After chasing down and killing over twenty Moon Demon Wolves, Lin Lanyue and Wu Dongdong finally returned.
“Li Yuan, you’re amazing!” Wu Dongdong exclaimed, circling the now motionless body of the massive Moon Demon Wolf King. “This one should be level 12, right?”
“I thought you would need us to rescue you,” he continued. “I didn’t expect you to take it down while surrounded by the wolf pack. You’re stronger than I imagined.”
“Just luck,” Li Yuan replied with a smile.
“How about you? Are you hurt?” Lin Lanyue squatted beside Li Yuan, her eyes scanning his body for any blood, showing a hint of worry.
“All this blood is from the Moon Demon Wolves,” Li Yuan laughed and shook his head. “I’m just a bit exhausted.”
Their faces were close for a moment.
“If you hadn’t come, with so many Moon Demon Wolves left, I would have probably needed to call for help,” Li Yuan smoothly changed the topic.
“It was just a coincidence that we showed up,” Lin Lanyue smiled and stood up. Seeing that Li Yuan was indeed fine, her worry eased.
“Hey, Li Yuan,” Wu Dongdong suddenly said, “I really think you’re lucky to have run into the Wolf King. I can’t catch up to your score now. Two million Blue Star Coins gone! You made a killing this time; I’ll have to treat you to a big meal later.”
“Is that so?” Li Yuan smiled and glanced at the score ranking on his wristband:
First: Li Yuan, 188 points
Second: Wu Dongdong, 129 points
Third: Lin Lanyue, 94 points
Fourth: Wang Yu, 76 points
Fifth: Tian Dazhuang, 66 points
…
Li Yuan’s score was originally just a little higher than Wu Dongdong’s. But after this battle, he had pulled far ahead. The key was that the Wolf King, being over level 12, had given Li Yuan a full 50 points.
“Lanyue, are we still going to look for more Moon Demon Wolves?” Wu Dongdong turned to Lin Lanyue.
“Li Yuan is a bit worn out, so I’ll stay here with him,” Lin Lanyue said. “I don’t want another pack of Moon Demon Wolves to show up.”
“No need,” Li Yuan said. “I’ll rest for a bit and can still fight at half my strength. You guys should continue your practical training.”
“Li Yuan, it’s not just about keeping you company,” Lin Lanyue smiled. “We’ve been fighting for over six hours, and we’re tired too.”
“Besides, there’s only half an hour left until the assessment ends. Do you think we’ll drop out of the top ten?”
“We’re all in the top ten; the rewards are the same,” Lin Lanyue said seriously.
Li Yuan was speechless and had no way to argue back.
“Alright then.”
“Okay, sister, I’ll listen to you,” Wu Dongdong said, shrugging and planting his long spear heavily into the ground before sitting down. “Since I can’t surpass Li Yuan, let’s just wait for the assessment to end together.”
The three of them stayed where they were. Li Yuan rested while observing his Divine Palace Panel.
——
[Life Level: 8.9 (Not Ranked)]
Physical Constitution Index: 93 (This measures various aspects like explosive power, endurance, speed, physique, and spiritual power.)
Fist Power: 991 kg
Speed: 19.9 m/s
Spiritual Power: Level 15.1
Spirit Awakening Level: 12.8% (Current limit 20%, can guide source power into the body once)
Body Cultivation Method: Rock Foundation Cultivation Method
Spiritual Cultivation Method: Great Sun Starry Sky Sutra
Technique Levels: Spear Technique (Level 4, 4%), Movement Technique (Level 4, 1%), Fist Technique (Level 4, 7%)
[Note: When the Spirit Awakening Level reaches 25%, 50%, 75%, 100%, and 125%, guidance will be progressively received.]
…
After over six hours of practical assessment, especially the fierce battle with the Moon Demon Wolf King, Li Yuan’s movement technique broke through to level 4, indicating that his martial arts skills had fully advanced to level 4. His spear and fist techniques also saw slight improvements.
However, what concerned Li Yuan the most was still the Spirit Awakening Level: “Awakening level at 10%, source power entering the body?”
This change was something he had never considered before. And at this moment, as he calmed down, he vaguely sensed that something was changing within his Divine Palace, waiting for him to discover it.
“I’ll wait until the assessment ends to try it out,” Li Yuan thought.
Half an hour later.
