The Supreme Eternal Prime God : 1000x System From Beginning

Chapter 36 – The Academy Can No Longer Contain Him

The moment the spiritual barrier shattered, the weight of the air within the Grand Tournament Arena changed.

Not in the way of an unexpected event.

Not in the way of an opponent unleashing an overwhelming attack.

Not even in the way of an external force disrupting a carefully balanced battle.

No—this was something greater.

Something deeper.

Something that was never supposed to happen.

The formless pressure that had once ensured the sanctity of the tournament grounds—the very force that had kept all battles within controlled conditions, ensuring that no disciple, no matter how powerful, could ever truly harm another—was now gone.

And in its place—

Something else had arrived.

A ripple in the flow of Qi.

A shift in the balance of the world itself.

A presence that did not belong.

Yet had come for one reason alone.

From the shattered remnants of the barrier formations, where golden embers of fractured spiritual energy still flickered like dying stars, a figure stepped onto the battlefield, their presence sharp, overwhelming, yet eerily controlled, the very air bending subtly around them as they moved, as if reality itself had not yet fully accepted that they existed here, as if the world was still trying to determine whether or not it was allowed to acknowledge their presence at all.

They did not belong.

Not to the Outer Court.

Not to Azure Dragon Academy.

Not to the structure that had once governed the rules of this tournament.

And yet—they were here.

And every single disciple watching—knew why.

Because this was no accident.

No mistake.

No unexpected turn of fate.

This was a test.

A trial.

A force sent not to intervene.

But to judge.

And there was only one person on this battlefield worth judging.

Xiao Lin did not move.

Did not react.

Did not even blink.

He simply stood at the center of it all, his golden-flecked eyes half-lidded, his posture relaxed, his breath steady, his presence unchanged, as if none of this mattered, as if the collapse of the barrier, the arrival of this unknown force, the chaos now spreading through the stands, the shouts of the instructors, the rising uncertainty among the Elders—

None of it was important.

Because it wasn’t.

Because he had already won.

Because this was not his problem.

And yet, despite the sheer indifference radiating from him, despite the unshaken certainty that he had already transcended the boundaries of this tournament, despite the fact that every person watching knew, deep in their bones, that nothing about this situation would ever affect the outcome—

The intruder still spoke.

"You are different."

The words were quiet.

Measured.

Yet within them, there was no curiosity.

No admiration.

Only a simple, unshakable certainty.

A fact that had already been acknowledged.

A truth that had already been decided.

"You are not like them."

A pause.

Then—

"You do not belong here."

A silence followed.

A silence that should have been filled with shock.

With disbelief.

With outrage from the instructors, with resistance from the Elders, with murmurs of confusion from the gathered disciples—

But none of those things came.

Because they all already knew it was true.

Because this was not an accusation.@@novelbin@@

It was a statement of reality.

And Xiao Lin?

He simply smiled.

Because this was not a test for him.

It was a test for the academy.

To see whether or not they would acknowledge what they had already realized long ago.

That he was no longer theirs to control.

High above the battlefield, within the Inner Court Pavilion, where only the strongest resided, where those who had once believed themselves untouchable now watched in silence, an Elder exhaled slowly, his gaze locked onto the battlefield below, his fingers tapping against the armrest of his seat in slow, thoughtful motions, his mind processing the events unfolding before him—not with surprise, not with shock, not with resistance—but with understanding.

It had finally happened.

The academy had reached its limit.

Because Xiao Lin had outgrown it.

A quiet chuckle escaped his lips.

Soft.

Amused.

Inevitable.

"Interesting," he murmured.

A pause.

Then—

"Let’s see how they handle it."

Because whether the academy accepted it or not—

Xiao Lin was already beyond them.

From the private pavilion, where the strongest disciples of the Outer Court had gathered to witness what should have been a battle for ascension, yet had now become something entirely different, Zhan Kanzi sat in stillness, his expression neutral, his dark eyes unreadable, his lips pressed into a thin line—

And yet, beneath the carefully controlled exterior, beneath the unshaken mask of composure, beneath the illusion of confidence, a single thought burned within his mind.

Why?

Why was this not enough?

Why was it that even now, even after tearing down the barrier, even after allowing an external force to step in, even after changing the battlefield itself—

Xiao Lin had not reacted?

Had not even acknowledged that this was supposed to be an obstacle?

As if even this—was beneath him.

And in that moment, for the first time since this tournament had begun—

Zhan Kanzi felt something he had never truly experienced before.

Not irritation.

Not frustration.

Not even anger.

But helplessness.

Because no matter what he did—

The outcome had never changed.

And no matter what happened next—

Xiao Lin would still be standing at the end of it.

Xiao Lin exhaled slowly, his golden gaze meeting the figure standing before him, his voice quiet, calm, yet carrying the weight of something far greater than a mere response.

"You’re right," he said.

A pause.

A smirk.

"I don’t belong here."

And just like that—

The academy could no longer deny it.