Starting School with an Arena Battle

On the second day of vacation, Fu Junlin woke up in the morning to find all the muscles in his body thoroughly torn apart once again.

It was Big Black's handiwork again. Fortunately, Fu Junlin had learned his lesson this time and had formed a Battle Banner in his hand beforehand.

The moment he woke up, he activated the Battle Banner and revived himself from his paralyzed state.

By the afternoon, the laboratory had been tidied up.

By the time Yao Jinying got off work, Fu Junlin had already packed up his mother's and younger brother's belongings and moved them into the laboratory.

This laboratory had come with the factory lease. Zhang Cheng had no use for it, so he had turned it into a storage room, but the interior furnishings had remained untouched.

The former laboratory staff must have lived there as well. There were exactly three bedrooms—not large, but more than sufficient for one person each—as well as a shared storage room.

There was a large walk-in closet and a spacious bathroom. It even had a bathtub.

The water and electricity here were directly connected to the factory's supply.

Although Zhang Cheng's factory was not large, it was fairly profitable. He was not so stingy as to fuss over Fu Junlin's small water and electricity bill.

This way, they would not need to rent a hive apartment, and without water and electricity bills to worry about, they could save quite a bit of money.

Zhang Cheng could be said to have received two pieces of good news at once.

Fu Junlin had not removed the Capacity Expanders from the crystal blocks he repaired, allowing the two Capacity Expanders to serve a useful purpose. That meant the money Zhang Cheng had invested in buying them had not gone to waste.

The price had nearly doubled, and he had earned all of it back.

The second matter was naturally his rise from oppression to glory. Ever since Chen Changming caused that disaster, Zhang Cheng had kicked him straight out of the factory.

That allowed Wang Kai to smoothly become deputy factory manager. As for his disappointing wife, she had finally become completely obedient. Their positions at home had not exactly reversed, but at the very least, they were now evenly matched...

That evening.

Yao Jinying took a proper bath. The factory used Sub-Zero-Level Infection water, the same grade as the water Fu Junlin and his family normally drank.

Within the city, purified water was the highest-grade water resource. It was exceptionally difficult to purify, and production was limited.

Then came Zero-Level Infection water, Sub-Zero-Level Infection water, Level-One Infection water, Sub-Level-One Infection water...

By the time it reached Sub-Level-One Infection water, the water was already murky. Under a microscope, Flower-Drum Parasites could be clearly seen...

When water was scarce, Subspecies had to rely on their own immunity to withstand the parasites and drink it.

Fu Junlin himself had once drunk Level-One Infection water for a period of time.

Fortunately, those days had not lasted long. Yao Jinying had protected her two sons well, and neither of them had suffered any serious infection so far.

After they had all bathed, the family of three finally had the mood to properly look around Fu Junlin's laboratory.

Zhang Cheng had kept his word.

He had prepared a full range of commonly used laboratory equipment, and he had even brought over two pieces of idle equipment from the factory. There was hardly anyone at the factory doing research now anyway.

Besides, could Fu Junlin really conduct research here without studying anything beneficial to the factory at all?

Zhang Cheng did not think so.

"Junting, look what this is."

Fu Junlin mysteriously took a crystal block from behind a shelf.

"A Battle Flag Crystal Block??"

Fu Junting snatched it up, his eyes wide as he studied and admired it in amazement.

"They gave it to me for research. I've charged it already, so I'm lending it to you for your exam. Remember to bring it back after you're done."

Fu Junlin smiled and rubbed his head.

"Really!!"

Fu Junting was overjoyed.

For the middle school entrance exam, students were permitted to bring all sorts of crystal blocks. They could bring one Battle Flag Crystal Block and one Magic Crystal Block.

After all, financial strength was also a measure of strength.

If that were not the case, how could the situation of the poor growing weaker and weaker ever arise?

"There won't be any problem with this, will there?"

Though Yao Jinying was happy for her son, she was still worried that he might misuse the factory's resources.

"Don't worry, Mom."

Fu Junlin gave her a reassuring look.

"Brother, Mom, my exam is in ten days. Can you come?"

Fu Junting said excitedly.

"Yes, I'll definitely be there. I have to watch my son show off his might!"

Yao Jinying immediately nodded, rubbing Fu Junting's cheeks as she spoke.

"If I don't have a mission, I'll definitely be there too."

Fu Junlin smiled and nodded as well.

