Soran paused a bit.

"Your instincts are terrifyingly good for someone of your age," Soran said.

Shang nodded.

"In our fight, when you suddenly noticed my spear coming towards you, you immediately found a creative way to mitigate the damage. You obviously haven't seen the attack coming, and you certainly have been surprised by it. I saw it in your face."

"However, out of pure instinct, you managed to find a quick and good solution to your predicament. At that moment, you didn't have the time to think of a plan because you were lacking time, but by acting on your instincts, you managed to find a solution in that tiny moment."

"Such battle instincts can't be taught. They can only be built by going through several genuine life-threatening battles. Those are the instincts of a seasoned warrior, and they are the most important thing for any warrior."

"However, relying upon instincts should be the last thing you should do," Soran explained. "You should only rely on your instincts when your planning no longer works, and you can only rely on them when you literally have no time to plan."

"You could say that the instincts are a last, life-saving measure. They are essentially your very last defense. However, if you need to rely on your instincts, it means you are already in a losing position. After all, if you weren't in a very disadvantageous position, you would have time to plan your attacks, which means not relying on your instincts."

"But the good thing is that you are good in something that we can't teach, which gives you a major edge over the other students."

Soran took the papers in front of him and straightened them out into one pile, showing that he no longer planned on writing more down.

"In summary, you are an uncut diamond," Soran said with a smile. "You're not good in the things we can teach, but you are very good in the things we can't teach. If we teach you everything we can teach you, you will be good at literally everything."

"That's our evaluation."

Shang looked at Soran. "So, am I accepted?" he asked.

pᴀɴdᴀ nᴏveʟ Soran only smiled. "There are two more things we need to verify, but if you have been honest, those will only be a formality."

Shang nodded. "Which things?"

"First of all, I need to test the quality of your body," Soran said as he stood up again and walked around the table.

He approached Shang. "Just continue standing there. It might be a bit uncomfortable, but bear with me."

Soran put his left arm on Shang's shoulder while his right arm pressed on multiple spots on Shang's torso.

Shang was reminded of the routine doctor appointments on Earth. When he complained about trouble in his intestines, the doctors also pressed down on his abdomen in a similar manner.

Shang didn't feel anything when Soran pressed onto his abdomen.

Soran nodded in appreciation.

Then, Soran went to the sides of Shang's abdomen and pressed on his kidneys and liver.

Shang didn't show any reaction, and Soran nodded again.

Next, Soran checked Shang's stomach and lungs. There were also no issues there.

Viera and Mervin threw some surprised glances at each other.

"Argh," Shang suddenly groaned as his vision blurred for a bit.

"Just as I've thought," Soran said with a smile after pulling his hands back. "This basically confirms your claims."

"What do you mean?" Shang asked.

"About how you managed to train your body to such a powerful stage at such a young age," Soran answered. "It's hard to fathom, but the proof stands right in front of me."

"All your organs have been strengthened to the peak of the Soldier Stage except for your heart. With normal methods, that's impossible."

Soran looked at Shang with a concerned, raised eyebrow. "However, it's also sad in a way. You seem to only be about fourteen or fifteen years old, but you managed to get through so much pain."

Then, Soran frowned. "And the worst thing is that you did it willingly."

"How is that a bad thing?" Shang asked with a skeptical expression. "Shouldn't that be a positive? After all, it shows that I can get through any hardships placed before me, and it proves how much I am willing to sacrifice for my own strength."

Soran sighed. "Exactly that is the problem," he said. "Your perception of yourself and your surroundings is warped."

Shang only looked with skepticism at Soran.

"You are so used to going through so much pain to become powerful that it will be hard for you to find like-minded individuals," Soran explained. "Listen, Shang. It's not necessary to go through as much pain as you. There are easier ways to train your body."

"These ways can still be quite painful but obviously not nearly as painful as you have experienced. However, other kids and adults will perceive these ways to be quite painful while you won't."

"If you publicly make it known that you don't perceive these things as painful, you are indirectly calling everyone else a crybaby, which will isolate you."

"Additionally, your cold attitude towards yourself will also inevitably reflect on your surroundings."

"What do you mean?" Shang asked.

Soran sighed.

"For example, you haven't smiled, laughed, or chuckled even once ever since I got to know you," Soran said.

For some reason, Shang felt his insides shake a little when he heard that.

"You are a teenager, and you've just been praised by several very powerful warriors in the Commander Stage. You also managed to win against a student of ours."

"Any of these things would excite someone, especially someone as young as you."

"Yet, you always only looked with either an emotionless expression at us or one filled with skepticism."

Viera and Mervin also had concerned expressions on their faces.

"You also don't even try to fake it. You don't put on a polite smile or anything like that. Do you know what that shows me?"

Silence.

"It shows me that you don't care about what anyone else thinks. Don't get me wrong. That can be good to a certain extent, but if you're overdoing it, this will isolate you."

"Do you know what you look like to me?" Soran asked.

Shang felt a bit uncomfortable, and he didn't know how to answer.

"Like a kid that has gone through so much pain that it can't build a connection with other humans anymore."

"And that's very sad, but also very dangerous."

"Because, if you become an adult, what will you become?"

"What choices will you make when you have power over other people?"

"What choices will someone make that has no meaningful connection with anyone else?"

Soran sighed again.

"Listen, Shang," he said. "You don't need to go through this suicidal training you have been going through for months. It might train your body faster than any other method, but it will damage your mentality."

"You shouldn't sacrifice your future for an expedited path to power. You have enough time, and you don't need to try so hard."

"Look at us," Soran said as he gestured to himself and the other two. "We are already well within the Commander Stage, and we are all still young. We can all still laugh, and we have all gone through more battles than you can imagine."

"We are very experienced, and if we were subpar warriors, we wouldn't be teachers in the most prestigious academy for warriors in the world. We essentially reached the realistically achievable peak of the warrior's path, and we didn't have to go through as much pain in such a short time as you."

"Remember one thing, Shang," Soran said. "It is not the outside world forcing you down this path but yourself. As long as you don't force yourself down this path, no one will force you."

Soran sighed again.

"Honestly, if it were up to me, I wouldn't accept you into the academy. As you appear right now, I fear giving you power. In my perception, when you gain power, you will bring a lot of suffering to a lot of innocent people."

"However, the decision isn't up to me."

Soran stood up as he took the pile of papers with him. "Could one of you two please deal with the last part of the exam? I'll deliver the papers to Master."

"I'll deal with it," Mervin said as he stood up. "Come, Shang. It's time for the practical exam."