98 Returns to School

However, Li Aoz seriously underestimated his influence.

The members of the Help-Study Association had already hailed Li Aoz as a legend. As soon as he joined the group chat, he was immediately showered with congratulations and welcomes. Under their enthusiastic invitation, Li Aoz simply went to meet up with them and enjoyed a feast at a restaurant in the countryside.

"Look! This is the leader of our Help-Study Association!"

Li Aoz's old friend, Kadfi, exaggeratedly introduced him to others, "Although Boss Lioz's name is rather common, he's a once-in-a-millennium genius who came from Blue Chrysanthemum Village! With him around, we all benefited, and our exam results were outstanding!"

Kadfi went on and on, praising him repeatedly, calling him "a role model for our generation," "the pride of civilization," "the light of tomorrow," and even "a national hero."

"You flatter me, I'm not that amazing." Li Aoz a little nervously, "I'm actually not that good. It was the examiners who appreciated me, and most importantly, everyone helped me and reduced my burden a lot, which allowed me to perform without any worries. This is all thanks to the efforts of everyone in the Help-Study Association."

"Yes! It's the Help-Study Association!"

Mitty chuckled and said, "Now, the members of the Help-Study Association tell everyone, 'What's so special about your XX? You know Lioz, right? He handed in his paper five minutes into the competition and was admitted as a special student to the Magic University directly under the Crystal Tower. We're in the same Reading Club.'"

To Li Aoz's Li Aoz, none of the members of the Help-Study Association were jealous of his performance.

On the one hand, as Interstellar Civilization, the people of Crystal Tower have a relatively high level of civility, unlike the Azure Planet era, where a few people would scheme against each other, report each other, and even assassinate their roommates for a spot in the postgraduate entrance examination.

On the other hand, most of the members who participated in the Help-Study Association benefited from Li Aoz's influence.

It should be said that the appearance of Li Aoz was a powerful boost to everyone in the Help-Study Association. The shared learning and living process gave others a sense of "If Lioz can do it, then I can't be too bad either."

This gave everyone a lot of confidence. Of the first batch of 27 members, all of them passed, and the undergraduate rate even reached 30%!

Several of them performed exceptionally well, and one girl named Bettina Siddy even got into Trivella University, which is on par with Li Aoz.

Li Aoz was not surprised by the result. Anyone who has participated in the Magic Aptitude Test knows how much willpower affects the result. The sheer number of questions and the long test time alone can eliminate 90% of people on a psychological level.

The group learning and mutual support model of the Help-Study Association helps test takers alleviate the psychological pressure of fighting alone. Overcoming this pressure will naturally lead to improved scores.

This promotional method is simple, direct, and effective. In just one week, the number of people Help-Study Association increased by 120. After a large number of repeat test takers joined, they all felt the help brought by the Help-Study Association.

Although the Help-Study Association did not improve their knowledge base, the supporting services and mutual support provided by the organization reduced a lot of pressure for many candidates, allowing them to perform to their full potential.

You're saying this doesn't increase your knowledge? Silly child, exams only look at the score.

Regardless of the reason for the improved scores, Mitty and the others only advertised that 'our scores have all improved' – that was enough.

Hearing what Mitty, Kadfi, and the others said, Li Aoz amused and exasperated.

He has no immediate plans to establish an economic organization, nor does he intend to raise the entry threshold or fees. Therefore, when Mitty asked him about the next steps for development, Li Aoz a vague answer and told them to discuss and decide for themselves.

However, for Li Aoz, the Help-Study Association also became a pretty good intelligence agency. The Magic Apprentice from various professions and cities made it easy for him to collect relevant information.

Of course, he took this opportunity to briefly clarify the 'rumors'.

"Everyone has misunderstood. I was not admitted to the Magic University directly under the Crystal Tower."

"Oh?" Under the questioning gazes of the crowd, Li Aoz explained:

"I was admitted to White Candle Star Interstellar University without taking the entrance exam."

hiss--

Everyone was filled with awe and respect.

As the saying goes, "The emperor is far away, but the village chief is right in front of you."

For the local members of the Help-Study Association, the meaning of Crystal Tower University was not very clear, but they certainly held it in high esteem as one of the most prestigious universities on White Candle Star.

Li Aoz's explanation only deepened the already respectful atmosphere among the Help-Study Association members, especially the new members, who looked at Li Aoz with the same awe and reverence they would show a principal.

The party was a lot of fun. Li Aoz hadn't had such a good time in a long time. As a magical race, the Thanatos Human Race preferred lively and emotional singing and dancing to the Azure Planet People. They didn't have as many troublesome rules. Some people even cried at the party, excited that their efforts had finally paid off.

Li Aoz discovered that human happiness is actually very simple: it is about pursuing a reward for one's labor, and more labor means more reward, nothing more.

Perhaps it was because he had spent so much time in the complex and harsh environments of Azure Planet and Star Abyss that Li Aoz felt a sense of melancholy towards these simple and pure joys.

If Nomi and Qiu Ran were still alive, this would probably be the kind of life they would be pursuing.

After the fun, Li Aoz had a brief chat with Kadfi and Mitty about the future development period, and then took the Magic Train back to the university.

As a student at a prestigious university, Li Aoz enjoyed free treatment; all the sightseeing and attractions along the way were free, which refreshed and soothed his battle-hardened spirit.

Unfortunately, Li Aoz also knew that such a peaceful life was destined not to last.

On the way back to school, Li Aoz continued to expand Trustworthy Village through remote command, improve the players' production and development, and guide more Red Arrow People to transform into [Mutant] through the White Obelisk.

