As Liang Dang began to speak, a crowd of new students from the Secular World imdiately tensed up.
"Everyone, don’t be nervous. Just perform normally, and even if you end up in the Reserve Forces, there is still a chance to enter Dragon Gate Academy."
"Once you’re in Dragon Gate Academy, if you accomplish nothing you can also be demoted to a Miscellaneous Duties Disciple!" Chao Liang assured everyone.
Hearing his words, everyone’s mood finally stabilized sowhat.
Liang Dang stepped forward to a stone platform with fixed iron chains, stimulated his True Yuan, and reached out to turn one of the chanisms.
Suddenly, huge flaming cages ignited at the connections on the iron-chain bridge. With two in the middle and one at the end, there were three fire walls in total.
As the flas rose, the airflow started to create wind, and the iron-chain bridge began to sway slightly.
This magical scene left the new students from the Secular World dumbstruck, as though they were witnessing a magic trick.
"Haha, look at the expressions of these country bumpkins, it’s so damn interesting!
I bet they’ve never even heard of Formations before, look how shocked they are!" Soone in the crowd snickered.
"Heh, the Secular World only talks about science; taphysics isn’t even considered legitimate. Talking about Formations and Talismans with them is like discussing feudal superstition!" Another person sneered.
Kong Yin, Jiang Wen, and the others looked at each other in dismay. They had occasionally heard of Formations, but it was sothing that had been lost long ago. Where in the modern world could you find it?
"To think that Zhongnan Academy still has Formations!" Tao Yang exclaid in surprise.
Chao Liang nodded, "Yeah, Zhongnan still retains so miraculous things. It is said that this place is a relic left by immortals from Ancient Tis, and later on, people from the Five Peaks Noble Houses established the academy here!"
Upon hearing this, everyone was astonished, realizing that the Martial Arts World had so many wondrous and inconceivable aspects.
Liang Dang looked at the crowd and spoke indifferently, "I was supposed to offer so encouragent before the assessnt, but that’s not very aningful. Instead, I must remind you seriously.
Based on past experience, it would be good if half of you could enter Dragon Gate Academy.
Most will have to join the Reserve Forces, but don’t lose heart. Being in the Reserve Forces doesn’t an you have no chances!"
Everyone had just cald down a bit when Liang Dang’s words made them nervous again.
"Groups of two, start getting ready now!" Liang Dang announced.
Chao Liang gave Tao Yang a nod, and Tao Yang, understanding, began to give instructions, "Everyone should stick to the groups we ford yesterday, go up in pairs of two. Let’s start!"
Chao Liang had already arranged yesterday for the assessnt to start with those of lower Cultivation and move up. This had an advantage, as it ant less psychological pressure during the assessnt.
If the stronger ones started first, the weaker ones left would feel the disparity in comparison and their performance might beco less stable.
If each group that went up perford slightly better than the previous one, the confidence of those who followed would grow stronger.
Su Qiong and others were directly placed in the back. Chao Liang surely wasn’t concerned about whether that guy felt pressured or not!
The first to step forward were two students in the Late Stages of Second Grade Cultivation. They were sowhat nervous, but thankfully, they had practiced in advance the day before.
"Yo, yo, yo, it’s starting. Don’t wet your pants, eh? When you fall from this height, make sure you fall straight down!
If you slap down flat, it’s no different than hitting steel, and you’re guaranteed to splat like a big waterlon. Don’t say your brothers didn’t kindly warn you, hahaha!" The older students began to heckle.
"Co on, who wants to bet? I bet these two will fall into the water within fifty yards, a payout of two to one, anyone in?" Soone called out, readily starting to run a betting pool.
"Haha, I bet they’ll make it past fifty yards and wager a Gathering Spirit Powder!" A burly man laughed heartily, pulling out a small dicine Pill from his clothing, an essential item for a martial artist’s Cultivation.
After placing his bet, the man imdiately turned to the two students about to be assessed, bellowing, "You two better perform damn well for . If you lose today, I swear I’ll break your dog legs, hahaha!"
