If The Real World Is Suddenly Gamified - Chapter 28

Chapter 28: New Playstyle [ Synthesis ]

Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation

It was a blazingly hot day in the month of June.

The electric fan above the classroom spun, creaking faintly as it did so.

At the same time, the sound of the examinees scribbling on their papers filled the classroom.

3 pm.

It was the time slot for the foreign language exam of China’s 2021 College Entrance Examination.

The loudspeaker was playing an English recording to test the students’ listening skills.

“The price of the shirt is nine pounds and fifteen pence…”

All the examinees’ ears were peeled wide open as they carefully listened to the questions and answers posed by the recording.

The atmosphere was particularly solemn.

However, not all examinees reacted in the same manner when confronted with the questions.

Some examinees were able to understand the logic of the dialogue effortlessly, and thus, they confidently wrote down their answers into their answer sheets.

On the other hand, some examinees struggled to make head or tails of the conversation, even after listening to it a second time. As a result, the only thing they could do was pull their hair frantically as they sighed inwardly.

It was a particularly pitiful sight.

After all, there were only two shots at attempting the listening questions. As such, should they fail to catch or understand the recording, there was no way for them to redo the test.

Meanwhile, there were also the elites, whose actions during the exam appear as if they were only there to fool around. It looked as if the questions were child’s play to them, and it felt as if they were listening to a normal conversation in Chinese.

One such example of these elites was Chen Yilang.

With the Translation Jelly’s help, Chen Yilang’s English proficiency had reached the level of High Distinction in CET4. As such, he could pay no attention to the conversations in the recordings and still make out the context unscathed.

Twenty minutes later, the English listening examination ended.

Although the atmosphere in the examination hall was very solemn, many people could still be heard sighing softly.

“It seems that this year’s English listening test is rather difficult.”

Chen Yilang silently made a judgment in his heart.

Chen Yilang also passed the next written examination very smoothly.

[ Nothing is impossible. ]

Finally.

Chen Yilang ended his essay with that sentence in his English paper.

The bell signifying the end of the exam rang immediately after.

All the examinees stood up.

The invigilator went forward to collect the papers. Now that the examination was over, he announced that the examinees could leave the examination hall.

“Phew.”

Chen Yilang let out a sigh of relief and walked out of the classroom.

It was finally over.

As soon as he stepped out of the door, he was greeted with a gray, dreary sky.

Rain was drizzling down, and some of the rainwater had converged into a small stream by the side of the stone road.

All kinds of young voices drifted into his ears:

“The exam is over, the exam is finally over!”

“D*mn it, I need to get back home as soon as possible!”

“F*ck, why is it raining again?”

“Isn’t it normal for it to rain during the college entrance examination? It’s pretty much the same every year, right?”

…

People came and went.

Chen Yilang stood quietly in front of the corridor, staring blankly at the rain.

“It’s already over, why aren’t you going home, Chen Yilang?”

Chen Yilang came back to his senses and realized that his homeroom teacher, Mo Li, was greeting him.

“Ah, I’m waiting for the rain to stop, Old Mo!” Chen Yilang replied with a smile.

“Judging by your expression, you did pretty well in the exam, didn’t you?” Old Mo said with a smile.

“I treated it as it were any other exam,” Chen Yilang answered.

“That’s pretty good.” Mo Li patted Chen Yilang’s shoulder and added, “I’ve been the form teacher for so many years. Up till now, you’re still the one who’s improved the most dramatically.”

“That’s all because Old Mo taught me well.” Chen Yilang smiled embarrassedly.

“You really know how to flatter a person, don’t you?! Anyway, it’s time for me to buy groceries and go home. My child is complaining that he’s hungry again. Once you make it big in life, remember to visit us again!”

“Of course.”

Chen Yilang waved his hand, and with a smile, he said goodbye to Mo Li.

The slightly plump middle-aged woman’s back gradually disappeared behind the curtain of rain.

As he watched Mo Li leave, he raised his head and looked at the teaching building where he had frequented in the past three years.

Chen Yilang fell into a daze once again.

The rain was about to stop.

