A Different Kind of Examination

"Distribute the exam papers!" With the display of authority concluded, the examination officially began. The next moment, several City Guards carried large crates into the hall. Inside the crates were not loose sheets, but books—thick booklets! The young instructor from the Great Xia War Academy smiled faintly and said, "This is the written portion! There are six hundred and sixty test booklets in total. Each one may be identical or completely different. Once you receive yours, proceed on your own. The War Academy counts language scores up to a maximum of one hundred points. In other words, passing ten language courses gives you a perfect score. "Naturally, you can answer more. Each test booklet may contain dozens of courses. You're welcome to fill out the whole booklet and gamble on your luck; out of dozens of courses, you might hit ten and take away a perfect score! Of course, each course has ten questions, and getting six right counts as a pass!" Because of the warning just made, none of the examinees in the hall dared utter a sound. After a moment, an examinee raised a hand. The young man said indifferently, "Speak." "Teacher, if the test booklet I receive contains only All-Races languages I don't know, may I trade with someone else?" "Decide for yourselves. Breaking the rules means disqualification!" "..." Below, Su Yu raised an eyebrow slightly. As expected, every year brought a new trick. Last year, the papers had been identical, but the languages of the various races were scrambled together so that you had to sift through them yourself. This year, the test booklets themselves were different. The War Academy's examinations did not test martial strength and academic knowledge alone. The Civilization Academies operated the same way. Su Yu could not quite tell what was truly being tested here. Different test booklets contained different language exams. The booklet in your hands might not contain a single language you knew, while the ones you did know could very well be sitting on someone else's desk. At this moment, how would you choose? Soon, Su Yu received a thick test booklet. Flipping through it casually, he noticed a pattern. The three foundational language courses—Immortal-Demon, Common, and Monster language—were placed right at the front. Almost everyone knew and had studied them. The papers behind those, however, covered the languages of all manner of different races. Su Yu quickly turned the pages, scanning through them. He had mastered twenty languages in total, having picked up two more over the past two months. Yet in this booklet, including the foundational courses, he found only nine languages he had studied. "Ninety points?" Su Yu hesitated slightly. Even if he passed every single one of those nine, he could only get ninety points on the written exam, not the full hundred. A ten-point gap might not mean much to him, but for others, missing ten points could easily make the difference between passing or failing the academy entrance examination. While Su Yu examined his booklet, other students were doing the same. Some were completely unbothered; knowing only the foundational three courses anyway, they buried their heads and started writing. As for the thick stack of papers behind them... what did that have to do with them? Since they couldn't understand any of it anyway, they simply treated the rest of the booklet as if it didn't exist. Could they trade booklets? Su Yu didn't know. But for the War Academy to distribute such booklets was inherently unfair to the top students, which suggested trading might indeed be allowed. Su Yu glanced toward the invigilators at the front. All of them wore expressionless faces, offering no clues. Most of the students had already begun writing. After a moment's hesitation, Su Yu made up his mind. Looking to his side at a male student who was also scanning his booklet, he said quietly, "Want to trade?" The boy clearly came from out of town. Caring nothing about who Su Yu was, he asked hurriedly, "Does yours have the flying tiger, mountain-burrowing rat, or nine-tailed fox languages?" "Not sure. Some of those I don't know, so I wouldn't recognize the script..." Su Yu shook his head. He hadn't studied all of them and naturally couldn't identify their scripts. There were far too many All-Races languages; who could tell which script belonged to which race at a glance? The boy beside him hesitated for a second, then said at once, "Trade!" With that, the two swapped booklets. The invigilators on the platform watched, but none of them spoke. Seeing this, the others no longer hesitated. Students who had mastered many languages began trading booklets with one another. Yet trading didn't guarantee you would get what you wanted. Soon, someone discovered their new booklet was even worse than the first and started looking for another person to swap with. At that moment, the young instructor from the Great Xia War Academy said indifferently, "Once you've written your name, no trading is allowed!" At those words, many faces changed. They could only search for other students who hadn't started writing yet. Rustling sounds filled the hall for several minutes. Nearly ten