Ning Kesheng of the department of communication firmly opposed her. He was a typical person from Aslan.
“Even if he were to enter, he would be looked down upon, and he would drastically reduce the standing of the Sword Shield Rose Association. ”
“Your reasons should not be taken as the standards in judging the qualifications of a person. His own capabilities should determine his membership, not just his background. I have said it many times before, do not make me repeat this again”.
Vice-President Berwick Pompey was an absolutely fair and equitable person. He was experienced and was also an Aslanian nobleman and an important force for the reformists.
Si Jiali also insisted, “Wang Zheng is also very competent and has won the Milky Way Alliance’s Student Contribution Award. He is very important to our Physics Department and will have even greater achievements in the future, especially in developing the nation’s physics prowess. So I hope that you will consider this matter in many ways, not just from your individual points of view.”
Berwick Pompey nodded. Si Jiali still had a lot of power in the association, and she would never say something she did not believe in. “I trust your judgement, but the Physics Department has exceeded their number of allocated entries into the Sword Shield Rose Association. It is impossible to increase the quota.”
“We can easily make it an exception as rules were meant to be broken. Otherwise, how could we adapt to the changing situations that appear in the college?”
“As long as the president permits it, adding seats is not considered breaking the rules.”
“But now the president is accompanying Her Royal Highness. This is a trivial matter that we should make a decision on.”
The debate heated up within the conference room. Within Aslan, the conservatives and the reformists were also in conflict, and this extended to the Royal Academy.
Si Jiali knew there would be resistance, but she was also prepared. “About the seats, he can join not as a member of the Physics Department. There is another key qualification. He is the captain of the Solar System Federation’s IG team. We can let him join the disciplinary team. Clement, doesn’t your disciplinary team always need back-up supporters?”
Clement had been silent the entire time. “Only those with Ability X can join the disciplinary team, without any exceptions. However, I am supportive of the idea.”
Berwick Pompey raised his head and had a sudden interest in Clement expressing interest. Clement seldom gave exact opinions. When he spoke, there had to be a reason.
“Oh, tell me, why do you support this idea?”
“Eliya’s men are doing a background check on Wang Zheng.”
The answer given by Clement was simple and clear.
The Sword and Shield Rose Association’s biggest competitor in the college was the Thistle Flower Union of Autonomy led by Eliya.
Berwick Pompey looked stunned. “Be more specific.”
“I do not know the specifics yet, but the possibility of them retaliating against Wang Zheng is very high. During the absence of the President, the Thistle Flower Union of Autonomy was proactive in expanding their pool of Ability X users. It is time for us to take the initiative.”
Clement said very seriously.
It didn’t matter what person Wang Zheng was. What was important was that Wang Zheng played a role in the expulsion of Klimton and became a thorn in the eyes of the Arbiters. So, why cast him aside now?
Berwick Pompey considered the situation seriously. If Eliya were to make a move, they would first save Wang Zheng. This would not only be a blow to the Union of Autonomy, but also to the entire college. They would be sending out the message that they were truly open and fair and would protect everyone, from Aslan or not.
Other cadres at the round table silently shouted and exchanged their opinions. Even the great Aslanian, Ning Kesheng, did not oppose this idea.
“Keeping Wang Zheng in the Sword Shield Rose would not only resist the Thistle Flower Union, it would also convey a good message to the non-Aslanian people of the college. Moreover, this will further emphasise the incident with Klimton on Eliya. ”
“I also feel that we can let Wang Zheng join us.”
“We’ve reached a consensus, but… although Wang Zheng is the captain, is he really an Ability X user?”
Suddenly, some people raised this issue. According to normal conditions, the IG captains in all countries should possess Ability X, but in the Solar System…
Si Jiali blinked. This was not stated in Wang Zheng’s profile.
The room was quiet for a moment, and Clement, the captain of the command team, said, “The Ability X requirement cannot be bypassed. I propose that we determine Wang Zheng’s capabilities before we continue with any further discussion.”
“Agreed.”
“I agree.”
“I agree.”
Wang Zheng received a notice to go the Ability X Quantitative Testing Room.
It was a high-pressure gravity room. The lights were on and there were five long lanes side by side similar to bowling lanes. Firefly-like light spots were emitted along the lanes. It was a special kind of photon biological material. The properties were similar to G material.
The test was sent over by Vice President Berwick Pompey and Commander Clement.
Wang Zheng looked around curiously. “You want to test my ability? How do you do it?”
Si Jiali told him about the circumstances. There were no more spots for students of the Physics Department, so he was specially recruited into the disciplinary team that was responsible for handling incidents. However, they first had to test his Ability X.
