Chapter 360: 333 Discipline

"So-called discipline is, first and foremost, the discipline of the front lines and the discipline of the safety zones; only then is it the discipline of the examination."

"Violating examination discipline merely results in expulsion from the exam, or at most being barred from future attempts; even those who openly cheat are only thrown in jail for a few years, or at worst, conscripted into the army. But violating front-line discipline costs lives."

He scanned everyone sternly, his voice turning sharp, and the young people who were rushing to stuff food into their mouths immediately stopped.

"It is not just you who dies; your death counts for nothing. Your friends and family, the kind-hearted people willing to help you, and innocent passersby could all be implicated and killed because of you. You would become a scourge. Do you want to be a scourge?"

He did not demand that everyone answer aloud, so the people below naturally did not shout "No" in unison; at most, they just shook their heads.

"Very good. I hope there are no scourges among you, and I am unwilling to personally lead a scourge to the front lines. I hope you go to the front lines to learn and practice, and become pillars of the state in the future. So, I will emphasize this now: Rule number one—you are absolutely forbidden from leaving the safety zone."

"Don't ask me where the safety zone is. Once you arrive, I will point it out to you; only the blind or the foolish would fail to understand. Second, if you take the exam according to the rules within the examination grounds, you will absolutely not leave the safety zone. If anyone goes out, I can only assume you are doing so as a deliberate provocation."

"What happens if you leave the safety zone? Ask the battle robes in your hands. I imagine some fellow who knows the inside story and likes to show off has already told you the details, right?"

Qu Huan gave an awkward smile, then immediately thought: If I hadn't said anything, wouldn't you be very awkward right now? I sacrificed myself to complete you. I said it on the boys' side, but on the girls' side... I wonder if that girl Wen Caifei can hold it in?

"Someone told you, right? Without the protection of a battle robe, leaving the safety zone means death," Li Yijian said. "Of course, we do not wish for you to die for no reason, so we will give you a form of protection. Aside from the battle robe."

He picked up a Red Copper Bracelet with a bead embedded in it.

"This bracelet will sound an alarm once you are outside the safety zone, allowing you to hear and see it. Then it will activate a protective barrier that lasts for ten breaths."

"Ten breaths?"

Everyone was somewhat startled; this time was too short—even holding one's breath lasts longer than that.

"Ten breaths is to give you a buffer. That is where the battle robe on your body becomes useful. Use your Internal Energy to activate it, then wrap yourself up so not a sliver of skin is exposed, and you will be safe and sound. Use this time to run back to the safety zone. All the students here just kept their battle robes from deforming for two hours; I think that is enough for you to use. Even in the worst-case scenario, if you are lost outside, it is enough to get back to the safety zone."

Everyone breathed a sigh of relief. That was true; at their pace, they could run a hundred miles in two hours of full-speed running, so how could they fail to make it back?

"The second discipline is to follow orders. Follow whose orders? Follow me, follow your Instructor—that goes without saying. But I want you to know that in Qianjin City, any soldier is stronger than you. They are all battle-hardened veterans; you don't even count as new recruits."

"In Qianjin City, it goes without saying that you should follow the main force, but if you happen to get separated, you must obey any officer with a military rank you encounter. If there is a conflict, obey the one with the highest rank. I will not explain how to distinguish ranks. If you can't even do that, you certainly won't pass the written exam, and you will be eliminated directly, so there's no need to waste effort."

"Oh, right, your results will be told to you after you wake up from the transport vehicle. Those who pass will continue to the next stage of the exam; those who don't will get off the vehicle immediately and be dismissed on the spot."

"The third discipline is that you are not allowed to harm the original inhabitants without cause. I don't need to go into detail on this; you can just treat the original inhabitants as the common people of Yunzhou. Scum who bully the weak will not just be eliminated from the exam, but should be eliminated from the Human World. Let me remind you one more time: the forces in Suiyu are both complex and deep, and strong people gather there. I am not telling you not to offend the original inhabitants just for their sake, but even more so for your own good."

"There are only these three major disciplines, but there are many minor ones. A booklet will be distributed in a moment; read it on the way. I believe that by now, everyone here is someone who can read a book."

After he said so much, he saw that everyone had finished eating and looked ready to set off.

"Alright, now I can tell you the examination rules."

"You will understand once you see the vehicles in a moment. The troop transport vehicles have two levels: one level for you, and the other level for your horses."

Hearing the word "horse," quite a few people showed expressions of distress. Clearly, the few hours they had just spent with the horses had left them with no small amount of Shadow.

"I see some people pulling faces; such people certainly cannot be soldiers. As a warrior, you actually dislike your own horse? Let me tell you, even when you reach the front lines, horses remain very important, especially horses fitted with protective iron. They are like warriors wearing battle robes, galloping through Suiyu, saving you a lot of energy. And... it must be said, horses also use their lives to detect safe areas in Suiyu for us. Where they can tread, we can certainly tread."

