e-booksonline Chapter 1 School Joint Examination, Hanging Up - Pet Space
Chapter 1 School Joint Examination, Hanging Up - Pet Space
Gangneung Base City.
Outer city - East District, Development Zone No. 7.
The evening breeze in June, carrying the scent of grass and trees, flowed into the living room through the half-open window.
Su Guoliang picked up a piece of cold pig ear with his chopsticks and put it into his bowl.
With a smile on his face, he asked, "Son, how did you do on the joint exam between the ten schools?"
Su Chen lowered his head, shoveled a mouthful of rice into his mouth, and mumbled, "534."
"How much?" Su Guoliang leaned forward, wanting to confirm.
Su Chen repeated “534” and added, “Academic subjects 176 (out of 200), Spirit Pearl Theory 83 (100), Martial Arts Six Items 275 (450).”
Su Guoliang's eyes lit up, and he waved his chopsticks in the air: "Not bad! You've made great progress! You scored a full fifty points more than last time. If you keep this up, you could get into a top university."
Li Huilan, who was standing nearby, smiled and added another piece of braised pork to Su Chen's bowl: "Come on, eat more."
Su Chen took a bite of meat, his expression blank: "It's alright, mainly because this year's ten-school joint exam was a bit easier."
"Across all the schools, there are 14 students who scored above 700 and 59 who scored above 680, which clearly indicates that the exam was easier. In previous years, it was considered good if 20 students from the entire Jiangling City could get into the top nine universities."
"Haha~" Su Guoliang didn't take it to heart, and laughed even harder. "Doing well on the exam is a skill!"
But then he abruptly changed the subject, the peanut he was holding on his chopsticks hanging in mid-air.
"By the way, isn't there a girl in your class who scored 709?"
Su Chen paused slightly as she picked up some food.
He looked up and saw the smile on his father's face, and the slight curve of his mother's lips as she lowered her head to drink soup.
The couple is clearly in trouble.
Could it be that I've gotten a little too close to Jiang Wei, and my homeroom teacher is afraid I've snagged a good catch and has told my parents?
Su Chen gently bit his chopsticks, his expression unchanged: "Well, it was mainly a practical assessment. Jiang Wei led a team to wipe out a fire ant nest and even killed a warrior-level queen ant, scoring 198 points."
"Wow~ Warrior General level?" Su Guoliang's smile vanished, his eyes widening. "Warrior General level, equivalent to the fourth realm, Qi Refining Realm. She's only in the first semester of her senior year of high school, and she can already kill a Warrior General level ant queen? What's Jiang Wei's cultivation level? She's only in her senior year; she couldn't possibly be at the Qi Refining Realm, could she?"
"The third realm - the Hundred Acupoints Realm - currently only seventy-odd acupoints are open," Su Chen said casually.
"A move up a level! That's quite difficult!"
"It was indeed quite dangerous at the time." Su Chen nodded, "But he was a water spirit with all fourteen meridians open, 73 acupoints activated, and he successfully absorbed the spirit pearl of the water god Gonggong system, mastering powerful spiritual techniques."
There was a two-second silence at the dining table.
Su Guoliang and Li Huilan exchanged a glance.
His eyes conveyed a wealth of emotions.
They were all all smiles just a moment ago, but now they're all quiet.
Su Chen took in their expressions and found it somewhat amusing.
Without showing any emotion, he casually asked, "Why are you suddenly asking about this?"
Li Huilan was the first to react, picking up her bowl to cover half her face: "It's nothing, I just heard that quite a few geniuses scored 700 points in this joint exam. Mom is concerned and hopes you will take them as role models and study hard."
Su Guoliang was much more direct; he put his chopsticks on the table, clearly getting into character.
"What's your relationship with Jiang Wei? Are you close?"
"They're just so-so, we're friends, I guess."
"Um...do you have any feelings for her?"
Su Chen rolled her eyes at her father, put down her chopsticks, and looked worried.
"I do have some ideas. Maybe I should try harder and see if I can marry her?"
Su Guoliang was stunned for a moment, then thought about it seriously for two seconds, and his expression actually became conflicted.
"That's...okay. But...if you have the same temper as your mother, I'm afraid that if you're subjected to domestic violence, neither your mother nor I will be able to stop you."
"Bang"
Li Huilan tapped Su Guoliang on the head expressionlessly.
The force wasn't great, but the sound was crisp. Su Guoliang shuddered, shrank his neck, and became obedient.
He rearranged his words and said seriously, "Actually, when your mom picked you up from school yesterday, she saw you with..."
