บท 17: The Exam
Siduo was biting her nails. On the other hand Karni was staring at the ceiling.
"Sisi."
"Yes, Kiki?"
"This next week. We're only focusing on school. No objection." Karni stared into Siduo's eyes.
"I…" She struggled. "REALLY don't want to-"
"We're only focusing on school Sisi." Karni said again, as she tried to avert her eyes away from his.
He forced her eyes onto his. "You did this."
Siduo tried to rebuke. "But I…"
"You made that brain-dead bet with the teacher." Karni refused to give way.
"Fine, you meanie." Siduo felt defeated. She was definitely in the wrong this time.
"Next time just don't make that kind of muscle headed bets please."
"Oh my god! I get it, please just shut up." She really had an itch to fight with him right now.
"All right then, I'll be right back."
It wasn't 2 minutes before he returned with a stack of books.
"Is that everything we have to learn?" Siduo asked in shock. This was truly a lot. They should barely make it by the end of the week if they dedicate all of their time to studying.
"It is if we want to pass all of the tests with a 100 percent score." Karni answered nonchalantly.
Siduo pouted. "I only bet for 95 percent though."
Karni stared at her silently. She quickly shut up.
"Fine, fine, I know, I know." Siduo raised her hands in defeat.
Karni opened the first book and put it on the empty table. They then got a giant sheet of paper on which they could take notes on.
Siduo opened her mouth once more. "You really think she'll make the tests in that mean way?"
"What do you think?" Karni asked back.
"She might not. But there's definitely a chance she makes them in a way we have to get a full score." Answered Siduo.
"It was a rhetorical question Sisi, even if she doesn't we should study as if she will." Karni berated.
"You're being really mean today, you know that?" Siduo argued.
"I remember you being mean to me when I first met you too." Karni argued back.
"You know that was different."
"No. No I don't. I get that you know me, but I never knew why you acted that way."
"You know why I can't tell you. I tried already! You got that ringing headache."
Karni fell silent for a bit.
"Maybe it will work this time. I broke through on all fronts after all."
"I'm… not sure I want to put you through that again."
"Try in like… a roundabout way."
Siduo quieted down for a second. Thinking how just she could say what she wants to say. "I acted that way… because I thought that… if I did, you might recognise me."
As soon as Karni heard that a familiar splitting headache followed. One much harsher than before. He could even feel it in his bones. Like they were shaking. His martial soul was shaking.
"Kiki!" Siduo came next to him.
"I'm alright." He laughed a bit cheekily. "I heard what you said."
"You did? ... You did!" She was happy. She was super happy.
"But I don't think I'd be able to face anything more than that."
"That's okay. At least there's some things we've cleared up now."
"Speaking of clearing up… We should really clear up our schedule for this." Karni pointed at the books.
"I'd rather cause you headaches." Siduo pouted.
He just gave her a side eye.
"Fine, fine, I was joking."
"Let's start with history then." Karni opened up a book. It gave him a familiar feeling of his home, studying like he used to.
… … …
Karni and Siduo looked miserable when they got home. They had just come back from school and Teacher Ye explained how the test was going to work.
The exam was going to be split in two parts: theoretical and practical. Good. So far so good, this was standard exam stuff.
The problem came when she explained the grading that was going to happen this time around. Out of the 18 possible points, only 14 were required for the highest grade. The last 4 points were bonus points that would help them when choosing a specific profession to study in school.
2 of the points were for Mecha Designing. One for theoretical and the other for practical. The other two followed the same principle but for Mecha Manufacturing.
This didn't affect many of the students. Most of them rejoiced. If they proved their skill in both theoretical and practical parts they would automatically be recognised as reaching the 1-star rank in those professions.
This also meant, however, that the bonus points were at the level of 1-star Mecha Designing and Making. The only way to get a 95 percent was to get a perfect score and to get a perfect score, one had to solve both 1-star Mecha Designing and Manufacturing questions.
