Chapter 3: The last trial
As a soldier, Caleb Li knew the importance of physical training. He wouldn't sit idle or wallow in pity.
He used the three days for high-intensity interval training. Starting with early morning sprints, he performed push-ups, squats, jumping jacks, burpees, planks, high knees, and much more.
Those living in the dreg watched him with various baffled expressions. Previously, he had been somewhat different from all the other children living there.
The dreg was the city's slum, where those with meager talents banded together to survive the harsh world.
The world was in chaos under the terrifying attacks of the Shataki. The human race's top priority was becoming stronger.
Anyone deemed useless would be thrown out anonymously.
The only saving grace was that the government still allowed those without talents to live in the city's dirtiest part.
Of course, the government wasn't charitable. The dreg residents didn't live there for free.
They were required to handle the millions of junk items in the junkyard.
The junkyard was a deadly place filled with various dangerous animals and poisonous gases.
Still, it was far better than being kicked out of the city. The desolate land outside the city walls was rampant with aliens.
The neurotoxins released by the Shataki caused a deadly poison that made it impossible for humans to stay outside for long.
However, the same wasn't true for animals. After the first detection of the toxins, thousands of animals died.
Their deaths enraged the world's inhabitants, but there was nothing they could do about it. The mysterious system hadn't arrived yet.
Therefore, humanity didn't have the spare time to mourn the animal kingdom's death.
However, the animals that survived the horrifying toxins mutated into deadly beasts.
With the emergence of these mutated beasts, the battle took another drastic turn.
Humanity now had to not only defend against the aliens but also be wary of the mutated beasts.
Therefore, the desolate land became a dead zone for all three races. As for the dreg, it was a paradise compared to the desolate land.
Watching Caleb Li sprint around the dreg with a heavy metal in his hand surprised everyone.
Previously, when he was admitted to Maple High School, everyone in the dreg was astonished.
Maple High School was a place where those with some influence sent their children. It wasn't a place for the weak and poor.
Grandma Shu was an elderly woman with no influence who could barely support herself and her two grandchildren with the money she earned from the junkyard.
How on earth did she manage to pull such strings?
Unable to wrap their heads around it, they came to one conclusion: Caleb Li must be a talented genius.
However, when his talent results were released, they were as meager as their own. They were dumbfounded.
Many even confronted Grandma Shu about it, demanding to know how she had done it, but they couldn't get an answer from her.
And from then on, everyone living in the dreg became hostile towards them, making life difficult for the three-person family.
Grandma Shu and Caleb Li could still endure the hostility, but little Lihua couldn't and was bullied repeatedly.
Her elder brother, who should have protected her, was long gone, chasing after girls.
The previous Caleb Li was an unreliable boy who had nothing on his mind but thoughts of Amanda.
With the help of the mysterious Jade Pendant, he was much stronger than anyone else in the dreg and could have stopped the bullying of his family. Alas...
Now, the famous Caleb Li who had disdained staying in the dreg was seen running back and forth with heavy metals.
Many people tried to approach him, but when they remembered how strong he was, they could only look at him from afar.
His muscles were well-toned and proportional compared to the skinny bodies of those around him.
For the next three days, they watched him train from morning till night, with only short breaks between his intensive exercises.
After completing his high-intensity interval training on the third day, Caleb Li dragged his exhausted body back to their house.
Their house was located in a secluded part of the dreg, closer to the heaps of junk. This made it one of the most dangerous places to live.
He pushed open the old wooden door and walked inside. He saw his little sister reading a textbook with focused concentration and didn't want to disturb her.
Unfortunately, Lihua's perception was sharper than he thought.
"Welcome, big brother," she said, raising her head from her textbook and smiling at him.
"Hmm. Are you doing your assignment?" He asked, moving closer to her to ruffle her hair.
"Oh, don't touch my head." She leaned back, trying to dodge his hand.
"Fine. Touch it." She grumbled with a sweet smile.
"That's more like it," he chuckled, running his hand through her hair for a moment before retracting it.
"Where is Grandma?"
"In the kitchen. She asked you to wait for her," Lihua replied, her eyes still glued to her textbook.
Caleb nodded and headed towards his room, peeling off his sweat-drenched clothes. He grabbed an old, tattered towel and draped it over his shoulder before making his way to the single bathroom in their cramped dwelling.
Emerging from the bathroom, he slipped on a pair of faded black shorts and entered the living room. Grandma Shu looked up from her meal and gave him a slight nod.
"Take a seat and join us," she said, her voice soft but firm.
Caleb sat down and began eating without a word. The meal was simple but hearty, a welcome respite from his grueling training routine.
After they finished eating, Grandma Shu looked at him with a mixture of pride and concern in her eyes. "Come with me," she said, rising from her seat.
Lihua watched her brother leave with a worried frown, her fingers fidgeting nervously.
Inside Grandma Shu's room, she opened a small wooden box and carefully extracted a small, transparent vial. Inside the vial, nestled against the velvety lining, lay a single red pill.
"Take it," she said, her voice trembling slightly. "And make me proud."
Caleb stared at the pill, his mind swirling with questions.
He knew the Ancient Realm trials were a brutal test, but he also knew that it was his only chance to break free from the shackles of his impoverished life and to remove the label of a trash.
He had seen the hope in his grandmother's eyes, and he wouldn't let her down. Moreover, to enacted his revenge.
Back in his room, he sat on his bed. With a deep breath, he took the vial and uncorked it. The pill was small, but the energy radiating from it was palpable. He tipped it back and swallowed it dry.
A bitter taste flooded his mouth, followed by a wave of dizziness. He felt his body tingling, his senses growing sharper, and his mind becoming clearer.
"Spirit of the Ancient Realm," he whispered, his voice filled with a newfound determination.
A genderless voice echoed in his head, resonating with an otherworldly power. 'Welcome, Jun Caleb Li.'
'Are you ready to face your final trial?'
Caleb closed his eyes, his heart pounding in his chest.
"Yes," he replied, the word resonating with unwavering conviction.
The room began to fade, replaced by a swirling vortex of light. The air crackled with energy, and an overwhelming sense of anticipation filled him.
He was ready. He was prepared to face whatever awaited him, to push his limits and emerge stronger than ever before.
For himself, for his family, and for the future of humanity.
He stepped into the vortex, and the world dissolved around him.
Gifts
-- Gift
received Weekly Power Status
-- Power
Ranking 
-- Power
stone