Chapter 124: Evil God Discusses Secrets

Hearing what the Evil God said in his mind, Zhang Yu was slightly stunned.

This Evil God had been extremely opposed to him giving up the Tianjiao class to stay in Songyang City, so why had she suddenly changed her mind?

Seeming to sense Zhang Yu's confusion, the Evil God continued speaking in his mind: "After what Zhang Pianpian said, I've also remembered some things."

"I once heard the Evil God King of the third underground layer mention that a struggle had occurred in the upper layers of Kunxu, and it involved this Foundation Establishment qualification exam."

The Evil God still remembered that back then, she had sunk to working in the third underground layer of Kunxu.

Relying on just a phone and a phone book, she became the sales champion of the month, even conning several PhDs from the university. Not only did she receive a reward from the Evil God King, she also attended the Evil God King's banquet, where she heard many secrets.

The Evil God thought to herself: "Too bad, the very next month, that damned Evil God King stole my sales skills and bonus, then turned around and sold the skill to a bunch of unemployed dropouts who had fled to the third underground layer, hired those college students to work, and ultimately kicked me out, forcing me to start looking for a new job all over again..."

The thoughts flashed through her mind, and at that moment, the Evil God continued: "I remember hearing the Evil God King once sigh about how some Immortal Venerable, in order to increase mobility among the middle and lower layers of Kunxu, had pushed through a series of reforms to the quota for qualification exams, including changes to the Foundation Establishment qualification exam quota."

"But they had to consider the disciples and descendants of various immortals, balance the student quotas of the ten great sects, and also balance the power of different factions within the Heavenly Court. The web of interests was incredibly complex, and no one knows how many struggles erupted."

"Anyway, after all the fighting, some immortals went bankrupt from gambling, some died in their caves from qi deviation, and some even fled to unknown regions more than ten layers deep in Kunxu."

"But precisely because the struggle was so fierce, the Foundation Establishment qualification exam that was finally established is full of authority. It represents the final, unified will of the ten great sects and the Heavenly Court formed by the immortals of those sects."

"So you don't need to worry about the safety of taking this exam. Just like Zhang Pianpian said, the top powers on Layer 1 wouldn't dare violate the exam rules or cheat. At most, they might suppress information outside the exam venue and do their best to boost their own students' strength."

Sensing that Zhang Yu was pondering what she had said, the Evil God quickly added: "And if you obtain this Foundation Establishment certificate before entering university... that's a huge advantage. Since this exam was set by the Heavenly Court, it has great authority. It's practically a stamp of approval that the passers are among the strongest high school students on Layer 1."

"If you enter university with this certificate, the treatment you receive, the courses you take, and the resources you get will all be vastly different."

"In particular, you can directly enter the university's Foundation Establishment class, study Foundation Establishment courses, and enjoy Foundation Establishment-level resource support. This will give you a massive advantage in the early years of university, far greater than the Tianjiao class advantage."

Zhang Yu understood what the Evil God meant—it was even bigger than the difference between a key high school and an ordinary high school, right?

"Second, whether it's Bai Zhenzhen or Zhang Pianpian, neither of them understands just how terrifying your talent has become after my enlightenment."

"Based on my observations over this period, as you master more and more techniques, your rate of progress will only accelerate. I firmly believe you will become the strongest high school student on Layer 1 of Kunxu and ace this Foundation Establishment exam with ease."

"In comparison, given your terrifying talent, competing for the Foundation Establishment certificate during high school against students who have been on the path of cultivation for no more than three years... might actually be easier than fighting for it in university against all those Qi Refinement peak students."

The Evil God sighed: "If I weren't broke right now, I'd bet everything on you."

Of course, the Evil God had some things left unsaid—things she kept to herself for her own true purposes.

That was: once Zhang Pianpian left, Zhang Yu and Bai Zhenzhen would remain in Songyang City, facing an increasingly pressured environment. Zhang Yu would inevitably keep pursuing stronger power, stronger talent, and stronger potential.

Under such circumstances, the Evil God judged that Zhang Yu would ultimately, in order to enhance his own potential, follow her guidance to hunt the Evil God.

Aside from that, there was the issue of the True Spiritual Root.

"Won't even sell out your best high school friend, and you still want to climb up in Kunxu? What a saint. If it weren't for your incredible potential, I wouldn't bother with you at all."

The Evil God knew that Zhang Yu was unwilling to kill someone for their root. Even if he went to the Tianjiao class alone, he'd have no True Spiritual Root to assist him. But if he stayed to take the Foundation Establishment exam, he could continue cultivating with the True Spiritual Root.

After weighing all these factors, the Evil God agreed that Zhang Yu should stay and take the Foundation Establishment exam.

And what the Evil God said did remind Zhang Yu of something.

"My greatest advantage is my ability to learn various techniques quickly and raise them to Level 10."

"That's an advantage other high school students can hardly match in just three years."

"But once I'm in university, those college students who have been in Qi Refinement longer and have long hovered at the Qi Refinement peak will inevitably have mastered many techniques."

"After all, for college students whose Dao-hearts, mana, and physical strength have all reached the upper limit of Qi Refinement, one way to further differentiate strength... should be the number and quality of techniques."

