Just now, the Young Master's fla spell was extrely dazzling, burning twelve targets in succession, causing many people outside the field to cheer and shout "Young Master, Young Master," the sound gradually growing into a grand montum.
But Chen Shi's display, with yellow flags covering the entire East Mountain and all targets on the mountain being hit, instantly silenced the cheering outside, leaving it completely quiet.
Because Chen Shi's move was more difficult and more dazzling than the Young Master's fla spell!
Compared to it, the Young Master's earlier spell was like a grain of rice-sized pearl encountering the radiance of the sun and moon—they were simply not on the sa level!
Suddenly, a provincial graduate shouted loudly, "Instructor Chen!"
Then soone in the drill ground echoed, "Instructor Chen!"
"Instructor Chen!" "Instructor Chen!"
The clamor gradually grew louder and louder, with a full three to four hundred provincial graduates cheering, gradually drawing many people outside the field to join in. The sound converged into a torrent, and even when the Divine chanism Battalion soldiers raised signs for silence, they couldn't quiet the crowd.
The Left and Right Vice Ministers of the Ministry of Rites were the chief examiners responsible for this martial exam. Hearing the people's shouts and seeing the yellow flags covering the mountains and plains, they couldn't help but frown.
Chen Shi had used the gravel from the drill ground to hit all the targets on the mountain. Each provincial graduate had six targets, and twelve graduates were tested at once, making a total of seventy-two targets!
This level of precise control was even more shocking than the display the Young Master had just shown, completely overshadowing the Young Master's lilight!
They had received orders to build montum for the Young Master, but now there was no way to do so.
Instead, Chen Shi's montum was growing stronger and stronger.
"We must inform Minister Fei about this!"
The Right Vice Minister of the Ministry of Rites had just said this when he saw Minister Fei standing not far away, frowning as he watched the scene, clearly also finding it troubleso.
Chen Shi had completely stolen the Young Master's lilight. Even if the Young Master won the top scholar title, he probably wouldn't be able to stir up much of a storm.
The Young Master's expression remained unchanged as he walked out of the Divine chanism Battalion drill ground and returned to Jiexiu Hall.
In Jiexiu Hall, Chief Administrator Shui Xuanzhi, Gentleman of the Interior Qin Su, Fan Peng, Sacrificial Officer Dou Qi, Huang Yue, and others were all present, each looking grave. Clearly, what had happened at the Divine chanism Battalion drill ground hadn't escaped their notice.
The glory that should have belonged to the Young Master had now been snatched away by Chen Shi, which was also a significant blow to the mbers of the Fu Zheng Pavilion.
"There's no need for you to worry."
The Young Master sat down and said calmly, "What Chen Shi perford was the Xu family's Ten Thousand Mile Flying Sword Technique. The Xu family also taught this technique. Whatever Chen Shi knows, I know too. He just had the advantage of going second, so he stood out more in this round."
Qin Su said seriously, "Young Master, even a lion uses its full strength when hunting a rabbit. Although your cultivation and strength are greater, you still must not let your guard down."
The Young Master nodded lightly and said, "I'll go cultivate first." With that, he entered Shui Xuanzhi's Realm of Emptiness.
Everyone's gaze fell on Shui Xuanzhi's face.
Qin Su asked, "Brother, what do you think of Chen Shi's technique?"
Shui Xuanzhi said, "His cultivation progress is faster than I estimated. Within three months, his cultivation will definitely catch up to the Young Master's! But in terms of actual combat strength, it might happen even sooner!"
Everyone frowned.
"Now, Creation Little Five has already left the Western Capital."
Fan Peng suddenly said, "The corpse cloud is gone. Relying solely on Chen Tang, it will be difficult to protect Chen Shi."
Everyone frowned. rit Officer Wei Xize said, "If we kill Chen Shi, Creation Little Five will co for revenge."
"Not kill him. Severely injure him so he cannot compete with the Young Master."
Fan Peng said, "As long as he's injured and unable to use his full strength, it won't alarm the demon hidden in his Sea of Consciousness, nor will it alarm Creation Little Five."
Everyone exchanged glances and nodded, "Feasible."
Qin Su said, "Chen Shi sleeps at the Chen residence at night. A night raid on the Chen residence would require dealing with Chen Tang. There might also be Eunuch Feng, Feng Tianhuan, and Lord Zhang Fuzheng. To be safe in assessing the enemy, relying solely on our people from the Fu Zheng Pavilion might not be enough to break into the Chen residence!"
Shui Xuanzhi opened his eyes and said, "Then we need to mobilize the forces supporting the Young Master. We'll just take action, and they will naturally help."
"When do we act?"
"Tonight at the hour of Zi!"
Chen Shi had just walked out of the Divine chanism Battalion drill ground when a familiar voice called out to him.
"Hey, Brother Chen!"
Hu Feifei stood gracefully outside the camp, looking smug. "Did you see? I hit the farthest target! The top scholar title is practically in the bag this ti! Even if I can't get the top scholar, I can still rank in the top three!"
