The Martial Unity

Most of the applicants didn't understand what was happening. Only the applicants from the Martial community or applicants with a connection to a Martial Artist or repeat applicants knew what was going on. The first phase was unchanging, but that wasn't public knowledge, not exactly.

Yet people soon understood as they tried approaching the Martial Apprentices.

"Waaah!" One boy squealed in terror as he stumbled back, away from the Martial Apprentice holding a pass in his hands.

The Martial Apprentices glared at him with a fierce expression, terrifying him even more, while eying all the applicants, daring any of them to step forward and grab the pass.

The applicants froze as waves of bloodlust came from the Martial Apprentices. It exerted a terrifying pressure inside their minds as their subconscious danger and risk evaluation systems evaluated them to be terrifyingly strong, posing a huge threat to their life. A tremendous amount of pressure was generated in a lot of them.

"Damn...!" Another girl gritted her teeth as she did her absolute best to push herself towards the Martial Apprentice. "Not again!"

Just because one knew about the test did not mean that one could pass it. Just knowing about an obstacle did not mean that they could overcome it, and a good chunk of the applicants of the Martial community and of those who attempted the entrance last year was realizing this the same way. Mental fortitude was much harder to train than physical fortitude because the rate of success was low, there was no guarantee that the training would yield success.

"Applicant 538; Crea jenken, pass!"

"Thank you." Crea plucked the pass out of the Martial Apprentice's hand before walking past him to exit the hall.

"Woah," Max mumbled. "She was so cool."

"We can do it too." Mana reminded him. "Just remember what big brother Rui taught us."

Max nodded. "Concentration."

The two exhaled deeply before recentering their focus and walking towards the Marital Apprentices.

Each step was harder than the last.

As they approached the Martial Apprentices, the fear generated within them grew more intense. Their steps become labored as they walked on, as though they were wading through a river. The deeper they crossed through it, the more resistance the currents threw their way.

STEP

The two of them were panting by the time they reached their Martial Apprentices.

"Applicant 878; Mana Quarrier, pass!"

"Applicant 877; Max Quarrier, pass!"

The two of them quickly took their passes before quickly passing through the exit.

"We did it!" Max rejoiced.

"We sure did." Mana grinned.

"But, I dunno, is it just me, or was that easier than the training we did big brother Quarrier?" Max wondered with a curious expression.

"Now that you mention it..." Mana grew a little absorbed in thought. "Big brother does get us much more winded much quicker."

The two pondered a bit before shrugging. It didn't really matter since they had already passed it. They simply followed the directions to the second phase of the exam. They were eventually led to an open ground. It was an artificial multi-environment ground with various different kinds of topographies and vegetation.

When Mana and Max arrived they found a much smaller group of applicants that had passed through the first round. The two could vaguely feel that this group of applicants was much stronger. It was par for course, no one could pass the first round with weakness.

The two of them silently waited as an increasing number of applicants poured in, each having passed the first phase until the flow stopped.

Max and Mana looked around, getting an estimate of the number of applicants that had made it through the first phase. The sheer number of applicants that didn't make it through was astonishing to them.

Rui had never given them great confidence in their capabilities, he had always made the first phase sound basic and fundamental. They had assumed that most of the applicants would be able to pass it. To their utter surprise, it was the exact opposite. Most people failed it.

They wouldn't be surprised if only less than ten percent of the original population made it through.

"Wow..." Max whispered to Mana. "So few..."

"Yeah..." Mana nodded.

Soon, the next phase began. A Martial Apprentice appeared from the entrance, gazing at them all.

"Applicants, I am the proctor of the second round of the entrance exam. The second phase of the exam will commence here." He told them. "You will all be provided badges with your application number on them. Your objective for the second round is simple. The average application number of this group, that is when all your application numbers are summed and divided by the number of applicants, is 1026. Your objective and the condition for passing this round is to ensure that the sum of your application badges at the end of the round exceeds 1500. Meaning, you can take the badges of other candidates and wear them. As long as the sum of all the badges you're wearing exceeds 1500, you will have passed."

He paused, letting them digest the second phase of the entrance exam.

"The rules are few. You made procure the badges you need in any way you wish. Any badge in your position must be pinned on your chest at all times. You may not conceal your badge or the number on it in any way. The second phase begins the very moment the doors close behind me. The second phase lasts exactly an hour."

He informed them as he walked out of there.

Instantly all the applicants put a huge distance from each other, they had barely gotten any time to consider the second round of the entrance exam at all and it was already about begin. Each of them was highly tense as they looked at their badges, doing some quick math and figuring out who among their opponents they ought to target.

They scouted their opponents' badges, looking for a suitable number and also a suitable opponent.

STEP STEP STEP

THUD