019: Recognizing Reality

Pat, pat, pat—

Li Aoz stepped into the examination room, sat down in his seat, and entered his candidate number without saying a word.

Luther couldn't help but chuckle when he saw that ' Rio ' had arrived so late. Realizing his lapse in composure, he quickly covered his face. He only breathed a sigh of relief when he realized that ' Rio ' wasn't even looking in his direction.

"This guy, I heard from others, was so upset that he cried when he discovered he hadn't awakened his Mental Power during the test. Right? At his age, this is the first time he's awakened his Mental Power —how embarrassing!"

But that's normal, after all, not everyone is qualified to become a magician.

Luther glanced at his newly issued qualification certificate: First-class magical perception - Excellent mental fluctuation - Good

Imagination - Good

Spatial perception ability - good

Logical thinking ability - good

Elemental affinity - good

"One excellent, five good—even better than last time. The Magic Vein Cultivation Fluid I spent a lot of money to get is indeed effective. With such talent, even if the written test score is a little lower, some universities will be willing to lower their admission scores."

In contrast, ' Rio ' was sitting there expressionless and indifferent, clearly having lost his mind due to the awakening of his Mental Power.

Seeing Rio's taciturn and tortured appearance, Luther felt much better. "Tch! Rio, that guy really is just a muscle-bound, simple-minded King Kong Gorilla."

Luther was full of confidence. He had made thorough preparations for this exam, and with his qualifications, he expected to achieve a score that was even lower than the passing mark.

Next came the long certification process. He remained seated throughout, while the other candidates took their seats one by one, each under strict physical and magical protection.

Five full minutes passed before the screen in front of Li Aoz finally showed that the authentication was complete, displaying a page of candidate information.

Name: Lioz

Gender: Male

[Examinee Number]: ZX120094

[Elective Courses]: "Magical Common Sense", "Basic Worldview"; [Remaining Time Today]: 7 hours, 59 minutes, and 56 seconds

[Start answering questions?]

"Today's exam is about to begin. Please check that your personal information is correct."

He raised his hand and gently tapped the screen.

[Start answering questions: Please answer within the designated exam area; answers outside this area will be considered invalid.]

The blue-green eyes reflected the densely packed course questions, and besides a calculator and scratch paper, there was nothing else to help her.

All the candidates began to bury themselves in answering the questions. Although the answer screens between them were separated by physical and magical means, one could still catch a glimpse of people working diligently and thinking.

Luther wrote furiously, his calculations were very fast, and he started with what he was best at.

This is a moment that will determine his fate. No matter how talented or gifted he is, if he cannot meet the requirements of the written test, he will not be able to truly achieve a leap forward.

"I must win! I must win! Once I become a mage, no one will ever bully me again. Rio, that little punk, only deserves to stay in the countryside and be a lazy, poor bastard for the rest of his life."

His eyes were filled with fighting spirit, remembering the bullying he had suffered at the hands of ' Rio ' in the past, his parents' aging bodies, and the girls who supported him and held deep expectations for him.

'I can't lose!'

Luther's will hardened, and he became more astute and cautious, carefully calculating and checking every problem.

'Whew, I'm on a hot streak today. I should be able to finish at least 400 questions by the end.'

He glanced at ' Rio ' briefly, then chuckled.

Rio, this guy is just staring blankly at the screen.

It wasn't calculation or reasoning; it was flipping through the pages one by one, looking at all the questions.

"Stunned, aren't you? This is the Magic Aptitude Test! The biggest exam in the entire civilization! You think you can just walk in unprepared? You might as well die. There's no chance for someone like you to get through!"

Luther was secretly pleased, and then resumed focusing on solving the problems.

Snap.

He swiped his finger across the screen, presenting the last page to Lioz.

At this point, all questions have been entered.

Lioz said nothing. He raised his hand, pushed aside the scratch paper and calculator, and then raised his hand to tap the screen.

A black and white spiral appeared in the depths of his eyes, and the question in front of him changed rapidly.

[Sequence Three · Paradox]

Assign the following properties to the answer to the question: hidden and public.

For objective questions, the ABCD options are automatically highlighted in red, key information in reading comprehension is also highlighted, experimental questions automatically display the standard steps, and subjective essay questions display the scoring points and standard template text.

The proctor walked past Lioz, glanced at Lioz's paper filled with red marks, but showed no surprise.

To the proctor, there was nothing wrong with the screen Lioz was showing; the image reflected in his eyes had no red markings whatsoever.

Lioz remained silent, then traced another line on the exam paper with his finger.

Assign characteristics to the fill-in-the-blank area: blank and filled.

The next moment, the words on the exam paper appeared neatly and uniformly.

The 3,500 objective questions, whose answers were originally highlighted in red, now appear dull and solid, like cold iron after Quenching, as if each correct answer has been chosen.

The 600 subjective questions are presented automatically in cold, concise language, relying entirely on the most standard answer templates and standard answers.

The 12 experimental questions are all conducted in strict accordance with actual operations, with no steps deviating from conventional understanding.

As for the 10,000-word argumentative essay, he only needs to follow the basic answer template. He just needs to combine his language habits and writing style, add a few lines at random, throw out a bombshell statement at the beginning to attract attention, slowly provide evidence in the middle, repeatedly refer to the topic, point out the main idea of the article, and finally repeat some quotations from famous people to fill in the word count of the article.

