The second round of interviews involved ten examiners, including faculty members such as Gou Ping'an, Master Ming Deng, Xu Tian, and Liu Ji.
Miss Ruo served as the chief examiner.
Upon entering the examiner panel, she made minor adjustments to the interview process, designed to crush the confidence of the newcomers and align with Miss Ruo's "maliciously playful" sense of humor.
"After all, if they can't even handle this much pressure, no amount of resources will turn them into anything more than a useless legend. Our academy seeks true prodigies, not weaklings defined solely by numbers."
"The first stage of the second round tests the courage of these young ones. Without sufficient bravery, how can they face those unspeakable evil gods in the future, wouldn't you agree?"
"Yes, yes, Miss Ruo, you are absolutely right."
This formidable woman was practically a ghost within the academy, appearing everywhere. If any of them, the academy teachers, slacked off or made a minor mistake, they were certain to be thoroughly lambasted by Miss Ruo. And her critiques were always well-reasoned and irrefutable.
The students, especially the newcomers who had enrolled in the past few months, were both in awe and terrified of the 'Dean of Students, Miss Ruo'. But seeing the even newer freshmen about to be tormented to the brink of death by Director Ruo, they finally realized...
Thank you, Director Ruo, for showing mercy and sparing our lives.
...
On the vast white jade plaza, the Deep Sea Dragon Turtle, the Ancient Rock Giant Dragon, the Thunder Divine Eagle, and the Extreme Cold Wolf King, four ancient statues, all awakened simultaneously, emanating genuine mythical power.
The divine might was like a prison, like an abyss, stirring up gusts of wind and torrents of rain. Even students with considerable strength trembled under the impact of this divine pressure, let alone the weak, pitiful, and helpless newcomers.
Mindful of their 'senior' status, the older students forced themselves to appear calm and composed, unwilling to lose their senior dignity in front of the freshmen. Even though they had only enrolled a few months ago, some of them still hadn't shed the prefix "prospective" before their student titles.
The newcomers, however, were long past caring about anything else. They screamed, they cried, they trembled uncontrollably, and they shed tears of fear.
...Referring to their tears and snot.
Some even fainted on the spot.
Miss Ruo snapped her fingers lightly, and the fainted newcomers were moved to a safe area, where medical students awaited to assess their condition.
Miss Ruo never cared about those who were eliminated.
She continued to stare expressionlessly at the assembled newcomers, a myriad of faces of the freshmen flashing in the depths of her eyes. No newcomer could escape her meticulous observation. However, the more she observed and assessed, the more an indescribable gloom spread across Miss Ruo's delicate face.
A palpable oppressive aura emanated from her, causing the surrounding students to instinctively shift away.
The terrifying Director Ruo had appeared again!
...
"Lousy!"
"Useless!"
"Garbage!"
"How can these utterly worthless brats support the future of humanity!"
The Torchwood Academy was flourishing, with prodigies emerging one after another. Ruo witnessed the unceasing inheritance and brilliant glory of this era, but she never expected that humanity outside of Torchwood would be so pathetic!
"They still require some nurturing. There are still a few salvageable sprouts among them."
Liu Feng frowned slightly.
He also felt that this batch of newcomers was not up to par, but he couldn't let the freshmen be played to death by the seemingly fierce and stern trial officer.
Ruo glanced at him and snorted coldly.
"This examiner has her own judgment. I have already applied different levels of mythical pressure based on the awakening ranks of these little brats."
Lightning bolts descended from the sky, the roar of the dragon shook the air, and the biting wind cut through the heavens like a blade.
But these were merely external phenomena.
While they appeared extremely perilous, in reality, they would not harm anyone on the plaza. The true danger lay in the divine pressure hidden beneath the heavenly lightning and frigid winds.
Mythical pressure had weight and force!
And these statues of ancient rock dragons were not like puppets; they were semi-living beings capable of radiating divine pressure and adjusting its intensity. Miss Ruo, as the spirit of the secret realm with absolute home-field advantage, controlled these mythical statues with micro-manipulation, ensuring the divine pressure they radiated precisely and delicately landed on different targets.
