Seeing that Jessica was busy, Feng Che gave her a quick nod of goodbye and pushed the door open to leave. Following her directions, he quickly located the "Cultural Education" wing. He was surprised to find himself greeted by the rhythmic sound of students reciting texts.
At the end of the corridor, a table was set up. Behind it sat a massive, muscular man puffing on a cigar. His Team Rocket uniform was stretched to its limits over his bulging physique. A nameplate pinned to his chest read: Panshi, Instructor.
"Newbie, right? I'm Panshi, the instructor in charge of your cultural exams. Here's your study material."
Instructor Panshi dumped a stack of nearly a dozen thick volumes onto Feng Che's arms with a heavy thud. Feng Che stared at the mountain of books, momentarily stunned.
"What? Did you think joining Team Rocket didn't require exams?" Panshi asked, blowing a cloud of smoke. "How can you be a Rocket without an education? Kid, don't aim too high without a solid foundation. You need to hit the books."
Feng Che glanced at the titles:
Encyclopedia of Rare PokémonWilderness Survival TechniquesThe Complete Compendium of HerbsThree Years of Exams, Five Years of Mock TrialsHistory of the Pokémon WorldCultural History of Team RocketCult of Personality: On the Charisma of Boss Giovanni
There were thirteen thick books in total.
"Every single one of these is part of the exam. Only once you pass can you move on to the next phase," Panshi explained. "If you fail, you stay here and keep testing until your credits run out—at which point, you're demoted to a menial laborer. Remember: a Rocket member who doesn't want to be an executive isn't a good member. To be an executive, you need knowledge. Otherwise, you'll stumble upon a rare Pokémon and won't even know how to catch it."
"This is a high-risk profession," Panshi continued, launching into a thirty-minute lecture. "You must memorize everything that can help you survive. If you're injured in the wild and your supplies run out, knowing how to craft your own medicine is the difference between life and death."
While Panshi talked, Feng Che didn't just stand there. He leafed through all thirteen books, his eyes darting across the pages.
"Instructor Panshi, when can I take the exam?" Feng Che asked curiously.
"See that room over there? It's full of testing terminals. You can go in and start whenever you're ready. I'm just the proctor. Remember, kid—the higher your score, the more credits the organization rewards you with. There are thirteen subjects, each worth 100 points."
"Understood. Thank you." Feng Che turned and headed straight for the testing terminals.
"Hey! Kid, you're going the wrong way! The classroom is over there!" Panshi shouted, baffled.
"I'm in the right place, thanks Instructor!" Feng Che's voice drifted back as he disappeared into the testing area without looking back.
"Another one trying to take a shortcut," Panshi muttered. "I forgot to tell him that if he fails to average at least 40 points on his first try, the machine locks him out for two weeks. Well, he'll regret it soon enough. Sigh. When will I get a 'dark horse' to earn me some bonus credits? This proctor job is peaceful, but there's no profit in it."
The testing area was composed of several small, private cubicles. Each contained a single chair and a liquid-crystal display. The format was 100 multiple-choice questions per subject. However, the system was notoriously difficult: it didn't specify if a question was single-choice, multiple-choice, or "all of the above." Only someone with a truly deep mastery of the material could pass.
Feng Che watched several candidates walk out looking utterly dejected. They had clearly failed.
But exams were the last thing Feng Che feared. With his "photographic memory" and his background as a Master in the game, the content was child's play. He had already committed the books to memory during Panshi's lecture.
He entered a cubicle and closed the door. A synthetic voice chimed: "Candidate, please scan your wristband under the screen."
Beep.
The screen displayed his temporary ID and his codename: Kongjian.
"Candidate Kongjian, please select your subjects."
Feng Che selected all thirteen at once.
"Selecting question bank... please wait." A 60-second countdown appeared. "Questions ready. The system will proceed in order. To ensure integrity, the entire process will be recorded."
The voice faded, and the first question appeared. Feng Che answered each one in less than a second. He finished the first entire exam in under a minute.
"My speed is dropping," he remarked to himself. "Back in the day, I would have finished a paper in thirty seconds."
Outside, Instructor Panshi was yawning over his cigar when Feng Che suddenly walked back out toward him.
"Back so soon, kid? Realized you couldn't hack it and failed out, huh?" Panshi reached out to pat Feng Che's shoulder in consolation. "Don't aim too high, stay grounded—"
Panshi's hand froze mid-air. His eyes landed on the digital certificate in Feng Che's hand. He was so shocked he dropped his cigar and didn't even notice.
"Full marks..." "Perfect scores? All of them?!"
Panshi's eyes nearly bulged out of his head. "My god, kid... how long was that? You passed the entire curriculum already?"
He felt like the organization had just recruited a literal monster.
"Congratulations! That's a huge windfall! A perfect score in every subject earns a 100-credit bonus per class." Panshi excitedly scanned the barcode on the back of the certificate. He was grinning ear to ear now; the better his candidates performed, the more merit points he received.
He quickly uploaded Feng Che's results to the system. "You're clear, kid. You can head to the next trial now."