Chapter 28

Time flew by, and before they knew it, the end of June, the summer month, was approaching.

From June 20th to 22nd, these three days were dark for the third-year students of Luoshan Intermediate College.

Whether to break through the darkness and welcome the dawn or be consumed by it, such turning points in life are both inevitable and must be faced.

On the morning of June 22nd,

Police cars had already arrived at Nanying College, with special police officers stationed around the perimeter to maintain order.

In the sky, military aircraft landed one after another, and fully armed soldiers rushed to each examination room to ensure absolute order.

The final exams for third-year students at intermediate colleges have always been a focus of attention from all sectors. The government and the military would dispatch elite forces to ensure the smooth running of the exams. Especially on June 22nd, the day of the martial arts test, the most important part of the final exams. If any mistakes were made today, many relevant staff members would lose their jobs. No one involved in this day dared to be careless.

At 8:00 AM, the square of Nanying College was crowded with people. All third-year students had gathered, creating a noisy scene.

Some were beating their chests in frustration over their poor performance in the written exams of the previous two days; some were eagerly looking forward to the upcoming martial arts test; and others were indifferent, just going through the motions...

In the crowd, Sun Yan opened his eyes and stared straight ahead, as if listening intently to the speech. Beside him, Shui Lianqing bit her lip and gently nudged him, "Sun Yan, Sun Yan! Don't sleep, wake up."

Drowsily, Sun Yan woke up, blinking his eyes, "Shui Lianqing, you're so amazing! You could even tell I was sleeping."

"That's because you have a history of it." Shui Lianqing didn't know what to say about Sun Yan, who could even sleep with his eyes open during the final exams.

"I'm asking you, why didn't you even participate in the written exams the day before yesterday and yesterday?" Shui Lianqing was both angry and frustrated. "Aren't you giving the teachers a handle to use against you?"

"I'm conserving my energy! Sigh, Mubing is the luckiest, he doesn't even have to take the exam as a special admission student." Sun Yan smiled, seeing the girl's angry expression, he explained, "Whether I participate in the written exam or submit a blank paper, it doesn't matter. As long as I'm here today, that's enough, right?"

As he spoke, a spirited aura emanated from the young man, making Shui Lianqing feel a bit dazed. Recalling the scene on the rooftop a few days ago, she felt a bitter taste in her heart. Yes, as long as he was here today, that was enough. The overlap between his world and hers might only be today. In the future, the distance between them would only grow, and she would never be able to catch up with his pace.

At this moment, three points of light appeared at the edge of the sky, quickly growing larger. These were three flying vehicles, two of which resembled black bats, and the other was like a hawk.

The three flying vehicles flew over Nanying College, their wings folding to the size of ordinary military aircraft, and they slowly landed on the airport on the roof of the teaching building.

"Those are some cool flying vehicles!" Sun Yan's eyes sparkled. Owning a spaceship was his dream. Then he asked curiously, "Isn't that the [Iron Scaled War Hawk] model, a B-class fighter from the military? Why is it flying to our school?"

Shui Lianqing sighed, "Those are the invigilators sent by the higher colleges and the military. Don't you know that?"

For the martial arts test of the final exams, the top 100 higher colleges in the Nanfeng Domain and the military would dispatch staff to invigilate at various intermediate colleges through a lottery system. This practice was both an obligation of these prestigious colleges and the military, and a demonstration of their authority.

Sun Yan countered, "Why should I know that?"

Shui Lianqing shook her head speechlessly, muttering, "I just don't know which prestigious college's teacher will be assigned to our school this time."

The screen in front of the square suddenly flickered, displaying a series of subtitles showing the examination room numbers and candidate numbers.

Looking at the subtitles on the screen, Sun Yan quickly found his name, "Examination Room - 362, Candidate Number: 144."

"My examination room number is also 362. Candidate Number: 72." Shui Lianqing exclaimed, her voice tinged with surprise. Being in the same examination room as Sun Yan gave her a sense of reassurance.

Sun Yan nodded, gave her a thumbs up, and winked, "Good luck! Girl."

Shui Lianqing rolled her eyes and pouted, "Hmph, you too! Boy."

The two walked side by side, following the crowd to their examination room.

