Nano Machine Chapter 8: The First Qualifying Stage is a Complete Freebie! (A)

Thanks to the insolence of Cheon Gyeon Woon, and his humiliation that ensued as a result, the crowd once again became very quiet.

It helped everyone to experience in person what people meant when they said that in Ma Fighting Academy, everyone is on an equal playing field where the truly strong survive and the weak die out.

Grand Lord West continued his rhetoric.

"The question you were going to ask is quite predictable. Like I said, there is only a chance for you to move on to each consecutive stage, so yes, it is quite cut-throat. However, each contestant who qualifies for the next round receives three invaluable advantages beyond this academy.

At the word "advantages" the contestants' eyes lit up.

The longer one was able to survive the grueling competition, the stronger and higher in social standing he or she would one day leave the academy.

"The first advantage you will receive is a miracle herb called a manna orb. A manna orb is a medicinal herb made from parts of mystical animals and mineral oils that are imported from the outside world. Every time you qualify to the next round, you will be granted one manna orb."

As Yi Hwa Myeong just explained, a manna orb was a medicinal herb created within the Ma faction. Although it wasn't at the level of a spirit orb made by the shaolin masters, it rivaled if not was superior to that of an energy orb. When an individual absorbed a manna orb's full properties it gave them a boost in inner power that was equal to about the result of twenty-years of training.

Hypothetically, if one consumed all six medicinal herbs throughout the entirety of the competition, by simple calculation he or she would have soaked up a potential level of inner power that was equivalent to one hundred twenty years' worth of training. It meant that anyone could have the chance to reach the "ultimate level" of mastery in martial arts.

Given the fact that all the masters who were ranked in the top 100 best fighters list were themselves in the ultimate level, this advantage was huge.

But as with all medicinal herbs, the person consuming it naturally built a resistance to its potency, which meant that each consecutive manna orb taken fails to produce the same effect as the one before.

That's why it was important for the faction to keep training and employing young successors into service. If one could constantly acquire twenty-years of instant inner power by consuming the orbs, why not just keep giving more of it to the high ranked masters who could simply prolong their service?

"Six stages… Hmmm."

There was a look of intrigue in Cheon Yeo Woon's eyes.

Although at this point his inner power level was closer to zero, if he could just pass through the succeeding stages of the competition then he would be given the invaluable opportunity to increase it within a very short period of time.

"The second advantage you will receive is access to the academy's library. I'm assuming with your experience and training in the world of the masters, that you would know the importance of these long-preserved books handed down to us by our ancestors."

This was indeed one of the greatest advantages of being in the Ma Fighting Academy

All of the sacred and seminal books within the Ma faction were neatly organized within the library of the academy. Moreover, it was the repository that contained what is considered the foundation of the Ma faction, namely, each one of six pillar clans' most sacred books.

"The sacred books!"

What Cheon Yeo Woon most needed right now was to get a hand on those books, even more so than gaining more inner power.

Despite the leverage he acquired through Nano's wonder-working magic, to survive all six stages of Ma Fighting Academy, he needed more than just mastery in Dangeom Bisool.

"The Ma Fighting Academy's library has a total of five floors. Each of the floor numbers correspond to the level of mastery the books within those floors contain. We will open one level at a time in successive order after each round of the competition advances onward. Of course, depending on how well you do, you will be given the opportunity to train using the Ma faction's six sacred books and even one of the Grand Lords' exclusive fighting techniques."

The top floor of the library contained books that were considered divine even among the top masters within the faction.

By training and mastering the techniques within these near-divine books, one was able to reach a level of renown that only the greatest fighters in the faction could attain.

"But, I highly doubt that any of you will ever reach the top level, so dream on."

Grand Lord West Yi Hwa Myeong was the master of raising the participants' hopes up to then dash them to pieces within a matter of seconds.

Despite the trolling, this enormous advantage that came from advancing through the rounds just made the crowd even more thirsty for blood.

"My recommendation is that you enjoy your time now. The third and last advantage you will receive is something none of you currently possess, namely ranking and position.

