79 The sAcademic Discussions in the Twiligh (2/2)

An instructor within the crowd replied, ”She's the only female honorary professor in the academy. Those amongst you who have tested into the academy will be taught by her in math for the next few years.”

”Is she... the second professor?” Ning Que watched the hunchbacked old woman who was now a distance away and tried to suppress the laughter bubbling within him.

The third young master Xie, Xie Chengyun, of the South Jin Kingdom was completely calm. While he was full of youthful vigor, he still came in first place in the overall rankings of the entrance exam today. Furthermore, his goal was different from the average candidate, his views were completely different too. He placed more importance on how to enter the second floor of the Academy. The lad before him should be a regular person, and as such, there was no reason to enter into a conflict on a matter like this.

Conversely, he couldn't help but be impressed by Ning Que's ability to answer the question in such a short time after hearing what the old woman had to say. He asked seriously, ” I first used the method of exhaustion to find out the infinite number before finally understanding the reasoning behind the question. How did...”

Situ Yilan came to his side and told him Ning Que's name. Xie Chengyun nodded in thanks and continued his question. ”How did Brother Ning calculate it? Did you use another method to find out the answer so swiftly?”

”If you knew it was infinite, why bother with the method of exhaustion? I'm too lazy to reason backward if I only had to find out the answer. I just wrote a close enough number.”

Ning Que's answer was sloppy and seemed irresponsible. However, he was not speaking nonsense. The change between infinity and accurate figures were fuzzy and irresponsible by itself.

Many did not understand and thought that Ning Que got lucky. Some thought that he was hiding something. Only Xie Chengyun understood, and just as he was about to ask further, the voice of an Academy instructor sounded from afar.

”Xie Chengyun, Wang Ying, Ning Que, Chen Simiao, He Yingqin... report to the Department of Magic.”

Ning Que was astonished upon hearing his name. Report to the Department of Magic... What did that mean? Why did he feel like he was about to enter the House of Respectful affairs? Was that a slight breeze between his legs? There was no one he could ask about the matter. As such, he followed Xie Chengyun and the others into the depths of the Academy after leaving instructions with Sangsang. It was only when he realized that there was a female candidate in the group when he felt slightly calmer.

The other candidates on the pavement did not express any surprise. It was late in the day, and yet, none had left. They all wanted to hear if they would be called into the Department of Magic. Jealousy colored their expressions as they watched the few called walk into the depths of the Academy. Situ Yilan kicked at the cracks of the bluestone pavement in disappointment. She complained in a low voice as she watched Ning Que's back walking further away, ”Why is it that he got everything good?”.

It didn't take long before the candidates returned. It felt as if they merely went for a walk. Xie Chengyun had the calmest expression while Wang Ying could not hide the joy in her face. Only Ning Que was completely expressionless.

Other than the six subjects in the Academy, there was also an additional department in Magic meant to cultivate those with potential. These students would be able to learn sword and talisman magic in Department of Magic. The few who were called up previously were thought to have potential by the instructors and were sent for an examination in psyche.

Ning Que was chosen because of the Hairpin-style Small Regular Script he wrote as well as his lightning fast response in the math exam. The Academy thought him to have potential, but the instructor examining him had made an unusual slip and was disappointed to find that his chi was completely blocked.

It was yet another cycle of hope and disappointment. If there was no hope, there would not be disappointment. Ning Que was well aware of his body condition and as such was able to face this calmly.

Xie Chengyun had already started on cultivation when he was in the South Jin Kingdom, as such he had nothing to be excited about. Wang Ying and the others had only just found out that they might be able to enter the legendary enigmatic doors today and could not suppress their excitement.

”I can't.” Ning Que laid out both hands and explained to the masses. ”Erm, you can't say that I completely can't... The instructor said that there was no problem with my will. It's just that my chi is bad and my body is ill suited for cultivation.”

There were seven called in by the Academy and he was the only one who had not passed the examination. The gazes of the other candidates changed. Some who had looked at him with animosity previously now looked upon him with compassion. Of course, there are others who looked at him ridicule.

The Tangs respect the strong, but do not look down upon the weak. A thousand years of merriness has cultivated a tolerant and graceful society. Situ Yilan who had previously found Ning Que unpleasant sighed and comforted him, ” Do not be too disappointed. There are not many who can enter cultivation. Look at us, we all can't do it either.”

”There is much sense in your words. Not being able to enter cultivation doesn't make me a useless stack of firewood.” Ning Que accepted and drank from a bottle given to him by Sangsang. He looked at her and smiled, ”I'm a professional firewood cutter.”

With that, the young master and his maidservant left the Academy in the twilight.

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