Because of her excellent performance earlier, when other classmates in her senior year of high school began to sprint towards the finish line, Ding Yun was surprisingly relaxed. Her academic performance, in particular, had reached a point where there was nowhere further to climb.
Don't assume such a thing is impossible.
When her mock college entrance examination scores were already in the 730-740 range, there was simply no room for further improvement. Achieving full marks on essays and reading comprehension wasn't something that could be attained through sheer effort alone.
Ability is one thing, and luck is another.
It even has a lot to do with the type of examiner you encounter.
Continuing to study more advanced knowledge and completing all university courses wouldn't necessarily improve her score. In fact, applying university knowledge to the college entrance exam paper might be counterproductive.
Therefore, Ding Yun's next task was simply to maintain her current standing and ensure her current state didn't decline.
This was actually quite easy, as Ding Yun's mind was not that of an ordinary person. She also had a consciousness chip to assist with learning and memory.
As a result, she could afford to be a little more relaxed.
In such a situation, she finally had the time and energy to reopen the Poké Ball manufacturing system, which she had previously shielded with her consciousness chip. She began to observe and study the relevant basic knowledge from the very beginning, learning about the knowledge and materials involved in manufacturing Poké Balls.
And then she discovered.
This system was not as useless as she had imagined.
Although much of the knowledge within was theoretical due to the lack of raw materials, making it a case of a skilled cook unable to prepare a meal without ingredients, the content itself was accurate. At the very least, the various spatial compression theories and energy application techniques involved were based on sound fundamental principles.
Technology is valuable, but there is no doubt that the theories behind the technology are even more valuable. Most high-tech advancements today are built upon theories first.
Then the corresponding technologies emerge.
Without theories as a foundation, technology is merely a castle in the air, difficult to truly realize unless directly copied. However, with theories, many different branches can be extended and created based on those theories.
Therefore, Ding Yun quickly shed her contempt for the Poké Ball manufacturing system and dedicated a significant portion of her time each day to diligently studying its courses. After all, these courses were directly transmitted to her soul, and Ding Yun's soul didn't require sleep, even if it remained active constantly. As the saying goes, "Flesh is weak, but the soul is eternal!"
Her soul no longer needed to hibernate.
Otherwise, it would have been impossible to support her continuous journeys to different worlds and her experiences living through the lives of so many clients.
This characteristic meant that even if Ding Yun studied relevant knowledge every night without sleeping, it didn't affect her physical health because only her soul was learning.
Her body still rested as usual.
In fact, due to the lack of brain cell activity caused by her soul's absence during sleep, her body's rest state was even better. She felt energetic and vigorous every day, performing better than her classmates.
As a result, Ding Yun's progress in her normal studies was minimal. However, her theoretical knowledge and understanding of Poké Ball manufacturing processes were rapidly expanding, including all foundational extension content.
It wasn't significantly slower than her learning high school subjects.
After all, learning is different from creation. As long as the knowledge isn't entirely abstract and incomprehensible.
Then, learning tends to be relatively fast.
Not to mention that this system also provided video tutorials.
By the eve of the college entrance examination, Ding Yun had successfully mastered the theoretical knowledge of basic Poké Balls. It was only then that the Poké Ball manufacturing system suddenly displayed a new page: an assessment page.
Below it, it was clearly indicated that only by passing the assessment could one obtain the title of Basic Poké Ball Craftsman.
This title would grant a skill bonus: the basic-level talent for discerning and substituting materials.
In simple terms, as long as the user has a basic understanding of the myriad things in the world, they can easily find corresponding substitutes for them.
Furthermore, this title could be upgraded.
When the level was sufficiently high, even if certain items couldn't be found as substitutes, they could be synthesized or transformed from existing materials to create substitutes.
Of course, if the technological requirements for synthesis and transformation were too high for the current level of technology, then it would be impossible.
This news was good news.
However, when Ding Yun saw this pop-up window and its explanation, she was so angry she wanted to hit the designer. What kind of mindset would lead someone to reveal such crucial information to the user at this point? If Ding Yun weren't on a trial mission, she might not have bothered studying the contents of the videos, knowing it was impossible to create anything.
"Are all these golden finger designers mentally ill? They design golden fingers, but then they have to mix in their own thoughts.
Is this meant to be a test or an attempt to recruit disciples?
Oh, it's such a hassle!"
At this moment, Ding Yun couldn't help but complain. She could understand some app designers creating complicated schemes for advertising revenue or to guide users towards more consumption.
But why would a golden finger do such things?
Besides, this wasn't a consumption-based golden finger!
Surely, it wasn't that they were worried about not attracting enough attention without convoluted schemes, and thus needed more of them to generate traffic.
Of course, complaining aside.
The test still had to be taken. After five hours of answering questions, Ding Yun successfully passed the basic Poké Ball test and obtained the corresponding title.
And then nothing happened.
To know if something could substitute for an ingredient in the basic Poké Ball recipe, Ding Yun first needed to know and have seen that item. If possible, touching it would allow for a more accurate determination of whether it could serve as a substitute.
As an ordinary student, the original host.
How many materials could she have come into contact with or recognized?
Most of the relevant knowledge was still basically derived from geography and chemistry classes, where geological minerals were briefly mentioned or shown in pictures.
Furthermore, with the college entrance examination looming the next day, Ding Yun did not immediately attempt any experiments after receiving the title. Instead, she quickly closed the system and went to sleep, preparing for the exam.
The next morning, long before the exam was scheduled to begin, Wang Haiyan was already up and busy.
She was preparing a filling and healthy breakfast for Ding Yun.
The eggs for the boiled eggs were bought fresh the day before, for fear that her daughter might be affected by eating something stale.
If their family had connections to someone who raised chickens, she might have gone directly to the hen house to fetch them herself.
Or perhaps she would have waited by a hen for it to lay an egg.
After breakfast, she meticulously checked and helped Ding Yun confirm that she had brought all the necessary items, emphasizing that it was better to bring too much than too little.
Pens, in particular, absolutely needed to be prepared in pairs.
Just in case of any unforeseen circumstances!
Then, she early on escorted Ding Yun to the examination hall entrance, where she met up with her teachers and classmates. The teachers once again had everyone check their belongings to ensure nothing was forgotten, stressing that the admission ticket was crucial.
At the same time, they advised everyone not to be nervous and warned them against cheating, as failing this time could be rectified by retaking the exam. However, cheating could result in a ban from exams for two to three years.
These were all clichés, of course.
They had been repeated numerous times before the exam.
As they were speaking, time passed, and the examination hall doors officially opened, with everyone entering successively.
Some parents left after watching their children enter.
Others stubbornly waited at the entrance.