Special Examination

Early the next morning, the members of Zero Class gathered. Lin Xiuran was still somewhat unaccustomed to it. He had only just joined Zero Class, yet he was already taking the final exam, without even a period to adjust.

Wu Zhangkong still wasted no words, simply leading the four of them out of the academy. This time, they did not walk. Instead, they took a Soul Guidance Bus straight toward the outskirts.

"Teacher Wu, could you give us a little hint about what today's exam is?" Xie Xie asked with a fawning smile.

Wu Zhangkong glanced at him. "You'll find out when you get there. It's somewhat like the Spirit Ascension Platform, but not entirely the same."

"Oh." Xie Xie nodded.

Lin Xiuran naturally had no objections. Although he was going straight into the final exam, he was generally confident. He was no longer the person he used to be.

Still, heading to the outskirts cast a bit of a shadow over him. Fortunately, this time they were going to the outskirts on the other side of Eastsea City, with the entire city between them.

They got off the bus in the suburbs, and Wu Zhangkong led them into an enormous park. This park had a name: Donghai Soul Guidance Technology Park.

The park was filled with broad stretches of greenery and rows of uniquely styled buildings. Every building had its own distinctive features, and most were constructed from metal.

Lin Xiuran was not too surprised. Though Wu Zhangkong had not said anything, he had a fairly good idea of the contents of this exam, so he was mentally prepared.

The park was huge. They walked for a full half hour before Wu Zhangkong brought them to a smaller park within it.

The first thing they saw was another broad landscaped area, followed by a small building. Compared to the buildings they had seen earlier, this one seemed truly rather petite. Against the vast expanse of this park within a park, it looked somewhat disproportionate.

Only when they reached the entrance did they see that there was not even a nameplate on the building. There was no way to tell what kind of place it was.

The small building was deep blue, its outer walls mirror-like, seemingly pieced together from panels of glass. The mirrored surface possessed a strange beauty, reflecting light differently from every angle.

There were no guards at the entrance. Only a deep-blue glass door, the same color as the building, stood tightly shut.

Wu Zhangkong walked straight up and pressed his right hand against a section of the glass.

A bright blue light flashed beneath his palm and vanished. A projection lit up, followed by a somewhat playful voice. "Yo, long time no see, Little Longkong of Donghai."

Wu Zhangkong said coldly, "Open the door."

The voice sounded somewhat helpless. "You're still as boring as ever."

With a soft ding, the glass doors silently slid open to either side.

Tang Wulin, Xie Xie, and Guyue were all stunned, clearly shocked by the name Little Longkong of Donghai.

Lin Xiuran, however, was focused on something entirely different. This door alone was enough to reveal just how advanced the technology here was.

This already involved the field of AI. Given that Douluo Continent's current level of technological development was roughly comparable to the era of his previous life, AI with such humanlike capabilities was exceedingly rare even on Douluo Continent.

If he remembered correctly, this should be a place belonging to the Tang Sect.

They passed through the glass doors. The floor was white, the walls deep blue, and the soft white lighting made everything look clean and neat. Yet there was still no one around. A circular metal platform floated over, carrying four metal wristbands.

The four of them put them on as instructed. According to Wu Zhangkong, they were identification devices.

Only by wearing them could they ensure they would not be treated as enemies. Otherwise, they might be destroyed by the defense system here.

It sounded somewhat alarmist, but it was actually terrifying. A major reason there were no guards here was likely because of confidence in the strength of the defense system.

Wu Zhangkong did not speak again. He continued leading the four deeper inside, until they reached another deep-blue glass door. Bright blue light swept over them again. This time, there was no AI voice. The four wearing the metal wristbands saw a flash of light from their bands, which quickly faded.

Beyond the door was a corridor stretching inward. After turning several corners and passing through another glass door, light flashed. Wu Zhangkong, who was walking in front, suddenly vanished.

"Spatial technology?"

Without a doubt, this was spatial technology, which was still in the research stage across the continent. Yet it was already being applied here, at least one stage ahead of the Federation.

"Keep walking forward."

Wu Zhangkong did not reappear, but his voice clearly echoed from every corner of the room. They heard him with perfect clarity.

The others quickly walked toward the spot where Wu Zhangkong had vanished. In an instant, Lin Xiuran felt his body wrapped in a strange energy. The next moment, he appeared out of thin air somewhere else.

It was a deep-blue space. Above his head and beneath his feet were deep-blue crystals, while the walls were silvery-white metal. The refracted halos of light made it especially strange.

Wu Zhangkong and the others had appeared here as well.

Wu Zhangkong was ahead of them. He walked to one side of the wall and performed some unknown operation. The wall suddenly split apart, revealing a large screen. All kinds of strange symbols lit up across it, and a keyboard popped out. Wu Zhangkong's hands swept over it, tapping like raindrops striking banana leaves with lightning speed.

Identity confirmed: Little Longkong of Donghai.

Test difficulty: medium. Number of testees: four. Ten-second countdown.

Ten—

Nine—

"What the hell? It's starting already?"

Xie Xie immediately began complaining again, but before anyone could respond, four beams of blue light descended without warning and struck the four of them. With a flash of blue light, all four vanished without a trace.

Lin Xiuran did not even have time to react before he felt that sensation of being enveloped again. It was very similar to the Spirit Ascension Platform. The difference was that over at the Spirit Pagoda, only their consciousness entered, while this time it was their actual bodies.

A sense of dizziness and weightlessness struck him at once. Lin Xiuran immediately reacted, gathering Wind Element beneath his feet and landing lightly within this space.

The entire space was pitch-black. He could not see anything at all. Only the ground beneath his feet gave him a genuine sense of touch.

Welcome to the Hall of Heroes. First trial, difficulty: advanced.

Name: Lin Xiuran. Age: ten.

Test requirement, first round: hold out for thirty seconds.

Lin Xiuran frowned slightly. Before he could react, a figure flickered into view ahead of him.

She had large pink-blue eyes, long curled eyelashes, a slender graceful figure, and long pink-blue hair flowing down her back. Her flawless face was set off by a pure white dress, making her seem like a goddess descending into the world.