Chapter 992: Full-Marks Exam Paper

For the 1-star examination, it was enough for the examinees to just have a single subject reaching the expert level.

Hence, the examinees would head to their respective venues according to the scheduled time of each subject.

With all the subjects added together, it basically needed three days for all the subjects to be tested.

For a subject like poison study, it was usually held in the smallest classroom, the type where 50 pax was the max capacity. In fact, the classroom might not even be filled up.

While for alchemy, weaponsmithing, and spirit runes—the popular subjects, their testing area would always be filled to the brim. Hence, they were usually scheduled first, and the grading would begin the moment the candidates completed the exam papers.

“Everyone, let’s start!”

This time around, the person in charge of the grading was a 7-star great teacher, Tong Xugao. He had already been a grandmaster spirit runist for 30 years and was experienced enough to manage this.

Moreover, the other ten graders were all spirit runists with over ten years of experience in the study of spirit runes.

“Teacher Tong, please!”

Everyone clasped their hands. After Tong Xugao took away a paper, they then started grading.

This was a convention. The main grader would start by doing this first as a sign of respect.

“I wonder if we will see someone scoring full marks this year?”

Wang Song glanced at the exam papers in his hands as he frowned. There was already a mistake at the 7th question.

“A supreme genius like Sun Mo might only appear once in a decade!”

“It should be in several decades!”

“In any case, they are very rare!”

The graders started chatting.

With their standards, they wouldn’t make a mistake even if they chatted as they graded the papers.

And it was fine even if they made a mistake because every set of exam papers would be cross-marked by three people. The others would surely catch it if a mistake in grading was made.

“Sadly, my student went to participate last year. And to avoid gossip, I had no way to become an examiner. Otherwise, he might have to address me as ‘teacher’ now!”

Wang Song sighed.

“It’s fine. We might meet one this year as well. Don’t forget that Secondary Saint Zhou’s beloved great grandson has chosen the study of spirit runes.”

Qian Hao chortled.

The eyes of everyone brightened. Being able to form a relationship with the Zhou Clan wasn’t bad either. If that really happened, it meant that their trip here wouldn’t be a wasted one.

“I wonder how many marks the Great Tang Empire’s Princess, who is also Sun Mo’s student, can score?”

Someone was curious.

“I think it should be above 90 no matter what, right?”

Wang Song guessed.

For the written exam this time around, full marks was 100.

“Let’s get started quickly then!”

The excitement of everyone was immediately stirred, and the speed of their grading became quicker as well.

This was them trying to find a hint of joy in a dry and arduous task like grading papers.

Because the Saint Gate limited the number of people that passed, the grading of the exam papers was extremely strict.

For the first portion, which consisted of basic questions, no mistakes were permitted. One would be eliminated the moment there was a mistake.

The second portion of the written segment consisted of questions with depth to them. The examinees could at most make three mistakes and if they exceeded this number, there was no need for the graders to continue reading as the examinees would be eliminated as well.

Yes, even if the examinees had fascinating and wonderful answers for the latter questions, they would still fail.

And for the third portion, they were collectively known as open-ended questions.

For questions belonging to the third portion, there was only a rough scope and there were no concrete answers. As long as their answers fell into the rough scope, they could be considered to have passed.

As for whether their answers were good or not, it would be judged through a discussion by the graders eventually.

Bluntly speaking, it was to test their creativity and to check if the examinees had a unique understanding of spirit runes. For those examinees who only excelled in rote memorization, they would never be able to pass.

There was a bamboo basket placed before every grader.

The failed papers were tossed inside the basket.

Gradually, everyone no longer bothered to chat and started grading the papers in a mechanical-like manner. They would only engage in discussion if they saw the occasional brilliant answer that was worthy of being a highlight.

“Spirit runes could have life? What wild fantasy is this?!”

Wang Song’s lips twitched.

