The National College Entrance Examination Was Getting Serious!

The study group matter was resolved in such a messy fashion.

The homeroom teacher did not want to dwell on it for too long. He slammed the blackboard eraser heavily against the podium and said loudly, "All right, put everything else aside. Now, I'm going to talk about applying for the Undergraduate Program!"

Undergraduate Program!

The students jolted awake, all forgetting the farce from moments ago.

"If all you want is to get into a decent Associate Degree program and find a comfortable, worry-free job in the future, then just prepare for the exam and enter the examination hall in a month and a half. But the legendary Undergraduate Program is an entirely different matter. There is a saying about 'passing three trials.' The first great trial that decides your fate is about to begin!"

The homeroom teacher told them that applying for the Undergraduate Program involved the "Preliminary Test, retest, and Ultimate Combat Test"—three Gates of Hell.

The first trial would be held within the school. It tested Limit Fist Strength, the hundred-meter sprint, and marksmanship. There were limited advancement slots; even District Key High Schools would eliminate more than half their students.

The second trial would be held at the District Education Bureau, using the "Super Brain Virtual System" to test candidates' mental strength. The pass rate was also very low.

The third trial was the National College Entrance Examination in late July.

The National College Entrance Examination was divided into theory and practical combat. For theory, the Undergraduate Program and Associate Degree programs were the same.

But for the practical combat test, Category Two Candidates applying for Associate Degree programs went to the Monster Research Institute to fight Biochemical Beasts that had been tamed, modified, and controlled by humans.

Category One Candidates applying for the Undergraduate Program, however, would go to the edge of the city, close to the mist—to a real battlefield!

"This year's test is earlier than usual. In one week, the first trial will begin. Our school has one hundred and fifty advancement slots.

"Don't think one hundred and fifty slots is a lot. The two Rocket Classes alone have one hundred students. Based on past experience, the remaining six Parallel Classes can grab, at most, fifty or sixty slots. That means roughly ten per class. Students ranked in the top fifteen of our class can still make a push. As for everyone else, things are dangerous!"

With every sentence, the homeroom teacher struck the podium with the blackboard eraser, making everyone's expressions turn grave.

The top students in the class remained calm and composed, while those ranked near the bottom had long since given up. Only the students ranked between tenth and twentieth discussed it heatedly.

"Teacher Wang, why does applying for the Undergraduate Program have to be so complicated? Can't it be settled in one go in July, just like the Associate Degree programs? That way, we'd have an extra month to sprint forward with everything we have!"

Someone said this, filled with unwillingness.

"It's simple. Escorting a large group of candidates to the edge of the mist to fight real monsters consumes enormous resources. The military and powerful fighters must be gathered to protect the candidates, and what Dragon City lacks most is resources."

The homeroom teacher said coldly, "Besides, the path of the Transcendent is a path of life and death—supremely glorious, and supremely perilous. If you are not an outstanding talent blessed by heaven, there is no need to harbor extravagant hopes and burden yourselves with needless worries. It is better to give up the thought early and focus on getting into an Associate Degree program!"

That single sentence made quite a few students lower their heads.

Being in a Parallel Class, many students had long accepted their fate. These days, an Associate Degree was still very valuable. As the saying went, "Even college graduates stand above others!"

Yet the student from before continued muttering under his breath, "This isn't fair. A poor hundred-meter time doesn't mean I can't have a flash of brilliance and suddenly erupt in actual combat..."

"Fair?"

Hearing this, the homeroom teacher's eyebrows shot up. He slapped the podium so hard it nearly jumped. "There has never been any fairness in this world! When Dragon City crossed over, we had nothing, yet we had to face the assaults of zombies and monsters. Should we talk fairness with zombies, or fairness with monsters?

"It was only to survive with difficulty amid crisis that Transcendents gradually came into being. Transcendents stand high above others and possess all kinds of privileges, but none of what they enjoy fell from the sky. They had to use their fists, blades, swords, even their teeth, to snatch it from the jaws of demons and monsters. That is the greatest 'fairness'!