Otherwise, the lower-ranked individuals among the freshmen would have long since passed out, rendering the assessment useless.
Watching the freshmen below scream and cry, looking utterly miserable, Chief Examiner Ruo showed no hint of softness. She simply stared intently, assigning scores to these trial participants on the academy's data system.
Those who fainted had a large 'x' marked next to their names, signifying their elimination in this first stage.
However, those freshmen who could still barely hold on were not necessarily through.
Their performance determined the scores they would receive in this stage. If their scores were too low, even if they could proceed to the second and third stages of the interview, their elimination would be a foregone conclusion.
The freshmen, naturally, were unaware of this, nor did they have the capacity to ponder it.
Even some of the newcomers from noble backgrounds with extensive knowledge had pale faces and were not faring much better.
Outside the arena,
observers included not only the mentors and students of Torchwood Academy but also a select few mythical beings and dignitaries from the Seven Kingdoms.
Torchwood Academy's second-round interviews were not intended for public viewing, but when the mythical beings from the Seven Kingdoms requested to observe, Fang You considered it and decided to grant them this courtesy.
After all, even if they were not allowed to observe, the Seven Kingdoms had the means to obtain the specific details of the interviews.
"The second-round assessments of Torchwood Academy have already begun?"
"What is this? Puppets? Fantastic creatures, or something else?"
"Indeed, the foundation of Torchwood Academy is unfathomable."
The observing mythical beings and dignitaries marveled, and only when they came to their senses did they realize the newcomers were already crying from fear.
Using mythical pressure on newcomers, was this interview assessment… perhaps too difficult?
Some dignitaries who had found the initial screening of Torchwood Academy to be unremarkable were greatly astonished.
A noblewoman frowned, "How dare this Torchwood Academy arrange such a dangerous assessment! What if our children get hurt? Can they take responsibility!"
But before her words were finished, she was reprimanded.
This even caused a mythical ancestor to frown.
What irked him was the lack of discretion from his juniors. Not to mention that Torchwood Academy had the means to prevent any problems, but even if issues arose, it was merely an insignificant junior. It would be truly foolish to antagonize Torchwood Academy over such a trivial matter.
Miss Ruo, of course, was unaware of the thoughts of the guests from the Seven Kingdoms. But regardless of the observers' views or opinions, she would not change her mind: only through extreme hardship could truly suitable talents be screened.
Moreover, this was just the beginning; there was no blood, no fire, merely mythical pressure.
A few minutes later, the oppressive mythical aura that had enveloped the plaza slowly dissipated.
The soaring divine eagle landed, and the mountain-like dragon ceased its roars. Their bodies gradually turned a grayish-black hue. In mere blinks of an eye, the four vibrant and powerful colossal beasts transformed back into four majestic statues, standing at the four corners of the plaza.
Lifelike!
Of course they were lifelike; they were alive in the first place!
"The first stage of the second-round assessment has concluded. Next, we will proceed to the second stage of the assessment."
"Now, we will give you a brief rest. Let's rest for..."
"Thirty seconds."
Miss Ruo displayed an almost devilish smile.
The newcomers' faces, which had not yet relaxed, froze.
This was disastrous!
But the assessment would not proceed according to the newcomers' wishes. Furthermore, this tight, breathless schedule was also part of the assessment.
At this moment, the newcomers who had barely passed the first stage still harbored intense fear, leaving them no room to think of anything else. They gasped weakly, collapsing onto the ground.
Among the newcomers, a few from noble backgrounds who had received extensive education and training were also faring poorly.
The seventy-sixth princess of the Water Overflow Kingdom, though finding the uncultured peasants beside her detestable, focused all her energy on herself. She leaned on her knees, wiped the cold sweat dripping from her forehead and neck, and struggled to maintain her composure while mustering her remaining strength to think.
"I cannot be careless, I cannot be careless. If this princess cannot enter Torchwood Academy, it will be a monumental disgrace!"
