Chapter 98 - Dragon Essence Temple Disciple Examination
After Yu Rou finished feeding Yuan, she said to him, "Okay, brother. Now that your own room has been cleaned, I am going to let you sleep by yourself again."
A few moments later, Yu Rou carried Yuan to the wheelchair before pushing him back to his own room.
"Do you want to play tonight, brother?" Yu Rou asked him.
Now that she knows his real identity as Player Yuan, she was more willing to let him play more so that he can continue progressing as much as possible.
"No, it's okay. In fact, I am going to take a break from Cultivation Online for a few days until the Dragon Essence Temple examination begins," Yuan said to her.
"Huh? You're taking a break already? Why?" Yu Rou asked him with a dumbfounded expression on her face.
Although missing a few days of progress might not matter when Yuan's already months, even years ahead of other players, it still doesn't make any sense why he would want to take a break so suddenly.
"Did something happen today? Is that why you're taking a break?" Yu Rou asked him. "It's okay to speak to me, brother."
"No, it has nothing to do with the game, honestly. I just want to take a break and prepare myself before I partake in the examination."
"Preparations for the examination… in the real world?" Yu Rou could not understand his intentions, but since Yuan insisted on taking a break, there was nothing she could do. After all, it was not as if she could force him to play the game.
"Okay. Then I'll leave you alone now. Goodnight, brother." Yu Rou closed the lights in the room before leaving Yuan alone.
Once he was alone, Yuan immediately began cultivating, and he would not stop for the rest of the night.
By the following morning, Yuan had managed to breakthrough once again, reaching fourth level Spirit Apprentice.
"Haaa… This is taking much longer than the game. If only there were monster cores in this world or things equivalent that would allow me to increase my cultivation faster…" Yuan sighed.
Sometime later, Yu Rou entered his room to clean his face and brush his teeth before feeding him breakfast.
After Yuan consumed all three bowls of soup, Yu Rou wiped his lips with a wet towel before leaving for school.
Once he was alone again, Yuan returned to cultivating. Even though the progress might be slow, at least he can make some progress.
Yuan repeated this process for the next two days, and besides eating and cultivating he was doing nothing else— not even sleeping.
By the time the Dragon Essence Temple began their disciple examination, Yuan had reached the fifth level Spirit Apprentice realm.
"Yu Rou, I am going back to Cultivation Online today. The Dragon Essence Temple should begin their disciple examination today, too," Yuan said to her after breakfast.
"Okay. Good luck, brother. Of course, I'm sure you'll pass the exam without any effort." Yu Rou chuckled.
And then she said, "Oh, I know you're already going to be in the spotlight, so try not to reveal your identity as Player Yuan, okay? You have no idea how many players are looking for you right now. If they learn of your identity, our lives will no longer be as peaceful."
"I understand…" Yuan responded in a nervous voice.
Sometime later, Yuan returned to the world of cultivation.
"Welcome back, Brother Yuan." Xiao Hua was the first to appear before him.
"I am back. The Dragon Essence Temple disciple examination should be today, right?" Yuan asked.
"That's right." Xiao Hua nodded, and then she turned to look towards the direction of the Dragon Essence Temple. "There's already a lot of people gathered."
"Then let's get going!"
However, Xiao Hua shook her head and said, "Brother Yuan, Xiao Hua will remain inside the necklace until you decide to leave the sect or need help. This way, Brother Yuan can experience the cultivation world the way it's meant to. If you ever need advice, Xiao Hua will speak to you using Divine Sense like the Vermilion Phoenix."
Yuan nodded and said, "It's going to feel lonely without having you by my side all the time, but I understand why you are doing this."
After Xiao Hua returned to the necklace, Yuan began running towards the Dragon Essence Temple.
'Oh, right… There will be a lot of people participating in this examination— both NPCs and Players alike. In order to keep my identity safe, I should at least hide my face.'
Thinking that, Yuan stopped moving and retrieved the Black Jade Mask and wore it on his face, hiding everything but his bright and innocent eyes.
"This should be good enough," Yuan nodded to himself before he continued running towards the Dragon Essence Temple.
Sometime later, Yuan arrived at the Dragon Essence Temple, and as he'd expected, there was already a sea of people gathered there.
'Wow… Is this what it feels like going to school on the first day?' Yuan wondered to himself as he followed the crowd.
Many minutes later, they arrived at this mountain range that had nothing but mountains and trees beside a large gate at the horizon that had a majestic sign with the words 'Dragon Essence Temple' on it.
'We are taking the examination here?' Yuan raised his eyebrows.
After waiting around for a few more minutes, a middle-aged man wearing colorful robes appeared before them by jumping on top of the gate.
"Welcome to the Dragon Essence Temple disciple examination! Before we begin the examination, we must verify whether or not you are actually qualified to be here!" The middle-aged man spoke to them in a loud and domineering voice.
"Below me is a transportation gate that will teleport you to the real examination halls. However, only those who have the Dragon Essence Temple Exam Token will be teleported to the examination hall. Everyone else will be teleported randomly to the mountain range behind me, and there are many powerful magical beasts that roam that area, so if you are thinking about sneaking into the disciple examination, I urge you to rethink that decision because we won't take responsibility for whatever happens to you afterward."