“With the scores you have, can you even afford a meal today?”
A low voice echoed through the library, reaching everyone's ears.
Quite a few people paused what they were doing.
“Dammit!” A young man slumped over his desk, his forehead pressed against the pages of a book as he cursed under his breath.
“I've been working my ass off. I've never studied this hard in my life. I even got a score I never dreamed of.”
“But the score that bought a full meal on the first day won't even buy the cheapest steamed bun today.”
The person next to him looked at his own student card, then thought about the ever-rising costs of housing and food. No one wanted to speak; no one knew what to say.
They were True Gods, beings standing at the pinnacle of countless worlds, possessing world-shattering power and infinite lifespans—yet here, they couldn't even afford a single meal.
“Tomorrow, I'll definitely do better,” someone said firmly, their voice like a ray of light piercing the heavy atmosphere of the library.
A transmigrator leaned against a bookshelf, holding a copy of 《Basic Theory of Causality》. He was already halfway through the book.
“Tomorrow, I'll definitely do better,” he repeated, as if swearing an oath to himself or offering a reminder to the others.
Sunlight filtered through the window, landing right on him and making his entire figure glow.
The others nearby seemed encouraged. They reopened their books, shaking the distracting thoughts from their minds, and returned to their studies.
As long as they studied hard, there was still hope. Maybe if they took the test again, their scores would go up. They would eat their fill, keep testing, and eventually graduate and leave this place.
“But the price of food will just go up again tomorrow,” that gloomy voice rang out once more, shredding the newly sprouted hope bit by bit.
The transmigrator who had just encouraged everyone kept flipping through his book, ignoring the somber voice.
“Shut up,” someone snapped, glaring toward the source of the voice. “Can you stop being such a buzzkill?”
The voice went silent for a moment before emphasizing, “I'm only stating the facts.”
The library returned to the sound of pages turning and the scratching of pens on paper.
It seemed as if everyone was studying diligently, but that gloomy voice was like a snake, slithering into their minds and flicking its tongue.
“Actually, we've been thinking about this all wrong,” a wicked-looking man leaning by the window said coldly.
“Studying isn't the point; time is. This school is forcing us into a race against the clock. Because prices are rising so fast, in another two days, our efforts will never be able to catch up with the cost of living.”
Everyone nearby shuddered. One person irritably crumpled a piece of paper and threw it onto the floor.
“Every trip to the cafeteria or the dorm drains my points,” the gloomy voice returned, constantly pricking at everyone's nerves.
“I can't take being punished by the school rules anymore, either,” someone else chimed in.
A pen slipped from someone's fingers, clattering onto the desk and rolling to the edge before falling off. The owner didn't even bother to pick it up.
“After all that talk, what do you plan to do?” someone asked.
The gloomy voice replied, “I've decided to graduate.”
No one was surprised or tried to talk him out of it, as many had already been considering the same thing.
Even with a zero on the graduation exam, one could leave for another world without having to take exams every day.
Even if that world was a post-apocalyptic wasteland, at least there were no exams.
They used to think a life of constant killing was painful enough. Now they realized that exams were the true agony.
...
More and more people began inquiring about the graduation exam.
The loudspeaker soon provided an answer: “Applications for the graduation exam are accepted at any time. However, you only have one chance. Regardless of your score, you must choose a destination and leave immediately. Even with a zero, you graduate and are no longer permitted to remain at the school.”
Who would actually aim for a zero? Unless it was on purpose!
Wave after wave of people entered the examination rooms to apply for graduation.
They had been studying for days, after all. While they might not get a high score, hitting a hundred or two shouldn't be an issue.
The graduation examination rooms were on the top floor of the teaching building. Doors that were usually locked were now wide open.
Long lines formed in the hallways, with some people still trying to cram at the last minute.
When the time came, the crowd filed into the rooms.
When the exam ended and they emerged, everyone's expressions were grim. They had no confidence in their performance.
The results were posted soon after. Generally speaking, the scores were quite low.
The lowest score was 56, and the highest was 287, achieved by a middle-aged man who looked like a university professor. He left the room with a calm expression, as if he had expected this outcome.
Someone asked him, “With 287 points, what kind of world are you going to?”
The professor flipped through the placement guide. “A multi-race world at war. It's a bit better than a post-apocalyptic one.”
In a world where demons, immortals, and monsters fought one another, there would at least be opportunities to exploit.
He chose that world, and the school immediately issued his graduation certificate and opened a transmigrator portal.
As the professor took the certificate, his expression stiffened. His loans hadn't been cleared. Even if he graduated and left, he would still have to pay them back.
Furthermore, he couldn't use points to repay them; he would have to use items of greater value.
The others had even lower scores. Their brows furrowed as they looked through the placement guide and saw the increasingly terrifying names of the available worlds.
They had no choice but to pick from the post-apocalyptic worlds.
Many chose the zombie apocalypse, thinking that zombies might be easier to deal with.
The first batch of graduates left quietly. There were no graduation photos or farewell ceremonies; they wouldn't be seeing each other again anyway.
The library grew emptier. Many of those who hadn't taken the exam yet gathered in small groups, whispering to one another.
“I'm planning to take the graduation exam too,” one man announced calmly, hands in his pockets.
He had estimated that with his current level, he could probably score around two hundred.
Two hundred points meant he could only go to a high-risk world. But he had no other choice. He had done the math—prices were rising daily, and the interest on his loans was snowballing. He couldn't hold out much longer.
Another person nearby said, “I've calculated it. The limit for surviving in this school is twenty-one days. By the twenty-first day, the cheapest steamed bun in the cafeteria will cost 450 points, and the dorm fee will hit 600. Even if you steal other people's student cards, you won't be able to afford to eat or sleep.”
“That's why I'm taking the exam,” the first man said.
“Wait, we're coming too.”
Several more people stepped forward, stating they would also take the exam. Moreover, they planned to head to the same world after graduation.
“Those low-score worlds are extremely dangerous. If we go as a group, maybe we can change that world and establish a pantheon!”
They encouraged one another and headed toward the teaching building together to apply for the exam.
It was Yue Shi's seventh day in this world. Many of the transmigrators from his batch had chosen to graduate.
The number of new students plummeted. Between the deaths and the graduations, the campus had become hollow and empty.
Those who remained were still reading, studying hard.
Rate on N.U.