minutes had passed since the start of the exam. When Su Yu looked through his new booklet, he found even fewer languages he knew—only eight. Su Yu frowned. The more he traded, the fewer he had! Should he trade again? After a brief hesitation, Su Yu gritted his teeth. No more trading. Eight would have to do! Lowering his head, Su Yu began to write. Other examinees also gradually discovered that their new booklets contained fewer languages they knew than their originals, and some began trying to trade yet again. Right then, Old Xie suddenly pointed at a student and said coldly, "No examinee may trade booklets more than three times. The exam is in progress!" "Teacher..." The student who had traded three times turned pale. In his original booklet, he had known five or six languages; now, the booklet in his hands contained only the three foundational ones. Just like that, he had lost dozens of points! "Do you wish to be disqualified?" The student dared not say another word. Choked with frustration and grievance, he lowered his head and began writing. The other examinees exchanged uneasy glances. They were only allowed three trades? ... Up on the platform. Old Xie exchanged a glance with the other invigilators, faint smiles appearing on their faces. Old Xie's lips moved slightly as he murmured, "Xiao Zhou, do you think they regret trading now?" "Undoubtedly." The young man's lips barely moved as he replied, "What was given to them at the start was already what suited them best. In life, things rarely turn out perfect. Striving for perfection in everything often leads one to chase a watermelon only to drop the sesame seeds, losing out in the end. "For those students with strong academic backgrounds, the starting point was the same: none had a perfect booklet, and none could easily achieve full marks. But by trading back and forth, they threw away what originally belonged to them." A smile crossed the young man's face, and he added, "The more they trade, the more frustrated they become. Won't these youngsters have a mental breakdown?" "If their mentality crumbles over this, they shouldn't bother coming to the War Academy!" Old Xie showed no mercy. This was merely a small test. If they couldn't even handle this, wouldn't they completely fall apart the moment a battle went against them? Continuing, Old Xie said, "Right now, I'm already wondering how we should set next year's exam. We're running out of tricks." "What's the rush?" The young man was in no hurry. Glancing at his wristwatch, he suddenly spoke up: "The written examination lasts one hour! Twenty minutes have already elapsed. The remaining time might not be enough!" "..." Below, the faces of several students drained of color! A one-hour exam, and they had spent so much of it trading booklets. Finding someone to trade with, checking whether the new booklet suited them—back and forth, each swap ate up at least five or six minutes. Twenty minutes had vanished in the blink of an eye! Su Yu, who was busily answering questions, couldn't help a wry smile. What a vicious setup! Was this even a normal exam? The top students were bound to panic now. Time was running out, and those who wanted to trade again couldn't find anyone willing, not to mention there was simply no time left. Even at top speed, spending ten minutes per language section meant completing several courses would consume dozens of minutes. ... Time flew by, and the hour ended in what felt like an instant. "Collect the papers!" At the command, the City Guards entered the hall to collect and seal the booklets. Many examinees wore looks of utter despair. It had been too fast! "If I'd known, I wouldn't have traded!" "Rotten luck! I know sixteen All-Races languages, and in the end I only wrote four sections!" "Last year wasn't like this at all! This year is just complete chaos. Doesn't this mean all our hard work studying so many languages went to waste?" "..." Low murmurs inevitably rippled through the hall. It was simply too unfair! Those who had mastered multiple languages were practically in tears. Earlier, each of them had been confident of scoring close to a full hundred points, but now some would be fortunate to scrape thirty or forty. This was far more brutal than they had anticipated. Su Yu, having rushed through the eight courses he knew, let out a quiet breath of relief. Fortunately, he hadn't continued trading. Beyond wasting time, even if he had obtained a booklet with ten languages, he might not have finished them all. Trading a few more times would have left him with only enough time to complete three or four sections at best. *Not bad. I answered eight language sections. Even if not every answer is right, my accuracy should be around sixty percent. Hopefully I can secure eighty points.