“Actually, I’m quite fond of the thoughts of these young people. They dare to lose themselves in their imaginations and have no constraints. They are unlike us who are old-fashioned and inflexible.”

Another great teacher spoke.

“Spirit runes have life? How? Even if Sun Mo used spirit runes to revive withered trees, he merely selected the correct runes.”

Wang Song shook his head.

Tong Xugao, who had always been silent, suddenly spoke, “Imagination is not nonsensical thinking. People who feel this way would soon be beaten up by reality. For any subject, they have their own ‘internal rules’. Leaving the confines of the ‘internal rules’ shouldn’t happen.”

Everyone hurriedly agreed with Tong Xugao’s words.

Wang Song felt a little awkward. Although this major character wasn’t targeting him, the former clearly disagreed with his opinions. (Would I leave behind a bad impression? Sigh! Why was I so mouthy?)

“Eh, this exam paper isn’t bad. The front portion is all correct, and the answers to the open-ended questions are very logical as well. This person should have received the guidance of a great teacher before!”

Qian Hao sighed.

After grading so many papers, he finally saw one with the potential to score full marks.

He then flipped to the last question where the examinees were asked to draw a Rain Request Spirit Rune. It was relatively not bad and the standard was around the fifth level.

To be honest, drawing the Rain Request Spirit Rune at the fourth level was already sufficient to get full marks for this question.

“I feel that this set of exam papers ought to be given full marks!”

Qian Hao spoke out, preparing to fight for it.

It was definitely impossible for such an impressive examinee to be ‘buried’ in the future.

A few of the graders immediately crowded over and lowered their heads to read the papers.

“His or her answers are pretty good!”

“Not bad, not bad. Not only did they answer the questions correctly, but their answers and judgments are quite far-sighted as well. This is really interesting.”

“The spirit rune is also drawn pretty well.”

The other graders immediately gave that paper a high evaluation.

“Teacher Tong!”

Qian Hao passed the paper to Tong Xugao. The number of marks would be determined by this main grader.

Tong Xugao checked the paper very meticulously, and he gradually revealed a smile as he nodded involuntarily.

“Put it to one side first!”

Tong Xugao instructed.

Qian Hao smiled when he heard this. This was the usual practice. Tong Xugao didn’t give it full marks now because he was worried there might be better papers later on.

“This time around, Teacher Tong is too cautious. This set of exam papers can already be considered as choosing one in ten thousand.”

Qian Hao already started to feel anticipation for the other graders to finish marking their papers. He wanted to know who the examinee of the papers he had just marked was.

But ten minutes later, his anticipation was crushed.

“Eh?”

A great teacher with the surname ‘Zhou’ opened up the sealed cover and was stunned because there was a weak hint of light glimmering from the paper.

This meant that within this set of papers, there was at least a sixth-level spirit rune. If not, the paper wouldn’t glow.

“Oh no, I guess my examinee would have to take second place now.”

Upon seeing this scene, Qian Hao felt depressed. The favor that he would gain if the examinee he marked was number one was all gone now.

For the exam papers that were handed up, they would be placed by the main examiner into a sealed box that would only be opened after the box reached the grading chamber.

“It would depend on luck, I guess?”

The great teacher with the surname ‘Zhou’ teased.

“Don’t slow down intentionally. Also, I don’t want you guys to neglect the papers you are currently grading just for the sake of snatching that set of exam papers.”

Tong Xugao reminded them.

He was worried that everyone might intentionally waste time because they wanted to wait for that set of exam papers.

Half an hour later.

“Haha, sorry everyone. I guess I’m the lucky one.”

Wang Song laughed.

“Treat us! Treat us! VIP seats at the top level of the Drunken Immortal Restaurant. If I don’t take advantage of you, I won’t be happy!”

Qian Hao chortled.

The others also no longer graded and gathered over.

Basic questions, all correct!

Advanced questions, all correct!

The answers to the open-ended questions that had a high degree of freedom were all done nicely with nothing to nitpick.