...

On the rooftop of the A-class teaching building, after the three flying vehicles landed, three people stepped out.

From the bat-shaped flying vehicles, two people emerged. One was of medium build, bald, and had a warm smile, looking very amiable. The other was tall and thin, expressionless, and seemed like a breeze could blow him away.

From the hawk-shaped flying vehicle, a soldier stepped out, towering at about 3 meters tall, with two silver stars on his shoulder, indicating the rank of a lieutenant colonel.

The three people stepped out of the flying vehicles and landed on the ground, defying the laws of physics, landing softly. Their lightness and brief suspension in the air were the marks of a ninth-level great martial artist.

After landing, the young soldier took three steps and walked up to the two middle-aged men, saluting, "Colonel Dao! Colonel Guo!"

The bald middle-aged man waved his hand and smiled, "Alright, Xiao Ye, both Colonel Guo and I have retired, so don't use our old titles." Then he looked around, frowned slightly, and muttered, "The people from Nanying College are so arrogant. We, the invigilators, are here, and no one has come to greet us."

The tall, thin man, who rarely smiled, said slowly, "The one who should greet us is Principal Wang. He's always slow, so don't expect him to wait for us. Hmph!"

The young soldier smiled, "It's not time yet." Then he changed the subject, "I didn't expect Colonel Dao and Colonel Guo to come as invigilators. Your presence is a bit too high-level."

The young soldier was quite surprised. These two were his former superiors in the military, now serving as special lecturers at Difeng College. Normally, they wouldn't participate in invigilation. What was the reason this time?

The bald middle-aged man smiled, "Xiao Ye, you're now a lieutenant colonel in the First Army Group. Why are you also serving as an invigilator? It seems a bit overqualified, doesn't it?"

Hearing this, Colonel Ye was taken aback and laughed dryly, "I heard that this year's class in Luoshan City has a lot of promising students, so I came to take a look."

The two men exchanged knowing smiles. The tall, thin man, seeing this, sneered, "What's there to hide? This year's class in Luoshan City has produced three geniuses, especially the young lady from the Feng family, who is a treasure in the eyes of all prestigious colleges. Although Lingxue Feng has agreed to enter Difeng College, we still need to confirm it just in case."

Colonel Ye nodded, "This year's class in Luoshan City has produced many geniuses, attracting attention from the top. I also came to see if any outstanding young martial artists have been overlooked."

The bald middle-aged man sighed, "It's a peaceful era now, and fewer outstanding young martial artists are emerging compared to wartime. Colonel Guo and I recently traveled to the major cities of the Dommil Star and found very few promising students. This time, coming to Luoshan City, besides ensuring that the three young geniuses aren't snatched away, we also want to see if there are any other outstanding students."

As they were talking, the door to the rooftop opened, and a group of people came out. The leader was a man with a square face and big ears, known to all Nanying College students as Vice Principal Wang Sen.

Behind him stood two rows of people. One row was the four chief instructors of Nanying College: Chief Instructor Rodney, and the chief instructors of classes A, B, and C, Dina, Jialan, and Qian Wei.

The other row was the deans of Nanying College: Chief Dean Liu Fei, and the deans of classes A, B, and C, Lin Nan, Nelson, and Qian Juren.

These were all important figures at Nanying College, who had come to welcome the invigilators.

Seeing the three men, Wang Sen's eyes lit up, and he greeted them with a broad smile, opening his arms and hugging the bald middle-aged man, "Teacher Dao, Colonel Dao. I didn't expect it to be you!"

"Ha, that's enough, no need for formalities," the bald middle-aged man laughed. "When we were randomly assigned to Nanying College, I was quite happy. Secretariat Wang, it's been two years, hasn't it?"

"Indeed, indeed," Wang Sen nodded repeatedly. "The invigilators for our Nanying College this time are two teachers from Difeng College. What an honor, it's like the humble abode is shining with your presence!"

The people behind him all smiled. Although they held important positions at Nanying College, even a regular teacher from Difeng College had more clout in high society.

Beside them, the tall, thin middle-aged man suddenly said coldly, "Shining with your presence? Hmph! This empty rooftop doesn't feel humble at all."

