Mercenary Wars

Chapter 226 Entrance Test
After paying over seven hundred gold coins, Gao Jiano left the Apothecary Guild with ten pieces of Earth-type Eternal Forget-Me-Not Moss.

As for the four pieces of Eternal Forgetfulness Moss on consignment, they can probably be sold for more than two hundred gold coins, but it will take a few days for the money to arrive.

Of course, Gao Jiano could also choose to sell directly to the Alchemist Guild, but that would inevitably result in a loss of some profits. Right now, he's not short of cash, so waiting a few more days would definitely be more worthwhile.

Back home, after a good night's sleep to recover, Gao Jiano immediately began making a secondary stabilizing agent.

He bought ten tablets from the Apothecary Guild, and with the two he picked from his homeland of Annaye, he now has a total of twelve Earth-type Eternal Forget-Me-Not Moss tablets.

Gao Jiano dared not ask for more; he felt he would be satisfied if half of the twelve materials could be successfully produced—that is, six bottles of secondary stabilizing potion.

It depends on his skill and feel.

It also depends on the blessing of the goddess of harvest.

Gaucano took a deep breath and began to pray silently in his heart: "Generous goddess of harvest, Demeter, please hear my herbal prayer, may I successfully complete this first potion-making..."

[Status Acquired: Alchemical Inspiration]

[Effect: Your next potion crafting will have a higher success rate and potion quality]

Alchemical inspiration arrived as expected.

But then another message appeared.

Demeter's Oracle: Solve a Drought for Plants

Gao Jiano sighed inwardly.

It's time to come.

The previous alchemical inspirations had all been obtained for free, but everyone's generosity has its limits, and the goddess of harvest finally sent down a divine decree.

Solving a drought for plants...

This oracle is a bit abstract.

It probably won't be finished in a short time.

Gao Jiano shook his head, his mind returning to the preparation of the potion.

Before fulfilling the oracle of the goddess of harvest, this will be the last time he creates a potion under the influence of alchemical inspiration.

He had to pull himself together and not waste this rare alchemical inspiration.

After all, divine assistance doesn't mean everything will be smooth sailing and you can just let yourself go; personal effort is still very important.

Gao Jiano concentrated intently, took out the highest-grade earth-type Eternal Forget-Me-Not Moss—level eight—and began the tedious potion-making process.

Cleaning, cutting, grinding, weighing, pre-forming, magical fusion... He was completely focused on every step, and the various materials were fused together in precise proportions.

After a flurry of activity, aided by alchemical inspiration, Gaucano successfully created a bottle of Lesser Stabilizing Elixir.

After a brief review, he started making it again.

Over the next three days, Gaucano used all twelve portions of the materials, eventually producing eight bottles of secondary stabilizing agent.

This result is not bad, at least it's better than he expected.

Arranging the eight bottles of secondary stabilizing agent in a row on the table, Gao Jiano felt a sense of accomplishment as he looked at the clear yellow liquid inside.

Start drinking!
He picked up a bottle of secondary stabilizing agent, tilted his head back, and drank it down.

With a surge of warm heat, Gao Gano's body underwent changes, and at the same time, a notification appeared in his mind.

[Constitution +2] [Constitution: 36/53]

"Ha—" Gao Jiano let out a cheerful sound, then picked up another bottle of secondary stabilizing potion.

Keep drinking!
[Constitution +2] [Constitution: 38/53]

[Spirit +3] [Spirit: 40/53]

[Constitution +2] [Constitution: 40/53]

[Spirit +3] [Spirit: 43/53]

[Constitution +2] [Constitution: 42/53]

[Constitution +2] [Constitution: 44/53]

[Spirit +1] [Spirit: 44/53]

After consuming eight bottles of secondary stabilizing potion, Gaogano's physical condition and mental state increased by 10 points and 7 points respectively.

At the same time, drug resistance has also begun to emerge.

The last bottle of Lesser Stabilizing Potion only increased his spirit by 1 point, causing Gaugano to frown slightly after drinking it.

But regardless, this is an unprecedented attribute boost.

In particular, mental attributes are crucial for Gaugano at this point.

After all, he was about to take the entrance test for the Academy of Magic, and mental attributes were an important part of the test.

