Chapter 5

The students only quieted down once everyone had signed in and the testing teachers entered.

The military academy assessment was a major annual event. The teachers overseeing it came from the provincial education bureau and spent more than a month testing schools one by one to ensure fairness.

The principal of Huangcheng No. 1 High School received them in person. Usually stern and reserved, Principal Sun was now exceedingly respectful.

The lead testing teacher was a middle-aged man named Chen Xiangrong, who wore gold-rimmed glasses. He pushed them up and said, "Principal Sun, I hear your school has two promising talents this year."

Principal Sun immediately said, "Yes, Director Chen! One is Fang Chuyun, and the other is Yu Hongyuan. Their most recent self-test Physique Points were 85 and 86, respectively."

"Fang Chuyun? Her older sister is..."

"Yes, yes, Fang Suyun! She's currently attending Zhongdu Military Academy and is already a third-rank Star Wielder!"

Chen Xiangrong cleared his throat. "So she's Star Master Fang's younger sister... I can see the resemblance."

Star Wielders enjoyed a high social standing.

In a small place like Huangcheng, even first- and second-rank Star Wielders were a big deal. Director Chen, who had come from the provincial education bureau, was only a Third Grade Initial Stage Star Wielder himself.

Yet even though Chen Xiangrong was also third rank, he still had to address Fang Suyun respectfully as "Star Master."

There was no helping it. A third-rank Star Wielder at fifty simply couldn't compare to one at twenty.

The former had most likely reached his limit in this lifetime and could never advance again, while the latter possessed extraordinary talent and boundless prospects, with even a chance of reaching the pinnacle of the grandmaster realm!

Chen Xiangrong went on admiringly, "...This student Fang Chuyun has 86 Physique Points before even drawing starlight into her body. Her future is limitless as well."

Principal Sun said awkwardly, "Fang's score is 85."

Chen Xiangrong raised an eyebrow. "Oh? Then the one with 86 is Yu Hongyuan? He is..."

"I heard he took a Soul Condensing Pill."

"Oh." Hearing that, Chen Xiangrong responded indifferently.

Over the years, students in every province had applied to military academies after using Soul Condensing Pills to raise their Physique Points. A single Soul Condensing Pill might start at a million, but across Huaxia, quite a few families could still afford one.

However, Physique Points were only a requirement for applying. Whether they could get in depended on their subsequent academic scores and practical combat assessments.

Chen Xiangrong said, "Self-tests are bound to be a little inaccurate. We'll see during the assessment later."

Principal Sun nodded repeatedly, feeling completely reassured.

Both of them would be able to apply to Zhongdu Military Academy one way or another. He was perfectly satisfied to have two students eligible to apply in a single year. Other high schools in Huangcheng might not even have one!

There was no helping it. Huaxia had so many provinces and cities, while the two top military academies admitted only a limited number of students, so the application threshold rose year after year.

Chen Xiangrong suddenly added, "Huangcheng hasn't produced a 'Heavenly Chosen' in quite a few years."

The term "Heavenly Chosen" referred to monstrous talents who reached 90 Physique Points before becoming Star Wielders.

Normally, military academy students could attempt to open a Star Aperture once their Physique Points exceeded 80. If they succeeded, they became a First-Grade Star Bearer.

With a Star Aperture, they could draw starlight into their bodies, after which their Physique Points would rise rapidly. Forget 90; even 100 was

easy as

could be. That was also why Star Wielders could readily slay mutated creatures: they were far stronger than ordinary people.

But Physique Points before opening an aperture were different.

Without drawing starlight into the body, raising one's Physique Points through physical training was very difficult.

Of course, that difficulty had its benefits.

The higher one's Physique Points before opening an aperture, the more efficiently one could draw starlight into the body afterward, far faster than others. Such people could easily become invincible within their rank and even fight across ranks. That was also why many children of great clans were in no hurry to open their apertures.

Only with a solid foundation could the skyscraper built atop it grow ever sturdier.

There was also a claim that hadn't been made public: the higher one's Physique Points before opening an aperture, the farther one could go after becoming a Star Wielder.

That was why those with 90 Physique Points were called Heavenly Chosen.

The Huaxia General Administration of Education also had targets to meet. If Huangcheng produced a Heavenly Chosen with 90 Physique Points, its education funding would increase substantially afterward, and even Huangcheng No. 1 High School's rating could climb.

The testing began.

Some four hundred students from Huangcheng No. 1 High School had signed up for the test.

Li Yang was in no hurry. Instead of competing with the others for a spot, she picked a line at random and joined the very end.

There was still too little information online, and it wasn't as detailed as the casual chatter of these students preparing for military academy.

The more Li Yang listened, the more she understood.

Her Physique Points really were a bit too high.

However, she had only one year left to live and couldn't roll for another set of Physique Points.

Besides, rolling again wouldn't guarantee a lower score. It might be even higher.

So be it. Li Yang figured that if she tested last, the teachers and students on the field would probably all be gone, and she wouldn't stand out as much.

