Chapter 54: Touring

Ben was about to open the academy map and head toward the Resource Department when he heard someone calling him.

"Yo, Ben!"

He turned around.

Daniel was approaching with another student, a young woman with long dark hair. She appeared to be around his age and wore the standard Jupiter Academy uniform.

Daniel raised his hand as he walked closer.

"We’re going to tour the whole academy. Come with us!"

Ben glanced at the young woman beside him before looking back at Daniel.

"A tour?"

"Yeah! We’ve only just joined the academy. There are so many places to explore, and I don’t want to spend the entire day sitting around." Daniel grinned. "Besides, it’ll be easier to find everything if we go together."

The young woman smiled and gave Ben a small nod.

"Hello. I’m Alice."

"Ben. Nice to meet you."

"Likewise."

Ben looked at Daniel again.

"Where are you planning to start?"

"Well, I haven’t decided yet." Daniel scratched the back of his head. "I thought we could start with the main facilities and then visit the other departments."

Ben considered it for a moment.

He had originally planned to visit the Resource Department and check out the available resources, especially the options for his next breakthrough. However, there was no immediate need to make a decision.

He could always visit the department later.

Besides, exploring the academy would help him become familiar with the campus. Since he would be staying here for the foreseeable future, knowing where everything was would be useful.

"Yeah, let’s go," Ben agreed.

Daniel smiled.

"Great! Follow me. I already checked the map a little."

He turned around and began walking, with Alice following beside him. Ben joined them.

As they left Building A, Daniel opened his information device and displayed the academy map.

"Look at this. The campus is much bigger than I expected. There are entire districts dedicated to different departments."

"That’s not surprising," Alice replied. "Jupiter Academy has been around for thousands of years. It would be strange if it didn’t have extensive facilities."

"Still, seeing it in person is different."

Daniel zoomed in on the map.

"Let’s visit the Training Department first. I heard they have several combat arenas, including simulation chambers that can recreate battles against creatures of different cultivation realms."

Ben glanced at the map.

"That sounds interesting."

The three of them headed toward the Training Department.

On the way, they passed several large buildings and open training grounds. Students were moving between the facilities, while some groups could be seen practicing combat techniques under the supervision of instructors.

A few automated vehicles moved along designated paths, carrying equipment and supplies.

The entire district was considerably busier than the residential area.

After walking for several minutes, they reached a massive structure with a large sign above its entrance.

[Training Department]

The building was surrounded by several open arenas. Some were occupied by students practicing their techniques, while others were being used for supervised combat sessions.

Ben could hear the sounds of weapons clashing and occasional explosions of energy.

Daniel looked around with excitement.

"This place is amazing!"

He pointed toward one of the arenas.

"Look at that!"

Ben followed his gaze.

Two students were fighting inside a circular arena. One wielded a long spear, while the other used a pair of short swords. Both were around the Bronze Realm, and their movements were considerably faster than those of ordinary people.

A transparent barrier surrounded the arena, preventing their attacks from affecting the spectators.

Alice glanced at the information display near the entrance.

"These are the public training arenas. Students can reserve them using Academy Credits, although some are available for free depending on the schedule."

"Can we use them too?" Daniel asked.

"Of course. We’re students now."

Daniel immediately looked interested.

"Maybe we should try one later."

Ben smiled faintly.

"Why not?"

They entered the building and found a large reception area. Several holographic displays showed information about the available facilities.

There were individual training rooms, group practice areas, combat simulation chambers, weapon training halls, and specialized environments designed for different abilities.

Ben spent some time examining the information.

The combat simulation chambers caught his attention.

Unlike ordinary training rooms, these chambers could generate opponents based on selected parameters. Students could choose different enemy types, cultivation levels, combat styles, and environmental conditions.

Some advanced chambers could even recreate battles against multiple opponents.

’This could be useful.’

Ben could use these facilities to test his abilities without revealing too much in public. He would still need to be careful about the information recorded by the academy, but the simulation rooms seemed like a good place to improve his combat experience.

Daniel, meanwhile, was reading about the weapon training facilities.

"I wonder if they have instructors who specialize in sword techniques."

Alice pointed toward another section.

"They do. The weapon training halls have instructors for swords, spears, sabers, bows, and several other weapons. Some of them even teach advanced weapon arts."

Daniel nodded enthusiastically.

"Then I’m definitely coming back here."

After exploring the Training Department for a while, they left and continued toward the next destination.

Their next stop was the Technique Library.

It was located in a separate building, considerably taller than most of the surrounding structures. Its exterior had a simple design, but the energy barrier surrounding it was noticeably stronger.

Several students were entering and leaving through the main entrance.

Daniel looked up at the building.

"This must be the place where they store all the cultivation techniques."

"Not just cultivation techniques," Alice corrected. "It also contains combat arts, movement techniques, body cultivation methods, and various other forms of knowledge."

Ben was already interested.

He had several powerful abilities, but that didn’t mean he couldn’t benefit from learning additional techniques.

In particular, he wanted to explore different movement methods and combat arts.

They entered the library.

The interior was surprisingly quiet despite the number of students. Several floors were visible from the central hall, with holographic signs indicating the different sections.

A reception desk stood near the entrance.

Students could access the catalogue through their identification cards and browse the available techniques. However, some materials required specific permissions or a certain number of Academy Credits.

Ben opened the catalogue on his device.

There were thousands of entries.

’They really have quite a collection.’

He browsed through the available categories.

Cultivation methods, sword techniques, movement arts, defensive techniques, energy manipulation, spiritual techniques, and many others.

