Chapter 36: Son, Perform Well!

The next morning.

Lin Mo turned over in a daze and reached out to touch the bedside table.

A maid who had been waiting long ago immediately handed him a cup of warm honey water.

"Young master, have some water..."

Lin Mo moistened his throat, and only then did he fully wake up.

He stretched contentedly.

"Comfortable~"

This sleep was simply refreshing.

Out of habit, Lin Mo focused his mind and opened his personal attribute panel.

【Name: Lin Mo】

【Class: Mage】

【Level: Lv. 17 (92%)】

"Hmm?"

Lin Mo raised an eyebrow and instinctively glanced at his skill bar.

【'Fireball' yawned, looking exhausted yet radiating extreme satisfaction: Ah... is this the feeling of dawn?】

【'Fireball' glanced at Lin Mo: Awake? This Seat wiped out the entire family of mobs in that area last night.】

【'Fireball' said proudly: No need to thank me; this is necessary accumulation on the path to forbidden spells.】

【Status: Sage mode after extreme excitement (a bit sleepy, but still can fight! Urgently need to replenish fire-element food.)】

Lin Mo couldn't help but sigh.

"Xiao Huo, oh Xiao Huo..."

"If conditions allowed, I would definitely award you a 'Annual Best Overachiever' trophy and parade you through the streets with a big red flower."

【'Fireball' snorted: Mere empty fame; this Seat doesn't care. What this Seat cares about is power!】

"Fine, fine, fine."

Lin Mo, in high spirits, flipped off the bed.

Soon, after washing up, Lin Mo hummed a little tune and arrived at the dining hall.

Lin Tianhao and his wife were already seated.

The atmosphere today was more solemn than usual.

Lin Tianhao wore a crisp military uniform, his chest covered with rows of dazzling medals; his entire bearing was majestic and imposing, commanding awe without anger.

Su Wan had also changed into a solemn black long dress, her hair pinned up, appearing elegant and capable.

"Dad, Mom, good morning."

Lin Mo pulled out a chair and sat down, casually picking up a slice of toast. "So solemn? Anyone who doesn't know might think you're getting promoted to City Lord today."

Lin Tianhao's eye twitched, and he said sternly:

"You brat, today is the grand exam, watched by the entire city. Your father is one of the chief examiners; how could I not dress formally?"

Su Wan served Lin Mo a bowl of 【Crimson Flame Beef Brisket Porridge】 and said softly, "Eat more; the grand exam is a physical task. Don't end up with an empty stomach."

"Thanks, Mom."

Lin Mo took the porridge and drank a mouthful with delight.

Lin Tianhao then reminded:

"By the way, Lin Mo, today the admissions officers from the 'Long Xu Ban' of the Capital's Tianlong Academy will be coming. You'd better perform well then."

"'Long Xu Ban'?" Lin Mo raised an eyebrow. "Is it very impressive?"

Lin Tianhao sneered. "Son, let me put it this way. Across the entire Dragon Nation, millions of candidates take the professional grand exam every year."

"Those who can get into Tianlong Academy are geniuses selected one in ten thousand."

"And the 'Long Xu Ban' never admits more than 20 people per year!"

"Hiss..."

Hearing this, Lin Mo inhaled sharply. "That really is quite impressive, then."

"Isn't it?"

Lin Tianhao continued, "Once you get into this class, it's equivalent to entering the state's privileged class. You even have the privilege to execute first and report later while still in school. Do you understand?"

"Mm-hmm, understood, Dad. Don't worry; I'll definitely bring honor to you."

Lin Mo mumbled unclearly while drinking his porridge.

For him, the grand exam was just to bring face to his parents; going anywhere was about the same.

Anyway, he would level up his skills himself and comprehend them himself.

Seeing his son's confident appearance, Lin Tianhao and Su Wan exchanged a glance, their hearts filled with gratification.

"Good! Ambitious!"

Lin Tianhao laughed loudly, stood up, and patted Lin Mo's shoulder:

"Since you have confidence, then Dad can rest easy."

Su Wan also stood up, adjusted Lin Mo's collar, and said gently:

"Just do your best; don't put too much pressure on yourself. Whether you get into that Long Xu Ban or not, you are the best in Mom and Dad's hearts."

Lin Tianhao glanced at his watch, his expression sharpening:

"Alright, it's about time."

"Your mother and I must go over there to hold the fort first."

"Today is after all a big day; as high-ranking officials, we must arrive early to inspect the examination venue's defenses."

"After you finish breakfast yourself, just take the family car over."

Lin Mo nodded:

"Alright, Mom and Dad, you go ahead and get busy; I'll eat slowly."

……

……

Jianghai City, Professional Exam Monitoring Command Center.

Inside the huge circular hall, hundreds of high-definition screens monitored every corner of the exam venue in real time.

Lin Tianhao and his wife had already arrived at the VIP monitoring room on the second floor.

Just then,

"Old Lin, you tricked me all the way from the Capital; if in the end I just see nothing, I'll hold you accountable."

A slightly lazy voice sounded.

Lin Tianhao turned his head to look.

