“Junior, this must be your first time here for the test, right?” The senior smiled as he struck up a conversation with Bai Ling.
“Yeah, it’s my first time here.” Bai Ling replied calmly, neither humble nor arrogant, showing no airs at all.
“Do you know the requirements for the test here?” The senior asked enthusiastically, thinking Bai Ling probably didn’t know the rules since it was her first time and she was just a first-year student.
It was normal not to know.
“You have to be able to inscribe a magic array?” Bai Ling asked.
“Yeah, that’s one of the requirements.
The other is that you have to be able to inscribe the magic array onto an item for it to count as a pass.” The senior explained the rules to Bai Ling.
So it’s just that.
I already knew this.
Isn’t he being a bit redundant? Although she thought this, Bai Ling didn’t say it out loud and just replied with a faint “Oh.”
Seeing Bai Ling’s uninterested look, the senior figured she wasn’t interested, so he sensibly stopped talking.
“Oh, right, I haven’t introduced myself yet.
I’m Lin Kun, second year, Class A.
If you ever need anything, you can come to me.
I’ll help you out.” Lin Kun introduced himself, hoping Bai Ling would remember him and make an impression.
“Bai Ling, first year, Class A.
Thank you, senior.” Bai Ling responded politely.
“Haha, no need to thank me.
Helping juniors is what I should do.”
Bai Ling didn’t say anything, and Lin Kun wisely didn’t keep rambling.
“Go on in, this is the exam room.
There’ll be a teacher inside to guide you through the test.” Lin Kun opened the door for Bai Ling and explained.
“Thanks.” Bai Ling thanked him politely, then walked straight to the door and went inside.
The hall was simply decorated, with some neatly arranged tables and chairs.
In front of the tables was a raised platform, not very high, about a foot off the ground.
Around the room were shelves holding various items that hadn’t been inscribed with magic yet.
There were already some people waiting inside.
The moment Bai Ling entered, she naturally drew everyone’s attention.
They were all curious—someone was still coming for the test at this hour? Everyone should have already arrived by now.
But when they saw Bai Ling walk in, with her alluring figure and stunning beauty, everyone was momentarily stunned.
“Who’s that? How come I don’t remember such a pretty girl?”
“She must be a first-year student!”
Once they snapped out of it, everyone started whispering.
Just then, a middle-aged man walked out from the inner hall.
He had short black hair, wore the Yulin Academy teacher’s uniform, was on the thin side, not too tall or short, and had a warm, smiling face as he walked up to the front platform.
“Hello everyone, I’m a teacher from the Inscription Hall.
My name is Zhong Yiqin, an A-rank Inscriptionist.
I’ll be leading your Inscriptionist test today.”
All the students listened attentively.
They all knew Zhong Yiqin, since they’d been tested by him before, so no one was too surprised.
Bai Ling didn’t think much of it either.
If the academy couldn’t even provide teachers of this caliber, Yulin Academy wouldn’t be called the top academy in Luo Country.
“Since you’re all here, I assume you can all inscribe magic arrays.
I won’t test that part.
We’ll go straight to the second stage.
Around you are all kinds of weapons, armor, and other items. Pick any one of them and inscribe a magic array onto it.
I don’t care about the process or the method.
If you succeed, you’re a real Inscriptionist.
Alright, enough talk—show me what you’ve got.”
As soon as Zhong Yiqin finished, all the students went to the shelves to pick out items to inscribe their magic arrays on.
Bai Ling chose a piece of armor—a soft inner vest made of a flexible metal.
It could be adjusted in size, fit close to the body, and unless the clothes were torn, it was almost impossible to notice the armor.
Once everyone had made their choices, they each went to a table, placed their chosen item on it, and got ready.
Bai Ling did the same, picking a spot in the back corner, standing there and putting her item on the table.
Not long after, everyone was in position.
Now Zhong Yiqin spoke from the platform.
“Since everyone’s ready, let’s begin!” As soon as he announced the start, the room lit up with colorful magical lights.
