Chapter : 72

In just a few seconds, Yan Yunqing watched as Alison's expression changed from initial curiosity to doubt, and then her brow furrowed slightly.

She put down the letter of recommendation and formally sized up the young man before her.

He had short black hair, slightly messy, probably not well-groomed for some time. His face was very handsome, with a pair of translucent, ruby-like eyes—those eyes were truly beautiful.

Alison sighed in her heart, then picked up the letter of recommendation again and gently pushed it back.

"Xavier—that's your name, right?" Alison softly read the fake identity Yan Yunqing had created for himself.

Because the corpse brother Yan Yunqing had encountered was already beyond recognition, his [Roleplay] skill couldn't take effect at all. Plus, he discovered in another letter from the so-called family friend that he had only briefly seen the newborn Xavier as a child.

Therefore, the uncle who got him the letter of recommendation most likely wouldn't recognize Xavier's appearance.

And those related to Xavier who could recognize that he wasn't Xavier were basically all dead. Even if there were any, they wouldn't possibly appear here at Sigret Academy.

After all, the former Xavier was an uneducated wastrel, spending his days in the wine and women of his fiefdom.

Aldrich's former fiefdom was a hundred and eight thousand li away from Sigret Academy. Yan Yunqing was not worried at all that someone who could recognize Xavier would appear, so he decisively used his own appearance to replace Xavier's identity.

Otherwise, if he kept the skill active all day, he would eventually reveal a flaw. He didn't dare to wear a disguise full of loopholes in a place like Sigret Academy, which was crawling with great swordsmen and great mages.

As for whether his identity would be exposed in the future? Sorry, after he finished shearing the academy's wool, no, the skill books, he would decisively run away, change his identity, and be as free as a fish in the sea or a bird in the sky. Why would he care about his identity being exposed?

Besides, in less than a year, the players would be online. It was estimated that the entire Ailman Continent would be thrown into chaos by the Fourth Calamity. Hiding among them, why would he need to worry about his identity being exposed?

"I've read your letter of recommendation, and your level...Hmm, it does indeed meet the requirements for recommended admission to our school."

"However..." Alison looked Yan Yunqing up and down. She drew out her words, her slender fingertips tapping lightly on the letter of recommendation, "Sigret hasn't restarted the examination for recommended admission for many years.

It's not that no one has ever received a letter of recommendation, it's just that after hearing about the content of the examination, they all gave up automatically."

"Without exception, they all chose to take the normal entrance examination when the academy recruited students the following year."

Alison leaned back in her chair, crossing her arms and looking at Yan Yunqing, "So, are you confident that you can pass this examination?"

Yan Yunqing raised an eyebrow, "Since all those people before gave up after knowing the content of the examination, then I should also be able to learn about the content of this so-called recommended admission examination, right?"

Alison spread her hands: "Of course."

"It seems you're ready." Alison stood up, "In that case, follow me."

Yan Yunqing was puzzled: "Can't you just tell me the content of the examination here?"

Alison walked to Yan Yunqing's side, held up her index finger, and gently waved it in front of his eyes, "No~ The content of the recommended admission examination is not decided by me, or any teacher in the academy, but by the magic crystal left by the first principal who established this school."

"It is said that the first principal left tens of thousands of test questions in that magic crystal, and every student with a recommendation can draw one from them."

Alison said with regret: "Even I don't know what the complete question bank contains!"

"So troublesome?" Yan Yunqing was surprised.

"Of course." Alison half-covered her lips and chuckled lightly, "In your understanding, is recommended admission just a way for you to take the examination at another time?"

Yan Yunqing: ...He really did think so.

"In the thousand-plus years since Sigret was founded, there have been no more than a hundred people with recommendation quotas.

And these people with recommendation quotas will not easily recommend students to Sigret, because once the quota is used, it will not be returned to them, regardless of whether the student passes the examination or not."

"And the reason why Sigret has set up such a strict system is simply because—the academy only allows the geniuses among geniuses to join through special recruitment."

"Those in Sigret's history who passed the recommended admission examination have, without exception, all become absolute powerhouses."

Yan Yunqing: ...This is bad. What kind of person's identity did he take over? How could he even get such a special recommendation quota? Could this uncle be some powerhouse above level 100?

No, you have an uncle who can get you a letter of recommendation, but you can't even hold on to a barony?

Isn't this water a bit too deep?

"...I understand. Let's take a look at the examination content first." Yan Yunqing hesitated for a while, but still decided to look at the examination content first. If it was really impossible, he could just turn around and head to the Free City now.

"Follow me."

Yan Yunqing watched as Alison knocked on the wall behind the screen. After a short while, a passage appeared in front of them. Alison gestured to Yan Yunqing, and he followed in Alison's footsteps.

The passage was not dark. Magic lamps were installed on the walls at both ends. It was a spiral staircase leading downwards.

