Examination D-Day: Part 2

Currently, at most 250 examinees have already failed during the first trial. Sect Leader Huo comforted them as they left and told them to train more to be more efficient in the future. On the other side of the examination hall, Hong'yu, Jingyi, and Hyunhei are queued for the second trial. Not long after, Jianyu and Yanlin joined them.

"Haiji Gege! Haiji Gege!" Yanlin shouted as he ran towards Hyunhei. He suddenly hugged him from the back like a little brother does, causing Hyunhei to be startled because he is not used to physical contact.

"Y-Yanlin?! You're also here?!" The young prince nodded cutely. Hyunhei blushed when he witnessed how cute Yanlin could be. "Where's your brother?"

"You're calling for me?" Jianyu appeared out of the blue. In fact, his eyes had been fixed on Haiji since he saw him before the opening speech. He also wished to beat the hell out of Hong'yu when he saw him talking to Hyunhei moments ago. Hong'yu greeted him with a bow, but he only gave him a cold shoulder.

"You know each other?" Hyunhei asked all of a sudden.

"We're old friends," Hong'yu added.

"Well, that's actually great! Let me introduce my elder bro—"

"I'm his beloved elder brother, Yi'en. It's a pleasure to meet you all." Jingyi then put his arm around his brother to gently pull him away from them. Hyunhei introduced each of his new acquaintances to Jingyi and explained how he met them. "I see. All we need to do now is stay focused on the exam, and good luck."

"Yi-gege, you know how to kill other people's moods, don't you?" Hyunhei whispered as they turned their backs on them. Jingyi chuckled. But when he was not paying attention to Hyunhei, he secretly asked Jianyu and Yanlin for their first trial results. Jianyu stated that Yanlin's aptitude level is 9070, while he is 10760. Jianyu was about to ask Hyunhei's result when the sect elder called them for the second trial.

The five young men stood at the abode's entrance when Hyunhei whispered, "Good luck." They all smiled secretly, while nervousness made Hyunhei's face stiff as stone. They entered their corresponding abodes, and the assistant supervisors started the timer for them.

Hyunhei had an excellent start. His abode was a cozy field of flowers with nearby cherry blossom trees that sprinkled their petals all over the place. There was a dry path beside the cherry blossom tree near him, so he carefully walked over the flowers to reach it. He walked for about half an hour, and he noticed that the path was cut off and that there was a forest of thorns ahead of him. Determined to pass the trial, he ventured into the dangerous forest.

He had no suitable weapons on him. The dagger is useless against such thorns. He used a fire talisman to clear a path for him, but it was no use. Without any choice, he removed the thorns with his bare hands and slowly continued his journey. Shortly after, he reached the end of the thorny forest with bleeding hands. He remembered that all injuries would heal once he left the area, so he ignored the pain of his wounds. Hyunhei attended a first aid course in his past life. He removed a strip of fabric from his robe and covered the wounds after washing it using a Flowing Water spell. He learned a lot of convenient spells from the book he found at the library. Unfortunately, he's having difficulty learning the healing spells, so he needs to rely on his medical knowledge.

He barely had an hour to settle the trial, so he ran towards the exit. Upon seeing the abode's exit, Hyunhei noticed a phoenix resting beside it. He carefully approached the spirit and tried to wake it.

"Mr. Fire Phoenix, are you alright?" With that, the legendary Fire Phoenix rose on its feet and stretched its mighty wings, covering the sun above.

"Ah! It's an honor to meet you, my old pal. I did not expect to see you here." Hyunhei was too stunned to respond. "We shall not delay your mission. I am rooting for your success."

"I'm afraid I don't understand what you're saying. But is there a way to pass this trial without hurting you?" The legendary spirit laughed after hearing Hyunhei's words.

"You really amaze me every time. Unfortunately, there are none. However, I can give you a tip to lessen the pain."

The fire phoenix pleaded with him to step closer to her core and instructed him to gently tap it. Hyunhei followed what was told and gave the core a gentle tap. To his astonishment, the core shattered and disappeared from his sight.

"You possess an incredible amount of strength but have the will of a scared puppy. I hope that during your journey, you will come to your senses and learn from your past mistakes. This is just the beginning, so move forward and cherish every moment. You have a bright future ahead of you, my child. Protect what needs to be protected and do what you want with a clear conscience." The legendary Fire Phoenix vanished like a pile of petals swirled by the wind. The abode's exit opened, and after pondering the words of the legendary spirit, he stepped out and fell unconscious.

Jingyi and the others finished the second trial within a minute without trouble. They began to worry when they did not see Hyunhei with them. The sect elders instructed them to wait for the final announcement of the passers outside the examination hall. Still, Jingyi insisted on waiting for his brother until the time was up. Ten seconds before the timer ran out, Hyunhei fell out of the abode's portal. Luckily, he was caught by Jianyu and Hong'yu, thus avoiding any injuries. Jingyi tried to wake him up, but they got no response.

"I checked his pulse and breathing patterns. He's definitely fine. He fell unconscious, probably because of shock." Yanlin asserted. Second, Prince Zhang Muchen excelled at studying medicine at 11. Now that he's 14, he can apply his knowledge to help anyone in need.

"Let's bring him outside while waiting for the results," Jingyi instructed while trying to lift his brother.

"You might break his fragile body, Yi'en Gege. Let me carry him." Jingyi glared at Hong'yu as if telling him not to mess with Hyunhei, or he'd never see the next sunrise. Hong'yu smiled back menacingly and gently carried Hyunhei outside the examination hall.

After a while, the remaining examinees completed the exam, but several failed and immediately left the sect's premises. Those who pass the two trials are summoned back to the examination hall. Sadly, Hyunhei showed no sign of waking up. Shandian, who followed him inside and out of the abode, also tried to wake him up with his purring and pawing but failed in the end.

At last, the examination results were summarized, and sect leader Huo announced the results. Hong'yu carried Hyunhei on his back while Jingyi was cautious of the men around him.

"I congratulate everyone present here. You managed to pass the trials given to you. Out of the 704 who registered for the exam, 357 passed. However, we decided to summarize the results to see who has the most potential among you. The rankings are posted on both sides of the hall. See them for yourselves."

The students rushed to the posters to look for their names, including Jingyi's group. He found his name at the second rank. Jianyu placed third, followed by Yanlin. Hong'yu claimed the first rank, yet they began to worry because Hyunhei's name was nowhere to be found on the list. To clarify what was happening, Jingyi approached his uncle.

"Shu— Sect Leader Huo, what's the matter?" Haiji's name is not on the list of passers!" They all looked worried, so Sect Leader Huo sighed.

"He's a special case. We encountered some anomalies during the exam. I'll explain it all to you later. For now, bring him to my chambers." They obeyed Sect Leader Huo and went to his chambers.

"I wonder what kind of anomalies Sect Leader Huo meant," Hong'yu uttered while readjusting Hyunhei's position on his back.

"Just shut up and head to where we're supposed to go." Jianyu rebutted annoyingly. He clenched his fists to suppress his emotions, but Yanlin noticed the tension between the three.

"Gege, are you jealous of Hong'yu Gege?" Yanlin whispered to his brother as he tried to cover his clenched fists. Jianyu was startled by his words.

"I-I'm not! What kind of crap are you saying?" Instead of worrying about his brother, Yanlin gave Jianyu a teasing smile. He clearly knows what's going on.

"Hong'yu Gege! My big brother wants to carry Haiji—men!" Jianyu covered Yanlin's mouth until they reached the entrance of Sect Leader Huo's chambers.