"I was just asking him a theoretical question about the Spirit Pearl," Su Chen interrupted him.
Su Guoliang waved his hand, adopting an air of experience: "It's alright, who hasn't had a crush on ten or eight girls when they were young? But... listen to your dad's advice. Although high school girls are easy to fool, you absolutely can't fool this kind."
"The girl who is first in the grade falling in love with the girl who is last in the grade is just a short drama imagined by people from the old era."
He paused, seemingly considering his words.
"Think about it, what level of enemies will they face when they enter the top nine universities? What kind of world will they be exposed to? If they're not in the same circle, they won't go far."
Su Chen shrugged, his tone relaxed: "I know."
After saying that, he quietly continued eating.
They say they know, but what they really think is something else entirely.
Memories of my past life flashed through my mind like old photographs.
No! It wasn't a past life!
I may have traveled to fifty years in the future, or I may have been reincarnated and now I am awakening my memories of that reincarnation.
But none of that matters.
The important thing is that feeling: resentment!
In my past life, I was mediocre for too long.
With mediocre grades and a mediocre job, one's greatest achievement in life might be not causing trouble for anyone.
That kind of mediocre life, like a frog being slowly boiled in water, eventually exhausts even the strength to struggle.
In this world, martial arts reign supreme.
The gap in power is more naked and insurmountable than that in terms of rights, status, or wealth!
He wasn't interested in Jiang Wei as a person.
only......
The gap between the two is like a microcosm of society, leaving one with a myriad of emotions.
"Will things be the same in another life?"
"With my adult perspective, I will definitely work harder in my studies and be more assertive when facing practical assessments."
"Before the college entrance exam, I might be able to reach 600 points, which is a huge improvement compared to the original owner."
"Even so, I still seem somewhat unsatisfied."
"If only it were like in novels, with a cheat code! I could carve out my own path in this vast new world! But that's clearly not realistic..."
Su Chen sighed inwardly.
He was also thinking to himself, since it is a law of time and space, why not let himself be reborn?
There must be something unique about it, right?
"The spirit pearls of this world are related to myths in history. They are extremely unique and are the essence of all cultivation systems."
"Could it be that I can make a name for myself in this field?"
"But there's no such nonsense as a mythological historical gap in this world."
"Sigh~ The road is difficult to travel."
Seeing that her son remained silent, Li Huilan stepped on Su Guoliang's foot under the table.
Su Guoliang's lips twitched, then he immediately realized what he meant, bursting into laughter, his voice several octaves louder: "Haha~ With our family's circumstances, there's absolutely no need to feel inferior, right? Now that the federal government is managing things, even those of us without martial arts talent can shine in various industries!"
He pointed at Su Chen with his chopsticks and said seriously, "Your life now is much better than your grandfather's generation. In 2035, when the apocalypse broke out, your grandfather was only 19 years old."
"Tsk tsk, in the eight years following the apocalypse, order collapsed, people became wicked, and the population plummeted by 80% compared to before the apocalypse. World War I and World War II, sound brutal, right? But they don't even reach 10% of that!"
"You simply cannot imagine how terrifying those years were..."
"Now, under the Federation's rule, everyone is equal," Li Huilan continued, her tone softening. "Look at other countries, they're either conquered by demons or the strong occupy territories and become lords. Within those territories, the strong are kings, and those without power are slaves."
Su Chen looked up at her parents and chuckled softly, "Dad, Mom, I understand!"
"Our family's financial situation is already better than 80-90% of families, how could I be dissatisfied?"
"Exactly!" Su Guoliang got excited. "Your dad isn't doing well now? The entire Jiangling City, with over a million people, relies on me for nearly 20% of the pork supply, doesn't it? Your mom is far more talented than me, a whole level above me. She was a top student at a prestigious university, and I still easily won her over!"
Li Huilan stomped on his foot under the table again and said, "Our son did so well on the exam this time, aren't you going to take this opportunity to bring out the gift?"
"Oh, right, right! I almost forgot about that."
Su Guoliang put down his chopsticks and walked out, his steps light and quick, humming an off-key tune.
Watching his father's figure disappear into the hallway leading from the living room to the storage room, Su Chen turned to his mother: "Mom, what's the gift?"
Li Huilan put down the soup bowl, a smile curving her lips with a hint of mysterious satisfaction.
"Your birthday is in two weeks, right? You're in your final year of high school now, and I don't know if you'll be able to take time off on your birthday," she said. "So your dad and I discussed it and bought you a special gift in advance. You'll see when you see it; you'll definitely love it!"
Birthday gift.
Su Chen was taken aback.
