{"id":3254,"date":"2026-05-10T01:37:20","date_gmt":"2026-05-10T01:37:20","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/velvetink.xyz\/global-examination-14\/"},"modified":"2026-05-10T01:37:24","modified_gmt":"2026-05-10T01:37:24","slug":"global-examination-14","status":"publish","type":"chapter","link":"https:\/\/velvetink.xyz\/fr\/chapter\/global-examination-14\/","title":{"rendered":"Global Examination 14"},"content":{"rendered":"

Chapter 14: The Crossroads

Humans truly are creatures with incredible adaptability.

By the second day, everyone had already grown accustomed to life at the Candidate Rest Stop.

Even though it wasn\u2019t a real town, compared to the hunter\u2019s cabin, it was paradise.

There was food, there were beds, stepping outside wouldn\u2019t kill you, and no chickens chased after you screaming about collecting answer sheets.

Across from the rest stop stood a three-story building covered by thick plastic strip curtains. The plastic had yellowed with age and was no longer transparent, allowing only a faint glow from the lightbulbs inside to leak through.

A wooden sign hung outside the building.

General Store

\u201cWhat\u2019s a general store?\u201d the twin girls asked in unison.

Old Yu was very patient with children, so he explained, \u201cIt\u2019s basically a convenience store. Sells a bit of everything. Haven\u2019t you seen one before?\u201d

Not only the girls, but several others shook their heads too. \u201cPeople don\u2019t call it that where we\u2019re from.\u201d

\u201cReally?\u201d Old Yu muttered.

He became a little more cautious after that. While everyone else went shopping, he deliberately dragged the shop owner into conversation and discovered that the man was actually from the same hometown as him.

Unfortunately, the owner was an extremely unfriendly fellow townsman.

\u201cBrother, I\u2019ll just call you Brother Zhao,\u201d Old Yu said familiarly.

The shop owner Zhao was at most forty years old, definitely younger than Old Yu. He was broad-shouldered, solidly built, and stood perfectly straight. Yet shamelessly, he accepted the title of \u201cbig brother\u201d anyway.

With a cigarette dangling from his mouth, he lazily replied, \u201cWhatever.\u201d

Old Yu said, \u201cYou\u2019ve been away from home a lot of years, huh? You barely have an accent anymore. Mine\u2019s already pretty light, but yours is even lighter. Honestly, if I hadn\u2019t seen the words \u2018general store,\u2019 I wouldn\u2019t have recognized it.\u201d

Smoke puffed straight out of Zhao\u2019s mouth. \u201cPretty much.\u201d

\u201cYou\u2019ve always run a shop here?\u201d

\u201cMore or less.\u201d

Old Yu nodded thoughtfully before probing further. \u201cLooking at the way you stand, you used to be in the military, right? How\u2019d you end up opening a shop here?\u201d

For the first time, Zhao glanced at him through the smoke and finally spoke in a complete sentence.

\u201cI wasn\u2019t in the military. But judging from the way you stand, you definitely were. So how\u2019d you get this fat?\u201d

Old Yu: \u201c\u2026\u201d

Zhao took several deep drags, reducing the cigarette to almost nothing before crushing the ashes and saying, \u201cStop trying to get friendly. That hometown-bond stuff doesn\u2019t work here. Today you\u2019re crying together, tomorrow one of you might already be dead.\u201d

Old Yu: \u201c\u2026\u201d

\u201cIf you\u2019re buying something, hurry up. If not, get out.\u201d Zhao flicked out another cigarette and lit it.

\u2026

The first floor of the general store was thick with smoke. Zhou Jin practically coughed his lungs out but still refused to give up the opportunity to shop.

Because the store contained far more things than they had imagined.

It looked like an old, shabby supermarket from the outside, but inside it was practically a giant department store. Clothes, pants, blankets, pillows, pots, bowls, medicine for injuries, internal medicine, external medicine\u2014everything a supermarket would have, this place had too. And plenty of things normal supermarkets probably didn\u2019t carry.

