Early this morning, at the gate of Dao School located 1500 meters above Donghua City, there was already a sea of people.
Zhou Bai squeezed in the crowd, listening to the surrounding noise, and said uncomfortably, "So many people are taking the exam, when the heck will this end?"
Next came queuing up and registering, and Zhou Bai followed others into the school.
First was the basic physical examination, which included height, weight, bone age, health status, and whether one was infected by the spiritual essence.
After completing the basic examination, it was time for the main event, the Primordial Spirit value test.
Zhou Bai stood in the middle of the queue, watching several rows of lines ahead, moving towards the Primordial Spirit Detector to test their values.
Some candidates were pale and extremely nervous.
Others appeared calm and confident.
Suddenly, a cry erupted, and they saw a girl clinging to the teacher, refusing to leave the detector.
"Please, please let me test again." The girl cried, "I didn't sleep well yesterday, and I was too nervous just now. Give me one more chance, and I will do better."
To show fairness, everyone's test results were magnified on the big screen. The girl's result showed a Primordial Spirit value of 29, just one point short of the qualifying line of 30.
The proctor shook his head, "You've already had your three chances. Come back next year."
"No, I'm already 20 this year. Next year, I won't have another chance. Please, please let me try one more time..."
Bang! The proctor decisively knocked the girl unconscious. There were too many people like her, crying in anguish due to failing the exam every year.
After all, the Four Great Taoist Schools were the only four Dao Schools, representing humanity's elite force.
Materially, it represented the best cultivation resources, and spiritually, it was the best channel to resist the Heavenly Demons and realize the dreams of protecting the homeland and reviving humanity.
In these apocalyptic times, it could be said to be the most coveted place for countless young people.
Zhou Bai shook his head. If this girl didn't pass this time, the future options were either joining the army, joining some small sects, or having a job arranged by Heaven's Administration. But none of these paths were as good as becoming a Dao School student.
A few minutes later, there was an uproar from the other side of the crowd. Zhou Bai looked over and saw a young man standing in front of the detection instrument, with the result boldly displaying the number 99.
Zhou Bai thought to himself, "Wow, a genius? It's almost my turn to shine."
Subsequently, every now and then, there were exclamations, as more genius students with a Primordial Spirit value of 99 appeared in this year's entrance test.
Just as it was almost Zhou Bai's turn, an unprecedented shout came over. Numerous candidates looked over in shock.
On the big screen of the test results, a gigantic number 105 appeared, causing everyone to whisper in a low voice.
"Is this a joke, someone's Primordial Spirit value is 105?"
"Are you kidding, isn't the highest supposed to be 99?"
"Who is that guy? Could he be a genius who started cultivating before admission and broke through 0% Taoization?"
A cold-faced, pale, tall, long-haired man casually glanced at the 105 Primordial Spirit value, then walked off the stage.
Zhou Bai looked at the man with a Primordial Spirit value of 105 on stage, full of displeasure, thinking, 'I thought my Primordial Spirit value of 99 would be the top of this batch, increasing my pass rate. But now there's someone with 105?'
Hearing his name called, Zhou Bai stepped up, focused his mind, and injected his Primordial Spirit force into the spherical detector floating in mid-air in front of him.
Instantly, the number 99 jumped onto the big screen, but this time no one gasped, as everyone was still immersed in the shock of the 105 Primordial Spirit value.
"Tch!" Zhou Bai pouted, following the leaving queue to the next examination hall.
At this moment, in an office, several Dao School teachers were watching the entrance test situation through surveillance footage.
"This year, a total of 12,000 students passed the first round." An old white-haired man sighed, "Children with the talent to cultivate are becoming fewer. Heaven truly does not favor our human race."
"Principal, although the number is smaller, the number of elites has increased." A young woman with sword-like eyebrows, starry eyes, a ponytail, and wearing a leather jacket said, "There are 25 candidates with a Primordial Spirit value of 99, and even one whose Primordial Spirit value reached 105."
The female teacher mused, "As the distortion of the Heavenly Dao intensifies, it becomes increasingly challenging for ordinary people to cultivate. But for geniuses, the process of gaining power has become even faster."
The old man known as the principal, but in fact the vice-principal, Zhao Shouyi nodded, "A Primordial Spirit value of 105? Could it be Zuo Dao from the Zuo Family?"
"It is him. This kid's talent is remarkable, and his future achievements could be limitless." The female teacher praised, "He is likely to be the champion this time."
On the other side, as the first test ended, the number of candidates was refreshed to 12,000, randomly assigned to different places for the second test.
Zhou Bai and other candidates stood in a large plaza. Although the sky was still filled with endless floating buildings, the entire plaza was as bright as day under the artificial sunlight.
Zhou Bai stood in place, listening to Christina, "Zhou Bai, I must have been here before. It feels so familiar."
Zhou Bai looked at the bright, clean Dao School, incomparable to the lower ground area, and sighed, "This place compared to below is like the difference between a rich area and a slum."
Just then, a voice sounded beside Zhou Bai's ear, "Though the environment above is good, it's also more dangerous during battles.
The layout of Donghua City is such that the higher the area, the larger it is, and the stronger people there are, like layers of defense protecting below.
This is to have stronger individuals above protecting the weaker ones below during Heavenly Demon attacks. The ground, where the civilians reside, is actually the safest."
Zhou Bai turned to see a short-haired, energetic girl in sportswear standing in front of him, smiling, "I'm Jing Xiu, and you are Zhou Bai, right?"
Zhou Bai: "Do we know each other?"
"We were just in the same line for the Primordial Spirit value test; we both have a Primordial Spirit value of 99." Jing Xiu smiled, "Although there are second and third rounds of tests, people with a Primordial Spirit value of 99 have rarely been eliminated in the second or third rounds. You know the kind of determination and comprehension it takes to achieve this before turning 20."
Zhou Bai nodded, "Indeed."
"So..." Jing Xiu extended her hand with a smile, "Hello, fellow student."
"Hello." Zhou Bai shook hands with her.