Chen Shi walked over and asked, "The tropolitan examination doesn't allow demon cultivators to participate. How did you sneak in?"
"Of course, it's the Clan Head's doing."
Hu Feifei laughed. "Which high official's household in the Western Capital doesn't have a few fox spirits? Although our Fox Clan doesn't have many high officials in the governnt, there are plenty in the households of high officials. A little pillow talk, and I was let in. I want to be the Fox Clan's first female top scholar!"
Chen Shi asked, "Haven't you found your ideal husband yet?"
"Not yet!"
Hu Feifei looked a bit troubled, but then perked up and smiled. "I'm not thinking about that anymore. If I can't find a scholar who can beco the top scholar, I'll just beco the top scholar myself and go back to be a 'Grandma'."
Her ambition was simple: to beco the "Grandma" spoken of by the little rascals of the Fox Clan and earn the respect of the fox spirits.
"Where's Nannan?" Chen Shi asked.
"Your father is taking care of her."
The two looked around and soon found Chen Tang, who was indeed holding Nannan.
The boat girl and her father were also nearby, watching Chen Tang nervously, afraid he might drop the little King of Hell.
"Lord Chen, our injuries are almost healed. We can go to the underworld to search for your mother's soul," the boat girl said.
Chen Shi was overjoyed and bowed. "I'll trouble the two of you."
He bowed deeply to the ground. The two hurriedly returned the bow.
Chen Tang was also extrely excited. He put Nannan down and kowtowed to the two. "The safety of my wife is in your hands, my benefactors!"
"We dare not!"
The boat girl and her father hurriedly kowtowed back, saying repeatedly, "Lord Chen, you humble us too much! We were also forced into this!"
The boat girl said, "Please, stop kowtowing! We're afraid of getting beaten up again."
Chen Tang stood up, his expression serious, and said to Chen Shi, "Be more polite to our benefactors!"
Chen Shi bowed in agreent and looked at the two. The boat girl and her father beca solemn and said, "We'll go handle this right away!" With that, they turned and vanished into a gust of Yin wind.
Chen Tang frowned slightly. This seed a bit different from what he had experienced. Shouldn't you beg and plead when asking soone for a favor? What's with the beating at the drop of a hat?
However, he wouldn't inquire about things he didn't understand.
Chen Tang returned Nannan to Hu Feifei. Hu Xiaoliang and Blue Goat walked over. Chen Tang frowned deeply and whispered, "Chen Shi, stay away from them... Chen Shi!"
Chen Shi walked over. Hu Feifei, holding Nannan's hand, also ran over.
Blue Goat's voice ca through, "Chen Tang, you scoundrel, co over to your Uncle Goat!"
Chen Tang walked over with a dark face and greeted them, "Chen Tang pays his respects to Uncle Goat, Uncle Hu. Where's Granny Sha? Why isn't she here?"
Blue Goat said, "She was just here. She saw Xiang Yunfei and ran over."
Chen Tang looked around and finally saw Granny Sha's ex-husband's family, the Director of the Ministry of Personnel, Lord Xiang Yunfei. Standing before Lord Xiang was a woman as beautiful as a flower, looking about twenty years old. She chatted with Lord Xiang while laughing so charmingly that Lord Xiang was utterly captivated.
Xiang Yunfei was already old, in his sixties, but seeing that woman seed to make him decades younger.
"That woman looks like Granny Sha when she was young," Chen Tang thought.
He had seen Granny Sha when she was young during his childhood.
Not long after, the woman walked over and smiled. "Old Xiang still likes won like ."
Chen Tang reminded her, "Granny, Lord Xiang has already remarried."
Granny Sha said fiercely, "Call sister!"
Chen Tang complied readily, "Sister Sha."
Granny Sha was very satisfied and smiled. "Little Ten, you call sister too. If either of you utters the word 'granny,' I'll tear both your mouths! Also, no one is allowed to expose to Lord Xiang!"
Everyone hurriedly nodded.
Director Xiang Yunfei of the Ministry of Personnel kept glancing over. Granny Sha smiled at him, then quickly covered half her face with a scented handkerchief, looking shy and timid.
Chen Shi interrupted her flirtatious glances and said, "Sister Sha, I encountered Little Five. He taught how to comprehend the Ghost and God Domain from the Eight Trigrams Protection Talisman. I don't quite understand. Please teach , Sister."
With that, he described the scene where Creation Little Five perford the Heaven-Earth Variation from the Eight Trigrams Protection Talisman. "He evolved heaven and earth from two hexagram symbols, transforming the Western Capital into the Ghost and God Domain of the Heaven-Earth Variation, and almost everyone in the Western Capital city was unaware that heaven and earth had changed. Sister Sha, do you know how to comprehend the Ghost and God Domain within it?"
