"Skill [Resurrection of the Dead] acquired successfully."

[Resurrection of the Dead] (Apprentice Level, Beginner): Consumes Undead Mana to heal subordinate Undead Creatures. The healing effect and quantity are determined by the Spirit Attribute and Skill Proficiency.

Fang Zhou sighed silently. Indeed, the heroes of this world should not be underestimated. Su Xinyan developed such a practical new skill solely through her talent and effort, without the help of an attribute panel. I must not slack off in the future.

However, Fang Zhou smiled slightly. The research journal proved Su Xinyan had true talent, making her an extremely reliable person to collaborate with. I'll have to get some more good stuff from her in the future.

Fang Zhou then took out a small iron box, inside which lay a completely azure, transparent gemstone. This was the [Level 1 Blue Gemstone] that had dropped in the Abyss Difficulty of the [Little Inferior Demon Camp].

On his way back, Fang Zhou had already researched gemstones. After humanity entered the Era of Myth, they began to mine various types of Energy Gemstones from both Blue Star and the Mythical World. These gemstones, when inlaid into Equipment, could provide all sorts of enhancements.

For instance, the Blue Gemstone in Fang Zhou's hand could increase his Spiritual Power limit. Additionally, there were Moonlight Stones that could enhance Magic effects, Wind Crystal Stones that increased movement speed, and emeralds that could increase the recovery speed of Spiritual Power, among others.

Due to the rules of the world, different pieces of Equipment could only be inlaid with specific types of gemstones. A proper combination of these gemstones could further boost one's strength.

Fang Zhou weighed the gemstone in his hand. This Level 1 Blue Gemstone could be inlaid into his Apprentice Mage Hat, further increasing his Spiritual Power limit. Unfortunately, although anyone could attempt to inlay a gemstone, an unskilled person had a high failure rate. Only those who had mastered the [Inlay] Skill could guarantee a high success rate.

But to learn the [Inlay] Skill, one had to take on a life Profession like [Blacksmith]. As a mere Apprentice, Fang Zhou currently lacked the ability to take on a life Profession, so he naturally couldn't learn the [Inlay] Skill.

He shook his head slightly. It seems I'll just have to wait until tomorrow and ask around if any instructors or senior students at the military academy have the [Blacksmith] Profession.

Just then, a prompt appeared on his attribute panel.

"Enhanceable resource detected. 10 Soul Power can be consumed for enhancement."

"Start enhancement?"

Fang Zhou's expression lit up. Soul Power is truly formidable! It can even bypass the [Inlay] Skill requirement! Alright then, attribute panel, enhance!

He took off his Apprentice Mage Hat and placed the Level 1 Blue Gemstone upon it. As 10 points of Soul Power were consumed, the Mage Hat and the Blue Gemstone fused into one.

[Apprentice Mage Hat] (Gray Inferior, Level 1 Blue Gemstone x1): An Apprentice Mage Hat inlaid with a Level 1 Blue Gemstone. Slightly increases Spiritual Power limit.

Fang Zhou re-equipped the Mage Hat, happily feeling his Spiritual Power limit had increased significantly. This was the effect of just a single Level 1 Blue Gemstone. If I can inlay all eight pieces of my Apprentice Equipment with the corresponding gemstones, my strength will surely have another small breakthrough.

The unfortunate part was that F-level permissions did not grant the eligibility to exchange for gemstones. Fang Zhou sighed. He could only consider exchanging for gemstones after he was confirmed as a military academy seed and his permission level was raised.

「...」

Early the next morning, Fang Zhou went to the training ground again, preparing to challenge the Apprentice Middle Rank simulation battlefield. The training ground was as bustling and crowded today as it was yesterday. The vast majority of first-year students were immersed in the joy of pioneering new instances.

Seeing Fang Zhou enter, these students all looked on with envy. Clearing four difficulties in a single day and dominating both leaderboards... Fang Zhou must have already been pre-selected as a military academy "seed," right?

One person looked on with admiration. "Big Boss Fang Zhou is here again! Is he here to conquer the [Horn Demon Outpost]?"

Someone else spoke with a sour tone, "How is that possible? The [Horn Demon Outpost] is a team-mode simulation battlefield for a group of three. You can imagine how hard it is. How could Fang Zhou possibly clear it alone!"

Another person immediately retorted, "Heh, Big Boss Fang Zhou isn't an ordinary person like you and me. What seems like an impossible task for us might be something he can accomplish with ease."

The students in the training ground buzzed with discussion. They were all curious to see if Fang Zhou could clear the [Horn Demon Outpost] as smoothly as he did yesterday.

Fang Zhou paid no mind to their chatter. He nodded a greeting to a few familiar cadets from Company One, then found a Simulation Pod and logged into the Simulation Battlefield.

After re-uploading his projection, Fang Zhou updated it with the enhancement from the Level 1 Blue Gemstone and the newly learned [Resurrection of the Dead] Skill. Yesterday, Su Xinyan had already told him that the [Horn Demon Outpost], unlike the solo-mode [Little Inferior Demon Camp], was a team instance designed for a three-person squad.

Fang Zhou wasn't very confident he could clear it alone, but he would give it his all. Success would be ideal. But even if I fail, I can identify my weaknesses and determine the direction of my future efforts.

Once his preparations were complete, Fang Zhou looked at the second Teleportation Gate that had appeared before him.

"[Horn Demon Outpost] Easy Difficulty (Apprentice Middle Rank), Team Mode."

Fang Zhou made his projection touch the Teleportation Gate and immediately received a prompt.

"Junior Sergeant Fang Zhou, this Simulation Battlefield is in team mode and has a high difficulty. A team of three is recommended. Are you sure you wish to enter?"

Currently, Fang Zhou was the only one at the Apprentice Middle Rank in the entire first year. Where could he possibly find two teammates?

Fang Zhou chuckled, decisively paid the 2 contribution points for the entry fee, and began the challenge directly.

Meanwhile, outside the Simulation Battlefield, both the instructors and the first-year students focused their attention on the large screen, watching Fang Zhou's combat live stream with rapt attention.

Yesterday, Fang Zhou had swept through four difficulty levels of the [Little Inferior Demon Camp] like a whirlwind. He was the only student to clear the Abyss Difficulty, and he also topped the speed leaderboard for every difficulty level, far surpassing Ye Fan, Meng Hongzhuang, and Gu Zhiqiu. With the combat recordings as proof, everyone was thoroughly convinced of Fang Zhou's strength.

However, the [Horn Demon Outpost] he was challenging today was, after all, an Apprentice Middle Rank three-person instance. In most people's eyes, although Fang Zhou had miraculously broken through to the Apprentice Middle Rank within a month, both his Spirit Attribute and Skill Proficiency still had great potential to be tapped and were far from their limits. His chances of clearing the [Horn Demon Outpost] solo, even on Easy difficulty, were not considered very high.

「...」

Inside the Simulation Battlefield, Fang Zhou slowly opened his eyes to find himself in a dense fog.

Instead of surveying his surroundings, he acted on instinct, immediately conjuring two Skeleton Shields to guard his body. Then, he brandished his Magic Staff and began to continuously cast [Summon Skeleton].

With the [Summon Skeleton] Skill now at the Perfection level, he could summon several Skeletons at once, and his casting speed had increased dramatically. Soon, Fang Zhou had summoned 20 robust Skeletons. This time, his projection's strength wasn't suppressed, so the summoned Skeletons were naturally also at the Apprentice Middle Rank. The durability of their bones was a major step up from yesterday's.

Protected within his swarm of Skeletons, Fang Zhou finally breathed a sigh of relief and began to observe his surroundings.

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