Chapter 42: So Embarrassing!
「Ah, this…」
Xu Wenchang’s aged eyes locked onto the screen, letting out a dry, startled exclamation.
As an admissions officer for the Dragon Sequence Class at Tianlong Academy, he had seen countless ways to clear the Trial Tower.
Some relied on positioning and kiting, others on burst damage to kill instantly, and some even used summoned beasts to tank.
But he had never seen anything like this…
Brick up the monster spawn point, then flood it with fireballs!
Keep in mind that [Earth Flow Wall] is an advanced earth skill.
At just three days post-transformation, an ordinary earth mage would be lucky to hold a wall steady—let alone construct such a thick, seamless hexagonal cage.
More importantly, while achieving this level of earth wall mastery, he also possessed the terrifying firepower to instantly melt ten goblins!
Even Tianshengtuhuoshuangxiqinhe geniuses, during the major exam, considered it impressive if they could stabilize a moderately thick wall and nail fireball accuracy.
«Old Xu, what do you say?»
Lin Tianhao’s lips twitched harder than an AK, yet his face remained stoic.
Xu Wenchang took a deep breath, his voice thick with awe:
«Old Lin, your boy… he’s no ordinary kid…»
«No no, he’s just a bit stronger than average…» Lin Tianhao said, glancing sideways at Zhao Lei.
Xu Wenchang turned to the technician:
«Rewind the footage! Slow motion!»
The footage reversed.
Everyone clearly saw the rain of fireballs reduce the bewildered goblins to ash.
Most crucially, Lin Mo never once looked at what was inside the earth wall!
«Did you see that?»
Xu Wenchang pointed at the screen, voice low:
«Every split fireball landed precisely on one goblin.»
«Without line of sight, he locked onto every monster’s position—this absolute perception… honestly, I’ve never seen anything like it…»
«Hahaha, Old Xu, you’re exaggerating.»
Seeing his son receive such high praise, Lin Tianhao’s cheeks flushed, but he waved it off:
«You can do this too, can’t you? How come you’ve never seen it before?»
Xu Wenchang shot him a disgruntled look:
«Old Lin, that’s not fair. I’ve been transformed for thirty years—your son’s been transformed for three days. How can you compare?»
«This is a genius. A true genius! Old Lin, I really owe you for letting me know—if not, we’d have lost him for the Dragon Sequence Class.»
«Ha… hahaha…»
Lin Tianhao and Su Wan exchanged glances, their eyes brimming with amusement.
«Come on, Old Xu, you’re overdoing it.»
Su Wan stepped in, perfectly timed:
«Genius? What genius? Our Mo’er has no big ambitions—he’s just lazy.»
«He thought chasing monsters was too tiring, so he came up with this lazy trick: trap them and blow them up, just to save effort.»
«Exactly.» Lin Tianhao added: «Our Mo’er’s been like this since he was a kid—always lying down if he can.»
The couple played their parts in perfect harmony.
To Xu Wenchang and Zhao Lei, it sounded like: «Basic move. Don’t overreact. Everyone sit.»
Zhao Lei’s face appeared calm, but inside, his mind was in turmoil.
Such terrifying elemental control… such unimaginable tactical thinking…
He had been wrong. That Abyss dungeon had nothing to do with Xia Qingyue.
It was this kid who led the team through it!
Damn… I misjudged him.
Xu Wenchang glanced at the data and spoke again:
«Three seconds.»
«Old Lin, what’s the current record for our Trial Tower?»
Lin Tianhao thought a moment, then replied calmly:
«The current record is five years ago—Layer 27, total time 20 minutes, excluding rest periods.»
«20 minutes… Layer 27…»
Xu Wenchang murmured, «At this pace, Lin Mo won’t just break the layer record—he’ll break the fastest clear time for every single layer.»
«Hmph. Dream on!»
Zhao Lei finally snapped, sneering to interrupt Xu Wenchang’s speculation.
He stared coldly at the screen, trying to salvage some dignity: «Old Xu, you’re overestimating him.»
«The last five layers have level-25 monsters, plenty of them, and even flying demons.»
«How are a few earth walls supposed to hold them?»
Lin Tianhao merely smiled faintly: «Old Zhao, your vision is limited. If you think it’s a dream, then let’s keep watching.»
Zhao Lei’s face darkened. He said nothing, turning instead to his precious son.
Too bad—his own son couldn’t even match Lin Mo’s little toe.
…
Meanwhile, in the independent space of Layer Two, where Zhao Yu was.
«Huff—huff—»
Zhao Yu leaned on his staff, gasping for breath.
He’d won that fight, but it hadn’t been easy.
These ten Goblin Warriors weren’t just tough-skinned—they knew how to flank and had fierce aggression.
He’d had to kite constantly, time his skill cooldowns, and fire every fireball with pinpoint accuracy.
«This level of combat… and it’s only Layer Two?»
Zhao Yu walked to a supply crate, pulled out a Chujifaliyaoji , and downed it in one gulp.
【Congratulations, candidate Zhao Yu! Layer Two cleared!】
【Time: 1 minute 47 seconds!】
【Prepare for Layer Three in five minutes!】
Hearing the announcement, Zhao Yu smiled with quiet pride.
One minute forty-seven seconds…
An average A-rank candidate would struggle for three to five minutes, often taking damage.
Even an S-rank talent who cleared it under two minutes was rare.
And he’d done it in under one minute fifty!
This score, in past years, would’ve been the absolute ceiling for S-rank talents!
And Jianghai City had no one above S-rank.
Which meant…
His score was almost certainly dominating the entire field!
Thinking of this, Zhao Yu turned his head, eyes locking onto the corner surveillance camera.
«Dad, did you see that?»
«This is the dominance of an S-rank Flame Mage!»
«This year, Jianghai City’s Top Graduate is mine!»
Though he couldn’t see the monitor room, he was certain his father sat right there in the VIP booth, watching him with pride.
…
In the monitor room now.
Since Lin Mo had already cleared, everyone’s eyes were fixed on the enlarged screen—Zhao Yu’s side.
Watching Zhao Yu’s strange smile, Lin Tianhao feigned confusion:
«Old Zhao, what’s your Zhao Yu muttering over there?»
Zhao Lei’s face turned black.
Who knows a son better than his father?
He knew his son too well.
From that gaze, that upward tilt of the lips, Zhao Lei could guess exactly what the boy was thinking.
Normally, he’d feel proud, feel honored.
But now…
Looking at the monster who cleared in three seconds beside him, then at his own son’s «I’m the greatest» expression…
Zhao Lei felt blood rush to his skull—he wanted to crawl into the screen and drag Zhao Yu out to beat him senseless.
Embarrassing…
So damn embarrassing!
End of Chapter
