Li Tian stood at the edge of the arena, his breath steady but his mind still racing. The echoes of his victory over the Combat Construct lingered in the air, but it wasn’t the challenge itself that troubled him. It was the unsettling knowledge that the System was watching him, tracking his every move, and likely adjusting its trials to force him into submission.

His gaze lingered on the now-dissipating holographic screen, which displayed his new rank, C-Rank. It was an achievement, yes, but it felt like a mere stepping stone—one more move in a game where the rules were stacked against him.

His instincts had already told him something more was at play. This was more than a simple ranking system; the System was alive in its own way, a controlling force that manipulated the world around him. Li Tian clenched his fists, the energy coursing through his veins burning with a resolve to break free from this web of control.

As the air around him seemed to shift, Li Tian felt the familiar presence of the shadowy figure from earlier. It wasn’t physically here, but its influence hung like a storm cloud on the horizon. “The System will find you,” the figure had warned. “You’re a glitch.”

Li Tian’s hand instinctively twitched, and in an instant, his energy spear was back in his grip. It wasn’t a tangible weapon—it was born from the raw power of his cultivation and shaped by the rules of the System. But he hadn’t called it forth consciously; it had appeared without effort, as if responding to his instincts.

There’s more to this system than I realize, he thought. He had already surpassed its expectations, breaking through its limitations with his quick thinking and mastery over his elemental techniques. But that wasn’t enough. He had to learn the System's rules, and more importantly, learn how to break them.

---

Li Tian stepped off the arena floor and made his way toward the training chambers. His goal wasn’t just to train his body—it was to test the System itself. There had to be a way to manipulate it, to turn its own mechanics against it.

The walls of the training hall were lined with monitors that tracked the progress of every student in the academy. Li Tian could feel the weight of the System’s gaze, but he didn’t let it shake him. He needed to stay ahead.

He walked toward the center of the hall, where several students were already engaged in basic drills. Their movements were stiff, controlled by the System’s directives—strikes that followed a set pattern, attacks that had no flow. They weren’t warriors; they were players in a game, confined by invisible walls.

Li Tian observed their movements, recognizing the limitations that the System had imposed on them. These rules—they’re meant to confine us, to keep us in line. But I can see the cracks, he thought, a spark of realization lighting within him.

He had been branded a D-Rank, but that was a limitation imposed by the System. It wasn’t his true power. He could feel it—his potential far exceeded the boundaries that had been set. He had to push past those limitations, but he needed a way to test the System further. Every moment spent under its watchful eye was another moment of opportunity to learn.

---

One of the instructors, a middle-aged man with sharp eyes, approached him. "Li Tian, I’ve been told you’ve passed your combat trial with ease. But don’t let that make you complacent. The next trial, the Rank Advancement Trial, will test you in ways you can’t predict."

Li Tian nodded but said nothing. His mind was already elsewhere. The Rank Advancement Trial—another challenge. But it wasn’t the trial itself that worried him. It was what came after.

"All tests are the same," he said to the instructor. "They’re all designed to make us conform to the System’s will. But what if we don’t? What if we break free?"

The instructor raised an eyebrow, clearly puzzled. "You’ll have to pass each trial if you wish to advance. There’s no other way."

"That’s where you’re wrong," Li Tian murmured, more to himself than to the instructor. "I’ll find a way."

The instructor seemed unfazed, but there was a flicker of concern behind his eyes. "Just don’t get too confident. The System isn’t something you can just defy."

---

Li Tian’s thoughts began to crystallize as he walked away from the instructor. The System was designed to maintain order, to rank and classify everything according to its own set rules. But he didn’t belong in this system. He had transcended beyond what it could understand. He could manipulate it. He just needed to learn how.

He walked toward a set of holographic targets that had been set up for practice. With a wave of his hand, a spear of elemental energy appeared in his grasp once more, flickering with raw power. He had already used it in battle, but now, in the relative peace of the training hall, he could truly focus on testing it, pushing it to its limits.

Li Tian took a deep breath and focused. He wasn’t just going to strike the targets. He was going to test the limits of the System itself.

---

The first target appeared in front of him, a simple hologram designed to be torn apart by any student who was willing to engage with it. Li Tian’s spear lashed out, its energy crackling as it tore through the target with ease. The target flickered for a moment as it disintegrated, and another appeared in its place.

This time, however, he held back. Instead of using his full power, he focused on something else—the way the energy moved, how the System responded to his actions. He concentrated, feeling the underlying structure of the System itself as he shaped the energy within his spear.

The target flickered as his spear neared, its energy signature changing, almost as if it were trying to adapt. Li Tian’s heart quickened. There it is. The System is trying to counteract me.

The target shifted in response to the trajectory of his attack, but it didn’t move in a way that seemed natural. Li Tian’s mind raced as he analyzed it. The System is learning, he thought. It’s adapting.

With a slight twist of his wrist, Li Tian shifted the flow of his energy. The spear’s energy bent around the target, striking it at an angle that the System hadn’t accounted for. The target disintegrated again, but this time, the display flickered before returning to normal.

Li Tian’s eyes gleamed. I can control it. I just need to push further.

---

His movements grew bolder as the targets appeared in quick succession. Each strike became more precise, more attuned to the way the System tried to resist him. He wasn’t just fighting the targets anymore. He was learning how to break the code, how to manipulate the energy around him. The more he focused, the more he realized that there was a flaw in the System’s design—something that could be exploited.

But before he could test further, the holographic screen above the training hall flickered once again, and a new message appeared:

> [Warning: Unauthorized Manipulation Detected.] [System Integrity Breach Imminent.]

Li Tian froze. The words were a sharp reminder of how deeply the System was watching him. It wasn’t just training him—it was monitoring his every action. He had pushed it too far. A breach? Was that what the System thought of his progress?

But before he could react, another message popped up, accompanied by an urgent countdown:

> [Security Protocol Engaged.] [Incoming Threat Detected.]

Li Tian's gaze snapped to the far end of the hall. A shadow moved in the corner of his vision—an unknown figure cloaked in black, standing just outside the training area. The air grew heavy with a palpable tension.

---

The figure stepped forward, and Li Tian’s heart skipped a beat. The cloaked form was unmistakable—the same one that had warned him earlier. The figure’s eyes, glowing faintly from beneath the hood, locked onto his with an unnerving intensity.

"This is just the beginning," the figure spoke in a voice that sent a chill down Li Tian's spine. "The System will not let you go so easily."

Li Tian’s grip tightened on his spear. This wasn’t a mere warning. This was a declaration of war.

---

The figure raised a hand, and the room seemed to pulse with dark energy. The ground beneath Li Tian’s feet began to tremble, and a new presence—one far stronger than any trial or construct—began to manifest in the shadows.

Li Tian's eyes narrowed, and his voice dropped to a whisper. "Then let the game begin."