Great. Not only did the teacher make the tests so that they HAD to get a perfect score, she even added harder questions to get that score. Both Karni and Siduo felt like they wanted to puke. They now had to get proficient enough in the second profession to be acknowledged as 1-star Designers and Manufacturers… in a week.
Originally, Teacher Ye wasn't going to make the tests harder. She was only going to make it so they had to get perfect scores. No, this was something that was recommended by Mo Qing to put pressure on the two little geniuses.
He didn't expect them to succeed. This was going to be a little lesson in humility so that they wouldn't go too far astray. Their bet was going to be overlooked as long as they got their main professions correct and scored perfectly on everything else. They were already 1-star Engineers; heck they were already on the edge of 2-star Engineering after almost half a year of study. It was just a matter of time before they reached it.
"We'll have to change our schedule." Karni said seriously as Siduo gave an affirmative nod.
The two didn't know about the circumstances. All they knew was that they were going to fail if they didn't ace these exams.
"2 hours of cultivation a night should be enough for us to keep our brain power in form." Siduo continued from their conversation.
"6 hours at least should be dedicated to teaching professions to each other, mine can be after cultivation, yours can be before cultivation, everything else proceeds as planned before." Karni added.
"Mm, that should work. We will have to be brutal and trust each other when we teach. We might be able to push ourselves to the rank of 1-star in the other professions that way." Siduo wasn't too confident, but one could hear the stubbornness in her voice.
In 1-star rank, the professions overlapped in many ways, therefore they believed it should be possible to achieve the first rank with each other's help.
The teacher noted that a 1-star Mecha Mechanic should be able to get 16 points, but to reach 18 one would need to be both 1-star Designer and Manufacturer.
Mo Qing expected each of them to achieve 17 points. Full for their specific profession and the last point as a Mechanic point. 18 points were there mostly to taunt them.
Mo Qing was correct in taunting them. However he didn't quite know the extremes Karni and Siduo were willing to go. 2 hours of rest, or more accurately, cultivation, to clear their heads was borderline torture - for both body and mind.
The week was very busy. As if Mo Qing knew how occupied they were, he didn't even show up at the Wu family house. Of course he would know, he was one of the main culprits behind the exam setup.
On the fourth day of their "midnight retreat" as they hatefully called it, Wu Jianguo found them and reprimanded them, but due to their stubbornness to keep on studying he couldn't get the children back to bed.
On the fifth day of the "midnight retreat" Siduo's mom Ta Siyu joined her husband in a futile attempt to convince the children to rest. However, since the exam was in two days, both Siduo and Karni were so focused on their second professions they didn't even notice Wu Jianguo and Ta Siyu.
Because of studying Karni didn't even try out his second soul ring ability yet. He hadn't even focused on what its effect was. And how could he, the pressure they were facing was immense.
In their mind, failing this test was going to end their studies in Mecha Engineering. They would have to wait another two years before they could study it again, and even then, they would have to start all over from the beginning. It was the worst case scenario, and they wanted to avoid it at all costs.
If Mo Qing knew what sort of hellish schedule the children put themselves into, he would definitely tell them the truth. He didn't know how obsessive the two of them could get over something like this.
While the two required pressure to grow, he was ultimately a carefree character and the Vice-Headmaster of the school. He was assuming they might ask for help after the exams and he would pretend to do so, while also giving them a valuable lesson in humility.
As an added bonus, he was hoping to teach them about the challenges of life, and how they were often unfair. To truly have the power to change the world one needed true power. To have potential, in this world, simply means that one hasn't reached their peak yet. Potential would not help a soul master grow, only what one did with that potential mattered.
While perhaps the lesson in humility has not yet been achieved, the second lesson was already taking effect without Mo Qing's knowledge. It was happening in a tiny messy room filled with designs and many, many metal parts.
