The moment the gate accepted Team 13, the pressure around them disappeared.
The forest, the clearing, the colluding teams near the final gate—everything vanished in an instant. The next moment, Arin felt the firm surface of the academy chamber beneath him again.
The first trial was over.
He opened his eyes and sat up slowly. His breathing was still rough, and sweat clung to his neck and back. Even though the injuries inside the simulation were not fully real, the strain remained. His muscles ached, and his whole body felt heavy.
Around him, the others woke as well.
Ren was the first to speak.
"I really hate this academy."
His voice sounded dry, but it still carried the same familiar tone.
Liora sat up and pushed her hair back. "You say that like you expected to enjoy it."
"I expected less attempted murder."
Taren rolled one shoulder and stood. "You talk too much for someone who passed."
Ren looked at him. "And you hit too much for someone who also passed."
Mila quietly checked her terminal.
Kale remained seated for a few moments longer, pale and tired, before finally pushing himself upright.
A soft tone sounded through the chamber.
Then the system voice spoke.
"First examination concluded. Final results are now being processed."
A screen of light opened above the center of the room.
First Trial Complete
Qualified Teams: 8 / 17
Team 13 — Qualified
Final Score: 390 Points
Current Rank: 3
Time Remaining at Completion: 00:12:43
Ren stared at the display.
Then he pointed at it.
"Third."
Taren looked up and gave a small nod. "Not bad."
"Not bad?" Ren repeated. "That's top three."
Liora looked at the board a little longer. "Only eight teams passed."
That mattered more.
Seventeen teams had entered.
Less than half had made it.
Arin looked at the score in silence. Their team had not fought the hardest, but they had preserved their strength and reached the end with better timing than most. That had made the difference.
More lines appeared.
Original Team Survival Count: 4 / 5
Attached Survivor Status: Passed
No one spoke for a moment after that.
They had passed.
But not for free.
The chamber door opened soon after, and the system instructed all qualified applicants to move to the upper waiting hall for the next examination.
They left together.
The hall above was quieter than before. Several teams were already there, and most of them looked worse than Team 13. Some had only two or three members left. A few were injured badly enough that they could barely stand straight.
A larger display showed the final ranking from the first trial.
1 — Team 7
2 — Team 4
3 — Team 13
Ren looked up again and exhaled. "Third really is third."
Mila glanced at him. "It would be strange if it wasn't."
A few minutes later, Supervisor Dain Corvel stepped onto the front platform.
The room quieted at once.
"Eight teams have passed the first examination," he said. "Your first-trial rankings have been recorded and will remain part of your final academy evaluation."
A second display opened beside the first.
"The second examination will begin in fifteen minutes. It is a written knowledge assessment."
A smaller reaction spread through the hall this time.
Ren blinked. "After that forest, they want us to write?"
Liora answered at once. "That is usually how schools work."
Ren rubbed his face. "This place is cruel in more than one way."
Dain continued.
"The written assessment covers public cultivation theory, basic body and core knowledge, city and planetary structure, civic classification, and standard foundational education."
Arin listened quietly.
This exam was far simpler than the first. It would not eliminate many people, especially not those who had prepared normally before coming. But it would still matter for records and ranking.
"The minimum passing score is required," Dain said. "Those who fail will still be removed from admission."
That made sense.
The first trial tested field ability.
The second tested whether they knew the basic world they were trying to enter.
After the announcement, room assignments appeared on each terminal.
The qualified applicants were separated and guided into individual testing rooms.
Arin entered his assigned room without speaking.
It was small, clean, and plain, with a single desk and chair at the center. A screen lit up the moment he sat down.
The exam began.
Most of the questions were straightforward.
Basic cultivation age ranges.
Semi-core formation.
Body Stage and Core Stage public knowledge.
Citizen ranks.
Administrative structure from city to state, continent, and planet.
The role of the Planetary Lord.
Basic medical caution for unstable core conditions.
Public safety rules for low-stage cultivators.
Arin moved through the test calmly.
Some answers came from his own judgment. Others came from the original owner's memories, now much easier to access than before. None of the questions felt truly difficult.
The exam lasted less than an hour.
When he finished, the screen paused for a few seconds before showing the result.
Knowledge Assessment Complete
Result: Passed
That was enough.
Arin stood and left the room.
One by one, the others emerged from their own testing rooms as well.
Ren came out looking far more relaxed than he had after the forest.
"That was much better," he said. "No one tried to bite me."
Liora looked at him once. "A written test was always going to suit you more."
Ren frowned. "Why does that sound insulting?"
"Because it is."
Taren came out next and simply said, "Passed."
Mila gave a small nod. "Passed."
Kale came out a little later and looked relieved when he saw the others. "Passed."
Eventually, all the remaining members of Team 13 had cleared the second examination.
Not just them.
Almost everyone from the eight surviving teams passed as well. As expected, the written test was not the real barrier. The academy had already removed most of the weaker applicants in the first trial.
A final notice appeared above the waiting hall.
Second Examination Complete
Knowledge Assessment Results Recorded
Qualified Applicants Will Proceed to Final Admission Review
The long day was not completely over yet, but the hardest part had passed.
The first trial had taken blood, pressure, and judgment.
The second had only asked whether they knew the basics well enough to stand inside an academy.
Arin stood quietly beneath the display and looked at the recorded results.
They had entered this place as uncertain applicants.
Now they had passed two examinations and moved one step closer to becoming true academy students.
For the first time that day, the pressure in the hall had eased.
The fighting was over.
For now.