Chapter 6

At this time, two Daoists arrived as light and landed in front of Zhang Sheng and Wei Yuan. The older Daoist looked at Wei Yuan, then looked at the book in his hand, and said: "Wei Yuan of Feng Yuanjun Prefecture, confirmed correct, take him to the dormitory!"

Zhang Sheng was stunned and said: "Why go to the dormitory now?"

Sun Yu appeared beside Zhang Sheng one step later and said: "Don't be anxious, younger brother. There are many candidates in Feng Yuanjun Prefecture this session, so a special rule has been set: all candidates must move into the dormitory as soon as they step into the immortal gate and are not allowed to communicate with outsiders until the exam is over."

Zhang Sheng looked at Sun Yu, looked at the two Daoists, and looked at the countless immortal state auspicious beasts on the square, lost in thought, and said gently to Wei Yuan: "Then go, don't be afraid, just display all your learning, and I will handle other matters."

Wei Yuan nodded hard; he was early in wisdom and already felt that the atmosphere was unusual.

Zhang Sheng took a step back, and the young Daoist pulled Wei Yuan, his figure flickering, and disappeared in the blink of an eye. The older Daoist checked a box on the book and left after apologizing.

Zhang Sheng's gaze slowly swept across the entire square.

Although his Dao power was sealed, his vision remained, and he recognized seven or eight out of ten just by looking at the shapes of the mounts and auspicious beasts. Although there were many styles of flying boats and immortal carts, most of them had family crests or clan emblems on the carriage bodies, and Zhang Sheng recognized most of them. Just looking at it like this, he saw seven or eight prominent vehicles, not from some high-ranking noble family, but from descendants of some sect master or elder of an immortal sect.

Those two nine-colored treasure deer from the East Sea couldn't even squeeze into the top five here.

Sun Yu said: "Younger brother, don't worry, you know the rules of the dormitory, and besides, there are True Persons and great scholars watching right now, no one dares to play tricks."

Zhang Sheng said lightly: "No one dares to play tricks? I'm afraid there are not many people who don't dare!"

Sun Yu pretended not to hear and said: "This time, it's not just our Taichu Palace that came, but also the Four Sages Academy and the Great Baohua Pure Land."

Zhang Sheng immediately thought of the many terrifying fortunes on the Jian Water Light-Merging Formation six years ago. Calculating six years, these fortunes should also begin to merge with people, giving birth to many corresponding extraordinary people. It seems that the great powers above have already calculated this matter, so three of the four great immortal palaces have come, and there are many grotto-heavens and blessed lands, all preparing to snatch the children of fortune.

It's just that thinking of those fortunes, Zhang Sheng felt somewhat strange in his heart. The Immortal Sect recruited these people back, not knowing what Ji Wang would think, and what Tang Di would think.

At this time, the white jade boat from the East Sea finally parked, and a team of people walked off the boat one after another, surrounding a teenager like stars surrounding the moon. The teenager was eight or nine years old, with dark skin, slightly curly hair, and a few fine pearl-colored scales on his neck, protecting his throat, and a pair of bright amber pupils. This teenager was clearly of pure East Sea blood, and those pupils were the proof.

Seeing the teenager's appearance, Zhang Sheng's face was unusual, and he asked: "Is this a native of Feng Yuanjun Prefecture?"

The Immortal Sect's unified examination has always stipulated that candidates must have three generations of blood relatives living in a prefecture to be eligible to take the exam in that prefecture, otherwise they must participate in the unified examination in their original state or prefecture. All along, this rule has been strictly enforced without exception. And the East Sea is hundreds of thousands of miles away from Yongzhou, even if it's not a million miles. It's understandable for a collateral mixed-blood of the Yan family to come, but how can a direct pure-blood be related to Feng Yuanjun Prefecture?

But Sun Yu looked at the tip of his nose, his voice without the slightest fluctuation: "He is indeed a native of Feng Yuanjun Prefecture."

Zhang Sheng sneered: "The East Sea Yan family, the Great Elder of the Bishui Liushang Sect, and the Little Sage of the Shiming Academy, these three families are nearly a million miles away from Feng Yuanjun Prefecture, and the far ones are several million miles away. Do they all have three generations of blood relatives here?"

Sun Yu sighed and said: "They all have. It's just that I heard that some blood relatives only recognized their ancestors and returned to their clans last month. But there are both human and material evidence, so those are real blood relatives, younger brother, you can't overturn them."

Sun Yu emphasized the word 'real blood relatives'. Sun Yu had already said this much, which was already quite difficult; if these words were heard by the relevant noble families, it would be a rhythm of offending them to death.

