[1-200] THE MECH TOUCH

Chapter 81: Culling

After Professor Marshall finished her introduction, the entire crowd seperated into groups of hundreds. Each of them were guided towards different locations, where every mech designer had to stand at a predesignated spot. Even the fliers had to stay put above the heads of the walkers.

Professor Marshall patiently waited until the student guides made sure their groups were in the right places. "Now, let us begin with the qualifiers. Three days from now, the best of you will showcase your skills to our most distinguished guests. Only a hundred of you will receive this opportunity, which means we have a big task ahead of ourselves in order to cull 99.8 percent of all contestants"

Everyone shuddered abit. Too many mech designers had flocked to the competition. Even with the age limit of thirty years, the Komodo Star Sector was simply too big.

Everytime the LIT held its open competition, they liked to mix up their tests. Though the organizers often reused most of them, the selection of tests still gave the contestants some anxiety. After all, no one claimed they excelled in everything.

"For the qualifiers, we will hold two rounds today and one more longer trial tomorrow. In our first round, you will be tested on your fundamentals. Without a well-rounded foundation, you have no right to be considered by our masters. In our experience, many of you fail to make the cut, so only one out of five will qualify for the next round."

A projection lit up in front of everyone's faces. To the surprise of Ves and everyone else, it consisted of a series of exams.

"What the hell? Are we back in school?"

"Damnit! I already forgot half of what I learned!"

"Hah! No exam will stop me! I'm the learning expert!"

Some mech designers moaned as if beset with tragedy, while others arrogantly claimed they could ace any exams in a breeze. As for Ves, he maintained his confidence. He might not have been the best book learner, but all of the knowledge he gained from the System had been comprehensively stuffed in his mind. There was no way he'd forgotten any details.

"In the real universe, when you are hired to do your job, you are expected to perform competently. Any of you who have slacked off in any fundamental subject will never have what it takes to grow in the industry. Every Senior, Master and Star Designer has reached their heights by relying on a combination of hard work and talents. Mere connections and wealth can give you a head start, but no designer has ever achieved enduring success by staying lazy."

The din quieted as some of the designers understood the professor's viewpoint. Most of the participants came from far away in order to impress the masters. These eminent figures could not be swayed by regular means such as the size of your wallets.

"Designers, please prepare to fill in the tests. Each of you have received five different exams at a level just beyond what we expect our last-year students to master. You may choose three of the subjects to fill in and submit. Take note that we will only give you five hours of time, more than enough to complete the exams if you are proficient in your chosen fields. Your scores will be counted together and only the top 10.000 will pass."

That meant that forty thousand mech designers were forced to bow out in the very first round. The Leemar Institute of Technology did not hold back in their attempts to diminish the giant crowd of designers. Most of these mech designers were about to have their hopes crushed without even getting a chance to show off their skills in front of a crowd.

"Start!"

The projections unlocked, allowing each designer to interact with the digital exam files. Ves spread them all out to see which topics Leemar picked out for him especially.