At night, Chai Residence.
Chai Rong's dinner was tasteless.
In just a few months, his father and brother had died a violent death, and even now, he had to endure it and not act up.
The only fortunate thing was that his mother had returned to her parents' home and escaped the disaster. After asking the servants in the residence, he was sure that the person who colluded with Li Xiang Jun was that Yan Li.
During the day, he tried all kinds of methods to probe, but he couldn't get any information about that "Mister Second" from Ghostly Hand's mouth. He was only warned not to provoke him.
After dinner, when Ghostly Hand left, he said to Gong Yanjun, "Junior brother, I have something to say to you, follow me."
Gong Yanjun followed and came to a secluded place, only to hear Chai Rong say, "You came back to Qingya Market, other than to help me find the murderer, there is another purpose, right?"
Gong Yanjun said, "Senior brother understands me."
Chai Rong smiled and said, "Li Xiang Jun."
Gong Yanjun laughed and said, "Li Xiang Jun is worthy of being the number one beauty in Bing Province. With that appearance and that figure, I really don't know how happy it will be."
He clenched his teeth and said, "But you also saw that Ghostly Hand didn't let me provoke that person. When you get the quota tomorrow, we have to return to Lin 'an. Damn it, I can see but not eat, it's so uncomfortable. Sigh, no, let's secretly go to Emerald Mist Tower at night? "
Chai Rong's eyes flickered and said, "Don't go at night, but I have a plan. As long as you listen to me, you can have her forever and play with her however you want."
Gong Yanjun thought of that scene, his lower abdomen was burning and his heart itched. He quickly pulled him and urged, "Quickly say it!"
"Come closer." Chai Rong said.
Gong Yanjun quickly moved closer.
Chai Rong said so in his ear.
Gong Yanjun's eyes first lit up, then he frowned and said, "But, Ghostly Hand will never agree to this."
Chai Rong said indifferently, "When I take the exam tomorrow, use the excuse that you want to play in the city and send him to my side."
"This …" Gong Yanjun was still a little hesitant.
Chai Rong's eyes were cold and said, "If you are worried that Yan Li will find trouble with the Gong family, you don't have to. He won't be able to walk out of the exam tomorrow!"
"Are you confident?" Gong Yanjun's eyes widened.
Chai Rongyin sneered and said, "The second round of the assessment is' Thinking and Visualization '. His cultivation won't be higher than Level Five, and I've long since bribed a few candidates with decent strength. What do you think will happen to him if we join forces?"
Gong Yanjun was overjoyed and said, "Senior Brother's calculations are indeed flawless. I'll leave everything to you then!"
…
The next day, Yan Li woke up early as usual. After washing up, a maid came to him and said that the owner of the Green Vine House wanted to see him.
Yan Li walked over slowly and sighed, "Do you think we're living here for free, and we even have the courtesan to entertain us? Isn't this the life of immortals?"
The burly man thought about it seriously and said, "Not really."
The maid secretly rolled her eyes at the two of them. In her heart, she had already regarded Yan Li as a pretty boy with relatively good zither skills. She had completely forgotten that she had cried while listening to Yan Li's zither music the night before yesterday.
Yan Li cast a sidelong glance at the burly man and said, "I know, you've always wanted to open a wine shop. We'll leave today after we get the quota. When we get to Yongling, you can open one."
"Really?" The burly man's face, which had never changed, was actually a little excited.
Yan Li said lightly, "You're too conspicuous, it's not easy for me to do things. However, don't expect me to pay. I don't have a single cent left. "
After hearing this, the maid's eyes were already filled with disdain.
The burly man showed a rare smile and said, "I do."
When they arrived at the Green Vine House, they saw Li Xiang Jun greeting them with a smile and said, "I've prepared breakfast for you. Eat before you go."
Yan Li's eyes brightened. He saw that she was wearing a green and white dress today. The snow-white skirt just happened to touch the ground. The faintly discernible small golden lotuses were wrapped around a pair of light purple, round toe embroidered shoes. With light makeup, she looked even more elegant and beautiful. Her eyes and eyebrows were curved, as if there was a lingering smile on them. Her hair, which was pinned with a pearl flower, cascaded down like a waterfall. Two locks of hair separated and draped over her shoulders, softly sticking to the two sides of her peaks, adding a bit of tenderness like water.
