Sun and Moon Assessment

Sun Moon Imperial Soul Master Academy.

A new round of admissions had begun.

By the era of the Legend of the Dragon King, the admission standards for the Sun Moon Imperial Soul Master Academy had been raised. During the Sun Moon Empire era ten thousand years ago, the people of Sun Moon relied heavily on medicinal enhancements, resulting in decent initial soul power but low entry requirements, primarily to mass-produce soul engineers.

In the current Federation era, there was no longer a need for such a vast number of soul engineers to provide combat power for war. The Sun Moon Imperial Soul Master Academy had begun to place greater emphasis on the cultivation of soul masters.

To enter the elementary division at age nine, a soul power of level twenty was the baseline, though those with local Ming Capital residency could enter at level fifteen.

However, even with such provisions, this only granted the qualification to take the assessment. Many soul masters with level twenty soul power could not necessarily pass the assessment, let alone those at level fifteen, who were few and far between.

"Liushuang, it's admissions day! Should we go see if there are any handsome juniors?"

The cold girl with blue hair and blue eyes heard the voice and slowly turned around, glancing sideways at the running Weng Daimin.

The latter giggled as she draped herself over her shoulder, whispering, "I heard this year's freshmen are quite extraordinary."

"Boring." Xue Liushuang's expression was indifferent, her cold face devoid of emotion.

"Oh, come on, just keep me company."

Weng Daimin leaned in closer, pouting and pleading in a low voice.

Regarding this behavior from her best friend, Xue Liushuang ruthlessly exposed her: "I think you just want to go see Long Chen."

Caught off guard, a faint blush instantly bloomed on her cheeks. Her eyes darted around before she playfully stuck out her pink tongue, gently hooking her friend's arm and shaking it softly.

"Liushuang, you're the best."

"Stop acting like that, I'll go."

Xue Liushuang sighed helplessly and reached out to gently poke the other girl's forehead.

"Let's go, let's go!"

In front of the Sun Moon Imperial Soul Master Academy, it was the peak of the admissions season. It was packed with people; soul masters from many regions across the continent were eager to send their children to this academy. In truth, the admission requirements for Sun Moon were much simpler than those of Shrek Academy, yet the resources were just as good, making it highly cost-effective.

The North Sea quartet had already arrived at the designated location.

Even Shen Nanxun, the young master of the Shen Family, had no shortcuts and had to register with his recommendation letter like everyone else.

He still had to go through the standard registration and assessment process.

The teacher in charge of registration was a young man. He took the recommendation letters, glanced over them, and raised an eyebrow.

"From North Sea Academy, eh? Not bad, not bad. Go on, take the assessment."

Students from the academies of the major legions generally possessed higher overall quality than average students. The teachers at Sun Moon preferred these disciplined students with good talent.

Accompanied by many other examinees, the group arrived at a vast plaza, large enough to hold nearly a thousand students. In the very center of the plaza stood a statue.

The statue was crafted from a special gray metal; it was a dragon head, filled with a murderous aura and permeated by a faint sense of destruction.

"The Purple Imperial Heaven-Destroying Dragon?" Shen Nanxun recognized the true identity of the dragon-head statue at a glance.

It was the once-hereditary martial soul of the Sun Moon Imperial royal family, a companion to the Dragon God and the ancestor of all sub-dragons.

The towering, ancient dragon-head statue sat atop a high platform. Suddenly, wisps of gray halo began to slowly emanate from its body.

Immediately after, the statue's tightly closed dragon eyes snapped open, and two points of deep, cold gray light ignited within the sockets.

As if released by a mighty dragon's prestige, a tyrannical pressure instantly centered on the statue and expanded in all directions.

The students in the plaza were instantly stunned by this pressure. Many students with weaker constitutions fainted on the spot. Even the slightly stronger beast-soul masters and those with high spiritual power were forced to bend over, half-kneeling on the ground in agony.

"The assessment officially begins!"

