He tried to guide the residual medicinal power to impact that specific spot. The energy surged forward, crashing against that section of bone.
But it always dispersed and receded, leaving no trace behind.
He tried again. It dispersed again. He tried once more. It dispersed once more.
After five consecutive attempts, Lin Yuan gave up.
It wasn't because he lacked willpower, but because the medicinal power had been completely exhausted.
The medicinal power of fifteen Peak Grade Mid-tier Bone Tempering Pills, combined with his foundation of Nine Rounds of Bone Tempering, couldn't even conquer a piece of bone the size of a fingernail.
That spot was like a locked door; no matter how much medicinal power he had, if the door wouldn't open, it wouldn't open.
Lin Yuan leaned against the training room wall, gasping for breath.
He was covered in sweat. His black clothes were soaked and clung to his body, and his wet hair hung over his forehead.
Bone tempering progress: 99%. The golden bone patterns covered ninety-nine percent of his skeleton, with only that tiny blank space remaining behind his heart.
Lin Yuan muttered to himself, his voice slightly raspy, “Alright, it seems this can’t be forced open with brute strength alone.”
The difficulty of reaching Ten Rounds as One far exceeded his expectations.
Nine rounds was already a realm only the most elite geniuses could reach; in the last five hundred years, the entire Dragon Nation probably hadn't produced more than a handful.
Ten rounds was a legend—and legends were legends precisely because they couldn't be achieved simply by piling up resources.
It required a turning point, some kind of condition that he didn't yet possess.
Lin Yuan glanced at the clock on the wall; it was 11:30 PM.
He still had the exam tomorrow.
He pushed himself up from the floor and turned off the energy-absorbing walls of the training room. The energy fluctuations that had leaked out during his bone tempering had pushed the walls' load to sixty percent.
If he hadn't turned on the energy-absorbing walls, the walls of this room would likely have cracked.
Back in his room, he took a shower to wash off the sweat and medicinal residue.
As the hot water hit his back, the spot on his bone stuck at 99% felt faintly hot.
Lin Yuan dried his hair and lay down on the bed.
A thin beam of light from the Hangzhou night outside leaked through a gap in the curtains, falling across the foot of the bed.
He closed his eyes.
Tomorrow. Three thousand examinees in Hangzhou, the highest being Tier 1, Level 5.
He was at the peak of Tier 1, Level 7, with Nine Rounds of Bone Tempering and two combat techniques.
Shen Man said she’d reimburse him for Purple Lightning if he made the top ten.
That was a million coins.
Lin Yuan fell asleep with that thought in mind.
...
At six o'clock the next morning, the alarm went off.
Lin Yuan opened his eyes, stared at the ceiling for three seconds, and then flipped out of bed.
He washed up, got dressed, and checked his gear.
Purple Lightning was on his back, and his storage bag hung at his waist, containing four bottles of Source Recovery Pill, two bottles of healing spray, and five bags of beast repellent powder.
Then, carrying Purple Lightning, he headed out the door.
When he was checking out at the hotel front desk, the girl with the round-framed glasses asked if he was going to the college entrance exam.
He said yes.
She smiled and told him to do his best, then pulled a small bottle of milk from under the counter and handed it to him, saying it was a gift from the hotel and that every examinee got one.
Lin Yuan took the milk, thinking that the people of Hangzhou were actually quite nice.
He took a taxi to the combat base.
He arrived at 6:40 AM, and the plaza at the base entrance was already a sea of people.
It truly was a sea of people.
Three thousand examinees, plus the parents accompanying them, the leading teachers from various schools, media reporters with cameras, and the City Defense Army and staff members maintaining order—there were at least seven or eight thousand people squeezed into the plaza.
The crowd was bustling, and the noise was deafening.
Some parents were straightening their children's collars, some teachers were giving final tactical instructions to their students, and reporters were holding microphones for random interviews, asking, “Are you nervous?” “Do you have confidence?” and “What is your goal?”
The interviewed examinees varied: some shyly said, “I’ll just do my best,” some confidently said, “Top ten,” and some started stuttering as soon as they saw the camera.
Lin Yuan squeezed through the crowd and swiped his exam permit at a machine at the check-in counter.
The machine spat out a small number tag—No. 1137—along with a wristband-style locator.
The locator was silver-gray, and when worn on the wrist, it had a small button on its surface.
Pressing it would send a distress signal, and examiners would arrive in the shortest time possible.
A staff member nearby repeatedly reminded everyone: “Make sure to wear your locator properly! Press it if you encounter danger! Don’t try to be a hero! Your life is more important than your score!”
Lin Yuan put the wristband on his left wrist, right next to the silver-white ring on his index finger.
...
He walked through the crowd toward the examinee assembly area. On the way, he was stopped by several people.
The first was a boy in a blue school uniform. He wasn't very tall and had a friendly, familiar smile on his face.
“Hey, classmate, what’s your realm? Our team is still missing a front-liner. Tier 1, Level 3 or above is fine.”
Lin Yuan answered calmly, “Tier 1, Level 4, F-rank lightning ability.”
The boy’s smile visibly stiffened.
“F-rank? For real?” he asked to confirm, his gaze jumping back and forth between Lin Yuan’s face and the Purple Lightning on his back.
“For real.”
“Then never mind.” The boy’s enthusiasm cooled instantly. He turned and left, muttering something to his companion after walking a few steps.
Lin Yuan didn't hear it clearly, but he could probably guess: “Tier 1, Level 4 is useless. An F-rank lightning ability can’t even break a monster’s defense.”
The second person was a girl with twin ponytails and a round, friendly-looking face.
She was from the summoning system, and her team already had a fire ability and an earth ability; they lacked someone who could fight on the front line.
“Tier 1, Level 4, F-rank lightning ability.”
The twin-tailed girl froze for a moment, then gave a somewhat awkward smile.
“Ah, F-rank... We’ll keep looking, keep looking.” After saying that, she quickly walked away with her companion, as if afraid Lin Yuan would cling to them.
The third was a tall, thin boy standing alone with a long sword on his back, looking like a lone wolf who hadn't found a team either.
He locked eyes with Lin Yuan and walked over to ask about his realm.
Upon hearing the words “F-rank lightning ability,” he went silent for a second, then said “Good luck” and turned to leave.
His attitude was polite enough, but the meaning was the same.
Lin Yuan wasn't angry. He understood all too well how this world viewed F-ranks.
He had experienced it firsthand on Awakening Day back in Donghai City.
F-rank lightning ability, a mobile lightbulb, can't even shock the lowest-level monster to death—he had heard these things countless times.
Later, he used his spear to shut those people up, but those people had seen his strength with their own eyes.
In Hangzhou, no one knew him.
“Lin Yuan!”
A familiar voice called out from the crowd.
Jiang Ran squeezed through the crowd and ran over, a large smile on his round face, with Chen Mo and Song Zhiyi following behind him.
All three had changed into gear suitable for field combat. Jiang Ran had a short blade at his waist, Chen Mo carried a long sword on his back, and Song Zhiyi had a longbow slung across her back with a quiver at her waist.
All three were wearing the same silver-gray locator wristbands on their left wrists.
“You’re really something, you actually signed up!” Jiang Ran ran over and patted Lin Yuan’s shoulder, then leaned in and lowered his voice.
“I just heard someone say there was an F-rank lightning ability at Tier 1, Level 4 getting rejected everywhere, and I figured it had to be you. Those people have no vision, don’t take it to heart.”
Song Zhiyi walked over and gave Lin Yuan a flat look: “Teaming up with us?”
Her speech was as brief as ever.
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