n

n

n

nTranslator: EndlessFantasy Translation Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation

nWen Ting stared at Fang Lang.

nHe kept staring silently.

n‘He almost killed the examiner? Did I hear that right?

n‘Why do you have such a pitiful look on your face?

n‘You’re the one who almost killed him! Where is all this self-pity coming from?’

n“What exactly happened there?” Wen Ting interrogated, furrowing his brows.

nA situation like that should not have occurred in a practical assessment. The fact that Fang Lang almost killed the examiner must have meant there was real friction between the two.

nMore importantly, the examiner was a third-class cultivator. How did a boy who just became a sword master almost pummel him to death?

nFang Lang took some time to manage his emotions, then narrated what had occurred in the combat hall in detail.

nThe moment Fang Lang mentioned the examiner was a foreign soldier from Asi Luoshan’s army, Wen Ting’s expression changed drastically.

n“Li Puyi!” Wen Ting exclaimed.

nHe raised his clenched fist abruptly.

nAt last, he understood why Fang Lang almost killed the examiner—he was a foreigner!

nUsually, examiners would be picked from third-class cultivators of the Tang Army. No foreigner had ever been allowed to take part in the Imperial Examination. After all, the Imperial Examination was meant to select the geniuses among Tang Dynasty’s citizens. If a foreigner was involved in the exam, there was a risk of betrayal. The foreigner could assassinate the geniuses of the Tang Dynasty!

n“Li Puyi is insane! What does he take Luojiang Academy for?”

nWen Ting—who had always maintained a calm and elegant exterior—was infuriated.

nThe next moment, he vanished from his spot.

nFang Lang watched as his mentor vanished into thin air. Fang Lang spat out a mouthful of stale air. Many were involved in the incident but Fang Lang never considered the possibility the third prince had altered the rules of the Imperial Examination for the sole purpose of causing him trouble. After all, Fang Lang was just a nobody.

nHe thought the third prince’s faction must have always wanted to test this out. It was just a coincidence Fang Lang got caught up in it. Similarly, Fang Lang ruining his plans was also a mere coincidence.

nFang Lang felt the looming sense of threat intensifying.

nHe left the exam venue and was met with the perfect sunset. The entire evening sky was painted crimson red!

nFang Lang had completed both his theory and combat exams, marking the end of the Tang Dynasty’s triennial Imperial Examination. Fang Lang stretched out his body. He felt as if a heavy burden was lifted off his shoulders.

nWithin the examination tower, the combat exam continued. Nonetheless, it had nothing to do with Fang Lang anymore.

nUpon exiting the examination tower, he was met with Old Fang’s kind smile. Fang Lang reciprocated with a smile of his own and entered a carriage with his father.

nAs the setting sun glowed, the shadow of the carriage was stretched out long and narrow.

n“Lang’er, the Imperial Examination is over. You should get some proper rest,” Old Fang advised with a smile.

n“I can’t. If everything goes as planned, the final section will be coming up soon.”

nAt the same time, Fang Lang wanted to study the ‘Splitting Punch’ reward he obtained earlier.

n“Are you really not gonna relax? How about we… take a stroll at the entertainment house?”

nOld Fang suggested in a serious tone after a moment of thought.

nSuddenly, Fang Lang went quiet.

nIn an instant, the carriage was filled with nothing but silence.

n…

nAfter Fang Lang left, Wen Ting and Headmaster Cui arrived at the examination tower together.

nThe headmaster—who always wore a cheerful smile—had a dark expression on his face. The head examiner from the Ministry of Rites was leaving when Headmaster Cui burst through the doors of Luojiang Examination Tower. Headmaster Cui raised a hand and gathered all the spiritual energy in the air, turning them into a rune. He knocked the head examiner over and pressed him hard against the ground.

n“I’ve been asking around about the other examination towers. Luojiang Examination Tower is the only venue with foreign soldiers acting as examiners! Who ordered you to do this? The rules are supposed to be ironclad! How is it fair to bully the students from Luojiang? Do you think this old man won’t make a scene out of it?

n“Outrageous!”

nHeadmaster’s rage made the sky turn dark. Even the setting sun outside was quickly dimming.

