The Academy Entrance Test

Norton Academy's teaching philosophy has always been "loose on the outside, strict on the inside." While anyone can enroll as long as they are willing to pay the price, the tuition fees are determined by the level of talent. If a student has high talent but comes from a poor family, the academy will offer reduced fees or loans to help them complete their studies. However, students with low talent not only face exorbitant tuition fees but will also be immediately suspended if they fall behind on payments.

Moreover, the academy separates students into different classes based on their talent levels. In short, the academy never loses out.

Leah led Ryan toward the center of the academy square. Along the way, some senior students greeted Leah, curious to see if any exceptionally talented individuals would emerge from this year's batch of new students.

The siblings stood quietly on the outskirts of the crowd, waiting. After about the time it takes for a stick of incense to burn, Ryan was growing bored when a figure suddenly darted from the direction of the teaching building. In moments, a spirited old man in a gray robe appeared on the stone platform. If not for the wrinkles on his face, it would be hard to believe this upright figure was an elderly man.

The old man raised his eyelids slightly and looked at the noisy crowd. "Everyone, thank you for coming to our academy. On behalf of the academy, I express our gratitude for your support and trust. I am Gunter, a mentor at Norton Academy. I hereby declare the entrance test officially begun."

As soon as he finished speaking, the bustling square fell silent. Gunter's voice wasn't loud, but it reached everyone's ears with perfect clarity, as if he were speaking right next to them.

Ryan felt a faint buzzing in his ears. Leah tugged his hand and explained, "The man speaking is Mentor Gunter, second only to the headmaster in strength. He cultivates the thunder element. Since you haven't started cultivating yet, you might feel a bit uncomfortable. I felt the same way during my test. It'll pass soon."

Ryan looked around and noticed that most of the boys his age looked uneasy, and even some adults seemed affected. He thought to himself, "This man is truly impressive," and felt a sense of awe for the old man before him.

Seeing that the crowd had quieted down, Gunter stopped using his elemental power to intimidate them and continued, "Next, I will call out names. When your name is called, step onto the platform. The rules are simple: stand in the red circle at the center of the platform, hold the crystal ball with both hands, close your eyes, and think of anything you like."

"That's it? Easier than falling asleep!" Ryan thought to himself.

As Ryan's mind wandered, Gunter pulled out a small booklet from his robe and called out, "Carmon."

A sturdy-looking boy stepped onto the platform, stood in the red circle, and held the crystal ball with his eyes closed. Shortly after, the crystal ball began to glow red, starting dimly and gradually brightening. The red light stopped rising when it reached the middle of the crystal ball.

Gunter glanced at it and said indifferently, "Fire element, Level 3 medium. Not bad. If you wish to enroll, please go to the headmaster's building behind me to pay the fees and complete the registration."

Gunter knew that not everyone could afford the tuition. Except for children from exceptionally wealthy families, those with average talent and modest backgrounds might not even be able to enroll. When the potential cost outweighs the benefits, most people choose to give up. After so many years, he was used to it.

Upon hearing the result, Carmon walked off the platform in a daze. Whether he could enroll would depend on discussions with his family, given his modest background. In contrast, children from wealthy families would immediately proceed with the enrollment process without a second thought. For them, medium talent was acceptable, as wealth could compensate for lack of talent.

In a way, Carmon was lucky. At least he had the option to choose. Those less fortunate than him would have no chance unless their families supported them. Carmon, however, might attract sponsors willing to fund his education in exchange for his service to their family—whether for a set number of years or a lifetime would depend on the agreement.

The path of cultivation was like thousands of troops crossing a single log bridge—fairness was a luxury. For ordinary people, so-called fairness was nothing more than empty words.

Even so, most people would choose to sacrifice their freedom and compromise, all for the slim hope of turning their lives around.

As one by one, the boys stepped onto the platform with high spirits and walked off with mixed expressions, the world beyond the academy was far vaster than they could imagine.

Just as Ryan watched a boy walk off the platform dejectedly, a familiar name reached his ears: "Ryan."

Ryan froze for a moment, took a deep breath, and walked onto the platform. When he stood in the red circle, he noticed intricate patterns etched into the stone. He realized that the academy used an elemental array for the test, and the crystal ball was merely a tool to display the results visually.

After Leah had demonstrated her abilities, Ryan had asked the servants to find him books about elementalists. Over the past three days, he had crammed some knowledge and learned about the existence of elemental arrays.

Ryan held the crystal ball with both hands and closed his eyes. As he wondered what to think about, he felt various colored substances swirling around him, trying to enter his body. However, just as they were about to touch him, they inexplicably dissipated.

After a while, the crystal ball in Ryan's hands showed no change. At that moment, the pendant around his neck emitted a faint, almost imperceptible glow.