After entering the passage, Yan Yunqing found that Walkley had not followed them in, but had remained in the principal's office.

Yan Yunqing's footsteps paused for a second, then he followed Alison. The sound of two sets of footsteps with a very similar rhythm was particularly distinct in this quiet space.

Going down one level, Yan Yunqing had expected to see a very serious and solemn room. After all, Alison had said that it was something left by the first principal of Sigret, so it should be kept with great care.

But... he saw a study with a very lived-in feel?

It should be considered a study, right? But why was there an alchemy station here, and even a cauldron for brewing magic potions that hadn't been washed?

Alison looked around and facepalmed with a bit of a headache, "Oh, let me think, where did I put that magic crystal..."

As she spoke, she walked towards the pile of clutter, rummaging here and there, occasionally shaking off a layer of dust, which made Yan Yunqing can't help but take a few steps back.

Yan Yunqing's mouth twitched: "Is this how you usually store the things left by the first principal?"

With Walkley gone, Alison simply stopped maintaining that dignified and elegant appearance. She waved her hand casually, still burying her head in search of the magic crystal that had been placed somewhere, "Oh, this thing isn't used more than once every few years, and it won't break. It's fine to put it anywhere."

"Besides, our first principal left quite a few things behind. This whole room is full of them. It's too much trouble for me to carefully preserve every single piece."

Yan Yunqing: .

"Ah!" Alison seemed to have spotted what she was looking for in the pile of clutter. She pushed aside the surrounding things and pulled out a fist-sized crystal ball from inside, "Found it!"

She wiped the dust off the crystal ball with her sleeve and presented it to Yan Yunqing as if it were a treasure, "Ta-da—this is it!"

Yan Yunqing couldn't help but glance at the smudge of dust on her snow-white sleeve, "Are you really the principal?"

How come you look so unreliable.

Alison was startled, surprised: "You've even discovered this?"

She was a little embarrassed, "Actually, I'm just the acting principal. The principal is actually my older sister, but I don't know what she went off to do last week. She just left a letter and ran off, so I was forced to take up the post."

Alison sighed at length, for the heavy burden on her shoulders, "Sigh, I really don't want to take over this school. There are too many troublesome things."

Yan Yunqing opened his mouth. He felt that perhaps he should reconsider the matter of coming to school.

"Let's not talk about that anymore. Come and draw your test question!" Alison stuffed the magic crystal into Yan Yunqing's hand, "Channel mana into the crystal to draw a test question."

Yan Yunqing wanted to say something else, but facing Alison's sparkling eyes, he could only do as she said and channel mana into the magic crystal.

A little bit of mana was channeled in. At first, Yan Yunqing didn't feel anything was wrong, but he soon discovered that the crystal ball was like a bottomless pit. No matter how much mana he input, the crystal ball could devour it all.

Yan Yunqing's expression changed slightly. He wanted to withdraw the hand that was inputting mana, but found that the magic crystal had started to actively absorb the mana from his body, giving him no chance to stop.

And his intention to release the crystal ball seemed to have been discovered as well. The crystal ball stuck to his hand as if it had been smeared with superglue.

Yan Yunqing was shocked. He looked up at Alison. She still had that smiling appearance, but there was a hint of profound meaning in her smile.

What's going on?

For a moment, many terrible guesses popped up in Yan Yunqing's mind. The mana in his body was being drained bit by bit. Just as he was about to use a skill to attack this magic crystal, it finally stopped.

The surface of the crystal ball faintly lit up with a golden light, which grew brighter with time. Alison showed a surprised expression, "Golden?"

Yan Yunqing's blue bar was completely drained, and his face was a little pale. Seeing that the crystal ball in his hand could finally be removed, he quickly threw it out.

The crystal ball was thrown out by him, but it did not fall to the ground. Instead, it floated in mid-air, spinning quietly.

Yan Yunqing took a step back, looking at the crystal ball warily, "What is this for?"

Alison tapped her chin with her fingertip, "It should be drawing a question. This is the first time I've seen this crystal ball light up with a golden light—"

"What do you mean?" Yan Yunqing couldn't help asking, "What does gold represent?"

Alison shrugged, "Ah, I don't know about that. After all, the first principal didn't say. However, some people have speculated before that the light from the crystal represents the aptitude of the person who input the magic, and at the same time, it draws a test question for them based on this aptitude."

"Among the test questions that have appeared before, white meant the lowest difficulty, and orange meant the highest difficulty... Golden has never appeared before."

Alison looked at Yan Yunqing, her eyes flashing with excitement, "You're the first person to make the magic crystal turn golden. I'm already starting to look forward to what your test question will be."

Yan Yunqing's heart skipped a beat at her words, but he quickly put the heart that had jumped into his throat back in place.

