Reborn as the Candle Dragon, I became the strongest academy guardian beast.

In this world's martial arts schools, there are two assessments each semester: a midterm and a final.

Both assessments are equally important, and the results of each assessment will be ranked citywide.

The top 100 students will receive scholarships, with the higher the ranking, the more generous the award.

Midterm exams...

Upon hearing these words, Kong Bowen's body involuntarily tensed up.

He recalled some unpleasant memories.

As a student who had repeated a grade, his past academic performance was appalling.

I received zero marks almost every time in the midterm and final exams.

Every time Kong Bowen brought his report card home, he would inevitably be punished by his father with family discipline, beaten until he was in so much pain the next day that he couldn't get out of bed.

The Kong family has been practicing martial arts for three generations, and all of them have awakened the sword martial spirit.

For a long time, Kong's father believed that his son's poor grades must be due to his laxity and lack of effort in his studies.

But as time went on, Kong's father gradually discovered that Kong Bowen was much more hardworking than he had imagined.

He was training day and night, even more relentlessly than he had back then.

From then on, Kong's father never hit him for his grades again. In fact, when Kong Bowen came home with his appalling report cards time and time again, his father would pat him on the shoulder and tell him that he had done his best.

The same applies to Confucius' mother.

However, his parents' concern only made Kong Bowen feel worse.

This incident remains a deep-seated regret in his heart to this day.

Now, the midterm exams are finally here.

"This time, I'm determined to get good grades and make my parents happy!" Kong Bowen clenched his fist and said firmly.

Su Chen nodded approvingly.

very good!

Very energetic!

Just then, Su Chen suddenly paused.

He subconsciously pondered why the other three weren't as motivated as Kong Bowen.

It's okay if you don't think about it, but once you do, you'll be shocked.

Lin Fan has never seen his father since birth. His mother left suddenly when he was a few years old and her whereabouts are unknown.

Xu Liyue's parents both died fighting against the beast tide.

Chu Yunfeng grew up in a slum and lived with his younger sister.

Su Chen couldn't help but gasp.

Is this the destiny of the chosen one?

"System, why do I suddenly feel a chill down my spine?"

[It's the 21st century already! Please believe in science, not superstition!]

"I've already traveled through time, and you're talking to me about science?"

……

Half an hour later, Lin Fan, Xu Liyue, Chu Yunfeng, and Kong Bowen arrived at the mission hall together.

This is the place where martial artists throughout the city receive and assign missions.

Most free-spirited martial artists in society earn their rewards by completing missions here.

This format has also been adopted for the midterm and final exams at various martial arts schools.

Students can choose tasks that suit them, and the school will give a comprehensive score based on the difficulty and completion of the tasks.

"The assessment score is related to the difficulty of the task, which means the higher the difficulty of the task, the better, right?" Chu Yunfeng thought for a moment and said.

"Yes." Kong Bowen, the only one who had taken the test, nodded: "If you choose a Level 1 task, no matter how well you complete it, you can only get a maximum of 40 points. A Level 2 task can get you a maximum of around 70 points. If you complete a Level 3 task well, you have a chance to get a perfect score of 100."

"However, you should be realistic about your abilities when accepting tasks. If you accept a high-difficulty task but cannot complete it, you will get far fewer points than if you simply complete a low-difficulty task."

Kong Bowen sighed.

In order to get a high score in last year's final exam, he chose a level-two task.

The task is to help the villagers hunt down a brown bear in the mountains.

As a result, Kong Bowen was slapped to the ground by the brown bear and only escaped by playing dead. He was hospitalized for several months afterward.

Upon hearing Kong Bowen's words, Lin Fan's gaze swept across the notice board and landed on a Level 4 task sheet in the far corner.

Mission objective: Capture fugitive Zhao Yicheng.

Task Level: Level 4.

Mission Summary: Zhao Yicheng, a third-tier, ninth-level martial artist, has severely injured three law enforcement officers during his time on the run. He is ruthless and extremely dangerous. Reward: 50 Da Xia coins.

Lin Fan stepped forward and tore off the task sheet.

He then went to the task window and handed over the task sheet: "Hello, I'd like to accept this task."

The receptionist took the task sheet, her gaze sweeping over Lin Fan's face before she paused, surprised: "A level four task?"

"Please wait a moment, I need to consult my supervisor first."

A short while later, a middle-aged man with an obese build and no hair on his head pushed open the door and came out.

Director Wang looked at Lin Fan: "Are you the one who's going to take on that Level 4 mission to capture the fugitive?"

Lin Fan nodded: "That's right, is there a problem?"

"Of course there are." Director Wang frowned. "I've seen people like you who treat life like a game before. Even many experienced veteran martial artists wouldn't dare to easily take on a Level 4 mission, let alone a student like you."

"You can take on this task, but you must prove that you have the ability to complete it."

Director Wang took a deep breath, his muscles bulging, and stood in front of Lin Fan, saying, "Give it your all. If you can push me back even one step, I'll let you take on this mission."

Lin Fan wanted to say something, but seeing the other party's unyielding expression, he could only sigh and say, "Alright."

Lin Fan raised his right hand, and wisps of purple electric arcs wrapped around his fist.

He threw a punch.

Director Wang, who had been so confident just moments before, suddenly changed his expression.

The moment Lin Fan's fist landed on his chest, he felt as if he had crashed into a heavy truck traveling at full speed!

"boom!"

With a loud bang, Director Wang was sent flying backward, his feet leaving the ground, and he smashed into the wall, leaving a huge crater.

The loud noise attracted a lot of attention, and the receptionist behind the window rushed out: "Director Wang, are you alright?"

Director Wang coughed up blood, staring at Lin Fan in shock: "Who is this kid? How can he be so strong?"

"Director, you don't recognize him?" The receptionist was taken aback. "He's Lin Fan from Qinglong Academy, one of the four strongest freshmen from Baihu Academy who defeated him at the martial arts tournament a while ago."

Director Wang turned around, his face filled with disbelief: "Why didn't you say so sooner?"

"You didn't ask either," the receptionist said helplessly.

Director Wang almost fainted from anger.

On the day of the martial arts tournament, he happened to be on a business trip. Although he had heard the name Lin Fan, he did not know what Lin Fan looked like.

Otherwise, how could he have been so confident in letting Lin Fan punch him?

At this moment, Kong Bowen also took down a Level 4 task sheet from the bulletin board.

"I'm also planning to take on Level 4 assignments. Do I need to take an assessment first?"

Looking at Kong Bowen's tall, muscular physique, Director Wang's pupils dilated in shock, and he waved his hands repeatedly: "No need, you can take on whatever missions you want, there's no need for assessment."