Chapter 20: The Battle for Talent, The Game-Winner

"Of course."

Yun Yangzi replied.

"Um... I don't know much about the various Peak Masters, so... would it be alright if I conducted an assessment of you all?"

As Zheng Tuo spoke, he pulled a stack of exam papers from his spatial backpack.

That's right.

You didn't see it wrong; it really was a stack of exam papers.

Zheng Tuo felt that his request was perfectly reasonable.

After all, he was a possessor of a top-grade spiritual root.

Commonly known as a "prized morsel."

If one wants to eat a prized morsel, one must certainly pay a price.

"An assessment?"

"Exam papers?"

"Are you kidding me?"

Everyone looked at one another.

As Peak Masters, they were beings who stood below only one person and above ten thousand.

Usually, they were the ones making demands and assessing others.

Who would dare make demands of them? Who would dare assess them?

But now.

For the sake of a super genius—an existence who would inevitably stand at the pinnacle of the mortal realm—they could only endure.

One by one, they obediently took out brushes and ink.

Like elementary school students, they sat with heads held high, eagerly awaiting the teacher to hand out the papers.

Zheng Tuo handed the papers to Yun Ding.

"Pass them down, one by one."

Yun Ding froze for a moment but followed instructions.

"The exam duration is half an hour."

Zheng Tuo took out an hourglass and began timing.

"Once the half-hour is up, you must hand in your papers."

The Peak Masters and Yun Yangzi found Zheng Tuo's serious attitude somewhat amusing.

However, when they saw the questions on the exam, they all began to frown.

**Part I.**

Multiple Choice. 10 questions total, 3 points each, for a total of 30 points.

**Question 1.**

"If your mother and your wife both fall into the water at the same time, whom do you save?"

A. Save mother. B. Save wife. C. Save whoever screams the loudest. D. Light a cigarette and calm down first.

"What kind of nonsense question is this!"

Yun Ding frowned; it made absolutely no sense.

"Damn! I'm an orphan, what if I don't have a mother!"

Lei Xing scratched his head, falling into a state of self-doubt.

**Question 2.**

"Which came first, the chicken or the egg?"

A. The chicken. B. The egg. C. None of my business. D. I don't know, but fried eggs are delicious.

"Can someone tell me what the hell an 'egg' is!"

Yun Qianli had never heard of an egg. He had always assumed that chickens did not lay eggs.

**Question 3.**

"When a female Dao companion says, 'I am not angry,' what she actually means is..."

A. She is truly not angry. B. She can only give birth, not get angry. C. Give her a beating, then ask again. D. I have never had a female Dao companion.

"It seems young friend Zheng Tuo is quite the romantic youth," Hong Niang remarked, continuing to write with her brush.

**Question 4.**

"Which of the following divine beasts has the most delicious meat?"

A. Ancestral Dragon. B. Kunpeng. C. Phoenix. D. Never eaten it, so I don't know.

"Do you think divine beasts are like pork? You can just eat them whenever you want?"

Yun Yangzi shook his head. These creatures only existed in legends. He had never even seen them, let alone eaten them.

The remaining questions followed this same logic, leaving them all in agony.

*What kind of hellish questions are these?*

After answering the multiple-choice section with trembling hearts, they thought the nightmare was over.

But when they saw the second section, their worldviews collapsed.

**Part II.**

Brain Teasers.

5 questions total, 5 points each, for a total of 25 points.

What on earth was a "brain teaser"?!

**Question 1.**

"Two puppies are racing. Puppy A runs very fast, and Puppy B runs very slowly. When they reach the finish line, which puppy has sweated more?"

"If you asked me if dog meat tastes good, I could tell you. As for who sweated more, why should I care?" Yun Ding was depressed.

**Question 2.**

"What kind of sword is a transparent sword?"

"Someone actually refined a transparent sword? I would love to meet them," Yun Yangzi nodded.

