21: Some are happy, some are sad.

Just as the sunlight spilled into the academy, Jiang Donghua hurried toward Yellow Rank Class 266.

The Senior Students in the dormitory had already gone to their respective classes.

As a New Student, he still needed to report to his class first today.

Before he even stepped into the classroom, he heard Instructor Yan Feng's rough, booming voice giving instructions.

"The academy doesn't have many special assessments; besides academy missions, you figure out the rest yourselves!"

"If you don't understand something, then come ask us. Normally, just treat this place as a study room for reading, don't make me repeat myself a second time!"

Jiang Donghua paused, sighing inwardly.

"This Old Yan... he really is casual."

Pushing the door open and stepping inside, he was immediately stunned.

He had thought he was early, but the classroom was already packed with people, at least two or three hundred New Students, gathered in small groups, talking quietly. Some were flipping through cultivation manuals and texts, while others were simply napping on their desks.

"So many people?"

Jiang Donghua muttered softly, scanning the room for an empty seat.

Just then, Lin Xiuyuan waved at him.

"Donghua, there's still a spot here!"

Jiang Donghua sat down and couldn't help but ask incredulously.

"How did you guys get here so early?"

Lin Xiuyuan shrugged, then changed the subject and asked.

"Oh right, are you going to the talent assessment later?"

"Talent assessment?"

"Yeah, on the second day of New Students' enrollment, the Alchemy Department, the Formation Department, and the Talisman Department all open for testing. As long as your Soul Power meets the standard, you can apply for a transfer."

A trace of anticipation flashed in Lin Xiuyuan's eyes.

"If we happen to test out some talent, we won't have to do those simple tasks like escorting, hunting magical beasts, or gathering herbs."

Jiang Donghua recalled the conversation from the dormitory last night and nodded.

"Go, of course I'll go."

Just as the two finished their whispered conversation, Instructor Yan Feng's loud voice boomed out again.

"Quiet down, everyone! Next, I'll announce today's schedule: self-study in the morning, and in the afternoon, go to the various departments on your own to participate in the talent assessment. Those who want to go can scram now, don't waste time here!"

As soon as he finished speaking, the classroom instantly erupted in commotion, with more than half the people immediately getting up and rushing outside, afraid of being a step too late.

Lin Xiuyuan yanked Jiang Donghua.

"What are you waiting for? Hurry up and go claim a spot! If we go late, we'll be queuing until nightfall!"

Jiang Donghua was dragged by Lin Xiuyuan as they ran outside, the wind whistling past his ears, yet it couldn't drown out the other party's excited chatter.

"My biggest dream is to become a formation master!"

Lin Xiuyuan shouted as he ran, his eyes sparkling.

"Being an Alchemist is out of the question; that requires the Fire Attribute with the Wood Attribute mixed in. I'm not even Fire-attributed. But a formation master is different—Earth Attribute, Wood Attribute, even Water Attribute all have a chance!"

Jiang Donghua's heart stirred, and he couldn't help but mutter.

"Civil engineering big brother? Does this world have civil engineers too?"

Lin Xiuyuan didn't hear his complaint and continued talking to himself.

"But don't get your hopes up too high. Even among the Wood Attribute and Earth Attribute users, you might not find a single person with formation master talent out of two or three hundred!"

He curled his lip.

"Ninety-nine percent of us in the Yellow Rank Class are destined to be ordinary."

Jiang Donghua raised an eyebrow.

"Then why are you so excited?"

"Nonsense! What if?!"

Lin Xiuyuan abruptly stopped, turned around, placed his hands on Jiang Donghua's shoulders, and looked serious.

"Do you know how popular formation masters are?"

"Setting up a Spirit Gathering Formation can double cultivation speed, and carving a defensive array can withstand attacks even from those guys in the Profound Rank Class!"

"If we can master it, who would stay here in the academy taking orders?"

Jiang Donghua felt dizzy from being shaken. Just as he was about to complain, a sudden clamor came from afar.

The two turned their heads to look, only to see that a long queue had already formed in front of the Alchemy Department's testing location, the line even curving around three corners.

Several apprentices wearing the white robes of the Alchemy Department stood at the entrance, chins raised high, completely ignoring the waiting New Students.

"Tsk, the Alchemy Department is still so arrogant."

Lin Xiuyuan rolled his eyes.

"Let's go to the Formation Department! There are fewer people there!"

Jiang Donghua was dragged by him toward another path.

Following Lin Xiuyuan on a jog, Jiang Donghua realized that this guy was practically a walking map.