"I'm telling you, don't only look at the superficial splendor of Transcendents. Do you know that last year, the death rate among Dragon City's Transcendents was more than five times that of ordinary people? And every year's Category One practical combat test had quotas for injuries, disabilities, and deaths. Last year's disability quota was one hundred people, and the death quota was ten. This year, they've doubled outright!"

"What?"

The students all cried out in alarm.

The disability and death quotas had doubled. Did that not mean this year's National College Entrance Examination would be exceptionally dangerous?

Meng Chao's heart stirred. The authorities had definitely noticed some clues and knew the Monster War was about to escalate. They had to cultivate stronger, tougher, fearless super soldiers as quickly as possible.

Therefore, this year's Undergraduate Combat Test was getting serious.

The homeroom teacher said, "Understand now? Screening people out early, eliminating ordinary people who are unsuited to become Transcendents early—that is for the sake of your lives."

The students all looked terrible.

"Surely it won't really be that exaggerated? Surely they won't use up all the quotas?" someone said.

Thinking about it, everyone realized that the quotas had rarely been used up in previous years. Usually, at most three to five candidates were injured or disabled, and one or two died. There had even been two lucky years when no one died at all, and everyone rejoiced.

"Stop dreaming. This year's National College Entrance Examination is different. I can give you a little inside information. The school has already issued a notice asking us to prepare your parents mentally—soon, the Survival Member Association, the military, and the city Education Bureau will jointly issue a document. Candidates injured, disabled, or killed in this year's examination will receive the same treatment as injured or fallen soldiers."

The homeroom teacher spoke decisively. "In other words, this is not a simple examination. This is a real war!"

The students were all dumbfounded.

"To be honest, for my own sake, I would love for our class to produce a few more Undergraduate Program students who become Transcendents in the future."

The homeroom teacher kneaded the blackboard eraser again and again, lowering his voice. "But for the sake of your lives, if your grades are not particularly ideal and you do not have much confidence in your combat ability, I do not recommend applying for the Undergraduate Program. Truly."

Those words could be considered heartfelt.

The students processed this shocking news with pale faces.

Meng Chao, however, clenched his fists, craving power more than ever.

"All right, go to the testing room and see what you're made of. If you don't have the speed of an Earth Era sprinting champion and the strength of a heavyweight boxing champion, you won't even pass the internal school test. Then there's no need to struggle over it at all!" Wang Longjun waved his hand.

They were, after all, carefree young people. They were still sighing in the hallway, but once they reached the Cultivation Center, their fighting spirit rose again.

Even if the death quota had doubled, it was only twenty people. Compared to the total number of candidates, it was far less than one percent. No one believed they would be that unlucky.

Moreover, having been born in Dragon City, everyone understood one principle—without high risk, where would high returns come from?

Since this year's National College Entrance Examination had suddenly become much harder, the authorities would not simply watch them march to their deaths. They would certainly increase the allocation of cultivation resources.

Sure enough, the homeroom teacher told them that as long as they passed the internal school test, the cultivation resources provided by the school to every Undergraduate Program candidate would double compared to previous years.

For Bone Cell Growth Factor alone, candidates had previously received one dose every three days. This year, they would receive one dose a day!

Under a heavy reward, brave men would surely emerge.

"With our blades, swords, and fists, we will expand Dragon City's living space, make our names known, and achieve greatness—today is the day!"

By the time they entered the testing room, the teenagers were already howling with excitement.

Of course, the necessary humility could not be neglected.

"Ah, monsters caused trouble all night last night, so I barely slept. I definitely won't be able to exert any strength today. It's over, it's over—I'm going to bomb the test!"

"Wu Xue Ba, who are you trying to fool? Everyone knows your Limit Fist Strength ranks in the top five of the class. I'm the truly pitiful one. I twisted my ankle yesterday, so today I can only limp along. I'll probably run the hundred meters in over ten seconds, sigh!"

