The content of the College Entrance Exam wasn't drastically different from the usual final exams.
In fact, regular finals were designed in the same format precisely to prepare students for this day.
The structure remained the same:
Cultural subjects
Pokémon theory
Practical battle assessment
However, the standards for practical combat had clearly risen.
Another half year had passed—Pokémon strength benchmarks were naturally higher. In the early stages of training, power growth tended to be relatively fast, so expectations had increased accordingly.
Entering the Exam Hall
The campus environment felt familiar.
But the invigilators and staff were all from other schools.
At the entrance of the exam hall, machines verified identity:
ID card scanning
Fingerprint verification
Electronic device inspection
All electronic items were strictly prohibited.
Oliver inserted his ID card, pressed his fingerprint against the scanner, and was cleared to enter.
Inside, the atmosphere was suffocatingly tense.
Every student was cramming last-minute notes.
Just standing there was enough to feel the pressure in the air.
Oliver walked calmly to his assigned seat.
He was still wearing:
A mask
Sunglasses
The students nearby were confused.
Why was someone dressed like that during the college entrance exam?
Was he planning to cheat?
Zhou Shenyao, seated behind him, tapped his shoulder kindly.
"Um… just so you know, every exam hall has a Senior-level Psychic-type Pokémon monitoring everything. Cheating is basically impossible…"
Oliver turned slightly.
"Thanks. I know."
Even though most of his face was covered, she somehow felt he was smiling.
Strangely—
Ever since he entered, the oppressive tension in the room seemed lighter.
The Confrontation
Fifteen minutes before the exam, the invigilator entered.
"All unrelated items must be placed on the podium—"
She stopped mid-sentence.
"Candidate in the sunglasses and mask. Remove them immediately. No face coverings allowed."
Oliver stood up.
"My situation is a little special."
The middle-aged female invigilator frowned.
"Rules are rules. Remove them."
Murmurs spread.
Was he really arguing with the invigilator during the national exam?
Oliver walked to the front, handed her his ID, and whispered a few words.
Her expression shifted instantly.
From stern—
To shocked.
To hesitant.
"I need to consult the supervisor."
She left the room.
The issue escalated upward—
School-level → District-level → Chengdu General Examination Authority.
Minutes later, she returned.
"You may keep the mask."
"But you must remove the sunglasses."
"And you must use the mask provided by us."
Oliver nodded.
"No problem."
When he returned to his seat, the other students stared.
Why was he allowed to keep a mask?
Who exactly was he?
Zhou Shenyao felt an inexplicable familiarity when she briefly saw his profile without sunglasses—
But she couldn't place it.
The Exam Begins
The papers were distributed.
Zhou Shenyao scanned the test.
Her expression stiffened.
This was hard.
Very hard.
Perhaps the hardest Pokémon Theory paper in recent years.
Many topics weren't directly covered in textbooks.
Examples included:
Does a Beedrill's personality affect its Ability's effectiveness?
What digestive enzymes are secreted inside Victreebel's mouth?
What allows Clefairy to float in midair?
Explain the Fairy type and its impact on the world.
That last one—
Fairy type had only recently been publicly revealed.
If someone hadn't followed current events closely—
That question was essentially free points lost.
Zhou Shenyao felt relieved.
"Thankfully I've read all of Oliver's papers."
The hall fell into total silence.
Only the sound of pens scraping paper remained.
Time slipped by unnoticed.
When Zhou Shenyao reached the final page, she exhaled.
Two long-answer questions left.
Then—
The boy in front of her stood up.
And submitted his paper.
She glanced at the clock.
Only one and a half hours had passed.
Half the room froze.
This paper was notoriously difficult.
Was he giving up?
Or—
Had he really finished?
Oliver handed in the paper without hesitation and walked out of the hall.
The invigilator snapped,
"What are you looking at? Focus on your own papers!"
The room lowered their heads again.
But Zhou Shenyao's thoughts lingered.
That side profile…
It felt familiar.
Where had she seen him before?
She shook her head.
Focus.
The exam mattered more.
Outside the hall, Oliver stretched lazily.
"Provincial top scorer?"
"Shouldn't be an issue."
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