"We're going in."
"Xiao Yu, it's time. Get in there. Don't put too much pressure on yourself!" Father Xiao Dingguo said repeatedly. Mother Xu Jingyi, beside him, added, "Go on. Mom will wait here for you to come back."
"Dad, Mom, you should head home. I'm not a child anymore."
After saying goodbye to his parents, Xiao Yu entered the grounds. When he spotted the figure ahead of him, he quickened his pace.
As he drew close, Xiao Yu pretended to wave behind him and bumped into the person.
He knocked him back two meters. Though he did not fall, he still staggered.
Looking at Luo Feng's current appearance, his youthful face carried a hint of toughness. He was not exceptionally handsome, but he had a distinctly masculine air about him. No wonder No. 3 High School's campus belle, Xu Xin, was so taken with him.
This clichéd encounter was Xiao Yu's first step toward getting acquainted with Luo Feng.
"Sorry, classmate. I was just saying goodbye to my family and wasn't watching where I was going. I bumped into you. Are you okay?"
"I'm fine, but classmate, you should be more careful in the future." Luo Feng rubbed his back. That collision had hurt quite a bit.
Xiao Yu had deliberately put some force into that bump to leave a deeper impression.
"Classmate, I'm really sorry! Let me introduce myself. I'm Xiao Yu. Let's exchange contact information, so you can find me if you feel any discomfort!"
Xiao Yu proactively extended his right hand.
"Sure! I'm Luo Feng. Let's add each other as friends."
Luo Feng often got hurt while sparring with others during training at the martial arts school, so he did not think much of the collision. Seeing that the person before him was decently dressed, he saw no harm in adding him as a friend.
After adding each other, the two went their separate ways to their respective examination rooms.
Inside the examination room, admission tickets and ID cards were placed at the upper right corners of the desks for the invigilators to inspect, while the test papers began to be handed out.
"2056 Jiangnan City Gaokao Science Test Paper A"—the clear line printed at the very top of the paper.
The Gaokao had three examinations: the science stream exam, the arts stream exam, and the final mathematics exam. Each subject was worth 250 points, for a total score of 750.
The science stream combined physics, chemistry, and biology.
The arts stream combined language arts, history, politics, and geography.
The mathematics exam naturally consisted of mathematics alone.
As the foundation of the natural sciences, it was only natural for mathematics to be given greater importance.
In the blink of an eye, it was June 9th, the day of the mathematics exam.
Inside the examination room, Luo Feng stared at the second calculation problem, repeatedly checking his work on the scratch paper. Again and again, he failed to solve it. His heartbeat accelerated without stop until it finally exceeded what he could bear, and he fainted.
Unlike Luo Feng, thanks to his usual hard work, Xiao Yu found today's mathematics exam as effortless as a fish in water.
"Ding ding ding..." The urgent bell echoed through Yian District No. 1 High School. The anxious parents waiting outside the examination rooms, whether seated on the grass or along the paths, immediately rose to their feet one after another and peered through the railings surrounding the campus.
The bustling crowd of examinees poured out of the examination rooms.
The 2056 Jiangnan City Gaokao had officially ended.
On the day the Gaokao ended, Third Uncle Xiao Guoxuan helped Xiao Yu register for the Probationary Warrior Assessment.
The Probationary Warrior Assessment required advance registration. Limit Martial Arts School held one assessment on the first day of every month.
Over the past two days, Xiao Yu had been busy training at home, adapting to his increased strength and the combat experience he had received. Occasionally, Father Xiao Dingguo would suppress his own strength and spar with him.
"Xiao Yu, not bad! That kick was really tricky!" Xiao Dingguo narrowly dodged Xiao Yu's kick and praised him.
The son before him had never experienced actual combat, yet his combat experience was incredibly rich. Every strike targeted vital spots, and his movement technique had reached the Perfect level.
"I really don't know how your movement technique was trained, kid. It has already reached the Perfect level."