nWhen a spell master was enraged, they could shake the land and seas.

n“I’m going to bring this to the Emperor and he shall punish you for your crimes!”

nHeadmaster Cui’s long hair and beard fluttered in the wind as he yelled furiously.

nThe head examiner’s expression darkened, yet he did not dare utter a word. Lying face down on the floor, he clenched his teeth as an odd feeling of grief swelled in his heart.

nHe could already predict the end that awaited him.

nAlas, though unwilling, he was inevitably caught up in this elaborate scheme.

nThe practical combat assessment in Luojiang Examination Tower came to a halt. After a delay of two hours, order was restored and the Imperial Examination resumed.

nExaminers from another examination tower came over to replace the foreign examiners in Luojiang Examination Tower. Finally, the practical section of the Imperial Examination was concluded.

nAt the same time, it marked the end of both the theory and combat assessments of the Tang Dynasty’s Imperial Examination.

nEven so, Headmaster Cui was not satisfied. The moment the practical assessment ended, he picked up the head examiner and started walking on air. Every step he took, runes formed beneath his feet, lighting up the night sky as they made a beeline for Changan.

nIn the ancient Changan City, curtains of autumn rain fell.

nIt was destined to be a sleepless night.

n…

nChangan City, Ministry of Rites’s grading faculty.

nIn the pouring rain, Cui Cheng—a man very close to mastering the forbidden spells—came rushing to Changan in person.

nMultiple palaces of the ministry were still burning the midnight oil.

nThe graders of the combat examination were finally done marking the written scripts. The ministry had brought in hundreds of mentors to mark the exam papers that came in from all the examination towers.

nAfter a long day, they were finally done marking.

nSeveral exam graders gathered together. There were four sets of exam scripts before them.

nThey picked up the first exam script and revealed the candidate’s name.

n“This is the exam script of Wei Sheng from Changan Academy. Major studies section of martial arts mastery, a hundred and eight questions answered with perfect accuracy, obtaining one hundred points. Major studies section of sword mastery, seventy correct answers out of seventy-five questions answered. Major studies section of spell mastery, answered forty-eight correct answers out of fifty questions. Total score obtained, two hundred and eighteen.”

nSome graders praised the student while others simply stroked their beards.

n“This is the exam script of Jiang Linglong from the Imperial Academy. Martial arts mastery, answered a hundred and eight questions with perfect accuracy. Sword mastery, answered eighty-eight questions with perfect accuracy. Spell mastery, fifty correct answers out of sixty questions answered. Total score obtained, two hundred and thirty-eight.”

nJiang Linglong’s results received a fair amount of applause from the graders.

n“This is the exam script of Li Yuanzhen from the Imperial Academy. Sword mastery, answered a hundred and eight questions with perfect accuracy. Spell mastery, eighty correct answers out of eighty-one questions answered. Martial arts mastery, sixty-three correct answers out of seventy-one questions answered. Total score obtained, two hundred and forty-three.”

nHis results were better than both Wei Sheng and Jiang Linglong’s. When compared to the scores from the previous Imperial Examination, Li Yuanzhen would have been the champion!

nThus, his scores made many graders gasp.

n“As expected of Administrator Li’s son! Smart and talented! He has the potential to become the next grand chancellor!”

n“Yuanzhen must have inherited the right administrator’s talent and intelligence. His future is limitless. He will surely become a man of great importance!”

n“It seems like the ‘champion’ title of this Imperial Examination is no doubt Li Yuanzhen’s.”

n…

nThe graders from Li Puyi’s faction were all singing the praises of Li Yuanzhen.

nHowever, when their gaze fell onto the last set of papers, their applause gradually died down.

nThe head grader revealed the candidate’s name on the final exam script.

n“This is the exam script of Fang Lang from Luojiang Academy…”

nThe moment his name was uttered, all the graders gasped in shock.

n“Fang Lang? The one that scored the highest in the theory exam? That Fang Lang?”

n“Well, it can’t be another person with the same name. There’s only one Fang Lang in Luojiang Academy!”

n“Damn… That student is terrifying! He topped both the theory and combat exams!”