The three-story building was packed full.

Several shopping carts sat on every floor, all coated in dust.

Everyone grabbed one, wiped it down casually, and began frantically stocking up like bandits raiding a village.

\u201cWait a second, none of this stuff has price tags!\u201d Yu Wen suddenly shouted.

Zhou Jin picked up several bottles of cough syrup and piled on anti-inflammatory painkillers before saying, \u201cI noticed that already\u2026 cough\u2026 It\u2019s probably like tourist attractions. The prices must be doubled.\u201d

\u201cThey know everyone\u2019s scared of dying, so they\u2019re taking advantage of it. Totally normal,\u201d others agreed.

Everyone understood the logic.

But nobody took less because of it.

When money could buy survival, it stopped feeling precious.

Still, Yu Wen felt something was off. He pushed his shopping cart around searching for Qi Yang and eventually found him in a corner of the third floor.

To his surprise, Qi Yang was shopping too.

\u201cBro, you actually grabbed a cart?\u201d Yu Wen followed him over.

Qi Yang glanced at him with an expression that clearly said: What kind of stupid nonsense is that?

Yu Wen awkwardly waved his hands. \u201cNothing, I was just looking\u2026\u201d

If even his brother was shopping, then there probably wasn\u2019t any problem.

Yu Wen immediately relaxed and looked into Qi Yang\u2019s cart.

He had expected to see emergency supplies\u2014flashlights, batteries, ropes, knives\u2026

Instead\u2026

This great expert had bought a change of clothes and a black backpack.

That was it.

\u201cUh\u2026 Bro, aren\u2019t you getting anything else?\u201d Yu Wen asked.

Qi Yang pushed through a clothing rack, picked out a black down jacket, and tossed it into the cart. \u201cThat\u2019s about it.\u201d

Suddenly, Yu Wen felt like the guy carrying glow sticks, flashlights, and batteries\u2026 looked like a concert scalper.

\u2026

By the time they returned to the first floor, everyone else had finished shopping. People and carts surrounded the checkout counter.

Qi Yang disliked crowds, so he leaned against the wall far away, looking bored.

The elderly woman at the front asked the shop owner, \u201cThis is all we\u2019re buying. Calculate the price.\u201d

Zhao had no idea how many cigarettes he\u2019d gone through already. Through the haze of smoke, he glanced over the mountain-like shopping carts and let out a strange chuckle.

\u201cFirst-timers. Obvious at a glance.\u201d

Nobody understood what he meant.

Zhao raised two fingers. \u201cMost people who come here only dare buy this many.\u201d

\u201cWhat do you mean, Brother Zhao? Two items?\u201d Old Yu asked.

\u201cYeah,\u201d Zhao replied. \u201cAnd that\u2019s already the most generous person I\u2019ve ever seen.\u201d

What the hell kind of prices were these?

Everyone silently looked at their overloaded carts.

Zhou Jin finally couldn\u2019t help asking, \u201c…Can we use WeChat or Alipay? Credit cards are fine too. We didn\u2019t bring much cash.\u201d

Yu Wen added, \u201cI haven\u2019t withdrawn cash in over a year.\u201d

Zhao said, \u201cWeChat, Alipay, cards\u2014none of them work.\u201d

Zhou Jin and Yu Wen immediately looked defeated.

Then Zhao added, \u201cCash doesn\u2019t work either.\u201d

Yu Wen blinked. \u201cHuh? Then what do we use?\u201d

Zhao pulled out a card from beneath the glass counter. It looked exactly like the inn room cards every one of them carried.

\u201cYou all have one of these, right? Use this.\u201d Zhao flicked the card and suddenly became strangely enthusiastic for the first time. \u201cThe back of the room card doubles as your admission card, right? It shows your accumulated score.\u201d

\u201cThe stuff here? You buy it with points.\u201d

\u201cNot expensive either. Daily necessities and clothing cost 0.5 points each. Food and medicine cost 1 point each. As for knives and sharpened tools that can be used as weapons, those cost 2 points each. Easy to remember.\u201d

\u201cWhy don\u2019t you calculate it yourselves first?\u201d

Everyone froze instantly, faces turning pale.