Besides Princess 76 of Water Overflow, there were dozens of other princes and princesses present. However, most of these princes hailed from 'small to medium-sized nations.' But there were still over a dozen princes and princesses from the Seven Great Kingdoms.
Prince Arthur of the Crimson Sands Kingdom, the eighteenth prince, was one of them.
He panted slightly, a trace of lingering fear in his eyes.
"My father said that with my abilities, passing the academy's assessment would not be difficult, so he had me apply myself to save the expensive foreign study quota. But… Father might have been lying to me. I feel like I could mess up at any moment!"
"In any case, I must be careful. This academy's assessment seems to have little to do with one's awakening level."
...
The plaza remained in a state of disarray.
The burly female awakened being, standing over two meters tall, was trembling slightly, still recovering from the mythical pressure.
The slender Qian Xiaocao, dressed in patched clothing, was comforting the tall and robust Sister Shi.
She was also afraid, very, very, very afraid.
Those monsters were too terrifying.
Initially, she had covered her head and crouched, trembling for quite some time. But seeing that the terrifying monsters merely intended to scare her and did not pounce, she somehow gradually grew accustomed to it.
Of course, she was still scared.
But standing up was not difficult. It was like encountering a very scary monster called a 'Knocker' years ago. She had been terrified then, but she still ran away as fast as she could.
If her legs trembled too much, it would affect her running speed.
"It's not that I don't want to restrain myself, but under the mythical pressure, my body instinctively trembles uncontrollably. Perhaps with extremely strong willpower, one can suppress it, but..."
The burly female warrior chuckled bitterly.
Her willpower was still not strong enough, and she was also a little bit afraid. After all, she was not a person of high status, but merely one of the countless awakened beings of low status. She had never seen such terrifying colossal beasts before.
However...
The burly female warrior glanced at the petite Qian Xiaocao.
This child didn't seem to possess strong willpower either.
...
The second round of interviews consisted of only two stages: the first stage being 'courage training,' and the second stage being 'illusion trial.' However, this second stage covered a wide range of content, encompassing heart tempering, combat, willpower, and wisdom, aiming to select students who were well-rounded in moral, intellectual, physical, aesthetic, and labor aspects... ahem, students.
The illusion trial was centered around the legendary secret treasure 'Book of Trials' obtained by Fang You in his early years. However, this book alone was far from sufficient. Mentor Fang also integrated numerous Kandra technologies, and with the combined efforts of four individuals (Liu Feng, Ruo, and Wang Chui), they created a super-large illusion capable of encompassing thousands of people simultaneously.
Invisible illusionic mist gently descended.
On the plaza, the newcomers, who were either tense, panting, or slumped on the ground, gradually let their eyelids droop. They fell into a deep sleep, their minds entering the boundless illusionary world.
At the same time, the ten examiners began observing and scoring.
Through connections established by Kandra technology equipment, Miss Ruo and others could view the scenes within the illusionary world from a macroscopic perspective. Simultaneously, Xiao Huan manipulated the equipment to broadcast some less important yet sufficiently exciting scenes to the guests from the Seven Kingdoms, making them feel that their favor had been worthwhile.
Xiao Huan’s greater focus was on talent selection, and she presented these scenes to Fang You.
She and Fang You were hidden examiners and also possessed the right to assign scores.
The ten-person examiner panel consisted of a total of twelve examiners, which was a perfectly normal situation.
"This one is alright."
"This one is not bad."
"This one is barely acceptable."
"This one..."
Fang You's gaze fell upon a slender young girl.
He had already noticed this newcomer because the girl named 'Qian Xiaocao' was not an awakened being.
Qian Xiaocao was about fifteen or sixteen years old. At this age, if her talent were high enough, she would have naturally awakened early without relying on potions or other external aids.
Qian Xiaocao had not awakened and possessed no innate talent. However, during the initial screening, she was detected to have above-average potential.
This was quite peculiar.
And at this moment, Qian Xiaocao in the illusion was even more astonishing.
