The news that scholar Igor had received approval from the Dean and Vice Dean to break precedent, gaining access to the Liansuo Cheng and being allowed to take the virtual laboratory out of the experimental building, quickly spread throughout the Apothecary School.

Yang Ying instantly became the center of attention.

In a corner near the Apothecary School, Student A said to a few classmates, "Did you hear? There’s a new student named Igor who actually got Dean Faskerlun and that cold-faced Tis’a to make an exception for him."

A glimmer of admiration flashed in Student B’s eyes: "Of course, I know. Good heavens, it's only been three months, and he’s already earned an exception. This year's batch of freshmen is fierce; how are we supposed to live? It’s truly agonizing to compare people."

Student C scoffed, "Tch, what’s that? Basang, with his four-star ranking, wasn't allowed an exception until half a year after joining the school? That Igor took a full three months; it’s nothing special."

Student A glared, "Absolutely wrong! Basang comes from a prestigious family of apothecaries; they have their own inherited knowledge. Before even arriving at the academy, he had already mastered many Tier Seven potion recipes and spiritual refinement techniques. Plus, his grandfather has some connections with our Dean, which is why the Dean made an exception for him. Who knows how long Basang spent studying that knowledge before coming to school? How can that compare to Igor, starting from scratch and achieving an exception in just three months?"

Student B and Student C suddenly realized, "So that’s the inside story. We are truly impressed, deeply impressed."

Conversations like these were happening everywhere. As Yang Ying walked down the paths, he felt like the focus of every gaze. Whether it was senior students or fellow freshmen, their attention shifted to him as he approached. The hubbub would immediately quiet down, transitioning into murmured telepathic transmissions.

However, most of these students’ mental cultivation was still primarily at the Second Tier. In front of Yang Ying, their telepathy was practically like shouting. He didn't even need to concentrate to hear them. Their voices automatically entered his mind. Most of these voices were unconstructive; besides expressing envy and admiration, there were also undertones of sourness.

Laiya, Dimas, and Dannan had all come to offer their congratulations. Since they were all top students among the freshmen along with Yang Ying, and they had previously helped Dannan assert himself, they were quite close and considered good friends.

At this stage, Dannan’s academic performance was still slightly behind the other three, but he was much improved from being at the bottom of the freshman class three months ago. Since his awakening, Dannan had gradually begun to display his talent, and his ranking among the freshmen was rapidly rising; his future was clearly bright.

Dimas was always a man of few words. He shared the same dormitory villa with Yang Ying, but Yang Ying had never encountered him inside the villa. In Yang Ying's view, Dimas was the quintessential bookworm. Relying on his Tier Three Saintly physical body, he could study tirelessly without sleep or food, devoting all his energy to learning. The fact that he could take time out to congratulate him struck Yang Ying as quite an effort.

As for Laiya, the first thing she said upon seeing him was a strong condemnation: that it was incredibly unfriendly of Yang Ying not to consult them before submitting his application. After a long string of accusations, seeing Yang Ying remain as calm and detached as ever, she turned and stormed off in a huff.

Yang Ying offered a perfunctory apology toward her retreating back, but inwardly, he found this academy life quite pleasant. Having navigated a past filled with bloodshed and turmoil, enjoying this atmosphere of peace now offered a unique flavor.

Still, even after arriving at the Empire, the development of the Three Races remained an eternal theme for Yang Ying.

At night, Yang Ying returned to his dormitory villa and entered his room. At the doorway, he traced a "Do Not Disturb" sign in the air. The text glowed with a faint red light, hovering and undulating, refusing to dissipate. This was primarily to prevent the automated systems from bothering him. After locking the door and confirming his surroundings were secure, he spread out a mat on the floor and sat down cross-legged.

He entered the Floating Continent.

Beside a beautiful lake, a gentle breeze stirred the water into soft ripples, mirroring the green mountains on the opposite shore. A pair of birds flew overhead, occasionally emitting crisp chirps. Near the bank, a fish suddenly leaped from beneath the surface, flipped in the air, and splashed back down, sending up a spray of water.

Katerina, wearing a white dress, sat on the grass by the lake. The breeze lifted strands of her hair as she looked up at the sky. There, she saw a hazy, diffuse mass—neither blue sky, nor dark clouds, nor a star-filled expanse. If one absolutely had to give it a name, perhaps it could be called Chaos.

Light from an unknown source illuminated the entire continent, creating a cycle of day and night.

Katerina withdrew her gaze and checked the time, intensely anticipating Yang Ying's arrival.

A hand gently rested on her shoulder, bringing a familiar sensation. Katerina’s heart jumped, and she turned, her eyes immediately brightening.

"Commander!" she called out with deep affection.

