Lu Yuan's heart pounded. This dark blue cube was incredibly powerful.
Infinite evolution!
As long as he had time, he could grow strong enough to shock everyone.
The strongest of humanity?
The strongest in the universe?
It seemed possible.
But what exactly was this cube? Why had it appeared when he awakened?
As Lu Yuan pondered this, his left wrist suddenly stung.
He opened his eyes and saw that the Awakening Crystal was emitting a white glow. Golden threads moved across his left wrist, eventually forming a golden ring.
A Gene Battle Tattoo.
This was the mark of every awakened person.
It was also the "key" to entering the Origin Land.
The appearance of the Gene Battle Tattoo also proved that Lu Yuan had truly awakened as a Gene Warrior.
"Gene Battle Tattoo?! Lu Yuan, you awakened!"
The teacher's astonished voice rang out.
The students below also erupted into an uproar, their faces filled with shock.
"Lu Yuan actually awakened!"
"He's usually so quiet. Who would've thought he could awaken too?"
"Hmph... So what if he awakened? Being a Gene Warrior is so dangerous. Who knows when something might happen to him?"
The students looking at Lu Yuan showed envy and jealousy, while some of the girls gazed at him with a strange light in their eyes.
To be fair, Lu Yuan was handsome. He was just usually gloomy and withdrawn, and after experiencing the Mutation Event, no one had dared to get close to him.
Now that he had awakened, Lu Yuan's appeal had instantly risen by several levels, making some of the girls restless.
As humanity's elite combat force, Gene Warriors held a very high status.
Lu Yuan heard the students' discussion below, but he paid it no mind at all.
In truth, very few people wanted you to live better than they did.
He was already past the age of arguing over petty words. He only needed to do what he had to do.
After Lu Yuan awakened, a smile appeared on the teacher's usually stern face for the first time.
The teacher looked at Lu Yuan and said gently,
"Student Lu Yuan, congratulations. From now on, you are a Gene Warrior. There are still two months until the college entrance examination, so work hard and strive to get into a highly ranked Gene Warrior Academy. It will benefit your future as well... Oh, right. Since you've just awakened, you can register with the Gene Warrior Association. After registering, you can receive a monthly subsidy of 5,000 yuan."
Lu Yuan was delighted when he heard that.
5,000 yuan?!
Even with the Empire supporting him, his monthly allowance was only 800 yuan, barely enough for the most basic living expenses.
Of course, tuition and miscellaneous school fees were waived.
An ordinary college graduate generally only earned around 3,000 yuan a month.
Lu Yuan did not have to do anything and could receive 5,000 yuan for free. He almost felt as if he had reached the pinnacle of life.
Who wouldn't like free money?
But Lu Yuan quickly came back to his senses.
He was a man destined to become the strongest in the universe! How could he be satisfied with something so trivial?
Unless they gave him 10,000 a month!
Lu Yuan nodded and smiled. "I understand. Thank you for the reminder, Teacher."
Lu Yuan was not surprised by the teacher's change in attitude.
He had heard that awakened students counted toward a teacher's performance targets, and there were sizable bonuses involved as well.
The teacher looked at the students below and smiled.
"Let us congratulate Student Lu Yuan on successfully awakening."
Whether they wanted to or not, the students below all joined the teacher in applauding.
The teacher smiled and nodded, then looked at Lu Yuan.
"All right, you can go back now."
Under everyone's gaze, Lu Yuan returned to his seat.
"The awakening ceremony will continue. Next, Wang Ming."
The ceremony continued, but Lu Yuan was no longer paying attention.
At that moment, he was examining his Gene Battle Tattoo. He could sense that it was like some kind of switch.
He could control this switch with his consciousness.
He had a feeling that once he turned it on, he would be able to enter the legendary Origin Land.
However, Lu Yuan did not know much about the Origin Land yet.
Before entering, he needed to make preparations.
There were only two months left before the college entrance examination.
The examination for Gene Warriors was definitely different from the ordinary one.
Compared with his peers who had awakened at sixteen, he had already lost two years of growth.
