"What? Not within the safe zone? What if we encounter a beast wave?""Yeah, why do we have to go to such a dangerous place just for an entrance exam?"
"..."
Just a single sentence set off a wave of complaints among many of the candidates.
Sitting in his seat, Lin Su's expression froze for a moment before he quickly regained his composure.
These complaining candidates probably hadn't thoroughly understood how Mountain City University conducted their entrance exams in previous years because similar situations had occurred several times before.
Though not common, it wasn't without precedent.
Just keep listening then.
Seeing many candidates getting noisy, the male teacher revealed a smile that did not quite reach his eyes and remained silent, simply watching those who were speaking.
Only when the outspoken candidates realized that the atmosphere was off and their voices gradually faded until they stopped speaking altogether did the teacher let out a cold snort, "This is not a time of peace. To become an outstanding Beast Tamer, one must see blood, experience the brutality beyond the safe zones!"
"To this day, there are thousands of Beast Tamers stationed outside every safe zone, guarding daily against the beast organizations' waves, assaulting the cities. Your peaceful lives are possible because others carry the burden and march forward!" The teacher's expression was solemn, "Mountain City University does not admit cowards! Whether you're enrolling in combat or research, at this moment, there will be no difference in the practical combat examination items."
Seeing that the candidates were silent, deep in thought, the teacher's tone softened slightly, "Of course, Mountain City University would not ignore the safety of our candidates. The examination area has been swept clean, only juvenile-stage and elite-stage beasts are left, and numerous teachers are within the examination boundaries responsible for security."
"With this said, if there are still candidates who feel it's too dangerous, you can leave the bus now, which will be considered a forfeiture of the exam," the teacher said, his gaze lingering on the candidates who were noisy earlier.
However, at this moment, those candidates were bowing their heads in silence, as if the complaints earlier hadn't come from them.
"Cherish your own lives; I'm not joking. If you feel it's dangerous, the transport hasn't departed yet; there's still time to leave!" the teacher repeated, and seeing that the candidates were still not speaking, he nodded slightly, "Since no one is withdrawing, let's talk about the content of this exam."
"This time, for Mountain City University's entrance exam, there are 10,232 Beast Tamer candidates," the teacher paused slightly, "but the admission plan for this session of the university only accommodates 4,000 students!"
"So, although it's regrettable, 60 percent of you candidates will be eliminated and will only have the option to apply to other Beast Tamer Universities," the teacher said with a hint of regret, glancing unintentionally at a certain spot. Sёarch* The novёlF~ire.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.
Lin Su blinked, somewhat baffled.
Why are you looking at me?
It's not like the excessive number of applicants has anything to do with me...
Wait, maybe it's not entirely unrelated?
Recalling how he had helped Mountain City University win first place in the Breeding Achievement Competition, Lin Su's expression became slightly awkward.
Perhaps... it really is related?
That's a bit embarrassing...
Forget it, just act as if nothing happened.
Lin Su cleared his throat and continued to listen.
The male teacher did not dwell further on this issue. He resumed, "In the area designated for practical combat exams, we have hidden a large number of magical objects in advance."
"A magical object looks like this." The teacher took out a glowing piece of jade, the size of a fingertip, from his pocket, "Just like this stone, there are 20,464 pieces hidden in the practical combat examination grounds, twice the number of candidates taking the entrance exam."
"From the name of this stone, you can guess it's related to passing the exam." The teacher handed the magical object to a candidate next to him, signaling everyone to take turns inspecting it while he spoke louder, "The first rule of the exam, make sure you listen carefully!"
"If you don't have a single magical object in your possession when the practical combat exam ends, you will receive a score of zero for the practical combat portion. No matter how well you perform in other aspects, without a magical object, the score is still zero."
With these words, the candidates' expressions became serious as they silently passed around the magical object, carefully memorizing its features, afraid they wouldn't be able to find even one and thus fail the exam.
Lin Su raised his eyebrows slightly.
It doesn't sound too difficult.
On average, each candidate could obtain two magical objects; there was always hope to find them.
Plus, more than twenty thousand pieces scattered around one area can't all be hard to find.
Is the practical combat exam this easy?
However, as he was thinking this, the male teacher spoke again.
"The second rule of the exam! At the end of the practical combat exam, anyone ranked beyond 6,000th place will be scored zero for practical combat," the teacher said with a smirk in his eyes, "and for each magical object, you get ten points with no upper limit."
Lin Su's eyes widened, his face showing shock.
That's harsh!
He took back his earlier thoughts; just these two rules layered on top of each other were enough to reveal the ruthlessness of this exam.
To get into the top 6,000, candidates would naturally try to collect as many magical objects as possible; the ideal scenario of everyone getting their fair share was impossible now.
Not far from him, a bespectacled young man suddenly raised his hand. After receiving a nod from the teacher, he asked, "Teacher, besides magical objects, are there other ways to earn points?"