Bi Mo Zhi Jian

Chapter 245 The First Esoteric Knowledge Examination (Part 1 of 2)

On the bus to the airport, the slightly plump student Wang Fan put on his earphones and was engrossed in a news livestream on his phone.

Inside, a reporter with a standard oval face and a sweet smile followed the camera to a devastated woodland.

"Viewers, this area behind me is the source of the emergency evacuation in Lindong City some time ago. As you can see, it's a mess, as if a Category 12 typhoon has passed through. This was also why the Investigation Bureau demanded Lindong City to carry out a city-wide emergency evacuation at the time."

"In this disaster, through the joint efforts of the Investigation Bureau and various parties, we achieved a glorious victory and did not let any anomalies set foot in Lindong City."

"They are heroes, our silent guardians, the heroes of Donghuang."

"Now, let's interview Director Zhou Hai."

Live comments flooded the screen.

Some shouted "wife" at the reporter, but most people were focused on the major disaster that day.

"So it was actually that serious, no, tragic! Such an intense battle erupted in places we couldn't see!"

"I'm from Lindong City. At that time, we were forced to evacuate. I was very unhappy, especially since I was only halfway through my business. But now I just want to say thank you."

"+1+1, we evacuated at noon and returned in the evening. I still thought they were overreacting, a major disaster? We came back soon, and no part of Lindong was missing. But now it seems the disaster wasn't less serious, it's just that it was all blocked in places we couldn't see."

"Salute to the heroes!"

"Salute to the heroes!"

"Salute to the heroes!"

"When will the Investigation Bureau start recruiting full-time? Although I weigh 200 pounds, have high blood pressure and cholesterol, and am nearsighted by a thousand degrees, I also have a heart to protect my country!"

Wang Fan's gaze shifted from the reporter with a first-love face to the comments, and he felt a surge of joy.

He was there at the time, a hero, and he never expected to be called a hero himself one day.

It was as refreshing as drinking iced watermelon juice on a hot summer day.

Uh, but... they, the trainees, were present, but except for helping with the initial defenses, they spent the rest of the time spectating.

Being called a hero made him feel a little ashamed.

He wasn't worthy yet.

At least, at least he should have killed a few anomalies to be worthy of the name hero.

The classmate sharing his earphones nodded,

"I think so too. When we finish our advanced studies, we'll be able to go to the real battlefield. I just don't know where we'll be studying."

"I heard it's not at headquarters, but in a special place. Oh, I'm so excited!"

"Who isn't excited!"

Wang Fan thought.

Ye Luo's performance in the assessment was outstanding, so he might awaken soon, but his own progress was even more astonishing.

At first, he participated in the assessment just to try. Then, he trained hard with the intention of not being last. After that, he stood out from thousands of trainees.

He was actually this strong?

He truly had the talent of a protagonist! This time, he also got a special opportunity. Even though Ye Luo had already awakened, Emperor Wang Fan was confident he could catch up and surpass him.

He would rise from obscurity and suppress the entire era.

Hahaha—!

Hoo~

Several special planes from the Investigation Bureau landed on the runway of the Xin Huo · Pacific Base.

The misty landscape outside the window and the magnificent buildings in the distance came into view for the trainees.

Excitement, eagerness, and shouts of joy filled the air.

These trainees, along with many official investigators, were visiting for the first time, but some were returning for advanced courses.

They were familiar with the routine.

Led by these veteran investigators, Wang Fan and the other trainees boarded vehicles directly for the new recruit reception area.

It was bustling with activity. Given that many foreign students had come to the Investigation Bureau, the reception area, a small department with only a dozen staff members, had to dispatch tasks and bring in some instructors and teaching assistants to help as temporary employees.

Only teaching assistants could take on this role.

Ordinary trainees and graduates were not qualified for this task.

The reception area represented the face of Xin Huo. It had to receive not only ordinary foreign students who had not yet awakened but also foreign students undergoing advanced studies, or elites from various countries preparing to go to the 'Land of Awakening' for the first time.

The requirements were high, and the benefits were also substantial.

Ye Luo, with his status as a teaching assistant, secured the "Silver Receptionist" position at the New Recruit Reception Area.

He was responsible for receiving high-ranking officials, powerful individuals, or larger groups of foreign students from various countries.