Fu Junlin spent the third day of vacation undergoing Big Black's devilish training.

On the morning of the fourth day.

Vacation ended, and Flying Cloud Vine's students returned to school.

Fu Junlin arrived in the classroom early.

After three days of adjustment between Fu Junlin and Big Black, their training had settled into a rhythm. Whenever Big Black had energy, it would begin stimulating his muscles.

Fu Junlin could feel the pain during the process, but he could only grit his teeth and endure it.

Whenever he could not bear it any longer, he would take out the Battle Banner to recover, then continue training.

For nearly half of every day, his muscles were continuously stimulated by the bored Big Black.

"Junlin!"

A cute girl with a baby face and airy bangs boldly hurried over to Fu Junlin's desk at the first opportunity.

Her pretty face was delicate, with red lips and white teeth. Her autumn-water eyes sparkled like starlight.

Her large eyes stared at him without blinking, completely unreserved in their admiration.

When vacation began three days ago, Fu Junlin had left an unforgettable, handsome impression on every girl in the class during that Arena Zone battle.

Over the past few days, some girls had practically wanted to go to his home to find him.

Fu Junlin immediately put on a polite yet awkward smile...

This baby-faced girl was named Ling Xiaobing. She was something of a fan of Fu Junlin's looks and had been infatuated with him for some time. Later, because everyone was afraid of embarrassment and unwilling to associate with a coward like Fu Junlin, she had felt too awkward to keep hanging around him.

But things were different now. Fu Junlin had real strength, and he had now become synonymous with being deeply hidden and unfathomable.

Some people had even analyzed that Fu Junlin might have been pretending in the past. Maybe he was actually a hidden expert.

Still, more people believed that he had merely gotten lucky and erupted with a burst of potential.

Perhaps that Minotaur had not actually been as strong as it looked...

In any case, the mystery that had gone unsolved throughout the three-day vacation was still drawing attention.

"Junlin, I made these muffins myself. They're for you to eat at noon!"

Ling Xiaobing happily handed over an exquisite little box.

Fu Junlin did not really want to eat them, but it would not be good to reject someone who was showing goodwill on the first day back at school.

So Fu Junlin smiled and nodded.

"All right, then I..."

He had originally reached out to take it, but Big Black controlled his hand and prevented his palm from closing. What should have been a grab became a push.

He directly pushed the lunch box back.

Fu Junlin's eye twitched, and he immediately changed his words:

"Then how could I possibly accept that? I appreciate the thought, but you should keep it and eat it yourself."

Ling Xiaobing immediately looked a little disappointed, pouting as she complained.

"Ah... I spent so long making them."

As she spoke, she handed the little box over again.

"You really don't need to. Why don't you eat them for me? I think you've gotten thinner again. You need to replenish your..."

Fu Junlin smiled faintly. He had intended to flirt with her a little after turning her down so that she would not feel too unhappy.

But before he could finish speaking, that damn Big Black controlled his hand and directly snatched the lunch box away.

That was right—not taking it, but reaching over and snatching it right out of her hand.

Ling Xiaobing was left staring blankly in utter confusion.

But seeing that Fu Junlin had accepted it, Ling Xiaobing quickly became happy again.

"Junlin, which secondary specialization are you planning to apply for?"

"Mecha Master."

Fu Junlin carefully put away the lunch box as he answered.

"I knew it!!"

Ling Xiaobing immediately jumped in place, her smile dazzlingly bright.

"What did you know..."

Fu Junlin looked at her, not knowing whether to laugh or cry.

"I want to study to become a Mecha Master too!"

"Uh, aren't you a mage?"

Fu Junlin said speechlessly.

"Yeah, I want to make Magic Mecha."

While they were talking, quite a few students gradually entered the classroom. Fu Junlin told her to return to her seat.

In less than five minutes, all fifty-six students in the class had arrived.

Shi Hongyu strode in from outside, her long, toned legs wrapped in tight black athletic pants today.

It seemed they had a combat mission today.

"Have you all decided on your secondary specializations?"

Shi Hongyu asked loudly from the podium.

"We have!!"

The entire class answered in unison.

"Good. At 8:20, line up at the specialization registration window. After you receive your specialization belts and books, gather at the rear sports field.

Our class has a combat mission today: we're taking on a Death-Cycle Arena. If we can clear it, we'll receive a large bonus."