Anyway, if the question drawn was too difficult, he could just give up. There was no need to force himself to complete it.

Soon, the golden light emitted by the crystal ball slowly converged, forming a line of text in mid-air.

[Become the 'Midas Touch' of 'Mantiper']

The same quest notification popped up on his game panel, but it was a branch of the previous [Successfully pass Sigret Academy's entrance examination]. No specific information was given to him.

Yan Yunqing was stunned. Both the name Mantiper and the title Midas Touch were very unfamiliar to him. He couldn't help but glance in Alison's direction, only to find her face also filled with surprise and confusion.

"Is this Midas Touch very difficult to complete?" Yan Yunqing couldn't help asking.

Alison thought for a moment, "Hmm... It's this type of examination? This is indeed different from the past examinations."

"The most difficult examination I've seen before was to have a level 30 swordsman kill a level 80 demonic beast, skipping levels.

Of course, that was indeed very unreasonable, so that student also gave up the qualification for recommended admission."

Alison looked at the golden characters floating in mid-air, "As for this kind...Hmm, it's not that I haven't seen event-type examinations, but I've never seen one like this in my memory. No wonder it's golden."

Alison clapped her hands and kindly explained to Yan Yunqing: "This task of yours is simple in a way, but also very difficult. It all depends on your own choices."

"Mantiper, an underground casino located in the Free City. It is the most luxurious and extravagant place in the entire continent. It is said that the gold coins that pass through Mantiper in a single day can reach hundreds of billions—"

"It is a dream kingdom built of gold coins, where some people get rich overnight, and some lose their fortunes. Everything can become a bargaining chip on the gambling table."

Alison said softly: "Everyone who walks in has the possibility of being tempted by the devil and falling into the abyss."

"And the Midas Touch is just a title given to the luckiest guest by Mantiper. Winning more than thirty million gold coins in a single day makes you the lucky star of that day.

And if you become a lucky star for more than three consecutive days, Mantiper will give you the title of 'Midas Touch' and you will enjoy the top-tier service of the entire Mantiper until your luck is exhausted."

She reached out and lightly touched the golden text. Instantly, the text shattered into foam and re-condensed into smaller text, clearly stating the conditions.

[Become the top 'Midas Touch']

Alison sighed: "No wonder it's a golden quest. To become the top Midas Touch is not as simple as winning thirty million for three consecutive days. You have to make your lucky star status last the longest in the entire Mantiper."

Yan Yunqing was stunned, "To become the longest, doesn't that mean..."

Alison nodded: "Besides maintaining your lucky star status every day, you also have to pray that the luck of those who have already become Midas Touches runs out. Only when they lose their lucky star status can they also lose their Midas Touch identity."

"Of course—you can also snipe them and become the sole winner."

"Let me see..." Alison said, "Oh, the examination time is three months. This is a really harsh condition. After all, it takes nearly two months to travel back and forth from the school to the Free City.

Plus, familiarizing yourself with the rules of Mantiper, you only have less than a month to become the top Midas Touch... This fits my judgment of a golden quest very well."

"How about it?"

Alison looked at Yan Yunqing calmly, "What is your answer?"

"Yes or No?"

Yan Yunqing lowered his eyes and began to constantly estimate the success rate of this task in his heart. This task didn't sound dangerous. Compared to a task like soloing a level 80 demonic beast, he was more willing to accept this kind of casino task.

At least, it was more likely for him to go to a casino and earn ninety million gold coins than to solo a level 80 demonic beast.

It was just the additional condition of being the top 'Midas Touch' that stumped him. This was not a task that could be completed just by earning ninety million.

He also had to snipe those old gamblers who had been immersed in the casino for who knows how many years. Perhaps Yan Yunqing couldn't even guess whether the other party was cheating.

Yan Yunqing struggled for a while, but in the end, he couldn't bear to part with the huge skill library of Sigret Academy. He gritted his teeth, "I accept this examination."

Alison was not at all surprised by Yan Yunqing's choice. After all, compared to the test question of soloing a level 80 demonic beast, this test question looked quite gentle on the surface, without even the danger to his life.

However, could the test questions placed in the magic crystal by the first principal really be that simple?

What's more, this was a golden quest. I hope this talented little fellow can successfully walk out of that labyrinth of desire and not sink into it.

Alison lightly tapped the magic crystal. The golden text shattered again, rushing towards Yan Yunqing's right hand and forming a countdown icon on his wrist.

『90 days』

"This is the deadline for you to submit the results of your examination. When you step out of Sigret Academy, the examination will automatically begin. Even if you complete the examination, it's not a complete success.

You have to walk into Sigret Academy alive to be considered as having successfully submitted the results of your examination."

Alison said with a smile, "Do you have any other questions? I can answer three more questions for you. After these three questions, you should probably be on your way."

