The Framed Assessment

"Is that a C??"

"No — wait, the glow is still spreading."

The examiners themselves were visibly puzzled. Every other student had completed the test quickly, but this one was different — the glow had started faint, then gradually brightened. It climbed from D to C, and even after reaching C it kept growing.

"That's a B! That's definitely a B!!"

"Holy crap, he's turning this around — the class dunce is actually pulling ahead!!"

"You've got to be joking. I only got a C — how is this guy getting a B?"

Huang Feifeng, a Fire Element student himself, was on the verge of tears.

Zhou Min had scored A++, and that scrawny kid everyone called Da Niu had pulled a B as well. Of all four Fire Element students in the class, Huang Feifeng alone had landed a C. How was he supposed to compete for Teacher Tang Yue's attention now?

Xue Musheng's eyes lit up on the spot.

As a homeroom teacher, nothing terrified him more than a student who dragged the class average down. All Xue Musheng had wanted today was for Mo Fan not to claim that uncollected slot — the one that had sat untouched for three years. Beyond that, let this impossible student cause whatever havoc he pleased.

What he had never, in his wildest imagination, expected was for the boy to pull out a B.

The class average hovered around B−.

This impossible student had actually come in above average. It was beyond anything he could have dreamed.

Right now, Xue Musheng was more elated than he would have been seeing an A student perform.

The commotion was no quieter than it had been for Mu Bai. The difference was that a strong score from Mu Bai was expected — Mo Fan was widely regarded as the very bottom of the barrel.

The absolute worst student suddenly scoring a B had caught everyone completely off guard.

"How... how is this possible..." Mu Bai stood there dumbstruck.

His uncle Mu He was equally at a loss.

*What's going on? This kid got a B???*

"Mu Bai — did you actually place the Dark Stone, or not?" Mu He hissed under his breath. "That thing suppresses the reading hard. Even a C student would drop below D."

"I placed it. I definitely placed it." Even if Mu Bai had fumbled his own examination, he couldn't have fumbled this.

The Dark Stone had definitely been placed. So why had this guy scored a B??

*Hadn't he been hovering somewhere between C and D? Was he hiding his real strength the whole time — and just now unloaded a B when it counted?*

A C was barely passing. A B was genuinely good.

Could you imagine someone who had been on the verge of triggering the three-year punishment suddenly emerging as a strong student?

"Hmm. Unremarkable, as expected." Mu Zhuoyun's tone was flat, though threaded with a trace of dry self-mockery.

*His daughter had nearly been led astray by a boy like this?*

If that had actually come to pass, he'd have been the laughingstock of the entire world.

"All right, let's move on to the next class." Mu Zhuoyun spoke up, not wanting his daughter paying any more attention to the boy.

"Brother, but what about Mu Bai..." Mu He began, reluctant to let the matter drop.

Mu He was far from satisfied. Today's visit had had two objectives: to see Mu Bai distinguish himself within the clan and earn the patriarch's recognition, and to see Mo Fan ground into the dirt. Neither had been achieved. How could he simply walk away?

"Oh — give their household a little extra at the New Year. As encouragement." Mu Zhuoyun replied.

Mu Bai went blank.

*A little extra at New Year? What does that even mean??*

He didn't want their handout money. He wanted to be recognized. He wanted a slot in the Mu Clan's priority cultivation program. He wanted a Stardust Artifact. He wanted the cultivation resources this colossal clan distributed to its direct-line descendants.

"But... Brother, I think—" Mu He was just about to press on Mu Bai's behalf when another voice cut through.

"Something's wrong. This glow isn't right."

The challenge came without warning — a woman's voice, soft and melodic, with a mature, unhurried quality.

"Teacher Tang Yue, do you have concerns about this score?" Xue Musheng stepped forward, his voice carefully measured. "Technically, rulings are made by the examiners. Even if we have doubts..."

Xue Musheng, truth be told, was perfectly happy with the result — overjoyed, in fact. He'd half-wondered if the Star Sensing Stone itself had malfunctioned. How else could Mo Fan have gotten a B? *Teacher Tang Yue, please, just let this one go. If something actually turns out to be wrong, my name as a homeroom teacher will be finished.*

"A teacher has no authority to challenge an examiner's ruling," Tang Yue said, her voice calm and deliberate. "But she may raise concerns about irregularities during the assessment — and even request an inspection of the testing equipment to verify its accuracy."

Several school administrators began frantically shaking their heads at her from across the room.

The principal himself was gesturing desperately for her to stand down.

It wasn't that they knew anything about the scheme — they simply didn't want unnecessary complications arising while so many School Board Directors were present. What could possibly be wrong with the score? It was completely ordinary — exactly what you'd expect from an average student.

"What exactly gives you cause for doubt, Teacher?" Mu Zhuoyun asked, a flicker of genuine interest crossing his face.

Tang Yue had already stepped into the examination area, her brow furrowed in concentration.

Then, without warning, she closed her eyes — the precise, still expression of a Mage in the moment of casting.

Anyone with a working knowledge of magic would have recognized it for what it was: she was sensing.

The sight of it sent both Mu He and Mu Bai into a cold panic.

Under normal circumstances, once Mo Fan's test concluded, the assessment would pause for an intermission. Students would be sent to rest, the standout results from the first half would be announced, and during that window the bald examiner would have quietly pocketed the Dark Stone. Clean, untraceable, without a ripple.

Everything had been proceeding perfectly. No one could have anticipated a teacher stepping forward — and, worse, one who seemed to know exactly where to look.

"Teacher Tang Yue, how dare you disregard examination regulations?" Mu He's voice cracked like a whip. "If I were in your position, I would leave this examination area immediately!"

He had to roar. He needed to use his authority to crush this before she could expose anything.

But Tang Yue didn't flinch. Moving as though she had already found what she was looking for, she walked straight to the Star Sensing Stone.

"There is a problem with this Star Sensing Stone," she said, her gaze cutting directly into the examiner. "This assessment must be redone."

The bald examiner's composure collapsed. His eyes flew immediately to Mu He.

The color drained from Mu He's face.

Mu Bai looked even worse.

"Why are you standing there?" The Tianlan principal's bearing suddenly straightened, his voice firm with purpose. "Go and inspect it. Our students deserve a fair and impartial examination. If there is a problem, it must be addressed immediately."

All three examiners moved forward at once. Within moments, they found it — a small, unfamiliar stone, hidden where it had no business being.

"That's strange — we inspected this before the assessment began. How did this get in here?" one of the other examiners said, genuinely baffled.

The stone was re-inspected after every student's turn. The person responsible for the check following Mu Bai's assessment had been none other than the bald examiner himself.

The bald examiner felt the ground drop out from under him.

Covering up examination sabotage was a serious crime.