What Nethermark Humanity could not do, Li Aoz could not only do easily, but also eliminate the serious flaws and promote them.

The Red Arrow Empire has yet to notice that among the hundreds of thousands of people in Eerga City, there are already several hundred [Mutant]. Given time, [Mutant] will become the most common path to becoming a superhuman in the city.

The awakening arcane Aoneng that Li Aoz set for the White Obelisk is [Gravity]. This Aoneng is a prerequisite for advancing to [Echoer], and its harm level is not too high. Controlling gravity requires a long period of practice, which can eliminate many people.

If we could directly awaken the residents' Aoneng like "Natural Ignition"—that would be fantastic! A powerful Red Arrow, igniting fire every day.

Gravity is also a relatively suitable Aoneng for labor and production. For the elderly, their legs and feet are not convenient, and their immunity declines with age. If a prosthetic body is implanted, there is a risk of rejection, which could cost them their lives.

[Gravity] In the civilian field, it can also be used for mineral exploration, heavy object transportation, rescue, flight and high-altitude operations. After all, with this thing, you are basically not afraid of falling. As long as the elderly do not fall, their bodies will basically not have major problems. This alone is very attractive.

As for applying it to movement and combat like Li Aoz does—even professional players can only barely manage that. Most people are already grateful if they can even learn to use the gravitational slingshot effect to throw stones.

The extended learning period was intentional on Li Aoz, as it would foster unity among followers and establish a mentor-apprentice system. This system represents the most basic order and etiquette, and teaching people how to use and acquire [gravity] could also become a business in Eerga City.

Everything revolves around money. Li Aoz nodded with satisfaction as he watched the money in the donation pool steadily increase.

When N4 brings the Nethermark Heavy Industries to Eerga City, the path of the [Mutant] will undergo a revolution.

This time, Li Aoz is going to pull off something big.

Nethermark Professor went astray and took the wrong path, which was a limitation of the times. But Li Aoz didn't have this problem. With the Path Building in hand, he would push the [Dominion] system into the mainstream.

If the professor were still alive, then Li Aoz felt he would have to say something like, "Look carefully, this is how Aoneng is used. Aoneng is the Jikara that can bring humans Assassin and Simeru!"

Putting aside the issue of Eerga City having too small a local population, Li Aoz felt that his future was still promising.

As for the players in the public beta, Li Aoz doesn't intend to let them go either. The Path Building in Eerga City will attract a group of people. Once these players from White Candle Star have made some achievements, Li Aoz will also rightfully tell them the truth about the Dao Path and let them spread the news.

At that time, the players of Azure Planet will realize: there is such a good thing about Azure Planet. We actually have a way to Ascend to Godhood. Now we have no choice but to save our home.

These professional players are the ones Li Aoz plans to focus on developing, but ordinary players are the real market, and Li Aoz can't afford to give up on them. Although each of them has limited purchasing power and can only offer a little experience, when combined, the rental of Aoneng alone can generate a huge revenue stream.

However, at present, Li Aoz can only ask N4 of the Nethermark Heavy Industries and the Daoist followers in Eerga City to find a way to rent Aoneng for the player by remotely issuing missions. Fortunately, the formula for Aoneng potion has been spread, and it is believed that within half a year at most, Li Aoz will be able to enjoy the real benefits brought by the increase in the number of [Mutant].

Behind the scenes, Li Aoz's power is steadily expanding.

June 1st marks the start of the new semester at White Candle Star Interstellar University. Unlike Azure Planet, magic schools only have holidays like Spring Break, with a break of 1 or 2 months a year. Excluding National Day and Progress Day, there is only one day off per month.

This is related to the workshop system unique to Magic Civilization, where magicians themselves are the most basic labor force and producers, and even students are no exception.

Magic University is not a place for full-time academic research. Almost every college student must complete 1,000 hours of workshop work during their university years in order to be eligible to apply for graduation.

However, the White Candle Star Interstellar University, where Li Aoz studied, was different. The proportion of workshops in this school was very low, and the course content was mostly academic theory with little practical application.

"Be an ordinary person and enjoy university life."

Although Li Aoz had already moved into a single dormitory, in order to fulfill Qiu Ran's last wish, he still followed the crowd in through the main gate, deliberately taking photos from left and right, pretending it was his first time at the school and wanting to experience it properly.

The education committee members monitoring the scene from a distance nodded in approval. It seemed that Lioz was quite sensible, and everyone was satisfied with the peaceful and natural campus life.

Seeing that Li Aoz seemed like a complete newcomer and nothing out of the ordinary, the monitor got bored and left his post to report to his superiors.

Unaware of the presence of the monitor, and finding it too slow to queue with the crowd, Li Aoz began to wander around.

To be honest, the campus is quite large, with hills and valleys, mountains, forests, and swamps everywhere. After walking for a while, he even felt a little tired, so he found a place to sit down and started watching the ducks playing and fighting in the Central Lake.

Hey, you're a freshman, right?

Suddenly, Li Aoz heard a woman's voice calling to him.

He turned his head and immediately saw a Thanatos Human Race girl with a purple ponytail. When she saw Li Aoz turn his head, her eyes lit up. "Wow, a beauty!"

Li Aoz was silent for a moment, then the girl rushed to him as if by teleportation and shoved a small card into his hand:

"Young man, you look quite talented. Join our club! We have tons of activities to guarantee you enough practice points every year!"

"You are..."

Li Aoz lowered his head and saw three large characters prominently displayed on the card:

The Alchemy Club.