…

…

Half an hour later, Chen Yilang had finally returned home.

Naturally, the table was full of good dishes waiting for Chen Yilang.

Yang Si had already prepared the meal in advance, and Chen Yilang’s father, Chen Junfeng, had also left work early. The family of three was in a good mood.

After finishing the meal, Chen Yilang lay on his bed.

There was only one word to describe his current state, tired.

The moment he made contact with his bed, he could feel all the tension being relieved from his body.

Chen Yilang, who finally had some free time, opened the system panel and began to check his notifications from the past couple of days.

While the exams were going on, Chen Yilang was unable to spare much attention to his system panel.

In the past two days, Chen Yilang had taken four papers in total, and as they were original questions and not mock questions, he was certain that he would gain ample of experience points and Gold Coins from his efforts.

[ Ding! ]

[ Calculating earnings… ]

[ Obtained 1. Gold coin +2,453 2. EXP + 467 ]

[ Ding! ]

[ Congratulations! Your level has increased! ]

[ Level: LV4→ LV5]

[ Congratulations! You have unlocked a new skill! ]

[ Obtained a new skill: Synthesis. ]

…

“Huh?”

The system notification about the new skill caught Chen Yilang’s attention.

Not bad, not bad at all.

I now have another avenue to mess around with!

Chen Yilang, who was in high spirits, was no longer feeling sleepy. He leaped out of his bed, sat up, and began studying the new skill.

[ Level 1 Synthesis: A skill that combines two or more materials or elements to form a brand new item. ]

[ Remark: As a novice Synthesizer, failure and accidents are inevitable. Please be mentally prepared. ]

…

Synthesizer?

Interesting.

Chen Yilang, who had played many online games in the past, was no stranger to such a mechanic.

Chen Yilang theorized that there was likely a proficiency meter somewhere for this skill. The more items that he successfully synthesized, the more his proficiency would rise.

“Alright, time to mess around with this new mechanic.”

Without hesitation, Chen Yilang opened his inventory.

[ Knowledge Points x154]

[ Immortal Cultivator’s Soul x16]

[ Diligent Scholar’s Soul x24]

[ Academic Failure’s Fragment x156]

…

Chen Yilang did not own much materials.

This was likely due to him limiting his field of activity within the school. As such, the materials that he obtained were only related to the academic field.

Chen Yilang activated his [ Level 1 Synthesis ]

A synthesis interface quickly popped up in front of him.

The synthesis panel was very simple. There was only a burning furnace serving as the panel’s background.

He dragged some of the items from the inventory with his mind and threw them into the furnace.

[ Synthesis in progress… ]

[ Failed! ]

[ Synthesizing proficiency: (1/100)]

[ You received: Scraps x13]

“…”

Alright.

I was already prepared for such a possibility anyway.

Chen Yilang put the pile of [ Scraps ] into his inventory. Then, he placed the same materials into the furnace and tried again.

[ Ding! ]

[ Synthesis failed! ]

[ Proficiency: (2/100) ]

[ You have obtained: Scraps x 9]

Damn it!

The corner of Chen Yilang’s mouth twitched.

Why did the amount of scraps reduce?!

“I really can’t believe this.”

Chen Yilang restarted the furnace again.

[ Synthesis failed! ]

[ Synthesis failed! ]

[ Synthesis failed! ]

“…”

He started to doubt his life.

Compared to the time when he used the blueprint to synthesize the Memory Bread, the success rate of the Synthesis skill was so low that it ground on his gears.

Chen Yilang could not recall when he started the Synthesis process.

All he knew was that the materials that he had painstakingly accumulated were almost depleted.

No no, that was not quite right.

After all, he still had a lot of [ Scraps ] in his warehouse.

Just as Chen Yilang was about to throw the towel…

[ Ding! ]

[ Congratulations! Synthesis successful! ]

[ Materials consumed: [ Diligent Scholar’s Soul x 3] [ Immortal Cultivator’s Soul x 3] [ Academic Failure’s Fragment x 10]

[ Acquired: Cold Crystal Spring Water! ]