Chapter 122: An Evil God’s Secrets
Zhang Yu was slightly taken aback by what the evil god had said in his mind.
This evil god had previously been dead set against him giving up the Prodigy Class to stay in Songyang City, so why the sudden change of heart?
As if sensing his confusion, the evil god continued to speak in his mind, “What Zhang Pianpian said has reminded me of a few things.”
“I once heard the evil god king on the third subterranean level say that a struggle had broken out on the upper levels of Kunxu, and it involved the examination for this very Foundation Establishment certificate.”
The evil god still remembered its time working on the third subterranean level of Kunxu.
With nothing but a telephone and a phone book, it had become the top salesperson of the month, even duping several university PhDs. Not only did it receive a reward from the evil god king, but it was also invited to the king’s banquet, where it overheard many secrets.
The evil god thought to itself, Damn it all, what a shame. The very next month, that evil god king swindled me out of my sales skills and my bonus, then turned around and sold those skills to a bunch of dropout university students who had fled to the third level and couldn’t find work. He then hired those students and kicked me to the curb, forcing me to find a new job all over again…
The thought flashed through its mind, and the evil god continued, “I remember hearing the evil god king lament how some Immortal Venerable pushed for a series of reforms to the qualification exam quotas to increase mobility for the lower and middle classes of Kunxu, and that included changes to the Foundation Establishment certificate quotas.”
“But they had to consider the disciples and descendants of every immortal, weigh the quotas for the Ten Great Sects, and balance the power of the different factions within the Heavenly Court. The web of interests was so tangled, and I can’t even imagine how many struggles unfolded.”
“In the end, some immortals went bankrupt from gambling, some died in their immortal abodes from cultivation deviation, and some even fled to the unknown regions more than ten levels deep beneath Kunxu.”
“But it was precisely because the struggle was so fierce that the final version of the Foundation Establishment qualification exam is so authoritative; it represents the collective will of the Ten Great Sects and the Heavenly Court formed by their immortals.”
“So you don’t need to worry about your safety participating in this exam. Just as Zhang Pianpian said, the top powers on the first layer wouldn’t dare violate the rules or cheat. The most they can do is suppress information outside the examination grounds and do their best to improve their own students’ strength.”
Sensing that Zhang Yu was contemplating its words, the evil god quickly added, “And if you can obtain this Foundation Establishment certificate before entering university… the advantages are huge. The exam itself, established by the Heavenly Court, carries immense authority. It practically appoints its passers as among the strongest high school students on the first layer.”
“Entering university with this certificate, the treatment you receive, the courses you study, and the resources you get will all be on a completely different level.”
“Most importantly, you’ll be able to directly enter the university’s Foundation Establishment class, study the Foundation Establishment curriculum, and enjoy the support of Foundation Establishment-level resources. This will give you a massive head start in your early university years, a far greater advantage than the Prodigy Class could offer.”
Zhang Yu understood what the evil god meant. The difference was even greater than that between a key high school and an ordinary one, right?
“Secondly, neither Bai Zhenzhen nor Zhang Pianpian has any idea just how terrifying your talent has become after my enlightenment.”
“From my observations during this period, as you master more and more cultivation techniques, your rate of progress will only accelerate. I firmly believe you will become the strongest high school student on Kunxu’s first layer, and winning this Foundation Establishment qualification exam will be as easy as turning over your hand.”
“In comparison, with your terrifying aptitude, competing for the certificate against high school students who have been on the Immortal Dao for no more than three years is likely far simpler than vying for it at university against all those cultivators at the peak of Qi Refinement.”
The evil god sighed. “If I weren’t broke right now, I would definitely go all-in on you.”
Of course, there were some things the evil god left unsaid—things related to its own hidden agenda.
Once Zhang Pianpian left, Zhang Yu and Bai Zhenzhen would remain in Songyang City, facing an environment of ever-increasing pressure. Zhang Yu would inevitably be driven to seek greater power, greater talent, and greater potential.
Under such circumstances, the evil god judged that Zhang Yu would eventually follow its guidance and hunt evil gods to enhance his own potential.
Then there was the matter of the True Spiritual Root.
He’s not even willing to betray his closest high school classmate, yet he still wants to climb higher in Kunxu? What a saint. If it weren’t for your outrageous potential, I couldn’t be bothered with you.
The evil god knew Zhang Yu was unwilling to kill someone to steal their spiritual root. Even if he went to the Prodigy Class alone, he wouldn’t have the aid of a True Spiritual Root. In contrast, by staying behind to take the Foundation Establishment exam, he could continue borrowing this True Spiritual Root for his cultivation.
Considering all these factors, the evil god finally agreed that Zhang Yu should stay and take the exam.
And what the evil god said had indeed reminded Zhang Yu of one thing.
“My greatest advantage is my ability to quickly learn various cultivation techniques and raise them to level 10.”
“This is an advantage that other high school students, in the short span of three years, would find very difficult to match.”
“But once I get to university, those students who have been in Qi Refinement longer than me, who have lingered at the peak of Qi Refinement for ages, will have surely mastered numerous cultivation techniques.”
“After all, for university students whose Dao hearts, magic power, and physical strength have all reached the upper limits of Qi Refinement, one of the ways to further differentiate their power… should be the number and strength of their cultivation techniques.”