“Ding~” “Ding~” The three wristbands vibrated slightly, signaling the end of the practical assessment.
“Second! Second!” Wu Dongdong shouted excitedly. “Lanyue, once I buy a flying motorcycle, I’ll take you for a ride.”
“Okay, I’ll be waiting,” Lin Lanyue smiled back.
Li Yuan watched this scene with a smile. A flying motorcycle? That felt a bit extravagant for him.
Eight minutes later.
“Boom!” A small flying vehicle descended rapidly, its door opened, quickly loading Li Yuan, Lin Lanyue, and Wu Dongdong as it headed towards the war fortress.
……
The flying vehicle soon arrived at the metal square outside the war fortress, where dozens of other flying vehicles had already landed. Students were continuously getting off the vehicles.
Li Yuan, Lin Lanyue, and the others got off, weapons in hand.
“Hey, Li Yuan, look over there!” Wu Dongdong suddenly pointed into the distance.
There was a row of stretchers covered with white cloth.
“Bodies?” Li Yuan’s pupils contracted slightly, his heart shaking a bit.
Eight stretchers meant there were eight bodies. Although they had been informed earlier about the ‘death rate’ in the practical assessment, seeing it for real still made Li Yuan feel uneasy.
Just this morning, his companions were lively and full of energy. By the afternoon, they had turned into cold bodies?
Li Yuan was still just a seventeen-year-old boy. The joy of having just secured the top spot in the practical assessment was washed away by this grim reality.
“The practical assessment was just fighting against weaker Star Realm creatures; the danger was manageable, yet so many have died,” Li Yuan thought sadly. “What about in the future?”
“Will I also die on the battlefield one day?” As this thought crossed his mind, he instinctively tightened his grip on his spear.
Strength!
He needed to have stronger power to ensure he could survive.
……
“Li Yuan, wait a moment. The military base commander might be looking for you,” Lin Lanyue said quietly.
“Looking for me?” Li Yuan was puzzled.
“Yeah.” Lin Lanyue spoke softly, just loud enough for the two of them to hear. “If they come to you and their requests aren’t unreasonable, just agree first and secure the benefits.”
“Benefits?” Li Yuan was even more confused. Wasn’t the benefit just the two million Blue Star Coins?
What else could there be?
But with so many people around, Li Yuan didn’t ask further. The two of them followed the crowd, moving further away.
“Look, Li Yuan is here!”
“First in the practical assessment!”
“188 points, that’s incredible! He must have killed over a hundred Moon Demon Wolves by himself!”
“So impressive!” Many students noticed Li Yuan approaching, their eyes filled with admiration.
Li Yuan was already quite famous. Now, after this practical assessment, his reputation soared even higher.
Many had watched as his score skyrocketed, especially in the last hour when it surged dramatically.
The score represented the number of enemies killed!
What did that mean? In the last hour, Li Yuan had likely faced a pack of Moon Demon Wolves and still managed to survive until the end.
Naturally, everyone respected him for that.
“Li Yuan is amazing! If I were that good, my dad would praise me for it!”
“I barely managed to kill five and almost got hurt. He killed about 180!!”
“Don’t even get me started; I was unlucky and killed eight, but in the last ten minutes, I ran into a pack of wolves… my score dropped to just four! I failed the practical assessment!”
“Li Yuan is ruthless, and his companion Wu Dongdong is tough too.”
“That beautiful girl next to Li Yuan, is that Lin Lanyue? She’s third, even higher than Wang Yu.”
Compared to Li Yuan and Wu Dongdong, Lin Lanyue was much less known, but her looks certainly added to her appeal.
In the bustling crowd.
“Li Yuan, awesome!”
Gu Qianghan suddenly rushed over from a distance, punching Li Yuan in the chest with excitement. “You even took down Wu Dongdong! That mother dragon couldn’t do that! You’re truly my brother!”
Li Yuan was taken aback, motioning with his mouth towards Gu Qianghan.
Lin Lanyue beside him wore a strange smile.
“What’s up?” Gu Qianghan still hadn’t caught on.
“Gu! Qiang! Han!” Wu Dongdong jumped out from behind Li Yuan, his face furious, his eyes wide like saucers.
“Whoa, Dongdong, you’re here?” Gu Qianghan’s eyes nearly popped out, and he turned to run.
“Thud~”
He was tackled to the ground by Wu Dongdong, struggling and shouting, “Sister, Li Yuan, help me!”
