Chapter 10: : Unexpected person

"It's still a loan," Xiye muttered as he gazed at his account balance, which now displayed a staggering 10 billion. His head was spinning, and he couldn't shake off the foolishness of his beautiful teacher's tactics.

In reality, he held a certain disdain for his father, who had been duped in the past. Whenever he had mustered the resolve to convince his father to withdraw him from school, his teacher had managed to sweet-talk and convince him by promising to cover the next hundred years of tuition. What was worse was that, even when their family was struggling to make ends meet and had sold off their mines, his father could still be swindled into lending billions. This had led to him being ousted from the position of family patriarch amidst widespread complaints, and Xiye wasn't sure if that chapter of his father's life was over yet.

Should he go back and check on his dad?

With the 10 billion coins now sitting in his balance, Xiye was suddenly feeling invigorated. However, the realization that these were, in fact, loans that he'd have to repay later dampened his spirits significantly.

A loan with a three-fifths profit margin? This was simply daring!

Now he understood what his father had been going through. His teacher had made a living from these slick sales tactics for tens of thousands of years, and countless unsuspecting victims, including Xiye, had fallen prey.

With money in hand, Xiye decided to splurge on materials. After all, since he'd borrowed so much, he might as well spend it extravagantly!

So he decided to embark on a bold shopping spree on the largest shopping planet in the Federation. He booked a luxurious interstellar train for the occasion, securing a first-class seat for himself and a few of his classmates. The ticket alone cost over 500, equivalent to several years' worth of living expenses.

The money spent on the loan suddenly seemed inconsequential!

Inside the interstellar train, several players were in awe of their surroundings. The train was constructed from Longgang, exuding an air of dominance. It resembled a steel dragon from the outside, while the interior was exquisitely luxurious. The floors were adorned with Xinghai giant whale jade bones, featuring intricate carvings by top elf artists and embellished with phoenix crystals. It was truly a sight to behold, akin to an ancient elven palace.

The business-class seats were seamlessly stitched with leather from star beasts above the 12th level. Each seat came equipped with state-of-the-art fantasy crystal touch screens, providing a realistic texture and massage-like comfort.

Though several players were not experts in luxury, they could still appreciate the extravagance. Their family backgrounds were not shabby, especially Lu's grandchild. His grandmother had managed to open several cafes back in the day, and the profits had piled up over generations. They could be considered middle class within the D-Ball Federation. As a standard rich next-generation member, he had indulged in Michelin dining, presidential suite stays, and fine wines, but even he was trembling in his seat now, wearing the expression of a pauper entering the palace.

Xiye, on the other hand, was comfortably reclining on the leather seat. He casually opened the fantasy crystal screen, connected to his federal account, and accessed his Tenjin group.

He noticed over a million unread messages on the group and muttered, "Are these people really that idle?"

In truth, before the discovery of the Milky Way, he was one of the most diligent members in the group during the ten thousand years on the spaceship. But now, as he transitioned to a new chapter, he felt a newfound sense of superiority when he looked at the active group members. He couldn't help but think, "What a bunch of novices!"

Generally, in student groups, the true experts tended to stay silent. As individuals who had now secured loans worth billions, they weren't inclined to engage in idle chatter within the group. However, they couldn't resist peeking at their screens to ensure they were always one step ahead of the others.

He clicked to enlarge the screen and perused the content. The discussions seemed to revolve around the unified exams.

It dawned on Xiye that these days marked the start of the ten-year anniversary of the Federation's large-scale interstellar campus entrance exams!

The topic was rather sensitive because most of the people in the group had failed to get into their desired majors during their college entrance exams. Of course, Xiye, with his billions in loans, was on an entirely different level, detached from their experiences. What connection did he have with the past?

Brother God: "Hah, here I was, setting off on my grand adventures, and now my grandsons are all taking the exams. I couldn't even find my mother's Goblin, who is probably still wandering around. I've decided that when I discover a planet, I'm going to colonize it like a stallion, even if the natives there are uglier than Goblins!"

Tenjin C: "Hold on, what if they're hermaphroditic cockroaches?"

Brother God: "Darn!"

Everyone: Impressive!

Tenjin G: "Did any of you meet any juniors asking questions recently? I'm at a loss. Although we were all top talents from scientific explorations on various planets, it's been more than 20,000 years since. Do you still remember the high school content? And can the questions in the current exam be compared to those from 20,000 years ago?"

Tianshen Class B Duanchen Xia: "Who said no? Some time ago, a junior from our family group asked me quietly about the synthetic test tube sequence for an artificial blue phoenix crystal. After providing the materials list for the test tube mixture, they asked me what E and F were for test tube e, and what D and A were. How could I remember the answer to such a low-level problem? Furthermore, we didn't even have Blue Phoenix back in my time!"

Brother God: "Synthetic Phoenix? That's Hex Chemistry content, the kind of stuff you need for Clockwork University and Pilt University entrance exams. How do you even have knowledge that high-level?"

Duanchen Xia: "Nonsense! My family has pure Pilt lineage. It's been almost half an era since I passed through. I was the top student of my generation in Hex Mechanical and Electrical Physics and Hex Organic Chemistry. I could have become a cutting-edge scientist with a multi-million annual salary if I hadn't attended the gods' academy. But I can't retrieve such basic knowledge now!"

Brother God: "I see. How are you dealing with your juniors?"

Duanchen Xia made a rolling-eyes expression and said, "A to W, then to the outer ring to scrape them with the Ruthless Iron Hand, then A to A and finally Bloodrage Anger, followed by a Guillotine kill!"

Brother God: "…"

Tenjin C: "Great plan!"

Tenjin G: "It depends on the enemy's movement. If they have a means of teleportation, you won't be able to scrape them in the outer ring. And if they move quickly, your Ruthless Iron Hand won't be able to catch anyone."

Xiye was about to respond, instinctively thinking he could provide some insights on gaming strategies, but then he realized how much he'd paid for those insights.

  How could he discuss such things with these people? 

Thinking about it, he decided to create an elegant and unique bubble to show off, and even prepared to return to open a post to blow up the game!

But as he was formulating his grand response, a shadow loomed over his screen, casting a sudden darkness. He squinted and looked up to see a robust and imposing Thunder Clan warrior.

The voice that followed the silhouette was all too familiar, laced with sarcasm. Xiye's heart skipped a beat.

"Hey, it seems you've got some free time, our future star."

As the figure spoke, Xiye couldn't help but feel a sense of unease. 

He glanced at the newcomer and responded with a complex expression, "It's been a while, Father."