* Su Yu was already beginning to worry whether the afternoon's Civilization Academy exam would pull a similar stunt. "Your papers are currently being marked. Dedicated staff are grading them, and the process is very fast! The scores will be out shortly, so there is no need to fret," Old Xie said with a chuckle. "The first part of the examination is over. We will now begin the second part! "The written portion is done, which brings us to the cultivation assessment!" As soon as he spoke, another group of City Guards entered the hall. Old Xie smiled and said, "The Kaiyuan Realm opens nine apertures! The mouth, nose, ears, and eyes are the seven foundational apertures. Just because you say you have opened an aperture doesn't mean you truly have! "The examination for the first three stages of the Kaiyuan Realm begins now!" As his words fell, a cup containing liquid was placed before each candidate. "The first three stages of the Kaiyuan Realm open the apertures of the mouth and nose. Smelling and tasting are the fundamentals. Smell it to see if it can be drunk, and taste it to discern what this liquid is and what ingredients have been added. They are all basic substances: common monster beast blood, household seasonings, and of course... laxatives!" Old Xie said indifferently, "If you smell wrong and taste wrong, the rest of the examination will have nothing to do with you, because you will be spending your time waiting in the latrine. Therefore, taste cautiously, write down your findings, and submit them. That is the foundational assessment for the first three stages! "Oh, I forgot to mention: there might also be sleep-inducing drugs. If you taste it and fall asleep, you will miss the rest of the examination as well." "..." An examinee couldn't help raising his hand. Once Old Xie nodded, he asked hurriedly, "Teacher, last year's assessment wasn't like this. Last year there was a fixed list of ten options to choose from. Are there no options to choose from this year? In that case, the scope of possibilities is far too broad!" "The time you are wasting is not just mine, and not just your own, but everyone's!" Old Xie said flatly, "Take the test if you want to; if not, shut your mouth! This is how the Great Xia Prefecture is conducting the exam this year, and you are not an exception. If you'd like to chat with me a bit longer, I don't mind. I have plenty of time!" At those words, everyone was left helpless. Even Su Yu felt resigned. This year's exam was vastly different from last year's. While the general flow appeared similar, the specific procedures were completely altered. "Test cautiously. Only taste it after you've identified it by smell, and finally write down your answers. I promise the contents will not exceed the scope of your knowledge. You can also try guessing wildly; maybe you'll get it right." Old Xie laughed again. "Examinees at the third stage of the Kaiyuan Realm possess no real combat strength anyway. Surely you aren't expecting a massive free-for-all brawl? If that's what you want, I wouldn't mind either. The last hundred standing can pass the assessment. How about that?" "..." Silence fell over the hall. What a joke—brawling at their level would just be an ugly street fight. Walking out of an exam with a bruised face and a swollen nose would be utterly humiliating. Since Old Xie had promised the contents wouldn't exceed their knowledge, no one wasted any more time. Su Yu carefully sniffed the liquid before him, forming an initial judgment. *Smells like Fire Swine blood...* He was exceptionally sensitive to blood. Different kinds of blood had distinct scents. Between different races and the varying innate traits of monster beasts, all of it left traces in their blood. After smelling it for a moment and sensing no threat, Su Yu lifted the cup and carefully took a tiny sip. Analyzing the sensation on his tongue, he quickly arrived at an answer. "Fire Swine blood, normal duck blood, chili paste, water, beef tallow..." Su Yu wrote down his answers swiftly. Other examinees were also beginning to sample their cups; some were already writing, while others still hesitated over whether to taste it, terrified that something might go wrong. "Manage your time wisely!" The young invigilator spoke again, his voice cold. "Those who have written down their answers don't need to wait for the others. Head to the back to take the assessment for stages above the third stage of the Kaiyuan Realm!" At those words, many students promptly stood up. Su Yu was among them. He worried that the next section would also have a strict time limit, leaving him unable to complete the other tests. This vast floor had originally seemed like a single open hall, but behind the partition wall lay another testing ground. Su Yu and the others moved quickly into the rear hall. Old Xie, the woman from the Yuqiang Department, and the officer from the Demon Suppression Army followed them inside. ... Inside the rear testing hall. Over thirty people had arrived one after another. All of them were at the fourth stage of the Kaiyuan Realm or higher, though many other students at or above the fourth stage were still out front trying to identify the liquid. "The fourth and fifth stages of the Kaiyuan Realm open the ear apertures, enhancing hearing!" Old Xie walked to the front with a beaming smile. "You are only in the Kaiyuan Realm and have never been to the battlefield. The Great Xia Prefecture will not demand the impossible of you, but since you have reached the fourth or fifth stage, you must meet the basic requirements. "Listen closely..." Old Xie gave a brief warning, and everyone hastily strained their