"Dressed so beautifully, are you going to meet your lover?" Yan Li teased as he sat down.
Breakfast was hot porridge with a few exquisite side dishes. Just looking at it made one's appetite increase.
He did not stand on ceremony, picking up the bowl and chopsticks and eating.
Li Xiang Jun beckoned the burly man to sit down and rolled her eyes at him, "I can't stop your mouth."
Yan Li smiled at her, then turned his head to take a look. Suddenly, he was startled. In the study, the place where "God of Ghosts" was hung yesterday was empty. It must have been put away by her.
Was she afraid that he would have a relapse again?
Looking at her eyes carefully, he saw that she looked as if nothing had happened.
Yan Li curled the corner of his mouth and said, "It's so strange. It was still here yesterday. Why is it gone today?"
Li Xiang Jun lightly said, "If you are talking about that painting, I have given it to someone else. Have you finished eating? If you have, quickly go to the county office. After the time limit, you are not allowed to enter the examination hall. Don't come looking for me again. "
Yan Li stood up and said, "Aren't you going with me?"
Li Xiang Jun frowned and said, "Mom said that there is a distinguished guest visiting today. I can't leave. Besides, our deal is already over. Whether you get a place or not is your own business. Don't come looking for me again. "
Yan Li's eyes were full of smiles, and said, "That won't do. Did you forget what I said yesterday? You just wait here for me to come back. "
"Who wants to wait for you!" Li Xiang Jun's pretty face was slightly red.
The maidservant was dumbfounded. She had never seen Li Xiang Jun show such a girlish expression in front of anyone. She was so beautiful that even she, as a woman, blushed.
When Yan Li walked out of the Emerald Mist Building, Li Xiang Jun's personal driver was already waiting.
He didn't have any self-awareness of being a "gigolo" at all. Under the driver's undisguised disdainful gaze, he got on the carriage. When he arrived at the county office, it was exactly seven in the morning.
There was only one place, but there were thirty to forty people competing for it.
The most basic qualification for the assessment was to awaken one's true name. Once one passed the age of twenty and still hadn't awakened one's true name, it could basically be judged that one's aptitude was inferior. It was not worth the effort to cultivate them.
The assessment was divided into two parts. The first part was the written test. The written test was very simple. It was to write down the "Treatise on Strategy" from memory.
There were three popular works in the Divine Great Land that had a profound influence on the dynasty and the surrounding foreign tribes. "Treatise on Strategy" was one of them. It was written by the wisest and most knowledgeable Soul Emperor in history. It covered a wide range of topics, and was most praised for it: examination, officials, governance, peace, and strategy.
Examination was examination; officials were officials; governance was governance; peace was balance; and strategy was power.
It didn't matter if he couldn't read it, as long as he remembered every word and didn't make any mistakes.
Although Yan Li wasn't a knowledgeable person, writing from memory was still a piece of cake for him.
After more than two hours of writing from memory and an hour of reviewing, the first part ended after four hours.
However, only six people could enter the next part.
Yan Li knew that it wasn't that most people couldn't write from memory, but that they wrote the wrong words, which meant that they weren't focused enough. This was a big taboo for cultivators.
They had a simple lunch at the county office. Around noon, County Magistrate Fang finally showed up. He said some encouraging words to the eliminated candidates and brought Yan Li and the other candidates to the drill ground.
Yan Li found that the other five people were sizing him up. One of them was Second Young Master Chai, but they were very careful to hide their eyes.
Ghostly Hand also entered the drill ground, and he was also observing Yan Li.
County Magistrate Fang stepped onto the Xuanyuan Platform, and his big flat face had a rare solemn look. "As everyone knows, more than two hundred years ago, the dynasty faced the disaster of the foreign tribes and was in danger. In the third year of Chen Ping, Emperor Wu decisively abolished the two religions and the imperial examination, and established the academy. Cultivators reappeared in the Divine Great Land. This is an opportunity, an opportunity that belongs to all of you. As the people of the Xia Dynasty, no matter who the final winner is, I hope that you will remember the spirit of Emperor Wu. Let's not talk about idle talk. Prepare for the second part of the assessment! "
The six people walked onto the stage in a line. There were already six futons placed on the stage, forming a circle.
