Chapter 73: The Grand Examination Begins

Jiangning City.

The provincial capital of Dongning Province.

Located southwest of Donghai City, separated by just over a hundred kilometers.

All students participating in the grand examination will gather here to take part in the uniformly organized evaluation.

At this moment, the school gate of Donghai No. 1 High School was filled with an atmosphere intertwined with youth and tension.

Over a hundred students gathered here, waiting for the head teacher to take attendance and make arrangements.

Zhou Huai glanced over and discovered that the number of students from No. 1 High School participating in the grand examination this year was fewer than he had anticipated.

It seemed to be less than a hundred people.

The threshold of the grand examination was right there; the Rank had to reach level 15.

This rigid standard had already ruthlessly screened out the vast majority of students.

Zhou Huai controlled Gandalf as he passed through the crowd, came before a middle-aged teacher in charge of registration, and handed over his admission ticket.

That teacher took the crystal card, his gaze sweeping over it.

"Gandalf?"

He frowned, raising his eyes to size up the mysterious examinee before him who was draped in a star moon robe.

He was very certain that there was no such figure in his class.

However, the doubt on his face flashed by and he didn't ask much.

He had seen too many such matters.

Every year near the grand examination, some unfamiliar faces would always pop out of thin air.

Most of them were retakers who had failed the previous exam or failed to reach the evaluation standards, regaining their examination qualifications through certain connections and financial transactions.

As long as the examinee's age did not exceed twenty and the Rank did not exceed level 20, the organizing committee would usually turn a blind eye.

This had long been an unwritten rule.

After confirming the admission ticket was correct, the teacher habitually swept Gandalf's Rank with an observation spell.

The next second, his pupils shrank sharply.

LV20!

To actually participate in the exam at full level!

At this moment, he was even more certain of his judgment.

It was definitely a retaker without a doubt.

After all, due to the beast tide these past few days, many students didn't dare to leave the city to level up; being able to reach the 15-level threshold in their graduating year was already considered quite good.

The fellow in front of him obviously spent one more year than others.

Thinking of this, the expression on the teacher's face also turned a bit colder.

"Go sit in the last row."

He pointed to the back of the bus, his tone devoid of much emotion.

"Speak less."

Zhou Huai controlled Gandalf to nod, walked straight onto the bus, and sat down in the corner of the last row.

As soon as he sat down, the noisy discussions inside the carriage quieted down a lot.

Countless curious, inquiring, and even slightly envious gazes all fell upon the glowing Star-Moon Set on his body.

"Holy crap, what kind of equipment is that? It looks so awesome!"

"A whole set of Mage equipment? How much must this cost?"

"I don't recognize him, does our school have such a figure?"

"Whatever, looking at his appearance, he's probably a rich second-generation heir who isn't to be trifled with."

Zhou Huai turned a deaf ear to these discussions, closed his eyes, and leaned against the back of the chair to rest.

Soon, other students boarded the bus one after another.

Only Lu Qi, surrounded by a group of people, uniquely boarded the luxury private car sent by the Zhou Family.

He rolled down the car window, his gaze sweeping across that crowded bus, and the corners of his mouth curled into an undisguised sneer.

A moments later, the motorcade slowly started.

Heading all the way west, driving toward Jiangning City.

To ensure the safety of the examinees, the military had long dispatched troops to clear out the alien beasts along the way.

Squads of heavily armored soldiers, riding battle beasts, patrolled back and forth on both sides of the road, a murderous aura permeated the air.

Two hours later, the motorcade successfully arrived at Jiangning City.

Compared to Donghai City, this provincial capital city appeared even more bustling and majestic.

That hundred-meter-tall city wall, like a steel behemoth spanning across heaven and earth, exuded a reassuringly heavy aura.

The bus slowly drove into the city and finally stopped on an incomparably huge plaza.

Gandalf got off the bus following the flow of people.

Looking out, the plaza was already parked full of school buses from various cities in Dongning Province.

Dozens of buses and nearly a thousand examinees gathered here, and the scene was magnificent.

Zhou Huai's gaze swept through the crowd, and soon he saw that familiar figure in the team of No. 2 High School.

Ye Xi was surrounded in the middle by several little female companions, her small face tightly taut, and her hands nervously grasping the corner of her clothes.

Zhou Huai looked at her look of feigned calmness and felt somewhat like laughing.

With a thought in his mind, his consciousness instantly returned to his main body.

He took out his mobile phone and skillfully sent a text message to Ye Xi.

"Come on for the grand examination, just maintain a normal state of mind. Don't be too nervous, you are so excellent, you will definitely be able to enter a top-tier academy."

On the other side, Ye Xi was taking deep breaths to adjust her mindset when the mobile phone in her pocket suddenly vibrated.

She took out her phone and saw it was a message sent by Zhou Huai, and that tight little face instantly blossomed with a brilliant smile.

The nervous emotion seemed to be instantly smoothed out.

Her fair fingers tapped quickly on the screen, and when replying to the message, her mouth was still stubborn.

"Brother Zhou Huai, I am not nervous at all! Hmph!"

"Besides, I don't want to go to any top-tier academy either."

"It's enough to be able to get into Dongning Academy."

Zhou Huai looked at the reply and was somewhat surprised.

"Why? With your talent, you can completely go to the top-tier academies in the Imperial Capital or Modu."

Soon, a new message popped out.

"Because the other academies are too far away from you!"

"In the future, I won't be able to go see you often."

"Dongning Academy is closer, right here in Jiangning City. From now on, whenever there is a holiday, I can go back to Donghai City to see you."

Zhou Huai looked at the text on the screen, and a warm current surged in his heart.

This girl…

He helplessly shook his head, but a smile hung on his face.

That's fine too.

She would get into Dongning Academy, right in Jiangning City.

If she really encountered any trouble in the future, he could send a Clone over to look after her a bit or two.

Just at this moment.

Hum——!

The ground of the entire plaza suddenly lit up with dazzling rune lights.

Ancient and profound Formation patterns rapidly spread across the ground, enveloping all the examinees within them.

A solemn and respectful aura instantly suppressed all the hustle and bustle.

Following closely, a majestic and grand voice resounded through the entire plaza via the broadcast, echoing in everyone's ears.

"All examinees, please pay attention!"

"Maintain silence!"

"The grand examination is about to begin!"