Xiao Yu could only brush it off with a foolish grin, but his hands never stopped moving.
The two had been sparring back and forth for three hours. Rather than calling it sparring, it was more accurate to say that his father was acting as his training partner.
During a break, Xiao Yu thought of Luo Feng. He should still be in the hospital, so Xiao Yu sent him a message.
"Hello, Luo Feng. I heard you fainted during the mathematics exam. How are you now?"
A few minutes later, he received Luo Feng's reply and was overjoyed. They were connected now.
Luo Feng's message read: "Thanks. I'm much better now. I've already been discharged."
After chatting with him for a while longer, Xiao Yu continued training.
After adapting to his physical strength, Xiao Yu set a new wish.
"System, set the wish as: physical fitness reaching Apprentice Level 2."
Apprentice Level 2 was equivalent to Intermediate Warrior Level: a punching strength of 2,000 KG, a speed of 40 m/s, or 2.5 seconds for one hundred meters.
Wish set successfully! Host: Xiao Yu Host's First Wish: Become Apprentice Level 2. Wish completion status: 121.2/1000 Wish Points.
Although Xiao Yu also wanted to possess a spiritual talent like Luo Feng's, he understood that such a transformative wish was beyond what his current finances could achieve. Even borrowing money from his father would not be enough.
Moreover, the Wish Fulfillment System could currently set only one wish. If he set awakening spiritual talent as his wish and could not fulfill it in a short time, it would disrupt his plans.
That would be more loss than gain.
Over the following days, Xiao Yu exchanged all one million in savings from his bank card for F-class Monster Meat, gaining 500 Wish Points.
In order to fulfill the conditions for completing his wish as soon as possible, he set his sights on Father Xiao Dingguo. The idea of borrowing money naturally came to him.
"Dad, my physical fitness has already reached the Warrior standard. Shouldn't you give me some reward to encourage me?"
"Little brat! What are you plotting this time? Didn't I just buy you a car not long ago?" Father Xiao Dingguo laughed as he patted his head.
Three months ago, Xiao Yu's former self had used his coming-of-age ceremony as an excuse to ask him for a luxury car.
"Dad, I don't want a car this time. I just want to borrow some money as start-up capital for becoming a Warrior! As you know, initial funding is very important for a Warrior. Whether it's cultivation techniques or weapons, they all cost a huge amount of money!"
"Kid, you haven't even passed the Probationary Warrior Assessment yet, and you're already thinking about start-up capital! Besides, once you become a Probationary Warrior, whether you join Thunder Martial Hall or Limit Martial Arts School, you'll receive a certain amount of initial funding. Our family will also provide at least five million Huaxia Coin in support based on your talent. Of course, I'll give you some as well."
Xiao Yu, who knew the plot well, naturally knew all this. He also knew that the more one's physical fitness improved within the month after passing the Probationary Warrior Assessment, the more funding one would receive from the martial arts school.
"Thanks, Dad. After these past two days, you should know your son's strength clearly. Passing the Probationary Warrior Assessment will be a piece of cake! And the support you're giving me would have to be given sooner or later anyway, right?"
Ever since learning that Xiao Yu's physical fitness had reached Beginner Warrior Level, Xiao Dingguo had already been preparing his start-up capital, and the amount was not small.
To convince his father that he would not waste the money, Xiao Yu said with an exceptionally firm gaze, "Dad, don't worry! I definitely won't spend it recklessly. Every bit of it will go toward improving my strength!"
Although Xiao Dingguo did not quite understand what his son needed money for now, he knew his son well. For the past eighteen years, Xiao Yu had been a model good child, without a single blemish on his record.
Whether it was the neighbors or his schoolteachers, everyone praised his son's character!
"Then I'll give you five million first. We'll discuss the rest after you join a martial arts school!"
Five million meant little to the current Xiao Dingguo, and this five million was only a small portion of what he had prepared.
