https://novelcool.info/chapter/Chapter-193-The-Second-Round-of-the-Foundation-Establishment-Exam-Begins/13686686/
https://novelcool.info/chapter/Chapter-195-The-Three-Divine-Medicines-Vote-for-the-Month-/13686688/
Chapter 194: Good Students Should Be Drug Injected
Just as Zhang Yu and Ye Lingshao locked eyes in silent exchange, the figures of five Zheng Shen examiners—Deng Bingding, Huang Zichou, and three others—gradually materialized before them.
Taking in the five candidates present, Deng Bingding spoke with a calm, detached tone:
"The second round of the Foundation Establishment Exam, Physical Fitness Track, has a simple advancement rule.
In the upcoming exam, the top two scorers will advance to the final round three months from now—next January—where they’ll compete for the Foundation Establishment Qualification Certificate.
The third-place candidate will receive a recommendation bonus, granting extra points in future university-level Foundation Establishment exams.
The fourth-place candidate will earn College Entrance Exam bonus points..."
Upon hearing this, the atmosphere among the students instantly shifted.
Their spirits soared—especially when they heard about the Foundation Establishment bonus and College Entrance Exam advantages. Even Yu Xinghan, who had long since given up hope of winning, suddenly felt a spark of determination ignite within him.
But then, Zhang Yu raised his hand.
"Examiner," he said, "besides the chance to compete for the Foundation Establishment Qualification Certificate, do the first and second place winners receive any additional rewards?"
Deng Bingding glanced at him, offering a faint smile.
"Securing the final opportunity to compete for the Certificate... isn’t that enough?"
"Unsatisfied?" she continued, her tone cool. "No problem. After next January’s final exam—regardless of whether you earn the Certificate or not—you’ll still receive a substantial reward."
"Alright," Deng Bingding added. "Now, let’s discuss the specific exam components.
Today’s test is divided into two sessions.
The first half centers around Drug Injection..."
---
Meanwhile, in another testing arena, Bai Zhenzhen slowly opened her eyes—only to find Zhang Yu nowhere in sight.
Her gaze swept across the space. She stood in a vast underground plaza, and besides her, four other candidates were already present.
Second round of the Foundation Establishment Exam has begun, she thought. Each candidate is assigned to a different track.
Looks like I’ve been split from Yu Zi right at the start.
Her eyes lingered on Yun Jing’s No. 11 badge.
That’s him—the second-place finisher from the last round. One of the top-tier Xian Du masters.
A surge of crackling, restless thunderous Martial Energy pulsed through her body, wild and unrelenting, refusing to settle.
He’s the biggest obstacle standing between me and the Foundation Establishment Qualification Certificate.
Unbeknownst to her, Yun Jing, under her gaze, suddenly felt a faint prickle in the air—as if brushed by static electricity.
He turned to look at her.
The 56th candidate from the previous round? The one who came with No. 55—Zhang Yu? The outsider pair...
He recalled the first round: those two had concealed their strength in the first two stages, only revealing their true potential in the final round, securing third and fourth places with astonishing Technique mastery.
But Yun Jing remained utterly confident.
For the past two months, his family had poured resources into him like never before.
With unprecedented financial backing, he’d undergone repeated, quantum leaps in progress.
Only with the kind of investment the Yun family can provide could I continue to break through, even after reaching Peak Qi Refinement in Dao Heart, Martial Energy, and physical cultivation.
And if I obtain the Foundation Establishment Certificate… I might just save my family from ruin. The resources invested in me won’t be wasted.
So I cannot lose.
He felt a quiet relief that Ye Lingshao wasn’t in his group.
After all, as a Perfect Bloodline heir, Ye Lingshao was also in the midst of a high-speed growth phase during high school. Who knew what level his strength had reached now?
Avoiding direct confrontation with Ye Lingshao meant his path to securing the Certificate had just become nearly guaranteed.
At that moment, a flicker of light ahead revealed the familiar figures of Deng Bingding, Huang Zichou, and the other three Zheng Shen examiners.
The five examiners now stood as divine avatars, simultaneously overseeing four separate tracks.
To Deng Bingding, it was like controlling four bodies, four perspectives, thinking with four minds at once.
But such multitasking was second nature to her.
Since becoming a Zheng Shen, she’d grown accustomed to juggling back-to-back meetings, attending events while giving gifts, and working overtime—multitasking on a scale of ten, even a hundred, was just part of the job.
"Today’s Martial Arts Exam is straightforward—live combat evaluation," Deng Bingding declared.
