Next, five names appeared on the screen.

"Examinees, please enter the passage corresponding to your name on the screen to begin the test!"

Five figures emerged from the crowd.

Their faces showed a mixture of nervousness and excitement.

Under the watch of countless gazes, the five of them took a deep breath and walked into the passages.

Lin Ye watched the scene, feeling a bit dazed.

This solemn and austere atmosphere, this moment that would decide the fates of countless people. 𝒻𝘳ℯℯ𝑤ℯ𝒷𝘯ℴ𝓋ℯ𝘭.𝑐ℴ𝑚

It reminded him of when he took the college entrance exams in his previous life.

The moment the five figures disappeared into the darkness of the passages, the names on the five screens went out.

Then, a second batch of five names lit up.

Lin Ye grew thoughtful.

’According to the normal procedure, the first group of five should have just reached the first testing area. They might not have even started the test yet.’

’There’s no way they could be finished this quickly.’

’The only explanation is that these five seemingly simple passages have a far more complex internal structure than they appear to have on the surface.’

’Perhaps they’re layered vertically, or perhaps they split off horizontally.’

’In any case, each passage must branch out like the roots of a tree, creating more independent sub-passages that allow multiple examinees to be tested simultaneously.’

’No wonder the entire testing center looked so massive from the outside.’

’The cost to build this testing center must have been astronomical.’

’It’s precisely because of this facility that Dongjiang became one of the designated cities in the Ninghai region to host the national Martial Arts College Entrance Exam.’

Batch after batch of names appeared, and the examinees walked into the passages.

The number of people in the waiting room visibly decreased.

After the fifth batch, twenty-five examinees in total, had entered the passages, an announcement finally instructed the remaining candidates to wait for a short while.

They would enter the exam passages in the next batch.

「Another ten minutes passed.」

Lin Ye saw a flash of light on the LCD screen at the entrance to passage #3, not far in front of him.

His name appeared on it.

He didn’t hesitate and strode forward.

From the prep area, the passage had looked very dark.

But the moment he stepped inside, soft light illuminated the space from all directions.

The walls of the entire passage, it turned out, were composed entirely of high-definition curved screens pieced together.

Bright blue arrows appeared on the floor, guiding him forward.

The metal floor beneath his feet had a slight slope.

Lin Ye could clearly feel himself heading downward.

His earlier theory was confirmed.

Before long, he reached the end of the passage.

A heavy alloy door slid open silently, revealing a pure white room about ten square meters in size.

In the center of the room stood a silver-white metal pod.

"Examinee Lin Ye, ID number 423663219. Please confirm your identity."

An electronic prompt sounded.

Lin Ye glanced at the screen beside the metal pod, where his personal information was clearly displayed. He tapped confirm.

"Identity confirmed."

"Test Subject: Martial Arts Fundamentals."

"Please enter the designated area and lie down completely flat."

"The test will officially begin after the first tone. Please do not move your body and remain calm."

"When you hear the second tone, the pod door will open automatically, signaling the end of this portion of the test."

Lin Ye did as instructed, entering the metal pod and slowly lying down.

The pod door closed, shutting out all external light and sound.

A sense of claustrophobia washed over him.

BEEP—!

A crisp tone sounded in his ear.

Lin Ye closed his eyes and cleared his mind.

He could feel gentle currents of energy, like small streams, flowing from the pod’s inner walls into his body, probing his limbs and his entire frame.

These energy currents were assessing his muscle strength, cellular activity, bone density, and more.

This data would ultimately be converted into two metrics: the Qi and Blood Index and the Life Index.

The minutes ticked by, one by one.

Lin Ye waited patiently.

However, the expected second tone did not come.

He didn’t make any rash moves.

The testing pod seemed to be functioning normally. There were no flashing red error lights, nor were there any alarms.

Lin Ye decided to wait a little longer.

’If there’s still no response after a while, I’ll consider contacting the proctors and reporting an equipment malfunction.’