Chapter 753: Monthly Exams

When Xia Duo arrived outside the Academic Affairs Office, he happened to hear a conversation between He Sai and several Apprentices. While feeling displeased, he immediately queried the Tower Spirit about the situation of these Apprentices.

He knew they were all in charge of classes with over 50 people, but they were teaching Level 1 Apprentices who were just starting their enlightenment, which required almost no effort at all.

Besides, the number of people they were teaching was something they had chosen themselves, and they had received higher wages than others because of it; wanting to regret it now was truly unreasonable.

However, after the new regulations for the Library's Spell Practice Room were issued, these teachers who led New Apprentices had almost lost the opportunity to use the Spell Practice Room.

After all, practice sessions for New Apprentices did not require the Spell Practice Room; they focused primarily on Focus Training, which could be done anywhere.

As for using it at their own expense, compared to the casual use they had before, this disparity was indeed a bit large, and not everyone had the financial means to maintain the same intensity of use as before.

Thinking this way, the displeasure in Xia Duo's heart lessened slightly. He could understand these people's feelings, but the Tower of Time's decision could not be changed just for these few individuals.

He would just have to compensate them in other ways!

Thinking this, Xia Duo walked into the office.

"Mage He Sai!"

"Lord Xia Duo!"

He Sai stood up to welcome him, while the few Apprentices lined up in a row bowed and immediately shrank into the corner, heads lowered, not daring to speak.

Xia Duo glanced at them, pretended not to see them, and said to He Sai, "We may continue to recruit New Apprentices in the future. You must make preparations in advance. Do not be stingy with rewards for those with teaching ability, and encourage them to develop in the direction of professional teachers. The Tower of Time will not forget their contributions."

"Yes."

"Additionally, let's start from this month: organize regular Apprentice exams and establish a question-setting group specifically responsible for creating test questions. You will be the leader of this group. From now on, a teacher's performance and salary will be directly linked to the Apprentices' grades. The more people they teach and the better the grades, the better their performance and the higher their salary!"

This was a mature experience from Earth, which Xia Duo used directly upon arriving. As for whether doing this would cultivate "test-takers" who only knew how to take exams, he was not worried.

The most crucial point was that Magic itself was a form of practice. If the Apprentices of the Tower of Time could all become "test-takers," then becoming an Archmage step-by-step was by no means an empty promise.

He was actually more worried that these Apprentices wouldn't be able to become "test-takers"!

Hearing Xia Duo's new measures, He Sai's eyes were filled with indescribable excitement. Recently, he had been thinking about how to improve teachers' enthusiasm and how to teach Apprentices more efficiently.

Xia Duo's method immediately gave him countless new ideas. Just as he wanted to speak, he didn't know how to put it into words and could only shake his head in frustration.

Seeing this, Xia Duo couldn't help but raise an eyebrow. "Hmm? Do you have a different opinion on this plan?"

"No, I don't. I strongly agree!" He Sai said loudly.

His voice was so loud it almost startled himself. He Sai looked a bit embarrassed, then lowered his voice and said, "Lord Xia Duo, I think this plan is excellent."

"That's good, I thought you had some different opinions!"

Xia Duo didn't really think He Sai would oppose him; the enthusiasm He Sai had previously shown for the cause of popularizing Magic didn't seem faked.

"By the way, regarding the rewards for excellent teachers, I'll state one, and you decide the others. Make a list and hand it to me."

"Yes."

He Sai asked curiously, "My Lord, what is the reward you mentioned?"

"For excellent teachers who are still Apprentices, approve them to attend the Primary Mage Study Class; for those who have already become Primary Mages, approve them to attend the Intermediate Mage Advanced Training Class; for those who are already Intermediate Mages, I guarantee they will become High Mages."

"Ah?!"

Not only He Sai, but even the teachers in the corner who were still Apprentices couldn't help but let out a gasp.

He Sai's mouth hung open, his eyes full of anticipation. "My Lord, is what you said true? Can they really become High Mages?"

"Of course it's true, but don't get happy too soon. What I'm saying now is just a general direction; the specific details may still be subject to change."

Xia Duo was not boasting. If there really were excellent teachers at the Intermediate Mage level, even if he had to teach them personally and spend a massive amount of resources to pile it on, he would produce a High Mage to stand there as a benchmark.

However, there was currently only one Intermediate Mage in the Academic Affairs Office, which was He Sai, and he had already left his teaching post.

As for the Intermediate Mages responsible for the Low-level Mage Study Class, they could only be considered part-timers; their main work was still as "workshop directors" or "project team leaders"!

Furthermore, it was not easy to compare teachers of different grades. Only when the Tower of Time had a large number of Primary Mages and needed to provide them with institutionalized training would there be specialized teachers at the Intermediate Mage level.

Of course, when that time truly came, Xia Duo believed that those teachers becoming High Mages would be no problem at all, and even becoming an Arcanist was not impossible.

"My Lord, can I return to leading a class now?" He Sai asked expectantly.

"Of course you can!"

How could Xia Duo refuse someone who actively requested to enter a teaching position! However—

"However, your main task now is here at the Academic Affairs Office. As long as even one Intermediate Mage appears among this batch of Apprentices, I will likewise guarantee you become a High Mage!"

"Really?!" He Sai's surprise was already overflowing.

There was no Mage who didn't want to progress, and even those like him who had already given up hope for progress actually still had a passionate desire for it in their hearts.

Hearing Xia Duo's guarantee now—that as long as one Intermediate Apprentice appeared, he could become a High Mage—made He Sai almost faint with joy.

According to the current scale of Apprentice cultivation in the Tower of Time, even if he didn't manage anything, even if he returned to the old "free-range" state, after a dozen years or so, there would have to be seven or eight Intermediate Mages!

What's more, it wasn't the past anymore, and he wasn't managing nothing; the speed at which this batch of Apprentices produced an Intermediate Mage would only be faster than in the past!

This was equivalent to saying he had already locked in becoming a High Mage in advance.

Looking at the beaming He Sai, Xia Duo shook his head slightly. In fact, as long as they thoroughly studied the current textbooks of the Tower of Time and the subsequent ones, becoming a High Mage was no problem at all.

It was just because the transition time was still short that their thinking hadn't fully adjusted yet. In the future, perhaps they would no longer consider becoming a High Mage their life's highest pursuit.

However, Xia Duo didn't explain any further. Those who should understand would understand in the future; as long as they were on his boat, they would definitely reach the other shore!