ears. At that moment, someone seemed to be speaking inside the hall, but the sound was indistinct. "Someone is currently reciting a cultivation technique. It will be recited ten times, five minutes each time. After fifty minutes, if those still out front haven't arrived and haven't heard it, then even if they are at the seventh or eighth stage of the Kaiyuan Realm, they will fail this stage and receive none of the sixty points for the fourth and fifth stages! "Those who cannot distinguish priority, who waste time and fail to manage their resources properly—such people on the battlefield will only become dead weight!" As Old Xie spoke, a faint voice brushed everyone's ears. Indeed, someone was reciting something. Su Yu caught a few phrases, but they were very faint. Just then, a girl with braided hair raised her hand. When Old Xie nodded, she frowned and asked, "Teacher, what if someone already knows this technique? They wouldn't even need to listen. Wouldn't that count as cheating?" "Rest assured, no one here knows it." Old Xie said calmly, "This is a technique freshly seized from a minor race, obtained by the Great Xia Prefecture for the very first time. If anyone already knows it... they belong to the All-Races Sect!" With that, Old Xie added with a playful grin, "Besides, different translations don't always match. If the version you transcribe doesn't match what we are reciting, but instead resembles the version that minor race provided to the All-Races Sect... heheh. We catch plenty of spies through this exact process every year. I certainly hope none of you end up arrested just to get into an academy!" As if anticipating their confusion, Old Xie continued, "Curious why I would tell you this outright instead of waiting until someone transcribes it before making an arrest? It's simple: I am offering you a chance. That minor race has already been completely wiped out. If any cultists of that race truly are present, letting go of the past now gives you a chance to turn over a new leaf." Su Yu couldn't be bothered to listen to the banter. He was focusing all his attention on the sound. The voice was exceedingly faint—audible one moment, slipping away the next. The slightest lapse in concentration would cause it to blur into noise. Under such conditions, without listening with utmost care, transcribing it was entirely impossible. Su Yu wrote in bursts, paying no heed to anyone else and lacking the energy to do so. Five minutes later, the first reading concluded. Su Yu looked at what he had written; he had transcribed about one-third of the text. At this rate, it would take him at least three to five readings to complete the entire piece. There weren't too many words, roughly a thousand or so. Su Yu was among the fortunate ones. Many examinees had only managed a few scattered characters on their sheets. Their hands couldn't keep pace. Having to listen intently while writing simultaneously was simply too difficult! Meanwhile, students continued to trickle in from the outer hall. Having arrived late and missed the early readings, they had virtually no hope of transcribing the text in full. *I should be able to get the whole thing down in three to five readings. As for Chen Hao... let's just hope that idiot doesn't fall asleep listening!* ... Just as Su Yu was worrying about Chen Hao, Chen Hao was indeed listening. Scratching his head and tugging his ears, he had scribbled quite a few words on his sheet. However, when the nearby invigilator glanced over, he could barely decipher any of it. The boy had written plenty, but what on earth was it supposed to be? Of course, some were in an even worse state than Chen Hao, with only a few lonely words scattered across the paper, their faces filled with misery. Under these conditions, even if some had reached the fourth or fifth stage of the Kaiyuan Realm, they might not earn these points. *Possessing cultivation without knowing how to use it... such people are better off not entering an academy!* the invigilator thought to himself. Having opened their ear apertures, they had no idea how to utilize them, unable to grasp even basic listening, let alone locating targets by sound. Such fourth- and fifth-stage cultivators were utterly meaningless. Students in the intermediate academies studied for five years. Everything that could be taught had been taught. Aside from lacking actual combat experience, they were supposed to be genuine soldiers. Yet a group of soldiers couldn't even wield their fundamental abilities. Their hopes of entering the War Academy were practically nonexistent. While the invigilator was lost in thought, Chen Hao raised a hand beside him and said in exasperation, "Teacher, stop pacing back and forth in front of me! You've walked by several times already. Can't you go over to someone else?" "..." The invigilator froze, then chuckled. "This is also a test. On the battlefield, all sorts of unexpected distractions occur..." Chen Hao rolled his eyes. "If we were really on a battlefield, I'd have drawn my saber and hacked you to death! Teacher, if you pace in front of me again, I'm going to chop you!" "..." The invigilator couldn't help but laugh. Nearby, the chief examiner gave a slight