As for the last question.

“This is a sixth-level spirit rune!”

Seeing the exam paper shining with a weak glow, everyone exclaimed in admiration.

Just this spirit rune alone could be sold for a few thousand taels of silver.

Naturally, it wouldn’t be too expensive because its effect was simply to gather rain. It provided no help toward cultivation.

“Full marks! This examinee is definitely the top-scorer of this batch for the written spirit rune exam!”

“His handwriting isn’t bad as well and has the feel of a calligrapher.”

After Wang Song finished speaking, everyone nodded. Even Tong Xugao felt the same way.

Only when one’s grasp on the study of spirit runes was high would they be able to draw such a high-level Rain Request Spirit Rune.

“I wonder how Li Ziqi would perform?”

Qian Hao suddenly mumbled.

Everyone started before laughing. This time around, she definitely had no way to replicate her teacher’s feat of getting full marks.

The handwriting on this set of papers and the style of answering for the open-ended questions might not be bold and unconstrained, but they also exuded a sense of robust sharpness. The examinee should be a guy.

The grading continued and 15 minutes later, the great teacher with the surname ‘Zhou’ suddenly cursed out loud.

“Damn!”

Everyone inclined their heads in puzzlement.

“You guys, quickly look at the handwriting…”

Great Teacher Zhou was agitated because he was a lover of calligraphy.

“What about it? Are there any signs that this examinee was cheating?”

Wang Song stretched his head out. After that, he was startled. “This…”

“What calligraphy style is this?”

The others were dumbstruck as well.

“Haha, I didn’t expect that I would grade the exam papers of a calligrapher!”

Great Teacher Zhou was joyful.

“Mn!”

Everyone nodded. Although they weren’t calligraphers, their ability to appreciate this wasn’t low. The handwriting on this set of exam papers was good enough for the examinee to set up his or her own unique style.

This font was sturdy but with a hint of beauty and gentleness. It was really impressive.

Great Teacher Zhou continued reading, but the more he read, the heavier his expression grew. In the end, his brows were completely furrowed, intense enough to crush a crab to death.

“What’s wrong? Is that person going to fail?”

Wang Song asked.

This was after all an exam testing for one’s expertise in the study of spirit runes and not an exam testing for one’s handwriting. No matter how beautiful their handwriting was, it was useless if they failed.

“No, the answers have surpassed my scope of understanding.”

Great Teacher Zhou honestly replied.

“Ah?”

Everyone was shocked and hurriedly gathered over.

“Look at this question. The examinee explains the connection between spirit runes and life. It said that all living things needed a type of ‘life cycle’. If one could convert spirit runes into this type of system and use purified spirit qi as the energy source, one would be able to create a new life.”

Everyone exchanged glances because this concept was super advanced. Moreover, this didn’t merely involve the study of spirit runes but also medical studies.

If Sun Mo saw this question, he would say that it was not medical studies but a part of life sciences.

As someone of the modern era, Sun Mo’s horizons were too broad. Moreover, because of his habits, he would subconsciously impart some modern concepts to her.

This concept was something casually mentioned by Sun Mo when they had been discussing mechanical puppets. At that time, Sun Mo had been thinking about whether he could create a machine that relied on a spirit rune system to operate.

After all, in this era, coal and oil were too rare. Even if they were excavated, it was impossible to use them. And as for spirit qi, it was then the main energy source that the bulk of the population used.

Also, Sun Mo said before that those aboriginals in the Greenhaze Forest were artificially created. Hence, Li Ziqi extended the thought and mentioned puppets.

Could puppets become alive and gain their own consciousness? Becoming a race of their own?

Li Ziqi’s answer was too shocking. All the graders who were veterans in the study of spirit runes fell silent. They could only look at Tong Xugao and wait for his explanation.

However, this grandmaster spirit runist had sunk into deep thoughts after hearing Li Ziqi’s answer which was being recited by Great Teacher Zhou.