"Hiss—That spear strike was so fast!"
"What an incredible thrust! It was practically like a bolt of lightning!"
"That attack speed rivals Wind-type ability users—but isn't he supposed to be a Lightning-type Awakener?"
"..."
Watching the black-clad figure on the projection screen instantly kill a Shadow Cat like a streak of lightning, many teachers in the spectator stands were completely stunned.
Fast! Precise! Ruthless!
That was their first impression of Xu Jingming.
Class 5 homeroom teacher Chen Fan widened his eyes.
Since the school regularly conducted combat training classes, he was generally familiar with the combat strength of most students in his class.
But during combat lessons, Xu Jingming had only performed at an average level.
There was no way he should have possessed this level of strength before!
"Good grief… he actually managed to hide this from me for so long!"
"With Spearmanship like this, why didn't he reveal it earlier? Did he really wait just to make a stunning debut during the exam?"
"But with Spearmanship like this, even with only an E-rank ability, he really can achieve good results in the Martial Arts College Entrance Exam."
Chen Fan nodded slightly.
"Looks like persuading him not to participate earlier was completely unnecessary."
"Powerful Physique… and outstanding Spearmanship."
Principal Zhao Yao of Second High School let out a long breath, then shook his head.
"What a pity…"
"Yes… truly a pity."
Education Bureau Director Zhang Wenshan also showed disappointment.
Strong Physique and weapon mastery were indeed major advantages during the Awakener stage.
But as levels increased, the advantage provided by Physique and technique gradually diminished.
After all—
Ability Users fought primarily using their abilities.
"If only he had a C-rank ability, combined with this Physique and Spearmanship, Jiangcheng's number one spot would absolutely be his!"
"But unfortunately… he only awakened an E-rank ability."
Zhang Wenshan couldn't help sighing again.
Compared to the regret of the principal and director, Chen Fan took things more calmly.
As long as Xu Jingming could maintain a Top 10 ranking, he would definitely enter a good Ability User university.
Even if he stopped hunting Fierce Beasts right now, with his current performance, he could still enter an Ability User university—though perhaps not a top-tier one.
And compared to the outcomes Chen Fan had originally feared—failing the exam or even dying—
This result was already countless times better.
...
[Killed one Tier 1 Shadow Cat — Ability Points +9]
Inside the ruined town, Xu Jingming listened to the system notification in his mind after killing another Shadow Cat.
His mood was extremely pleasant.
There were even more Fierce Beasts in the Middle Zone than he had imagined.
In just a little over one hour since entering, he had already killed:
20+ lower-tier Tier 1 Fierce Beasts
10+ peak unrated Fierce Beasts
Meanwhile, the Ability Points accumulated on his system panel had reached:
312 points!
"Not bad. As expected, hunting Fierce Beasts in the Middle Zone is far more efficient."
Xu Jingming nodded in satisfaction.
Just then—
He heard the buzzing sound of rapidly spinning rotor blades.
A drone flew over from the distance and hovered dozens of meters above his head.
"A tracking camera drone? Did I enter the Top 10 already?"
Xu Jingming opened his smartwatch and checked his ranking.
[9th Place]: Xu Jingming, 607 points. (Jiangcheng Second High School)
"Sure enough… Top 10."
A faint smile appeared on his face.
The appearance of the tracking drone meant that from now on, all of his battles would be broadcast to the outside world.
That also meant—
If he used his ability later, his S-rank Purple Heavenly Divine Lightning would inevitably be exposed.
After all, the lightning he summoned now was far too extraordinary to disguise as a weak E-rank ability.
Of course—
Xu Jingming had never planned to hide it.
"The Martial Arts College Entrance Exam tests strength and potential. The better your results, the more choices you gain."
"Only an idiot would give up points just to hide their ability."
Xu Jingming's gaze sharpened as he opened his system panel.
[Name]:Xu Jingming
[Level]:Awakener
[Ability]:Purple Heavenly Divine Lightning (S)
[Physique]:141 (+)
[Spirit]:160 Hz (+)
[Skills]:Spearmanship (Advanced), Lightning Gale Break (Beginner+)
[Ability Points]:312
"Over 300 Ability Points already… and still no way to level up?"
Xu Jingming frowned when he didn't see a plus sign beside his level.
There were only two possible explanations.
First—
The number of Ability Points required to evolve from Awakener to Ability User might be extremely high—even 300 wasn't enough.
Second—
There might be a prerequisite condition that had not yet been fulfilled, preventing the system from upgrading his level.
"To evolve into an Ability User, you must first learn an Ability Cultivation Method…"
"Looks like I can't level up because I haven't learned one yet."
Xu Jingming silently made his guess.
Ability Cultivation Methods were a fundamental requirement for becoming an Ability User.
Even the cheapest ones cost over one million yuan.
With Xu Jingming's financial situation, buying one was impossible.
He had originally hoped the system could bypass that condition—
But it seemed he had been mistaken.
"Still, with my current combat strength, I'm not much weaker than a true Ability User."
"I'll wait until after the exam. Once I enter an Ability User university and learn a cultivation method, then I'll advance."
He didn't dwell on it.
Right now, the real question was—
How should he use these 300+ Ability Points?
"At the moment, I can only upgrade base attributes and combat techniques. Combat techniques aren't urgent, so I'll strengthen my base attributes first."
After thinking for a moment, Xu Jingming distributed all his Ability Points into his two main attributes.
Physique: +200 points
Spirit: +112 points
[Physique]:141 → 181
[Spirit]:160 Hz → 182 Hz
As his base attributes increased—
Xu Jingming immediately felt a surge of power throughout his body.
His mind became clearer than ever before.
All the fatigue accumulated from continuous movement and combat disappeared instantly.
"Feels amazing!"
Xu Jingming laughed loudly, casually spinning his spear into a beautiful flourish.
His attack speed and striking power were now noticeably stronger than before.
"With Physique like this, combined with my Advanced Spearmanship—even Tier 1 mid-level Fierce Beasts in the Core Zone can be easily killed without using my ability!"
At this moment, Xu Jingming was filled with confidence in his strength.
"The Fierce Beasts in the Core Zone are stronger—and more numerous!"
"Since my strength has increased again, there's no need to stay in the Middle Zone any longer. I'll head straight into the Core Zone!"
With a flick of his spear, the blood staining it was shaken clean by inertia.
Then, slinging the spear across his back, Xu Jingming glanced at the map and charged toward the Core Zone.
With his enhanced Physique—
His sprinting speed at this moment was even slightly faster than Zhou Mingyang, who was enhanced by a Wind-type ability.
And behind him—
The camera drone followed closely, like an inseparable shadow.