"At that point, my advantage over those college students... won't be as great as it is now over high school students."

Thinking this, Zhang Yu grew more and more inclined to stay and take the Foundation Establishment exam.

Zhang Pianpian, who had been observing Zhang Yu, sighed at this moment: "So you've made up your mind. You're going to stay with Bai Zhenzhen?"

After a moment's deliberation, Zhang Yu finally nodded, while a strange feeling rose in his heart.

It was as if... choosing not to go with Zhang Pianpian but to stay with Bai Zhenzhen gave him a sense of guilt toward Zhang Pianpian. It was like telling Zhang Pianpian: Sis, I'm closest to Azhen. If you two ask me to choose who to follow, I'd pick Azhen.

And Zhang Pianpian had been looking out for them for over four months...

This strange feeling made Zhang Yu feel a twinge of shame under Zhang Pianpian's gaze.

Beside him, Bai Zhenzhen watched Zhang Yu, her heart gradually stirring, as if a warm current surged within her.

"Yuzi is really going to stay and take the Foundation Establishment certificate exam with me."

Thinking of this, the previous feeling of loneliness, the darkness and cold of being deep in an ice river, seemed to be swept away, replaced by a sense of reassurance.

Accompanied by this sense of reassurance and the stirring in her heart, even the True Spirit Root in her abdomen trembled slightly.

"What's this broken spirit root getting excited about? Is it so reluctant to leave Yuzi's flesh? Does it want to go in that badly?"

But Bai Zhenzhen reconsidered and realized that the True Spirit Root might be reflecting her own thoughts—the thought that, after seeing Zhang Yu stay and take the Foundation Establishment exam with her, she wanted to be good to Zhang Yu.

And the way to be good to Zhang Yu was to stuff the True Spirit Root into his body, since it was the most valuable thing Bai Zhenzhen had.

One by one,

This behavior of lending one's most valuable thing to another is rarely done even among the closest relatives in Kunxu. It is generally only done after signing a contract, including but not limited to lending one's brain, heart, kidneys... to the other party for use.

Bai Zhenzhen became aware of her own thoughts at this moment, and her gaze toward Zhang Yu shifted. She said in her heart, "A Yu, from now on, you'll always be number one on my friendship ranking. You and I will be the best in the world—the kind where you let me call you 'Dad' every day."

Zhang Pianpian looked at the two and said calmly, "Since you've decided to stay, then stay. The path of immortality is ultimately chosen by oneself, step by step."

"But since you've decided to stay, don't regret it."

"In the time ahead, you must make the most of every minute, every second, and every cent to cultivate."

"The Foundation Establishment qualification exam in Kunxu Layer 1 is divided into three rounds."

"It's now mid-April. After registration in mid-June, the first round is in August, testing comprehensive quality—it's the easiest of the three rounds, but you'll need at least a high school senior level to have a chance to pass."

"The second round is the specialty exam in October. Students are tested separately in four categories: Dao Heart, Mana, Athletics, and Martial Arts. At this point, you need to be at the level of a city high school senior competition champion to have a chance of passing."

"The third round is the final selection exam in early January next year. The remaining students compete against each other, ultimately determining the strongest in the four tracks of Dao Heart, Mana, Athletics, and Martial Arts, and awarding the Foundation Establishment certificate..."

Listening to the description of the three rounds, Zhang Yu gradually outlined the framework of the Foundation Establishment exam in his mind: "This competition doesn't ultimately test the students' overall qualities. The key selection criterion is their specialties in the four directions: Dao Heart, Mana, Athletics, and Martial Arts."

"Indeed, after all, these are high school students—they can't be as well-rounded as those university students who've polished their Qi Refinement for a long time. So the students this exam wants to screen out are... four talented students with extremely high specialties in four different directions."

"To pass the exam, the key lies in how long your strong points are."

Zhang Yu then asked curiously, "Where is the exam location?"

Zhang Pianpian said, "Both registration and the exams are held in Xiandu."

Xiandu City is the most prosperous and largest super-metropolis in Kunxu Layer 1, far surpassing Songyang City in scale.

Zhang Yu remembered that Xiandu was about 1,500 kilometers from Songyang.

Thinking that the entire exam was divided into three rounds, spanned half a year, and the exam site was in Xiandu a thousand li away, Bai Zhenzhen couldn't help but sigh.

Bai Zhenzhen: "This exam really takes a lot of time. I'm afraid we'll need to take quite a few leave days. And travel, accommodation, and meals must be expensive, right? I read online that the cost of living in Xiandu is very high."

Zhang Pianpian nodded and said, "The exam location and time are themselves a screening criterion."

"For example, you two haven't obtained intercity travel permits yet, right? To leave the city, especially to go to Xiandu City, you must apply for an intercity travel permit, providing proof of education, income, and rental or housing..."

Zhang Yu nodded slightly. Hearing the arrangement of the exam and the requirement for an intercity travel permit, he felt he heard a message:

If you don't even have a little spare money and free time, or if you're a poor wretch who can't even afford to rent a house, then don't bother taking this exam—stay in your hometown and work peacefully.