"Hua Zi."
On the rooftop of the research institute, a large number of people, young and old, had gathered today. This place was originally a popular spot for people to come up, smoke, and relax. Even in the digital world, this activity of smoking, relaxing, and chatting on the rooftop seems to remain a popular part of human social interaction.
However, none of the people on the rooftop looked relaxed today. No one seemed to want to light a cigarette; they were all sitting in some corner, lost in thought. Many of them had been spacing out for half an hour without even considering going down to continue working.
What's the point of working?
"Are we really going to listen to what the higher-ups say?" a middle-aged, overweight man asked his colleague next to him.
"Are you going to get blacklisted if you don't listen?" Another middle-aged man turned around and stared blankly at the other person. "Are you willing to take the bet?"
The people around immediately became conflicted. The research institute selects people through multiple rounds of screening. Don't be fooled by the low income here; you do the hardest and most tiring work but don't get the benefits. However, this is a temple of scientific research, and there is a Federation guarantee. Whether it's your children's education or welfare benefits, there is a safety net.
Once they are blacklisted here, they will have no place in the entire scientific research community, and their lives may even be worse than those low-level miners outside.
"Actually, you could give it a try," someone finally couldn't help but say. "Why not give it a try?"
The others looked over in astonishment.
" The New World is so vast. I've heard that many powerful family leaders have already gone there. I don't need to elaborate on the opportunities there, do I? Once we get in, why should those old guys continue to exploit us like this? Why should we let them continue to coerce us like this?"
"But... there's no way out!" someone couldn't help but say. "What if it doesn't work out?"
"Why wouldn't it work?" someone couldn't help but ask. "Would we fail the exam? If it's a fair exam, losing is losing, I accept it!"
"Exactly!" someone couldn't help but exclaim, "What's wrong with that?"
However, most people were still unwilling to respond; clearly, not everyone has the courage to burn their bridges.
This scene is playing out on the rooftops of many research institutes, and many people are struggling internally, destined for a sleepless night.
--
The grand examinations began the next day. The most attention was naturally focused on the martial arts exam, but the written exam also sparked heated discussions, mainly because the way the results were announced was quite interesting.
The written exam is divided into basic science and field science exams. The questions are different every day, and each candidate must take the exam for at least three days. The combined scores for each day will be published, and the final ranking will be based on the average of the three days' scores. Then, the places to enter the New World will be allocated according to the scores.
Regarding these rules, Mr. Wang Ye, the representative of the New World, personally answered questions at the press conference. On that day, the number of viewers for this interview exceeded 10 billion, including netizens from the Western Federation who were closely following this major test.
"Mr. Wang Ye, there are many questions about the number of places available for this written examination. First, there's the question of the number of places. Why is there such a large difference between the number of people taking the written examination and the number taking the martial arts examination? Some people say that the New World needs soldiers now, not ordinary people. Is that true?"
"That's right." Wang Ye answered the reporter's sharp question without hesitation.
This answer immediately drew boos from the audience, and the reporter became somewhat embarrassed. He had originally intended to put pressure on the reporter and demonstrate his sharp style, but now he was in an awkward position.
"First of all, everyone must recognize one thing," Wang Ye said to the group of reporters, " The New World is still in a period of war and turmoil, and the future situation is predicted to become increasingly dangerous. It is not a time for peace and enjoyment. If you hold onto the idea that the past is a time for enjoying life, then you may be disappointed. And it is a fact that there is a greater need for soldiers there now."
The reporters were stunned by this answer, but the online response was enthusiastic.
[That's more like someone who tells the truth!]
[Yeah, this guy is really honest.]
[That's true, which virtual world isn't dangerous? Depicting it as some kind of paradise is truly malicious.]
[However, since there's an infinite Samsara there, we're going there to seize an opportunity. We don't care how dangerous it is. But I like this honest approach; I really dislike the kind of nonsense the authorities used to spout for their own purposes.]
"Ahem," a middle-aged reporter coughed lightly, and continued, "Even so, aren't the chances for ordinary people to go too slim? Don't you advocate for fairness?"
"That place isn't suitable for ordinary people anyway," Wang Ye said calmly. "Our so-called fairness is only about fair selection of materials, not fairness to everyone. Even if I said that, would you believe me?"
