The worse you are, the stronger you become: My summoned beast is a photographer.

"Dear contestants, please maintain order in the examination room. The first round of the Liberal Arts Competition is about to begin—" The host stood on the stage, his voice amplified throughout the auditorium via a magic circle. He was a golden-haired hound-man, with shiny fur, wearing a well-tailored tuxedo and a perfectly tied bow tie. His smile revealed two rows of neat white teeth, and he was a natural livener.

"First of all, let's give a warm round of applause to all the seeded players in this competition!"

A cheer erupted from the audience, flags waved, and applause thundered.

The host stepped to the front of the stage, flipping through a gold-embossed list of contestants, and announced in a melodious voice: "First place, the humanities prodigy of the Royal Noble High School, and also the first place winner of the Royal Noble High School Humanities Competition—Amos Oscar Gilbert!"

The spotlight shone on the lion-clan youth in the first row. Amos nodded slightly, his golden mane gleaming with an aristocratic sheen under the light, his expression calm, as if it were all perfectly natural. He didn't stand up, but merely raised a hand to gently adjust his collar, a movement as composed as if he were sitting in his own living room. His fan club immediately erupted in deafening screams: "Your Highness Amos—Your Highness Amos—I love you!" Several fox-clan girls were so excited their tails practically bristled.

The host smiled and gestured for him to turn the page, then continued: "Second place, also a talented young woman from a prestigious royal high school, this year's top scorer in essay writing, a woman of both beauty and brains—Lillian Beaumont!"

The fox-girl stood up, her nine snow-white tails swaying gently behind her like a blooming white epiphyllum. She bowed slightly to the audience, the platinum earrings on her ears flashing under the lights, a reserved smile playing on her lips—understated yet captivating. Her summoned beast—a small, pure white fox—perched at her feet, elegantly licking its paws.

"Third place, the mathematical genius of the Royal Noble High School, the only person to get all the calculation problems right last year—Austin Carter!"

The young man with a human head and a snake's body slowly stood up. His dark green vertical pupils shrank to thin lines under the lights, and the ambiguous smile on his lips remained. He didn't look at the audience, but turned his head to say something to Amos beside him, to which Amos nodded slightly. His snake tail twitched under the seat, the scales rubbing together with a soft rustling sound.

Another round of cheers erupted from the audience, but it was slightly weaker than the previous two – after all, the snake clan's presence in the imperial nobility circle has never been as strong as that of the lion and fox clans.

The host raised his voice: "Fourth place, from Rifttooth National High School, this year's goal is to break into the top three—Morton Pierce!"

Morton, the hyena-like beastman, stood up, baring his teeth in a fierce and arrogant smile. He raised his hand, whistled, and provocatively gestured with his chin towards Amos. In the stands, a group of hyena fans were far more frenzied, pounding their seats and chanting slogans: "Morton! Morton! Tear them apart!" They acted more like they were watching a gladiatorial contest than a liberal arts competition.

"Fifth place, Zoe Pierce, the tactical genius of Rifttooth National High School!" Another hyena beastman stood up. He was slightly thinner than Morton, but his eyes were even more sinister. He had a half-smile on his lips and casually waved to the audience, which drew screams.

"Sixth place, the computing prodigy of Rifttooth National High School—Miss Jennifer Pierce!" The third hyena beastman stood up; he was a strong-looking man.

Ming Luochen frowned strangely. Jennifer's burly physique was taller and more imposing than her companions. Her rugged muscles and profile showed no trace of femininity. Her short hair was neat, and her teeth were sharper than a man's. She blew a kiss to the audience, exuding a roguish charm.

The host smiled and gestured for them to stop, then continued: "Seventh place, the talented young woman from Keller High School, second in computer science this year—Eleanor Grant!"

The 4.8-meter-tall crocodile girl stood up, nodded slightly to the audience with a blank expression, and her thick tail swayed gently behind her, causing the ground to tremble. Her summoned beast—a tiny sparrow the size of a palm—perched on her shoulder and chirped twice, the stark contrast eliciting a burst of good-natured laughter. Eleanor seemed used to this reaction, sitting back down expressionlessly, merely reaching out to gently stroke the sparrow's head.

"Eighth place, the logic master of Keller High School—Cecilia Grant!" Another crocodile girl stood up. She was slightly smaller than Eleanor, but still huge. She smiled slightly at the audience, revealing two rows of neat, sharp teeth, which startled the audience in the front row, causing them to shrink back.