Xu Wenchang, holding two walnuts in his hands, was walking over slowly.

"Hahahaha, how could that be? How many years of friendship do we have? When have I ever screwed you over?"

Lin Tianhao laughed heartily, stood up, and went to greet him.

Xu Wenchang rolled his eyes and plopped down on the sofa:

"Give it a rest; what ivory could possibly come out of your mouth?"

"And what about your son simultaneously comprehending four skills across the Fire and Earth dual elements? And what about 'wielding it as if it were an extension of his arm,' hitting wherever he points?"

"And Fire-Earth combination techniques? Do you think you're writing a novel?"

"To be honest, if it weren't for the fact that we used to sleep in upper and lower bunks back in the day, I definitely wouldn't have come."

Lin Tianhao just smiled mysteriously and poured a cup of tea for Xu Wenchang:

"Whether it's a novel or not, you'll know once the exam starts in a moment."

"I'll just say this: if you, Long Xu Ban, don't accept my son today, that will be the biggest loss of your life! It will be a loss to the nation!"

"Don't try to lecture me on values..."

Just as the two were bickering, Zhao Lei also walked over with several aides.

His gaze landed on Xu Wenchang immediately; his pupils contracted slightly, obviously somewhat surprised.

"Eh, isn't this Old Xu? Why are you here too?"

He couldn't figure out how Xu Wenchang could appear here.

Could it be... for his son with the S-rank talent?

Thinking of this, Zhao Lei felt a surge of joy in his heart.

Looks like my face carries enough weight; I didn't even ask anyone to come, and he came scurrying over on his own.

Hearing the voice, Xu Wenchang turned his head slightly.

The three of them were classmates at the same university back in the day.

At that time, Lin Tianhao was the universally acknowledged battle maniac of the whole school, unrivaled in strength.

And Zhao Lei was that eternal number two, always suppressed by Lin Tianhao.

As for Xu Wenchang himself, he was the bystander who loved stirring up trouble and watching the drama.

For these few decades, Zhao Lei had been holding back a drive to beat Lin Tianhao once; this fact wasn't a secret in the old classmate circle.

"Hahaha, Old Zhao, long time no see."

Xu Wenchang didn't stand up; he just said with a faint smile, "I was invited by Old Lin."

"Invited... by Old Lin?"

Zhao Lei was stunned for a moment; his tone became somewhat strange:

"Old Xu, are you not joking?"

Xu Wenchang shrugged, "Yeah, Old Lin praised his son to the skies, calling him a once-in-a-millennium genius, and insisted I come to see for myself."

"Pfft—"

Zhao Lei couldn't hold it back and burst out laughing.

He withdrew his hand, adjusted his collar, and then plopped down on the sofa on the other side.

"Old Lin, Old Lin, what kind of place is Long Xu Ban? It's a place that looks at hard strength!"

"You invited Old Xu here; do you want to take a backdoor route?"

"Or are you saying... you prepared a one-time skill scroll for Lin Mo and want to cheat?"

Zhao Lei said this and seriously warned, "I advise you not to have such thoughts; the consequences of cheating in the exam venue are severe."

Lin Tianhao didn't even lift his eyelids; he blew away the steam from his teacup:

"Zhao Lei, your perspective is just that limited."

"Always judging a gentleman's heart with a petty person's mind; no wonder you couldn't catch up to me back then; now... in the next generation, you still can't catch up."

"You—!"

Zhao Lei's face darkened.

But very quickly, he regained his composure and snorted coldly: "Hmph, just wait and see what earth-shattering performance your son puts on."

Having said this, Zhao Lei ignored Lin Tianhao and turned his head to look at Xu Wenchang:

"Old Xu, I suggest you pay more attention to my Zhao Yu."

"S-rank Fire Element affinity, Flame Mage! These past few days I've put him through devilish special training; that skill proficiency, that casting speed, tut-tut-tut..."

Zhao Lei gave a thumbs-up, looking extremely proud:

"Absolutely the top scholar candidate of this year's Jianghai City!"

Xu Wenchang heard Zhao Lei's boasting and smiled politely:

"An S-rank Fire Mage is indeed impressive."

"However... Long Xu Ban recruits based on fate and also on on-the-spot performance."

"Take a look, take a look, no rush."

Xu Wenchang's reply was flawless; he neither agreed nor completely refused, typical perfunctory rhetoric.

Seeing this, Zhao Lei immediately leaned back on the sofa.

His heart was bursting with joy.

Originally, his son with S-rank talent had absolutely no chance to show himself to the Long Xu Ban recruitment officer.

But now Lin Tianhao had invited Xu Wenchang over.

Now things were perfect; no matter how heaven-defying Lin Mo, the blank-slate mage, was, how heaven-defying could he really be?

He certainly wouldn't catch the eye of the Long Xu Ban recruitment officer, and instead would provide an excellent stage for his own son, Zhao Yu, to show off.

This move, this move was a god-tier assist!

Thinking this, Zhao Lei picked up his phone, edited a message, and sent it to his son Zhao Yu.

【Son, perform well later; the Long Xu Ban recruitment officer is here!】