Chapter 10: Xu Jingming, Top Fifty? Did I See That Right?

On the old street, the blackened spear forged from F-grade alloy moved in Xu Jingming's hands like a sleek black dragon, agile and swift!

Hss—

When Xu Jingming suddenly halted his swing, the spearhead, shifting from extreme motion to absolute stillness,

heated up from violent friction with the air, steaming up a plume of heat!

"Just this spear technique alone could kill a Class One ferocious beast!"

Xu Jingming had originally thought spear technique was inferior to the two foundational attributes: physique and spirit.

But after truly obtaining advanced spear technique with the help of the Deep Blue System, he realized he'd been wildly wrong!

Once his spear technique reached advanced level, his thrusting speed more than doubled from before!

And all the various usage techniques of the long spear became fully comprehended—he could find a counter for any kind of enemy.

You could say that even a Class One ferocious beast with physique several times stronger than his would be toyed to death by this technique!

Xu Jingming then glanced at the system panel.

Raising his spear technique to advanced level had cost him 200 energy points; the panel now showed only 13 energy points left.

"Pity I don't have enough energy points—I'd really like to see just how terrifying Master-level spear technique would be."

Shaking his head, Xu Jingming opened the map.

The white dot representing himself was already at the edge of the green outer zone, not far from the yellow central zone.

"I'll reach the central zone in about half an hour—the central zone is filled with peak non-class ferocious beasts and Class One ferocious beasts.

There, my rate of harvesting energy points will be much faster."

The former Weiyuan Town, now a ruin town, had been built decades ago but was hardly different from a modern city.

Its buildings were all constructed of cement, divided into urban and suburban areas just like any modern city.

Xu Jingming was currently inside a residential compound in the ruin town's suburban area.

After the ferocious beast invasion and years of erosion, the entire compound was in terrible disrepair.

Of the six-story residential buildings, more than half had collapsed; those still standing were severely weathered.

The stone pavement beneath his feet was overgrown with weeds, presenting a desolate scene.

When Xu Jingming sheathed the blackened spear and turned to leave,

at the far end of the opposite road, several other examinees appeared.

It was a group of five: three girls and two boys.

Leading them was a tall girl wearing a silver-white battle suit.

And this girl was none other than Lin Qingyuan, Class 5's monitor, who had invited Xu Jingming to join her team before entering the exam hall.

"Xu Jingming?"

Lin Qingyuan also spotted Xu Jingming; surprised and delighted, she strode forward with long steps, closing the distance in three strides.

Most female battle suits are tight-fitting, designed to accentuate the figure.

The one Lin Qingyuan wore was no exception—the silver-white suit clung to her skin, outlining her curvaceous silhouette.

Her legs, wrapped in the suit, looked especially long and toned as she moved.

"Monitor."

On his way here, Xu Jingming had encountered other examinees.

But they were either from other schools or other classes.

This was the first time he'd met a classmate, and he couldn't help but smile.

"Phew, didn't expect to run into you here—did you come all the way on your own?"

Lin Qingyuan glanced around and saw no one else; she asked curiously.

The four members trailing behind her also looked surprised at the sight of Xu Jingming alone.

Usually, E-rank energy-awakened individuals are eliminated within one or two hours after the Wu Ke Gaokao begins.

It was now about twelve noon—over three hours since the Wu Ke Gaokao started.

How had Xu Jingming not only survived but reached this far?

"It's more convenient alone."

Facing Lin Qingyuan's question, Xu Jingming didn't hide it—he nodded.

"Impressive!"

Lin Qingyuan's eyes sparkled; she gave a thumbs-up. "We only made it here thanks to Xiaoqiao's help."

Behind her, a petite girl nodded shyly.

This girl, named Xiaoqiao, had awakened a D-rank auxiliary energy: "Rapid Movement," which could enhance her own and her teammates' movement speed to some degree.

Thanks to Xiaoqiao, Lin Qingyuan's team had been able to advance this far.

"I was just lucky—the ferocious beasts I encountered along the way weren't strong."

Facing Lin Qingyuan's smile, Xu Jingming unusually said a few more words.

After all, in this place crawling with monstrous horrors, what could be more uplifting than seeing a beautiful girl?

After chatting with Lin Qingyuan for a few more moments, Xu Jingming took his leave:

"Monitor, time is tight—we'll talk after the exam."

"Mm, go on. I wish you a good score."

Lin Qingyuan knew this was the Wu Ke Gaokao—a race against time—and didn't stop him.

"Never thought Xu Jingming could make it this far."

"So he really had his reasons for signing up for the Wu Ke Gaokao."

Xu Jingming, who had lost both parents since childhood, was, in Lin Qingyuan's eyes, a pitiable person.

Dying in the Wu Ke Gaokao would be even more unfortunate, so seeing Xu Jingming alive and well now, she felt a weight lift from her heart.

"Captain, come quick! This one-horned rhino looks like it just died not long ago!"

A startled cry drew Lin Qingyuan's attention over.

She saw several others gathered around the one-horned rhino's corpse, chattering away in discussion.

"The blood from the wound hasn't even dried yet, which means it died within the last few minutes."

"There are plenty of wounds on its body, but the fatal one is on the head."

"Judging by the shape of the wound, it looks like a piercing injury from a long-handled weapon — looks like... a spear!"

Lin Qingyuan's squad had spotted this one-horned rhino corpse long ago, but hadn't paid it much mind, assuming some earlier examinee team had killed it here.

But taking a closer look, they found the one-horned rhino had only just died, and every wound on its body looked like it had been made by a spear.

"You don't actually think this one-horned rhino was killed by Xu Jingming, do you?"

One of the male examinees said, an odd look on his face.

The one-horned rhino is an extremely troublesome fierce beast.

They had only dared to face one in combat because there were five of them.

That an E-class ability awakener could single-handedly kill a one-horned rhino — they absolutely refused to believe it.

"If we want to know whether Xu Jingming killed it, why not just check his score ranking?"

One of the male examinees opened his smart watch, and quickly found Xu Jingming's name in the score rankings:

'46th place: Xu Jingming, 256 points. (Jiangcheng No. 2 High School)'

"Xu Jingming, 46th place?!!!"

"Holy shit?! He actually broke into the top fifty?! Am I seeing this right?"

Seeing that ranking, the male examinee froze for a moment, then rubbed his eyes hard.

Certain he hadn't misread it, he looked as if he'd seen a ghost and let out a shriek.

"What do you mean, 46th place?"

"Did you find Xu Jingming's ranking?"

The remaining squad members crowded over one after another.

After seeing Xu Jingming's ranking on the virtual screen, their expressions turned equally shocked.

Even squad captain Lin Qingyuan couldn't help but widen her eyes, her expression adorably blank.

The others all felt the same question rise in their hearts at once:

"What the hell — these days an E-class ability awakener can be this fierce?!"