Out of the 244 candidates who successfully passed the second round, over 60 more chose to withdraw.
In the end, only 180 people decided to continue the exam.
Although they chose to quit, passing the second round of the National Exam had already proven their strength.
Gaining entry into a standard higher academy wouldn't be a problem.
Those who remained were all aiming for the top-ranked higher academies.
"The results ranking after the second round are now announced."
Morintis, Total Points: 1605 points.
Zoe, Total Points: 470 points.
Sophia, Total Points: 270 points.
Julian, Total Points: 265 points.
...
Julian jumped up, shouting, "This is impossible!"
"How could his score be so high!"
In 30 minutes, at a rate of one monster every 5 seconds, the maximum would be 12 monsters per minute.
On Hell difficulty, each monster was worth 5 points, so a maximum of 60 points per minute.
The absolute limit for 30 minutes would be 1800 points.
And that's before factoring in actual combat time and other variables.
Generally, one could expect to score between 200 and 400 points.
Someone like Zoe, who scored 400 points by killing 80 monsters, was considered exceptionally outstanding.
But someone like Morintis, with 1605 points...
That meant he killed 301 monsters.
He had to kill 10 monsters per minute, just shy of the theoretical maximum of 12.
A single thought arose in everyone's mind: Is this guy a monster?
Julian even suspected Morintis was cheating, but he didn't dare say it out loud.
Uttering those words would mean offending the entire upper echelon of the Divine Dragon Empire.
Who would dare cheat in the National Exam?
It was unthinkable.
No one had ever dared try; it was simply suicidal.
The entire exam was under comprehensive surveillance.
Cheating was impossible.
Outside the examination hall, Victor Stone was practically jumping for joy.
His old face was even redder than before.
His heart pounded with excitement, his hands trembled.
The cup in his hand shook uncontrollably, spilling water everywhere.
"Old Stone, this student of yours... is a bit monstrous."
"Indeed, utterly monstrous."
Victor Stone nearly retorted, "You're the monstrous one!
Your whole family is monstrous!"
He desperately wanted to know how Morintis had managed it.
In his memory, no one had ever achieved such a score.
The brilliant Arthur Knightley of the past only scored 700 points in the second round.
Last year's Morona scored 650 points.
Morintis's score was higher than both of theirs combined.
The Trials Tower projected beams of light onto the candidates who had chosen to continue.
Bathed in the light, their fatigue vanished, and their Spirit was restored.
In the blink of an eye, their condition had fully recovered.
"The third round of the exam will now commence."
"This round also offers three difficulty levels."
"You will face a single Chieftain-tier monster."
"Normal difficulty: 100 points."
"Nightmare difficulty: 300 points."
"Hell difficulty: 500 points."
The rules were similar to the last round.
The previous round tested sustained combat capability.
This round tested individual peak combat capability.
A single Chieftain-tier monster required a one-on-one fight.
Without any support, this posed a significant challenge for every professional.
Morintis was the first to make his choice this time.
"I choose Hell difficulty."
The examiners saw Morintis's choice and began discussing it again.
"As expected, the kid chose Hell difficulty."
"Given his skill strength and his summons' power, he's definitely taking first place again this round."
"It seems the Jiangning Provincial Top Scorer title will be his."
"Not necessarily.
There are still two rounds left, especially the fifth round..."
They had presided over many exams and had seen plenty of comebacks.
Although Morintis's performance seemed dominant so far, they couldn't definitively say he would win the provincial top scorer title.
The point gap between Julian and Morintis had already exceeded 1300 points.
Julian had originally aimed for the provincial top scorer, but now he wasn't even in the top three.
"First place is mine!
There are still two rounds left; I won't lose!"
"Just wait until after the exam.
If I run into you, you'll be sorry!"
Julian muttered viciously, also selecting Hell difficulty.
Sophia and Zoe likewise chose Hell difficulty.
They only needed to deal with one monster.
Sophia's Elemental Mage and Zoe's Stalker both possessed immense burst damage, so they weren't worried.
After everyone made their choices, the examiners announced the start of the third round.
A massive monster appeared before each person.
It was another wolf-headed creature, belonging to the Wolfkin race.
The monster held a sword in each hand—a dual-wielding monster, akin to a Sword Dancer among professionals.
[Wolfkin Captain (Chieftain)]
[Level: 15]
[Strength: 1000]
[Agility: 800]
[Spirit: 500]
[Constitution: 1000]
[Skill: Chaotic Wind Slash]
Looking at the stats, Morintis felt they didn't live up to the name.
Called Hell difficulty, but it was significantly weakened.
Probably due to the nature of the exam, it was far from the difficulty of a true Hell-difficulty dungeon.
It was only slightly stronger than the Enhanced Elite Monster guarding the gate in the Nightmare-difficulty Westsea Mine Dungeon.
Nowhere near a true Chieftain-tier monster.
Morintis understood the Empire's approach.
If they released a real Hell-difficulty monster—even a regular mob, let alone a Chieftain—it wouldn't be something an average professional could handle.
This was the National Exam, meant to select living talents, not the deceased.
Once the battle started, Morintis issued the command almost boredly.
The two Skeleton Warriors charged forward rapidly, simultaneously activating their skill.
Furious Strike!
Thump!
Thump!
The Wolfkin Captain didn't even have time to make a sound before it collapsed to the ground, dead.
Insta-killed.
Again.
The examiners were dumbfounded once more.
"Again?! Another instant kill!"
"His summons can use skills?!"
"And the skill power isn't insignificant either."
"Morintis, time and again...this is just too much."
"How can anyone else compete when he's like this?"