He knew the location of the Alchemy Department's Bluestone Hall, the Formation Department's Rune Tower, the Talisman Department's Cinnabar Pavilion, and even the academy's most remote Spirit Beast Training Ground.

"See that?"

"That's the Profound Spirit Pavilion, specifically for storing high-level cultivation techniques, but we in the Yellow Rank Class can't even get through the door."

Lin Xiuyuan raised his hand and pointed to a distant pavilion with carved beams and painted rafters, his tone tinged with sour envy.

Jiang Donghua couldn't help but ask.

"How are you so familiar with the academy?"

Lin Xiuyuan chuckled, lowering his voice.

"Although my Lin family can't compare to those top aristocratic families, we have some connections in the city."

"That Instructor Mo you saw earlier is a lifelong friend of my father."

"Before enrollment, my father got me a map of the academy layout, even marking which places had the most benefits..."

He suddenly stopped halfway through, coughing twice.

"Ahem, anyway, just follow me, and you won't go wrong!"

Jiang Donghua understood. Sure enough, he was a disciple from a large family.

But since there was a free guide, he might as well use it; he was happy to save the effort of exploring.

However, reality quickly hit the two of them hard.

The white-bearded elder of the Formation Department looked at the completely unresponsive formation plate in front of Lin Xiuyuan and shook his head, sighing.

"Your Earth Attribute affinity barely passes, but your Soul Power fluctuation is too weak; you are not suitable for studying formations."

The female cultivator holding the brush glanced at Jiang Donghua's crooked test talisman and immediately crumpled it into a ball.

"You can't even draw the lines of a basic Tranquility Talisman steadily, don't waste any more materials."

Lin Xiuyuan squatted under a locust tree, looking like an eggplant hit by frost, listlessly pulling at the blades of grass on the ground.

"It's over. Now I really will have to stay in the Yellow Rank Class until graduation..."

He sighed, looked up at Jiang Donghua, and found that the guy was still rubbing that broken crystal stone, without the slightest hint of frustration on his face.

Lin Xiuyuan suddenly froze, as if he had thought of something, and his eyes gradually lit up.

"Wait... that's not right!"

He slapped his thigh suddenly.

"I have the Wood Attribute, so I can't be a pill Alchemist, but you have the Fire Attribute!"

"We haven't gone to the Alchemy Department to try our luck yet."

Lin Xiuyuan looked at Jiang Donghua's indifferent expression and felt inexplicably annoyed.

"No way, I can't be the only one suffering a setback!"

He dragged Jiang Donghua and ran toward the Alchemy Department, thinking to himself.

"Those people in the Alchemy Department are so stuck up. I want to see if this guy of yours can still be so calm!"

In front of the Alchemy Department's main hall, several Senior Students wearing white robes stood at the entrance, chins raised high, their eyes full of impatience.

They were playing with several crystal clear spheres in their hands, occasionally glancing at the queuing New Students, a faint trace of mockery on their lips.

"Fire Attribute users, touch the crystal sphere first!"

"If there's no reaction, scram immediately, don't waste our time!"

The New Students in the line were trembling, one by one reaching out to touch the crystal spheres, but after the vast majority touched them, the spheres didn't emit a single ray of light.

The Senior Students didn't even bother to raise their eyelids, merely waving their hands coldly, signaling for them to leave quickly.

"The quality of this batch of New Students this year is really poor."

"I know, only thirty or so have been let in all morning. Last year, we had at least fifty or sixty."

Lin Xiuyuan stood in the line, listening to the Senior Students' discussion, and felt a strange sense of balance in his heart.

He turned his head to look at Jiang Donghua, deliberately lowering his voice.

"Donghua, don't be nervous later. If the crystal sphere doesn't react, that would be embarrassing."

Jiang Donghua glanced at him, the corner of his mouth curving slightly upward.

"Don't worry, my mindset is excellent."

Finally, it was their turn.

Lin Xiuyuan deliberately let Jiang Donghua go first, while he stood aside, ready to watch the show.

Jiang Donghua walked forward and placed his hand on the crystal sphere.

"Buzz—"

The crystal sphere suddenly lit up with a faint Red Light. Although it wasn't dazzling, it definitely reacted!

Lin Xiuyuan's eyes widened.

"Holy crap?!"

The Senior Students finally looked over properly, and one of them nodded.

"Fire Attribute affinity is average, but barely acceptable. Go inside."

Jiang Donghua withdrew his hand, turned back, and raised an eyebrow at Lin Xiuyuan.

"Looks like my luck isn't bad?"

Lin Xiuyuan:

"..."

His heart felt like it was bleeding. He was afraid of his brother suffering, but he was even more afraid of his brother enjoying the good life!