Chapter 31: The Exam Begins
Chapter 31: The Exam Begins
At the old building examination site, they waited until noon, and the entire morning passed by, but the exam still hadn't started.
Some clever individuals believed that the academy might be intentionally testing their patience and perseverance, and this was probably part of the assessment criteria. Most candidates agreed that this was likely the case.
After all, the final exam was graded, and the final result was determined by the examiners' scores. How they were evaluated was a highly subjective matter, and besides the performance inside the exam hall, they might also be observed for their behavior outside. Of course, if a candidate could directly defeat the senior students responsible for the sparring matches, they would pass immediately without the need for further scoring. However, most people didn't have such thoughts; they just wanted to perform as well as possible, which was something they could achieve.
The female teacher stood there the entire time, and even after several hours, her standing posture hadn't changed. This made the candidates below hesitant to move around casually. They could only stretch their legs when going to the restroom to drink water, and even then, they didn't dare do it too frequently. Some of them were holding it in the entire time.
At this moment, the female teacher tilted her head and saw someone outside waving at her. She went out and returned after a while, saying, "Candidates can rest for half an hour. Please note not to go too far from the exam hall. The exam hall will be closed at 12:45, and those who are late will have their exam eligibility canceled."
The candidates finally breathed a sigh of relief, and one by one, they eagerly stood up to stretch. Sitting for so long had been uncomfortable.
At this moment, a short and stout young man with a round head and a sturdy build stood up. He took out a large package of beef jerky from his bag, each piece individually wrapped. He distributed it to the candidates around him, saying, "Classmate, this is beef jerky made by my family. Have one, it's especially good for hunger."
He handed it to the nearby candidates one by one. Chen Chuan was seated nearby, only a few seats away, so he also received a piece. He thanked the young man and put it in his pocket instead of eating it immediately. He had eaten three nutrient gels before coming, and with no physical activity in the morning, he wasn't hungry at the moment.
The stout young man enthusiastically went on to distribute the jerky to other candidates. By this time, many of them were feeling hungry, and they thanked him as they accepted it.
However, some candidates directly refused, choosing to eat their own food instead. Others didn't give him a good look and asked him to stay away.
The young man didn't get angry. Instead, he smiled and took out a stack of flyers from his bag, handing them to the candidates who had accepted the jerky. He said, "If you like it, you can come to my family's Han Family Cuisine restaurant. All Wu Yi students will get a 50% discount, and if you pass the final exam, it's on the house."
After eating something, the candidates couldn't hold back any longer, and they started chatting with each other. Fang Zhiming couldn't help but strike up a conversation with Chen Chuan, who was sitting next to him. He asked, "Chen Chuan, how long have you been training?"
Chen Chuan replied, "Not long."
Fang Zhiming said, "Oh, I haven't trained for long either. There used to be an old man in our town who taught martial arts. I was curious and followed along. The old man said I had talent, so my parents mortgaged one of our houses and pooled some money to hire a teacher for me. I practiced every morning and evening for two years..."
He took a bite of the beef jerky and said in a muffled voice, "To be honest, I'm not confident. When I heard that I passed the preliminary exam, I couldn't believe it. But my teacher said that only passing the final exam counts as becoming a true Wu Yi student. Passing the admission exam doesn't mean anything. Since I passed the preliminary exam, I decided to give it a try."
It seemed like he was trying to relieve his tension, and once he started talking, he couldn't stop. Chen Chuan listened without showing any signs of impatience.
At this moment, in the third exam hall, Wei Dong heard the announcement for a break and immediately jumped up. Instead of sitting or standing properly, he squatted on the chair, constantly twisting and looking around.
The candidate next to him, who was eating, was already feeling irritable, and this behavior was too much to bear. He couldn't help but say, "What are you looking at? Can't you get down? Aren't you tired?"
Wei Dong replied, "I have a friend I know, but I don't see him here. Did he forget about the exam today?"
The candidate, annoyed, said, "There's more than one exam hall. Maybe the person you're looking for is in another hall."
"There's more than one exam hall?" Wei Dong realized.
Seeing that he finally understood, the candidate felt like a burden had been lifted. However, after a while, when he saw that Wei Dong was still squatting, he became angry and said, "Are you a monkey? Can't you sit down?"
"Are you cursing at me? Did you just curse at me?" Wei Dong asked.
The candidate was already irritated, and he stood up abruptly, saying, "So what if I cursed at you? Do you want to fight? I'm ready for you!"
"Good, now?" Wei Dong was also eager for a fight.
The candidate was taken aback by his enthusiastic response and muttered, "Are you crazy? Don't you want to take the exam? Aren't you afraid of getting your exam eligibility canceled?"
Wei Dong just stared at him, seemingly unbothered by anything else.