“At that point, my advantage over those university students… will no longer be as great as it is now against high school students.”
With this thought, Zhang Yu found himself leaning more and more towards staying behind for the Foundation Establishment qualification exam.
Zhang Pianpian, who had been observing him all this time, now remarked with a sigh, “It seems you’ve made your decision. Are you going to stay here with Bai Zhenzhen?”
After a moment of contemplation, Zhang Yu finally nodded, an unusual emotion rising in his heart.
It felt as if… choosing not to go with Zhang Pianpian, but to stay with Bai Zhenzhen, was somehow letting Zhang Pianpian down.
It was like telling Zhang Pianpian: Sis, Zhen and I are the closest. If I had to choose one of you to go with, I’d choose Zhen.
And Zhang Pianpian had been looking out for them for over four months…
This strange emotion caused a trace of shame to well up in Zhang Yu’s heart under Zhang Pianpian’s gaze.
Beside them, Bai Zhenzhen looked at Zhang Yu, her heart gradually stirring as if a warm current was surging through her body.
Yu-boy is really staying to take the Foundation Establishment exam with me.
At that thought, the earlier feeling of loneliness, the darkness and cold of being deep within a frozen river, seemed to be swept away, replaced by a sense of security.
Along with this feeling of security, along with the stirring in her heart, even the True Spiritual Root in her belly began to tremble slightly.
What’s this stupid spiritual root getting so excited about? Is it that fond of Yu-boy’s body? Does it want to get inside that badly?
But on second thought, Bai Zhenzhen realized that the True Spiritual Root was probably just reflecting her own feelings—a desire to be good to Zhang Yu now that he was staying to take the exam with her.
And the way to be good to Zhang Yu was to stuff the True Spiritual Root into his body; after all, it was the most valuable thing she owned.
This act of lending one’s most precious possession to another was rare even among the closest of relatives in Kunxu. It was something usually only done with a signed contract, including but not limited to lending one’s brain, heart, or kidneys for a while.
Realizing what she was thinking, Bai Zhenzhen’s gaze toward Zhang Yu changed slightly, and she thought to herself, Yu-boy, from now on, you will always be number one in my friendship rankings. You’re my best friend in the whole world, the kind I could call ‘daddy’ every single day.
Zhang Pianpian looked at the two of them and said calmly, “Since you’ve decided to stay, then so be it. The path of the Immortal Dao is ultimately one you choose for yourself and walk step by step.”
“But since you have decided, you must not have any regrets.”
“In the time that follows, you must seize every minute, every second, and every coin for your cultivation.”
“The Foundation Establishment qualification exam on Kunxu’s first layer is divided into three rounds.”
“It’s mid-April now. After registration in mid-June, the first round is in August. It tests comprehensive abilities and is the least difficult of the three rounds, but you’ll need to be at least at a third-year high school level to have a chance of passing.”
“The second round is the specialization exam in October. Students are assessed separately in four categories: Dao heart, magic power, athletics, and martial arts. At this stage, you’ll need to be at the level of a city-wide third-year competition winner to have a chance of passing.”
“The third round is the final selection in early January of next year. The remaining students compete against each other to finally determine the strongest in the four tracks of Dao heart, magic power, athletics, and martial arts, who will then be awarded the Foundation Establishment certificates…”
As Zhang Yu listened to the description of the three rounds, an outline of the exam began to form in his mind. “This competition doesn’t ultimately test a student’s overall quality. The key selection criterion is specialization in one of four areas: Dao heart, magic power, athletics, and martial arts.”
“It makes sense. They’re just high school students, after all. They can’t be expected to be as well-rounded as university students who have honed their skills in the Qi Refinement stage for a long time. So the students this exam aims to select… are four geniuses with extremely high specialization in four different areas.”
“To pass, the key is how long your longest plank is.”
Zhang Yu then asked curiously, “Where is the exam held?”
Zhang Pianpian replied, “Both the registration and the exam are held in the Immortal Capital.”
The Immortal Capital was the most prosperous and massive super-metropolis on Kunxu’s first layer, far surpassing Songyang City in scale.
Zhang Yu recalled that the Immortal Capital was about fifteen hundred kilometers away from Songyang.
Thinking about how this entire exam was not only divided into three rounds spanning half a year, but was also held in the Immortal Capital a thousand miles away, Bai Zhenzhen couldn’t help but sigh.
“This exam really is time-consuming. We’ll probably have to take a lot of leave. And travel, accommodation, and food will cost a lot, won’t they? I read online that prices in the Immortal Capital are very high.”
Zhang Pianpian nodded. “The location and timing of the exam are, in themselves, a form of screening.”
“For instance, you two haven’t obtained your intercity travel permits yet, have you? To leave the city, especially to go to the Immortal Capital, you must apply for an intercity travel permit. You have to provide proof of education, income, and either a rental lease or home ownership…”
Zhang Yu nodded slightly. Hearing the arrangements for the exam and the requirements for the intercity travel permit, he felt like he was hearing an unstated message:
If you don’t have a bit of spare cash and free time, or if you’re a pauper who can’t even afford to rent a place, don’t even think about taking this exam. Just stay in your hometown and work.