Upper, Middle, and Lower Grade

Kaiyuan sixth and seventh levels, opening eye apertures.

There were almost no students in South Yuan who opened their eye apertures locally. At least, Su Yu hadn't seen any. Except for Su Yu, almost everyone in exam room five, who followed Old Xie, was from Great Xia Prefecture.

At this moment, Su Yu was surrounded by people from Great Xia Prefecture.

Su Yu was actually a bit curious. He also saw the student who had exchanged papers with him earlier and asked in a low voice, "Are students at Kaiyuan sixth and seventh levels unable to get admitted in Great Xia Prefecture?"

That seemed a bit exaggerated, right?

Even in Great Xia Prefecture, the probability of getting admitted at the sixth or seventh level should be quite high, shouldn't it?

The boy who was asked looked up at Old Xie's side. Seeing that he wasn't looking back, he also whispered, "Sixth and seventh levels aren't considered top-tier in Great Xia Prefecture, but they're considered average. The probability of getting admitted isn't small, but the realm isn't the only factor."

The boy explained in a low voice, "Besides the basic assessment of realm, there will also be in-depth assessments later, you know?"

"Yes, the riding and archery assessments are mandatory every year."

Su Yu nodded, but he was still confused. "Does this have anything to do with being in South Yuan or not?"

"Of course, it does!"

The boy said helplessly, "Riding and archery are also bonus points, but in Great Xia Prefecture, there are too many people who have mastered them. If we go to take the exam, we'll definitely be at the bottom, unable to get bonus points. Under normal circumstances, only those with high rankings get bonus points."

"In Great Xia Prefecture, those at Kaiyuan eighth and ninth levels occupy all the spots, so we have no hope."

"If we come to South Yuan... Although South Yuan is small, if you perform well, it's easier to get bonus points."

Su Yu nodded slightly, but then asked again, "Those above 200 points are almost guaranteed admission. If you score more, besides first place, the gap between other rankings isn't that large, right?"

"It's clear you don't understand these things!"

The boy shook his head. "Since you've followed along, it means you're above Kaiyuan fifth level. You should know that 200 points can get you into the War Academy, but even after getting in, there are different tiers. All the major academies divide students into nine ranks!"

"Lower-lower, lower-middle, lower-upper... all the way to the most outstanding upper-upper!"

The boy gritted his teeth. "Students in the lower ranks have the worst treatment in the academy. They don't have dedicated teachers to guide them, and it's actually very difficult to get in. It's just a nominal title. At least you need to reach the middle ranks to have a chance to come into contact with more things."

"Anything below 300 points is considered a lower-rank student!"

"So, you must score above 300 points to truly enter the War Academy."

The boy looked at Su Yu sympathetically. "The War Academy, besides cultural classes and realm assessments, the most important thing is the practical assessment. The bonus points are very high. The bonus points from the practical assessment are almost equivalent to the bonus points from the Divine Script assessment in the Civilization Academy."

"That's why we came to South Yuan. We hope to perform better and get a higher ranking, which can add some bonus points. In Great Xia Prefecture, people like us have almost no hope of getting bonus points."

Su Yu understood and nodded slightly. He then glanced at the girl in front and said in a low voice, "The competition pressure is high at the sixth and seventh levels. What about the eighth level? Those at the eighth level should be considered geniuses, right? Why did they come here too?"

He could feel the Qi gathering around the girl in front, which indicated that she was at least at the Kaiyuan eighth level.

"Eighth level?"

This boy wasn't a student applying for the Civilization Academy and wasn't too familiar with Wu Lan. He followed Su Yu's gaze and hesitated, "I'm not sure. Could it be to get first place in South Yuan? At the Kaiyuan eighth level, they are also considered geniuses in Great Xia Prefecture, or perhaps they only have the realm but are very poor in other aspects, which is why they came to South Yuan to play it safe."

Su Yu stopped asking. At this moment, everyone had arrived at another exam venue.

Old Xie looked at the students following behind him with a calm expression. "The assessment for the sixth and seventh levels is worth a total of 80 points. The basic assessment is very simple; you just need to be quick and accurate! In this room, 100 balls will be thrown, 80 of which are red and 20 are white."