Sitting on the futon, Yan Li found that the eyes of the five people were no longer hiding, but full of malice. At first, he thought it was inevitable for competition to be like this, but it turned out that it was premeditated.
The corner of his mouth slightly raised into a cold smile.
The second test was to test the candidates' ability of "thinking and visualization". Thinking was the most basic ability of cultivators. After the awakening of their true names, they would naturally sink into this state and try to seize the Qi of Heaven and Earth, either to train their bodies or to store it in their bodies for use against the enemy.
However, if two cultivators who were thinking were too close to each other, the amount of Qi of Heaven and Earth in a small area would cause their true names to be revealed to the world, and they would fight on the spot. The one who lost would have his true name broken, and the one who lost would die.
Therefore, this test was very dangerous. Before the test, the candidates also signed the life and death agreement, indicating that they were willing to die.
Chai Rong sat opposite to Yan Li and said lightly, "Don't think that I don't know that your cultivation can't exceed the fifth level at most. You killed my father and brother, and I let you live one more day. It's kind of you."
Yan Li raised his eyebrows. The other party was right. His cultivation was the sixth level of a Martial Warrior, one level lower than Chai Rong.
"I'm really touched by your kindness," he said lazily, "In order to thank you, I'll send you to see them for free."
A trace of anger flashed across Chai Rong's face, and then he said with a cold smile, "I forgot to tell you that Li Xiangjun has been redeemed. I'm afraid she's already in Lin 'an."
Yan Li frowned and did not speak.
Seeing that the candidates were ready, County Magistrate Fang immediately said, "I announce that the visualization begins!"
As soon as he finished speaking, a shadow of a fire crow rose from Chai Rong's body.
Of course, it was just an illusion. Even so, County Magistrate Fang and other officers and soldiers still widened their eyes.
"Interweaving of Qi, the first appearance of the true name. It turns out to be a fifth level Minor Celestial," Ghost Hand's eyes flickered, "No wonder he was accepted as a disciple by the master."
The higher the level of the true name, the more unimaginable the height it could reach. Among the three categories of true names, Manifestation was the most common one. It was divided into seven levels. Don't underestimate the fifth level Minor Celestial, there would only be one in ten thousand cultivators. It was already rare to see a fifth level Minor Celestial in Qing Ya Market.
Therefore, everyone was stunned. County Magistrate Fang was even more overjoyed. If his county had a fifth level Minor Celestial, it could be said that it was a big addition to the performance evaluation. At that time, as long as the academy verified it, he would have a chance to be promoted!
At this time, the rest of the people also revealed their true names. They were all of the Manifestation category, but they didn't even have a weak Qi. They couldn't even be ranked in the seventh level Minor Celestial. They were just the most common Celestial.
Apart from Chai Rong, these people were already the most outstanding cultivators in Qing Ya Market, but they didn't even have a seventh level Minor Celestial. The rarity of the fifth level Minor Celestial could be seen from this.
As if they had colluded, they all seized the Primordial Qi around Yan Li at the same time. This was to make it impossible for him to reveal his true name.
Everyone's eyes were naturally focused on Yan Li. But he still closed his eyes and didn't move, as if he was trying hard to visualize.
"Although he is the son of that lord, his aptitude is really not good."
Disdain flashed in Ghost Hand's eyes. Although the true name was illusory, it was extremely proud. The more top-level the true name was, the more it couldn't be provoked. If Yan Li had a top-level true name, he would have already jumped out.
County Magistrate Fang regretfully shook his head. Obviously, he also thought that Yan Li would lose.
Feeling that the eyes of the people around him had become respectful, Chai Rong's depression in the past two days was swept away. He sneered and observed Yan Li who was still trying hard to visualize. He suddenly had a feeling that he had a clear understanding of the whole situation and everything was under his control.
At this time, Yan Li suddenly opened his eyes. Deep in his eyes flashed a very strong deathly gray.
Then, darkness fell.
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