**Question 3.**

"Two people went to the seaside to play and were suddenly swept away by a wave. The person swept away was named Xiao Ming. What is the name of the remaining person?"

"The name is obviously 'Help!'" Hong Niang wrote down her answer.

**Question 4.**

"Where does the world's largest potato grow?"

"Can someone tell me what the hell a 'potato' is?" Yun Qianli frowned.

**Question 5.**

"Did your mother hit you when you were little?"

"I don't have a mother. This question is too hard," Lei Xing scratched his head, sinking deeper into self-doubt.

After the baptism of the brain teasers, they reached the third section.

**Part III.**

Truth or Dare.

Two questions total. Choose one.

Each question is worth 15 points.

**Truth:** Please state the most embarrassing moment of your life. No word limit. The more, the better.

**Dare:** Life is full of regrets. Please boldly shout out the name of the person you love most. The louder, the better.

"I forfeit!"

Lei Xing broke down and immediately chose to forfeit the exam. At the moment he gave up, he felt as if he had been reborn.

As for the others, they continued to grit their teeth and persevere.

**Final Question.**

Essay, 30 points.

Please write at least 800 words to move me.

The four Peak Masters and Yun Yangzi looked at the exam paper in their hands, then at Zheng Tuo.

*What the hell!*

The questions were all so strange. They didn't ask about cultivation, the Dao, magical treasures, or divine abilities. They asked about all sorts of nonsense, things they had never even heard of.

Was this Zheng Tuo a transmigrator from another plane?

They were speechless. But they had no choice. To win Zheng Tuo's trust, they could only bury their heads and finish the exam.

Zheng Tuo walked around the hall with his hands behind his back, like a proctor.

These questions were not added randomly; they were all carefully considered.

Looking at the structure: Multiple Choice, Brain Teasers, Truth or Dare, and the Essay.

The purpose of the multiple-choice questions was to see how they handled situations. The brain teasers were to see their adaptability. Truth or Dare was a test of sincerity. As for the essay, it was purely for improvisation.

As time passed, the assessment ended quickly. It was evident that none of them felt good; they felt as if they had been hollowed out.

Zheng Tuo collected the papers, sat at the table, and began to grade them.

He graded them seriously. He treated them with caution. Otherwise, choosing the wrong master would mean a dark future.

One day later.

"Young friend Zheng Tuo truly wants to join our Falling Immortal Sect; he is even grading these papers so seriously," Yun Yangzi nodded in affirmation.

The Peak Masters continued their cultivation...

The third day.

The Peak Masters continued their cultivation...

The seventh day.

Except for Wu Dao, the Peak Masters were starting to get restless.

This Zheng Tuo was being... too cautious.

It was just choosing a master; did it really need to take this long?

Twelve days later.

Just as the Peak Masters were about to explode with frustration

"I choose Wu Dao of Enlightenment Peak to be my master."

The result was unexpected.

Zheng Tuo did not choose either of the two opposing factions, nor did he choose the tempting conditions offered by Hong Niang and Yun Yangzi. Instead, he chose Wu Dao, who had remained silent throughout.

Zheng Tuo had a very good reason for choosing Wu Dao.

First, the scores for Yun Ding, Yun Qianli, Hong Niang, Yun Yangzi, and Lei Xing were 98, 95, 97, 100, and 0, respectively. Generally speaking, they were all quite good, and their final essays had moved him quite a bit.

In contrast, Wu Dao's score was appalling compared to the others because he had submitted a blank paper.

However, at the end of the paper, there was a single line of text. The content was simple and clear

"They have all been talking behind your back; I have proof."

One had to understand that for Zheng Tuo, nothing was more persuasive than this sentence. It was like a knife to the heart—a finishing move.

Furthermore, Enlightenment Peak was the quietest of the five peaks. Including that "immortal" fellow, there were only six disciples in total. He loved such quiet places where one wasn't constantly being watched.

The reason he had considered it for a full twelve days was entirely due to caution. He wanted to see how much patience they had for him.

Now, he had his answer.