Three days passed in the blink of an eye.
Even on the third day, a long line still stretched out in front of the Academy’s gate.
Fortunately, on this final day, Li Xian had purposely dragged Sara out of bed early in the morning to get in line ahead of time.
It wasn’t until nearly noon that they finally completed their registration.
Today marked the start of the Imperial Magic Academy’s entrance examination.
During the three-day registration period, tens of thousands had successfully signed up to participate in this year’s test.
Although the number of candidates was vast, the Magic Academy was equally vast.
Those tens of thousands of people seemed grand from the outside, but once inside the Academy, they became just a sea of faces.
The details of the test had yet to be announced.
However, based on what Li Xian knew, each year’s examination was generally divided into several stages.
The first was the talent assessment.
This stage alone would weed out many candidates.
After all, the Imperial Magic Academy was the most advanced institution in the entire Empire.
Such an academy naturally wouldn’t accept mediocre individuals.
Exceptional talent was a necessary qualification for admission.
Once talent was determined, successful candidates were grouped according to their strength for the next round of challenges.
Following the talent test came an evaluation of courage, mental fortitude, and combat ability—all of which could be assessed in a single phase.
This year’s examination seemed no different; everything was proceeding exactly as it had last year.
The first priority was the evaluation of the candidates’ elemental affinity.
Because of the large number of participants and the tight schedule, the assessments began promptly once the lines were formed.
The method for testing talent was quite simple.
Candidates were given a specially crafted Test Crystal filled with pure elemental energy and asked to absorb as much of that energy as possible.
The amount of elemental energy absorbed reflected a candidate’s elemental attraction capability, or in other words, their elemental affinity.
As the tests quickly got underway, the crowd gradually grew tense.
For the Academy, determining one’s talent was a straightforward task.
But for the children of ordinary families, pure elemental Magic Crystals were practically unreachable.
Only those who stood at the pinnacle of humanity on this continent—Legendary Magic Beasts within each Elemental Domain—were capable of producing such crystals.
These were created through the combined efforts of many Legendary Mages.
Even a weakened version of these crystals could only be made by Transcendent-level experts.
Therefore, the vast majority of candidates had no real idea how talented they truly were.
This included Li Xian.
Because the method was so simple, the testing proceeded at an impressive speed.
Those with average or low elemental affinity were dismissed immediately, their chances of entering the Academy dashed.
“Low elemental affinity, next…”
“Average elemental affinity, please leave. Next…”
This time, no one stepped forward immediately.
The examiner reluctantly looked up at the young man before him.
“Next.”
Though the words were calm, a hint of impatience showed.
With so many participants, there was no time to waste.
Li Xian was carefully examining the so-called “pure elemental Test Crystal” before him.
From his perspective, the crystal’s elemental purity was far from perfect.
The crystal’s production method likely involved extracting elements from the magic crystals of high-level magical beasts, then infusing them with elements refined by Legendary Mages.
But this process had drawbacks: residual unwanted elements remained in the beast’s magic crystal, and though the Legendary Mages’ refined elements were far purer than ordinary human magic energy, they were still far from truly pure.
“Next! If you don’t even know how to absorb elemental energy, get out and stop wasting everyone else’s time!” The examiner’s tone sharpened, finally jolting Li Xian awake.
He glanced at the examiner and said sheepishly, “Ah, is it my turn now?”
He stepped forward and placed his hand on the Test Crystal.
The examiner immediately wore an expression of annoyance.
Judging by this candidate’s hesitant attitude, he was probably just trying his luck without really understanding how to draw elemental energy.
People like him were the most frustrating to test since they wasted precious time.
From his slow, cautious movements, it was clear the boy was just a country bumpkin who thought placing his hand there would magically attract elements.
What the examiner didn’t know was that Li Xian was considering a very important question.
If elemental affinity was truly the issue, Li Xian felt that his affinity far exceeded the threshold this crystal’s elemental purity could handle.
He could drain the inferior elements in this crystal within an instant.
But if he did that, it would come across as too showy.
Li Xian disliked drawing attention.
He hated being surrounded by people wherever he went—it was troublesome and exhausting.
So in the end, he decided it was better to hold back a bit.
After making up his mind, he cautiously placed his hand on the crystal.
One second, two seconds…
Several seconds passed without any change in the crystal.
The examiner smiled smugly.
“No elemental affinity. Off you go…”
“Go…”
He paused slightly when uttering the last word because at that moment, a brilliant blue light burst forth.
A transparent glow flooded wildly into Li Xian’s body, as if a channel had opened between the crystal and him, allowing the overflowing elemental energy to surge through.
“Damn!” Li Xian’s face changed instantly.
Even though he had spent several seconds trying to harmonize with the crystal’s energy, he still couldn’t control it…
Perhaps he had too little experience with magic elements—it was too unfamiliar.
The entire testing hall fell silent, stunned by the dazzling blue light.
“Elemental affinity… outstanding!”
The examiner’s voice trembled slightly as the entire hall erupted into uproar.