"Ninth place, the strategic genius of Keller High School—Greta Grant!" The third-ranked crocodile girl stood up. She was the shortest (but still over four meters tall), but had the broadest shoulders. She didn't say a word, just nodded, her thick arms crossed in front of her chest. Her aura was in no way inferior to the first two.

"Tenth place: Zaharie Hoffmann, the zebra prodigy of Dante High School and a perfect scorer in logic!"

The bipedal zebra-like orc stood up, his black and white striped school uniform standing out under the lights. He wore gold-rimmed glasses, had a refined appearance, and bowed to the audience with elegant manners.

"Eleventh, the literary rising star of Dante High School—Aesop Hoffmann!" Another zebra-like beastman stood up, tall and slender, holding a book of poems in his hand, and bowed slightly to the audience.

"Twelfth place, the history buff from Dante High School—Elsa Hoffman!" The female zebra beastman stood up, her ponytail neatly tied, and waved to the audience with a gentle smile.

"The thirteenth, the exotic sage of Borta High School—Samael Harrington!"

The young man with a human head and a scorpion's body slowly rose. The muscles of his upper body gleamed with a bronze sheen under the light, and his scorpion tail was raised high, the venomous stinger at the tip flashing a cold, eerie blue light. He was expressionless, only nodding slightly, his amber eyes revealing a cold indifference that kept people at a distance.

"Fourteenth place, Camilla Douglas, the toxicology expert from Borta High School!" The girl with a human head and a spider body stood up, her eight long legs swaying gently at her sides, and spider silk wrapped around her waist into a gorgeous belt. She smiled slightly at the audience, revealing two sharp teeth at the corners of her mouth.

"Fifteenth place, the desert sage of Borta High School—Rashid Valentine!" The young man with a human head and camel body stood up. He was tall and sturdy, carrying two camel-hump-shaped backpacks. He gave a gesture of respect to the audience, as is common among desert peoples.

The host introduced the top fifteen seeded players in one breath, each sentence drawing cheers and applause, creating a heated atmosphere. Support flags from various schools fluttered in the audience, resembling a grand carnival.

"And to all the other participants from other universities, I wish you all the best in the competition!"

"Alright, all you geniuses are in position, so—" the host drawled, raising his right hand, "I hereby declare the first round of the humanities competition officially open! Invigilators, please distribute the exam papers!"

Ten proctors filed out, distributing thick exam papers to each participant's desk. The exam paper covers were decorated with a magical grading array, its silver lines shimmering under the light like swimming silver snakes.

Ming Luochen took the pen that Aura had prepared; it was a finely sharpened pencil with the Raven Crest family crest engraved on the barrel. He glanced at the row in front of him and made up his mind.

As expected of a liberal arts competition, the summoned beasts of these orcs were almost all very weak—octopuses, crows, sheepdogs… Although they were not strong in combat, they all exuded intelligence, quietly squatting at their master's feet, occasionally blinking their eyes, as if they were helping their master think.

"Timer - Start!"

With the examiner's command, the only sounds in the room were the rustling of turning pages and the soft scratching of pens on paper.

Ming Luochen dared not delay and immediately began answering. His speed was so fast that he barely glanced at the paper before writing his answers. To him, the questions were as simple as one plus one equals two. The other contestants were racing against time, their brows furrowed; some were biting their pens, some were counting on their fingers, some were staring blankly at their exam papers. No one noticed his terrifying speed—one question per second, his pen tip dancing across the paper, almost sparking.

One pencil tip after another went down, and Aura tacitly took out a new pen from his pencil case and handed it to him. The sharpened nib faced forward, and Ming Luochen took it and started writing without even looking up, as if the pen was a part of his body.

On stage, to ease the tense atmosphere of the wait, the host livelyened up the atmosphere again: "Ladies and gentlemen, while our geniuses are still writing furiously, let me interview some of the senior judges on the sidelines. Who do you think will be this year's champion?"

An elderly judge stroked his beard and chuckled, his goatee twitching slightly. "I've been watching Amos for three years, he's got it all figured out. He only lost twelve points in last year's preliminary exam, he should do even better this year."

Another judge from Zebra shook his head and pushed up his glasses: "Morton has made great progress. I heard he's been studying intensively in seclusion for the past six months. He might pull off an upset. I've seen his recent mock exams, and he got almost all the logic questions right."

"Eleanor's creative skills are extremely strong. If she doesn't lose points earlier, she has a chance," a judge with thick glasses and an owl-like orcish feathers whispered.

The host, while making transitions, kept glancing at the timer crystal and saying, "Only five minutes left! The seeded players are making their final sprint... Wait, someone raised their hand?"