Li Yuan and Lin Lanyue exchanged amused glances and walked forward.
……
Ten minutes later.
Nearly a thousand students, regardless of whether they passed the assessment or not, gathered in the square.
All their eyes were on the podium.
“First, I want all of you to observe a minute of silence for the eight students who lost their lives,” the tall, thin officer named Ji said, scanning the crowd slowly.
All the students looked somber.
A silence fell over the area.
For an entire minute, the only sound was the wind blowing through the large square.
“The opportunities for practical training are few,” Officer Ji continued. “In the future, when you step onto the battlefield, it will be ten times, a hundred times more dangerous than today!”
“I hope that when you return, you can reflect on today’s experiences, train harder, and reduce future sacrifices.”
“I also wish everyone can become Source Warriors soon and truly become the blades of human civilization!”
“Next, congratulations to the 293 students who successfully passed the practical assessment,” Officer Ji announced. “Finally, I want to especially commend Li Yuan, Wu Dongdong, Lin Lanyue, and several others.”
All the students listened intently.
After a brief pause, Officer Ji continued, “Especially Li Yuan, who fought alone against a pack of Moon Demon Wolves and successfully killed the level 12 Wolf King. He is the only one to achieve this in the entire assessment, and I want to commend him for that.”
Instantly, there was a wave of astonishment.
Even though many had guessed Li Yuan’s score would rise dramatically, hearing it confirmed still shocked them.
A level 12 Star Realm creature!
Most students knew that Li Yuan’s physical abilities weren’t particularly exaggerated.
“Li Yuan, you’re famous now; you’ve overshadowed Tian Dazhuang and the mother dragon,” Gu Qianghan muttered, his face bruised.
“Keep your voice down, or you’ll get beaten again,” Li Yuan smiled.
Gu Qianghan instinctively shrank his neck.
“Fame?” Li Yuan thought to himself. He didn’t care about fame.
He was just wondering when the two million Blue Star Coins reward would be given.
Once it was in his hands!
……
After the meeting ended, all students boarded vehicles in order, preparing to return.
Li Yuan and Tian Dazhuang, however, were invited by two officers into a small meeting room next to the square.
“Just me and Tian Dazhuang?” Li Yuan thought, recalling Lin Lanyue’s warning.
“Li Yuan, you go into this room,” the officer guiding them smiled. “Tian Dazhuang, your room is next door.”
Li Yuan nodded, feeling relaxed.
Entering the room, he saw that the tall, thin officer who had just spoken was sitting inside.
“Li Yuan, hello. My surname is Ji, and I’m the head of this war fortress base,” Officer Ji smiled. “Congratulations on achieving first place in the practical assessment.”
“Please have a seat.”
“Head of the base?” Li Yuan was slightly surprised.
According to the video introduction from Lin Lanyue, this was the only war fortress in the entire Star Realm.
In other words, the person before him was the head of the entire Moon Demon Star Realm?
The power he held was surely impressive!
“Hello, Officer Ji,” Li Yuan said, sitting down respectfully.
In the martial arts community, those with strong abilities and older ages are often referred to as seniors.
“Do you know why we didn’t call for Wu Dongdong?” Officer Ji smiled.
Li Yuan shook his head.
Not only did they not call for Wu Dongdong, but it seemed Wang Yu wasn’t called either.
“I’ve looked over your files. The title of ‘Young Hero’ is quite rare, and you have a strong sense of justice,” Officer Ji said.
“You have high talent and excellent practical skills.”
“Would you like to join our military?” Officer Ji smiled broadly. “Our military loves practical geniuses like you with a sense of justice.”
“In my eyes, among all the students this time, you are absolutely the best! Wu Dongdong and the others can’t compare to you,” Officer Ji stated firmly.
Li Yuan was taken aback.
Absolutely the best? They think so highly of him?
……
In the next room.
“Tian Dazhuang, you are very impressive. You come from an ordinary family, but you work incredibly hard in your training and have truly changed your family's fate,” a burly officer named Wang said.
Tian Dazhuang showed a rare hint of pride in his eyes.
“Just from your resume, I admire you greatly… In my eyes, you are absolutely the best among this group of students; Li Yuan can’t compare to you at all.”
Officer Wang was sincere. “Would you like to join our military?”
“You will receive the best training from us.”
(End of Chapter)