A person should keep a low profile. She just wanted to quietly claim the 100,000 scholarship, then go happily harvest wheat at Zhongdu Military Academy.

The testing went fairly quickly, averaging less than ten minutes per person.

Li Yang heard two students ahead of her speaking nervously. "Deep breaths! Don't be nervous! I can definitely match my self-test score!"

"Ahhh, it's hard not to be nervous! If I perform beyond my usual level, I'll only just make the cutoff. If I get nervous, I'm done for!"

"So don't be nervous!"

"The more you say that, the more nervous I get!"

A loud wail came from up ahead. A boy who had just finished his test cried, "Give me one more chance! I can get 65! Please, just one more chance!"

The testing teacher said expressionlessly, "You've used up both your chances. Please don't hold everyone else up."

The students watched with pounding hearts and grew even more nervous. "That's brutal. Sixty-five is enough to apply to a third-tier military academy, and he was just one point short!"

"He usually gets 65. He was just too nervous this time..."

"That's why you need some room to spare. It's safer if your self-test score is one or two points above your target military academy's cutoff."

A thought occurred to Li Yang as she listened.

So Physique Points could fluctuate?

That made sense. Physique Points were ultimately determined by a test, and one's physical condition would affect the number.

Everyone was discussing how to get themselves into better shape and score a little higher... but Li Yang was pondering how to get a lower score.

Ninety was too eye-catching.

Eighty-six would be good.

But... making it fluctuate by four points wouldn't be easy.

After watching for so long, Li Yang had noticed scores only seemed to fluctuate by one or two points.

Eighty-eight would do too.

That number attracted wealth.

The testing reached its first small peak when Fang Chuyun began her test.

Li Yang's line was no longer particularly long either, and she spotted the tall girl standing beneath the testing machine at a glance.

Fang Chuyun wore her hair cut short to her ears, with one side of her black hair tucked behind an ear, revealing her sharp, cool features. She rarely smiled, and her expression was austere and cold, giving off an aura that warned strangers to keep their distance.

Fang Chuyun stood calmly beneath the machine. There was no trace of panic or unease on her face, only certainty and confidence.

The result came out quickly, and the testing teacher said with a smile, "Congratulations, Fang Chuyun. Your Physique Points test result is... 85 points."

Compared with the other students' scores, Fang Chuyun's 85 truly stood out like a crane among chickens.

A score of 65 was enough to apply to a third-tier military academy.

A score of 70 was enough to apply to a second-tier military academy.

It took 75 to apply to a first-tier military academy.

As for the top two, Central Capital and Star Slaying, their threshold had risen from 80 to 83 points this year.

At present, only a few dozen students at Huangcheng No. 1 High School had scored over 75. Fang Chuyun's 85 put her in first place by a decisive margin!

Hearing her score, Fang Chuyun remained unruffled and said politely, "Thank you, teacher."

The testing teacher asked her, "Would you like to take the test a second time?"

Fang Chuyun answered decisively, "No need."

The students couldn't help applauding and cheering.

So steady!

Fang Chuyun's bearing was truly worthy of a great clan!

Watching, Yu Hongyuan gave a cold snort and crossed his arms. "It's only 85."

One of his lackeys said, "Brother Yu, go crush her!"

Yu Hongyuan said, "What's the rush? I'm going to test last and bring Huangcheng No. 1 High School's military academy assessment to a perfect close!"

With that, he swept his gaze over the field and headed straight for the longest line.

At the end of the line was a girl who looked familiar.

"Li Yang?" Yu Hongyuan called her name, his eyes full of disbelief.

Earlier in the classroom, Li Yang had been sitting in a corner, while Yu Hongyuan had been surrounded by a crowd, so he hadn't noticed her.

They had been classmates since their first year of high school and had ended up in the same class again after the classes were reshuffled. So even though Li Yang had taken nearly half a year off during her final year, Yu Hongyuan recognized her at once.

In his recollection, Li Yang was a pale, timid girl who usually didn't even dare look up at him. Now, hearing his voice, she turned to look at him.

Her uniform was still washed pale, but Li Yang's whole bearing was completely different. Her black hair was tied in a half-high ponytail, exposing her slender neck. Her skin was fair and luminous, her manner confident and poised. Her clear, cool black eyes met his without flinching, conveying composure and calm.

Yu Hongyuan still couldn't believe it—was this Li Yang?

Seeing him standing behind her, Li Yang asked, "Yu, are you joining the line behind me?"

"Uh..." Instead of answering, Yu Hongyuan asked, "Are you applying to a military academy?"

Li Yang: "..." What else? I'm already standing here in this long line.

Yu Hongyuan also realized he'd asked a stupid question and hurriedly asked another. "What's your Physique Points total? You need at least 65 to apply even to a third-tier military academy, right? Have your Physique Points... reached 65?"

Chapter 5

Unless she had absolutely no choice, Li Yang didn't like lying, so she said, "Yes."

Yu Hongyuan had asked whether her Physique Points had reached 65, and they certainly had.

Yu Hongyuan looked Li Yang up and down, then said, "You look different from before. Did you take time off school to train?"