He squinted at the second row, and the golden retriever's ears involuntarily perked up.

A loud "bang" suddenly erupted in the quiet examination room.

"I want to hand in my paper."

The sound wasn't loud, but it exploded like a thunderclap in the quiet examination room.

Ming Luochen threw the pen in his hand on the table. The nib of the pen was worn down beyond recognition, with wood chips showing. "I'm done answering."

The entire room fell silent.

"So... you're giving up?" someone muttered under their breath, their voice full of confusion.

"There are still three minutes left before the end. He handed in his paper? Could it be a distraction tactic?" A dog-eared spectator frowned as he analyzed.

"What's the point of handing in the exam early? It's not like we're competing to see who hands it in first. If you can't finish, you can't finish. What are you pretending for?" A student in a school uniform scoffed.

Hollen snorted coldly from the audience, his trunk curling slightly as he glanced at the murmuring crowd, a disdainful smile playing on his lips. Ming Luochen meant it when he said he'd finish. He'd personally witnessed the kid's speed at which he solved problems; it wasn't "answering" questions, it was "scanning" them.

Benuna sat on the highest judging panel, her fingertips lightly tapping the armrest, her red hair cascading over her shoulder, a knowing smile playing on her lips. She had been watching Ming Luochen's uncanny speed of answering questions the entire time; from the first second to the last, his pen barely paused, the sound of turning the pages like a rapid-fire crossbow. She already had a suspicion, but merely narrowed her eyes slightly, remaining silent.

The host reacted swiftly, immediately saving the day with a professional smile: "Looks like a dark horse has emerged this year! Aura from Pudi Yale Academy—no, it should be her summoned beast—has submitted her paper three minutes early! Is this ignorance or confidence? Let's wait and see!"

He deliberately emphasized the words "summoned beast," and sure enough, a burst of laughter came from the audience.

"A summoned beast takes the exam for its master? And it can hand in its paper early? That's hilarious!" A tiger-eared spectator slapped his thigh.

"Pudi Yale? Never heard of it, probably a third-rate school." Someone flipped through the program book and searched for a while before finally finding the school's name in a corner.

"An F-rank summoned beast? What kind of grades can it possibly get?" Well-informed people had already found Ming Luochen's registration information and scoffed.

Taunts rose and fell, even drawing glances from the top-ranked players in the front row. Amos's lips curled into a barely perceptible smile as he continued answering questions, his pen moving steadily and without the slightest tremor. Morton, on the other hand, scoffed, shaking his head, his teeth flashing under the light, deciding that this opponent was not worth paying any attention to.

Only Eleanor, for some reason, felt there was something inexplicable about the short man. That composure, that certainty, didn't seem feigned. She glanced at the little sparrow on her shoulder; the sparrow was tilting its head, looking in that direction, and chirped once.

The proctor walked to Ming Luochen's desk and, following procedure, placed the marking crystal on the exam paper cover. It was a fist-sized, transparent crystal, its surface engraved with dense magical patterns, specifically used for calculating scores.

The light flashed, and numbers appeared.

The next second, the proctor was stunned.

Her large, bright eyes blinked in disbelief, her eyelashes fluttering several times. Thinking she was seeing things, she looked again—it was still the same number. Her breathing became labored, her chest felt constricted, and she picked up the crystal, put it down, and put it back up—the score remained unchanged.

"Quick... quick, bring the marking crystal over here!" Her voice changed, becoming sharp and piercing as she shouted at her colleague.

Another proctor rushed over, his horse's hooves clattering on the floor, and placed the new crystal on the exam paper. The same numbers were output again, like a hammer blow to his chest, or a thunderclap exploding in his ears.

"What's wrong? What happened?" The host noticed something was amiss and quickly walked over, the hem of his tuxedo billowing behind him, his blond ears perked up nervously.

The proctor opened his mouth, his throat dry, his voice trembling: "972 points...he scored 972 points..."

The entire venue fell silent once again.

Then, a commotion ten times more intense than before erupted.

"972? Are you kidding me!"

"A thousand questions, thirty minutes, 972 points? Less than two seconds per question on average, and you still have to guarantee accuracy—this is cheating!" A judge wearing glasses suddenly stood up, causing his chair to tip over.

"They definitely got the answer in advance!" someone exclaimed excitedly, patting the handrail.

"Pudi Yale College! Investigate! This must be thoroughly investigated!" The leader of the team from Rifttooth High School was the first to stand up, his face flushed red.