nFang Lang’s impressive answers in the theoretical assessment made him famous among the graders of the Imperial Examination. Just the progressiveness of his policy essay made it impossible to ignore the boy’s brilliance!

nThe head grader kept his composure and continued to read out Fang Lang’s results. “Sword mastery, answered a hundred and eight questions with perfect accuracy. Martial arts mastery… answered a hundred and eight questions with ninety-eight correct!”

nIt was pindrop silence in the room.

nThe head grader’s heart was pumping. His voice trembled as he spoke.

n“Spell mastery, answered a hundred and eight questions… ninety-two correct… Total score…

n“Two hundred and ninety!”

nOnce he finished, the room went completely silent.

nBoth inside and outside the palace, not a single sound could be heard with the exception of the autumn rain striking the palace roof tiles.

n“He answered every single question in the major studies section of all three disciplines… Moreover, his accuracy is insanely high! The student is an expert in all three disciplines… What a monster!”

nThe head grader exclaimed before calming himself down.

nJust months before the Imperial Examination, Fang Lang was a nobody. No academy had ever produced a student as exceptional as him. A boy that no one batted an eye at had gone against all odds and surfaced as the grand champion of the Imperial Examination!

nA cough broke the silence in the palace. The head grader turned to the other graders and asked, “Have the physical assessment scores of all the examination towers come in yet?

n“Once we total the physical assessment score, the honor roll of this year’s Imperial Exam can be confirmed.”

nA grader came out from the crowd and reported, “Besides Luojiang Examination Tower, every other examination tower has submitted the physical assessment scores.”

nThe head grader furrowed his brows but relaxed them a second later.

n“Let’s add up the scores sent in from the other examination towers for now,” the head grader said.

n“Understood.”

nThe graders whispered their tasks to one another and began to add up the scores.

nMinute by minute, time passed. Just then, a tardy flight sword tore through the rain and landed within the palace. Rain covered every inch of the vehicle.

nThe physical assessment results from Luojiang Examination Tower had finally arrived.

nJust as before, the graders got a sneak-peak of the results before they were released. All their eyes were fixed on the practical assessment results that just came in from Luojiang Examination Tower.

nThey flipped through the papers and searched for Fang Lang’s name.

nFinally, under the dim light of the palace, they found Fang Lang’s unforgettable name.

n‘Fang Lang. Physical assessment score: Full marks. Assessment evaluation: It’s a miracle the examiner did not die.’

n

nHis score was acceptable. After all, most geniuses who took part in the exam scored full marks as well.

nHowever, what was up with that terrifying comment?

nThe palace fell silent again.

nAfter a long while, the head grader sighed. Fang Lang’s score had already placed him ahead of the majority of students. Even with additional points, it would be difficult to compete with him.

n“This year’s theory and combat champion can already be confirmed…”

nNonetheless, topping the theory and combat honor roll did not mean Fang Lang was the grand champion of the Imperial Examination. The grand champion would be decided in the final section hosted by the Emperor himself.

nEven so, topping the honor roll was already an unparalleled honor!

nHe was truly a dark horse!

nThe biggest dark horse in the entire country!

nHe was a nobody who managed to surpass the likes of Wei Sheng, Jiang Linglong, Li Yuanzhen and other top-tier geniuses!

nIt was as if the boy was standing on top of a cliff with his blade unsheathed, announcing his arrival to the world beneath. That was the image his earth-shattering scores painted.

nThe head grader took a deep breath and headed deep into the palace with the honor roll draft in his hand.

nHe handed the list to the person in charge of the Imperial Examination that year—Lu Taixuan.

nLu Taixuan was drinking wine as he scanned through the list. His gaze fell onto the name on the top of the list. He lifted his brows in astonishment, then laughed.

n“Hahaha!

n“Good! ‘What of the great mountains that hither stood? The green extended across once warring states.’

n“Alright, publish it!”

n…

nAs the autumn rain continued to fall, the sun rose in the east of Changan.

nOne after another, flight swords carrying the honor roll lists tore through the curtains of rain. Like a blooming lotus, they flew off into every direction, heading toward the 3,000 academies of the Tang Dynasty.

nThe moment the honor rolls touched ground, the earth would shake in the Tang Dynasty.

n