This word sounds so unfamiliar.
Memories of my past life flashed through my mind: when I was a child, before I turned ten, every year on my birthday there was a cake, candles, and the song "Happy Birthday".
Later, it became less common.
After the age of eighteen, there was none.
For an adult man, the only things he can pray for in his heart are his 70th and 80th birthdays.
This is all assuming we survive!
Su Chen felt a touch of emotion and began to look forward to it.
.......
After a while.
"They're here! They're here!"
Su Guoliang's voice came from the other end of the corridor, accompanied by the sound of cardboard boxes scraping against the floor.
Su Chen turned his head and saw his father carrying a large cardboard box measuring 2×1×1 meters, moving it horizontally from outside the corridor into the hallway.
"So big? What could it be?"
"A TV? A refrigerator? No, that's not what you get for a birthday."
"Martial arts related? There's no equipment this size."
Just then...
A notification sound rang in his mind, crisp like jade striking each other.
[Ding~ A contractable pet has been detected.]
[After contracting your first pet, you can unlock the Beast Taming Space and receive an initial construction gift pack.]
Ok? ? ?
Su Chen stood there, stunned.
What the heck?
Hang up! Come on?
His pupils dilated slightly, and his heart pounded wildly, as if someone were drumming inside his chest.
The feeling was like a drowning person suddenly grabbing the shore, or like someone who had walked in the dark for too long suddenly seeing the light.
Having lived two lives, he had seen many trials and tribulations, but at this moment, he almost couldn't keep his expression in check.
"bring it on!"
Su Guoliang stood next to the cardboard box, patted it, and said with a proud look on his face, "Open it yourself!"
Su Chen suppressed his excitement for the moment, took a deep breath, and walked to the cardboard box.
Tear open the seal.
Lift the cardboard.
Inside the cardboard box, a clump of silvery-white fur was the first thing that caught the eye.
It looks like a wolf! It has a thick ring of purple fur around its neck.
It is as strong as a lion, with thick and powerful limbs, and a body length of nearly 1.5 meters. Standing in the cardboard box, it almost fills the entire space.
But overall, it has that soft and cute feel that makes you want to cuddle it at first glance.
Its round ears stood up slightly, its light golden eyes were clear and bright, its nose was wet, and it was looking up at Su Chen, its tail swaying gently behind it.
Its four claws looked like they were encased in hard black armor, with wear marks on the edges, clearly indicating that it had been through a lot of combat.
Thunderous and fierce dogs!
Su Chen recognized the breed.
The war beasts, standard equipment for the city guards, have stable bloodlines and extremely high combat qualities; they are almost impossible to buy on the market.
In his eyes, a semi-transparent panel had already appeared above the creature.
【Wind and Thunder Fierce Dog】
Status: Contractable
Strength Rank: Second Realm - High-Level Soldier
Racial potential: Fourth Realm - Warrior Level
Attribute: Wind/Thunder
Growth potential: 9.8
HP: 389
Attack: 65.7
Defense: 32.5
Talent: None
Special abilities: none
skill:
Thunder Fang Lv4 (2166/4000): Thunder-attribute bite attack, inflicting paralysis.
Swift Step Lv3 (950/3000): Greatly increases movement speed for a short period of time.
Thunder Roar Lv2 (320/2000): Emits a roar imbued with the power of lightning, intimidating the target.
Wind Blade Lv3 (1125/3000): Condenses wind element to form dozens of sharp blades.
Thunderous Protection Lv2 (287/2000): Surrounded by lightning, causing paralysis to nearby objects.
Wind and Thunder Claw Lv3 (1300/3000): A claw attack with both wind and thunder attributes, possessing a powerful tearing effect.
Lightning Release Lv1 (845/1000): Transforms into lightning and disappears briefly, performing a short-distance teleportation.
Related technologies:
① Advancement Path: 5 paths in total (viewable by consuming the corresponding number of pet energy points)
② Industrial Technology: 6 items in total
③ Pet Armaments: Wind and Thunder Wings, Heavenly Thunder Claws
④Master Technology: Thunder Gauntlets, Gale Boots
Su Chen gasped.
What the hell!
The panel is so rich?
Ordinary high-level beasts only have two or three skills.
There are seven of these!
Moreover, all seven skills are practical.
There's also a tech tree: Thunder Wings, Thunder Claws, Thunder Gauntlets, Gale Boots... these names don't sound like ordinary stuff.
He took two deep breaths, barely managing to calm his wildly beating heart.
The composure honed from two lifetimes came in handy at this moment; her face only flushed slightly, making her appear excited but not losing her composure.