"So how will fairness be ensured in this written exam?" an older reporter asked. "We'd also like to know the specifics."
Wang Ye nodded. "This written exam will be entirely handled by myself and the researchers within the New Army. The basic science of the original world is quite different from that of our world, so the assessment will not be entirely the same as the field of this world. But you can rest assured that the basic science is based on intelligent calculation, so the difference will not be too great. In addition to the basics, the key to the assessment will be the problem-solving thinking in the face of different problems. This will be the key to the assessment. We will publish the answers to each assessment and the rankings for each assessment."
"There are 10,000 places available for this written examination. Every three examinations, we will allocate 1,000 places to each candidate. Based on their ranking, they will be reborn into different regions. The top ten will be reborn in Jiangnan with their memories intact. The top one hundred will have the option to be reborn in Jiangnan without their memories or in the Southeast Region with their memories intact. The top five hundred will be reborn in the Southeast Region without their memories intact. The bottom five hundred will have to migrate westward overseas."
"Will these areas be very different?" a female reporter asked quickly.
"There will be a big difference." Wang Ye nodded. "Because of the strategic planning, people in Jiangnan can enjoy more resources from a young age, both in terms of spiritual energy and educational resources. Especially in this era of the Earth Spirit Revival, we need a large number of array masters as strategic reserves. Therefore, many children can be exposed to the knowledge of array techniques at a very young age. The gap may not seem big now, but once the knowledge starts to be distributed to lower levels, the difference in the quality of education will be very exaggerated, and the possibility of people from other provinces getting in will be very low."
"Isn't this unfair to other areas?" the reporter couldn't help but ask.
"We're at war now, so we can't worry about that," Wang Ye said calmly.
"Then why are the 10,000 slots being distributed in ten batches?" someone couldn't help but ask curiously. "Doesn't that waste time?"
"This is to avoid wasting talent," Wang Ye said with a smile. "We need to give more opportunities to outstanding people. For example, if you could have been in the top ten this time, but you ranked twelfth, and you feel you can do better in the next round, you can completely disregard the results of this round and take the next round as an example. Of course, the result is your own choice, but you do have the opportunity to make that decision for yourself."
"For every person who passes the exam, once they go to the New World, we can publish their entire journey and their life in the first few years after birth, as long as it's voluntary. This allows everyone to observe what life is like there. If someone wants to observe before deciding to take the exam, they can wait a few years and see how things develop."
"Live broadcast throughout?" The reporter was stunned.
"It's not a live broadcast," Wang Ye shook his head and smiled. "There will be a kind of image crystal recording it unilaterally, and it will be updated gradually."
These words immediately sparked excitement online.
[That works too?]
[Wow, this is the first time I've heard of virtual world recording. It would be so great if that were possible! Even if I can't go, it would be nice to see it.]
The majority of online opinions are in favor. For many ordinary people, the virtual world is just a legend. Although it has been announced that everyone will have the opportunity to enter the New World, no one knows for sure what it will be like. Everyone is still uncertain. If there were any recorded footage from inside, that would be wonderful.
In a short time, Wang Ye's outspokenness earned him increasingly high praise online.
With the interviews concluded, the first day of written exams quickly began.
For three consecutive days, the written exams were held, and the results and answers were released online before 9 p. m. each Heavenly Capital. This method of making the exam papers and answers public was very credible, but the rankings sparked a lot of discussion.
This first written exam was open to the entire Central Federation, with over ten million participants. There were no educational restrictions, and many people who failed to get into university and could only work as simple repairmen took the exam with a bit of luck. The key point is that quite a few people won this time.
For example, the ninth place in this assessment is an old repairman in a western city of the Federation who is almost three hundred years old. He failed to get into a prestigious university back then and never entered the threshold of advanced scientific research. He worked as a repair engineer for more than two hundred years. This time, he saw that the children were taking the exam, so he tried it out with a try-it-out mentality. He never expected to actually pass!
It is said that Elder Hou the live interview and couldn't speak a word clearly.
Many of those in the top 100 did not graduate from prestigious universities or graduate schools. Keen observers quickly noticed that very few Miao Miao on the list had a research background, and even fewer graduated from top universities. This immediately cast doubt on the credibility of the first ranking list.