There was a commotion as the students burst into chatter, louder than ever before, at the mention of the words "ranking" and "position."

Unlike the rigged systems of the Jeong faction and Sa faction, the hierarchy of the Ma faction was determined exclusively through a merit, not spoils, system.

All boys and girls within the Ma faction are restricted from attaining a ranking or position until they enter Ma Fighting Academy, which, in truth, acts as a defense mechanism designed to protect them.

"Perhaps, that was the reason why?"

Now it was beginning to make more sense why everyone would say that everything will instantly change for everyone once the academy commences.

As soon as they entered the academy, they were no longer kids nor under the protection of the faction. Instead, they enter into its dog-eat-dog system with a metal leash on their neck.

This was the secret behind the Ma faction's ability to maintain, just within one faction, three different fighting orders categorized by three different mastery levels.

"If you successfully qualify through the first level of mastery, you become a low-level master; after qualifying through the second level, a mid-level master; and finally, after qualifying through the third level, a high-level master. It would be one thing for a common master to settle at one of these three levels, but it would truly be a humiliation for the future prince of our great faction to not reach beyond these common levels of mastery."

Because the training and recruiting competition for the common masters were commenced every five years, this year it coincided with the higher-stake competition that determines the best candidate for the Grand Prince.

"Ah! Even for those of you who are here to become a common master, the first qualifying round will earn you a manna orb, so remember to do your best!"

As Yi Hwa Myeong mentioned, this was a very momentous time, even for those participants looking to attain to the common master levels, because they had a chance to earn a manna orb, which when consumed would undoubtedly change the course of their life forever.

The fighters within the Ma faction were categorized into three main groups with the gap between each groups' skill level being as wide as the ocean.

The common masters were considered third-rate novices, the elite masters second-rate aces, and the exclusive, highest-ranking masters were seen as first-rate demigods.

As a result, the number of highest-ranking masters within the Ma faction were a small minority.

"After qualifying through the fourth stage, you will be appointed as a Grand Captain and after qualifying through the fifth stage, you will be made a Grand Admiral. As for those who qualify through all six stages… since none of you will ever attain that anyway, I will skip over it."

There was a good reason why Yi Hwa Myeong spoke like this.

First of all, to reach stage six was almost an impossibility in itself. In all of Ma Fighting Academy's history, there were no more than ten people who had successfully reached that far.

Hence, Yi Hwa Myeong's words were more just realistic expectations than some unfounded sadism on his part.

"If you reach any of these upper stages in the competition, you will be recognized within our faction accordingly. So, even though right now everyone is on an equal playing field, eventually there will be clear distinction of rank among you."

That was the perfect summary of the Ma factions -modus operandi-.

If you didn't preemptively strike and sprint for the top spot on the totem pole early on, you would eventually end up dropping out of the competition.

The eyes of Cheon Yeo Woon, who had been sprinting for survival throughout his whole life, began to glow with passion.

If escaping the throes of death was his way of life until now, from this point forward it would be to fight to get to the top.

"Don't get so excited. Most of you standing here will not reach beyond the third stage, no matter hard you try."

As though he already possessed knowledge about the future, Yi Hwa Myeong mockingly poked fun at the young contestants who were before him.

"That concludes my basic intro. Now, we will move on to our first round to assign your dorm and group numbers."

At Yi Hwa Myeong's sudden words, the faces of everyone in the crowd became stone-faced.

All those in the crowd who, up until this point, showed dogged determination and a strong will to make it to the top, began to panic for the first time.

No one expected the first stage of the competition to begin right on Day 1.

"As mentioned earlier, if you do not pass the first round of the competition, you will shortly be expelled from the academy. All such individuals do not even deserve to be a low-level, common master."

At Yi Hwa Myeong's cold words, the faces of half of all the participants standing in the one-thousand-person crowd turned pale.

They all anticipated at least some training before turning up the fierce competition, but it became clear to them in that moment that they intended to clear the threshing floor by 'gathering the wheat while burning up the chaff' right from the get-go.

Even Cheon Yeo Woon was thrown off by the abrupt announcement.

"What? We're being thrust into the preliminary round already?"