Dormitory

Dormitory

After eating and drinking his fill, Luo Jun left the venue.

Only after leaving the gymnasium did Luo Jun realize that he was already on Ningyuan Mountain's main peak.

Luo Jun had always been curious. Ningyuan Mountain was a famous mountain representing Ningdong City, so why had it never been developed into a tourist attraction? In all his years, he had never even heard of anyone coming here to hike.

Now he understood. Ningyuan Mountain belonged to Ningdong University and was also home to the mysterious Explorer Academy.

Naturally, secrets involving Vital Energy and Different Worlds were not open to Ordinary People.

The venue for the second exam had actually been the Explorer Academy's gymnasium. Outside it stood all the facilities one would expect from a school—the Teaching Building, dormitories, cafeteria, track field, and more.

Unlike ordinary schools, however, this place was deep in the mountains, with very little flat land. The buildings had therefore all been constructed along the slopes, scattered at varying elevations. Their architectural style followed classical designs, with upturned eaves and bracket sets. From afar, it looked like an ancient mountain temple, carrying the air of a Martial World sect from a historical drama.

Following the senior student guiding them, Luo Jun made his way along the mountain path and soon arrived at a valley.

A small river ran through the center of the valley. The rock walls on either side were covered in densely packed wooden cabins, with more than a dozen rows stacked above and below. They resembled two high-rises standing opposite each other. Though the cabins were not perfectly aligned, their structures were simple and refined, their style uniform rather than cluttered.

"This is the dormitory area," the senior introduced. "Today's exams are over. Everyone who passed the first two tests will stay here overnight. The final two exams will take place tomorrow and the day after."

"They even provide lodging?" Luo Jun looked at the novel mountain dormitories with curiosity. "Senior, aren't there a lot of mosquitoes here?"

The senior rolled his eyes at him. "You're a Cultivator, and you're afraid of mosquito bites? When you venture into a Different World in the future, there'll be far more dangerous venomous insects than this. If you can't even endure this little hardship, you might as well go home."

Luo Jun grinned. "You're absolutely right, Senior! So which room should I stay in?"

"See that suspension bridge?" Many suspension bridges connected the rock walls on both sides. The senior pointed at the nearest one. "The rooms on this side are all Guest Rooms. Pick any one you like. Your wristband can unlock the door."

"Any one?" Luo Jun asked curiously. "No roommates?"

"They're all single rooms." The senior pursed his lips. "When the academy was built, it was designed for three thousand people. But after all these years, they've never been able to recruit that many students. Even at its peak, there were fewer than two thousand trainees. There are plenty of empty rooms."

"Three thousand?" Luo Jun took a closer look. The cabins followed the terrain, some standing alone and others joined in rows, but all of them were compact. They stretched deep into the valley for at least five or six hundred meters. Looking at it this way, there really had to be around three thousand rooms.

"The cafeteria serves meals at five in the evening and six tomorrow morning. After breakfast tomorrow, gather at the cafeteria entrance. A teacher for the next exam will lead you to the third test site."

After explaining the important details, the senior left. Luo Jun climbed the stairs along the rock wall, picked a room at random, and opened the door.

It looked like an ordinary wooden cabin. The interior was not spacious; aside from the bathroom, there was only a narrow bedroom. The furnishings consisted of a basic bed, table, and chairs. Altogether, it was barely over ten square meters, even smaller than his Rental House.

For a single student dorm room, these conditions were already pretty good. What more could he ask for?

Still, the entire place was made of wood. Was it sturdy enough...? Luo Jun casually slapped the doorframe and found it felt remarkably solid.

His Strength attribute was now close to forty, and he had cultivated the Body Tempering Art to the second level of the Body Refinement Realm. Even without using Vital Energy, his strength was thirty or forty times that of an ordinary person. A casual slap from him carried considerable force, yet this seemingly thin doorframe did not even tremble.

It was as though it was not wood at all, but forged steel!

This clearly wasn't ordinary lumber... Luo Jun leaned closer and sniffed it, catching a faint, unusual fragrance.

Could it be material from a Different World?

A Different World... Luo Jun had only experienced a Chaos Mission once. Old Yuan had said that it was not a stable Different World. In a true Different World, humanity could systematically dispatch teams to explore it and even establish roots and develop their own forces there...

But those were not concerns for Luo Jun right now.

He had eaten a little too much at the gymnasium snack stands, so he would skip dinner. Luo Jun lay on the bed, circulating his Inner Breath to strengthen his Vital Energy while taking out his phone to browse the forum.

According to his Master, there were currently around one hundred and fifty thousand registered Vital Energy Cultivators in Dawnland, roughly one in every ten thousand people.

However, the overwhelming majority were merely Cultivators in the Body Refinement Realm. After all, reaching the Foundation Establishment Realm meant being forced to participate in Chaos Missions. Therefore, most Cultivators only practiced to the Body Refinement Realm to strengthen their bodies, taking internal clerical jobs in organizations such as the Yuan Cultivation Society. Even if they had the opportunity, they would not attempt a breakthrough.

That did not stop them from caring about major events in the supernatural world, though. The forum was lively every day.

The hottest posts were naturally major news from within the circle, such as these current trending posts.

"[Martial World] Shocking! Heaven's Gate Sect Master has issued a challenge to Sword Saint Zuo Taixuan. Their decisive battle is set for September 16 in Mobei Ancient City."

"[Wilderness] Ling Yao successfully hunted the Redwater River-Cutting Dragon. No one can shake his position as the Number One Under Ascension!"

"[Chaos] Situ Zhen successfully led his team through a Tier A Mission. He also killed the Sea Emperor's projection and received a Perfect Evaluation. The Church wishes to purchase information on the Sea Emperor, and the two sides are currently in negotiations."

"You Hao, the Marrow Hunter, ranked ninth on the Wanted Criminal list, has been captured. Zhuge Chi of the Puhua Mountain branch receives primary credit."

All of these were official news posts from the forum. Those with brackets in front described major events that had occurred in Different Worlds, while those without them were news from the Main World.

"Wait, Ling Yao?"

Luo Jun noticed a familiar name among them.

"I am the strongest hunter, Ling Yao!"

That was the promotional line for Wild Hunt, a movie he had been eagerly anticipating! It was a science fiction film about humans battling monsters on a Wilderness planet...

Because he had been training During This Time, he had completely forgotten about the movie. Yet now he saw the protagonist's name on the forum, and judging by the post, he was also a powerful hunter.

If it was not a coincidence, did that mean the story in that movie had actually happened?

Luo Jun's eyes shifted. If stories of exploring Different Worlds could truly be made into movies, that would be a great way to make money! After all, the monsters in Different Worlds actually existed. With some real combat footage and a little processing, it would look far more realistic than computer-generated effects, at a fraction of the cost...

These Vital Energy Cultivators really knew how to have fun!

When he had the chance, he should watch Wild Hunt, then explore this [Wilderness World] and go on some kind of pilgrimage to the filming locations...

After finishing the posts, Luo Jun continued scrolling and soon saw something related to himself.

Thanks to Zui Qu Ren for the 100 Qidian Coins tip!