With carts piled that high, they could easily shop their scores into the negatives.

Zhou Jin stared at his cart full of medicine and immediately sucked in a sharp breath before coughing violently.

No wonder\u2026

No wonder the shopping carts were covered in dust.

No wonder even the most generous customer only dared buy two things.

Every point they possessed had been earned by risking their lives. Nobody knew how well they\u2019d do on the next exam.

If they bought one or two extra items here and later ended up just one point short of passing\u2026

They might as well commit ritual suicide.

Zhao clearly saw scenes like this all the time.

After thoroughly shocking everyone, he returned to his lifeless attitude again.

\u201cAlright. Checkout time.\u201d

The moment he said it, the entire crowd around the counter collectively backed away two steps.

\u201cNobody buying anything?\u201d

Qi Yang suddenly spoke from beside the wall.

Everyone\u2014including the shop owner\u2014turned to look at him.

Qi Yang straightened up, pushed his cart to the counter, and pulled out his room card from his jeans pocket.

\u201cCheckout.\u201d

Zhao: \u201c\u2026\u201d

He stared at Qi Yang\u2019s shopping cart with his mouth slightly open.

The cigarette butt dropped right onto his shoe.

Qi Yang held the card between his fingers and waited for a moment, already looking slightly impatient.

Zhao abruptly snapped back to his senses and hurriedly stomped out the cigarette.

\u201cLet me calculate\u2026\u201d

Innerwear, outerwear, jeans, black backpack, down jacket.

Three points total.

After hearing the result, Qi Yang nodded.

Apparently deciding he still had room in his budget, he glanced at the shelf behind Zhao and added, \u201cOne pack of cigarettes and a lighter too.\u201d

Zhao: \u201c\u2026\u201d

Yu Wen finally couldn\u2019t hold back anymore. \u201cBro, you don\u2019t even smoke. Why buy those?\u201d

Qi Yang stuffed the clothes into the backpack without raising his head. \u201cJust in case.\u201d

Two minutes later, when Qi Yang walked back to the inn carrying the backpack over one shoulder, the accumulated score on his admission card had already dropped to 15.

At the speed of freefall, he had become the lowest scorer in the group.

Looking at Qi Yang\u2019s completely unchanged cold expression, Yu Wen truly felt his brother was insanely fearless.

\u2026

The seven days at the Candidate Rest Stop passed in the blink of an eye.

At exactly 3:12 PM on the final afternoon, everyone was automatically checked out. Boss Chu personally drove them out the front door.

\u201cThere. Walk straight ahead. There\u2019s a crossroads about two hundred meters away. Off you go.\u201d Chu Yue waved at them and added, \u201cDon\u2019t delay. If you\u2019re late, your right to choose won\u2019t matter anymore. Hopefully this isn\u2019t our final goodbye.\u201d

After saying that, she shut the inn doors.

The glowing sign reading Lodging \u2022 Heating \u2022 Food flickered twice and suddenly went dark.

The surrounding buildings still stood within the snowy fog, but not a single light remained lit. They looked like abandoned ruins left untouched for years.

\u201cThis seriously isn\u2019t a haunted house?\u201d Yu Wen shivered.

Qi Yang remembered the question he had asked the proctor earlier.

He had asked whether this was some supernatural event.

The proctor had answered no.

At the time, the man had clearly wanted to explain further, but before he could finish speaking, the system issued a violation warning.

So then\u2026

What exactly was this place?

Qi Yang silently considered it to himself.

Once the next exam began, he absolutely had to find a way to trick a proctor into telling the truth.

Hopefully the next proctor would be honest and easy to fool.

\u2026

Two hundred meters wasn\u2019t far.

The group quickly arrived where Chu Yue had directed them.

It really was a crossroads.

In the center stood a lonely security booth, and slumped against the booth was a human figure.

When the man saw them approach, he struggled to stand up.