"Catching one red ball earns one point, and catching one white ball deducts one point. You need to catch them as quickly as possible. If you can't distinguish them in time and catch all of them, you can still get 60 points, to avoid missing a large number of red balls."

In front of them were a total of 5 small rooms.

There were only about 10 people, so they would be assessed in two rounds.

Old Xie added, "The throwing time is very short, two minutes in total, with a one-second interval between each throw! I remind you again to allocate your stamina and energy reasonably. You should know that sometimes giving up is harder than persevering! If you expend too much energy in this round, I'm worried you won't be able to last through the subsequent assessments."

Su Yu and the others remained silent. This assessment was not beyond the scope of their studies.

There were several assessment methods for the Kaiyuan sixth and seventh levels, and this method had been used before. Middle-tier academies also conducted some related training.

Of course, that was in Great Xia Prefecture.

South Yuan only mentioned it and rarely conducted training. It wasn't that South Yuan didn't value it, but rather that there were almost no students above the sixth or seventh level in South Yuan each year.

"The five of you, go in, don't waste time!"

Old Xie said with a light shout, pointing at five people. Someone nearby began to supervise and count.

Su Yu was not among them, but he watched very attentively.

Before this, Su Yu had hardly done any related training because he had advanced too quickly and didn't have time for training.

The five students were slightly nervous and quickly walked in.

As soon as they entered, a machine in the room began to spray balls at a high speed.

"Bang!"

At the first impact, a student was hit. Not only did he fail to catch it, but he was also hit on the head by the ball.

Old Xie frowned slightly and shouted, "If you can't keep up with the rhythm, you'll get hurt too! Judge for yourself whether to give up..."

Before he finished speaking, the second ball was thrown. The speed was not slow, and the impact force was not small.

Except for the person who was just hit, who was a bit flustered, the others caught the balls with relative ease.

However, in such a short period, not only did they have to catch the fast-thrown balls, but they also had to distinguish between red and white. The throwing speed was very fast, making it difficult to distinguish. Often, their minds would react, but their bodies would involuntarily reach out to catch some white balls.

The balls were thrown, not in a straight line, but sometimes in an arc. The students had to run quickly in small rooms.

In less than a minute, three out of the five students were panting, struggling to catch their breath.

One of them had a face that was bruised purple, having been hit by the balls several times.

Su Yu had been secretly counting for the person and couldn't help but sigh, "Caught 32 red balls, 8 white balls, for 24 points."

He couldn't tell if that person was at the fifth or sixth level of Kaiyuan. Regardless of their level, it seemed difficult for them to even reach 30 points.

Now he understood why some students who had reached the required realm often couldn't get full marks.

Thinking about this, he looked at the girl in another room. She was amazing!

In one minute, she handled about 50 balls, catching 42 red balls, which was all of them. She didn't catch any white balls, meaning she currently had a perfect score.

"Something's not right..."

Su Yu could feel the difficulty. It required consciousness to keep up with the body, and both body and consciousness needed to be strong.

The girl's strength wasn't weak, but she seemed very relaxed, often even predicting the red and white balls. This was a manifestation of willpower.

"Her willpower is very strong!"

Su Yu frowned slightly. This meant that the girl might not only be participating in the War Academy assessment but might also be a candidate for the Civilization Academy.

As for catching the balls, Su Yu was confident.

His willpower wasn't weak either. With an interval of just over a second, which was quite long, he could quickly distinguish between red and white and was confident he could catch them all. However, it seemed the competition for first place in the War Academy this time would be fierce.

This was only testing room number 5, and there were still four more rooms to go.

While he was thinking, two minutes passed.

Some students had already given up and didn't continue.

Old Xie didn't mind. As they came out, he quickly announced, "80 points, 65 points, 60 points, 32 points, 24 points!"

These were the assessment scores of the first five students.

The results of this round were the most straightforward!

The student who scored 24 points looked a bit dejected. He was at the sixth level of Kaiyuan. By all rights, 30 points was considered passing, but now he had inexplicably lost 6 points.

He was dejected, and so were the others. A student at the seventh level of Kaiyuan scored 80 points. Except for the girl who achieved a perfect score, none of them had managed to get all the points.

"Continue!"

