Some disciples dove into their papers immediately, their pens moving frantically as they raced against the clock. Others simply stared at their examination sheets with blank expressions, as if the entire world had suddenly collapsed around them.
Xiang Yu began walking leisurely through the scattered disciples, his hands clasped behind his back and a satisfied smile playing across his features. He observed their various approaches with a smile causing those who saw him to feel somewhat uneasy.
Some wrote confidently, others chewed their pen tips nervously, and a few seemed to be having internal breakdowns.
He paused deliberately beside one particular disciple who was scribbling away with intense concentration. The young man looked up nervously as the Grand Elder’s shadow fell across his paper.
"Sorry bud, I’ve always wanted to try this," Xiang Yu thought to himself in amusement. He was about to end this guy’s whole career.
He leaned down slightly, looking at the disciple’s answers. He then shook his head and walked away casually. When he was a few steps away, he activated his ult. "Make sure to read the questions carefully and understand."
The disciple’s face immediately drained of all color. Panic flashed across his features as he frantically began erasing his previous answer. Sweat beaded on his forehead as he second-guessed everything he’d written.
"Well, he wasn’t right to begin with, so..." Xiang Yu mused silently, continuing his patrol.
After exactly thirty minutes had elapsed, Xiang Yu clapped his hands sharply. "Time’s up. Pens down, papers forward."
He collected all the examination sheets, gathering them into a neat stack. With his divine sense, scanning and grading all eighty papers took mere seconds.
"Pass, pass, fail, fail, pass..." he spoke as he called out the disciples’ names.
When the evaluation was complete, he looked up at the crowd that was now split into two factions. Out of the original eighty candidates, only thirty had passed.
"Those who have failed," he announced, "you’re dismissed. You can try applying to a different school, or continue studying independently and wait for the next entrance exam."
The rejected disciples trudged away with dejected expressions, their dreams of joining the secondary professions pavilion crushed. Some cast envious glances back at the successful candidates, while others simply hung their heads in disappointment.
Xiang Yu then turned his full attention to address the survivors. "You there," he said, pointing directly at one disciple who had been trying to blend into the crowd. "You are Wang Cheng, correct?"
The disciple straightened immediately, his eyes widening in surprise at being singled out. "Yes, Grand Elder," he nodded quickly.
"Excellent. You scored the highest marks on the examination," Xiang Yu announced with approval. "From now on, you are the president of the School of Medicine and will report directly to me regarding all school matters."
Wang Cheng’s jaw dropped in shock before he quickly recovered, dropping into a deep, respectful bow. "This humble disciple will listen to the Grand Elder’s guidance," he replied formally.
"Alright, you guys can leave now," Xiang Yu addressed the remaining group with a dismissive wave. "Just like the cooking school students, practice your medical knowledge independently for the time being. I’ll communicate with you through President Wang Cheng once the Secondary Professions Pavilion construction is completed. Class dismissed."
"Wait, one more thing before you go," Xiang Yu called out, stopping the departing disciples in their tracks. He had almost forgotten something crucial.
"Just because you passed the test doesn’t mean you’re qualified to practice medicine on other disciples," he said firmly.
"I’ll provide some practice materials to President Wang Cheng when they’re ready," Xiang Yu continued. "Do not, under any circumstances, practice medicine on fellow disciples. Or anyone else for that matter."
The disciples nodded. Medical mistakes could be fatal, especially when dealing with cultivation-related injuries. After seeing that they understood, Xiang Yu finally waved them away.
He then made his way back to Liu Qing, who had just finished conducting tests for the talisman and formation schools. A small group of candidates stood nearby, some looking hopeful while others appeared dejected.
"Who had the highest score?" Xiang Yu asked as he approached Liu Qing.
The testing gadget he had crafted wasn’t just for testing, it also calculated precise scores based on multiple parameters including qi control, concentration stability, and pattern completion accuracy.
"It was these two," Liu Qing replied, pointing toward two disciples standing slightly apart from the group.
Xiang Yu’s eyebrows rose in surprise. Someone had actually performed better than Liu Qing? Given her impressive demonstration earlier, that was genuinely unexpected. He turned his gaze toward the pair she indicated.
What he saw made him pause. Two strikingly beautiful girls stood before him, their features so similar they could only be twins. But something felt off about the whole situation.
"Wait a second, I smell something suspicious here," Xiang Yu thought.
He discretely deployed his divine sense, scanning the pair more carefully. What he discovered confirmed his suspicion. It was actually a trap. Despite their delicate, feminine appearances, these two were definitely men.
"What are your names?" he asked.
"I’m Lin Yue," the first twin spoke with a bow, even his voice was female. "Yue as in the character for joy."
The second twin followed suit with an identical bow. "I’m Lin Yue," he said, his voice equally gentle. "Yue as in ’to surpass.’"
"They even have the same name?" Xiang Yu thought incredulously.
Even with his divine sense actively scanning them, he couldn’t tell the twins apart at all. And their spiritual signatures were exactly identical as well.
Deciding he needed more information, Xiang Yu activated his battle simulation’s detection ability:
[Realm: Body: 15th Layer; Spirit: Golden Core Peak; Mind: Level 4]
[Spiritual Root: Sacred-Grade Yin]
[Enlightenment: Superior]
[Physique: Twin-Yin Dao Body]
[Bloodline: Demon God (True Blood)]
Felt that this school testing arc was a little boring and decided to bring back an old friend.
For those interested: "They even have the same name", it’s not entirely the same name. The first twin uses this yue(悅) meaning joy/pleasure and the second uses this yue(越) meaning to surpass/to cross over.