Chapter 69

In the exam hall, almost everyone who heard the prompt sound looked up immediately.

The live chat exploded.

“What?”

“I suddenly can’t understand!”

“Her talent has risen to star level? Say that again?”

Viewers were spamming the chat, and many who missed the initial chaos were asking how she did it.

“The potion!”

Ji Fu had spent four days experimenting multiple times with a strange potion.

Before Shen Qingxue arrived, she had extracted the sound core from the Half-Howl Sky Ape and integrated it into the potion.

Then, in front of countless viewers in the live stream, she drank the potion.

The potion took effect within seconds, and the Bright Moon she was piloting immediately triggered a full-screen red alert.

“Talent fluctuating intensely…”

“Talent has been upgraded.”

From drinking the potion to her talent skyrocketing, the entire process was very brief.

This led to many people watching her operation but failing to react in time.

The entire star network was abuzz with excitement.

Everyone was discussing what kind of potion Ji Fu had used.

Previously, she had already upgraded her talent once, and many people knew she had a defective talent.

But for so long, there had never been such an effective treatment potion.

Not only the netizens, but even the proctors were extremely envious.

“What kind of potion is this?” Someone looked at Zhang Huan with burning eyes. “Its effect is so exaggerated that it can directly upgrade from S+ to star level?”

“Although it did use top-tier super-star and star-level materials, the effect is truly remarkable,” the Fang family representative said with deep eyes. “For regular interstellar people, the cost is too high.”

But it’s different for aristocratic families.

These materials are precious, but not entirely out of reach for them.

Especially with such a significant mishap on Qionghai Huashi’s side, if this thing can really enhance or stabilize talent…

Many present considered this possibility, their breathing becoming heavier.

Unfortunately, Ji Fu’s operations over the past few days, though constantly under the camera, didn’t reveal the formula directly.

Because the other materials and reagents she used in the experiments were all finished products.

They were various reagent tubes with her own labels, readable only to her.

Just from these reagent tubes, it was impossible to determine the raw materials used.

Not to mention the entire mixing process, which was extremely complex and had a high failure rate.

Huang Peilan glanced around at the eager faces and laughed.

She said coldly, “Ignoring the cost issue, the potion’s effectiveness means that Ji Fu’s own talent had already reached the star level.”

She added mockingly, “Do you all think that anyone using this potion could reach star-level talent?”

“This is a talent-repairing potion, not some miracle drug to enhance talent.”

The entire proctoring room fell silent at these words.

Though what she said was true, seeing Ji Fu’s talent painlessly upgrade, from S+ to star level, made it hard for many to remain unmoved, even knowing it was just a repair potion.

After crossing into the star level, one would be considered a top genius not just in military academies, but throughout the entire interstellar community.

Some were surprised by Huang Peilan’s bluntness.

It’s rare for aristocrats to speak so unkindly.

But then again, considering Huang Peilan’s daughter also had a defective talent, her words were understandable.

There was much discussion among the proctors, with many expressing great curiosity about this potion.

Especially since Ji Fu still had one vial left, many began eyeing the Interstellar Academy with keen interest.

Ji Fu stored the remaining potion.

Her previous talent upgrade involved using blue rosette to counteract residual antidotes in her body, automatically elevating her to S-level.

After the remaining antidotes were metabolized, her talent recovery sped up significantly.

Gradually, it rose to S+.

But there was still some distance to star level.

Talents above the star level are fundamentally different in concept and magnitude; relying solely on natural recovery would take too long.

With the upcoming rounds of exams, she would inevitably face super-star level opponents.

Upgrading her talent was an urgent matter.

Though the potion seemed like a four-day effort, she had actually prepared for a long time.

She knew her own body best; after reaching S-level, she could feel that her talent had not peaked or fully recovered.

This indicated that her inherent talent was above S-level.

So, she refined many reagents, aiming to improve on previous talent-repairing potion formulas, creating a higher-level talent repair potion.

But she had never succeeded.

During this period, she had acquired quite a few super-star level materials and even attempted to make potions using Broken Gilded.

Without exception, all of them failed.

The experiment she was conducting in this exam hall was her fourth attempt to replace the main ingredient.

This time, she used Ghost Lotus with the sound core of the Jingtian Ape as the catalyst.

Before adding the sound core essence, she still couldn’t guarantee the potion’s success.

Fortunately, luck was on her side.

When she used the star-level Ghost Lotus and added it to the previously refined reagent, she thought of using the long howl ultrasound of the Jingtian Ape to decompose and merge the potion.