Old Xie looked at Su Yu and the others. They quickly entered their rooms.

The machine immediately began throwing round balls again.

In the room.

Although Su Yu hadn't undergone specific training, he had watched for a while and had now grasped the general knack.

His willpower manifested slightly. He stared at the machine's ejection port. As soon as a ball came out, he sensed its color and trajectory.

Bang!

The ball hit his hand. Su Yu caught it and casually tossed it aside. It was red.

His eyes emitted a faint glow as Su Yu opened his eye apertures, making everything appear very clear.

"Using willpower is like cheating... Of course, this is my own ability, but I'll try to see if I can do it without willpower..."

Su Yu suppressed his willpower and began to catch the balls using his opened eye apertures.

Fortunately, even with his willpower turned off, he found it relatively easy.

With quick eyes and hands, Su Yu's movements were not slow. He had practiced basic skills for many years, and his hand acupoints had been tempered through his rigorous training with the Thunder Origin Blade. Catching the balls now was quite effortless.

Outside, Old Xie nodded slightly, a smile appearing on his face.

He could sense that Su Yu was using his willpower.

This was considered cheating, but since his willpower had been cultivated, it was his own ability, so he didn't say anything.

However, when Su Yu caught the second ball without using his willpower, Old Xie also sensed it. "Good," he thought, "I like this kind of student."

You can use your abilities, but that doesn't stop me from looking down on you!

For example, Wu Lan, the girl from before. Old Xie didn't like her much. She had a perfect score, but using willpower during the War Academy assessment—was that still an assessment of one's realm?

Was having strong willpower really that impressive?

If you have the ability, go take the Civilization Academy assessment. The War Academy looks at whether your physical realm meets the standards, not whether your willpower meets the standards.

Two minutes later, Su Yu came out, breathing heavily.

Old Xie smiled, "Not bad, 80 points, a perfect score! Although you looked a bit disheveled, you got full marks for the sixth and seventh levels of Kaiyuan! Your rapid advancement and ability to get a perfect score show that your basic skills are very solid. It seems these five years weren't wasted!"

Old Xie was beaming, his attitude completely different from how he had treated Wu Lan, who had also achieved a perfect score.

Beside him, Wu Lan's expression was grim.

She had also gotten a perfect score, but Old Xie had barely acknowledged it, simply stating her score before moving on.

Wu Lan, being proud, couldn't help herself and said softly, "Teacher, 80 points is just a basic ability in Great Xia Prefecture..."

Old Xie said indifferently, "Yes, but this isn't Great Xia Prefecture. The key is that some people can't even get 80 points based purely on their realm!"

After speaking, Old Xie muttered, "Little brat, not applying to the War Academy, just wasting exam resources!"

Wu Lan was speechless.

Old Xie was a sharp observer. Su Yu still had a chance to switch to the War Academy, but this little girl had no such possibility. Unless something unexpected happened, she would definitely go to the Civilization Academy.

Since they weren't going down the same path, he couldn't be bothered to recruit her.

Her older sister was a genius teaching assistant at Daxia Civilization Academy, as stated in her records. However, Old Xie couldn't be bothered to curry favor. The girl was very proud, and it also depended on who she was dealing with.

He, Old Xie, was also a powerhouse in the Soaring Realm. He wasn't necessarily afraid of her.

Of course, it was just an assessment, no need to offend anyone, but there was also no need to flatter her. He just needed to do his job as an examiner.

Did Wu Qi dare to cause trouble for him over such a trivial matter?

Did he really think the Dragon Martial Guard was a pushover?

Old Xie didn't care at all!

Beside him, Su Yu also felt everyone's gaze on him. He couldn't help but find it amusing. This Old Xie... was truly realistic!

He wanted Su Yu to apply to the Dragon Martial Academy and praised him in front of everyone. Wasn't this just creating enemies for him?

Of course, Su Yu didn't care.

Getting a good assessment score and being praised by the teacher was a display of ability. He didn't need to bother with what others thought.

Old Xie checked the time and continued, "The basic assessment for the first seven levels of Kaiyuan ends here. Including the cultural subjects with a perfect score of 100, the total maximum score is 270 points. The eighth and ninth levels have another 100 points, archery has a perfect score of 100 points, and practical combat has a perfect score of 100 points, for a total of 570 points. With an additional 3 or more merit points, the total score will exceed 600 points."