The paper was cold and impersonal, but it also contained no errors.

Even machines incorporate human habits and emotions during the learning process. The writing of intelligent machines may not be perfect, but it is still learned by combining human thoughts and emotions.

However, Lioz's paper was missing.

The coldness numbs the dead; the simplicity puts machines to shame.

Even the most frequently repeated articles lack any human concern. Those passionate words, aphorisms looking towards the future, and words that proclaim beauty, when combined by Lioz, become like code, devoid of any lively or vibrant spirit.

But he knew that such a test paper would be absolutely correct.

It perfectly caters to the intelligent magic spirit's judgment mechanism, without writing a single unnecessary word.

You have completed all exam content. Do you wish to submit the exam paper?

[Submission successful. Please wait here; the grading results will be released shortly.]

Luther scribbled furiously. He seemed to be divinely inspired today, and in just five minutes, he had Walkthrough sixteen questions! At this rate, he could very well finish 700, or even 800, objective questions today!

"That's amazing! I'm the only one who got kissed by Goddess of Luck today!"

Luther's eyes burned with intensity. As he got into the zone, he clearly felt that this exam wouldn't be too difficult.

"These questions are much easier. I can do it. I'm sure I can get 380 points this time. No, I only need 375 points to pass the exam and go to university!"

On the other hand, that guy ' Rio ' must be facing an incredibly difficult problem right now, and he's about to cry, right? Luther thought to himself, and casually glanced at ' Rio's ' side.

From his perspective, he could see ' Rio ' sitting in front of the screen, waiting quietly.

"Ha, just as I Rio, Rio, now you understand the pressure I've endured for so long, right? Exams aren't easy; it's a five-day marathon of exams, a true test of willpower and stamina."

Luther looked at Rio's stunned back and felt a sense of triumph.

Rio would definitely not be able to stand this feeling. Everyone around him is answering questions seriously and immersing themselves in this atmosphere, but he feels out of place and just feels like he's sitting on pins and needles, wishing he could stop answering questions and leave as soon as possible.

Snap.

Rio suddenly stood up, grabbed a piece of paper, and turned to leave.

"Hmph, couldn't resist any longer, could you?" Luther chuckled, in high spirits, and worked even harder on the problems.

The eight-hour exam was extremely difficult, and this kind of exam would continue for five days. By the afternoon, Luther was dizzy and his head was throbbing. The long hours of mental exertion had caused him to feel palpitations and dizziness, which was clearly due to low blood sugar.

"Oh no, I woke up too late today and didn't have time to eat."

He quickly stopped answering the questions, ran outside, and started eating and resting. The corridors were crowded with candidates from all over the country. Everyone took this opportunity to bite into their bread while trying to think about the questions and recall if they had made any mistakes.

A commotion arose in the distance. Luther looked up and saw the group of students from the Help-Study Association gathered together. They were eating and discussing the problems they had encountered in the exam. This was within the scope of the exam rules. If someone else had solved a problem before and obtained it through discussion outside the exam room, it would not be considered cheating.

After all, the questions here are randomly generated. The probability of encountering such an event is no lower than winning the lottery for 5 million, encountering an asteroid collision, being confessed to by six girls at the same time, and not asking for a dowry.

But Luther knew in his heart that the group of people in the Help-Study Association had relieved a great deal of psychological pressure through collective mutual assistance, and they would at least be the group with the highest completion rate among all the participants.

The vast majority of test takers break down on the third day due to pressure and excessive mental exertion, especially those who are alone in a foreign place. They are easily overwhelmed by difficult questions and the need for prolonged periods of intense concentration.

The emergence of the Help-Study Association has solved this problem to some extent. Moreover, the practice of taking turns on duty to provide logistical support has also spared the candidates from physical hardship.

Luther suddenly felt conflicted. He was now considering joining the Help-Study Association, but the thought of Rio being there made him feel nauseous.

However, he thought again: Rio has already left, and his status must have plummeted. If he goes in now, with his excellent qualifications and intelligence, he can completely replace him, or even become the leader of the Help-Study Association.

Thinking it and acting on it, Luther stepped forward, about to ask the Help-Study Association, when Kadfi, who was chatting, suddenly said:

"By the way, you guys who just came out probably don't know yet, right? Lioz has already left."

"Hey. Lioz isn't taking the exam?"

"What? Such a good thing?" Luther was overjoyed and quickly stepped forward, saying, "Everyone, don't be nervous. It doesn't matter that Rio is gone. The Help-Study Association needs a leader, and I'm willing to take on this responsibility—"

Before he could finish speaking, he received disdainful looks from the crowd.

"Shut up."

Mitty said irritably:

"Lioz left us because he was admitted as a special student to the Magic University directly under the Crystal Tower. Who do you think you are? How dare you comment on 'that guy' Lioz?"

"... Admitted? But didn't he just leave the exam hall?"

"Yes, that's why we're discussing it right now."

Kadfi clicked his tongue in amazement and said:

"Because he finished it a long time ago."

Happy New Year! There's no need to specifically read the previous work for the next few chapters. Although it's a crossover, Star Abyss's story remains unaffected. You can understand the plot even without reading the previous works and accumulating them gradually.