There are also special remedies to boost mental well-being.

However, Gao Jiano didn't know how to make it, and it wasn't cost-effective to buy it, so he had to make do with the secondary stabilizing agent.

The surge in his physical and mental attributes made Gaucano feel exceptionally energetic.

It's hard to describe this feeling.

If I had to describe it, I could only say it was a "sudden recovery from a serious illness"—the normal state I was in not long ago now looks like a sickly weakness.

Taking advantage of this state of extreme energy, Gao Jiano immediately began an intensive "pre-exam sprint," spreading all his books and notes out on his desk and immersing himself in the world of knowledge.

For several days in a row, he barely slept or rested, spending most of his time preparing for the exam, except for eating, drinking, and relieving himself.

He didn't get a proper night's sleep until the day before the exam. He slept exceptionally soundly and woke up feeling refreshed and in top form.

Then, in top form, Gaucano and Dariss headed to the Academy of Magic.

Normally, Ax Magic Academy is a relatively quiet place.

Today, the Ax Magic Academy is unlike any other, bustling with activity.

The number of people participating in and accompanying the entrance exam, the onlookers, the merchants who came after hearing the news, the security guards maintaining order, the teachers and students of the magic academy, and all sorts of other people, added up to tens of thousands!

Therefore, as they walked along the road, Gaucano and Darius could hear the cacophony of traffic. The cries of vendors, conversations, the clatter of horses' hooves, the sound of wheels rolling over the cobblestones... all blended into a lively symphony.

As people got closer to the college and the crowd grew denser, the sounds of conversation and discussion became even more frequent, with people gathering in small groups to discuss this year's exam results.

How many people registered this year?

"It seems to be 27,000 people."

"I estimate that several thousand more people won't even be able to get into the exam hall. I don't know what they're thinking. They clearly don't have the ability, but they still insist on registering, wasting their registration fees!"

"I heard that several young people from prominent families are participating in the test this year. Is that true?"

“It’s true, just the ones I know of are the Fitzroy family, the Shackleton family, the Goode family, the Vogel family… oh, and there’s a dwarf family, but I can’t remember what they’re called.”

"Dwarves, pshaw! If it weren't for the preferential treatment from the king and the church, none of them would have passed the exams given their magical talent!" "What can you do? Dwarves are a minority race, and they even produce griffin riders..."

"Don't say that. Some dwarves can still learn magic. For example, isn't Professor Teymor a dwarf?"

"As far as I know, Professor Tamer has one-sixty-fourth human blood; otherwise, he would hardly be a chair professor at the magic academy..."

The noise from the crowd grew louder and louder.

After a while, Gaucano and Daris arrived at one of the gates of the Ax Magic Academy.

The gate is not grand, even a bit simple, and is made of ancient stone, covered with the marks of time.

If it weren't for the light blue emblem of the Ax Magic Academy, most people might mistake it for the gate of a manor. However, this understated design precisely highlights the academy's rich history; everyone knows that this gate is one of the oldest buildings in Ax City.

"Look, boss!" Daryls suddenly said, pointing excitedly.

Gao Jiano looked up and saw a gray owl standing on the gate, turning its nimble head to look around. Its feathers were clean and neat, shimmering with a silvery-gray luster in the sunlight.

It is very small, perhaps even smaller than an ordinary owl, but its big eyes sparkle with a curiosity similar to that of humans as it observes the people coming and going, occasionally blinking, appearing exceptionally intelligent.

"It's probably some mage's pet," Gao Jiano said casually.

The two walked to the college gate, showed their registration certificates, and registered.

After registration was completed, the registrar took out a blue stamp and stamped it on the registration certificate.

A pale blue light flashed by, and the registration certificate turned completely blue, becoming a slightly luminous hard blue card.

“With this pass, you can cross the barrier of the examination hall,” the registrar said. “Also, as a routine reminder, there are ‘Shock Aura’ and ‘Higher Silence Aura’ within the barrier… If you don’t know what this means, you’d better go and check the notices near St. Grosset now, or you can check them again once you know.”

"OK, thanks."

Holding their passes, Gaucano and Darius followed the flow of people and soon saw a pristine white statue—Saint Groste. The statue sat in the center of a circular plaza, surrounded by a large number of examinees.

