High Martial Arts Era

Chapter 46: Mid-January Exams

The Mid-January exams lasted three days. The first day and the morning of the second day were for cultural subject exams, while the afternoon of the second day was reserved for the 'spiritual potential test.' The third day was dedicated to the martial arts assessment.

Li Yuan didn't let the exams disrupt his training schedule. As usual, he arrived at school around four in the morning to practice his foundational exercises. At seven, he took a shower in the martial arts room before heading to the cafeteria for breakfast. Then, he joined Zhou Qi, Yan Zhou, and others on their way to the exam hall.

The Mid-January exams are one of the two most critical standardized tests before the college entrance exams. Both the education bureau and the school take them very seriously. All standards are strictly in line with the college entrance exams. Devices like smart rings are not allowed in the exam halls, and various checks are in place. The twenty classes were divided into forty exam halls.

The seating arrangement in the cultural exam hall was based on the students' cultural subject rankings from the last major exam.

"Yuan, we're heading upstairs," Zhou Qi waved with a smile.

"Yuan, do well in the exams, we'll be waiting for you upstairs," a group of classmates teased as they headed up. The higher the floor of the exam hall, the better the ranking.

"These guys," Li Yuan shook his head, smiling.

He glanced at Li Tianyou's exam admission ticket beside him and grinned, "Tianyou, I'm in exam hall 29, and you're in hall 33. Do well, I'll be waiting for you upstairs."

With that, Li Yuan headed upstairs, leaving Li Tianyou looking bewildered.

The students in exam hall 29 were among the middle to lower achievers in cultural subjects at Guanshan No. 1 High School. However, as a top high school, even students in exam hall 35 had a chance of getting into a top-tier cultural university.

After sitting down, Li Yuan scanned the room and saw many familiar faces, including several from the elite class. Students in the elite martial arts class generally didn't perform as well in cultural subjects because their focus and energy were limited.

"Gu Qianghan, you're here too?" Li Yuan smiled at a nearby student.

"Call me Gu Qiang," the delicate-looking boy said stubbornly.

"Alright, Little Qiang," Li Yuan chuckled. "I remember your sister calling you that a few days ago."

Li Yuan and Gu Qianghan often ran into each other in the independent martial arts rooms on the fourth floor of the elite building.

The delicate-looking boy glared at Li Yuan and stood up, seemingly ready to argue.

"The proctor is coming, your homeroom teacher," Li Yuan pointed to the distance and sat up straight.

Gu Qianghan turned his head, saw no one, and angrily looked back at Li Yuan, "You tricked me."

"This time, she's really coming," Li Yuan suddenly said seriously, "your homeroom teacher."

"I don't believe you," Gu Qianghan raised his middle finger at Li Yuan, looking disdainful.

"Gu Qianghan! Sit down! We're about to distribute the test papers!" A stern voice suddenly erupted from the classroom door, making Gu Qianghan shiver and quickly sit down.

The cultural homeroom teacher for the elite martial arts class in their third year was a female warrior. At Guanshan No. 1 High School, she and Xu Bo were known as the "Literary and Martial Ashuras."

.....

The cultural exams lasted a day and a half and were uneventful for Li Yuan. Over the past year, his mental strength had continuously improved, making it easy to remember a lot of rote learning content. However, increased mental strength didn't directly translate to higher intelligence, and he had spent very little time on cultural subjects.

"Zhou Qi and the others originally had good academic performance and spent a lot of time on it," Li Yuan thought. "My cultural subject ranking should improve slightly compared to the last exam... but it probably won't be a significant change. I'll do my best."

.....

After the cultural exams, all students returned to their cultural classrooms, where many began discussing their answers.

"What was the answer to the last math multiple-choice question? Was it B?" a noticeable student asked excitedly.

"It should be C," replied a student who usually scored near perfect in math.

"But I just guessed, so I might be wrong," the math genius added.

"Damn, I originally thought it was C, but then I changed it to B... It looks like I won't get 150 in math again," the noticeable student lamented.

The total math score is 200 points, making it the most critical subject.

Amid the noise, Li Yuan sat in his seat, daydreaming. He never checked answers. It wasn't out of confidence but rather indifference. The total score for cultural subjects was 1,000 points, but if one chose to pursue a martial arts university, the cultural score would be converted to 100 points, accounting for only 10%.

For Li Yuan, scoring 700 points or 800 points in cultural subjects only made a 10-point difference in the total score. However, the effort required was vastly different.

"Traditionally, the Mid-January exams are slightly harder than the college entrance exams," Li Yuan calculated silently. "This time, I should get most of the basic points. Scoring over 650 in cultural subjects would be a success."

Suddenly, their homeroom teacher, Mr. Chen, walked into the classroom with a serious expression, "Everyone, settle down. The schedule for the spiritual potential test is out. Our class is at 2 PM, and we are the first to be tested."

Class 3-1 was the elite class, and all students had awakened their martial arts potential, so they didn't need to be tested again. Class 3-2 would be tested first.

"After the test, it's self-study," Mr. Chen continued. "But don't overexert yourselves in martial arts practice today. Tomorrow, we have the 10,000-meter test." With that, Mr. Chen left the classroom.

"Spiritual potential test! It's here again."

"I wonder if I can change my fate."

"Don't dream."

"It's senior year, wake up. If my urine isn't yellow enough, I won't be motivated." The students started discussing again.

