“Is Teacher Xia coming too? I thought he was busy with recruitment. Is he done already?”
It wasn't surprising that Chen Xu was confused. After all, it was only because of his heaven-defying talent that he had been able to clear the initial dungeon so quickly.
At most, it had only been two and a half days since they started. He hadn't expected others to clear it so fast as well.
“Well, the West Wasteland is a bit special. Cities like Mohai and Arid Land City are frontline cities directly facing dungeon invasions. The initial dungeon assessments are centralized in Xining City or Xiwang City.”
“Teacher Xia went to Xining City. I heard he recruited three people who are also going to participate in the Dragon Seed assessment. One is a Beast Tamer, one is an Ancient Martial Artist, and one is a Rune Envoy.”
Tang Hezhou explained the information he had gathered while pouring tea for Chen Xu.
“I can understand the Beast Tamer, but the Ancient Martial Artist and the Rune Envoy... aren't those classes that follow the 【Hero】 route? Shouldn't they go to the Academy or Heavenly Crafts Academy? Why would they come to the Military Academy?” Chen Xu asked as he took the tea.
“To be precise, all three of them are on the 【Hero】 route. That Beast Tamer doesn't follow the Myriad Beast Legion path; he focuses on an elite system. Whether they will ultimately stay at the Military Academy with you or move to the Academy or Heavenly Crafts Academy, I don't know. But Teacher Xia isn't just a recruitment teacher for the Military Academy; he's also a recruiter for the Dragon Seed Program.”
Tang Hezhou continued to share what he knew.
“I see. By the way, Senior Tang, do you know of any official trading platforms? The kind for exchanging rare items.”
“Isn't there a supply depot at the Mohai Base? You can go there to exchange materials for points or military academy credits. If you want to barter directly, you can talk to them too.”
Thinking Chen Xu just didn't know the way, Tang Hezhou took out his intelligent terminal and sent him a simple map of the Mohai Base's interior.
Chen Xu pulled out a dungeon fragment and said, “I already went to them. I exchanged all the goblin materials for credits. But I wanted to swap this dungeon space fragment for one that matches the attribute of my Necrotic Space. They said they didn't have any and could only offer Dragon Seed points for it.”
Looking at the fragment in Chen Xu's hand, Tang Hezhou realized what he meant. “So it’s one of those. That’s a bit of bad luck. Dungeon fragments are extremely valuable. Usually, fragments obtained from clears are traded directly to the officials for points. Since fragments can expand dungeon spaces, Daxia buys up any fragments on the market at a high price.”
“So their stock is likely empty. There might be a few unused pieces at the Academy or Heavenly Crafts Academy for research, but otherwise, they’re usually merged into corresponding dungeons immediately. If you really want to trade it, you’ll have to talk to Director Le or ask Teacher Xia later. They can help you submit an application. Then, if the officials receive a fragment with an attribute that suits you, they can make the exchange.”
“Is the consumption of dungeon fragments really that high?” Chen Xu hadn't expected this. “Doesn't Daxia keep some as resources for training newcomers?”
“Training newcomers? Why would a newcomer need one of these?” Tang Hezhou looked completely bewildered.
“To synthesize spaces, of course!” Chen Xu said as if it were the most obvious thing in the world. “Necromancers have Necrotic Space, Beast Tamers have beast spaces... all summoning classes should have corresponding spatial skills, right?”
“But that’s usually something you worry about around level 50. Merging spaces requires at least Transcendent level mental strength. How could a newcomer...”
Tang Hezhou suddenly froze, his eyes wide with shock. “Junior, is your mental strength already at the Transcendent level?”
Chen Xu nodded.
Upon receiving confirmation, Tang Hezhou slumped back into his chair with a sigh. “Sigh. To think I, Tang Hezhou, was once considered a brilliant young talent. I never expected to be left in the dust so quickly.”
“Who’s so impressive that they can leave Tang Hezhou in the dust?” Teacher Xia’s voice rang out from outside the door.
“Teacher Xia,” Chen Xu greeted him, pulling out a chair for him.
Following behind Xia Qiming were three young people, two boys and one girl.
“Let me introduce you. This is Tang Hezhou, an outstanding student of the Military Academy and currently the captain of the Mohai investigation team.” Xia Qiming pointed toward Tang Hezhou as he spoke to the newcomers.
“Hello, Captain Tang.” The taller boy among the three was the first to greet him, and the other two followed suit.
“Hello, there’s no need to be so formal. Just call me Senior.”
Xia Qiming then pointed toward Chen Xu. “This is Chen Xu. He’s in the same year as you, but he cleared the initial dungeon a day earlier and has already passed the Dragon Seed assessment. You all need to work hard.”
After hearing the introduction, the three teenagers stared at Chen Xu with wide, incredulous eyes. They had thought that clearing the initial dungeon so quickly and being selected for the Three Great Academies and the Dragon Seed Program made them rare geniuses among men.
They never expected that this ordinary-looking person their age would be even more formidable than them.
“Hahaha, Teacher Xia, you flatter me.” Being praised like this by Xia Qiming for the first time made Chen Xu feel uncharacteristically shy.
“Lin Chen, Martial Artist. Qin Xixi, Rune Envoy. Su Qinghe, Beast Tamer.”
