The single-line knight strode forward, kicking open the door that had appeared, and stepped out of the room lined with mirrors. Zhang Yuanqing, his teammates stumbling behind, reached the corridor. Red Chicken Brother, having lost too much blood, leaned against the corridor wall and collapsed with a heavy sigh, gasping for breath. Guan Ya, Sun Miao Miao, Tian Xia Gui Huo, and Zhao Chenghuang either sat weakly in a seated posture or leaned against the walls, easing the pain as their characters nearly detached from their bodies. Though Zhang Yuanqing had managed to stop in time, for them, their souls felt as though pierced by a blade—though the bleeding had been halted, the injuries remained. Red Chicken Brother took several deep breaths, then reached into his inventory, drawing out a concentrated life essence vial, which he injected into his neck artery. He then pulled out a jade-green orb and placed it between his teeth. Closing his eyes, he smiled in contentment. A few seconds later, where his wrist had been bloodied and torn, new bone emerged, fresh flesh regenerated, and a pale, delicate hand formed. The other members also began retrieving healing items to restore their own conditions. At that moment, Zhang Yuanqing saw Zhai Cai approaching, her dress fluttering gently. The single-line knight smiled warmly. "I sensed an aura of evil just now—don't deny it. To a knight who is upright, strong, strikingly handsome, and exceptionally well-liked, the presence of evil feels as bright and distinct as fireflies glowing in the dark." Zhang Yuanqing remained composed, brushing off the remark with a breath. "I didn't see any uprightness, nor any exceptional character—though I must admit, you do have a certain presence." He said this not only to counter the impolite knight, but primarily to distinguish himself from the free-spirited sword immortal, who is known for his aloof persona. Zhai Cai, on the other hand, is both sweet and nurturing, capable of being both an attacker and a receiver—versatile and adaptable. Zhai Cai gave him a critical glance, appraising him from head to toe. "You're quite a handful, aren't you? By the way, what has been happening with the free-spirited sword immortal lately? I've been thinking of him." Zhang Yuanqing chuckled. "He's been thinking of you too, and he has "He said you're the kind of knight who's sharp and clever." "What does 'sharp and clever' mean?" Zhai Cai is of Chinese-Hawaiian descent. She grew up and spent her adolescence in the Free Federation, having lived in her homeland for a few years, but her understanding of regional cultures there remains limited. "Sharp and clever means resourceful and intelligent," Zhang Yuanqing explained. "I don't believe you!" Zhai Cai had a keen intuition, expressing her skepticism. "Unless you make a solemn vow right here in my presence, I'll have whoever lies return to the spiritual realm!" You still have a good sense of judgment... Zhang Yuanqing didn't respond to her. After a half-hour break, once everyone had settled in, Zhai Cai raised her hands to draw attention and said: "Our objective this time is Room 503 on the fifth floor. We're currently on the fourth floor; all we need to do is pass through one more room to reach our destination. Everything is going smoothly. If luck holds, and we encounter a level-six challenge, I can guarantee you'll be safe." Now let's discuss which room to choose. I think six is a lucky number, so how about room 406? "Opposed!" everyone shouted at once. The single-charge knight had originally hoped to hold out a bit longer, but seeing the unwavering determination in everyone's eyes, he finally gave in, shrugging with a flexible attitude: "Alright, minority follows majority—whichever person has the best character will pick." Red Chicken Brother spoke first: "Let's go with room 401." "Get out of here—you're just a black-and-white club guy, your character is the worst," Sun Miao Miao spat at him. Zhang Yuanqing thought for a moment, then said: "Once we pass through the fourth level, we'll be able to reach Elder Brent's storage room smoothly. Using stargazing magic now should allow us to accurately determine the level of the fourth floor. Six waters, try it." Sun Miao Miao nodded in agreement, opening her star-eyed gaze to observe the star patterns of the group. Immediately, her expression turned grim: "A disaster of blood and flames..." It's the same as last time—another