On this point, Mentor Jin Ling had some worries too—but only that, mere worries.
"Since the president insists, he must be confident. And while our Second Military Academy's fame can't match the First's, we're still one of the Alliance's top academies. The Academy does not admit rubbish. Anyone without real substance will be eliminated sooner or later—we're only bringing that forward a bit."
"Exactly, exactly." Mentor He Bi raised both hands in approval.
"And besides, even if some of them lack strength, surely they're not brainless? If they can't get out on their own, can't they follow someone who can?" He Bi's expression showed open disdain.
"If they really are that stupid, then our Academy truly mustn't take them! Otherwise they'll do something idiotic after graduation and disgrace our good name."
Though Jin Ling said no more, she agreed entirely.
As for Mentor Cheng Gong, his concern was for everyone sitting the entrance exam. He strove for fairness—upright, strict, a good teacher.
But he had overlooked one thing: the Alliance Second Military Academy had always been a gathering place for geniuses. Students of ordinary aptitude did not even have the qualification to step through the door.
So there was no need for a bog‑standard assessment.
Only this kind of high bar, high difficulty could truly test who was a genius—and who a fool.
Though all three were mentors at the Second Military Academy, they belonged to different departments; Jin Ling had not dealt closely with Cheng Gong before, and had not realised how limited his frame of reference was.
By comparison, Cheng Gong fell rather short of He Bi—in the big‑picture view, even unfit to be chief mentor at the Second.
Even Jin Ling herself felt her overall sense lagged He Bi's somewhat.
Appearances could deceive—He Bi was a prime example.
As a mentor in the Second Military Academy's Mecha Design Department, He Bi's learning and ability were without doubt top tier.
If you did not know his identity and only saw his appearance, few would ever link him with the high‑end, art‑and‑tech craft of mecha design.
He Bi's blunt words left Cheng Gong red‑faced and speechless.
Seeing Jin Ling seemingly neutral yet actually siding with He Bi, Cheng Gong's eyes darkened. He then made a show of magnanimity and dropped the quarrel.
The entrance exam had only just begun; there was a long way to go. He did not believe this Waste Star girl could always stay far in front.
She had merely been lucky for a moment—one step ahead, that was all.
With so many elite geniuses sitting the Second Military Academy's entrance exam this year, Cheng Gong was certain that the standouts would soon catch up with the Waste Star girl's progress.
We'll see.
Retracting his resentment, Cheng Gong returned his gaze to the light‑screen.
Desert trial zone.
With only one day to leave that vast desert, everyone racked their brains, snatching every second.
The snatching of mid‑grade nutrient vials had already ceased. Even if two crossed paths on a narrow track, both acted as if they had not seen the other.
Even brushing shoulders, no one wanted to strike—the only result would be wasting their own time.
How to leave the desert? It became the first problem for all to solve.
Some tried walking straight—keep to a single direction and you'd leave eventually, surely.
But after a dozen hours they still hadn't left the sands.
As time passed, patience wore thin, and their will to hold a straight line weakened.
Between two points the straight line is shortest—so the idea wasn't wrong in principle. But in a desert, principle and practice would not align.
Blowing sand induced illusions; the sand itself flowed.
With no point of reference, there was no way to know whether your present path truly was a straight line.
Add to that the loose sand—easy to sink in—and without the right methods, all you'd do was exhaust your strength and never get out.
Most of those sitting the entrance exam were trapped and frowning.
A small number, though, had their ways.
Ji Chenfeng, an elite of the Alliance's First Battle Regiment, had seen the battlefield. His strength was solid. Among all examinees, his physique ranked top three.
Physique S‑grade, mental power S‑grade. A double‑S genius like him would stand out even in the Alliance First Military Academy.
Before sitting the Second's entrance exam, Ji Chenfeng had set himself a goal—take first place.
Now, however, someone had finished the first trial before him.
He thought further than other examinees.
He even suspected that this desert trial they were now being made to complete had only been brought forward because the "Waste Star girl" President Ferrero spoke of had completed it early.
What's more, the trial's difficulty exceeded his expectations.
Getting out of a desert wasn't hard; the hard part was: only one day.
He could be almost certain that when the day was up and the trial closed, more than half would still be in the sands—eliminated.
It must be said—Ji Chenfeng had it right…
After announcing the beefed‑up desert trial, President Ferrero, far away on the Alliance Star in the garden restaurant of his private villa, soon regretted it.
He felt he should not have impulsively raised the bar so high!
Leaving the desert within a day—for most examinees—was too much.
If the very first trial left hardly anyone, how would the rest proceed?
But words once spoken could not be taken back.
He could only hope these examinees would work harder—show some mettle—and that the exam would not end in embarrassment.
…
Simulated planet, jungle region.
Lan Grace's one‑day "jungle holiday" came to a temporary end.
A few hours earlier, by the stream that ran across the jungle, she had found several chunks of rock salt.
Though coarse salt crystals were inferior to fine table salt, they at least solved the "boiled‑in‑plain‑water" awkwardness of her jungle cookery, and rescued her taste buds.
Using her pocket tin, she scraped a whole tin of coarse salt from the rock—enough saltiness for a month.
That night she made earth‑ear mushroom soup, and sprinkled in a pinch of coarse crystals—the taste was so much better than earlier!
But before she could finish eating, she heard footsteps—rapid, approaching through the trees.