Sitting on the bed, lost in thought for a while, Charles Lynn began to wash up, pack his things, and prepare to leave school.

"It's about time. I should get going."

He glanced around the dormitory, making sure nothing was left behind. Charles Lynn picked up his luggage, ready to leave.

Before leaving, he habitually stood on the measuring device to check his physical condition—mainly to see if his [Core Resonance Rate] had increased.

Ding!

The measuring device flickered, gradually displaying rows of data, not much different from yesterday's results.

"As expected, still no change..."

Charles Lynn muttered to himself, but suddenly his voice cut off. Another line of data appeared: Core Power—Stage Three.

Core Power, Stage Three!

When did I break through? How come I didn't even notice?!

Just as Charles Lynn was stunned, yet another line of data gradually appeared, making him hold his breath.

Core System Resonance Rate—12%!

"12%!!!"

Charles Lynn stared blankly, dazed for quite a while. He stepped off the measuring device, then got back on, then off again, then on again—repeating this dozens of times...

"Overnight, my [Core Resonance Disorder] is cured?!"

Suddenly, he felt his face ache a little. Touching his cheek, he realized the corners of his mouth were stretched so far from smiling, they were about to split.

What is going on?!

Charles Lynn looked around, a bit bewildered. The dorm was empty. If Henry Lewis were here, he would have walked up to his best friend, slapped that big guy on the shoulder, and told him—Bro, I'm coming clean. That's right, I'm 'Ling.' You don't have to worry about your future anymore. Just stick with me, and I'll take you to the top!

Taking a few steps back, he sat on the edge of the bed, took out his communicator, and, excited, Charles Lynn's fingers flew as he prepared to tell Henry Lewis the news.

Wait... something doesn't feel right?!

Charles Lynn's body tensed, his finger hovering over the send button, suddenly frozen in place.

Scenes from last night flashed through his mind—coming back from Mobin Port, the events in that alley replayed in his memory like a movie, vividly clear.

"On that stone sphere... [Ninety-Nine Layer Core Code Lock]... it was real... so that wasn't a dream?"

Holding his forehead, Charles Lynn's thoughts grew inexplicably clearer. Looking at the major wanted news on the holographic virtual screen, a thought flashed through his mind—The military and security departments of Nanluo City are making such a big show of searching, claiming it's to hunt down armed forces from the Iceblood Principality, but in reality, isn't it for that stone sphere?

In other words, the military and security might actually be after me?

The reason he thought it was a dream was because, in reality, the [Ninety-Nine Layer Core Code Lock] is almost impossible to engrave.

"[Ninety-Nine Layer Core Code Lock], this is a theoretically possible composite core code lock, existing only on virtual platforms. Engraving it in reality is just a theoretical possibility, like how a perfect circle is nearly impossible in this world..."

In the first-year core code class, Professor David Armstrong, the leading authority on core code studies at Nanluo Academy, had once asserted this with absolute certainty.

Charles Lynn agreed with this point. Overlapping core codes is a technical feat; once you go beyond nine layers, the difficulty of engraving them in reality increases a hundredfold.

In reality, let alone the [Ninety-Nine Layer Core Code Lock], Charles Lynn had never even heard of a thirty-six-layer core code lock.

Such core code locks only exist on the Alliance Academy's virtual platform or the Alliance Core Battle Network.

That's why he thought everything last night was just a drunken dream.

"So, the thing inside that stone sphere cured my [Core Resonance Disorder]..."

Just as he was reeling in shock, Charles Lynn felt a burning sensation in his chest. He opened his shirt and his expression changed.

In the center of his chest, a strange, clock-like blurry pattern was spinning clockwise, slowly rotating and emitting a faint glow.

"The pattern of these lines..."

Charles Lynn suddenly looked up at an emblem on the wall—the symbol of the Star-Ao Empire: beneath a golden cross star, a hand gripping a giant golden sword.

The lines on that emblem were somewhat similar to this pattern...

However, in the wardrobe's dressing mirror, Charles Lynn's chest showed nothing unusual—no pattern at all.

"This is bad..."

Charles Lynn's heart pounded wildly. He could even imagine that, perhaps soon, people from the military and security would burst in, arrest him on the spot, throw him in prison, or turn him into a lab rat.

At that moment, the pattern on his chest glowed faintly, and Charles Lynn's anxious mood suddenly calmed, his thoughts becoming as clear as a tranquil lake.

Lines of information flashed through his mind, allowing him to quickly form a general assessment of his situation. Even Charles Lynn was surprised by this sharp, clear analytical ability.

Then, he opened the map of Nanluo Province, looked at the training camps in each region, and fell into deep thought.