"The rule of the exam is to find your horse within the examination grounds and then reach the finish line together."

"Your horses will be scattered in a pre-fenced examination area, waiting for you to find them. They will run freely, and no one knows where they will be. You are given two hours to search. Within two hours, find your own horse, then bring it through a mixed territory to reach the finish line. That is the exam question. Simple, right?"

Everyone was silent.

Simple?

At first glance, this rule sounded similar to the time they arrived at the examination grounds, but thinking about it carefully, it was vastly different.

First, the process of arriving at the examination grounds had clear hints beforehand, one link leading to another; after solving each link, one could crack the clues for the next, eventually leading directly to the stables, whereas this time, there should be none.

Second, the previous horses were tied in a fixed place, just waiting for the students to come and lead them away. This time, the horses were running freely in a completely unfamiliar environment, and even the examiners didn't know where they were—how was one supposed to search for them?

Furthermore, there were a hundred horses before, and one only needed to find any one of them, whereas now it was specifically one's own, making the chances much smaller.

In short, it was very difficult; even students who were confident in themselves might not trust their luck.

Someone had a thought and raised their hand to signal. Li Yijian was slightly taken aback; clearly, raising one's hand to ask questions was not popular in the military, but he still gave permission. The student said: "Instructor, what if we find someone else's horse?"

Li Yijian stroked his chin, as if he hadn't thought of this question, then suddenly laughed: "They are all military horses; finding one is naturally a good thing. How about this: for every extra horse found... there will be bonus points. How about that?"

Everyone felt a chill. Qu Huan thought to himself: Good fellow. Finding someone else's horse has benefits; isn't this asking people to kill each other?

Li Yijian said: "Don't worry, this is just one item among the bonus points. As long as you safely find your horse and bring it back to the finish line, you will certainly have the base points and be allowed to pass. But along the way, there are Fierce Beasts, Phantoms, and other incidents, and even surprises..."

"Other incidents?"

"Hehe, for other incidents, you will encounter different things. There is no standard answer for how to handle them; we will grade you based on your responses. Rest assured, as long as you are not utterly devoid of conscience, it will not affect your final passing."

Someone raised a hand.

"You again. What do you want to ask?"

"Instructor, if the base points are not obtained, can one pass by getting enough bonus points?"

Li Yijian pondered again and said: "What a strange question. Logically speaking, it shouldn't be allowed..."

But, he was about to say "but." Many people thought to themselves.

"But, who knows? The final result is still decided by us; after all, our examination is to select the worthy and employ the capable. For someone who is truly down on their luck but talented, we might just give them a helping hand, right?"

That statement... was the same as saying nothing.

Although there was no definite word, when it really came time to not being able to find a horse, how could students who considered themselves "talented" not try to gamble on it?

When the time came and they saw someone else's horse, would they not take it for themselves?

And once one person took someone else's horse, that person would naturally have no horse, and would have to take someone else's horse...

Such an infinite nesting doll...

It would certainly be a mess.

Li Yijian stated the rules and answered a few more questions, then stopped disturbing the students' final "leisure time" and went to the place where the Instructors were.

He heard Lan Xiuzhu say: "How do you think this exam is designed?"

Tang Zhao replied: "It's designed quite classically."

Lan Xiuzhu laughed: "The way educated people talk is just different... 'quite classical' just means it has no new ideas. It's still a gauntlet run; didn't our Jing'an Division design it this way last time?"

Li Yijian sneered inwardly: What do you know? When you get to the front lines, I'll let you see what "new ideas" really are.

At this time, Tang Zhao said: "Actually, it still has highlights. I think introducing the concept of a 'horse' is very interesting. Usually, we design things to let students demonstrate their 'combat' talents, but this time the horse has the meaning of 'protection.' Protecting innocent people is also the original intention of us Sword Guests learning martial arts and practicing the sword."

To tell the truth, if it weren't for the fact that human lives were at stake, the horse could even be replaced by an "ordinary person" acting as the one to be rescued.

Lan Xiuzhu said, "This explanation is interesting—but why would the Central Army design the examination this way? Our Jing'an Division does sometimes protect important figures, and your Land Inspection Division also has the duty of guarding the borders and protecting the people. But isn't the military primarily focused on killing and warfare? Especially at the Qianxian, where there isn't a single ordinary commoner besides the original inhabitants; who would the Central Army need to protect?"

Li Yijian felt a bit more comfortable and was about to go out to explain.

At this moment, Tang Zhao was lost in thought and suddenly said, "Perhaps I thought about it wrong. 'Horses' shouldn't refer to ordinary people, but rather to 'companions'. It's not just protection, but cooperation. Is there anything that values comrades-in-arms more than the military?"

Li Yijian's expression changed slightly; he stood there stunned for a while, wanting to say something, but in the end, he did not go out to speak again.

Suddenly, a rumbling sound came from afar.