"Damn your workshop!"

"Damn your craftsman examination!"

"Damn your association, damn your mutant erosion..."

In the ruins of the observation station, Lou Feng crawled out from the crevice, covered in dust, clutching a sack of scavenged canned food, gasping heavily.

He raised his hand and pulled out a bug that had crawled into his collar, pinching it to death.

Didn't even have the urge to scream anymore.

He was already completely numb.

Tired, let it all be destroyed.

Never cursed so much with the word "damn" in his life.

"Why the hell am I competing with Ji Jue... Should've never come this year..."

After a night of hardships, facing such a dire situation, Lou Feng, unwilling to be eliminated, could only struggle like a salted fish tossed into a vat of sauce.

After all, grand proclamations had been made, and failing the first preselection round would mean going home in shame...

Master Kong a few days ago: "You can try, but if you don't pass and disgrace me, you know what will happen when you return, right?"

He knew, oh, he too knew.

Moreover, even without the teacher's force, he urgently needed a craftsman certificate to cleanse his gradually deteriorating image among his family.

Saying goodbye to his grandpa before leaving, he used the wrong tone-ending particle by mistake, making the atmosphere awkward. Lou Feng could only blame Ji Jue, that scumbag dragonfly, for teaching him so many curse words!

Yet in some way, he had to thank Ji Jue.

If it weren't for the experiences at the recovery department and in Spring City, he wouldn't know how dire and miserable his current situation was.

Boom!!!!

The ruins shook abruptly, collapsed earth and rocks scattered, a raging mutant broke through the wall, its pieced-together limbs flailing wildly.

Its scarlet eyes fixed on Lou Feng, ravenous and sinister.

"You haven't left?"

Lou Feng propped himself up, glanced at it, almost out of energy to even curse.

Since last night, it hadn't been quiet for a moment.

Does it have to be fixated on eating me?

The mutant shrieked, charging forward, only to see Lou Feng taking out a dazzling crystal from his pocket—a hard-earned startup fund squeezed from his thin spiritual essence using the Lou family's spiritual operation techniques since last night.

Intricate spiritual circuits flashed within it, briefly.

Snap!

A crisp sound, the spiritual crystal vanished from Lou Feng's hand.

Then, from the burst of flashing light, semi-transparent chains shot out from the void, interwoven, binding the mutant, restraining joints, suppressing the soul, freezing the blood anger.

Every motion was shackled within them.

Amid fierce struggles, the frictional sound never ceased, yet the mutant couldn't break free from the semi-transparent chains. Even without the ability of spiritual shaping, the Lou family's inherited techniques and alchemy could achieve these nearly void creation-like effects!

With heavy footsteps, the mutant's eyes widened, staring at Lou Feng who, instead of fleeing, walked step-by-step towards it.

So close.

Almost within biting distance to snap his wrist, to relish blood and flesh.

But that hand pressed against one of its heads, a regretful voice followed: "Sorry, I don't want to emulate that bastard either."

But this move is really... too effective!

At that moment, an unprecedentedly fierce roar burst from the mutant's mouths, each eye shattered like light bulbs.

Yet out of its eyes, ears, nose, and even wounds, strands of gray-black stream floated, surging.

Gathering.

Ending up in Lou Feng's hand.

The once fragmented and chaotic soul, as if thrown into a ten-ton pressure machine, squeezed out all spiritual essence instantly, leaving an empty shell.

Total collapse, rapidly rotting into a foul-smelling pus.

Only a palm-sized black-purple crystal landed in Lou Feng's hand, crystal clear, reflecting his eyes and an uncontrollable joyful smile.

A decent quantity.

Though heavily polluted, a little purification would suffice to forge a spiritual armor!

"Mere mutant, easy to handle!"

Lou Feng felt invigorated, laughed skyward: "Watch and envy, Ji Jue! I will pass this craftsman examination for sure!"

Spiritual operation, Lou family's specialty!

Even without the spiritual shaping ability and Shangong Matrix, there were countless secret techniques and skills passed down for thousands of years.

In contrast, that annoying bastard, without the Non-Aggression or Mechanical Descent, what does he have left?

Only Master Ye's true teachings combined with Dissociation Technique, Saint-transmitted Fluid Alchemy, and a whole bunch of secret skills looted from somewhere, and mastery more skilled than You Sui Craftsman's mutated transformation...

Laughingly.

He stopped laughing.

"Damn--"

Ultimately, he couldn't help but curse.

Life was unbearable.

.

In the Tower of Transformation, numerous floating lights ahead, scenes from countless projections morphed.

With time accelerating in the simulated world, after the initial tension and chaos, most candidates had started to desperately self-rescue and struggle.