She was being chased by several Knocker monsters, her lips bitten as she ran wildly. Suddenly, her entire body tumbled forward, having tripped over a piece of deadwood. Qian Xiaocao's eyes welled up with tears from the pain. Seeing the ferocious Knockers closing in on her, she was too terrified to stand up and could only huddle and crawl backward.
As she crawled, her palm, cut by the deadwood, touched something cold.
It was a sword.
An ordinary sword, barely qualifying as a white-grade weapon.
Qian Xiaocao was stunned.
As if guided by divine inspiration, she picked up the long sword. In that instant, her entire demeanor changed, becoming like a drawn sword. The surrounding crooked weeds straightened, as if they could cleave mountains and split rocks, cutting away all impurities.
The next moment,
*Swish*—
The sword light slowly receded. The several Knockers that had surrounded her were already cut in two and dissolved into wisps of black smoke. Only the sword-wielding girl stood dumbfounded on the pile of deadwood.
Outside the arena, Mentor Fang mused thoughtfully, "So, that's how it is."
...
The illusion trial lasted for over half an hour before concluding.
During this trial, the examiners assigned multiple scores, which were then added to the scores from the first stage. Ultimately, the newcomers who surpassed the passing line truly entered Torchwood Academy.
And the number of these newcomers was...
223 people!
Out of three thousand potential and capable second-round candidates, only a little over two hundred passed. This was the assessment of Torchwood Academy!
However, this was only the first batch of newcomers.
Soon, another batch and then a third batch of newcomers preparing for the assessment arrived via White Shark-class airships.
Their experiences were largely the same as the first batch—utterly dismal.
After taking up most of the day, the second-round recruitment interviews for Torchwood Academy officially concluded.
The mythical beings from the Seven Kingdoms who had observed returned to their respective homes. After all, Torchwood Academy had not hosted them for a banquet, and they were too proud to grovel.
The newcomers who passed the assessment and obtained the status of 'prospective students' participated in the matriculation ceremony, led by the older students.
The joys and sorrows of people are not interconnected.
Under Torchwood Academy's exceedingly difficult assessment standards, the newcomers who were accepted appeared exceptionally outstanding, and they were filled with immense joy.
However, their happy times were fleeting.
On the same day, this batch of newcomers received their student uniforms, student bracelets, and other items. Under the guidance of the older students, they began their cultivation.
They dared not relax!
Because older students had already informed them that admission did not guarantee an easy life. During cultivation and mission execution within the academy, there was still a risk of expulsion, especially for those who had not yet shed the prefix "prospective."
While marveling at the academy's wonders, they also felt a strong sense of urgency.
In addition to these newcomers, exchange students from the Seven Great Kingdoms also enrolled at the same time.
However, the exchange students received much better treatment than these newcomers. They were granted 'official student' status upon enrollment and received a substantial amount of academic credits.
"Damn it, those guys got in without any assessment and received so many benefits!"
"There's nothing we can do. The Seven Kingdoms have already paid a significant price for them. This seems to be part of the academy's cooperation with the various countries. Besides, these individuals are already distinguished princes and princesses, far above us. The fact that we now have the opportunity to pursue these princes and princesses is a once-in-a-millennium chance."
"I understand the reasoning, but it's still a bit infuriating."
It wasn't just the ordinary students; among the newcomers, over a dozen princes and princesses were also enraged seeing their siblings flaunt their status.
Putting aside other matters, they still had to undertake missions to earn academic credits to use the precious cultivation areas. These siblings who had obtained foreign study quotas started with a large amount of academic credits, saving them countless hours of effort.
Over time, the gap could potentially become immense.
Furthermore,
they were still only prospective students, with the risk of expulsion, while those with foreign study quotas had official status from the moment they enrolled, their student qualifications rock-solid.
"Interjecting with a notice now..."
On this day, hundreds of newcomers were admitted.
On the same day, three exchange students from the Water Overflow Kingdom, Cloud Atlas Kingdom, and Flame Thunder Kingdom were directly expelled for violating the academy's regulations.
Their duration of enrollment was less than half a day.
Director Ruo, passing by, sneered dismissively, "Presents for others, thinking too highly of themselves."