There were too many candidates to fit in one testing site, so Zheng Fa set up more than ten testing sites on Paradise Island.
Zheng Fa stood outside the testing site of his younger sister.
Tongming Master and his group were also there.
"What are the standards?"
"Calculating the total score, where Spirit Root and arithmetic weigh heavily, while Martial Arts and Classical Literature count for less."
No matter how much he valued knowledge, the issue of Spirit Root was unavoidable.
Arithmetic is the foundation of all sciences, naturally, it’s also important.
Martial Arts and Classical Literature... in fact, they only count as bonus points, Zheng Fa included these two mainly to prepare teachers for the ordinary folks in Jiushan Realm.
Tongming Master understood it in his own way—this arithmetic is equivalent to things like the Elixir Talisman Formation in their Ascension Conference?
It’s just not known why Zheng Fa valued arithmetic so highly.
Compared to modern standards, this method might not be fair, but compared to Xuanwei Realm, it gives those capable in scientific research a pathway.
Another loophole is, the good deeds system doesn’t limit whether it’s within or outside Jiushan Sect:
That is to say, even if one doesn’t join Jiushan Sect, one can still accumulate good deeds, resources, and even cultivation methods to self-study or train the next generation—just unable to attend classes on University Island, or participate in experiments.
Universal cultivation... is currently unrealistic, and may remain unrealistic for a long time.
Zheng Fa felt it was still insufficient, yet Tongming Master was shocked—
The Ascension Conference recruits only about a thousand disciples each time!
A small Paradise Island in Jiushan Realm, so many people came for the exam?
Can Jiushan Realm support them?
He doubted in his heart.
Looking at the examination venue, he was even more shocked—
Not to mention other venues, the candidates in this venue, each one of them literate.
On the arithmetic exam paper, the difficulty of the various questions varied greatly, some he couldn’t even manage, but there were quite a few candidates who handled them effortlessly.
By the afternoon, not just Tongming Master, but even the disciples of the Hundred Immortals Alliance who came to participate in the Hundred Immortals Conference were getting restless—
An entire examination venue, and every single person at least knew a set of Martial Arts for beginners!
This... is something not even those Foundation Establishment or even Golden Core had access to.
Such Martial Arts, have always been exclusive to descendants of large families.
Who would have thought, in Jiushan Realm, everyone could learn and practice?
As for testing the Spirit Root, there was nothing much to say.
The entrance examination ended, and the results came out quickly:
Only three hundred people could enter the Jiushan Sect this time—a less than one percent admission rate.
The threshold for enrollment generally was:
If you have a Single Spirit Root, naturally you can enter easily.
If it’s a Dual Spirit Root, then your arithmetic needs to be at least good.
Triple Spirit Roots would require excellence, which means getting at least eight out of ten questions right.
If it’s lower than Triple Spirit Roots—then the score needs to be nearly perfect...
This time there weren’t many with a Single Spirit Root, including the little sister, there were just two people, and even adding those with Dual Spirit Roots, there were only dozens.
But there were quite a few who excelled in arithmetic— even more than Zheng Fa anticipated, but then he realized:
The people of Jiushan Realm, though lacking in other aspects, always tend to try harder after experiencing turmoil.
That’s how he managed to gather more than two hundred people.
Little sister Zheng Shan naturally easily entered Jiushan Sect.
After the examination ended, Tongming Master, somewhat puzzled, asked Zheng Fa, "Your sect, aren’t you recruiting too many disciples?"
You see, in twenty thousand years, Jiushan Sect had only a thousand disciples, and now in one recruitment, it’s three hundred...
The threshold is even lower than before.
And still recruiting once every year?
Zheng Fa thought for a while, then smiled, "Tongming Master, the cultivators of my Jiushan Sect, I fear, are different from those of Xuanwei Realm..."
Tongming Master was stunned, not understanding.
Zheng Fa remained silent, some matters, even the Master and Master Pang did not understand at first:
If seen from the perspective of cultivators in Xuanwei Realm, indeed, the fewer the cultivators, the better...
Because those cultivators’ most important task is fighting, the more powerful, the more resources they occupy, the higher they stand.
To use a not quite accurate description, they are end consumers: devouring resources, sustaining themselves, with almost no return to the world.
During battle, ten thousand low-level cultivators don’t compare to one high-level cultivator.
Therefore, Xuanwei Realm needs more geniuses.
But Jiushan Realm doesn’t need such cultivators:
From the "Golden Core Project", Zheng Fa saw— if cultivators act as producers, then the conversion ratio changes.
Through cooperation, simplifying cultivation methods, and exploring principles, dozens of cultivators below Golden Core can produce an outer elixir which only a Nascent Soul cultivator could create!
And the resources needed to foster dozens of Foundation Establishment disciples are far less than a Nascent Soul, the time needed for training, far quicker than a Nascent Soul.
Very cost-effective...
Not to mention, Zheng Fa’s ’borrowing brains’ plan, more people have the advantage of more people.
For Zheng Fa, the only issue has always been the dwindling Spiritual Energy—but on the other hand, the more the Spiritual Energy dwindles, this system has even more advantage:
Little Spiritual Energy, harder for high-level cultivators to emerge, but low-level cultivators are less affected.
Even various simplifying projects, various explorations of principles, will ultimately be more resource-efficient, more productive.
This is also why Master and Master Pang were persuaded by him, to nearly open the sect widely.
Seeing his assurance, Tongming Master didn’t ask further, only a deep confusion remained in his eyes.
He naturally didn’t understand.
Zheng Fa, looking at those newly admitted disciples, his mind recalled Gao Yuan’s letter, silently saying in his heart:
The world I want is where cultivators are not only revered but also appreciated.
It is right before us, in the future.