What Jiang Cheng didn't know was that, far above the clouds of the secret realm, a drone hovered in absolute silence. It was barely visible even to someone actively searching for it, coated with a special material that made it nearly invisible among the mist and natural light.
That drone had been following his every movement for hours.
And it was transmitting everything, in real time, to the academy's teachers and the director.
Inside a room filled with screens, dozens of instructors watched attentively. Some took notes nonstop; others argued among themselves, unable to believe what they were seeing.
Professor Kai's voice broke through the murmur:
"Count them again. How many slimes does that boy have now?"
"The estimated total is… around one thousand two hundred," replied an analysis professor, enlarging the image of the swarm.
A brief, uncomfortable silence followed.
"That's not normal," muttered another instructor. "Even if he constantly devoured creatures, he shouldn't have reached that number this quickly."
The director narrowed his eyes.
"Slimes are low-level creatures, but they do have a high division capacity," he said calmly. "But that only explains part of it."
The screen displayed the five evolved slimes the ones with sharp, mantis-like limbs.
The entire mood in the room shifted instantly.
"Those arms…" said a magical biology professor, leaning forward. "Those blades… that is not a natural ability of slimes!"
"Search the database," ordered the director. "Compare those limbs to known insect-type creatures."
Several teachers began scanning documents, images, and records.
Minutes later, one of them hit the table excitedly.
"Here! It matches the Spectral Mantis of the Shadowed Forest! A low-class creature, yes, but its physiology allows its limbs to be extremely sharp."
Another professor nodded immediately.
"So this means… those evolved slimes mutated after devouring parts of that mantis."
The director crossed his arms and watched the screen with interest.
"Director… do you think he did it intentionally?" asked a confused teacher. "Or was it just a coincidence?"
A heavy silence followed.
Finally, the director shook his head.
"For now, it's most likely a coincidence. Slimes naturally absorb traits from what they consume, but they rarely manifest them in a stable form."
He stared at the screen and added:
"Even so… if that boy learns to control that mutation process and reproduce it at will… he could become very powerful in the future."
The teachers continued watching the image of Jiang Cheng walking with his army behind him.
On the screen, he advanced through the forest, unaware that hundreds of eyes were analyzing him from above.
The director exhaled slowly.
"Keep monitoring him."
The discussion about Jiang Cheng continued for a while longer, until the director waved his hand.
"Alright. We'll analyze his case in more detail later. Let's review the progress of the other participants."
The screens shifted, showing different points of the secret realm: ruined goblin villages, forest clearings covered in blood, rivers stained by battles, and areas where the vegetation had been completely destroyed.
A professor read the updated report:
"So far, only ten students have managed to destroy an entire village."
"And among those ten," another instructor added, "is Jiang Cheng. He is the tenth participant to wipe out a goblin village."
The director raised an eyebrow.
An elementalism professor joined the conversation:
"Mira is also among them — her race is Water Elemental. She destroyed her village last night. According to reports, she created a water dome that compressed the goblins until they were pulverized. No survivors."
Several teachers nodded.
"She has advanced control over her race," one said. "It's no surprise she eliminated a village that quickly."
The director added nothing, simply watching the recordings as more battles played out across the screens.
When dawn arrived, sunlight filtered through the ruins of the goblin village that Jiang Cheng had destroyed hours earlier. The air smelled of burnt wood, dried blood, and overturned soil.
The slimes hadn't rested.
They devoured everything overnight: bodies, structures, roots, food remnants, bones, tools… anything that could become energy.
When Jiang Cheng stepped out of the tent where he had slept, the scene stunned him for a moment.
Slimes covered his entire field of vision.
They hopped, slid, vibrated, and rippled across the ground. They were like a living sea, a gelatinous ocean stretching over the land.
He counted again, out of habit.
"One thousand six hundred eighty-three… one thousand six hundred ninety-five… one thousand seven hundred one…"
He let out a short, almost disbelieving laugh.
"Seven hundred new slimes in one night… devouring a village really is profitable."
The final number was close to 1,700 slimes.
An absurd power for a beginning summoner.
He looked around the destroyed village.
Broken walls, collapsed houses, not a single goblin left alive. It was, technically, empty territory… perfect for a temporary base.
"I'll use this place as a center," he decided. "From here on, I'll keep expanding."
Then he began giving orders.
First, he grouped the five evolved slimes at his side as his personal guard.
Then he sent a mental command to the rest:
"You… expand the scouting range. One hundred of you go northwest. One hundred south. One hundred east. One hundred into the deep forest."
The slimes obeyed, flowing like rivers.
"If one of you dies," he added, "I'll know the direction and strength of the enemy. That will be my map."
His "early detection system" was brutally simple… but effective.
Each death created a marked point in his mind.
Each disappearance indicated an enemy he needed to devour.
He sat on a half-broken log and took a deep breath as he watched his army disperse through the forest.