It didn't take long before the several inner-court and direct disciples were all gathered at the entrance of the pagoda. Looking at the number, they were a little more than two hundred in total.

The grand pagoda was a very massive building, it was big enough for them to go in at once. Each of the inner-court disciples took a spot at the several entrances around the pagoda. Although they felt like rushing in at this very moment, they had to wait for further instruction from the official.

The official in charge of the test was a young man who seemed to be in his early twenties. His face beamed with a hot smile, apparently impressed by the enthusiasm they had shown even before the test began. He walked to the base of the pagoda and cupped his fist before the inner-court and direct disciples:

" I greet the champions of this great academy…"

He paused for a while; giving time for them to soak in the greeting. Most of these disciples were nobles from prestigious families, so it was needful for him to act with courtesy. After a short moment of silence, he continued:

"It is a pleasure of mine to witness this great event, which will go down in history, marking the beginning of a new era of glory for the entire florin valley"

He gave another brief moment of silence.

"….."

The disciples still wore impatient looks on their faces, but they had no other choice but to wait patiently for him to finish what he had to say.

"As core disciples of this great academy, I understand the burden that you have on your shoulders; it's not easy, I can feel it.

He shook his head slightly with an emotional look, he then peered deeply into their eyes one after the other, with a gaze of sympathy.

It was another moment of silence!

"The road to success is always tough, and only the strong will prevail, that's why…"

Black lines now appeared on the faces of these disciples as they felt that something wasn't right. The test official didn't seem to notice any sort of changes as he was busy, immersed in his speech.

One of the inner-court disciples who couldn't bear this any longer screamed out impatiently: "Who the fuck is this dude! Why the hell are you guys just standing still and watching his rambling?"

The rest of the inner-court disciples cast grateful looks at the disciple who shouted; it was like he had just expressed their minds, they were also having the same thought, it was just a matter of time before they would have voiced it out.

"I haven't seen him before, maybe he is a new test official"

"Perhaps he was transferred here recently".

"No wonder he dares to act this way, I was afraid that he doesn't know the immensity between heaven and earth"

"Hey, hurry up and light the incense burner let the test begin if you know what's good for you, or else don't blame us for being ruthless".

The test official was barraged with angry shouts from different directions. Although he appeared embarrassed, he quickly wore an apologetic smile,

"I must have acted foolishly for delaying the champions of this great academy. You all are dragons among men and phoenixes among women, who am I to impede you on your path to greatness? I humbly ask of you to forgive this lowly one for being unreasonable" He said with his head slightly bowed.

His words, tone, and action worked hand in hand to disperse the boiling air. The inner-court and direct disciples didn't understand why they suddenly felt their anger fade away like the stars of the morning. Although they could tell that this guy was well acquainted with the art of ass-kissing, they couldn't help but develop a favorable impression of him.

A direct disciple among them cleared his throat and spoke up, "Mistakes are bound to happen, we can see that you were newly transferred into this Academy, and you were probably a frog in the well wherever you came from, but from the look of things, you seem to be a smart person, and for admitting your mistake— we will let you off this time.

"Thank you" the test official responded with a bow, he walked up to the jade platform by the side of the pagoda where an incense burner and several incense sticks were placed. He lit up the incense burner and declared,

"The test will now begin"

Hearing this, the several inner-court and direct disciples cast quick glances at themselves before hurrying through the entrance of the pagoda from their respective positions.

*Vroom…*

With a slight hum that reverberated the entire atmosphere, a radiant blue light was lit around the entire first floor of the pagoda; the sound was to indicate when a new floor had been entered, while the surrounding lights on each platform meant that all the disciples had successfully entered the first floor.

The elders and outer-court disciples outside the pagoda could only watch silently, waiting to see how this year's top rankings will turn out to be. The first three spots were a no-go area, they all knew the owners of those positions, but from fourth place downwards, there was no certainty— anything could happen.

Just as they waited in anticipation, the second floor was lit with numerous blue lights:

*Vroom…*

it happened almost at the same time. Everyone's attention was immediately shifted to the first incense stick on the burner and discovered that it had burned to about a quarter.

Although they were amazed by the speed at which these core disciples had completed the first floor, they had also anticipated this much— the competitive spirits of these disciples seemed to grow stronger by every year, so it didn't come as much of a shock.

The level of difficulty on each floor of the pagoda varied significantly; the difference was as wide as the skies. The higher the floor the harder it became to clear, but as for these inner-court disciples, the first two floors could be considered as a piece of cake, and the disparity of their strengths couldn't be determined now until they had reached the third floor at most; by then, the weaker ones will take a longer period to clear it.

*Vroom…*

The third floor was lit. This time, it didn't happen all at once; the lights that appeared on the third floor came with slight time intervals— the weaker ones were now lagging behind.

The time they entered the pagoda to the duration it took for them to reach the third floor, was the same time it took one incense stick to burn. With this indication, a great shock had now descended on the faces of the outer-court disciples watching from the outside.

As disciples of the Academy, they could attest to how difficult it was to clear each floor of the pagoda; after last year's test, so many of them were as happy as a dog with two tails for being able to reach the second floor of the pagoda, but now, these inner-court and direct disciples were clearing the floors like they were actually drinking a glass of water.