Progress

Su Mu was taken aback.

Little Drill Wind had followed him for so long, and had never bowed to any being. It kept to itself from the White Bone Spirit, and ignored Benbo'erba and Babo'erben. But when facing the Green Lion King, it actually took the initiative to bow.

But he soon noticed that besides respect, there was also a hint of doubt in Little Drill Wind's eyes. His slender eyes were slightly narrowed, and the muscles around his pointed mouth twitched slightly, as if he was trying to figure something out, or as if he was puzzled by something.

Su Mu thought for a moment and guessed two possibilities.

First, the appearance of the Green Lion King does not match the original work. Although this Golden Lion Beast is now named "Green Lion King," its appearance is still based on a golden-maned lion, only its mane has a bluish-black tinge and its eyes burn with eerie green. In contrast, the Green Lion King in the original work is a real blue-maned lion with a ferocious face, a mouth like a blood basin, and the ability to swallow 100,000 heavenly soldiers. The difference in appearance between the two is too great, and the concepts do not match, which is where Little Drill Wind's doubts come from.

Secondly, the Green Lion King's state is not right. It is only a half-embedded phantom, exuding an aura of "incompleteness". It feels like a painting that is only half-finished, or a piece of music that has only played its prologue.

Little Drill Wind is a complete SSS-level card, and its conceptual anchoring is in place. It can naturally perceive the "incomplete" state of its kind.

Regardless of which one, they all point to the same conclusion... the current Green Lion King is not the true Green Lion King.

Su Mu withdrew his gaze, not wanting to think about it any further.

These things can't be rushed.

Once it's fully integrated, let's see if there are any new changes to the Green Lion King's stats and status.

If he still can't advance to the next level, then he'll have to consider other ways to improve, such as changing the base material, or like the White Bone Spirit, gradually improving through appearance shaping, equipment adaptation, and background anchoring.

The road ahead is long.

Su Mu withdrew his consciousness and exited the Dungeon Space.

He picked up his phone and glanced at the time; it was a little past one in the morning. There was an unread message on the screen from Li Ming.

"Brother Mu, training has already started at the military academy. They say it's a guaranteed admission without the college entrance exam, which is awesome. But military training is really tiring, especially at our military academy. We have to run at least five kilometers every day and practice team coordination in dungeons. But my level is already level fourteen and it's still increasing. When I get stronger, I'll carry you."

The message was followed by. "Your college entrance exam is tomorrow, so I won't bother you. Good luck, bro. I'm waiting for your good news."

Su Mu looked at the two messages and a slight smile appeared on his lips. He replied with a "Go for it!" and a fist emoji, then typed. "It's already midnight and you're still playing on your phone? Is it allowed to play on your phone during military training?"

The reply came almost instantly, "Of course! We're dungeon raiders, not real soldiers. A lot of our training requires an internet connection. Besides, the instructors said that for dungeon raiders, brains are the most important thing; physical strength is just secondary."

Then came another message: "I'm not saying anything more, you should get some rest. Tomorrow's the college entrance exam, don't miss it. I'll take you to new heights, bro."

Su Mu replied with an "OK", then locked the screen and put the phone on the bedside table.

He lay in bed, staring at the ceiling. The night outside the window was as dark as ink, and the faint rumble of the city could be heard in the distance. Tomorrow was the college entrance exam.

From awakening until now, it's been a full seven days. In those seven days, he went from a "useless" F-level stone card to level seventeen, cleared the Hell-level Land of Buried Bones, and now possesses an SSS-level Little Drill Wind, an SSS-level White Bone Spirit, an SS-level Benbo'erba and Babo'erben, as well as a nascent Stone Left Over from Mending Heaven and a half-embedded Green Lion King.

This pace of progress is probably unparalleled in the entire history of Rongcheng.

But Su Mu wasn't too proud.

He knew very well that the real challenge would begin tomorrow.

The college entrance exam is just the first hurdle. There are still admissions to Tsinghua and Peking Universities, higher-level dungeons, more powerful monsters, and more complex forces to come. The journey in the world of Journey to the West is far from over.

He closed his eyes, adjusted his breathing, and gradually suppressed those distracting thoughts.

A few minutes later, his breathing became steady.

She fell into a deep sleep.

At six o'clock in the morning, Su Mu opened his eyes precisely on time.

The sky outside the window was still dark; a dim, gray light seeped in through the gaps in the curtains, casting a faint line on the ceiling. He sat up, stretched his shoulders, and felt refreshed.

A good night's sleep will restore you to your best condition.

He got dressed and walked out of the room. His aunt was already busy in the kitchen. On the table was a bowl of steaming noodles, with two poached eggs floating in the soup and a sprinkle of bright green scallions.

"Eat before you go." Auntie handed me the chopsticks, her tone leaving no room for refusal. "It's the first day of the college entrance exam; you should eat noodles, it symbolizes a smooth and successful outcome."

Su Mu sat down and buried himself in his noodles. His aunt sat opposite him, clutching a dishcloth, seemingly wanting to say something but holding back.

"Auntie, don't worry." Su Mu looked up at her. "I know what I'm doing."

Aunt nodded, but didn't say anything more.

After finishing his noodles, Su Mu went out. The morning air was slightly cool, and there were already quite a few students in school uniforms waiting for the bus downstairs at Peaceful Residence Garden. He walked to the bus stop and boarded the early bus bound for Rongcheng No. 1 High School.

The street scene outside the car window slowly receded, following the exact same route as the day of awakening seven days ago, yet it felt like an eternity had passed.

Rongcheng No. 1 High School, playground.

Around eight o'clock, the playground was already packed with a large crowd.

Unlike the awakening ceremony seven days ago, today the students did not line up by class, but were scattered in twos and threes throughout the playground. Some were doing their final meditation, some were chatting quietly together, and some were standing alone in a corner, closing their eyes to rest.

In the very center of the playground, a huge teleportation array has been set up.

It was a circular magic circle with a diameter of over fifty meters, engraved on the cement ground of the playground, its patterns deeply embedded in the ground, gleaming with a ghostly blue light.

The magic circle was made up of countless intricate runes, layer upon layer, gradually converging from the outer circle inwards, and finally converging at the center into a fist-sized sphere of light.

The sphere of light hovered one meter above the ground, rotating slowly and emitting stable spatial fluctuations.

Outside the teleportation array, dozens of staff members in uniform stood, holding electronic boards and making final adjustments.

On the platform on the north side of the playground, the school leaders and all the senior teachers of Rongcheng No. 1 High School had all arrived.

The platform is not high, only a little over a meter, but standing on it allows you to overlook the entire playground.

Zhao Jianguo stood at the front, followed by the vice principal, the director of studies, the homeroom teachers of each class, and the copy design tutors. There was no speech scheduled for today, but everyone came voluntarily.

For these teachers, the National College Entrance Examination (Gaokao) is even more nerve-wracking than for the students themselves.