As Gustav had said, a perfect test paper sometimes couldn't measure a craftsman's true ability, but reality was just the opposite; reality was the best test.

At the same time, reality was the most undeniable answer and ironclad evidence.

If you have it, you have it; if not, you don't.

No matter how eloquent, still useless.

After initially eliminating at least half of the candidates, those remaining, recognizing reality, no longer concealed their skills or offered excuses.

Each displaying their talents.

In the scene within the ruins, a cautious mutant gnawed on the corpses and flesh below, eyes on its back vigilantly watching.

But from a dark crevice, a small cylinder silently stretched out.

A dark-skinned candidate took a deep breath and blew hard.

Silently, a streak of emerald light flew out, instantly entering the mutant's body. Then, the mutant trembled violently, struggling intensely but unable to make a sound.

Gray-black solid matter pierced out from its body, soon the blood solidified, flesh expanded and stiffened.

Morphing completely into a gray-black stone, void of life.

In another scene, a burly candidate with intricate braids wielded a freshly forged axe and short sword, battling monsters in the ruins.

In fierce melee combat.

On him, layers of blood etched weird symbols glowing brightly, growing more intense.

Absorbing blood, growing stronger.

In yet another scene, within the ruins of the observation station, no mutants or pollutants could be seen.

Only numerous broken bodies rose from the ground.

Under the command of a mournful flute, those zombies dragged their lungs and intestines, stumbling while carrying stones and bricks.

In a gloomy workshop, on a temporary operating table, another stitched corpse slowly rose.

It staggered towards the busy work.

"Tsk tsk tsk, this year's candidates sure all possess unique skills."

Jiang Tongguang stroked his chin and sighed: "Lou family's spiritual transformation, Gorgon Clan's Petrification Seal, Central Earth's Frenzy Battle Curse, Wow, and Northern Wilderness' Corpse Bone Alchemy...

So many signature skills, truly eye-opening."

Indeed, when pushed to the limit, people could accomplish anything.

Even advanced calculus.

Yes, even modern alchemy required calculus. If clueless, they couldn't even understand the basics of four-phase equilibrium.

After enjoying the lively scenes and kicking out two nearly dead candidates from the simulation, Jiang Tongguang eagerly turned to his specially reserved window.

Annual Best Talent Live Room!

But the scene showed no living person, only a swarm of bizarre mutants gathering in the ruins of the observation station, feasting on the blood and corpses as if no one was around.

Binge —

"Where's the person?"

Jiang Tongguang stared in disbelief: "Couldn't have been eliminated so quickly, right?"

After a long silence, Gustav pointed to the end of the scene, that furtive mutant.

"There's the person."

The scene zoomed in.

Amid the mutants lured by the scent of burnt flesh, the massive outline creeping at the end, like a giant, squatted there.

As if fearful of other mutants' intimidation, not daring to advance.

Merely fiddling with bits of meat in front, eventually snatched away by other mutant creatures.

Finally, confirming nobody noticed, that grotesque bloody figure silently reached out from the rubble, pulling out a constantly screaming iron hammer.

Then, slammed down fiercely!

Boom!!!

Amid the thunderous noise, an octopus-like tentacled monster had its head smashed.

Then, shedding unnecessary attachments, rusty iron revealed a structure akin to thick armor made of bones.

And then, with roaring noise, plumes of smoke rose from a twisted creation of flesh and metal... Only with Jiang Tongguang squinting and focusing did he discern it seemed like that diesel generator?

What the hell!

Jiang Tongguang leaned closer, squinting for details.

At that moment, the figure leapt, descending into mutant monsters to start a brawl...

Tell me, it's Ji Jue?!

Bang!

Flesh, steel, and bones intertwining, the arm swung, hammer wailing, sweeping away several huge monsters.

Claws, tentacles, bone spurs, venom attacks landed on it, unable to pierce the outer defense.

On the pale bone-like armor, thick veins emerged, intertwining, flesh and steel merged, inseparable.

On the skull-like face, two burning blue flames of spiritual essence in the black eye sockets ignited.

Not a mere mutant, but using mutant materials, fused with that coarse exoskeleton set from before...

A whole set of living power armor!!!

Holy power armor!

The mutated armor wielded the wailing hammer, like a humanoid evil, plunged into mutant creatures, hunting freely.

Unafraid of any disruption or collision.

Even occasional gaps or wounds, with a weird squirm, could swiftly restore, becoming hungrier.

Even not sparing fellow mutant creations, the armor's beast faces greedily absorbed all blood, repairing and strengthening...

"Gah gah gah gah!!!!"

Amid loud engine roars, the mutated armor stomped, crushing the struggling mutant beneath, its blood-stained bone-like face seemingly laughing:

"Today, by your lives, I shall prove my embers' art, unrivaled in the world!!!"

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