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After another half an hour passed, the written test finally came to an end.
All of the professors hurried to the plaza and quickly marked the test papers with their reference answers.
The method of advancement was very simple. One could participate in the interview if they passed.
With several hundred professors "exploding" their scores, 1,107 of the 1,764 candidates were eliminated. The elimination rate was astonishing, and only 657 candidates remained.
The losers wore gloomy expressions as they lined up to board the helicopter and silently departed.
The victors wore solemn expressions as they rode the giant squid across Black Lake and entered the castle to participate in an even crueler interview.
Twenty minutes later, the candidates walked through the wide corridor and arrived at the auditorium. Under the guidance of the professors, they found a random seat and sat down.
None of the candidates conversed with each other.
At this point, everyone was a competitor.
"Students."
Standing on the podium, Professor Li said condescendingly, "Next, please focus. I will inform you to enter the small room behind me according to the sequence of your numbers.
You will only repeat each number three times. If no one answers, you will be considered to have given up.
"Numbers 0021, 0045, 0047!"
"Me!"
"Me too!"
The three candidates reacted violently, raising their hands desperately and rushing out of their seats.
"Mhm. Go in.
Pay attention to your manners. "
"Thank you, tutor."
3
After exchanging glances with each other, the three candidates pushed open the wooden door and entered the small room.
There were a total of five examiners inside the room, and the one sitting in the middle was none other than Chen Yu.
"Since there are many candidates, let's skip the formalities and start the exam immediately."
Chen Yu crossed his fingers and looked at the three candidates. He then pointed at the candidate on the left and asked, "May I ask how many elements are there in the periodic table?"
The candidate on the left couldn't help but be taken aback by the question. He then blurted out, "118."
"Very good." Chen Yu nodded. He then looked at the second candidate and asked, "How many cycles are there in total?
How many elements are there in each cycle? "
After pondering for a moment, the candidate in the middle answered, "The first cycle has two elements, the second and third cycles have eight elements, the fourth and fifth cycles have 18 elements, and the sixth and seventh cycles have 32 elements."
"Excellent." Chen Yu gave the candidate a thumbs up and looked at the third candidate.
Thinking that Chen Yu would ask for the names of all the elements, the candidate on the right proudly puffed out his chest and waited for the question.
"May I ask what the relative atomic mass of each element is?"
The candidate on the right: "???"
"Yes."
Shaking his head slightly, Chen Yu picked up a pen and made a few strokes on the paper. "It seems there is still a problem with your knowledge."
Putting down his pen, Chen Yu raised his head once more and looked at the candidate on his left. "For the second round, excluding the other language families, how many language families are there in the world?"
The candidate on the left glanced at his two companions gloatingly and blurted out, "Seven major language families."
"Very good.
May I ask what their names are? "
The middle examinee hesitated for a moment. "They are Indo-European, Sino-Tibetan, Altaic, Semitic, Dravidian, Caucasian, and Ural."
"Excellent, it's your turn."
Looking at the third candidate, Chen Yu smiled and said, "Please speak the representative languages of these seven language families."
Examinee: "…"
"Student, there is indeed a problem with your knowledge."
After making a few strokes, Chen Yu started the third round once more. "First student, may I ask when was the earliest time humans started paying attention to astronomical phenomena?"
The left examinee nearly jumped up in excitement. "The Neolithic Era, around 2,500 BC!"
"Second question: How did humans observe astronomy in 2,500 BC?"
Frowning, the middle examinee pondered for a moment before saying, "They placed the boulders in specific positions to symbolize the movement of the moon and the sun, as well as the time of the winter and summer solstices.
As for the other characteristics, humans have yet to decipher them. "
"Excellent!"
"Excellent!" Chen Yu applauded.
Clap, clap, clap.
The other four examiners also applauded.
After the applause ended, Chen Yu looked at the third candidate.
Examinee: "…"
"May I ask what the name of the leader who built Stonehenge was?"
Examinee: "…"
"Why don't you know anything?"
"M-Mr. Headmaster." The right examinee's complexion darkened.
"What's wrong?"
"N-Nothing …" In the end, the examinee managed to hold himself back.
"The interview is over. Everyone can leave now," Chen Yu said, waving his hand.
"Yes!" Unable to contain his joy, the first examinee bowed to Chen Yu and strode out of the room.
"Thank you, examiners." The middle examinee silently left.
Only the third examinee's complexion turned red with anger. Although he wanted to say something, he didn't manage to do so and left angrily.
"How is it?"
After waiting for the three examinees to leave, Chen Yu looked around and asked, "Which one do you think should stay?"
Revealing "amiable" smiles, the surrounding professors said, "You have the final say. You have the final say …"
"Alright."
Nodding, Chen Yu suddenly said in a serious tone, "The second examinee, then. He hasn't received too much interference from the outside world from the start to the end. He has focused his attention on his own problems and thinks before acting. Not bad.
"The first examinee's emotions fluctuate too much. He has poor self-control and gets carried away easily. He might not be able to recover from a setback.
From the start to the end, he has never looked at any professor aside from me. He thinks too highly of himself and is not suitable to join the academy.
"The third examinee also has a problem with patience. He has received unfair treatment and isn't calm enough to refute questions. Aside from getting angry, he hasn't revealed any outstanding qualities.
He also lacks courage. He is easily suppressed by power and deviates from his original heart.
He is similarly not suitable to join the academy. "
This was the selection method Chen Yu decided to use.
In terms of strength, every one of the 600-plus examinees that entered the interview was a big shot.
Hence, the main purpose of the interview was to examine the examinees' personalities.
As for the pros and cons of each personality, Chen Yu naturally had his own judgment.
Just like that, he could do whatever he wanted …
Two days later, the interview for the 657 examinees ended.
After 577 people were eliminated, Chen Yu managed to advance to the next round.
"Headmaster, this is the list of 80 students. Should we announce them now?"
Three minutes later, Professor Li returned with a printed list of names and placed it on Chen Yu's desk.
"Wait a moment. Let me see if there are any mistakes."
Picking up the list, Chen Yu quickly scanned it from top to bottom. After pondering for a moment, he added the names of eight examinees at the end of the list. "Eight people added, 88. Lucky.
Professor Li, take this and announce it. "
Accepting the list, Professor Li asked doubtfully, "Headmaster, weren't these eight people eliminated?"
"Yes."
Nodding, Chen Yu said, "Although they were eliminated during the interview, in my opinion, they are all excellent students. They possess talents that shock me. I can't let them go."
"Is that so?" Surprised, Professor Li asked, "What talents?"
"Every single one of them is beautiful."
"..."