Specialty Assessment

The pressure descending from the sky continued to intensify, rolling in like ocean waves.

Faced with that terrifying pressure, Wei Heng did not move at all. Only a sharp gleam flashed through his eyes, and afterward, the dreadful pressure could no longer suppress him.

However, a careful observer would notice that within an inch around him, some nameless force seemed to dissolve all the pressure pouring down from above, preventing it from coming any closer.

The other six were nowhere near as composed as Wei Heng. Caught off guard by the terrifying pressure, two of them managed to remain standing and release Soul Power to resist it, while the rest were crushed flat onto the ground, unable to move.

With the miserable state of the other six as a contrast, Wei Heng, standing beside them with a calm expression as though nothing had happened, became exceptionally conspicuous.

As time passed, the remaining two began to sway as well, as if they might collapse at any moment.

Yet Wei Heng still stood there as if nothing was wrong. He seemed to have plenty of strength left and could even withstand the pressure while looking around at the other decorations in the examination room.

Suddenly, he seemed to sense something and stared at an empty patch of ground for a long while.

Just as the final two were about to fall, the terrifying dragon's might vanished instantly. The two relaxed and slumped to the floor.

"Oh? You actually noticed this old man."

A questioning voice sounded from nowhere as a Soul Power barrier appeared.

Shen Yi stepped out from within the barrier. It was precisely the empty space where Wei Heng's gaze had lingered. An elderly man emerged alongside her.

The old man had a head full of white hair tied up with a wooden hairpin. He wore a blue-green robe, and a trace of surprise showed on his face as he looked at Wei Heng and nodded slightly.

"Not bad. You are a young man with great potential. In all these years, this is the first time I have seen someone among the examinees directly ignore the pressure of the Golden-Eyed Black Dragon King through sheer will alone. Young man, your spiritual power must be quite formidable."

While enduring the pressure of the Golden-Eyed Black Dragon King, Wei Heng had still possessed enough spare capacity to notice their presence. Without sufficient spiritual power, that would have been impossible.

But that aura just now... could it have been intent? He comprehended his own intent at such a young age?

Based on that fleeting aura alone, the old man did not dare jump to conclusions. He could only keep the thought to himself.

This level of spiritual power alone was enough to make him take notice. The boy before him was surely an exceptional uncut gem, and his cultivation was not low either.

Wei Heng merely clasped his hands modestly and did not directly answer the old man.

The old man did not mind. Geniuses always had some secrets, much less a genius like the boy before him. So long as Wei Heng would not endanger Shrek Academy, he would not deliberately investigate.

Based on that spiritual power alone, he dared say that none of the tests prepared for this year would likely trouble Wei Heng.

Even Shen Yi stared at Wei Heng in astonishment. When she had enrolled back then, she had not performed anywhere near as calmly as he had.

One had to know that in this era, in order to highlight the protagonist, the entire age constantly emphasized one word—"bloodline." As the ancestor of Soul Beasts, the Dragon God, and the Golden Dragon King and Silver Dragon King, which were halves of him, could exert absolute bloodline suppression over all Beast Soul Masters and Soul Beasts below the Dragon King level.

Although Di Tian was inferior to the Golden Dragon King and Silver Dragon King, he was the leader of the Black Dragon Clan and the current Beast God. His bloodline suppression was not something just anyone could break free from.

This was also why Liu Tianran had always refused to arrange a Beast Martial Soul for her clone, because there were simply too few options capable of breaking free from such bloodline suppression.

Even after becoming a teacher at Shrek Academy, she had never seen a freshman in Black Dragon Hall directly ignore the Black Dragon's pressure through their own spiritual power.

For students taking the entrance examination, this was a test of spiritual power.

The longer one endured, the higher one's score in the spiritual assessment.

"Elder Li, then their score for this test..."

Elder Li glanced at Wei Heng. "This little fellow gets full marks. As for the other six... the first few to fall receive zero points. The last two did fairly well, so they pass. Six points."

Upon hearing Elder Li's words, the two who had passed showed expressions of immense relief. The faces of those who had failed turned rather ugly, especially since they had received zero points. As self-proclaimed geniuses, they found it hard to bear.

"The assessment consists of multiple tests. Each test is worth a maximum of ten points, and six points is a passing score. Your total score will be calculated after all the tests are completed. Failing an individual test will result in additional deductions, while getting full marks in an individual test will earn additional points.

"So even if your score for this round is low, it is fine. Try to make up for it in the next round."

Seeing the grim expressions of the four, Shen Yi explained things to them so they would not carry too great a psychological burden.

Though what she said was not exactly comforting. Even the two who had passed began to lose their joy upon hearing it.

"Teacher, how many stages are there in total? How many points do we need to pass?" The speaker was the girl among the two who had passed.

Shen Yi said, "There are ten stages in total. Sixty points to pass."

"Then can you tell us what the later tests are?" the girl asked again. Even the others turned their eyes toward Shen Yi.

Shen Yi shook her head without hesitation. "No."

The others were deeply disappointed.

Shen Yi did not care about their reactions. That was simply how Shrek Academy's entrance examinations were designed. They were not recruiting ordinary people, but monsters.

"You will have the time it takes for one incense stick to rest. Of course, if you choose to continue the assessment, that is also allowed."

The other six immediately shook their heads, indicating that they wanted to rest for a while.

Wei Heng, however, said to Shen Yi, "Teacher Shen, I choose to continue."