Braving the howl to move forward, it wasn’t her eagerness to kill this super-star level beast.

It was that she needed to ensure that the potion in her weapon box was decomposed and merged by the ultrasound.

Sure enough, only the potion mixed with ultrasound could integrate with the sound core essence without any repulsion.

This catalyst was used very boldly, and the potion formula had a certain degree of non-replicability.

…Unless they could find another super-star level Jingtian Ape.

But more peculiar than the potion’s success was her body’s reaction.

She named the potion refined from the super-star level materials “Sound Ghost Lotus.”

After using Sound Ghost Lotus, her talent quickly rose to the star level.

Star-level talent is already considered top-tier, but her talent was still not fully restored.

…It wasn’t just a matter of not being completely restored; after crossing into the star level, the previously vague sensations became particularly clear.

There were clearer physical reactions and an immeasurable talent value.

As she controlled the Bright Moon, the hidden value panel on the mech showed that her talent was still climbing.

Entering the mech made these previously vague concepts appear as specific values.

Ji Fu had seen the final values of many star-level talented individuals.

In the previous rounds of exams, she had even helped Tan Xi and Li Yunyi repair their mechs.

Compared to the often inflated talent values of aristocratic families, Tan Xi and Li Yunyi’s values were very normal.

After a high burst, Tan Xi’s value could even reach Star+.

They were excellent star-level mech soldiers from the three major military academies.

Now, after Ji Fu’s talent upgrade, the values from her mech far exceeded those of Tan Xi and Li Yunyi.

Seeing the skyrocketing value, both she and Qin Chu Yue at the base were surprised.

Qin Chu Yue watched the talent value soar as if it had stepped on the accelerator.

She couldn’t help but exclaim softly, “What the…!?”

Qin Chu Yue jumped to her feet, glancing again at the talent rating, still star level.

It hadn’t even reached Star+.

But the data kept climbing.

What does this specific number represent?

It indicates that under the same talent, Ji Fu’s upper limit is higher, representing that she could have stronger sustained combat capabilities than any ordinary star-level mech soldier.

It means more precise control over materials.

Most importantly…

It means Ji Fu’s talent might be higher than they had ever imagined.

“Damn!” Qin Chu Yue thought, getting angrier.

“These bastards!” She smashed the wine glass in her hand, furious. “How much did they take from you?”

Given Ji Fu’s currently exhibited talent strength, Qin Chu Yue couldn’t imagine how bright of a new star Ji Fu would have been if she hadn’t gone through those ordeals and had grown smoothly.

She would likely have been stronger than the so-called geniuses of the aristocratic families.

She clearly possessed infinite potential.

But because she was born into poverty and had no backing, people leached off her, draining her talent dry!

Qin Chu Yue was so angry her face turned red.

In today’s era, technology had advanced beyond imagination, becoming capable of shaking the heavens and the earth.

But this rapidly developing technology brought more opportunities and increasingly inflated ambitions.

The emergence of top-level talent should have been about helping all of humanity progress better and combating the horrifying mutated beasts and plants that appeared after the black hole phenomenon.

But in the end, this super ability became a monopolized resource driven by greed?

Sometimes, Qin Chu Yue didn’t know if this was progress or complete regression.

Ji Fu glanced at the skyrocketing values, her expression calm.

This time, repairing her talent used super-star level materials.

Currently, it seemed that her talent’s strength was so high that even after refining super-star level materials, it could only recover to the star level. To recover more, conventional methods might no longer work.

The numbers continued to rise, and amidst the chaotic information, Ji Fu looked up at the mech in front of her.

It was a super-star level mech.

Shen Qingxue on the opposite side also realized what was happening, her face turning particularly grim.

She hadn’t expected that the first news after so long would not only be Ji Fu killing a super-star level beast but also the news of Ji Fu’s talent upgrade.

For once, Shen Qingxue, usually expressionless, showed some emotion.

She didn’t know how Ji Fu had upgraded her talent or if this upgrade had a time limit, like the resonance between her and her brother’s talents.

In her moment of hesitation, the newly upgraded Ji Fu perfectly synchronized with the Bright Moon again.

She piloted the mech, unleashing the heavy weapon of the Black Bright Moon.

Unlike the broadsword used by the White Bright Moon, the Black Bright Moon was equipped with a different weapon, which Ji Fu rarely used.

So when she pulled out a massive high-speed rotating cannon, the viewers in the live stream were shocked.

