"So," said Jue Zhu, "I'm guessing most of you are going straight to the gathering site?" The five of us who had surmounted the not at all frantic but nonetheless difficult ultimate challenges of the Outworlder Labyrinth had agreed without needing words to go back to the dorm building together.
"Yeah, you know I never mind camping out," I said.
"Neither do I," said Quan.
"I do a little, but there's really no reason to stay," said Shokoya, "and I'm counting on the genius here to help me not to look like easy pickings as soon as we get to the Library, so I'm sticking to him like glue."
I laughed. "I hope I won't look like easy pickings. But we know how to not draw a ton of attention to ourselves, so that should help."
There was really nothing for me to pack, anyway. I had another set of Academy Inner Court clothes, but even the set I was wearing would soon be replaced by a Sect uniform. Everything else I had of value was already in my Inventory, including my camping set. So, I didn't even bother to set foot in my dorm room, only stopping at the building to wait for Shokoya and the others.
It was a stroke of bad luck, then, that Bing Hei spotted me as he was coming out of his own dorm room, with none of the others around. "Oh—haven't seen you much, senior brother Xu. I heard your Graduation Field Exam went very well, congratulations."
I gave him a look. It helped that he was particularly short, so that I could loom over him. "You don't seriously expect bygones to be bygones with us."
He smirked. "Well no, but I admit you really stole a march on me this time. I chose this environment because I figured there'd be plenty of weaklings to stomp on, but who'd have thought I'd find you of all people."
I snorted. "I assume Impact Comet finally getting tired of your crap came into it too, or you'd still be grinding for a midrange paradise."
Bing Hei's face turned ugly, contorting in anger. "I have you to thank in part for that, you know. Blue Comet gave evidence against me from that incident, when some ants banded together to force me out. So go ahead and take it easy on your grind—I'd love to pay back that debt to you someday."
"Thanks for the incentive," I said sardonically, "good freaking luck trying to catch up to me." And spitefully, I revealed my cultivation base from my System. It was worth it for the look on his face.
"You've reached the 8th Realm? I'd heard rumors someone did, but I assumed it was that Jue Zhu monster. I guess as things are, you've become someone I can't beat. But maybe I'll yet see you around. At the 10,000 Scrolls Library, right?"
I caught myself after a moment, but he still saw the change in my poker face. "Oh please," Bing Hei sneered, "as if anywhere else they offer here is suitable for a Comprehension specialist. You could go somewhere else to throw me off, to be more unpredictable, but you'd be hindering your own cultivation journey, and that's something no one can afford."
Jue Zhu emerged from the hall, a pack on his back, and Bing Hei definitely noticed, leaving without another word. Shokoya came out a moment later, and nodded when I caught his eye. I nodded in turn to Jue Zhu. "Jue Zhu…best of luck on your cultivation journey."
"Good luck to you too. We'll meet again someday, if the heavens will it."
I chuckled. There are no heavens here…only algorithms and coding well beyond our understanding. Though something bothered me about the thought, once I'd thought it. Then again, what's the difference?
Jong and Quan didn't lag far behind us, so the operator had all five of us teleport to the gathering site at once. An elder from Rising Sun monastery directed us to the particular area for Academy applicants to camp, which was nearly empty. I picked a spot near the area's perimeter to set up my tent, then after cultivating for a few minutes and concluding the spiritual density here wasn't very good, I decided to get some sleep.
The next morning, just before 10, all the cultivators there, including us Academy graduates, gathered around a wooden stage that had been raised adjacent to the overall area where everyone had been camping out. On that stage was a wooden doorway with what I could just about make out as the four symbols of the elite sects, arranged in a diamond exactly as they had appeared in the Academy lesson introducing them, carved into it.
When the appointed time arrived, the doorway opened. At first, I could see only light beyond, but in the next moment, five people stepped through it one by one onto the stage. They were all clearly Elders, the first two to enter wearing uniforms in the red-orange color of the Rising Sun Monastery, two in the silver-grey of the Iron Tortoise Castle, and the last one in the rich purple of the 10,000 Scrolls Library. The gleaming azure of the Azure Flame Abbey uniform was pointedly absent.
The purple-robed elder spoke, his voice amplified to carry over everyone surrounding the stage. "I am Elder Shin of the Library, and I will be presiding over this year's examination. Before we begin the proper tests, we must record information about each of you, as well as confirm that you fulfill the minimum requirements to take the exam. Please form an orderly line, starting at the stairs to my right leading up to the stage, and wait for myself or one of the other elders to call you. When called, come forward and follow the elder's further instructions. Then, assuming you are approved to continue, proceed through the gateway behind us and await instructions for the first stage of the exam.
Just as a reminder, you must have an identifying badge or token from an approved institution to be accepted by the portal. If you do not have one on your person, you will pass through as though it is an ordinary doorway. For you System users, that means you can't just leave it in storage, it has to be on your person. There's about seven hundred of you to get through, so let's try not to hold things up this year."
Everyone hastened to form a line as directed. "Quan, what are you doing?" I said, noticing him going off in the wrong direction, "he said the stairs on his right, that means our left."
"Oh! Uh, yeah. Thanks."
"You really don't have a good sense of direction, do you?" Shokoya ribbed.
"S…shut up!"
Between that and having been pretty far back in the first place, we entered the line barely ahead of 100 people. At least the line moved pretty fast with five elders taking information, but it still looked to take well over an hour for the five of us to reach the front. I noted the other half of the Academy Inner Court contingent was about a dozen places ahead of us.
From behind, I caught some interesting conversation. "The 10,000 Scrolls Library is presiding this year, that's a good sign."
"Yeah, they usually only send a single representative for the selection at the end, right? If they're presiding, they must think there's some promising people this year."
They probably already know about the ones coming from the Academy. I'm sure they were told about Jue Zhu at least. Well, I'll do my best not to disappoint, either!