The candidate, seeing that he genuinely wanted to fight, felt his scalp go numb. He turned away and sat down without saying a word, thinking, "I can't deal with this."
Wei Dong, seeing that the candidate didn't want to fight anymore, seemed a bit disappointed. He scratched his head and jumped down from his seat, walking out.
The candidate cursed under his breath, wishing that Wei Dong wouldn't find his way back to the exam hall.
The half-hour break passed quickly, and at 12:30, the four exam halls were closed again. The candidates continued to wait in silence, enduring the agony.
At around 1 p.m., Jiang Weiban and his entourage emerged from the private room in the college canteen and made their way towards the old building.
The teachers responsible for the examination, who had been waiting anxiously, finally relaxed a little. Ning Laoshi, who had been standing by their side, cautiously asked, "Jiang Weiban, can we get your signature now?"
Jiang Weiban nodded, and the assistant immediately handed him the list of candidates. After reviewing it, he signed it and said, "Let's begin. Let's be efficient; the candidates have been waiting, and we should show some efficiency too."
Ning Laoshi took the list, breathed a sigh of relief, and immediately walked to the side, urgently instructing the assistant teachers. They quickly sprang into action, hurrying off to carry out her instructions.
The assistant then approached Jiang Weiban and asked, "Which examination site will you be observing, sir?"
"Hmm, I'll check them all," Jiang Weiban replied, as if remembering something. "I heard that the third and fourth examination sites are a bit more challenging?"
"Yes, those sites have a higher concentration of advanced candidates, so we've assigned some high-level senior students accordingly," the assistant explained.
"Let's go and take a look at the first examination site first," Jiang Weiban suggested.
In the fourth examination site, the door was pushed open, and an assistant teacher hurried in with a list, which they handed to the female teacher. She took it and announced, "We will now begin the roll call."
A soft cheer and sigh of relief filled the room, but her piercing gaze silenced everyone. No one wanted to risk being kicked out at this critical moment.
"Students, report to your respective testing stations. One hundred and fifteen, two hundred and eighteen, and ninety-three, you will go to Testing Station One. Three, nine, and four hundred and ninety-two, you will go to Testing Station Two. Two hundred and seven, one hundred..." As she called out the numbers, the candidates realized that the final exam was not following the usual order.
Chen Chuan immediately understood that even those at the back of the line couldn't relax. They had to stay alert and focused. This was likely a deliberate strategy by the school.
It was clear that there were five testing stations in the fourth examination site, numbered one to five. However, it was uncertain who would face whom.
T
After about seven or eight minutes, the next batch of candidates was called, indicating a reasonably swift process.
As the examination progressed, injured candidates began to emerge, some unconscious and others with fractures. The school made no attempt to hide this, and through the open doors and windows, the other candidates could see one or two of their peers being carried out.
Having experienced this during the initial entrance exam, the candidates were mentally prepared for an even stricter final exam.
An hour later, the senior students conducting the examinations were rotated to ensure they got some rest. The information about these senior students was posted on the bulletin board, and the candidates learned about them, sparking various discussions.
"It's going to be tough today. At Testing Station Three, there's a senior student named Tai Dongwei. My brother told me he's very skilled in martial arts, and I don't want to face him," one candidate shared.
Many candidates nodded in agreement. The information they had was limited, but from appearances alone, Tai Dongwei was an intimidating opponent at 1.95 meters tall and weighing 98 kilograms.
Most of the candidates were young, and their bodies were still developing. Even with some experience, they were no match for someone like Tai Dongwei. One round with him would be a struggle, leaving no room for a proper demonstration of skills, let alone scoring.
"At Testing Station One, there's Zhou Xinrou. She's 1.8 meters tall, weighs 82 kilograms, and is a third-year student skilled in joint manipulation. The candidates with broken joints were reportedly her victims."
"And at Testing Station Five, there's Zhong Wu. He's even more impressive at 2.02 meters tall and weighing 442 kilograms. He's a third-year student specializing in grappling techniques. This is way beyond the curriculum!"
The candidates' faces paled, and they frantically flipped through their materials, hoping to find something useful.
Chen Chuan thought for a moment. In theory, only a small number of candidates would face these senior students since they took turns resting.
However, the roll call wasn't sequential, so the matchups might have been predetermined.
He glanced at Fang Zhiming, who was intently studying the materials. "Did you receive any sponsorship from the Aid Society?" Chen Chuan asked.
"Hmm? Oh, that... My father told me not to trust those who offer money willingly, so I didn't accept it," Fang Zhiming replied, scratching his head.
Chen Chuan nodded. If his assumption was correct, those facing these senior students might include those who had declined the Aid Society's sponsorship, like himself.
...
...
(End of Chapter)
Chapter end
Report
