The echoes of the broadcast announcement gradually faded, and all the candidates whose names had been called were already heading towards their respective examination rooms. All, that is, except for one.
“I’m off!”
Candidate 46, Li Xiushen, rose from his chair, a confident gleam in his eyes. “I will prove that I am the undisputed one,” he declared.
“Alright, alright!” The chubby boy waved dismissively, clearly unimpressed. He and Li Xiushen had never quite seen eye to eye, primarily because he couldn’t fathom what was so appealing about the particular title they were vying for. Even without this elusive title, given his A-grade Void Energy concentration and his formidable supernatural ability, the four major institutions would undoubtedly extend invitations to him.
“Good luck!” A few members of his small group offered their well wishes, patting Li Xiushen on the shoulder. They watched as he strode confidently, chest puffed out, past the other three candidates, and was the first to enter the door.
‘Tch, what a show-off,’ Candidate 129 thought, cursing under their breath. They then quickly followed suit.
****
“Candidate 124, please proceed to Examination Room One.”
The enormous loudspeaker on the teaching building of Yanghai First Vocational Middle School blared, its sound reverberating with a sudden *whoosh*!
The instant she heard the announcement, Fang Miaoging shot up from her chair. She was Candidate 124.
She jogged all the way to the corridor entrance. After a thorough full-body scan by a metal detector, her ID card and examination permit were checked once more before she was finally allowed to enter the teaching building.
The iron door, adorned with a photocopied sign reading “Examination Room One,” was slightly ajar. Fang Miaoging paused, then reached out and gently knocked twice.
*Knock, knock.*
“Come in!” a female voice called from within.
Granted permission, Fang Miaoging pushed open the iron door with a soft creak and stepped inside.
The desks and chairs in the classroom had already been cleared and moved to the back. The spacious classroom was empty, save for a wooden table on the podium and three chairs beneath it. Three examiners sat at the back: two men and one woman. The men were handsome, the woman elegant, all dressed in formal suits, each with the Tiandu University emblem pinned to their chest.
Fang Miaoging’s gaze lingered on the emblem for a moment before she withdrew it, turned, and closed the door.
“Please begin with your self-introduction,” the woman said softly.
Fang Miaoging took a deep breath and began reciting the two-hundred-word self-introduction she had meticulously prepared. The introduction had to be concise yet effectively highlight her strengths. Consequently, she had revised and rewritten those two hundred words numerous times. Her youthful voice was clear, carrying a hint of delicate charm.
As she spoke, the examiners below the podium took out her files and began reviewing them.
“Ying City First High, Class Four, Grade Two?”
Li Qinyue, who had been feeling a little drowsy, instantly perked up upon seeing those nine characters. ‘If she wasn’t mistaken… her junior female student seemed to be from this very school and class.’
“A schoolmate, then…” Li Qinyue murmured, narrowing her eyes slightly, just as Fang Miaoging’s self-introduction drew to a close.
“My self-introduction concludes here. Thank you.”
She bowed slightly in thanks, but not excessively, maintaining an overall demeanor that was perfectly poised.
*Tap, tap.*
Li Qinyue lightly tapped her fingers on the table. “That was an excellent self-introduction, Student Fang. We now have a clear understanding of your academic achievements and past competition experiences.”
“Now, we have a question we’d like to ask you.”
Fang Miaoging met the woman’s gaze directly, nodding slightly in acknowledgement. ‘Maintaining constant eye contact with the examiners during an interview was crucial for a good score. This was a lesson she had learned from experience.’ In her preparations over the past few days, she had thoroughly prepared for any potential questions. These included questions about her future life plans, choice of major, or even her views on her chosen field. She was confident she could handle any question thrown her way.
With this mindset, she watched as Li Qinyue’s red lips parted, and in a slow, deliberate tone, she asked, “Student Fang, do you believe in superpowers in this world?”
“Huh? Are you talking about… superpowers?” Fang Miaoging tilted her head slightly, utterly bewildered in that moment. ‘Superpowers… what on earth are those? And, does Platinum Star count…’
****
“It’s already been ten minutes,” Huang Xiu remarked, a hint of surprise in her eyes as she gazed at the real-time clock displayed on the top right corner of the leaderboard.
Ten minutes had elapsed since the boy who was with Bai Baibai and Liu Lu entered the examination room. During this time, not a single candidate had emerged. Even Candidate 18, who was B-grade, had barely reached six minutes for their exam duration.
The crowd gathered by the examination board was equally astonished, murmuring amongst themselves. Just then, the leaderboard suddenly refreshed.
A new candidate number appeared at the top position, pushing all previous rankings down by one slot.
[Candidate 46, Score: 572, Grade: A. Intended Admission Institutions: Jurisdiction Bureau, Conquest Bureau, Tiandu University, National Awakened Higher Vocational College.]
“Holy crap! What in the world! How did he suddenly get 400 more points?”
“It must be fake! How is that even possible?”
The group of candidates gathered around the leaderboard, eagerly awaiting updates, erupted in a clamor. Their faces were etched with disbelief; they stared at the leaderboard as if it were an alien artifact, unable to tear their eyes away.
In truth, three other new candidate numbers had quietly appeared on the leaderboard besides the first place, but no one paid them any mind at that moment. All attention was fixated on the top position.
‘Fake, it’s all fake, just watered-down iced tea! How could he possibly have that score?’
At the back of the crowd, Candidate 10 knelt on the ground, his face utterly drained, turning a chalky gray like limestone. ‘He only had 172 points… Candidate 46’s score was a full three times his! How could this be! Is the gap between people truly wider than that between humans and pigs?’
‘Heh, heh, heh.’
He collapsed onto the ground, truly unable to rise again this time. The ceiling lights, blinding and brilliant, prevented him from seeing anything clearly. Tears of shame streamed from the corners of his eyes.
“Damn it, I’m just a piece of trash, I’m giving up!”
The moment this thought arose, he instantly felt a profound sense of peace, as if the world had opened up before him, and his tears were drawn back.
At the same time, a gasp erupted from the back of the plaza.
“How is this possible!”
Candidate 36, who had been boasting and chatting merrily with those around him, froze the moment he saw the leaderboard. He shot up from his chair. He was tall and burly, with a bald head and a mature, fierce appearance. When he abruptly stood up and began shouting, everyone around him flinched in alarm.
“How can the difference be so huge!”
He frantically scratched his bald head, his face a mask of disbelief. “I’m a B-grade, he’s an A-grade, can there really be such a difference in points between the two?”
Huang Xiu was also greatly surprised, a thought spontaneously arising in her mind, ‘Could he be A-grade as well?’
*Thump-thump-thump.*
Footsteps echoed from the end of the passageway, and a figure emerged, chest out, striding confidently: Candidate 46, Li Xiushen. A faint trace of pride graced the young man’s face, while behind him trailed the other three candidates, utterly disoriented. They moved like zombies, listless and shambling, and the moment they looked up and saw the young man, a deep fear flickered in their eyes, as if they had just encountered a monster.