Many of the top students in cultural subjects quietly took out their books to study. If they chose the academic route, even if they awakened their martial arts potential, it wouldn't give them extra points.

"Yuan, your physical fitness seems to have surpassed level 7.0. You should have awakened your potential," Zhou Qi said excitedly.

"Maybe," Li Yuan pondered for a moment. He wasn't sure if his spiritual awakening degree of 0.6% would make a difference.

...

Over an hour later.

"I've awakened my martial arts potential?" Zhou Qi was shocked and confused as he walked out of the testing room, looking at his test results in disbelief, drawing the attention of his classmates.

"Zhou Qi, awakened?"

"Really?" Discussions broke out as almost everyone found it unbelievable. Zhou Qi was widely known as being at the bottom of the class in martial arts.

"Zhou Qi awakened?" Li Yuan smiled slightly, glancing at his own test result marked 'not awakened.'

He wasn't surprised by his result; the Divine Palace panel had already indicated it. However, Zhou Qi's compatibility with high-tier training methods exceeding 85% in his senior year was unexpected.

"Some people chase something desperately and never achieve it, while others get it without even trying," Li Yuan glanced at Li Tianyou, who was enviously watching Zhou Qi being the center of attention.

"Perhaps sometimes it's just about fate," Li Yuan thought.

.....

Class 3-2's testing concluded, and Zhou Qi was the only one who successfully awakened his potential.

As one gets older, their bones become set, and the hope of achieving compatibility with high-tier training methods diminishes. It's already rare for Class 3-2 to have two students awaken their martial arts potential within one semester.

.....

In the martial arts assessment, qi and blood tests, punch strength tests, and martial arts skills were conducted in closed tests, so other students didn't immediately know the specific data. However, physical fitness tests like the 40-meter, 100-meter, 1-kilometer, and 10-kilometer runs were public.

On the third day of the Mid-January exams, Class 3-2 students followed the elite class to the school's largest sports field for the 10,000-meter run test.

The first physical test was the 40-meter sprint.

"The elite class students are so fast."

"14.5 meters per second!"

"That one reached 15.7 meters per second, their physical fitness must be over level 7."

"Wow! 17.2 meters per second? Almost level 8."

"No wonder they're in the elite class." Li Yuan's classmates exclaimed as they watched the elite class students cross the finish line.

No wonder Class 3-2 students were impressed; their physical fitness was generally only above level 5. After half a year of senior year training, even the weakest elite class student had surpassed level 6, with nearly half exceeding level 7.0.

Training with high-tier methods allowed even a tiny bit of cosmic energy absorption, giving them a significant advantage.

However, even in the elite class, students with physical fitness reaching level 8.0 were few and far between.

"Look, Lin Lanyue."

"The top martial arts student in the grade."

"It's her."

On the track, a bright-eyed and beautiful girl in red training clothes immediately drew everyone's attention.

In senior year, Lin Lanyue was extremely famous.

"Lin Lanyue?" Li Yuan looked over curiously. Her physical fitness was indeed strong.

Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!

Six figures on the track sprinted, with the red figure breaking away with terrifying speed. In just over two seconds, Lin Lanyue crossed the finish line, far ahead of the others.

The electronic display showed her final result—"19.7 meters per second."

"Wow."

"Is that a university student?"

"Almost a martial artist."

"Damn, she's twice as fast as me. She could definitely beat me with one punch." A chorus of exclamations filled with shock.

Li Yuan's gaze lingered on Lin Lanyue, and he initiated his scan, revealing the results: Target: Life Level 9.0.

"9.0?" Li Yuan was surprised.

A quick comparison made him conclude, "Her progress in physical fitness seems as fast as mine."

Logically, the progress should slow down as one advances. However, Lin Lanyue's physical fitness showed no signs of slowing, even accelerating.

The 40-meter test proceeded quickly, and soon it was Class 3-2's turn.

"Randomized numbers, first group, 36, 1, 8..." The proctor called out the numbers.

As the top martial arts student in his class, Li Yuan's number was 1. He stepped up to the starting line.

"Li Yuan is up?"

"What's his physical fitness level now?"

"Not sure."

"It should be over level 7. He was already 6.5 at the start of the term." Li Yuan's appearance drew attention from many students, even those from the elite class.

Li Yuan had made it into the top thirty in the grade from a regular class and was recognized as having the best martial arts skills. His victory over Lin Lanyue in a virtual fight further boosted his reputation.

"Lanyue, look, Li Yuan is... you're already watching him," a chubby girl next to Lin Lanyue said, intending to call her attention.

She then noticed Lin Lanyue had already stopped and was watching Li Yuan.

"Li Yuan?" Lin Lanyue watched seriously, curious. Why did Li Yuan sign a B-level contract with Starlight Martial Hall? Maybe this exam would provide some answers.

"Lanyue, what do you think Li Yuan's physical fitness level is?" the chubby friend asked.

"Him?" Lin Lanyue hesitated. "Maybe around 7.4."

"That high?" The chubby friend was surprised. That level would put him near the top ten in the elite class.

At that moment.

Whoosh! Whoosh!

Six figures on the track instantly sprinted out, with Li Yuan like an arrow, quickly leaving his five classmates far behind. He crossed the finish line nearly twice as fast.

"Beep—"

The electronic display showed Li Yuan's result—"17.8 meters per second."