Chapter 148 - Full Marks and 99 Points

“Hurry! Quickly go save him! Does this child not recognize the Duskgold Dreadclaw Bear? Why didn’t he hit the ejection button!”

An anxious voice echoed in Tang Wulin’s mind as he gradually regained consciousness, the icy numbness fading from his body at the same time.

A metallic friction sound rang out and in the next moment, light filled his eyes.

I’m back. I’m fine. Those were Tang Wulin’s first thoughts, but then he noticed something strange about his state. Why do I feel fine?

His body had been shredded into pieces so he should be experiencing strong residual effects, and yet, he didn’t feel anything in particular.

“How are you doing?” Wu Zhangkong’s face appeared above the metal box.

Staff members also came over, prodding Tang Wulin’s body with a sort of popsicle-looking thing. “Are you conscious? Do you feel cold?”

“Yes,” Tang Wulin answered.

“He’s awake and has feeling. This is odd! He recovered this quickly?”

Tang Wulin grabbed the edge of the metal box and slowly pulled himself up.

A burst of weakness struck his brain, as if his mind had tired. Apart from this, everything else felt normal for him.

“Teacher, I’m fine.” After confirming that his body had no abnormalities, Tang Wulin got out of the metal box.

Wang Jinxi, Zhang Yangzi and Gu Yue were waiting at the side. Standing right beside his box, Gu Yue only let out a breath of relief when she saw Tang Wulin sit up.

However, the box next to his was bustling with people.

Xie Xie, that’s Xie Xie’s box.

Xie Xie should be fine, right?

Tang Wulin anxiously asked, “How is Xie Xie’s state right now?”

Wu Zhangkong said, “He managed to avoid having his head destroyed at the final moment, but the spiritual backlash for the rest of his body is still great. He’s currently unconscious, but he should wake up after resting a bit. Oh, he’s conscious.”

A long sigh of relief escaped from Tang Wulin after hearing that Xie Xie was awake. The most important thing after exiting the spirit ascension platform was waking up. As long as one was able to wake up, the body would be able to slowly recover. After all, they hadn’t truly sustained any injuries.

Tang Wulin quickly reached Xie Xie’s box and peered inside. Xie Xie’s complexion was pale and his body was twitching. Abnormal twitching of the body was a typical residual effect from dying in the spirit ascension platform.

Twitching is normal after dying in there, but there aren’t any effects in my body at all. Why aren’t I twitching too?

Tang Wulin wasn’t the only person thinking of this question. Within Wu Zhangkong’s heart, he was asking himself the exact same question. It was obvious, however, that Tang Wulin was unable to answer this question.

“As long as everybody is fine, then that’s good.” Wu Zhangkong dully said.

“Wulin, thank you.” Xie Xie’s weak voice called out from the metal box.

“Huh? What are you thanking me for?” Tang Wulin smiled bitterly.

Xie Xie forced out a difficult smile. “Thank you for your Thousand Refined Cloud Titanium vest. If I hadn’t worn it on my shoulders, helping to block some of the attack and giving me enough time to react, then my head might have been shredded too. That would have been truly troubling.”

It was only then that Tang Wulin understood Xie Xie’s words. Although it had seemed to him that Xie Xie had been sliced apart, the vest had still slightly protected him. With his sharp reflexes as an Agility System Soul Master, he had just been able to narrowly avoid having his head destroyed.

Come to think of it, it was also like that when the Duskgold Dreadclaw Bear tore me apart from the waist down. It’s just that I was already dodging at that time.

“You guys cheated.” Wu Zhangkong’s cold voice suddenly cut in as he stood there holding a vest. That vest was undoubtedly Xie Xie’s, stripped off during his post-ejection medical inspection.

Tang Wulin immediately blushed with embarrassment and awkwardness. “Teacher Wu, that shouldn’t be considered cheating, right? I only made it because I was afraid everyone would suffer like Wang Jinxi the first time.”

Wu Zhangkong handed the vest to Tang Wulin and indifferently commented, “The craftsmanship is not bad. You can already Thousand Refine?”

“Ah?” Tang Wulin was stunned.

“Yes!”

Wu Zhangkong said, “For the first part of your final exam, everyone gets full marks except for you, the captain. You get points deducted because you cheated and encouraged your teammates to cheat. Your final exam score is…”

Tang Wulin listened anxiously for the final verdict, his heart racing.

“Just 99 points.”

“Huh?”

Ninety-nine points? That’s not a huge difference from one hundred though? At that moment, Tang Wulin was at a loss as to how to react. The Zhang Yangzi at the side had already started yelling, “Long live Teacher Wu!”