"Zhao Xue Shen, keep acting sneaky and low-key. If you run under 9.7 seconds later, treat the whole class to milk tea. Dare you?"

"Please, just act like human beings! Every one of you is a top student or genius in this class, yet you're all pretending to have muscular dystrophy. Is that necessary?"

The students joked and laughed as they underwent the tests.

Sure enough, every one of them acted more delicate than a tender flower. Even burly, broad-shouldered rough men were standing there going "Waaah, waaah," striking coquettish poses.

But the moment they stepped onto the track or stood before the Fist Strength Tester, they transformed from little white rabbits into big gray wolves. Their "Waaah, waaah" became "Awooo, awooo!"

Especially those who had studied Super Raging Bull Force together the previous night.

Though none of them had improved their Limit Fist Strength by a staggering three percent in one breath like Chu Feixiong.

An increase of 0.5 percentage points could still mean one or two extra points on the National College Entrance Examination, enough to eliminate plenty of competitors.

Besides, Raging Bull Force was not merely a fist technique. It was an extremely scientific method of exerting force with the entire body, and it was also very helpful for improving sprinting speed.

For a time, cries of surprise rang out through the testing room.

"Wu Xue Ba broke his own Limit Fist Strength record! His punching force increased by 0.5 kilograms in just a few days, and he says he didn't sleep well? What a monster, beast, scum, disgrace!"

"Zhao Xue Shen, hundred-meter record: 9.57 seconds! You beat the world record held by Earth Era Bolt! Limping my ass—milk tea! You must treat the whole class to milk tea!"

"Chu Feixiong! Brother Xiong! Limit Fist Strength: 233.5 kilograms! He's refreshed the class record again! Earth Era boxing champion Tyson was nothing compared to him!"

The students shrieked one after another, their eyes filled with shock and worship as they looked at Chu Feixiong.

The homeroom teacher's expression was also complicated.

The class average had risen, class records had been broken again and again, and upon closer inspection, every student who had made a breakthrough had joined the study group. Twenty years of educational experience had been smashed to pieces, and he was becoming more and more interested in Super Raging Bull Force.

Meng Chao stood with both hands tucked into the loose pockets of his worn-out school uniform, leaning comfortably against the corner of the wall. Smiling, he admired the waves that rolled through the girls' bodies when the force feedback from their hundred-meter sprints and Limit Fist Strength strikes spread throughout them.

"You piece of trash."

Suddenly, Zuo Haoran walked over. He wore a friendly smile, but spoke in a voice only the two of them could hear. "So what if Chu Feixiong breaks the record, gets into the Undergraduate Program, and becomes a Transcendent? He is him, and you are you. He can soar into the heavens in one leap, but you will always be garbage!"

Meng Chao raised an eyebrow.

There it was—the class monitor's trash-talk attack.

In the fragments of his memories, in his previous life, Meng Chao had gotten into a huge argument with Zuo Haoran after his mother had been severely injured by a mutated beast, leaving him restless and irritable.

This guy had been very refined even while arguing in front of everyone, saying things like, "Meng Chao, you are being far too excessive."

But when no one was around, he spat out filth like blooming lotus flowers. The obscenities he uttered—tsk, tsk, tsk, tsk—were enough to make Meng Chao's ears vomit.

Of course, Zuo Haoran had not lost his mind and was not merely venting.

He was using trash talk to provoke Meng Chao, luring him into making a move.

In his previous life, Meng Chao had fallen for it. The class monitor had used underhanded methods to leave hidden internal injuries in his body. They flared up during the National College Entrance Examination, causing him to fail miserably and not even get into an Associate Degree program.

But in this life?

The corner of Meng Chao's mouth curled up as he watched Zuo Haoran perform.

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A new week had begun, and all the data was being counted anew. I hope all my brothers and sisters will continue supporting me with more favorites, recommendations, and the like. During the new book period, every bit of support means a great deal to Old Cow. Old Cow will also keep fighting alongside everyone forever. Thank you!