Douluo Dragon King: My Strategy System Is a Bit Off

Chapter 27 Xie Xie Gets Beaten by Mixed Doubles

"I have to say, our grade started taking exams these past two days. I passed by the practice field today and watched them go through their grueling practical exams, and I felt unusually happy."

Xie Xie said, waving his fist excitedly.

Gu Yue said coldly, "I advise you not to be so happy so soon. Teacher Wu didn't say there wouldn't be an exam. You'll be crying later."

Suddenly doused with cold water, Xie Xie said speechlessly, "Gu Yue, can you not spoil the fun? I've trained hard for a semester, and I finally have this little bit of superiority. Can't you even let me be happy?"

Gu Yue clearly wasn't going to tolerate him, and coldly replied, "What you call a dream."

Xie Xie nearly choked on his breath, about to retort. But Lin Ci behind him spoke first: "That's not right."

Xie Xie's eyes lit up, and he looked at Gu Yue triumphantly, saying, "See? Even Ci-ge supports me..."

But before he could finish speaking, Lin Ci said calmly, "Not quite right, it should be daydreaming."

Xie Xie: "..."

What an incredibly precise last hit!

At this moment, Wu Changkong also pushed open the door and entered the classroom.

Xie Xie was clearly anxious; he immediately asked, "Teacher Wu, do we still have final exams?"

Xie Xie believed that the first-year final exams were utterly meaningless. This wasn't arrogance on his part; although Class Zero had only been established for three months, each of them could feel a complete transformation in the past three months. The first-year exams were child's play for them. This was why Xie Xie felt a sense of superiority watching them take the exams.

But Wu Changkong's words shattered his delusions.

"need."

Xie Xie froze on the spot, his whole being as withered as a flower.

Seeing Xie Xie's stunned expression, Wu Changkong showed no mercy and continued, "Don't think you can rest easy just because you've entered Class Zero. Although you've made great progress in these three months, it's still far from enough. The final exam will be a comprehensive test of your learning outcomes this semester, including basic knowledge, practical skills, and adaptability, among other things."

Xie Xie, on the other hand, looked utterly dejected and muttered, "Teacher Wu, those basic subjects are really too easy for us. Shouldn't Class Zero have a more challenging assessment method?"

"Therefore, your exam subjects are different from theirs."

Clearly, Wu Changkong was waiting for Xie Xie to say those words.

Wu Changkong said calmly, "Your final exams will consist of two subjects. The first subject is the Spirit Ascension Platform. You need to stay inside the Spirit Ascension Platform for one hour to pass the final exam."

Ascension Platform?

Xie Xie, who had just been feeling utterly hopeless, suddenly became excited again. Perhaps the first time they went to the Spirit Ascension Platform could be considered a test. But after this semester of honing their skills on the Spirit Ascension Platform, they were already extremely familiar with it.

Xie Xie, in particular, was arguably the longest-surviving survivor besides Lin Ci. This gave him immense confidence.

What does an hour matter?

"I need to remind you that this is the Ascension Platform during a period of riots."

Wu Changkong was well aware of Xie Xie's ulterior motives, and he certainly wouldn't grant his wish. Therefore, the content of this exam was definitely not that simple.

Xie Xie sighed helplessly, "Teacher Wu, could you please finish what you were saying? My emotions were so volatile, I felt like I was about to plummet off a cliff, and now you've pulled me back up."

Wu Changkong simply added, "The Ascension Platform experiences two riot periods each year. During these periods, the soul beasts become particularly active and their numbers increase, greatly increasing the danger. Each riot period, each of the eighteen Heavenly Pillars has three hundred slots available for entry, and this time, the six of you can obtain six of those slots. You can teleport directly together."

"In addition, it should be noted that during the riot period, you may encounter not only soul beasts, but also other soul masters, who are equally dangerous. Furthermore, after a soul beast is hunted down during the riot period, the time it takes to absorb spiritual energy will be a hundred times longer. If you leave the Spirit Ascension Platform during this process, the remaining spiritual energy will be absorbed by the nearest soul master."

"Alright, we'll enter the Ascension Platform tomorrow. There's no class today. Get ready."

After saying that, Wu Changkong walked out as gracefully as ever, without taking away a single cloud or waving his sleeves.

Tang Wulin asked curiously, "Is the Spirit Ascension Platform different during this riot period?"

Wang Jinxi's expression was solemn. He nodded and said, "If I remember correctly, the entry limit for the Elementary Spirit Ascension Platform is the peak of the third ring. Entering the Spirit Ascension Platform during the turmoil requires a tremendous investment. Therefore, many Soul Masters only attempt this once they reach the peak of the third ring, hoping to kill more Soul Beasts to advance their Soul Spirit. So, the opponents we face may be extremely powerful. They can plunder our spiritual power by killing us."

Tang Wulin frowned and said, "So, our final exams this time are going to be quite difficult. Those peak three-ring Soul Masters are definitely much stronger than us, and they might even resort to any means to seize spiritual power."

"It's okay, don't be afraid. Don't forget we're together this time. With Brother Ci, the wilderness survival master, here, what's there to be afraid of?"

Xie Xie already had experience with this; in his past daily training at the Spirit Ascension Platform, his primary goal was to find Lin Ci.

Although he can't find it every time, once he does, he won't be attacked by some random soul beast and forced to retreat.

That's how he managed to last three hours. If he hadn't run out of soul power, he probably could have kept up with Lin Ci for another hour.

Not a single mistake, not a single poem, not a single post, not a single piece of content, not a single look!

Lin Ci survived for a long time each time, mostly because he was forced to withdraw due to exhaustion of his soul power. Of course, there were a few times when he failed, but these were rare, and most of the time he was ambushed while eating barbecue.

After all, the aroma of his roasted meat could be smelled from a great distance, naturally attracting the attention of some carnivorous spirit beasts. And most of these spirit beasts were extremely ferocious and powerful in combat.

For example, the first time the crystal bear was attracted by the aroma of Lin Ci's roasted rabbit meat.

Lin Ci didn't mind, and simply shrugged, saying, "You can come with me, but this time I'm planning to eat the paws of the Dark Gold Terrorclaw Bear. Want to come along?"

Xie Xie shook his head vigorously, quickly correcting himself: "Um, where were we? I can't remember."

"Coward," Gu Yue scoffed.

Unfortunately, Xie Xie couldn't refute them. They were arrogant and powerful, unafraid of the Dark Gold Terrorclaw Bear. He, Xie Xie, couldn't withstand a single claw strike from that creature.

Lin Ci chuckled at Xie Xie's cowardly expression. "Just kidding. Soul beasts of the Dark Gold Terrorclaw Bear level don't easily appear even during the Spirit Ascension Platform's riot period. But this time, I think the real threat isn't from soul beasts."

Lin Ci's words are not wrong. Just like in the apocalypse, the danger is never the most obvious bad weather or ferocious beasts, but rather the treacherous fellow human beings.

During this period of unrest at the Spirit Ascension Platform, although the number of soul beasts increased and they became more active, the six of them, working together, were not entirely unable to cope. However, the other soul masters who would stop at nothing to obtain spiritual power were the truly insidious and difficult-to-defend threat.

When interests are at stake, human nature becomes the most unpredictable thing.

I wish you all a Happy New Year.

(End of this chapter)