After the brief introductions, Xia Qiming sat down and signaled for the three of them to do the same. “You’ll all be classmates in the future. Relax and get to know each other.”
Tang Hezhou’s eyes lit up at those words. As he poured tea for Xia Qiming, he said, “Teacher Xia, you really have a way. You even managed to pull people from the 【Hero】 route into the Military Academy.”
Xia Qiming took the tea and replied dryly, “Watch your words in front of your juniors. You’ve picked up all of Le Yu’s bad habits. These three, including Chen Xu, will be jointly trained by the Three Great Academies regardless of their specific school. All Dragon Seed students will be like this from now on.”
“Joint training? Teacher Xia, could you tell us more about that?” Chen Xu’s interest was piqued.
“Yeah, Teacher Xia, tell us!” Tang Hezhou also looked hungry for knowledge, quickly refilling Xia Qiming’s tea.
“The Daxia higher-ups believe that since they are Dragon Seed geniuses, they must be able to master everything. In the past, the Academy and Heavenly Crafts handled research while the Military Academy handled application and practice. But for the Dragon Seed Program, Daxia needs the students to have a research-oriented mindset while also engaging in practical application themselves.”
“Huh? Doesn't that mean triple the coursework?” Chen Xu looked distressed. He knew himself well; he could study through the night for things that interested him, but being forced to study and take exams for things he didn't care about was a nightmare. It sounded more troublesome than a green dragon.
Among the other three, Lin Chen and Qin Xixi didn't show much of a reaction, but Su Qinghe frowned just like Chen Xu.
“As for how much you’ll have to learn, a dedicated teaching team will set a plan for you once you reach the school. I’m not sure of the details yet.”
“True. Let's not talk about such depressing things then. Teacher Xia, I actually have a favor to ask.” Chen Xu decided not to let the mood sour, choosing to worry about tomorrow’s problems tomorrow.
“Go ahead.”
“I have a dungeon space fragment here with the forest and breeding affixes. It doesn't really fit my Necrotic Space. I was wondering if you could put in a word with the higher-ups to help me swap it for something more suitable.”
Xia Qiming took the fragment, glanced at it, and said, “You really are lucky, kid. One fragment from the initial dungeon, and now another one. A suitable affix... let me think. The Academy actually has a fragment with the Dragon Tomb affix.”
“Dragon Tomb! I’ll take that one!” Chen Xu couldn't help himself and excitedly interrupted.
Xia Qiming shot him a glare and continued, “I wasn't finished. The Academy is a massive institution. This fragment of yours isn't enough for an equal trade.”
“What if I throw in a green dragon carcass? A fresh, complete dragon body, with only a few old scars and one puncture wound on the chest.”
Upon hearing that Chen Xu had a green dragon carcass, Qin Xixi couldn't help but ask, “Is it the legendary green dragon? Has Student Chen Xu already reached the level where he can defeat such a monster?”
“Yes, but it was just an injured green dragon. I just got lucky,” Chen Xu said with a wave of his hand and a smile.
“You’ve got some nerve, kid, picking a fight with a green dragon. If you add the entire carcass, it might be possible. I’ll put in a word for you. After we get to the Military Academy tomorrow, go find Old Man Wen. If he agrees, the trade is on.”
“Then thank you, Teacher Xia!”
Knock, knock, knock!
A knock sounded at the door. “Excuse me, is it convenient to serve the food?”
“Yes, come in,” Tang Hezhou called out. Several servers pushed carts into the suite and began setting the table.
“Let’s eat first. It’s late, so we can talk while we eat,” Tang Hezhou suggested.
During the meal, Tang Hezhou mostly led the conversation while Chen Xu and Xia Qiming chimed in. Lin Chen and the other two seemed to be overwhelmed by the revelation that Chen Xu could kill a legendary creature; they only answered questions passively and didn't really relax.
...
The next morning, Chen Xu, Teacher Xia, and the other four arrived at the Mohai City airport. They were to take a dedicated military aircraft to the Military Academy in the Zhongyuan District.
Since there were no suitable assessment dungeons for the 【Hero】 route in Mohai, Lin Chen and the others had to go to the Military Academy first and wait for the investigation teams in other regions to discover suitable dungeons before they could take their assessments.
“Tsk, tsk, so this is a military plane? It looks so impressive.” Standing on the tarmac, Chen Xu marveled at the aircraft. It looked like a fighter jet from a sci-fi movie, with a sleek, pitch-black, angular body.
“But Teacher Xia, did you apply for the wrong thing? This is a fighter jet, not a transport plane.”
“There are only five of us. You wanted a transport plane? We’re taking the fighter jet, there’s no mistake.” Xia Qiming was the first to open the cockpit and sat in the pilot’s seat. “Get in. What are you waiting for?”
“Teacher Xia, are you sitting in the wrong spot?” Chen Xu asked in disbelief.
“Stop being cheeky and get in. Being proficient in operating all kinds of military equipment and vehicles is a mandatory requirement for the Military Academy. You’ll have the chance to learn later.”
Once everyone was buckled in, Xia Qiming closed the hatch. “Hold on tight.”
With that, the fighter jet lifted off vertically. After reaching the proper altitude, it engaged triple acceleration and streaked toward the Zhongyuan District.
Rate on N.U.