The day of the exam finally arrived. Two dark shadows walked shoulder to shoulder into the school, their backs straight. If not for the bags under their eyes, the sight might have been awe inspiring.
As soon as Teacher Ye walked into the room she noticed the two students that have caused her headaches in the last half a year. She might have been tough on them, but even she didn't think that the exams would get to them this much.
"Uncle, are you sure you didn't overdo it with your exam changes?" She felt pity for them, perhaps for the first time. Anyone could tell they weren't completely sane at the moment.
"Are you two sure you can take the exam today?" None of the students questioned who this question was aimed at. Everyone noticed their current situation.
For the first time since she's been teaching the two of them, she was worried about them. She honestly thought the day would never come. She has seen their constant talent and maturity, yet today, she could see that they were indeed still children.
"Mm." Was all they could say. They didn't even look like they processed the question, yet the response felt natural to them.
This answer was automated because of Wu Jianguo and Ta Siyu. They were constantly bothering them. Karni and Siduo developed a subconscious response that didn't require brain power to use.
Teacher Ye could only sigh as she started handing out the exams.
As soon as Karni and Siduo got theirs, it was like a switch was flicked. The intensity in their eyes increased and one of the senior students could swear that the bags under their eyes ceased to exist.
It was like they were machines, the pure speed at which they were solving questions was astonishing. It only took them 10 minutes out of the 45 given that they moved on to the bonus questions.
Karni started out with Manufacturing, and Siduo started with Designing. Both of them were starting with their secondary profession and the reasoning behind it was quite simple.
In case they ran out of time, they were sure they could squeeze their main profession in successfully in the last moments.
The last two weeks of training didn't only increase their proficiency in their secondary professions. They were teaching each other with such intensity that they also progressed in their main professions. Both of them reached 2-stars.
The theoretical part was finished. Only the practical remained with 20 minutes left. They took 15 minutes to complete the secondary profession theoretical section.
The practical part of the exam didn't require them to make a fully functional soul tool; That can take up to hours. They only needed to make particular parts of it that were necessary to consider one a 1-star master in their chosen profession.
Another 15 minutes went by and Siduo and Karni both put down their current papers. They finished with only 5 minutes left on the clock for them to do their main profession exams.
It was like they did it on purpose, as soon as the final minute finished they dropped their pens and tools, and looked at each other. There was excitement in their little faces, no trace of the bags under their eyes. They could tell. They succeeded.
The teacher also couldn't believe it. They actually did everything? She was still sceptical. Whether they solved the problems correctly or not would be found out soon enough.
Karni and Siduo didn't care. They were confident they succeeded. This was why they focused on the secondary professions first. If they were going to fail, they might as well find out sooner rather than later.
While walking home they were completely silent, however any one watching them could tell the serene atmosphere between the two little children. They were simply enjoying the moment.
Entering the house their muscle memory of the last week led them to the tiny room of their "nightly retreats".
As soon as they closed the door they realised what they had done.
"Haha, we should really go and sleep in our beds for a change." Said Siduo awkwardly.
"Yeah." Is all Karni could muster in that moment.
The two pairs of eyes caught each other as they burst into laughter, all of the stress seemed to have been released.
They high fived each other and immediately collapsed on the tiny couch, one body in each corner.
A tiny chuckle could be heard outside of the room. Two figures entered quietly. It was Wu Jianguo and Ta Siyu, in their hands were two sets of blankets that they softly put on top of Karni and Siduo.
"Sweet dreams."
… … …
Mo Qing was in his office at the school, and his current appearance was quite comical.
He was racing back and forth through the study and he was constantly eyeing two sets of papers on the table.
Finally he stopped and looked over each of them for what seemed like the hundredth time.
"These two…"
He finally sat down, not knowing whether to feel excited or worried.
"They aren't geniuses, they are monsters. I'll need to make some adjustments."
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AzKoPo
AzKoPo There it is, the ending of this arc. Next time, time skip!
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