Catching up to them within two months and getting into a good school would not be easy.
Fortunately, with the Evolution Cube that could continuously evolve genes, he felt there was still hope.
Having gone through college once in his previous life, Lu Yuan naturally understood that a good university was a better stepping stone in life, making the road ahead smoother.
No matter what, he had to do his very best to get into the best Gene Warrior Academy.
After going back, he would first learn more about the Origin Land, then work hard.
By the way, Lu Yuan had just come up with the name "Evolution Cube" himself.
He thought it sounded good and fit perfectly.
After Lu Yuan awakened, the remaining students became even more expectant. Maybe they could awaken too?
Yet reality was cruel.
By the time the last student finished testing, only Lu Yuan had awakened among the forty-one students in the class and become a Gene Warrior.
After the awakening ceremony ended, the teacher put away the crystal ball. Looking at the dejected and disappointed crowd, the teacher said,
"It is normal not to awaken. Since you cannot become Gene Warriors, settle down and study hard. Get into a good university. That is being responsible for your own lives and futures."
Lu Yuan did not know whether the others took the teacher's words to heart, but they gave him a strong sense of déjà vu from the hundred-day college entrance exam oath-taking ceremony in his previous life.
Unfortunately, not many students in his previous life had truly understood those words either. By the time they did understand, it was already a little too late.
When it came to the future, every young teenager had a mysterious confidence, believing they were the protagonists of their era. Once they entered society, they would surely become CEOs, marry rich and beautiful women, and reach the pinnacle of life.
Then they became honest, hardworking wage slaves, enjoying their blessings.
Yes, Lu Yuan had been one of them.
For a moment, Lu Yuan actually missed that former self who had possessed such mysterious confidence.
Where had that mysterious confidence even come from?
Unlike him now, he was much more grounded.
Mm, as expected of me!
After the teacher finished speaking and left, the students in the classroom gathered in groups of two or three, slapping their desks and groaning in complaint.
"I actually didn't awaken! I thought I would definitely awaken this time!"
"Ah... So from now on, I can only study hard and become an ordinary person?"
"Looks like I can only go home and inherit the family business. Luckily, my family has a small company. At least I won't have to worry about food and clothes in the future."
"...You beast!"
"..."
As the students chatted, they would occasionally look in Lu Yuan's direction.
After all, Lu Yuan was the only person in the class who had awakened.
A pretty female classmate stood up, walked over to Lu Yuan's desk, and said with a bright smile,
"Lu Yuan, I think we're heading the same way. Do you want to go home together later?"
Lu Yuan glanced at her, shook his head, and said flatly, "No. I'm used to being alone."
The girl's smile stiffened. She nodded awkwardly. "Oh."
She turned around and left.
The other girls who had been eager to make a move also gave up on the idea of coming over to greet him.
Lu Yuan secretly breathed a sigh of relief.
Although his personality was different from that of the original owner of this body, and he was not especially withdrawn,
he still had nothing to talk about with classmates who were destined to walk different paths from him.
The two sides had not interacted during their three years of high school, so there was no need to interact in the future either.
The commotion caused by Lu Yuan's awakening soon died down in the class.
Even after awakening, Lu Yuan still had to continue studying.
Even Gene Warriors had to attend cultural classes. Gene Warriors were not illiterate, and school was more about developing thinking and logical skills anyway.
After school in the afternoon, Lu Yuan left campus and walked to the Gene Warrior Association.
He had checked the map before. The Gene Warrior Association was far from the school, and it would take over an hour to get there on foot.
As for why he did not take a vehicle?
Other than being poor, what other reason could there be?
Although Lu Yuan had seen what the city looked like in his memories before, walking through the streets now and looking around still felt somewhat unreal.
Skyscrapers stood everywhere, neon lights flashed, and hovering vehicles floated through the air. Massive light screens played advertisements, where beautiful female celebrities sang and danced with radiant smiles.
There were many pedestrians on the streets. Some even had mechanical limbs, and robots could be seen as well.
At that moment, Lu Yuan was deeply shaken. It felt as though he had arrived in the future.
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