“Is she preparing to fight Shen Qingxue?”

“That’s not very rational. Shen Qingxue is currently resonating with Shen Qinglan’s talent, making her a true super-star level. If she’s going to fight, she should wait until the resonance ends.”

“Does she think Shen Qingxue will give her the chance to wait?”

Indeed.

The talent resonance between the twins was Shen Qingxue’s greatest advantage.

She had no intention of letting Ji Fu and Wan Feng leave.

So, as soon as Ji Fu took out her weapon, Shen Qingxue immediately piloted her mech into the air.

Boom!

The violent barrage cannon cracked the entire land but missed Shen Qingxue.

The speed of a super-star level mech was beyond imagination.

In the blink of an eye, Shen Qingxue, who had just taken off, was already in front of Ji Fu.

A row of black spikes rose on the mech’s fists, and as soon as Shen Qingxue appeared, she smashed down with all her might.

The entire process left no time for Ji Fu to react.

The super-star level pressure was brought to the extreme.

Ji Fu dodged slightly.

Bright Moon indicated: “High-intensity heavy punch impact, defense damage: 45%.”

The defense system of Bright Moon had already been shattered by the Jingtian Ape, but because Ji Fu’s talent had upgraded, the mech’s performance was released to 100%, causing Bright Moon to automatically repair the defense system in the few minutes she was extracting the sound core essence.

However, under the super-star level heavy punches, the star-level defense system was still too fragile.

Shen Qingxue struck again with a fierce blow.

Bang—

The mech’s heavy punch tore through the air and crashed down!

“Activate berserk mode.”

The wearable mech was very petite, giving Ji Fu some convenience as she quickly reacted, dodging to the side again.

She was fast, but Shen Qingxue was faster. The heavy punches continued to rain down, the repeated impacts making one’s scalp tingle.

Shen Qingxue also activated the super-star level turret.

In the midst of heavy punches, the mech in front opened dozens of turrets, with the super-star level quantum patrol light cannons all aimed at Ji Fu.

In that instant, the whole world lit up with white light.

Countless piercing roars hovered around, and the world was filled with distorted quantum light cannons.

These cannons had tracking properties, and once they locked onto Ji Fu, they rained down on her.

Ji Fu activated strobe defense.

In the brief combat, Bright Moon’s control panel showed the current mech’s value determination.

“Mech level: Super-star, pilot talent: Super-star-“

It wasn’t Star+ nor a true super-star level, but Super-star-.

Shen Qingxue’s value was indeed lower than a normal super-star level.

However, the talent resonance was domineering, giving Shen Qingxue the strength of Super-star-.

The live stream was abuzz, marveling at the explosive power of the super-star level mech.

Ji Fu’s star-level strobe dodged some of the heavy cannon fire, but the rest still bombarded her head.

Ji Fu took half a step back, and the heavy weapon in her hand suddenly transformed into a large cannon barrel.

Just before the barrage hit her, she fired a light cannon.

The light cannon met Shen Qingxue’s quantum light cannon in mid-air and exploded.

The whole world seemed to spin before their eyes.

The entire live stream was filled with intense white light, leaving the viewers stunned.

“What? I thought she would use a shield to block?”

“No, she used a cannon against a cannon. What kind of mutual destruction tactic is this?”

“My eyes are almost blinded.”

The light cannon blazed, and even the exhausted Wan Feng barely withstood the aftermath, shielding himself with the body of the Jingtian Ape.

Looking up, the surrounding Ghost Lotus plants were shattered into tiny pieces by the intense shock waves.

Shen Qingxue reacted quickly, activating super-star level defense.

In the blinding white light, she remained standing.

The super-star level light cannon and Ji Fu’s counterattacking star-level barrage cannon exploded together but couldn’t fully penetrate the super-star mech’s defense.

In the flickering white light of the live stream, only the silhouette of Shen Qingxue’s mech could be seen.

“This mech is Shen Qinglan’s masterpiece, isn’t it?” Someone in the exam monitoring room spoke softly. “Super-star level mech is indeed extraordinary.”

“…Ji Fu’s Bright Moon is also an outstanding example of the same level.” The head of the Zhou family said in a deep voice. “Using such a dangerous cannon-for-cannon tactic, her mech didn’t fall apart.”

As the white light in the live stream slowly faded, Bright Moon reappeared in a completely new form.

“Defense system damaged, activating starry sky mode.”