Zhang Sheng's face showed sarcasm, and he said slowly: "Not even covering it up anymore?"

Sun Yu sighed: "Isn't it always like this? Follow me to the Qianxin Hall, it's convenient to talk there. In addition, the regulations for the Feng Yuanjun Prefecture unified examination this session have been greatly changed, saying it is to reform the old and establish the new, and you also need to read it."

Zhang Sheng stood still until he saw the two Daoists also take the East Sea Yan family teenager away, then left with Sun Yu.

The young Daoist carried Wei Yuan to a beautiful mountain valley. In the valley, there were rows of two-story small buildings, all room doors opened on the corridor, and each had a number on the door.

As soon as Wei Yuan entered, he saw a number light up.

The young Daoist took Wei Yuan and took a step, arriving in front of that room, and said: "This is number seventy-seven, and it will be your code name during this unified examination. Before the exam, you can move freely in the dormitory, and maybe you will meet other candidates. Communication is allowed, but remember not to reveal your identity and name; once discovered, you will be severely punished! Do you remember?"

Wei Yuan nodded.

The young Daoist pushed the door and entered. The furnishings in the room were simple but exquisite, with a bed, a desk, and a chair, and another sandalwood flower stand, on which was a fruit tree the size of an arm, full of golden fruits, emitting a faint fragrance.

"This is a Chonglou fruit tree, which can help you clear your mind and stabilize your heart. The fruits cannot be eaten; eating them will surely die."

"This is a North Sea Ice Pear bed; sleeping on it can drive away inner demons and nourish the primordial spirit. You haven't cultivated yet, so you can't get these benefits. But sleeping on this bed for one hour every day can replenish your spirit."

"This is the Heavenly Secret Desk, this is the Li Fire Inkstone, this is the Water Element Brush..."

After introducing the functions of each object in the room, the young Daoist said: "The unified examination regulations will be issued at the You hour, read them carefully so as not to be caught off guard. Tomorrow morning is the Dao test, don't miss the time."

After the instructions, the young Daoist pushed the door and left.

Wei Yuan suddenly saw an extra book at the door, as if the young Daoist had accidentally left it behind. He picked it up and saw the words 'Great Tang Immortal Sect Recruitment Unified Examination Regulations' written on the cover.

Originally, the regulations were to be issued at the You hour, but it was only past the noon hour, and there were still two full hours until the You hour. Wei Yuan understood that this was a little convenience that the young Daoist had secretly given.

Wei Yuan sat at the desk and began to read the regulations. As he read, he was somewhat surprised. The exam rules in the regulations were very different from what Zhang Sheng said.

According to Zhang Sheng, the Immortal Sect's unified examination consisted of two parts: the Dao test and the literature test. The Dao test measured cultivation talent foundation and whether there was fortune added. The literature test examined human affairs, including articles, history, policy discussions, military tactics, etc., and generally gave two or three topics, each requiring an article.

The literature test not only looked at whether the answer was accurate but also examined understanding. A candidate might have extreme arguments, but as long as they could be original and self-consistent, they could get extra points for understanding.

However, the regulations in Wei Yuan's hand stated that this session, in addition to the Dao test and literature test, there was also a martial arts test. The Dao test originally examined the foundation and fortune part, which was divided more finely, with more detailed grades, each grade having corresponding points.

Because the martial arts test was added, the proportion of each test in the overall evaluation became 40% for the Dao test, 30% for the literature test, and 30% for the martial arts test. The original proportion was 60% for the Dao test and 40% for the literature test.

The grading of the three tests was no longer the vague Heaven, Earth, and Human three-grade grading of the past, but replaced by a scoring system, 40 points for the Dao test, 30 points each for the literature and martial arts tests, and a total of 100 points, with the total score determining the ranking.

Previously, Zhang Sheng also said that Feng Yuanjun Prefecture was remote and had just encountered a great disaster, with countless deaths, so there would be no more than twenty candidates this year, but now just looking at the dormitory rooms, there were far more than two hundred people. After a glimpse after entering the immortal gate, Wei Yuan also knew that countless prominent figures had come, obviously all for the unified examination.

The regulations were greatly changed, and the competition was unprecedentedly fierce, and Wei Yuan felt leaden clouds gathering above his head. But having studied under Zhang Sheng for three years, he inherited the character of becoming braver with each setback and going against the current. At this moment, the pressure was unprecedented, but Wei Yuan calmed down instead and began to study the regulations carefully.

Just as Zhang Sheng taught, one must have a quiet heart when facing major events.

(End of chapter) ===== CHAPTER 7 =====