At this moment, seeing a group of foreign students from Donghuang approaching, Ye Luo stepped forward to greet them.

In the group,

Wang Fan and the other trainees were listening to the introductions from the veteran instructors, marveling in awe.

"Here, there are all sorts of facilities and nutrient potions. If you train hard, one day's improvement can equal half a month or a month of normal training?"

"And as long as you pass the assessment for an awakening spot, there's a high probability of awakening?"

"Here, second-tier individuals are everywhere, and first-tier individuals are less common than dogs?"

"Hiss~! Does such a place exist in the world!"

The outstanding trainees from the Investigation Bureau training camp were currently like bumpkins entering the city, unable to suppress their exclamations.

And they were impatient.

Impatient to start training, impatient to pass the assessment and awaken.

However, before that, they still had to complete their registration as foreign students. This was the starting point, after which they would become stronger step by step, defeat their good friends, and reach the peak of awakening.

This was what Wang Fan thought.

Wang Fan heard a familiar voice.

Wang Fan saw a familiar figure.

The receptionist, wearing silver-trimmed attire, seemed to be a teaching assistant here.

What is a teaching assistant?

Trainee →→ Graduate →→ Outstanding Graduate →→ Teaching Assistant!

Damn!

I haven't even started, and you've secretly reached the finish line? Dog Ye!

If heaven gave birth to Fan, why also give birth to Luo!

Annoying!

Student Wang Fan was hit hard and collapsed.

As a large number of trainees from the Investigation Bureau arrived at the Pacific Base, planes from countries like Sunset, Wave, and White Bear also landed around the same time.

Over a hundred figures disembarked from the special plane of Sunset Country.

Among them were advanced study trainees, new foreign students, and powerful individuals from the Night Watch organization who were not foreign students but had purchased awakening spots.

"Uncle Yul, this is Xin Huo's training base. The place we're going now is called the New Recruit Reception Area. Afterward, we'll have to do some simple tests, including a physical test, a willpower test, a mystery accumulation test, and so on. Only after passing these tests can we proceed to the Land of Awakening."

"Yes, that's about it."

Princess Anna, who had come here, seemed much livelier, as if she were back home, introducing everything to Yul and the others with great enthusiasm.

Her words were filled with pride.

It was as if the one introducing them wasn't the Princess of Sunset Country, but a receptionist from Xin Huo.

Must be an illusion.

Yul shook his head and looked around. Blue sky, white clouds, misty, with occasional glimpses of magical plants, and people flying through the sky.

Some flew with the wind, some with swords, some on hoverboards, and some on broomsticks.

They all seemed very powerful!

That made sense. Even if one had the ability to fly, without a strong foundation, they couldn't fly. These people were at least second-tier awakened individuals!

And around them…

People hurried past everywhere. Yul didn't find it strange. The training atmosphere at Xin Huo was very intense. Every trainee was training with all their might, not daring to waste a single moment.

Some were exercising their abilities while walking, their bodies wreathed in flames; some were carrying rocks as large as small mountains; some were running at lightning speed.

Were there too many experts among these people?

He, Yul, was the second most important figure in Sunset Country and one of the top three strongest experts, but here he seemed… very ordinary.

As expected of Xin Huo's headquarters, filled with experts everywhere!

Registration, then testing.

Including Yul, there were a total of 62 elites and experts from the Night Watch organization. They had come prepared and naturally had some prior understanding of the requirements. They had selected veteran Night Watch members who were in the first or second tier.

A long time had passed since their last awakening, and many had even undergone mystical purification to suppress their awakening.

They all passed the mystery accumulation test.

They also all passed the willpower test, as they were elites. However, some passed with just a satisfactory grade, others with good, and some with excellent.

For the physical test, a few people were slightly short and did not meet the safe standard for awakening.

To address this, Xin Huo thoughtfully prepared Type II Physical Enhancement Elixirs and Mental Enhancement Elixirs.

These elixirs were difficult to produce and their ingredients were precious. They were being sold exceptionally to outsiders who were not trainees.

Sun Hao said with a smile, "So they're a bit more expensive. Mr. Yul, you can understand, right?"

Yul understood.

Yul, with tears in his eyes, paid.

He didn't want to see the Night Watch elites who came with him leave in disappointment without even getting in. Besides, this was being paid for by the organization's account, not his personal one.

He didn't feel that much pain in paying.