After abyss mode, Bright Moon now showcased a brand-new mode: starry sky mode.

At first glance, it looked no different from before.

It was still clad in black armor, but the heavy weapon it wielded had transformed from a cannon into a light sword.

The light sword glittered with starlight, befitting the name starry sky mode.

No one knew what material this sword was made from. The sky in the exam hall had darkened, and the sword gleamed with unique starlight under the dark sky.

Ji Fu’s second Bright Moon had shattered in the earlier roar.

She had switched to a third mech with the same appearance: Bright Moon Starry Sky.

After her mech shattered, there was a moment when Shen Qingxue lost sight of her target. When she reappeared, what Shen Qingxue saw was the enormous starry sky sword slashing towards her.

Her expression changed slightly.

Ji Fu’s sudden approach had no warning at all. The mech was still in the process of loading, yet the sword had already swung in front of her.

And it was incredibly fast!

The giant sword swung towards her head, and Shen Qingxue reacted by raising her hand to block. The starry sky sword struck her right arm, sparking a large explosion of sparks.

Her right hand stung, and as she prepared to counterattack, she once again lost sight of her target.

“Where did she go?”

It wasn’t a case of the system losing track due to disruption; it was a physical disappearance. Ji Fu’s Bright Moon vanished into thin air for half a second.

Shen Qingxue’s expression changed slightly as she was about to activate the mech’s berserk mode.

Since resonating with Shen Qinglan’s talent, she hadn’t really used the berserk mode of the super-star level much because she simply didn’t need it.

This was also the first time she had been forced into berserk mode.

But the battle just now had consumed too much energy. As Shen Qingxue activated berserk mode, a red warning box flashed on the mech.

This warning box activated privacy mode, so the viewers in the live stream couldn’t see the message.

However, the head of the Shen family in the exam monitoring room suddenly changed his expression.

There was only one situation that would trigger that window prompt: unstable talent state.

Shen Qingxue’s talent hadn’t reached the super-star level yet. Even if it was close to super-star level, it was still only Star+.

After intense consumption, star-level talents could become unstable.

Fortunately, Shen Qingxue reacted quickly. After the prompt appeared, she quickly administered herself with special-grade nutrient fluid.

This mech, specially designed by Shen Qinglan, had emergency equipment inside. Once activated, it would automatically administer special-grade nutrient fluid to the pilot.

Compared to drinking nutrient fluid during combat, this method of administration was safer and didn’t require the pilot to worry about it; it connected automatically.

The whole process took just a moment, so fast that many viewers watching the live stream didn’t even notice.

But during this gap of unstable talent, Ji Fu suddenly bounced out from mid-air and slashed with the starry sky giant sword, breaking Shen Qingxue’s right shoulder blade with one stroke.

Unable to predict Ji Fu’s movements due to the unstable talent, Shen Qingxue was hit squarely on the head by the giant sword, nearly severing her right arm.

The injury to her right shoulder directly worsened her talent state.

The special-grade nutrient fluid injected couldn’t repair it in time.

But just at that moment, Ji Chu Yue looked up and saw Ji Fu’s talent values still skyrocketing crazily.

In the footage, Ji Fu, at a frenzied pace, ignored the falling debris and emitted intense flames from the starry sky bolts all over her body.

By activating the strobe and then boosting her speed within the strobe, she swiftly arrived in front of Shen Qingxue. In Shen Qingxue’s incredulous eyes, Ji Fu, using two enormous fangs that appeared out of nowhere, tore Shen Qingxue’s super-star level mech apart from the wound on her right shoulder with a burst of mechanical force.

Bang—

Crack!

The super-star level mech exploded, high-current streams bursting out.

Not far away, Wan Feng was panting heavily.

…Only heaven knew how long he had spent pulling out the two teeth of the Jingtian Ape.

He hadn’t made any moves throughout the entire scene, so Shen Qingxue had simply ignored him. For a super-star level person, it was normal not to notice an S+ mech.

But Shen Qingxue never expected that after she appeared, Ji Fu would inform Wan Feng to pull out the teeth.

Using the potion Ji Fu gave him, Wan Feng tore the fangs of the Jingtian Ape.

Then, in the half-second of Shen Qingxue’s unstable talent, Ji Fu flashed over and took away two of the fangs.

This was their super-star level weapon.

The giant mech in front of them collapsed with a thunderous crash, and at the same time, another urgent alert sounded throughout the examination site:

“Hanhai Academy’s Shen Qingxue, eliminated.”