Chapter 21: Board First, Pay Later
From behind the curtain, there came soft humming sounds.
After about 3 minutes, the commotion inside dwindled, and the young girl's breath no longer rushed but returned to its usual rhythm.
"Five minutes have passed. Congratulations on passing the test. Remove your hand from the bottle's mouth. Take this and find the person outside," Taelus congratulated cheerfully, then called out, "Number 7, come in."
Xia Zuo glanced at the delighted black-haired girl, using his detection ability to examine her attributes.
【Spirit】10
The black-haired girl's name remained unknown.
As she opened the door, she paused, stealing a glance at Xia Zuo before departing.
Xia Zuo counted the people in the room, sensing a pleasant fragrance swirling around his nose. It wasn't until he identified the scent of pine resin that the black-haired girl had already closed the door.
He shrugged, recounting the number of boys and girls in the room.
The testing inside the room followed a sequence: girls first, then boys.
The miller's daughter, Keli, entered the curtain before the blacksmith's son, Moben Liley.
Keli also chose the bottle with the blue element, covering the mouth with her hand. After three minutes of subdued pain, she transitioned to calmness.
Keli's spirit attribute was also 10 points.
Xia Zuo nodded to himself, recognizing the significance of the spirit attribute in this round of testing.
Twenty minutes later, all the girls finished the test and left the room.
Only the black-haired girl, Number 6, and Keli Muller passed the test; the rest voluntarily withdrew within the initial 3 minutes.
Xia Zuo couldn't help but feel regret for the girls who forfeited.
They all had sufficient spirit attributes but lacked the willpower, with only 3 points in that regard, unable to endure even three minutes of pain.
"Now it's time for the boys' test. Number 9, come in."
Number 9 was Moben Liley, the first among the boys.
Upon entering the curtain and exchanging brief pleasantries with Taelus, he began the test. Shortly after, he started yelling in pain, his cries echoing.
Three minutes later, the increasingly hoarse and agonizing cries made everyone tense involuntarily.
Why was this different from the girls' situation? Xia Zuo frowned, shifting uncomfortably.
All the girls who had made it to the second round had 10 points in spirit, while Moben Liley had only 9 points.
Could a mere one-point difference have such a significant impact?
Behind the curtain, Taelus inquired about stopping, but Moben Liley staunchly refused, "I can... endure."
Amidst sobbing and heavy gasps, the remaining two minutes passed like a torturous ordeal.
During the girls' test, almost all the boys wore smiles, seemingly confident that enduring the first 3 minutes was enough to easily pass the test compared to the girls.
Xia Zuo surveyed the room, noting the beads of sweat on their foreheads; the boys with slightly weaker mental fortitude had already clenched their trousers.
"Congratulations, lad, you've passed the test. Take this and go out."
When Moben Liley drew the curtain, his face was pale, his short robe soaked with sweat. Black stains covered his chest and back, walking unsteadily, appearing utterly exhausted, much worse than Moben Liley.
"Number 10, come in."
Number 10, slimmer than Xia Zuo, was the offspring of an herbalist, often venturing into the forest to seek wild herbs.
In the initial three minutes of his test, he behaved similarly to Moben Liley, but as soon as the threshold of three minutes passed, he emitted a strange sound, followed by complete silence.
"Ah."
Taelus seemed to feel a headache for the boys' stubbornness.
If they were girls, they would have given up within the first three minutes; how could boys forcefully push into the final two minutes like this?
After approximately a few dozen seconds, Number 10 groaned, gradually coming to.
"Young man, go out."
When Number 10 drew the curtain, his eyes were bloodshot, indiscernible whether from pain or the heartbreak of failing the test, startling those who were watching him. Under their gaze, he leaned against the wall, staggering towards the door, in a much worse state than Moben Liley.
Subsequently, several more boys entered the curtain, but not a single one passed the test. With Number 10's precedent, many gave up within the initial three minutes.
Xia Zuo frowned, mentally reviewing the recorded attributes of the individuals, noting a few details:
It seemed that the test was divided by a threshold of 9 points in spirit.
Those with 10 points experienced some pain during the test, but without exception, all passed. They felt pain in the first three minutes but then entered a state of calmness.
If one had only 9 points in spirit, like Moben Liley, relying on willpower was feasible.
Once it dropped below 9 points, regardless of efforts, they couldn't endure the pain after three minutes and would faint directly.
In comparison, it wasn't hard to draw a conclusion.
10 points in spirit were the true starting point for affinity mages.
Those naturally inclined to elemental affinity possessed 10 points or even 15 points in spirit from birth.
Among all those who entered the second round, except for Xia Zuo, none had a spirit below 7 points.
They also had at least 3 points in willpower.
7 points in spirit and 3 points in willpower were the prerequisites for developing elemental resistance under normal circumstances.
As for Xia Zuo...
Relying on high HP brought by vitality, forcefully undertaking fire-spewing performances, continuously leveling up, only then did he finally gain the 【Fire Resistance】 provided by his status.
Attributes skewed... yet he could enter the second round like everyone else...
...The digitized transformation from the golden finger is truly remarkable!
Half an hour later, only Xia Zuo remained untested in the room.
Taelus called out from behind the curtain, "Number 17, come in."
Xia Zuo walked into the curtain with a smiling face, "Ah, Taelus, it's been a while."
"It's you, Xia Zuo. You're the youngest among this group today, so you're last," Taelus, still the affable middle-aged man, his eyes sparkling with anticipation.
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