With a loud "bang," the statue in front of Fang Mo was instantly shattered to pieces.
However, the statue was indeed genuine, and the wrath of the evil god erupted immediately, nearly throwing Fang Mo off the table.
"F*ck!"
Fang Mo was so startled by the explosion that he cursed loudly.
When he turned around, he found that the others were even more severely affected.
All the candidates in the room, including the invigilators, were subjected to the corruption of the ancient divine presence, their minds thrown into utter disarray.
One could see a naked strongman lying on the floor, laughing while continuously struggling and bouncing around like a clownfish out of water. The others were equally deranged, muttering incomprehensible sacrilegious whispers, turning the examination hall into a chaotic scene reminiscent of a demonic dance.
Meanwhile, Saitama, who had been concentrating on his exam, was also distracted by the noise and looked up instinctively.
Just one glance, and he was completely stunned.
"What... the heck?"
Saitama was confused by the scene before him, but soon he realized what was happening and turned to Fang Mo: "Hey, Fang Mo, this isn't your doing, is it?"
"It's not me, don't start with that."
Hearing this, Fang Mo quickly deflected: "It must be that shut-in... it must be the work of the evil god Cthulhu; if you ever get the chance to meet him, remember to punch him."
"So, this is an invasion by monsters?"
Genos, upon hearing Fang Mo's explanation, stood up from his seat, vigilantly scanning the surroundings: "To dare attack the Hero Association's branch, such audacity. Today I shall eliminate him..."
"No, Genos, don't listen to his nonsense."
Saitama, unexpectedly, also understood and first cautioned his disciple, then turned to Fang Mo: "You say it's something about Cthulhu... but that statue was brought in by you, right? And now it has exploded, isn't this your doing?"
"Damn it, brother, I'm being wronged here!"
Upon hearing this, Fang Mo's face was a picture of misery: "Do you know how bad I feel right now? I really am a victim here!"
"Is that so..."
Seeing Fang Mo's deeply aggrieved demeanor, Saitama seemed a bit puzzled: "It really wasn't you?"
"I told you, it was that fat otaku octopus's doing."
Fang Mo immediately spread his hands out and said: "I'm super pissed off right now, dammit... If it weren't for the fact that I can't find him now, I would definitely chop off his head."
Yes, Fang Mo was indeed a bit upset.
After all, the god Cthulhu really was a bit unappreciative, or one could say his temper was just too huge.
Fang Mo just wanted to gain a bit more module download permissions, but instead, this guy simply kicked him out and even blew up his own statue.
You know, that statue was really troublesome to make.
Even Steve only had one statue of Cthulhu, and it was made by Shoggoth in Minecraft World; he hadn't made it himself.
After all... it seems that besides charging, it didn't have much other use.
But the problem was that Cthulhu had blown up the statue, meaning Fang Mo would not be able to seek him out for a long time to come.
In fact, within the dark dimension in Minecraft, there were still many statues, but Steve currently didn't have any flying tools, and Fang Mo was too lazy to explore that area... After all, he had already cleared the Abyss realm, studying these didn't have much use anymore.
"Dammit, the more I think about it, the angrier I get..."
And with that thought, Fang Mo couldn't help but lose control of his anger: "Damn it, next time I'll definitely turn this guy into takoyaki..."
"Takoyaki? Where's the takoyaki?"
As Fang Mo was talking, Dr. Genos curiously walked over: "So, that monster called Cthulhu, is it a giant octopus?"
"In a strict sense, he is considered the god and father of the octopuses..."
Fang Mo casually explained, then added: "But if you insist on seeing it that way, sure."
"How do you know it's a giant octopus?" Saitama, hearing this, also curiously asked: "Do you know him?"
"I've never met him face to face."
Fang Mo shook his head: "But I've seen him in my dreams."
"Met in a dream?" Saitama, upon hearing this, suddenly remembered his own encounter with the King of the Subterraneans, and somewhat helplessly advised: "I'd advise you not to take things in dreams too seriously... otherwise, you'll be disappointed."
"I'm not talking about that kind of dream... never mind."
Fang Mo opened his mouth, but ultimately decided not to continue the topic and instead changed the subject: "Anyway, considering the state of this examination hall, the exam must have been canceled by now, right?"
"Huh?"
Saitama seemed a bit startled after hearing this: "You mean to say..."
"That's right, sensei."
Hearing this, Genos also slowly nodded: "Now that even the invigilators are insane, our results might very well be deemed invalid."
"What!? My brilliant insights had just come to me, how can the results be canceled just like that!?"
As Saitama spoke, suddenly a series of rapid footsteps sounded from outside the examination hall.
Then the door burst open, and a man in a snake-skin suit ran in.
"Hey, is everyone alright?"
The moment the man in the suit opened the door, he immediately shouted worriedly, but when he saw Fang Mo and the others, he suddenly paused: "What... where is the monster?"
"Are you... a hero from the Association?"
Genos turned to look at the man in the suit, and after quickly searching his database, he realized: "A-ranked hero, Snake Fist Sneck."
"That's right, it's me."
Sneck, the man in the snake-skin suit, nodded and then cautiously surveyed the surroundings: "You must be the candidates for the hero assessment, right? How are the other candidates? And the monster that destroyed the examination hall?"
"He..."
"Oh, it's like this."