"Then please follow me. Stay close for the rest of the way."

Sun Hao and several other formal Xin Huo personnel led the way towards the Land of Awakening, located on a mountain peak over a hundred meters high on the western side of the island.

This Land of Awakening looked almost identical to the Xin Huo village Land of Awakening they had visited before, except this one lacked a certain ancient charm.

The effect was the same.

They were unaware that this 'Second Legacy Land' inherited the awakening legacy from the 'First Legacy Land,' and with accumulated awakenings over generations, the awakening benefits for first and second tiers were now complete, and the awakening benefits for third tier were already quite high.

This was the meaning of passing down traditions.

The predecessors blazed the trail, and the successors followed this path to its end, accepting their responsibility, and continuing to forge ahead.

One day, this path might reach its destination.

Heading west, out of the main activity areas for trainees, the surroundings became much quieter.

Only the chirping of insects and birds, and the rustling of leaves could be heard.

The group walked along a path paved with gravel. Before reaching a dense forest, they saw that the trees were lush, with roots crisscrossing and seemingly blocking the entire gravel path, leaving no room to go around.

At this moment, Sun Hao stepped forward a few paces, took out a silver token emitting a faint halo, and respectfully called out, "Old Man Qing Ye."

As soon as his voice fell, it was as if a switch was flipped.

The crisscrossing tree roots in front of them came to life, burrowing in and out like earth dragons. The dense forest that completely blocked the path slowly parted to the sides, revealing a road buried beneath the tree roots.

"These trees are… are they alive? They're all alive!"

Yul was startled.

Even in this mystical era, where people could control fire and lightning, seeing these treants, which only existed in stories, still caused him immense shock.

Princess Anna was not surprised, her snow-white chin slightly raised, like a proud swan.

"What's so strange about that? They're just treants!"

She selectively ignored her own embarrassment the first time she came. She was a princess, elegant, how could she have her jaw drop in surprise like Uncle Yul and the others?

Impossible, humph humph.

As the dense forest parted, their vision moved forward along the mountain path paved with gravel. They saw an ancient tree dozens of meters tall, its canopy swaying. Countless green leaves fell from it, swirling and dancing around the ancient tree, as if they had entered a world of leaves in an instant.

A wizened human face slowly appeared on the trunk of the ancient tree.

He was Qing Ye! The second person of the Qing character generation... the second tree demon, ordered to guard this Land of Awakening.

"You have arrived. The Land of Awakening is ahead. Go."

A leisurely voice echoed through the forest.

Yul's eyes widened. Seeing the dancing leaves around him, he stepped forward and bowed slightly, "Old Man Qing Ye, I represent Sunset Country in thanking you for your rescue."

A legendary tree demon!

He could create a world of leaves with a single thought!

Such astonishing power made Yul immediately think of the Tree World that appeared in Fog City during the Red Moon disaster.

The hero who saved Fog City at that time must have been this Old Man Qing Ye!

He had to express his gratitude, and if he could foster a closer relationship, that would be even better, as this person was very likely the second strongest in the Xin Huo organization, second only to that mentor!

Lord of the Tree World · Qing Ye!

Detective Yul made this judgment.

But after he spoke, silence suddenly fell upon the scene. After a long pause, the wizened human face on the tree trunk slowly spoke, accompanied by the roots moving around like earth dragons.

"Does my appearance suggest I could cross thousands of miles to your Sunset Country?"

Yul paused.

The Night Watch elites who had similar thoughts paused.

Anna also looked a little embarrassed, her expression reminiscent of her actions the first time she visited.

After a while,

"Cough..." Yul collected himself, without much embarrassment, and said, "Old man, may I presume to ask for the honorific name of that person?"

"It is Miss Liu Shang and Miss Liu Ji."

The old tree demon replied.

After hearing this, Yul thanked him and silently noted down these two names, while also being secretly alarmed.

In Xin Huo, how many powerful individuals possessed unimaginable strength? Besides these three, there must be others.

Regardless, they had seen only a tip of the iceberg of Xin Huo today.

The Land of Awakening, the guardian tree demons, etc. These were the foundations of the ancient organization Xin Huo.

With complex thoughts, Yul walked further in.

Among the crowd,

Anna, Iris, and the other five did not go further. After seeing off the Night Watch elites, they left the 'Mountain of Awakening' and took the base's train to the academy district.

