Specialty Assessment

The pressure descending from the sky grew stronger and stronger, like rolling ocean waves.

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

Yet if one looked carefully, one would discover that within an inch of his body, some nameless force seemed to have erased all the pressure pouring down from above, preventing it from coming any closer.

The other six, however, 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 to the ground, unable to move.

With the bedraggled state of the other six as contrast, Wei Heng, standing calmly beside them as if nothing had happened, became exceptionally conspicuous.

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

Wei Heng, meanwhile, still stood there as though nothing was wrong. He seemed to have plenty of strength left, even able to withstand the pressure while looking around at the other decorations in the assessment 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 in an instant. The two relaxed and immediately slumped onto the floor.

"Oh? You actually noticed this old man."

A questioning voice sounded out of thin air, and a soul power barrier appeared.

Shen Yi stepped out from behind the barrier, emerging from the exact empty spot where Wei Heng's gaze had lingered. An elderly man came out with her.

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

"Not bad. A young man with great potential. In all these years, this is the first time I've seen someone among the examinees able to completely ignore the pressure of the Golden-Eyed Black Dragon King through sheer will alone. Young man, your spiritual power must be rather formidable."

To withstand the Golden-Eyed Black Dragon King's pressure while still having the spare attention to notice their presence was simply impossible without sufficient spiritual power.

But that aura just now... could it have been intent? At such a young age, he has already comprehended his own intent?

Based solely on that fleeting aura, the old man did not dare jump to conclusions. He could only bury the thought in his heart without voicing it.

This spiritual power alone was enough to make him take notice. The youth before him was undoubtedly an exceptional uncut jade, 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 a few secrets, much less a genius like the youth before him. So long as Wei Heng did not endanger Shrek Academy, he would not deliberately pry.

On the strength of that spiritual power alone, he dared say that none of the examinations they had prepared this year would likely be able to stump him.

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

One had to know that in the era of Soul Land III, one word had always been emphasized to highlight the protagonist—"bloodline." As the ancestor of soul beasts, the Dragon God, along with the Golden Dragon King and Silver Dragon King, who were its halves, could exert absolute bloodline suppression over all beast soul masters and soul beasts below the Dragon King level.

Di Tian might not compare to the Golden Dragon King and Silver Dragon King, but as the patriarch of the black dragon clan and the Beast God of the current age, 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 his clone. There were simply too few options capable of breaking free from such bloodline suppression.

Even after becoming a teacher at Shrek Academy, Shen Yi had never seen a new student 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 mental assessment.

"Elder Li, then their scores for this assessment..."

Elder Li glanced at Wei Heng. "This little fellow gets full marks. As for the other six... the ones who fell first get zero. The last two to fall performed fairly well. They pass—six points."

Upon hearing Elder Li's words, the two who had passed wore expressions of immense relief. The faces of those who had failed, meanwhile, became rather unpleasant, especially since they had received zeroes. For youths who had always considered themselves geniuses, it was hard to save face.

"The assessment has multiple sections. Each section is worth a maximum of ten points, and six points is a passing grade. After all the assessments are complete, the total score will be calculated. Failing an individual section will result in additional deductions, while achieving full marks in a section will earn additional points.

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

Seeing the grim faces of the four, Shen Yi explained things to them, hoping to keep them from carrying too heavy a psychological burden.

Though what she said was not exactly comforting. Even the two who had passed began to lose their delighted expressions upon hearing her words.

"Teacher, how many stages are there in the assessment? And what score counts as passing?" The one who spoke 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 assessments will test?" the girl asked again. The others also turned their gazes toward Shen Yi.

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

The others were deeply disappointed.

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

"Next, you will have the time it takes for one incense stick to burn to rest. Of course, if you choose to continue challenging the stages, 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 rise considerably if you do not have teammates to cooperate with you. You..." Shen Yi reminded him kindly.

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

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

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

"It's fine. I still have this much authority," Elder Lin said, glancing at Wei Heng. "Besides, monsters ought to be assessed like monsters."

With that, he drifted away, leaving Shen Yi standing there as if she wanted to say something but held it back.