Some were available to all students, while others were restricted to higher-ranked students.

He also noticed that the library contained knowledge related to alchemy, formations, artifact creation, and other specialized fields.

Ben didn’t select anything yet.

He wanted to examine the available options properly before spending his credits.

After spending some time in the library, they moved on.

Their next destination was the Research Department.

Unlike the Training Department, this area was much quieter. Several students and researchers could be seen entering different laboratories, while some buildings had restricted access.

Alice explained that the Research Department was responsible for studying abilities, celestial energy, artifacts, rare materials, and many other subjects.

It also conducted experiments involving secret realm resources and unusual creatures.

Ben found this particularly interesting.

His White Ruination was an unusual innate ability, and he had already discovered that its interaction with different resources could produce unexpected results.

Learning more about energy systems and rare materials might help him understand his own ability better.

However, he wasn’t planning to reveal its true nature to the academy.

He could simply study the general knowledge available to students.

After that, they visited the Mission Hall.

It was one of the busiest places on campus.

A massive display occupied the central wall, showing hundreds of available missions. Some involved collecting resources, while others required students to explore dangerous areas, eliminate creatures, escort researchers, or assist with various academy projects.

Each mission displayed its difficulty, recommended cultivation level, rewards, and requirements.

Daniel leaned closer to the display.

"Look at these rewards. Some missions offer thousands of Academy Credits!"

Alice shook her head.

"Those are usually difficult missions. You shouldn’t choose one just because the reward is high."

"I know, I know."

Daniel continued browsing.

Ben also examined a few missions.

There were several related to secret realm exploration, including resource collection assignments in the Abyssal Battlefield.

He noticed that some missions offered additional rewards for obtaining specific materials.

’That’s worth remembering.’

If he eventually entered the Abyssal Battlefield, he could look for materials that were useful for both his breakthrough and the academy’s missions.

That way, he might earn additional credits while searching for a suitable resource.

After leaving the Mission Hall, they visited the Medical Department.

It was a large medical complex equipped with advanced treatment facilities, recovery chambers, and specialized laboratories.

Daniel glanced toward one of the buildings.

"This is where they treated me after the entrance examination."

Ben nodded.

"Then you should know the place quite well."

"Unfortunately, yes."

Alice laughed softly.

They didn’t spend much time there. After all, none of them needed medical treatment at the moment.

Their tour continued through several other areas, including the academy’s cafeteria, student activity center, and public cultivation facilities.

The cafeteria was particularly large, with several floors and different dining sections.

There were ordinary meals, energy-rich food, and specially prepared dishes suitable for cultivators of different realms.

Ben noticed that students could pay using Academy Credits or other accepted forms of payment.

Daniel looked at the food displays.

"Now this is a place I can appreciate."

Alice shook her head.

"You’ve been talking about food since we left the lecture hall."

"What’s wrong with that? Cultivation makes you hungry too."

Ben chuckled.

They eventually purchased a few meals and sat down together.

While eating, Daniel brought up the academy’s ranking system.

"So, Ben, do you plan to maintain your fifth position?"

Ben looked at him.

"I’ll try."

"That’s all? You’re already in the top five. Shouldn’t you aim for the first place?"

Ben shrugged.

"I’ll see how things go."

Daniel laughed.

"You’re surprisingly relaxed about it."

Alice looked at Ben thoughtfully.

"Maintaining a high ranking won’t be easy. There are many talented students here, especially those from influential families."

"I know."

Ben wasn’t particularly worried.

He had no intention of revealing everything he could do just to maintain his ranking. As long as he continued improving, he would have enough opportunities to compete for better positions later.

After finishing their meals, the three of them continued exploring.

By the time they reached the outer section of the central academic district, Ben had gained a much better understanding of the campus.

However, there were still several restricted areas they hadn’t visited.

Daniel checked the map again.

"There’s a lot more to this place than I expected. We haven’t even explored the advanced training facilities or the restricted research buildings."

Alice shook her head.

"We can’t enter those areas without permission. Some facilities are reserved for higher-ranked students or researchers."

"Then we’ll visit them when we qualify."

Daniel put away his device.

He looked toward Ben.

"Anyway, that was a pretty good tour. What are you planning to do now?"

Ben glanced at the time.

He had spent considerably longer exploring the academy than he initially expected.

However, he still wanted to visit the Resource Department.

"I need to check something at the Resource Department."

"Your entrance reward?" Alice asked.

Ben nodded.

"Yeah. I received an Epic-rank Resource Selection as part of my reward, so I want to see what’s available."

Daniel’s eyes widened slightly.

"An Epic-rank resource? That’s a pretty good reward."

"It is."

"Then you should definitely check it out. I heard the Resource Department has a separate section for special reward selections."

Ben nodded.

"That’s what I’m planning to do."

Daniel smiled.

"Alright. We’ll go with you. I still want to see what kind of resources they have."

Alice agreed.

The three of them opened their maps and headed toward the Resource Department.

Ben had originally planned to visit it alone, but having companions wasn’t a problem.

As they approached the building, he noticed several students carrying resource containers and sealed boxes.

The entrance was guarded by academy personnel, and a large holographic display showed the available services.

[Resource Department]

[Resource Exchange]

[Special Reward Redemption]

[Resource Storage]

[Material Evaluation]

Ben looked at the display.

’Looks like this is the place.’

He stepped forward and entered the building with Daniel and Alice.

His next breakthrough was still some distance away, but finding a suitable resource in advance would give him more options.

And with his Epic-rank reward waiting to be claimed, he had a good reason to examine the department’s collection carefully.