Twenty bottles of Body-type Potion had increased the Golden Slime's size by 15%, halfway to its 30% maximum, which would require another twenty bottles. Just achieving that full 30% increase would cost a staggering one million Chinese yuan—an expense only a select few could afford.
Chen Shu patted the Golden Slime. "Goo-ji! Goo-ji!" it chirped as its large eyes opened, filled with affection, and it began nuzzling its head against Chun’s hand. The slime was now a full meter tall, but with Gigantification, it could become an absolute behemoth of over four meters, dwarfing the contract spirits of other low-level Beast Tamers.
"Hope the final exams give me a decent score."
Chen Shu put away the Golden Slime. Seeing it was already noon, he prepared to go out for lunch before heading back to school in the afternoon.
"Boss, one green pepper and pork rice bowl with a cola."
While wolfing down his meal, Chen Shu suddenly spotted a familiar figure outside the shop. "Well, well, if it isn't Wang Teng?" he called out loudly.
A tall, refined-looking male student froze, looking toward the shop.
Suddenly seeming to recognize Chen Shu, he actively walked into the store.
"I remember you—you're Xiaoyu's classmate, right?" Wang Teng said, approaching the table. "I've already heard about her encountering that wanted criminal in the black market." He sighed. "Thank you for saving her."
"No problem," Chen Shu waved dismissively, then added with a sly look, "You seem pretty guilty about it, though. You didn't hire someone to do it, did you?"
"Cough... cough..." Wang Teng felt like he was choking, the words catching in his throat.
What the hell kind of thought process was that? Could his logic jumps be any more random?
"Of course not," Wang Teng said. "But I do have something I'd like your help with."
Though Wang Teng was somewhat irritated with Chen Shu, he hid it extremely well.
"Hmm? What is it? Just to be clear, I don't have money to lend you," Chen Shu said reflexively.
"..."
Wang Teng took a deep breath, finding it difficult to accept Chen Shu's conversation style.
I'm from the prestigious Wang family, one of Nanjiang City's top wealthy families—would I really need to borrow money from you?
"I want you to help me convince Xiaoyu. If she teams up with me, we'll definitely place well in the upcoming Beast Taming competition."
Chen Shu was about to respond when options suddenly appeared before his eyes again.
[Option 1: Agree to Wang Teng's request.]
Completion reward: 100,000 Chinese yuan
[Option 2: Shake your head and refuse, then say: "Are you worthy?"
Completion reward: Strength Potion
[Option 3: Say seriously: "Anyone can team up—we could get good results together too!"]
Completion reward: Golden Slime all attributes +5%
Chen Shu hadn't expected to see a Chinese yuan reward again, but it was useless to him.
The second reward was even more pathetic, not even worth 100,000 yuan.
Chen Shu shook his head and said: "I can't convince Xiaoyu either. How about we team up instead?"
"You kidding me?" Wang Teng had a constipated expression.
How do you have the balls to say something like that?
"My proposal is pretty good. If your abilities meet my expectations, I wouldn't mind." Chen Shu said after a thinking for a moment.
My abilities? Meet your expectations?
Wang Teng rubbed his temples, feeling his head starting to ache.
"Hehe... hehe... you're quite the comedian." Wang Teng finally managed to say with difficulty, "Anyway, I hope you can help me with this favor."
With that, Wang Teng wobbled out of the restaurant, afraid that staying any longer would make him lose his mind.
Chen Shu now wore a satisfied smile. With just a simple choice, the slime's strength had improved again.
"Boss, check please!" Chen Shu had finished demolishing his rice bowl.
"That'll be thirty yuan total."
"Isn't the rice bowl twelve yuan?" Chen Shu recently felt like he kept running from one highway robbery into another—what the hell was going on?
"The rice bowl is twelve yuan, but the cola is eighteen yuan."
"What cola costs that much?" Chen Shu felt completely scammed.
Even though he had money, he couldn't just throw it away.
"The regular three-yuan kind from outside,"¹ the boss explained with a perfectly straight face.
"You... you're really something..." Chen Shu's eyes scanned the menu and found the price, indeed clearly marked—but in a font at least half the size of the food items, which most people would never notice. Shaking his head, he paid and left, mentally adding the restaurant to his personal blacklist.
After eating his fill, Chen Shu returned to school.
…***...
"Chen Shu, the exam is coming up soon—stop wandering around."
As soon as he returned to school, Xia Bing came over with good intentions to advise him.
"Not wander? How else can I get stronger?"
Chen Shu thought to himself, but outwardly nodded, promising to stay put and behave.
Several days passed quickly, and final exams arrived as scheduled.
"Students, today is the day of final exams. I won't say much about the importance—it all depends on your performance!" Fang Ke said with a serious expression.
Ring ring ring!
As the bell sounded, the cultural subjects exam officially began.
The atmosphere was tense; in addition to Fang Ke, three other supervising teachers were present, creating a four-to-twenty-five teacher-student ratio that basically eliminated any possibility of cheating. The exam itself followed the rigorous standards of the college entrance exam, covering four subjects—History, Materials, Geography, and Biology—each worth one hundred points and designed to test the students' complete mastery of their second-year knowledge.²
Chen Shu looked confident, requiring almost no thought as he quickly completed the entire test paper.
"Genius, truly a genius!"
Looking at his completed test paper, Chen Shu couldn't help but pat himself on the back. He could guarantee his cultural subjects score would be flawless.
Just as he was getting bored, new options suddenly appeared before his eyes.
[Option 1: Submit early to show your ability.]
Completion reward: Medium amount of Beast Taming Power
[Option 2: Lie on your desk and sleep, waiting for the exam to end.]
Completion reward: Chaos Potion
[Option 3: Mess with other students' mental states.]
Completion reward: Charge Skill +1
Chen Shu thought briefly and chose the third option.
Based on his knowledge, skills and talents were most important.
The next second, Chen Shu suddenly started flipping through his test paper.
Rustle!
The sharp sound made the concentrating students jump, a seed of panic planted in their hearts.³ This exam was harder than they'd imagined, designed to select for the third-year special training class, making every second count.
Rustle rustle!
The flipping sounds grew more frequent, creating the illusion that most of the class was already working on the back of the page. In reality, only a handful of top students had made it that far.
Rustle rustle rustle rustle rustle!
A devious grin spread across Chen Shu's lips. He propped his head up with one hand while flipping the pages with the other, his eyes gleefully watching everyone else's expressions.
Reward obtained: Charge Skill +1
Huh? That was fast?
Chen Shu was startled. Looks like this batch of students really has terrible mental fortitude.