185: Rewards issued

The silver five-pointed star, which originally represented the fifth-rank lieutenant military rank, had now undergone a magnificent transformation, becoming a dazzling golden five-pointed star. This was the insignia of a Captain, and it even had two thin V-bars, clearly indicating the rank of a Second Captain (Military Rank).

"A Second Captain (Military Rank)? It's one rank higher than the predetermined reward for the mission. It seems this is an additional commendation from the Empire."

Li Yang was pleasantly surprised and couldn't help but murmur to himself.

According to the initial mission settings, successfully completing the mission should result in a five-rank promotion, meaning he should have been awarded the rank of a first-rank Captain. However, he unexpectedly received an extra rank promotion.

Not only that, when Li Yang tapped his smart brain and carefully checked his military merit record, he found that his original 10,000 military merit had now increased by 5,000, while the 30 million star coins mission reward amount remained unchanged.

This series of increased rewards made Li Yang truly feel the Empire's high recognition of the mission's success.

"That's right, I can't forget the starship at the Imperial port in the Lanstan Star System. According to regulations, upon completing this mission, I have the right to acquire a starship there. This is a very important reward and must not be overlooked."

Li Yang silently calculated in his mind, reminding himself.

After these rewards, combined with his past savings, Li Yang's net worth was now quite substantial. He possessed nearly 70 million star coins, and his military merit had reached as much as 15,100.

This wealth and honor were undoubtedly his solid capital for continuously climbing within the Imperial military system.

Just as Li Yang was happily immersed in the joy of his gains, in other cabins of the fleet, A Zhi, Su Xia, and Wang Gang also simultaneously received message notifications from the Academy.

"Beep... Graduation assessment completed. Relevant personnel from the Imperial Military Department will arrive tomorrow to confer your ranks. Please be prepared."

The crisp notification sound echoed in the quiet cabin, instantly making the three of them excited and their blood boil.

They exchanged glances, their eyes filled with uncontrollable excitement and joy. They almost simultaneously got up and eagerly rushed towards the Command Room, wanting to share this good news with Li Yang as soon as possible.

The three rushed into the Command Room, their faces beaming with bright smiles, reporting the news they had received.

"Not bad, it seems you've all received the news. Starting tomorrow, you will officially become Imperial Military Officers. From now on, you must all do well in your respective positions."

Li Yang smiled, his eyes full of gratification and expectation.

Just then, the sharp-eyed A Zhi inadvertently glanced at Li Yang's epaulet and couldn't help but widen his eyes, blurting out,

"This is... a Second Captain (Military Rank)!"

This exclamation, like a clap of thunder, instantly attracted the attention of Su Xia and Wang Gang.

They then reacted, their gazes simultaneously fixed on Li Yang's epaulet.

"A Second Captain (Military Rank)! Teacher, weren't you just a fifth-rank lieutenant before? How could this be..."

Wang Gang looked shocked, his eyes filled with disbelief, and his words full of questions.

"That's right, the mission is completed, so my military rank naturally increased. Is there a problem?"

Li Yang said casually, still with a faint smile on his face.

Is there a problem... This is a huge problem.

The three of them were, after all, top students from the Imperial Supreme Military Academy, and they had more or less some understanding of the career development of their senior graduates.

But in their knowledge, they had never heard of anyone receiving such a significant rank promotion from just one mission.

This was simply beyond their imagination, leaving them somewhat stunned for a moment.

"Teacher, you might not know, but take one of our academy's seniors as an example. After he was commissioned upon graduation, he worked diligently and struggled for a full half a year in his position before finally managing to get promoted to a second-rank military rank."

Su Xia's face was filled with disbelief, her expression almost numb, her words full of confusion and wonder.

She truly racked her brain but couldn't understand why, when performing the same type of mission, Teacher Li Yang could directly advance a full seven ranks after completing just this one mission.

Moreover, from the perspective of difficulty, this mission was by no means one of those dauntingly high-difficulty tasks, was it?

Seeing the three of them looking as if they had been struck by lightning and were numb with shock, Li Yang smiled helplessly, gently shook his head, and slowly said,

"Perhaps... it's because I was selected as an Imperial Military Officer through the 'Spark Plan.'"

"Spark Plan?"

Upon hearing this unfamiliar term, the three of them first froze in unison, their faces instantly showing deep confusion, and then they simultaneously repeated the four words, their tones full of curiosity and inquiry.

Hearing their reaction, Li Yang's heart stirred.

After all, regarding this so-called "Spark Plan," he himself was like looking at flowers through a fog, understanding very little. Even when the smart brain explained it, it was vague and failed to fully clarify.

Seeing that Wang Gang seemed to know a thing or two about it, Li Yang took the opportunity to ask,

"What? Do you know about the Spark Plan?"

"Hmm, I know a little."

Wang Gang quickly nodded, his expression becoming serious, and he explained in an orderly manner,

"A professor at our academy once mentioned in class that this Spark Plan is not simple. It's a special plan specifically established by the Empire to directly select the elite of the elites from numerous talents. However, the selection criteria for this plan are extremely strict, and those selected are as rare as finding a needle in a haystack, very few indeed.

You wouldn't believe it, but even our well-informed and knowledgeable professor, over so many years, has never heard of any Imperial Military Officer around him being selected through the Spark Plan. So, when we learned that you, Teacher, were one of them, we were truly too surprised."

"Even your professor hasn't seen other Imperial Military Officers selected through the Spark Plan? It seems the probability of being selected is indeed unusually low."

After hearing Wang Gang's explanation, Li Yang couldn't help but secretly gasp in his heart. He increasingly felt that his selection was like winning a super lottery, incredibly lucky.

Originally, Li Yang only had some vague understanding of his special identity, but after Wang Gang's explanation, he felt as if he was peering through a thin mist, vaguely seeing a more mysterious and profound corner of this plan... Time flew like a white colt passing a crevice, and in the orderly navigation of the fleet, they unknowingly arrived at the next day.

The faint morning light had just spilled onto the bulkheads of the Command Room, and the few of them walked into the Command Room as usual.

Just then, the crisp electronic sound of the fleet system echoed in the space.

"Detecting an approaching fleet..."

"A fleet?"

Li Yang frowned slightly, a glint of thought flashing in his eyes.

A moment later, his gaze gradually became firm, and the corners of his mouth curved slightly upwards as he said,

"It seems it should be the people sent by the Imperial Military Department."

Seeing this, the few of them quickly used the fleet's communication system to send coordinates to the other fleet, preventing them from getting lost in this Subspace.