Only after getting closer did everyone recognize him.

It was the tattooed man who had refused to stay at the rest stop.

But now he looked completely different. His body was covered in bloodstains, his left arm hung limply at his side, and one leg dragged awkwardly as he limped.

\u201cWhat happened to you?\u201d

Even though nobody particularly liked him, nobody wanted to see him crippled or dead either. After all, they had been strangers with no grudges between them.

The tattooed man rasped hoarsely, \u201cBetter than going insane.\u201d

\u201cHow long have you been here?\u201d everyone asked while looking toward the security booth.

\u201cTwo days.\u201d

\u201cWhy didn\u2019t you go back to the Candidate Rest Stop?\u201d

The tattooed man looked awkward and angry at the same time. \u201cIf I went back, I\u2019d be admitting I was a coward. Besides\u2026 once I turned around, I couldn\u2019t find the road anymore. I retraced my steps and still couldn\u2019t find those buildings. There was only this place.\u201d

\u201cThen why didn\u2019t you keep walking?\u201d Yu Wen asked.

The tattooed man swept his gaze across the area and pointed toward the road signs.

\u201cLook for yourselves.\u201d

Only after he pointed it out did everyone notice that the crossroads led in four directions, and each road had its own sign.

Under normal circumstances, the signs would display street names.

But not here.

The four signs pointing north, south, east, and west displayed four subjects instead:

Chinese

Foreign Language

Mathematics

History

Suddenly, the small speaker inside the security booth crackled to life.

The familiar voice from the radio echoed once more.

\u3010The current examination format is 3+1+1. Congratulations on successfully completing one subject. Four subjects remain.\u3011

\u3010Candidates possess the right to choose and may freely decide the order of examinations.\u3011

\u3010Please make your selection within 30 seconds.\u3011

\u3010Late arrivals will lose the right to take the exam.\u3011

Everyone: \u201c\u2026\u201d

At a crossroads like this, they honestly felt more like standing there until death claimed them.

Yu Wen immediately grabbed Qi Yang\u2019s arm.

\u201cBro, whichever one you pick, I\u2019m picking too!\u201d

Everyone else also turned to look at him.

Unexpectedly, Qi Yang swept his gaze around expressionlessly and said:

\u201cChoose? All four directions show Foreign Language for me.\u201d

Yu Wen: \u201cWhat???\u201d

Even more irritatingly, from Qi Yang\u2019s perspective, there was a figure standing beneath the sign in every direction.

The person was tall, standing beneath an umbrella in the snow as though waiting for him.

Qi Yang let out a cold laugh.

His face turned green with anger.<\/p>","protected":false},"parent":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","template":"","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"site-sidebar-layout":"default","site-content-layout":"","ast-site-content-layout":"default","site-content-style":"default","site-sidebar-style":"default","ast-global-header-display":"","ast-banner-title-visibility":"","ast-main-header-display":"","ast-hfb-above-header-display":"","ast-hfb-below-header-display":"","ast-hfb-mobile-header-display":"","site-post-title":"","ast-breadcrumbs-content":"","ast-featured-img":"","footer-sml-layout":"","ast-disable-related-posts":"","theme-transparent-header-meta":"","adv-header-id-meta":"","stick-header-meta":"","header-above-stick-meta":"","header-main-stick-meta":"","header-below-stick-meta":"","astra-migrate-meta-layouts":"default","ast-page-background-enabled":"default","ast-page-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"ast-content-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}}},"novel":[],"class_list":["post-3254","chapter","type-chapter","status-publish","hentry"],"acf":[],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/velvetink.xyz\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/chapter\/3254","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/velvetink.xyz\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/chapter"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/velvetink.xyz\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/chapter"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/velvetink.xyz\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=3254"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/velvetink.xyz\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/chapter\/3254\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":3255,"href":"https:\/\/velvetink.xyz\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/chapter\/3254\/revisions\/3255"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/velvetink.xyz\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=3254"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"novel","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/velvetink.xyz\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/novel?post=3254"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}