Elite Mages' Academy

“I remember this examination should have been forest survival. Oh, I remember that I got that topic during my last examination in the first year. Do you know what evaluation you got for the examination?” Song Junlang raised the topic, but he seemed to be playing around with it.

Xiao Lin shook his head. He had been unconscious for a week, and he only knew of all that after he woke up. He never really checked the results of his examination, but he curiously asked, “Department Head Song, did you go through this examination as well back then?”

“Haha, of course. This problem was basically a compulsory examination for first- or second-years. I managed to get an S-rank evaluation back then.” Song Junlang narrowed his eyes and thought about it.

Xiao Lin did not seem to care initially, but he immediately paid more attention hearing that. Song Junlang rarely mentioned anything about his past, and Xiao Lin had basically treated it as Song Junlang being unwilling to open past wounds. This time, Xiao Lin did not know if Song Junlang was feeling off, but he had brought it up himself.

“How did you do it back then?” Xiao Lin asaked.

“We’ll not mention defeating the beasts at the start, it doesn’t really differ much. The last boss was Poseidon, a very difficult opponent. Back then, I was in charge of keeping him occupied as the monitor. Even though Poseidon was much weaker than actual history, he should at least have been Silver to Gold-ranked…”

Looking at Song Junlang who had shut his mouth while reminiscing about the past, Xiao Lin pushed on. “What happened next?”

“After that.” Song Junlang looked at the colorful mass outside the window which was due to the colorful layers of magical protection. He said, after a long time, “After that, I died.”

Xiao Lin speechlessly looked at Department Head Song. The story seemed similar to his own, and he had guessed what mostly happened, but he never expected that ending.

“However, I got an S-rank evaluation in the end. I only got to know of the goal of the examination later. It actually wanted to teach all of us that, sometimes, sacrifices are needed. I used my own death to bring everyone a lot of time, stalling Poseidon and allowing the crack in time to restore itself. Poseidon slowly died by himself after losing the source of his power.

Pausing for a moment, Song Junlang smiled. “Of course, I didn’t do it properly. There were a few details that I did not do well. If I had managed to win more time, I would have gotten an SS-rank evaluation, but those who managed to do that were only a miniscule number a few hundred years later.”

Song Junlang’s strange smile seemed to have led Xiao Lin to guess something. He pointed at himself, and he happily and said in a surprised tone, “Are you saying that I’m someone who got an SS-rank evaluation?”

“Huh? No no no. You’ve misunderstood. You don’t have any score from this monthly examination.” Song Junlang shook his head and denied.

Xiao Lin was speechless as his eyebrow twitched.

Song Junlang playfully said, “Your examination is interesting. I heard about it when I was in the New World. Just like I mentioned, the goal of the examination was so that you would understand the meaning of sacrifice and making the most appropriate choice at the right time, even if that choice was death. That’s why the final opponent of that examination was something that first-years could not defeat, and it’s been the same for the examination all these years. However, there was an accident this time, and the undefeatable opponent had died.”

Saying that, Song Junlang opened his arms and seemed to be laughing. “You really gave the student union a very hard problem because the system never expected Poseidon to be defeated, but you did it. So, the last evaluation is not easy to determine, and thanks to you being unconscious, there was no way to understand the situation. So, the final decision was to not give a result for now. Hahaha, it’s really interesting.”

“Are you being entertained by my misfortune?”

“No, I just wonder how you did it. According to the date from the system, the Poseidon you defeated was far stronger than the other classes. Even so, Poseidon still died. What did you do?” Song Junlang’s playful tone carried a hint of seriousness.

Thinking for a bit, Song Junlang added, “You don’t have to say it if it’s not convenient, but please answer a few questions. Was it all your own strength? Did someone else help you?”

“Ah, I’m not sure if it was a person.” Xiao Lin really did not know what that existence in his heart was.

“Was it an explosive power?”

“That’s right.”

“What about the duration. You can give an approximation if you’re not sure.”

“Oh, around three minutes.”

“How much do you think your strength increased during that time? Let’s use your current strength as the benchmark.”

