peace."

"Hmm?"

"That country..." the Major General adjusted his glasses. "Their people carry something rarely seen here. Not weakness, but... a sense of 'living.' That female Ability User in high heels, that Association member standing as straight as if at a military parade, that little girl so nervous she looked about to cry... They live in a world where one can 'relax.'"

Ivan said nothing, waiting for him to continue.

"But their convictions are strong," the Major General added. "Especially that team leader, his Willpower is as firm as a rock. And..."

He paused. "That seemingly laziest young man, I couldn't see through him."

"Oh?"

"His energy signature is only around A-Rank. His physical fitness is decent, but just decent," the Major General recalled. "But his eyes... were too calm. Too calm for a teenager brought to a foreign country and shown such brutal training. And when my Perception swept over him, it felt like... hitting air. Not blocked, but 'non-existent.'"

A slight gleam appeared in Ivan's eyes.

"Xia Country was willing to let him come," the Major General concluded. "Either they are truly ignorant. Or... they have absolute confidence."

On the other end of the projection, Ivanov leaned back in his chair, fingers lightly tapping the armrest.

"Perhaps the former," he said. "Their system is about laissez-faire, wild growth. They might not even know what level their own people are at."

"Shall we meet them?" Major General Sokolov asked.

"Yes," Ivan nodded. "I'm a bit interested now. Arrange it, under the guise of a 'friendly exchange.'"

"Understood."

The communication ended.

Major General Sokolov stood in the empty office, looking out the window at the warriors sweating on the training grounds, then thought back to the five Xia Country Ability Users he'd met today.

"The scent of peace..." he repeated softly.

Then he took off his glasses and rubbed the bridge of his nose.

The eyes behind the lenses now held none of their former scholarly air, only a deep weariness born of experiencing countless life-and-death situations and seeing too much.

He was a Sensing type.

A Sensing type who had survived the battlefield by predicting danger and discerning weaknesses.

But he was also S-Rank.

An S-Rank who, within North Bear Country's "Flesh First" system, had stubbornly used his Sensing foundation to train himself to the point where he could fight S-Rank Flesh System users head-on.

Incongruous?

Of course it was incongruous.

But here, if you weren't incongruous, you wouldn't survive.

This was their conviction.

He put his glasses back on, resuming his clerical officer appearance, and pushed the door open to leave.

Outside the window, the training camp's horn sounded once more.

A new round of "grinding" had begun.