Wang Zheng, of course, was anxious to enter the disciplinary team. Muye had told him about the structure of the Sword Shield Rose Association. Apart from the members of the round table, members of the disciplinary team were the ones that came into contact with Princess Aina the most. Sometimes, they were even responsible for the safety of Aina at the Royal College.
Moreover, the disciplinary team often collided with others who possessed Ability X. Wang Zheng wanted to understand Aslan’s standards, and from what he learnt from Xie Yuxin, Ability X’s application and usage here far surpassed that of the Solar System.
Berwick Pompey smiled. “Don’t be nervous. First of all, are you sure you are an Ability X user?”
Wang Zheng nodded. “I am.”
Berwick Pompey nodded. Clement opened the test preparation box, which contained objects of various shapes, including balls, triangles, cubes, cuboids, etc…
Si Jiali stood on the side and said to Wang Zheng, “See these photons on the test track? This is a biological medium similar to G material. It can effectively conduct Ability X. Later, just try your best to push the medium into the shape of the logo flashed.”
It sounded very simple, and Wang Zheng nodded and said he understood.
Clement picked up a box marked with a number five and was about to put it on, but he saw Berwick Pompey shaking his head at him. He nodded and dropped the number five cube to pick up a cube labeled seven. The size was the same, but the material was different. One was a metal and the other was a polymer. The weight was obviously different. The smaller the number, the less difficult the test was.
Clement placed the cube on the long lane and then started preparing the quantitative test equipment.
When Berwick Pompey saw that the preparations were in place, he said to Wang Zheng, “Start in ten seconds. Stand on the baseline and prepare your Ability X. The results will be determined by the time and speed of the push, so try your best.”
Wang Zheng nodded and followed the instructions and stood in front of the baseline. There was a countdown at the side. Six, five, four, three, two, one, start!
Wang Zheng slammed his Ability X into the photons on the test track, and he could feel the substance. His consciousness was immersed in the photons above the long path. This was a kind of G-like conduction, and it felt a little strange. It was just like the G-material in the mech had increased by several times, and its conduction became abnormally sensitive.
Wang Zheng’s eyes flashed with light, and his Ability X extended along with the photon biological media and quickly flew towards the No. 7 cube above the walkway.
The No. 7 cube made two turns on the track and stopped.
Berwick Pompey was shocked.
Si Jiali’s eyes widened. No! This was too…
Both were speechless!
Impossible!
It stopped moving. This meant that Wang Zheng really had Ability X, since the cube moved, but for the cube to merely stop after two turns….
“Hey, try again. Use your full strength, do not have reservations,” Berwick Pompey said. He was in disbelief. Although the Solar System had been weak for many years, they would not send such a weak person to be a captain, right?
Wang Zheng was slightly embarrassed as he scratched his head. Although he had not useed his full force, his burst of power was not small. How did the thing only roll twice?
Hearing that there was a second chance, he was more serious this time. Before that, it was more of him going through trial and error. As the IG captain, he could not shame the Solar System.
He breathed deeply, mobilizing the energy of every cell in the body, activating his Ability X, Second test countdown. Three, two, one…
Roar!
Wang Zheng yelled and used all his might!
This time, the No. 7 cube slammed forward before returning to a stop. It was as if it were struck by something unknown.
Wang Zheng blinked. How was it? Was his performance worse than before?
Si Jiali touched her forehead. It seemed that her instincts were wrong. When it came to military affairs, the Solar System really could not compare.
Wang Zheng was very embarrassed and asked, “Is this… passable?”
Berwick Pompey froze for a second and smiled and said, “You have already proven that you are a person with Ability X. We will let you join the Department of Foreign Affairs for a week. Si Jiali, you take him to prove his identity. That’s all for now.”
Si Jiali nodded and signaled Wang Zheng to leave with her.
Wang Zheng starred at her. “Is that okay?”
Si Jiali was a bit speechless. What is the Solar System’s doing? How could a person with this level of Ability X become the captain? How weak was the Solar System? She could not imagine.
After Wang Zheng left, Berwick Pompey and Clement exchanged looks.
Clemente operated the machine. A light screen appeared in midair. It was the test.
“Quantity quantification: unknown.”
“Capability level: unknown.”
“Capability strength: unknown.”
Actually three unknowns!
The two men looked at each other and Clement frowned. “There are only two possibilities. One is that he is too weak, and the other is that he is already strong enough to exceed the scope of the instrument.”
After a brief second, the two were dumbfounded and Berwick Pompey smiled. “You pay attention. Let him be responsible for the logistics of the team and wait for the President to come back and give him an appraisal. Anyway, his main strength has to do with physics.”
“Has the Solar System truly fallen to this extent?”
In this way, Wang Zheng received a Sword Shield Rose medal and became a member of the Aslan Royal Society.