An old man with white hair and beard floated in mid-air, looking down at the crowd with his hands behind his back. His eyes narrowed slightly as he said slowly, "Your goal is to reach the top of these steps. Whether you crawl or roll, as long as you make it to the top, the assessment is a success."

"Director Zhang is presiding over this round again." Outside the plaza, among the students watching the spectacle, two beautiful figures stood.

Weng Daimin grumbled from time to time.

"Old Zhang was the one testing us during our year too. He seems to really enjoy watching students suffer. Do you think he's a psychopath?"

"I advise you to keep your voice down. Last time you gossiped about him behind his back, he heard you. Do you want to be reported to the whole school again?" Xue Liushuang consciously distanced herself from her to avoid being caught in the crossfire.

Weng Daimin rubbed her nose and gave a sheepish laugh, but before she could say anything, her eyes suddenly lit up.

"Liushuang, look, over there!"

Looking across the plaza, while all the other students were hunched over, two figures were standing perfectly straight!

"So uncomfortable!" Dong Yi'an knelt on one knee, feeling his mind tremble as if he were about to vomit at any moment.

Ye Xi, beside him, was no better off. Beads of sweat covered her forehead as she used her soul power to continuously resist the pressure, yet she still had to grit her teeth to keep from collapsing.

"Big Sis, Brother Xun, are you two okay?" Dong Yi'an looked up with great difficulty, but he regretted it immediately; the sight made him doubt his life.

"What the?"

Shen Nanxun stood there, his expression unchanged, looking bored. Na'er was even more exaggerated, still chewing on a lollipop and looking around with curiosity.

"Shen Nanxun, what's wrong with them? Why are they all kneeling?"

"I don't know." Shen Nanxun shrugged, casually grabbed Dong Yi'an, and walked forward.

Na'er took Ye Xi's hand, and they also walked forward, completely unharmed.

The two of them felt their bodies lighten, the pressure vanishing entirely. The simulated pressure of the Purple Imperial Heaven-Destroying Dragon was not worth mentioning, as if it were nothing at all.

Thus, a scene unfolded on the plaza: while everyone else struggled to crawl forward, the four of them walked ahead with remarkable steadiness.

"Freaks, absolute freaks!" Zhang Hanlin, a Soul Douluo, stroked his beard and sighed at the sight.

"Freaks appear every year, but there are especially many this year."

The pressure of the Purple Imperial Heaven-Destroying Dragon, simulated using soul guidance devices, required at least a level 50 Soul King to withstand unscathed. Yet, those two little ones ignored it completely, even managing to bring their companions along with them.

Stepping onto the platform meant exiting the plaza. Without needing to wait, the teacher stationed outside led the four of them toward the next trial.

The entrance examination for the Sun Moon Imperial Soul Master Academy was not actually that complex; provided one had sufficient soul power and a recommendation letter, there were only three tests. The one just completed was the first, and this second one was quite unique.

The greatest truths are the simplest.

It was precisely because there were only three stages that their difficulty was reflected.

The location for the second test was a room inside the main teaching building. The teacher brought them to the door and then withdrew.

The interior of the room was shaped like an altar, with circular steps in the center. Hovering above the steps were two objects: one brilliant and dazzling like the sun, the other cold and luminous like the moon.

"Welcome to the second stage of the examination, the Sun Moon Altar. It is divided into the Sun Blazing Array and the Moon Cold Yin Array. Examinees must withstand the power of both arrays to reach the very top of the altar. Those who succeed will pass."

As the mechanical voice faded, distinctly different lights rose on both sides of the path leading to the altar. One side was like a frigid hell, its icy aura piercing through flesh and straight into the marrow. The other side was like the blazing sun, its scorching heat burning every inch of skin without discrimination.

They needed to traverse the narrow path in the center, seared by these two extreme forces, to reach the final steps.

It was evident that the first two tests of the Sun Moon Imperial Soul Master Academy were quite similar; while testing strength, they placed even greater emphasis on willpower.

Only by persisting could one pass the examination.