Yang Ying came and sat beside her, pulling her into an embrace. They felt each other's warmth. Yang Ying's hand explored lightly over her figure, and then he suddenly said, "You’ve lost weight."

Katerina stared blankly at him for a long moment before replying, "Brain activity and emotional fluctuations both consume energy."

Yang Ying tapped her forehead lightly. "I know. You mean that missing me also consumes energy."

Katerina let out a sudden burst of laughter. "That's exactly what I mean."

The two tumbled onto the lawn, indulging in this heaven and earth by the lakeside, cherishing the moments they had together.

After a long while, they sat up again, tidying their clothes. Yang Ying began recounting the recent happenings at the academy.

Since enrolling, meeting Katerina in the Floating Continent had become a recurring event; it was the primary reason for returning to his dormitory villa.

"...So, I still cannot concoct the Tier Eight Class Eight potions. It seems I must start with the Tier Eight Class One potions, tackling the easier ones first, proceeding step by step."

When Yang Ying received permission to access the Tier Eight curriculum, he had intended to leap straight to concocting the ultimate Gene Activation Potion. However, after numerous attempts, none had succeeded, and they were far from achieving even a glimmer of hope, forcing him to abandon the goal.

The difficulty of the ultimate Gene Activation Potion was too vast a leap compared to Tier Seven potions. Yang Ying had no choice but to shift his focus, starting with the Tier Eight Class One potions.

He had only been engaging with the Tier Eight coursework for a few days and hadn't yet successfully concocted a single Tier Eight potion, but he had already memorized several Tier Eight courses. It seemed the day he crafted his first Tier Eight potion was not far off.

Katerina leaned on Yang Ying’s shoulder, pondered for a moment, and asked, "Commander, I have a question, and I don't know if I should ask it..."

Yang Ying mused, "Hmm... then perhaps you shouldn't ask."

"Alright," Katerina replied without hesitation.

"Heh heh," Yang Ying laughed, kissing her cheek. "I was just joking. If you have a question, ask. Don't worry about whether you 'should' or not."

Katerina wrinkled her nose, made a funny face, bit her lip, and then asked, "Commander, why didn't you have a clone play the role of Igor?"

"That is a good question," Yang Ying said with a smile, looking up at the sky. "Initially, I just wanted to witness the legendary Atlantean civilization firsthand, gather information about Langdon, and then find a way to obtain the ultimate Gene Activation Potion and bring it back. I did that. But my thinking changed once I arrived at the Central Glacier Academy."

Katerina thought for a moment and asked, "Is it because of what we discussed last time, about advancing to Tier Four?"

Yang Ying nodded. "Exactly. Although the clone and the main body are both me, sharing thoughts, memories, and personality, there is a subtle yet significant difference between the experience gained by the main body and the experience gained by the clone."

A look of confusion crossed Katerina's face; she clearly didn't understand.

Yang Ying smiled. "You haven't awakened yet, so there are things you can't understand without direct experience. Once I get the ultimate Gene Awakening Potion and you awaken, you can create a clone and experience it yourself. For now..." He paused. "Let me give you an example. It’s like the difference between the left hand and the right hand. Both are my hands, but they give me a different feeling, so their functions differ. The gap between the main body and the clone is much smaller than that between the left and right hands, but it still exists. I habitually use my right hand to eat, and I habitually use my main body to be close to you—these are external manifestations of that difference."

Katerina blushed, but her heart felt sweet. She asked again, "Commander, then after you learn the ultimate Gene Activation Potion, will you continue studying?"

"Yes," Yang Ying nodded. "The longer I stay at the academy, the clearer my feeling becomes: my advancement to Tier Four will hinge on apothecaries. They say everything—food, clothing, shelter, and transport—can lead to the Dao. There is no divine medicine in this world that someone can drink to immediately advance to Tier Four. However, researching potions and spiritual refinement can point me toward the gate of the Great Dao."

"As for how far I need to go, I don't know. But one thing is certain: the Tier Eight Class Eight potions absolutely will not allow me to advance to Tier Four."

While Yang Ying and Katerina were enjoying their time by the lake, back in Pohan Yan, Blade was remotely controlling the development work around the solar system. Major mining operations were running at full capacity, extracting ship after ship of ore and sending it to the production lines, which churned out warships. The scale of the Jushou-class battlecruiser fleet had now reached three thousand vessels.

On Planet E’er, the Radiant Consul Cas led the divine race warriors to establish a new divine city. The population had already doubled since their initial landing.

And on Planet Iros, over a dozen Blade Emperors, leading increasingly large Zerg armies, were conquering territory and sustaining their forces through warfare; their military strength had also doubled since first landing.

One chapter for today; I will make up for it tomorrow.