Saint Groste was the founder of the Academy of Magic, a great mage and sage, and was canonized as a saint by the church after his death. His life story has been told by countless mages.

The statue depicts Saint Grostete as very dignified, with a tall stature, a firm gaze, a smooth head, a thick beard, a staff and a book in his hand, and an elegantly pleated classical robe, exuding the air of a philosopher.

Unfortunately, according to Gaucano, the statue was completed about eighty years ago, and the true appearance of Saint Groste was already impossible to verify hundreds of years ago.

So this cool-looking statue, named Saint Grostedt, is actually unknown, or may even be a fictional character. Of course, this doesn't diminish people's reverence for this legendary figure.

Near the statue of St. Grostete, above the two mages, many characters composed of blue light were suddenly floating in mid-air.

This is clearly what the registrar referred to as a "notice".

There's not much to say about the notice; it's just exam instructions, no cheating, etc., which Gao Jiano already knew when he registered.

However, its form did attract the attention of some people; the large amount of text composed of light was indeed quite stunning.

"What kind of magic is this?"

"It's amazing!"

"Once I get into the academy, I'm going to learn this, and then go back to town and use it to make a sign for our family's tavern!" some candidates exclaimed.

Some unfriendly voices also rang out: "It's just an application of the Light Dance spell. If you don't even know that, you should go home now, lest you get knocked unconscious by the Shock Aura!"

After a brief discussion.

Those who had read the notice continued walking forward.

When passing by the statue of St. Groste, many people make a triangle shape with their hands, some saying, "St. Groste, please bless me to pass the test..."

Gaucano and Darlis followed suit, making a triangle shape in front of the statue of Saint Grostedt and muttering, "Saint Grostedt, please bless me to pass the test..."

After all, everyone does it this way, and if they go against the grain, it would seem as if they are disrespectful to the saints.

We walked some more road.

A faint blue light screen appeared in front of the examinees.

Near the light screen, at intervals, stood a young mage.

"Crossing the light curtain will take you into the examination room. Please check your belongings one last time. Do not bring any prohibited items. Otherwise, you will be disqualified from the test immediately!" a mage reminded everyone.

There was an open space next to it, filled with all sorts of items: books, staffs, robes, strange magical objects... and a few people.

A person in a coma.

The reason they fell into a coma was simple—the aura of shock.

A striking aura can be considered the first item in the entrance exam.

The halo covered the entire examination room, creating a tidal wave of mental impact on all living beings within the area.

People with weak mental health will be knocked unconscious as soon as they enter the venue and then carried out.

In name, those who were stunned by the aura of shock were still eligible to participate in the test, but in reality, everyone knew that this was the most undignified form of failure.

No one will even wake them up.

Most of them will remain in a coma until the test is over.

In addition, all assessment items will be conducted under the influence of the aura of shock.

This will undoubtedly have a significant negative impact on test takers, causing them to underperform.

Only those with a strong enough mind can complete the test relatively easily.

That's why Gao Jiano drank eight bottles of secondary stabilizing potion before the exam, greatly increasing his mental attributes.

Facts have proved that his decision was correct.

As he stepped across the pale blue light curtain, the mental impact of the aura of shock immediately descended upon him.

At first he felt almost nothing.

But this mental impact is tidal.

Every few moments, the intensity of the mental shock would increase until it reached its peak.

When he reached his peak, even with a mental attribute of 44 points, Gao Gano felt some pressure and a faint phantom pain between his eyebrows.

This made him frown.

Thankfully, I took eight bottles of the secondary stabilizing agent.

Otherwise, although he wouldn't be directly knocked unconscious, under such a mental shock, he probably wouldn't be able to perform at even 70% of his normal level.

As he adjusted to the aura of the dazzling light, Gao Jiano looked at the other candidates nearby.

His performance was clearly quite good; among the hundreds of candidates around him, very few could even manage to frown like him.

Most test takers, when the shock of the aura of glory reaches its peak, will painfully hold their foreheads or even groan.

Some couldn't even stand steadily.

As for those who are even worse off, the mages standing guard nearby will immediately drag them out of the shock aura's range, and once they are confirmed to be out of danger, they will be allowed to wake up naturally.

(End of this chapter)