Granny Sha, who originally had her mind on Xiang Yunfei, grew increasingly solemn as she listened to his description. She set Lord Xiang aside and carefully inquired about the details of Creation Little Five's Heaven-Earth Variation. After pondering for a long ti, she finally said, "Little Five is amazing. He comprehended sothing even better from my cultivation technique. I need to think carefully... Give a few days to study it!"
Chen Tang coughed. Granny Sha understood and smiled. "Don't worry, it won't delay things. Little Ten, you still have the big exam tomorrow. Don't let your thoughts wander. Go to sleep early."
Chen Shi agreed.
Night fell. Chen Shi did not sleep but entered the minor heaven within the Fox Grape Mirror to cultivate and improve his cultivation.
During this ditation, layers of heavens opened behind his head. With the nine heavens perfected, his cultivation speed was astonishingly fast, and his mind was completely focused.
anwhile, at the Chen residence, Chen Tang took out a cinnabar brush and, under the moonlight, ticulously repaired the head of the Talisman God Tianji.
This Talisman God Tianji was the crazy, dented Tianji that Chen Shi had picked up. This thing was originally a talisman creation. Chen Shi didn't know how to repair it, so he could only place it on the miniature shrine, using his own Qi and blood to help it repair itself. But Chen Tang repaired the Talisman God Tianji using a cinnabar brush, clearly not doing this for the first ti.
"Chen Tang."
The Talisman God Tianji was much clearer now and said to him, "Where is the master? Where's my butt? Was it eaten by Creation Little Five... Have you seen my legs?"
Chen Tang didn't speak. After using up the ink, he went to prepare another batch.
The ink he used was a special kind that Chen Shi had never seen before. In the Precious Mirror of Talisman Creation, the ink used to write the Talisman God Tianji was extrely precious and very difficult to find, requiring many different types of rare heavenly and earthly treasures to refine.
Chen Shi had originally planned to search for these treasures but later discovered that even if he used all his wealth to buy them, he couldn't afford even one-third of what was needed, so he gave up.
"Being the Vice Minister of Revenue, in charge of the eight treasuries and four storehouses, does have so benefits," Chen Tang murmured as he painted.
He filled the holes in Tianji's head and painted its legs.
The Talisman God Tianji looked majestic and dignified, like a handso scholar, but it was several zhang tall, had eight arms, and emitted a powerful aura. Standing in the courtyard, it was very conspicuous.
"My butt has grown back," it said, turning around in surprise.
The Talisman God Tianji was the first-grade talisman of the Southern School Talismans created by Chen Yindu. It required extrely high skill to write such a talisman and create such a Talisman God.
This thod could be called creation.
However, even the Talisman God Tianji wasn't very intelligent and was easily influenced by moonlight, turning into an evil god. Moreover, the materials required to draw the Talisman God Tianji were extrely precious. Even Chen Yindu hadn't drawn many.
"My legs weren't eaten by Little Five," the Talisman God Tianji said, looking down at its legs in surprise.
The mont it lowered its head, Chen Tang pressed lightly on its body. Suddenly, its body shrank rapidly, turning into a fist-sized cloth doll that fell to the ground.
Chen Tang picked up the cloth doll and blew the dust off it.
The cloth doll had eight arms, with various strange patterns drawn on its body, very exquisite.
Chen Tang brought over a small box, carefully opened it, and placed the cloth doll inside.
"Another Tianji," he murmured.
Inside the box, similar cloth dolls were arranged in four rows, with nine in each row.
When Creation Little Five first entered the capital, he had co looking for him. At that ti, Chen Tang was carrying this box.
This was his trump card.
Having served as the Vice Minister of Revenue for so long, wielding imnse power, he had sidelined the Minister of Revenue. The minor officials in the eight treasuries and four storehouses of the Ministry of Revenue were all his people. He used the Ministry's treasury to search for the various materials needed to create the Talisman God Tianji.
Even with such massive corruption, he had always managed to maintain an image of being as clean as water.
All these years, he had been thinking about that ruthless elder brother and had prepared a big gift for Creation Little Five.
He knew he was no match for Creation Little Five, but as the successor of the strongest talisman master, he could defeat Creation Little Five without even lifting a finger.
As long as he controlled the Ministry of Revenue, he could control the wealth of the world. Using this wealth well, he could defeat Creation Little Five!
When Creation Little Five saw the Tianji box, he didn't attack but turned and left.
Creation Little Five's purpose in coming to the Western Capital, besides finding the person who obtained Chen Shi's Divine Embryo, was to eliminate this useless younger brother, send him to the underworld to reunite with their father, and thus fulfill his filial duty.
If he couldn't go to the underworld to accompany his father, then sending his younger brother Chen Tang there would also be an act of filial piety.
However, this box made him feel that his younger brother wasn't completely worthless. Why cause discord between brothers and let outsiders benefit?
"Tonight is not yet the ti to use you."
Chen Tang straightened up, put the box back in its place, went to the main hall, bowed to the sword enshrined on the long table, and whispered, "Fellow Daoist, fight alongside tonight!"
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