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The two indicated officers walked through the crowd, which parted for them in awe . At the entrance, they signaled for their respective applicants, who promptly lined up in front of them, splitting the sea of people in two . The Cultivation Division's officer gave a short introduction and some instructions that was heard throughout the room .

"I am Bai Yangliu, the disciple of Elder Chen of the Sword Department . I will be leading you to our exam grounds . Once you are done with one portion of the exam, we ask that you please move on to the next portion so we can get through everyone without delay . You shan't need a guide on the exam grounds as the exam portions are close enough you can see the setup for the next one . " She then looked at the man next to her to indicate him to do his .

He gave a short laugh before he started . "Hey everyone, I'm Ming Yanghun, nice to meet you guys! My favorite color is green and my favorite food is wonton! And not just any wonton but Xinjiang Pavillion's wontons! Moving on, what Yangliu said also applies to the Medical Division applicants so though waiting for your friends is tempting, please move on after your portion of the exam when you are done~ . Ah, that's right . I'm a disciple of Elder Liu of the Medical Division who is in charge of the Poison Stage . Ahaha, doesn't really fit me does it?" He scratched the back of his head in embara.s.sment and shyness .  

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After the guide's introduction, everyone was led their respective directions . The Cultivation Division applicants, who were the majority, were led to the right and the Medical Division to the left . Shen Tianyu's group arrived at the first portion of their test . In front of them was a wide open s.p.a.ce paved with flat stone, similar to how the Roman Empire's roads looked . In the middle of it all was a large stone plate the size of three people floating above the ground at about the height of two people stacked on top of each other . On it were strange and seemingly incomprehensible markings .

'Hm? The Sword array? To think the Sword Department would be up first . ' Shen Tianyu thought .

The officer stationed at the stone plate opened his mouth to explain . "This is the Chengyuan School Sword Department's Sword Array . Once a person steps in and the array is turned on, there will be a number of swords appearing from the core, which is the stone plate you see, and attack the person within the array . It's usually used as a weapon against enemies, but it has been tuned down for the sake of this exam . Chengyuan School will take full responsibility for any injury that occurs as a result of this . "

A person within the crowd raised their hand . She was a teen girl wearing luxurious pink sheni with golden collars, sleeves and a gold sash . All over the sheni were colorful embroidery of calla lillies and peonies . The officer that was the administer for this part of the exam pointed at her to let her ask .

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"Since it's so dangerous, why is the Sword Department bringing this out for the exam? Is it really necessary?" She asked in a cute yet unchildish voice .

The officer sighed and looked at Bai Yingliu who nodded in return . All the applicants had varying degrees of questioning looks, deoending on how well they can control their expression . "'Wahahaha! An exam, a test of strength for the youth! How can we not show them the utmost respect for their courage! Let's deploy the Sword Array to show them our prowess!' was what the Department Head said . " The officer replied .

Everyone had three black lines on their foreheads from the repsonse and Bai Yingliu was holding her face in ehr hands out of embara.s.sment and exasperation .

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"In any case, you have to take the exam if you don't want to quit now . Don't worry, we've turned down the power of the Array and we guarantee we will hold responsibility if any of you become grieviously injured or have your cultivation affected as a result . " The officer a.s.sured in a melancholy tone . "Once the Array is turned on with a person within it's range, a number of swords will appear . If you manage to fend off those swords, more swords will appear and once you have been cut, the Array will automatically close and the exam will be over . If you do not have a sword, we will provide one for you . You are not allowed to use your own personal weapon bsince this portion of the exam is to test your swordsmans.h.i.+p . Your score will be dependent on how many rounds of the sword attacks you can survive, the more the higher the score . If there are no further questions, we will begin the a.s.sessment . "

There wasn't anyone else wanting to raise their hands so the a.s.sessment would start . Bai Yingliu brought out a booklet, the booklet that recorded the names of the applicants, and handed it over to the officer . He recieved it respectfully and opened to the first page . "Applicant number 2, step forward . " The applicants were given numbers in the order they signed up as, but were divided into two booklets, one for each division that were available .  

The applicant whose number was called out steepped forward nervously and was guided by the officer to stand before the Sword Array . He brought his own sword so there was no need to provide one for him . The officer turned on the Array from the side of the stone paved s.p.a.ce and the markings on the floating stone plate lit up with a golden-white light . Immediately, ten streaks of light seperated from the stone plate and solidified into swords of light . After the blinding light died down, the swords flew towards the applicant . Applicant number two gripped his sword tighter and his previous nervous face was replaced by one of determination . He tried to dodge the swords that came at him at a speed that almost made them into blurs, sometime deflecting them with his own sword . After the first round of swords had it's turn, the stone plate shone again and more swords appeared from it, ten more swords just like before . Adding to the ones already out, it was now twenty swords . The twenty swords struck out at lightning speed, faster than before, and his a.s.sessment ended there . He got nicked by the ninettenth sword, which cut the end of his tunic . Bai Yingliu walked up to him and cooly congratulated him for finis.h.i.+ng the a.s.sessment and led him away . He followed with a bowed head behind her . They walked towards a large pillar at the other end of the stone-paved s.p.a.ce, where a stone pillar could be seen in the distance .

The a.s.sessment for the Sword Deaprtment continued on like this, with the average rounds pa.s.sed being three . The highest was by Ningwu Liushan, whom had helped her out before and his facially paralyze friend, who both got up to the fifth round, which had one hundred and sixty swords coming down at borderline the speed of light, but didn't pa.s.s .  The next closest was the girl in the luxurious pink shuni, who got through the fourth round but didn't last even one second in the fifth . She left with a proud face with an undertone of discouragement .

Finally, it was Shen Tianyu's turn to try out the Sword Array, she wasn't the last, but there weren't many peopl after her .  

"Applicant number 265, please . " The officer called out . She stepped into the range of the Array with her own sword . It wasn't her personal weapon but she'd rather fight with a sword she knew compared to a sword provided by the School . It was just a plain ordinary sword from Yaodu, it was more durable than most and wasn't fancy in it's design or engraving . She indicatedx for the official to start the Array and the blinding light was emitted once more .

In front of her were ten swords of light that rained down on her . She waited until the last moment to step or jump out of the way, keeping track of the tragectory of each sword . After those were done, ten more swords were added . This time, she couldn't be so leisurely . She jumped to the edge of the Array's range to avoid the firt couple of swords then ran around the perimeter, deflecting the other swords coming at her . Before she could take a complete breath, twenty more swords were added . Fourty swords rained down on her at lightning speed but she managed to dodge a quarter of them and deflect the rest, still running around the perimeter of the Array . Since she was on the edge of the Array, there was more ground for the swords to cover and she had more time to react, as it took longer for the swords to reach her, than if she was standing right next to the Array core . She was able to sense where the edge if the Array was from the fluctuations of spiritual energy being emitted so she didn't need to be too worried bout where she was stepping . Instead, she kept her eyes on the swords coming for her, trying to follow their movements . After the third round, the swords would no longer stop after one track but rebound and went after their opponent after missing, as if they were alive, which was also why so many people failed at this round .  

The markings of the Array Core started emitting light again and Shen Tianyu screeched to a halt so she could try to catch her breath . When the round was over, the swords would pause as more comrades joined them . This time, eighty swords were in the air as Shen Tianyu got ready to dodge and deflect . She as aware of her abilities so she didn't try to show off and deflect them all like some of the other applicants . Despite her current cultivation level, eighty swords coming at her as fast as another cultivator of her level wasn't a laughing matter . The swords rained down as she became more tense but she tried not to let it affect her movements . tunic & skirt st.i.tched into one

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