Old Xie looked at Su Yu and smiled, "Su Yu, only with a score of 600 or above will you be rated as 'superior' in the War Academy! Therefore, superior students are very rare in the War Academy. You are only at the eighth level of Kaiyuan, and even with the additional merit points, you may not have a chance to get a superior rating!"

200 points was considered passing, below 300 points was considered inferior, 300-600 points was considered average, and above 600 points was considered superior.

Su Yu calculated and felt a bit dejected. It seemed he might not be able to achieve a superior rating.

He didn't get a perfect score in cultural subjects. Even if he got 80 points, and full marks in other subjects, he currently only had 250 points.

Of course, besides the Myriad Races language, he had accumulated 10 merit points, which counted as 100 bonus points, bringing his total score to 350 points.

"Unless I get full marks for the eighth level of Kaiyuan, full marks for archery, and full marks for practical combat, a total of 250 points, I can reach 600 points, just barely meeting the standard."

Su Yu calculated that only if he got full marks in the remaining assessments could he achieve the superior rating.

Even then, it would only be the lowest tier of superior, with a rating of 'upper-lower'.

Su Yu was curious and couldn't help but ask, "Teacher, what about the 'super-superior' rating? What's the score for that?"

"Let's talk as we walk. We're going to other locations for further assessments! All students from five examination rooms will participate in the other assessments together!"

Old Xie replied as he walked, "You're from Nanyuan and know too little. Your teachers felt it was unnecessary for you to know, as they were afraid of discouraging you. The strongest in Nanyuan in previous years only reached average. There's no need to consider too much."

"Super-superior... you can calculate it yourself. It's over 800 points!"

Su Yu frowned, "But even if I reach the ninth level of Kaiyuan and get full marks in cultural subjects, I still won't reach over 800 points, right?"

"Yes, that's why the super-superior ratings are all for Qianjun!"

"..."

Su Yu was speechless.

Old Xie said with a chuckle, "It's just Qianjun. You'll all reach it soon. Those at the super-superior level have not only reached Qianjun but also have very high merit points, so their cumulative scores are much higher than yours."

"Don't pay too much attention to them. Some of those guys are monsters, and some are fake monsters!" Old Xie was blunt. "Some people treat Qi Liquid like plain water, wasting resources. Even if such people are rated as super-superior, it's useless. The academy will deal with them as they see fit. No one wants to bother with those who can't be molded."

"Once you get to the academy, some powerful individuals would rather recruit Kaiyuan seventh-level cultivators from small towns than Qianjun cultivators from large families. Besides the higher treatment, there are no practical benefits, and treatment isn't that important to them. So, these fake monsters don't fare very well either!"

Old Xie's words were very direct.

If he had said this during the Great Xia Prefecture assessment, Old Xie would likely have faced immense pressure.

Behind him, Wu Lan felt uncomfortable and said in a deep voice, "Teacher, not everyone from a large family is like that..."

Old Xie was dismissive, "I didn't say all of them are! I'm just giving ordinary students some confidence. For example, in the Civilization Academy, some people master Divine Script in advance and gain hundreds of bonus points instantly. Is that fair?"

"People from small cities don't even know what Divine Script is. Some start reading Willpower Script at seven or eight years old. How can you compare?"

"Of course, those are the results of their parents' hard work, and I won't deny their contributions. For example, my own children, of course, I want to give them the best. But... comparing yourself to geniuses from small cities at the starting stage, with an attitude of 'I'm better than him'... that's a sign of immaturity and incompetence!"

Old Xie said calmly, "What can you see at this stage? Wait five or ten years, and then you'll see! That's when it's fair. If someone from an ordinary family has no achievements after more than ten years, then they are truly ordinary, not geniuses."

"With different starting points, you insist on comparing at the starting stage. What's the glory in winning? Because my father is powerful, my mother is powerful, therefore I am better than you... only the weak, the cowardly, and the incompetent think that way! True geniuses don't compare themselves to those weaker than them; they are all striving for the peak!"

