Chapter 49: The Grand Examination Opens

Time flew swiftly through the bustling Bai Ling Garden, and before anyone knew it, the day of the major examination had arrived.

Outside Bai Ling Garden, the surging crowds grew ever larger, clearly drawing people from every corner of Tian Shu Commandery to witness this grand examination.

At the foot of Bai Ling Mountain, the extended viewing terraces were packed with a sea of people, buzzing with energy.

At the very front stood several spacious, luxurious pavilions, all prepared for the high-ranking figures of Tian Shu Commandery.

Within just a short while, both the Commandery's Governor-General Shi Qing and the retired Dean Wei Sha of Nan Feng Academy made their appearances, drawing widespread attention.

As the two most influential figures in Tian Shu Commandery, they directly entered the central pavilion, where attendants immediately served them fragrant tea and fruit.

"Heh, Dean Wei, your spirit is as vigorous as ever." Governor-General Shi smiled.

Dean Wei Sha replied with a cold smile: "I hear Governor-General Shi is quite dissatisfied with Nan Feng Academy being Tian Shu's top academy."

"That's surely just rumor," Governor-General Shi shook his head, laughing.

Then he shifted tone: "The title of Tian Shu's top academy is earned through strength—no one can change it, unless another academy surpasses Nan Feng Academy in power."

The retired dean spoke coolly: "When Nan Feng Academy rose to prominence in Tian Shu, you, Governor-General Shi, were still lurking in some obscure corner."

Over the years, Governor-General Shi's governance of Tian Shu had clashed repeatedly with the retired dean, some disputes even touching Nan Feng Academy's reputation and interests—knowing full well that the dean treated the academy's prestige as his very lifeblood; any threat to it from Governor-General Shi was utterly intolerable.

Every year, the Great Xia Court evaluates the performance of provincial governors, and as head of Tian Shu's top academy, the retired dean holds significant influence—yet given their bitter feud, how could he possibly give a favorable review? This has left Governor-General Shi unable to advance for years.

As time piled up, their grudge deepened, and now, whenever they met, it was a battle of words.

Especially this year—if Governor-General Shi's performance review still fails to meet the threshold, he will almost certainly be reassigned to a weaker commandery than Tian Shu.

This is precisely why Shi Kong has gone to great lengths to strip Nan Feng Academy of its title as Tian Shu's top academy.

In the central pavilion, the atmosphere was icy, but elsewhere, it was lively—lords of Tian Shu's great families like the Song, Di Fa, and Bei clans all appeared in person.

Director Lü of the Golden Dragon Guild arrived with a beaming smile, for his young niece would be shining brightly in this examination.

In one of the pavilions, Cai Wei and Yan Yan Lingqing arrived as well; as members of Luo Lan Mansion, they naturally wanted to monitor their young master's performance in the examination.

But more importantly, they were close friends with Jiang Jiang Qinge, so they treated Li Luo as if he were a younger brother—additionally, Li Luo was handsome and lacked the arrogance typical of a young master; though he sometimes acted mischievous, he was clearly very likable.

"Do you think our young master will make the top ten?" Cai Wei leaned back elegantly, plucked a banana from the tray, and with her sensual red lips parting, her white teeth cleanly bit through it.

Any man present would have been stirred to fever by this sight.

Yan Yan Lingqing tapped the table with her slender fingers and couldn't help saying: "You fox, tone it down."

"There's no one else here."

Cai Wei pouted, then took a slice of fragrant melon from the fruit platter and handed it to Yan Yan Lingqing: "Eat more of this—it's good for you."

"You're pushing your luck now, aren't you!"

Yan Yan Lingqing snapped, rose, and pounced on Cai Wei, pinning her down and scratching her mercilessly.

Cai Wei writhed and giggled uncontrollably, trembling helplessly, until she finally begged: "Stop! I'm sorry!"

That pitiful, alluring expression bore no resemblance to the calm, rational demeanor of Luo Lan Mansion's chief steward.

Yan Yan Lingqing snorted and sat back down: "Li Luo's phase power should be at the Seventh Seal level—on paper, it's difficult for him to break into the top ten."