Everyone present was taken aback. How could he speak like that? Did he really think, as a teacher from Difeng College, the top prestigious college, that he could look down on intermediate colleges?

Wang Sen's smile faded, and he suddenly punched the tall, thin middle-aged man's shoulder, laughing, "Old Guo, can't you speak like a human being?"

The tall, thin middle-aged man grunted and turned his head, but a smile appeared at the corner of his mouth.

The young lieutenant colonel stepped forward, saluted, and said, "Colonel Dao, Colonel Guo, Secretary Wang, hello!"

This scene left most people present curious and puzzled. How did these four seem to know each other?

Chief Instructor Rodney explained in a low voice, "That teacher Dao is named Li Guorui. During the Fourth Sino River War, he was the colonel of the 79th Army, and the other teacher is Guo Nu, who was the colonel of the 37th Army. The other one is Lieutenant Colonel Ye Zefeng, a soldier trained by Teacher Dao. When the JW Alliance's [Scorpion Armor Corps] besieged the city, Secretary Wang was still the mayor's secretary. Colonel Dao, Colonel Guo, Secretary Wang, and Lieutenant Colonel Ye were comrades-in-arms who fought side by side."

This explanation made everyone respect them deeply. Survivors of the Fourth Sino River War were all iron-blooded heroes.

After a few pleasantries, Wang Sen introduced everyone, and then the group escorted the three teachers into the elevator on the rooftop.

In the elevator, everyone except Wang Sen stepped back a few steps, maintaining a distance from the three teachers. Whether it was their background from Difeng College and the military or their role as invigilators, they deserved the same level of respect as the principal in this setting.

Wang Sen smiled and said, "How about it, Old Dao, do you want to come to my office for a cup of tea first? We can gather the comrades from Luoshan City tonight and have a good drink!"

Although he had never served in the military, Wang Sen, who had experienced the baptism of the Sino River War a hundred years ago, spoke and acted with the straightforwardness and firmness of a soldier.

"Tea? When did you become so refined? Alright, Secretary Wang," Teacher Dao laughed and waved his hand. "We'll talk about personal matters later. It's work time now, let's start the handover."

Wang Sen slapped his forehead, "Right, it's work time now. We can't mix personal and professional matters. Rodney, start the handover."

Rodney nodded in understanding, stepped forward, and extended his right hand. He wore a circular device on his wrist, which was flashing red.

The three teachers also extended their hands, wearing the same devices. They touched their devices to Rodney's, and a series of clear chimes sounded. Then, the red lights on the circular devices turned green.

This was the invigilation method for the final exams' martial arts test—triple invigilation.

Staff from higher colleges, the military, and intermediate colleges would supervise the exams. The invigilators from higher colleges and the military would be randomly assigned three hours before the final exams. After the three invigilators arrived at the exam school, they would use the devices to hand over to the chief instructor of the intermediate college, automatically sorting and verifying the information.

This double insurance ensured that, although cheating in the martial arts test was almost impossible, it demonstrated the importance placed by all sectors.

After the handover, Lieutenant Colonel Ye Zefeng smiled, "Colonel Dao, Colonel Guo, I'll handle the examination room information review. I'll report any issues to you."

Teacher Dao and Guo Nu nodded, indicating their agreement.

"Xiao Ye is still the same, meticulous and serious," Wang Sen praised.

"Without real talent, he couldn't be a lieutenant colonel in the First Army Group," Teacher Dao couldn't help but show his pride.

Ye Zefeng was a soldier he had trained, and his promotion to lieutenant colonel in the First Army ten years ago was one of Teacher Dao's proudest achievements.

Guo Nu glanced at him and coldly snorted, "What are you so proud of? I'd say, every soldier under you is better than you. You owe your life to them."

"You stink, no one will think you're mute if you don't speak," Teacher Dao glared back, then his face showed a nostalgic look, "My life was indeed saved by them. I wonder how those guys are doing now?"

"Hey!"

Suddenly, Lieutenant Colonel Ye Zefeng exclaimed, looking up, "Colonel Dao, look at Examination Room 362, it's Carter."

Hearing this, Qian Juren and Qian Wei exchanged glances, frowning. Could Carter have some private connection with the teachers from Difeng College?