The last few days of preparations had ended. Today is finally the day of the competition. Every student who had registered for the competition had gathered in the academy's largest open ground. The Federation had decided to use this competition as the yearly assessment which is not only important for the students but also for the whole empire. This is because yearly assessment is regarded as a test to see the maturation of the current generation which is considered as the future of the whole interstellar Federation.
As the top academy in the whole empire, the First Military Academy is considered the source where future officials and soldiers would come out to. This is the reason why they took the importance of this year's competition.
Before the participants were ushered to be brought to the location of the event, Dean Astra stood at the podium with a proud smile on his handsome face. His features were similar to the royal family of the Oberion Empire as he is one of the former princes now a duke with the Regulus family. He gave the students an encouraging speech. He had also listed the regulations and rules of the competition as were spread a few days ago. With the ending of his speech, the competition had finally begun.
The teams who entered all gathered separately at the open ground. They were all waiting for the interstellar warship which will bring them to Citlali Star where the competition will take place.
First Military Academy's Largest Open Area.
Students wearing their academy uniforms were scattered on the school grounds in groups. There are small and large teams while each group is separated by grades. There are too few freshmen who joined this competition even if they did, one could count them with two hands. Sophomore students who had entered were not as much as the Senior students.
After all, most seniors had registered in this competition after learning about the rewards. For them, this is their biggest opportunity to join a marshal lead unit. Most of them were dreaming of joining the most popular yet strictest unit in the whole Interstellar Federation. The one led by the youngest marshal in the empire. Marshal Sirius's Fallen God Unit.
Even though the youngsters had gathered in orderly manners there are still some problem children who like spreading rumors about the infamous things in their academy. For example, Feng Jing who is rumored to have failed his awakening as a guide and is now nothing but an ordinary person. There are lots of clans who hated the regal family of the Phoenix bloodline. The Feng Clan had always been famous for their monstrosity. After all, the talents of this bloodline are said to be second only to Marshal Altair of the Federation.
The Feng Family used to have two Marshals. If not because of General Feng Xuan's injuries from the unreasonable missions given by the empire, he would still be a marshal at the present. His wife who had the same level of talent as he did had stepped down from his position as a Marshal to accompany his husband. For the Feng Family above everything is their family member and loved ones, authority and fame will forever be their second priority.
A senior group composed of members of the Navi Clan and Regulus Royal Family approached Feng Jing's group of commoners with sneers on their faces. The young lord of the Navi Clan, Navi Naja had a mocking expression on his face. He had always hated Feng Jing, this cousin of his for being a descendant of that abandoned aunt of his.
Navi Naja is the firstborn son of the current master of the Navi Clan. The Navi Clan had always hated Feng Jing's mother, Navi Luna for clearly breaking all of her relations to the clan before the family could even announce her expulsion. Moreover, she had married the current master of Feng Clan, Feng Tian, without telling them. By the time the Navi Clan had learned about it, the Phoenix Clan had already heard everything their family had done to Navi Luna which in the end incurring the hatred of such a dangerous family.
First and foremost the Phoenix Family is famous for its extremely family-centered attitude. Their top priority is family first above the rest. This is the reason why it is notably hard to kill a member of a Feng Family. Not only their bloodline had a special trait, but they are also greatly vengeful towards those who harmed their family. Some noble clans considered them as lunatics. This is already a well-proved reality.
When Navi Luna had entered the threshold of the Feng Clan, she was already considered a Feng instead of a Navi. That time there are some jealous noble ladies from the Navi Clan who were jealous of Navi Luna for marrying in with the Phoenix Family and tried to assassinate her. At that time Feng Tian had just become the master of Feng Clan after his parents were demoted from the Marshal position. The Navi had sent assassins towards his pregnant wife. Navi Luna was pregnant with Feng Yang at that time. They nearly lost him when the assassination attempt almost ended successfully.
Feng Tian completely lost it and send the strongest unit, the Phoenix Brigade to the Navi Clan and openly killed those people who are involved with the assassination of his wife. Of course, the federation and the royal family had gotten involved in it. The Navi Clan and Feng Clan were both big families that supported the Oberion Empire.
At that time everyone in the interstellar world thought that Feng Tian would get punished for his actions. The truth is that the Federation and the Royal family intended to indeed punish him at that time. But when the rumors that Feng Tian's punishment is life imprisonment, many small and mid-size clans that are considered vassals of the Phoenix Clan had appealed to the head. They even started threatening the two largest powers in the Empire that every single one of them would protect the Feng Family until the end. They would even leave the Oberion Empire and go somewhere far with the Feng Family if needed.
The Federation and the Royal Family were astounded by the influence the Feng Clan possessed. Tallying up those families that appealed for Feng Tian's freedom was beyond half the population of the whole noble society. They didn't expect that the Feng Clan would be that influential. Among those in the top level of authority, only Marshal Janus knew how influential the Phoenix Family was.
There is a reason for this. The Feng Clan is extremely famous for those small and mid-sized clans because they've never used their position to look down on others. In their eyes the separation of power between nobles and commoners was nonexistent. They are popular because they are friendly and loyal. As long as you had become a friend of the Feng Clan regardless of your position as long as you haven't done any evil thing, the Phoenix Clan would support you until the end. They are charismatic and too down to earth, that's why they are popular.