They had already checked in.

However, today, the academy district had an important arrangement—a comprehensive written exam on mystical studies.

"Whether we can study advanced courses depends on today's exam."

"Indeed, and this exam is different from our previous classroom quizzes. It's a comprehensive exam that integrates multiple subjects and knowledge points. The difficulty is estimated to be different, so don't be careless."

On the train, Anna and the others gradually fell silent. They took out the textbooks they had brought with them and began to review.

At the same time,

In the academy district, the teaching building.

Many staff members were setting up the examination hall for this comprehensive exam.

The admission requirement this time was a graduate level, and the content of the assessment was "Fundamentals of Mystical Studies." Although it was fundamental, it covered subjects such as "Understanding Anomalies from Scratch," "Mysteries and Awakenings," "Application of Abilities," "Basic Analysis of Materials," "Passing Down Traditions," and "Viewing the World from a Mystical Perspective."

Among the mandatory subjects, except for a few from the advanced course "General Knowledge of the Anomaly Realm," all other knowledge points were covered.

Theoretically, all graduates had learned the knowledge points for this exam.

But in reality, most Xin Huo trainees had only studied for ten to fifteen days, during which they also had to balance training and other activities. Passing the Fundamentals of Mystical Studies exam was by no means an easy task.

Participation in this exam was not mandatory for graduates.

It was up to personal choice.

However, only by passing the Fundamentals of Mystical Studies exam could one study more profound knowledge. At the same time, only with proof of passing this exam could one serve as a lecturer at the training base.

Simultaneously with the introduction of this new regulation, the base also increased the salary for the position of cultural lecturer, which greatly attracted a group of graduates.

Especially those with weaker abilities.

Previously, training camp lecturers were mostly held by veteran graduates, but there was no standard for evaluation. This time, it was standardized.

Increased benefits, raised the threshold.

This was to prevent the emergence of so many academically poor students, especially high-level academically poor students like Yi Luoxi.

"Ahchoo—!"

Yi Luoxi sneezed, shook her head in confusion, and said excitedly to Bai Yan Si on the video, "Did you hear that? The mentor promised to let me leave if I can get a passing grade in this exam."

"Just watch, a mere basic assessment can't stump this president!"

"It's only sixty points, you're underestimating me. I'll at least get seventy, no, eighty!"

She said to herself.

Bai Yan Si on the other side of the video completely agreed, "Ah yes, yes, you're right."

Po Li and the other girls who came with Yi Luoxi were holding thick textbooks in their hands; they had just returned from collecting their textbooks.

Po Li flipped through the textbook a little, looking at the dizzying content, and then looked at the full of confidence President Yi.

A question mark appeared on her forehead.

President, who gave you the confidence?

The exam was scheduled for 9 PM, a time when most people were relatively free.

As the time approached, graduates from various periods who aspired to obtain the certificate began to arrive from different places. Among them were graduates from the Xin Huo headquarters, but there were also many graduates from foreign countries.

"Old Zhou, you're here too? You're a busy person now."

A young man wearing a baseball cap raised an eyebrow.

The middle-aged old man looked over, also somewhat surprised, "I'm currently in charge of cultural education within the state bureau, so of course, I have to see how Xin Huo sets its questions."

"I also have inside information, the person setting the questions this time is the mentor."

The old man, Zhou Hai, Deputy Director of the Baiyun State Bureau, said, and then asked, "I just didn't expect you to come too."

"Ha~! I heard that the top ten in the written assessment will receive bonus points. With those points, I can exchange for an awakening spot. This time, I'll definitely awaken!"

"I have a premonition that once I awaken, my ability will be earth-shattering!"

Jiang Ting Qiu smirked.

Zhou Hai shook his head,

"Give it a rest. You've failed to awaken twice already. Even I can't help you apply now. However, getting a mystical studies diploma is good. You might be able to become a lecturer in the future, and you don't necessarily have to go to the battlefield."

"Get lost, don't underestimate me."

The two walked into the examination hall together.

Yi Luoxi walked into the examination hall full of confidence.

Xing Jinglei was also called back and walked into the examination hall.

The Liu Ji trio, with the mission of becoming cultured plant monsters of the new era, also walked into the examination hall.

— — External remarks — —

Two chapters combined, sob!