"—The Registered Talisman Master assessment is divided into two parts: a written examination in the morning and a practical examination in the afternoon."
"The written portion includes three core subjects—Basic Talismans, rune structures, and Talisman Foot Cryptography—as well as eight supplementary subjects: Cloud Seal Script, Yin and Yang Talismans, Ink Talismans, talisman diagrams, compound scripts, cinnabar writing, Introduction to Talisman Schools, and Outline of Talisman Development History. Each candidate must select two core subjects and three supplementary subjects for the written assessment. Each subject lasts forty minutes; including the ten-minute pre-exam reading, the total is three and a half hours. All answers must be written on separate answer sheets. The answer sheets are protected by anti-cheating magic, and I hope none of you will try to challenge the school's long-standing accumulation with your limited skills..."
At the podium, Professor Dragoon Barton read through the examination rules, occasionally adding a few personal remarks. Below, the candidates ticked off the written papers they wished to take on the parchment that had just been distributed.
Zheng Qing chose Basic Talismans and rune structures as his core subjects. He was very confident in both.
For his supplementary subjects, he chose Cloud Seal Script, Ink Talismans, and Yin and Yang Talismans. These three mainly concerned ancient talismans and the yin-yang variations of basic talismans. They were also Zheng Qing's electives this semester, so they posed little difficulty for him as well.
Still, this method of selecting exam papers on the spot felt rather novel.
Zheng Qing guessed that one reason for it was that it minimized the possibility of cheating.
After all, the people sitting around him would very likely be taking different papers. Even someone skilled enough to spy on another person's answer sheet would find it difficult to copy the right answers.
"—For