Chapter One: One Tester Remains

White lamps buzzed overhead. There were forty-nine desks in the classroom, the other forty-eight occupied by human-shaped shadows. Exam papers lay before them; everything above their necks had been blotted out in ink. At the front stood a man in an old-fashioned robe. A porcelain mask covered his face, bearing only a smiling mouth. Four words appeared on the board: ENTRANCE EXAMINATION. Lin's testing interface came alive. 【Unregistered region detected: Layer Zero.】 【Trial 01: The Entrance Examination Without an Exit.】 【Clear reward: one random root-level permission.】 【Warning: This trial has not passed safety certification.】 【Time until complete reboot: 6 days, 23 hours, 59 minutes.】