Wu Zhangkong coldly responded, “Don’t get so excited just yet. There’s still one more section to your final exam. You will need to pass this section too in order to pass your exams.”

A staff member brought out a machine to stabilize Xie Xie’s conditions. This machine sent electric currents into his body to alleviate the side effects of the spirit ascension platform.

Xie Xie had suffered from many residual effects after being killed, so it took him over an hour before he was able to muster enough strength to sit up.

Everyone else had already recovered and were all waiting for Xie Xie. Tang Wulin walked to Wu Zhangkong’s side and softly asked, “I still have another entry card for the rebellion spirit ascension platform. Am I actually able to go in again?”

“Mn?” Wu Zhangkong stared at the card in Tang Wulin’s hand, a trace of astonishment flashing through his eyes.

“The Blacksmith’s Association gave this to me.” Tang Wulin didn’t bother trying to hide it.

Wu Zhangkong’s impression of Tang Wulin changed. He then shook his head and said, “You don’t need to go in again. There’s no meaning in it for you. As the rebellion period progresses, the spirit ascension platform will grow increasingly powerful, and even more rabid soul beasts will emerge. If you go in right now, you won’t be able to survive for long at all. You can just hold onto the card for now and use it during the next rebellion period. The card itself is also worth a lot. You could auction it off for quite a sum.”

Tang Wulin had originally wanted to return to the rebellion spirit ascension platform to absorb more spirit energy, but after hearing Wu Zhangkong’s words, he understood that his thoughts had been too naive.

“Teacher Wu, I have an idea, but I’m not sure if it’s possible to achieve or not. It’s about the spirit energy we absorbed. This time we…”

Just as Tang Wulin was about to explain, Wu Zhangkong’s hand shot out and covered his mouth. Wu Zhangkong’s eyes shifted to the nearby Spirit Pagoda staff members then whispered, “We’ll discuss this when we get back.”

Tang Wulin realized his error. That’s right! We had absorbed so much spirit energy this time that we must have surpassed the average. I really shouldn’t talk about this in front of the Spirit Pagoda members.

“Yes!”

Xie Xie was piggybacked by Tang Wulin all the way back to the academy. Although Xie Xie was recovered now, he still didn’t have full control over his body and all his movements were uncoordinated. According to a Spirit Pagoda staff member, he would need at least a day to recover from this state. Fortunately, there would be no lasting effects. As for whether a shadow had been cast over his heart, only Xie Xie could answer that.

“I’m fine? I didn’t even see what soul beast killed me, so why would I have a shadow over my heart?” Xie Xie said, all thick-skinned.

“That’s good then.” A faint smile appeared on Tang Wulin’s lips after hearing such a typical response from Xie Xie.

Xie Xie grumpily complained, “It’s so unfair. You were slashed apart too, yet why are you completely fine?”

Tang Wulin shrugged. “I don’t know either. Anyways, I’m just happy I made it out alright. Perhaps it’s also related to your body strength. Your body is still too weak. How about you come with me on morning runs from now on? It’ll increase your constitution and strength.”

Xie Xie teased, “Alright! I can go meet that senior sister with you then.”

Tang Wulin blushed crimson. “What meeting with the senior sister? Stop talking about things you don’t know about.”

Gu Yue’s gaze instantly locked onto Tang Wulin, while Zhang Yangzi and Wang Jinxi cast curious glances in his direction.

Tang Wulin said dismissively, “It’s nothing. There are a lot of people going on runs in the morning so naturally I’ve met a few seniors.”

Even though the words he spoke denied it, a delicate face appeared within his heart.

It was just as Xie Xie had said; every day he would be able to see Ouyang Zixin on his morning runs. Although he only greeted her each time and occasionally spoke a few words with her, the more he ran, the more familiar he had grown with her.

Moreover, he was so accustomed to seeing her every morning that disappointment would fill his heart if she wasn’t there one morning.

“Go back and rest properly. We’ll be summarizing your experiences tomorrow. Tang Wulin, come to my quarters.” Wu Zhangkong immediately issued out these commands the moment they arrived at the academy.

Tang Wulin first delivered Xie Xie to his room and laid him down to rest before heading over to Wu Zhangkong’s office.

“Wulin, you must remember that in the future, regardless of whether it be the spirit ascension platform or the Spirit Pagoda, you mustn't speak of any ideas. Instead, wait until you come back. Understood?” Wu Zhangkong advised.

Tang Wulin nodded. “Understood, teacher. But why? If the spirit ascension platform has a problem, shouldn’t I tell the Spirit Pagoda?’