nod, signaling him to step away from Chen Hao. Pacing relentlessly in front of a single examinee was indeed inappropriate. The main reason had been Chen Hao's exaggerated movements, constantly clutching his head, which had drawn the invigilator to hover near him. The invigilator walked to the side and murmured under his breath, "The candidates from Great Xia Prefecture are performing noticeably better overall than Nanyuan's! Stages Four and Five are practically baseline for them, whereas Nanyuan doesn't even have as many Fourth and Fifth Stage students as Great Xia." Only a little over four hundred candidates had come from Great Xia Prefecture, while Nanyuan had nearly three thousand. Yet Nanyuan had fewer students at the Fourth and Fifth Stages than the Great Xia cohort. The chief examiner was not surprised. In a low voice, he replied, "Nanyuan's yuanqi is simply too thin. Still... there is an advantage! Nanyuan's students advance slowly, spending far more time polishing each stage. Most of their Stage Four students can transcribe at least a portion of the text, whereas plenty of Stage Five and Six students from Great Xia can't even hear clearly." The chief examiner shook his head, clearly feeling that those from Great Xia were disgracing themselves. Their cultivation was higher, but because they had advanced too quickly, they had spent little time developing their ear apertures. Obsessed with growing stronger, some of those Stage Five and Six candidates might end up scoring lower than Nanyuan's Stage Four and Five students. ... Upstairs. Su Yu had listened through five readings and completely transcribed the cultivation technique. A few other students had done the same, but very few—fewer than ten in all. Out of six hundred and sixty students in Hall 5, only this handful had fully transcribed the text so far. Old Xie, the invigilator, seemed slightly disappointed, though not entirely surprised. The only genuine surprise was that some Stage Five and Six students from Great Xia Prefecture still hadn't finished writing. Giving no thought to the students still straining to listen, Old Xie spoke aloud: "Those who have finished transcribing and wish to take the assessment for stages above the fifth stage of the Kaiyuan Realm, follow me!" At these words, Su Yu and the others rose to their feet. The candidates remaining in the hall grew frantic. Some had only just entered, yet others were already heading off to the higher-tier assessments. Should they stay here and keep listening, or move on to the tests for stages above Stage Five? What if, just like before, staying behind cost them the next round of tests? *Manage your time wisely, balance your energy and stamina...* The words spoken earlier by the young invigilator echoed in their minds. Several students gritted their teeth and hesitated no longer, rising one after another to head for the higher-tier assessments! The listening assessment was worth sixty points. Whether to stay here listening and burning precious time, or to push forward and secure other points, was an agonizing dilemma for students at the fifth stage and above. Listening for prolonged periods left them dizzy. If this continued, they might be unable to score in the subsequent assessments, which would be an enormous loss. Passing the assessment for the seventh stage of the Kaiyuan Realm yielded fifty points for that stage alone, enough to make up for the ear aperture test. Leading the way at the front, Old Xie wore a faint smile. Knowing when to let go was often difficult. The Higher Academy Examination was never purely a test of raw power or talent; other qualities mattered just as much. Decisiveness, judgment, weighing gains against losses... these young students had to master all of them. If the academies only cared about raw strength, why bother testing at all? They could simply compare cultivation realms and declare the highest the winner. A higher cultivation realm might grant an advantage here, but someone who navigated the earlier stages flawlessly could still earn admission to a War Academy at the third stage of the Kaiyuan Realm. *Nanyuan is still a bit weak. If they had more Stage Four and Five students, the cohort from Great Xia Prefecture might have ended up looking worse than Nanyuan.* As Old Xie reflected on this, he didn't forget to keep an eye on the top students he had been tracking. Su Yu had performed admirably through each stage. In the first round, he had made a swift decision after a single trade, passing eight courses to secure eighty points—very likely the highest score in the entire hall. *I'm rather looking forward to seeing how this kid's final score compares to the geniuses from Great Xia Prefecture...* The unified prefectural examination used identical content, procedures, and scoring across the board. What Su Yu scored had nothing to do with whether he hailed from Nanyuan. Old Xie was genuinely anticipating the outcome. In Nanyuan, Su Yu was likely the only one with any hope of measuring up against Great Xia's geniuses. As for the rest... there was simply no point in comparing. The sheer gap in cultivation realm was vast, and no matter how solid their foundation, an inherent disparity remained.