blood and flame disaster As for this outcome, Zhang Yuan had anticipated it from the start. When he entered Room 306, both Sun Miaomiao and Zhao Chenghuang observed that everyone—including Zhai Cai—faced a potential life-threatening crisis. Yet the crisis in Room 306 did not threaten Zhai Cai at all. This indicated that the crisis originated from the fourth level. Sun Chuan, the Knight of Single Transmission, paused and said, “So let’s still go with Room 406. After all, no outcome will be worse than this.” The atmosphere grew serious. Red Chicken Brother complained, “The crisis isn’t proportional to the returns—we could really use a few dominion-level materials, couldn’t we?” “Do you want to be pursued by a Dominion-level entity?” Zhai Cai narrowed her eyes and smiled dryly. “Old Brother Lunt doesn’t yet know the true nature of the Holy Disc fragments. If we take them, there will be no immediate consequences. But dominion-level materials are rare—losing even one will immediately draw attention. Once we gather all the fragments and unlock the Church’s treasure vault, I assure you, you’ll experience your most significant gains yet.” This statement stirred the holy elders This was exactly what the Primordial had promised them before taking action—whenever they secured a fragment of the Sacred Plate, they would share in the treasures of the Papal Court upon its eventual unveiling. As one of the largest organizations established a century ago, the wealth it had left behind must surely be immense. Indeed, it's no surprise that simply offering a generous share of the pie can ignite such enthusiasm among the staff. Zhang Yuanqing silently remarked, urging, "We've rested long enough—let's go into the room now. The sooner we get the fragments of the Sacred Plate, the sooner we can leave this place." Zhai Cai nodded, "Then let's choose Room 406—6 is my lucky number." He strode confidently toward Room 406, turned the handle, and found the room dark, with no visible features. Zhai Cai stepped forward and disappeared into the darkness. Zhang Yuanqing and the others quickly followed. As they entered the dark space, their vision instantly cleared, revealing a spacious classroom with a blackboard, a lectern, and ten student desks. On the blackboard was written: Welcome to the Wisdom Playground—The Examination Hall! Examination Rules: 1. Thirty seconds remaining until the exam begins! 2. At least six participants must take the exam. 3. No props may be used during the exam. The examination hall will be sealed once the exam starts. 4. Each incorrect answer will incur a penalty. 5. The duration of this exam is ten minutes. "Red Chicken Brother said loudly. "Me too!" Sun Miaomiao mumbled. "She has always been average to below-average in her academic performance from elementary school through high school." Zhao Chenghuang didn't hesitate to expose her childhood friendship. "Even underperforming students are still talking nonsense, while top students are already studying the rules." Guan Ya cut in, interrupting the conversation, her face serious, gazing at the rules written on the board: "It's similar to the mirror room—it will seal off the inventory, but won't restrict the use of skills. The exam hall is closed, meaning we can't actively enter the spiritual realm. We don't know what the questions will be, but they probably won't be as desperate as in the mirror room." "Don't interrupt me!" Zhang Yuanqing interrupted his girlfriend. "In the mirror room, the knight wasn't in any life danger. Here, however, he is. How do you have the confidence to claim this isn't as desperate?" Zhai Cai insisted firmly: "No problem. I'm a top graduate from MIT. A simple exam is nothing to me. The rules say we can't use props, but they don't say we can't cheat or exchange "You just copy mine when the time comes," Tianxia Guihuo said, shaking his head. "It's clearly not that simple. The questions mustn't be the ones we're used to. I simply don't believe props would present a free federation exam." At that moment, there were still ten seconds until the answering began. Everyone quickly retrieved their preferred weapons, armor, vine armor, or protective shields and mirrors. Although the rules explicitly stated that props couldn't be used, the functionality of the props was merely sealed—so the props themselves remained unaffected. For instance, Guan Ya's sword, even with its enhancement and piercing abilities