Wei Heng even heard her mutter resentfully, "Why is it like this again? These old folks always love giving me difficult problems."

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 examinations."

With 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 were jubilantly celebrating their successful passage, while others trudged out with their heads hanging low.

Ah, which of those who made it this far was not a genius burdened with great expectations? Unfortunately, genius was only the threshold for entering this place.

While he was pondering this, he was brought into a large room. Shen Yi pointed to a chair at one side of the room.

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

"Only one specialty will be assessed, so think about what you want to display. Your primary specialty—something related to your own strength." With that, she turned and left.

Shen Yi did not ask whether Wei Heng needed to rest. Having personally witnessed how he had passed the first stage, she knew very well that the youth before her had not expended much at all.

With his personality, even if she asked, he would probably only want 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 with a faltering gait as she muttered under her breath.

"That old Lin really knows how to make trouble for me. I'm not like him—I'm usually very busy. He insisted that he'd found some rare little monster. If he doesn't measure up, just see if I don't straighten him out."

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

The two middle-aged men did not dare respond. They stood respectfully at the side, only taking their seats after she had sat down. Shen Yi stood nearby.

Wei Heng calmly watched the three of them. Seeing that he remained neither servile nor overbearing before them, the elderly woman nodded. In particular, when she saw Wei Heng's sunny, handsome appearance and his upright aura, some of her irritation faded, and her words naturally became somewhat less harsh than usual.

"Mm, your psychological fortitude is fairly good. Young man, we are the proctors for this assessment. The assessment begins now. Remember, you only have one chance. Show us the specialty you are most proud of."

Wei Heng walked before the three, bowed in salute, and nodded faintly to them. Respectful but not ingratiating, he seemed to be facing nothing more than ordinary elders. "Then I'll begin."

The elderly woman nodded at his actions and said, "Begin."

Wei Heng raised a hand and summoned his martial soul.

The long spear was like a warrior who had slept for countless years and had only just awakened. Its shaft was long and ancient, forged from an unknown dark metal. The patterns upon it resembled marks carved by time itself, every line seemingly telling a story from ages past.

Upon closer inspection, ancient runes could faintly be seen across the spear's surface. Under the dim light, they glimmered with a mysterious radiance, 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 Sage and someone who had witnessed this soul ring configuration three years ago, could not help but feel her breathing gradually quicken at the sight.

"Ten-thousand-year soul rings!"

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

The next instant, the elderly woman—Cai Yue'er—immediately furrowed her brows and swiftly extended her spiritual power to sense them carefully. Then she let out a long breath. They truly were ten-thousand-year soul rings. With her spiritual power, there was no possibility of misjudgment.

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

A Soul Ancestor having a ten-thousand-year fourth soul ring was not rare at Shrek Academy. Some geniuses could accomplish it, especially now that there was the Ascension Platform, such a powerful tool for raising the cultivation of soul rings.

But possessing four ten-thousand-year soul rings at the Soul Ancestor level—there had only ever been a handful in the continent's history!

The most recent were those freaks who had burst onto the scene during the Skysea Grand Tournament three years ago. Yet every one of them had been a peerless talent capable of supporting a major superpower and becoming a giant of the soul master world.

After all, completing ascension at the Soul Ancestor level and obtaining four ten-thousand-year soul rings was an entirely different concept from waiting until one's soul power had risen before entering the Ascension Platform to complete ascension.

It also meant that this youth's spiritual power had to be at least at the Spirit Sea Realm, while his physical body was no weaker than a Soul Sage's.

Sure enough, in the next instant, an incomparably powerful spiritual force erupted from Wei Heng's body. Even Shen Yi, watching from the side, felt her thoughts freeze for a moment when Wei Heng unleashed it. Then her body sank, as though a massive boulder were pressing down upon her.

"Spirit Abyss Realm spiritual power!"

Cai Yue'er's eyes instantly widened. Then spiritual power likewise flowed from her body, forming an invisible barrier that blocked the ripples caused by Wei Heng's erupting spiritual power.