Subsequently, many people spontaneously organized themselves and started betting, occasionally throwing a few threats at the pair about to be assessed.
This scene had the new students from the Secular World exchanging glances, especially the two who were about to be assessed, whose palms were sweating from nervousness!
"What the hell, you guys place bets, but what’s that got to do with us?" they cursed in their hearts, finding themselves in an unwarranted disaster, having provoked no one.
Actually, this was just a form of teasing by the older students towards the new ones, a way to find amusent. They loved to see the new students’ panicked and fearful expressions, like quails quivering with trepidation.
This was the older students’ idea of fun. Every batch of new students basically went through the sa ritual, especially the ones from the Secular World who had no background to speak of, leaving them at the rcy of the older students’ mockery.
"Stop dawdling and hurry up!" Liang Dang frowned and urged.
Teasing the new students from the Secular World during their admission had beco an unwritten rule that he was no longer surprised by.
Hearing this, the two clenched their teeth and stepped onto the iron chain bridge, rushing forward in succession.
"Run faster, damn it, hurry up..." soone shouted.
"Fall off, fall off..." those who had bet that they would fall within fifty steps started hollering.
In an instant, whistles and shouts rose and fell in waves.
As a result, the two who had a chance to make it past fifty steps lost their concentration amid the onlookers’ jeering and the bridge being even more unstable than the day before, causing them to fall off just after thirty steps.
"Yeah yeah yeah... we won, hahaha, didn’t even make fifty steps, just over thirty!" the winners of the bet laughed heartily.
The new students from the Secular World turned red-faced, feeling as if they were being made to perform like monkeys for others’ amusent.
"Brother Chao, without the interference of those old students, they could perform better. If this continues, it’s going to affect everyone’s mindset.
I think, at this rate, it’d be good if even one-third make it through," Tao Yang said with concern.
"Damn it, exactly, those bastards are just too hateful!" Jiang Wen said coldly.
"Sons of bitches, they don’t treat us as humans, goddamn it!" Kong Yin said angrily, his face dark with indignation.
Chao Liang also frowned, then turned to everyone and said in a grave voice, "Everyone, calm your minds. ntal strength is also part of your ability, and even very important. Ignore them, and just do your best!"
After Chao Liang’s reminder, everyone took deep breaths, forcibly calming their emotions, and tried their best to ignore the old students’ taunting.
The two who had just fallen off were battered enough, gulping several mouthfuls of water and barely managing to swim back to shore, shivering from the cold, their bodies stiffened.
Seeing that these two were alright and could swim back on their own, the others were sowhat relieved and felt more assured.
With Chao Liang’s guidance and reminder, the performances in the evaluations stabilized significantly, with each group doing better than the last.
The old students also noticed that the participants from the Secular World were getting stronger as the evaluations proceeded.
"This batch of new students seems different from the previous ones. That leader seems to have more brains than those from previous years!
Damn it, these bets aren’t much fun anymore, there’s hardly any uncertainty; everyone knows how to bet to win!" A junior from Dragon Gate Academy muttered beside Zha You.
At this mont, the betting stall had quickly beco regulated and unified, hosted by the first major power of Dragon Gate Academy, the noble house.
Zha You was also a bit downcast, having hoped to make a good profit this year but finding little opportunity for it.
By this ti, most people had completed their evaluations, and only about twenty had managed to pass and enter Dragon Gate Academy, with the majority getting stuck at the Fire Wall cage.
In the end, apart from Chao Liang and Tao Yang, only Jiang Wen was left without a turn.
"One person short, it’s your team’s turn!" Kong Yin glanced at Su Qiong and the others, saying indifferently.
"Let go first!" Zuo Zhengqing took a deep breath, clenched his teeth, and imdiately stepped forward.
"Don’t feel pressured, just go with the flow!" Su Qiong and the others encouraged.
Zuo Zhengqing nodded, then resolutely turned and walked towards the iron chain bridge, embodying the tragic bravery of a hero facing their end.
Watching Zuo Zhengqing’s retreating figure, Su Qiong inwardly sighed, feeling sowhat helpless. This was like putting ducks on the shelves!
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