"But if their Nan Feng Academy's Lü Qing'er wins first place, Nan Feng Academy will gain fifteen extra slots—Li Luo securing one of them wouldn't be hard."

Cai Wei smiled lightly: "I think our young master will make the top ten without trouble."

Yan Yan Lingqing glanced at her in surprise—she had no idea where such confidence came from.

"Don't be fooled by his gentle demeanor and lack of arrogance—he's still proud at heart, being the son of those two, and betrothed to Jiang Qinge. With his nature, he may not obsess over first place, but he'd never accept being 'dragged' into Sheng Zhu Xuan Star Academy." Cai Wei said.

"More importantly, by instinct, I feel our young master isn't nearly as simple as he appears."

Yan Yan Lingqing pondered—Li Luo had indeed often given off an elusive aura; though he'd only recently awakened his phase, in just one month he'd accomplished far more than expected.

"I hope he earns his top-ten slot through his own strength—if not, being admitted as a side benefit will make him awkward later at Sheng Zhu Xuan Star Academy. Add to that his status as Luo Lan Mansion's young master and Jiang Qinge's fiancé… ugh, just thinking about it, I doubt going to Sheng Zhu Xuan Star Academy will be good for Li Luo." Yan Yan Lingqing adjusted her silver-rimmed glasses, a trace of sympathy softening her icy face.

Cai Wei nodded gently; she too had come from Great Xia's capital and understood Sheng Zhu Xuan Star Academy well, and knew exactly how famed Jiang Jiang Qinge was there—she was truly the center of universal attention.

Li Luo is still safe hiding in Nan Feng City, where the storms haven't reached him—but once he enters Sheng Zhu Xuan Star Academy, he'll face directly the crushing pressure of Jiang Jiang Qinge's dazzling, blinding halo.

Someone with weaker resolve would collapse under it.

As they spoke, the atmosphere in the arena suddenly erupted into a frenzy—the two women turned their gazes and saw the teams from every academy entering the grounds.

Their eyes swept across the crowd and instantly spotted Li Luo among Nan Feng Academy's ranks—his silver-gray hair and striking looks made him unmistakable.

"Our young master is truly beautiful—now that his hair color changed, he's even more handsome," Cai Wei commented with a smile.

Yan Yan Lingqing grumbled: "You're just a pretty-face addict—superficial."

But she didn't deny it—Li Luo, inheriting the superior genes of his two parents, had not a single flaw in appearance.

Amid countless watching eyes, a figure in a star-patterned robe appeared on the high platform, the robe shimmering with silver radiance from embedded stars.

That was the robe of a Sheng Zhu Xuan Star Academy instructor—clearly, this was a supervisor dispatched by the academy.

"Students of Tian Shu Commandery, I am An Lie, instructor of Sheng Zhu Xuan Star Academy. This year's academy examination will use a point system to determine rankings." The instructor, An Lie, appeared around thirty—remarkably young to hold such a position, clearly talented.

As he finished speaking, each academy's lead instructor produced a crystal tablet and distributed one to every student.

Li Luo and the others received theirs—the tablets were palm-sized, engraved with their academy's emblem and their names.

"When the examination begins, all of you will enter two evaluation stages. Passing these two stages will grant you base points."

"During these two stages, students are forbidden from attacking each other. Once you pass them, everything becomes free: you may seize others' crystal tablets and take their points—that's the third stage, the elimination round. However, students from the same academy cannot steal points from each other."

"Your final destination lies deep in the southwest of Bai Ling Mountain—a ruined ancient city called Bai Ling Ruins. There, you will learn the final rules."

As An Lie spoke calmly, every student's expression grew solemn, the air thickening with tension.

After explaining all the rules, An Lie glanced at the sky, then flashed a brilliant smile.

"Enough talk—I hereby declare the academy examination officially begun."

The moment he spoke, the taut atmosphere in the realm shattered explosively, surging into a roaring tide that spread everywhere.

The examination had finally begun.

(One chapter today, two tomorrow.)

(End of chapter.)