It had been eight years since he became an Advanced General. His physical condition had remained stuck at the peak of Advanced General for all those years, but he had truly accumulated a considerable fortune. Taking out part of it as his son's start-up capital was perfectly normal.
Although he did not know what his son needed the money for now, he chose to trust him.
The five million stayed in Xiao Yu's hands for less than a week before he exchanged it for various Monster Meat. After absorbing it, it became Wish Points in the system.
"System, check the wish completion status."
Host: Xiao Yu Host's First Wish: Become Apprentice Level 2. Wish completion status: 3121.2/1000 Wish Points.
Although the conditions had now been met, he restrained the urge to improve immediately. He would wait until after passing the Probationary Warrior Assessment.
Soon, it was eight o'clock in the evening on June 16th.
It was time for the Gaokao scores to be released.
Examinees and their parents could check Gaokao scores by phone or online, and the undergraduate admission cutoff would be released at the same time.
Although Xiao Yu had already become a Warrior and did not care much about his Gaokao score, he still deliberately checked online.
"Xiao Yu, how did you do on the Gaokao?" Mother Xiao, Xu Jingyi, asked as she cleared the dishes, looking toward Xiao Yu, who was checking on his laptop beside her.
"The internet's a little slow. It's still refreshing! Probably too many people are checking their scores."
Xiao Yu said helplessly.
Father Xiao Dingguo was also watching from the side. His son was definitely going down the path of a Warrior, but who would not want their son to excel in both academics and martial arts?
Three minutes later, the page finally refreshed.
Xiao Yu quickly entered his name, ID number, and examination number, then clicked the word "Search."
The page flickered slightly, and a table appeared.
Examinee: Xiao Yu
Gender: Male
ID Number: 426123203803213251
Examination Number: 5878643587890799
Arts stream: 189
Science stream: 211
Mathematics: 212
Total Score: 612
Undergraduate Cutoff: 561
"Son, not bad at all! The undergraduate cutoff is 561, and you scored 612. Even if you don't join a martial arts school, you can still attend Jiangnan First Military Academy." Father Xiao Dingguo was overjoyed upon seeing the score. Naturally, he was thrilled that his son had one more option.
Warriors generally had four paths.
They could join the military and become part of the armed forces. The advantage was greater safety.
They could join a martial arts school. Martial arts schools had relatively loose management systems and were comparatively loosely organized groups. Limit Martial Arts School had also been founded by the world's First Strongest, Hong, and most of the Xiao Family's Warriors had joined Limit Martial Arts School.
They could join a corporation, financial conglomerate, family, major power, or the like, essentially working as hired muscle.
Or they could join a Mercenary Group. That was a life-and-death path, the most dangerous, but also the freest.
Each of these four paths had its own advantages and disadvantages.
Naturally, Father Xiao hoped that while his son became a Warrior, he would also enter a military academy and join the military after graduation. Someone with both strength and military training would enter the management ranks once he joined the army, making it an exceptionally safe choice.
It was also the path he hoped his son would choose.
But all of this depended on his son's own choice. This was, after all, his son's life.
He could offer advice, but he did not want to dictate his son's path.
Thinking of this, he could not help but sigh. "My son has grown up!"
After dinner, Xiao Yu returned to his bedroom and sent Luo Feng a message.
"Luo Feng, the Gaokao scores are out. Don't forget to check yours!"
Luo Feng did not say much and only replied with a bitter-smile emoji.
Xiao Yu naturally understood that Luo Feng's score would not be very good, so he sent another message to comfort him.
"Even if your Gaokao score isn't good this time, you can still take the Warrior path. I've heard some things about you and know a little about your strength. I believe you can definitely do it! Keep it up!"
"Thanks!"
Xiao Yu naturally also knew that after Luo Feng fainted during the Gaokao, his strength had improved somewhat, and his physical fitness had already reached the standard for the Probationary Warrior Assessment.
New author seeking recommendations!!!
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New author seeking recommendations!!!
For discussion, join group 763688906.
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