Each person used their own magic element, and the magic in the air seemed to dance.
Everyone focused on channeling magic to their fingertips, moving it over their chosen item, leaving their own mark.
As an Inscriptionist, you had to stay calm and steady.
If you got impatient or distracted, you could easily ruin the magic array on the item.
Even the slightest mistake wasn’t allowed—it had to be perfect.
As time passed, some people succeeded, but most failed.
Succeeding was no easy feat.
Bai Ling was inscribing an A-rank protection array.
For her, an A-rank array was a piece of cake, couldn’t be simpler.
She carefully etched the magic lines onto the soft armor, and soon, the armor began to glow with starlight.
But Bai Ling’s magic element was different from the others—hers was a deep green.
The moment her magic element lit up, all the other magic in the air seemed to be suppressed, moving sluggishly.
The other mages noticed this anomaly and all turned to look at Bai Ling.
They saw a color that didn’t belong to any known magic element—a deep green glow they’d never seen before.
They couldn’t figure out why this stunningly beautiful first-year’s magic element was deep green.
But because of this distraction, their own inscription tests ended right there.
They realized their mistakes and looked regretful, but it was too late.
Some people, though, stayed focused and weren’t distracted by Bai Ling, putting all their energy into controlling their magic and inscribing their arrays.
Bai Ling was completely focused.
She found the healing-type magic element very easy to use, and inscribing the array was quick.
In no time, she’d finished an A-rank array, and the soft armor had been completely transformed into a magic item.
The students who had already failed all stared at Bai Ling.
They wanted to see just how different this magic element was.
But when they saw Bai Ling easily finish inscribing an A-rank array, their eyes nearly popped out.
She… she just finished it that easily? They didn’t want to believe a little first-year girl could inscribe an A-rank array on an item so effortlessly, but the evidence was right in front of them—they had no choice but to believe it.
When time was up, only three people had succeeded.
Bai Ling was, of course, one of them—this freak couldn’t be judged by normal standards.
The other two were experienced upperclassmen who had taken the test many times before.
This time, their persistence finally paid off.
Plus, the test was so hard that most people couldn’t pass.
The teachers at the academy never taught you any inscription techniques—you had to figure it out yourself.
Only if you succeeded would they teach you the techniques.
That’s why the pass rate was so low.
“Only three people passed the inscription test this time.
You all know who they are, so I won’t say much.
They are Bai Ling from first year Class A, Cheng Fei from third year Class B, and Wang Hong from third year Class A.
This time, we’ve got a dark horse.
I’m sure many of you, like me, thought there was no way a new student could pass the test.
But she did.
That’s true talent.
I believe she’ll shine in the field of inscriptions in the future.” Zhong Yiqin said passionately from the platform.
Feeling all the envious, surprised, and curious looks around her, Bai Ling felt uncomfortable all over.
Bai Ling didn’t like this, but there was nothing she could do—she just had to endure it for now.
“The items you succeeded with in this test—you can keep them as a memento.”
“Alright, the test is over.
Everyone go to that room over there and pick up an Inscriptionist badge.
After that, you can use the badge to come and go from the Inscription Hall freely.”
“Dismissed!” After saying that, Zhong Yiqin turned and left.
The three of them went to the side room to get their badges, and then Bai Ling hurried off.
As for the chatter that continued after she left, it was no longer her concern.
Once outside, Bai Ling immediately spotted Lin Qiufeng, who looked a bit bored waiting.
She walked over and called out, “Qiufeng.”
Lin Qiufeng looked up and saw Bai Ling, instantly perking up.
She stood up and asked, “Xiao Ling, did you pass?”
“Yeah, I did.” Bai Ling replied with a smile.
“I knew Xiao Ling would definitely succeed.” Lin Qiufeng was happy for Bai Ling too.
“Yeah, let’s go!” Bai Ling didn’t want to stay here for another second.
One word: annoying.
“Alright, let’s go!” Lin Qiufeng had already guessed a thing or two, so she didn’t tease Bai Ling.
She just followed Bai Ling and left.