Before anyone else could speak, Fang Mo took the initiative to explain: "The monster that attacked the hall... is actually called Cthulhu. Its real body isn't here; it just used a kind of long-range attack spell, blew up the statue I used for worship, and also drove the other candidates insane."
"How come you're not affected?"
Sneck looked puzzled at the few in front of him: "And... why would you need to worship gods during a written exam?"
"Because I believe in metaphysics."
Fang Mo spread his hands: "Man proposes, God disposes. I've had faith since I was a child, and with something as important as the hero exam, praying to a god isn't too much, right?"
"This..."
Sneck seemed a bit taken aback.
But before he could speak, suddenly his left earpiece transmitted a voice.
"Hmm? What?" After hearing the content from his earpiece, Sneck seemed somewhat surprised, but quickly nodded: "Alright... I understand."
After the call ended.
Sneck looked somewhat complicatedly at the few people in front of him.
"Technically, having a worship statue that could explode is not allowed."
Sneck sighed helplessly: "But considering it was the monster's fault, I won't pursue it. It's about time anyway, go submit your papers, I still need to tend to the other candidates."
"What?"
Saitama heard this and seemed a bit surprised: "So... our written test results will still be valid?"
"The written test results remain valid."
Sneck waved his hand somewhat wearily: "Go ahead, submit your papers and then proceed to the physical test."
"Phew, that's a relief."
Saitama also breathed a sigh of relief, then cheerfully waved to the others: "Genos, Fang Mo, Doctor, Ancient One, let's go for the physical test."
"Oh, okay."
Fang Mo nodded, then followed Saitama out of the examination hall.
And after leaving the hall, they walked along a corridor and soon entered a spacious indoor sports field-like space.
Fang Mo looked around.
There were indeed a lot of testing equipment here.
Although there were many machines, the actual content of the assessment was surprisingly simple.
There were no combat-related items with the Association heroes; it was just a test of physical attributes such as speed, strength, and endurance.
Due to the Hero Association's substantial financial resources, the space for the physical test was quite spacious.
They didn't even need to queue up.
They went straight to the testing area.
The first item was a 1500-meter sprint, clearly a test of speed. A long track lay ahead, and there were staff with stopwatches waiting at the finish line.
At the starting line, several of them stood relaxedly.
"Ready... go!"
Soon after, the staff member shouted.
And the next second, the candidates began to demonstrate their prowess as if it were a night parade of a hundred demons.
Leading the charge was Saitama, whose combat power was the pinnacle of the one-punch world. With a stomp, he blasted off the ground and reached the finish line in the blink of an eye.
While the staff at the finish line was just blinking, he was already stepping on the finish line.
After him, Genos activated his flame propulsion. Fire spewed from behind him, propelling him forward like a missile towards the finish line.
"So... so fast!"
Only then did the staff member realize and exclaimed in shock.
But before he could think further, a bright orange portal suddenly appeared at the finish line.
And as several staff members watched in shock, Ancient One elegantly walked out from it, completing the process in less than a second.
Even from the other side of the portal, the staff could see the scenery at the starting line.
"This..."
Honestly, the staff were dumbfounded, now unsure how to judge. The time taken was indeed very short, but... this wasn't running at all!
But before the judges could figure out how to make a ruling.
A voice unexpectedly sounded at the finish line.
"You two are way too slow."
The staff turned around subconsciously, only to discover that at some unknown point, a tea table had appeared, and Fang Mo was leisurely preparing tea: "I've already finished one round. Come on, let's have a cup, we still have the next test to go."
"Hey, it's not time for tea!"
Saitama commented, seeing the setup: "At least wait until after the exams to drink."
"After the exams, you won't feel like drinking."
Fang Mo spoke as he scooped a packet of MC tea leaves into the pot and began pouring hot water: "Besides, someone hasn't finished running yet... we have enough time to drink a pot of tea."
"Someone hasn't finished?"
Saitama turned his head just in time to see Genos also crossing the finish line: "Nonsense, Genos has already finished running."
"Not Genos, it's Genus."
Ancient One kindly corrected Saitama.
"Hmm?"
Saitama looked up and indeed saw Genus struggling forward, his physical condition obviously weak. He had only run about a hundred meters and already seemed unable to continue.
"Sorry, please give me a cup of tea."
Seeing this, Saitama also turned around somewhat helplessly.
"See, I told you." Fang Mo chuckled, pouring tea for Saitama: "Doctor's run 1500."
"You didn't put it in the cup, did you?"
Ancient One asked.
"Pfft!" The tea Saitama had just sipped sprayed everywhere.
"If you keep dissing me, I'll lift your skull and use it as a teacup." Fang Mo's face darkened, commenting on how Ancient One had recently become much cheekier.
So was it because they had changed worlds?
Or was it really that his own power could affect others' minds?
"Although I don't quite understand what you're talking about..." Genos, who had just come over, seemed a bit puzzled, but he soon politely knelt and sat down: "But Mr. Fang Mo, please serve me a cup of tea as well."
In any case, under Fang Mo's arrangements, the group leisurely enjoyed their tea.
But the staff witnessing the entire test process couldn't stay calm. They were all shocked, watching the four at the tea table, their eyes nearly popping out.
You could say Saitama was fast, at least he actually ran here.
And that strange bald head, although she used some kind of ability... at least the underlying principle was understandable to everyone, likely some sort of portal.
But only Fang Mo, none of the staff present saw how he appeared, and even checking the surveillance didn't clarify; it seemed as if he just appeared there in an instant.
~~~
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