18: Chapter 18 The College Entrance Examination is Coming

New Calendar year 1227, June 7th, the day of the College Entrance Exam.

Early summer, the morning breeze carries a hint of coolness, instantly clearing one's mind.

"Xiao Feng... do you have everything? Check again."

"Xiao Feng... make sure to go to the bathroom beforehand."

"Xiao Feng... where's your admission ticket? Did you bring it!"

"I've got it, I've got it... Mom!"

Early in the morning, Mother Lu began nagging and reminding him about this and that.

She hadn't rested for a moment.

He knew that for the College Entrance Exam, his mom was probably more nervous than he was.

This was the mindset of most parents; when their child faces a life-defining hurdle, they become even more anxious.

Conversely, the children often act indifferent because they don't truly understand the importance of the College Entrance Exam.

Perhaps only after entering society will they realize what a significant opportunity they missed.

We all once had the chance to change our lives, but we just didn't grasp it.

By middle age, all that remains are regrets, sighs, and endless remorse.

...

Lu Qingfeng, however, was truly not nervous. He was steady as a rock; the top scorer title was definitely his, as he said.

Even if Emperor Tianhuo came, it wouldn't matter.

He had also thought it through clearly.

If a good Cancerous Mutation location appeared, like a combat-related one, he would choose the Mecha Combat Academy.

If it wasn't a combat-related Cancerous Mutation, he would choose a scientific research major or a command-related one.

As for the National Martial Arts major, he didn't consider it at all.

No matter how much he liked National Martial Arts, what was the use if it couldn't put food on the table?

He was clear-headed about this.

After breakfast, the family took an Intelligent Car to school.

Today, his exam center was still assigned to Third Middle School, just a different classroom. This was quite lucky—a familiar place.

Early in the morning, the parking lot at the entrance of Third Middle School was packed. Fortunately, since they were all Intelligent Cars, they would automatically find parking spaces, so there was no need to worry about traffic jams.

Therefore, no traffic accidents would occur.

People walked toward the entrance of Third Middle School in groups of twos and threes.

"Test well, don't be nervous."

"Good luck."

Encouraging words like these were everywhere.

Lu Qingfeng led his parents to the entrance of Third Middle School, submitted his admission ticket, and entered the exam hall.

Preparing to start the exam.

The exam order hadn't changed; the morning was still History and Mathematics.

For Lu Qingfeng, it was extremely simple, and he finished easily.

But this time, to be safe and keep a low profile—after all, his parents were outside...

He didn't turn in his paper early. If he did, he feared his mom would nag for ages, and she might not even sleep well until the results came out.

He waited patiently for time to pass.

For both subjects, he only turned in his paper when the bell rang.

The afternoon was the same.

Not a bit of pressure.

On the second day, as soon as the morning Biology exam finished, everyone went straight home. The afternoon was the highlight: Cancerous Mutation.

"Lu Qingfeng... look at how you're sitting. You have no posture when sitting or standing."

"Lu Qingfeng, go wash the dishes."

"Lu Qingfeng, mop the floor."

Lu Qingfeng: ...

Is this how a child is treated after finishing the College Entrance Exam?

Mother Lu seemed to be venting, constantly ordering him to do this and that.

Old Lu was so scared he didn't dare to speak.

After mopping the floor, Lu Qingfeng quickly said, "I'm going to school. The Cancerous Mutation is this afternoon. I'm off!"

After saying that, he just ran off.

"Hey... you kid!" Mother Lu wanted to say more, but she smiled as she watched his retreating back.

...

Cancerous Mutation depends entirely on luck; it's a matter of fate, so parents almost never choose to go along.

Moreover, this thing has been around for many years, and failures in Cancerous Mutation are very rare.

Statistics show the failure rate for Cancerous Mutation is one in a hundred million.

Lower than the odds of winning the lottery.

It's just that the location is uncontrollable; the success rate is almost one hundred percent.

Of course, it's not non-existent. Every year there are a few cases, and everyone treats them as idle gossip, saying, "How could there be such an unlucky kid?"

Without Cancerous Mutation, one's lifespan is relatively short, making it hard to live past a hundred and twenty years old.

That's the minimum lifespan.

Furthermore, aging is much faster than in normal people.

Take Old Lu and Mother Lu, for example; they were already thirty when they married.

Old Lu looks like he's not even forty, while Mother Lu is even more extreme, maintaining the appearance of someone around thirty.

Old Lu will maintain this state for decades, while Mother Lu might keep it for centuries.

Statistics show that one's appearance usually only begins to age when there are thirty to fifty years of lifespan remaining, and the process is very rapid.

However, most people are actually Level 1 Cancer-mutants; it is extremely difficult to Breakthrough to Level 2.

Every level is almost a gamble with one's life; it all depends on whether the Physique can withstand a second injection of cancer cells.

...

Lu Qingfeng arrived at school to an atmosphere of jubilation; the pressure from before the College Entrance Exam was gone.

Everyone was young and in the prime of their lives.

Some were even frantically tearing up exam papers and books.

For instance, classmate Li Tianran was tearing up his papers.

"Tianran... what are you doing?"

"Tearing up these damn papers. They almost took my life! Old Six, you have no idea. Look at my eye sockets—are they sunken?"

"They aren't sunken, but it's true they're swollen."

"Holy crap... for real?"

"Alright, alright. Can't you be normal for once? The papers are so cute, why tear them up?"

"You're really something, Old Six. These things are cute? I get annoyed just looking at them now. Twenty days! Do you know how I survived?"

Li Tianran spoke with tears streaming down his face.

"Didn't I go through the same thing as you? What are you making such a fuss about?"

"You're a god... the rest of us are just Mortals. We can't compare."

"Stop with the gods and ghosts talk. Once you get to university, I hear it's not easy there either. Do you think it's like a thousand years ago?"

Lu Qingfeng said with disdain.

Li Tianran's expression became even more pained as he sighed:

"Life... why is it so hard? It turns out being a loser is the true path. Is wasting time what life is really about?"

"You've turned into a philosopher? Wasting time is indeed a philosophy of life, but since you've come to this world once, shouldn't you leave something behind?"

Lu Qingfeng looked at his best friend and said seriously.

"Uh... I guess that's true."

Facing Lu Qingfeng's gaze, he felt a bit unable to meet his eyes.

It felt as if stars were flowing within his eyes.

"That's more like it. You can't be despondent. The two of us brothers will roam the sea of stars together and see all kinds of alien races, and Star Beasts that are like gods..."

While everyone was chatting happily, the Homeroom Teacher walked in with a relaxed pace.

She was also carrying a safe.

Everyone stopped talking and looked at the Homeroom Teacher with expectant eyes.

She placed the box on the podium.

"Students... the final hurdle is coming. Are you nervous?"

Everyone: "Nervous..."

"Exciting..."

Everyone: ...

Who is being so out of sync?