Applied Immortality

For a student to join the Immortal Institute spoke volumes about their talent. Sure, Wu Fan was mediocre at best when paired with Wang Qi, but compared to those who failed to enter the grand Immortal Institute, only listening to lectures at an Immortal Alliance branch went to show Wu Fan’s talent was quite high still. Months into the academic year, over half of the freshmen had passed Reaching Heaven, with the rest not far behind. With increased general cultivation among students, a meal could be skipped, making it possible to hold this written examination from morning until afternoon.

Since illusions blocked the five senses, there was no risk of cheating or talking to each other in the ‘exam room.’ It was the major reason why Immortal Institute didn’t demand students hand in their papers at the same time. The illusions broke apart when one finished all the topics. The quicker students left the white curtain around noon. 

Wu Fan finished the test and walked out of the area influenced by the copper mirror. The sun dipped in the west, taking some of the summer heat with it. He chuckled at the small groups of students around the training grounds looking over. The examination was nearing its end, and the All-immortal Realm showed a countdown. Noticing the incense about to run out, Wu Fan had given up the last topic he didn’t understand, indicating that he was done.

Footsteps closed in and he took it for another student finishing at the same time. Wu Fan thought it was fate. He turned to salute but found it to be Yang Jun, a freshman who lived near him. 

Wu Fan practiced the ‘too awesome for friends’ thinking. He’d only see people when he needed them, and only the ones he saw eye-to-eye with. Wu Fan was the opposite; he was well acquainted with his neighbors. “Brother Yang Jun.”

Yang Jun was frozen as he stared at the sky. The sudden shout woke him. “Oh, Wu Fan!”

Wu Fan noticed his expression. “How did you do?”

Yang Jun shook his head, not feeling like answering.

Wu Fan said, “It’s only the monthly examination. It’s fine. I didn’t feel much better anyway. I have to thank Wang Qi for his help earlier, or I’d have done far worse.”

Wu Fan was used to his behavior. He always told his friends Yang Jun was a sad guy. The son of a fisherman by the Western Sea’s shore found his village in ruins a few years ago from a group of Awareness Stage sea demons that came to shore. Of the large fishing village, only Yang Jun and a handful of others survived. It was all thanks to the Immortal Alliance’s frontier guard patrolling the area that intervened in time to save them.

The Immortal Alliance and the water races’ leaders had an accord. Seaborn demons were forbidden from coming within a thousand miles of shore. But not even the Dragon King could control Awareness Stage demons, the equivalent of human toddlers. This was an unmitigated disaster. The Western Sea’s frontier guards realized this wasn’t an isolated incident, discovering that a powerful demon, one hating humans with a passion, was behind it. It strained the situation in the Western Sea, threatening to break out into a full-blown war between the Immortal Alliance and the demons.

Upon discovering Yang Jun’s high talent, he was sent to the Longde branch near the Western Sea. He, however, found out the demons were behind his home’s destruction and snuck out three times to take revenge. Longde’s Immortal Institute had no choice but to send him to Argent Apex. 

Yang Jun had been feeling down ever since.

Wu Fan noticed he kept looking up and couldn’t fight his curiosity to follow his action. Yang Jun said, “The mirror is something else.”

“Of course, all calculators are incredible.” Wu Fan didn’t know much about them, having heard Wang Qi mention them once. 

The mirror’s glow dimmed, and Wu Fan looked back.

He was shocked to find a few people left standing on the huge training grounds. Among them was an ashen Wang Qi.

[How is this possible?]

[It’s unnatural!]

[Did Wang Qi flunk the test?]

Wang Qi dragged his feet out of the training grounds when Wu Fan rushed over. “Wang Qi, was the test that… bad?”

Wang Qi shook his head.

Wu Fan followed after him, Yang Jun joining them. Wu Fan felt awkward about how silent Wang Qi was.

[Was the written test that hard? Or is this guy looking for perfection, especially on the hardest topics?]

A freshman in rich clothes broke Wu Fan’s random thoughts. “Oh, if it isn’t Maestro Wang! Why the long face?”

Ever since Wang Qi broke his flying sword, Du Bin had a bone to pick with him.

Wang Qi would’ve ignored him any other time. Now, however, he glared. “Hey, tell me something: who handed his paper first?” 

“Eh?” The others had no reaction. Since Wang Qi didn’t get an answer, he tripped Du Bin and walked away.

Du Bin roared, “Bastard! You…”

“Ha-ha, you suck in sword and pen. At least make a plan for how to get back at me before you open your mouth.” 

Wang Qi walked away, stopping any freshman he knew on the way to ask who finished first.

Wu Fan chased after to ask why.

Wang Qi snapped, “I’m not the first! Just why?!”

During the examination, Wang Qi discovered some good and bad news.

The good news was that he could use Math in the All-immortal Realm.

The All-immortal Realm didn’t block spiritual power. Cultivators were free to use magic items. Since calculators were of the same type as the All-immortal Mirror, it was beyond convenient. In illusions set up to test cultivators, calculators would be blocked, but Math was too primitive to be even seen as a true calculator. Wang Qi pictured a humanized Immortal Institute’s mirror yelling at him, “You’re a disgrace for all calculators?”

Talk about cheating. Wang Qi begged to differ. He didn’t find it to be cheating in the literal sense of copying the results. No, he merely shortened the number of calculations he needed to do. He wasn’t one to look down on such an action. The exam was there to test your learning, while he used Math to lighten the workload. Years ago, calculators were still allowed during SAT exams. 

The bad news was that Wang Qi sucked at recognizing Divine Province’s math symbols.

Arithmetic was crucial in cultivation but hardly widespread among mortals. Wang Qi had no contact with it before coming to the Immortal Institute, more familiar with Arabic numerals and math symbols from Earth. It bogged down his answering speed.

[Using a calculator sped things up and avoided mistakes, but I still couldn’t finish first.]

“This is a disgrace, a disaster, and an utter humiliation!”

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