The Federation and the Royal Family were frightened by that event. If they punished Feng Tian for his actions, the Oberion Empire would lose a quarter of their whole population and most of these clans were merchant clans that left connections from outside of the Empire. It wouldn't be surprising that the other countries would be welcoming to them. Because of this, they had no other reason but to forget about Feng Tian's lifetime imprisonment and just demoted him from his General position, which is close to seating as a Marshal to being a simple Lieutenant General instead.
To Feng Tian, he didn't care whatever position he had in the Federation. His parents hadn't completely retired after all. Moreover, the position of Lieutenant General is enough to feed his family for the incoming years so didn't really care that he was demoted. At that time the only one who had suffered was the Navi Clan who had lost most of their descendants. The Federation turned a blind eye on them, basically, if compared with the Phoenix Clan's talents, those in the Navi Clan are just average.
The one who compensated them is the Regulus Royal Family. They had married the youngest princess to the Navi Clan, allowing them to secure a connection with the crown at least. But this is also useless because when Young Miss Feng Yue was born, she had married the Crown Prince of the Regulus Family for love. This is the reason why the Navi Clan descendants hated the Feng Clan. Their hatred for the whole family was passed on to the current generation. Navi Naja and Navi Nash hating Feng Jing is normally the result of it.
This Navi Naja is the son of that abandoned princess of the Regulus Royal Family. Princess Regulus Aurora's only son.
---
Regulus Royal Family Tree.
Emperor: Regulus Sol
Wives:
[Empress] Tang Adhara (Mother of Regulus Zenith)
[Imperial Concubine] Cosmos Dayla
Prince and Princess:
First Prince: Regulus (Cosmos) Aera
Second Prince: Regulus (Tang) Zenith [Crown Prince]
Third Princess: Regulus (Tang) Tifa
Fourth Princess: Regulus (Cosmos) Aurora
---
Regulus Zenith is the Crown Prince as he is the firstborn son of the Empress. In the Oberion Empire, only the son of the Empress is allowed to sit on the throne. When the Royal family had promised a princess to be married to the Navi Clan, Princess Aurora didn't exist yet but she was already promised to be married outside. This reason is also added to Navi Naja's hatred of the Feng Clan. His mother wouldn't have to be married to an average clan like Navi is not for them.
That's why he was so delighted when he heard the rumors about the youngest phoenix, Feng Jing, failing to awaken. Because in the whole empire, Feng Jing is now considered a waste of the Feng Clan and would definitely be thrown out for his uselessness. But after waiting for weeks to months, Feng Jing's anticipated expulsion wasn't heard. Instead, the Feng Clan had closely protected their weakest phoenix, securing his safety at all times. He had become the most fragile treasure the Feng Clan has and their greatest landmine.
Navi Naja couldn't accept such truth. How could a prestigious clan like Feng allow a useless thing like Feng Jing to exist? He is just an ordinary person. The Phoenix Clan is full of high-ranked Sentinels and Guides. Feng Jing is the only crow among the phoenixes. The Fengs treated such a waste as a treasure!? They are crazy!
Sneering at Feng Jing's face directly, he noticed that almost every commoner in his group had closely protected Feng Jing like a precious pearl. Seeing him, Navi Naja, approaching Bai Yuyan and the rest had already placed their leader behind their back, preventing Navi Naja from approaching.
Feng Wu and Xue Ran lead the protective circle around Feng Jing. Among the group only they have the right to before Navi Naja.
Navi Naja narrowed his eyes upon seeing this and just snorted, "Tsk! What is this? The Youngest Phoenix of the Feng Clan had to be protected by commoners instead."
Feng Jing's voice was heard from behind his team members, his whole figure was hidden from Navi Naja's line of sight.
"Un! They are talented people who are even stronger than the lackeys following your butt, nephew~" said Feng Jing.
Navi Naja is indeed Feng Jing's nephew. After all, his mother Princess Aurora is the half-sister of Regulus Zenith who married Feng Jing's elder sister. Based on this family tree progression, Feng Jing as the Crown Princess's little brother is the uncle of all children of the other princess and prince.
The melon seed-eating crowd around them had heard Feng Jing's words and instantly compared the levels of the team members of Feng Jing and Navi Naja. Almost every students' potential can be searched in their academy's forum. The team members of Navi Naja are all those with noble bloodlines except for Navi Naja and his royal cousin brother, Regulus Rigel, son of Prince Aera whose potential was S and SS+ respectively, the rest only has potentials ranging from D to B.
Meanwhile, the members of Feng Jing may almost all come from a common background but their talents were the majority of A to SS+ potential even the weakest is at C rank.
Navi Naja's face turned red in embarrassment and anger mixed together. What Feng Jing had said was all true. Not only were his team members weaker than his group, he even needed to call Feng Jing as his uncle despite being older than him.
The crowd's reactions:
'Eh? Nephew?'
'Young Lord Feng is Prince Navi's Uncle!?'
'Ah~ right!? Young Lord Feng's elder sister is the Crown Princess.'
'Wow~ for real!?'
'This is amazing~'