"Each of you will face off one-on-one in the Arena Battle. After everyone has fought a round, each match will be scored based on win, loss, or draw.
The top two scorers will advance to the final round in three months—next January—to compete for the Foundation Establishment Qualification Certificate.
Third place: Foundation Establishment bonus.
Fourth place: College Entrance Exam bonus."
Bai Zhenzhen nodded silently.
So it’s just one match against each of the others?
She stretched her limbs, sparks of electricity dancing across her skin as she began her warm-up.
---
Back at the sports testing field, Deng Bingding continued her explanation.
"Everyone knows—Drug Injection is the cornerstone of physical training.
If you can’t endure the pain of Drug Injection, you can’t walk the path of immortality.
The ability of a cultivator’s body to withstand Drug Injection, and its capacity to absorb the substances, is a key indicator of how far they can go on the Dao path.
For the first half of today’s exam, you’ll have one hour to administer as many Drug Injections as possible.
Which drugs you choose is entirely up to you.
However, you are not allowed to use Spirit Roots or activate Spirit Armor during this process."
As she spoke, a massive Light Screen shimmered into view, displaying a long list of drugs—each accompanied by a score.
"There are 23 drugs available today," Deng Bingding explained.
"Their effects vary widely. We’ve ranked them by the physical burden they impose, from highest to lowest, and assigned corresponding scores.
In short: the greater the strain on the body, the higher the point value.
The lighter the burden, the lower the score."
"At the end of the one-hour Drug Injection period, your total score will be the result of your first half."
As Deng Bingding spoke, Zhang Yu felt a growing unease—his mind fixated on one question:
Does this cost money?
If this test charges for drugs… I’ll have to borrow from someone.
He scanned the list, frowning.
So many of these drugs I’ve never even heard of. I don’t know what any of them do.
The top three highest-scoring drugs were completely foreign to him—entirely outside his knowledge base.
But Deng Bingding’s next words eased his mind.
"All drugs provided today are completely free. You don’t need to worry about costs," she said.
"Also, I understand not everyone here is familiar with all 23 drugs.
So, we’ll now play a Drug Review Video, to help you understand each drug’s effects."
At that moment, Zhang Yu’s eyes lit up.
Free? So this is basically self-service Drug Injection?
Finally, these Zheng Shen have done something useful.
Beside him, Huang Zichou listened silently, his expression darkening.
They’ve finally pulled it off—the pharmaceutical companies. "Use Drug Injection to replace exams," they said. "Measure student potential by how much you inject."
But in the end, it’s all paid for by the Divine Department. The Heavenly Court foots the bill.
And the ones who lose? The Kunxu realm.
The ones who gain nothing? Me.
Not a single coin in my pocket.
Those bastards in the company—they don’t even respect the Ninth-Rank Gods.
But then he thought about how deep this system ran—through not just one layer, but dozens of exam stages across the hierarchy.
To cut costs for the Heavenly Court while still making the deal work…
The sheer scale of the corruption and the tangled web of interests made his stomach churn.
He could only mutter in silent resentment.
At that moment, the Light Screen flickered—then began playing a video.
A man appeared on screen, smiling at the camera.
"Hello everyone! Today, I’ll be reviewing 20 commonly used drugs in daily cultivation practice."
Zhang Yu blinked in surprise.
Wait… is this a cult video?
He recognized the format instantly.
This was the kind of content his former self had watched countless times—drug reviews, Technique evaluations, food supplement breakdowns, workout equipment unboxings, Spirit Root reveal videos…
Even though Zhang Yu now watched fewer of these, he still remembered them all—especially the memories preserved in his original body.
The man on screen was particularly familiar.
He wasn’t just a content creator—he was a sensation, known for a viral “Open the Tomb” series.
The first video had shown a tour of a family mausoleum, displaying the state of preserved corpses aged 10, 30, 100, and even 300 years.
That video exploded online, and the man capitalized on the momentum, filming grand ancestral tombs across wealthy clans—revealing underground palaces, parks, skyscrapers, entire mountain ranges carved into burial grounds.
Those videos had been the first time Zhang Yu’s former self truly grasped the chasm between the rich and the poor.
He’d realized then that some families’ tombs were bigger than his entire school.
And even in death, the wealthy continued to grow richer—while he, a poor wage slave, could barely keep up.
The memory faded.
Zhang Yu refocused on the video.
The influencer’s review was impressively detailed, professional, yet delivered in a simple, accessible way—making complex drug mechanisms easy to understand, complete with pros, cons, and real-world effects.
(End of Chapter)
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