Yan Yunqing thought for a moment. He did indeed have questions for Alison, so he didn't hide them, "What is the difference between students who enter the school through recommended admission and other students?"

Alison clapped: "Good question."

"As I said before, Sigret Academy only allows the geniuses among geniuses to enter the school through the rules of recommended admission, so extremely strict conditions have been set.

For so many years, very few students have been able to succeed. Of course, correspondingly, the school will also give the highest level of treatment to students who can pass the examination."

"For example, you can freely choose your courses. Upon enrollment, you will have one million points. At the same time, you will have the highest level of authority in all facilities within the academy.

In the library, you can view any book except for the forbidden books. In the potion room, you can retrieve any medicinal materials and formulas available in the academy..."

"I can't finish saying all these in a short time. If you can really complete the examination and enter the academy, you will naturally be able to experience the benefits of recommended admission."

Alison's smile was full of meaning: "That's the treatment of a single student being supported by the entire school's resources. You will definitely be so happy that you'll forget to go home."

Yan Yunqing: .

Indeed, just hearing the few things Alison had casually mentioned, his heart was already pounding wildly.

"Second, I want to know who wrote my letter of recommendation?"

This was also a question that Yan Yunqing was very concerned about. It was related to what kind of secret was hidden in Xavier's identity.

Alison covered her mouth in surprise, "You don't even know who wrote this letter of recommendation for you?"

Regarding this point, Yan Yunqing was not flustered at all, "My parents died due to the demonic beast tide. I wanted to inherit my family's title but was rejected.

An uncle sent this letter of recommendation, telling me to try and see if I could successfully enroll. If I succeed, I will have a chance to inherit my father's title."

He revealed a bitter smile: "He's called an uncle, but actually I don't have much impression of him.

It seems he came to my house to see me when I was just born. After hearing about my parents' accident, he wrote me a letter. I didn't know at first that recommended admission was such a special thing."

"I think, since this quota is so precious, if I fail to pass the examination in the end, I should still repay that uncle and Mr. Tobias Dewitt who gave me the letter of recommendation."

Alison frowned, "Is that so?"

She pondered for a moment, "I didn't expect that these big figures with recommendation quotas would give them out so frivolously...Hmm, forget it. Since you are indeed quite talented, this can be forgiven."

"Tobias Dewitt, this name is indeed unfamiliar. However, when it comes to his identity, you will definitely not be unfamiliar."

Alison chuckled lightly: "He is the current Pope of the Church of Light."

Yan Yunqing's pupils shrank abruptly.

"Every Pope has a recommendation quota for Sigret Academy. The last Pope recommended the Holy Son of the Church at that time.

When I saw Dewitt's signature just now, I thought you were the new Holy Son. So there's no connection at all?"

"...Is that so? I really have no connection with the Church." A puzzled expression appeared on Yan Yunqing's face at just the right moment, "How could the Pope write a letter of recommendation for me? Could it be that this uncle of mine is also a member of the Church of Light?"

Alison glanced at Yan Yunqing lightly and spread her hands, "I don't know about that. Perhaps you should write a letter to your uncle and ask."

Yan Yunqing's heart was beating fast at this moment. He felt that this Xavier might indeed have an unknown identity.

He had really drawn an SSR card with a random pull! The corpse brother he picked up on the roadside could have an uncle from the Church, and even got a letter of recommendation from the Pope.

Tsk, it seems he will have to be more cautious in the future.

"Alright, is there a third question?" Alison looked at the time and interrupted Yan Yunqing's thoughts, "It's almost time for my afternoon tea. If there are no more questions, you can get ready to leave."

Yan Yunqing swallowed. He still had many questions he wanted to ask. He listed them out one by one in his mind, then crossed them out one by one, leaving only the last one.

It was also his true purpose for coming to Sigret Academy.

"I want to ask—do you know about the prophecy, 'When war and calamity descend, and the world is annihilated, only the Descenders can save it all.' I need to know everything you know."

Alison was stunned for a moment, her expression strange: "Prophecy?"

She sized Yan Yunqing up and down again with a surprised gaze, "I thought you would be more concerned about school matters... I didn't expect you to ask this question."

"This question is a long story. If I were to tell you everything I know, it would take three days."

Alison shook her head gently, "What's more, this prophecy involves some of the highest-level information in the academy. I can't reveal it to someone who is not yet a student of the academy."

Yan Yunqing was a little disappointed. He had thought that if he couldn't complete the examination task, it would be good to find out something about the Descenders in advance, so that his trip wouldn't be in vain.

But Alison didn't want to grant his wish.

"However... since I promised to answer three of your questions, I can't break my promise."

"If you are really interested in this kind of information, after you return from the Free City, regardless of whether you have completed this examination, I will tell you some of the things I know."

Alison winked at Yan Yunqing: "As for how much I will tell you, that will depend on whether you have completed the examination task!"