“Around fifty times; it should at least be around that number. If it was at the peak, it might have been higher.” Xiao Lin answered after some hesitation. His Ruin state could more or less give him ten times more strength than usual, so Myth should have been around fifty. If it were the dragon’s blade sword aura under Myth, then the power would be even more horrifying. Even Xiao Lin would not be able to estimate it.

Song Junlang breathed in a cold breath at that point before angrily saying, “My god! Are you crazy?! Fifty times?! Do-do you think you’ve lived too long?!”

Xiao Lin had a face full of innocence.

Song Junlang angrily said, “A human’s body has its limits, and these limits are ingrained within everyone’s DNA. In a Normese manner of speaking, at the level of the soul, there are skills that can increase your power temporarily, but if you exceed the limit, the damage it would cause to you is astronomical!”

“Power is sacrifice. Is it that principle?” Xiao Lin asked.

Song Junlang paused. “You’ve heard of that as well? That’s right, the forbidden spells that the academies have all agreed on were due to that unscientific mode of learning. It’s like pulling out saplings to help them grow, trading the future for short-term benefits; is there any meaning to it? It is just a loss. What could you lose? However, if you died, do you know how many people would be affected? Have you thought of your friends? Did you think of your parents?”

Song Junlang seemed to be angry. This was the first time Song Junlang had talked to Xiao Lin in such an accusing tone since they knew each other.

Xiao Lin did not rebuke it. No wonder Wang Shengming had placed him under surveillance. It was true that, from various perspectives, even if it were a self-created technique, Myth would be considered forbidden. That was the power of several decades of his life; that price was too heavy, but he still said lightly, “I understand. I understand all of it, but Department Head Song, don’t you have anything you absolutely had to do? Something that you had to do, even by using a forbidden spell or sacrificing your life?”

It was Song Junlang’s turn to fall silent. His face was ugly, but it was not due to Xiao Lin’s words or actions. He seemed to narrow his eyebrows to remember something, but he quickly shook his head, warning, “Xiao Lin, even though we joke around a lot normally, that doesn’t matter now, I need to remind you that, no matter how you got that power, you mustn’t use it a second time. Never use it a second time, or you’ll regret it!”

Would Xiao Lin regret it?

He did not know, but Xiao Lin would never regret using it this time.

“No wonder novice Lifewater was useless to you. You suffered damage directly to your soul. You were lucky. Though, since it was your first time, the damage was not serious. It is still in the realm of recovery.” Song Junlang never stopped talking, but his tone was warmer.

“How long would it take?” Xiao Lin asked.

“I’ll do my best, but it will be hard to do it before the Inter-academy Tournament.” Song Junlang guessed what Xiao Lin was about to ask.

“Oh.”

“What does ‘Oh’ mean?” Song Junlang retorted.

“I will still take part in the tournament.”

“I expected that.” Song Junlang was not surprised. He understood Xiao Lin quite a bit. He took out a document from his bag and handed it to Xiao Lin. “Then just fill this in.”

“What is this?” Xiao Lin looked at it a few times before he was frozen solid.

On the white document was the title, ‘Will’.

That was right; it was an actual will!

Song Junlang stared at Xiao Lin. “What’s there to be surprised about? Since you’re adamant about participating, then you should make plans in case the worst happens. You can’t resurrect, and if you actually die, you should arrange everything after your death. You should still have a lot of money in your New World bank account, but I have to remind you, based on the academy’s regulations, if you didn’t arrange it earlier, the money will be given to the public.”

Song Junlang explained the law to Xiao Lin in detail. Even though the current colonists would not use it normally, back during the war with the orcs, there really were a lot of people who died. This was the law that Dawn Academy had passed after that.

Fine, Xiao Lin finally snapped back to reality. From a third-party point of view, the law was very humane because there were detailed arrangements there, such as the fact that his fortune would end up with his mother if he died. If he had a descendant in the New World, there would be other arrangements and so forth.

That really did solve the regrets for dying for most, but Xiao Lin still looked at Song Junlang with a strange expression. Why did he suddenly feel like the will was the most important reason he had come to see Song Junlang for?

However, Xiao Lin quickly made a decision as he signed his name without a doubt. The will was not bad. At least his wealth would guarantee that his parents on Earth would live an easy life if he died.