Abyss Solo

'This mission, Daru scored full marks, Kabuba failed!'

The roar of the chief instructor was almost enough to shatter eardrums.

On the final night at the initial training base, Yang Ming lay on his bed with the panel raised, reflecting on the upgrade path of the past three years.

He was about to enter the advanced training base.

What level is he now?

Frankly, Yang Ming wasn't quite sure; there was no panel in front of him, nor any way to visually see the so-called level. If he didn't already know this was a virtual world, he might have thought it was real.

He needed to participate in comprehensive tests tomorrow, where the 'system' would provide an overall score that would determine his level.

Should be able to reach Lv20 or higher?

Yang Ming sighed.

Time here flows at a thousand times the speed of the real world, which is the main reason he needed to rest on schedule every day. He had been here for three years, but only a day or two passed in the real world.

It's quite a feeling, isn't it?

He had indeed trained here for three years, significantly improving his combat skills and gaining a lot of experiences.

These experiences were indeed quite precious.

However, as he was always training at the base, the people and things he could interact with were relatively monotonous.

In Yang Ming's perception, everyone at the base seemed to have flesh and blood, indistinguishable from real humans, with clear personalities.

Sometimes, Yang Ming would absurdly wonder, is the Milky Way another larger virtual world? How does one define virtual and reality? Then he'd suddenly recall philosophical phrases like 'I think, therefore I am' from his home on Earth, adding more complexity to his thoughts.

Collecting these feelings seemed to become another kind of 'upgrade' material.

The strength upgrade, certainly easier in the early stages, gets more troublesome as you progress, so Yang Ming was not overly optimistic.

Based on the information he currently had, there were only three shortcuts to rapidly enhance strength.

First, ability evolution, achieving secondary and tertiary awakenings.

It's said there are corresponding ability evolution drugs, requiring entry to combat units, or methods to evolve abilities through advanced training centers.

—— which means acquiring higher system permissions.

Secondly, external interference, in which Lyu helps cheat.

As Yang Ming became more active in the City of Light, Lyu started sneaking in, attempting to seize control while Li was unable to focus here.

She only needed to do two things: grant Yang Ming system permission to acquire more powerful abilities and assist Yang Ming in approaching Levi, allowing Yang Ming to complete his purpose easily.

But completing the infiltration required time.

Comparing the flow of time here and out there, whether Yang Ming reached Lv60 or Lyu secretly opened the backdoor, it's uncertain which would happen first.

This shortcut also served as an insurance measure.

Thirdly, find ways to gain the attention of the management on Levi Star, letting Thought Body with high system permissions grant him access.

This would depend on his networking skills later.

Speaking of networking, Yang Ming had to admire his troublesome friend... Seriously, this guy went to attend the so-called graduation party; what time is it now, and he hasn't returned? Doesn't he have to participate in the assessment tomorrow?

Can't be bothered with this guy.

Yang Ming shook his head, took a shower, changed into a more relaxed shirt, and sat in front of a solid-state screen terminal, beginning to browse recent information.

The network world of the City of Light was rather rich and colorful.

Data models started to precisely recommend beautiful girls with hourglass figures to Yang Ming, and Boss Yang watched with a smile.

To alleviate worries, only imagination suffices.

If he hadn't experienced sweet love, he wouldn't yearn for those gentle harbors.

Hooking up with a girl in the City of Light?

There were a few attractive female classmates who showed interest in him, and the City of Light had a rather open culture; trainees at the initial training base were not prohibited from dating, as everyone lived in double dormitories, and they could freely swap dorms to form cohabiting relationships.

But Yang Ming was always somewhat wary of Thought Body.

He was different from the people here; he was just an invading human. To have a fictive love with Thought Body just to gain pleasure built on data felt odd to Yang Ming.

Eventually, he transformed this need into one of his upgrade motivations.

The earlier he ended his journey in the City of Light, the sooner he could return to Mimili's side.

Knock knock!

A small cartoon avatar popped up on the lower-left corner of the screen, along with a message box.

[Annoying Kabuba: I won't be coming back tonight! Rest well! Tomorrow show your strength perfectly!]

Yang Ming immediately revealed a joyful smile.

Tonight was another rare quiet night.

His roommate Kabuba, handsome with charming golden hair, was quite popular with the girls, and hadn't been back for overnight stays for the past six months.

Rumors said Kabuba was once caught leaving the dormitory hallway monitored with two fellow female dorm mates.

Young Thought Bodies play wild.

Yang Ming browsed the web for a bit longer before drowsiness hit him, so he stretched lazily with a yawn, returned to his single bed, and activated the curved panel to create a small enclosed space.

He closed his eyes, gently pushed his fingers on the mattress, and his body slowly floated; he turned simply, leaning against the curved panel, beginning to concentrate with closed eyes.