sealed, remained a sharp and effective weapon, allowing the swordsmen to fully express their techniques. As for armor, its inherent strength and durability remained unchanged. Zhang Yuanqing also brought out his Form-and-Spirit-Annihilating Blade and his Purple-Jade Shield. Although Zhai Cai wasn't particularly familiar with Yuan Shǐ Tian Zūn, seeing the Purple-Jade Shield didn't matter—there was no way he could identify the latter's identity based solely on this unfamiliar prop. In fact, even in the second-largest district, few people had seen the Three Treasures of Zijin, and among those who had, even fewer knew that the Three Treasures were spiritually bound to the Prime Immortal's soul. At that moment, the countdown ended, and a line of text appeared on the board: "Examination begins. Please take your seats within three seconds. Anyone not seated by the designated time will be eliminated!" Square panels opened up in the ceiling, each housing a long, sleek, high-caliber anti-aircraft gun—ten in total, five on each side, providing complete coverage of the classroom. Zhang Yuanqing and the others rushed toward their seats with a loud crash. On the board, a new line appeared: ["Begin answering!"] ["Please state the first 20 decimal places of pi. This question is worth 10 points."] ["Answering time: thirty seconds. Countdown begins!"] "Good heavens!" Sun Miaomiao exclaimed, "I only know 3.1415926." "Good heavens! What is pi?" Red Chicken also exclaimed in frustration. The entire realm is solemn, even desperate—Zhao Chenghuang, Guan Ya, all of them. The crowd turns to the college student, Yuan Shǐ Tianzūn. "Who, among students, would memorize this?" Zhang Yuanqing speaks with serious determination, also filled with despair, then turns to the single knight: "The MIT prodigy—hand it over to him." Zhai Cai's face gradually stiffens: "Who... among students, would memorize this?" Thirty seconds pass, with everyone's expressions frozen. [Time's up! This round's score: zero!] [Shooting penalty: twenty seconds!] At that moment, a soft metallic clinking echoes from above, as a deluge of bullets rains down from the sky—golden, shimmering, covering every corner of the classroom. The tables and chairs shatter under the barrage, their clinks and impacts blending into a continuous symphony. Zhai Cai grabs his sword and rushes toward the corner, shouting, "To my back!" The group retreated to the corner near the right wall, where the blind spots of the five high-velocity machine guns lay—now they only had to face those five guns. Zhai Cai planted his knight's sword before him, and a bronze glow ignited, forming a shimmering, ethereal wall in front of him. "Clang... clang... clang..." Bullets struck the wall, splashing out rain-like bursts of golden light. At first, Zhai Cai held on firmly, but within ten seconds, his arms began to tremble. After another five seconds, the once-unbreakable ethereal wall started to crack. "I can't hold on anymore," he roared. "For the final five seconds, you're on your own." The bronze wall shattered, and bullets rained down upon the group. Those behind the wall each employed their own tactics. Red Chicken Brother formed a fire ball and hurled it several meters away, then used the fire technique to deflect the first wave of bullets before they reached him. Tian Xia Gui, leveraging the fire ball thrown by Red Chicken Brother, also activated his fire technique to evade the attack. The three Star Officers gradually dissolved into starlight. Guan Ya, clad in reed armor, possessed no elaborate abilities. With her long sword, she moved with dense, unbroken rhythms, the metallic clinks echoing as she deflected incoming bullet fragments. Her scouts' Insight ability allowed her to track the trajectory of each bullet, yet beneath the relentless rain, even the strongest predictive skills could not fully shield her from the onslaught. Soon, two bullets pierced her abdomen and right chest. The holy-grade reed armor, though resilient, could not withstand the faintly glowing projectiles. Guan Ya immediately reached out to support her lover, and together they collapsed to the ground. Instinctively, she opened her inventory to retrieve the life essence fluid, only to realize it had been sealed. "Don't worry, I'm not going to die," Zhang Yuanqing coughed up blood. "How about the others?" This question is worth 10 points. [Answering time: thirty seconds, countdown begins!]