Old Xie said meaningfully, "For example, Wu Qi from the Civilization Academy, she wouldn't compare herself to Liu Hong, but to Xia Yuwen from the Xia family! The broader your mind, the higher your vision, and the further you can go in the future!"

"If you want to compare, then compare yourself to those people! Su Yu, if you want to prove yourself, would you go and compare yourself to Chen Hao?"

Old Xie said with a smile, "Of course, you are still young and may not understand my words, but it's okay. You will understand in the future! The higher-level assessments are just the beginning of competition. Your parents' advantages can be reflected at this stage, but when you reach Soaring, Lingyun, Shanhai... what's the use of your father being an invincible powerhouse?"

"More resources? Guidance from experts? When you reach the stage of forging your own path, resources aren't crucial, and guidance isn't crucial either. If you truly have talent, you won't lack these things. What truly matters is yourself!"

Old Xie's words caused everyone to fall silent.

Wu Lan was silent for a while, then after a moment, she said softly, "Thank you for your guidance, teacher!"

"I didn't guide you!"

Old Xie denied it, saying indifferently, "It's not my place to guide you, I just wanted to say don't forget your original intentions, don't be influenced by random things. If you cultivate willpower and can't even withstand some rumors, if your mindset collapses, then don't bother cultivating at all, you'll never reach the Soaring Realm in your life!"

"If Liu Wenyan were like that, could he have held on until he was 70 to reach the Soaring Realm? He would have committed suicide decades ago!"

At this moment, everyone had walked to another large examination hall. Old Xie said one last sentence, "Civilization or war, everything is for the human race. Appropriate competition and comparison are necessary. Don't let jealousy and resentment consume you. Five years from now, if you have reached the Soaring Realm and he hasn't, when you look at him then, he'll be nothing special. The jealousy and envy from back then will be a joke!"

"The opposite is also true!"

Old Xie spoke for a while and had already stopped walking. At this moment, Su Yu and the others had no intention of listening. They were all staring at the large examination hall in front of them, dumbfounded!

In front of them were ten incredibly huge demonic beasts!

Yes, demonic beasts. Seeing live demonic beasts in Southern Yuan... how was this possible?

"What are you looking at? The weakest are the Cloud-Chasing Horses. Those who can control demonic beasts are not controlling the donkeys from your homes! When the assessment starts, ride on them and circle the examination hall, and that's full marks!"

"It's incredibly simple. I stopped riding these things decades ago."

Old Xie looked smug. What was this? The most trashy demonic beasts. Who would still ride these!

"Oh, right, if you fall off, or don't complete a circle, you'll lose points. Don't be afraid if you've never ridden one before. Just hold on tight to the fur. Controlling the direction is also simple, it's the same as the horse riding tutorials you usually have at the academy."

Su Yu was speechless. The academy did have such courses, but they were indeed about riding horses, not these things!

Skills like archery and riding were taught at intermediate academies, but there were too few opportunities to use them in small towns.

Learning was one thing, but to say he was proficient was something Su Yu wasn't confident about, especially now that his mount had changed to this mountain of flesh!

"Riding one circle is 50 points. Ride faster, as there are many people waiting for the assessment. First come, first served. The time limit is three minutes. If you exceed the time, it counts as a failure. There are 10 such examination halls, representing about 2,000 people participating in the assessment. Time is running out. If you haven't been assessed after the time is up, you'll get zero points. Hurry up."

10 examination halls were enough. Many people were still struggling with identifying liquids, and another group was struggling with listening comprehension.

Allocating time reasonably had been mentioned many times. Those who couldn't prioritize deserved to fail.

Su Yu and the others dared not delay. Some people were already riding on the examination grounds. The next moment, a student was thrown off the back of a giant Cloud-Chasing Horse. A proctor caught the student and casually threw him aside, "5 points, next!"

This didn't even take three minutes; it was a change every 30 seconds!

Su Yu wanted to wait a bit longer, but Old Xie pointed at him, "Su Yu, it's you! You have to strive to be first in everything. How can you win if you don't strive to be first? I have high hopes for you. Get an 'Excellent' grade this time to show them, even small places have geniuses!"

At this moment, many examiners in the hall looked over. 'Excellent'?

Could Southern Yuan produce an 'Excellent' student?

Had Old Xie drunk too much last night?