Gunter frowned and muttered, "Hmm? What's going on? Why is there no reaction? Could it be..."

Before he could finish his thought, Gunter formed a hand seal and slapped a corner of the array. A purple light surged into the array, but even after a while, the crystal ball remained unchanged.

Gunter shook his head in confusion and woke Ryan, who was still standing with his eyes closed.

Ryan opened his eyes to find everyone on the platform staring at him with strange looks.

Even Gunter was wide-eyed, staring at Ryan in disbelief. The wrinkles on his face seemed to smooth out slightly, and his expression was somewhat peculiar.

Though puzzled, Ryan remained silent, standing quietly in place.

As the crowd buzzed with confusion, Gunter suddenly spoke, "Headmaster, perhaps you should take over."

This single sentence caused an uproar. "What's going on? Why didn't the crystal ball react? Who is this boy? Why does the headmaster need to intervene? This is unprecedented!"

A flood of questions erupted from the crowd.

Moments later, a graceful woman in a purple robe emerged from the headmaster's building. She had an enchanting face, almond-shaped eyes, and crimson lips. Her golden hair cascaded over her shoulders, exuding an alluring charm that made many men secretly swallow their saliva.

This was Annis, the headmaster of Norton Academy.

As Annis approached, Gunter bowed slightly, but she waved her hand, indicating that she already knew what was happening.

Annis stepped to a corner of the array, closed her eyes, and a faint golden light emanated from her body. After a moment, she opened her eyes and said, "As hard as it is to believe, this is indeed an extremely rare case. Ultra-low perception—essentially no perception at all."

"But..." Gunter hesitated, about to speak.

Annis smiled faintly. "I know what you're going to say. You're thinking of an element that has no color, right?"

Before Gunter could respond, Annis continued, "That element is not just rare—it's legendary even across the entire Purple Cloud Continent. It's said that while this element doesn't produce color in the crystal ball, it does produce sound from the array. This element is the sound element. However, I didn't detect even the slightest sound from the array. Therefore, I can confirm that this child is not a possessor of the sound element."

Hearing Annis's explanation, Gunter suddenly understood. "I see."

Ryan, of course, also heard the headmaster's conclusion. When she said "ultra-low, no perception," he felt as if he had been struck by lightning. He stood frozen in place, silent.

Annis took the booklet from Gunter, glanced at it, and frowned slightly. She looked at Ryan, who was still standing dumbfounded, and comforted him, "Child, having no elemental perception isn't the end of the world. Not everyone can reach the pinnacle. Being an ordinary person isn't necessarily a bad thing. If you wish to enroll, go to the headmaster's building to complete the procedures."

In an instant, not only Gunter but everyone, including Leah, was stunned. The square erupted into chaos once more. "What? Even a 'useless' person can enroll? What kind of academy is this? What's this boy's background?"

Amid the uproar, Ryan remained silent on the platform.

Leah's eyes were already misty. She muttered to herself, "This is too much. Ultra-low? I've never even heard of such a thing. I knew Ryan's results might not be great, but I never expected this. The difference between 'ultra-low' and 'ultra-high' is like heaven and hell."

As Leah's thoughts raced, Annis raised her voice and said, "What's all this noise? As long as someone is willing to pay the corresponding price, we will accept them. Norton Academy has stood in Sweet Spring Town for so long. Have we ever turned anyone away?"

Annis's words silenced the crowd. True, the academy had never rejected anyone, but the exorbitant fees were beyond the means of most.

Annis didn't want to engage further with the crowd. She waved her hand and walked away.

As the headmaster disappeared from view, she couldn't help but feel a headache coming on. After all, she had accepted a favor and couldn't go back on her word.

Leah, seeing Ryan standing helplessly on the platform, felt a pang of heartache. She rushed onto the platform, wrapped her arm around the dazed boy, and led him toward the headmaster's building. The sight left the crowd even more stunned, and the murmurs grew louder.

"Who is this young master? Even if they're rich, this is just burning money. For someone like him, the tuition fee would probably cover at least ten students with medium talent."

Though Leah ignored the comments, the mockery directed at Ryan had already angered her. If it weren't for the fact that they were in the academy, she would have lashed out. She might tease her brother, but she wouldn't tolerate anyone else doing the same. So what if he had no talent? House Stark had money to spare. Let's see who dares to look down on us now.

The siblings entered the headmaster's building, where they were greeted by a middle-aged man. Leah bowed respectfully and said, "Teacher, I'm here to complete the enrollment procedures for my brother."

"Ah... so Ryan is your brother! The headmaster just informed me that, given Ryan's situation, the tuition fee will be one thousand gold coins per term." The man's voice wavered slightly as he mentioned the amount.

One thousand gold coins! He couldn't imagine anyone spending such a fortune on someone deemed "useless." The headmaster's demand was simply too harsh.