"Are you sure? Let me tell you in advance: in some of the upcoming stages, the difficulty will increase considerably if you do not have teammates to cooperate with you. You..." Shen Yi reminded him kindly.

Just as Shen Yi wanted to continue persuading him, the old man beside her interrupted.

"No need. Send him directly to the fourth stage."

Shen Yi was greatly startled. "What? Elder Lin, that is against the rules, isn't it? Shouldn't we discuss it with the others first?"

"It is fine. I still have this much authority." Elder Lin glanced at Wei Heng. "Besides, monsters should be assessed like monsters."

With that, he drifted away, leaving Shen Yi where she stood, seemingly wanting to speak but holding herself back.

Wei Heng even heard her mutter resentfully, "Why is it like this again? These old people always like making things difficult for me."

She then took a deep breath and turned to Wei Heng and the others. "Student Wei Heng, come with me. As for the other examinees, wait here. I will notify other teachers to bring you onward for the examination."

After saying that, she led Wei Heng deeper into the teaching building. Along the way, they saw quite a few examinees taking assessments in other rooms. Some happily celebrated their successful passes, while others walked out with their heads lowered in dejection.

Sigh, which of those who made it here was not a genius carrying great expectations? Unfortunately, genius was merely the threshold for entering this place.

While he was thinking, he was brought into a large room. Shen Yi pointed at the chairs along one side of the room.

"Wait here for the moment. I will go invite the assessment teachers. This stage will test your specialty.

"Only one specialty will be tested, so you can think about what you want to demonstrate. Your main specialty, something related to your own strength." With that, she turned and left.

Shen Yi did not ask whether Wei Heng needed to rest, because as someone who had personally witnessed how he passed the first stage, she knew very well that the boy before her had not expended much.

Given his personality, even if she had asked, he would probably only have wanted the assessment arranged as quickly as possible.

Less than five minutes later, Shen Yi returned. Three people entered with her: two middle-aged men and an elderly woman.

The elderly woman entered with a cane, walking unsteadily while muttering under her breath.

"That old Lin really knows how to create trouble for me. I am not like him—I am usually very busy. He insists that he found some rare little monster. If the kid is not up to standard, just watch me deal with him."

As she spoke, she sat down in the middle seat behind a long table at one side of the venue.

The two middle-aged men did not dare respond. They stood respectfully to one side and only sat down after she had taken her seat. Shen Yi remained standing beside them.

Wei Heng calmly looked at the three. Seeing that he remained neither servile nor overbearing even before them, the elderly woman nodded. In particular, when she saw his bright, handsome appearance and upright aura, her irritation eased by several degrees, and her words naturally became more restrained than usual.

"Mm, your mental composure is not bad. Young man, we are the proctors for this examination. The assessment begins now. Remember, you only have one chance. Show me the specialty you are most proud of."

Wei Heng stepped before the three, bowed, and nodded slightly. Respect showed on his face without any hint of flattery, as though he were facing ordinary elders. "Then I will begin."

The elderly woman nodded at Wei Heng's actions and said, "Begin."

Wei Heng raised a hand and summoned his Martial Soul.

The long spear was like a warrior who had slumbered for countless years before being awakened. Its shaft was long and ancient, forged from an unknown dark metal. The patterns upon it resembled marks carved by time, each one seeming to recount stories of the past.

Upon closer inspection, ancient runes could faintly be seen on the spear's surface. They flickered with mysterious light beneath the dim glow, as though guarding the power contained within the spear.

The next moment, "Black, black, black, black."

Four terrifying Soul Rings rose from beneath his feet. Even Shen Yi, already a Soul Saint and someone who had seen such a Soul Ring configuration three years ago, could not help but breathe faster when she witnessed the sight again.

"Ten-thousand-year Soul Rings!"

The three experienced examiners, including the elderly woman, were so shocked that they abruptly rose to their feet.

The next moment, the elderly woman—Cai Yue'er—immediately frowned and swiftly extended her spiritual power to examine them closely. Then she let out a long breath. They truly were ten-thousand-year Soul Rings. With her spiritual power, there was no way she could have sensed wrongly.

Yet it was precisely because of that that she found it even more unbelievable.

A Soul Ancestor possessing a ten-thousand-year fourth Soul Ring was not rare at Shrek Academy. Some geniuses could achieve it, not to mention that they now had the Ascension Platform, a powerful tool for raising the cultivation of Soul Rings.

But a Soul Ancestor possessing four ten-thousand-year Soul Rings had appeared only a handful of times in the continent's history!

The most recent examples had been those freaks who emerged out of nowhere at the Skysea Grand Tournament three years ago. Yet every one of them had been an extraordinary talent capable of supporting a superpower and becoming a giant of the Soul Master world.

After all, completing ascension at the Soul Ancestor level and possessing four ten-thousand-year Soul Rings was an entirely different concept from waiting until one's Soul Power rose before using the Ascension Platform to complete ascension.

This also meant that the boy before them not only possessed spiritual power at least at the Spirit Sea Realm, but his physical body was no weaker than that of a Soul Saint.

Sure enough, in the next instant, an incomparably powerful wave of spiritual power erupted from Wei Heng. Even Shen Yi, watching from the side, felt her thoughts briefly stall when he erupted. Then her body sank, as if a massive boulder had been pressed onto her.

"Spirit Abyss Realm spiritual power!"

Cai Yue'er's eyes widened at once. Then a wave of spiritual power flowed from her as well, transforming into an invisible barrier that blocked the ripples created by Wei Heng's eruption of spiritual power.