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Su Mo didn't know about the chatter behind him, nor would his personality care much about it.
That was just how he was. Aside from his family and close friends, he generally ignored everyone else unless they provoked him.
If they did provoke him, well, that was a different story.
High in the sky, Su Mo and Su Yu rode on the back of the Golden-Winged Sky-Devouring Tiger, watching the clouds swirl below and Tianfu City—where they'd lived for nearly 20 years—grow smaller. Their hearts swelled with emotion.
Though this wasn't Su Mo's first time flying—last time, Old Man Wang had dragged him back from outside the city—he hadn't had the mood to enjoy Tianfu City's scenery then.
Now, riding his own mount with his sister, the two of them soared freely through the skies.
From above, Su Mo looked down at the 5-Kilometre Slope dungeon—the first dungeon he'd tackled when he left the city.
Once a rare sight for humans, it now bustled with activity, all because he'd graded the dungeon, making it accessible to more low-level awakened ones.
[Boom!]
The Golden-Winged Sky-Devouring Tiger's massive frame landed, kicking up a cloud of dust that sent nearby awakened ones scrambling backward.
When the dust settled, revealing a man and a woman stepping off the tiger, envious gazes fell upon them from all around.
Especially when they saw the gleaming golden words "College Entrance Exam Champion" above Su Mo's head, the crowd let out gasps of awe.
Su Mo paid them no mind. He pulled Su Yu along and headed straight for the 5-Kilometers Slope dungeon entrance.
For grinding monsters, aside from the college entrance exam dungeon, 5-Kilometers Slope was the go-to spot.
Just as he was about to take his sister into the dungeon to farm, a notification popped up instantly.
[You have exceeded the dungeon's level limit and cannot enter!]
Seeing this, Su Mo's expression stiffened. He'd almost forgotten he was already level 12, while 5-Kilometers Slope was just a level 10 dungeon.
But it made sense. Though he'd been awakened for less than 20 days, his leveling speed was absurdly fast.
And that was with Old Man Wang holding him back—otherwise, he might've climbed even quicker.
Noticing Su Mo's sudden pause, Su Yu asked, "What's wrong, Little Mo?"
Facing her question, Su Mo scratched his head awkwardly. "We can't get into this dungeon. Let's switch to another one."
"Alright, I'll follow your lead, Little Mo."
Soon, the two climbed back onto the Golden-Winged Sky-Devouring Tiger. With a flap of its snow-white wings, they took off into the sky once more, this time aiming for the Wild Boar Forest!
The Wild Boar Forest dungeon was as lively as ever—perhaps even more so since Su Mo had solo-cleared its hell difficulty mode single-handedly.
The hulking Golden-Winged Sky-Devouring Tiger landed again. After Su Mo helped Su Yu down, he stowed the tiger back into his body, sent Su Yu a party invite, and selected hell difficulty before stepping inside.
His movements were so fluid that the surrounding onlookers barely had time to gasp before his figure vanished.
Inside the familiar dungeon, Su Mo had just opened his eyes when a massive wild boar charged toward him.
Su Yu let out a yelp and ducked behind him.
With a flick of his wrist, the nearly two-meter-long Yue-Breaking Halberd appeared in Su Mo's hand. Without any flair, he swung it down in a single slash. The next moment, the boar—rivaling even the Golden-Winged Sky-Devouring Tiger in size—exploded into a mist of blood.
Even back then, a boar like this was a one-hit kill for Su Mo.
With his current stats, forget this small fry—even the Raging Tusked Duke would likely fall in a single blow.
Su Mo summoned the Golden-Winged Sky-Devouring Tiger again, letting Su Yu ride it, then gripped his Yue-Breaking Halberd and charged forward.
Facing wave after wave of wild boars, Su Mo didn't even need to use skills. Whether they were three meters, five meters, or ten meters long, every boar dropped instantly with one strike.
As he carved a path forward, five flashes of light shimmered over Su Yu. They hadn't even finished the dungeon, and she'd already jumped five levels.
But that was only because the first five levels required the least experience. Reaching level 6 would likely mean taking down the Raging Tusked Duke.
This was partly due to partying. Back in the day, even Su Mo had gained two levels in this dungeon.
But with experience split in a party, Su Yu—despite doing nothing but trailing behind him—still leveled up like this.
If it were anyone else trying to leech off Su Mo's experience, they might've earned a Mountain Collapse for their trouble.
But this was his sister, so it was fine.
Twenty minutes later, Su Mo had wiped out every wild boar in the dungeon. Others crept through this place, cautiously avoiding small mobs, inching toward the boss, and grinding it down with teamwork.
Not Su Mo. He bulldozed straight through, slaughtering not just the mobs that charged him but even those that tried to flee—he'd chase them down and finish them off.
For experience, he'd stop at nothing!
Once again, he reached the spot where the Raging Tusked Duke spawned. With a tremor that shook the earth, a hundred-meter-long monstrosity clawed its way out of the ground.
But before its body could fully emerge—before it could even reveal more than its head and its nameplate—Su Mo hurled his Yue-Breaking Halberd like a javelin.
With over a thousand points in strength and a 10x critical hit, the halberd pierced straight through its forehead and out the back of its skull.
A massive, red [-130,000] damage number popped up. The next instant, the Raging Tusked Duke's head slumped lifelessly.
This boss, which once took all his effort to chip away at for dozens of damage points—a foe he couldn't have beaten without Absolute Defense—was now as easy as an adult swatting a child.
As the Raging Tusked Duke fell, a white light flashed over Su Yu, boosting her straight to level 6.
In front of Su Mo, a gleaming golden treasure chest appeared.
But Su Yu was so stunned she could barely close her mouth. It wasn't until a moment later that she calmed down enough to speak.
"T-This… it's over already?"
Su Mo nodded. "Yeah, what else?"
"Isn't this a bit too fast? I—I didn't even do anything!"
"Alright, enough talk. Sister, come open the treasure chest—let's see how lucky you are."
At those words, Su Yu's face lit up with excitement. She hopped off the Golden-Winged Sky-Devouring Tiger's back.
When it came to opening treasure chests or blind boxes, it wasn't just girls—even Su Mo back then had been just as thrilled.
Su Yu stepped up to the golden chest, rubbed her slender hands together, and blew on them for luck.
Say what you will, but being siblings, even their chest-opening rituals were identical.
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