It seems like there's really nothing that [Willpower] can't achieve. I wonder if this skill will become an all-purpose one in the future.

But it's a bit of a pity that right now, I can't merge it immediately.

Because the scarecrow isn't by my side.

Not just the scarecrow; even BuBu and Ugly Little Wolf aren't here.

The day after the preliminary test ended, these three troublemakers apparently got into some mischief again and were caught by the political education office here.

This time, without Jiang Guiju's intervention, they were completely locked up.

Deciding to teach them a lesson, Li Pu didn't bail them out. He decided to let them reflect first to prevent trouble later.

So, yes, that's right.

This time, in the instance, he didn't bring any summoned beasts.

However, after that scuffle with the group of noisy random sharks, Li Pu felt that he was more than enough on his own.

Having himself, in this context, doesn't mean that the team can complete the task smoothly just because he's in it.

Rather, it means that even if he were alone, he could complete the task.

Li Pu quickly tidied up his things, and only then did Qian Shanshan and the others enter the instance.

"Wow, so many random noisy sharks today?"

Tian Tian expressed mild surprise seeing the horde of magical beasts.

"Looks like you guys went through quite a battle."

Qian Shanshan patted Long Ren on the shoulder.

Handling so many magical beasts should have been quite taxing for just two people.

"It wasn't that bad; I didn't really exert myself."

Long Ren pointed to Li Pu, who was covered in a blue glowing liquid.

"Huh?"

Only then did they notice that there were no summoned beasts around Li Pu.

"Where are your summoned beasts?"

Xiu Lijia asked in confusion.

"Oh, I didn't bring them today."

Li Pu shrugged.

"..."

Qian Shanshan was speechless at his words.

What do you mean you didn't bring them today? They're summoned beasts, you know.

Why does it sound like you're casually saying you forgot your phone?

Though, the truth is, Li Pu really hadn't brought a phone.

After arriving at the capital, he did buy a phone for easy contact.

But worried that this precious thing would get ruined in his hands, he entrusted it to Wu Guinan for safekeeping.

If there's anything, they can just call him, and Wu Guinan would answer for him.

Frankly, buying it was like not buying it.

Wu Guinan had been doing it this way before, too.

"So, you mean to say you and these two summoned beasts defeated so many magical beasts?"

Tian Tian realized, a bit shocked.

[NONO, the dragon!]

[NONO, clamp him!]

But the two summoned beasts shook their heads, indicating they didn't do much. They were just watching the big boss handle it.

"Truly impressive."

Qian Shanshan didn't understand what the two summoned beasts said but was amazed.

Feeling like if it were All Treant senior, he definitely couldn't have achieved this.

Truly deserving of being the real-life PKer who completely surpassed All Treant senior.

All Treant: Am I even around to whip?

Yet she couldn't imagine just how much more powerful Li Pu was than she thought.

Once everyone settled down, they began releasing their own summoned beasts.

Qian Shanshan's summoned beasts were a 2nd-tier LV21 Spirit Fire Elemental, a 2nd-tier LV15 Spiky Raptor, and a 0-tier LV20 Big Scythe Youyou.

The Big Scythe Youyou was just summoned during the winter holiday, so it wasn't very strong yet.

Xiu Lijia was from the life-oriented mechanical department, so her summoned beasts were all mechanical.

She excelled in repairing machinery, earning her the nickname Repairer.

A 2nd-tier LV12 Mechanical Mantis and a 2nd-tier LV5 Dragon Light Helmet.

The Dragon Light Helmet was the one on her head, indeed a summon item.

Due to the lack of summoning tokens, a third contract hasn't been completed yet.

Tian Tian's summoned beasts were a 1st-tier LV40 Little Der Horse and a 1st-tier LV29 Rainbow Horn Frog.

Although their strength hasn't been showcased yet, judging by their development progress, they were a bit behind Wu Guinan's.

As for Ah Yajun's summoned beasts, they didn't bring them out since resurrection tokens cost money.

With these nine summoned beasts present, even a large group of random noisy sharks would be easily handled.

Especially since Qian Shanshan and her teammates had been in a fixed team for a semester, their synergy significantly boosted their collective strength beyond simple individual sums.

Now, Qian Shanshan finally revealed the trial task of this instance to Li Pu.

They had to find the core of the instance and take photographic evidence.

This task had been completed by seniors before. However, since it hasn't been canceled, the core's location must change, rendering memorized routes ineffective.

Li Pu was quite experienced with instance cores, so he wasn't nervous upon hearing this.

Excluding the most agile half-dragons, the remaining seven summoned beasts formed a fixed formation leading the front.

The half-dragons, along with the Dragon Light Helmet on Xiu Lijia's head, were tasked with protecting the group of summoners.

And, of course, there was Li Pu.

If Li Pu weren't there, Qian Shanshan would definitely keep a summoned beast beside her for reassurance.

During this time, the summoned beast formation encountered several waves of random noisy sharks, all of which were easily defeated.

Taking advantage of this break, Li Pu casually chatted with Qian Shanshan.

"What? You're asking how our school's combat department can earn points?"

Qian Shanshan didn't expect Li Pu to ask this now, thinking he already knew.

In fact, Li Pu had just remembered, so he asked on the spot.

"Honestly, the teaching models of the ten universities borrow from each other."

"So some aspects shouldn't differ much."

"The most common way to earn points is through monthly exams, I guess."

Mentioning monthly exams, Qian Shanshan had more to say.

Because the format of last semester's monthly exams was different from this semester's.

"The life-oriented department was the worst. Next semester, there'll be written exams."

Long Ren immediately complained.

Though he had his own fixed team, his specialty was in the life-oriented department.

Hearing this, Li Pu immediately gave up the idea of participating in the life-oriented department's monthly exams.

Written exams? That was a death sentence for him.

If he just wanted to pass, a few more days of cramming would suffice.

But to aim for first place would require a lot of time, and he wasn't confident.

"The Cubic Card department had written exams last semester; this semester, it's card games with the teacher."

Although Ah Yajun's Cubic Card department also fell under the life-oriented category, it was a bit different.

Playing card games with the teacher was equally hard for Li Pu to accept.

If the grading teacher decided to give him a hard time, it could ruin his scores.

No way would he go all out in a minor monthly exam with his dragon cards.

His deck wasn't perfect yet, and it was best to keep it under wraps.

"The combat department's monthly exams still revolve around combat."

"Last semester was a ring battle; this semester, I've heard it's a checkpoint time trial."

"The school will release temporary simulation instance checkpoints for everyone to conquer."

"The faster you conquer, the higher your score."

Qian Shanshan explained the monthly exam content for the combat department.

"Huh?"

Hearing this, Li Pu's expression changed instantly.

This seemed perfect for him.

Time trials were his forte even as a limper.

Just now, they'd said that first place in the capital's monthly exams also received 10 points, and he currently had 110 points, nearing the 132 points needed for a level 5 summoning token.

Winning first in a monthly exam would mean 120 points.

If something unexpected happened before the second monthly exam, he might reach the required points.

"By the way, if we achieve a first clear in this instance by our grade, everyone earns 1 point too."

Tian Tian's statement immediately energized Li Pu.

He even thought about ditching the group to find the instance core alone.

"Let's stop chatting; something's approaching."

However, Xiu Lijia's sudden remark made all the capital students tense.

...

...